Stargazing - by Eli Lutgens

A weekend adventuring in Akeley

I spent an incredibly relaxing weekend up north at a cabin on a lake near Akeley. It was the first time I have gotten away for a short reprieve in more than a year and a half. The trip started with much uncertainty. Schedules, cars, and moving to a new office complicated matters on Friday....

Piecing my life and apartment together

I was interviewed by the Mankato Free Press today. After going through multiple interrogations by Deb Bently who has written about me in the past, this was a walk in the park. I probably talked too much for my own good, but it was an interview after all. My favorite part was the surprise...

Fond memories of Grandma and Joie

Something about operating a newspaper, there’s no way to guess what will happen next. Let me describe a recent exchange. Last week a reader with the last name Hagen, an experienced reader in New Richland, stopped into the office to renew her subscription. I didn’t get up from my desk as it was...

Sitting around talking baseball and news

In my world of newsing this week, it was pretty busy. New Rchland held its annual night out and had record attendance. I spoke with the Waseca mayor for a while Tuesday night and came away with a nice story. Chatting with Randy, he made the comment that he probably shouldn’t be suggesting stories...

Good news, bad news, and baseball

Two of our readers had significant birthdays this week: Dolores Sommers and Helen Fowler. The Sommers family put a birthday notice in the paper last year when she turned 100 and did so again this year. That got me thinking. Deb Bently really enjoys the company of Helen Fowler each time they’ve...

Geno, our very own Kirk Gibson

I came down with a cold this week, so less “newsing” than usual. I only made it to one of the two Braves playoff games this weekend. I arrived late to the 5-4 loss to Blue Earth, a team we beat twice earlier in the season. Energy was down when I arrived, and unfortunately my presence alone was...

Baseball is Heaven's gift

“It’s like Heaven.” That’s what Blaine Nelson told me after my latest Braves game. I can officially call myself a baseball player now that I’ve notched my first inning in the field after 6 years away from the sport. Blaine was right. It really is Heaven. Or Iowa. To quote the famous...

Farm and City Day ramblings

I am sitting here writing this at the conclusion of Farm and City Days. It was another packed weekend. The car show included more cars than ever before. During the nightcap Saturday, I lost count of the number of people who commented about the band. By all accounts, it appears to have been a hit...

Doing good for good's sake

Celebrating the Fourth of July this year, I felt some noticeable absences. This was the first Fourth since my grandfather, Dean Richardson, passed away last August. He loved fireworks. He and my mother’s boyfriend would go all out for fireworks. Every year, it seemed, someone barely escaped with...

What will bring the next injury?

I only managed to make it to one Brave’s game this week. We won 8-7 over St. Louis Park. I believe they were state-level competitors or something big like that last year. Chaz, the new guy, pitched the first 7 innings. For those of you who don’t know, Chaz (whose last name I can’t remember) is...