1957

 Recent tornado activity brings to mind past seasons of dangerous storms. But to describe those storms in such terms that every bit of the horror and confusion can be understood by others is impossible. No amount of space on a page can explain it fully or accurately. The following poem describes my experience with a tornado in the best terms I can summon.

At chore time one afternoon the boy of fifteen stood

wondering under roiling green clouds that filled

the low sky with some angry dispute.

One cannot forget the color of the clouds,

that green color.

He’d not seen such before.

But he was here to feed the hogs

and turned his attention

to the task while swatting

at mosquito hordes that rose

and clouded the sultry still air.

The brawling sky found no limits

and fought beyond its bounds,

stumbling toward Fargo.

News coverage in 1957

did not tell us what happened

in some coherent sequence

until the next morning. Roving

reporters had not rushed to the scene.

Several days passed before they

assembled and reported the facts

that ten people died.

Enderlin-Sheldon-Anselm

 I drove to Enderlin-Sheldon-Anselm area yesterday. Along Highway 46 some of the tornado damage is very evident. Across the road from  the Doug Kellerman farm where some buildings flew in the wind, the shelterbelt now holds great quantities of torn pieces of tin from those buildings hanging in the trees or laying scattered about. Closer to Enderlin quite a large plot of twisted and splintered  trees sat in disarray across from the Pfaff place where the house was destroyed.

Curious if I could find the spot on the Soo Line where all the railroad cars rolled off the tracks, I found it near its crossing on the Sheldon road.  About twenty heavy duty lowboy trailers sat on the edge of the gravel road. The machines they’d hauled here had been unloaded and were  trackside working to set things back in order.

The nearby farmsteads  showed extensive damage. The buildings once known as the Larson Brothers place had lots of broken trees and branches scattered about. On the south side of the road, friend Ralph’s old place took a heavy hit. I wondered how the wind made the roof of the large quonset building look like a giant fist had  squashed  it down, making the building unusable except for scrap. 

Then it was on to the Anselm Trinity Lutheran Church for the Dale Kaatz funeral where he filled the sanctuary with people saying goodbye.

Scandinavian Festival - 2025

 It could be seen as insensitive for going out to have some fun yesterday what with the tornado and deaths resulting from it. But we did not know the extent of the damage until yesterday evening when the news reporting started assessing it. We went to The Hjemkomst Center in Moorhead held their annual Scandinavian Festival on June 20-21. Mary and I attended and enjoyed it.

A Viking in authenic garb.

Kevin Wallevand reminisced about his trip to Norway.

Finnish blueberry pie and open-face

Mary bought a book from Candace Simar. I've known Candace for several years. Good writer.

The Luren Singing Society from Decorah, Iowa performed a great selection of numbers.

RANDOM THOUGHTS - Friday, June 13, 2025

Today is Friday the 13th. I hope things go well …  Common sense isn’t so common anymore  …  Brian Wilson left us with some great music  …  Ida’s Cafe in Sheldon served the best hamburgers and malts  …  Soon the days will start getting shorter  …  I wonder if our friend from Venlo, Netherlands knows that Netherlands is the 2nd largest exporter of food products  …  The chief function of the body is to carry the brain around  …  Our government is set up with three separate but equal branches of government: Legislative, Judicial, and Executive  …  John Wayne said a big mouth doesn’t make a big man  …  I’m just a simple man but I read lots of history books  …  A few years ago while watching a KXMB newscast in Bismarck one evening everyone was surprised by the comedic face of Will Farrell  appearing on the screen as a co-anchor. While traveling through the area he had stopped to ask if he could do it, they said OK, and lots of laughs followed.

Eating at the Sons of Norway

Through these doors...

We ate at the Sons of Norway this noon (June 5). I ordered a half ham open-faced sandwich, pasta salad, and the best tomato soup I can recall. To top it off the chocolate cream pie melted in my mouth. Mary's peach, blueberry pie looked mighty fine, too. We'll be back.

RANDOM THOUGHTS - Tuesday, June 3, 202

 Great turnout for Sheldon’s observance of Veterans Day  …  Live life so the preacher doesn’t have to lie at your funeral  …  Canadian smoke burns my eyes  …  At least sundogs aren’t barking in the sky  …  Place an active verb in a declarative sentence and all hell might break loose  …  Don’t name a calf you intend to eat  …  We’re again watching Public TV’s All Creatures Great and Small -  great series, more, more, make more  …  We enjoyed our trip to Strasburg area on Sunday, Welk Homestead State Historic Site to be exact  …  "Beer Barrel Polka”  hits #1 on the pop singles chart in 1939 …  We visited the Hjemkomst museum in Moorhead a couple weeks ago.