Culture

Bonanzaville: spooky paranormal investigations

October 4th, 2017

October is finally here, which means that Halloween is not too far away. If you’re anything like me, this time of the year is best celebrated not by the pumpkin-spiced goodies or warm fall-themed sweaters, but instead by marathoning all my favorite horror films and decorating my home with creepy creatures, spider webs, and severed limbs (plastic, of course). Ah, yes. It’s the most wonderful time of the year.

If you wanted, you could also usher in this very Spooktacular time of the…

Therapy options for transgender and low-income individuals

October 4th, 2017

The closing of the NDSU Family Therapy Center was a blow to a lot of community members, both transgender and otherwise. It was a place that offered a sliding scale fee, where no matter a person’s income or ability to pay, they would be seen. With this service now closed there has been a lot of community anxiety about where to go.

Much of what is at issue relates to the concepts of sliding scale fees and letters of referral. Sliding scale refers to therapy organizations that charge…

Hitting your thumb with a hammer

September 27th, 2017

That hammer can really do a lot of damage to your thumb. Please be careful if you are doing some DIY carpentry. The hammer can also do a lot of damage if you hit your thumb drive with it. Your hammer should not be anywhere near your thumb drive. Now do you know what a thumb drive is? Let me explain.

Also referred to as a USB flash drive, a thumb drive is that little square thing sticking out of the side of laptops that you may see in a coffee shop, the student union of a university, or…

Capsized canines and caring hearts

September 27th, 2017

Extraordinary circumstances often tend to bring people together. When faced with overwhelming odds, people look past their superficial differences and join together for a common good.

Those sentiments can extend beyond just our fellow human beings to our four-legged friends as well, as Caring Hearts Rescue of Perham, Minnesota and Shaggy’s Dog Washing and Grooming found out firsthand in the wake of Hurricane Harvey, which has not only displaced thousands of people, but many animals as…

Transgender-affirming therapist in Fargo

September 27th, 2017

North Dakota State University’s Family Therapy Center (FTC) was recently closed due to a variety of factors, ranging from budget cuts to restructuring. It will be closed for the duration of this school year.

This was a place that offered therapy on a sliding fee scale for everyone in our community. It’ll be a resource that many people in Fargo -- and myself -- will sorely miss.

While the FTC served a plethora of clients and needs, they also functioned as the biggest provider of…

From Algeria to Fargo: Ibtissem Belmihoub

September 21st, 2017

photo by Meg Luther Lindholm.

Ibtissem (pronounced Ib-tiss-em) Belmihoub is both enjoying her time in Fargo as a doctoral student in Rhetoric, Writing and Culture at NDSU and a community volunteer. She is currently the Project Coordinator for The World in Fargo Moorhead social media project. Ibtissem is an Algerian citizen and is in the Berber ethnic group in the Kabyle area of Algeria.

First coming to the United States four years ago on an undergraduate exchange program, Ibtissem studied…

Stern Homestead offers insights into the lives of a German Russian farm family

September 20th, 2017

When I travel I prefer to hit the backroads, exploring sleepy highways, scenic byways and hoping I don’t end up lost.

I found myself on Highway 21 heading west to Mott the spot and stumbled across The Stern Homestead. Its earthy construction grabbed my eye and upon closer inspection I saw informational placards provided by the National Register of Historic Places noting points of interest on the grounds. I turned around at the most convenient spot and stumbled upon a unique piece of…

I am the Master of my Domain

September 20th, 2017

You could be the master but you have to pay for it. How do you get a domain name for free? If you have been reading this column for any length of time you should have learned that nothing is free.

Now that you know that it is not free, perhaps I should explain what a domain is. You probably realize that the last few letters after the period in a web site name can be different. Some examples are .com , .org , .bus , .ca. These are called Top Level Domains (TLD).

You can buy domain names…

Fully Loaded Wrestling takes on Fargo

September 20th, 2017

Founded in Minot, North Dakota’s premier independent wrestling company has been tumbling around the prairie and travelling the state with their dynamic production since the spring of 2015. Their talent comes from a core base of regional wrestlers and extends into contracted talent from across the globe. HPR had a chance to chat with Fully Loaded Wrestling owners Brady Berndt and Tony Waswick about the independent wrestling movement, training, and wrestling as an artform.

High Plains…

Wilkommen to Hjemkomst’s German Kulturfest!

September 13th, 2017

It’s pretty easy to tell that Fargo is proud of its Norse heritage. After all, North Dakota is one of the most Norwegian places in the Midwest. Reminders are everywhere, like Stabo in the West Acres Mall or the Sons of Norway. However, another large group of immigrants that settled in Fargo back in the day we don’t hear about nearly as much are the German ones.

That, among other reasons, is why the Hjemkomst Center in Moorhead is holding the “German Kulturfest” on Saturday,…