Opinion

In a field of wildflowers, amidst a pleasant breeze, ROB PEREZ finds PERSEPHONE, Queen of the Underworld, seated beneath a blooming crabapple tree, sipping pomegranate juice.

As Steve Martin famously said, “Some people have a way with words. Others… no have way.” I fancy myself in the first camp. I’m kind of a word guy. I love the way words look. I love the way words sound. I love the way words land. I love when you put words together and the combination is like a perfect martini. It elevates, invigorates, and you shouldn’t need that many to get where you’re going.

With finally sunny warm days, we’re starting to see the leaves appear on the trees, flowers beginning to bloom, and the sound of lawn mowers breaking up the regular routine of sounds in the neighborhood. While I do enjoy the winters, I’m so glad to see more signs of summer.

And another beautiful week is ahead. If only we can keep that dreadful wind machine turned off. I attended a double header baseball game on Friday evening, and the wind made it miserable. I thought I had enough layers on to keep me warm. Wrong again. 3 layers including a winter jacket plus a blanket was not enough. So. Reconfigure the blanket. Fold it differently. Drape it another way. Warm up one part of the body and chill out another. And no hot coffee at the concession stand.

Another wonderful week in beautiful rural Minnesota. I have only received drizzles of rain, but every drop is precious. My rain gauge hasn’t had enough moisture in it to read. It will come. The farmers are busy digging and planting and waiting for fertilizer spreaders. Of course, the entire county seems to be ready for fertilizer at the same time. Who has the fastest phone line? I know patience wears thin, but everybody will get their share in due time, I guess.

Over the last week, our teams have been working on the new layout for the newspapers that will roll out soon. Recently, CherryRoad Media hosted a couple of community meetings to show samples of the new layout. If you were unable to attend one of those meetings, I’ll explain a little more about what you can expect to see here.

My daughter rummages around in the toy closet a lot. She inspects. She considers. She uses a broomstick to loose toys higher up so they fall to her. She studies those. Then, for reasons unknown, she settles on one. Today, again, she chose a kite.

We’ve been teasing, a bit, in the newspaper about some upcoming new things. One of those things is both exciting for local businesses and exciting for subscribers. A new program, coming soon, called “Community Insider” offers our subscribers access to perks and rewards that make your subscription to the newspaper even more valuable.