This Is Online

by Casper

As a decorated military war veteran it has easily come to my attention the disconnect between returning soldiers and those few groups that are out there to help them transition. In the move between being active in the military and discharge from service, some men and women are lost in the limbo. This may seem like such a minor national issue, but in reality this issue is of great importance. I some cases veterans returning from our current war have been known to get in legal trouble due to issues like Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Men and women like me have served in the military during war time, have lost just about everything in a sacrificial move to do what they feel is right.

By Candice Spitler

Growing up in Belleview, Florida was a paradise for me. The temperatures were constantly above forty degrees and the

vegetation bloomed even in the winter time. I remember the garden we had in the front of our lawn. It wasn't very spacious but it grew a variety of flowers. Now that I live in Bemidji, Minnesota the scenery change is consistently jolting. I had never known what snow was like or the drastic death the landscape endures annually.

I never knew that I would forget the color green or how the grass smells in the summer heat. So, every August I ingrain as much stimuli as possible. Trying to store away every smell, every sight, every feeling of summer that I can. Around February, when the grass is still buried, I can't even imagine the beauty of spring.

However, this year is different. I've always wanted to create my own garden. I've always wanted a flower garden with Bleeding Hearts, skyscraper hydrangeas and burgeoning rose bushes. I've wanted to plant peach trees for me and cherry trees for my mother. This is the year that I finally take Florida out of my heart and nurture it in the Earth.

By Candice Spitler

I have been in college for four years. I’m graduating from Bemidji State University on May 13, 2013. Literally, fifteen days away I will be considered a college graduate with a BFA in creative and professional writing. I’ve been thinking a lot this semester. I’ve been panicked, exhilarated, frightened, and apathetic this semester. May 10th, the last day of my college career, is looming ever closer. It’s a bittersweet, freak-out moment for me. So, in celebration I wanted to write an article that entertained and educated at the same time.

One of the first things I learned about college was pertaining to money. I made some bad decisions when it came to owning my first credit card. I didn’t pay attention to my spending and I was a thousand in the hole. It took me a whole year to pay off my debt but it made me better at saving money. Every paycheck thereafter, I transferred fifty dollars into my savings account and didn’t touch it.

By Kim Monson

It seems as though American shoppers no longer need to create hand-written shopping lists based on the actual act of counting or taking inventory of their household goods and supplies. Why? Because these days there are "apps for that." Interestingly enough, some of the apps even include barcode scanners. The devices not only handle the physical act of counting, but also create databases designed to organized your items according to the layout of your specific retailer's floor plan.

Sans lists, consumers also respond to prompts from sales ads and coupon flyers; those you find in your Sunday newspapers, or spread out like kitty-litter in coupon bins just inside a store entrance. While certain coupons can obviously save you money, others beg you to waste it. By using them, you’re actually allowing yourself to fall into some remarkably crafty and well-planned merchandising traps.

by Casper

Brooks had won his first World Heavyweight title, and he was on his way to the WWE Hall of Fame. Best in the World? Well if he is not, then he is as good and as close as it is going to get this generation. Brooks defeated John “Bradshaw” Layfield in his first title defense on Raw, the very same night he won the title.

Brooks held the World Heavyweight title for several months, up to Unforgiven when the then early version of “Legacy” (a three man group) attacked him backstage and he was forced to forfeit the title. Although he was afforded a rematch for the title won by Chris Jericho, he was unable to regain the title in the steel cage match.

April 2013: Journeys Out and Home Sweet Home

Heading out

• Erika Wheelhouse graduates in May and heads out with the Peace Corp in July.
• Matt Bruflodt doesn't take vacations, He writes about them.
• Kevin McColley remembers his father: In Memoriam 1936 - 2012 | 2001 - 1986.

On the home front

• Anna Hamman surveys local ASD-friendly places.
• Kimberlee Monson readies a garden.
• Barry Stephens looks at CM Punk.
• Jake Ford considers the state(s) of hockey.
• Yami Blandford reviews Dead Space 3.

by Jake Ford

When it comes to hockey in the United States, many fans will tell you that the sport is only relevant in the three M states: Minnesota, Massachusetts, and Michigan. Looking back in the country’s hockey history, you could see why.

These fans, however, haven’t realized that times are changing and, despite two National Hockey League lockouts in fewer than 10 years, the popularity of the sport is growing nationwide—you no longer have to have been introduced to the sport by playing on a pond a block away from your house in a town that is no more than five hours from the Canadian border.

By Kim Monson

If your mailbox hasn't been buried beneath the snow during these ceaseless barrages of Minnesota spring-time blizzards, then you've likely noticed many of the seed catalogs have begun to make their annual appearances. If you're like me, however, you probably just scoffed and then tossed them into a holding bin or cabinet, seeing that, right now anyway, there doesn't seem to be any point in even thinking about gardens. Well, despite the subzero temperatures and knee-deep drifts, now is the time to start thinking about your spring and summer gardens! So go ahead, dust of the catalogs and find a comfy spot near a sunny window where you can look beyond the icy pallor and imagine a gorgeous, balmy world of color instead. Whether it seems like it or not, Spring has arrived in the Northland and it's time to start dreaming of gardens.

by Anna Hamann

The principal emotion experienced by autistic people is fear.
--Temple Grandin

As Tristan's mother my primary job is to make sure he socializes with people outside of his family. When he was younger I spent most of my time translating the world for him, but I have since realized the importance of teaching him how to translate for himself. He can't be completely dependent on us. We won't live forever. He needs to be comfortable with other people and other places. Comfortable with New Things.

By Erika Wheelhouse

The Beginning

Once upon a time, I applied for the Peace Corps.  It was the summer of 2012, and I had no plans for my future except a vacant basement in my parents' home. Graduate School was not in the cards for me.  I wanted to learn through experience; not lecture.  I wanted a challenge.  I wanted to travel.  The Peace Corps involves all of that.  Plus, a change in location.  After spending the first 21 years of my life in northern MN, maybe a change wouldn't be so bad.