Culture

​Five ways to rock Oktoberfest

September 25th, 2019

Munich Oktoberfest - photograph by Alicia Underlee Nelson

It’s prime Oktoberfest season, both in Germany and here in the upper Midwest. I visited a biergarten and a beer tent at Oktoberfest in Munich (the place where the party started way back in 1810), then bellied up to a communal table at Cannstatter Volksfest in Stuttgart to hoist a beer stein and learn how the Germans celebrate.

I came away with five tips for enjoying Oktoberfest to the fullest, whether you’re in Germany or the Midwest. Try them yourself at one (or five!) of the…

Read more...


Research and data collection around the web

September 18th, 2019

I am sure that you have reflected about how some of the web sites you use get your name or other facts about you, shopping habits, area of the country you live in or even your closest friends. The answer to your questions is data collection. Collecting data is valuable because you can use it to make informed decisions. The more relevant, high-quality data you have, the more likely you are to make good choices when it comes to marketing, sales, customer service, product development and…

Read more...


​Do You have a router in your house?

September 18th, 2019

I guess I have to assume that most of you do. It is useful when you have more than one computer that you want to connect to the Internet. There are also many other advantages to owning a router but that is a story for another time. This time I want you to know about resetting the router.

A factory reset wipes your router’s custom settings and returns it to a like-new state. This is an important step when troubleshooting some network problems. Factory-resetting is relatively easy, but…

Read more...


​Fall Equinox at Medicine Wheel Park

September 18th, 2019

Joe Steckler - photograph by Michael Gabbard

By Kristin Gruber
perriex1@gmail.com

Amongst the many charms of autumn in Valley City, North Dakota, at the top of a huge hill, in a serene, semi-secluded area, you'll find Medicine Wheel Park.

The park offers 30 acres of scenic trails, 12 burial mounds between 500 and 2,000 years old, a 3,000 square foot flower garden, a distance-scaled solar system and more. Its centerpiece is the Medicine Wheel.

Measuring 213 ft around and built with fieldstones, the Medicine Wheel, inspired by the Big…

Read more...


Chrome Web Browser

September 11th, 2019

We haven’t talked about the Chrome web browser for a while and now is a good time because Google is coming out with a new version of the browser. This will be Chrome 77 which will be arriving as I write this. Disclaimer- I use the Chrome web browser for almost all of my work and I use Firefox, Edge, and Opera for various tasks when setting up a website, etc. In years past, if a website didn’t work properly with one browser, you simply tried another one. These days, Chrome knows how…

Read more...


Living a dream

September 11th, 2019

Shari Lindsley

This past week, Shari Lindsley had the chance to live out the dream of a lifetime when she participated in the USA Powerlifting Athlete Camp which was held at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Shari was one of 35 powerlifters who had the opportunity to train under world-class coaches like Zac Cooper, Arian Khamesi, and Priscilla Ribic during the 4-day event.

Shari said she has always had a passion for powerlifting and, when she was young, had success at the world…

Read more...


25 years…where do I begin?

September 4th, 2019

By Raul Gomez, Publisher
raul@hpr1.com

I have come to think of the High Plains Reader, not as an extension of John Strand or myself, but as its own living breathing entity that wants and feeds and strives for its own personal fulfillment. And sometimes when I look back at where it started, I feel a closeness to it. We share a bond, like a parent or gay uncle, and I’m proud of what it’s become.

When I first saw the Reader I was in Grafton, North Dakota, fresh on my second week of…

Read more...


​The Main Guys

September 4th, 2019

Photograph by Raul Gomez

I was pretty depressed. I was new in town, very much alone and my main entertainment was going to the supermarket. I walked there to make it last longer.

On March 7, 2007, I overcame my shyness and walked up the stairs and into the headquarters and only quarters of the High Plains Reader, to volunteer my services. John Strand, the co-proprietor, asked me what I’d like to do. I said that for starters, what nobody else wants to do, and he put me to work answering the phone.

That’s…

Read more...


​Fargo VFW Revs Their Engines with Motorcycle Show

September 4th, 2019

There has always been a certain allure about motorcycles. Even after they have become a fixture on roads everywhere they still evoke a sense of freedom, rugged individualism, and danger. It is that aura of mystique that has enthralled Dan Jacobson Sr. aka “Dangerous Dakota Dan”, well-known motorcycle celebrity emcee, ever since he was twelve and still holds him in its thrall to this day. This passion inspired him to spearhead the first ever downtown motorcycle show to be held in…

Read more...


​Finding sanctuary on the prairie: Hawkes Homestead Animal Sanctuary

September 4th, 2019

Photograph provided by Jessica Hawkes

North Dakota is often known for its multigenerational family farms; not so much for its animal rescues and sanctuaries. But Jessica Hawkes, a New Rockford local, is currently working to convert a 600-acre, fifth-generation homestead into the Hawkes Homestead Animal Sanctuary.

“We currently house approximately 125 animals,” Hawkes says. “I say approximately because they are always coming and going—last week we adopted out five cats and four chicks, and this morning three more…

Read more...


Tracker Pixel for Entry Outcast Tracker Pixel for Entry EmpireAUG2021 Tracker Pixel for Entry WestFargoEvents Tracker Pixel for Entry DareToDream Tracker Pixel for Entry Bismarck1 Tracker Pixel for Entry Farrms

Recently in:

By Laura Simmonslaurasimmons2025@u.northwestern.edu Dr. Stephen McDonough researched why North Dakota had the highest COVID death rate and cases in the fall of 2020. His investigation accumulated into a 1,000-plus page book titled…

By Michael M. Miller michael.miller@ndsu.eduOne of the most important books published about the Germans from Russia in North Dakota is “Along the Trails of Yesterday: A Story of McIntosh County” by Nina Farley Wishek, published…

photo credit: Jessica GavinSeptemberOktoberfest: Now-October 3Wurst Bier HallStein-holding competition, happy hour Mon-Fri from 4-6, wear your dirndl or lederhosen, German music.https://wurstfargo.com/Papa’s Pumpkin…

By John Strandjas@hpr1.comOur Opinion: Thank you, Reader readers, for 29 fulfilling yearsChugging along, The Little Newspaper That Could commences its 30th volume and year with this issue. Simply getting here speaks volumes. Just…

By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comIs Cruelty a Part of Nature—or Is It Just Part of Human Nature?Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman has been my economics guru for many years for his pithy columns in The New York Times. In…

We are looking for 55-gallon plastic food grade barrels, do you have ideas or connections?We use these barrels to teach our resilient yard workshop series including Make Your Own Rain Barrel and Make Your Own Compost Tumbler. If…

By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.comMy new venture as a master’s degree student has got me thinking…again about food. Although I’m in an online program with the University of North Dakota, I thought it would be handy to list and…

By John Showalterjohn.d.showalter@gmail.comThe Melvins formed in 1983 Montesano, Washington, founded by singer/guitar player Buzz Osborne. The group is known for its heavy sound mixed with a dose of punk, forming its own subgenre.…

By Greg Carlsongregcarlson1@gmail.comFilmmaker Jacqueline Castel’s “My Animal” premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival in January, but its vibes are better suited to the rising blood moon of autumn’s spooky season. Now…

By HPR Staffsubmit@hpr1.comThe Fargo Moorhead Visual Artists’ much-lauded neighbor lovin’ Studio Crawl is just around the corner – October 7 and 8, noon to 6pm. During the free event, the people who add culture and vibrancy…

By Eric Dallmanericd@hpr1.comWe recently watched “The PROM” at Chanhassen Dinner Theatre, and it was an experience that left a lasting impact on us. The story, a heartwarming yet familiar one, follows a group of Broadway stars…

By Annie Prafckeannieprafcke@gmail.com AUSTIN, Texas – As a Chinese-American, connecting to my culture through food is essential, and no dish brings me back to my mother’s kitchen quite like hotdish. Yes, you heard me right –…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comNew Jamestown Brewery Serves up Local FlavorThere’s something delicious brewing out here on the prairie and it just so happens to be the newest brewery west of the Red River and east of the…

By John Showalter  john.d.showalter@gmail.comThey sell fentanyl test strips and kits to harm-reduction organizations and…

JANUARY 19, 1967– MARCH 8, 2023 Brittney Leigh Goodman, 56, of Fargo, N.D., passed away unexpectedly at her home on March 8, 2023. Brittney was born January 19, 1967, to Ruth Wilson Pollock and Donald Ray Goodman, in Hardinsburg,…

By Faye Seidlerfayeseidler@gmail.com On the first day of the month I ask people to thank a journalist they know or someone who contributes to papers in some meaningful way. When I grew up, my best friend's father was a journalist…