GaryOsberg.com

Good morning from Collegeville,

Yesterday it was 14 degrees, this morning it was back up to 32. A good thing too, because Bob Nichol (age 96) and I, will be ringing the bell for the Salvation Army at the Coborn’s store on Cooper Avenue between 10:30 and noon. Stop on by and bring lots of cash.

In 1998 Dad moved from his high rise apartment in downtown St. Paul to my house in Upsala. He had been a city fellow for most of his life, but he too was raised in Upsala. I was working in Minneapolis as a sales manager with a Xerox agency and I was gone most of the week. It wasn’t much of an inconvenience. His passion was cooking, however I told him in no uncertain terms that I hated the smell of fried foods and I did not eat leftovers.

In July of 1999 the Xerox agency and Xerox parted their ways and they no longer needed a sales manager. I spent the summer painting old buildings and garages in the Upsala area and started working here at MPR in October of that year. If I did not leave a post-it note on the counter in the morning that said “NO SUPPER”, there would be a home cooked meal on the table when I arrived home. The food was awesome. The baked potatoes were done in a special way. He boiled them 10 minutes first and then baked them for one hour at 400 degrees.

As Dad struggled with old age and cancer, sometimes the quality was not up to the usual standards. Also, many times the smell of burnt food or worse, burnt plastic, would greet me at the back door. He burned three tea pots, with plastic handles, in the last six months. It got so that the only time I did not leave out the post-it note, “NO SUPPER”, was on Fridays. Seven years ago today, I came home and he greeted me with “I have to go to the hospital, but you can eat first” I responded “No way” and I put on the oven mitts and grabbed the baked potatoes and baking dish of meatballs from the oven and shoved them in the frig and we drove to the VA in Minneapolis.

That was Dad’s “Last supper”, he never did come home. That weekend I ate the leftover meatball supper. It was a very tasty meal.

The show this week is a live broadcast from the Skoglund Center Auditorium at St. Olaf College in Northfield. Special guests include the entire St. Olaf Orchestra and St. Olaf Choir in the same space at the same time. Also, Philip Brunelle, vocalist Heather Masse, The Royal Academy of Radio Actors and the usual band members. Enjoy the show. We are still rebroadcasting the show twice on Sundays, 11 AM and 6 PM.

“You’re only here for a short visit. Don’t hurry. Don’t worry. And be sure to smell the flowers along the way.” Walter Hagen

PS. If you are interested in advertising or branding on our air waves or on the mpr website, let me know. 320-293-6771