The Northfield Blogosphere Roundup is a good way to see the latest information on many of the area’s blogs. The updates included here show blog posts added approximately within the previous 48 hours. See Northfield.org’s blogosphere aggregator page for an automated, comprehensive listing.
Food and energy is something we cannot go without, and the farther these two come from where we use them, the less sustainable they are, this is a matter of logic and economic fact not a matter of opinion, or political leaning, or weather we agree or disagree on global trade.
The fact is that we don’t account for the full cost of our foods and have been living under the illusion that a banana is really only $0.75 cents a pound. It isn’t, what happens is that we are only paying for a small part of the full cost of producing it, bringing it from Brazil or Central America and delivering it to our stores and picking it up. The carbon emitted, the water, soil and air pollution in the production cycle, and many other costs are just being passed on for others to pay, either down the rivers and oceans, or down to the next generation.
Friends of Way Park was the pioneer Northfield neighborhood blog starting in 2005 but has been dormant since last summer. Are there other neighborhood blogs out there that I don’t know about?
The Northfield Blogosphere Roundup is a good way to see the latest information on many of the area’s blogs. The updates included here show blog posts added approximately within the previous 48 hours. See Northfield.org’s blogosphere aggregator page for an automated, comprehensive listing.
I’ve been working with (L to R) Bill Carlson, Ray Eng, and Ed Lufkin to convert the Cannon Valley Elder Collegium (CVEC) website to a WordPress-based blog site. It went live last week.
CVEC is in the middle of registration for their Spring 2009 courses. See the 3 PDFs on their home page for course descriptions, registration, and the schedule/enrollment update. There’s no online registration nor online payment yet. That capability will be available for the next round of courses.
By Bonnie Obremski, on February 27, 2009, 10:25 am
The Northfield Blogosphere Roundup is a good way to see the latest information on many of the area’s blogs. The updates included here show blog posts added approximately within the previous 24 hours. See Northfield.org’s blogosphere aggregator page for an automated, comprehensive listing.
At a meeting at Plaza Morena Restaurant in Owatonna on February 17 2009, a diverse group of restaurant and food business owners from Red Wing, Waseca, Albert Lee, Owatonna and Faribault meet to discuss an organizing process to secure higher level of cooperation and organization in the food business owners sector of the Southern Minnesota region (more).
Over the past few weeks, Griff and Ross and I have been talking with specific community members about the idea of becoming Contributing Bloggers on Locally Grown. A few of our new contributors have posts in the works, and we’re looking forward to the added dimension these voices will bring to our content and discussions here. Watch this space for the new bylines!
New KYMN 1080 AM owner Jeff Johnson has brought the station into the 21st century in the span of a month. With the help of new hire Tim Freeland and couple of local consultants (yeah, I’m one), the station launched a blog a few weeks ago and this week, they turned on live audio streaming. See the screenshot with the arrows, pointing to the link that triggers the streaming and the options available from the player. This morning, I listened to Dusty Budd’s 8:05 newscast, pausing and starting it several times as I was interrupted by pesky citizens. Way slick. (continued)
I don’t know the Nieman Journalism Lab guys personally but Mathew Ingram’s blog post today, “Locally grown” news gets a boost acknowledged the good stuff happening here. The ‘boost’ to hyperlocal sites like ours that he’s referring to is the new funding that RepJ founder Len Witt just got from the Harnisch Foundation to create a new Center for Sustainable Journalism (CSJ) at KSU in Georgia. No, that doesn’t mean a cash infusion into LG or RepJ Northfield. It’s just that we’re going to be a part of something much bigger. Mathew had this to say about LG after a quick look around here. (continued)
At last week’s Union of Youth open house at The Key, I met Kevin Krein, Addy Payne, and Dan Zenner, co-hosts of the KeyMN radio show which airs on Saturday mornings at 9am on KYMN 1080. The show now has its own web site where each episode is blogged with a clickable Flash player. They started podcasting in early December. (continued)
I don’t know if the City of Northfield’s 4-year old website can be easily modified (that was the plan when it was created for $85,000) but it clearly needs improvement. So maybe we can help the City by listing the problems we encounter when using the site and making suggestions for improvement. (Although I do blogsites for a living, I would decline bidding on a revamp of the City’s site, just like I declined to bid on a revamp of the Northfield Area Chamber of Commerce’s website.) (continued)
Behind the scenes, the Triumvirate has been discussing ways to hear more voices in and from the LoGroNo community. Because this is a three-person blog with Griff as Emperor, right now only the three of us can create posts for discussion; everyone else is restricted to comments. (We’ll have more news about that soon – we’re looking at changes to the status quo there too.) So I thought, why not create a catch-all post to serve as “open mic”? Continue reading “Open Mic” at Locally Grown
The Star Tribune may not be the last to go that route, said Alan Mutter, a Silicon Valley-based analyst and former newspaper executive. "We’re in a period of sustained pain for the newspaper business," Mutter said. "The employment ad business has been melting away since 2000. Automotive has been falling apart for the last couple of years. And I don’t even have to explain about real estate."
Since its inception in the 1990s, Northfield.org has evolved into more of an electronic community bulletin board than an outlet for the reporting of local news. A few years ago, Griff Wigley, one of the founders of Northfield.org, spun off to create his own group blog, LocallyGrown, which—along with its companion radio show and podcast—does feature hard news and commentary about local issues. Earlier this year, LocallyGrown teamed up with reporter Bonnie Obremski to provide local Representative Journalism. Continue reading Whither Northfield.org and citizen journalism?
On any given day at the Goodbye Blue Monday coffee shop in downtown Northfield, you will see several people scanning their computers instead of perusing a newspaper, as they nurse their morning coff ees.
The reason is that Northfield has two citizen journalism blogs, LocallyGrownNorthfield.org and Northfield.org, that are highly popular morning reads in town. With a total population of only 17,150, Northfield has two citizen journalism web sites covering local news, events and activities — Locally Grown, which attracts nearly 7,000 visitors a month, and Northfield.org, with a monthly readership of about 9,400.
Unlike their newspaper counterpart, the Northfield News, these websites provide citizens with more than just breaking news and a calendar of events. They also serve as important social and community hubs by providing a forum for civic discussion and a database of comments on articles from readers. They even showcase other local citizen blogs.
kiffi summa: Our mothers consider the ‘bunched panties’ remark too squalid to pass either their sainted lips, or those of their darling daughters… and seriously doubt whether it was said during your father’s time!
Jane Moline: Griff: you really didn’t know my mother and how do you even know if I wear panties?
Griff Wigley: Jane/Kiffi, I did some family of origin research and it turns out your mothers actually said “A stitch in time saves nine” and “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” about 3-4 times more often than...
kiffi summa: Jane: Both our Mom’s were smart, and they knew about the problems with “borrowing trouble” i.e don’t stir up problems that are non existent; there’s enough current problems to deal with, and even some of...
Jane Moline: I can’t believe I have to bring up my mother’s advice: DON’T GO BORROWING TROUBLE! If some women want to join the fire department in Northfield, we must be afraid that our fire department MIGHT respond like North...
Vicki Dilley: How many lives can we even begin to count that have touched by the Youth Exchange program? Northfield has been involved in Youth Exchange since 1969 when we hosted our first student…since then 100′s of High School...
Tom Durkin: This event supports one of the crown jewels of the Northfield Rotary Club – the Youth Exchange Program. Northfield can be proud that we send out more than fifteen students annually for year abroad study programs. We also host several...
john george: Kathie- I knew I was sticking my neck out on that one!
Kathie Galotti: Geez John. Don’t get Griff restarted on the geese!
john george: Yes, more beaches would certainly accomodate more geese. We have to remember to be waterfowl friendly.
Susan Hvistendahl: I totally agree with you re the need for more beaches in Northfield, having just returned from a week in Puerto Vallarta. Could have had rum punches there but….well, after we visited a local tequila distillery and got to...
Bright Spencer: Oh, you both look so happy! Thanks for sharing. More pics please!
kiffi summa: Griff: whither goest thy right arm if it starts to “whither” (sic) ? sorry; couldn’t resist… stuck at home with a bad knee provides way too much time on computer!
Bright Spencer: i’ve been looking thru a site, crazyguyonabike.com that has lots of journals and photos from around the world.
jane fenton: Congrats, Griff! That’s my son Cliff in the orange hat. He’s revamped the recycling bin prototype. You should see it!
Griff Wigley: Don, I’ll keep ping pong in mind. I’d hate to have my right arm start to whither from a lack of racquetball. In the meantime, I’m trying to excite as many Northfielders as I can about mountain biking. I’ll...
john george: Griff- Iris will have to work real hard to keep you in focus on everything else. I shutter to think where this could go.
Griff Wigley: Name: The Local Joint Description: A handmade and vintage collective in Northfield, MN. COLLECTING.CREATING.COLLABORAT ING. Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/TheLoc alJoint Nfld News: Store to open in former ‘digs’ space
David Beimers: Hmmm… fans? air conditioners? ice cream?
Jessica Paxton: I know. But I don’t wanna spill the (cool) beans!
Megan Tsui: Edward, Sorry you weren’t able to attend. We’ll be posting notes from the meeting on the NEC website and if you send me your email, I’ll make sure you get a copy! If you (or anyone else!) would like to chat about it...
Edward Smith: I wanted to attend this, but was unable. Does anyone know if there will be a summary posted anywhere?
Kathie Galotti: My kid had a pretty decent AP Environmental Science class 2 years ago….he’s not a great math/science student, but this one got him interested in at least knowing enough science to create good policies. I remember...
Paul Zorn: A few years ago one of my daughters spent a year working in Copenhagen, largely in an office setting. All desks in her office could be raised or lowered to permit either standing or sitting positions. I have no idea whether such...
Griff Wigley: In today’s Strib: Office-dwellers stand up to ‘sitting disease’ Dr. James Levine has reviewed the statistics: One in three Minnesota adults is either diabetic or pre-diabetic, and one in four is obese. And he thinks...
Bright Spencer: The All Pro Game last Sunday between the AFC and the NFC was so enjoyable. The stess, the anger, the anxiety all gone…well I didn’t watch all of it, as I rarely do watch an entire game, usually just the beginning and...
Griff Wigley: Today’s Strib: Hockey safety goal expanded to youth In an unprecedented mid-year change, Minnesota Hockey is toughening the penalties for checking from behind and boarding. The change will affect 40,000 hockey players in the...
Bright Spencer: I like hockey and all sports very much. I was a star basketball player in my day. I don’t remember anyone suffering any major injuries in all my hs and college days. I feel certain that coach’s know who does what and...
john george: You are correct. That is why I didn’t allow my children to attack the character of their siblings just to support their position. There do need to be some kind of ground rules in any discussion so as to keep individual...
kiffi summa: The issue could be considered to be: what is “conflict”, and what are two sides of a discussion… see #33 re: the Mayor’s admonition to Peter Dahlen at the joint Council/ChartComm meeting. I don’t see how...
john george: Kiffi- This is a good article, and I agree with most of it. Just thinking about my kids in their youth, there was always some conflict between them, but our goal as parents wasn’t to force them into some weiner form but to help...
kiffi summa: A very interesting article in the Jan.30th New Yorker magazine on the nature of the dynamics of creative discussion; it’s entitled “Groupthink; the brainstorming myth”. Based on studies done by a psych professor at...
Griff Wigley: Kiffi/Kathie, I didn’t have that reaction. But I’ve put up a new blog post to discuss it and everything else related to the Fire Department so let’s shift the discussion there.
Kathie Galotti: I read Betsey’s blog and, like most of Betsey’s blog entries, found it well-written and making a very good point. Though I agree that geographic districts aren’t the only way to represent different constituencies,...
john george: Griff- The NN editorial presents the difference between geographic representation and ideological representation. Right now, the wards establish geographic representation. With this approach, depending upon the voter turnout, a person...
kiffi summa: I hope that people will use the link here on LG to read the current posting by Councilor Buckheit on her blog, re: wards versus all at-large, and take the opportunity to comment. Once again, the NFNews has not given a very well...
Griff Wigley: Nfld News editorial: Keep the current ward system intact
Sean Hayford Oleary: In any case, this issue doesn’t seem like it needs to be another opportunity to dis/agree with the current council. Regardless of how focused on the downtown (or not) they are, it’s clear this change would not...
Griff Wigley: In today’s NY Times: Turning to Kettlebells to Ease Back Pain Kettlebells, cast-iron weights that have been used for centuries to train Russian soldiers and athletes, appear to be a promising therapy for back and neck pain, new...
Sandy Vesledahl: UPDATE ON RHONDA: We are very happy to report that Rhonda was adopted over the weekend by a local family. Rhonda’s new mom is a Family Counselor and Rhonda will be going to her office with her and helping with her clients. So...
Megan Tsui: Griff, The NEC is moving forward with the idea of a non-profit Coworking Incubator/Accelerator space. Megan
Megan Tsui: What do you think? Come to the Community Dialogue and tell us! January 31st from 2 to 4 pm at the Archer House lower level conference room. Share your ideas, thoughts, and dreams about a Coworking Incubator/Accelerator space in...
kiffi summa: I would hope the City’s Historic Preservation Commission would explore this option, and the appropriateness/allowability for use on properties within the Historic District. Thanks, Jim.
Jim Haas: I was reading a story by Porter Fox about his visit to Copenhagen. He mentioned in passing that the city is vigilant about removing graffiti using high-pressure washers with ice crystals as a mild abrasive. I did a little rudimentary...
kiffi summa: The LWV observer reports are meant to be a summary of actions taken, not a ‘blow by blow’ transcript. This is the reason that anyone deeply interested should watch the meeting for themself, if they want a full...
Over the past few weeks, Griff and Ross and I have been talking with specific community members about the idea of becoming Contributing Bloggers on Locally Grown. A few of our new contributors have posts in the works, and we’re looking forward to the added dimension these voices will bring to our content and discussions here. Watch this space for the new bylines!
Betsey Buckheit started her blog
Posted to the Strib web site about 30 minutes ago: 
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