Fortnight For Freedom Wrapup: Photos and Weather

Fortnight For Freedom will be over in about an hour and a half, here in the Central time zone. I joined Sauk Centre's freedom rosary on Sunday, June 24, 2012: and was out each evening with almost a hundred of my neighbors in the Marian garden, until yesterday.

I took another photo this evening, added it to the ones I've posted before, and will show the lot of them: after I talk about the weather.

We've had remarkably fine weather during Fortnight For Freedom: hot, occasionally muggy, but no rain. At all.

Having clear weather, 14 evenings in a row, from the end of June to early July, in Minnesota: that's doing pretty well here in central Minnesota.

A stereotype of 'small town people' is that we're 'always talking about the weather.' There's something to that: living in a rural area means that weather makes as much difference in our lives as stock market reports do for financiers.

Which may be another stereotype: and another topic.

"Excessive Heat Warning," "Record Report," and - Oh, That's Interesting

I checked on Wunderground.com's Sauk Centre page. One of the alerts weren't exactly news to me, or anyone else who had been outside today:

"Excessive Heat Warning

"... Excessive heat warning remains in effect until 10 PM CDT Thursday...
"Statement as of 8:06 PM CDT on July 04, 2012"

"* temperature... a bit of moderation is expected in central Minnesota on Thursday... but the remainder of the area will again see an afternoon heat index above 105 degrees. Overnight lows will remain very warm... with temperatures only expected to fall back to between 72 and 79 degrees away from the Twin Cities Metro... and around 80 within the Metro...."

---

"Record Report
"Statement as of 07:19 PM CDT on July 04, 2012

"... Record high temperature set at Twin Cities MN...

"a record high temperature of 101 degrees was set at Twin Cities MN today. This breaks the old record of 100 set in 1949."

---

(US Severe Weather/US Weather Service, via Wunderground.com)

The record high, one degree higher than a temperature on this date in 1949, was interesting. What really got my attention was this:

"Tornado Watch
"Statement as of 9:00 PM CDT on July 04, 2012

"The National Weather Service has issued Tornado Watch 465 in effect until 3 am CDT Thursday for the following areas

"In Minnesota this watch includes 9 counties

"In central Minnesota
"Benton Morrison Sherburne Stearns Todd

"In east central Minnesota
"Chisago Isanti Kanabec Mille Lacs

"In Wisconsin this watch includes 3 counties

"In northwest Wisconsin
"Barron Polk Rusk

"This includes the cities of... Cambridge... Center City... Elk River... Ladysmith... Little Falls... Long Prairie... Mora... Osceola... Princeton... Rice Lake... Sauk Rapids and St. Cloud."

---

(US Severe Weather/US Weather Service, via Wunderground.com)

A map shows the parts of Minnesota affected by the watch and advisory:


Regional radar shows why that tornado watch is a good idea:


I expect to be up rather late tonight, unless the watch is lifted. I'm not worried, or nervous: on the other hand I've lived in this part of the world most of my life, and know better than to ignore severe weather.

Acting Like God Matters

I'm a practicing Catholic, so I think God exists: and matters. I also think prayer is a good idea, and would prefer being able to act like God matters without getting in trouble with the law.

I even think that all human beings are people. I have to, since that's what the Church teaches: even if it's not what the leaders of my nature culture believe.

I've given my take on freedom, prayer, and being part of a counter-culture, before:

• "Independence Day, 2012: 236 Years of Freedom"
  (July 4, 2012)
• "We Pray For Freedom"
  (June 25, 2012)
• "Curing the Sick, Helping the Poor; Yes:
  Killing the Innocent; No"
  (June 24, 2012)
• "A Little Soap, A Little Prayer"
  (March 1, 2011)
• "Being Counter-Cultural:
  I am Not Now, Nor Have I Ever Been, a Hippie"
  (January 12, 2010)

Finally: Photos of the Sauk Centre Freedom Rosary

A neighbor of mine took two of these photos. I'd have taken more, but spent most of the hour each evening praying and singing:

Getting ready for another freedom rosary at Our Lady of the Angels Church in Sauk Centre, Minnesota. July 2, 2012.

Freedom Rosary, Marian garden, Our Lady of Angels, Sauk Centre, Minnesota. June 24, 2012.

Another really nice evening. June 25, 2012.

Violins and song at the Freedom Rosary, Marian garden, Our Lady of Angels, Sauk Centre, Minnesota. June 25, 2012.

Freedom Rosary, Sauk Centre, Minnesota. June 26, 2012. Photo by Dr. Erik Rivers.

Freedom Rosary, Our Lady of the Angels, Sauk Centre, Minnesota. June 26, 2012. Photo by Dr. Erik Rivers.

Young, old, and most ages between. July 2, 2012.

Not as many folks as some previous nights: no surprise, since it felt like 101 ° F. July 2, 2012.

Last evening for the freedom rosary in Sauk Centre. July 4, 2012.

We had a pretty good number of folks in the garden by Our Lady of the Angels Church for the last evening of the freedom rosary. Maybe it was the root beer floats we'd been promised: but I don't think so. There are much easier, more comfortable, ways to get a treat.

My wife and #3 daughter were with me: neither of them can take anything that sweet; and I'm diabetic. And that's yet another topic.

Related posts:

• "Freedom Rosary, Photos, and Heat: Lots of Heat"
  (July 2, 2012)
• "We Pray For Freedom"
  (June 25, 2012)
• " '...A Time to Stand Up' "
  (June 27, 2012)
• "Freedom Rosary: Another Day, Another Hour of Prayer"
  (June 26, 2012)
• "Decisions: Ethical, and Political"
  (June 26, 2012)