Columns/Opinion

Record-setting year for Harmony even if most residents didn’t notice

Published by lniemeyer@bluff... on Tue, 01/22/2019 - 10:22am

Harmony residents probably weren’t aware they were living through a monumental year in 2018, but the city set the Minnesota record for most annual precipitation.  Harmony reported 60.21 inches of precipitation in 2018, nearly double its average amount.

The amount crushed the not-so-old state record set by Waseca, which had 56.24 inches of precipitation in 2016. The precipitation in Harmony last year was about the same as the annual average total in New Orleans.

Fire equipment from 1874 well preserved

Published by lniemeyer@bluff... on Tue, 01/22/2019 - 9:55am

It is gratifying to see the city's fire hydrants very visible, and know our firemen are “at the ready.”  It is also comforting to know the remarkable 1874 wooden fire wagon is well preserved.

Motorcycle club played prominent role in ‘50s

Published by lniemeyer@bluff... on Tue, 01/15/2019 - 3:20pm

Sharon Jahn, local historian, compiled the following story on the local motorcycle club of the 1940s and 1950s.  Readers will enjoy hearing about the exploits of the members and their valued contribution to this community.

Does anyone remember the Valley Black Hawks Motorcycle Club?   Many years ago Buster Johnson was asked that question when he was reminiscing about his childhood; Buster recalled the fun of being the 10-year-old mascot for the club. Since that time, we have collected more about the club.

Running in circles really does have a higher purpose

Published by lniemeyer@bluff... on Tue, 01/15/2019 - 12:32pm

When I go out for runs, I always track my distance with a GPS watch that downloads my miles to a software app on my phone.  Recently, the app put together my year’s worth of runs and gave me the option to publicly post my mileage tally for the entire year, so I decided to do that with the personal notation, “productive year.”

A friend came back with, “Productive? Didn’t you almost always end up right back where you started?” In other words, he was implying I spent 2018 running in circles.

Local couple enjoys annual Christmas event

Published by lniemeyer@bluff... on Tue, 01/08/2019 - 2:53pm

What a wonderful event to put on in our community — the 29th annual Spring Valley Christmas Day Dinner.

Thank you to everyone who planned, purchased food and paper products, prepared food, delivered meals, served or did clean-up. Thank you to Thrivent for paying for the ads in the newspapers and for the food. Thank you to Faith Methodist Church for the use of your Fellowship Hall and kitchen. A very huge thank you to Theresa and Tom Warren for purchasing and preparing all the turkeys, the best dressing ever and the gravy.

Many changes in Spring Valley since 1962

Published by lniemeyer@bluff... on Tue, 01/08/2019 - 2:51pm

We found a 1962 brochure sharing pictures and information of Spring Valley at that time. We cannot believe the changes that have taken place since 1962 — only 50-some years ago!   Pictures are awesome -- Broadway shows the Red Owl Store on the corner opposite Ben Franklin's store (now Sheldon's Plumbing & Heating and Shiney Hiney) and of course the theater facade showing a movie.

‘Monsters’ among us can be turned back

Published by lniemeyer@bluff... on Tue, 01/08/2019 - 11:21am

One of the activities my wife and I enjoy around New Year’s Day is watching vintage “Twilight Zone” episodes. We don’t sit and watch the entire marathon of shows, but catch various episodes here and there. Even though we’ve probably seen every one, the moral lessons resonate in different ways through the years, depending on what is happening in the present.

Keeping faith through the sounds in darkness

Published by lniemeyer@bluff... on Mon, 12/31/2018 - 9:11am

As I was nearing the end of a leisurely run on a dark, damp Thursday evening, I ran past a figure getting out of a car near a funeral home who yelled out “nice editorial this week.” I looked back to make out someone I recognized from a neighboring town, replied “thanks” and continued into the darkness.

Such are the joys, and peculiarities, of small town journalism.

Of course, the personal feedback isn’t always positive. I’ve had people confront me — not on a dark street in the middle of winter, fortunately — about a column they didn’t particularly like.

Broom factory once located in Spring Valley

Published by lniemeyer@bluff... on Mon, 12/31/2018 - 9:01am

About 1896 the accompanying photo shows the unusual operation being carried out here in Spring Valley.  The men in the picture are threshing out broom corn so that the seedless stalks can be dried and used to make brooms.

Area’s water quality issue bigger than Catalpa project

Published by lniemeyer@bluff... on Thu, 12/27/2018 - 10:42am

Minnesota Pollution Control Agency Commissioner John Linc Stine admitted at a news conference that the denial of a permit for Catalpa LLC’s proposed 4,890-sow facility in Newburg Township was an unusual action. He noted that typically these permits are granted as thousands of feedlots now operate across the state.

The reason he gave for the denial of the operation, which would have generated more than 7.3 million gallons of manure annually to be spread on farm fields for fertilizer, is due to the threat to public health.