JIM HEFFERNAN'S BLOG

A Kennedy affair to remember–even in Duluth...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 21:22:00 +0000

By Jim Heffernan Still another of President John F. Kennedy’s extra-marital girlfriends – some call them mistresses, quite accurately it turns out – has written a book about their affair that is...

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Mardi Gras hype...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 18:49:00 +0000

We arrived safe and sound to our vacation destination and found that the merriment of Mardi Gras has already begun. Until we experienced the madness down here in the Land of Mardi Gras, we had no...

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The land of Mardi Gras....

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 22:56:00 +0000

I've been a bit busy lately with some other writing tasks and just a busy life. And now– here it is–time for me and my wife to travel south on our winter vacation for (we hope) some sunshine and warm...

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A short jaunt up the North Shore by way of the digestive system...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 20:31:00 +0000

By Jim Heffernan Split Rock Lighthouse As I lay on the operating table last week waiting for the anesthetic to take effect before the start of an extremely invasive procedure, the woman nurse...

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Here's news for Bachmann: America not missing...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 22:54:00 +0000

By Jim Heffernan Before Michele Bachmann got to the point in her withdrawal speech in which she said she would “step aside” from her presidential campaign after finishing dead last in the Iowa...

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A Christmas Gift: When my Grandma played Jingle Bells

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Sun, 25 Dec 2011 06:12:00 +0000

Note: My mother, Ruth Heffernan (a local church organist and choir director, now deceased), could play the piano with skill and feeling. It was when Ruth sat down at the piano at Christmas time to...

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Christmas Memories: The Coal Man cometh, with the Night Stalker not far behind...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 20:15:00 +0000

By Jim Heffernan One of my grandsons, a five-year-old kindergartner, is concerned that he might be getting a lump of coal for Christmas. We all know why he has that concern, although lumps of...

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Devil missing from hell; said lurking in details...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 19:18:00 +0000

By Jim Heffernan Here’s some good news you won’t find in the mainstream media – just in time for the holidays. DATELINE HELL -- Officials here announced today that the devil has gone missing....

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When wolves almost got the deerslayer...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 21:20:00 +0000

By Jim Heffernan Firearms deer hunting season is over in Minnesota, but the Wisconsin nimrods are still going at it. I do not hunt, but my father did – deer only. Never partridge or ducks...

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Reflections on 11/11/11: The ignominious final salute to an ancient uniform...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 23:38:00 +0000

By Jim Heffernan WWI campaign hat Veterans Day 2011, or, as everyone has noticed, 11/11/11. The first Veterans Day – marking the armistice among the World War I belligerents – was signed on...

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Trick or treat, smell my feet...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 01:01:00 +0000

By Jim Heffernan First Captain Underpants book Three of my grandchildren – boys ranging in age from 3 to 5 – are getting geared up for Halloween, it should go without saying. It’s a great...

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Norwegian royalty in Duluth today....

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 17:44:00 +0000

In case you hadn't heard, King Harald V and Queen Sonja of Norway are visiting Duluth today. They're scheduled for activities with local Norwegians and a re-dedication of Enger Tower in the...

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Norwegian royalty visit prompts interview by MPR

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 21:01:00 +0000

If you're up and at 'em tomorrow morning, tune into Minnesota Public Radio Morning Edition with Cathy Wurzer between 7-9 am. (It's 100.5 on your FM dial in the Duluth area and may be somewhere else...

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Norsk royalty visit goes to head of local Norwegian citizens...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 23:27:00 +0000

By Jim Heffernan King Harald V & Queen Sonja I’m happy for all of the local Norwegians that King Harald V (motto: “Alt for Norge!”) and Queen Sonja of Norway are visiting Duluth...

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Aha moment: Fight your own battles

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 22:52:00 +0000

Hi Everyone, I was invited by the Mutual of Omaha Aha Moment people to share my personal "Aha Moment" with the world when they came to Duluth this past August. As many of you know, I steer clear of...

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Birthday confession: I’m older than Johnny Appleseed

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 22:47:00 +0000

By Jim Heffernan I was going to ignore my upcoming birthday (Oct. 4) blogwise because I’m getting so old, but, what the heck, there’s no denying one’s age, so I’ll reveal right now for the...

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We left our cheese in Baraboo...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 06:47:00 +0000

By Jim Heffernan James Dean in Giant A recent road trip took us to a wedding held in an Indiana corn field and the homelands of two American icons, James Dean and Frank Lloyd Wright. And... we...

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The Norwegians are coming...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 18:14:00 +0000

Duluth's Enger Tower It's almost here... the visit from Norway's royalty to re-dedicate Enger Tower on October 17th. (Read more about it in the Duluth News Tribune HERE.) King Harald V and Queen...

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Contagion: Pandemic hits Northland in current movie...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 05:32:00 +0000

By Jim Heffernan Poster for movie, Contagion The current movie “Contagion” is about what the title implies: How a global pandemic is caused when a virus that has no known remedy spreads from...

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Northland population almost free of scurvy, beriberi and brucellosis...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 17:17:00 +0000

By Jim Heffernan It is not comforting to pick up your local newspaper – in this instance the Sept. 2 Duluth (Minnesota) News Tribune -- and read the headline: “Risk of dying is greater in the...

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True confessions of a phonephobe...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 20:22:00 +0000

By Jim Heffernan “I was born to Twitter, I was born to tweet, log me on to Facebook, that’d be a treat.” That might be a refrain for some, but not for me. I don’t expect to twitter in this...

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Local publishing house changing gears...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 04:31:00 +0000

Local author/publisher, Tony Dierckins, announces some exciting changes ahead for his publishing company, X-Communication. This longtime Duluth publishing company is in the process of transforming...

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Lew Latto: Memories of a 65-year friendship

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 22:52:00 +0000

Lew Latto, 1940-2011 Memories of a 65-year friendshipBy Jim Heffernan Lew Latto: WDSM 710 radio photo My friend broadcaster Lew Latto is dead. Suddenly, unexpectedly, before we could get together...

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What I did on my summer vacation...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 06:10:00 +0000

Just got back from a week of vacation with our adult kids, their spouses and all our grandkids. We spent the week at a nearby Wisconsin lake and enjoyed good family fun while swimming, boating,...

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Hampston's Swinging Doors...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Heffernan) — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 22:22:00 +0000

"Mischief and mishap figure into Quinlan Michael Hampston's hilarious stories of how a kid who couldn't read grew up to be a man who would write a book."Printed above is the first line in the web...

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