The great Minnesota get-together

It's the end of August and start of September, which means a time of transition for Minnesotans. The Minnesota State Fair is the final 12-day fling before we all say goodbye to summer and welcome the new school year. Of course, now that I'm done with school I enjoy Labor Day much more than I used to, because it's a day off.

The state fair has always been a tradition for me and my family. I have not missed a year of it, a fact that I'm now quite proud of. It used to always be one day-long trip on a weekend with the four of us. As I got older, I would go twice, usually with a friend or friends the second time.

Hands down the best part of the state fair is the food. Cheese curds, Sweet Martha's chocolate chip cookies and mini donuts were always the three items we just had to have each year. I'd say that's certainly still true. I do eat other things, too, like pronto pups, deep-dried candy bars or Oreos, malts, chocolate-covered key lime pie bars, pizza (of course) and other items I'm sure I'm forgetting about.

It's also fun to people watch at the fair. I even made up my own game where I keep a running tally of the number of Vikings jerseys I see while wondering the grounds. This past Sunday it was 28.

There's plenty to see and do at the fair as well. If you haven't been, give it a try. Maybe you could make it your tradition, too.