I live in Wishek, North Dakota. It is a small town of about 1,100 people in the south-central part of the state. Wishek is home to the "World's Largest Badger." We call him Barney and he is the school mascot. To my knowledge, no one has ever challenged the "world's largest" claim. I can tell you, he is pretty darn big. I am a graduate of Wishek High School (Class of 1981, 20+ years ago, yikes!), which means that Barney is something of a personal icon to me.

Wishek is also known as "The Sauerkraut Capitol of the World." We don't make sauerkraut, but some people here actually do like it. The second Wednesday of October is "Sauerkraut Day" in Wishek. On October 8, 2003, we will mark the 78th year of this cultural tradition. People will stream into Wishek from miles around to eat free sauerkraut, wieners, "speck" (uh, no one under 40 seems to know, I think it is pork fat, sort of poor man's bacon), and all the trimmings. Almost everyone in Wishek has a German-Russian background. Our ancestors moved from Germany to Russia at the invitation of the czaress. Problem was our people were so damn good at what they did (especially farming) that the native Russians were put to shame. They basically told us to get, so our ancestors came to America, many to what was then Dakota Territory. To make a long story short, they conquered the new land and we have continued to dominate in the same way for more than 100 years now. As for Sauerkraut Day...traditions are cool, but I think we should switch it to "Sausage and Kuchen Day." Sausage reflects our proud heritage every bit as much as sauerkraut. And kuchen, what can I say? It is kind of like a fruit and custard pizza. Rich and creamy and good. I recommend it.

Back to me (that's why you're here, right, LOL), I went to Moorhead State University (Go Dragons!) in Minnesota. I graduated in 1985 with a bachelor of science degree in Mass Communications (Broadcast News concentration) and a minor in Sociology. A couple of years ago, the name of my alma mater became Minnesota State University Moorhead. No hyphen, no comma. I am not really sure why they did that. Oh well, it will always be Moorhead State or MSU to me and probably most everyone else, too.

I have been a reporter and writer for The Wishek Star (it is a weekly newspaper) for more than 15 years. I cover City Council, School Board, business news, sports and just about everything in between. There is a routine to it, but it can get kind of exciting at times. The hours can be long on certain days and the pay stinks, but I would still recommend community journalism to anyone.

It's often said that we're writing the first draft of history every week. That's rather corny, but it's also true, if you think about it. My work is published and the North Dakota Heritage Center keeps copies of all the newspapers in the state on microfilm. What I write today will be available to be read and used long after I become worm food. I am going to leave something tangible behind and anyone who cares will know I've been here. Not everyone can say that about their work. I think it's kind of neat that I can.

What else? Well, I was born (at 7:29 p.m. to be exact) on June 24, 1963 at St. Alexius Medical Center in Bismarck, N.D. That makes me a Cancer, sign-wise, and also means that I turned 37 earlier this year. I am single.

I love sports, even though I have never been much of an athlete. My favorite teams are the Minnesota Twins, Minnesota Vikings, Colorado Rockies, Seattle Mariners, Colorado Avalanche and Minnesota Timberwolves. I have many favorite players, too, but Kirby Puckett and Charles Barkley are at the top of the list.

Some of my hobbies are reading, watching television, listening to music and using the Internet. I love to chat and have met some of the coolest people I know online. The Net can be a dark and nasty place, but I think the good things outweigh the bad by a long shot. Many thanks to Al Gore for inventing it. :-)

My favorite TV shows include "King of the Hill," "CSI" and the late, great "Politically Incorrect." My favorite actors are Gene Hackman and John Travolta and the actresses are Meg Ryan, Natalie Portman and Katie Holmes. I like all sorts of music. The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, John Mellencamp, Billy Joel, Eagles, Dixie Chicks, George Strait, AC/DC, Prince, Foreigner, Dwight Yoakam, The Wallflowers, Garth Brooks, Kool and The Gang, Shannon Curfman, Jim Croce, The Beach Boys, Boston, David Lee Murphy and REO Speedwagon are the names on just some of the CD's I have around me right now, so you probably kind of get the idea, right?

That's about all. If you want to know more, just ask. My ICQ number is 574322. I also have AOL Instant Messenger (screen name: Franorama).