Wannaskan Almanac

Hello and welcome to a school-free Saturday here at the Wannaskan Almanac. Today is May 31st. Hello and welcome to the Wannaskan Almanac. School-free Saturday here. Today is May 31st and two days ago was the last day of school.  So let's get some recap on that. *Intro muzak - the kind you hear on a podcast.* It was May 29th. A sunny day when the first activity took place. *Dun, dun, DUN!*  My class had the third graders come into our room. We had Morning Meeting with them. At morning meeting we do "the greeting," sharing, and THE activity. Today's activity was *dun, dun, DUN!* playing a dance video. And if you were in my class, you would know this would be my heaven. I LOVE DANCING. So about halfway through the song, a message came from the intercom: "Please go out to the hallway." And we went out to the hallway. We saw teachers dressed up in inflatable costumes looking like they were riding animals. My former third-grade teacher was riding a donkey. Another...

    On this day in 1911, Ray Harroun won the first Indianapolis 500 race in his Marmon Wasp. The 500 indicates 500 miles. It took Harroun almost seven hours to make the 200 laps around the brick course at an average speed of 75 mph. The Spaniard Alex Palou covered the same distance this past Sunday in a bit under three hours at an average speed of 169 mph.    In 1970 I watched Al Unser win in 3 hrs.12 mins, average speed 156 mph. I shouldn't say I watched the race because I had no idea what I was looking at. Thirty-three cars had started at a high rate of speed like a bunch of noisy wasps. At first I could see a leader, but soon drivers were making pit stops and it became a jumble. Real fans had their favorites and knew who was where. But I was not a fan. I think it helps to be born in the Midwest to become a true fan. The Midwest has lots of long straitaways for driving fast, and fewer cops around.    So it was odd that I as someone with no interest in rac...

   Counter to my own judgement, I gave into the wife’s demands that we continue to feed birds just long enough that our company from the Cities would have some 'wildlife here’ when they came up here last weekend.   I had to go to Wannaska about 2:00, for beer and stuff anyway, so I picked up a 40# bag of sunflowers to appease the little woman. Arriving home, of course I grab the most important items first, one of which I carry it to the house so it can retain its refrigerated coolness on the floor of our heated-floor basement (You gotta know where its heated and where its not) and leave the bag of sunflowers in the bed of the closed tailgate truck bed, thinking I’d put it in the house later. But I forgot.   Passing by the truck the next morning, about eleven o'clock, I walked out toward the corral where the trail camera is and noticed a corner of the sunflower bag was torn open, and a little seed was gone. Given the size of the hole, I thought it was likely a visit f...

And here is the Wannaskan Almanac with Word-Wednesday for May 28, 2025, the fifteenth Wednesday of the year, the tenth Wednesday of spring, the fourth Wednesday of May, and the one-hundred forty-eighth day of the year, with two-hundred seventeen days remaining.   Wannaska Phenology Update for May 28, 2025 Wild Roses The first of the Rosa blanda have appeared here in the Wannaskan forests. These gorgeous, delicate, short-lived flowers appear at the tips of new lateral branches of older woody stems. The flowers blossom two to three inches across in pink to deep rose colors with five broad, rounded, wavy-edged petals per blossom. Numerous yellow stamens surround the shorter styles in the center. The sepals are narrow and lance-like, about an inch long, and rounded at the base. Unlike the thorn-embedded woody stems, the flower stalks are smooth. May 28 Fickle Pickle Wednesday Menu Special : Potato Dumpling May 28 Nordhem Wednesday Lunch : Updated daily, occasionally. Earth/Moon Alm...

The world of acting often evokes admiration and fascination, as actors take on roles that entertain, inspire, and captivate audiences. However, there’s a growing sentiment among some that actors are excessively compensated for their craft. Many top-tier actors earn millions for a single project, even while millions of hardworking individuals in professions like healthcare, education, and public service receive modest salaries by comparison. This disparity raises questions about the value placed on fame versus the tangible contributions of other professions to society's welfare. Beyond their high pay, actors have often been criticized for being disconnected from everyday life. With lifestyles involving luxury vacations, sprawling mansions, and lavish events, some appear far removed from the struggles faced by the average person. This detachment can lead to perceptions of insensitivity, particularly when actors advocate for causes or make statements that seem divorced from the realit...

Originally published November 25, 2019... Once again, we are in the thick of it. New characters arrive on the stage, and the main character starts taking the name, Hart. An odd trio, Skitch, Mim, and Nivel, appear to welcome the MC; however, motives soon become clear. As for the trio, it’s hard to know whether they are even related, or just habituated to each other. Nasty doings appear to be developing from opportunities presented. Even the dog, O’Gill is somewhat of an enigma, although he is definitely the kindest of the bunch. The MC immediately develops an affinity for this dog; keep an eye on this canine as the story progresses. At the end of this segment, a short trip into the dream landscape shows up, presaging extraordinary events and reptiles to come, as well as dragons past. Our segment begins with the MC having just entered the trio’s residence. “You can call me Hart,” I lie but speak truth because that name claims me for my own good scarred into my mind and my heart’s b...

  The Palmville Globe Volume 1 Number 17 Man Beefs Up Menu Joe McDonnell, 78 and a resident of Palmville Twp, Minnesota, recently discovered a new entree for their supper rotation. "It's not exactly new," McDonnell tells the press. "It's a different and improved form of an old standby. Every morning right after breakfast I get to work on the supper menu. Residents here are on their own for lunch, but supper must be something everyone can agree on. Two nights are always pizza, a crowd favorite, but that leaves five suppers to come up with. There's usually something in the freezer that can be thawed for one night. And the fridge can be counted on to cough up leftovers for another night. Once a week it will be salad which involves a lot of prep time, plus the leftover lettuce goes bad before it's all consumed. The other day I found a salad kit in the store at a good price. You pour the chopped lettuce, etc. into bowls, pour on the included dressing, sprinkle...

Hello and welcome to a graduation-filled Saturday here at the Wannaskan Almanac. Today is May 24th. This morning, I've been doing all kinds of household chores as a way to prolong answering a difficult question: How was Paris? Paris, in a word, was wonderful. When I set out on this touristic journey, I had shared that what I was most looking forward to was "a sense of place." In this respect, Paris (and all of the other places we visited) did not disappoint. It was already one Saturday ago (last week!) that our adventures kicked off in a cafe in the airport, as we waited for the last person of our traveling band to join us. The café allongé and fresh, flaky croissant prepared our mouths for the food adventures that awaited. While we waited to get into our Airbnb, we strolled along the Seine, glimpsing the posters, art, books, and bric-a-brac at the green-boxed bouquinistes. I felt regret that my French wasn't better as I admired the covers of many titles en français ....