Behind the Lines: by David Heiller

David Heiller We took a trip to Brownsville to see my mother last weekend. It wasn’t the best weekend to go, what with the Askov Fair and the Festival of the Little People both going on. I don’t think the two events conflicted with each other. There aren’t many little people at the Askov Fair, at least not after they stop at the æ bleskiver stand. Æbleskiver , YUM! George Clegg used to be one of the first customers at the æ bleskiver stand. He said that eating æ bleskiver at the Askov Fair was like eating a hotdog at a ballpark. It just tasted better there. George is back to stay in Askov now. His relatives scattered his ashes on the old family farm three miles northwest of Askov during the fair. Rutabaga Days went fine without me. I felt guilty about missing it. As soon as I would start feeling better, Jay Eull would ask me if I was going to the fair, so I would feel guilty again. He asked me at least twice a day. Jay’s a good guy, really. But life is such that ...

David Heiller Sue greeted us with a box of tomatoes on Saturday night. Sue Hulsether called a dance and left her calling card: a box of tomatoes! She had come to call a dance, and she figured someone might need a few tomatoes. She had more than she could use. A few people took some over the course of the evening, but most of them are sitting on our kitchen counter right now, along with the cucumbers and zucchini that I took to work last week. We have more cukes and zukes than we can use, so I passed a few of them off to my co-workers. Then Robin at work asked if anyone could use some squash. She planted quite a few, and although they aren’t quite ripe, she can already see a surplus, and is planning for their distribution. She has more than she can use. She was following the footstep of Jill, who had given me a feed bag full of sweet corn a week earlier. She couldn’t use it all. All of this made me realize that we have another season in Minnesota going on right now...

David Heiller We had an interesting experience here three months ago. Or should I say Meg had an interesting experience. Meg was a Llasa-poo dog belonging to my sister-in-law, Nancy Olson, of Brooklyn Park, Minnesota. They were a duo for the last 16 years, almost inseparable. When they arrived for our anniversary party in late May, it was obvious that Meg did not have long to live. She had no energy, no spring in her step. In fact she could barely manage a shaky walk, and she weighed no more than six pounds. Nancy and Meg About halfway through Saturday afternoon, in the bustle of the big day, Nancy discovered that Meg was missing. We brushed it off at first. No time to worry about a dog, she’s hiding in the house, we’ll find her later. Nancy looked and looked for Meg, and soon other people did too. They searched the house, because Meg had not gone outside, at least that anyone could recall. No Meg. She wasn’t in the house. Nancy searched outside too. She ventured in...