We are t-minus two days from my departure for the lakes and counting down.

For those not in the know, I’m heading up to the Boundary Waters on Thursday. It’s the first of what I hope will someday be many trips to the allegedly wonderful area in Minnesota’s North Woods. In fact, if the scenery is as beautiful as I’ve been told, I may just set up my tent and stay there for good – coming back to the Twin Cities in August for my wedding, of course.

After living in Minnesota for almost three years, I’m finally getting around to some of the things on my “Becoming a Minnesotan” to do list. I’ve already checked off a visit to the Spam Museum, so now I’m making an effort to understand baseball and pretty much crossing off or trying to understand everything on this list: http://www.commonplacebook.com/jokes/you_know_youre_a/you_might_be_a_2.s....

But this summer I’ll be doing something that I’ve wanted to do since I was in high school, and something that is distinctly Minnesotan.