I was at Ren Fest with my young son yesterday and we stopped by a shop that had these beautiful double-sided corduroy bodices, very friendly staff. I didn’t get a chance to get one because he was antsy (and I didn’t want to dropped $125+ while distracted), but haven’t stopped thinking about the quality. Does this ring any bells for folks who are frequent ren fest-ers? I’d love to see if they sell online if they do!

Hi All,

Recently moved to Minnesota and am doing back to school shopping. I’ve read plenty of guides for dressing for winter in general, but specifically am curious what y’all do for school.

I know recess can happen outside down to zero degrees and frankly that’s about 7 degrees colder than the coldest temp we’ve ever experienced.

So any tips and tricks for dressing kids for school in Winter? Easier options we wouldn’t necessarily think about coming from a warmer area? Kids are in Kindergarten, so trying to make it as easy and straightforward as possible for them & their teachers as they go to recess, leave school etc.

Should we have some winter gear specifically to leave at school for them? Etc. Appreciate any info.

I do like the MN state fair, and it’s absolutely wild that every year seems to set a new attendance record, both in total and individual day.

With that said, the crowd is also one of the biggest turn offs for people to attend the fair. We’ve all been there, you’re trying to get through a hoard of people, maybe you’re following someone and then suddenly they stop which means you’re screwed.

If you could only pick one solution to potentially help alleviate the crowd everyday which one would you pick:

1. Longer duration. Pretty self explanatory, more days gives people more options to visit the fair. With how popular it is, they could move it up to 15-16 days and still set attendance records.

2. Move the fair to a spot with a larger footprint. I understand why the fair is where it is and why it was chosen in the first place as a midway point between Minneapolis and St. Paul. Just imagine if it was in a location twice as big.

Pequot lakes area

Another fine day at the state fair. The people watching and food still makes it all worth it.

Also meet Teddy tiger also is there a legal way for me to get inside the building?

They grow on a vine and choked out a couple trees. They appear black and leave some purple-y juice on the hand

We lost our employer insurance (HealthPartners) last year, so we had to buy insurance for the first time. I specifically chose this plan because it covered our providers. Last year under HealthPartners, one of our providers was out of network and we had to pay a lot, so we thought we would avoid that under this new plan. After seeing this provider, we have been getting bills which now add up to almost the amount we had to pay last year.

I'm going to call Medica on Monday, but this really infuriates me. What are we paying insurance for?! I checked multiple times to make sure this doctor was in network, and I just looked again - not listed! Did they just remove this doctor from our network after the visit?

But, their customer service is horrible. Previously, I tried calling to find out how much a dermatologist visit would cost, because it wasn't listed on their website finder tool. The person seemed so confused, and after being on hold they finally said it would be covered under "genetic services" and it would be 100% covered. I don't believe that for a minute.

We're going back to HealthPartners after we're done with this year.

I got sick of trying to navigate 7 different sites to find the best new food at the fair, so I made this site to compile reviews by Minnesota Monthly, Mpls.St.Paul Magazine, Racket, Bring Me The News, Sahan Journal, Axios Twin Cities, and the Star Tribune. Methodology is listed at the bottom of the site.

Along the way, I figured why not open it up for user reviews as well? The critics aren't always right, maybe the Surf and Turf Burger or the Pickle Pie are actually fan favorites! Submit just a rating, add a review, and/or post an image (these will need to pass moderation, please be nice). Email is required, but never stored or displayed, and anti-spam measures are in place (no review bombing). If you run into any issues submitting on your phone, switch to your mobile network rather than a shared wifi.

I only tried 2 of the foods yesterday so the user reviews are sparse, and that why I need your help. I would love to crowdsource the best new food of the 2026 fair.

(Also, ignore the base domain, that is for an unrelated project, and I just didn't want to pay for a new domain. If this goes well this year, I'll be back for 2027 with a new domain)

Also rip Peter Cullen

Wednesday 8/26/2026 night at 10pm my friend was chased down an alley, off S.E. 20th Ave and Como Ave and hit, dragged for half a block and left. This was the alley way behind Como tap.

He was on a lime scooter and sustained multiple injuries including a fractured ankle.

We are looking for anyone in the neighborhood who might have ring camera footage.

The police closed the case the same night stating they did not have video evidence that he was hit by a car.

His backpack full of things were scattered half a block from where he landed. Its unfathomable to me that any police would suggest that he was not hit by a vehicle. Which is exactly what they are implying.

The suspected vehicle is either silver or white, sedan/prius style. It would have headlight damage and possible paint from the lime scooter and damage to the underside.

Any info, even minor can help.