That’s A Lot of Bull!
Some days you fight the traffic and other times you go with the herd. But in Yellowstone National Park life pauses. Mostly, there is no radio, no television, no internet and no cell phone service. People are forced to submit… Continue reading
Midwest Hurricane
Twenty-four hours into our midwest hurricane I am fascinated by waves of soaked leaves and tree branches racing past my window. A bird nest flies by and I realize there are no birds in sight. Not even Sammy, my favorite squirrel,… Continue reading
Brutal Winter Continues
Our string of below zero days persists with no end in sight. One can only wonder how the birds and small animals 
survive, we even spotted a brain-dead robin today who wasn’t bright enough to fly south. The bird feeders… Continue reading
Science Can Be Dangerous
As much fun as it can be to toss boiling water in the air when it’s 20-below in Minnesota such experiments can go bad, especially when you toss the water straight up and don’t move out of the way quickly enough.
The Fishing Is Great
In the early 1980s only three species of rough fish called the section of the river passing through Minneapolis and St. Paul home but today after tremendous efforts by local, state and federal agencies to clean the river there are… Continue reading
Spring Has Sprung!
I LOVE SPRING!!!
T
he birds are back singing until their little beaks ache. The drab browns and grays of crushed vegetation are yielding to lush green fields. And, the Mississippi River is running hard past our floating office. Best of all the Riverboat Season is underway.
Over the winter we installed a new bottom on the riverbarge Betsey Northrup. You won’t see the difference, but your feet won’t get wet either. And, we added a new sewage tank to the Betsey. You won’t see that either, but I guarantee that every passenger definitely will appreciate it.
You definitely will see the changes on the Jonathan Padelford. The crew worked all winter grinding, cutting, welding and now painting. They ripped all the railings off the second deck, ground 37 years of old paint off the decks and bulkheads (walls for you land lubbers) and completely remodeled the women’s head (water closet, bathroom, toilet, lu, potty, whatever). The pride of the Padelford fleet is undergoing a rebirth in 2007 and you’re going love it. Continue reading
"It's hard to believe Kriesel would have survived if it hadn't been for the strength of his wife, who literally moved into Walter Reed Army Medical Center." St. Paul Pioneer Press, Aug. 8, 2010
"No matter what your opinion of the war, you'll be blown away by Kriesel's story. You don't have to have served near Fallujah to know what Kriesel experienced. It's all here--and in mind-blowing detail."
Minneapolis Star Tribune, Nov. 3, 2010
