On Veterans Day of this year, I had the honor of being a casket bearer for Mr. Ray Uthof of Fenton. Ray was a 90-year-old World War II veteran with three bronze campaign stars. He was also a lifetime resident of Fenton and a good friend.
Read more in the Dec. 12 Kossuth County Advance.

On the morning of Tuesday, Dec. 2, I came upon a dead juvenile trumpeter swan lying on a gravel road one mile northeast of Ledyard that parallels the new high-voltage power lines that connect to the electrical substation three miles east of Ledyard. It appeared to have been killed by flying into the electric lines during the night.
Read more in the Dec. 12 Kossuth County Advance.

One political party in the United States actually believes in Democracy with a capital "D." The other claims to support it, then undermines it at every turn through gerrymandering, purging of voter rolls, disinformation and outright corruption; i.e., illegally extorting foreign governments to aid one's political campaign.
To chide them for their efforts seems unduly cynical (On the Side, Dec. 5).
Read more in the Dec. 12 Kossuth County Advance.

Call me skeptical about the Iowa Democratic Party's plans to conduct virtual caucuses the first Monday in February.
The idea is to be more inclusive and who is going to argue against that? Shift workers, snowbirds, officials of junior varsity basketball games and people who are otherwise busy the first weekend of the month, generally miss a chance to caucus. Finding ways to allow them to participate is laudable.
Read the full column in the Dec. 5 Kossuth County Advance.

When you read this, Thanksgiving will be over. However, I'm writing this a week before the feast since I'll be kinda busy the week of. Why, you say? So glad you asked. I'm doing Thanksgiving for a cast of thousands. Okay, 10, but for me, that's a cast of thousands.

The West Bend-Mallard Achievement Foundation will once again head up a project called Support a Star Educator to provide teachers with supplies and tools for their classes. It will save money that the school would otherwise need to draw from the general fund.

Ivy Scarlett is driving me crazy.
She's decided to stay out all night, sleeping in her doghouse, which doubles as my garage, instead of in the house, keeping me company. She has a wing chair out there to sleep on, but she prefers the puffy, down-filled bed beside the chair.
Read Molly's Ink Spots in the Nov. 21 Kossuth County Advance.

When people pick up a phone and call 911 in a medical emergency, they expect an ambulance service or medical responder service to be available.

The holiday season is here again. As you are reading this, Thanksgiving is a week away. It seems like at times we lose Thanksgiving in all of the hype about Christmas. Our community has many events that focus on Thanksgiving, so please see if they work into your family's schedule and participate.

Tina Haase Findlay is returning to Algona to reach out to young musicians and others in the surrounding community. She will fill the air with the sounds of jazz, blues and pop on Nov. 15 at the Wilcox Performing Arts Center
During the day Friday, Haase Findlay will provide music clinics at Algona schools for both high school and middle school students and for the jazz choirs of Bishop Garrigan. The students will have a short concert at the end of the school day.

Lavonne Lindhorst celebrates her 98th birthday today. But, on display in her room is a gift she received two weeks ago from Garrett Schmidt, a longtime friend and a senior at Algona High School. He is also a member of the unbeaten Bulldogs football team.
"The seniors for senior night gave their away jerseys to somebody that's made a difference in their lives or somebody that's really important to them," Garrett said.

Mirrors are amazing things, really. They allow us to do things that would otherwise be really difficult.
For instance, plucking eyebrows or – sorry about this one – nose hairs, is pretty difficult without looking at a reflection. Combing one's hair is aided by a mirror. I'm sure we could make really long lists of things that are easier when we can see our reflections.
Read the rest of On the Side in the Nov. 7 Advance.

I fell off the face of the earth last week. At least, that's what seemed to happen. Actually, I was alive and well and drinking coffee at Cafe Boutique with some of my pals. However, I wasn't supposed to be drinking coffee with some of my pals then. I was supposed to be playing bridge in the hospital round robin. At nine in the morning. Not one in the afternoon, as I thought.

Sue and I were on one of our anniversary weekend excursions – a three-day weekend exploring some part of Iowa. That particular year we were in Newton, and it was on the heels of the closing of the Maytag production facilities there after the company was purchased by Whirlpool.
To say the community suffered an immediate economic sucker punch is putting it mildly.
Read the rest of On the Side in the Oct. 31 Advance.

I hate to say this, but sometimes it's not about you.
When it comes to taking care of ourselves, it's easy to put off preventive medicine for other pressing issues and life in general. There are times, however, when our choices can impact others. Getting the seasonal flu is a great example.
Read the complete editorial in the Oct. 31 Kossuth County Advance.