Guests and Pests

Generally, I like to honor traditions and stay with the tried and true. I grew up in a time when most stores were closed on Sundays. There is a scene in the movie, “That Thing You Do” set in 1964, where Mr. Patterson, a middle-aged owner of an appliance store, is reading aloud from a newspaper ad for a competing store.

“Open Saturday ten to ten. Open Sunday twelve to six... open on Sunday from twelve to six! You know, I don't believe I want to live in a country where you stay open on Sunday to do business. You shouldn't have to work on Sunday to support your family.”

I wonder what Mr. Patterson would say now when many stores are not only open on Sundays, but Thanksgiving and other holidays as well. However, this trend seems to be losing some glimmer.

Whereas many retailers are closed for Thanksgiving, some will open their doors to get a jump on the Black Friday frenzy. The Mall of America’s amusement park and movie theaters will be closed, and yet the stores within the mall will make their own decision whether to be open or not. I suppose this is a test to see how people respond to staying home with their families. 

This year for Thanksgiving, in addition to our children and grandchildren, we are having my wife’s family over, plus various in-laws and so on.  I may be in-hiding that day. Mingling with the invited guests will be lingering uninvited pests. I am talking about Asian beetles – they keep showing up in our old farmhouse.

We have a large farm field across the road from our place and another one beyond the tree line. When the soybeans were harvested the beetles left the field and swarmed our house.  Clearly, insect infestations are not the farmer’s fault – it’s part of what you get when you live in the country.  It would be like moving next to a highway and then complaining about the traffic noise.

Many years ago, at Yarusso’s hardware store in Shakopee, I learned of an ingenious way to capture the beetles without a lot of fuss and muss. Instead of crushing the smelly little buggers or dumping them into the toilet, you grab a turkey baster. Helpful Hint: Have a different one on hand for the day of giving thanks.

The turkey baster works like a small vacuum cleaner. By using a proper angle of attack these beetles will allow you to sneak up and suck them into the baster. Once captured and secured with a small cover on the end, the baster will hold the beetles until disposed of with a few vigorous pumps. Some people prefer to release them back in to the wild (I can’t imagine why), while others will give them a good swim in the toilet.

I realize using a turkey baster in this manner may be off putting to those sitting at the thanksgiving table, but I plan on having one close by during the meal; it’s timely, unsightly use will be sure to rid the house of pests and guests. Sometimes the new way is better than the tried and true.

November

I think of November as the month where our nation comes together. However, it appears from my side of this essay that after our country came together to vote it was driven apart when some were not pleased with the results of the presidential election.

I am not a historian, only a casual observer and reader, but I do not recall a similar reaction in our nation’s history over the results of a presidential election, even in 1972 when our nation had grown quite weary of the Vietnam War and two polar opposites were running for President. Republican Richard Nixon was running for his second term. He had escalated the United States involvement in the War during his first term.

The Democratic candidate that year was United States Senator George McGovern. Senator McGovern, himself a war hero, strongly opposed our country’s involvement in the war.

My father and older brother, Dan, were almost as opposite, but they both had their birthdays in the same month. In November of 1972, my Dad celebrated his forty-fifth birthday, whereas Dan turned seventeen.

Dad and Dan differed on many subjects, such as musical tastes (especially volume), hairstyle (specifically length), clothes (Dad wore a suit and tie to work and to church, Dan thought jeans were suitable anywhere), and some aspects of the military (Dad was a veteran, Dan was opposed to the draft).

Dan was quite vocal in his support for McGovern, but he was too young to vote, whereas Dad represented the over-thirty crowd and the establishment. He was also a Democrat in the tradition of President Franklin Roosevelt and Vice President Hubert Humphrey. Dan later told me that Dad privately acknowledged he had voted for McGovern.

In one of the largest landslides in U.S. history, Nixon defeated McGovern and was elected to a second term. Naturally, there would have been disappointment, but to my knowledge no one broke any windows, burned any flags or blocked traffic simply because their side lost the election.

Certainly there would have been no moping in our house. Dad was not a moper and he had no patience for sore losers. I know Dan was unhappy with the outcome, and it likely fueled his dislike for President Nixon; yet he accepted it.

Here we are forty-five years later, and since both my brother and father are gone, I can only guess how they would have reacted to this year’s presidential election and the protests. I do know though, they both wanted the same things we all want: A country where we are free to worship (in suits or jeans), a country where we are free to express ourselves in music, art and literature, a country where we are free to disagree, and a country where our freedom to do all of this is protected by our military (volunteer or draft is still debatable).

November is a special month. Last week on the 11^th was Veteran’s Day, the day we honor those who served in our military. Next week we celebrate Thanksgiving, the day our nation comes together to count our many blessings.

Winners and Losers

We made our choice, and the second Tuesday of November has come and gone. Finally. I can’t remember when I was sickened more by a presidential race. I am writing this on Sunday, November 6^th, so I really have no idea who is going to win, but since there will be winners and losers, allow me to address both sides of the results.

The winners – Congratulations, I hope you’re happy and I hope your side was right, but quite honestly I fear there will come a time when you will wonder, “What was I thinking?”

You ignored all the warning signs and didn’t listen to what was being said (and what wasn’t). Was this the best we could do? I hope I’m wrong – but honestly were there ever two worse choices for President? Did you vote for your candidate because you genuinely believed they were the best, or rather were they simply, not the worst?

Now comes the hard part – living with your choice and accepting the consequences. As your candidate takes office and begins to shape the country in their image, ask yourself, is this what you had in mind, or were you duped? I hope and pray, for the sake of our country, that you were right. If not, God help us all.

The losers – Try not to take it too hard. There’s always next time (maybe). Take heart, God is still in control and he’s not worried. Hold your head up and stop moping about – those people in Washington are going to do what they are going to do, with little or no regard to what you and I think or desire.

Perhaps you were one of the few who promised to move out of the country if the other candidate won. Well, what’s taking you?

If indeed you can find another better place to live than this country you probably better move there and let us get on with our lives.

But, if you’re like me and think the future is still bright regardless of the results of Tuesday, then stick around and see what you can do to make it happen. Our leaders have let us down and they no longer lead. Instead they shock us with their lies and behavior. I am not relying on them to make things better – I will have to set an example by making life better from right here.

For me that means being kind, generous and considerate  - even with those who may not deserve it.  I don’t know what tomorrow may bring; therefore I am going to act like I can make a difference in having it turn out for the better.

Now is the time for you to go for a walk, play some music, paint that picture, read that book, write that novel, play with your children (or grandchildren), call or write a friend (much better than texting and email) and be happy. It is a choice you can make with results that will prove to be successful.

Regular Food

Recently, my grandson, Micah, was playing with some toys that looked like sea creatures. My wife, Rhonda, pointed out a lobster and explained to him that I like to eat this type of food from time to time. Later, he showed his mother a stingray and told her “Pa likes to eat this. Not me, I like to eat regular food.”

It’s true, I do like to eat seafood, I just don’t get it often enough in restaurants. I remember the choices people had for dining out while I was a kid in Belle Plaine. There were cafés, bars that served hamburgers and pizzas, and a few of the gas stations that had restaurants where teenagers could harass the waitresses. For fine dining you had to drive into “the cities” (Shakopee and beyond) or to The Holiday House in St. Peter. In forty years much has changed, but people are still looking for that unique, entertaining dining experience.

Tim, a friend of mine who survived the trip from childhood to adulthood, was in town from California last week with his cousin, Paul. They found some time in their busy schedule to drive to my office to have lunch with me. Other than some crackers, peanut butter and applesauce, I didn’t have much to offer them so we decided to go out.

Going out to eat requires some forethought in what you or your dining partner(s) are hungry for. There is American-style food found in diners, cafes, and hamburger joints, and there are restaurants serving ethnic fare (Chinese, Italian, Mexican, Irish, etc.), and fancy places where white tablecloths report any ill-mannered eating. As it was a nice day, we decided to walk instead of drive; however, that decision limited our choices.

I determined that Turtle’s was our best choice, as it was clearly within walking distance, offered a full menu of food and beverage choices, sported several televisions for our viewing pleasure and played good old rock and roll to aid digestion.

Tim and Paul ordered the walleye sandwich, while I requested half of a chef salad (I was not told who got the other half – maybe it was the chef). As I ate my leafy greens, I envied my friends on the other side of the table eating their fish sandwiches. I left Turtles craving seafood and that night I went to a sushi restaurant with my son, Nathan.

I had never eaten sushi before, whereas Nathan was practically an expert, with three or four visits under his belt. An all-you-can-eat menu offered tempura, sashimi and sushi (all unknown to me). Nowhere on the menu did I find hamburger and fries or any fraction of a chef salad. There were, however, scallops and scallions, crab and clam, tilapia and tuna, urchin and eel.

I ate most of what was put in front of me as there was a charge added onto your bill if you left too much of your food uneaten. I suppose it gave one pause to reflect before ordering more and more food.  Nathan and I were mindful of what we ordered, as we didn’t want to stuff raw fish into our pockets to avoid being penalized. Still, if you eat enough small portions of small fish served on small plates you can feel like a stuffed toad.

Towards the end of the meal when I couldn’t eat another bite, I started to push my food around on the plate. I was no longer eating my seafood; I was, like Micah, playing with it instead.