This is from today's blog: I have been given permission by the Minnesota DNR to recover the remaining egg when I feel it is the right time. They feel that anything a week or 10 days beyond the expected hatching date means it is not going to hatch. One piece of information that I did not know before is that even the DNR has to have a permit from the US Fish and Wildlife Service to take a loon egg from the wild! It is serious stuff. And I am glad to see that everyone takes it so seriously. So we have now gotten through all the red tape and legalities and I have permission to take the egg whenever I feel it is appropriate. So here is my question for you.... I have pretty much decided that I want to take it at night to minimize the stress on the loons and to keep from imprinting on them that I am a threat. Also, since the sun does not even set here until 9pm and we have that wonderful twilight until after 10pm, my thinking is that I will take the egg somewhere around 11pm similar to the times when I had to go out and restore the camera. And with the new night vision camera this year, you will be able to observe the whole thing even though it is pitch dark! But my question for you is which do you prefer, Monday or Tuesday night? I want to give people as much notice as possible and also allow people who are traveling over the weekend to be able to see it. Also, I want to do it relatively soon to be able to free the loons from their being tied to the nest. So I lean toward doing it Monday night at 11pm but I am also open to Tuesday night if everyone thinks that is better. Let me know what you think. Someone may even want to start a separate subject with that question so that everyone sees it. By doing it on either one of those nights, we have gone almost 2 weeks beyond the expected hatching date and should have removed any doubt in anyone's mind that the remaining egg MIGHT have hatched if we had just waited another day. Now it is time to learn as much as we can from this year's experience. And to let the loons get on with their lives and to be able to enjoy the rest of the summer in the element that they were created to be in. Not tied to a nest. So let me know what you think. But we WILL do it either Monday night or Tuesday night at 11pm. And let some of your family and friends and others know about it when we set the night to do it. It may be a once in a lifetime thing to watch. At least I HOPE it is once in a lifetime. I don't want to have to do it again in MY lifetime! And I hope future years we are talking about how cute the chicks are and not about when to take the unhatched egg off the nest! After the egg is off the nest, I would expect that the loons would return to the nest but fairly soon leave when there is nothing to keep them there. I will plan on leaving the camera running for at least a few days after we take the egg so that you may be able to catch of glimpse of them now and then. AND that we can learn from their behavior and see exactly how they will deal with the egg being taken. Yet one more opportunity to learn about our amazing loons!

The best thing about Minnesota is the reputed cold winters. It helps keep the riff-raff out! Though the common joke is "2 seasons, winter and road construction" the two best seasons are often overlooked. The beauty of spring and fall can be breathtaking. (Check out Joanmn's pic that was chosen for a billboard. It's in another thread.) Where else would people build an ? Weather is a big topic of conversation because it has an impact on so much of the lifestyle of the state. Not just for recreation but also for agriculture and other occupations. Outdoor or indoor recreation, there's variety. Overall consistently one of the highest rated for public education and after talking to people from different parts of the country, I see that's quite true. Quality of life is subjective, but overall the health of Minnesotans is up there too. The Mayo, mentioned before has treated presidents and worldwide royalty. When people have serious illnesses, the Mayo is the top of the lists for places to go most of the time. The Mall of America is the largest in the US, the Edmonton mall is the largest in the world, both malls built by the same guys. Skiing, golfing, fishing, hunting, crafts, cooking, eating, naps and many other hobbies are among Minnesota favorites. January is the coldest month with an average high of 22° and July is the hottest with an average high of 83°. The highest recorded temperature was 108°F in July of 1936. The lowest recorded temperature was -41°F in January of 1888. Many vehicles around here are equipped with heaters and air conditioners so it's not quite like Little House on the Prairie with the horse and wagon in the blizzard. I haven't even taken out my winter coat yet. I use a quilted flannel shirt. It hasn't gotten cold here yet. It might though. There's lots of webcams to have a look at the metro area, traffic cams, there's even loon cams fish cams and more. Because we have so many lakes and woods and more, we tend to have a few mosquitoes. The major metro areas treat for them so they're not as big a problem as many think. Lakes and air are very clean. Canadians sneak across the border to partake in our reasonable prices. But we're likable and forgiving people - we don't kick them "oot", eh? I think they like the big bobber water tower. Most of our houses don't have wheels on them and most have basements under them. I'll never forget when my Texican cousin first visited, she couldn't get over the basement and spent most of her time down there! Soon you'll receive your Lutefisk lessons and venture out to go to the fishhouse parade in Aitkin or watch the ships come and go in Duluth/Superior. Want to see an open pit iron ore mine? Take a quick video tour. We'll be glad to share some hotdish recipes too. Then it's of to greet Paul, Babe, Herman the German, the big Otter the largest prairie chicken and the big ball of twine. Go watch "Old Gluepot" run the Ken-L-Ration Derby at Canterbuy Downs. Pick a pony there. Entertaining. BTW, Walleye is good, no doubt... but you ain't et fish 'till you et fresh caught Sunfish. Fry them with the skin on - there's a fat under the skin that's indescribably delicious. Ah yes, Minnesota, where the winters are cold and the women are colder, the men are tough enough to fry bacon without a shirt on and all the mosquitoes are bigger than average. Here is a link that might be useful: Lots of links to check out

Unfortunately, our community had a rash of incidents about 4 years ago that may have been linked to open houses. Small items were missing, keys disappeared, or windows/doors were left unlocked and perps returned to steal stuff shortly thereafter. My realtor was really great at telling us to remove ANYTHING small that we did not want viewed or lost. The list included, keys, meds, money/coins, any jewelry, small pictures, collections, items with personal importance. Glassware, silver, even china should be packed away. Remotes, laptops, I-pads, chargers, tools, dvds, etc...all needed to be in locked drawers. Calendars with your schedule on them needed to be hidden. Even items stored under beds and in closets should be in boxes/totes that were taped shut. We even had a few beers in the fridge walk off. We had about a couple dozen showings that I know of. There were faucets left running, windows left open, heaters turned on and left on (in summer). We had kids crawling under beds, playing in closets, jumping on beds. (I began to just go next door and look through the window to see what people were doing while at my house. When I saw 2 girls jumping on my antique bed in the front bedroom of my house while the parents were milling about in the back yard, I walked over and rapped on the window of my bedroom -- boy did those two girls take off like a shot to the backyard!) I was really floored when I saw private items like dresser drawers had been opened and some of the contents moved around (husband is very OCD on his drawer organization and we know they were gone through!). I even had a closet staged with nothing but my business suits hanging in it -- and some of the jackets had the pockets turned out like they had been gone through! I wanted to put a mouse trap in one -- but held off. Visiting realtors were bad enough at keeping track of house hunters when having private showings -- it would have been worse with an open house. We eventually sold to the parents of a woman who stopped by my neighbor's place while I was sitting on the porch with my neighbor. The lady came by to say she didn't have a realtor yet, and her parents had just sold their home across the state and were looking for a home like ours. She asked if I knew the people who lived in the house on the corner (mine). I fessed up right away that I was the owner and she asked to have a quick look -- normally I would have referred her to my realtor, but since she had custom plates on her car, my neighbor and I figured we were fairly safe! (She was the wife of a local doctor we later found out.) The quick tour of the house convinced her it was exactly what her parents wanted -- and 2 days later they traveled the 4 hours to view the house and make an offer! yeah! Maybe if I had an open house she would have stopped by, but she was attracted by the street side for sale sign in a neighborhood she was targeting. I'm certain she would have called the realtor's number had I not been there, but we used the opportunity to sell the house.

I lived in San Diego for a while not far from Miramar Naval Air Station. When Fleet Week rolled around, we would get treated to multiple days of their practice. They are really something. And really loud. When I was a kid, my dad would take us to a local air show every year (he was a recreational pilot), and we were often graced by the presence of either the Blue Angels (Navy) or Thunderbirds (Air Force).