It is now the 3rd of December

and

I want to talk to you about the intervening time since...

I last wrote, or rather, talked.

The barn has been a busy place since Sept-

full of hunters from all over the States.

It's bow hunting for the first two months

and

then in Nov we had a few rifle as well as bow hunters.

There are lots of deer out there and most hunters went home

happy!

Ducks and pheasant hit the dust as well - even some gueese

But I want to tell  you how my life has changed since Aug.

We now have wind towers to the north and east and south.

I've changed where I eat so that I can still look over untouched Prairie.

I now sit on the east side of my table whereas I used to (for 30 or so years)

eat on the south side, which I prefer no longer since the monsters feel 

like they're in my plate!

Some of you know that my byline from 1989 in all publicity has been

Come Find Yourself on the Prairie

Now I'm contemplating a "different" byline

COME FIND YOURSELF IN AN INDUSTRIAL PARK

where you will see sprouting for miles on the formerly natural prairie hills 

of the one and only Sheyenne River Valley, 112 white spires or missiles,

poised upward into the sky 360 feet - far above the prairie.

It is no longer quiet here -  with a sound not unlike an airport , and there is

a kind of Circus going on - red "Christmas" lights flashing nightly all year round,

 competing successfully with  stars and constellations.

And when the sun comes up in the morning, we offer flickering, spine tingling

mysterious lighting created by our graceful 90 ft blades spinning 100 mpr - 

again, successfully competing with exquisite sunrises.

HAVE I MADE MY POINT!

Actually, I have only now finished hosting three months of hunters

and they are not impressed (at least not favorably).

The flickering morning light confuse and seem to trick the eye

when watching for moving deer.  One hunter told me that after he

was sure his buck was dead, it still seemed to be alive and moving.

The table talk at every meal includes how it used to be year after year,

and is no longer.

You can feel that this is something to deal with as far as my

emotional acceptance is concerned.  The main problem is that they are too close

to my home.  If we could have known ahead of time and persuaded 

the Public Service Commission that no tower should be 

closer than a mile from where any person tries to sleep,

 I would feel somewhat relieved. 

But such is not the case.  The State feels that 1400 ft is far enough.

I count 57 "pinwheels" from the fence next to my barn.

My Workshops my become "Green" discussions.  We'll see.

Stay Tuned - bye for now - JoAnne