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Greetings and Welcome to The 405 Coffee Break with O.K. Solberg
New episodes tend to air over the local KMMR radio station @ 5 minutes past 4PM each M-F. And have been doing so, nearly every week since Sept 2018.
I'm D.J. Rasmussen, O.K.s friend since junior high, possibly your neighbor & this websites maintainer, whom strives to get each episode's show notes written, the transcript proofed and the audio posted to the internet within a few hours of that days KMMR air time. NOTE: recently been publishing most new releases by 4:30PM.
Thanks for visiting and I hope you enjoy the time we can spend together.
Wanna again welcome you to The 04:05 Coffee Break. Guys, you're ready for the weekend? It's getting close. Get your cup of coffee, glass iced tea, or bottled water. Let's see what's happening.
OK Solberg:Spring wheat $5.49 a bushel. A 550lb steer calf $4.65 A butcher hog in Iowa 57¢ a pound. And a 100lb fat lamb in Billings $2.39 a pound. But guys, there's more much more.
OK Solberg:Okay. Okay. Okay. Thanks to Jimmy Murdoch. I'll be sharing from a little booklet published by the Phillips County News and it's titled Looking Back. Looking Back. Now Jimmy dropped it off the other day and I'm filled with true appreciation. Today, we'll be looking at a family that is listed in this booklet whom I personally knew myself.
OK Solberg:Their names were Jonas and Malmfrid Undheim from the Harb community, original homesteaders.
OK Solberg:Now before I get into the story in the book, I'd like to tell you this. If your heading out to the East Malta Colony where most everyone is familiar, you go by Doc's place and you get to the East Malta Colony. You go past it and you keep going down towards Art and Joan Kaasa house, cross Beaver Creek, the road shortly turns south and you drive by Earl Duty's corrals, keep heading south and look off in the distance. Even from Earl Duty's property, you can see a butte off in the distance, a hill, a butte with a sharp drop off. That there is Undheim's Hill.
OK Solberg:There were many neighbors. Now listen from the book nut. This account was written by Margaret Undheim Bergsagel and I quote, I quote, back on the Undheim farm in Harb, Christmas preparations began early in December. Scrubbing and cleaning was done in every nook and cranny, and everything that was washable was washed. By this time of the year, our cellar was stocked with home canned fruits, vegetables, pickles, jams, jellies, chicken, beef, and pork.
OK Solberg:In the root cellar were sand covered vegetables and bins of potatoes. That's where we kept the wooden barrel full of bacon in salt brine. Pungent smoked hams hung from the roof. One year, there was no money for gifts at Christmas. Mom found a 27¢ refund check from wards in order to set a salt and pepper shakers for the family.
OK Solberg:Now that was the year dad made a big wooden sled with metal runners for us. Many a cold winter afternoon was spent coasting down the hills with the boys shouting dares to one another over the most dangerous drifts. Mom made mittens, caps, socks, and scarves for our Christmas stockings. It was a Merry Christmas indeed. We hung our stockings on the dish towel drying line in the corner of the kitchen by the black cook stove.
OK Solberg:Christmas morning, there was always something in them, an orange, an apple, nuts, candy, and sometimes a wee toy. The hard Christmas candy was provided by a kind grocer in Bowdoin, Habedank, whose German name means have thanks. This man, Habedank, tucked a bag of candy in each farmer's grocery bag when he knew they couldn't afford such luxuries. End of quote. That's a great story written by a lady I also knew and, of course, Palmer was their son.
OK Solberg:You remember Palmer, he worked at the post office in Malta, Montana. Their daughter, Gundren, was, well, married to Conrad Bergsagel. Did you realize this? This story is about Jonas and Malmfrid Undheim, and Jonas is the person who first invited my mom to come to church. Which church?
OK Solberg:Well, the church I now serve. And Ross and Bruce Christofferson had a grandmother named Ovedia Chistofferson. And Ovedia, she saw my mom come into church with 4 little children looking scared, including myself. And Ovedia smiled and put her arm around my mom and said, come on. You can sit next to me.
OK Solberg:That was about 65 years ago and, well, I've never left the church. So until next time, have a good weekend. As you go out there, remember now, don't be bitter.