FORE! Area golf courses hit hard by the Souris River flood of 2011 are coming back to life, so to speak. The Minot Country Club and the Souris Valley Golf Course have both turned shades of green recently, after being re-seeded. It's good to see, for sure. Both courses were inundated with water last summer, with predictably devastating results. Buildings were ruined and greens, fairways and sprinkler systems were flooded. Both courses have plans to be back in operation next spring, if everything continues to according to plan in the recovery efforts. A smaller, shorter course was playable this summer at Souris Valley, but it will be great for area golf enthusiasts for both courses to be re-opened next spring.
BOOM CONTINUES North Dakota set yet another record in July, according to the Department of Mineral Resources. The office said North Dakota oil workers produced a record 20.8 million barrels of crude in July, up more than 7.5 million barrels over July 2011. There were also 7,467 producing wells in July, an increase over the 7,352 wells in June. None of the news is a surprise, of course, as the state continues to set records nearly every month in nearly every category relating to oil production. It's not a surprise, but it's welcome news nonetheless.
REFILL, PLEASE Well, cross New York City off our list of places to visit. The Big Apple's ban on supersized, sugary sodas was approved last week and will take effect in March. When that happens, residents and visitors will be limited to buying sugary beverages in cups or bottles no larger than 16 ounces. We know it's an effort to battle the rising levels of diabetes among the city's population, but the decision will be watched closely to see if has any actual effect on those levels. We have our doubts. Now if you'll excuse us, our Big Gulp is getting empty and we need a refill.