Concrete

        While I was volunteering at Noble Academy, the Hmong Charter School, I taught my students the difference between cement and concrete, cement is mixed with water and gravel to make concrete. When Joanne's grave marker was first placed it was mounted on a 'concrete' foundation. Last fall the concrete base was replaced with granite. Why? Concrete lasts 100 years or so, granite last centuries. 

      There was a cost savings to this process if I would dispose of the concrete foundation. With my loader I moved it to behind the garage. Since the rain Friday fieldwork is at a standstill. Consequently, the grain elevator staff are also more relaxed because it is too wet for them to spread fertilizer. Aha, I thought, the timing's right to ask a favor. "May I borrow a man with a forklift to move some concrete?"

      So, the concrete foundation that once supported Joanne's grave marker now lies out the back door of The Little House. It was about a twenty minute job with the right equipment. There it may rest in peace.

      More rain news:  The lobby of the elevator is a crossroads of farmer traffic. The 3.5" of rain reported was from west of  town. East of town the total was between 2 & 2.5". Some of my land received the lesser amount and other of my land the greater. The town of Arlington, about 12 NW of The Little House, received 4.5"  Today there was another shower so fieldwork is further delayed.

Takk for alt,

Al

                                   Placement

                           The concrete slab.

Puddles Abound!

       It's been months since there has been so much standing water here. The explanation is simple; approximately 3.5" of rain since Friday. The Little House has a sump pump in the basement. It hasn't been needed for years. Will it operate if needed? Who knows. This last rainfall hasn't been sufficient to test it. Yesterday's blog post reported a meteorologist who predicts a wetter summer. Is this recent rainfall a precursor to his prediction.  Ask me in September.

    With the meteorologists prediction was included his assertion that if a wetter summer is in store it will include more storms.  Yes, the good often comes with the bad. Stay tuned.  

Takk for alt,

Al

Little House

      Kaia and I arrived back in The Little House about supper time. It rained for about two thirds of the trip. Many planted fields had water standing in the rows so apparently a good rainfall. The little pond across the street has noticeably more water. A meteorologist told Lars that he expects that summer will be on the wet side. Given the dry conditions the past few year that would be welcome.  

Takk for alt,

Al

Needle Arts

       Joanne's talents did not run so much to crafts. Though she did know how to sew. When the children were small she sewed many of their clothes. There's also a picture of me in a leisure suit, remember them?, that she made. As her career took off her sewing stopped and other needle work didn't occupy her. Consequently, I was never obliged to accompany her in forays to craft shops.

     Today I voluntarily entered Three Kittens Needle Arts in Mendota Heights. WOW! That's quite a store. One half is knitting supplies and focus the other half is needlepoint. My new hobby is knitting! If you believe that I could sell you some swampland in Florida. Nope, but I have two granddaughters who knit and crochet. The oldest of whom just had a birthday. My gift to her was "a mystery trip", i.e., a shopping spree, which included her sister, at Three Kittens. It seemed to be well received.  

Takk for alt,

Al

Cautionary tale!

      A recent brief news article reported on the death of a woman in an OFH. A man with dementia pushed her, she fell striking her head and subsequently died as a result of the fall. Her death has been ruled a homicide. Perhaps it's not likely the one who pushed will be charged.

    Many of my fellow inmates of the OFH have compromised mobility. Walkers, canes and wheelchairs abound. It's been noted that I'm not always the worlds most patient person. That news item is a cautionary tale for me in my impatience. As I wait for a procession of persons using walkers where I'm attempting to walk, my mantra is "Be patient Al, someday you'll need to use a walker."

   Joanne embraced her walker in her last years. Living downtown with skyway access she's walk to Target, using her walker, which was over a mile away. Coffee shops were plentiful and she was known to stop for a cup. I've kept her walker for the day when I need one.

Takk for alt,

Al

                            Kaia looks out the OFH balcony door, which she often does.

Ya then

 

Today's date 4/25/24...do it backwards! :)

      Quarantined in The Little House in 2020 my hair grew so long that I bought a clipper and buzzed it off. Before today's visit to the barber I was in desperate need of a haircut. Using those clippers I'd managed to trim my beard to a reasonable length. It was too daunting to tackle my hair knowing it would end up a chop job. Back in The Cities for a few days today I got to my long time barber.

     As I settled into the barber chair the barber's dog, a two pound pug, crawled into my lap, promptly fell asleep and snored quietly. There she lay, covered by the drop cloth, until my hair was cut and beard trimmed. Even after the drop cloth was removed she remained on my until the barber pretended to head for the door.

   "Yes, petting a dog can release endorphins in both people and dogs. Endorphins are neurochemicals associated with positive feelings and bonding. Other neurochemicals that are released during enjoyable interactions with dogs and people include oxytocin and dopamine." Google   

    The barber makes no extra charge for this amenity. 

Takk for alt,

Al

                                       Before and after pictures from 2020.

OFH

      Kaia and I motored to the OFH this morning. We're here for a birthday party and will stay a few days. Time to catch up with family, friends and mail. The Easter Card waiting for me was nice, even if delayed by my absence. 

   Many corn planters were busy in the fields, all of the planters larger that mine.(See mine below.) It's ideal planting conditions and future precipitation is hoped. Nice to have a comfortable apartment to occupy while city-ing. 

Takk for alt,

Al

                    The less modern corn planter.

How Exciting Is That?

       Perhaps you've all experienced the joy? of  waiting for service technicians. It seems they don't always arrive in a timely manner. Last week the message was that a service person would arrive between 8:00 and 12:00 Tuesday (today). He arrived at 10:30 and finished the job at noon. There was even a GPS feature that allowed me to track his progress as he drove from Sioux Falls.

     The windshield on the truck was in bad shape. Pervious operators had run the windshield wipers without blades. The result was half-moon scratches on both sides of the window. The glass was also badly pitted from road debris. It was dirty, too, 😊but insurance wouldn't replace it for that.  Oh, the view is so much better now!

    Was I impatient waiting for service?  Not a bit. It was a good time to launder the bed linen. Watching others work is one of my finely honed skills. However, Kaia was quite impatient. She was missing her typical morning foray into the fields. Pacing back and forth she made it clear that she wanted to run. Eventually she had her opportunity.

Takk for alt,

Al

First Operation Complete

         The corn and sorghum planted last spring stood through the winter providing food for wildlife; primarily deer and pheasants. In preparation for tillage, plowing and discing, I chop the stalks with a mechanical stalk chopper. Due to operator error the power shaft of the chopper was bent. It's a very old machine consequently repair parts are not available. A welding shop in Volga was able to true up the power shaft making the chopper functional. Today was warm enough to operate an open station tractor, i.e., one without a cab. Now all three fields are ready for plowing.

     Entering the food plot with sorghum seven hen pheasants flew out. As mentioned in a previous blog pheasants prefer sorghum to corn. That field will be replanted to sorghum and brood mix. That will provide food for chicks and winter feed for pheasants. 

Takk for alt,

Al

Local History

       At the weekly Wednesday meals at the bank, to which I have a perpetual invitation, I'm by far the oldest. Not only are most of the others younger their tenure in Sinai is relatively brief.  That confers on me the role of historian. The owner of the bank, who resides one town over (Arlington), occasionally joins us for the meal. He is particularly interested in local history so often asks questions about various aspects of that  history.  Because I'm 'older than dirt'...it should be 'older than soil'...I do  know much of the lore. One farmer, perhaps 60?. who grew up locally is often at dinner (noon meal). His wife is an employee of the bank and, while his memory does not reach back as far as mine, he is also a source of information.  

     Given that my grandparents settled in the community in 1885, and there have been family members in residence ever since, I do carry a significant amount of history.  No, I'm not going to write a book!

Takk for alt,

Al

Ya then...

     This is one of those days without an original thought! Did I mention that  Dekalb Seed Corn is owned by Bayer? 

    All's well, just waiting for warmer weather!

Takk for alt,

Al

Seed Corn

       Two 56lb bags of seed corn each hold 80,000 kernels, counting took me awhile. 😉 Germination was tested November 2021. This confirms my suspicion that the seeds are surplus because the seeds are past their prime. Precision planters determine the optimum seeds to plant per acre. The four row John Deere planter, from the 60s, which I use is not so precise.  Labels on the bags indicate that they are for wildlife planting only. To receive the bags I had to sign a statement that they'd be used for wildlife and not commercial use. The label would normally indicate the dates to maturity, e.g., 101 days. These tags didn't offer that. It's only a matter of curiosity for me becasue the corn isn't harvested but left for the pheasants and deer. 

     Both I, and the soil, are waiting for warmer weather before planting. "Corn is a warm-season crop that germinates and emerges best when soil temperatures are between 85–90°F. However, many corn varieties will sprout at temperatures in the 50s. For best germination, the soil should be 60–65°F at a depth of 2–4 inches."  Google

Takk for alt,

Al

Dekalb Seed Corn!

        Now that bring back memories, my dad planted Dekalb Seed Corn. 1957 was the last year he planted. I planted in 1968 because he'd had a heart attack. Every year the State gets surplus seed corn from commercial seed corn companies. Likely it's leftover inventory. Then they give it to those of us who plant wildlife food plots. This year it is Dekalb. Certainly the current Dekalb Company is mixture of companies that have merged or been bought out. I didn't look at the labeling, don't look a gift horse in the mouth, to see maturity date or when the germination was tested.

     Along with the bags of corn came bags of sorghum, pheasants like sorghum even better than corn, and brood mix. "The brood mix is an annual mixture of cover crop species designed to flower from spring through fall and then produce seed for wildlife forage during the winter months. By flowering, the brood mix provides pollinator habitat that traditional corn/sorghum food plots lack. Pollinating insects, such as bees, leaf hoppers, butterflies, moths and ants thrive in areas with flowering, broadleaf plants.  Insects comprise nearly 100 percent of a pheasant chick’s diet, making habitats for pheasant chicks to forage a key component of pheasant production."  SD Game Fish and Parks

     Purchased commercially these bags would have cost hundreds. They are given to encourage wildlife conservation. Likely the corn was commercial surplus given to the state by the seed corn company.  "Landowners  receive free brood plot mix, corn or sorghum seed to plant, plus receive a payment to help offset planting costs." GFP

Takk for alt,

Al

Exceptionally Good Book!

       Hmong American writer, Kao Kalia Yang led, off with The Late Homecomer, which was the story of her family and much about her grandmother. Then she wrote The Song Poet, a biography of her father. Now, a mother herself, she has written a biography of her mother, Where Rivers Part: A Story Of MY Mother's Life. It's exceptionally good!

       "Born in 1961 in Laos, Tswb has a childhood marked by the violence of America's Secret War and the CIA recruitment of the Hmong and other ethnic minorities into the lost cause. By the time Tswb is a teenager, the US has vacated Laos, and  the country has erupted into genocidal attacks on the Hmong people, who are considered traitors. Fearing for their lives, Tswb and her family leave behind everything and flee into the jungle."  Quoted from the book's dusk jacket.

       Yang has written the book in her mother's voice and it is filled with incisive observations about humans and their interactions.  Here's an example as Tswb remembers her father. "Father had raised himself and five younger brothers into manhood. On this journey he had learned, among other thing, to be careful in his speech, slow in his feelings, and steady in the places where others might shake." P. 15. 

      In her life of flight in the jungle Tswb marries as a teenager, leaving her clan for her husbands. She gives birth to her first child, a daughter. After years on the run the clan escapes across the Mekong River to Thailand. After spending a decade in a Thai refugee camp, where their second daughter who is the author of the biography is born, they move to St. Paul, MN.

      Tswb is the mother of 8 children, whose births were interspersed with 7 miscarriages. Her life is a story of tragic adventure. However, as interesting as that is, what make it profound is her reflections on motherhood. It was a significant educational experience about motherhood for me. It includes her thoughts about her mother, mother-in-law and care for her own children. She deserves her currently peaceful life in a house on a hill. The entire story is one of endured racism.

     Her children have excelled; graduating from Carleton, Stanford, Columbia and several with advanced degrees. The profundity of her reflections indicate her brilliance. 

     READ IT! READ IT! READ IT!

Takk for alt,

Al

PS Factoid: The US dropped more ordnance on Laos, a country about the size of Minnesota, in 7 years of secret bombing than was dropped on Germany in WWII. 

"When farmer's eyes are smiling..."

      "When farmer's eyes are smiling...." sung to the tune of "Irish Eyes."  Twice, separated by hours, there was thunder during the night. Morning light revealed rain puddles and its rained off an on during the day today. This intermittent rain is ideal allowing the much needed moisture to soak into the soil. The weather app says 1" in the past 24 hours though that's monitored one town away. At this afternoon composing it is raining again. Wonderful rain preceding planting season. Lawns turned green overnight.

     Last year on this day The Little House was snowed in from an April blizzard. Snow also brings moisture but rain does not need to be shoveled. 😄 No complaints about a rainy day!

Takk for alt,

Al

Memory from the Marines

         After finishing boot camp it was off to Camp Pendleton, CA. Arriving there early January 1960, it was to be my home until we shipped to Okinawa, Japan, June 1961. Assigned to the office of a rifle company my title was company clerk. The office was in a quonset hut. In this building was the company commander, the executive officer, first sergeant, a staff sergeant and two clerks (Ed and I). 

       The first Sergeant was Louis Ricatto, our bosses boss who had a desk near us. He began his military career in the Army and early on switched to the Marines. His service time stretched over 30 years. When he turned 48 Ed and I thought he was really old. Actually that was old for active duty but he was physically in great shape. Memories of him are positive for, while he was clearly in charge, he was also kind and approachable. 

     Need it be said that age 48 doesn't seem old from my current perspective? 😀

Takk for alt,

Al

            Standing in formation, Okinawa 1961.

Marine Memories

          I think it was in Japan when a several hour march in the rain ended with sleep in a (wet) pup tent. Perhaps that's why I don't like to be wet?

Takk for alt.

Al

     Reposted to show the Marine Corps wasn't all 'spit and polish'.

Swallows return

        There were tree swallows by two nesting boxes today. Do they return on the same day each year like the Swallows of San Juan Capistrano?  Perhaps their return recorded this year might be a marker. Can I remember to note and compare the date next year?  The bluebird houses host tree swallows. That's not a problem because swallows also need homes. It's a pleasure to see them adopting the nesting boxes. Almost all were occupied last year. Three boxes were added this year ten miles from the others. It will be interesting to see if they also are used.

     Spring must be here as heralded by the frog chorus and migrant birds return.

Takk for alt,

Al

Joanne Elizabeth (Hanson) Negstad, 4/1/1936-4/12/2018

       Six years have passed since that morning, April 12, 2018, when at 6:00 am I asked Joanne "What's special about April 12? " She shrugged her shoulders and three and a half hours later she died. She is greatly missed!

       As time passes there are fewer triggers of intense grief. Life alone has become the new normal. The death recently of Jenine, her college roommate, is a grief trigger. There is no one now to recount Joanne's college experiences with me. Much of the pain of grief is the loss of shared memories. While I can recall many of her college stories there is no one who was these with whom I can remember. After six years there are fewer persons who knew her and that makes me sad.

     From 1963 until 2018 we shared life. The memory bank is full of blessed memories. It was a blessing to share life with her and I'm deeply grateful. Though I live in the land of grief, I'm also grateful for the gifts that have come to me after her death.  I was blesses and I am blessed.

Takk for alt,

Al

          Joanne's last meal at the table on her birthday, April 1, 2018, which was also Easter Sunday.

Spring Song

      The small pond across the street from The Little House is very low.  Perhaps a foot, or at the most, two feet  of water. During the dry 30' streets bisected the pond. Now the remains of that street be is above water It was dry last fall causing wonder about the frogs that call it home. 

    Yesterday the frogs awakened singing their spring song in unison. One day it's all quiet and the next there are multiple voices singing their song. It's interesting how they all begin together. What's the trigger that tells them it's time to raise their voices.

   Badger(s) are active on my land. Nocturnally they dig for gophers. In one location they eliminated an entire colony of pocket gophers. It's good to be rid of the gophers but the badgers digging leaves a mess of  holes and mounds. With long front claws and powerful legs they can quickly dig themselves out of sight.

   There aren't any badger dens on my property. Bordering on the east is 300 acres of state wildlife land. Perhaps the dens are on the state land. While they are messy I'm glad to see the signs that they are present. Only a few times over the years have I seen them in daylight. 

Takk for alt,

al

                           A cedar seedling in the wrong place.

                              Badgers are in the weasel family.                               

Almost forgot...

      Good conversations and a good book, so I almost forgot to post. Perhaps I'll do something dramatic tomorrow, and then again I may not. 😀

Takk for alt,

Al

Not much to report

      On this day in 1969, a ten pound 24"  boy was born in the Renville/Bottineau Memorial Hospital, Mohall, ND.  There was several feet of snow there that winter and when the boy's mother entered the hospital on April 9, there had been no thaw. Then the temperature zoomed into the 70s. By the time mother and son left the hospital five days later most of the county bridges had been washed away and Minot was flooded.

     Happy Birthday!

Takk for alt,

Al

     A brightly colored nesting box awaiting migrant birds...tree swallows or bluebirds?

Percolated

      This morning I called the author of the article referenced is yesterday's blog. In the course of the conversation he said he was bringing a university student out to look at the wetland restorations today. We decided to meet and walked together to look at the dams. The water Luke had seen in January was gone, percolated away into the dry soil. It will take either a huge rain or significant snowmelt to fill them. There they will remain at the ready waiting for wetter days. 

Takk for alt,

Al

           There was some water in one restored wetland last year.

Famous?

      It wasn't The New Yorker or The Atlantic Monthly but I did react with surprise when I got to page 5, and saw this headline "FRUIT'S OF ALLAN'S LABOR". It's in the Spring edition of the South Dakota Conservation Digest, published by Game, Fish and Parks. The article begins "Allan Negstad voluntarily restored four wetland basins in Brookings County. The wetlands remained dry all year due to the lack of precipitation....the runoff did not occur in the spring like a typical year, it occurred in late January. They (didn't totally fill)  but they did fill enough to show the fruits of Allan's labor and investment....Wetlands are being drained across the state and country faster than they are being restored. Thankfully these restored wetlands will have a great impact on the wildlife in the surrounding landscape..." Luke Zilverberg, Statewide Grassland Ecologist,  P. 5.

    Well that's interesting and the January runoff is news to me. It hadn't occurred to me to check them since I returned to S.D. last week. Yes, tomorrow I will!

Takk for alt,

Al

Wetland restoration in progress, and the reverence to my "labor" isn't quite accurate. I just got the process moving but others did the work. 

Book Report

       The book was passed to me as a good story and it was. It's a novel about Wyoming homesteaders in the 1870s. There are two neighboring farmers twenty miles from town. The story is made of the interactions of these neighboring families. There is a bit of  the author's family history in the book. I'd identify a possible theme for it; Proverbs 16:1.  You both recognize that verse as "A soft answer turns aside anger" correct?

      Much (most?) of the story gets its tension from a grudge that is held and nursed. One For Blackbird, One For The Crow, Olivia Hawker; excels with the descriptions and portrayals of nature. Hawker has a keen eye for the natural world. She can also construct an engaging story that holds one's interest through 479 pages. 

     Beulah, the daughter of one family, who is on the cusp of womanhood, has an uncanny ability to live Proverbs 16:1. She does that even in the face of its increasing the anger of the holder of the grudge. There is a lot to like about this book and Hawker's ability to tell a compelling story. You'll likely be glad if you read it, as I was.

Takk for alt,

Al

Shocked

        It's an experience I hope is not repeated. Upon opening Facebook yesterday one of the first posts I   read was the announcement of a friend's death. There had been no warning. With the exception of 2020 every year since my retirement in 2007,  we, or I, have made a trip to east central Iowa to visit friends. Upon my retirement I said to Joanne that these friends had often travelled to MN for our events so now we should visit them. As long as Joanne lived we did, and after Joanne died I did the trip solo.

    While Joanne was makin the trip we'd spend a night in Decorah with her friend and college roommate. After Joanne died I meet this friend for lunch, usually on the return trip. Jenine Jordahl's husband Paul, deceased, was also a college classmate.

    Opening Facebook the first post I saw was from First Lutheran Church, Decorah, announcing Jenine's death Wednesday at St. Mary's Hospital, Rochester.  So far that's all I know. None of the circumstances have been communicated.

    This is a double measure of grief. Jenine was not only Joanne's friend but mine as well. It is a significant personal loss and also connects with Joanne's death. As time passes, now only a few days short of six years since she died, the deaths of persons who knew her leaves a void. Joanne and Jenine had so many memories of college life, e.g., always being the first two in the cafeteria in the morning. There is now one less person who remembers Joanne, one whom knew her years longer than I. Void is good description of how it feels, lonely. Much of grief relates to the loss of shared history, Jenine carried those college memories of Joanne.

    Jenine was a good and faithful servant, may God bless her memory.

Takk for alt,

Al

  This picture with Jenine was taken when I stopped to have lunch with her in Decorah.

Rocks and cedars...

       While Kaia scampers far and wide, while I look for rocks and cedars. There is no shortage of either. This activity seems more profitable than paying for a gym membership.  Yes, it is good to be on the prairie again. The snow drift in the front yard disappeared today but there are still drifts to be seen. They represent welcome moisture. Today a farmer predicted that field work would begin in two weeks. He has planted an oats field, for oats the earlier the better.

      Life is good, I am content and grateful.

Takk for alt,

al

                        The grass will soon be green like this.   

Promise kept...

      In a conversation via phone I told Tom that my water heater wasn't working right. He said he'd stop by about 7pm...and he did.  The diagnosis revealed a problem that possibly could be fixed. However, the heater was 21 years old?  It was quickly agreed to replace it. Tom said "I'll be here at 8:00 am with a new water heater if that's not too early."  Promise kept and in an hour the old one was out and the new in!  

    He let me pay for the heater but wanted nothing for labor and delivery, though I gave him some. Now I have no excuse for not taking a shower!

Takk for alt,

Al

South Dakota Commerce

       One of the tires on my truck had a very slow leak. The leak was so slow that the tire went flat over winter. The tire repair person at the shop in Volga advised against  using an arenol can of stop leak. He said that the stop leak aspect doesn't always work. The stop leak material, if it doesn't stop the leak, makes the tire difficult to patch. "Just bring the truck in" he said, so I did.

    At the shop they removed the wheel, examined the tire, deflated it and replaced the valve stem, which was the source of the leak...put it all back together and remounted the wheel on the truck. This was done as I waited. The cost?  $10.52.

   I also learned something.  It is illegal to use inner-tubes in tires for highway driving. Apparently it is a safety issue.  Did you know that? There's always something to learn!

Takk for alt,

Al

   This is another photo of Joanne that I like. She's wearing the outfit she wore to Lars' wedding.

Little House

      The drive to The Little House on Joanne's birthday was a good time to reflect on 53+ years of marriage.  Though it's now soon six years since she died the memory bank is full of files with her name. There were times I'd tease her "Forty nine years of married bliss is not bad out of 50."  Much was done together and also much alone. It's a gift to remember.

     She loved The Little House. It was a sanctuary and a retreat for her. She's sit in her recliner with a good book, once so engrossed she read all night. Bird songs in the morning alerted her to the time. When I called her to say "There's a house for sale in Sinai." Her immediate response was "Buy it!"  So, I did. When she wasn't reading she was happy to connect with my family resident in the area.  Her immediate and full acceptance by them was very significant to her. 

    Her burial a half mile from The Little House gives wonderful opportunity to visit her grave. Buried, as she is, next to my Grandmother and Grandfather is very special.  Yes, I bless her memory and continue to miss her living, as I do, in the land of grief.

Takk for alt,

Al

                  At our wedding, June 6, 1964