Marilyn Hagerty: What is good about January?

What, we sometimes wonder, is good about January?

Shoveling snow, slipping on the ice, freezing fingers, weight loss diets, big heating bills,

And life goes on.

Monday is a holiday — Martin Luther King Day. School’s out for the day in Grand Forks.

There are many days of wonder. Wonder if coronavirus will ever go away? Will the UND basketball and hockey teams be able to finish out their schedule with all the coronavirus cancellations?

The North Dakota Museum of Art on the UND campus is holding steady and hoping for reopening of its café by the end of January. And a visit to the museum is a pleasant experience in mid winter. After all, not everyone goes south. And there are winter visitors.

Kristen Whitney has taken on the role of executive chef. She calls herself “a good old New England gal.”

She loves serving local foods in season — root vegetables like buttered squash and potatoes.

Chef Whitney has the call out for a server. She needs a helper in order to open up her dining room. The dining room plans are for hours of 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. The museum is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on week days and from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends.

And there is parking available near the Museum.

All in all, the days of January and February can be filled with wonder. We wonder sometimes why we live here. We wonder how many books we can read. We wonder what we should plant in our gardens. How many trucks travel down the Interstate 29? Are the Canadians coming back?

We wonder when we can expect to see peonies in bloom. We wonder about bicycle riders in January.

Has anyone around here been reaching down below the ice for fish in the Red River?

Cheerful people of the week: Bonnie Goodman and Jake Sanderson.