I thought I was seeing
a painting
come to life...
A Kincaid painting...
in real life
in
Oregon.
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Lost in a storm...
tiny dog finds big friend
A lightning storm the previous night had left the Cannon Valley trail refreshed as John Pidd biked along that day. John enjoys riding from his home in Riverside Terrace to the trailhead a couple of miles away and then heading down the trail itself.
It was at the two mile marker that he saw a tiny bedraggled dog running around in circles beside the trail. It seemed to be searching desperately for something.
He slowed down and stopped to check the forlorn little fellow. It appeared to be a Shih Tzu. This is a type of “lap dog” that weighs around ten pounds and is about ten inches tall.
The dog allowed John to pet him and even look at his tags. He could see the words, “St. Cloud”, on one and another tag had the word, “Blessed”. Neither tag was apparently the dog’s name but could mean that he was not local.
John called his wife, Mavis, and they decided that John would put the little dog in the carrier behind his seat and push his bike to the next road which crossed the trail where Mavis could drive to meet him.
Mavis laughingly realized that she would be the one sitting in the back seat!
After checking a house near the trail if they had lost a dog, it was suggested they stop at a nearby campground. They arrived to see flyers had been put up about a lost dog and were told the searchers were presently posting them in Red Wing and Cannon Falls.
The Pidds left their phone number and went home with the dog they now called “Blessed”. About an hour later the owners came to their door. When the tiny dog saw them, the Pidds didn’t know who was more excited, the dog or the owners!
A man and wife, aged 79 and 75 years respectively, explained that the little dog had escaped when they opened the door in their motor home during the lightning storm the day before. The tiny Shih Tzu had been gone since 10:30 a.m. that day until 5 p.m. the next afternoon when John found him.
In the joyful reunion, the owner offered John a reward - but John refused. As the older gentleman kept insisting and appeared to be hurt that John wouldn’t take anything, John found a way. He explained that his two daughters were taking part in a three day 60 mile fundraising walk to fight breast cancer that weekend. It was the Susan B. Konen Minnesota Race for the Cure. He would put the gift of money toward that.
The dog’s owner responded, that’s such a good cause - and he added more money to the amount he had previously offered! Later on John counted it and discovered the total was over $300.
So the little dog, now nicknamed “Blessed”, and his owners... really fulfilled that name.
.
It was at the two mile marker that he saw a tiny bedraggled dog running around in circles beside the trail. It seemed to be searching desperately for something.
He slowed down and stopped to check the forlorn little fellow. It appeared to be a Shih Tzu. This is a type of “lap dog” that weighs around ten pounds and is about ten inches tall.
The dog allowed John to pet him and even look at his tags. He could see the words, “St. Cloud”, on one and another tag had the word, “Blessed”. Neither tag was apparently the dog’s name but could mean that he was not local.
John called his wife, Mavis, and they decided that John would put the little dog in the carrier behind his seat and push his bike to the next road which crossed the trail where Mavis could drive to meet him.
Seeing big tall John walking beside the bike with the tiny dog in the carrier was a picture of tender beauty to Mavis. She smiled as she next recalled how she opened up the back door of the car to let the dog go in. Although he jumped right in, he then hopped over into the front seat and instantly fell asleep!
After checking a house near the trail if they had lost a dog, it was suggested they stop at a nearby campground. They arrived to see flyers had been put up about a lost dog and were told the searchers were presently posting them in Red Wing and Cannon Falls.
The Pidds left their phone number and went home with the dog they now called “Blessed”. About an hour later the owners came to their door. When the tiny dog saw them, the Pidds didn’t know who was more excited, the dog or the owners!
A man and wife, aged 79 and 75 years respectively, explained that the little dog had escaped when they opened the door in their motor home during the lightning storm the day before. The tiny Shih Tzu had been gone since 10:30 a.m. that day until 5 p.m. the next afternoon when John found him.
In the joyful reunion, the owner offered John a reward - but John refused. As the older gentleman kept insisting and appeared to be hurt that John wouldn’t take anything, John found a way. He explained that his two daughters were taking part in a three day 60 mile fundraising walk to fight breast cancer that weekend. It was the Susan B. Konen Minnesota Race for the Cure. He would put the gift of money toward that.
The dog’s owner responded, that’s such a good cause - and he added more money to the amount he had previously offered! Later on John counted it and discovered the total was over $300.
So the little dog, now nicknamed “Blessed”, and his owners... really fulfilled that name.
.
Monday, April 13, 2009
Cannon River Valley’s rare wildflower
Do taxes upset you? One property owner asked me to look into their predicament. So I interviewed a variety of businessmen and residents as to their perspectives. The county assessor, Peggy Trebil, was also very accomodating in giving me information.
Then, following an early morning meeting in town, I came back to our farm and changed into old worn out slacks and sweater... a benefit of working at home. (And although sloppy, they were clean. My mother, although dead many years, would want you to know that!)
It was during a phone call that I heard a knock on the front door. Holding on to our portable phone I ran down and opened it up to a surprise visit from Peggy - the assessor. I welcomed her into the house and told her to find a chair in the kitchen while I finished my interview.
Then we sat and discussed the story I was writing about taxes. Following this she explained that she was reevaluating our farm. She had been out here a couple of years ago, she recalled.
Could increased taxes
threaten endangered species?
threaten endangered species?
Do taxes upset you? One property owner asked me to look into their predicament. So I interviewed a variety of businessmen and residents as to their perspectives. The county assessor, Peggy Trebil, was also very accomodating in giving me information.
Then, following an early morning meeting in town, I came back to our farm and changed into old worn out slacks and sweater... a benefit of working at home. (And although sloppy, they were clean. My mother, although dead many years, would want you to know that!)
Then we sat and discussed the story I was writing about taxes. Following this she explained that she was reevaluating our farm. She had been out here a couple of years ago, she recalled.
She wanted to look at every room in our house. This was a bit humiliating! The kitchen floor had burn marks where I had spilled a burning cookie sheet. And the wall oven was broken and needed replacement. I apologized that we couldn’t use the bathroom because the toilet wasn’t working right. The carpet was buckled from wear and a bag of garbage was sitting by the front door waiting to be taken outside. The laundry room was serving as a catch-all for various bargain cans of juice and vegetables, etc. Rooms were dark because the window shades had been pulled down to conserve heat.
Then we went outside where she checked the age of the roof, etc. We looked in the garage/shed and she noticed the cement floor. I explained that the tractor and loader were on plain dirt at the other end.
As we looked toward the corrals we talked about our stallion. She understood that you don’t keep a stallion for a “pet”. I had asked a previous assessor if we should be classified as a tree farm because we were logging the woodland, but he said our stallion kept us agricultural. Peggy said the state was not classifying horses as livestock. So apparently we would be changed to a residential classification. I recalled that our farm had been part of a class action suit back in the ’70’s to fight that category. And we had won then.
Although I was embarrassed at how poorly both the house and I appeared, how much do you want to bet that our tax evaluation would be higher anyway?
You’re right. The letter arrived a day or so later. We would now be classified as 40 acres of residential.
Someone “up there”, (the legislature, not God!), decided that 40 acres needs to have 10 acres tilled or used for a saleable crop and it should have sufficient or substantial income. When we bought the farm almost 40 years ago, part of it was tilled. And we did that too, until we raised horses and decided to use it for pasture.
So we could raise crops again. But the result would be that we would then have to put our horses into the wooded areas and the river bottomland. And that is the area where the state discovered the federally endangered species, the Dwarf Trout Lily, growing. This is Minnesota’s only endemic plant, meaning it only grows in a few miles of the Cannon River Valley and no where else in the whole world. If someone digs up one of these rare endangered species they can be fined $25,000. But the owners of such property can destroy them by plowing or letting their livestock trample them.
Seems like a higher purpose would be served by simply looking at the best use of the land and just letting country be country.
Then we went outside where she checked the age of the roof, etc. We looked in the garage/shed and she noticed the cement floor. I explained that the tractor and loader were on plain dirt at the other end.
As we looked toward the corrals we talked about our stallion. She understood that you don’t keep a stallion for a “pet”. I had asked a previous assessor if we should be classified as a tree farm because we were logging the woodland, but he said our stallion kept us agricultural. Peggy said the state was not classifying horses as livestock. So apparently we would be changed to a residential classification. I recalled that our farm had been part of a class action suit back in the ’70’s to fight that category. And we had won then.
Although I was embarrassed at how poorly both the house and I appeared, how much do you want to bet that our tax evaluation would be higher anyway?
You’re right. The letter arrived a day or so later. We would now be classified as 40 acres of residential.
Someone “up there”, (the legislature, not God!), decided that 40 acres needs to have 10 acres tilled or used for a saleable crop and it should have sufficient or substantial income. When we bought the farm almost 40 years ago, part of it was tilled. And we did that too, until we raised horses and decided to use it for pasture.
So we could raise crops again. But the result would be that we would then have to put our horses into the wooded areas and the river bottomland. And that is the area where the state discovered the federally endangered species, the Dwarf Trout Lily, growing. This is Minnesota’s only endemic plant, meaning it only grows in a few miles of the Cannon River Valley and no where else in the whole world. If someone digs up one of these rare endangered species they can be fined $25,000. But the owners of such property can destroy them by plowing or letting their livestock trample them.
Seems like a higher purpose would be served by simply looking at the best use of the land and just letting country be country.
.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Historic House may be foreclosed...
Are taxes high in Cannon Falls?
Are taxes high in Cannon Falls?
“I just want someone to care.” Sentimentally, Diana Farr looked around the historic house she owned at 300 Mill Street in Cannon Falls.
The sign on the lawn explains that it is the Van Campen House. It was built in the late 1800’s by Henry Van Campen, the son of pioneer Benjamin H. Van Campen who had a distinguished house across the street. The elder Van Campen’s site is presently a parking lot because the original structure was moved to the Midwest Importers property southwest of the city.
“I walk through here quietly and feel the people who built it,” Diana Farr explained, “and the joy that was here.” Today Farr is apparently losing the house to foreclosure.
The taxes on her building in Cannon Falls, she believes, is the reason she hasn’t sold it. Since the property has gone from residential/commercial to all commercial, (it has two tenants with single room offices), the taxes have just about doubled to over $13,000.
If reclassified as just residential, the taxes on a $398,200 property, approximately the valuation of her property, would be about $5,430 according to Goodhue County Assessor Peggy Trebil. A property is classified as to its use on January 2 of the year. The 2008 levy rate was 131.675. In 2009 this rate dropped to 124.741.
The tax on commercial property is 1.5 % on the first $150,000 and 2% on anything over this.
The total tax on commercial property in the city combines that of the city, county, state, school, hospital and HRA. There is no state levy on residential property but there is on seasonal recreation property like a cabin, etc. which is already taxed at the non-homestead rate.
County 3050.27, City 4609.61, State 3285.35, School 1331.28 and 603.05 = 1934.33, Hospital 246.10, SEMHRA 53.41, TOTAL: $13,179.07 with Special assessments 565.53 and Delinquent 90.07 and 185.33.
One of the highest taxed commercial properties in Cannon Falls apparently is the recently purchased First National Bank - now Merchants Bank. They pay $38,168 for their building and two parking lots. Another commercial building paying $14,096 is First Farmers and Merchants.
Taxes have been a topic of concern in Cannon Falls for several years. A study by the Praxis Strategy Group hired by the city showed that Cannon Falls has the highest taxes compared to Red Wing, Northfield, Hastings, New Prague sand Stillwater.
For example, Cannon Falls has the highest residential homestead taxes on a $185,000 home. But this is only $12 above a similar one in New Prague and less than $70 higher than one in Red Wing.
Aaron Reeves, Cannon Falls city administrator, explained how the city tries to keep their portion of the taxes as low as possible while trying to provide the services the residents need and want.
Besides the levy, the city applies for funding from grants, etc. They also make sure that developers, for example, pay for the services they use up front.
The main emphasis to getting lower taxes, Reeves explained, is to encourage commercial/industrial growth.
And as one city official who wished to be unidentified said encouragingly, “This is as bad as it should get.”
The tax rates are set by state legislators to be carried out by the county assessors.
Local legislators are: Rep. Pat Garofalo District 36B, Rep.Tim Kelly District 28B, Sen. Steve Murphy District 28 and Sen. Pat Pariseau District 36.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
International Scam foiled...
International scam
foiled by Grandpa!
He was just setting down to noon dinner when the phone rang.
Ken Axelson of Wanamingo picked it up to hear, “Hi Grandpa!”He was trying to figure out which grandchild it could have been and asked, “which one are you?”
“Katie,” was the response. She went on to explain that she was stuck up in Canada because she had a little problem with the law.
Ken asked, “Do you need money?”
“Katie” responded, “I need $2500.”
Ken explained, “Well, I don’t know how to send money.”
“Katie” explained, “Well, you go to the bank and get $2500 in cash and then you go to Wal-Mart... you have a Wal-Mart there don’t you?”
Ken now figured out that this was not his granddaughter Katie calling because she would have known that there isn’t a Wal-Mart in Wanamingo!
So that was a red flag there.
Ken didn’t say anything but let “Katie” go on talking. She explained how he would get the money from the bank and then get a moneygram from Wal-Mart. She gave him the address to send it to and a phone number.
After she hung up, Ken called his son, who is the father of the real Katie and found out that he had just talked to his daughter about five minutes before at her work - and not in Canada!
Ken also called his real granddaughter, Katie, to make sure she was O.K.
He then knew for sure it wasn’t “my Katie” who had called.
Ken also called his real granddaughter, Katie, to make sure she was O.K.
He then knew for sure it wasn’t “my Katie” who had called.
It was a scam.
Ken went down to talk to the officers at the local Sheriff’s office and Deputy Tom Wolner explained that the phoney “Katie” would be calling back.
As soon as Ken got home, the phone was ringing. The Canadian “Katie” said, the officer at the customs office wanted to know how soon the money would be getting there?
But by this time, Ken had decided to have a little fun himself!
He mischieviously told the phoney “Katie” that he had gone to the bank and had $2500 in $100 bills.
“ I’ve got them right here in my hand.” he said beguilingly. “They look nice.”
Then Ken delivered his masterpiece by saying, “But you know, ‘Katie’, I got to thinking.
“I never did like you. So I’m not going to send the money to you!”
Ken said the conversation “went downhill from there!”
And he had foiled an attempt to cheat a concerned grandparent out of their money.
But other people haven’t been so fortunate. A recent newspaper report stated that one person lost a total of $12,000 when trying to help out their grandchild.
.
Friday, March 20, 2009
The laughing comes after...
Tales about snowstorms can be scary unless you’re telling them to friends. And they can see you survived. And they’ve got their own stories to tell.
It was at a “get-together” at the little Wangen Prairie church in the valley that I started telling folks about our trek home during the recent snow storm. Paul and I had been sitting in the Cannon Falls library when it started. But it didn’t look too bad. No need to hurry.
By the time we left we unknowingly were in the worst part of the storm. Entering Highway 52 we couldn’t see the cars or trucks except for their headlights. And if these would have been covered with snow we could be in big trouble.
Turning off onto County Road 24 didn’t help much. You couldn’t see the road.
I got out and started walking in front of the car while Paul drove. I would feel for the road through my boots. We knew there were ravines along that road.
It wasn’t until we were home that Paul told me at times I had disappeared into the snow too.
The folks at Wangen Prairie hooted with laughter as they pictured me being a new fangled hood ornament!
And that reminded Carol Schiell of the time she was trying to get to her job in Northfield during an ice storm. It was pay day and she was responsible for getting every ones’ checks to them.
Her husband, Gene, didn’t want her to go but since she insisted, he said she wasn’t heading out without him. And he decided to bring a bucket of ashes from their wood burning stove to provide traction if needed.
Well, it was needed. After getting stuck and pushing the car a couple of times, Gene figured that Carol should drive and he would sit on the hood of the car and throw the ashes ahead of it for better traction.
But Carol was concerned that he might slip off the hood and the headlines in the newspaper would read that she had run over her husband in the storm!
Then Betty Ann Hernke recalled driving near the area affected by the tornado that hit Vasa. Her husband, Alan, was riding along. The roar of the wind and the hail pummeling their tiny P.T. Cruiser was deafening. They had to yell just to hear each other.
Betty Ann pulled off onto a field road and then pointed their little car further down into the ditch while they waited for the winds to die down.
Tales about snowstorms can be scary unless you’re telling them to friends. And they can see you survived. And they’ve got their own stories to tell.
It was at a “get-together” at the little Wangen Prairie church in the valley that I started telling folks about our trek home during the recent snow storm. Paul and I had been sitting in the Cannon Falls library when it started. But it didn’t look too bad. No need to hurry.
By the time we left we unknowingly were in the worst part of the storm. Entering Highway 52 we couldn’t see the cars or trucks except for their headlights. And if these would have been covered with snow we could be in big trouble.
Turning off onto County Road 24 didn’t help much. You couldn’t see the road.
I got out and started walking in front of the car while Paul drove. I would feel for the road through my boots. We knew there were ravines along that road.
It wasn’t until we were home that Paul told me at times I had disappeared into the snow too.
The folks at Wangen Prairie hooted with laughter as they pictured me being a new fangled hood ornament!
And that reminded Carol Schiell of the time she was trying to get to her job in Northfield during an ice storm. It was pay day and she was responsible for getting every ones’ checks to them.
Her husband, Gene, didn’t want her to go but since she insisted, he said she wasn’t heading out without him. And he decided to bring a bucket of ashes from their wood burning stove to provide traction if needed.
Well, it was needed. After getting stuck and pushing the car a couple of times, Gene figured that Carol should drive and he would sit on the hood of the car and throw the ashes ahead of it for better traction.
But Carol was concerned that he might slip off the hood and the headlines in the newspaper would read that she had run over her husband in the storm!
Then Betty Ann Hernke recalled driving near the area affected by the tornado that hit Vasa. Her husband, Alan, was riding along. The roar of the wind and the hail pummeling their tiny P.T. Cruiser was deafening. They had to yell just to hear each other.
Betty Ann pulled off onto a field road and then pointed their little car further down into the ditch while they waited for the winds to die down.
But that’s not the only storm Betty Ann has been in. It seemed like if there was a storm brewing, she was near it! That got us all laughing, although wondering if we should be a little cautious when riding anywhere with Betty Ann!
And this brought the scenario from Audrey McKeag as she recalled the tornado that hit their home near Highways 56 and 19. She had picked up her four grandchildren and was heading into her driveway when she saw a television news helicopter in the air. She knew that meant trouble.
Audrey considered staying in the garage but then hurried them all into the house. This turned out to be fortunate because the garage was totally destroyed.
Inside the house Audrey got everyone down into the basement root cellar where they were safe.
On a previous tornado sighting, Audrey had also taken refuge in the basement.
But then she heard the phone ring upstairs. She hurried back up and picked up the receiver to hear her son Mike warn, “A tornado is headed your way, Mom. Get down in the basement!”
Audrey exclaimed, “That’s where I was before I came upstairs to answer the phone!”
Ahhh yes... it is sweet to be able to share these stories... and smile with friends.
.
And this brought the scenario from Audrey McKeag as she recalled the tornado that hit their home near Highways 56 and 19. She had picked up her four grandchildren and was heading into her driveway when she saw a television news helicopter in the air. She knew that meant trouble.
Audrey considered staying in the garage but then hurried them all into the house. This turned out to be fortunate because the garage was totally destroyed.
Inside the house Audrey got everyone down into the basement root cellar where they were safe.
On a previous tornado sighting, Audrey had also taken refuge in the basement.
But then she heard the phone ring upstairs. She hurried back up and picked up the receiver to hear her son Mike warn, “A tornado is headed your way, Mom. Get down in the basement!”
Audrey exclaimed, “That’s where I was before I came upstairs to answer the phone!”
Ahhh yes... it is sweet to be able to share these stories... and smile with friends.
.
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