It's already that time of year up here in North Dakota. It won't be long and we will be coming home in the dark as well. One more thing about late Fall in ND... Blizzards. Just so happens that we got our first one last night.Something that comes with our first snowfall and especially or first blizzard  is a 12 mile stretch of cars in the ditch between Minot and the Minot Air Force Base. The base is in North Dakota but many of the men and women are from Southern States and have never driven on snow before. It's NOT a good combination. Luckily the damage is usually only to egos and the cost of getting their cars out of the ditch.Somewhat redundant, my YouTube description.The November 19th-20th 2024 blizzard was really our first snowfall of the season. It is normal for us to have snow befo... 11/20/2024

Being disorientated can be a disaster. No matter where you are, being disorientated can also be a very scary. Behind the wheel, out in public, or even at home when you have to ask yourself "where am I?" there is real danger involved.I am sure all of us have had a moment of disorientation. As a senior citizen I can say that I have had an episode of disorientation one early morning (before the sun came up) while driving in town in an undeveloped part of town. It passed quickly but it was scary.If I had continuing episodes I would get myself checked out by a medical professional but that was several years ago and has not happened again.Back in the 60's my grandmother was diagnosed as being "senile" as they did not have any other name for it back then. Because of this you can bet I would ha... 11/19/2024

I am planning a trip to Fargo soon and I was surprised at how little community information is available on the City website or Chamber of Commerce website.I was raised in Fargo's sister city, Moorhead MN however that was forty years ago and things have changed a lot over the years. Most disappointing is that the bulk of friends that I was close to have passed on or like myself, moved on.I'm not one to spend much time in the past and that is why I have not been back to Fargo/Moorhead more than 6 times in 40 years.So why now? I am meeting my daughter and son-in-law halfway as she is returning a car I loaned her six years ago. We all thought it would be a good time to visit as we will not be able too over Thanksgiving.Through careful searching I did find some arts offerings I knew Timmothy... 11/13/2024

I can't say that I've ever seen leaves sticking to the wall with the exception of Oshibana which is an art form one of our guest artists uses to create wall art.The artist is Shayna Rodriquez, a young Navaho Native American lady from NM who moved here last year when her father took a job in the ND oil field.Changing the subject slightly there is a section of sidewalk at the zoo I love that looks like this:Now, as the title of my blog states, I wish the leaves in my yard would go away. It is always such a joy to see new leaves bud in the spring. It will be about 7 months before I see that again. 🤔 11/04/2024

The Titus & Philemon Art Gallery is very appreciative of the base newspaper, The NorthernSentry. You can view it on line and subscribe by clicking on the graphic below.You can read about National news concerning the United States Air Force, Local news concerning the Minot Air Force Base, and human interest stories about local Air Men/Women. I want to encourage you to take a look and see what our sons and daughters are doing for our GREAT Nation. BTW you will also see what Titus and Philemon are up to as they are proudly published in The NorthernSentry.   11/03/2024

Let's hope and pray for a safe Halloween day and evening for our children today. Despite all the evil out there every day our children have "sweet dreams" about this day looking forward to showing off their costumes and collecting candy. I didn't have any pics of my kids handy to use for the post so here is one of Tina in the play THE ADAMS FAMILY when she was in high school. Ironically she is the one in a brides costume, ironic as she was a Bride just two weeks ago.Halloween is a scary time for parents with young children and a fun time for the children. I ask we pray for both of them. For some great Halloween safety tips I recommend you check with the local police department for tips on how to be safe.  10/31/2024

I am a firm believer that beauty is all around us no matter where you live. I have also stated that God is the greatest artist of all and man's art is just an imitation of God's.Even in a very urban setting like where my office is in downtown Minot there is great beauty Spring, Summer, Winter, and Fall. To make my point I just snapped these pictures on the block, my side of the street, of my office. Amazingly enough we have not yet had a "killer" frost yet. That is highly unusual for this time of year in Minot.  10/17/2024

Timmothy's cartoon is in reference to an article in the Northern Sentry, the official newspaper of the Minot Air Force Base. The museum will be located on the officially ND State Capitol grounds. This is a significant honor for The North Dakota National Guard. I love when our armed services are recognized. Every branch! Many people have no idea what the Guard does for our States and our Nation as a whole. I am very proud that my daughter, Tina has served in the Air Force Guard and I will admit that I am a bit saddened that she did not re-up for another 6 years but she has a busy schedule getting married next week.   10/12/2024

Next Wednesday is the beginning of the largest Scandinavian festival in the Western hemisphere. Four days of FUN! I myself am German but during these four days I'm full blooded Scandinavian, it's so much fun! If you come early and stay late you may be able to take in most everything in one day BUT it's a lot more fun to take two or more days. Hotel/motel rooms are not always easy to find. I highly recommend The Clarion hotel as it is right across the street from the Hostfest. There are two hotels on North Hill you need to avoid so feel free to ask me which ones. 09/22/2024

The 1 mile walk/jog/roll in the park was in the Minot Air Force Base newspaper, The Northern Century. Regretfully I am a month late in getting this information out to you so you will have to wait until next year to participate. The event was put on by the Souris Valley Animal Shelter so of course you were to bring your pets to the event. Titus is correct, a one mile walk is a long walk for a guinea pig.If you remember/read an older post of mine I used to walk our birds.I hope to walk Baby (my dog) next year if they have it and if Baby lives to be 12 years old. 09/21/2024

The inspiration and back story for this cartoon comes from the Air Force Base newspaper The Northern Sentry. The story was about U.S. Air Force Master Sgt Jonathan Salvador, a very gifted musician. Jonathan says in the article "Music is just like technical orders, a step by step guide on how to do a mechanical task just like playing a new song on guitar, you have to follow each beat note by note". Jonathan has preformed at many AF related events across the country.Still I have to ask, can he do it on a flying B52?  09/15/2024

We have all had frustrating experiences concerning our automobiles (I will get to Real Estate). Last week I called our local Big O Tires to get several things looked over. I called Big O because I know the owner and the service had been sterling, I even wrote a raving review last year. My appointment was a week away for today. I knew because of the length of the list they would need it all day.When I got to Big O I greeted the owner and the man I spoke to as they came around the corner from the shop. My friend asked "What can I do for you today". I told him I had an appointment and he should have the list. Immediately he became combative towards me and then looked over to the other guy asking him if he had notes. That fellows response, "I don't even know who he is". My patience and coun... 09/13/2024

When you live in a four seasons climate it means you need to have many yard tools and maybe even a lot of toys as well.Fall doesn't require much for itself except a good rake or two, a leaf blower, and maybe a tiller to plow over the years garden bounty. That being said, knowing that winter could happen at any minute, you need to know what to winterize NOW. Things like your home, your car, your camper, your boat, and your mower and other small engines. Each of these things need attention. My least favorite is winterizing the camper.Even a small camper like ours (pictured above) has a plumbing system. The fresh water holding tank need draining, the two sewage systems need draining. The hot water heater and all the water lines need to be "blown-out" as well. Then there is food and other i... 09/13/2024

No one knows how long "Fall" will last in North Dakota. I remember years were we really didn't have fall. To explain I will say on one day in August, while the trees were fully green, we had a freak blizzard bring down power lines and damaging many trees. Our weather did not recover that year so winter started with a August blizzard. I remember other Falls that went well into December. In the year 1997 it was in the 60's during the Christmas season up to New Years Day. On that New Years Day we received two feet of snow!On April 4-7, 1997 North Dakota was hit with a Major Blizzard, bringing much of the state to a complete halt. Heavy snowfall (as much as 2 feet in some areas), and winds to 65 MPH, resulted in widespread impacts. This included 100,000 head of cattle killed (10% of the sta... 09/09/2024

The smoke from forest fires in Canada and the Western USA have/had been so bad last week children have not been let outside for recess due to it being a hazard to their health. This is not something I remember as a child and I am wondering why it is happening today.The only explanation I have heard is that environmentalists have pushed legislation forbidding the cleaning up the floor of the forests so there is a lot more flammable tinder on the floor of the forest then there ever has been before.  If this is true it's very ironic. Maybe forest specialist Bob Crane can let us know if it it true.What I do know is that the smoke is costing me money. On days I could turn off the AC at night and open a window the smoke is so bad I don't want it in my bedroom. 09/07/2024

Interesting cartoon being the author has never had a cup of coffee in his life. I used to drink two pots a day but now a days I limit myself to six cups and usually stop at four cups.     "You get to smell it and drink it" says one or both of Joe's pet guinea pigs. Ponder that as Michael Jacobs might say.As advanced as MLS & website listings have become there is nothing that takes the place of visiting a property in person. I have seen several posts in the last few days encouraging Buyers to research the neighborhood and the community. You can do these things on line and even look down neighborhood street via Google maps BUT nothing trumps driving to the location and physically walking through the house and the neighborhood. If you have children actually visit the school they will atten... 09/05/2024

Even when life is good it's still easy to complain... especially on a Monday. My health has been improving at a rapid pace lately. The attack by a pit bull is nearly healed, the movement in my shoulder is greatly improved as has the pain. The cracked rid is hardly noticeable and best of all I can now exercise, lift weights, and use my inversion table. So what do I have to complain about? The Minot International Airport Parking lot. More accurately LAZ Parking (dis)Service. Actually this rant has as much or more to do with the City of Minot & Minot's Airport Authority. The City constantly promotes doing business with Minot Businesses but over and over they themselves don't even though many/most of the out of town services they hire could have been hired right here in Minot.Here is my bee... 08/26/2024

We still have summer here in North Dakota but last week we had an evening where the temp dipped to 32 degrees in one community. Every year we have many new residents from the deep South who have never experienced cold weather. These new residents come to the Minot Air Force Base as well as the vibrant oil industry in North Dakota.HOW to prepare.If you purchased a home or if you are renting a home where you are responsible for yard work I highly encourage you to purchase a snow blower/thrower.The chances of snowfall in the Minot ND is a crapshoot. There have been winters where I only shoved and had no need for a snow blower and there have been winters where the snowfall was so heavy I had to use a snow blower as often as twice a week all winter. When you look at the picture below keep in... 08/17/2024

If there is an artist in your home there is more than likely a stack of sketchbooks in your home as well. This stack, pictured below, is just a few of Timmothy's. Tina's stack is about 10 times the amount.Timmothy's cartoon above is in today's Base newspaper, "The Northern Sentry" the official newspaper of The Minot AFB and it is intended to let the people on the AFB know that there is an extensive collection of sketchbooks at the Taube Art Museum in downtown Minot.It is my understanding that all across the USA mini-sketchbook libraries are popping up like the past decades explosion of "Little Libraries" seen in nearly every town.I remember reading about this little sketchbook library on wheels years ago (below) but I never got to see it.I have to admit I miss seeing my kids works in th... 08/16/2024

Today's strip is nearly the same as yesterday's but here the focus is on your communities ordinances in regards to burning bans. Yes there are regulations as to what you put into your firepit even if its a metal firepit purchased at your local hardware store. Minot, North Dakota has several burning ordinances, including guidelines for recreational fires and open burning: A recreational fire has a maximum fuel area of 3 feet or less, in diameter by 2 feet or less, in height. A permit issued by the Minot Fire Department is required for fires of larger size or other uses. These fires can only be held on private property with approval from everyone involved. They must be at least 25 feet away from structures, dry grass, leaves, or other combustible materials. Fires can only be made with unt... 08/15/2024