Faribault – Valerie's Voice

Litter

The Faribault Flyers Bike and Ski Club picked up trash last week. The club adopted a portion of highway 60, out of Faribault. This means the club has committed to pick up litter along both sides of the highway section, at least twice a year.

Gary and I are members of this bike club and were available to help. It was a windy day, and that was challenging…keeping the plastic garbage bag from blowing away, or its twisting and dumping all the contents out. But, the sun was out and it was a mild temperature.

We were all given fluorescent vests to wear. The traffic on this particular highway is heavy, and a little dauting at first, being so close to the road with the cars whizzing by. We were given garbage bags to fill, then instructed to leave them on the side of the road to be picked up.

We divided into four groups of four or five.

We were told mark with a bag… and do not touch… drug paraphernalia or firearms, if we came upon any. I found what looked like a small firearm. I did pick it up because I was fairly certain it was too small to be real. It ended up being a large cigarette lighter in the shape of a gun. Sigh.

This small, heavy, metal gun that was a lighter.

It felt good to be outdoors on this spring day, while picking up the discarded pop and beer cans, liquor bottles, miscellaneous paper, fast food bags and cups and utensils, cigarette lighters and cigarette butts (the worse). I think there is a mentality that cigarette butts are not litter, so smokers just throw them out the window. There are a lot of them!

Full trash bags set along side the road for pick-up. We filled 35-40 bags, in two hours.

It felt good to participate in this community service. There were several of us from the bike club that showed up to help. Many hands make light work, although it was still hard work. We had a handy, dandy picker-upper which worked well. It reduced the amount of bending over a little bit, during our two-hour shift.

Six months from now, the club will set apart another afternoon to collect trash from the same section of the highway. It’s one of those jobs that is never ending, but I think we make a difference.

More Random Thoughts on Animals

We’ve had unseasonably warmer weather for this time of year (except for that one cold night in Duluth at Bentleville). It hit 54* yesterday. Gary went for a bike ride (my bike was put away for winter already) and I went for a long walk around the three ponds in our neighborhood.

This is one portion of the pond where hundreds of geese are facing the same direction.

This is a regular route and we often see wildlife. We’ve seen otters, and a beaver a couple years ago, a fox and frogs and such. However, the past few days the ponds have been clear of any wild life. I thought the Canadian geese and ducks had flown south. I guess not, they were back, in mass.

The geese in the pond from a different angle.

It was a beautiful sight, and a fun sight since they were mostly all facing the same direction…like they were waiting for a preacher to start preaching.

The beautiful Cathedral of Our Merciful Saviour in Faribault, Minnesota.

Which led me to thinking about a recent concert we went to at Our Merciful Savior’s Cathedral in Faribault Minnesota. We entered the church from the front and I liked what I saw.

The menagerie of stuffed animals taking up the front pew of this church.

The entire front pew was lined with all different sorts of stuffed animals…all looking towards the pulpit. I thought it was a clever way to fill the front row since so many of us head to the back of church to sit, but I found out after the concert, when we visited with the priest, that he keeps the stuffed animals up front for his children’s sermons.

Glass frog…photo off internet public domain

Then, as I continued walking along, I thought about an age-appropriate book I’ve been reading for our grandson. This adventure book talks about different animals in the Amazon rainforest. It introduced me to a glass frog. It is amazing (as all creatures are). This frog has a lime green, camouflage back with a translucent underside where you can see the organs inside its body! I had to look it up! I had never heard of this.

And sure enough, there is such a creature! And there are a couple of fun videos on the internet about the glass frog! I’ve added a couple of links.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twAK29xwb6Q

The male glass frog also is the soul protector of the eggs and will ward off its predator, the wasp, with one swift kick of his very long leg.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7zARByAu1c

Once again, I’m reminded “All creatures great and small, the Lord God made them all” – unique, wonderful and amazing!

Bridge Over Troubled Water

It’s been a long time since we’ve been to the Chanhassen Dinner Theater, but we attended a concert there last weekend. In addition to the main stage play productions, there is a smaller venue, the Fireside Theater, where concert series are performed.

At the end of December, we were scheduled to go to the Christmas on the Prairie concert in the Fireside Theater, but a winter storm caused Chanhassen to cancel the concert. So, we had to choose a different concert. We chose Simon and Garfunkel’s Bridge Over Troubled Water.

Enjoying the fire in the main lobby of Chanhassen Dinner Theater, before the concert.

Collective Unconscious is a popular Minnesota band that performs tribute concerts of different 60’s and 70’s bands. In 2019, we saw them preform a tribute concert to the Eagle’s at the Paradise Theatre in Faribault, and they were very good. We were excited to see them perform Simon and Garfunkel’s music. It did not disappoint.

A photo of the album cover of Simon and Garfunkel’s *Bridge Over Troubled Water*.

Collective Unconscious includes three guitar players who are also the vocalists, a drummer and a keyboardist. In addition, for this concert, there were 4 violin players, 2 trumpet, 2 trombone, 2 saxophone players, plus a harpist and flautist. They put on an impressive performance, and amazingly they sounded like Simon and Garfunkel, just as they sounded like the Eagle’s when they sang Eagle’s songs. How do they do that? They are very talented.

The first act they performed various songs by the duo, and a couple solo works by Paul Simon.

After intermission they played through the entire Bridge over Troubled Water album, the last album recorded by Simon and Garfunkel in 1970, before they went their separate ways.

The first song on the album is “Bridge Over Troubled Water”, a favorite of mine, and many others. The lead vocalist did a superb job!

The group performed the songs in order on the album, and after several songs one of the vocalists said something to the effect… Back in the 60’s if you were laying on your orange, shag carpeting listening to a vinyl album, you would hear the scratch sound indicating it had come to the end of side one. You would have to get up, physically turn the album over, and set the needle down to play side two... His sound effects and word descriptions were so vivid, we could envision everything he said. It looked like most of us in the auditorium were from that era and could identify with what he was saying. It was not only funny, but nostalgic.

After they finished side two of the album, they came back for an encore and played three more songs including, “The Sounds of Silence”, another one of my favorites.

It was fun to be out on a Saturday night…hanging out listening to great “oldie but goodies” music in an “oldie, but classic” dinner theatre, that was built in a cornfield in Chanhassen, Minnesota in 1968.

Before the Cold Sets In…

Last week the snow started falling…sometimes it felt like we were living in a snow globe. It was, and still is, beautiful outside.

Out our front door…at dawn’s early light.

Looking out our patio door, early morning.

It has continued to snow off and on, and the “frosting” has stayed on the trees, and everything else for that matter. Wherever you look, it is stunning. A true winter wonderland!

We went on a cross-country ski outing at Riverbend Nature Center in Faribault before the freezing temperatures moved in. It was breathtaking…and hard to ski because I wanted to capture it on camera.

Other skiers enjoying the fresh fallen snow.

Recently, while in North Carolina, I read the chapter book “The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, to my grandchildren.

In the book, the white witch keeps winter in Narnia all year long. The white snow-covered wonderland is gorgeous, but I wouldn’t want to live in it forever.

Now the freezing temperatures are moving in.

“And mamma in her ‘kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled down for a long winter’s nap…”

It’s time to settle into the cozy house by the warm fire. I’m so grateful we can do that, knowing full well that’s not the case for everyone.

Leaves hanging on trees, some individually covered in snow!

This scene in Riverbend reminded me of the cotton fields we saw in South Carolina last month.

Winter Walks

Northfield’s Winter Walk took on an interesting twist for me this year. The children’s book author Kate DiCamillo was at our local bookstore, Content, for a book signing. I invited my daughter-in-love to come join me for Winter Walk, to meet and greet this author, who I knew was a favorite of hers.

Kate DiCamillo signing books at Content Bookstore.

First, my daughter-in-love and I went out for a nice dinner at a local restaurant, Reunion, and then we got in line for the book signing at Content. We were assigned a wait list number, which worked well and we didn’t have to wait long. It was a brief encounter, but sweet.

Enjoying our greeting time with Kate DiCamillo.

Understandably, Kate DiCamillo was masked which doesn’t make for lovely photos, but she was very gracious, and a joy to meet. (It was interesting to learn from Wikipedia that this beloved and award-winning children’s author received 473 rejection letters before her first book was published!)

Beautiful horses pulled a wagon, giving rides throughout the night. Photo taken 2021.

After shopping a bit in the children’s section of Content, we meandered along the closed-off main street lined with luminaries; going in and out of the stores, checking out the model trains at the library, waiting in line for a quick horse-drawn wagon ride, and hearing different groups playing or singing Christmas music.

The weather was mild, and the lights and crowds made it festive.

I love this tree that is lit up during the Christmas season, welcoming everyone to Northfield. It sits on top of the old Malt-O-Meal hot cereal plant, near downtown. Photo taken 2021.

Also, last week I took another walk along Central Park in Faribault. It was lined with creative and artsy Christmas trees.

The Christmas trees are decorated by local businesses, then donated to families who might not be able to afford a Christmas tree and decorations this year. For more about this event visit MN Prairie Roots…click here.

The Christmas trees are put on display in Central Park for a few days before they are given away. It’s a fun idea, and a benefit to others.

I especially enjoyed seeing the different tree toppers.

It’s beginning to feel a lot like Christmas.

Libraries

Libraries are a gift to any community. I have come to love and appreciate Northfield’s public library.

The Northfield Carnegie Library was built in 1910, with a major addition built in 1985, and renovated in 2015-16.

I think of Andrew Carnegie, whose mission was to provide libraries to many communities throughout the world. A total of 2,509 Carnegie libraries were built between 1883 and 1929.* Northfield’s library is a Carnegie library.

“His [Andrew Carnegie] philanthropic interests centered around the goals of education and world peace. One of his lifelong interests was the establishment of free public libraries to make available to everyone a means of self-education.” **

Over the years I have used a variety of our library’s helpful services. I realize my list is a fraction of what libraries have to offer.

My list includes:
When our grandkids lived with us a for a few months, we went to weekly children’s story time. And after story time, I took them to the children’s area and they picked out books to check out and bring home.
I’ve attended author’s talks at the library.
I’ve had help with my computer from a librarian.
I’ve had help finding books and audio books for myself from a librarian.
I’ve had help finding children’s books from a librarian. I have gotten ideas for children’s game.
I’ve found nooks to sit in and write for a spell. It's a peaceful place.
I can order a book from home and the librarian will find it and put it on the hold shelf for me...I just stop in and pick it up! Quick and easy.
The library offers daily newspapers to read.

Tromsø City Library and Archive was opened in *2005*. It was designed by the Norwegian architect Kjell Beite

When we were in Tromsø Norway, we visited the public library. Tourist information for Tromsø includes a visit to the library. It has a beautiful, architectural design. We did purposely walk to see it, and then one day, when we needed a place to rest while walking around town, we found shelter in this beautiful public library. It felt so right, so peaceful. It was comforting to know we had a place to sit for a spell, and to get a drink of water, use the restroom.

Buckham Memorial Library, est.1930. Faribault, Minnesota

There was a seed exchange program at the library in Tromsø. I’ve seen the same seed exchange program in Faribault’s Buckham Memorial Library. What a wonderful idea.

On a side note: In Svalbard Norway, far above the arctic circle, there is a Global Seed Vault, that stores seeds to provide “security of the world’s food supply against the loss of seeds in genebanks due to mismanagement, accident, equipment failures, funding cuts, war, sabotage, disease and natural disasters.” ***

Libraries: the concept is appealing… and I believe, it’s called pooling and sharing our resources!

*Wikipedia: Carnegie Libraries 
**Wikipedia: Andrew Carnegie
***Wikipedia: Global Seed Vault

Another Christmas Poem

This is my writing partner’s Christmas poem for your enjoyment.

Blessings
by Sheri Ginter Eichhorn

As we gentle into winter and the holidays draw near,
my heart turns toward my loved ones, the good people I hold dear.

It is a time I cherish. During Christmas time I find
that people make more effort to remember to be kind.

We all seem to be nicer, and to be more thoughtful, too.
It brings out all the best in us and shows in what we do.

It’s a time when we remember the blessings that we share,
and it’s a time to show others just how much we care.

It seems to me that, in the end, the blessings we receive
that matter most of all to us are our loved ones, I believe.

And, though life’s not always easy, when a tough challenge appears,
It’s the hands of all those loved ones that I hold to quench my fears.

I am blessed far beyond measure with the riches of the heart.
and it matters so for me to say that you, dear, are a part

Of my lovely cache of treasures—of the people I hold dear—
and that is why I wish you love today and through the year.

My wish for you is every good that life can offer you.
A life of love and happiness and lots of laughter, too.

May all the blessings Christmas brings be yours at the holidays.
But also, may the year bless you in endless, lovely ways.

Imaginary Door

A few weeks ago we were hiking in a wooded area in Faribault and came across an intriguing sight. It made us stop in our tracks to investigate…

From the trail we noticed this secret door…

It looked like two roots from a large, tall tree that had grown down a cliff and into the soil at the bottom leaving an opening exposing the rock cliff. It formed a beautifully-shaped, arched doorway, and it was the size of one too.

We saw this from the trail at the bottom of a rock wall but we didn’t see an easy way to get to the top of the wall, and we were not equipped to go rock climbing that day. We left the trail and walked closer to the tree to inspect how the split trunk/roots were attached to the rock and found they were growing into the rock. It looked like the rock was sandstone so it seemed possible.

Perspective as to how large the fissure is.

We wondered how it grew to be this way. It was a fun and curious discovery. Gary went and stood in the opening to show perspective to its size.

It lends to one’s imagination of opening an adult-size fairy door and entering through the tree to mystical and charming wonderlands inside…

Someday I’d love to go back and strategically attach a door knob to the rock door…

Frosty the Snowman

We took a drive down to Faribault MN to see Faribault Frosty. Even though we do not have any snow on the ground Faribault’s Frosty still came to be – and is a wonder for us all to see.

Frosty is an oversized Snowman and one that has been created every year for 17 years by a wonderful family giving this gift to their community in Faribault. Employees from Shattuck- St. Mary School’s ice rink shaved ice with their Zamboni for this family’s tradition to carry on in spite of the fact there are no students at the school practicing their hockey skills or ice skating.

We took our grandchildren to see Frosty standing tall. As we drove up the master creator was on a ladder tying Frosty’s red scarf around his neck. He told us we came just in time – that the kids could help him patch up Frosty by adding snow to some holes in Frosty’s body. The kids had a great time doing so.

This is a great tradition this Faribault family has built. Frosty’s creator, was so kind to our grandhildren and he made their day.

And mine too…every little act of kindness these days really means a lot.

Story Walk

We entered Forestville State Park into the GPS system in our car and ended up on a dirt road in the middle of two tall cornfields with the system declaring we had “reached our destination!”

Following the red truck down the gravel road.

We pulled over and as we got out our map, a red pick up truck pulled up along side us and stopped. We rolled down our window and he asked, “Are you looking for the state park? “ We said, “Yes.” He said, “Follow me.” So we did. He stopped a couple miles up the road at his farm and gave us directions from there to the park. He laughed and told us he meets the nicest folks at the end of his driveway… every weekend. They find themselves where we did, in the cornfields looking for the state park.

The beautiful golden cornfields under an interesting sky.

Along our route that morning we saw colors of autumn. Yellow, red and orange leaves on the trees and stunning golden corn stalks in the fields so we didn’t mind this beautiful detour… and we did find the state park.

Once there we met up with friends. They greeted us with a campfire. We planned to do some hiking.

The park has set up a wonderful Story Walk along one park trail. I had seen this Story Walk idea in Faribault. I had checked out a few storyboards downtown. The title of the featured book in Faribault was Eric Carle’s, From Head to Toe.

(That morning in Faribault has a side story… I left our house and drove 25 minutes south to Faribault to run some errands. When I got out at my first stop I realized I had my slippers on! It was too far to go back home and change shoes so I ran my errands in my slippers!)

Back to Forestville State Park. The book featured on the Story Walk was One North Star by Phyllis Root.

Look for “Eight yellow pond lilies float, seven great blue herons…”

Each page of the book was placed behind plastic on a sign staked to the ground, spaced several hundred feet apart on the trail.

Look for “Nine mosquitoes whine, eight small cranberries…”

As you walk along the trail you stop to read another page of the story. This book is a beautifully illustrated, counting book featuring Minnesota animals and flowers. We stopped at each page to read and count. It was fun!

I enjoyed the book so much I bought a copy at the park office.

I can only imagine how much fun this Story Walk would be for children. It is engaging. We were wishing our grandchildren were along, hiking this Story Walk trail with us.