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“Spring Ahead”
“Spring Ahead” is part of my 2014 winter/spring sanity project. I will post original cartoons about modern life in northern Minnesota every Friday until the snow melts. Related posts: No related posts.
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‘Not Dark Yet,’ but iconic Zimmy’s Restaurant in Hibbing closes
Today my friends Linda Stroback and Bob Hocking announced that they would be closing Zimmy’s Restaurant tonight until further notice. A year of tough economic conditions in downtown Hibbing and back taxes is forcing the closure, with the hope of the restaurant restructuring and reopening in the near future. Linda described the company’s woes in…
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TPT explores Iron Range political influence
Twin Cities Public Television’s “Almanac: At the Capitol” with Mary LaHammer dedicated last night’s show to the influence of the Iron Range on state politics, including a discussion about Range political history and the current nonferrous mining debate. Since I’m still working on my script for the Great Northern Radio Show, maybe this will tide…
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‘Lost Iron Range’ airs tonight on public television
I am sometimes asked to explain why I chose to stay in northern Minnesota instead of chasing some faster life under brighter lights of some big city. My answer is simple: I am a writer at heart; writers need stories; the Iron Range is teeming with past, present and future conflict; and the complete story…
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No really, science agrees that it’s cold this year
On Dec. 4, I wrote about the above scene outside my office at Hibbing Community College in my post “Insider Tips on How to Dress for Cold.” At the time I thought I was merely waxing poetic about the first of the “really cold” weather we experience every year in northern Minnesota. What I didn’t…
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Best picture of 2014?
KENT: Action! This is Kent Winsington with Movie Time Reviews. Joining me today is Aaron Brown. AARON BROWN: Hey, everyone. I like movies. KENT: Of course, we all like movies! And it doesn’t get any better than Oscar Sunday, when the best movies in the world compete for timeless glory, provided they are predominantly about…
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Up to $12 million owed at Essar site
Northland NewsCenter jumps in with its own report about the work stoppage and financing issues at Essar Steel’s construction site near Nashwauk, Minnesota. The headline: Up to $12 million is owed Iron Range contractors for work already completed at Essar’s planned taconite mine. Oh, and I’m in this one, saying pretty much the things I…
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‘March: In like a lion’
“March: In Like a Lion” is part of my 2014 winter/spring sanity project. I will post original cartoons about modern life in northern Minnesota every Friday until the snow melts. Related posts: No related posts.
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WDSE’s ‘The Playlist’ celebrates 100 episodes
As you may recall, this blog advocates economic diversification in northern Minnesota and one of the ideas I push heavily is the arts. So I take a moment now to congratulate Karen Sunderman and the WDSE (PBS-North) program, “The Playlist,” on their 100th episode and five years on the air. The episode aired last night…
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Will Minnesota finally invest in rural internet?
This week, State Sen. Matt Schmit (DFL-Red Wing) will introduce a bill investing $100 million in state dollars into rural internet infrastructure in Minnesota. The Star Tribune published a story by Jenna Ross about the broadband expansion bill and the poor conditions facing internet workers in rural Minnesota. I am one of the rural internet…
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Contractor files lien on Essar; millions unpaid
More details about the shaky financial situation at the Essar Steel construction site near Nashwauk, Minnesota are coming to light: Nobody is working at the Nashwauk site now. Millions are owed to construction contractors and laborers. At least one contractor has filed a lien on the project. Essar says it hopes to have its financing…
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Joe Radinovich heating aid bill first to pass 2014 legislature
The 2014 legislature got off to a mostly useful and bipartisan start with emergency legislation to fund home heating assistance programs. The bill, carried by Rep. Joe Radinovich (DFL-Crosby), comes amid what has become a crisis of short fuel supplies, rising costs and enormous heating demand amid one of the coldest winters in recent memory.…
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The charred earth of the 2014 MN legislative session
The 2014 MN legislative session opens today in St. Paul amid the distinct sense that lawmakers in both parties would like to avoid having things get out of hand before this fall’s elections. That said, both Republicans and Democratic-Farmer-Laborites have distinct goals in this session. The most agreed-upon goal is a bonding bill. Even years…
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Business North: Grand Rapids Kmart to close
The Grand Rapids, Minnesota, Kmart store is about to ship its pants for the last time, according to Business North. Unofficial reports put the closure of the Grand Rapids Kmart sometime in June. City officials notified of the coming closure are now planning to work with the building’s owner to seek new tenants or alternative…
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GOP’s Zellers: ‘We are all Iron Rangers’
It might have made for a fun parlor game back in the late ’80s. “What set of circumstances would cause a Republican candidate for governor to use ‘We are All Iron Rangers,’ as a slogan?” One must admit the smart money then and perhaps even recently would have been on “horrific natural disaster.” The Iron…