First Day of Winter

I have given the blog a new template, simplifying it, and eliminating the pictures that I used for musing before coming here. All of the prior posts and all of your comments are still here, only the layout has changed.

After my first full day in International Falls, Minnesota, I feel quite settled—the heat works in my room, groceries are not far away, and nobody has accused me of smuggling drugs from Canada. The sky was clear all day, and the temperature rose to about forty. There is no snow on the ground, but every puddle is frozen and it’s quite possible to slip on the ice. I must have walked ten miles, exploring every main street of this small town, learning where wine is cheapest, groceries too, and peeking into all four of the restaurants. I walked along the river and into the woods and listened to a flock of Canadian geese crossing the border like bandits.

This morning I walked into Sandy’s Café and decided to sit at the counter; it’s the best place to meet. I took off my heavier than heavy coat, gloves, and bogan. Finding no coat rack, and wanting to act not-Califorian, I stood there a minute as if pondering where to sit. Soon a man came in, slung his coat on one of the stools at the counter and sat on it. So I did the same; it’s a perfect solution since the stools are hard wood.

Katrina, our waitress, can’t be over eighteen, but she’s got it all over the pros. It’s just the way her mind works—friendly, considerate, accurate—in spite of the herd of us who all came in at about the same time. She gets the people fed and makes them happy, and the men at the counter love her. Of course I tried the flying-north angle, even laughed at their jokes, but Katrina was the clear winner. Her clinching blow was to ask one of the men to make another pot of coffee for her because she was running behind. It was the perfect compliment, and he grabbed it with joy. Larry said the winters have been milder the last few years. In the old days it would stay twenty-five below for weeks at a time. But Jerry disagreed and quoted last year’s total snowfall at 128 inches. “ It was piled up to the roofline of a two-story building,” he said, “pushed up there with a city loader just to keep the street clear. And the stop signs kept having to be dug out so drivers could see them.” I think it’s like all hard times, remembered clearly for a while, then forgotten by the time another winter rolls around. Two women just got back from Orlando where they shopped for the grandkids. “I don’t like winter anymore,” one said, “not anymore.” Katrina says winter is fun. In the background, U2 is singing on the radio. Larry gets up to leave. “Love you,” says Katrina.

This town changes today from what it was during the two months of investigating it on the internet. The pictures, maps, advertisements and missives that I absorbed there are being replaced with people, cold air, and a winter that wants to wait.

The pictures below are Rainy River on the west side of International Falls. Click on any picture to enlarge it.











The center part of International Falls is much undeveloped as shown here: