June 15, 2015
Who Turned Off the Wind?

You might think that we live in the windiest spot on earth, or perhaps just in these parts at least.  Well, generally that's so but, as Murphy's Law dictates, when there's a chance that something can go wrong, well, it's going to go there.  When the folks just to our south launched the wind surfing regatta 16 years ago in Worthington, it was done with much thoughtful contemplation.  After all, the wind practically howls around here on a daily basis and you've got a good sized lake, spectators and visitors flocking from around the nation to descend upon every year at this time to harness the wind and sail upon the water.

What's not to love?  Well, what's NOT to love was that the wind machine oddly shut itself off for the span of two days, idling the colorful sailboards to a crawl, gasping to catch a breath of elusive wind.  You can imagine that there wasn't a lot of knuckle biting, knee clicking, hair raising competition there this past weekend.  But as with most things in life, you make do and there was, it sounds, like an abundance of great music and food to boot.  And fear not, the winds were back on track today just in time for the visitors' departure.  Nonetheless it was too late for the festivities.  To my recollection this is only the second or third time in the history of the regatta that the wind has skunked them all.

Even though we face a daily incessant assault of winds, it's comforting to know that, though it seems like there is probably no windier spot on earth,  Minneapolis is only ranked 9th as the windiest major city.  With an average of 10.5 miles per hour, it ranks below Boston, which holds the coveted title of advanced wind machine with average blows of 12.3 miles per hour.  So much for bragging rights, which Minnesotans love to hold.  But hey, we can still boast of the coldest spot in the winter (where typically temperatures drop below zero 23 times a year, number one in the nation - Minneapolis again).

Wind has its bright spots:  it powers daily the massive wind machines that dot the landscape far and wide, producing megawatts of electricity in a silent manner.  It does a great job of drying the laundry when its hung out of doors.  And, depending on the direction you're headed, it can boost gas mileage by leaps and bounds.

But here in the land of the windy hairdo, we just learn to live with this phenomenon every day.  After all, like they keep saying, there's nothing we can do about it.  Except take up a sail board on those airy days, or grab a paddle boat when the winds remain still.  

Another thing they say:  when life gives you lemons, just make some lemonade.  Sounds like a great idea.  Or sun tea.  I hear that we've got some of the hottest weather around come July....those scorcher days will be good for something at least (besides growing mammoth corn plants, which by the way, is well over knee high and it's not even close to the fourth of July yet!)