Year to year, knee to knee and back to knuckles, there’s a moral to this gobshite’s tale.
We all limped hurriedly toward the doors of Sanford Orthopedics & Sports Medicine Walk-In Clinic.
An oxymoron if ever there was one. Continue reading “…from their limping…”
Good fortune comes in all shapes and sizes, and sometimes travels in a little Mazda pickup. Where it’s headed after a few months is anyone’s guess.
“What the fuck, man!”
The other redhead leaned in to look closely at what I held gingerly between my thumb and forefinger.
“I been lookin’ for one of those my whole life!” he exclaimed.
I chuckled.
“No, I’m serious!” he said, actually getting upset now. “My whole fuckin’ life.”
He paused, took another good look, then started counting with his forefinger. “One…two…three…four. Ah, man!” He took a step back.
“An’ you’re seriously tellin’ me you’ve never even looked for one before?”
“Never,” I assured him. His face was boiling.
“Beginner’s luck?” I said sheepishly, shrugging my shoulders. “I am part Irish.”
He harrumphed, stepped forward again, took another look.
“Fuckin’ A!” he exclaimed. Then, “Well…” –slapped me on the back – “my whole goddamned life … I guess…. Guess I’ll just hafta keep lookin’.” He backed up, bent down and started looking through the patch of clover again.
Does it qualify as “living” when all you do is run to your car, into the front doors of your destination, back to your car and, finally, into your house, no pauses or sidetracks?
Yeah, it’s been cold up this way the last coupla days.
So cold that 0° sounds – and feels – downright balmy.
I mean, it’s so cold you can throw a cup of water into the air and it’ll turn into a cloud of crystals immediately. As one media type pointed out a couple of days ago, nearly every TV news outlet in the state will demonstrate that little maneuver while we’re in the midst of this freakin’ cold vortex thingy. Too ugly out to go out and find real news.
Let’s just say it’s “triple-dog dare ya” cold. Think Flick in “A Christmas Story.” Come to think of it, we might have just stumbled upon a new phrase for expressing how cold the weather is – “We’re Flicked!”
Continue reading “Ridin’ the Vortex ‘Til the Wheels Fall Off”
Five years after Casselton’s near miss with exploding oil cars, the North Dakota Industrial Commission is loosening rules for testing Bakken crude set to ship by rail. What do YOU think?
Five years after railroad cars carrying Bakken crude oil derailed and exploded near Casselton, N.D., the N.D. Industrial Commission is weakening rules for conditioning oil destined for railroad transport.
The irony is so thick it cuts like Jack the Ripper’s blade through London fog.
But this ain’t London, folks.
It’s our own backyards.
Rory Peterson, who runs the Hardware Hank in Casselton, was spot on when he commented recently to The Forum News Service about the explosions five years ago.
Continue reading “North Dakota Moves to Weaken Bakken Crude Conditioning Rules”
UND hockey has a rich tradition of excellence; nine national championships speak loudly to it. Maybe it’s time to support that excellence by vocalizing support for the team that’s on the ice, in the classroom and at the alumni center.
I’ve always been a fan of University of North Dakota (UND) hockey. My father was in school there when I was born, and my folks used to take me to games all the time. Through the years, I’ve been happy when the teams have had success.
There’s been lots of it. According to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), “North Dakota is one of two teams with eight national championships. The Fighting Hawks have won a national championship in all but two decades since its birth.”
But if you’re familiar with UND hockey, you understand how those two sentences describe a sadness that’s hard to miss in the Ralph Engelstad Arena.
NCAA. Fighting Hawks.
Byron Dorgan once got my ass kicked.
That’s not literally true, of course. I can’t remember the name of the kid who actually trounced me in a back alley half a block from Jamestown Junior High when I was in the 7th grade, but it did start with our future senator.
