PUBLIC HEARING NOTICEThe Southwest Regional Development Commission (SRDC) will hold a public hearing on its budget for fiscal year 2006 (July 1, 2005, through June 30, 2006) on Thursday, May 12, 2005, at the Blue Mound Banquet and Meeting Center, 401 West Hatting Street, Luverne, MN. The Hearing will begin at 5:30 p.m. and continue until all persons wishing to offer testimony have been heard. Copies of the proposed budget may be obtained at the Southwest Regional Development Commission Office, 2401 Broadway Avenue, Slayton, Minnesota. Copies of the proposed budget are also on file with each county auditor, county coordinator, city clerk, and township clerk in Region 8. (4-28)

NOTICE OF BOARD OF REVIEW FOR THECITY OF LUVERNEThe Board of Review of the City of Luverne will meet on Tuesday, the 10th day of May, 2005, in the Council Chambers of City Hall, 203 E. Main Street-2nd floor, starting at 4:00 P.M. to 4:30 P.M. Property owners who wish to appeal the valuation or classification of their property are hereby notified to appear at this meeting. The Board of Review cannot act on current year property taxes. They can only act on the valuation or classification of property for the 2005 assessment year for property taxes to be paid in 2006. MARIANNE PERKINSCITY CLERK(4-28)

REQUEST FOR BIDS INVITATION AND INSTRUCTIONS TO BIDDERS FOR TWO (2) PICKUP TRUCKSSealed bids will be received by the City of Luverne in the Council Chambers of City Hall, 203 E. Main Street, Luverne, MN, on the 10th day of May, 2005, until 10:00 AM D.S.T. at which time they will be publicly opened and read for the furnishing and delivery of two (2) 2005 Pickup Trucks. Specifications for the Pickup Trucks can be obtained from the City Administrator’s Office at City Hall, 203 E. Main St., Luverne, MN.The City of Luverne reserves the right to accept or reject any and/or all bids. Each bid envelope shall be clearly marked "Pickup Truck Bid" and addressed to: City Administrator City of Luverne P O Box 659 Luverne, MN 56156-0659(4-28)

RadioShack is taking a look at LuverneAccording to a recent e-mail sent out to Luverne Chamber members from Dave Smith, RadioShack is interested in selling their products in Luverne.Bill Bartels, Select Marketing Manager for RadioShack, will be in Luverne on Thursday, May 12, to see if any Luverne retailers are interested in adding a RadioShack dealership to their existing operation.Anyone interested in the opportunity can contact Bartels at @ 262-662-2855.Do you know an ‘Outstanding Senior Citizen’?Nominations are now being accepted for this year’s Outstanding Senior Citizens.One man and one woman age 70 or over by August 1 will be selected as the 2005 Outstanding Senior Citizens.The selection committee looks for those whose community involvement serves as an example to others in the county.The two will be honored at a special luncheon at the Rock County Fair on July 30, 2005.The Outstanding Senior Citizens will receive special certificates of commendation from the Governor, and their names will be submitted to the Minnesota Board on Aging to be considered for the statewide honor.If you would like to nominate someone for the county award, you can obtain official nomination blanks by writing Carol Wulf, P.O. Box 715, Luverne, MN 56156 or phoning 507-283-5070.Judging will be based on the number and variety of contributions nominees have made to their communities after age 65.Deadline for nominations is July 20.What’s it take to be a mentor?If you ever thought you might like to be a mentor to a child but don’t know what is involved, a meeting has been set to answer your questions.Big Buddies of Luverne will be having an informational meeting for community members from 1:00 to 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 3, at the Rock County Extension Office located in the Senior Citizen Center west of the Post Office. If you are unable to attend the meeting but would like more information, contact Amy Chartier at 283-1302. Did you turn off the TV?It’s that time of the year when crusaders are out to get you to turn off your TV.Frank Vespe is the executive director of the TV Turnoff Network. The TV-Turnoff Week is the group’s annual event where they try to get Americans to watch less TV for one week.Vespe says there are many ways to get news and information, and most are far superior to television.Of course those of us at the Star Herald are convinced newspapers are the way to go.According to Vespe, participants often tell him they feel out-of-sorts at the start of the week but say they usually "get into the rhythm of the week" and get back to doing things they thought they no longer had time for.Publisher Roger Tollefson can be reached by e-mail at tolly@star-herald.com

Worthless TV or not, a little time on the couchis OK once in a whileI spent Monday night following a murder investigation involving three shooters. The death was ultimately caused by a bullet that ricocheted into the victim’s brain. So much for observing TV Turn-off Week.Most people are like me — their living rooms are centered on the electronic box that streams a bluish strobing light and very little value. But even so, I’m not really advocating turning off the TV for any particular week of the year. Sure, I think it should be off during family meals, when it’s time for an uninterrupted conversation or for a peaceful rest. Other than that, I don’t mind having it on. I’m not alone either: 283 million Americans feel they can’t last the week without their TV fix.It’s not that I couldn’t handle it, but I don’t see the harm in television that a lot of Turn-Off advocates do. I guess you could say I am an advocate of moderate viewing.I realize that watching television promotes obesity (by being the only activity second to sleeping that requires the least amount of calories.) Excessive TV viewing also encourages violence, as proven in a 32-year study, and reduces reading performance. It probably encourages lower self-esteem in women because most on TV are perfect.But without TV, a couple of my co-workers wouldn’t be able to argue over various national sports figures they see on television broadcasts. And how many of us looked forward to discussing "Seinfeld" episodes every Friday morning throughout the 1990s?I realize people with children have different issues: even kids’ programming is full of foul language, disrespect for elders, mischievous behavior and just plain shallow ideals.One Web site in favor of TV-Turn-Off Week offered these quotes from children who experienced a week without TV."I had a great time, and my only question is: If this is so great, why don't we turn off the TV for the other 51 weeks of the year?" — Benjamin Loxley, second-grader, Lewisboro, New Jersey"I really didn't like TV-Turnoff Week except I did notice that my grades went up and I was in a good mood all week." — Drew Henderson, second-grader, Donora, Pennsylvania.Even for us adults who don’t have attention span issues and who aren’t suckered into products through commercials, watching TV is still a big time waster. But I waste just as much time lying in bed daydreaming as I do wasting time in front of the TV. What about time on the phone or computer? Reading isn’t that much different from watching TV in the way that it stops me from doing housework or other "useful" activities, too. I just figure we are all owed a little wasted time in our days. Productivity isn’t meant for every waking moment (unless you’re my mother, and in that case I send out apologies for my behavior).Without TV, I wouldn’t have just learned that crabbing is one of the most dangerous jobs in the world and I wouldn’t have been able to get teary-eyed over a romance that would have taken me two weeks to read. TV inspired me to play "Little House on the Prairie" and detective games with my sisters when I was little. … But then again, it also made me beg for toys my parents couldn’t afford and showed my big sister how to karate kick me across the yard.So, even though I am not endorsing all this TV-Turn-Off business, I still think moderation is the moral of this episode of "Room with a View." Enjoy "The Simpsons," "Sesame Street," "Everybody Loves Raymond," or "Forensic Files." Just give your eyes a break and don’t let too much of your time be absorbed into that electric box in your living room.

When it comes to the Minnesota Vikings, I’m a passionate man.I’ve been a big backer of the purple and gold for as long as I can remember, and my devotion to the team is something that I can proudly say has rubbed off on every member of my family.It was a tough sell at first, but I consider one of my biggest conquests to be converting my wife (Astrid) of 11 years into a die-hard Vikings fan."What do you watch those losers for, anyway," she said, early in our marriage.Then, with one trip to the dome for a Sunday night game against the Philadelphia Eagles, a Minnesota victory turned my skeptical partner around. She now wears Viking purple every Sunday during the football season, and taking her to a home game every year has become an autumn ritual.Brain-washing the children was easier.All we had to do was buy a couple of Randy Moss jerseys, and our 11 year old was hooked. Nick might try to tell a different story, but the tears that fell from his eyes were real when the Vikings lost the NFC North Division championship to the Green Bay Packers last Christmas Eve.As far as our 3-year-old goes, she had no choice in the matter of becoming a Minnesota football fan. Melanie was wearing a Vikings sleeper before she turned 1, and she now dons a Daunte Culpepper jersey every game day. Behind the instruction of my converted wife, the girl knows every word of the Vikings’ fight song, and I’ve heard her reciting it at times in the middle of the night.My family is devoted to the Vikings 100 percent, but the problem is convincing myself that Minnesota will fare any better on the field in 2005 than it has in recent years.Sure, they have brought some experience to the defense by signing free agents Darren Sharper, Fred Smoot, Pat Williams and Sam Cowert, but I doubt trading Moss to Oakland (the deal included Minnesota acquiring linebacker Napolean Harris) was the right thing to do.I admit some of his antics were immature and boorish, but the fact remains that Moss is the most dangerous offensive weapon in the game today.With him, we fielded an offensive team that could score points from anywhere on the field. Without him, I think we’ll be an average offensive team at best. We were 4-1 when Moss went down with a serious hamstring injury in New Orleans last season, and we were 6-4 when he returned from the injury.Other than being fast, I don’t know anything about Troy Williamson, the South Carolina wide receiver Minnesota drafted with the seventh pick they received from Oakland in the Moss deal. All of the so-called experts say Williamson will be a deep threat in the NFL, but that remains to be seen.The fact is, Moss is a proven deep threat who also made plays with great hands and outstanding jumping ability. In my opinion Moss made a mistake-prone quarterback in Daunte Culpepper (his record as a starting quarterback the last four seasons is 26-33) look good.I’m also concerned with how our new defense will perform next fall. With a projected six new starters (seven, if first-round pick Erasmus James cracks the starting lineup) on the defensive side of the ball, I can’t imagine team continuity was at the top of the organization’s wish list during the off-season.Whenever an area high school team loses a lot of players to graduation, the coach always says it will take time for the team to jell. If that’s true, how can someone expect Minnesota’s defense to operate like a cohesive unit with more than one-half of the starters entering a new system led by unfamiliar coaches.Don’t take this the wrong way, because my loyalty to the Minnesota Vikings will not be compromised this fall.My wife and I are planning to take in the Sept. 27 home game against New Orleans, and nothing would make us enjoy the weekend more than a victory for the purple and gold.But, as a Vikings fan for years, I’ve experienced my share of disappointments while following this team. And when I heard the so-called experts say the Vikings are the favorite to win the NFC North and will be a trendy pick to reach the super bowl, all I could to is shake my head in disbelief.

Taking a cue from an increasing number of U.S. companies, many families are now outsourcing their parental responsibilities. However, rather than shipping off their children to be raised in third world countries, they are hiring coaches to come into their homes and teach their children everything from table manners to baseball pitching skills. A columnist in The Wall Street Journal recently reported that children specialists can "assist with everything from potty-training your toddler to getting your teenage daughter to agree to a passably modest prom dress." This should be wonderful news for any parent reluctant to send a daughter off into the night looking like a streetwalker. Parents who are too busy with their careers can now hire someone to teach kids to ride bikes for $60 an hour or someone else to calm down a fussy baby. Toilet training sessions begin at $185 an hour and — this is no joke — a parent coach can teach any parent how to say "no" for about $75 an hour. Outsourcing childcare can be a win-win situation. If the kids don’t turn out to be socially acceptable when they’re older, the so-called experts can always be blamed. We would have parenthood without the guilt. We would never have to ask ourselves, "Where did we go wrong?" or "Do you think this behavior could come from your side of the family?" Critics of outsourcing might wonder what will be left for parents to do with their children. With most of the parenting responsibilities delegated to paid experts, there would be little more than dressing the children and showing them off to visitors. Proponents of the plan might argue that outsourcing is not enough for truly busy parents. Why should they waste valuable time, much better spent at work, performing the mundane, often unappreciated tasks required of parents? Those tasks might be alleviated with a service offering "Rent a Kid." "Rent a Kid" would eliminate the need for maternity leaves from work and even childbirth itself. However, if a working couple should feel compelled for some strange reason to take a kid to a movie, a simple phone call to "Rent a Kid" would provide the perfect solution. After reciting a credit card number, the temporary parents would only have to specify gender, age and event-appropriate clothing. The agency might also have to know the location of the movie theater for drop-off and pick-up purposes. "Rent a Kid" services would eliminate the need to hire and feed babysitters. There would be no costly education expenses and no bills from pediatricians or orthodontists. Paying for baby teeth left under pillows and lighting increasing numbers of candles on birthday cakes would be the concerns of unfortunate parents unable to rent their own children. It will no longer be necessary to stop doing the important work you brought home from the office in order to kiss a child’s bruise, cut or scrape and make it better. You won’t find tell-tale spit-up marks on the shoulders of your power suits at work. You will never have to read the cooking directions on a box of macaroni and cheese and you won’t have to pretend to be excited about bouquets of dandelions in the spring. Your house will be cleaner and your schedule more organized than anyone else’s. All a working person really needs to project an occasional parental image is a "Rent a Kid" for use as a social prop or "‘show and tell" every once in a while.

Taking a cue from an increasing number of U.S. companies, many families are now outsourcing their parental responsibilities. However, rather than shipping off their children to be raised in third world countries, they are hiring coaches to come into their homes and teach their children everything from table manners to baseball pitching skills. A columnist in The Wall Street Journal recently reported that children specialists can "assist with everything from potty-training your toddler to getting your teenage daughter to agree to a passably modest prom dress." This should be wonderful news for any parent reluctant to send a daughter off into the night looking like a streetwalker. Parents who are too busy with their careers can now hire someone to teach kids to ride bikes for $60 an hour or someone else to calm down a fussy baby. Toilet training sessions begin at $185 an hour and — this is no joke — a parent coach can teach any parent how to say "no" for about $75 an hour. Outsourcing childcare can be a win-win situation. If the kids don’t turn out to be socially acceptable when they’re older, the so-called experts can always be blamed. We would have parenthood without the guilt. We would never have to ask ourselves, "Where did we go wrong?" or "Do you think this behavior could come from your side of the family?" Critics of outsourcing might wonder what will be left for parents to do with their children. With most of the parenting responsibilities delegated to paid experts, there would be little more than dressing the children and showing them off to visitors. Proponents of the plan might argue that outsourcing is not enough for truly busy parents. Why should they waste valuable time, much better spent at work, performing the mundane, often unappreciated tasks required of parents? Those tasks might be alleviated with a service offering "Rent a Kid." "Rent a Kid" would eliminate the need for maternity leaves from work and even childbirth itself. However, if a working couple should feel compelled for some strange reason to take a kid to a movie, a simple phone call to "Rent a Kid" would provide the perfect solution. After reciting a credit card number, the temporary parents would only have to specify gender, age and event-appropriate clothing. The agency might also have to know the location of the movie theater for drop-off and pick-up purposes. "Rent a Kid" services would eliminate the need to hire and feed babysitters. There would be no costly education expenses and no bills from pediatricians or orthodontists. Paying for baby teeth left under pillows and lighting increasing numbers of candles on birthday cakes would be the concerns of unfortunate parents unable to rent their own children. It will no longer be necessary to stop doing the important work you brought home from the office in order to kiss a child’s bruise, cut or scrape and make it better. You won’t find tell-tale spit-up marks on the shoulders of your power suits at work. You will never have to read the cooking directions on a box of macaroni and cheese and you won’t have to pretend to be excited about bouquets of dandelions in the spring. Your house will be cleaner and your schedule more organized than anyone else’s. All a working person really needs to project an occasional parental image is a "Rent a Kid" for use as a social prop or "‘show and tell" every once in a while.

By John RittenhouseThree home losses for the Luverne softball team left the Cardinals sporting a 3-4 overall record.Marshall swept a Southwest Conference double-header from LHS Thursday. Luverne lost a two-run home game to Murray County Central Monday.Luverne, 3-4 overall, will attempt to snap a four-game slide when it plays a twin bill in Jackson May 5.MCC 8, Luverne 6The Rebels outscored the Cards 6-0 late in the game to pull out a two-run victory in Luverne Monday.The Cards snapped a tie at two by scoring four runs in the home half of the second inning. MCC, however, trimmed the difference to one run (6-5) by scoring two runs in the fourth inning and one in the sixth before winning the game with a three-run rally in the seventh.Sarah Wynia limited MCC to three hits during a seven-inning stint on the hill, but she was hurt by issuing 12 walks during the game. Wynia fanned 10 batters.Natalie Domagala, Sarah Ailts, Alison Brands and Tori Snyder recorded one hit each for the hosts.MHS twin billThe Cardinals slipped to 1-3 in Southwest Conference play when Marshall swept them during a league double-header played in Luverne Thursday.Ten unearned runs in the second inning helped the Tigers post a 13-3, five-inning win over LHS in the opener. Game 2 went 11 innings before Marshall notched a 9-8 victory.Marshall scored 12 runs in the first three innings of the opener before Luverne came up with three runs in the bottom of the fourth. Jessa Dahl doubled home one run and Snyder added a two-run double during the fourth inning rally.Marshall scored once in the top of the fifth and blanked LHS in the bottom half of the inning to win the game by the 10-run rule.Wynia pitched the first two innings and took the loss. Snyder limited the Tigers to two runs in the final three frames.Luverne sported 2-0, 3-2 and 8-2 leads in the second game, but the Tigers outscored the Cards 7-0 the rest of the way to pull out a 9-8 win in 11 innings.The score was tied at two after one inning of play before the Cards opened an 8-2 cushion by scoring one run in the second inning and five in the fifth.Marshall scored four runs in the bottom of the fifth before tying the game with single runs in the sixth and seventh innings. The Tigers pushed one run across the plate in the bottom of the 11th to settle the issue.Wynia, who led the Cards with four hits, fanned 14 batters and walked three Tigers during an 11-inning stint on the mound. Kerri Fransman and Sarah Schneekloth slapped two hits each for LHS.