Home Care In Montrose, MN

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - All of her life, Gina Smith has been interested in art. Now, instead of just appreciating it from afar, she is re-creating it in the comfort of her own home.

"It's a glimpse into what beauty was back then and what standards were and obviously what made a great piece of art," she explained.

Montrose, Minnesota woman uses extra time at home to recreate masterpieces

Montrose, Minnesota woman uses extra time at home to recreate masterpieces

A creative Montrose woman is using her pandemic down time to recreate some memorable scenes from artistic masterpieces.

Smith started re-making masterpieces after the Getty Museum put out a call for the public to re-stage a work of art using household objects back in March.

Since she has been working from home during the pandemic, Smith thought it would be a good creative outlet to dress up and model like the subject in this classic painting called "The Maid."

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"It was of this maid like drinking and I was like that's how I feel right now during COVID," said Smith. "I'm stuck at home. I can't go anywhere. All we can do is drink right now."

Now, once a week, Smith strikes a pose, snaps a picture and posts it on social media, inspired by mostly European portraits from the 18th and 19th centuries.

But there are some modern touches like a cardboard cutout of former Minnesota Wild Nino Niederreiter's head on a stick instead of a fan or a chalkboard with “Justice for George Floyd” written on it that are clearly signs of the times.

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"It's definitely not natural poses," she said. "It’s a challenge but I enjoy it."

Smith says it can be a meticulous process making sure her poses are just right. But fans of her work say the results are picture perfect.

"You feel a little dorky laying out here in these weird poses and weird put together clothing," said Smith. "But I have no problem laughing at myself and if my friends and family and co-workers enjoy it, I have no problem doing that."

MONTROSE, Pa. — In Montrose, one issue has been pecking at members of the borough council raising chickens in the neighborhood.

Something Zoning and Code Enforcement Officer Roy Williams says is not feasible for many people due to the current ordinance.

"The size of the lots in town other than a handful of them makes it difficult with the way it's written now for them to be able to have chickens," said Williams, Zoning and Code Enforcement Officer.

The ordinance allows people in Montrose to have chickens at their homes if there is a minimum of fifty feet between property lines.

Now, people want to change it.

Over the past few weeks, the council met with community members about adjusting the property line requirement to allow more people to have chickens in residential neighborhoods.

Council Vice President Edward Herd is on board with updating the ordinance.

"Instead of fifty feet, maybe ten feet, ya know, something that would allow the common properties in town to have chickens as well, which I see," said Edward Herd, Montrose Council Vice President.

Now one of the main reasons people want to bring chickens into residential homes is to provide economic relief, but one business says that even starting up can get costly.

"Fence, coop, chickens, buying the chickens, buying the animals, buy the feeders, buy the waterers. There is an initial cost to that; that is a fair amount," said Guy Parrish, owner of Montrose Feed & Supply.

Montrose Feed and Supply owner Guy Parrish dealt with these startup costs when his family got their chicken coop.

Although it helped lighten the grocery bill a bit, his daughter Katie Lamphere believes owning animals like chickens needs to mean more than just saving a couple of bucks.

"Like having animals is not get rich quick it's an investment and you kind of do it because you love it. You love the animals. You love knowing where your food comes from," said Katie Lamphere, Montrose Feed & Supply Manager.

The decision of whether to ease regulations on chicken ownership in the borough of Montrose has yet to be decided.

The issue will be brought up at the next borough council meeting on August 15th.

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After a heavy burst dropped up to 10 inches of snow on parts of Minnesota Tuesday, another round of snow is coming on Wednesday.

The National Weather Service says the Twin Cities is in the bullseye Wednesday, with several more inches of snow falling early in the morning.

This has prompted Minneapolis Public Schools and St. Paul Public Schools to call E–learning days, while Minnesota's biggest school district, Anoka-Hennepin, is closing

Here's a look at what school districts are making changes for Wednesday.

(Updated as of 6 a.m. Wednesday)

Albany Area Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Amery Schools: E-learning day

Annandale Public Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Anoka–Hennepin Schools: Closed.

Atwater–Cosmos–Grove City: Starting 2 hours late.

Becker Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Belgrade–Brooten–Elrosa: Starting 2 hours late.

Benson Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

BOLD Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Blooming Prairie Public Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Bloomington Schools: E-learning day.

Buffalo–Hanover–Montrose Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Buffalo Lake–Hector–Stewart: Starting 2 hours late.

Burnsville–Eagan–Savage Schools: E–learning day.

Butterfield–Odin Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Cambridge–Isanti Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Cannon Falls Schools: E–learning day.

Cedar Mountain Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Chisago Lakes Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Chokio-Alberta Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Clear Lake Schools: Closed.

Clinton–Graceville–Beardsley: Starting 2 hours late.

Columbia Heights Schools: E–learning day.

Comfrey Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Dassel–Cokato Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Dawson–Boyd Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Delano Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Eastern Carver County Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Eden Prairie Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Eden Valley–Watkins Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Edgerton Public School: Closed.

Edina Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Elk River–Zimmerman-Otsego–Rogers Schools: E-learning day.

Fairmont Area Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Faribault Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Farmington Public Schools: Closed, flex learning day.

Foley Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Forest Lake Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Glencoe–Silver Lake Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

GFW Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Glencoe–Silver Lake Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Granada–Huntley–East Chain Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Hancock Public School: Starting 2 hours late.

Hastings Schools: E–learning day.

Hiawatha Academies: Closed.

Hinckley–Finlayson Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Howard Lake–Waverly–Winsted: Starting 2 hours late.

Hutchinson Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Inver Grove Heights Schools: Closed.

Ivanhoe Public Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Jackson County Central Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Janesville–Waldorf–Pemberton: Starting 2 hours late.

Kenyon Wanamingo Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Kimball Area Public Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

KMS—Kerkhoven Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Lac Qui Parle Valley Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Lake Crystal–Wellcome Memorial: Starting 2 hours late.

Lakeview School District: Starting 2 hours late.

Lakeville Area Schools: Closed, flex learning day.

Le Sueur–Henderson Public Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Lester Prairie Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Litchfield Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Lynd Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Maccray Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Madelia Public Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Mankato Area Public Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Maple River Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Marshall Public Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Martin County West Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Medford Public Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Melrose Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

McIlroy Public School: Starting 2 hours late.

Mid-State Education District: Starting 2 hours late.

Milaca Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Milroy Public Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Minneota Public School: Starting 2 hours late.

Minnehaha Academy: Closed.

Minneapolis Public Schools: E–learning day.

Minnetonka Schools: Closed.

Montevideo Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Monticello Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Mora Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Morris Area/St. Mary's: Starting 2 hours late.

Mounds View Schools: Closed.

Mountain Lake Public Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Murray County Central: Starting 2 hours late.

New London-Spicer Public Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

New Prague Schools: Closed.

New Richland-Hartland-Ellendale-Geneva Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

New Richmond Schools: Closed.

New Ulm Public Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

North Branch ISD 138: Starting 2 hours late.

Norwood Young America Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Onamia Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Orono Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Ortonville–Big Stone: Starting 2 hours late.

Osceola Schools: Closed.

Osseo Schools: E-learning day.

Owatonna Public School District: Starting 2 hours late.

Paynesville Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Pine City Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Plum City Schools: E-learning day for grades 3-12.

Princeton Schools: E–learning Day.

Redwood Area Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Renville Co West: Starting 2 hours late.

Richfield Public Schools: Closed.

River Falls Schools: Closed.

Rockford Schools: E–learning day.

ROCORI Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Rosemount–Apple Valley–Eagan: Closed.

Royalton Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Rush City Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Sartell–St. Stephen School District: Starting 2 hours late.

Sauk Centre Public Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Sauk Rapids–Rice: Starting 2 hours late.

Sibley East: Starting 2 hours late.

Siren Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Sleepy Eye Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Somerset Schools: E–learning day.

South St. Paul Schools: Emergency flex learning day.

South Washington County Schools: Closed.

Springfield Public Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Spring Valley Public Schools: E–learning day.

St. Clair Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

St. Cloud Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

St. Francis Area Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

St. James Public Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

St. Michael/Albertville Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

St. Paul Public Schools: E–learning day.

St. Peter Public Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Swanville Public Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Tracy Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Tri–City United Schools: Closed, blended learning day.

Truman Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Wabasha–Kellogg Schools: E–learning day.

Waconia Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Waseca Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Watertown–Mayer Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

Waterville–Elysian–Morristown: Starting 2 hours late.

Wayzata Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

West–Central Area Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

West St. Paul–Mendota Heights–Eagan: Closed.

Wheaton Schools: Starting 2 hours late.

White Bear Lake Area Schools: Closed.

Willmar: Starting 2 hours late.

Yellow Medicine East: Starting 2 hours late.

Fire and health officials began issuing warnings about wildfire smoke several weeks earlier than normal this year. With almost the entire U.S. West in drought, signs already pointed to a long, dangerous fire season ahead.

Smoke is now turning the sky hazy across a large swath of the country as dozens of large fires burn, and a lot of people are wondering what’s in the air they’re breathing.

As an environmental toxicologist, I study the effects of wildfire smoke and how they differ from other sources of air pollution. We know that breathing wildfire smoke can be harmful. Less clear is what the worsening wildfire landscape will mean for public health in the future, but research is raising red flags.

In parts of the West, wildfire smoke now makes up nearly half the air pollution measured annually. A new study by the California Air Resources Board found another threat: High levels of lead and other metals turned up in smoke from the 2018 Camp Fire, which destroyed the town of Paradise. The findings suggest smoke from fires that reach communities could be even more dangerous than originally thought because of the building materials that burn.

Here’s a closer look at what makes up wildfire smoke and what you can do to protect yourself and your family.

What’s in wildfire smoke?

What exactly is in a wildfire’s smoke depends on a few key things: What’s burning — grass, brush or trees? The temperature — is it flaming or just smoldering? And the distance between the person breathing the smoke and the fire producing it.

The distance affects the ability of smoke to “age,” meaning to be acted upon by the Sun and other chemicals in the air as it travels. Aging can make it more toxic. Importantly, large particles like what most people think of as ash do not typically travel that far from the fire, but small particles, or aerosols, can travel across continents.

Smoke from wildfires contains thousands of individual compounds, including carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds, carbon dioxide, hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides. The most prevalent pollutant by mass is particulate matter less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter, roughly 50 times smaller than a grain of sand. Its prevalence is one reason health authorities issue air quality warnings using PM 2.5 as the metric.

The new study on smoke from the 2018 Camp Fire found dangerous levels of lead in smoke blowing downwind as the fire burned through Paradise, California. The metals, which have been linked to health harms including high blood pressure and developmental effects in children with long-term exposure, traveled more than 150 miles on the wind, with concentrations 50 times above average in some areas.

What does that smoke do to human bodies?

There is another reason PM2.5 is used to make health recommendations: It defines the cutoff for particles that can travel deep into the lungs and cause the most damage.

The human body is equipped with natural defense mechanisms against particles bigger than PM2.5. As I tell my students, if you have ever coughed up phlegm or blown your nose after being around a campfire and discovered black or brown mucus in the tissue, you have witnessed these mechanisms firsthand.

The really small particles bypass these defenses and disturb the air sacs where oxygen crosses over into the blood. Fortunately, we have specialized immune cells present called macrophages. It’s their job to seek out foreign material and remove or destroy it. Studies have shown, however, that repeated exposure to elevated levels of wood smoke can suppress macrophages, leading to increases in lung inflammation.

Dose, frequency and duration are important when it comes to smoke exposure. Short-term exposure can irritate the eyes and throat. Long-term exposure to wildfire smoke over days or weeks, or breathing in heavy smoke, can raise the risk of lung damage and may also contribute to cardiovascular problems. Considering that it is the macrophage’s job to remove foreign material — including smoke particles and pathogens — it is reasonable to make a connection between smoke exposure and risk of viral infection.

Recent evidence suggests that long-term exposure to PM2.5 may make the coronavirus more deadly. A nationwide study found that even a small increase in PM2.5 from one U.S. county to the next was associated with a large increase in the death rate from COVID-19.

What can you do to stay healthy?

Here’s the advice I would give just about anyone downwind from a wildfire.

Stay informed about air quality by identifying local resources for air quality alerts, information about active fires and recommendations for better health practices.

If possible, avoid being outside or doing strenuous activity, like running or cycling, when there is an air quality warning for your area.

Be aware that not all face masks protect against smoke particles. Most cloth masks will not capture small wood smoke particles. That requires an N95 mask that fits and is worn properly. Without a proper fit, N95s do not work as well.

Establish a clean space. Some communities in western states have offered “clean spaces” programs that help people take refuge in buildings with clean air and air conditioning. During the pandemic, being in an enclosed space with others can create other health risks. At home, a person can create clean and cool spaces using a window air conditioner and a portable air purifier.

The Environmental Protection Agency also advises people to avoid anything that contributes to indoor air pollutants. That includes vacuuming that can stir up pollutants, as well as burning candles, firing up gas stoves and smoking.

This is an update to a story originally published on Aug. 20, 2020.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Orchards are not only about "them apples," you can take the kiddos on a hayride, through a corn maze or to a barnyard to pet farm animals.

GOLDEN VALLEY, Minn. — While this murky Monday might be getting you down, don't worry - there are sunny skies ahead and perhaps a jug of cider.

There's no better time than now to start planning your annual pilgrimage to go apple picking as this upcoming weekend is shaping up to be a beauty.

Minnesota and Wisconsin have a bountiful offering of orchards to choose from, so take your (apple) pick(er):

You can't start a list of apple orchards without beginning with the name Aamodt.

Family-owned since 1948, Aamodt's Apple Farm is not just an orchard, it's a winery, bakery and goat farm that features wagon rides. The apple crop includes Honeycrisp, Haralson, Sweetango, First Kiss, and Sweet RiverBelle varieties.

Aamodt's offers pick-your-own apples but check the website for apple availability.

The farm is open daily 7 days a week from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

In 1983, "Apple" Jack Kelly famously picked apples from his over 250 trees to sell and soon planted more.

Now, Apple Jack Orchards in Delano boast over 10,000 trees and over 29 varieties of Minnesota apples.

There is also a bakery, corn maze, and the opportunity to pet some farm animals.

They are open 7 days a week from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Family-owned and operated since 1958, this orchard has more than just apples on the agenda.

They are also a large egg producer, raising "happy, healthy and free range" chickens.

Brand Farms is 20 acres and has 7,000 trees with all different variations of Minnesota-bred apples.

The farm is open Monday- Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

This farm in northwestern Minnesota has both apple and raspberry picking along with hard cider and a bakery.

Among the apple varieties to choose from is one called "State Fair," which was introduced in 1977.

Country Blossom Farm also features a 7-acre corn maze.

They are open Tuesday to Sunday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

A family-run orchard located just outside of Buffalo has fun activities for the whole family and a variety of apples to pick, including Sweet Tango, Honey Crisps and Zestar.

Deer Lake Orchard also boasts a 100-year-old barn that is available to book for your next event!

They are open Tuesday to Sunday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Along with the obvious, Fall Harvest also offers live music, tire climbs, hay bale mountain and much more.

Located four miles west of Delano, the orchard offers a multitude of different "rides" from their Classic Red Train Ride to Cow Train Rides.

There are a couple of other fun alternatives like "apple cannons" and "pedal carts" that are only available on weekends.

Fall Harvest Orchard is open Thursday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Sure, you can pick apples at LuceLine Orchard, but there's even more to do at the 155-acre family-owned and operated property, and lots of the activities, parking and admission are free!

There are nine apple varieties available to pick at LuceLine, from the early-season favorite First Kiss to the classic Honeycrisp. You'll just have to purchase an apple bag to enter the orchard.

Pick your own apples, enjoy a free wagon ride or take a spin on the giant hamster wheel at this western Wisconsin orchard.

Shihata's Orchard also has their "Bakery Barn," a scenic overlook deck on the back of the gift shop, and a pumpkin painting station.

The farm is open daily 7 days a week from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

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