Welcome Home

I'd have known what the flags downtown were for, if I'd visited the Sauk Centre Chamber of Commerce website. They've got "WELCOME HOME CHARLIE COMPANY! THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE!" on the home page. Charlie Company, I learned this morning, came home, and rejoined their families, yesterday around noon.

I'll be looking for this week's Sauk Centre Herald: Charlie Company's homecoming will probably be front-page news.

Related post:

• Gray sky, Bright Birdhouses, and Flags"
  (April 22, 2012)

Not Much Snow, Charlie Company, and Grilling

Sunday, November 13, 2011. Looks like Friday the 13th falls on a Sunday this month.

Charlie Company is still deployed, I read in the Sauk Centre Herald that the public school is making some sort of change in its lunch schedule, and we got snow on Thursday.


Snow on the ground, Thursday morning: not much; and gone by the end of the day. November 10, 2011.

It wasn't much snow, and it had melted by the end of the afternoon. Or maybe evaporated. Whatever, it was gone. But, for one brief moment: we had snow on the ground! Sort of.

Some sort of bug has been making the rounds. I've heard that some folks got 'strep,' which doesn't sound like much fun at all.

Apart from that, and the sort of thing you can read in the Sauk Herald, I don't have much to report. Except that I was out, grilling burgers, again this weekend. I'm refining my technique, and didn't convert either Saturday or Sunday's batch into briquettes.

Gray Days, Wind Turbine, and Charlie Company

Sunday, October 9, 2011. The last few days have been the sort of typical Minnesota autumn days that tourism promoters probably don't like to emphasize: gray sky, wet pavement, the sort of day that makes being inside a treat. I like both the picture-postcard days and the other sort, myself. There's something to be said for contrast.


Sun hidden by a roof of cloud. October 9, 2011.


Wet streets, damp sidewalk: Our Lady of Angels church. October 9, 2011.

We're nowhere near having ice on the lakes. Not thick enough for ice fishing, anyway. Looks like someone's getting ready, anyway. At least, I'm assuming that the possibly-unique red trailer I saw is someone's ice house.


Part of a semi, refitted for ice fishing? October 9, 2011.

I've been watching a wind turbine going up in the industrial park on the west side of town. Today's the first day I noticed it in operation.


Wind power in Sauk Centre. Either that, or the biggest pinwheel in this part of Minnesota. October 9, 2011.


A closer look at the new-style windmill. October 9, 2011.

Charlie Company's been deployed, again, for a while now. The 1st State Bank sign has some good advice, I think.


"Remember Charlie Company?" Works for me. October 9, 2011.

Tomorrow's Columbus Day: which means that the banks and Post Office will be closed. I don't expect many stores or offices will be closed, though. And that'sanother subject.

Memorial Day Weekend 2011

Sunday, May 29, 2011. It's the midpoint of Memorial Day weekend. I'm taking it easy this weekend, in sharp contrast to the folks in Charlie Company. Here's an excerpt from the Sauk Centre Herald's website:

"The community of Sauk Centre said goodbye, for the next 12 months anyway, to the 131 soldiers in Charlie Company on Wednesday, May 25, at the VictriVillage Campus as the unit prepares for their 12-month mission in Kuwait.

" 'We will deploy to write the final chapter of the Iraq war,' said Lieutenant Colonel Brian Melton, commander of the 1st Combined Arms Battalion, 194th Armor (1-194 CAB). He addressed the friends and family who gathered to support the troops that afternoon...."
(Sauk Centre Herald (Friday, May 27, 2011))

There's quite a lot more at the Herald website (saukherald.com) about Charlie Company, and their sendoff. Including photos.

Our Lady of the Angels church had a special collection for tornado relief this weekend. Weather around here has been, thankfully, much less interesting.

I plan to be back, before next Sunday, with a photo or two: but we'll see what actually happens.

Charlie Company Being Deployed

Sunday, February 27, 2011. I took advantage of today's warmer weather - comparatively warmer, that it - and grilled burgers this noon. What with one thing and another, it's been a while since I've done that.

The big deal that I know about at the moment is Our Lady of the Angels' Lenten Parish Mission with Steve Ray: that's March 13th and 14th, a Sunday and Monday. The Sunday thing is at the Sauk Centre High School auditorium. I'll probably be writing more about that: but not just now.

I am determined to get a flu shot next season: I didn't this year, and that may be part of why I've been sincerely off my feed for so long.

I see in the paper that Charlie Company will be deployed (again) May 27. They tell about Beyond the Yellow Ribbon - a program that encourages folks in the community to help families of deployed soldiers. 'They' being the Sauk Herald, that is.
Then there's Snow Week Royalty at Sauk Centre public schools: Maren Greenwaldt and Dillon Dean.

It's late, and I'm determined to get a good night's sleep: so, goodnight!