(L-R) Rosie Schluter; Aaron Reeves, City Administrator; Commissioner Ehlinger; Tom Bergeson, Public Works Director; Susan Brace-Adkins Healthy Communities Supervisor of the Goodhue County Health and Human Services and Dave Maroney, Community Development Director. 

What’s your “pitch”?

  It was just an impulsive idea... to e-mail the Minnesota Department of Health to see if the Commissioner would be interested in my idea of having upper body exercise equipment along the Cannon Falls city trail to promote community health.  

I had read that he had been in Rochester for a media event - pitching horse shoes and letting citizens “pitch” their ideas on public health issues.

It didn’t matter that I didn’t have the commissioner’s correct address.  I just sent it.

Nothing happened.

That I knew about anyway.

Almost three weeks later I got a surprise call from the Department of Health telling me that Dr. Ed Ehlinger, the commissioner, was coming to Cannon Falls in a couple of weeks for an all-day media event including the county’s Health and Human Services department, the county commissioners, local officials and politicians, etc.

Caught off-guard I chuckled, “President Obama only gave us three days... we can do this!”

And then I explained to city officials that I really didn’t usurp their authority - I was just trying to contact the commissioner - but this was cool wasn’t it?  

Many conferences and collaborations later, they all pulled off a wonderful media event (even the weather cooperated), with the hopeful attitude that health issues of importance to all of us would be addressed by the Commissioner in the future.

As Commissioner Dr. Ed Ehlinger stated, it’s his job “to protect and enhance the health of all Minnesota citizens.”  The state’s national health rating has dropped from number one down to number six.  What has gone up?  Obesity and smoking. And exercise has gone down.  But Ehlinger wants to make Minnesota “the healthiest state in the nation.”

That day in the park many issues were presented to the commissioner.  They included fracking sand, wind generators, dental health,  tobacco, and adding upper body exercise equipment to the city walking trail.

Another issue came from Julie Phelps, an elementary school nurse in Cannon Falls.  She expressed the importance of school nurses as they deal with health issues of students like Loden Bell, a fourth grader with diabetes who is very active and also tossed a couple of horse shoes with the commissioner.

Now back to what I had been doing to promote the event.  Well, newspapers and cable TV promos hit the area.  And I was happily surprised when it was kidded around on WCCO-radio Dave Lee’s show on several mornings with our own Jack Lucking.  And then Joan Risty announced it on KDHL radio.   

But my friend, John Weiss, reporting on the event in the Rochester Post Bulletin, “got” me with this write-up:  "... and Rosie Schluter brought a passion for better health — but poor horseshoe pitching form — to Tuesday's "Pitch the Commissioner event in Cannon Falls." 

Oh, the power of the press!

(Behind the scenes video on www.paulrosie.com)

Volunteer Harvesters Rewards!

Tom Sawyer - Sogn Valley Style 

It’s a fairy tale setting... the rolling hills of the Sogn Valley just a few miles south of Cannon Falls. 

But the scenario taking place each weekend reminds you more of Mark Twain’s story of Tom Sawyer... the mischievous boy who persuades his friends to whitewash the fence so he wouldn’t have to do the job.  

Today, hundreds of people have volunteered to harvest the grapes at the Cannon River Vineyard owned by John and Maureen Maloney.

But unlike Twain’s story, these folks look like they’re having a great time and are rewarded at the end of their approximately two hour shifts with a lunch catered by the Old Market Deli, the opportunity to taste a variety of wines and then just relaxing and enjoying the beautiful views of the surrounding hills and vineyards.

According to Bergit Nerheim of the Cannon River Winery, many come back every year.

John explained that they had originally hired a crew to do the harvesting.  But after three years of hearing folks asking to do it, they opened the vineyard for one day for this project.

The next year they had more days.

And this year Bergit said they will likely have 10 days available for morning and afternoon harvesting. They have 30-60 people on a shift and they come from all around Minnesota.  I met Joan and Dennis Benson, he’s from Cannon Falls originally and Linda Perry from Randolph.  

Pretty much all of the grapes are harvested in this manner.

All ages came out on a recent Saturday afternoon.  The grapes are cut from the vine by slicing their stem with a bladed Harvest Fork and then gently laid in the containers which are collected into larger vats.  

The sweet fruity fragrance of these Edelweiss grapes spread across the rows.  It was so delicious you didn’t want to exhale!

And the harvester can eat as many of the grapes as they want to!

         (About an hour into doing my story I couldn’t resist any more and I asked to join the crew!)

John also explained that the south facing hillsides are ideal for growing the cold hardy grapes of Minnesota hybrid varieties that survive the sometimes harsh winters and add a unique and delicious flavor to the wines. 

The Edelweiss grapes being picked that day are a white seeded table, wine and juice grape.  They are hardy to -30 F.  It takes about four to five years after planting before you collect the fruit.  The vines harvested at this session were nine years old.  

 Some interesting data found on the internet may explain why we’re seeing more and more vineyards locally.

One acre of Minnesota grown grapes may produce about 2,800 bottles of wine.

The Minnesota Wine Industry is growing at a rate of 28% annually.

The Minnesota Wineries are projected to produce more than $11,250,000 of wine a year by 2014.

 So here’s a “toast” to the volunteer harvesters at the Cannon River Vineyard!

(For video program go to www.paulrosie.com)

"Death ride" to Red Wing?


It should be a nice night to take a drive, I thought.

We election judges had just finished packing up the results from the primary. There wasn't much competition among the candidates, so the turn-out in our township was pretty light. We only had about 38 ballots to deliver to the county seat about 25 miles away. But we value the ballots.

The rules state we had to have two judges bring the ballots to the courthouse. So the head judge and I started out.

I was driving our little Prius, in which I love to cruise along. It went well for a few miles until we hit the east side of Cannon Falls on Highway 19. It was newly paved and tarred and would be beautiful in the daytime.

But now it was night... and they hadn't yet put the markings on the road indicating where the center and sides were. I ended up just trying to see the grass marking the edge of the road.

That was partly because of the fog. It rose from the road and blocked my vision. And sometimes it rained, which brought blinding reflection from the headlights.

I had really slowed down because at times I couldn't see where the road was turning. This area is filled with hills and valleys. And what about deer crossing?

I thought...can't find a place to pull off the road...what if there's another car coming up behind us... they can't see us... and on and on.

You could tell both my passenger and I were pretty scared because neither one of us was talking!

And that might have led to another problem.

When you talk you have to breathe. And I don't know if I took more than two breaths on that whole stretch of road!

When I got to the courthouse I got out of the car and sat on a bench and closed my eyes and breathed. When I felt stronger I walked back to my car and called my husband. I said, this is really strange.

He knows that I have driven with him through many hours of rain and darkness and didn't feel like this! So he kept me talking on the phone so I would breathe!

I explained that I would be taking Highways 61 to 20 home. It's longer but it's on higher ground and shouldn't be so foggy and the road has markings on it.

Sure enough...we did just fine.

After I dropped off my passenger I felt even better! I was more concerned about her safety.

A couple of weeks later at a town board meeting, the township treasurer came over to me with a questioning look on her face and asked if I had filled out the form for compensation for my mileage? I hadn't. But someone had. And I chuckled when I read what someone had written on the form: "Death Ride to Red Wing!"

Someone else knew how it felt!


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Behind the scenes with

Timberwolves announcer

Audition tapes for the job of public address announcer for the professional basketball team, the Minnesota Timberwolves, had to be in by the end of the day.

Rod Johnson of Cannon Falls had just found out about this opportunity and took his lunch break to make up the tape. His wife, Bernie, “hand delivered” it to the team’s offices in downtown Minneapolis.

Over the following weeks, Rod went through more competitions and intermittent periods of waiting to finally hear that he had been chosen. Later he found out that the other finalist had been none other than Jesse Ventura - who went on to be governor of Minnesota.

This was about 16 years ago.

Rod presently is also director of the Shepherd’s Center where he organizes senior citizen volunteers and trips. Not surprisingly, one event was to attend a Timberwolves game with the added attraction of using three luxury suites to view the game.

It was a Wednesday night when over 15,000 came to see the Charlotte Bobcats play the Timberwolves at Target Center. It seemed to me that it would be fun to find out just what a public address announcer does - so I asked to follow Rod around.

Rod gets to Target Center about 3 p.m. to get ready for a 7 p.m. game. I needed credentials to be able to follow him down into the “bowels” of the auditorium to get to the media room where he starts the process rolling. This is where he gets information like: how to pronounce some of the visiting players names.

Then they have the game operations session, which hadn’t allowed a reporter before. (I promised to cut out the audio on my video camera.)

We went through so many passageways that I’m not sure how I would get out if left alone. Yes, I saw the team’s locker rooms but we didn’t go in.

Midway through the process, Rod took a lunch break. Following this he continued at a fast pace getting his equipment set up at court side. About 6:20 p.m. he starts making pre-game announcements. When the teams come out he confirms starters, the national anthem is sung and he gives the starting lineups.

Rod has many stories to tell about some of the famous sports figures he has seen from his vantage point. Like when Kevin Garnett played here and 12 severely handicapped kids in wheelchairs were on the sidelines during a practice session. Garnet went over and hugged every one of them. And tears of joy cascaded down their faces. There were no cameras but this is the kind of quality character that so many of the athletes have, Rod recalled.

And they know their game. Like Michael Jordan. When in a practice session before the game, he came off the court after taking a couple of shots and explained that the basket was one inch off. Rod called maintenance and sure enough... it was. They fixed it.

Over 50 people from Cannon Falls took advantage of the opportunity to see the game from the suites. Although high above the court, you had a great view and could easily move around and enjoy the food and beverages. Even had your own bathroom.

I was leaving the suites to get back down to courtside when I noticed none of the escalators were going DOWN! All were bringing people upstairs. This would change later on but now it meant I had to run all the way to get to back to court side before the start of the game!

So where do I end up? Being a reporter I was given a place on the media platform. Sid Hartman from the Star Tribune/WCCO radio was right in front of me.

And so were a lot of other guys. All bigger than me. I could barely see the court... much less follow any action. But each one of us had a video monitor to get close-up views. Although... if I’m going to be watching it on a TV screen I might as well be back home!

Besides, it’s not cool to cheer from the media post!

So I moved out.

And yes, the Wolves won.

For video go to: www.paulrosie.com

or excerpts on Youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IeNXv6_ohvQ

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Competition... more than

just winning!

Why is everyone stopping to watch one competitor?

She’s not the fastest one...

In fact, she’s coming in last.

But watch how the other athletes stop... and wait... and cheer... as she finishes her race!

This was the action at a high school swim meet recently. It took place in Ohio but I have heard of similar situations in other places. It just happened that I caught this one on video.

I was visiting our grandkids and going to their various sports activities. So I’ve got video of basketball games... soccer games... concerts, etc.

But it was when I was videoing a swim meet that my attention was drawn to a particular scenario. It was not only the competitor that fascinated me but the reaction of the surrounding athletes and folks in the stands.

Wow!

First we had been holding our breath as the divers leaped up off the board and executed their form in the air to slice into the water below. One broke the school’s record that day.

Then we were mesmerized by the swimmers as they dove into the pool and were streamlining through the blue water. We watched as they made their turns and were racing back to the wall.

And then...

Except for one.

She was coming... although much more slowly. And with more splashing.

It was obvious she couldn’t keep up with the others. And then you noticed she apparently had Down Syndrome. And so you were even more in awe of her even attempting the race.

But you also noticed that the busy commotion of all the other athletes had stopped.

They were focused on watching this one young girl in the pool.

The audience in the stands quieted to watch her final push in the race.

The girl’s arms splashed the water as she headed to her goal. And when she finally touched the wall... cheers and clapping exploded as the young people and adults congratulated her on her struggle.

So...

So if you ever get downhearted about some of the antics of youthful indulgence (along with adult ones)... just know that you can find these wonderfully touching moments of compassion - and this they will carry into their future and ours.

I put a short video on Youtube. I didn’t know anyones’ names. But because of the internet, it was sent to many and also the family of the young girl. And they expressed their appreciation. They want to show it at their annual awards banquet.

How awesome to share in one of these special moments that catches your heart.

See the video on www.paulrosie.com or YouTube - Competition at its best! (look for: alongthewaybyrosie) or go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCmOxlJmbIw&lr=1&ob=0

Is it progress... or just annoying?

It was a "not so pleasant" surprise one morning recently when I discovered my cell phone had been disconnected by my wireless/cell phone service company when we changed to a new plan.

I had not been informed of this possibility beforehand and they apologized.

They explained that my phone was too old.

(This is not something a person of my age likes to hear!)

It had something to do with their equipment not working with our phones.

Although they didn't cut off my husband who has the same phone.

And of course they suggested that I could get an upgrade with a new two year contract, etc.

My old land line phone would also be temporarily forwarded to my husband's cell phone.

(Now you understand how a teenager would feel if all their calls

were sent to their dad's phone!)

But I'm impressed that the company "believed" me when I said I hadn't been told.

Then I wondered why I was so upset about the company disconnecting my cell phone without telling me.

It's not like I've always had one.

Remember the eight party phone line?

I grew up without one. When we moved to Cannon Falls we had an eight party line - where you counted the number of rings to hear if the call was for you.

Although you could pick it up and listen even if it wasn't!

And one time I recall picking it up to call out when I heard voices.

I apologized and was going to hang up when one of them told me to stay on the line because they were going to call me anyway!

But back to my old cell phone. I liked my old phone. It was in perfect condition.

And sometimes I don't like change that much. I remember years ago when I had to get a new computer and I was fussing because I wanted to keep Windows 95, but you had to upgrade.

And now that I'm busy creating new things with my Macs, I am still forced to keep upgrading.

And I loved my old phone company.

They just didn't have the ability to do what I wanted with my cell phone/internet access.

A "new-old" cell phone.

But with this new techie phone/internet stuff, I realize that I probably should have gone to Steve Winchell, local manager of KL Communications, and have him "walk" me through the process. He has "held my hand" before - like when I got my first cell phone years ago.

So now Steve provided me with a used phone and transferred my phone numbers

to it and I headed out.

While driving along, my "new-old" phone started ringing. I finally pulled over and

dug it out of my purse.

The phone's automated voice was asking me if I wanted to keep the voice prompts in Spanish or change them to English.

Since I have had one year of Spanish and over 70 of English - I chose the latter.

I didn't find any pictures or messages left on the phone from the previous owner, but just to be safe I looked up a translation program on the internet so I could say,

"Buenos dias mi amigo!"

A few years ago I had a local phone number that turned out to be the same as the National Bank of Panama.

If you didn't dial the correct number designated for that country you got me!

I got calls from all over the world!

A husband... and a phone...

But now I still just want my old phone back.

Like I said to the cell phone service company - I have kept the same husband for 50 years - I want to keep my old phone too!

Not to be forgotten!

Tis the season to be jolly... (or not).

My mom died many years ago. So I’m over it, right? And most of the time, I am.

But as I walked through a grocery store recently I saw the new addition of special holiday treats. And tears started flowing down my cheeks.

Just arrived on the shelves were German Christmas breads... directly from Germany too.

And they reminded me of Christmases long ago.

Those were the times my mother would delight us with all her baking and the treats of that exciting time of the year. (It’s not a tradition that I have carried on, alas.)

Mom had been an orphan in europe before the first World War. She told us some of her tragic experiences.

But she also shared her German traditions and she really knew how to bake German Christmas cookies and sweets!

Actually, I didn’t care for some of them that much - except for the Spritz cookies! Made with real butter. You see, I was a little kid during World War II and we appreciated real butter.

Anyway, when I saw these German delights on the store’s shelves... through my tears... I knew I wanted to taste them once again.

Then I considered that maybe the breads would go best with a glass of wine or a cup of coffee. As a kid I didn’t get wine. Nor much coffee either. Only a taste once in a while because I was told it might stunt your growth.

And then I wondered: does anyone “dunk” anymore? I mean dipping your slice of bread or roll in your coffee. I can’t remember when I’ve seen anyone do this recently.

Did we just do it because years ago the rolls dried out since we didn’t have airtight containers or freezers to keep them soft?

So many memories... but finally, later in the evening, with the snow falling lightly outside and a glass of wine for a toast inside, I cut open the festive breads and we tasted them once again.

And, you know... I still didn’t like them that much!

But I loved the memories that came with them.

So let’s take courage from the advice given by others who are missing loved ones... “Try not to think of what you have lost, but the joy you had.”

Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays!

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