Life

Dolly Parton’s new album is a detour from country music — could R&B be next?

Lifestyle Columns November 18, 2023

LOS ANGELES — Last year, Dolly Parton was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame — against her wishes. Now, almost exactly a year later, she’s releasing her first rock ‘n’ roll album, appropriately titled “Rockstar,” on Friday. In 2022, Parton shared a statement announcing that she didn’t feel she had “earned” the right to be nominated, but the Hall inducted her anyway. “I just didn’t think that I had done enough in the rock world to be considered, to be put in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame when there were so many great rock artists that are not even in ...

Forgotten New Ulm legend subject of local historian's first book

Lifestyle Feature November 18, 2023

NEW ULM — After 13 years of learning, writing, and revising, local historian Terry Sveine has released his first long-form book. The book is a biography, entitled “The Life and Times of Francis Baasen: From Luxembourg Immigrant to a ‘Most Prominent Man’” The book focuses on the ...

Coca-Cola is right for any holiday or occasion

Lifestyle Columns November 10, 2023

Thanksgiving will be here soon, and while the best organizers among us may already have everything in place, most of us are probably still working through our shopping lists. Let’s see ... turkey, seasonings for stuffing, ingredients for side dishes, pumpkin pie spices -- oh, and don’t forget a six-pack of Coke! Well, that last item might not be on the menu for most Thanksgiving dinners, although this c. 1950 advertising banner, which sold for $150 at Woody Auction, shows it’s not from the company’s lack of trying. Coca-Cola is a favorite brand among collectors of vintage ...

New Ulm High School presents... The Hunchback of Notre Dame

Lifestyle Feature November 10, 2023

NEW ULM — “A little romance, a little tragedy and lots of music — and latin.” That’s how New Ulm High School english teacher and director Carissa Cowles described the school’s latest musical “The Hunchback of Notre Dame.” Playgoers and theater enthusiasts will have several ...

The library supports your writing journey

Lifestyle Columns November 10, 2023

purchasing adult fiction books, movies and cd audiobooks. Each month I pour over a multitude of resources pointing me to the best of new fiction. Not only am I amazed at the number of choices each month, I’m awed that people continue to imagine new content, engage in the writing process and complete great works. I’m certain I am not alone when I say, “Please keep the stories coming!” The library can play an important, central part in creative lives and has many offerings to support your writing journey. Connecting people with information is one way the library offers support. ...

Jeff Tweedy is a prolific songwriter and poignant lyricist, so why does writing scare him?

Lifestyle Columns November 10, 2023

LOS ANGELES — Jeff Tweedy is known to fans as a prolific songwriter and poignant lyricist. So it may come as a surprise that the frontman of the Grammy-winning rock band Wilco has long found the act of writing intimidating. “I’ve always been really afraid of prose because I wasn’t good in school. I was always underachieving. And part of it was I always felt overwhelmed by how much there is to say,” he says. Perhaps ironically, that fear is in part what compelled a young Tweedy to start writing music four decades ago. “Songwriting is condensing things and giving yourself ...