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Trout Whisperer - Ala carte

Publisher — Fri, 19 Apr 2024 03:04:50 +0000

Trout Whisperer - Ala carte

Publisher Fri, 04/19/2024 - 05:04

Fishing as a child, for me, was tagging along with my grandfather. We dug red worms for bluegills and brook trout, everything we caught went home, he cleaned it and Gramma fried it. Every meal was all-consuming. There were never leftovers.

I went home with blue fingertips, blue lips from blueberries he wanted in the pail for jams and pancakes, wild raspberries or warm summer strawberries, and spring spruce tips just the same, it was all candy to me.

Long about the summer of sixth grade I met a fellow, who fished as much as me, we always said our bicycles had more miles on them than all the other kids we knew combined, and we ditched them by many a creek.

But he was one for stopping and smelling the campfire during the day, and he created a lifelong experience I’ve enjoyed ever since. You catch a few fish, stop and fry them up on the spot. Noontime boil up, might be a roasted duck, rotisserie grouse on an alder limb, a skillet full of butter fried crawdads and once a summer we gigged bullfrogs, we just made sure we had lard to fry em in.

To this very day, Mrs. and I do the same. Yeah, we might not get a full limit of birds or fish, but some of what we got, cooked right there on the spot, couldn’t have been better fare anywhere.

- The Trout Whisperer

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Trout Whisperer - Little waves

Publisher — Fri, 12 Apr 2024 15:21:28 +0000

Trout Whisperer - Little waves

Publisher Fri, 04/12/2024 - 17:21

How absolutely beautiful, beautiful, beautiful, these tiny little ripples, free from winter’s ice, and they ain’t got a clue how to be a wave yet, they’re so new, even to themselves.

They slide, a rhythm of the many, catching the blue of sky above, like the scent of the freshest mowed lawn of the season or a new fuzzy duckling. Everything to its time, that will come soon enough, but not this day, this is gentle nose in my nostrils, warmth, no churned turbid water, little waves of enthusiasm, at my feet soundless, they don’t even swish the beach I trod upon.

If I could follow one, just one wave, but my eyes get swept over so much of the newness, and I have missed my waves. I remember the tossed ones I set this lake to rest with. Novembers, ducks, divers, the birds that make you earn your duck dinner. Feet spraddled over the froth, I was glad to be safe of them. Same lake, today, just eye-pleasing in so many waves of waves.

Nobody’s looking, I wave my hand at them, thanks, to all of you. I kick my boot in the wetness meeting the shore, they softly weep in, ease back away, making new littleness waves at my feet. I wanna put one in my pocket and take it home. This the lake forbids, and I must obey, my little waves.

- The Trout Whisperer

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End of the Road Recipes: Sugar Cookies

Publisher — Fri, 29 Mar 2024 17:33:08 +0000

End of the Road Recipes: Sugar Cookies

Publisher Fri, 03/29/2024 - 18:33

by Crystal Schlueter

Last week I briefly introduced Sandy Nemanic of Hoyt Lakes. Sandy is back this week with another great recipe and story.

Her mother, Anne, was born in Ely in 1910 as one of six girls. Due to reasons unknown to Sandy, Anne and her five sisters were sent to an orphanage in Duluth. The youngest two were adopted, while the rest of the girls found jobs once they aged out of the orphanage. Anne found work as a nanny for a prominent family nearby.

Sandy’s parents met after her father made his way from Iowa to Duluth via the railway and found work as a merchant seaman. They married in 1938. Sandy is the second of six children, including four girls and two boys. Anne baked hundreds of cut-out sugar cookies every Christmas, and Sandy enjoyed helping her mother with this sweet tradition.

Sandy grew up close to Lake Superior, where she and her siblings spent a lot of time. Due to her time on the shore, Sandy became a rockhound, which is a hobby she still enjoys today.

Her love of reading developed early on, as her mother took the children to the library often. Her father encouraged the children to take interest in music, and Sandy found a passion for playing the piano.

Later on, she attended the University of Minnesota Duluth, where she met her husband, Ron. While in her sophomore year, she left school to get married. They eventually settled in Hoyt Lakes where they raised their son and daughter. They are also the proud grandparents of five grandsons and have two cats: Annie and Tillie.

Sandy went back to school after her children were grown and graduated magna cum laude from the University of Wisconsin-Superior in 1995.

Her career included teaching needlecraft classes, working as a para for the local school district, and working in the Boase Elementary Library until its closing in the year 2000.

Sandy loved working with children and enjoyed her colleagues. She said their collective goal was to make life better for kids.

Since 1985, Sandy has served nine terms (with a few years in between) on the Hoyt Lakes Library Board. She feels the library is the heart of Hoyt Lakes. Sandy has also been a member of a book club for more than 25 years.

After asking Sandy to contribute to my column, she read a 715 page book and knitted three prayer shawls while contemplating what to write. To date, she has knitted and donated over 60 prayer shawls to comfort those who are suffering. Sandy’s faith fills her with a need to serve others. She cherished her experience as an alto in her church’s choir and was a member until it dissolved. Including Sandy, there are five former choir members left, and they still sing together at funerals.

For years, she defined herself as a church basement lady and helped to provide meals after funerals. In April, the church she attends, Queen of Peace Church (part of Our Lady of Hope Parish) will be closed.

In her free time, she and her husband enjoy spending time at their cabin which they spent many years renovating. Their goal for the cabin was to make memories for their children, grandchildren, and each other. With a lot of hard work, they accomplished this task.

Sandy said she was meant to be a wife, mother, and grandmother, but as you can see, she was meant to be many other things too. As a woman of many talents, her gifts keep on giving. I must add that she is also a gifted writer, and shared a few of her writing samples with me.

If you were to ask Sandy’s friends and family what they thought of when you said her name, they would say “sugar cookies.” She has shared her cookies with family, friends, neighbors, students, authors, and strangers who she crossed paths with.

With Sandy’s love of baking, it should not be a surprise that she has an impressive collection of cookie cutters. Many of the cutters were gifted to her by those who had previously been treated to her cookies. Some of her favorites are very old and Sandy likes knowing that they were “used by many hands over many years.”

She also collects rolling pins. Her mother’s glass rolling pin is amongst her favorites but she always uses the rolling pin gifted to her at her wedding by her husband’s maternal grandmother.

Most recently, Sandy made octopus cookies for her book club. The book of the month was Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt, and the main character is an octopus. She also made Easter bunnies, toadstools, and fluted edged floral cookies for spring.

I would like to thank Sandy for all that she does and for sharing her treasured recipes with us.

Sugar Cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup (2 sticks) softened butter

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar (plus extra for sprinkling)

2 large eggs, at room temperature and beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (plus extra for rolling)

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

Ingredients:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, then add the vanilla and beat until smooth. In another bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add the flour mixture into the butter mixture and mix just until combined. Divide the dough in half and wrap one half with plastic wrap. Roll the other half on a floured board with a floured rolling pin until the dough is about 1/8 inch thick. Using a floured cutter, cut out desired shapes. Place onto ungreased cookie sheets and sprinkle with granulated sugar. Bake for 6-8 minutes or until lightly browned on the edges. Watch carefully as they brown quickly. Repeat with the remaining half of the dough.

Yield: About 36 servings (serving size varies depending on the size of cutter used).

Notes:

Sandy says you can also use different colored sugars, frosting, or sprinkles to decorate the cookies. She found the original recipe in an issue of McCall’s magazine while living in California the first year she was married.

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Trout Whisperer - ...A small town, the biggest-best-place on earth

Publisher — Fri, 22 Mar 2024 14:10:47 +0000

Trout Whisperer - ...A small town, the biggest-best-place on earth

Publisher Fri, 03/22/2024 - 15:10

If you never lived in a small town, you wouldn’t know that everyone who did not only knew the police chief’s first name, you knew their kids' first names, because they played on the local football team, maybe bagged your groceries on Saturday afternoon, once pranked the bank president in town, but he couldn’t be mad at those kids, cuz his or her kids were in on it.

You’d know the postal delivery person by the hitch in their stride from that leather strapped bag hanging on their hip for the last 20 years, every member of the local VFW, and what lady every spring had the earliest, brightest tulips, and she made sure everybody knew it too.

Which preacher pastor or priest lived out his or her sermons, and met your eyes, eye to eye, because they didn’t not understand sin, they forgave it, like a good neighbor is supposed to.

Pothole on fourth, and who down at the city could care less, they lived up on Sixth Avenue, about as smooth as the Indy raceway. Why the flag on the fifth tee, never leaned the way you like. Hardware stores whether it be spring, summer, winter or fall, always stocked full, not only on canning jars, every size, but lids, seals and pickle crisp too.

Gas station, fix yer flat, air up yer tire, give you a better weather forecast than the evening news, might even tip you off about a brunch up at the town hall just today at noon. You can get there quick, and say could you bring me back one, here’s some cash, it’s a fundraiser for the local high school band, my Molly plays the flute, and they;re serving up the local grocer’s home-smoked brats. Ahh, they are so good grilled and you get the bun, brat, onions, kraut, chips and a soda for $2.50. But you can leave extra and they’ll thank you for it. They’ll say, thanks for stopping, and then, right then and there, you know, you lived in a small town.

- The Trout Whisperer

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Miscellaneous Musings by FunGirlDi ...Drugs – Drugs – DRUGS!!!

Publisher — Fri, 15 Mar 2024 19:16:37 +0000

Miscellaneous Musings by FunGirlDi ...Drugs – Drugs – DRUGS!!!

Above is the actress who sings the jingle on the Jardiance drug commercial that airs continually. Diana can’t get the song out of her head.

Publisher Fri, 03/15/2024 - 20:16

I’ve been waltzing around my house lately with a tune in my brain that I picked up from one of the many drug commercials that air constantly on TV.

“I’ve got Type 2 diabetes, but I manage it well.

It’s a little pill with a big story to tell.

I take once-daily Jardiance at each day’s start.

As time went on, it was easy to see,

I’m lowering my A1c.

Jardiance is really swell,

The little pill with a big story to tell.”

I’m getting worried that this earworm has taken a permanent residence and I wish I never heard the commercial.

For the past several months, I started to keep a list of all the drugs I have seen or heard on the radio, magazines, online or on TV. When I think I’ve got them all, I am surprised as I see another commercial touting the introduction of yet another new drug with a name I struggle to even pronounce.

Here is the list of all these drugs:

Abrysvo, Alyglo , Amtagvi, Apretude, Arexvy , Astepro, Aurlumyn , Austedo XR, Avzivi, Axonics, Biktarvy, Breztri, Cabenuva, Calquence, Camzyos, Caplyta, Casgevy, Cosentyx , Darzalex Faspro, Descovy, Dovato, Dupixent, Enbrel, Entresto , Entyvio , Eohilia , Evenity, Farxiga, Fasenra , Fulsuvez , Gardisil 9, Ingrezza, Iwilfin, Jardian, Kerendia, Kesimpta, Keytruda, Leqvio, Linzess, Lucira, Lybalvi, Lyfgenia, Mavyret, Mounjaro, Nervive , Nexgard plus, Nurtec ODT, Ocrevus, OmegaXL, Opdivo , Opzelura, Otezla, Ozempic, Paxlovid, PreserVision, Prevnar20, Prolia , Qdulypta, Opill, Qulipta, Qutenza, Rebif , Rinvoq, Rybelsus, Sandlot flu vaccine, Shingrix, Skyrizi, Sotyktu, Sparvato, Stelara, Tepezza, Tezspire , Trelegy, Tremfya, Trintellix, Trodelvy, Tyrvaya, Ubrelvy, Ultomiris , Uquora, Vabysmo, Velsipity, Veozah, Verzenio , Vraylar, Vyepti, Vyvgart, Wainua, Wegovy, Xeljanz, Xiidra, Yervoy , Zelsuvmi , Zepbound, Zeposia,

You may think what I thought when I first started noticing them. The names look like someone is speaking (or writing) in a foreign language. I’m sure many of them come from Latin root words.

These drugs come with more warnings than you could ever make up. If you dare to try one of these, the warnings come short of you may grow an arm out of your forehead and worse if you are shorter than five feet, a smoker and consume more than 12 carbonated beverages per 24-hour period for the previous 18 months. They all end with “Ask your doctor to prescribe this for you,” I always think, “With all these possible side effects, why would you?”

At the recent State of the Union, President Biden mentioned the high cost of drugs in this country. Could there be any correlation between the cost of drugs and of all this advertising and marketing? My money is on a hearty ‘YES!’

I recently was in the market for new health insurance. The Cobra plan I was on was charging $827.40 per month, which came fully equipped with a $2,500 yearly deductible plus drug copays. As a relatively healthy person, last year I spent about $2,000 out of pocket toward my deductible and my expensive insurance plan didn’t kick in at all!

On a recent trip to the Twin Cities, I noticed there are new buildings being erected everywhere to house new healthcare specialty clinics and Urgent Care facilities. I guess I know where all the money went that I and others paid for unused insurance plans.

Healthcare has turned into big or rather HUGE business. No longer can doctors make the big salaries they used to and I’m afraid that when the word gets out, there will not be very many young people wanting to spend years and years in college, medical school, internships and residencies. They end up with hundreds of thousands of student loan debt and then once become doctors, are held at limits as to what they can earn because top management requires multi-million-dollar salaries and perks. What are we going to do when there is a shortage of doctors?

I tried to call one of my doctor’s offices earlier this week. I ran into a phone answering system that gave me nine choices of where to direct my call. I selected number seven then waited on hold and had to listen to annoying music that I’m sure was put in place so whoever calls would hang up. I gave up waiting after 12 minutes and did exactly what I think they intended - I hung up without an answer. I’m sure I’ll hear from them as I was going to make a payment.

Ever since Covid, so many are scared to contract any sickness and are programmed to get every vaccination that comes on the market. If the word would get out again that the human body was designed to naturally build up immunities to diseases, the lines for vaccines would dry up and pharmaceutical companies would need to cancel their order for their 15th Gulfstream jet to add to their fleet. The human body is an amazing machine, and our immune system can blow away any drug that comes accompanied with more warnings than a cat lady has cats.

I am not trying to undermine those who have compromised immune systems, chronic illnesses or debilitating diseases and have to manage their healthcare stringently. They have to handle their bodies in accordance with their healthcare team and their recommendations. I, however, can’t be alone in my thoughts of what I see.

These drug commercials that run day and night, have got to have had some negative effects. The United States and New Zealand are the only countries in the world that allow direct to consumer prescription drug advertising.

In 1996, $550 million was spent by pharmaceutical companies on drug ads. That number had increased more than 10-fold by 2020, reaching $6.6 billion annually and since it is now 2024, that number has had to skyrocket. Also, there are concerns that have arisen regarding expensive branded medications prescribed rather than generic options.

Consumers are more likely to ask their doctor for pharmaceutical treatments rather than live a healthy lifestyle by changing behaviors and I think drug companies are more than aware of this phenomenon.

Concern has risen that inappropriate drug prescribing is now an issue because patients ask for unnecessary drugs they have seen in advertisements. When we hear these commercials, we may fall victim to the power of suggestion and talk oneself into an ailment.

Evidently, House and Senate members have taken notice as well about the influx of drug advertising and have launched at least nine bills aimed at pharmacy benefit managers and companies that channel prescription drugs to patients.

On the other hand, the commercials may do a bit of good to educate consumers about possible treatment options about illnesses or diseases. Education is key in taking certain medications and those facts are reiterated to never stop or start a drug without consulting with a medical professional.

This year during the Super Bowl, Pfizer placed an expensive ad at a price tag of an estimated $14 million for their 60 second spot. It was the first time the company had advertised during the big game. That is a lot of healthcare dollars spent when many football fans probably missed it when they ran to the bathroom to rid themselves of that third Bud Lite.

I have been blessed to be relatively healthy and have gone the route of more natural supplements and food rather than rely on additional pharmaceuticals. I have not gone off the deep end either, as I still see a medical doctor regularly for a drug to regulate my blood pressure. I am not dead set against drugs, as they are necessary to treat some medical conditions.

We were taught as youngsters that everything in moderation was the way to go through life. Balance and common sense were two of the most important tools to have along with us for the ride. I have gotten concerned over the flood of drugs seemingly shoved in my direction no matter what I tune in to watch.

I am happy to report that I don’t have Type 2 diabetes that I manage well, even though I have been singing about it daily for the past few weeks. I guess I am like Jardiance in a way, as here I just proved I had a big story to tell!

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What You Don’t Know Won’t Hurt You…

Publisher — Fri, 01 Mar 2024 15:44:08 +0000

What You Don’t Know Won’t Hurt You…

Publisher Fri, 03/01/2024 - 16:44

by Diana Mavetz Petrich

I gave up Facebook for Lent. I was searching for something to offer up and perhaps relinquish its hold on me. Even though sugar is high on my list, I realized that something bigger had a hold on me – more so than the white stuff that sits in a covered pottery bowl in my kitchen cabinet.

Every Sunday morning, I get a notification on my iPhone about how many hours a week I spend on my phone. It flashes on my screen as I am getting ready to go to Sunday Mass. I started paying attention to the average number of hours per day I was interacting with this 3 x 5 electronic device, and it began to gnaw at me.

As Lent was approaching, I started thinking of what I could give up. At first, I thought about Facebook, but quickly dismissed that thought. I like Facebook, I like seeing what others are doing, I get inspired by memes and I was entertained by jokes and videos while scrolling.

I draw inspiration from songs, and I heard a song from 1959 by James Cleveland a few weeks back. It is, “Something’s Got a Hold of Me.” James was singing about falling in love, but I was thinking past his reference and looking at my life.

Over the years, I have seen people post about their surrendering of coffee or chocolate for Lent and I wasn’t one bit interested in joining in with them. I brushed it off that my faith wasn’t as strong as theirs nor did I have the desire to give up something I enjoyed.

As I have written, I have returned to my Catholic faith, and I now understand the whys behind giving up a loved item during the most holy time of the year. As I studied more about Lent, it began to sink in that I needed to do something bigger. Whatever I choose, it would have to make an impact in my life.

One night I had a dream I was back in high school, and I had to hand over my phone to my teacher. I was on the device so much that it was interfering with getting my work accomplished. When I woke up, I realized that was my subconscious directing me.

I made the final decision on the Sunday morning before Ash Wednesday when I looked at the screentime notification and I was shocked that the past week I had spent an AVERAGE of 7.5 hours per day on my phone. I pay bills on my phone, read my email, read the news, watch the weather, and communicate with my family and friends, but this high number startled me into submission. There was no justifying that number and I knew it was up to me to change it.

Before I went to bed on the evening before Ash Wednesday, I wrote a post on Facebook to alert the troops of my decision to step back from Facebook for the 40 days of Lent. I wrote, “Giving up Facebook for Lent. This won’t be easy. That’s why I’m doing it.”

The next morning, I was curious as to what people may have written about my post, but I held on tight to my conviction and have not gone on the platform at all.

Two weeks have passed, and I can say I am a recovering Facebookaholic. I joined Facebook on September 8, 2008. It has been 15½ years and I cringe at the amount of time I have wasted over the years. Oh, sure it has been great to reconnect with friends and it certainly is a great aid in reaching classmates for reunions, however, I now realize how much time I spent, and I can never get it back.

I have wasted a lot of energy on people I really don’t care for, and I know they don’t care about me either. Facebook is a thing that has eroded my productivity and only when you admit you have a problem can you do something to change it.

It was so easy to grab my phone, sit on the couch and unendingly scroll through all the posts, videos, and now oodles and oodles of ads. Many times, I would obligingly Like or Love someone’s posts because I thought I needed to. Then I would see someone else make a comment and I would think I had to do that, too. These were unending exercises in futility.

Recently, I was in the Twin Cities and stopped in a restaurant to grab a cup of coffee. I saw four young women seated at a table – all on their phones. Since they got my coffee order wrong, I had to wait an additional five minutes for them to remake my order, so I moved out of the way, but continued watching these women. For the 10 minutes I was waiting, they didn’t speak to each other – at all! They laughed out loud to whatever they were reading or watching on their devices and never bothered to even share their delight with those at the same table.

I know I have done this with my family. My phone dings and I pick it up as if it was a life-or-death situation. These little devices whisk us away from the most important thing in our lives – our loved ones. Once again, we will never get those moments back.

It has become visible that communication skills among the young are definitely affected. Many young adults start their sentences with, “I mean,” or “It’s like.” Don’t believe me? Just tune into a reality show for a few minutes and you will hear this. Jokes are lost on the young because of the constant accusations that any humor is racist, homophobic, or offensive.

Since the influx of cellphones, the majority of communication between many people seem to happen only through text, images or videos and is barren when compared to rich and complex face-to-face conversations.

It is no fallacy that Facebook feeds us a lot of useless information and is the worst perpetrator of fake news in the world. As users, we are becoming more vulnerable each day to false stories. Fake news posts are abundant no matter what side of the aisle of the political auditorium you choose. Facebook has sequestered many who post their opinion or a political view. As Americans, we should all be enraged that this type of censoring is happening. Freedom of speech is being squelched and that is a mammoth concern for all of us.

A sad casualty are lifelong friendships that have ended because of arguments over posts on social media. Disagreements erupted publicly and the words exchanged are forever on record.

Whether we believe it or not, the news we get from Facebook is specifically created to change beliefs and behaviors of us. At first, some of the posts may seem harmless, but they have been huge in helping users form opinions on national matters such as elections.

I will admit in front of God and whoever is reading this that I am nosy. I like to see what others are doing. I have talents in different areas, and I have posted about what I have done – in a sense, bragging. That confession makes me roll my eyes at myself. My parents used to talk to us about humility and evidently, I didn’t listen very closely.

My father used to tell us that, “Nosy people don’t live long,” which I didn’t understand. When I was about 11 years old, I asked him to explain. He said, “If you are so busy watching someone else cross the road, you are not paying attention that a truck is headed right for you.” Okay, dad…

It’s been two weeks since I have been social media free, and my productivity has skyrocketed. I read a book cover to cover, which is something I haven’t done in over 20 years. I would say I liked to read, but I didn’t have the time to do it.

I have been in my house almost three years and still had unpacked boxes in the basement. I have been unpacking them and found items I was missing. I set up my office in the basement and a cute little corner for my grandbabies to play with all the toys that have been packed away and unused since I moved here. I set up tables with grow lights, heaters and a watering station and planted the first seeds for my garden this spring. I can say I’m on the verge of giddiness with all the projects I am tackling.

The reason behind this “recovery” I chose is mostly a religious one. I closed the Facebook door, which was something that interfered with everything in my life. There is an old saying that when one door closes, God opens a window. I am finding this out to be true except it isn’t a window, rather it is a large garage door. The best part is my faith has become my sidekick and I will no longer ride without it.

I can’t bash Facebook completely as there is a time and place for everything. This platform has connected people with long lost friends and family. It is an invaluable tool when trying to reach people or pull an event together. Everything in moderation is okay – it’s the overuse that I personally discovered is harmful.

I decided to take the extra time I was spending on my phone and put the energy toward becoming a better version of myself. One thing I am not missing is the bombarding of information that has absolutely no effect on my life whatsoever. My dad told us kids many times over, “What you don’t know won’t hurt you.”

Dad, how right you are again.

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Hook and Bullet Club - Ely Film Festival

Publisher — Sat, 17 Feb 2024 05:37:18 +0000

Hook and Bullet Club - Ely Film Festival

DURING A Q&A session hosted by Ely Echo publisher Nick Wognum, Carl Skustad of Ely and Leah Gruhn of Duluth along with Joe Weiss of Ely answered questions about the movie “40 Below.” Photo by Mary Wognum.

Publisher Sat, 02/17/2024 - 06:37

We took in two films at the Ely Film Festival last week.

The first was “One With the Whale” which is about a Alaska Native family that is forced to deal with online bullying after a family member kills a whale to provide food for the people of St. Lawrence, a tiny Alaskan island in the Bering Sea,

And, the Ely Echo sponsored showing of “40 Below: The Toughest Race in the World” which is about the Arrowhead 135 race from International Falls to Tower where competitors, walk, bike or ski in oftentimes bitter conditions.

When “40 Below” was over I hosted a question and answer period with competitors Carl Skustad, Leah Gruhn and Joe Weiss.

Both Leah and Carl are shown competing in the 2019 race while Joe was a volunteer that year.

Carl shared a story of what happened to him that year and why there aren’t many who ski the race.

“So there’s not many of us that try to ski it. In Marius’s film, I didn’t finish. I pulled out at Melgeorge’s this time. I did finish five others. This one was extremely extra hard with the skis. It’s kind of like skiing on sandpaper.

“And most of us in the U.S. don’t ski this far at once. In Europe, we ski this far at once, but like the Birkie, for example, is 50k. That’s like a long ski in the U.S. most of the time.

“The 135 is not normal on skis in the U.S., I guess. But that’s why I tried it. When I came back from Alaska, I was like, why are not more people skiing the 135? So I gave it a shot a few years ago and found success other than minus 40.

“Minus 40 on skis is just, was a little bit too much. Yeah.

“At minus 40, it doesn’t have to be as epic as this race or this video shows. But there’s other things that happen, as we know, living in the north at minus 40, like pipes freeze, cars don’t start, skidders don’t move.

“I’m at Melgeorge’s and my wife, Christina, tells me the house is frozen. We have four kids at home. I’m like, I’m frozen, too. But I’m coming home.

“I had worked in Alaska and helped move and recover and rescue lots of people. And I personally didn’t want to leave Melgeorge’s and take that risk management on that evening. I went home and thawed pipes.”

Also at Ely’s Historic State Theater in the sold out crowd were Paul and Sue Schurke. They said their daughter Bria was the first female to ever cross the finish line on skis.

Joe Weiss worked as a volunteer in the film but talked about being a competitor in the walking division.

“So the reason I started doing Melgeorge’s is because the last time I did the race, I frosted both of my ears by like, I don’t know, mile 25.

“And it was, talking about conditions, I don’t even know, at that mileage, I was already like two hours behind where I did the year before because you’re just dragging a sled over sandpaper. It’s just brutal.

“And so it’s insanely cold, but I’m sweating like crazy because I’m working super hard and I took my hat off. And at some point I just reached up and both of my ears were frozen solid, which I’ve never experienced that before.

“And they itched, like till the end of April. I would just itch constantly. It was horrible.”

We had hoped to have director Marius Anderson there but he wasn’t able to. If you’d like to see his work check out London Road Films.

He’s got some great shorts on there to watch. One was the world’s oldest hockey player, he does a nice job with Mark Sertich. There’s one about a bar on a frozen Minnesota lake, that one’s cool. Plus there’s one on cutting hair with fire, you gotta watch it, it’s crazy. And then my favorite, a video about a hot tub filled with beer.

I’ve been advocating to have the theater show “40 Below” again. It’s one of the funniest documentaries you’ll ever see.

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Trout Whisperer - Good, to the very last drop

Publisher — Sat, 17 Feb 2024 05:16:48 +0000

Trout Whisperer - Good, to the very last drop

Publisher Sat, 02/17/2024 - 06:16

We finished the bluegill fish fry just after 4 p.m. He said he was going outside to pile up some wood for a campfire, I decided to skip the dishes and join him.

We hauled split ash, birch, maple and placed it all on top of a year-old bale of hay. We trimmed back a pine tree that some kind of bug is killing, thing was robust last spring, it’s on its last leg now, probably be cutting it down soon enough but then we had enough.

Done, stepped back admiringly and thought we had ourselves a doosey. I said, “Just have to wait until dark, I’m gonna clean up the dishes, seems about right for it now.” So I did. He went off to the shed, fetched two nice high-backed bag chairs and said, “How about we check the specific gravity of some high western and tin cup respectively.”

I told him next to our fire, that’d should be just about right. Sometime later, all our conversation worn out, fire was reduced to ashes, not much glow left in them when he said, “Time for me to go hold my mattress down for a while, you coming.” I said, “I’ll be in a bit.”

He melted into the dark, heard the cabin door, eased my stocking cap back, looked up, found the north star, Polaris kochab’d with a squinty eye, lazied along the Milky Way, came back over to the big dipper when a shooting star burst a shaft.

I wished they lasted longer, then I wished the fire did, then I wished he would have stayed longer so he might have seen the shooter. Then his idea of sleep seemed time and when I laid down, I closed my eyes on the day’s history. Shiny ice, gills aplenty, one scampering mink, a great pal half a cabin away snoring his head off, nice time all of it. Yeah, it was a very good day, just don’t think I could rinse anymore out it.

- The Trout Whisperer

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Trout Whisperer - It’s not funny, but it’s funny

Publisher — Fri, 09 Feb 2024 20:47:28 +0000

Trout Whisperer - It’s not funny, but it’s funny

Publisher Fri, 02/09/2024 - 21:47

He had been there twice last week, great ice, and for ice fishing, he had some extra good luck.

I said “OK.”

He says, “I’ll pick you up 3:30 a.m. sharp.”

I said, “If you know it so well, what’s the hurry.?

“We gotta stop at the bait shop, I can’t stand waiting, you get there after five, the parking lots jammed up, he doesn’t have any help, so it's just best.”

Again, I said “OK.”

The lot has no vehicles, there are no lights on in the building, it's five after five when the first truck pulls up, he’s waiting like us, by 5:30 a.m. there’s at least a dozen vehicles, there’d be more, but some folks evidently gave up and left.

At 6:17 a.m. Riley pulls up, gets out of his truck, unlocks the door, flips a switch, and he is descended upon. We’re eighth or ninth in line as Riley explains he had a flat tire, and had to have his neighbor come help him change it on the side of the road, in the dark, in the cold. What a way to start a Saturday, you could tell he wasn’t too happy.

I asked Riley if wanted me to put on the coffee, oh, that’d be a big help. Pretty sure my buddy’s head was about to explode before he got his turn to get an air pack of swimming hopefuls. And since we’re just waiting, I said “Riley, I’ll scoop, you just run the register.”

“Would ya?”

Sure, no problem. An hour later Riley was all caught up, he even gave us our minnows for free.

My pal has since resigned himself to the simple fact, things somehow don’t always go according to plan. He’s now done fussing, we are finally on our way.

He looks at his watch, he says, “It still just irks me so bad, I absolutely hate waiting, I had a plan.”

I burst out laughing, said, “Well I hope the walleyes don’t mind, because you’re doing it to them.”

- The Trout Whisperer

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End of the Road Recipes: Blonde Bombshell Chili

Publisher — Fri, 02 Feb 2024 14:24:38 +0000

End of the Road Recipes: Blonde Bombshell Chili

Publisher Fri, 02/02/2024 - 15:24

by Crystal Schlueter

Super Bowl Sunday is coming up, which means it’s time for a chili recipe.

Back in 2015, I heard about a chili contest with a $10,000 prize and knew I had to enter. The chili was to be paired with the sponsor company’s Lambrusco and a partnering sponsor’s tortilla chips.

I came up with “Blonde Bombshell Chili,” which is a spicy chicken chili. Chicken chili usually has a thin, broth base with no tomatoes. I decided to make my chili base more like traditional chili, but with yellow tomatoes and using the sponsoring tortilla chips as a thickener.

My chili was selected as a regional semi-finalist. Four other semi-finalists and I got to serve our chili at what was then called Sports Authority Field in Denver, CO, and we were told to bring a guest. The cook-off was judged by former NFL player Karl Mecklenburg. Karl played for the Minnesota Golden Gophers prior to being drafted by the Denver Broncos.

Karl is very blonde, in fact, his nickname during his football days was “The Albino Rhino.” I thought having a blonde judge was a good sign.

My friend and I, who are also blonde, had a great time dishing up chili and serving spicy comebacks to the many blonde jokes that were directed our way.

After all of the chili was tasted, the semi-finalists were told to sit down off to the side. Karl was at a table with his judging checklist. He got up and walked back to my chili, lifted the lid, and bent down to smell what was left in my pot. My chili was the only one he went back to, and I knew I had this one in the bag.

Shortly thereafter, it was announced that I won my region and would be going to the finals in Phoenix. After the cook-off, all of the semi-finalists and our guests were given tickets to the Broncos game.

My friend and I are not sports fans and were exhausted, but to celebrate, we made our way over to the stadium and up many flights of stairs to our seats. Soon after the start of the second quarter, a group of four blonde women that looked like cast members of The Real Housewives dropped their tray of beers on us. My friend and I reeked of chili and now beer was added to the mix.

I remember thinking I should have put beer in my chili (that is how the mind of a competitive cook works) and now I always add it. We then decided we had enough football and went home.

Later, I learned that another competitor and his guest hawked their Broncos tickets for $700 apiece. That would have been a fortune to my friend and I who were two broke 20-somethings. You live, you learn.

Unfortunately, I did not go on to win the final cook-off in Phoenix. That cook-off had two former NFL player judges and neither were blondes, so that probably didn’t help. However, the winning chili also used both sponsor products.

My competitor made a traditional beef chili but added the sponsoring Lambrusco to her tomato base along with cherry preserves, which was a prevalent flavor in the wine. She then took the tortilla chips and crumbled them atop of her chili, so you could actually see them. Well-played.

The best use of sponsor products usually wins the contest. It’s okay though, as the next year she and I were both finalists in a $30,000 sandwich contest. That time, I took home the win.

Blonde Bombshell Chili

Ingredients:

Chili:

3 1/2-4 1/2 cups chicken broth

12 ounces blonde ale (plus extra for serving, if desired)

4 cups yellow cherry tomatoes (or two 10 ounce containers)

2 yellow bell peppers, seeded and chopped

1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano

1 habanero pepper, pricked a few times with a fork

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 large yellow onion, diced

3 large garlic cloves, minced

3/4 cup finely crushed yellow corn tortilla chips (crushed into pea sized crumbs)

3 slightly heaping cups shredded cooked chicken

2 (15.5 ounce) cans great northern beans, drained and slightly mashed

Several pinches of salt and coarsely ground black pepper

Juice of 1 large lemon

Garnishes:

1 1/2 cups shredded smoked cheddar (or your favorite cheese)

1 cup sour cream

2 tablespoons minced chipotle chiles in adobo sauce

1 1/2 teaspoons honey

1 pinch of salt

2 tablespoons fresh cilantro leaves

Instructions:

Chili:

In a large pot, add 3 cups of broth with the ale, tomatoes, bell peppers, and oregano. Roughly mash the tomatoes with a potato masher. Add the habanero and bring to the boil uncovered over medium high heat. Meanwhile, in a dry skillet over medium heat, add the cumin and coriander. Cook for 1-2 minutes or until very fragrant, stirring often. Scrape the spices into the chili. Wipe out the skillet and place back over medium heat with the oil. Once hot, add the onion. Cook for 7-8 minutes, stirring often, until softened and starting to brown. Stir in the garlic and cook for 1 minute longer. Add half of the onion mixture to the chili and reserve the remaining half. Once the chili comes to a rolling boil, cook for an additional 15 minutes or until the vegetables are very soft. Remove from heat and stir in the crushed tortilla chips. Let cool for 15-20 minutes then remove and reserve the habanero. Carefully blend the chili in batches until smooth. Add the mixture back to the pot. Stir in the reserved onion and garlic. Add the chicken, beans, salt and pepper to taste. Turn heat back to medium high and bring to a simmer. Adjust heat to maintain a simmer and cook for 15 minutes or until thickened, stirring often. Add an additional cup of broth if the chili is too thick. Stir in the lemon juice. Taste the chili and add extra salt and pepper if necessary. Blend the reserved habanero (remove the stem) with 1/2 cup of chicken broth until smooth. Stir 1/2 tablespoon of the habanero mixture at a time into the chili until the desired heat level is reached (I added 1 1/2 tablespoons).

Garnishes:

Ladle the chili into 6 bowls. Top each with 1/4 cup of cheese. In a small bowl, stir together the sour cream, chipotle chiles, honey, and salt. Spoon a dollop over each bowl. Sprinkle with cilantro. Serve with extra tortilla chips and blonde ale, if desired.

Yield: 6 servings

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