Opinion

We all survived last week’s transition to the new systems under CherryRoad. Though I can’t say it wasn’t without a lot of lessons to learn.

Sometimes people ask me how I stay ahead of the news. Well, I have many trusted sources but I’ve been reading one publication in particular for longer than all the others. The periodical both informs and entertains. Its prose is simple and clear, but not without style. Their news stories cut to the chase. There is a focus on the natural world. And their puzzles keep me razor sharp. That’s why I still read Highlights magazine.

Welcome to the first week of the new look of the Advocate Tribune! As I’ve been noting in our newspapers for the last couple of months, this week readers will officially be able to see the first of the changes to come under CherryRoad Media’s ownership. Our team’s efforts have been underway for some time to bring this new look together, and I’ve been anxiously awaiting the point of reveal.

Spring Break 2022! They say it’s gonna be epic! But is it? Let us consider. Spring Break is a strangely named week in March wherein the schools, the same ones that were hitherto educating our children, for some inexplicable reason, set them free.

I’m writing this on a clear-blue Monday morning on a day that might just hit 60. The dog and I left bed early and drove to YME; outside the school, we met the film class and their teacher Tamara Isfeld. My dog’s job was to help the high-schoolers practice filming things in rapid motion, but also to snuggle: along with everything else happening in the world, my students in the class are grieving a big loss. It felt like a good day for a visit from a pup.

Time marches on and so do the inevitable changes that come with it. Long-time Granite Falls Fire Chief Craig Opdahl appeared at a recent Granite City Council meeting to give an update to the council about the fire department’s activity and needs. He was also there to introduce his successor, Ryan Haar. Craig has served as Fire Chief for about 10 years and has been a member of the Granite Falls Fire Department for 26 years and was on the Fire Department in Norwood for three years before that.

March 8 is International Women’s Day. Don’t ask me how I know this. I just do. So let us speak of Woman, specifically the International Woman. I like her. Very much. In my opinion She deserves much more than a day. But time waits for no man. Or woman, it seems. So… let’s get to it.

Welcome to the month of March! Portions of Minnesota closed out February on a mild note. Temperatures climb into the 40s on Sunday and again on Monday.

Last week, I wrote about how this week was going to have a whole new look. If you read that, and saw the front page this week, you're probably thinking "what the heck?" (I said heck, yes, because we're probably mostly Minnesotan here). Well, shortly after last week's paper went to print, it was announced that we would be working with the former company's systems for just one more week. Thus, no new look just yet.

Mid-February, Rob met with Olivia, a 6-year-old female snowy owl, in Northern Minnesota. Rob: Thank you for chatting with me.