Curtis Nickel is enjoying a brief trip back to Guthrie County.

By Rich Wicks | Times Vedette

For most anyone who has moved away, coming back home can be a special joy. But, for some, that is a much longer trip than others. Curtis Nickel, a 1983 graduate of Guthrie Center High School, recently came back to visit family, and he took the time to tell the story of where life has taken him.

Nickel is a U.S. Navy veteran who now lives in Thailand.

“I work in the oil and gas industry, driving what they call a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) in the water,” Nickel said. “We do underwater construction, and we do the inspections on drill rigs. We do a lot of pipeline inspections.”

On this homecoming trip, Nickel has been able to visit his parents (Janet Clark and Wayne Nickel) and his sister (Alicia Ciesielski), but he’ll soon be heading back to Thailand. Moving there was not something Nickel had planned.

“I’ve been working in the Gulf of Thailand for the last five years. Prior to that, I was working worldwide,” Nickel said. “As far as how I got to Thailand, I was working in Cypress, and some people from Thailand came and worked on the boat I was on, and they said I should come to Thailand, so I did. That was in 2013.”

When Nickel is working, he is out at sea for weeks at a time, working shifts on a “12 hours on, 12 hours off” rotation. But he says he enjoys the job and has adjusted well to life in Thailand, although there were numerous challenges.

“It’s nice, but I had to get used to driving on the opposite side of the road,” Nickel said. “And the food is different — the spiciness of the food.”

The biggest challenge for Nickel was the language.

“The communication is the hardest part, but most people there speak English to some extent,” Nickel said. “I’m not fluent, but I’ve I studied the alphabet. There are four different consonants and 33 vowels. I can recognize them.”

Nickel also had to adjust to an urban setting, living in a city with a population of 1.2 million.

“Everybody drives a motorbike or a scooter over there,” he said.

Nickel says he has enjoyed the climate in Thailand.

“Thailand is warm year-round. I usually golf about three days a week, even though my score doesn’t reflect that,” Nickel said.

By Rich Wicks | Times Vedette

If you are looking for something fun to do this weekend, you have plenty of options to choose from.

On Friday, Feb. 7, the Guthrie County Arts Council is holding its annual fundraiser, “An Evening Out.” The event kicks off with wine and chocolate at Art on State from 5-6 p.m. Dinner will be served at 6 p.m. at the Guthrie Center Activity Center, catered by Cabbage Rose. Live music by Zachary Freedom will follow from 7-9 p.m. Tickets, which can be purchased at Art on State, are $40 person and are limited to 100.

On Saturday, Feb. 8, you can show off your smarts by participating in a trivia contest hosted by Friends of the MJB Library. Teams of up to eight will compete for a cash prize. Cost is $35 per person, which includes dinner at 6 p.m. and the game at 7 p.m. The event will be held at the Guthrie Activity Center, 209 State St. To sign up, call the MJB Library at 641-747-8110.

The Yale Fire Department’s annual pancake breakfast will be Sunday, Feb. 9 from 7-11:30 a.m. at the Yale Community Building. A freewill donation is welcome but not required. The meal includes pancakes, eggs, sausage, and biscuits and gravy.

Special to the Times Vedette 

The Panora Chamber of Commerce encourages all golfers to save the date of May 4, 2025, for its annual golf tournament at Lake Panorama National Golf Course at 5071 Clover Ridge Road. Additional information coming soon. 

Special to the Times Vedette

As part of his annual visits to counties across the state, Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig will be in Guthrie County today, Friday, Feb. 7.

From approximately 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., he will be touring That Iowa Girl, located at 2425 Willow Ave. in Panora, visiting with ownership and staff about the company, touring the business including their Choose Iowa funded grant project, and discussing their participation in the Choose Iowa marketing and brand program. 

That Iowa Girl is a distributor of local Iowa products across Iowa and four other midwestern states. They offer refrigerated and non-refrigerated delivery to grocery stores, bakeries, restaurants and on-farm stores. They received a Choose Iowa Value-Added grant in 2023.

From the Iowa Department of Natural Resources 

Ice fishing shelters, left unattended, must be removed from state-owned lands and waters, including parking lots and boat ramps, by Feb. 20.

Ice fishing shelter owners who camp in a paid campsite within a state park can remain past the Feb. 20 deadline.

Ice fishing shelter owners are encouraged not to wait until the last minute to get their shelter off the ice. If a shelter falls through the ice, the owner is responsible for getting it out of the lake.