Category Archives: St. Joseph

Upholstery Field Trip

There’s a mysterious place known to everyone around here who has gone to Quarry Park; it looks like a castle and big glass building up on a gigantic pile of granite. We had heard that it was a school, and … Continue reading

Posted in art, St. Joseph, the Farm | 2 Comments

What I Now Know About Heirloom Tomatoes

Sunsugar: “incomparably wonderful” and taste test winner On Saturday I went to a conference called “Life in the Avon Hills” at Saint John’s University, the campus where I work. It’s about 5 miles from my house and I was feeling the community … Continue reading

Posted in garden, St. Joseph, the Farm | 2 Comments

Ash Wednesday Planting

I’ve held on through this incredibly mild February and resisted the urge to plant any seeds until today, February 22. The guy at Woods Garden and Nursery said it was ok. He sold me some seeds and a whole bunch of … Continue reading

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Poetry and Tea at the Fishhouse

MaryJude at the fishhouse Brother Paul Jasmer has had a fishhouse on Lake Sagatagan at Saint John’s Abbey and University since the mid-1980s. This is the second one, light enough to get on and off the lake and heavy enough … Continue reading

Posted in Benedictine monastery, poetry, religion, St. Joseph, writing | 6 Comments

At the Movies

First, let me give you a rant warning. Or a crank warning. This post is not about movies so much as the further degradation of the movie viewing experience in my town. We are lucky here in St. Joseph to … Continue reading

Posted in reviews, St. Joseph | 2 Comments

The Furniture Studio

One of the things I love about Steve is his creative drive and vision. I also love that he just does things, though sometimes the scope of them scares me. I tend to fret and get overwhelmed easily by big … Continue reading

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Laundromat

A laundromat is such a good civic business. I was a patron of these establishments well into my 30s. When we were finally in a place where we could have a washer/dryer, my first husband said he’d rather skip it; he didn’t mind going … Continue reading

Posted in St. Joseph | 2 Comments

Tamarack

tamarack and pine trees I pass on my way to work Throughout my adult life, there have been times I have been criticized for not being more engaged with nature. The harshest came from Denise Levertov, who thought it was … Continue reading

Posted in Park Forest, St. Joseph, the Farm | 1 Comment

House of Prayer

In mid-September I started a new job. I moved from being the communications director for the Sisters of the Order of Saint Benedict, the largest community of Benedictine women in the United States, to the part-time administrator of a 13-room, 17-bed retreat … Continue reading

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The Polka

Stearns County is a German Catholic stronghold, and for at least 150 years, the polka has reigned. As I’ve written before, even those who grew up poor on farms grew up with an accordion in the house, and maybe also … Continue reading

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