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Iconic Salted Nut Roll should have a future in Minnesota

Candy bars often have sweet, chewy and crunchy sensations; which can make it hard to choose one particular favorite. My personal choice made headlines during the past two weeks in the Twin Cities. The Pearson’s Candy Company announced that it was closing its doors, which will mean the loss of more than 100 jobs. They make the famous Salted Nut Roll, a mixture of cream, caramel and peanuts. The candy bar goes back almost a century, to 1933 and the depths of the Great Depression. It has remained popular throughout the Midwest. It was my favorite candy bar as a kid because it stood ...

Providing a place to gather is the secret recipe

Habits are hard to break. One of my everyday habits is stopping at Mainstay Cafe on my way walking to work. There is an advantage on being a regular at any establishment. The staff usually knows what you like. At Mainstay I don’t even have to open my mouth as I walk up to the counter. ...

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Alongside falling leaves of orange, red and yellow, pink is a familiar color during October, because it’s Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women (aside from non-melanoma skin cancers), affecting one in eight women during their lifetime. Rarely, it can also affect men. We all know someone who has had breast cancer. And many women reading this today are breast cancer survivors. Breast cancer can be serious, yet it’s very treatable at its earliest stages. Thanks to advancements in therapies and technology, treatments are improving every day; ...

Learning about two ‘old-school’ football coaches

I met two “old-school” football coaches this past weekend. On Friday night, I covered my first Marshall Tigers football game. It happened to be the homecoming game and the Tigers defeated Delano 21-7. I never met Coach Terry Bahlmann before Friday’s matchup. Of course, through ...

Anxiety over my PET scan

My finger hovered over the mouse button. Did I really want to read this report? No matter what it said, it would be life changing. The report contained the results of my latest PET scan. I tried to beg off the procedure, telling my medical team that I’d been thoroughly inspected by our dog, Bella, and our cat, Sparkles. The doctors replied that didn’t count. It all began in March of 2024 when I noticed an odd lump at the base of my jaw. Thinking it might be cat scratch fever (don’t play tag with a cat unless you’re faster than a cat), I was prescribed an antibiotic and ...

Celebrating Ruth’s visit to Sleepy Eye

You might have heard. Babe Ruth played in Sleepy Eye. For thirty years, I’ve tugged and pulled at that game in every possible way. My fascination with that day in my hometown’s history began when I was doing research for the Brown County Historical Society 30 years ago for an exhibit: “Baseball and Brown County, A Glove Affair.” Growing up here, we always knew about Babe’s visit. The picture of Babe and Yankee teammate Bob Meusel in front of the grandstand appeared in the paper every so often. They looked cold. That fall was the 75th anniversary of the Oct. 16, 1922, ...