The Rooster Crows – April 6, 2012

On April 6, 2012April 10, 2015 By rutlandramblingsIn Rooster CrowsLeave a comment

April 6, 2012: Spring weather continues to hold the prairie in its warm embrace, and even provided a gift of Rain on Thursday, March 29, depositing .4 of an inch in Rutland, and more to the east. Saturday was a beautiful day, with little wind and the temperature in the low 70’s. Mother Nature provided a change of air on Sunday and Monday, April 1 and 2, as high winds swept across the region, but Tuesday, April 3, resumed this gentle Spring’s aspect.

Greg Donaldson reports that the walleyes were biting along the Wild Rice River earlier this Spring, and he had been having some good luck until the water flow slowed down. Greg is close-mouthed about the hot spots on the River, though, only admitting that the best place to fish on the Wild Rice is somewhere between Straubville, in southwestern Sargent County, and south Fargo, where the Wild Rice flows into the Red River of the North. Gordy Phillips has been spending some time fishing at the spot where the Wild Rice enters Silver Lake, and reports that the fishing success was pretty good there back in the middle of March, but the bite has slowed as the water level in the River has dropped. For those who have the patience to keep at it, the local lakes: Tewaukon; Sprague; Silver; and, Buffalo; have been producing some nice fish, not a lot of them but enough to keep the fishermen coming. Chris Dennison reports some nice walleyes and northerns, but never in the same place twice, and usually only 1 or 2 a day.

Peder & Connie Gulleson and girls; Steve Wyum; and, Bill Anderson; were among those from Rutland who drove over to Cogswell on Friday afternoon to take in the retirement party for County Extension Agent Julie Hassebroeck. Julie had served as County Extension Agent in Sargent County since March of 1986, her 26 years of service being the longest that anyone has served the County in that capacity. As the County’s Extension Agent, Julie has been very proactive and helpful in arranging programs on economic development; transition of farms & businesses from one generation to the next; livestock and crop production; and, 4-H Youth activities. A lunch was served by the staff of the Sargent County Extension Service office, assisted by some of Julie’s friends. A number of co-workers and friends also spoke of Julie’s contributions to the job and to the community during the reception. Mrs. Hassebroeck now intends to devote her energies to assisting her husband, David, tend to horses, cattle and crops on the Hassebroeck farm in southwestern Sargent County. Continue reading “The Rooster Crows – April 6, 2012” →

Taking Flight

On March 28, 2012 By rutlandramblingsIn NatureLeave a comment

Travelling toward Forman the other day, there was a large white rock mound that I was not familiar with on the South side of the road. Just like last season, a flock of snow geese had settled in to a low area. As the car slowed and I retrieved my camera, the flock took flight in swirling white.

The snows have been flying around Rutland for several weeks and more flocks are arriving. Typically, they start coming in this area and then move further Northwest depending on the weather. Our weather has really been fluctuating so it appears they are enjoying their stay. A few gunshots can be heard as local and visiting hunters take aim at the birds.

Fact for the Day: Until recently the blue geese were considered another species but are now considered a dark form or morph of the snow geese.

Welcome to the Windy City

On March 26, 2012 By rutlandramblingsIn Life In General, NatureLeave a comment

We may not be in Chicago but Rutland sure can give that city some competition. The winds are blowing across the plains today and gusting heavily to who knows how fast (45 mph was predicted). I know it is extremely windy when the corn chaff blows off the field and piles up around the shelter belt; when the cats outdoor ‘kennel’ tucked by the house surrounded by a shrub, steps and a large storage container blows 100+ yards away and is in pieces in the shelter belt to the North and other parts headed South; when kids toys and trucks, once stacked neatly under the play set, are out to the road; and when the basketball hoop, with a base heavily loaded with sand and rocks, rolls down the driveway (one that takes two+ people to move from its place). Thankfully, this windy March day, is void of snow or no one would be venturing out.

“Owl: This is just a mild spring zephyr compared to the big wind of ’67. Or was it, uh, ’76? Oh, well, no matter. Oh, I remember the big blow well.” Winnie the Pooh and The Blustery Day. 1968.

Balance the Budget — But Not Like This

On March 25, 2012 By rutlandramblingsIn Life In GeneralLeave a comment

By Pam Gulleson

Somewhere along the line, our leaders lost their commitment to shared prosperity and financial responsibility and became more concerned with looking out for millionaires than standing up for the middle class.

Nowhere is this clearer than in the budget plan recently outlined by House Budget Committee Chairman Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis.

Like Ryan, I believe that reducing our debt needs to be a priority.

But unlike Ryan, I don’t believe we’ll get there by putting the burden on the backs of middle-class families, farmers, veterans and seniors.

The scheme that Ryan is proposing — and that Rep. Rick Berg, R-N.D., has supported — would end the Medicare guarantee.

That would shift substantial costs onto seniors, increase costs to the state and reduce access to quality care.

Ryan’s budget would give the wealthiest few Americans an average tax cut of at least $150,000 while cutting Medicare spending by an estimated $5,900 per senior citizen.

For North Dakota, a state with more than 100,000 residents on Medicare and a senior population expected to grow by 58 percent over the next 20 years, that’s unacceptable.

The plan also calls for $30 billion in cuts to farm and crop insurance and would turn the food stamp program into a block grant with a limit on funding.

Those provisions all but guarantee that there will be no farm bill this year.

For our state, which got about $1.5 billion in crop insurance indemnity payments in 2011, Ryan’s budget signals disaster for North Dakota agriculture.

Where would the farmers whose crops failed last year be without those payments?

Education — the basis of our nation’s upward mobility — would also be on the chopping block.

The plan would implement $115 billion in cuts to the Department of Education, and 9.6 million students would see their Pell Grants fall by more than $1,000 in 2014.

Currently, more than 30 percent of North Dakota college students get Pell Grants to help pay for their education.

At some North Dakota universities, that number is as high as 62 percent.

Without the funding, these students would not have access to the education they need to be able to compete in a global economy.

Furthermore, at a time when veterans who have selflessly served our country have just returned from Afghanistan and Iraq, the budget plan would cut $11 billion from veterans spending and make across-the-board spending freezes and cuts.

These veterans, many of whom rely on Veterans Affairs services, deserve better.

Not only is the Ryan budget unfair, it’s simply bad policy.

The middle class will be forced to shoulder an increasing burden, which will derail economic growth and development.

Cuts to agriculture, Medicare, education and veterans are not what our nation needs to build the future.

I’ve opposed this measure from the start, and I call on my opponents in the race for U.S. House to stand with me.

It’s time to stand up for what’s best for North Dakota.

—————-

A former North Dakota state representative, Pam Gulleson is the state Democratic-NPL-endorsed candidate for U.S. House and a Rutland resident.

It’s A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

On March 24, 2012May 11, 2021 By rutlandramblingsIn Life In General, NatureLeave a comment

March 24, 2014

The birds are chirping and nesting. The day lily greenery is well through the black dirt. The cats have ticks. It’s summertime in Rutland. Oh, wait, this is March? This was the winter that the Farmer’s Almanac predicted above average snowfall and warmer-than-usual temperature in the Midwest. Well, we’ve gotten the warmer temperatures. Last year, we still had several inches of snow on the ground and a blizzard was looming. We have a break from the waters rising which are lower this year than they have been in a decade and this is getting the farmers breaking ground and starting planting. I’m itching to get the garden planted but will keep the plants indoors for a while. In the meantime, I am planning to bask in the sun. Enjoy our early spring. Who knows how we will all feel when July comes around? What are your predictions for the coming summer?

Fishy Fishy

On March 5, 2012March 7, 2012 By rutlandramblingsIn Events, Rutland Sportman ClubLeave a comment

Last Friday I attended my first Rutland Sportman Club Fish Fry. This was the 26th fish fry for the Club, held annually the first Friday in March. The Club members spent three days at the Hall setting up and preparing the feast. They sold nearly all 550 tickets for the event so the town was a busy place that Friday. I enjoyed the meal which consisted of deep fried or pan fried Northern (OK, I took both), baked potato, coleslaw and beverages. It was an all-you-can-eat event. Club members came around with fish for seconds and, while a few people grabbed more, one trip through the line was about all I could handle. Besides, I needed to save room for that after-dinner drink at The Lariat. Lots of folks flowed over to the Lariat for a bit more socializing and imbibing throughout the evening.

The next big feed in Rutland will be the annual Palm Sunday Dinner hosted by Nordland Lutheran Church (but don’t forget about the play on March 16th!).