Tracker Pixel for Entry

Someone to pull us out of a ditch

Editorial | March 7th, 2018

Why We Had to Be Apart, oil painting Scholastic gold key portfolio winner - Janessa GraveThere’s nothing really quite as unifying as a good snow day. The calm before the storm gives us something to small talk about. It’s one thing everyone can relate to and add on to. Whether you casually comment on how much snow there is out there to “too bad ‘ol Norbert Schultz isn’t around to read the pig spleen..”

Both of which I’ve reiterated; but in my defense Schultz was an older gentleman who lived near Pingree, who would butcher a hog and predict the outcome of the winter based on its entrails. It’s an old custom that is slowly fading away.

If you don’t believe it, google it. I triple dog dare you. If you want to talk about North Dakota legendary, he was one of them.

Norbert Schultz is no longer with us, but the weather is still worth talking about, you betcha. “Nothing like an hour of shoveling ice 2-4 inches thick off the driveway in the rain during a thunderstorm,” said Lisa Cook on her Facebook page, “before the winter storm warning for 7-10 inches of snow by Tuesday morning!”

“It’s so good we cleaned our driveways,” answered her friend Rebecca Knutson, the next day.

In the parking lot behind the senior and disabled apartments on Broadway, tenants helped each other dig their cars out of the snowdrifts and warned everyone about the ice near the back door -- just as they had helped each other recharge their batteries in the late December cold snap.

Whether it’s idle small talk or reiterating weatherlore, it’s definitely something that is ingrained in Midwest culture. No matter what, someone is bound to learn something. It’s almost like the same gravel road courtesy as the backroad farmer wave. It’s simple acknowledgement.

I think that it’s something that we lack in this day and age--interactions that aren’t viewed through a screen.

Tangent aside...

Just today two of my friends and I drove past a vehicle that was stuck off of tenth street. A man was trying to push the vehicle out while a girl managed behind the wheel. My pals and I gloved up and started pushing, and with our powers combined, we successfully pushed her out. As she waved and drove off the man asked us if we knew her--we all shook our heads and he laughed… “Well, neither do I!”

It feels good to help someone. Feeling helpless or vulnerable is one of the worst feelings in the world...at least that’s how I’ve felt when I’ve had a flat or ended up stuck in the snow or mud. It’s reassuring to know that someone cared to step in and help out.

To those of you who helped someone out this week or even this winter or any other winter. We salute you and thank you. You remind us that North Dakota nice is alive and well. We need to be good to each other, otherwise there’s no one to pull us out of that ditch.

Every man for himself has its time and place but we need to work together and watch out for each other--this is the very basis of community. One kind gesture means more than you’ll ever know.

Recently in:

By Winona LaDukewinona@winonaladuke.comIt’s been eight years since the Water Protectors were cleared off the banks of the Cannonball and Missouri Rivers. It was a bitter ending to a battle to protect the water; and for most of us…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.com Rodeo is a family tradition for sisters Kate and Tera Flitton. The duo performs under the moniker Stellar Trick Riding Cowgirls. The Utah natives will be performing along with bareback riders,…

Saturday, April 19, 8 p.m. doors open at 7 p.m.Fargo Theatre, 314 N Broadway, FargoCheck out this cult classic on the big screen as a live band performs along with David Bowie’s vocals, all while basking in the Art Deco glory…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.com I feel like reading a newspaper is the equivalent of listening to music on vinyl. Not only is it analog, it’s an experience. I might be a little biased, but there's something about the rustling…

By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comA column on How Trumusklicans are trying to change historyIt took William L. Shirer a couple decades to write and then publish “The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany,”…

By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com Holiday wine shopping shouldn’t have to be complicated. But unfortunately it can cause unneeded anxiety due to an overabundance of choices. Don’t fret my friends, we once again have you covered…

By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com Photos by Rick GionLiving in downtown Fargo has its perks. One of them is taking walks along Broadway and peeking into the restaurants and shops for a glimpse of what’s new. Sometimes this makes a…

Mooncats and Pert Near Sandstone play Empire TheatreBy Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comThe MoonCats describe themselves as “Americonscious Campfire Folk.” They have a clear acoustic folk sound with a sense of whimsy — think…

By Greg Carlsongregcarlson1@gmail.com Making her feature directorial debut, Rachael Abigail Holder guides “Love, Brooklyn” to a satisfying conclusion, even if some viewers might have hoped for a different outcome for the…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comPhoto by Chad Nodland, "Artistic Freedom"On January 19, 2025, the last full day of Joe Biden’s presidency, he commuted Leonard Peltier's two consecutive life sentences to home confinement at his…

By John Showalterjohn.d.showalter@gmail.comHigh Plains Reader had the opportunity to interview two mysterious new game show hosts named Milt and Bradley Barker about an upcoming event they will be putting on at Brewhalla. What…

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 Josette Ciceronunapologeticallyanxiousme@gmail.com What does it mean to truly live in a community —or should I say, among community? It’s a question I have been wrestling with since I moved to Fargo-Moorhead in February 2022.…

By Alicia Underlee NelsonProtests against President Trump’s policies and the cuts made by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) are planned across North Dakota and western Minnesota Friday, April 4 and…

By Gilbert Kuipersgilbertkuipers@outlook.com I live in North Dakota District 24 and have been challenging the district Republicans about their understanding of climate science for years. There has been no serious response to my…