Thursday, April 24, 2008
Nissan adds SUV with enticing price
Sport utility vehicles no longer are the darlings of car showrooms. But Nissan has a new SUV that's sure to attract buyers - even those who are keenly sensitive to gasoline prices.
MUSIC SHORTS
Danish songwriter, folk singer and storyteller Esben "Longknife" Laursen will perform at 1 p.m. Saturday at Trinity Lutheran Church at 1420 S. Sixth St. in Brainerd.
Upcoming arts and entertainment events
Live music
UL to host film discussions
CROSBY - Unlimited Learning's film discussion series will be from 11 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Fridays May 2-23 at Crosby-Ironton High School. Robert Yahnke will host the series, which will include "Harry and Tonto," "Antonia's Line" and two other films to be determined.
DANCE SHORTS
Just for Kix studios will present its annual Spring Show, "That's Entertainment," at 1 and 4 p.m. Saturday at Brainerd High School.
ART SHORTS
NISSWA - Work by Trommald artists Erika Mullen-Hagberg and Madina Hagberg of Moon Bay Designs will be on display from 4-6 p.m. Friday at the Path Less Traveled gallery at 25282 Hazelwood Drive in Nisswa.
Casino books comedian Dunham
ONAMIA - Comedian and ventriloquist Jeff Dunham - along with his crowd-pleasing partners Walter, the old curmudgeon, and Achmed, the dead terrorist - will perform at 6 and 8:30 p.m. June 21 at the Grand Casino Mille Lacs Events & Convention Center north of Onamia.
Completely random slice of pop culture
When the ruling is handed down in the lawsuit matching "Harry Potter" author J.K. Rowling against RDR Books, which plans to publish fan Steven Vander Ark's "Harry Potter Lexicon," it will clarify a gray area in copyright law.
Just-for-fun questions with Hairball bassist Dan Dryden
What's in your CD player right now?
WRITING SHORTS
Entries for the Brainerd Writers' Alliance annual writing contest will be accepted from May 1-Aug. 22. Writers may enter pieces in short story/fiction, essay/nonfiction, creative nonfiction/memoir and poetry.
Having a ball
Let's get one thing straight right off the bat. As far as Dan Dryden is concerned, he didn't sell out by joining Hairball. The bassist had already proven himself in original bands - most famously with Stuck Mojo and Fozzy and most recently with the Black Mollys - and, for a change, he wanted to make a living playing music.
Nepal native Rose wins Best of Show at college
Artists from around the world relish the inspiration of exotic Nepal for creative stimulation, but a Central Lakes College freshman from Nepal creates her art from within. Kripa Rose, 19, Leader, uses a natural gift of expression to sculpt award-winning ceramics.
Cleaning out freezer, firing up the grill
When we recently cleaned out the freezer, I found quite a few packages of round steak, so I made Shish Kabobs over the grill one evening.
CRIME
BURGLARY - Chad Campbell, 200 block of Seventh Street South, reported Tuesday that someone entered his apartment and miscellaneous items were taken.
Oozing of spring
Melissa Raddatz wrote in early April, "This is a sure sign of spring! My family taps maple trees and makes maple syrup. It is one of our favorite times of the year. It takes 30-40 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of syrup. One can imagine how many drips like this we have to collect."
Cultural Thursday topic: Sweden
Dr. Bill Faber will present a free Cultural Thursday program about Sweden at noon May 1 in Chalberg Theatre on the Brainerd campus of Central Lakes College.
WINTER, SPRING & FALL
NISSWA - Someone not totally accustomed to our seasons might be confused.
PETS OF THE WEEK
Denver is a 2-year-old male Cavalier King Charles Spaniel mix. He was dropped off after hours at Heartland Animal Rescue Team and found shivering and in the rain. Denver would do best in a home with no young children and needs some obedience training. Brainerd Dispatch/Heidi Lake
LOCAL BRIEFS
The Lakeshore Conservation Club in Nisswa will kick off its season April 27.
ALL IN THE FAMILY
The grandchildren of Ada and Kenneth Kelling, Pillager, enjoyed the recent snow. "They're from Texas and came to an unexpected snowstorm in April," wrote Ada. The children are Amanda, Kristopher, Ryan and Nicholas Raynor.
EARTH-FRIENDLY
Did you do your part Tuesday to celebrate Earth Day?
Camp Ripley activity, volume on rise
BACKUS - Camp Ripley Deputy Post Commander Guy Konietzke told the Cass County Board Tuesday residents living adjacent to the camp likely will hear more ammunitions rounds being discharged and see more aircraft overhead this year than in recent years.
Charging prisoners a daily rate?
BACKUS - The Cass County Board deferred Tuesday for budget committee consideration whether Cass should charge its prisoners assigned either to the Cass jail in Walker or Crow Wing jail in Brainerd for their room and board. Crow Wing County recently began charging its prisoners a daily rate.
LOCAL BRIEFS
Peter Johnson was elected to a second term as Exalted Ruler of Brainerd Elks Lodge No. 615 at its recent installation of officers. Newly elected officers serving with Johnson are Dale Swenson and Gary Scheeler. New Lodge Trustee is Dave Smith and Ron Bower was re-elected.
Hiring freeze tweaked
BACKUS - Cass County commissioners modified their hiring freeze Tuesday, permitting department heads to hire part-time seasonal help for peak workload periods if they have done so in the past.
Pillager senior wins national scholarship
PILLAGER - Amy Fredman, a Pillager High School senior, was named a recipient of a Principal's Leadership Award Scholarship, co-sponsored by the National Association of Secondary School Principals and Herff Jones Inc. A total of 100 national PLA winners were chosen from among more than 4,500 applications. Each national winner will receive a $1,000 college scholarship.1
This was Brainerd
APRIL 23 - 60 years ago (1948) - Sand bags were being used today to keep rising waters of the Mississippi River out of the Brainerd Pumping Station located south of Boom Lake.
Crow Wing County seeks public comment
Crow Wing County has reviewed its inventory of county forest roads and has identified those long standing forest roads passing through multiple private and public ownerships which, for decades, provided access to the public "backlands."
Board: No stand on annexation
BACKUS - Cass County Board declined Tuesday to take a stand in the controversial proposal for the city of Pine River to annex 1,686 acres of Wilson Township through a contested annexation.
Randall teen killed, four others injured in crash
An 18-year-old Randall man died and four other teenagers were injured after the car they were in rolled and struck a power pole early Tuesday near Upsala.
Open burning restrictions take effect on Thursday
Open burning permit restrictions will go into effect at 8 a.m. Thursday in Aitkin, Cass, Crow Wing and Wadena counties.
Healthy lakes: Who pays?
For Crow Wing County Board members the question Tuesday was not a lack of love for area lakes, but who should pay to keep them healthy.
Overheard
Sometimes it's one of those things - think about how many vehicles pass through here on a daily basis. We got the right one."
Big drop in land use permits
BACKUS - There was more snow this winter than the last several winters. The housing industry is suffering.
Golf is not on minds of Whitefish shareholders
Excitement spills off Kim Roden's tongue when she talks about Whitefish Golf Course near Pequot Lakes.
Ah-Gwah-Ching purchase date is June 3
BACKUS - Cass County Board on Tuesday set June 3 as the date to purchase Ah-Gwah-Ching from the state of Minnesota and to have demolition contractors move onto the site to begin work.
Verndale marijuana bust stems from speeding stop
A California couple were charged Monday with possession and intent to sell more than 38 pounds of marijuana after officers in Verndale pulled their vehicle over for speeding.
LOCAL BRIEFS
Airports in Staples and Walker were among five in northeast Minnesota awarded a total of more than $1 million in Federal Aviation Administration grants to improve safety and operations.
Overheard
"I don't enjoy being in your doghouse - believe me."
Correction
A story on Page 6A of Wednesday's Dispatch about Saturday's seizure of 38 pounds of marijuana incorrectly stated the bond and bail set for the two people arrested in the case. Tiffany Dyanne Wildharber, 41, and Michael Jay Egan, 45, are being held on $500,000 bond or bail without conditions.
This was Brainerd
APRIL 24 - 30 years ago (1978) - Dispatch adds reporter: Mike O'Rourke has been hired as a general assignment reporter. O'Rourke, 24, is from Minneapolis. He received bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Minnesota.
Water leak closes CLC child-care center
A water leak this past weekend closed Central Lakes College's Early Care and Education Center Monday and Tuesday, said Steve Waller, CLC information director, in a news release Wednesday.
Chamber rolling out the welcome wave
DEERWOOD - The Brainerd Lakes Chamber is rolling out the wave.
Stay limit raised for private unit owners at resorts
Private unit owners at resorts now have more personal days to use at area resorts.
As good as GOLD
Prospectors don't need a pan and a stream or a mine for this gold rush.
Ironton will continue with nuisance dogs enforcement
The city of Ironton will have enforcement for nuisance dogs through 2008.
State adds jobs
Education and health care are strengths in the state's economy.
Food and products show
Dale Holst, Brainerd, prepared tables Wednesday for the more than 80 vendors expected at the fourth annual Food and Products Show at the Brainerd Area Civic Center, which will be 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday. The event, hosted by Food Services of America, is expected to draw about 200-300 area chefs and food service managers from restaurants, resorts, hotels, school districts and more. Invited customers will learn about the latest food products and services, including ways to cut costs as food prices continue to rise. Brainerd Dispatch/Jodie Tweed
Obituary policy
Obituary notices are charged at 40 cents a word, exclusive of the first 125 words, which are free. A $10 fee is charged for a half-column photograph. To place an obituary in the Dispatch, consult the funeral home handling arrangements.
Bruce Case
STAPLES - Cyril Bruce Case, 76, of Staples, passed away peacefully Sunday, April 20, 2008, at the Lakewood Health System Hospital in Staples after a short battle with esophageal cancer.
Genevieve G. Justin
ROYALTON - Genevieve G. Justin, 83, of Royalton, Minn., died Monday, April 21, 2008, at St. Gabriel's Hospital in Little Falls. Mass is 1 p.m. Saturday, April 26, 2008, at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Royalton. Interment is in the parish cemetery.
C. Blaine Harstad
MINNEAPOLIS - C. Blaine Harstad, a well-known eminent domain (condemnation) attorney at the Minneapolis law firm of Gray Plant Mooty, who resided in Minneapolis and at Lutefisk Bay on See Gull Road on the eastern shore of Gull Lake, Brainerd, Minn., died at home on April 19, 2008, after a brave fight with COPD (Chronic Obstruction Pulmonary Disease).
Edwin F. Johnson
LITTLE FALLS - Edwin F. Johnson, 100-year-old resident of Little Falls, formerly of Minneapolis, passed away Saturday, April 19, 2008, at St. Gabriel's Hospital. Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. on Friday, April 25, 2008, at First Lutheran Church in Little Falls. A visitation will be held from 4-7 p.m. on Thursday, April 24, at the Shelley Funeral Chapel in Little Falls and from 10-11 a.m. on Friday at the church.
Travis J. Struchen
RANDALL - Travis J. Struchen, 18-year-old resident of Randall, Minn., and a senior at the Little Falls High School, died suddenly Tuesday, April 22, 2008, as the result of a car accident in Upsala, Minn.
Arnold 'Jack' Radziej
LITTLE FALLS - Arnold "Jack" Radziej, 79-year-old resident of Little Falls, Minn., died Monday, April 21, 2008, at his home in Little Falls, Minn., after a three-and-a-half year battle with cancer.
Elma Irene Pajala
ELMA IRENE PAJALA, 89
Kenneth E. Bjerkness
MERRIFIELD - Kenneth Edward Bjerkness, age 79, of Merrifield, died on April 21, 2008, at St. Joseph's Medical Center in Brainerd. He was born in Crosby on April 23, 1929, to Carl and Floryce (Andrews) Bjerkness. He is a Korean War Navy veteran.
C. Daniel Shipman
God called our husband and father, C. Daniel Shipman, to heaven while surrounded by family on April 23, 2008.
Obituary policy
Obituary notices are charged at 40 cents a word, exclusive of the first 125 words, which are free. A $10 fee is charged for a half-column photograph. To place an obituary in the Dispatch, consult the funeral home handling arrangements.
Don't hide 401(k) fees
Faced with an aging workforce, corporate America has tried to cut costs by making employees take responsibility for funding their retirement. Pensions, or "defined benefit" plans as they're known in the parlance of chief financial officers, are becoming a relic of the Industrial Age.
Doctors awful at serving patients
Imagine one morning you're craving something sweet, so you stop by the corner doughnut shop. Turns out the wait is half an hour, the clerk is rude and, when you finally get it, the doughnut is stale. Would you buy doughnuts there again? Of course not.
What do you think?
The Brainerd Dispatch welcomes letters on recent articles and current issues. Letters should include the writer's full name, city and a phone number (for verification only). Letters are limited to 300 words. Only one letter per person per week.
Open Forum
Last month the New York Times printed the photographs of over 1,000 of our soldiers killed in Iraq during the last 12 months. There were four pages of photographs and the vast majority looked to be in their early twenties. To look upon that array of young faces is to have the sadness of this Iraq conflict brought home in a gripping and painful way.
OTHER OPINION: SEX EDUCATION
In the not-so-distant past - perhaps as recently as the 1970s and early '80s - the goal of sex education in the public schools was fairly simple: Give kids the basic facts so they understand where babies come from, and warn them not to have sex.
VOX POP
On April 15, Tax Day deadline, a person complained of standing in line 20 minutes at the post office to pay his taxes. You have had at least 60 days to get your taxes sent. Why should the post office have to hire a third person just for that? Get with it, you guys.
Thank goodness the pope is 'out of step' with modern times
Pope Benedict XVI's visit to the U.S. has afforded the American media and others an opportunity to remind us that the Catholic Church is "out of step" with modern times.
Sound off to state senators, representatives
Sen. Paul E. Koering
Warriors' Thompson does it all
Trevor Thompson took matters into his own hands.
AREA GOLF SHORTS
The Whitefish women's 18-hole league will begin play May 7 with tee times starting at 9 a.m.
Turena misses Olympic team by three places
Turena Johnson Lane continues her stride to the front of the country's distance running pack.
Things not so sunny for Raiders
Even though it was 70 degrees Wednesday was not a good day for the Central Lakes College Raiders to play two.
Gobblers blank
Wadena-Deer Creek
WADENA - The Aitkin Gobblers scored a clean sweep over Wadena-Deer Creek on Tuesday to move their overall record to 3-3.
Lyscio throwing for trifecta
Tom Lyscio is shooting for a trifecta - three state meets, all in his senior year.
Pequot's Beyer, Dale, Eck medal
PINE RIVER - Drake Beyer, Jonas Dale and Michael Eck of Pequot Lakes all shot a 40s for medalist honors in Tuesday's Mid-Minn Conference boys' golf meet at Pine River Country Club.
Pierz sweeps EV-Watkins
PIERZ - The Pierz Pioneers swept a doubleheader from the Eden Valley-Watkins Eagles by scores of 3-1 and 13-0 in Central Minnesota Conference baseball Wednesday.
SCOREBOARD
Area events
Distance runners converge on Nisswa
Sarah Sellnow was an avid runner, competing in a few long-distance events, before moving to the lakes area about a year ago.
Pierz strikes first 8-5
EDEN VALLEY - Hannah Groves pitched 6 2/3 innings of stellar relief as the Pierz Pioneers defeated Eden Valley-Watkins 8-5 in the first game of a Central Minnesota Conference doubleheader Wednesday.
Brainerd Makble Leafs take second in tournament
The Brainerd Lakes Area's Makble Leafs (pronounced Make Beliefs) women's hockey team, with players from Brainerd, Breezy Point, Crosslake, Crosby and Pequot Lakes, finished second in the Blaine tournament last weekend.
Warrior entrant goes up and over
Brainerd's Madison Smith (right) competed in the first heat of the 100-meter hurdles in Tuesday's track meet at Little Falls. Smith won the event. Brainerd Dispatch/Clint Wood
Up and almost over
Brainerd's Ryan Barnes attempted to clear 6-4 in the high jump in Tuesday's meet at Little Falls. But he didn't quite make it on this leap. Brainerd Dispatch/Clint Wood
SCOREBOARD
Area events
Gobblers beat Princeton
PRINCETON - Nick Sundholm raised his singles record to 5-2 and Kevin Hughes upped his mark to 6-0 as the Aitkin Gobblers beat Princeton 5-2 in boys' tennis Wednesday.
Top-ranked Raiders now 29-1
GRAND RAPIDS - The Central Lakes College Raiders softball team continued its winning ways Tuesday as it swept a doubleheader from the Itasca Vikings 7-1 and 10-1 on Tuesday.
Smith, Lyscio lead Warriors
LITTLE FALLS - Madison Smith won three events and Tom Lyscio two, the Brainerd girls' team won the title and the Warrior boys' team was runner-up in the Little Falls quadrangular track and field meet Tuesday.
Cardinals rule
the Ranger Invite
DEERWOOD - Cydney Hasselberg and Julia Schock shot 86s, Kelly Hagenson carded a 90 and Hailey Roberts fired a seventh-place 93 to lead the Staples-Motley Cardinals girls' golf team to first at the Ranger invite on the Lakes Course at Ruttger's Bay Lake Lodge Tuesday.
LOCAL SPORTS SHORTS
Brainerd Warriors football player Tyler Jensen will be the featured courage award recipient Sunday night at the first Honoring Legends-Inspiring Leaders dinner at the University of St. Thomas.
Warriors top Tech 5-2
ST. CLOUD - Tika Klauck's two-run double in the third inning handed the Brainerd Warriors a 4-0 lead that they turned into a 5-2 defeat of St. Cloud Tech Thursday.
Brainerd bounces Tech 6-1
ST. CLOUD - The Brainerd Warriors boys' tennis team lost only one match on its way to a 6-1 victory over the St. Cloud Tech Tigers in Central Lakes Conference tennis Tuesday.
State forecast for Iowa
Today...Mostly sunny. Highs in the 70s.
State forecast for S.D.
Today...Partly cloudy east. Mostly cloudy west with scattered afternoon thunderstorms...Some possibly severe southwest. Breezy. Highs from near 60 extreme northwest to the mid and upper 70s south.
State forecast for Minnesota
Flood watch northeast thursday and thursday night...
State forecast for N.D.
This morning...Mostly cloudy. Thunderstorms likely southeast. A mix
State forecast for S.D.
Today...Mostly cloudy with scattered showers and thunderstorms east. Partly to mostly cloudy west with showers increasing by afternoon. Highs in the 40s northwest to around 70 southeast.
Heading into spring
Weather drawing by Taya Person, a Lincoln school first-grader.
Weinie roast
Weather drawing by Tayden Holden of Mrs. Swanson's kindergarten class at Lincoln school.
Wisconsin state forecast
Flood watch northwest wisconsin this afternoon through early friday night...
State forecast for N.D.
Today...Increasing clouds. Becoming windy west and south central. A
Rain on the way
Heavy rain is on its way to the Brainerd area.
State forecast for Minnesota
Flood watch parts of the northeast today and friday...
State forecast for Iowa
.Today...Mostly cloudy. Showers and thunderstorms likely. Highs
Wisconsin state forecast
Today...Sunny. Patchy fog early in the morning west. Highs in the around 70 north to the low 70s south. Cooler near the great lakes. Tonight...Increasing clouds. Slight chance of thunderstorms far northwest. Lows in the upper 30s northeast to the low 50s southwest.