The Rooster Crows – February 8, 2019

On February 8, 2019February 8, 2019 By rutlandramblingsIn Rooster CrowsLeave a comment

By Bill Anderson

Mother Nature gave Rutland and vicinity a 2 day reprieve from the siege of Arctic weather on Friday and Saturday, February 1 & 2, just enough time for the Ground Hog and about 120 pinochle players to make their annual appearance in the little city that can. The Ground Hog was pretty quiet. The pinochle players, though…well, they’re another story. The following report was received from Sonja (Anderson) Christensen, one of the organizers of the 24^th Annual Rudy Anderson Memorial Pinochle Tournament: “As the sun rose at 7:48 a.m. on February 2 in Rutland ND, Mr. Groundhog, aka Rutland Roscoe, was busy checking out the weather conditions. Seeing his shadow, he jumped right back into his hole after he saw all 120 pinochle players arriving in town. Mother Nature knew how important the first Saturday of February is to all of those eager pinochle players. Raising the temperature from minus 36 degrees on Tuesday and Wednesday, She cranked the thermostat up into the plus 20’s for pilgrims to make their way to the 24^th Annual Rudy Anderson Memorial Pinochle Tourney on Saturday. Jason Hayen formerly of Cogswell, now living in Oklahoma, traveled to Rutland just for the weekend to play his favorite card game with his mother Kathy. Judie Seavert flew in from Port Aransas TX to partner up with her niece, Jessica Hayen of Fargo, for the tourney. Two newcomers were Charlie Makovsky and his daughter Madison from Grand Forks. Madison was recognized as the youngest player, saying, “This was so much fun. I will be back next year.” When asked how they knew about the day of pinochle, Charlie said he read it on the Rutland website. Due to Madison’s participation, players ranged in age from 20 years to 97 years, the latter honor going to Heb Diederick of Wahpeton, an All-Star baseball player back in the 1940’s & 50’s who is a contemporary of the late Leif Sundlie, Harvey Shasky and the other great players of Rutland Rooster fame. Sadly missed was Jack Brummond of Havana, The Sage Of Weber Township, who passed away shortly before the tourney, on January 29. Jack had played in the first 20 tournaments and must have decided he couldn’t stand to miss any more pinochle, so he wanted to be there in spirit to assist his former partner, Roger McLaen. Playing in all 24 tournaments were Roger McLaen, Norman Preble, and Stella Bell. Their devotion to hand after hand of pinochle is to be admired, as they teach others the love for the game. Roger and Benita Ziegler of Forman took first place with 1,818 points. Benita said, “It only took 23 years but we finally made it!” Congratulations to the persistent couple. Like the little train who kept saying, “I think I can, I think I can,” they made it to the top. Former Rutland residents who returned for the big day were Harvey Preble, Joel Hoistad, George Resler, Judie Seavert, and Norman Preble. Despite Harvey’s regular partner, Ed Christensen, not being able to make it to Rutland for the day, he quickly found a partner from Ellendale, Darlene Schock, to put up with his sense of humor and infectious attitude, reminding many of his days back in Rutland High.

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Family Fun Night! — Postponed to March 10 —

On February 6, 2019March 13, 2019 By rutlandramblingsIn Events, Rutland Community ClubLeave a comment

The Rooster Crows – February 1, 2019

On February 1, 2019 By rutlandramblingsIn Life In GeneralLeave a comment

by Bill Anderson

Mother Nature’s vocabulary of four letter words seems to be limited to3 this past week: cold; snow; and, wind. The coldest weather of the week, the month, the year and the Winter arrived on Tuesday & Wednesday, January 29 & 30, with the daily lows bumping off the -35 mark and the daily highs hovering around -10. According to the weather experts, this week’s weather is the coldest since this time of the year back in 2004, so, if you thought that you were experiencing déjà vu, you were right. The weather system that moved through ahead of the cold brought about 1½” of new snow on Saturday night, and another 4 or 5 inches on Sunday. The snow was hard to measure, because the wind brought it in sideways, piling it up at intersections, around buildings and in the trees. Tuesday’s winds of 20 to 30 mph, combined with the sub-zero air temperatures, produced a “wind-chill” index of 55 to 60 below, according to the weather gurus. Ground Hog’s Day is coming up on Saturday, though, and the TV Weathermen are predicting a high in the upper +20’s to low +30’s, just so Rutland Roscoe, the local ground hog, can wander out to see his shadow. Well, Saturday, February 2, is also the date for the 24^th Annual Rudy Anderson Memorial Pinochle Tournament in Rutland, so it just might be the aroma of scalloped potatoes with ham that lures him out. Another cool down for the first week in February is predicted, but, with a little bit of luck, the worst cold may be behind us. To paraphrase Winston Churchill, “This is not the end of the winter. It is not even the beginning of the end of the winter; but it may be the end of the beginning of the winter.” That Winston sure had a way with words, didn’t he?

FYI. Paul Anderson’s electronic digital thermometer recorded a low of 36 degrees below zero on the morning of Wednesday, January 30, in his backyard at 309 Gay Street in Rutland, and Jesse Brakke’s electronic digital thermometer recorded a low of 37 below in his Ransom Township farmyard between Rutland and Cayuga that same morning. Mike Anderson stated that he was sure glad that he lives a mile north of Jesse, because his thermometer only got down to 31 below before it froze up.

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T-Shirt Design Contest

On January 25, 2019April 5, 2019 By rutlandramblingsIn Life In GeneralLeave a comment

Calling all artists – and want-to-be – artists and graphic designers. The Rutland Community Club is accepting design entries for the 2019 Uffda Day T-shirts.

Design should be simple and include the words “Uffda Day 2019“
Design should be unique with a Scandinavian influence
Design should depict the event’s purpose to celebrate our Scandinavian heritage
Applicants may submit more than one entry.
The winner will receive $50.00 and will have their name and design printed in the Sargent County Teller on April 19, 2019.
The winner will be announced on the Rutland City website and Facebook page.

T-shirts will be printed with a goal of having them available for sale starting Memorial Day 2019.

Please submit entries by March 31, 2019 one of the following ways:

in person to Rutland City Hall, 115 Gay Street
by mail to Rutland City Hall, PO Box 181, Rutland, ND 58067-0181
or, by email to rutlandnd@drtel.net

The City and Community Club are anticipating your wonderful designs!

Uffda Day 2008 T design
2013 T-shirt design
Winning 2018 T-shirt design

The Rooster Crows – January 25, 2019

On January 25, 2019January 24, 2019 By rutlandramblingsIn Life In GeneralLeave a comment

By Bill Anderson

One week to go until Ground Hog’s Day, and a chance to break Winter’s tyrannical grasp on a people who will be neither bowed nor cowed, although they may, occasionally, have to be towed. We are now at that stage of the Winter in which it has ceased to be interesting or entertaining, and has become a brutal burden, to be endured, outlasted and overcome. Adversity does create opportunity, though, and men of ambition, such as Dave Young, Jim Brown and Larry Christensen, have shown that even winter’s bleak cloud brings with it the silver lining of polished and shiny snow shovels. Bitter cold and the sharp sting of snow driven by fierce winds cannot stay these stalwart yeomen from the efficient completion of their appointed snow removal duties.

On Tuesday, January 22, Sonja Christensen, one of the co-chairpersons of the 24^th Annual Rudy Anderson Memorial Pinochle Tournament, reported that 57 teams of pinochle enthusiasts had preregistered to play their favorite game of skill on Saturday, February 2, in the Rutland Town Hall, and that there is still room for a few more teams. The tournament is sponsored by the Rutland Community Club, which will also serve morning and afternoon lunches, as well as a Noon dinner, to tournament participants and to the public. For more information about registering to compete in the pinochle tournament, give Sonja a call at 701-899-1463.

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The Rooster Crows – January 18, 2019

On January 18, 2019January 18, 2019 By rutlandramblingsIn Rooster CrowsLeave a comment

by Bill Anderson

When it’s Winter in Dakota, and we’re frozen, cold and blue; When we’re stoking up the furnace and opening up the flue; When it’s Winter on the prairie, and we’re battling ice & snow; We’ll be glad we’re warm and cozy, ‘cause it’s only 15 below.

Tim & Jodi Bogenreif of Moorhead MN were Rutland visitors on the afternoon of Saturday, January 5, calling on 2 of Jodi’s cousins, Paul Anderson and Bill Anderson of this community. Jodi is a granddaughter of the late Rudy & Edna Anderson of Rutland, and one of the daughters of Marilyn Anderson, formerly of Wahpeton and now of Moorhead, and the late Arden C. Anderson, a member of RHS Class of ‘60. The Bogen reifs were accompanied by Jodi’s Mom, Marilyn, by their son, Darien Bogenreif, now a Freshman at The University of North Dakota in Grand Forks, and by a friend of Darien’s, Miss Gretchen Espedal of Ada MN. During their visit in Rutland, the Bogenreifs accompanied Bill Anderson on a tour of The Old Parsonage at 217 First Street, where they checked out the construction work now in progress and joined the Anderson brothers for an early supper at The Lariat Bar where the Special Of The Day was a steak & shrimp “Turf & Surf” combo.

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