Sunday, March 3, 2002

Here come's the sun
BAXTER -- At a new lakes area business, the sun experience comes without sand, but with chocolate and rock and roll.

Calls for responsibility extend to fund managers
NEW YORK -- Wall Street's angst about corporate accounting has meant painful losses for many mutual fund investors. Now one of the fund industry's most influential and outspoken members is criticizing his peers for not doing enough to protect shareholders from scandals like the Enron collapse.

Soft drinks losing fizz as bottled water sales brim
Soft drinks continue to lose their fizz among consumers, as bottled water and other noncarbonated drinks gain popularity.

Gigi's Hallmark ends 9 1/2-years at mall
Days are numbered for another East Brainerd Mall business as Gigi's Hallmark closes its doors later this month.

Good question
Q: I've been using a cell phone for a year now and I like my service, but I want a new phone to get some of the new services available, like e-mail and Internet browsing. Why can't I just get a new phone from a store? They tell me I have to spend a lot of money just for the phone if I don't get a new service. I don't want to get another account, just another phone. What can I do?

Safe haven or not, investors tap blue chips to lead market higher
NEW YORK -- The scenario of Wall Street's comeback wasn't supposed to unfold like this: blue chips surging ahead while tech stocks trail behind.

Business notes
BAXTER -- Emily Nesheim and Anita Strassberg joined Panache Salon and Day Spa in Baxter.

Washington Times
On February 5, Washington Middle School hosted Activity Day. Throughout the building and on the grounds classes not traditionally offered were taught. Students were allowed to sign up for classes they wanted to attend. Washington staff then polled those requests and placed students into classes. Classes that were offered ranged from training homing pigeons to outdoor cooking.

President tells radio audience he'll push teacher hiring, training
WASHINGTON -- President Bush pledged on Saturday to help recruit and train a new generation of teachers for America's schools.

The marital threat of emotional infidelity
Are you a woman who shares secrets with a male friend? Are you the kind of man who reviews his weekend plans with a female co-worker? Or do you go out for drinks with a colleague of the opposite sex?

The last child
"I'm always last," declared 10-year-old Calvin. "It's not fair!"

Volunteer opportunities
ONE-ON-ONE MATH TUTOR -- Help third graders catch up to class with math skills. Flexible, 11-11:50. Susan Rogers 828-0842.

Wife can't stop loving her ex-husband
DEAR ABBY: I am 34 years old, married and very confused. My current husband, "Austin," and I have a good marriage. He is wonderful to me. I have three children from a previous marriage.

Pet parakeet
Dear Readers: For anyone contemplating getting a parakeet as a pet, there are a few things you should know before taking one home. If you've never had a pet bird before, get a book about its care -- it will be a big help to you. Pet birds need daily exercise, especially if the cage is not large enough for them to fly about. Before letting a bird out to fly, the American Veterinary Medical Association has some good advice for all pet bird owners, new and old alike.

Betty Crocker coupon program updates itself
GOLDEN VALLEY -- After helping generations of homemakers collect sets of traditional flatware and dishes, the Betty Crocker catalog is taking a slightly different tack: selling trendier kitchen ware.

February youth volunteer of the month
NAME: Jeni Rosnau, Franklin Junior High School student

Nelsons awarded for new initiatives
Ron and Barb Nelson of Brainerd were honored with the Crow Wing County 2002 New Initiative Award for their dairy farm, greenhouse and produce farm in Daggett Brook Township.

Robots do the milking at a handful of U.S. dairy farms
BROGUE, Pa. -- With the help of robots and a little training, 150 cows on the H.E. Heindel & Sons dairy farm are practically milking themselves.

Cash grain
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Wheat receipts Friday 163, a year ago 185.

FARM FAMILY OF YEAR
FORT RIPLEY -- Working on a farm is all that Leonard Koering knows.

Livestock
SOUTH ST. PAUL,(AP) (USDA) -- Friday cattle: 1,500.

Accidents
LITTLE FALLS -- Two people were hurt in a two-vehicle collision Friday at Morrison county roads 46 and 264, north of Little Falls, the Morrison County Sheriff's Department reported.

Agendas
Brainerd City Council

Births
Brian and Nancy (Marshik) Knettel, Nisswa, a boy, Griffin Henry, 9 pounds, 3 ounces, Feb. 5, 2002.

Support groups
Crisis Line-Referral Ser.

More volunteers ill after trying Alzheimer's vaccine
WASHINGTON -- A promising experimental Alzheimer's vaccine that was reported last week to have triggered a dozen cases of brain inflammation in human volunteers has caused similar complications in three additional people and has been permanently withdrawn from human testing.

Health organizations
Brainerd - Trinity Lutheran Church from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. the second Wednesday.

Chemical dependency and AA groups
Adult Children-Chem.Dep.

Attorney general hopeful says he'd be less political than Hatch
Republican Tom Kelly Friday pledged to keep the law enforcement and political aspects of the Minnesota attorney general's office separate if he's elected to the post this fall.

Justin Wallin of PL seeks GOP bid for Samuelson's seat
Justin Wallin, 24, of Pequot Lakes announced last week he's running for the District 12 Senate seat. He'll seek the Republican party endorsement.

This was Brainerd
MARCH 3 - 20 years ago (1982) - The Brainerd School Board set dates for public hearings at five elementary schools: the first stage in a proposal to close up to three school buildings here. Recommended for possible closure are Lincoln, Edison, Riverside, Garrison and Pine Center elementary schools.

COMING MONDAY
A Crow Wing County Historical Museum exhibit traces the daring cross-country trip of four Brainerd women in the 1920s.

Local briefs
The Crisis Line and Referral Service will conduct a training session for volunteers at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Brainerd.

Region 5 meeting planned
The Region 5 board of directors will hold their regular monthly meeting at 9 a.m. March 14 at the Region 5 office in Staples.

Boston case draws more attention to sex abuse by priests
Q: Why have there been so many news reports lately about child-molesting allegations against Roman Catholic priests?

Almost all energy policy-meeting participants were from industry
WASHINGTON -- Industry 7. Environmental groups 1. That's the tally on Deputy Energy Secretary Frank Blake's meetings last year on a key pollution issue pending in the Bush administration.

Arthur Andersen to pay $217 million to settle suits in Arizona business collapse
PHOENIX (AP) -- Arthur Andersen, the accounting firm at the center of the Enron debacle, agreed Friday to pay $217 million to settle lawsuits filed after the 1999 collapse of an Arizona company accused of bilking elderly investors.

Police, family seeking help in solving double homicide
HUDSON, Wis. (AP) -- The father of a funeral home director killed along with an intern last month says he is praying for whoever shot the two.

Iowa governor signs bill declaring English the state's official language
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) -- Gov. Tom Vilsack signed a bill into law Friday declaring English the state's official language.

Poll finds belief in energy shortage growing, but not support for Arctic drilling
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The belief is growing in this country that a real energy shortage exists, says an Associated Press poll.

ABC wooing Letterman to replace Koppel, 'Nightline'
NEW YORK (AP) -- ABC's efforts to persuade David Letterman to switch networks could set up a classic struggle over whether entertainment or journalism is more important at a financially struggling company.

'I SEE HIS BUTT'
WASHINGTON -- Some were mortified, others tickled, when a bare-chested statue of George Washington sat on Capitol Hill long ago, one arm outstretched, the other raised.

National briefs
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) -- A pediatrician stabbed her 10-year-old son to death and wounded his younger brother, then called police to tell them what she had done, police said Friday.

Shauntay Hinton, Howard University student and Miss District of Columbia, crowned Miss USA
GARY, Ind. (AP) -- Shauntay Hinton told Miss USA pageant host Deion Sanders that active citizenship is the freedom she values most.

Razorbacks buy out Richardson's contract
Nolan Richardson coached Arkansas to the 1994 NCAA basketball title and helped pave the way for a generation of African American coaches, but his long career at the school ended Friday when Arkansas bought out his contract in the wake of Richardson's complaints he is treated differently because he is black.

National sports briefs
MIAMI (AP) -- Even with 25 mph gusts making the Blue Monster play two strokes harder, the Big Easy made it look like a breeze Friday in the Genuity Championship.

Kobe gets another last shot
LOS ANGELES -- The game had ended. But the action was just beginning.

Scoreboard
National Hockey League

Enid M. Hanson
AITKIN -- Enid M. Hanson, 87, Aitkin, died Friday, March 1, 2002, at the Riverwood Extended Care Center in Aitkin.

Robert S. Brown
PINE RIVER -- Robert S. Brown, 86, Pine River, died Friday, March 1, 2002, at his home.

Margaret Erickson
PINE RIVER -- Margaret Erickson, 88, Pine River, died Friday, March 1, 2002, at Whispering Pines Good Samaritan Center in Pine River.

Kurt Albert Dobias
OZARK, Mo. -- Kurt Albert Dobias, 44, Ozark, Mo., died Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2002, in Cox Medical Center South, Springfield, Mo.

Thomas Lund
RANDALL -- Thomas Lund, 49, Randall, died Friday, March 2, 2002, at the St. Cloud Hospital.

Paul E. Praske
AITKIN -- Paul E. Praske, 77, Aitkin, died Friday, March 1, 2002, at the Cuyuna Regional Medical Center in Crosby.

Hulda Crocker
PILLAGER -- Hulda Crocker, 95, Pillager, died Friday, March 1, 2002, at the Greater Staples Care Center.

Virginia Guy
LITTLE FALLS -- Virginia Guy, 88, Little Falls, died Saturday, March 2, 2002, at her home in Little Falls.

Roger T. Scull
LOS BANOS, Calif. -- Roger Tony Scull, 64, Los Banos, Calif., formerly of Brainerd, died March 1, 2002.

Open Forum
Tuesday night, March 5 is the beginning of the Minnesota political election process. How many times have you heard, "I don't understand why this party or that party nominated the candidate they did for governor, president or some other office"?

Vox Pop
Vox Pop, voice of the people, publishes Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays.

OTHER OPINIONS
Federal government is asking states to do more with less

Trusting in parents
Every building project, including a school or a community, must have a foundation. The foundation of society is the family. The family is the first organization of individuals into a group. Although small and

Time for a plan
It is time

Official scorers can determine how your deer's rack measures up
People who admire deer antlers -- and that includes most hunters and wildlife observers -- often compare one deer's rack to another.

Outdoor notes
Unusually high oxygen levels in Brainerd-area rearing ponds could diminish walleye fingerling production next fall. DNR Fisheries Supervisor Tim Brastrup said he's dismayed by the oxygen readings he's found in area rearing ponds.

Don't become a statistic
"179 Minnesotans die in ice-related accidents."

Fishing report
BRAINERD/NISSWA - Look for the area's best crappie and sunfish action in Wilson Bay and Booming Out Bay on Gull Lake, Nisswa Lake, the Cullen Chain, Upper Gull Lake, Round Lake, Jones Bay on Pelican Lake, and North Long Lake.

Bear season opener is back where it's usually been
After two years of August openers, bear season returns to its traditional Sept. 1 opener this year.

Think small for late-winter panfish
Time goes on, seasons change, and now it's time to fish for crappies. This isn't because northerns, walleyes and bass are on hold for a while, but because late winter is one of the best times of the year to catch silvery, sweet-tasting crappies.

Invading birds have town up tree
BREESE, Ill. -- This trim farm town on the prairie turns creepy each day at dawn and at dusk.

North Country calendar
March - 1-31 -- Crow hunting season (first split)

Christy Lynn Schlosser and Chad Cronquist
Christy Lynn Schlosser and Chad Cronquist announce their engagement. Parents are Wallace and Karen Schlosser, Nelson, and Darrel and Sheryl Cronquist, Brainerd. A June 15 wedding is planned at St. Nicholas Catholic Church in Belle River.

Chaney-Radtke
Molly Chaney and Ryan Radtke were married Oct. 20, 2002, at Lutheran Church of the Cross in Nisswa with Chris Meier officiating.

Vosler-Meyer
Charity Vosler and Donald Meyer III were married Oct. 20, 2001, at Lakewood Evangelical Free Church in Baxter with Ken Abramson officiating.

Bock-Gurneau
Tracy Bock and Wade Gurneau were married Feb. 14, 2002, at the Chapel of Love at the Mall of America in Bloomington with the Rev. Connie L. McCallister officiating.

Leslie Maria Bloomquist, Roseau, and Todd Allen Wensloff
Leslie Maria Bloomquist, Roseau, and Todd Allen Wensloff, Roseau, announce th

Charles and Marjorie Russell
Charles and Marjorie Russell, Pequot Lakes, recently celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in Sedona, Ariz. The event was hosted by their family. They were married March 1, 1952, in Lawrence, Kan.

Paula R. Maxwell and Jay K. Lang
Paula R. Maxwell and Jay K. Lang announce their engagement.

Grand Am driver killed in practice
HOMESTEAD, Fla. (AP) -- Grand American series driver Jeff Clinton was killed Friday when he crashed during practice at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Ventura ponders special session, curbing use of governor's mansion
ROSEVILLE -- Gov. Jesse Ventura raised the idea Friday of calling a special session if legislators don't fully fix the state budget. And he wouldn't rule out curbing use of the governor's mansion to save on security costs.

Taxpayers pick up part of tab for Bush visit to St. Paul
ST. PAUL (AP) -- When President Bush appears at a fund raiser for former St. Paul Mayor Norm Coleman's Senate campaign Monday evening, the Minnesota Republican Party will have to pay only part of the president's travel costs.

Pickar makes it to finals for Warriors
ST. PAUL -- Brainerd wrestler Andy Pickar is in familiar territory.

Area schools send three wrestlers to 1A finals
ST. PAUL -- The Pierz Pioneers advanced two wrestlers to the state Class 1A Individual finals Saturday and the Bertha-Hewitt/Verndale Raiders advanced one.

Aitkin finishes strong
AITKIN -- Sam Esary's 11 points put the Aitkin Gobblers boys' basketball team over the Pine River-Backus Tigers 48-38.

8th-grader qualifies for swim finals Peter Goeman responds in favorite pool
MINNEAPOLIS -- As a seventh-grader, Peter Goeman practiced with the Brainerd Warriors swimming and diving team and competed only in the section meet.

Minneapolis outburst buries CLC women
Before the Central Lakes College Raiders women's basketball team could even score a point they found themselves in an abyss.

Wolverines still battling for place
ST. PAUL -- The top-ranked Wadena-Deer Creek Wolverines were disheartened by the fact they were not in the running for the Class 2A state team wrestling championship this weekend.

Bowling
PAUL BUNYAN BOWL

Pioneer seniors deliver again in 1A action
ST. PAUL -- All season the Pierz Pioneers have counted on seniors like Dan Britz and Kevin Smude to deliver critical victories at crucial times.

Warriors coast past Sartell
SARTELL -- Mike Zauhar scored 20 points and Jake Phillips added 17 to lead the Brainerd Warriors boys' basketball team to a 62-50 Central Lakes Conference victory over Sartell Friday.

Schwegel trying to live up to graduate's deeds
If you're going to look up to somebody, why not have it be one of the leading scorers in school history.

Raiders pinned in consolation semis in loss to BOLD
ST. PAUL -- After suffering an upset to Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City in the State Class A Team Quarterfinals, Bertha-Hewitt/Verndale Raiders coach Steve Techam decided to rest his wrestlers still competing for individual honors.

Royer puts emphasis on team play this year
Matt Royer has sacrificed his stats for a chance at something better.

Youth Basketball summer season
The entry deadline for the Mid America Youth Basketball summer season is May 1.

Raider men can't clear first hurdle
MINNEAPOLIS -- All good things must come to an end.

WDC wrestler doesn't let trip to hospital stop him
ST. PAUL -- Not even a trip to the hospital two hours before the state Class 2A semifinals could keep Logan Brincefield from his quest to repeat as state champion.

Area events Saturday
SWIMMING AND DIVING

Minnesota holds lead in swimming
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) -- Defending champion Minnesota held onto its lead in the Big Ten Men's Swimming and Diving championships on Friday as it boosted its total to 487 points on the tournament's second day.

Minnesota State Wrestling Tournament
At the Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul

Indians hand Twins their first loss of spring training
FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) -- Jim Thome homered, and Russell Branyan had two RBIs to lead the Cleveland Indians past the Minnesota Twins 6-3 Friday.

Apple Valley dominates AAA
ST. PAUL (AP) -- As usual, Apple Valley is in for a busy Saturday at the state wrestling tournament.

Gophers edge Huskies
ST. CLOUD (AP) -- St. Cloud State forward Mark Hartigan was unfamiliar with the Sports Illustrated jinx before Friday. Now, he's a believer.

This could be the Twins' banner year
FORT MYERS, Fla. -- It's truly amazing what this thing called spring (don't worry Minnesota, it's on its way) can do. Maybe it's the steadfast sunshine, maybe it's the fresh (choose one: Florida, Arizona) air or the plethora of palm trees. Or maybe it's the steadfast sunshine.

Purdue, Indiana women advance; Badgers upset Gophers
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- The decision to move the Big Ten tournament back to Indiana after a one-year hiatus has proven a good one for the basketball-crazed state and its home schools.

Spurs bounce back
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- David Robinson knew the San Antonio Spurs would be able to shake off a tough loss.

Computer owners can rein in branders
Question: Who owns the branding rights to your computer?

Cyber safety for children
Parents who worry that their children might come across inappropriate Web sites and links on the Internet might want to consider a new educational portal.

Shuttle mission threatened
SPACE CENTER, Houston (AP) -- NASA expressed confidence that a cooling system problem aboard space shuttle Columbia would not prematurely end the spacecraft's mission to overhaul the Hubble Space Telescope.

Making a Web for everyone
I met Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the World Wide Web, in the fall of 1999.

Software snags crooks, sneaking spouses, but alarms privacy advocates
SEATTLE (AP) -- Right now, your boss, your spouse or the government could secretly be reading all your typed words -- even the ones you deleted -- while surreptitiously snapping your picture.

Sites to check out
A roundup of new and updated resources and services on the global Internet:

Blogging rides the next wave
It's called "blogging," short for "web logging," and as a mass phenomenon, it may become one of the most enduring legacies of the goofy dot-com era.

Borland Software regains its stride amid the high-tech wreck
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Borland Software Corp. sunk so low in the 1990s that it became ashamed of itself -- the company changed its name to Inprise to distance itself from a mortifying five-year slump.

Technology will let the inanimate speak for itself
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- The bar code of the future includes a little bit of the World War II dogfighter.

Worldwide Weather
Saturday

State forecast for North Dakota
Wind chill advisory east tonight...

State forecast for South Dakota
Wind chill advisory this morning for much of the west...

Regional Forecast
HighLowPR

The Weather Elsewhere
Saturday

Winter storm moves into central, eastern states, dropping widespread rain, snow
A winter storm that dropped over a foot of snow on parts of the central Rockies was moving through the central states early Saturday, threatening to bring rain and snow to the Midwest, South and Northeast.

Minnesota state forecast
Winter storm warnings and advisories over the southeast today...

Iowa state forecast
Winter storm warning today east third...

Wisconsin state forecast
Winter storm warning today and tonight for most of the south and east...And in the lake superior snowbelt...

A pal
Weather drawing by Brett Moser of Jan Wilcox's kindergarten class at Lowell school.

What's doing
Programs for the Brainerd-Baxter Area Golden "K" Kiwanis include: Wednesday, Superintendent Jerry Walseth on "School Districts Bond Issue;" March 13, Jo

Organizations
Brainerd Jaycees

Much obliged
On Thursday, Feb. 21, Kinship Partners was treated to a "Taste of the World," thanks to Jeana Wetzel and a great group of foreign exchang

Embassies still vulnerable despite precautions
WASHINGTON -- Despite miles of new concrete barriers, towering walls, bomb-residue tests, metal detectors, gas masks and tight restrictions on diplomats' travel, a recent tunnel found near the U.S. Embassy in Rome makes clear that America's overseas missions remain strikingly vulnerable.

Guantanamo hunger strike appears to be losing momentum
GUANTANAMO BAY NAVAL BASE, Cuba -- A hunger strike by prisoners at this remote U.S. naval base seemed to lose momentum after the U.S. military agreed to allow the Taliban and al-Qaeda captives to wear turbans, as long as guards could inspect them at any time.

Major U.S., Afghan offensive opened against Taliban, al-Qaida force
GARDEZ, Afghanistan -- U.S. warplanes and helicopters opened a new offensive Saturday against Taliban and al-Qaida believed regrouping in Afghanistan's eastern mountains in an air assault backed by Afghan forces on the ground, Afghan leaders said.

Israel searches for militants in one Palestinian refugee camp; leaves another
BALATA REFUGEE CAMP, West Bank (AP) -- Israeli troops searched house-to-house for militants and weapons for a third day Saturday in the densely packed Balata refugee camp, while soldiers pulled out of a second camp nearby.

Vengeful Hindus kill Muslims as death toll in religious strife reaches 415
AHMADABAD, India (AP) -- Vengeful Hindus torched Muslim homes, killing scores, and rioting spread through the western state of Gujarat on Saturday as the death toll in India's worst religious strife in a decade reached 415, officials said.

U.S. troops to go to Yemen
WASHINGTON (AP) -- U.S. troops will help train Yemen's military to fight terrorists under a plan approved by President Bush.

Package of hazardous chemicals sent to home of British prime minister Blair
LONDON -- Anti-terrorist officers were trying to trace up to 14 packages containing dangerous chemicals Saturday after two were sent to Prime Minister Tony Blair's Downing Street residence and a lawmaker's female assistant.

Macedonian police kill seven men they say were foreigners planning attacks
SKOPJE, Macedonia (AP) -- Macedonian police killed seven gunmen in a shootout Saturday and asserted that some or all were foreigners -- probably Pakistanis -- who were suspected of planning attacks on embassies in the volatile Balkan country.