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Good morning from Collegeville,

“You just need to find your authentic swing!” Bagger Vance, a character in the movie “The Legend of Bagger Vance”, released in 2000, directed by Robert Redford. Doing well at the game of golf is akin to doing well at the game of life. I am here doing what I do, loving what I do, to a large degree because of luck. Being in the right place at the right time. I had no idea what I was “going to be when I grew up”. I once signed up for the “Phillips Gas Station Management Program”. Those of us in the program wore company uniforms but I don’t remember having to wear “the cap”. They taught us how to properly check the oil and wash the windshield while keeping an eye on the gas pump.

One day my sister’s boy friend Barry Larson asked me if I had any skill with “drafting”. He had a side job that he needed help with. I was living with my mother recovering from a back operation and I told a fib, but I got the job. When he came to pick up the finished work, he was not happy. “Don’t you know the difference between an object line and a dimension line?” Clearly I did not. I bought an instruction book and did the work over again. I ended up as an Engineer Aid on the Polaris project at Honeywell and designed a part for the gyro for the missile . I own a tie clasp with a submarine on the face. I probably still have that instruction book in the basement of the Parsonage. When I left that job to go back to college they gave me a very nice compass set and a briefcase to carry my books. Twenty jobs, in three different industries, later I landed a job with Minnesota Public Radio.

The A Prairie Home Companion show this week is a live broadcast from The Fitzgerald Theater. Our host is back at the helm, fresh from burning off a few vacations days he had built up over 40 years. Special guests include sizzling vocalist and songwriter Aoife O’Donovan, singer and fiddler Emily Miller, and old-time juke-joint band, The Steel City Jug Slammers. The Royal Academy of Radio Actors, Tim Russell, Sue Scott and Fred Newman will team up with Rich Dworsky with The Exchange Street Quartet. Enjoy the show on the radio or online at prairiehome.org.

“We make first our habits, and then our habits make us.” John Dryden

Category : General

Comments Off on February 20, 2105

Good morning from Collegeville,

Happy Friday the 13th. This is the first “Friday, the 13th” for the year of 2015. In 2014 there was only one “Friday the 13th”. There will be a total of three this year.

According to the Stress Management Center and Phobia Institute in Asheville, NC, an estimated 17 to 21 million people in the United States are affected by a fear of this day. Some people are so paralyzed by fear that they avoid their normal routines in doing business on this day. “It’s been estimated that $800 to $900 million is lost in business on this day..” source John Roach.

According to Wikipedia, the actual origin of the superstition appears to be a tale in Norse mythology. Friday is named for Frigga, the free-spirited goddess of love and fertility. When Norse and Germanic tribes converted to Christianity, Frigga was banished in shame to a mountaintop and labeled a witch. It was believed that every Friday, the spiteful goddess convened a meeting with eleven other witches, plus the devil – a gathering of thirteen – and plotted ill turns of fate for the coming week. For many centuries in Scandinavia, Friday was known as “Witches’ Sabbath.” source: Charles Panati, Panati’s Extraordinary Origins of Everyday Things.

The APHC show this week is another show with guest host Chris Thile. I, for one, thought that he did a good job last week. For a minute I thought that he was even going to try doing the News From Lake Wobegon, but he simply introduced another story teller. Special guests this week include bluegrass all-stars Jerry Douglas and The Earls of Leicester, singer, violinist, and banjo player Rhiannon Giddens and story teller Elna Baker. Plus the Royal Academy of Radio Actors, Tim Russell, Sue Scott and Fred Newman. Enjoy the show.

“The years teach much which the days never know.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

Category : General

Comments Off on February 13, 2015

Good morning from Collegeville,

I celebrated my tenth birthday on a ship crossing the Atlantic Ocean. My mother along and with her four children were returning from a stint as US Army dependents stationed in Vienna, Austria. My Dad was held over in Vienna and when he arrived in Upsala a few weeks later, Ma along with brother Brian age 2, were in New Ulm visiting her cousin Helen. Dad borrowed a brand new 1954 Chevy from Uncle Duke who owned Hagstrom Chevrolet in Upsala and my brother Bill and I rode with him to New Ulm.

I was napping in the back seat and I woke up when our car was broadsided by a dump truck. I had a broken leg. I still can remember the pain when they were putting me on the X-Ray table at the hospital in Cokato. The cast was from my toes to my crotch. I was in the hospital for a few weeks and when it came time to transport me back to Upsala, Dad took me to Uncle Elmer’s. Uncle Elmer and his wife Ethyl owned the Dokken Funeral Home in Cokato. I had to spend the night on a cot on the main floor of the funeral home. There were coffins in the next room. The next day they hauled me to Upsala in a black Studebaker hearse. That explains a lot, huh!

The APHC show this week is a very special show live from The Fitzgerald Theater in Saint Paul. Garrison is taking the day off and Chris Thile steps to the center stage mic as the host. Special guests include the Punch Brothers, poet Billy Collins, bluegrass singer Sarah Jarosz and Minneapolis storyteller Tristan Jimerson. The Royal Academy of Radio Actors and the Exchange Street Band fill out the bill. Enjoy the show on the radio or watch/listen on the internet at prairiehome.org

“Any idiot can face a crisis; it is this day-to-day living that wears you out.” Chekhov

Category : General

Comments Off on February 6, 2015

Good afternoon from Collegeville,

Not much snow, but it is cooling off. We are heading to a cabin in the north country tomorrow, so this is going out early. The first seed catalog arrived in the mail this week and this one is from the “most ancient” town in Connecticut, the historic Comstock, Ferre & Company Seed Company in Wethersfield. We visited the store when we flew out to New Haven for a wedding in 2012. It is part of Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds owned and operated by the Gettle Family. You can check them out at rareseeds.com

I plan on ordering Butternut squash and a couple of other squash varieties. It will be a while before spring is here but it is fun to plan. In the meanwhile you can substitute cubed sweet potatoes that you can pick up at Target for the Butternut squash for making the awesome soup that is just perfect for cold nights like tonight. Stay warm.

The APHC show this week is another live broadcast from The Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul. Special guests include country songwriter and singer Robbie Fulks, Oklahoma’s own John Fullbright and singer and actress Kate Beahen. Plus the usual cast of characters. You may watch the entire show live at prairiehome.org

“The quality of a man’s life is in direct proportion to his commitment to excellence, regardless of his chosen field of endeavor.” The basketball coach speaking to Junior in the novel by Sherman Alexie, “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian.”

Category : General

Comments Off on January 29, 2015

Good morning from Collegeville,

Yesterday we celebrated the 48th Anniversary of the first broadcast on KSJR 90.1 from the third floor of Wimmer Hall. The first words uttered by engineer Dan Rieder were, “Heed my words, Earth People. You have 10 minutes to live.”

This is the story of how Bill Kling was selected to lead the creation of what has become the largest network of public radio stations in the United States. It was written by our first intern, Ellen Newkirk.

“The Saint John’s University monks chose Bill Kling to help run their fledgling public radio station (which would later become MPR) because of his “bright mind” – literally. SJU graduate Marty Mahowald shares the story of Bill Kling’s selection as the station’s leader told by his professor at Saint John’s in the 1970s, Fr. Gunther Rolfson. According to
Fr. Gunther, in the 1960s, Saint John’s had a mandatory lights-out policy at 10 pm when the faculty residents would flip a switch that turned off all power on each floor of the residence halls. However, one evening Fr. Gunther took a walk around campus after he and several other monks were struggling to come up with someone to run the radio station, when he noticed a light illuminating a single room in Benet Hall.

The next day, Fr. Gunther used a master key to enter the room and found a system rigged by the student to keep the power on after the switch was flipped each night. The room belonged to Bill Kling. Eventually, the monks decided Kling’s innovative and determined spirit was just what they needed for their new endeavor. According to Mahowald, “He (Fr. Gunther) said that they knew that as a fledgling business that it would have struggles, budget challenges and many other issues to deal with and it would take someone with a lot of moxy to lead it through to success.”

It turned out to be a very successful decision; Kling served as president of MPR until 2010 and created one of the greatest public radio stations in the country. “
Ellen Newkirk, CSB, Class of 2013.

The APHC show this week is a live broadcast from The Fitzgerald Theater in downtown St. Paul. Guests include singer-pianist-activist Nellie McKay, regulars Robin and Linda Williams and Minnesota poet Kirsten Dierking. Plus, the Royal Academy of Radio Actors, Tim Russell, Sue Scott and Fred Newman will join Rich Dworsky and The Exchange Street Quartet. The News from Lake Wobegon will bring us up to date on the town that time has forgotten. Enjoy the show.

“All great things are simple, and many can be expressed in a single word: freedom, justice, honor, duty, mercy, hope. Winston S. Churchill

Category : General

Comments Off on January 23, 2015

Good morning from Collegeville,

“Happiness is, a warm puppy”. Charles Schulz. “Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”. The Constitution of the United States of America.

In the February 27, 2006 issue of The New Yorker there was an article on pursuing happiness. It turns out that by nature we have been hardwired to emphasize the negative. Survival depended on being wary. The curious and unwary could be eaten by bears or tigers. “Call no man happy until he is dead” was a Greek saying. According to positive psychologists, once we are out of poverty, the most important determinant of happiness is our “set point”, our natural level of happiness, that is largely inherited.

Of course we have no control over our set point. Those of you who have more than one child know that they do seem to be wired differently. Same parents, same conditions and so different. However, we can control our attitude. “As a Man Thinketh” by James Allen made quite the impact on me. We also can decide if and how much volunteer work we will do.

Ready for the secret to happiness? Here it is: Happiness is equal to your set point S, plus your life conditions C, plus a bit of volunteer work, V. “H = S + C + V”. If you want a copy of the article, let me know.

The APHC show this week is a live broadcast from The Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul. Special guests include bluegrass siblings The Gibson Brothers, songwriter Joe Newberry and vocalist Heather Masse. The Royal Academy of Radio Actors, Sue Scott , Tim Russell and Fred Newman will join with the band to entertain us with skits and music.
Garrison himself will bring us the latest News from Lake Wobegon.

“Happiness is harder to put into words. It’s also harder to source, much more mysterious than anger or sorrow, which come to me promptly, whenever I summon them, and remain long after I’ve begged them to leave.” David Sedaris

Category : General

Comments Off on January 16, 2015

Good morning from Collegeville,

My sons fishing show is a hit. I am looking forward to episode number 2 tomorrow at 11 am on Fox Sports North. A retired advertising executive remarked “real people made to look like real people” and “the sound clarity was extraordinary for outdoor work”.

You can find it on YouTube. “Fishing the Midwest with Bob Jensen”

The APHC show this week is live from the Nourse Theater in San Francisco. Special guests include the Peter Rowan Bluegrass Band, sibling harmonizers the “T Sisters” and poet Joseph Stroud. The Royal Academy of Radio Actors, Tim Russell, Sue Scott and Fred Newman with join the band to entertain you with song and skits. Garrison will bring us the latest News From Lake Wobegon. Enjoy the show.

“In the best institutions, promises are kept no matter what the cost in agony and overtime.” David Ogilvy

Category : General

Comments Off on January 9, 2015

Good morning from Collegeville,

I consider myself in recovery. I quit drinking ‘Old Grand Dad’ in 1976. I am a “recovering entrepreneur”. I couldn’t work for the man, I had to be the man. Lastly, I am also a “recovering jerk”.

It is the last one that is the hardest to deal with. I have been known to grow very impatient with lines. Lottery ticket sales drive me nuts. I love the self serve gas pumps with swipe card capability. To help me deal with these defects of character, I have adopted a morning reading ritual. This one I stole from Dear Abby. It is usually published in the local newspaper every New Years Day.

JUST FOR TODAY: I will live through this day only. I will not brood about yesterday or obsess about tomorrow. I will not set far-reaching goals or try to overcome all of my problems at once. I know that I can do something for 24 hours that would overwhelm me if I had to keep it up for a lifetime.
JUST FOR TODAY: I will be happy. I will not dwell on thoughts that depress me. If my mind fills with clouds, I will chase them away and fill it with sunshine.
JUST FOR TODAY: I will accept what is. I will face reality. I will correct those things I can correct, and accept those I cannot.
JUST FOR TODAY: I will improve my mind. I will read something that requires effort, thought and concentration. I will not be a mental loafer.
JUST FOR TODAY: I will make a conscious effort to be agreeable. I will be kind and courteous to those who cross my path, and I’ll not speak ill of others. I will improve my appearance, speak softly, and not interrupt when someone else is talking.
JUST FOR TODAY, I will refrain from improving anybody but myself.
JUST FOR TODAY: I will do something positive to improve my health. If I’m a smoker, I’ll quit. If I am over-weight, I will eat healthfully, if only just for today. And not only that, I will get off the couch and take a brisk walk, even if it’s only around the block.
JUST FOR TODAY: I will gather the courage to do what is right and take responsibility for my own actions.

The APHC show this week is a rebroadcast of a show from January 2012 at the Fitzgerald Theater in Saint Paul. Joshua Bell plays Chopin’s “Nocturne in C-sharp minor” and Jearlyn and Jevetta Steele sing “Rip it Up”. The News From Lake Wobegon topic is warm weather which puts those that suffer from “Pump Handle Phobia” at ease.

Tomorrow at 11 am “Fishing the Midwest with Bob Jensen” will be broadcast on Fox Sports North. This year’s 13 episodes are the creation of my son Erik through his production company, Whiskey Creek Media. Check the website fishingthemidwest.com for the listing of broadcasts in your area.

Category : General

Comments Off on January 2, 2015

Good morning from Collegeville,

Six days until Christmas. I have all of my shopping done and now I simply have to pace myself on the cookies and candy.

Children love Christmas, as well they should. As with most families, some years, Christmas gifts were easy to come by and some years the budget would not allow for much. The Christmas of 1956 was a memorable one for me. My mother had to make a change due to Dad’s inability to handle alcohol. We were living in an apartment in Little Falls. That Christmas, Santa brought us six big Tonka Toy 18 wheel trucks. There was a cattle truck, an oil tanker, a freight truck and three more. This was a perfect gift for a family with five boys. For many years I had the impression that they were from some sort of social agency that served the poor. It turned out that the “Santa” was Dewey Johnson, a classmate of my mother from the Upsala High School class of ’37. Dewey’s friend was one of the founders of Tonka Toys. Dewey had already passed on before I learned the “rest of the story”, so I never did have a chance to thank him.

Perhaps you know of a family that has come upon hard times and they could use a “Secret Santa”.

Here is the link to getting the 24 foot Christmas tree into The Great Hall: http://bit.ly/7H3YDf

The APHC show this week is live from The Fitzgerald Theater on Exchange Street in Saint Paul. Special guests include the VocalEssence Ensemble Singers with violinist Sara Pajunen, and vocalists Heather Masse and Lynn Peterson. Plus the Royal Academy of Radio Actors, Tim Russell, Sue Scott and Fred Newman. Garrison will bring us the latest News from Lake Wobegon. Enjoy the show.

“Life is what we make it. Always has been, always will be.” Grandma Moses

Category : General

Comments Off on December 19, 2014

Good frosty morning from Collegeville,

Today is bell ringing day at Coborn’s on Cooper. Stop by between 2 pm and 4 pm and bring cash. This is the season of way too many choices on entertainment. Tuesday evening I had the pleasure of introducing “The Celtic Tenors” at The Paramount. Three young men from Ireland who have been touring together for many years. I wonder who came up with the idea of three tenors singing together? The sound is unique and I for one was impressed. I purchased their Christmas CD and I am enjoying it both at home and in the car.

Wednesday was the annual St. Joseph Chamber Christmas party at the Gorecki Center at College of Saint Benedict. I sat with the folks from The Closet 2 Closet, a thrift shop in downtown St. Joe. Most of us won a door prize and in fact, I won the grand prize, a Kuerig coffee maker. A very handy item indeed.

Later on this afternoon heralds the first St. Joseph Winterwalk event. At 5 pm you’ll find glowing luminaries lighting Minnesota Street and College Avenue. There will be a tree lighting on the patio of Bello Cucina at 6 pm with a visit from Santa at 6:30. Several shops are offering cider and cookies and staying open for this event. Come to St. Joseph and you can choose from either The Local Blend or Bello Cucina. At Bello Cucina you can make reservations. 320-363-4534.

The George Maurer Christmas show is next Monday evening at The Paramount Theatre. This is a must attend for me and I hope to see you there. Paramountarts.org

The APHC show this week is a live broadcast from The Fitzgerald Theatre in downtown St. Paul. Special guests include roadhouse R&B partiers the Marcia Ball Band, soprano Maria Jette and cellist Sally Dorer. The Royal Academy of Radio Actors along with the December Boys Band will join Garrison who will bring you the latest news from Lake Wobegon. Enjoy the show. The weather will be great for standing in line for the rush tickets. Consider it.

“Ring the bells that still can ring. Forget your perfect offering. There is a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in.” Leonard Cohen

Category : General

Comments Off on December 12, 2014