I’m always happy to see new construction in our neck of the woods. As inconvenient as it has been to fight construction traffic, I look at it as a sign that our local economy is thriving in these rough economic times.  I love the new Big Lake community sign on the corner of Hwy 10 and 25, complete with the new sidewalks and landscaping. It sure seems the Northstar Rail Station has helped keep Big Lake an active and vibrant community.

It appears the new station will be larger, according to the Big Lake Planning Commision, as it will involve the demolition of some adjacent property. It looks as if the new station will have a car wash. Perhaps it will be similar to the new Holiday station in Rogers? Let’s hope so! I like stopping there on the way to the Rogers Library, then hopping on 81 to take the back way to go to SAMS in Maple Grove. Dave like to take me there on “sample day” for a cheap date. Ha ha!

Dave called me outside tonight to see for myself. Sure enough, it was quite bright. After seeing my shadow against the house, the first thing that came to mind is that it would be a good night for shadow puppets! I took a few pictures, but the bugs were out so I cut it short. Not the greatest pic, but not too bad!

Dave also found a cool Neil Young video of the song of the same name. I chose this version because it shows footage from someones vacation to Norway, home to my ancestors. Enjoy!

Prairie Restorations provides homeowners and organizations with the resources to recreate their own prairies – very cool! We are attempting to do that on the back acre of our property. Growing anything in the sands of Orrock is difficult, so we figured why not let the things that grow do so naturally!

I’m anxious to see all the Prairie Day activities – it should be fun!

Here is the information from their site:

Prairie Day has been scheduled for August 20, 2011.

After a 3 year hiatus, we are very excited for the arrival of Prairie Day this August 20th from 9am to 3pm. Typically held in July, this year’s event is being held in late August so that visitors can experience the late summer beauty of the prairie. This is also the time of year when the farm is gearing up for the all-important fall harvest.

Scheduled Events:

10:00 & 11:00: University of Minnesota’s Raptor Center
10:30: Story telling with Doug Wood
12:00: “Minnesota Bounds” Bill Sherck
12:30: Monarch butterfly release
1:00: Live music by Douglas Wood & The Wild Spirit Band
2:00: “Important Life of Bees” by the University of Minnesota Bee Lab with Dr. Spivak and Elaine Evans

Kids Activities:
Scavenger hunt with prizes
Face painting
Crafts
Story telling

Other Attractions:
Farm Tours
Grass Maze
Guided Plant Walks

Representatives from other Organizations:
Bluebird Recovery Program of Minnesota
Sherburne County SWCD
University of Minnesota Bee Lab
Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge

Food and beverages will be available for purchase – provided by the Princeton Wrestling Booster Club.

For any questions please call 763-389-4342

Visit the Prairie Restorations website at:

http://www.prairieresto.com/

This particular coupon was for a $14.00 oil change. Can’t beat that! As an added bonus, he was in and out of there in 10 minutes! Good job guys!

Check out their site at http://www.precisiontune.com/Franchisees/ElkRiverMN/SpecialOffers.aspx for the special offer

It is being held on and around the grounds of the Holiday Inn right off 169 as you are leaving Elk River heading south. Parking was plentiful last year, as they used the open field north of the hotel as a parking lot. It was kinda fun, as they had a couple of tractors pulling open carriages as shuttles to and from the event. It really wasn’t that far anyway, but the kids seemed to enjoy it.

Unfortunately, we will be picking up our children that weekend from Tennessee, so we will miss it. Headlining this year will be Travis Tritt and the Marshall Tucker Band. Pretty cool, huh? Here is a link to the event site for additional information.

http://otsegojamfest.com

Stearns County Emergency Management Planner, Erin Hausauer taught the 20-hour course over a period of eight sessions. For more information on the CERT program is, see my  CERT Training Week 1 post from January.

We were asked to attend Wednesday’s final session on July 27, 2011 and act as victims in the aftermath of their simulated tornado emergency. The fire station training room was transformed into a disaster area with overturned chairs and tables, pieces of wood and debris, and victims, including one “dead body.” Extension cords were draped throughout the room to represent fallen electrical wires. Once the victims were in place, rescuers were given the scenario details, divided into groups and began implementing their training by searching for victims and removing them from danger. Once the victims were located, they were taken outside to a triage area and checked for any medical needs. Team members had to identify conditions and perform emergency first aid as necessary.

Victims included a pregnant woman, an unconscious man, and people with various wounds, a broken leg, and a sprained ankle. Some were just plain confused, like me. No, seriously – my role was to breathe 25 respirations per minute, be confused, and be able to follow instructions. I was also invited to take photographs of the event by my CERT leader, but the dedicated Big Lake disaster relief team kept trying to get me to sit down for observation. One of the things we are taught to do in an emergency is to have the walking wounded victims help out, so I told them that I was asked to record the disaster for posterity. Dave played a man with a serious deep cut in his arm. He also lost his wallet in the debris and kept trying to go back and get it.

One of the funniest comments I heard was a member who was examining the pregnant woman after she “fainted.” The member checked for pulse and respirations and said, “I’m beginning to think this pregnancy is not real.” The deadpan way she said that just made me laugh!

After the simulation, CERT members gathered together for a debriefing session. Leaders asked about items that were lost including a couple of CERT bags and a set of keys. From the back of the room, Dave called out and said that he was still missing his wallet – such a crack-up! Overall, the team did a great job finding and rescuing drill victims. The group discussed things that went well and areas that need improvement such as making a plan before initially starting out and communicating more effectively. Unfortunately, there were a few mishaps. Within the first two minutes of the exercise, CERT team members walked in to the disaster area and were “electrocuted” by an hanging electrical wire. They were pronounced dead, but after a time out they were allowed back in to participate.

Observing Big Lake’s exercise from the vantage point of a victim/photographer gave me a good opportunity to review the things we covered in our classes earlier this year. As Sam Olsen pointed out, the reason we continually practice our skills is to get better each time and identify weak spots in our methodology. Working together as a team is very important as well and the way we learn to do that is by taking as many opportunities to do so as possible.

Sam Olson and Cindy Finch, Big Lake Mayor Lori Kampa, Police Chief Sean Rifenberick, Fire Chief Randy Miller and EMT Chief Gordon Vosberg all participated in handing out certificates and pins to the seventeen graduates.

They also each received a phone tree list and very nice laminated maps of the Big Lake and Big Lake Township to help them locate the areas they may be called to serve one day. Three more people will be part of the graduating class as soon as they complete their remaining requirements.

Here is the first Graduating Class of 2011:

Beautiful congratulatory CERT cake was served to all present.

Chief Rifenberick served cake to the graduates.

Big Lake CERT members will participate in ongoing training, including a CPR class at some point. There will also be joint training sessions with both Big Lake and Sherburne County CERT groups. Even though I am a member of the Sherburne County CERT group, I also live in the outer fringes of Big Lake, so I’m glad that I had the chance to meet some wonderful people and I look forward to training (and hopefully not working) with them.

The group picture includes:

Police Officers Sam Olson and Cindy Finch, and Erin Hausauer, CERT Instructor from Stearns County.

The graduates are (in alphabetical order) Aaron Aanerud, Susan Bauer, Justin Boie, Julie Davis, Marie Ebert, Nikki Gruber, Tricia Hedstrom, John Krohn, Mark Lindula, Pamela Lindula, Theresa Littmann, Brian Olene, Betsy Roberts, Daniel Robertson, Alex Shinnick, Janae Stern, Joan Schneider, Ned Schneider, Justin Thooft and Rebecca Vaughn.

I will update this post when I learn what name belongs to which person!

For additional photos, see the second Big Lake CERT post.

Here are some additional photographs of the first Big Lake CERT Graduating Class of 2011:

Dave is quite excited that Sarah and her hubby Chris honored him by giving Holland the middle name of David. Since they were keeping it a secret until after the birth, Dave had no idea they were doing this. Needless to say, he was overjoyed at the news.

They say David means “beloved”. I am so grateful to have another beloved one in my life. Here’s a pic of the newest addition to our family.

Certainly temps in the nineties are not uncommon in the middle of the summer here in Minnesota,  but the humidity levels raise the bar to the point of being intolerable.  Widespread excessive heat warnings have been in place all week, as a high pressure system is keeping us wrapped up in a bubble of misery. With heat indexes pushing 110 degrees, caution must be taken with any outdoor activities. Drink lots of fluids, stay indoors when possible, and watch for signs of heat stroke.

Also, keep an eye on friends, family, and neighbors who may not have air conditioning, especially the elderly. These extreme temps can be life-threatening, so caution is advised.

They say these conditions are like living down South in the gulf states. I don’t know about you, but a week of this is more than enough. Just remember, Fall and Winter aren’t that far off. Of course by then, we’ll be complaining of two-foot snow drifts, dead batteries, and sliding into the ditch. Not that I have ever done that. Well, at least not for a few months.