Katie Marshall, Executive Director of the MacRostie Art Center in Grand Rapids told us all about the arts happenings in the Grand Rapids area on the morning show today. Vibrant art, cupcakes, fudge, photography by our own Torndado Bob, free kids movies, a student art show and jazz and blues music at the VFW are just a few of the highlights of tonight's First Friday events in Grand Rapids . The MacRostie will feature artists John Kolb and Jeffrey Hansen who are showing large scale, vibrant works

Molly Olson from the Ely Folk School told us about some fantastic opportunities happening this month at the school and she also told us about the Winter Festival that runs from now thru February 11th in Ely. Slovenian Ravioli, egg writing, rug knotting, beginner carpentry and even a class on tracking animals in the snow are just a few of the options the Ely Folk School has put together this month. Check out their website for a full calendar. Click on the link to hear Molly's full report!

Brainerd and Bemidji, MN both have some great opportunities in February for people to experience art, meet other creative folks and express themselves. Area Voices producer Katie Carter broke it down for us on the morning show. She told us about the February shows at the Crossing Arts Alliance in Brainerd, what's happening at the Watermark Art Center , then she tipped us off to some of the exhibits on the First Friday Art Walk in Bemidji. Click on the link for the full report!

Northern Minnesotans know how to have a good time in the cold. For 36 years, one group of Bemidji area skiers have pulled off a unique celebration of both the extreme northern climate and extreme athleticism. Since its inception, the MN Finlandia Cross Country Ski Marathon has challenged thousands of cross country skiers to 25K , 50K , and (back in the day) 100K races through the northwoods of Minnesota. This year, the races take place February 17th at the Buena Vista Ski Area north of Bemidji.

Every Tuesday we hear from students and listeners across Minnesota as they send in their weekly Phenology observations. Even though it's been cold, our student reports are full of action! Observations include an owl killing a chicken, a mouse invasion, beetles crawling around cars and lots of bird sightings! If you are a teacher wanting to get involved in our Phenology program, send John Latimer an email and he'll get you set in the right direction. We love hearing from students and knowing they

KAXE-KBXE volunteer David Harrington spoke with retired conservation officer Jeff Birchem and his 13 year old daughter Johanna during the Beltrami Island Christmas Bird Count in December. They discussed the importance of using copper bullets rather than lead bullets while hunting. Johanna hunts with copper bullets and nabbed two bucks this fall using them. Take a listen to the segment to learn more about why copper is the healthier choice while hunting. Thanks to Johanna and Jeff for taking the

Dr. Jess Hartshorn joined us this morning... she was in to answer a question that came up in our FB Season Watch page about whether cold temperatures could kill off invasive species like Emerald Ash Borer and the Gypsy Moth.

When Minnesota Poet Laureate Joyce Sutphen sees her child, she sees a lot more. Here she is reading her poem "Defying Gravity".

Tammy Bobrowsky produces What We're Reading on Northern Community Radio - an avid reader and librarian, she culls our community to inspire us all to read more. Reader Lily Winter gives us her thoughts on the loss of Ursula LeGuin this week. Also today, Tammy and Heidi talked about the 1st Annual KAXE/KBXE book awards where you get the chance to tell us about your favorite settings/characters and book choice of the year. What's cool about it is the book didn't HAVE to be published in this year.

New York Times Sportswriter Karen Crouse joined us on the Friday Morning Show for a Realgoodwords interview to talk about how 1 tiny town in Vermont has had 11 Olympic athletes but more importantly how they've done it with happiness and without TOO much attention to winning.