"Well Done Good and Faithful Servant"

Good hard work and great faith and a very big heart - a lover and a giver in Jesus' name - Lois Hayes died yesterday after a lifetime of service in His name. Service to family,to friends, and to church.

She was so angry with me once during tough times( not so long ago, either) when we had no food, and we had not told her. " Don't you ever do that again " she said, angry, and pointing her finger in my face. " If you are hungry you tell me. I want you to promise that," she said, and then she filled our cupboards to overflowing, the fridge and freezer too, and it was enough food for a month.

She did not do anything halfway, and she did it all. Courage, strength, faith, and the will to live life to it's fullest and to encourage others to as well. Full with life and joy.

Words from scripture come to mind - "Well done good and faithful servant." She is now at the greatest reunion of all - with her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, her husband Rex, those in her family who died in faith, and the rest of the great family of believers.

I have stumbled upon an ethnological field study by anthropologist Ruth Landes entitled The Ojibwe Woman, published by The Norton Library in 1971. The narrative of the book is comprised of and from"life stories" from the early 1930's of a Cree/Ojibwe woman in southern Ontario.

On page #132, the narrative continues ".... In Minnesota, men fish with nets during July and August, as women do also.Undoubtedly fishing with nets was stimulated by the market which the United States government has created for fish, for a greater haul can be made by net than by lance. The requirements of the Minnesota market have also caused these Ojibwa to cease extensive fishing during fall, winter and spring to permit replenishment of the lakes by summer." It says also that the... "characteristic style... was to fish with the lance."

Interesting.

Seems like a lot of folks were just waiting to pounce on tribal netters.

What of the winter and summer trash introduced to the Lake by fisherman and recreationalists? Gas and oil too from boat motors, a lot of it.

Lake shore environmental degradation too, with manicured fertilized suburban lawns.

Fishing launches that for years years dumped their toilets into the lake.

And, yes, rampant and abusive catch and kill( release).

Walleyes historically used in spiritual ceremony by Native Americans? Probably not unlike many of us saying grace, a prayer of gratitude, before a meal.

These things are never simple.

With the late cold spring, I do know that there are a lot of cold wet walleyes out there. Hopefully, enough for all of us.

Prepare them accordingly. Bon appetit'.

All the World's a Stage

Odets with one t. Sorry( previous post). Son Johnny was amazing according to his Dad and others. A nicely economized script transformed a historically unsuccessful play into a taut, well paced tragic tale of a famous Hollywood star w/ personal and professional problems. Classic noir genre' lines like " easy now, life is not a Russian novel."

Pre-performance we ate at D B Searles Bar and Restaurant in downtown St Cloud and had some pretty good chicken and shrimp and pasta. It is in a great old historic bldg on 5th ave. It appears to cater to college age kids, has a nice selection of beers and promotions and all that stuff, but has 3rd floor white table cloth dining. The burgers( handmade) and steaks are their strong point, I think.

Next door at Pioneer Place is a theater and a wine and Scotch bar. The Veranda. Lots of wines. Lots of single malts, if that is your cup of tea.

Fathers and Sons

A dad has braggin' rights, right?

A quick heads up.

Son Johnny plays the lead role in St Cloud State University's production of The Big Knife by Clifford Odetts. An astonishing performance from Dad's point of view. Where did this depth and range of emotion come from? Did he learn it within his own family? How am I involved?

It shows at 8 pm Friday and Saturday, and 2 pm Sunday at the Performing Arts Center on campus.

Pretty good theater. I'll write more about it, later.

Not Just Leftovers, Anymore

A couple of things to do w/ leftover spagetti noodles.

Wet the noodles w/ veg oil, add lots of granulated garlic( or fresh), lots of dried whole sweet basil( or fresh chopped), lots of grated parmesan cheese( even the cheap product in a can works), and fresh ground black pepper. Toss. Eat. Chives or green onions, and parsley too, as you wish. The secret is plenty of garlic, basil, and parmesan cheese.

This is the spaghetti salad recipe from the old Headquarters Lodge salad bar. A serendipitious discovery one day when we were short on salads and time. Far and away everyone's favorite.

A recent discovery for leftover spaghetti noodles simply involves stewed tomatoes, garlic, basil and bleu cheese tossed w/ the noodles. A little olive oil too, if you need to make it wetter. Served and eaten cold. I found a great buttermilk bleu at Cub in Brainerd - from raw milk - and made in Wisconsin. Creamy, sweet, not too pungent. Also good on a cracker.

Be Sure of Your Target

Be sure of your target. If you hunt, be sure of your target.

The death of an 8 yr old Belle Plaine boy by a shotgun blast of his dad's makes all of us, especially hunters, pause, ponder, and perhaps reconsider our hunting practises. It rips a hearts out, leaves it bleeding in an empty field. Emptier than it has ever been. Unbelief, heart pounding shock revisited again and again for days and weeks, and each time you awake for a long time that feels like forever. You can't change it. You can't change it.

Be sure of your target. If you hunt, be sure of your target. My prayers are with that Dad and his family. Be with them, Dear Lord, and help them as only You can.

Aw Baloney

It is not true that in Pierz you can eat baloney in a bar every day of the week.

But you can get it on Wednesdays at the Red Rooster( actually in Genola), and on Thursdays at Patricks. It is served from 11AM till 1PM as the lunch special. At the Rooster it is served help yourself buffet style. Which means it is an all you can eat deal. There is baloney, homemade white bread, butter, horseradish and mustard. I think that the horseradish is homemade too.

At Patrick's it is served to you in a basket. The entire ring of baloney I believe -sliced into 5 generous 4 inch hunks -along w/ 4 slices of homemade white bread( the soft variety), butter, and homemade(?) horseradish. It is indeed a "ring of fire" if you use enough horseradish. In Pierz, a bottle of tabasco will last for years, but horseradish is consumed like a cold beer on a hot summer day.

Is it a midwest thing this eating butter on a meat sandwich? Pastrimi on rye at a Deli in New York City? Nope.

Where does all of this baloney come from? Thielen's Meat Market right in town. Thielen's has been written up in the New York Times, rightly so, for their bacon. Try the black pepper variety, or garlic. Also get their jalapeno cheddar summer sausage. Or smoked hams. Or marinated pork chops and chicken breasts, smoked whole chickens, all the usual steaks, and much more. They have a professional and attentive staff, and the place is immaculate.

It is worth it to adjust your trip up North to include a stop in Pierz. Make it a golf date, in fact, at the mature 9 hole golf course, and be sure to do it on baloney day.

$4.95 for all you can eat. That is no baloney. And it sure ain't New York City.