From readers

FIRED UP

Rant: A reader writes: “I was disheartened last week to be driving behind a motorcyclist in downtown Prior Lake near City Hall; the driver was not wearing a helmet and had a cigarette hanging out of his mouth. I found it especially disturbing that the driver was also wearing a Prior Lake Fire Department shirt. I thought this was not a good example to set for our kids, as firefighters are a role model to young children. I feel the no helmet and smoking image of one of our firefighters was sending the wrong message.”

A CARNIE WHO CARES

Rave: A carnival worker gets some love: “This past weekend, I attended the Dakota County Fair with my granddaughter, who is 5.  I would like to give a big rave for the operator of the Tilt O’ Whirl ride. During the ride, the operator saw that my granddaughter was frightened, and stopped the ride to see if she wanted to get off. Being quite brave, she declined. The operator returned to the controls, but gave me a knowing look and quietly promised to keep the ride as slow as he could and as comfortable as possible for her. Thanks to this caring ‘carnie,’ disaster was averted and we all had a fabulous time.”

From staff

JELL-O NO

Rant: I didn’t think you could mess up making Jell-O, but I learned you could when the Reeser’s Jell-O mold I bought at the deli had zero taste. I mean, it’s Jell-O and whipped cream; how can that taste bad? Well, it didn’t taste good, that’s for sure. The texture was rubbery and the favors fell flat, even though it looked pretty in the package. I guess that’s what I get for being too lazy to make my own Jell-O. – Joanna Miller

LET’S BE REAL

Rant: Isn’t there already enough speculation over the “reality” of the Olympic games? The fact that coordinators told a little girl she wasn’t pretty enough to be in the opening ceremony, then used her voice and cast a “prettier” little girl (who they told didn’t sing well enough, I suppose) seems a little ridiculous – almost like bringing people onto your Olympic team and then telling them they need steroids to reach top performance, or lying about their ages so they make the cut. Instead of creating the “perfect” images, why can’t everyone accept reality and that people have unique gifts and talents, as well as weaknesses? Isn’t it more impressive to see real people work hard and succeed than to be handed a fake PR pitch? – Joanna Miller

JOKE’S ON YOU

Rant: There’s no “buyer beware” on this one. A house in our neighborhood, long the “blight” of our block, is up for sale at a ridiculously low price for the area, and people have been coming in droves to check it out. The problem (well, the first one, anyway) is that the people dart back out of the place faster than the Road Runner. Our neighbors have a running joke that the average person spends about 30 to 45 seconds in the house before coming back out, shaking his or her head. The $90,000 price should be the first hint that something might be amiss, but apparently someone forgot to include the portion of the MLS listing that indicates there’s mold growing 2 inches thick on the walls, or the fact that it’s been a “garbage house” for the last 40 or so years (or even that the house needs work). It’s definitely going to take a motivated seller (and a strong stomach) to get this deal closed. – Lori Carlson

I DREAM OF GUINNESS

Rant:  My Dutch ancestry doesn’t keep me from enjoying Irish events such as the Irish Fair at Harriet Island (or St. Patrick’s Day), but there was one thing about the Irish Fair this Dutchman has to rant about. As I searched for an Irish beer tent at the festival, all I could come up with was Finnegan’s Irish Amber. No Guinness (my goodness). No Harp. No Smithwick’s. What? The only beer I could find was Summit and Finnegan’s Irish Amber. Sure, Finnegan’s is a great Irish name, but the beer is brewed in Minnesota. Finnegan’s is actually really good, the company gives profits back to local charities and it’s made with a dash of potatoes, but it isn’t Irish. That’s not to say the fair isn’t a great time. It was a lot of fun, especially being that it is free, but maybe next year they could serve some Irish beer (or Irish whiskey for that matter). The Irish music was great. The sheep-herding dogs were fun. And the boxing exhibition was interesting, to say the least. There was no shortage of fish and chips, kilts and Irish accents, so next year, how about adding some Irish bevies? – Shawn Hogendorf

 NOT A FAN

Rave: I can’t express how happy I am that Brett Favre is going to be the quarterback for the Jets and not the Vikings. As I have ranted about before, the last thing I wanted to cheer for was Favre in purple and gold. Better yet, if Favre still has any magic left in him, it will all happen in the AFC, on a team that I don’t think can make the playoffs. Ba-bye, Favre. Have fun with those New York fans. Maybe now our local media will stop plastering Favre’s photo and story on the front page of the sports section every day. – Shawn Hogendorf 

Do you have a rant or a rave? Send us your musings:

E-mail: rantsandraves@swpub.com

Address: Prior Lake American, Attn: Rants and Raves, P.O. Box 538, Prior Lake, MN, 55372

Guidelines: Reader rants and raves must be no more than 100 words. The deadline is noon each Wednesday.

Rants and raves that are potentially libelous will not be printed or will be edited.

Submissions will not be refused because staff disagrees with their content. Anonymous submissions are acceptable; however, including a contact name and/or phone number is helpful for staff, who may have questions about the submission.

Rants and raves may be edited as space requires. All publication decisions will be made by the editor.