Tigers down Enderlin ND w/ super second half

Why not play on Saturday too? The prep sports slate can get kind of intense sometimes. But fans of the Tigers had to enjoy what they saw at the home gym Saturday. Great therapy during this disheartening mid-winter weather, eh? High school sports does a lot to counter that. 

I'm not sure it's enough for this winter, though. Unusual to see extreme cold at the same time the wind really whips up. "Hunker down" might well be the theme. But enthused fans assembled at Tiger Center on Saturday. We had an unusual opponent: Enderlin from out-of-state, the fourth-ranked team in North Dakota Class 'B'. 

As in the Tigers' previous game, versus Montevideo, the opponent carved out a first half advantage. Enderlin showed the superior shooting eye in the first half. So it was the visitor getting the 30-25 lead. The second half was an entirely different story. The Enderlin Eagles cooled off to 8 of 32 in shooting. Jackson Loge got in the groove with the kind of offensive prowess fans are used to seeing. Loge came through with 19 of his 25 game-total points. 

The Tigers won this game 64-54. (We also won the Monte game.)

Enderlin was handed its third loss. Their win total is eight. Meanwhile the Tigers continue to own the No. 3 state ranking. 

We overcame the Eagles' Carson Bartholomay who made four 3-pointers and posted 17 points. He was complemented by the Hurlbuts, Joe with 14 points and Gus with 13. 

MACA owns a 13-0 record. Our field goal shooting numbers were 23 for 63, 37 percent. Loge made eight of 23 shots en route to his game output of 25 points. Brandon Jergenson was four of eleven in the process of scoring ten. Thomas Tiernan made two of eight and posted nine. Cole Wente and Toby Gonnerman each scored six points. Tyler Berlinger put in four and Durgin Decker and Sam Kleinwolterink two each. 

Loge led our 3-point shooting with his four makes in nine shots. Jergenson and Tiernan each made two long-rangers. We were eight of 23 as a team, 35 percent. 

Our freethrow stats were ten of 14, 71 percent. Loge was five of six at the line. Tiernan made three freethrows and Decker two. Loge had seven of our team total 20 rebounds. Two of his boards were offensive. Decker and Wente each had four assists among our team total 12. Berlinger executed two steals. Our turnover total was eight. 

Loge blocked two shots and Jergenson blocked one. "Let's go Brandon." No, let's not hear that, please.

Paying last respects

Recently I have tried doing what I can, with the online resources at my disposal, to highlight the recent sudden and tragic death of Jim Carlson in Florida. How much reach do I have? I really cannot know for sure. I would hope that my writing helps make the public aware of Jim's passing, along with the legacy he leaves as jazz educator and promoter. 

Oh but his talents went well beyond jazz. Jazz represents the clear stamp he left on West Central Minnesota music. His UMM Jazz Festival helped put Morris on the map, maybe better than any other event. As much as this asset had impact, it appears the institution isn't much interested today in keeping it going. A good source tells me it's done. Well, we lost Prairie Pioneer Days initially, so maybe the shock value of these developments has diminished. 

Jim Carlson

I wrote five posts on Jim in the days following his passing. What I'm writing here might be considered a sixth. We had to wait a while to become aware of any sort of official obituary. Well, that wait finally ended Thursday. The appropriate funeral home in Florida came through. So I'm wondering if the obit will make its way into Morris-based commercial media this week. 

Will it be in Tuesday's Morris newspaper? How about the kmrs-kkok site where Marshall so often handles things capably? I call him "Marshall Tucker." 

I'd like to see Marshall do an expose on the softball complex, but that will probably only happen in my dreams. I'm a dinosaur in journalism with my attitude that we cannot trust the sugar-coated pronouncements of people behind projects like this. I came of age during Vietnam and Watergate. "Burn baby burn!" 

Marshall will probably have his usual big bowl of Sugar Frosted Flakes. Same with the newspaper, although I consider the paper to be brain-dead in terms of even seeing expose potential. I think Marshall at least sees it. Me? I'm a throwback. 

A friend commented re. speculation that Jim's obit would appear Tuesday:

 

The obit just came out Thursday, and as all material for publication has to be in to the paper office by Thursday noon, it may not appear in the next issue (if in fact the Florida Funeral home even sent it to the Morris paper). The paper’s obituary page on their website is all messed up when I checked it today. Pedersen Funeral Home can't be counted on for all death notices as many times the family takes care of “arrangements” on their own, or through the Minnesota Cremation Society, so Morris deaths won’t necessarily appear on their website. And if the family opts out of the media contact fee with the funeral home, then nothing may show up.

 

Systems with obituaries are "morphing" just like all of communications. Some people think "social media" is good enough. I'll demur on that. 

Jim Carlson's Jazz Fest is stored away in our memories. I guess that's where it will have to stay. I ought to be admired some for my attitudes on such things. Of course I am not. I'm an agitator. I don't know what's good for me.

Jim Carlson, at right, at his best during the Jazz Festival at Edson. Edson is part of the facility named for Edward and Helen Jane Morrison. Helen Jane is 100 years old!

 

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Boys escape halftime deficit, beat Montevideo

The orange and black of MACA prevailed over the purple of Montevideo on Thursday. The site was Monte. The predicted bad weather held off. It is arriving as of 8:30 a.m. Friday. But the roads were good for the Tigers to head south Thursday for the West Central Conference game. 

The host Thunderhawks led at halftime by four, 30-26. But the Tigers turned on the jets for second half play, to outscore the purple squad 37-22. So we prevailed. The Tigers upped their conference mark to 3-0 with this 63-52 triumph. 

The Willmar newspaper continues to refer to us as "Morris/CA." We of course are "Morris Area Chokio Alberta." Today they refer to one of our players as "Tyler Berling." Of course it's Tyler Berlinger. Tyler was a key player coming off the bench for our win over Hancock at UMM. 

The soaring success of the unbeaten Tigers puts us at No. 3 in the state AA picture. Will we get all the way to the summit? Stay tuned. Monte's coach felt heartened by how his team performed in a losing cause. The T-Hawks are 5-4. 

Jackson Loge and Thomas Tiernan were a 1-2 punch with their offensive prowess. Loge made ten of 16 shots to post the team-best scoring total of 21. Tiernan was six of 13 and scored 18 points. Durgin Decker and Berlinger each came through with eight points. Brandon Jergenson scored six points and Cole Wente two. 

Our team shooting stats were 26 of 51, 51 percent. Tiernan made four 3-pointers and Jergenson made two. I hope fans are not chanting "let's go Brandon." I would view that as being in poor taste. We were six of 19 in our team 3's, 32 percent. The freethrow stats were five of 12, 42 percent, with Berlinger and Tiernan each making two. 

Rebounds: here it was the rangy Loge pulling down eleven to lead, four offensive. Decker was No. 2 with seven boards, two offensive. We had 27 total rebounds, nine offensive. Wente led in assists with four. Three Tigers each had two steals: Decker, Berlinger and Tiernan. Our turnover total was ten. 

Loge was quite the presence around the basket with six blocked shots. Such a performance is par for the course for this Augustana-bound athlete. We're 12-0 now! 

Three Monte T-Hawks had a point total of ten: Justin Collins, Andrew Van Binsbergen and Mason Jerve. Also scoring were Kaden Boike 8, Hunter Strand 7 and Bradyn Schultz 7. Collins made two 3's while Strand and Schultz each made one. Strand and Collins each collected six rebounds. Van Binsbergen led in assists with six, followed by Schultz with three. Van Binsbergen and Boike each had two steals. Collins blocked a shot.

My coverage of the Hancock game is on my "Morris of Course" site. Thanks always for checking in. Here's the permalink:

https://morrisofcourse.blogspot.com/2022/01/maca-boys-force-22-turnovers-in-downing.html

 

Wrestling: tough opponent

This is a rare opportunity for yours truly to write about MAHACA wrestling. I'm not a fan of the "MAHACA" name - yes, pronounced that way - but sometimes in life you have to accept things you don't like. How about "Morris" as a name? Wouldn't that be novel? 

Anyway, while I relish the opportunity to type these kids' names, it was not an upbeat night for Tiger wrestling on Thursday. We were up against the No. 1-ranked team in Class A, the Jaguars of Brooten-Belgrade-Elrosa. The site was Belgrade. The Tigers fell to the Jaguars 58-9. 

Jeremiah Schmidgall wrestled at 113 pounds and lost by technical fall. Alex Sperr prevailed in a 13-7 decision at 120 pounds. Dallas Walton bowed in a 3-1 outcome at 126 pounds. Ethan Lebrija was edged 7-6 in the battle of 132-pounders. Davin Rose won by fall in 3:15 at 138. Caden Rose was defeated in a 9-3 decision at 145. Hunter Massner bowed in a tech fall at 152. Dain Schroeder lost by fall in :37 at 160. Asher Malek lost by fall in 3:31 at 182. 

Then it was Hunter Gibson dropping an 11-4 decision at 195 pounds. Brock Marty was pinned in 5:16 in the battle of 220-pounders. Javon Johnson lost by fall in :43 in the showdown of the big guys.

 

Boys hockey: Willmar 4, Storm 3

The skating athletes took to the ice at the Willmar Civic Center Thursday: MBA vs. Willmar. Fans enjoyed a hard-fought contest. In the end it was the Cardinals of Willmar prevailing by one goal, 4-3. The MBA record was left at 5-6-1. The Willmar numbers: 4-7. 

The Cardinals got the only first period goal which was by Cullen Gregory, with assists by Henry Mickelson and Jason Malmgren. 

The second period was a 2-2 standoff. Willmar's Malmgren scored unassisted. The Storm struck for the first time as Brady DeHaan got the puck in the net with assists from Trevor Buss and Hunter LeClair. Then it was Willmar asserting itself as Dylan Staska scored unassisted. MBA's Cole Blume scored with Charlie Goff's assist. 

The third period was a 1-1 standoff. Willmar's Ethan Stark scored unassisted. MBA's Ian Rajewsky scored the evening's final goal with assists from Sam Thompson and Goff. 

Our goalie was Christopher Danielson who had 29 saves in 33 attempts. Willmar's Braxton Heid had 30 saves in 33 attempts.

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Girls succumb to Thunder Hawks, Koenen

My thermometer shows 32 degrees as I begin this Tiger sports review. Shall I consider wearing sandals when I go out to the mailbox? Well, that's a stretch. As a practical matter I could do it. But let's not all get carried away. There is so much left of winter. A "reprieve" of slightly above zero doesn't go that far. 

So it's Wednesday, biscuits-and-gravy morning at DeToy's Restaurant, and we're looking at the results of Tuesday night girls hoops. It was not a winning night for the Tigers. It was a winning night for the Thunder Hawks of Montevideo, score of 61-45. Monte cruises along with the quite fine won-lost record of 9-1. 

A lot of their success has been due to Avery Koenen. On Tuesday this T-Hawk put in 22 points. Her performance was nicely complemented by Tenley Epema with 16 and Hailey Dirksen with 12. There is another Epema on the Monte roster, Teagan, and she scored six. Then we see the Foley girls, Keely with five points and Kiera with three.

(The individual totals from the Willmar paper add up to 64 points, not 61.)

The T-Hawks used 3-point shooting in no small way. Tenley Epema led that charge with four makes. Teagan Epema was on board with long-rangers, two makes. Dirksen also made two 3's, and these T-Hawks each made one: Kiera Foley, Koenen and Keely Foley. 

Koenen led in rebounds with five followed by Teagan Epema with three. Keely Foley and Koenen each dished out four assists. Tenley Epema supplied three assists. Koenen had two steals. Tenley Epema and Koenen each blocked a shot. 

Our kmrs-kkok site reported that our Tigers "hung tough all night." I know it's important to try to supply a positive "spin." I can read minds sometimes. I don't doubt that MACA showed competitive qualities at times, but we lost the game by 16 points. A coach acquaintance once gave some advice on writing about simple losses: "give credit to the opposing team." OK, sounds reasonable. 

Meredith Carrington was a bright spot in the MACA performance: 21 points including four three-pointers. Quite the deadeye. Cate Kehoe made our other '3'. Maddy Grove supplied ten points. Kehoe finished with five points and Kaylee Harstad with four. Hannah Schultz and Sydney Dietz each provided two points and Shannon Dougherty one. 

The kmrs-kkok coverage notes that Monte is ranked fourth. Monte led 29-23 at halftime.

 

Hancock 52, Tigers 35

The January 8 action for the MACA girls was at the UMM P.E. Center. An intra-county rivalry was renewed: Tigers vs. Owls. Morris is the significantly larger community but that has long seemed irrelevant. The Tigers fell to the Hancock Owls 52-35. 

We failed to contain Kaitlyn Rohloff of the Owls. Rohloff scored 15 first half points, 17 for the game. She was team-high in points. Misti Zempel had a point output of 13. Carlee Hanson came through with nine and she complemented that stat with five rebounds, six assists and three steals. Tori Pahl collected eight rebounds while scoring six points. 

Hancock is rolling over many opponents this season. The proud Owls came out of Saturday at 10-0. 

The Tiger cause was led by Cate Kehoe with eleven points, five rebounds and three steals. Sydney Dietz contributed eight points, four rebounds and three assists. Maddy Grove scored seven points.

 

Where's the spark?

It is useless for me to try to function as a community leader here - embedded biases against me - but aren't we seeing a drop-off in lots of things? We're left with this useless conflict between the City of Morris and the Chamber of Commerce over Prairie Pioneer Days. Who is responsible for PPD? 

The bigger issue is why we would let our midsummer community gathering just wither away. Doesn't it just seem embarrassing on the most fundamental level? I have so many memories stored away of PPD, right from its germination. I saw it decline in some ways, but did not think this was a death spiral. 

It does appear that last summer's "Makers Art Festival" might be the prelude for something special. I am told it will return. So, the Chamber just doesn't give a rip. I was struck by the very impressive support for "Makers" from the local Hispanics. 

There is potential with this event. Artists doing art? Musicians doing music? How can you beat that? So the Killoran stage might be used, if only for 1-2 days the whole year. 

There was no food vendor for the first "Makers," but maybe that could change. Might "Luther's Eatery" come back? I never dreamt that all the old sights and sounds of Prairie Pioneer Days would just vanish. The Museum should solicit photos and put up an exhibit. 

So the UMM Jazz Festival is now history too? It was once famous. I'll quote here an email I sent to a friend last night, a friend who I consider to be civic-conscious:

 

Recently in connection with the death of Jim Carlson, I gleaned the knowledge that the UMM Jazz Festival is not going to be revived. I have this on good authority. Maybe UMM adm. would say decision is on hold or whatever, but I take it as fact, would not surprise me. In its heyday the Jazz Fest was the No. 1 thing "putting Morris on the map." Remember how enthused U of M President Bruininks was about it? He's a real mover and shaker with U $. So apparently the Fest is no more, and is anyone making an issue of it, other than me? First we saw Prairie Pioneer Days die, and now we have this ridiculous issue of the City and Chamber sparring with each other. Marshall at the radio station is just assuming that the city is right and the Chamber is wrong. But it's kind of discouraging. So PPD dies, the UMM Jazz Fest is apparently dead, and the Community Thanksgiving dinner died too. Kind of a pattern. I got through Thanksgiving Day with a large Mountain Dew and a couple donuts from Casey's, plus some "Boost" supplement. I don't have my refrigerator connected. 

The UMM music dept. is having an NDSU graduate student take over jazz band now. The No. 1 choice for the job turned it down because of an insufficient salary offer. I have sources who enlighten me on all this. The wind ensemble director does not have a master's degree.

 

A limit to "selling"

Here's the view just from my perspective: I'm concerned that UMM is using promo/PR as a substitute for real programs and events, things that cost money but that create excitement and build constituencies to support the institution. 

So UMM hires Sue Dieter to do what Sue Dieter does, I guess it's in the Relations Department. My Bonanza Valley friend describes Sue as "arrogant and aloof." 

Think of the priceless asset that the UMM Jazz Fest represented in its long heyday. Today we learn of Carlson's death and see no acknowledgement of this in the local commercial media, none at all. The Morris newspaper website is merely a "teaser," not a go-to place at all. At least the Anfinsons rescued the paper from closure, so kudos to them. 

The radio station site is far more helpful. I smiled as I read Marshall's siding with the city against the Chamber of Commerce. You're not supposed to express opinions in news articles. But I guess there's an exception when you just know you're right. 

Sue Dieter told newspaper staff after I left that things would be better with me gone. Why was I there all those years, working Sundays, pounding the keyboard at 6 a.m., maybe even earlier, if I had no value? All I did was show up in the morning and I actually tried to be cheerful with people. 

Tom Larson - remember him? Maybe not - wrote an editorial that didn't mention me by name, but argued the sports reporting would be better. I delivered absolute mountains of sports reports on behalf of Stevens County teams for years and years. Even with any imperfections, it had value over the long run. 

So I'm still writing about the Tigers today, though not with pressure to cover all teams all the time and with total perfection, not a single typo. The year 2022 is the 50th anniversary of my start writing about the Tigers for the media. Fairly undaunted, I'd say. 

Tom Larson wrote the editorial suggesting that Neal Hofland led a regressive faction on the county board. Where did he get that? Gossip? I'm not aware of Larson living one day of his life in Stevens County. I guess the issue at hand was the RJC? Remember all that talk? "Regional Justice Center." Was that supposed to be in Cyrus? With a jail? Working with Pope County? Thank God it died. 

To anyone reading this: you might be surprised to learn what Sue Dieter might have said about you in a belittling way, with a snicker. I know of what I speak. She employs sarcasm.

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Tigers handle Benson at Tiger Center

The hoops Tigers hit the ground running after the holiday break. The success helps us put aside our mid-winter blues, to be sure. We have been tested of late! Extreme cold and wind. But we like it here, right? That's what the sign said in the early years of the Metrodome. Baseball stat whiz Bill James was amused by the sign. He interpreted it to mean "we don't care what everyone else says." 

I remember Steve Carlton pitching for the Twins when that sign was in the background. "We like it here." 

Indeed, Morris sports fans could feel buoyed by the hoops success on January 6. It was a doubleheader slate for the boys and girls with Benson on the opposing end. It was a sweep for our orange and black. We dominated the Braves, and why is Benson High School still using that nickname? It is cringeworthy.

 

Boys: Tigers 79. Benson 36

What a one-sided score. Fans at Tiger Center saw twelve different Tigers put in points - share-the-wealth. We had Benson buried at halftime: a 47-10 score. We came out of the day with a 10-0 record. The Braves fell to 2-7. 

Might we see a nickname change for Benson in the near future? States are passing laws against this sort of thing. 

A different name from the usual was at the top of our scoring list: Tyler Berlinger whose point output was 15. He was a perfect five-for-five in shooting. Jackson Loge was No. 2 on this day and he, too, made all five of his field goal attempts. Jackson scored 14 points. 

Our third double figures scorer was Thomas Tiernan: 12 points on four of seven. Durgin Decker continues the list: seven points on two of four shooting. Three Tigers each scored six points: Cole Wente, Brandon Jergenson and Toby Gonnerman. Let's complete the list: Sam Kleinwolterink (4), Kyle Fehr (3), Trey Hunt (2), Evan Oberg (2) and Jack Tollefson (2). 

Our team field goal numbers were 28 of 50, 56 percent. We did pretty well from long range: nine of 20 in 3-pointers, 45 percent. Tiernan had impact here, typical for this Tiger, as he made three long-rangers. Loge made both his attempts, and these Tigers made one each: Jergenson, Gonnerman, Kleinwolterink and Fehr. 

The Tigers made 14 of 26 freethrow shots, 54 percent. We were led here by Berlinger at five-for-eight. 

We collected 33 rebounds of which 12 were offensive. Loge and Drew Storck co-led in rebounds with six. Loge showed his unselfish play with three assists among our team total 15. Berlinger came through with four of our team total 18 steals. We turned the ball over nine times. 

Blocked shots? Loge accounted for two while these mates each had one: Wente, Tiernan, Brenden Hardy and Storck.

 

Girls: Tigers 51, Benson 11

Aggressiveness! Intensity! These were surely strong suits in our MACA girls team performance on January 6 vs. Benson. The Tigers rolled over the Braves 51-11, partly on the strength of 23 steals. 

Fans at Tiger Center could also appreciate seeing the scoring balance: four team members in double figures. Is there any better way to start out the new calendar year? 

Meredith Carrington scored 16 points as she made seven of 13 shots. Maddy Grove, Kaylee Harstad and Sydney Dietz each put in ten. The rebounding charge was led by Harstad and Dietz who each had nine boards. This was win No. 4 for coach Dale Henrich's squad, against six losses. Benson was left at 1-8.

 

Attention, Morris boosters

And, who are the Morris community boosters, anyway? Do they exist? Do they exist merely in theory or on paper? Are these people in official positions who just sit there, or who are happy just acting important? But, the latter part of that is sure a rhetorical question. 

The Chamber of Commerce can't get its act together with who is responsible for Prairie Pioneer Days. I hear the Makers Art Festival is coming back this summer, so maybe we can forget about PPD anyway. And, forget about the Chamber of Commerce, naturally. The Chamber wants to blame the city and the city has had to go public to clarify its role on such matters. 

The reliable ol' Marshall at the radio station covers this with the assumption that the city is right, the Chamber of Commerce is wrong. We may all assume that Marshall is right on this, but this is a rather sad commentary. 

Oh, but more sad than all this, is the belief that the once-famous UMM Jazz Festival is permanently gone, permanently erased. It should be an issue of concern for the broader Morris community. The event used to sort of "put us on the map." If anyone cares about that anymore. 

The pandemic gave UMM the excuse to cancel Jazz Fest last year. Of course, people would have to "give a rip" to keep it going. Maybe there's a lot of people with long-haul covid who have experienced a drop in IQ points, like about seven. I suppose we could lose our focus some. Or, is it just endemic apathy? 

What? In connection to Morris? 

When summer comes, our community leaders just want to "go to the lake." What an abomination. 

I write more about the UMM music state of affairs, Jazz Fest prominent, on my companion blog, "Morris of Course." This post is another vehicle for paying tribute to the recently-deceased Jim Carlson. Maybe I'm the only one going out of his way to do this. I invite you to read my post:

https://morrisofcourse.blogspot.com/2022/01/you-know-people-smile-when-remembering.html 

 

The grapevine indicates that the late Carlson indicated some time ago that he did not want a big deal made of his death. I assure you of one thing, though: if he were to look at the recent memorial posts I have written, posts with photos, I have NO DOUBT he would smile broadly. Laughter came easily to the two of us.

 

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

This is "winter," "Fargo" movie style

(from kmrs-kkok site)

Was it so long ago that I could shoot some hoops at the Wells Park court? We are so adaptable, us Minnesotans. Adaptable out of necessity, not that we seek the kind of pure winter weather that envelops us. 

There, I typed "envelops" and not "envelopes." Nice little test of my cognitive state. Spell-check no help on that. "Envelopes" were what we used in "old days," pre-electronic communications, the days when we'd regularly go to a bank and stand in line at a teller window. Change has been profound. Still we grapple with the certainty of the Minnesota winter with its often-grim nature, n'est-ce pas? 

Our winter today, Jan. 8, 2022, is exactly what the creators of the movie "Fargo" tried to project. We can expect a fair amount of snow by now. But in the past few days, we have gotten the "bonus" of strong winds coming out of the north (or northwest) and south. What beautiful "balance." 

My neighborhood of Northridge Drive becomes very attentive to wind effects. We are quite the target for the northwest wind as it assaults down the slope of a gradual hill to the north. Every few years, I feel curiosity about walking to the top of the hill and looking beyond. Surely there must be something interesting "beyond," right? There isn't, there is just "more of same." 

"More of same" describes so much of our rural western Minnesota countryside. I think this is partly what enthralled the makers of the movie "Fargo." Look at how the telephone poles recede into the distance, no clear landmarks in many places. A commentator on the movie remembered his own background in our state, how you'd look to the horizon in winter and it would be an ill-defined hazy blue line. 

We accept all of these traits of the season while acting upbeat around everyone we encounter. Hey, it's just another day, right? Another day in paradise? Well, another day in Minnesota. 

So this morning I said "to heck with shoveling." The effects of the south wind (out of hell) were most evident. Yes, I could have wielded a shovel. I will be 67 years old later this month. I live alone, unfortunately. Maybe my age suggests I might be a focus of some concern. So if the driveway is unattended for a couple days, perhaps time for a "welfare check?" I know one of my neighbors saw me walking home this morning. Maybe they'll start touching base with each other. 

I actually reminded one of my neighbors about three years ago that "I ran the Twin Cities Marathon three times in the 1980s." I was seeking to assure him I could always get to town and back. But, the 1980s? Olivia Newton-John times? Getting more remote to be sure, although fresh in my mind. 

Come to think of it, '70s seem rather fresh too. And my parents remembered the "big band" times of Glenn Miller. Such music was "cool" for a young generation. My late father Ralph got a chance to visit with Miller once. 

We're talking disco for the 1970s. It was escapist music designed, perhaps, to help us put aside concerns like inflation and the Vietnam war which the U.S. had lost. Inflation? It's back at the top of the news today. Losing a war? How about Afghanistan? Wars have seemed necessary to keep the wheels turning for the military industrial complex. What if the U.S. had not been forced to enter World War II? The monstrous complex might not have gotten off the ground. We would not have needed Bob Hope and Ann-Margret to entertain troops in Vietnam. 

Could we have just left Afghanistan alone? What was the pricetag? And now we see hair-pulling among Republicans about how the "build back better" plan is "too expensive." What is the purpose of our education system in America, if it produces leaders with such pea brains? 

Everything is tilted to the right politically now. Donald Trump will not go away. We hear "let's go Brandon" in church. Trump has normalized the word "fuck" whereas previously, it had an awful taint. This is how our culture evolves. 

Trump called General Mark Milley a "fucking idiot." Want to make a wager on who is more intelligent and accomplished? Trump or Milley? Have a hard time answering that question? 

So it's Saturday morning and we go about our business as if in the middle of the movie "Fargo." It's important to act like nothing is awry with the weather - that's part of being Minnesotan. Talk about the weather with some amusement. Deep down we are burdened. Don't let that come out. 

Could I run the Twin Cities Marathon today? For some reason I have no desire to even "jog." I get frustrated seeing Kevin Wohlers who is so in the spirit with jogging. I envy him. I choose instead to shoot hoops at the Wells Park court. But not this weekend.

I am putting up this post at 2:20 p.m. as the northwest wind has really whipped up again. Batten down the hatches.

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

"Did you order this weather?"

Minnesotans know we've "never seen it all" when it comes to the weather. Even lifetime Minnesotans have probably been taken aback by the weather this week. We do not bathe in pride about dealing with the weather. We simply deal with it. We have to. Do what's necessary. Then we dust ourselves off and move forward. 

Unusual aspect about this week's weather: the very strong northwest winds along with the bitterly cold temperature. The temperature usually moderates before we get a blast of wind, doesn't it? 

I often wonder why we aren't more happy with March weather. Have scratched my head over this. The simple reprieve from mid-winter cold ought to have us feeling rather giddy. In mid-winter I always resolve how I will thank God for the moderation of temperatures in early spring. Then when that time comes, we forget to feel thankful. 

My theory is that on the pleasant days in terms of temperature - maybe around 50? - a powerful wind often comes up. It neutralizes the positive effect, or trumps it, although maybe we should retreat from using the word "trump." I mean, I'm writing this on Jan. 6, the anniversary of something harrowing, at least viewed that way if you're a political moderate, i.e. someone with good sense. 

Even with the obvious staring us in the face - the harrowing, threatening nature of Jan. 6 of last year, we can't reach a good enough consensus. The Republican Party ought to get along just fine without Donald Trump. The party appeared headed in the right direction in the immediate aftermath of the riot. We might have gotten consensus on Trump not being fit to be president. We are human and can make mistakes in judgment. 

But we are seeing Republicans push back on any drifting toward consensus. Are they just too proud to admit their judgment was errant? Prior to 2016, Trump built himself up with "branding," a goal that is furthered by sheer celebrity. And that was an art where Trump felt most comfortable. Sad thing, is that people who become masters of this can be horribly artificial. They manufacture a public persona. It is a talent but one that can have dangerous consequences. 

This is illustrated in prime form with Trump's ascendance to the presidency. Did he even want it? He had no credentials. Many of his backers said all the more power to him. To heck with knowing what you're doing, eh? Such as, knowing there is a time to reach compromise with those across the aisle for the betterment of the American people. 

Trump rails about RINOs among GOPers, as if only the hard right course is justifiable, everything else be damned. He wields power like he's an absolute magnet with a certain portion of America, a large portion. Stevens County is full of people with eyes glazed over with devotion to Trump. They carry that devotion into church and expect their church to reflect it. 

We have seen "let's go Brandon" chants from within church walls in the USA. And so many Christians feel now is the time to rip women's reproductive health rights away from them, or to shove gay people back into the closet, or create more hurdles for people of color voting in certain states. This is all buttressed by the faction of Supreme Court members installed by Trump and the Republicans. It appears only the Republican Party is allowed to nominate Supreme Court justices. 

The Jan. 6 anniversary arrives at such an ungodly time in our state of Minnesota with the weather. Were I to encounter a certain friend today, she'd ask "did you order this weather?" A line that would belong in Howard Mohr's famous book.

 

A hovering menace

I was desperately hoping to see a trend in the news toward general acceptance of the danger that Jan. 6 of last year represented. I was hoping and praying - yes, Democrats can pray - that prominent Republicans would just stay quiet if they weren't going to join the desired consensus about Jan. 6. Sometimes there is a "scent" of that, like earlier this week. But the push behind Trump always seems to creep back. Leading to where? 

Republicans do not even have a legislative agenda. Why couldn't Amy McGrath beat Mitch McConnell in Kentucky? I don't know that much about McGrath but she's a Democrat. The crusty old Mitch is nothing but an obstructionist. What's with the affinity with him? Or worse yet, with Lindsay Gramm? We elect these people. 

Our Congressperson Michelle Fischbach will be on the wrong side of history. How many of you care?

All Trump wanted was a little more celebrity when he ran for president, among 17 total Republican candidates. He stood out as the "shiny object" in our media-drenched age. Will it bring down our very cherished United States of America, the "American experiment?"

In the meantime as we monitor this, do what all Minnesotans habitually do: cope with the weather. It's not that we like it, it's just that we do what we have to. Just like the boomer generation adjusting to the high-tech times.

I used this amusing graphic a year ago at this time. I gave my friend Greg Cruze of Cold Spring a hard time about how I thought I saw him in video of the riots! He's pro-Trump. I still sent him my annual Christmas song.

 

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Another year over, a new one just begun

We weren't prepared for loss of Jim "Doc" Carlson (Del Sarlette photo)

The headline is inspired by John Lennon's "Happy Xmas (War is Over)."
New Year's Day and all is not well. Questions remain about the pandemic: how much longer, and in what forms will it persist? We feel sadness about the countless disrupted lives, lost lives and the loss of our cherished routine. There is so much we used to take for granted. 

Could our government have done more to combat the virus when it emerged? Seems natural here to question Republican Party leadership in government, does to me anyway. A great many of us have unyielding faith in the Republican Party, so, must we respect their points of view? On the basis of cheer numbers, we must respect it, to deal with this influential element in our society. We must reckon with it. We must at this time reckon with the "let's go Brandon" folks. 

A lit-up sign in Dell Rapids SD has put the expression in front of us again. Time after time the phrase emerges in the news. There's the dad who said this over the phone to Joe and Jill Biden on Christmas Eve. Our society overall seems to countenance this now. A substantial number of people support it. They support "fuck Joe Biden" even directly to him and his wife at the most sacred of times, on Christmas Eve. Is it so hard to just focus on Santa Claus? Or at least on Christ's birth? But "fuck Joe Biden?" 

A sign outside of Brandon MN got altered this way. The stock car driver who unintentionally inspired all this, at first tried distancing himself from politics. He publicly declared he had "zero interest" in being involved in politics. We learned in the last few days he has done a complete 180. Such is the power of the red state Trump element. It scares me constantly. 

I have had to distance myself from one close friend because of these matters. I try to be the kind of person who communicates well and is understanding, thus can find common ground with friends. Politics lately has overcome my ability to do this. 

So it's New Year's Day, 2022. We used to joke about how easy it was to forget the new year when writing out a check. Seems a dated joke now: we hardly ever write paper checks any more. Our debit or credit cards always know what year it is! 

 

A soul departs

On the micro or local level here in Morris, we have the sad news of Jim Carlson's passing. It happened on Christmas Eve. The rollout of the news was a totally incompetent thing, disastrously so. People can have excuses though, especially when these people have professional positions that they try to protect. The Chamber of Commerce has excuses about dropping the ball with Prairie Pioneer Days. They're trying to tell us "it's not our job" and "why don't you call the city?" 

I'm certain no one at UMM will admit to negligence in the rollout of the sad news re. Jim Carlson. 

Jim left us due to a brain hemorrhage. 

I have heard the excuse that the campus gets shut down over the holidays. Or at least, things get a lot slower. A truism throughout our economy and society, and maybe it's time we question this. We should maybe question the need to have so much around us come to a grinding halt because of a holiday. Christmas and New Year's is the worst. And, even when we get past New Year's, we must anticipate Martin Luther King Day coming along soon. Is this an excuse to keep things "slow?" 

Maybe the indictment here should be of our legacy bricks and mortar institutions. People are expected to "show up at the office" for work. We have not pushed aside this assumption even after a pandemic year when many people adjusted. Many of us have stayed at home and of course harnessed the miracle of the Internet. But legacy institutions remain with their bulkiness and long-established norms. 

So Jim Carlson dies. I struggled at first to get adequate confirmation of the news. Once obtained, I went ahead and wrote an online-based piece. You might call it a "blog." Donald Trump tried blogging briefly and then abandoned it: it's not enough to write a headline, you have to write some body copy, multiple paragraphs, and that requires discipline and some refined background knowledge, which he lacks. He just happens to be a former president of the United States. 

He liked Twitter because he could lash out impulsively with brief, often crude comments. Until Twitter couldn't take it any more and he was banned. Yes, the man who was U.S. president for four years, who paid off a porn star and Playboy model for their silence after dalliances. I imagine Trump was just interested in sex. And be honest, isn't this what all men want? You want to be honest about this? But Trump is held up by the "evangelical Christians" of America as being on the same level as God and Jesus, maybe even superseding these. They'll deny that. That's their right. 

And if we cannot respect Christianity any more, where does that leave us for Christmas? I tried marking Christmas in the standard traditional way, the way my parents demonstrated for me when I was young. This was when the U.S. had leaders who projected morality, class, temperance and stability. Today it's "MAGA," at least out here in the rural USA. 

 

Dark clouds ahead?

So the new year is upon us. Problem is, it's scary to look ahead. We hear it's a guarantee for Republicans to re-take the House of Representatives. We could actually prevent that. We could prevent it, if more of us would simply consider voting for Democrats. Outlook is grim based on what we see in communities like Dell Rapids SD. A lit-up "let's go Brandon" sign with the initials "FJB" underneath, in case you need a reminder of what the phrase means. It's "fuck Joe Biden." 

I admired Ronald Reagan, the man and his spouse who projected total class. That Republican Party is totally gone now.

 

Addendum: The story of my getting confirmation of Jim Carlson's passing is on my companion blog, "Morris of Course." I use the word "odyssey" for the process. It was very unfortunate. I invite you to read this post, where you will find three more excellent photos from Carlson's tenure at the head of UMM jazz. Here is the permalink: 

https://morrisofcourse.blogspot.com/2021/12/rather-odyssey-to-confirm-jim-carlsons.html 

 

Happy New Year, y'all!

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com 

 

The Dell Rapids SD sign, image from "Daily Beast." What has become of all of us? And at Christmas?