Yeah, I know, just when we think we’ve escaped winter’s fury, seven inches of snow with below zero temps. The snow shovels and snow broom were just about put away for the winter. I had a hunch there was going to be at least one more “snow event” as the weather guy called it on Sunday night, so they were handy as we headed out the door this morning to find our driveway and sidewalks. There was good news, we had plenty of room for the pending piles of snow. Normally this time of year we can barely clear the snowbanks from the 2-3 feet of snow that has accumulated. Even if we get the extra 1-3 inches of snow predicted for this week, the warm temperatures will soon make winter melt away…

You’ve Got Time
There are years when Bottineau Winter Park has almost a perfect year. I don’t know, but I think 2024 will go down as not perfect for snow conditions, but pretty close. They have a 28 inch base and were just the recipients of another eight inches over the weekend. With all that snow, and warmer temps predicted, there’s still time for a skiing, snowboarding or tubing trip to BWP. General Manager Daniel Fett appreciates the traffic that the Minot Air Force Base creates,

91 MW Annual Awards
The Northern Sentry would like to congratulate all of those who received awards at the annual award ceremony last week. Minot Air Force Base Public Affairs took photos, and we have them in the Northern Sentry this week. Only the Best come North, and these award winners are the best of the best. Again, congratulations.

As I See It
I don’t know if it is just by accident or purpose, but the past two weeks I have had a number of people comment on my weekly article in the Northern Sentry. Most of them seem to appreciate the information I pass on about community events and activities. (Northern Sentry Community Calendar) Of course, I live in Minot, and one would think that I would communicate a majority of the information on events and destinations of note. But that isn’t always the case. Someone will tell me about an event that happened over the weekend that was not on my radar. One of those events is the Martini Masquerade hosted by Companions for Children. I have never attended the event, but I plan to this year. Want to know more? Go to their website, companionsforchildren.org, and click the Fundraisers tab.

More of an outdoors type of person. There are very few places in North Dakota that plan outdoor activities better than Fort Stevenson State Park. Their Maple Sugar day is an absolute “gotta see to appreciate” event. For more information on Maple Sugaring Day and other events at Fort Stevenson, go to https://capture.dropbox.com/eVYjU7MbKiUzE0C3. It’s a link to the Fort Stevenson newsletter. Note that Military Appreciation Day is June 1st at Fort Stevenson.

Wandering Thoughts
This is one of those stories that you maybe don’t like to tell, but you have to chuckle a bit…This morning on my way to a breakfast appointment I was pleasantly surprised that the Highway 83 Bypass was cleared of snow. I had been on that same stretch of road on Sunday, and it was difficult to see, and the road was covered with snow. Looking ahead I could see a ND DOT (North Dakota Department of Transportation) plow and thought, I’ll wave to him, so he sees how much we appreciate his good work.

As I got closer, I could sense that not all was right. Soon, I was able to see what the problem was. The snowplow, all 10 wheels of it, was stuck. As we used to say on the farm “Up to the axles in trouble”. I remember when I used to get a truck, or tractor, stuck on the farm, the one thing I didn’t want was for the neighbors to know. I am sure that is the way the ND DOT snowplow driver felt.

But, those snowplows are out in absolutely the worst conditions. They help hundreds of stranded motorists. So I figure it was just one of those days. The day can only get better, right.

Best Kept Secrets
Cookies for You in downtown Minot has started a Soup Flight lunch on Mondays and Tuesdays. Casey and the gang cook up four different soups, and with the Soup Flight you can choose three of the four, along with some bread for dipping into your bowls of soup. So far, Casey tells me, they have determined that after eating three bowls of soup, with the bread, customers are leaving “full”. So if you are looking for a “Souper” lunch. Head to Cookies for You in downtown Minot.

Today’s Chuckle
A parent’s job is to raise a child and then send them off into the world to live their own life. Ideally before the kid reaches the age of 45.