9 minute read
heart of gold
from The Sun 02.05.2020
by The Sun
Thanks for the information
Thank you to Osceola High School students, Osceola Medical Center and the Osceola Police Department for sponsoring the Transgender Educational Event at Osceola High School in January. Hopefully with more awareness and acceptance we can reduce the number of children who commit suicide, become homeless, drug addicted or who have violence committed against them. These young people face a diffi cult road, not of their choosing, with our understanding we can make that road more manageable for them and their families.
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The OHS club, Osceola Inclusive was instrumental in making this event happen. Their wonderful t-shirts say this on the back, “Diversity is a Fact. Inclusion is an Act.” I am proud to be a member of a community whose institutions are making inclusion a priority.
Proud of the school district
I am writing to say how proud I am to live in the Osceola school district. I attended the Gender Identity program presented at the Osceola High School on January 15. The student led inclusion group did a good job organizing and leading the program. Dr. Todd Savage from the University of WI, River Falls did a good job explaining about transgender students. His informational program was followed by Leslie Lagerstrom explaining her family’s experience with their transgender son. It was so diffi cult to hear about the torment her son endured in his school. No child should have to
THE POSTSCRIPT
Mouse vomit L ast week I started doing something I’ve never done before. I started writing fi ction. I realize this does not sound shocking since I’m writing every week. My husband, Peter, says I write fi ction all the time—every time I write about him. But the truth is, I have not written a word of fi ction since I was in the second grade and wrote, “The 500-Pound Mouse.”
I can’t take credit for either the title or the protagonist, as they were assigned by my teacher, but I have to take full responsibility for the deeply disappointing conclusion of the story when our hero, the now very large mouse, threw up nearly 500 pounds of mouse vomit on the front lawn and was instantly restored to his original size.
You can now probably appreciate why I have avoided fi ction since.
What happened last week was that I woke with a particularly vivid dream. I dream a lot and my dreams are usually weird, so this was nothing new. This time, it was a complete outline to a novel. This was also not a fi rst. I have terrifi c stories plotted in my dreams and the moment I am fully awake they fall apart like cobwebs.
“Wait… was I on the couch or in a car? Was I rescuing my sister or a dog?” Poof! The idea is gone. But this time, the idea stuck. “Nonsense!” I assured myself. I decided to prove to myself what a really dumb idea it was by writing it all down. To my consternation, the idea looked better on paper than it had in my head. I promised myself I would let that idea slowly evaporate over the next forty-eight hours. I was certain there would be nothing left of it by i t tl t Columnist Carrie Classon
endure any harassment or bullying because they are different. It is encouraging to know that the OSD nurtures an environment of acceptance for all students, regardless of their ‘sameness’ or ‘differentness’.
Miriam Flysjo Osceola
Impeachment Donald Trump’s defense has centered around several issues. 1. He didn’t do anything wrong. 2. Impeachment is trying to cancel out the will of the people. 3. The opposition to this president began at the moment of his election so people are out to get him. 4. Those who favor impeachment hate Donald Trump.
He has obstructed the gathering of evidence. He has bribed a foreign ally for the sake of his own re-election. How do we know he did nothing wrong if he prevents the testimony of witnesses? How do we know that he won’t behave this way again if he is not stopped? Simply put, if he is innocent, as he claims, then why prevent the evidence from being presented to the citizens of the United State so an honest hearing can occur?
He did not win the popular vote. He and others tampered with voting in in several states to win the electoral college. He invited Russia’s Vladimir Putin to hack balloting and create fake news. This is not an honestly elected man who represents the will of the people. This is a man who manipulated the election process for a dishonest win.
Opposition to Trump began from the moment of election because it was deserved. From the outset, his statements, bullying, lying and cre
SEE LETTERS, PAGE 6
then.
Two days later, I had characters jumping out of the woodwork and yammering at me night and day. “Okay, fi ne!” I grumbled. I sat down and wrote 700 words. “What the heck is that?!” I said to myself when I read it over. I generally think of myself as a fairly sunny person. This writing was dark, and ominous, and a little scary, and (at least to me) really funny.
So now it appears I’m writing a novel—with no training whatsoever, mind you, and no idea where I’m going. The story is spooling out faster than I can type it and it doesn’t appear that I am inventing any of it. It feels as if this story has tracked me down, gotten my phone number, taken my pet bunny hostage, and demanded I write it… OR ELSE. (I made up the part about the bunny.) So, I’m writing.
The more I write, the more I have become aware of how much time I spend trying to talk myself into doing the things I think I’m supposed to be doing instead of doing something that doesn’t feel like work at all, but feels more like a guilty pleasure, more like eating chocolate than anything productive.
Still, there are now 10,000 words staring me in the face and I know that I will fi nish this thing—whatever it is. I now wonder how many other ideas I may have discarded because I thought they were silly or I was unqualifi ed or I just didn’t have the time. I imagine there have been a lot.
But I’m not going to dwell on that now. Now I’ve got a book to fi nish and, while I don’t know how it ends, I’m fairly confi dent it will not involve a single ounce of mouse vomit.
Till next time, Carrie Carrie Classon’s memoir is called, “Blue Yarn.” Learn more at CarrieClasson.com.
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10 years ago Feb. 3, 2010 •Brent Bundgaard and James Cross received their Eagle Scout Awards last week at a ceremony held at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church.
• Osceola High School Winter Carnival royalty included, freshmen Devon Hafoka and Katie Ringlien, sophomores Brent Bundgaard and Rachel Mickelson; King and Queen James Cross and Megan Taryman, seniors Darby Nelson and Jessica Martell, and juniors Peter Meyer and Annie Guenthner.
• Austin Whittenberger of St. Croix Falls and Megan Tarman from Osceola were honored as Rotary Students of the Month. • Osceola High School Chieftainettes qualifi ed for state with their Pom routine. The team included Ashley Jones, Shelby Rossow, Heather Rixmann, Ashley Johnson, Jasmine Mederich, April Seiberlich, Fern Kratochvil, Emmy Videen, Danielle Turner and Amanda Schumann.
20 years ago Feb. 2, 2000 • The Osceola Chieftainettes danceline won a trip to the state competition in Wisconsin Rapids Feb. 5. Team members include Kari Johnson, Christina Gile, Darcie Raska, Nikki Briggs, Erin Lundgren, Lindsey Johnson, Andrea Tomforde, Liz Daugherty, Jessica Haan, Desirae Switalla, Bianca Brown, Nikki Altman, Dana Swanson, Jenny Holmquist and Nicole Heggernes.
• Polk County has offi cially chosen a site and architectural fi rm for a new justice center and adult development center, but the board voted down funding last week for the long discussed project.
• The Osceola High School Marching Chieftains, under the direction of Art Aytay III, took fi rst place at the St. Paul Winter Carnival on Saturday.
• In a 19-4 vote the Polk County Board voted to create a Deputy Director of Administrative Service who will be under the direction of the administrative coordinator and the personnel director. 30 years ago January 31, 1990 • Miss Osceola Kim Foss will be one of 40 visiting queens to attend this year’s Winter Carnival events.
• Airman Lawrence Peterson has graduated from Air Force basic training at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas.
• Helen Anderson was chosen as February Employee of the Month at Ladd Memorial Hospital.
• Kim Falen of Star Prairie has been named to the fall quarter Dean’s List at University of Wisconsin – LaCrosse.
• St. Croix Falls repeated as Conference Wrestling Champions.
• Osceola girls basketball beat Frederic, 49-36. The win set up a chance for Osceola to move into sole possession of second place.
• In the worst eff ort of the season, Osceola boys basketball scored just two points in the third period and lost to Frederic, 46-40.
50 years ago Feb. 12, 1970 • Timm Johnson, a 1968 graduate of Osceola High School, was recently chosen Assistant Horse Administrator for the 1970 Little International Livestock Show.
• Mr. and Mrs. Lynn Drinkwine entertained at Sunday dinner for their son, Gary, who is home on leave from the Marines. He is being transferred from Camp Pendleton, Calif., to Hawaii.
• Mr. and Mrs. Ron McIntyre are happy to announce the arrival of their son, Shawn Matthew. He arrived Feb. 5.
• Florence Lunde went to Milwaukee on Tuesday to attend a meeting of the American Lutheran Church Women.
• Mr. and Mrs. Wayne Lueck and Tommy, Mrs. Marlene Schmidt and family and Mr. and Mrs. Leland Lueck enjoyed a fi sh fry with Mr. and Mrs. William Luck on Saturday.
• Mr. and Mrs. Robert Lau and family attended a 4H sledding party and meeting at the Paul Keopple home Sunday.
GOVERNMENT NUMBERS
WHO TO CALL... President Donald Trump
1600 Pennsylvania Ave.• Washington, D.C. 20500 Comments: (202) 456-1111 or http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/ Switchboard: (202) 456-1414 • Fax: (202) 456-2461 Congressman Sean Duffy 7th Congressional District 1208 Longworth HOB, Washington, DC 20515 • (202) 225-3365 or 502 2nd St., Suite 202, Hudson, WI 54016 • (715) 808-8160 duffy.house.gov/ U.S. Senator Ronald H. Johnson 328 Hart Senate Offi ce Building Washington, DC 20515 • (202) 224-5323 www.ronjohnson.senate.gov U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin 709 Hart Senate Offi ce Building Washington, D.C. 20510 • (202) 224-5653 • (715) 832-8424 www.baldwin.senate.gov/contact Governor Tony Evers
115 East, State Capitol Bldg. Mailing address: P.O. Box 7863, Madison, WI 53707 • (608) 266-1212 EversInfo@wisconsin.gov • www.evers.wis.gov Rep. Gae Magnafi ci 28th Assembly District P.O. Box 8952 • Madison, WI 53708 (608) 267-2365 or 1-888-534-0028 • Fax (608) 282-3628 Rep.Magnafi ci@legis.wisconsin.gov Senator Patty Schachtner 10th Senate District State Capitol, P.O. Box 7882 • Madison, WI 53707 (608) 266-7745 Sen.Schachtner@legis.wisconsin.gov NO CALL LIST
1-888-382-1222 or website: datcp.wi.gov
