PAGE 4 PRESS PERSPECTIVES JULY 6, 2011
FROM THE
EDITOR'S DESK...
By Julie Garden Robinson, Food and Nutrition S )ecialist
BY ALLISON OLIMB
EDITOR,
There is something magical
about the Fourth of July.
Since I was tiny, the Park River
Independence Day celebration
was a family tradition. We would
gather at the street corner to
watch the parade. With every
passing fire truck we filled bags
with Tootsie Rolls that soon
would weigh more than we did.
You can see the wonder in the
eyes of children who'd never had
it be okay to take candy from
Hello,
The hay season has officially
started. Maybe it is just our little
comer or heaven, but we have the
biggest hay crop we have ever
had! If we get it up. We, as in I,
started cutting over the weekend.
Between showers. I just couldn't
hold myself back any longer. Al-
beit, criticism aside, it went pretty
good. And when'I am done with
this article, I'm going to wake
Shirley so she can take her turn.
As I was cutting yesterday, I was
thinking of past haying seasons.
Oh, there has been a few
mishaps. And I think if we had a
way to investigate, like they do in
airline crashes, we would deter-
mine that most of our problems
are caused by "pilot error".
Have you ever hoticed that
there is a direct link between
salary and repairs? I mean it. If
you hire a good man, or woman,
and pay them pretty good, it
seems like things get greased,
throttled back, raised over, gone
around, aired up, and so forth.
I'm always too cheap to hire
good help. Shirley and Will work
long days. I work occasionally.
Butwe haven't hired anybody in
years. We rely on donated labor
by friends and relatives. People
salfiadtan
( Si)cict00 ....
VALSH COUNTY PRESS
strangers in the street before as
they stuff their pockets with
goodies.
Parents sat back and snuck a
sweet or five as the next car
would doll out more for the kids
to dive into.
Car after truck, after tractor,
after bagpipers, after yet another
fire truck.., all in the name of
freedom. We celebrate because
we can. We, or more appropri-
ately those who fought before us,
Hat
who mean well.
For instance there is Herb.
Herb is from New York. Upstate
New York. He makes sure you
know this. And he comes out to
North Dakota each year to help us
out during haying. And to shoot
pd's. PDs are prairie dogs. I guess
that's what you call them in Up-
state New York.
So, every year, Herb loads his
weapons of mass destruction in
the back ofhisjeep and heads for
the ranch. He brings a truckload
of guns ranging from pellet guns
to howitzers. I wouldn't be sur-
prised if he has rocket propel)ed
grenades in there. He has shoot-
ing tables, tripods, and enough ri-
fles to defeat the French in a shoot
out.
And he likes to help. So, I put
him on the mower-conditioner.
Brand new. Paid for with a credit
card. I want it to last, at least till
we make the first payment. So I
asked if he can drive the Ford
tractor. He assures me, "If it has
Happenings at Our
Good Samaritan
and the big ones with their bright
colors that light up the sky are all
the routine and are expected, but
for me and my cousins the best
treat was when Grandma Steffie
would hand out boxes of snaps
just for us. You know the ones,
you throw them at the ground (or
at your brothers' toes) and they
make a snap noise. Snaps may
not be the most advanced of the
firecrackers, but they were from
grandma and they were given
with love, so they were my
favorites.
The streets were filled with
people and the park was filled
with family. We would eat until
we couldn't eat anymore and then
take to the playground, playing
games, and taking in the enter-
made sure we could, tainment where itzould be found.
Firecrackers, bottle rockets, And you never new what you Prairie Fare
Tips
wheels, I can run it!"
I explain the transmission, the
pto, and the hydraulics. He has it
down. I explain there is only one
thing you have to worry about.
DON'T TURN TOO SHORT! I
mention tiffs time and time again.
DON'T TURN TOO SHORT! If
you turn too short the gooseneck
hitch on the swing tongue hits the
tractor tire and can cause trelnen-
dous harm.
I make one round with Herb.
He has it down. So I get out and
stand there and watch him go
down the field, make one turn,
and run the gooseneck over the
tire. Causing tremendous dam-
aget His explanation is always
the same, "the frickin' mirrors
aren't set".
A couple days later, we have
things pretty well straightened
out. And Herb is shooting pd's. I
leave the swing tongue in a field
near the dog town and come
home for dinner. Herb, always
wanting to help, takes over the
would find from mimals and art
to games or a show.
It was a day of summer.
It was a day where no one was
"too busy."
Before you knew it, it would
be time to start harvest, and go
back to school, and count the
snowflakes as they fell into win-
ter, and wish it were summer once
more, but.., not on this day.
On this day, we celebrated
America with childlike wonder
and it seemed as though the world
would stand still for a few hours
until the sky dissolved in colorful
explosions. If you ask me, that is
magic.
Like "' the l'2tLs'h Count)' Press on Faeebook
and check out our blog at htq://walsh
countpre,s's, wordpress.com
cutting. Unbeknownst to me. He
makes a couple of rounds and a
wheel falls off. Not his fault. The
lug bolts worked loose. Can hap-
pen. He doesn't notice that he is
dragging the swing tongue down
the field sideways cause it has
only one wheel. Well, he notices
when he comes around again and
finds he has a dead furrow to
drive in.
He explains it wasn't his fault.
"The frickin' mirrors aren't set".
1 gently explain that as long as
he is in the tractor anyway, "just
kind of glance back once in
awhile".
That reminds me of the guy
that used to work for Jim. He was
hauling hay home and would oc-
casionally lose a few bales. And
his mirrors didn't work either, and
he would come home with half a
load of hay.
One time he plled in the yard
with no trailer. I nean no trailer.
Jiin walks over md asked where
the trailer was.
"Darrel" looks back and says,
"I don's know. It was behine me
da las time dat I looked!"
But, myself, if I had to work
for what I was worth, I'd starve to
death.
Later, Dean
There may be no future
NDSU Extension Service
"Mom, listen to this. It's about
water," my 7-year-old daughter
noted as she looke d up at the TV.
I was reading a newspaper arti-
cle about the ongoing flooding sit-
uations in North Dakota, so I didn't
look up promptly enough to suit
my daughter. I thought the TV
story was a recap of the newspa-
"Morn, you really need to
watch this," she said.
Then my persistent child gently
turned nay face in the direction of
our TV screen. I obediently
watched the report.
The national story wasn't about
flooding, though. The story was
geared toward kids and talked
about water conservation in
homes.
"Do you see what we can do to
conserve water?" she noted with
her hands on her hips. Fommately,
we were doing several of these
things already.
We have many options avail-
able to help conserve water. When
brushing teeth, we can fill a glass
with water and use that water to
wet the brush and rinse our mouth.
We can check faucets to be sure
they are not dripping. We can in-
stall restrictors in shower heads to
lessen water use during showers.
Shortening our shower time or
opting for baths limits water use,
too. We can turn off the water as
we lather our hands and only run
the dishwasher when it's com-
pletely full.
Installing a water-conserving
toilet, which uses half the amount
of water older toilets do, can lessen
water use. Using rainwater on
your plants also conserves water.
You can learn more about water
quality and testing from publica-
tions at http://www.ag.ndsu.
edu/pubs/watsys.html.
Water can have devastating ef-
fects when it's present in our envi-
ronment in too high or low
amounts. We all need a safe sup-
ply of water for survival, and my
daughter was right about con-
servation.
Our bodies, which are made of
60 to 70 percent water, need an on-
Monica Simon ADC
Happy 4th of July to all. We would like to thank everyone who
celebrated the 4th with us. A special thank you to the Parade for coming
by the center we always enjoy that so. We look forward to our July
events:
July Events:
July 7 2:30 Communion Service with Rev. Jeff Johnson
July 14 3:00 Monthly Birthday party program and lunch hosted by
Grace Free Lutheran Church of Edinburg
July 20 7:00 Polish Dancers
July 28 3:00 Auxiliary lunch and program provided by Trinity
Lutheran Church of Edinburg
Devotional leaders for the week were Sue Faggerholt, Rev. David
Hinrichs, Corrine Ramsey, Lois Ydstie, Lorene Larson, and Bonnie Van
Bruggen, and the accompanists were Jan Novak and Monica Simon.
Rev. Paul Kiel led Sunday Worship services and Father Gary Lutein. We
would thank everyone Who shared their time and talents with us this
week.
5 Key Steps to "wear it right"
Check the Label:
• The label will tell you if the life jacket is Coast Guard Approved
• The label will tell you the size of the life jacket
• The label will tell you how to use the jacket. (Sizes run from
infant to 2x adult). Children's life jackets should have a loop on the
collar and a strap between the legs. Infant life jackets have a head
protector that keeps them from going face down in the water.
Check for Damage:
• Check that there are no broken parts and no mold or rips in the
fabric. (When you are drowning is not the time to check for this).
Fasten Up:
• Fasten up all buckles, zippers and straps. Adjust straps so that
the jacket fits snugly. (When you are drowning is not the time to fasten
up)
Check for Proper Fit:
• Lift the shoulders of the life jacket; make sure it does not slip
above the chin or ears.
• It should feel snug, yet comfortable. A properly fitted life jacket
keeps your shoulders and head above water. You can swim in a properly
fitted life jacket.
Wear it:
• A life jacket only works if it is worn.. Make sure you wear the
rig]it life jacket before you go out in the water. (The time to put it on is
not when you are drowning).
If you would like to purchase a Life Jacket contact us. We have some
very nice life jackets at rrasonable cost available in our office courtesy
f
of Altru Safe Kids!
in the future
Sometime. around 1970,
Prof. Ed Banfield wrote a book,
The Unheavenly City, in which he
described the "present-oriented"
nature of lower class people whose
lifestyle was devoid of thoughts of
the future.
As a society, we could deal with
this inability of a minority to
foresee the importance of curbing
today's desires for tomolxow's
rewards. As an example, to protect
these fols from themselves,
Social Security was made
compulsory because present-
oriented people would spend
everything today and have nothing
for retirement. Smoking is another
present-oriented example.. We 11
enjoy that cigarette today, and
worry about cancer later.
While present-orientedness was
creating socialproblelns 40 years
ago when Banfield was writing, it
has spread to all segments of
society. "I want it now"
consumerism has become the rule
rather than the exception. Our
thoughts of the future have been
eclipsed by our thirst for things of
the present.
This present-oriented mentality
casts dark shadows over our
future. In fact, if we stay on this
course, there may be no future in
our future. God has not
guaranteed our existence in
perpetuity.
The first shadow is the inability
of the electorate to make informed
decisions. With the advent of
electronic media, people have
lapsed into ignorance about public
affairs, 'banking on the total
misrepresentations by FOX and
MSNBC, and the. partial
misrepresentations by CNN and
the networks. Uninformed
opinions have supplanted facts in
the public dialogue as newspapers
have been edged out of the
marketplace.
The second shadow is the
national debt. Our present-
oriented spending habits are
unsustainable and, ffwe are going
to have a future, we must curb
spending and raise revenue. But
this will never happen. Three-
fourths of the people think we are
spending too much but they are
also against cutting programs or
raising taxes.
Faced with this inconsistency,
politicians grab the part of the
elephant they like best and make it
their nonnegotiable position. The
debt crisis will not be solved by
polarized politics that promise to
get worse rather than better. Long
term problems can't be solved by
short term politicians.
The third shadow is the
"dumbing down" of our education
system. Instead of making
education a joint responsibility of
parents and teachers, we keep
blaming the failure of children on
the schools. Most of the criticism
during the Bush and the Obama
administrations has been directed
at schools while it is the parents
who need to be more engaged and
that would take a major cultural
shift.
At the college level, we see an
erosion of academic standards.
The electronic media have made it
possible for profit-making
organizations claiming university
status to short-cut education by
offering "life experience" credit,
second-rate content and inferior
instruction. This dumbing down
of the system means students are
learn ing less and as more and more
students keep learning less and less
we will have an electorate that
lacks knowledge, critical thinking
and other qualities required to
sustain a democracy.
The fourth shadow is energy.
The present dialogue on energy
policy manifests a distinct present-
orientedness. There is no public
support for reductions in
consumption, such as reducing
traffic speed, raising gas taxes, or
cleaning up energy sources. The
response to such suggestions
tbcuses on the increased cost and
inconvenience to present day
consumers. Today s corporate
bottom line and consumer
convenience are more important
than the impact on future
generations.
On the major issues of the day,
the present-oriemed electorate can
no longer think into the future and
realize that this generation must
experience inconvenience and
sacrifice to s&ure a brighter future
for our children and grandchildren.
Unless we start making some hard
decisions, there is not much future
in the future.
going supply of water. During
warm summer months, keeping
our bodies well-hydrated is criti-
cal.
How much should we drink per
day to stay hydrated? You may be
familiar with the 8-by-8 rule,
meaning eight glasses of fluid per
day with 8 ounces in each glass.
Many professionals recom-
mend 8 to 9 cups of water and
fluid from beverages per day for
women and 13 cups for men. This
accounts for about 80 percent of
your daily fluid intake. The other
20 percent is from water contained
in food.
Some fruits and vegetables,
such as watermelon and tomatoes,
contain more than 90 percent
water. However, your water needs
are very individualized and de-
pend on many factors, including
your health, how active you are
and where you live.
Hot and humid weather and
high altitudes increase sweating,
urination and breathing, so more
fluids may be needed in these con-
ditions. Sickness with a fever,
vomiting and diarrhea all increase
your fluid needs. Women who are
pregnant or lactating need more
fluids.
r
You need more fluids during
exercise. For exercises that make
you sweat and last less than an
hour, be sure to hydrate before you
exercise. If you exercise for longer
than an hour, a good rule of thtunb
is 6 ounces of fluid every 15 min-
utes.
This is about the fluid amount
in a small Styrofoam coffee cup.
Generally, if you rarely feel
thirsty and continually have light-
colored urine, you probably are
getting enough. However, do not
go by thirst alone. As we age, our
thirst mechanism diminishes. You
already are somewhat dehydrated
if you feel thirsty.
Editor's Note: Garden-Robin-
son, Ph.D., L.R.D., is a North
Dakota State UniversiO." Extension
ServiceJbod and nutrition special-
ist and associate professor in the
Department of Health, Nutrition
and Exercise Sciences
Editor's Note
Walsh County Nutrition, Food Safety and Health Agent Julie Zikmund's
columnn was not available due to the holiday. Her columns will return as soon
as she does.
Around the County
Walsh County Extension Office Park River - 284-6624
Resources for everyone
from grillers to growers
Dr. Marcia McMullen
Featured Speaker
at Plot Tour
Dr. Marcia McMullen, NDSU
Extension Plant Pathologist, will
be the featured speaker at the An-
nual Walsh County Plot tour
sponsored by the Walsh County
Crop Improvement Association.
Dr. McMullen will cover leaf dis-
eases in small grains. It looks to
be a hot topic with all the mois-
ture we have been receiving
lately. The meal will start a 6 p.m.
with the plot tour follow. Bryan
Hanson, Research Agronomist at
the Langdon Research and Ex-
tension Center, will be present-
ing on the small grain plots. The
meal is sponsored by the banks of
Walsh County. Come and enjoy
the evening.
NDSU BBQ Bootcamp
in Grand Forks
The NDSU Extension Service
is offering a BBQ Bootcamp in
Grand Forks on July 14 begin-
ning at 5 pm. The event will take
place at the Alerus Center and
will offer a unique opportunity io
learn a variety of BBQ tech-
niques. Learning topics include
meat cut selection; new cooking
methods and practices; rubs,
marinades and seasonings; food
safety and nutrition; and smok-
ing, gas and charcoal cooking. At
the end of the program those at-
tending will receive a meal in-
cluding the variety of cooking
styles which are demonstrated
during the program and samples
are also handed out during the
program. For more information
about the BBQ Bootcamp please
contact Donna Bernhardt or Car-
ole Hadlich at 701-780-8229 at
the Grand Forks Extension Of-
rice.
Small Grain Disease
Forecasting
The NDSU small grain disease
forecasting model website has
been activated for the season. The
website predicts the risk of infec-
tion for tan spot, septoria leaf
blotch and leaf rust of wheat, as
well as Fusarium head blight
(scab). The forecasting model
can be found at www.ag.ndsu.
nodak.edu/cropdisease/. The risk
of infection is based on weather
data from North Dakota Agricul-
tural Weather Network
(NDAWN) locations. To utilize
the website one choses the
NDAWN site of interest and the
crop growth stage to get the fore-
cast.
Dates to Remember:
July 11, Walsh County Plot Tour, Extension Office
Park River; 6 p.m.
