Conservatives in the literary world may claim to prefer their plays unadulterated, but without the occasional update to a classic work we would be missing so much. One would shudder to imagine theater without West Side Story, an adaptation of Romeo and Juliet, and we’d all be much poorer off without The Muppet Christmas Carol. Rent, an adaptation of Giacomo Puccini’s La Boheme by Jonathan Larson, is in that same boat, and it’s one of the glowingest examples of how setting a classic in the modern era can so greatly improve upon it. (Let’s keep Madama Butterfly intact forever, though.)
Harmony, MN
The Biggest Little Town in Southern Minnesota!
It’s easy to let the Twin Cities envelope you wholly in their hustle and bustle. I would say we’re right on par with great cities like London, Paris, and Trenton, NJ in terms of just how much culture we’ve got to offer here. Still, once and a while it’s good to get away from this vast web of asphalt and mortar to go somewhere a little more down to earth, where you can enjoy the kind of small Minnesota town charm that Garrison Keillor used to remind us existed weekly. For that you’d best drive southeast to Harmony.
Blu Skye Acres
Carolyn Johnson had always wanted her own little hobby farm to retire on. It was during her bout with breast cancer that she decided such a dream would be better pursued sooner rather than later. After Carolyn had beaten her ordeal she found the perfect little place just 45 minutes outside of the Twin Cities — a farmhouse built in 1900 on the end of its own private drive, as entirely removed from civilization as could be, but still near enough to it.
The State Fair Grandstand
The Minnesota State Fair has got everything: corn, dogs, corn dogs, and giant inflatable swords that hyper-energized nine year olds can wail on each other with. It has especially got music. Here are just some of the big acts coming to the Grandstand this year — to see the complete list and purchase tickets, visit mnstatefair.org/grandstand.
Best Foods of the Minnesota State Fair
All You Can Drink Milk
When I’ve spent a good time baking in the hot midday sun, there is only one beverage capable of restoring my calcium and vitamin D levels back to their status quo: milk, in a quantity definable only by as much of the stuff that I care to have. No other beverage will do. All You Can Drink Milk, whose milk is supreme because it comes from strong and proud local cows, is just what you need in order to fortify yourself before setting out to the 4-H building where you can assess which teenager has bred the handsomest turkey.
Lynde Greenhouse & Nursery
Preparing Your Container Garden:
Everything You Need to Know About Container Design!
At Lynde Greenhouse & Nursery we take pride in creating new container combinations year after year. Over the years we have perfected popular designs that our customers come back for while integrating fresh, new designs into our Lynde Design Program. Each spring our garden center crew works hard handplanting all combination patio pots and hanging baskets that are unique for our customers. We know that container design can be intimidating to a new gardener and new ideas can be hard to come up with, so that’s why we wanted to help make that process a little easier. Here are five steps to creating a successful container garden.