(relaxing music) - [Introducer] "Almanac" is a production of Twin Cities PBS for the stations of Minnesota Public Television Association.

- We have a treat for you tonight, a look back at some of our best stories and conversations from the past year.

Hang tight for this special New Year's edition of "Almanac".

(relaxing instrumental music) - [Introducer] "Almanac" is made possible by members of this public television station.

Support is also provided by Great River Energy, providing wholesale power to 28 Minnesota electric cooperatives.

Delta Dental of Minnesota Foundation, improving oral health while advancing social equities.

Deltadentalmn.org/tpt.

The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux community, a tribal nation focused on community and collaboration, especially in times like today.

Enbridge, connecting Minnesotans with energy for over 70 years.

More at enbridge.com/line3us.

And Education Minnesota, the voice for professional educators and students throughout the state.

More at educationminnesota.org.

One Greater Minnesota reporting on "Almanac" is made possible in part by the OTTO Bremer Trust, whose mission is investing in people, places and opportunities in our region.

Additional support is provided by the Blandin Foundation, working to strengthen Rural Minnesota.

(relaxing instrumental music) - We have a special show for you this holiday evening.

It's a look back at some of our favorite stories from 2021.

- That's right, Eric and I and the entire "Almanac" team have picked stories from the past year that we think deserve to be seen again.

- Yeah, and Cathy and I will be back in a few minutes with our selections, but we start the hour with a special story from Kaomi Lee.

(twinkling music) - There are about 200,000 internationally adopted Koreans in the world, raised in about a dozen countries with different languages and cultures, and by primarily parents of another race.

I am one of them.

I came to Meadowlands, Minnesota, as a six-month-old infant decades ago.

But as I've gotten older, knowing the truth about my origins and my first family have become increasingly important.

This next story is a personal look as I take one step closer to uncovering my past.

With most of the state in drought conditions, and half the state in severe drought... As "Almanac's" Greater Minnesota reporter, I usually report on stories from around the state.

This story is a little different.

Sasha and I became a citizen.

50 years ago, I was adopted as an infant from South Korea (relaxing piano music) and sent to a Lutheran pastor and his wife in Rural Minnesota.

I thought I left Korea with just a name, a presumed birth date and the clothes on my back, with no hope of finding family.

Little did I know, I also had something very powerful, my DNA, and I'm not alone.

(audience applauding) - Like many people who are adopted, our next guest grew up not knowing anything about his biological roots.

- But just a few months ago, he took a 23andMe DNA test and made a discovery that has changed his life forever.

- Well, Ben has spoken to his half-brother, Jeff, but they've never met face-to-face until now.

Ben, are you ready?

- I'm ready.

- Jeff, come on out.

(upbeat instrumental music) - Yeah.

(Ben chuckling) - [Kaomi] Commercial DNA tests have been connecting relatives to each other for the past 15 years.

For Korean adoptees who often can't access records or birth identities, the tests have been a game changer.

- Right now, we have over 12 million customers and about 80% of those customers have found a third cousin or closer.

I think a lot of this information is really invaluable, for everyone, but specifically for adoptees.

Especially because typically adoptees don't have family history, whether it's their ancestry or health.

And actually, certain ancestries can put you at a higher risk of developing certain diseases, and so we've heard from so many customers.

It's impacted their lives tremendously.

- [Kaomi] I took 23andMe's DNA test five years ago.

I shared the results in some other databases.

And then this spring, I got a message.

Someone in Denmark thought they were my half-sister or niece, and like me, she was also a Korean adoptee.

- I think we just take a day at a time.

- [Kaomi] We did more tests.

All signs pointed to half-sisters.

But after Denmark opened to visitors, (zipper zooming) (luggage rumbling) (boot door banging) (airliner engines roaring) I decided to fly and meet Lisa Beck, but I was still nervous.

How would it feel to meet a previously unknown biological sibling for the first time?

Would we get along?

Would we have anything to talk about?

Would meeting her help me better understand myself?

(paper rustling) Then the moment happened.

Hi, I'm tearing up.

- It's nice to see you, finally.

- I know.

Did you wait a long time?

- Yeah, and filming and I'm just so nervous.

- How nice to see you.

- It's so nice to see you.

- [Kaomi] We got a chance to sit down together, face-to-face.

I learned that Lisa decided to do a DNA test on a whim.

- Early morning, I laid in my bed and I was very tired and I just took my phone out and then, oh what?

I have a sister.

(Lisa chuckling) I was so confused and excited at the same time, yeah.

- What was going through your mind when you saw me?

- I was amazed.

I was surprised because I can see the similarities, but I can't put a finger on it, you know, exactly what it is.

But I can see we look alike, you know, nose, mouth, cheeks and so on.

- Maybe the eyes too.

- Yeah.

Yeah.

- Yeah.

- So I can see we look similar.

- [Kaomi] Lisa and I don't know who our birth parents are.

Finding each other through DNA feels like beating all odds.

Our story was even featured on national Danish TV.

(indistinct chatter) - Well, we did it.

(hands clapping) - We did it.

(ladies chuckling) - [Kaomi] We also met with Korean adoptees in Denmark.

Like Minnesota, there are thousands here.

- Nice to meet you.

- Nice to meet you.

Lisa and I had fun getting to know each other during the short visit.

But instead of answering questions, meeting Lisa created more.

Now that I know about you, it just makes me start to go down the rabbit hole of who was our father?

- Yeah.

- Is he still alive?

Do we have other siblings out there?

I'm also very aware that many adoptees do not get this opportunity, and that helps me to know how special it is that we did find each other.

(twinkling music) - My most memorable story of the year involves a devastating diagnosis for revered State Senator, David Tomassoni.

The former Olympic hockey player used to face off against the likes of Wayne Gretzky, now he's facing a fatal disease.

As someone who shares a neurological disease, this one was personal.

And I'm particularly proud that we were able to give him the time and space to tell his story.

- 17, 18, 19, 20, 21.

- Senator David Tomassoni can count dozens of colleagues he has outlasted in his 28 years in the Minnesota Legislature.

He started serving in the house in 1993, the Senate in 2001.

That's more than 50 members gone.

These days, Tomassoni is thinking a lot about his tenure in politics.

- You know, everybody likes his Gretzky picture, but I kinda like the one of me and Biden on Air Force 2.

- The Iron Ranger always ran as a Democrat, then joined the Republican caucus and officially IDs as an independent.

Does this mean you're gonna be a Democrat again?

- I never quit being a Democrat.

- Okay.

(Mary chuckling) But that's not why he's making news now.

- My shoulders are stiff.

My arms are getting a little weaker.

I never really know how my voice is coming out of my mouth because it feels like I got marbles inside.

But I don't feel sick.

- [Mary] Tomassoni has ALS, an incurable, degenerative, deadly disease.

- I'm putting shaving cream on my face.

In order to get it on my neck, I gotta turn my hand with this hand and go like that because that ability, this finger is bent, I can't straighten it out.

But I'm doing okay.

I can't complain.

- [Mary] What's the prognosis.

What did the doctor say?

- [David] Well, they don't know.

- We share a neurological disease.

And I remember when I was diagnosed with MS when they said to me, I'm glad it's not ALS.

They said, MS is easier news to deliver.

Those letters are scary, aren't they?

- When I was watching a chick flick one night, I started crying at the end of it.

And I thought, what in the world, crying at the end of a chick flick?

I'm supposed to be a big, tough hockey player, right, you can't cry at the end of a chick flick.

Check out that.

- [Mary] Quite the stache, huh.

- [David] Well, I had hair too.

(people laughing) - [Mary] Tomassoni is a proud, tough, likable law maker I've covered for more than 20 years.

He embraces his heritage that created an incredible opportunity in hockey, a history that never hurts in politics in the state of hockey.

- Well, I was playing for the Italian national team, but this was the Group A World Championship in 1982.

- [Mary] The defensive man studied Gretzky's moves to challenge him on the ice when the chance came.

- He's already lost the puck and he's about to go down in this picture.

- [Mary] The laughs and the tears come more frequently now, a symptom of ALS, especially with the emotional outpouring of support.

- Some I read it and I just break down crying, yeah.

It's like, wow.

Pretty neat.

- [Mary] Pretty neat in such a partisan, toxic time in politics.

- I haven't had one negative comment on anything and... (David clearing throat) (David breathing deeply) - [Mary] It's okay, take your time.

Whatever you need, we're here.

- The drug's not working.

(David chuckling) - That's okay.

Tomassoni is taking medication to try to control the uncontrollable emotions of ALS.

He went to Mexico for stem cell treatments, is trying holistic options, and is hoping to get into a medical trial.

- As you go through politics, you do a real lot.

(David whimpering) Some people like it, some people don't.

But after being in it for 30 years, you really can't remember all the things you did.

- [Mary] Things he did for the mining and paper industries, education, seniors, veterans workers, who he all advocated for along the way.

(David whimpering) You have a lot of friends after all these years.

- Yes.

- Yeah, you do.

Some people build up enemies.

Somehow, you switch caucuses and built friends.

- [David] Well, I didn't lose the old ones either.

But you realize that you've affected people's lives and in a real positive way.

(David whimpering) - [Mary] Tomassoni intends to continue to affect people's lives working at the capitol as long as he's able.

- Members, the 2021 COVID adventure begins.

- When you talk about all the things you do and all the things you've touched, what do you think looking at your career and your legacy two decades here, what's the legacy?

- I think I treated people kindly.

I don't know, I think maybe my legacy at the end will be, I was somebody who could work with everybody.

And I think that stands up.

(motivational instrumental music) - For two decades, acclaimed children's writer, Kate DiCamillo, has made annual visits to "Almanac".

We always have fun when she's in the studio and this was especially true when Kate stopped by in October to talk about her new novel, "The Beatryce Prophecy".

Take a look.

- I can't imagine that you started this and you forgot about it.

What?

- Yeah.

Yeah.

No, I know because as you know I only do-- - Two pages a day.

- Right.

And so you would think I would keep careful track of those two pages.

And I love how you introduced it and that it's dedicated to my mom, and I think that's part of the reason that I forgot about it.

I started it the year that she passed away and I think that it was just a little bit too close to home.

So I had turned from working on that, to working on the story of the squirrel that gets sucked up in the vacuum cleaner.

That's one of your favorites.

- [Eric] Yeah, well you've had toast, you've had the pig.

- So toast, pigs, squirrels, vacuum cleaners.

- Now, goat.

- He's worried about the goat in here.

- There's nothing, you should worry about whether or not the goat would approve of you, that's what you need to worry about.

- Well, this comes from a fever dream, doesn't it?

I mean, you've got that half king, half wolf, you got a boy turns into a bird.

You got somebody else-- - You read the whole thing.

- He did.

- 245 pages.

Somebody else turns into a bee.

- Can we just have a moment of joy and silence while we say, Eric read the whole book.

- I did.

- The whole book.

- That thrills me.

- How many interviewers do you know actually read the whole book?

- But this thing is-- - I know.

- It's kind of psychedelic.

It's kind of, is it in the Medieval times?

Is it a fairytale?

- Is it?

Is it?

Is it in the Medieval?

Because you're a careful reader if you assume that it's not because at the end I say, "All of this "happened long ago or perhaps it has yet to happen."

- Perhaps, yeah.

- Yeah, so you read?

Not only did you read it all, you read it well.

- Well, it shows my great respect for the author.

(ladies chuckling) - I think I should just leave right now.

I mean, that's a high note right?

- Exactly.

- Yeah.

- Literacy appears to be central to this story.

- It is.

It is.

- Why?

Why'd you do that?

- I didn't do it on purpose because I never know what I'm doing.

But as I was working on it, I could see these themes out of the corner of my eye.

And then by the time I was done and getting ready to start to talk about the book, I could bring it into focus and think, gosh, this is why this was so sensitive because I struggled to learn to read and it was my mother that helped me, and helped me in this really wonderful way because we were being taught with phonics.

Is that how y'all learned?

- Yeah.

- Sure.

- Yeah, and it made no sense to me.

And I came home from school distraught and she said several things to me.

One, you're smart.

Two, we'll find a way to work around it.

And three, you're good at memorizing, so let's do it that way.

So she just showed me that there was a way around and also saw me very clearly and knew what I could do.

And so she just made me flashcards and that's how I learned to read by memorizing the words.

- So because you took this up after your mom died, and you're probably right, it was probably too soon after, but was she talking to you at all as you were writing?

- You know what has been so much on my mind is that I wish, there's so many things that I did thank her for and I wish that I had seen this more clearly.

It's never that I forgot that but it's like the further away I get.

Because who I am more than anybody else, other than somebody that likes to pick on Eric and somebody who writes two pages a day, I am a reader.

And I knew from a very young age that I needed what was in the book and I was desperate to learn to read.

And she gave me that gift and paid attention to me as a reader and it was the world for me.

- I dug up autobiographical reference and you're in this.

"Where do the words come from?

(Kate chuckling) "I do not know.

"They were in my head and I wrote them down.

"That is all I know."

(Kate chuckling) That's the story of your career, isn't it?

(Kate laughing) - [Cathy] He carefully read the book.

- I wonder, you could write a critical analysis of this book or a term paper, I feel like.

- [Eric] Let's not go nuts.

- Yeah.

(Kate chuckling) Yeah, and you know what, this is one of those things where I would never be aware of that as me speaking truly about how I write through another character, but that is exactly right.

- That's your process.

- That's my process.

I feel so seen here.

- See.

- Yeah.

- Aren't you glad you joined us tonight?

- I was so thrilled to get to come back here and y'all in person.

- I gotta ask you about the pandemic, 'cause I know your routine's kind of change during the pandemic, right.

- Yeah.

Yeah.

And you and I talked pretty early on, right?

- Right.

- And I was walking up to see that big old tree every day.

And that was my touchstone, was this old, old tree that's over a hundred years old.

And I think, gosh, you've lived through a pandemic before, so I'd always like to visit that tree.

Yeah, my routines have changed because I used to be on the road all the time and I'm not.

And when I was at the Fitzgerald last night, that was the first time I'd stepped on a stage in almost two years.

It was terrifying.

- What happened to the opera and the Shakespeare Theater?

- [Cathy] Yeah.

- Royal Shakespeare Theater opens October, 14th, yeah, "The Magician's Elephant".

And it is going to be astonishing.

- Wow.

- Yeah.

And so that will go on and the opera will happen at some point.

We're talking about having something in December, kind of not the full opera but a thing.

So stay tuned, yeah.

- Are you okay that you're not traveling?

Do you like kind of just being?

- You know, this is what I miss and I realized it so much last night in front of that live audience, and I knew it but I really felt it, the kids, and what kids ask you and that you can connect with them and I can feel that connection and it matters so much to me and I hope that it matters to them too.

That's what I miss.

I don't miss flying all over and trying to get my luggage in the overhead bin.

- How do you pronounce the name of the goat?

- Answelica.

- Answelica.

- Answelica.

- Yeah.

- Okay, the story ends up happily but it is another buddy road trip book, right, basically?

(Kate laughing) - That's right, it is a buddy road trip goat book.

- Yeah.

- That's what it is, yeah.

- Well, and of course, goat is very emblematic because when you take the letters of goat.

- [Kate] I know-- - You get the greatest-- - Of all time.

- There you are.

- Yeah, and I didn't know that until the Olympics, so yeah.

- Right, see.

- Then I learned it.

- [Cathy] So what are you working on next?

- I've been writing fairytales.

It seems like a good time for fairytales.

(David chuckling) And then I can come back here and Eric can take them apart and say they're like fever dreams, and they are.

So yeah, so we've got some work to do.

(twinkling music) - Since the pandemic began, a lot of folks at TPT have leaned in and helped out the "Almanac" team.

One of them is Luke Heikkila Luke's a talented producer here at the station and he's done a lot of things for us.

He arranged and recorded Zoom interviews, helped us out in field production, even had a chance to do some storytelling.

Last winter, he did a story on saunas that I think is worth a second look.

- [Justin] It's cultural.

It's spiritual.

It's physical and it's oftentimes social.

- [Luke] Can you say the word for me?

Say that room that gets hot and Fins and others like to go and sweat in it, how do you say that word?

- The English language has one Finnish word in it, it's sauna.

- In general conversation I say sauna.

- I typically say sauna as well.

But I would be curious to know what Layne would say about that?

- I kind of go right in between so I don't offend anybody.

(Layne laughing) - Sauna feels fancy.

- Yeah, it feels too.

- Not too, but it just feels like I'm gonna go take a sauna.

It feels fancy.

- Here's the thing, I don't ever see anybody changing how they say that by reprimand.

(upbeat instrumental music) I think about sauna like a lot of people think about good food, good wine, good beer.

I think about it in terms of quality.

I don't care how you say it, but we're gonna introduce you to the real thing.

(water hissing) We're gonna introduce you to the authentic meal and by the end of eating the meal, you're gonna start asking, what went into creating this?

- [Luke] What makes a sauna?

- There's three key elements to me which is stone, water and wood.

You got the wood to create the fire (fire crackling) to create the heat in the first place.

Stone to become a repository for that heat and to hold it in place, and then water to throw onto those rocks and create the steam, that's the sauna at that point.

- It's an escape.

It's the place that you go and you just relax.

And you heat, you burn out all the toxins from your day, baby.

It's just, it's good stuff.

It's good stuff.

- In the face of our digital world that so much is intangible, so much is digitized, there are very few experiences that are authentic and analog and we set our phones down, and the heat of the sauna forces that.

- [Luke] What do you really appreciate about being in a sauna?

- I feel like it's, number one, a break from everything that's going on 'cause you're secluded and it just takes you away from all the clutter.

- Very often, our world is, I would say now even before the pandemic, full of stress and anxiety in ways that we've probably never seen before.

- The sauna destroys stress, it destroys it.

If you are having a bad week and you go in there and you endure 190 degrees Fahrenheit with three scoops of water on the rocks and you go through that searing experience and the trivialities (water hissing) of life can't stand next to that.

Walking into a 190-degree room is a bit of a daunting experience at first.

I think the important thing to focus on is how you feel after that whole process is done.

I've found nothing else in life that releases that sense of well-being and equilibrium, I think is the term I often come to for it.

- There's are so many months of the year here in Minnesota that are dark and cold.

And so being able to go into anywhere that feels like you can sweat and you can breathe in warm air really just kind of, again, reinvigorates your body and reinvigorates all of those nerves and tendons that you have that you forgot about 'cause it's freezing.

- [Justin] Minnesota, it's the cultural hub.

It's the capitol of sauna in the US.

And we get to steward this gift that many families brought here 150 years ago.

- [Croix] And you really do walk out feeling like the world's a different place.

- [Luke] What's this feel like?

- Awesome.

- Perfect Thursday.

- Letting it all go.

- Yeah.

- Here it goes.

(ladies chuckling) (twinkling music) - Hey y'all, the story that I'm most proud of doing this year is this one on Mutual Aid.

It has interesting characters.

It has unexpected twists and turns.

And it has a pressing social issue that leaves you thinking after.

I hope that you enjoy it.

(birds chirping) In a brick building, yards away from George Floyd Square, Everett Ayoubzadeh does his work.

He's a member of the Baha'i Center in Minneapolis, which shut down last year because of the Coronavirus.

But when residents spoke up about what they need, Baha'i and other organizations stepped in.

- A lot of people that wanted to, they didn't know what to do to help, they wanted to do something and so people filled their cars, knowing that grocery stores and things were either closed or not available.

And very quickly carloads, truckloads, U-Hauls filled with diapers and wipes and cans of food, and they were just dropping stuff off.

- [Kyeland] It's part of a movement in the Twin Cities that may be more necessary now than ever.

Data by the Twin Cities Mutual Aid project lists more than 500 Mutual Aid sites across Minnesota.

86% of those sites are closed, and Coronavirus restrictions limit what many others can do.

But if you ask Jeanelle Austin, who helped to found the George Floyd Global Memorial nonprofit, the spirit for Mutual Aid is still strong.

Already, the group has helped to distribute 6,000 blankets and preserved thousands of offerings left at the memorial.

- I have a friend who is Japanese and he once told me a story as an analogy.

He said, "Jeanelle, "When we do tea together, "you pour tea in the cup of the person next to you "and you never fill your own cup."

- Right.

- But there is this understanding that someone else will take care of your cup.

And I think that's Mutual Aid.

I can give, knowing that somebody else will give to me in my time of need.

Mutual Aid is powerful and I actually think that as we lean into Mutual Aid, it forces us to lean in community and community is the antidote to racism.

- [Kyeland] Keno Evol knows that better than many people.

He's the executive director of the Black Table Arts cooperative, which has served as a Mutual Aid site since George Floyd's killing.

The cooperative opened its space after raising more than $400,000 between donations from the community and from actress, Issa Rae.

Between providing safety equipment, donations to Daunte Wright's family, and space to give out donations, there's one moment that sticks out to Evol.

- The verdict came back and it obviously it was guilty.

And then I heard somebody at the front door and I think that they were saying, "Hello?

"Hello?

Hello?"

So I got up to see who it was and it was an elder black woman.

And when I say that she was sobbing like I've never seen anyone, like her body was in it, you know.

And she kept saying, "I just need some place to sit."

This work gathers multiple black communities across the diaspora to think about political education and grassroots organizing.

Also, sometimes elders just need a place to sit.

And that moment wasn't a part of an event.

That moment wasn't a part of a local campaign, but it just showed the necessity that our doors had to be open for this elder to sit in our bookstore for a little bit to catch her breath.

- [Kyeland] Even with a year passing since George Floyd's murder, Evol, Austin and Ayoubzadeh say there's more work to be done.

They said that more community voices should be uplifted and that people should support work from grassroots organizations.

For Ayoubzadeh, George Floyd Square is a painful reminder that we must also work on ourselves.

- I mean, it's become a global focal point for just how systemic this injustice goes and how we all participate in that.

We all perpetuate these systems.

So there's a saying, that's kind of become one of the mantras in the square is, "Be patient with people.

"Be ruthless with systems.

"And be understanding with systems within people."

(twinkling music) (playful instrumental music) - So because the two of us have been doing monologues longer than anybody on "Almanac", this year the producers asked us to introduce the clips of the best bits from the best monologues of the year.

- And we are absolutely thrilled that they actually gave us a chance to pick these clips, right Mark?

- Well actually, they made it clear that they're gonna pick the clips.

We're gonna stand here and smile.

- Well, enjoy them anyway I guess.

That's it, right?

We're done?

- Yes.

- Do you wanna grab a cup of coffee?

- Yeah, let's do it.

- Okay.

- Let's go.

(playful instrumental music) - We've compiled all the best cold weather science for your enjoyment in the segment that we call "Frozen Feats".

This is the mug of boiling water.

You just, I think that was maybe not warm enough.

You wouldn't normally think that an egg could freeze solid.

(egg shell cracking) Oh, that one is hard boiled.

- Some moms take great and often unsubstantiated pride in their kids.

They see them like states view their mottos.

I remember reading Picasso's mother said, "If he would've gone into religion, "he would've been pulp, "but he was an artist so he became Picasso."

I think that says more about his mom.

It's like my friend Steve's mom, according to her, he could've been pope, but he went into wastewater treatment, so we became Steve.

- Maybe I'd go if vacations included a personal assistant for the two weeks after who would do all the thinking and planning and doing while I rested.

Well, until employers get on board and wrap that post-vacation PA into benefits packages, coffee will have to suffice.

- The latest Apple watches measure your every move, your every breath.

That's the kind of creepy stalking that ends up in lawsuits.

They also remind you to stand up and move.

Apparently there were a lot of people lying around on sidewalks before Apple watches.

- I have a simple proposal to ensure that our legislators and the governor get their work done.

Here's what you do.

We put the key decision-makers in a plastic bubble in the middle of the capitol rotunda and then we turn off the air conditioning.

- For years, I have been thinking about doing an essay about how this time and this place joins us as Minnesotans, regardless of our political inclinations or our philosophical stripe.

Well, this year is the year, and COVID wrecked it.

- Crossing Wisconsin one year, I was heading for the Vernon County Fair in Viroqua.

It was hot.

I scanned the fairgrounds and could not spot the beer garden.

I stopped at a concession stand, asked the person where the beer garden was?

The woman at the counter announced, proudly, we're an alcohol-free fair, in Wisconsin.

(people chuckling) - When Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD, I'm sure the surviving members of Pompeii stopped talking about it after 10 years.

"Hey, do you remember when that volcano erupted?"

"Dibusta, that was 10 years ago.

"Pass the wine."

And that's what I'm going to be doing this Halloween if someone brings up the 1991 blizzard.

- My kids saw the photos from Halloween 1991.

When the Twin Cities got nearly 30 inches, they saw all the fun snowball fights and the giant snowmen, and they want it.

But right now, all they can do is dive in the leaf pile.

(dramatic instrumental music) - Each time the seasons change, Sharon Stiteler pays a visit to our studio.

Known as the Bird Chick, Sharon tells us what's going on in the fascinating world of birdwatching.

You tell us it's one of your favorite "Almanac" segments.

Here's a little bit from our conversation back in September.

- The Bird Chick.

(Sharon chuckling) It says self-proclaimed but I'm not gonna say that.

- I admire you.

Yeah, yeah.

- That's how gutsy I am.

(Sharon chuckling) By day, Sharon works for the National Park Service.

Welcome back from Alaska.

And what's the deal this time of year?

Migration, is that the deal?

- Migration, yeah.

It started in July and we have several months of it.

I know some people are very sad because, oh migration, it's sad.

But it's like we've got plenty of time to see great birds and the birding has been off the charts in the last week.

- When do the migrations start?

I didn't hear the wrens after a certain point.

Are they the first ones to get the heck out of Dodge?

- On no, wrens stay.

So I'm guessing what happened with you was that you had a family group and then the young left and they didn't renest in your yard.

Because once you get the kids out of the nest, you wanna spread them out so they know where to find other foods.

You don't want them hanging out and staying in the same area.

- What is this Merlin app we're gonna show video of?

- This is a fantastic app.

I love the Merlin app because it will identify birds for you by photograph.

But now they've added a new feature where it will identify sounds.

So I took this video this morning in my backyard in Falcon Heights and I don't know if people can hear the birds that are playing, but it is correctly identifying black-capped chickadees, gold finches, cliff swallows that flew overhead.

So you can walk around and it will tell you what birds are singing in your backyard.

(birds chirping) Yeah, that little (Sharon imitating bird) those are young gold finches.

- Okay.

- That is cool.

- It is cool and it's free.

- Oh, it's free?

- Yeah, it's from Cornell Lab of Ornithology and it's my favorite app when someone says, "I'm interested in birds, "what should I get?"

And the Merlin app is fantastic.

- So speaking of gold finches, - Yes.

- Are these, the little brown guys I'm seeing, are those babies?

- [Sharon] Yes.

Yeah.

And so here's some feeding on some native plants over at Reservoir Woods.

But they're coming to your bird feeders right now and they're super noisy.

Gold finches are our latest nester and so the babies are just leaving the nest right now and they're that kind of brownish and they're going.

(Sharon imitating birds) And they'll be over your bird feeders or if you have hyssop or coneflower in your backyard, you're gonna have tons of gold finches.

- Isn't this a little late for babies?

I'm a little worried 'cause they have to start to leave soon, right?

- Gold finches start late.

Some birds go early.

Orioles are at it in May but gold finches wait until July.

They need certain types of nesting materials.

They don't eat insects.

They eat lots of seeds.

It's one of the reasons why cowbirds don't survive in a gold finch nest.

So the babies wanna come out now to learn how to survive when we're at a seed glut.

- And one of the pleas of the birding community is to keep feeding the hummingbirds?

- Well, for people who are new to bird feeding, definitely keep feeding hummingbirds.

But don't worry about taking your feeders in, there's a wives' tale that that says you have to take your feeders in Labor Day.

You can keep them out.

But even better, it's been a fantastic year for cardinal flower.

This is cardinal flower in my backyard and a hummingbird perched on it.

If you're tired of cleaning your hummingbird feeders and you want hummingbirds around, plant some cardinal flower this fall.

You can get them at nurseries right now and if you plant it now, it'll bloom next year and it's great for hummingbirds.

But if you have hummingbird feeders, please don't worry about taking them in this weekend.

Hummingbirds are seen through Minnesota all the way into early October.

It's part of their migration so don't freak out, your feeder is not going to affect their migration.

- Let them tank up.

- Let them tank up.

Especially the young dudes, they're gonna be the ones that procrastinate and leave in early October, so yeah, make sure you keep those carbs out for them.

- Now, you're looking at radar now to track the flight of these-- - Yes.

Yes.

- Feathered friends.

- So this is a screenshot that I took, September 1st, first thing in the morning before sun came up.

So on NEXRAD Radar, birds flying through the sky show up as blue circles, 'cause the radar can tell something's there, it just can't make a shape like a cloud.

So those blue circles are literally millions of birds migrating over.

So if you check NEXRAD Radar at night and it's a clear night and you see those blue circles.

Sometimes you can go outside and you can actually hear the birds making their little chip notes as they go.

(Sharon imitating bird) So yeah, migration's so much fun.

- That is really cool.

So speaking of migration, my friend, Dan Crocker did a really nice story about night hawks in Duluth.

- They're not hawks.

- No, they're not.

They're goat suckers.

(Eric chuckling) - Well, I'm not sure about that.

(Sharon laughing) - That does not sound attractive, my friend.

It does not sound attractive.

- They are.

- Okay, so the story which I did not know, that Duluth, this confluence of night hawks or goat suckers over Duluth is the biggest in the world?

- Yeah.

Yeah, it's huge.

It's not uncommon to get 14,000 passing over around Hawk Ridge in the night.

And this is prime time.

Duluth is the spot to be but you can see this anywhere.

I warn people when we go to patios this time of year in the evening at a restaurant.

It's like, I'm not gonna make eye contact and if I see night hawks flying over, I'm gonna shout it out and tell everybody about it.

But they have a very bouncy wing beat and you can see them usually around dusk.

I've had them almost every night this week in Falcon Heights flying over.

So yeah, watch for those common night hawks.

(twinkling music) - As director for "Almanac", I always enjoy having live music on the show.

This next clip features a delightful performance from Gao Hong, playing a traditional Chinese instrument, the pipa.

(relaxing pipa music) (twinkling music) - As the editor of "Almanac", I get the opportunity to work on a lot of great stories.

And one from this past year was the renovation of Pillsbury Hall on the U of M campus.

It was really fun seeing how they were able to build something new from something old, sort of how we go from one year to the New Year, enjoy.

- [Mary] Pillsbury Hall is important.

It's one of the oldest buildings on the U of M campus, named for Governor Pillsbury of Food Fame who rescued the U in its early years.

The Romanesque solid stone exterior is impressive.

Now, the interior rivals, if not surpasses that.

This is a different way to even come in the building, right?

- [Anika] It is, yeah.

It's shifted closer to the tower to connect more to the main stairs.

- And when you say tower, right away, the first impression is we see stone.

- We do, yes.

This is exposed.

This is original masonry.

- Okay original, wow.

The wows keep coming as Anika Carlsted takes us on a tour.

Okay, you said the magic words.

It's tower.

- Yeah, that's the showstopper for sure.

- I'm dying to see the tower.

I think that's what everybody remembered before.

We said there was almost a castle-like feel to this building.

- Yeah, on the exterior, right, - Yes, but not the interior.

- But not on the inside.

And so now, - Okay, wow.

- It's been opened up so it's from the first floor.

And if you come here and take a look, it goes all the way up to the attic.

(relaxing piano music) - Wow.

Oh, this is exciting.

You'll recall, the attic was an off limits, underutilized storage space in the past.

This is all new physical structure, right?

- [Anika] Correct.

Correct.

So the light gray is the steel structure actually supporting the weight of the stairs.

It's pretty dramatic.

- It really is.

And it only gets more dramatic the higher we climb.

It's very photogenic.

- Yeah.

Yeah, for sure.

Let's keep going up one more floor.

- Keep going, okay.

Great, I love it.

Okay, this is getting good right.

- [Anika] Yeah.

Yeah.

There would've been a ceiling height here.

- Wow.

- So this is an entirely new experience for just anyone visiting the building.

- [Mary] Yeah, this is like fairytale castle moment right here.

Up here is what was likely leftover castoff stone and brick that make an eclectic, incredible mosaic of materials.

- This was all covered in lathe and plaster.

So it was never meant to be exposed.

- So this is the castoff, this beautiful stone.

- Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah, pretty much right.

So they put all of their time and attention and skill on the exterior of the building and this had all been covered, so never intended to be seen.

- [Mary] Now we're almost at the top.

- The big reveal.

- This is exciting, wow.

- A gorgeous classroom and event space.

- And again, using the original architecture, I'm guessing, right, to your advantage now.

- Yeah.

These beautiful beams.

- Right.

Those are load bearing.

- Wow.

The beams are so cool, aren't they?

- [Anika] Yeah.

- [Mary] It almost has like a chalet vibe, doesn't it?

Do people say that when they've been in this?

- [Anika] You know, I don't know.

I don't know, maybe.

- [Mary] People haven't really seen the new structure yet.

Classes just started and the work recently completed.

But with 6,000 students in English classes every year here at the U, each student will come through these halls.

Once you land in the center, I mean, this looks like you're in a church or a cathedral, doesn't it?

There's a healthy tension of old and new throughout, even around offices and classrooms.

This is made possible in part by the state legislature and bonding dollars, right?

- Correct.

Correct.

Yeah, so it was a $36 million project and two thirds of that are state bonding money.

- [Mary] So here it is.

- I'm walking through the hallway so you can really get a sense of this was the original whiff.

- Absolutely, and the mill work is outstanding.

I do think that really stands out here.

- Yeah, it's beautiful.

- I mean, the moldings and the base boards and everything are spectacular.

- If you remember that classroom that we took a look at and it had the tiered seating and the strange door.

It's now a level, beautiful modern classroom.

Another space we have looked at before.

- [Mary] Right, were there dinosaur bones in this hallways, am I remembering that correctly?

- Yes, exactly.

Exactly.

- Okay.

- Now, this is one where we were able to open it up and it is completely open from side to side.

- [Mary] If I remember, this was kind of dark and closed off, was the feel.

And now it's nothing but windows and light.

- [Anika] I know, isn't it lovely?

- Completely different.

- At the end of each area, the windows are exposed and before you couldn't actually see all the way through.

So definitely letting a lot more light in.

- [Mary Ultimately, the Pillsbury Hall project came in on time and on budget, even through a pandemic.

- [Anika] It has a whole new life, really, for another hundred-plus years.

(twinkling music) - We end the hour with a classic "Almanac" interview.

Minnesota had the same legislative auditor for nearly 40 years.

Jim Nobles held that job from 1983 until he retired this past October.

He was on "Almanac" dozens of times over those decades.

He stopped by on his last Friday on the job for a visit.

- How did you keep this office so non-political in an intrinsically political environment?

- Well, that's the mission of the office.

That's the expectation and there's no other way to do it.

And it takes that in mind with every word you write and every word you don't write and the assignments you take on, the ones you don't.

So yes, navigating through that very political environment, it's just part of the job.

And one of the things that helps is that you build relationships with legislators and in the executive branch.

They know you.

They know know, I hope, that you're not there just to throw rocks, but to try to find some improvements that can be made in state agencies.

- Eric had a laundry list of the investigations and audits that you've done.

What do you think are the top two most important that you've completed?

- Well, of course the work we've done at the Department of Human Services.

And it's not just one but many efforts to find where the problems are.

Sometimes even I've said sometimes to offend some people that we found disturbing dysfunction in that department.

And so that would be one of the things.

But there's another one that sometimes, well, you actually mentioned it, but I say it was important to me and I think to others as well, and that was the drug trial at the University of Minnesota.

- A person died out of that.

- A person died.

But I think what was so important about that is that the university just shut down in the aftermath of that, wouldn't answer questions from the media, from even faculty within the university.

And that in and of itself became kind of a scandal that the university was so walled off from any kind of accountability and that's why we went in.

And I feel like just breaking down that wall around the university, making the university president, vice president, the Board of Regents be accountable for not the suicide itself.

We never blamed them for that.

A young man had a really serious psychosis.

But the way they handled it and dealt with his family afterwards was really kind of outrageous, frankly.

- What's the 30,000-foot view of Minnesota state government, bang for the taxpayer buck, waste, fraud, abuse, effectiveness?

We love to be told how great we are.

In this realm, in your realm are we great?

- We aspire to be.

(men chuckling) But I don't think we've achieved that or I would have been out of a job a long time ago.

(James chuckling) So I've often said that even though I think we are a very good state and have a lot of good programs and good state employees, good leadership in this state, being an auditor in Minnesota is still a land of opportunity because there's much work to be done.

- I'm betting that the work can be a little frustrating because you make recommendations time and time and time again.

How often are those recommendations acted upon?

- They are within the executive branch because those are usually the ones tighten up internal controls.

They can do that.

But in some of the work we do, we get into some policy, whether or not a program in policy is working or not.

And so some of the recommendations are difficult for the legislature to implement because there are winners and losers sometimes in the implementation process.

And so sometimes it takes them quite a long time.

I remember there was one report that they had three or four task forces to try to figure out what to do.

Finally, they did some things.

But I respect that.

I respect legislators and the legislature as an institution.

A lot of folks throw rocks and certainly not perfect, but I have really come to respect the fact that they work hard to get elected and then they have to work even harder in office.

And these are not easy times to be an elected official.

- And I wanted to ask you about that, sort of the lack of trust in government and many institutions, political divisiveness.

How does that play into the scene?

- It plays in a lot.

And I've certainly tried to keep it away from the office legislative auditor, but I do have to mend some relationships after a report is issued with some of them.

And so that's, again, part of the job to connect with them.

And sometimes I've been told by a legislator that they just absolutely hated a report, and I understood why, because it stepped on their toes, something that they had accomplished.

- But it's been rare for you to get criticism in public.

I'm sure you get it behind the scenes but people don't really question you that much in public?

- Not in public.

It is rare but it does happen.

I do recall some.

(James chuckling) In my last, in fact, confirmation.

- Maybe in the Human Services stuff, maybe.

- Yes.

Yes.

I think that's become much more sensitive for some legislators because we've done so much there - [Eric] Well, it's a huge department too.

- It's a huge department.

And so I have to be, the legislative auditor has to be reappointed.

I have a six-year term, legislative auditor in law have a six-year term.

I can't be removed except for cause.

And I think the cause is related to if I did something that I also went to jail for.

(people laughing) So I don't think that it was ever set up that the legislative auditors should be fired because of a report that people just disagree with.

But you still have to deliver as an office on the expectation of being non-partisan and delivering reports that are, our mantra is that they have to be accurate, objective, timely and useful.

And given some of the stuff we take on in that office, complex, difficult topics, it's a lot of work.

And that work of course is typically not always done by me.

- [Eric] No, you've got a staff.

Researchers, investigators.

- There's a staff there, yeah.

- Well, Jim Nobles, a grateful state thanks you.

- Yeah, absolutely.

- Well, thank you.

- Job well done.

- And thank you for having me here.

(relaxing instrumental music) - We hope you've enjoyed this special edition of "Almanac" and we'll be back next Friday with a live show with the top news from the week.

- As we say goodnight, let's watch and listen to a musical highlight from this past season.

In August, guitar virtuoso, Pat Donohue, stop by and played a tune for us.

It was terrific.

We're gonna leave you with that as we roll the credits.

Thanks for watching.

We'll see you again next year.

(upbeat guitar music) - [Introducer] "Almanac" is made possible by members of this public television station.

Support is also provided by Great River Energy, providing wholesale power to 28 Minnesota electric cooperatives.

Delta Dental of Minnesota Foundation, improving oral health while advancing social equities.

Deltadentalmn.org/tpt.

The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux community, a tribal nation focused on community and collaboration, especially in times like today.

Enbridge, connecting Minnesotans with energy for over 70 years.

More at enbridge.com/line3us.

And Education Minnesota, the voice for professional educators and students throughout the state.

More at educationminnesota.org.

One Greater Minnesota reporting on "Almanac" is made possible in part by the OTTO Bremer Trust, whose mission is investing in people, places and opportunities in our region.

Additional support is provided by the Blandin Foundation, working to strengthen Rural Minnesota.

"Almanac" is a production of Twin Cities PBS, for the stations of Minnesota Public Television Association.