How can we compete with the Rochester U of M branch when we can hear coyotes out here?
I often welcome a sense of quiet as an older person. Nothing to get really excited about. That's nice. The exciting season of graduation is over in our Morris. Such a big deal and logically so. First it's UMM and then the high school, separated by two weeks in 2024. I remember when UMM's graduation was late and now it's the opposite.
I also remember when we could take for granted a band or "symphonic winds" at UMM's graduation. Is this a permanent arrangement now? No band? But with the Native Americans making their presentation with the drums and chanting? Is "chanting" the most appropriate word?
We should respect all cultures including the traditional Indian one. However I do think we can get carried away romanticizing the old Indian culture. I'm thinking of the country singer Pam Tillis when she did the classic ode. "Have you ever heard the wolf cry to the blue corn moon?" We're supposed to feel enthralled.
Totally real
You know what I heard about three nights ago when I stepped outside my house after dark? I live on Northridge Drive which might be considered "semi-rural." I was surprised to hear the very wild sound. No crying to the blue corn moon maybe, but certainly excited about something. It was amazing to take in: clearly a pack of coyotes to the east of Morris.
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| The coyote (wikipedia) |
The phrase associated with Johnson MN is surely hyperbole: "Where the pavement ends and the West begins." But the early pioneers out here definitely had experiences that could be associated with an old Hollywood western.
Artist's touch
Hearing the chorus of coyotes reminded me of the late artist Del Holdgrafer. Time passes and fewer of us are going to remember this distinct gentleman. What an artist! He did a little portrayal of Hitler when Hitler was contemporary. He covered so much ground and was current and topical so often.
I was thrilled that he sometimes followed up on my cartoon suggestions. Like on the O.J. Simpson trial: he drew a man walking away from his TV and reasoning that he'd just let God be the judge of the matter. Put aside the media hullabaloo.
I'm fascinated as I wonder how Delmar might approach Trump and that whole phenomenon. He might be too concerned and worried to even get into it. He had such a gentle soul. From Donnelly.
Today I particularly remember a drawing Del did of a group of intrepid campers getting away from civilization. A person in the drawing who appeared to be their guide said "pretty soon we'll be getting into wilderness." The others shuddered. They were most obviously out in wilderness already!
Is there any bigger representative of this than coyotes howling?
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| Not the "real" coyote! |
But what I heard the other night was - to repeat - right out of an old western movie. High-pitched. Just wailing. Could not have been domestic dogs.
And if it came from east of Morris, I had to wonder if these animals were out by the river which is right next to the biking/walking trail. A former pastor of my church likes to bicycle there. He told me he had recently seen a coyote or two. Wild animals, yes, but are they dangerous? Mostly the answer appears to be "no."
But these are wild animals. And there is precedent for being a little concerned. Taylor Mitchell was a Canadian country folk singer and songwriter from Toronto. I have seen videos of her and she was good. My, she died at the tender young age of 19. Her death was due to blood loss after two coyotes mauled her while she was walking along Cape Briton Highlands National Park's Skyline Trail.
So I suppose we shouldn't assume anything about coyotes. In the case of Mitchell, it appeared the attacking coyotes had learned to adjust to a limited food supply by attacking moose. Taking on such a large animal, they weren't likely to feel averse to a walking human.
So it appears that special circumstances were in effect. But "special circumstances" happen all the time.
I wonder about the temperament and instincts of our coyotes that seem to be out east of Morris. The biking/walking trail is popular these days of summer. Many solitary people can be observed. Many people have their own dogs and it is a delight to befriend the dogs.
I am inclined to think the "special circumstances" of the Mitchell incident were quite confined/limited. So we needn't fear? I would probably choose to go out there at full sunlight, that's for sure. An area right by a river is bound to have lots of wildlife in its myriad forms. Even skunks and raccoons. Skunks have total power over us, don't you think?
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| Not welcome (wikipedia) |
When I hear the primitive cry of the coyotes again, I will think of the Taylor Mitchell incident. I sure wouldn't head out that way after dark.
So to interpret
What does it mean when we can still hear wild coyote sounds from the outskirts of our community? I suppose it means we're darn close to wilderness.
The University of Minnesota has developed a coordinate campus here in Motown, an object of much pride always. Shall we be concerned that we're in such a remote place that we hear coyotes? I mean, concerned from the standpoint that we'd like to be sure our campus will stay viable? Or even grow?
The growth thing frankly is hard to envision now. Maybe impossible. It would help if we could get the UMM band back for graduation. The kids who are instrumentalists should want to be there. But I guess maybe the youth culture is different from what I remember.
Whither UMM? Whither UMM in our present circumstances where Rochester also has a coordinate campus? Oh, and I'm quite sure the Rochester campus has ambitious lobbyists for their interests. Consider the following: "Tens of thousands of new residents are expected to move to Rochester over the next two decades thanks in part to massive projects like Mayo Clinic's ongoing $5 billion expansion." The quote is from the Star Tribune.
"How are you gonna keep 'em down on the farm," eh? I mean, when you're located in a part of the state increasingly known for being sparse in population and well, desolate. We really are known that way.
The "Superior" company certainly pushes back. But can we compete with the Mayo Clinic and all its burgeoning? I don't know. But in the meantime we can at least feel peace listening to the wild coyote on the fringes of town. These creatures have been known to come right into a town, and they can attack small domestic dogs.
Ah Morris where the deer and the antelope play. Well maybe not the antelope but surely deer which can be plentiful to the east too. And the coyotes. Foxes as well. Skunks? Sadly yes.
If it's Morris versus Rochester for getting U of M resources, expansion and amenities, how do you think we'd turn out?
The Pam Tillis song
You can listen to Pam Tillis sing "Colors of the Wind" with this YouTube link:
Addendum: Remember when the bear came into Morris? According to Morris legend, a daycare group got pretty close to the tree where the little fellow settled, looked up at it. Maybe that's a tall tale. Speaking of tall tales, law enforcement tried telling us in the aftermath that the bear was eventually allowed to just wander away, out of town. A bear that had been wounded in a parking lot downtown.
A wounded bear, just wandering away to who knows where? I was incredulous. But I found a surprising number of people buying the story.
"It was the DNR's bear," Richard Barry told me. Richard had a way of learning local pertinent facts.
Liability issues for sure for whoever was responsible for the animal. I don't think it just wandered in from the wild.
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| Second in state, softball |
Now I'm talking "Wolverines" as in a sports mascot and not the fierce wild animal.
Are there real wild wolverines in this area? Would not rule it out. Out by the bike trail? I wouldn't know. A toast to the Clinton-Graceville-Beardsley Wolverines as they captured second place in Minnesota Class 'A' softball. What terrific memories from just recently. And let me say it was fun being along for the ride, sort of, as I wrote three in-depth blog posts on the success! It always feels like old times. Of course I used to work for the Morris fishwrap, er newspaper.
I am pleased to communicate often with my Bonanza Valley friend Randy Olson. He responded to my final post on the Wolverines:
On that bunt by Jordan (Wright) - you added the YouTube link on your blog.
It already has 418 views, which is remarkable for views on a small school team!
I wrote back to Randy, expanding as I often do on media topics in our changing media world. "Northern Star" is the name of the newspaper that serves CGB. It holds its own although I'm surprised that it apparently does not have a website. What I wrote back to Randy:
Hello Randy - Thanks for recent communications obviously. We see the communications world continue to evolve, definitely an ongoing process. Quaint to look at the Northern Star newspaper, bless their hearts, as it hearkens back to pre-digital times with its approach. Well to each their own. When the details of the game against West Lutheran showed up on the "Minnesota Softball Hub" site, my theory is that it was due to the CGB crowd seeing the dearth of timely coverage. Someone must have done some prodding. I see that these "Hub" sites are associated with the Star Tribune. I wonder what their incentive is for setting these up. The vast majority seem to sit there just dormant.
I was working on my coverage yesterday and was feeling some stress which is stupid for two reasons: 1) I don't get paid to do this anymore, and 2) because my coverage is online I can always go in to correct anything. And that's the big nightmare with the print newspaper - once it's off the press it's too late! And, the post-season phase for any high school sport gets complicated. As I pointed out, CGB played a total of eight post-season games. That gets pretty involved for trying to stay on top of it, especially if you're trying to cover more than one team or more than one sport. Oh, and the double-elimination thing can be confounding! In softball if you lose your first game you're done, and then the double-elimination starts the second round. You have to file all this away.
Double-elimination makes things confusing even for the media people who are trying to stay on top of it.
So I was reminded of all this yesterday as I was at the keyboard, sweated a little. And why should I sweat? I mean, CGB's own newspaper is way behind due to only publishing once a week. From that standpoint I'm doing rings around them. But many local people will always stick up for their hometown paper because it's an ingrained habit. Although, I think the habit is getting thinner all the time. Our librarian Anne Barber told me "I never see kids with the newspapers."
For much of my career we had the two-class system for high school sports. Looking back it really was pretty unfair, but think back to when it was one-class! I remember when Hayfield played Edina in the first round of state basketball and got slaughtered. Edina! They were the powerhouse. They had a star named Bob Zender. I got curious about where he is today so I did a check and found out that he went in for a knee replacement that seemed pretty routine and then died due to a blood clot. Lordy!
Quaint: In my earliest years with the Morris paper, it was almost an honor system for getting press credentials for state. I'd call a day or two previous, simply tell them I wanted the credentials and the person said fine and informed me where to pick them up at the venue. Nice and relaxed. Nothing is nice and relaxed today. Where will it end? And schools today have to contract for "security!" Could not have imagined it when I was young.
Summer is finally here. Morris will have a new athletic director in the fall, we'll see how that goes. I wonder if Willmar paper will start taking us in again. Does the Forum have an ax to grind because they failed in Morris?
Oh, I continue to consider putting my blogs into hiatus. Should be a routine decision but it is not. So the question arises: If I want to do this, do I have to make a big dramatic announcement? I remember in my last year with the Morris paper, I discovered a blog called "Mr. Cheer or Die" on the MN Vikings and the NFL. The guy got a little worn out just like how I feel now, then he sprang the big dramatic announcement. And I'm not sure that's necessary. People have to understand that I have no obligation to do this, it is an at-will thing. And even if I want a hiatus, I might in the future find some new inspiration as with some new topics. At present I am sick of writing about Trump/MAGA. That stuff will keep coming at us no matter what journalists say.
"Mr. Cheer or Die" had a podcast in the days when podcasts were rare. I'm not sure what changed, but I have read that you once needed a real expensive microphone. There are so many podcasts now I'm amazed. I have lost enthusiasm for putting stuff on YouTube because I think it just gets lost in a vast endless sea now. MAYBE I'll have a Christmas song recorded just to send links to a few friends. We'll see.
Caitlin Clark is a case study in "celebrity in America." The Fever lost badly last night.
My health appears fine at this moment so I give thanks to the Lord for this day that he has given me.
- BW
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