Hill City Prevailer

Forest, fire and everything in between

Published by admin on Thu, 04/08/2021 - 11:19am

What an emotional week.

I want to begin my column by thanking all the firefighters and first responders who helped protect Keystone, the Monument, and Rapid City from the devastating fires that plagued our Hills. You are all fearless, selfless souls who don’t get enough recognition for all you do. Some of us just have jobs; you have jobs that completely change lives!

I was hiking in Custer State Park and was enjoying a beautiful view when my phone started to “blow up” with concerned friends asking, “Are you OK?”

Spring has officially sprung

Published by admin on Thu, 04/01/2021 - 10:16am

I’ve written about all of the seasons save one. I’ve written about how fall is my favorite season, I’ve complained to no end about winter and I’ve written how summers here are a fantastic season.

But I’ve yet to write about my least favorite season: spring.

You may be wondering, “Why does Gray hate spring?” One word, three syllables: allergies. Yes, if you’re like me then you have horrendous seasonal allergies. Springs growing up meant watery eyes, stuffy nose and just a general feeling of feeling like garbage.

Talking about OHVs in District No. 1

Published by admin on Thu, 03/25/2021 - 11:20am

On Feb. 25 and 26 I virtually attended the 2021 Black Hills Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) Summit via an invite from the Black Hills National Forest Supervisor’s office headquartered in Custer. 

There was a limit of 100 attendees, which included employees of the Black Hills National Forest, Nebraska National Forest, South Dakota Game Fish and Parks, Black Hills Tourism Industry, OHV Club associations, local government, South Dakota Department of Transportation (DOT) and private stakeholders.

Mars and Venus unite

Published by admin on Thu, 03/25/2021 - 11:20am

As I write this I am three months and two days away from getting married! And by coincidence I just happened to finish reading “Men are from Mars and Women are from Venus.”

I got turned on to this book about a decade ago from a friend of mine named Molly. She read it cover to cover and often referred to the insights the author had about the male species. I admit I didn’t read the book then, even though I was curious. I guess I thought I knew more about men than this so called expert did. I was wrong.

I guess I’m a runner now?

Published by admin on Thu, 03/18/2021 - 11:04am

There’s something I’ve started doing that I hated when I was younger: running.

When I was younger, I hated running. I’ve always associated running with some sort of punitive thing from lacrosse. Nothing makes me have flashbacks to childhood terror like hearing a whistle and someone yell, “Get on the end line!” after we were goofing around too much at practice.

What a year it has been

Published by admin on Thu, 03/11/2021 - 9:34am

What a year! No, it’s not the end of a calendar year, school year, or fiscal year; but a COVID-19 year. March 13, 2020 is a day that will be seared into my brain forever. Our school district began to game plan for a potential COVID-19 disruption to our school district in early March 2020. We formed a committee of teachers and completed a series of “what if’s” and worst-case scenarios. The uncertainty of the next few days gave me anxiety that ultimately led me to clarity.

The Muppets and Dr. Seuss—what’s next?

Published by admin on Thu, 03/11/2021 - 9:33am

I know I have written about this before, but when “they” mess with Dr. Seuss it warrants being mentioned again.

The movement to “cancel culture” or as I like to call it “treat everyone the same” is flat out dangerous.

We are not all the same. Right now I am reading “Men are from Mars and Women are from Venus.” The basic premise of the book is that men and women are completely different in the language they speak. Men retreat into caves when they are stressed or having problems; women talk about things. Men want to fix problems, women want to be listened to.

What I learned during the pandemic

Published by admin on Thu, 03/04/2021 - 10:52am

It was 52 weeks ago this week that the words “coronavirus” and “COVID-19” graced the pages of this paper for the first time.

Since then, a lot has happened. I’ve written about the fallout a lot. We’ve talked about it together.

I’ve written about the negative implications, mostly — canceled school and events, panic buying and the economic impact in the spring and, more recently and on a personal level, the anxiety the pandemic has caused me. But what I haven’t addressed is the positive things to come out of this.

Out of respect please step aside

Published by admin on Thu, 02/25/2021 - 10:08am

Our state attorney general should step down. Not because he’s human and unintentionally killed a pedestrian.

We have all had traffic accidents; whether our fault or not, they happen. But Mr. Ravnsborg lied about the events of that evening. And he broke the law. And as our state’s highest attorney he should respect the great citizens of this state enough to step down.

Who is the GOAT of GOATs?

Published by admin on Thu, 02/18/2021 - 10:39am

Well, the Super Bowl is behind us, and we have a new champion of football. And when I mean new, I mean old. Tom Brady, once again, comes out on top of the football world.

This is his seventh Super Bowl championship. Whether or not you believe he came by them all honestly (I still maintain his Patriots cheated the Eagles out of a Super Bowl in 2005), he has now, in my opinion, cemented himself as the GOAT of GOATs in professional football, which got me thinking: in North American team sports, who is the GOAT of GOATs?