It’s time to “run along” on the two new commercial treadmills installed in the Fitness Center. They are getting a lot of use by the Center members, especially by the dedicated 7 a.m. Saturday group that meets. The space has been neatly reorganized to accommodate the machines. The addition of flat screen televisions and the DVD players provide atmosphere for those like me who find time to exercise and no one else is around. It helps to have a beat to jog. I love the new treadmills. Now the big challenge is to raise about $3300 to cover the cost of the machines. We’ve got some funding requests out to area businesses and are seeking grant resources as well to fund those machines and other planned improvements.
The Rooster Crows – April 11, 2008
By Bill Anderson
Old Man Winter’s role in the drama of 2008 is supposed to be over, but the doddering old actor can’t seem to find his way off the stage and keeps coming back for curtain calls long after the audience has tired of his cold and dreary performance. Despite the fact that Sargent County snowbird Harlan Klefstad has returned from Arizona, the fact that farmers have tractors fueled and planters ready, the fact that Canada geese are starting to nest, the fact that the snow geese have moved on to the North and the fact that fat robins are scratching around for their next meal in local yards, Winter made another appearance here last weekend, dropping another 4 to 6 inches of wet, heavy snow on this area on Sunday, April 6, with enough wind to make the storm as close to a blizzard as we have seen this year. Snow covered roads and slippery conditions slowed traffic and delayed the start of classes at local schools by 2 hours on Monday morning. Sunny days and temperatures that climbed into the mid-40’s on Monday and up to 53 on Tuesday cleared away most of the snow by Tuesday afternoon. Mark Wyum reports that Sunday night’s high winds blew many fields clear, depositing the snow in draws and coulees that will make good tractor traps in another week or so, when Spring planting commences.
Continue reading “The Rooster Crows – April 11, 2008”Our Children’s Well-Being
A 2008 Issue Guide has been prepared for each of North Dakota’s 47 Legislative Districts, as well as the state, in preparation for the 2008 election year. The two-page Issue Guides present data on children’s well-being in North Dakota in the areas of population, family structure, poverty, and parental employment. Check out the report at Kids Count.
Rutland Delegates at State Convention
Appearances from Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama were the highlight of the Democratic State Convention held in Grand Forks April 4-6. Steve and Sheila Wyum of Rutland were delegates to the convention and had seats in the second row directly in front of the candidates for their speeches. Steve was fortunate to get to shake hands with both of them as they were working the crowd after their speeches. Obama’s opening line was “Uffda, what a crowd.” (Maybe he’s Norwegian?) As they waited for Hillary to arrive, supporters in the arena started doing the wave which kept up for 15 minutes. An awed and excited little boy, standing by Steve as they were waiting for Hillary to get to them in the line, asked the secret service man if he got to ride in the plane with Senator Clinton and if the plane was nice. Surprisingly, he kindly answered yes to both questions. All in all it was an historic and exciting time for our state. And it is an event that Steve and Sheila will never forget.
The Rooster Crows – April 4, 2008
By Bill Anderson
March, the month that was put on the calendar to let people who don’t drink know what a hangover feels like – too depressing to live, too tough to die – departed on Monday, throwing a snowstorm and several inches of wet, sloppy snow our direction as it slammed the door on its way out. April Fool’s Day, Tuesday, April 1, fooled us by pretending it was still March.
The Spring conservation snow goose hunting season has been open since mid-February, but there were no geese here until the last 10 days of March. For the past 2 weeks, millions of the birds have been moving through this area, feeding in last year’s corn and soybean fields and providing some great hunting for those hardy enough to go afield and smart enough to outfox them. The purpose of the conservation season is to reduce the numbers of snow and blue geese to a level that can be sustained by their Summer range in northern Canada, so the usual rules that govern waterfowl hunting during the regular Fall season don’t apply. Hunters may remove the plugs from the magazines on their automatic and pump action shotguns, making 5 shots available before reloading is required, and there is no limit, other than their shooting ability and carrying capacity, to the number of snow and blue geese they are allowed to harvest. They must, however, have a valid North Dakota hunting license to avoid running afoul of the law. It’s not a sure thing, either, as the geese seem to fail to appreciate that all of this shooting is for their own good and continue to outsmart the hunters on many occasions, even if they are birdbrains. Hunters from Minnesota, Iowa and Montana, as well as North Dakota, have landed in Rutland, along with the geese.
Continue reading “The Rooster Crows – April 4, 2008”Zoning Changes
Members of the Zoning Committee, City Council and Renaissance Zone Committee attended the public hearing on the Rutland Comprehensive Plan and proposed Zoning Code changes. We met for about one hour to review the proposed changes to the two documents and agreed upon a final version of each that will be presented to the Rutland City Council on Monday, April 7, for final approval. Diane Smith and I will attend the Council meeting, which begins at 5:00 p.m., to present the documents to the Council and to address any questions that may arise at the meeting. Once the Council approves the document, Renaissance Zone Committee members will work on the State application to designate Rutland a Renaissance Zone.
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