Observations & Reflections from Lesa

Today on the flight home, as we arrived in Memphis, the landscape was as beautiful without snow as arriving in Minnesota last Saturday was with snow!! The temperature was 66 degrees! Adam enjoyed our flights today better than last week, and Jo Ann was a little braver this time, agreeing to look out the window on occasion. Jessi was ready to get to Hartford to see her boyfriend. We were all thankful to de-ice! Of all of us, Hayden was probably the least ready to leave Litchfield. However, her tears have now dried up as she looks forward to catching up with other friends she’s been without for over a week.

Before going to Litchfield, we were told repeatedly that the Minnesota cold is “a different kind of cold.” I didn’t find that to be true. Cold is cold! I think perhaps the difference is that when you have to be out in it every day you simply come to accept it and grit your teeth and bear it. You just deal with it! That’s how it is. The temperatures might not be so bad if it wasn’t for the cutting wind! I’m thankful we got to experience the temps below zero; I’m also thankful that I don’t have to contend with that every day, day in and day out for months…the ice…the snow. I have a new appreciation for all of you who do. Especially those of you who supply my milk and other dairy products!

I found that getting ready every day required 10-15 extra minutes, or at least it did for me by the time I applied lotion and put on all of those layers. At home, I always shower twice a day. However, I found that in Minnesota it 1) dried my skin too much, and 2) was just too darned cold to fool with twice in one day except for ski day when I actually exerted energy other than just shivering!

I had heard the term “land of lakes” before, but never thought about what that meant. Now I know. I would love to see all of those lakes in the warmer months and ride the Waverunner. But I recall being told by Jennifer Becker on her last trip down that the lake temperatures are cold even in the warmer months; that’s why the Minnesotans don’t mind swimming in the gulf when they’re down in November. I now understand that there’s no time for the water to warm up considerably after being covered with two feet of ice for months!

The sunrise is later on the western side of the central time zone. There’s also fewer hours of sunshine, or at least that seemed true this week. The sunrises and sunsets were gorgeous overlooking all the white powder though!

The friendships we’ve established this week will be some of the best, longest lasting. My sorrow is that in all likelihood we won’t be seeing each other for years even though we can stay in touch by phone, mail, and electronically. The distance is the worst part about the program, although without it, the program wouldn’t exist.

I personally enjoyed this trip very much! It ranks among the most memorable, noteworthy of any I’ve ever made. I thoroughly enjoyed myself and visiting with everyone, not to mention having new experiences! Thanks to everyone in Hartford and Litchfield for the opportunity. My sincere, heart-felt thanks to everyone who had even the slightest participation in our adventure; I cannot find adequate words to express the way I feel. I become easily attached to people, and I thank you for being the kind of people I will never forget. Hopefully, I will get to visit with you all again, whether it be here or there. Until then…

Last day in Minnesota

Where has the week gone?! In some respects it feels like we just arrived, and on the other hand it seems like a lifetime ago that we were out riding snowmobiles! We've had the best time; there simply aren't words to describe what a week it has been. The hospitality has been incredible, and everyone has been fantastic. Additionally, our group has enjoyed each other's company, and it's been a pleasure traveling together.

This morning we were treated to breakfast compliments of Burger King. Then we stopped by briefly to see the world's largest ball of twine! Our next stop was a visit to Specralytics where we were wowed by the technology used to make catheters, stents, and other medical pieces. Lasers are utilized to cut them, and the whole process is very interesting.

We were then off to the state capitol and enjoyed our tour. Their capitol is much more ornate than ours in Alabama. The Mall of America was our next stop, and we spent hours walking this huge place! The radio station surprised us all with tickets to the indoor adventure park! Mama Gwen, Jo Ann, and I spent our time looking through the Minnesota souvenir shops. Greg followed Jessi from store to store; she was our one true shopper! :) Mickey was challenged by the Litchfield FFA boys to a race in the NASCAR simulators, and they all had a great time. (shhh - Mickey won!). Adam and Hayden did a little shopping but largely enjoyed hanging out with the Litchfield teens. We were tired when we left!

Arriving back in Litchfield, we were treated to a going-away pizza supper at the high school ag shop. Following supper, some of us got to tour the 1500 square foot home the ag students are building this year to sell at the end of the school year. The funds go back into their account. That is an impressive project!! We enjoyed the evening visiting with everyone one last time before we depart bright and early tomorrow morning.

We cannot say thank you enough to our hosts, the businesses, our chauffers, the cooks, and everyone else who made the week possible. We are tired, but pleasantly so. Although we are anxious to get home and back to the warmer temps, we do so with a sadness that we have to leave our newfound friends. Thanks again, Litchfield!

Thursday notes from Lesa

Greetings from the north! Today was awesome! The weather was beautiful at about 33 degrees and no wind...we've been here long enough to have a benchmark so comparatively, it was gorgeous! I'm thankful we've been able to experience the true spectrum of the Minnesota weather, and had it not been for the intense cold the last few days, today might not have felt so grand! I can say that now that the forecast the remainder of our stay is to be in the teens and above. :)

We began our day with a fantastic breakfast spread at Steffes Auctioneers, followed by a tour of Meeker Electric Cooperative (MEC). MEC sponsored our trip to Powder Ridge with lunch and a day of snow-tubing and skiing. We were joined by the ag teacher, Rob Cole, and four FFA students (we've had two FFA students with us each day), as well as MEC representatives and Janet Huhn, our chaffeur for the day.

We all began with tubing, including Mama Gwen and Jo Ann. Mickey told them they had seniority over the entire hill...they took that to mean that they were over the hill, and they were, literally! The view was fantastic with snow covered fields as far as the eye could see. We went down the hill a time or two individually, and then we all formed two rows (about 16 of us), held the feet of the person behind us, and were pushed over the edge; that was hysterical fun which required more than one trip! Groups of two to four also hooked together and went down occasionally, but Adam seemed to enjoy his individual trips the most. On the individual runs, we could return to the top and head back down a lot quicker when we weren't waiting on other slow-pokes!

After an hour or so, those who were interested in skiing departed to obtain their gear and receive instruction. Some of us stayed behind on the tubing hills for awhile. Some of the group started on the bunny slope with instructors, and all but Mickey graduated to the more difficult slopes. Jessi hit those quickly, and the others of the group soon followed, all except Mickey who decided he was safest remaining on the bunny slope! Hayden caught on quickly and was an instant speed demon, and she joined Jessi and the two of them spent the rest of the afternoon burning up the ski lift and slopes. Adam put on the skis and worked with an instructor briefly but soon decided it was just too much trouble, so most of us returned to the tubing until we were forced to leave. :) Several of us were honored with a snowmobile ride to the top and down one of the slopes! The day couldn't have been much better!

On the return drive to Litchfield, Greg had us stop at Knaus' meat market to buy the world's greatest BBQ sauce for Stacy. After we got back to meet our hosts, we had an opportunity to rest, pack, and get ready for the chili/soup feed this evening. Greg was treated to a sight-seeing venture of pheasants and deer (they saw 13 deer standing in one field) followed by a Litchfield High School wrestling meet.

The evening concluded with a delicious chili/soup feed at Darwin Rod & Gun Club where we had a wonderful time visiting with everyone. Many of the teens then went bowling, and although we adults were invited to go (a very pleasant surprise!), we were just too beat and decided we better rest for our early morning departure for Spectralytics, the capitol, and the mall.

We've been treated like royalty all week and have been well fed, so we are already spoiled and in for a rude awakening next week when we have to return to the real world! We have some of the most fantastic host families ever! We have thoroughly enjoyed our trip, and as Hayden is fond of saying, it has been everything we expected and more!!!! Once again, I have to tell you that I am so very proud of her, Jessi, and Adam in their behavior and speaking skills, not that I would have expected otherwise from any of them, but it sure has been a blessing watching and listening! And these Litchfield teens are great and have been very welcoming and fun for them all week. The week has flown by...guess we'll be seeing you soon!

Wednesday notes from Lesa

Today was warmer (14!), and we were not out in the cold very much, so we felt as though we thawed out some. We were treated to breakfast at McDonalds and got to tour their new facility. They have some automated systems that were interesting, but the manager assured us that they had actually expanded their staff as opposed to having to cut anyone. We each had a portion of our individual 15 minutes of fame when we interviewed on KLFD radio. I generally don't have a problem speaking, but I felt as though I tripped all over myself with that interview and the last few meetings we've attended where we had to introduce ourselves. Perhaps the extreme cold has frozen my brain! Maybe it wasn't all that bad.

I've been very proud of everyone else, especially the teens. There was a great crowd that joined us for breakfast. School had a late start because the teachers spent the first couple of hours in an inservice, so we had a number of students there. I had several folks through the remainder of the day say they had listened.

We left there and spent the rest of the morning at their school, both 6-8 and 9-12. These kids in Litchfield are extremely blessed! They have incredible opportunities academically and athletically that our kids can't even begin to imagine. Their facilities are very impressive. Their school system is also state funded, so I cannot figure out why our schools are so far behind. We were introduced in a number of the classes and had an opportunity to tell them about Hartford, our weather, farming, how peanuts grow, etc. We were not ready to leave the school when our time was up.

Lunch was with the Kiwanis at the golf course on one of their beautiful lakes, and Terri Anderson was the guest speaker. She told about the Peanut Butter and Milk Festival and its roots.

This afternoon we toured the ethanol plant, Sweet Promotions, and Minnesota Coffee Roasters. Walking outside during the ethanol plant tour was the coldest part of our day, and we were thankful not to spend a great deal of time outside today. Needless to say, we're at least a little sweeter and a little warmer tonight. :) Mickey had the pleasure of flying late afternoon with the owner of Brodin Studios which we toured yesterday; and Mr. Dean Ohland, who is hosting Mama Gwen and Jo Ann, was very kind to arrange the flight. Mickey said Litchfield looks the same from the sky as it does on the ground; snow everywhere!

This evening we had three special unscheduled treats. First, we went ice fishing! Jo Ann and Mama Gwen were in hog heaven! Somehow sitting there over a hole about one-foot in diameter waiting for a fish to pass doesn't do it for me, but they thoroughly enjoyed it and I'm thankful I can now say I've experienced it. The little fish houses were very comfortable and warm so I can see how that in itself could be relaxing. After driving on the lake (which by the way had a crack Jo Ann and I found as we were leaving!), catching a boat load of fish (haha), and walking on water, we rode over to Spicer, MN to see an ice castle built from huge blocks of ice from the lake right beside it. The castle was decorated with white lights and was otherwise illuminated, and was a great photo opportunity. Some of the teen boys who followed us over even enjoyed posing. The castle was about the size of a tractor trailer and had steps by which we were able to go up top. The view of the frozen, snow covered lake was incredible. Actually, come to think of it, it was a little cold there as well since the sun had already gone down, but it was worth it and the drive over.

The third treat was having dinner all together with our host families and a few of the Litchfield committee members back at the golf course. Mama Gwen, Jo Ann and the Ohlands already had plans with the Cottingtons so they didn't join us, but the rest of us had a great time together.

Tomorrow is our trip to Powder Ridge, and we are all looking forward to that. Adam has talked about skiing all day! It should be very fun, and we already have the attire from our snow-mobiling venture so we are sure to stay warm. Funny how you don't notice the cold quite as much when you're doing something like that. Plus, they are forecasting another heat-wave...30 degrees for the high! I noticed that you all are experiencing tonight some of that cold -- cold we've had this week with your forecast being 18 for the low; keep in mind though that our high today was 14! I've got to get in bed and rest up for tomorrow's adventures! Stay warm!

Tuesday comments from Lesa

(2/3/09)
This morning started earlier than the last two and colder as well! You'll find a picture of the van thermostat reading -9, and we cheered when it warmed up to 0. I understand the low last night was -20! So no, I didn't get out and walk this morning! Brrrr! Also, the sun doesn't come up over here on the western side of the central time zone until about 7:00 a.m. The day allowed for enough walking for all of us though as we stayed busy with the bulk of the day devoted to touring six different Litchfield industries.

We had breakfast this morning with the Rotary where we got to tell about L.A.; Jessi & Hayden are becoming excellent young speakers. I'm still amazed how many people do not know that peanuts grow in the ground. We've found that they keep us talking as much as possible because of our southern drawl.

We then went out to their airport, a very nice city owned one I might add, for a snowblowing demonstration. We took turns riding with the crew, some on the snowblower and others in the dumptrucks. That was pretty impressive.

We began the first industry tour at Anderson Chemical where we received a little CSI demonstration. Next on the agenda was a favorite for Hayden and Greg, the Bobcat plant where they make the attachments for Bobcat machinery. My favorite was Minnesota Rubber where Pampered Chef spatulas are made. No, they couldn't give us one as they have to account for every one of them. I was curious about how much they cost to make versus how much I spend on them! Adam seemed to enjoy this plant, too, as he was always last because he liked to inspect the various items they were making.

Lunch was compliments of the Chamber of Commerce where Mickey and I were pleasantly surprised by a presentation from an Army National Guard Sergeant thanks to Mr. Cottington who read our bio...be mindful what you tell about yourself! :) Trico TC Wind followed lunch; they rebuild motors for the huge wind turbines that generate energy, and they rewind the motors by hand. Next was GVL, a rotational molding factory that manufactures plastic head covers for major combines (i.e., John Deere, Case, New Holland). Mama Gwen pointed out that our guide could be Rodney Myers' brother. Jo Ann's favorite tour was probably Brodin Studios. They make bronze statues and plaques and started years ago with military statues. They pay special attention to detail, ensuring the clothing, patches, guns, and other accessories are correct to the given job, time period, etc.

We finished the afternoon with a little shopping in downtown Litchfield. This evening we attended a high school girls hockey game; they rumble like all other hockey players! We all enjoyed participating in the chuck-a-puck where we bought a numbered hockey puck and everyone threw them over the wall to see whose stopped closest to the center of the arena; none of us won. By the way, did you know hockey doesn't have a half-time? And they play periods, not quarters or innings? :)

Jessi, Hayden and Adam have been enjoying their new friends...there's an exceptional group of young people involved in the FFA program up here. And what strikes me most is that they all work on their family farms, further their education in ag, and return home. They seem to have a great time together. I think they work hard, but they play hard, too. Although the day was cold, we survived a bit better than yesterday because we were indoors most of the time...but most of us kept our jackets on anyway! Mickey said the "wow" has about worn off. Now it's just cold.

Monday notes from Lesa

(2-2-09)
Today our day began like any other. Then we stepped outside! The temperature today was supposed to be 7; it never rose past 3 according to the van thermostat!!!! That was the absolute coldest any of us have ever been in our entire life! Hayden said her body pure hurt. They keep telling us it is "mild" this week. We'd hate to see harsh, bitter cold! We will now better appreciate our 32 degree temps...for at least the first week we are back home!

We had breakfast thanks to the Beckers at their dairy, and then toured their operation which was very impressive. However, we had a tough time paying attention to our host because we were so cold! Mickey said he now knows how a steak feels in the freezer. He can now also tell you how it feels to "wipe out" on the ice when you're already in a frozen state; I imagine he will be sore & slow moving tomorrow. Mama Gwen and Jo Ann hung onto Greg any time we were outdoors so as to not suffer the same fate.

We then toured First District where they process the dairy products. We all looked like mad scientists in our orange coats and hairnets. Lunch was a huge plate of ribs at the Legion. They even made tea for us! We toured their museum which has an impressive collection of memorabilia, and were on to their new library.

The Turck Dairy was next on the agenda with memorable moments all its own. Mickey was smart when he chose to observe from the "intake" side of things. Hayden, Jessi, Greg, Mama Gwen & Jo Ann kind of got trapped between two cows on the "output" level ... first the cow on the right had them shifting in a pack, and no sooner had that cow finished than the cow on the left suddenly had the same calling. The scene has me laughing as I type! Jo Ann said she was initiated! Don't worry, it wasn't as though she was covered or anything; in fact, she didn't notice it until later in the afternoon. Adam also milked a cow at the Turck's; way to go, Adam...no one else in the group would volunteer. Hayden said she milked one in Australia and saw no need to milk another. We will forever more appreciate going to the refrigerator, taking out the jug of milk, and pouring it...these folks work hard & endure a lot so we can enjoy our dairy products!

Our final destination for the afternoon was the Stockade. The teens and I hogged the fireplace in the main cabin after we visited the General Store and Chapel! It was a beautiful place, and somewhat similar to Landmark Park. And just before we left there, it started snowing. Okay, for we southerners, it was snowing even though you had to look hard to actually see it...it was still falling from the sky even if it did look a bit like dandruff if you didn't know better! As we left, we were beginning to think we were all going to have to get out and push the van from the icy drive to the main highway, but our chauffer was successful in sliding us onto the main road without further cold punishment. And of course they fed us all day, beginning with breakfast at the Becker Dairy; snacks of cheese, crackers & milk several times; lunch at the Legion; and last but not least, the Peanut Butter & Milk Banquet pot luck dinner tonight.

The evening was very enjoyable as we visited with folks who have visited Hartford over the years and made new friends we hope to see in Alabama one day.

Hartford Group Heads to Minnesota!

Mickey, Hayden and Lesa Hatfield; Gwen Turner; Joann Lindsey; Greg and Jessi Hatcher; and Adam Fulford.

Watch out Litchfield . . . they're loose on the lake!

The group from Hartford left yesterday (Jan. 31) on Northwest Airlines for the week-long trip to the Peanutbutter and Milk Festival in Litchfield, Minnesota. They are Mickey and Lesa Hatfield and daughter Hayden (FFA Treasurer), Joann Lindsey, Gwen Turner, Greg Hatcher and daughter Jessi (FFA Vice President), and Adam Fulford (FFA Parliamentarian).

Here is the report from Lesa:

"We made it to Litchfield yesterday pretty much without event - Adam & I got patted down when we went through security in Panama City, and Adam got sick on the second leg of the trip - couldn't believe I looked like I was smuggling something!! :) Today we went to church, then met up at one of their many lakes & rode snowmobiles. That was a blast!!! Hayden & I were speed demons of course. I'm being called "the tan lady from Alabama"; I tell them that's very kind of them compared to what some call me back home! Tomorrow are dairy tours and their banquet tomorrow evening. They're telling us we brought them some warm weather; it was 44 when we arrived yesterday, and today it was around 35. However, tonight the wind is blowing pretty hard (& their winds are cutting!!) and it's supposed to be like 4, and tomorrow the high is supposed to be around 7; oh joy! I went walking this morning as the sun came up. The snow is beautiful. It's a dry snow though so it doesn't stick together to be able to throw snowballs at each other; you just have to grab a handful and sling it. It's been an excellent trip so far. More later!"