Itís funny how one simple thing can be viewed in different ways.
A couple things illustrated that for me last week, one political and the other a force of Mother Nature.
The political one was the Campaign Finance and Public Disclosures Board ruling on complaints filed against state representative Greg Davids. Davids came into The Argus on Thursday very upbeat and pleased with the results. He also had a few choice words for the people who filed the complaint.
Then came a press release from his political opponent, Ken Tschumper, who was equally upbeat and pleased with the results, and with a few choice words of his own for Davids.
It was the same document to which they referred, the same findings and rulings spelled out in minute detail by the good folks at the campaign finance board, 19 pages worth to be exact. But two totally different conclusions
My head was spinning from their spin.
So who was right? I will leave that stick of dynamite burning, for the time being at least. Judge for yourself and read the report at www.cfboard.state.mn.us/bdinfo/investigation/060815_davids.pdf. It will cure a restless night.
I tried my best to sum it up in an article on page one of this weekís paper, but that will probably be received the same way as the original report.
The other simple thing last week that could be seen in a multitude of lights was the rain that fell on Thursday and Friday. That happened to be the start of the Houston County Fair.
I spent a goodly amount of time at the fairgrounds on those two days, camera in hand and raincoat on body. It was fun in a perverse sort of way, taking pictures, trying to keep my camera dry, ducking into buildings filled with pigs and cows, and slowly getting drenched.
But my sogginess was nothing compared to the people who had to be out in that rain. The kids at the horse arena were literally soaked to the skin. Their shirts stuck to them like wet Kleenex. They were not happy, their horses were not happy. Their view of the rain could probably be expressed in a few choice words that arenít quite as judicious as those of a politician.
But then there was that other point of view. I saw it in parents like Kenny Schaller, who stood like a quarry outside the riding ring with his three daughters and their horses. He had his poncho on, and was taking it all in stride in typical Schaller fashion. There was even a hint of grim satisfaction on his face. Perhaps a slight smile? No, thatís stretching it. But this is the fair after all, he seemed to say. It always rains at the fair.
Chuck Schulte even put it into words. I saw him that afternoon, in the soggy entertainment tent. Chuck was there to receive a well-deserved Friends of the Fair Award for his help over the years loaning green-colored farm equipment to the fair board as needed, which is quite often if you know much about fairs.
The first thing Chuck said to me was about the rain. Wasnít that a good rain? Iíd say we got a good half inch. Nice and steady too. It all soaked in. In other words, no grousing, no hemming and hawing. Cut to the chase, as farmers and farm kids like to do. Donít complain, we need the rain.
Iíll second that perspective. In the big picture, the rain at the fair was a good thing. Iíll wager that it even builds some bragging rights on those young cowboys at the horse arena.

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Caledonia Argus
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