April 11th, 2014 by Gary Osberg
Good morning from Collegeville,
I was a “town kid” not a “farm kid”, but I learned the joy of “tilling the soil” through gardening. I got into it by helping a neighbor with his garden. He was confined to a wheelchair or a three wheeler because of bad knees. I offered to help with the tilling only to get yelled at for running over some of the seedlings. The rows that he planted were not straight and I did not know how to distinguish between weed and seedling. The next spring I drove stakes in the soil exactly 36” apart and used heavy string to define the rows. I didn’t get yelled at that year.
Now the snow has melted and the dirt is calling. There is no way that I am going to be able to get the Yukon Gold potatoes in by next Friday, Good Friday, as the almanac suggests, but maybe by May 2nd. There are few joys better than freshly dug Yukon Golds and real butter.
The APHC show this week is another live show from The Town Hall in New York City. Special guests include soprano Maria Jette and pianist and accordionist Dan Chouinard. Old friends Robin and Linda Williams along with classical pianist Stephen Hough will join the Royal Academy of Radio Actors, Tim Russell, Sue Scott and Fred Newman. Enjoy the show. Tickets are on sale for the 40th anniversary show on July 5th. prairiehome.org
“You are a unique creation of nature and there is something that can be expressed only by you and that can be experienced by others only through you.” Anonymous
April 4th, 2014 by Gary Osberg
Good snowy morning from Collegeville,
We did not get the 6 – 12 inches that were forecast and there is a 64 degree day in the five day forecast on my iPhone. What a winter. I sent the check for a down payment on a house in Sedona, Arizona for next March. Life is good.
We had a marvelous trip to D.C. Did you know that the Father of Our Country fathered no children? How did I miss that in American History? He married a widow who had two children and George and Martha had no offspring. We were able to visit Arlington Cemetery, Monticello, The Marine Museum, Mount Vernon and the mall. On the mall we got to the Lincoln Memorial, The Vietnam Memorial, The World War Two memorial and the Corcoran Art Gallery and Museum on 17th Street. Chef Todd Gray at the Muse makes a very good salmon salad.
Brandon told me about WAZE.com, a wonderful APP for getting directions. That feature along with the Express Pass on the rental car made life a lot easier. Our use of the Metro was uneventful on Sunday when Brandon and Jen took us to Arlington, but on Thursday we could not find the first stop and we could not find parking spaces on the second station, nor could we find the third stop, so back to the first. WAZE was a bit off on that destination. If you go to Leesburg, go to The Old Town Grill at 15 South King Street for supper. Very nice. A huge thank you to Jill at Bursch Travel.
The show this week is a live broadcast from The Town Hall on West 43rd Street in New York City. Special guests include adventurous acoustic trio Nickel Creek, folk singing duo Pharis and Jason Romero and vocalist Heather Masse. The Royal Academy of Radio Actors along with Richard Dworsky will bring us the usual collection of skits and music. The News From Lake Wobegon will bring us up to date on the goings on in Mist County in central Minnesota.
“The time to be happy is now; the place to be happy is here; the way to be happy is to make others so.” Robert Green Ingersoll
March 21st, 2014 by Gary Osberg
Good morning from Collegeville,
Barby and I are flying to Washington DC tomorrow morning and I actually forgot it was Friday. My son called me to make sure that I was ok and so this is a little late.
Getting everything done when you are going to be gone for a while takes your mind off the usual. Barby’s nephew works as a secret service agent for John Kerry, so we want to visit with Jen and the two beautiful little girls and then do the “tourist bit”. They say that visiting the mall during the evening is quite the experience. All of the monuments are light up. I will give you a full report in two weeks. Spring break is welcome no matter what the weather. Soon it will be time to go fishing with grandson Willie, better known as “Walleye Willie” The attached photo is with a couple of trout that he pulled out of a lake that name of which will remain secret.
The APHC show is live from The Fitzgerald Theater in downtown St. Paul. Special guests include masters of Celtic music both ancient and modern, Battlefield Band,
Dan “Daddy Squeeze” Newton, blues singer Hilary Thavis and regular Butch Thompson. The Royal Academy of Radio Actors will join Garrison in a number of skits and steel guitarist Joe Savage will sit in with The Guy’s All-Star Shoe Band. The news from Lake Wobegon will tease us with stories of spring.
“Every minute spent in planning will save two in execution.” Henry Kaiser
March 14th, 2014 by Gary Osberg
Good morning from Collegeville,
On June 12, 2005 Steve Jobs delivered the Commencement address at Stanford University. He told three stories from his life, “Connecting the Dots”, “Love and Loss” and “Death”. Steve was 50 years old. You can Google “Steve Jobs Commencement” and watch it on You Tube.
A year earlier Steve had phoned Walter Isaacson, author of biographies of Einstein and Benjamin Franklin. Steve wanted Walter to write his biography. Steve died in October of 2011 from pancreatic cancer. The book “Steve Jobs” was published in November of 2011. The book has 571 pages and it is a “great read”. Especially for all of you other recovering entrepreneurs.
The lessons from Steve’s address are: 1. “You have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future”. 2. “The only way to do great work is to love what you do. And 3. “Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice.”
The APHC show this week will be live from The Fitzgerald Theater in downtown St. Paul. Special guests include, sparkling Irish vocalist, Karan Casey, the French-styled sounds of Dan Newton’s “Café Accordion Orchestra”, singer Aoife O’Donovan, and pianist and clarinetist Butch Thompson. The Royal Academy of Radio Actors and The Guy’s All-Star Shoe Band will join Garrison who will bring us up to date on the News From Lake Wobegon.
Tonight, I will be working a table at Gorecki Center on campus of the College of St. Benedict where the Soweto Gospel Choir will be performing. Tickets at csbsju.edu/finearts.
I hope to see you there.
“Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.” Back of the final of issue of the “Whole Earth Catalog”
March 7th, 2014 by Gary Osberg
Good ice walking morning from Collegeville,
I had to crawl on my hands and knees to the garage because my strap-on “Ice Walkers” that my son gave to me for Christmas were in the trunk. Two years ago I fell and hit the back of my head. I was nauseated and tired for four months and one half months.
“I will be impeccable with my word. I will speak with integrity. I will say only what I mean and avoid using the word to speak against myself or to gossip about others. I will use the power of my word in the direction of truth and love.”
This is the first affirmation of The Four Affirmations based on the book “The Four Agreements” by don Miguel Ruiz. I had these printed on a card using letterpress to hand out to friends. Yet, this week I managed to violate this agreement in a big way. I don’t know why I thought there was humor in my making a comment about a young man’s receding hairline in a staff meeting. Hopefully by the next video conference call in two weeks, the “Sorry” card and brownies will have arrived from Send Out Cards. As my mentor and business partner, Jimmy Dorr, used to say “No man is wise at all hours.”
The APHC show this week is live from The Fitzgerald Theater in downtown St. Paul. Special guests include honky tonk harmonizers, The Cactus Blossoms, singers Bob Douglas and Susie Eldredge and old friend, pianist Butch Thompson, who has written a few pieces about the Minnesota winter blues. The usual cast of characters will entertain with skits and The News From Lake Wobegon will bring us up to date with life in central Minnesota.
“I believe we have two lives. The life we learn with and the life we live after that.” Glenn Close to Robert Redford in “The Natural”
February 28th, 2014 by Gary Osberg
Good morning from Collegeville,
I am in the habit of listening to The Writer’s Almanac every weekday morning with my first cup of coffee. Garrison Keillor highlights important birthdays and other anniversaries and ends the broadcast by reading a poem. On Wednesday the poem was “Yard Sale”, by George Bilgere, the first line of which is “Someone is selling the Encyclopedia Britannica in all its volumes, which take up a whole card table”.
I wish that I could remember the name of the salesman that came to our basement apartment in Richfield in 1965 and refused to leave until I signed the sales agreement. For only $10 a month for three years, we could own a 30 volume set of the “Encyclopedia Britannica” and for only $1.50 more, we could get a genuine walnut bookcase to hold the set of invaluable information. He guaranteed that our children would be brilliant and success in life would be theirs if only I would sign. I held out until 11:30 PM. Today they are in the finished attic room of the Parsonage that my daughter rents from me in Upsala. By the way, my children are brilliant and cute too.
The APHC show this week is the last of the winter re-broadcasts. It is a blast of warmth originally broadcast from the Greek Theater in Los Angeles in June of 2013. Colin Hay sings “Send Somebody”, Lily Tomlin and Martin Sheen join the gang for a few skits, Paula Poundstone ponders life in L.A. and Jearlyn and Jevetta Steele ask “Are You Ready For A Miracle”. In the News From Lake Wobegon, high school graduation brings to mind tales of senior pranks. By the way, Paula Poundstone is coming to The Paramount Theater in downtown St. Cloud on Saturday May 10th. Tickets at paramount arts dot org.
“No one can excel in everything. The decades demand decisions. Choose wisely. Your choices pinpoint your priorities and determine your destiny. Use it or lose it.”
Patricia Souder
February 21st, 2014 by Gary Osberg
Good morning from Collegeville,
Nine of the twenty-nine members of the 1957 Upsala Cardinal foot ball team showed up for their induction to the Sports Hall of Fame. One of the guys, Dave Chuba. came all the way from Ohio. I was the only freshman who was there and Ralph Nelson was the only sophomore. Our quarterback, Bob Soltis, lives in Upsala, but he was not up to it. This is the second year that inductees were chosen. Bob’s brother Ralph was chosen last year and another brother John was a junior on the 1957 football team.
Bob was chosen as one of the four inductees this year, so brother John accepted his award for him. Bob, class of 1958, was the first Upsala athlete to be chosen to the All State Football Team. Kristi Pangrac, class of 2003, was an All State Volleyball player with 1011 kills and the final inductee was Neal Swanson, class of 1955. Neal was a two-sport athlete who was the first to sink a jump shot in the Upsala gym. It was a fun evening plus the Upsala basketball team won the game. Go Cardinals!
The APHC show this week is a re-broadcast of a show that was first broadcast in January of 2013 from the War Memorial Opera House in San Francisco. Special guests include Elvin Bishop and his band plus singers Michael Tilson Thomas and Laurie Lewis. The News From Lake Wobegon includes a story about texting during a choir concert.
“Our main business is not to see what lies dimly at a distance, but to do what lies clearly at hand.”
Thomas Carlyle
February 7th, 2014 by Gary Osberg
Good morning from Collegeville,
There are five of us Osberg brothers and of the five, without a doubt, I am the least talented when it comes to sports. Yet, tonight I get to be inducted into the Upsala Cardinal sports Hall of Fame along with the other members of the 1957 football team. That year no points were allowed by our defense. I got the phone call from John Atkinson last Friday, the same fellow that I have mentioned in the past when writing about my experience as a freshman. Trying to tackle John during practice was not fun. John ran hard with his knees pumping up and down. I clearly remember bouncing off of him with a ringing in my ears every time we practiced. In will be fun to meet classmates and upper classmen.
The APHC show this week is the first of the winter re-broadcasts. This show was from May of 2013 at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. The Time Jumpers play “Six Pack to Go”. Suzy Bogguss sings “I Always Get Lucky With You” and Stuart Duncan joins the Guy’s All-Star Shoe Band for a medley of fiddle turns. In the News From Lake Wobegon it is time for the fishing opener and annual Willis Bunsen Grocery Run footrace.
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and come short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause; who at best knows in the end, the triumph of high achievement; and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly; so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.” Theodore Roosevelt.
January 31st, 2014 by Gary Osberg
Good chilly morning from Collegeville,
Only three more months of winter. My plan to enjoy the winter by getting out on cross-country skis has been foiled by the return of the old “Hip Bursitis”. A “bursa” is a fluid filled sac that functions as a gliding surface to reduce friction between moving tissues of the body. Of course treatment includes “ice packs”. Just what one needs when it is minus 15 degrees. I was pleased that the therapy dept of St. Cloud Orthopedics was ok with faxing me the instructions on the exercises that help to treat the condition.
The big game is Sunday. I was not aware that the Met Life stadium does not have a roof. The forecast is for a high of 46 degrees on Sunday, so that should be ok. It is hard to imagine paying $3,000 for a ticket to sit outdoors for 6 hours. Barby and I will be watching Downton Abbey.
They say that when it comes to buying a home, the three rules are “Location, Location, Location” I have attached a flyer that describes a home on the Mississippi River in Sartell. If you choose to buy it, I look forward to a cup of coffee on your deck.
The APHC show this week is another live performance from The Fitzgerald Theater in downtown St. Paul. Special guests include roots rock radical Neko Case, comedian and author Paula Poundstone, gospel-bluegrassers Doyle Larson and Quicksilver and vocalist Hilary Thavis. Plus the Royal Academy of Radio Actors will entertain you with skits that you love. The News From Lake Wobegon will try to warm you up.
“The sense of humor is the oil of life’s engine. Without it, the machinery creaks and groans. No lot is so hard, no aspect of things so grim,
but it relaxes before a hearty laugh.” G. S. Merriam
January 24th, 2014 by Gary Osberg
Good morning from Collegeville,
This week we celebrated the 47th Anniversary of the first broadcast on KSJR 90.1 from the third floor of Wimmer Hall. 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 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 country and bluegrass outfit Rhonda Vincent and the Rage, traditional music masters Mike Compton and Joe Newberry and the women’s vocal group The Nightingale Trio, plus the Royal Academy of Radio Actors and the latest News From Lake Wobegon.
“There is no limit to the good a man can do if he doesn’t care who gets the credit.” Anonymous
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