The Great (extended) Minnesota Get-Together

I spent most of the month of September in Minnesota with my family. My first trip at the end of August was planned around the 50th anniversary of the Minnesota State 4-H Ambassador program. Minnesota Extension had organized a reunion for all past and present ambassadors (ambies) during the Minnesota State Fair. I was an ambie in 1996-1997 and my brother was one in 1997-1998 so the whole family decided to make a day of the fair and the reunion. The day of the reunion was the day that 270,425 other humans decided to venture out to the fair, marking a new record in fair attendance. The buildings and streets were full and it was HOT. But the fair is always an experience of food and people watching. Food is a little harder to come by as a gluten- and dairy-free person, though (thank goodness for the horticulture building!). No cookies for me. :( 

Fairchild the gopher, the mascot of the fair

fried pickles for breakfast

the mass of humanity

massive Paul Bunyan made from repurposed materials

Arts-In performance in the 4-H building

Dairy princess getting her likeness carved in butter

Our 4-H reunion was on the second floor of the (non-air conditioned) 4-H building, which brought back a lot of memories. It was great to see so many friends who made the journey. Our time together was short, but our connections are strong. I spent a lot of time with my fellow ambies during a key transitional point in my life. They all shaped me in some way and I'm so grateful that our paths crossed when they did and continue to cross every once in a while. 

Working at the MN State Fair in the summer of 1996.
Yes, the green suits were required for our formal attire.

Yes, I still have my green suit.

Ambies (including my brother) from 1996 to 1999

two of my favorites

siblings!

Five days after heading back to California, I was back in Minnesota to help my mom for a couple weeks while she recovered from hand surgery. Doing things with one hand is difficult! While I was there, I had much more time to hang out with the dogs, search for frogs (they were everywhere!), kayak on the lake, pick veggies from the garden, and listen to my mom tell stories about her family. There were a few medical appointments, but we also got to visit many dear friends. I also took my mom to Newsies at Chanhassen Dinner Theater for her birthday, which was a fun outing. 

Cole-dog trying (?) to catch a fish

grey treefrog

northern leopard frog (green morph)

northern leopard frog (brown morph)

a rare, windless day on the lake (eagle on top of the tallest tree)

my childhood friend Michele made an epic detour to come see us

Smithsonian Magazine sponsored a museum day in September, so my mom got us free tickets to the Runestone Museum in Alexandria. The museum covers a lot of ground, from Minnesota wildlife to Native Americans to town history. The star attraction of the museum is a Viking runestone from 1362. A Swedish farmer found the runestone in 1898 while clearing brush on his land about five miles from my mom's house. When the stone was found, many people thought it was a hoax and that the farmer had carved the Nordic runes himself. The controversy around the stone tore the farmer's family apart and alienated them from their community. The farmer had about six weeks of formal education so it seems highly unlikely that he carved the runes, but the stone has remained controversial for many, many decades. There is still debate today, but advanced techniques in dating suggest that the stone is authentic. Many other Viking artifacts have been found in the region since the runestone was discovered, including axes and fire steel that are commonly found in Scandinavian countries. The Vikings likely made their way to Minnesota by traveling south from Hudson Bay to Lake Winnipeg and down the Red River into Minnesota. The land where the runestone was found has since been turned into a park. We visited the park after the museum to see the where the runestone was unearthed. 

the controversial runestone

Ojibwa jingle dress typically worn at a pow wow

One of the original buildings from Fort Alexandria that was commissioned
in 1862 to provide protection for white settlers during the Dakota uprising.

The temperature was continually dropping during my visit, which made made the trees change color quickly the last few days, but I was happy to return to California before the windchill dropped below freezing.