Have you ever seen that credit card commercial where several scenarios with products are shown with their prices and at the end of a scenario the announcer says, “Priceless.” Put a conundrum spin on that concept and I had a day like that commercial last Friday.

    When $4.6 billion was cut from the state’s biennium budget last year, we hoped that would be sufficient to last into 2011. But worsening economic conditions have further hurt the state’s financial situation, and now the Legislature and Governor will be forced to make another $1.2 billion in cuts during the 2010 session.

    I have been struggling with a conundrum for as long as I can remember.  That conundrum is: Why don’t Catholics eat meat on Friday?

    The Minnesota River will be above flood stage this spring. That much we know. What we don’t know is how high the river and its tributaries will get and when this will all happen.

    When I turned on my radio this morning the news announcer was relating a story about Fat Tuesday and sharing information on the Mardi Gras in New Orleans.  I have always wanted to travel to New Orleans to experience Mardi Gras.

    When we traveled to the west end of town for a Valentine’s Sunday night out at Bootlegger’s, the wind was really starting to howl. A great meal and hour later, we were slammed in the face as we headed home by a mini blizzard that worked its way into the valley and made visibility while driving a real challenge.

    Folks across Minnesota are experiencing economic hardship that hasn’t been felt since the Great Depression. Statewide, unemployment has reached 7.4 percent and 217,000 Minnesotans are looking for work. For the State Legislature, these stats are both troubling and a call to action. Lawmakers have been aggressive about getting our hard-working residents back on the job since the Legislative Session began Feb. 4.

    Making job creation the first priority of the 2010 Legislative Session, the Minnesota Senate passed a comprehensive capital investment package this week.  State Sen. Gary Kubly, DFL-Granite Falls, said that economic experts predict the bonding bill could create as many as 10,000 much-needed jobs throughout Minnesota.  The bill was passed by the Senate with a strong bipartisan 52-14 vote.

    We have all talked about the weather so I am not going to spend your time and mine carping about the misery of snow shoveling. Bouncing a snow blower off large solid frozen chunks that are hiding under a foot of new snow isn’t worth writing about and hardly worth reading either. Add to that the fact that we all have suffered through this and there is no reason to expound on ice dams on snow-covered roofs and such.

    Have you given much thought to how dependent we are on the internet?
    Have you thought about how the technology just keeps cutting ahead and leaving us behind?
    Have you wondered where all the technology came from in the first place?
    Conundrums.  Conun-drums. Conundrums.

    The infamous prognosticator,   Punxsutawney Phil, peeped his furry little head out of his burrow on Tuesday morning.  When he saw his shadow, he retreated into his burrow and, you know it, we’re in for six more weeks of winter.

    Some well-deserving folks were recognized last Saturday night during the annual Granite Chamber of Commerce banquet. In the weeks leading up to the banquet, there was plenty of discussion about which awards should be given, who should be recognized. There was even discussion about whether or not the chamber should continue to recognize the service that people and organizations give to the community.

    The Minnesota State Auditor issued a report this month that shows Minnesota cities’ property tax revenues have increased 102 percent since 1999.  State Sen. Gary Kubly, DFL-Granite Falls, said this report confirms the trend that the Minnesota Senate has been warning against: when state funding to local governments go down, property taxes inevitably go up.

In many ways, the ongoing restoration of the Minnesota River Basin is a story of success. The water is less polluted, animals and aquatic organisms are seeing an encouraging  rebound and appreciation for the value of the river continues to grow.

    First it rained, and then the Vikings lost, a blizzard and finally a three foot drift of snow blocking the driveway.  Winter, isn’t it a wonderland?