All the hurricane anticipation talk last week and the devastation that followed in Florida always gets me thinking how fortunate we are to live where we do. Every location has its pluses and minuses …
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All the hurricane anticipation talk last week and the devastation that followed in Florida always gets me thinking how fortunate we are to live where we do. Every location has its pluses and minuses but I will take our winters over excessive heat, humidly and hurricanes, The occasional tornado that we experience does its damage and leaves in seconds, not the days on end perpetual threat of where a hurricane will be landing, what speed it will be traveling and the amount of rain to be anticipated. And then too, dealing with the potential damage from the hurricane once it strikes. All storms cause damage and you really can’t go anywhere to totally avoid them – except perhaps a specially built storm cellar. And then, you still need to deal with any damage after you emerge! *** Did you know that all the apple orchards in our area are not located south of Chippewa Falls? There is a pretty good sized orchard located west of Withee on County Highway O – a short distance from Highway 29. It is called Black River Orchard, I assume the name is derived from the fact that the orchard is located on the banks of the Black River. The owners are Gordon and Barb Finklelson. Barb is a retired librarian, who was employed by the Owen-Withee School District. A number of years back, Barb lead a tour to Alaska and we were among the travelers. The orchard has many features of large apple orchards e.g. already picked apples for sale, pick your own from dwarf trees making it easy pickings for little and big people, 12 varieties including my favorite – honeycrisp. *** This year, many schools districts in our area reported the shortage of teacher applicants and some started school with vacancies in key positions. While schools throughout Wisconsin had few applicants for open positions, the teacher shortage was most crit- ical in Milwaukee where school started with 230 vacancies and Madison Public Schools had 141 vacancies. How do schools run with that many vacancies? While many have opinions as to why there is a teacher shortage, it is a real travesty that I have not heard one politician spend any length of time talking about how they propose to fix the problem. Instead, the candidates spend their time and money with attack ads they feel will hit an emotion and make you vote for them instead of their opponent. It does make me wonder how many people get turned off by what politics has deteriorated to and end up not voting. *** Attention Men: Did you know that September was Prostate Cancer Awareness Month? This is a serious matter for us guys as according to the American Cancer Society, nearly 270,000 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer this year. American Cancer Society statistics show that the chance of having prostate cancer rises rapidly after age 50 and more than half of prostate cancer cases are found in men older than 65. If your regular in getting an annul health screening, you likely get checked for this dreaded disease. If you don’t have an annul heath screening, your chances for early detection are diminished. The advise is, don’t shy away from getting an annual exam and talk to your doctor about this disease. You have an opportunity for early detection, why throw it away. *** Spring and fall can be times when there is increased chanc- es of wildfires. Here are a few of the Wisconsin DNR's recom –
mendations for preventing them: 1.) Nearly 1/3 of all wildfires in Wisconsin are caused by debris burning in the spring. 2.) Over 70% of debris burning wildfires are caused by people who do not get a burn permit. 3.) Get a burn permit it's free, easy and the responsible thing to do. If you don’t know how to get a permit, talk to your city clerk or town clerk and they can give you direc- tions on how to obtain one. Or go to dnr.wi.gov.fire *** I have recently learned of some nearby places of interest and this week I will share information on one of them. Sunset Pines Resort – Rock Creek Disabled Outdoors, is located at W9210 Rock Creek Road, Willard, WI 54493 (715-937-5109). Rock Creek Disabled Outdoors is a non-profit organization dedicated to creating recreational opportunities for the disabled of all ages and abilities. It was started by Dale Petkovsek, a quadriplegic individual who knew there was a need for more outdoor activities for people with disabilities. He was a man who had a small dream in 1999, that has turned into what has been developed today. On the first hunt in 1999, 14 hunters with disabilities were hosted, that hunt occurred on 1,370 acres owned by 12 gracious land owners and 10 deer were harvested. Today, the hunt takes place on over 6,900 acres and over 50 hunters participate. It may be to late to get in on the hunt this year, but if you know a disabled person eligible to hunt, this may be the place for them to have an opportunity. The contact number was provided above. * Sunset Pines Resort is open year round, is pet friendly and has cabins for individuals of any ability. It also has 8 campsites and provides a catch and release pond, beach, garden, playground and walking trails. An event shelter is available to rent during the warmer months. Sounds like a great opportunity for families with a disabled member. More information is available at their website www.sunsetpinesresort.com There are charges, but there are also scholarships available from a foundation to help with expenses. Volunteers for the disabled hunt are always needed. *** Perhaps you celebrated Octoberfest in Chippewa Falls, where they celebrate in September. The true German Ocotoberfest dates back to 1810, when it began as a royal wedding celebration and horse race in Munich, Germany. We have visited Munich several times and the Octoberfest atmosphere is present daily at Hofbrauhaus where large steins of beer are served by muscular voluptuous women, oomph bands play for entertainment and authentic German foods are served. The largest German Octoberfest celebration in Western Wisconsin took place in La Crosse from September 29 – October 1. A special fest site has been developed over the years and a huge Ocotoberfest parade is a regional draw. *** Smile time. To read aloud to someone you love is the simplest of gifts, and one of the greatest. +++ Be kind to everyone because it cost you nothing and it takes you far. +++ Own you rflaws. Fix them. +++ We are all ordinary. We are all boring. We are all spectacular. We are all shy. We are all bold. We are all heroes. We are all helpless. It just depends upon the day. +++ How did we know communism was doomed from the beginning? All the red flags. +++ Mothers!! Mothers are champion worriers. It doesn’t matter how much adult children try to reassure their mother. “Worrying works!” one mother recently said. “Look at all the things I’ve worried about that never happened. +++ Star- fish don't have brains. I know people like that too.