It seems like there has been an awful lot of buckhorn weeds this year in area lawns. This stuff grows overnight and can transform a well tended lawn into a lawn that looks like it hasn't been mowed all summer.

I mowed my grass this week for the first time in 2 weeks. The rotary mower did quick work of the buckhorn. It reminded me of how hard it was to mow weedy lawns years ago. When I was a kid in the 50's I mowed lawns in Minonk for several people. In those days we used reel mowers that cut the grass with a scissor type action. Unfortunately, it was lousy in cutting weeds or tall grass. Somtimes it would just knock down the weeds rather than cut them.

The worst part about the old reel mowers was that you could get things stuck so easily in the mower blades. A twig from a tree could stop the mower dead in its tracks. You would have to disengage the mower blade and pull the twig from the mower blades.

The worst lawn I had to mow was that of Miss Kathryn Quinn, my sixth grade school teacher who lived on Seventh Street between Locust and Oak. There was an old wooden walk in her backyard that was infested with snakes. Every so often I would run into a snake with the mower causing it to jam. I would have to stop the mower and pull the dead snake out from the mower blades. Being afraid of snakes as I am, I think I would have rather had a root canal.

One of the benefits of not mowing during hot, dry spells is that it gives a chance for the wildflowers to bloom along the roads and ditches. This past couple of weeks the roadsides have been adorned with little blue and white wildflowers.

I think it would be nice if the farmers would keep from mowing the roadsides every year and allow the wildflowers to grow instead. In addition, it would provide a great nesting place for the pheasants. The other day I saw a mother pheasant and four little ones follow her out from the tall grass along the road. The next day the grass was mowed. I wonder where the little pheasants will hide now to keep from being a meal for the coyotes and foxes in the area.

The first 'heard on the street' comment is "Who gave the authority to have the maple tree moved from Sixth Street where the new sewer lines are being laid downtown?" The other part of the question is, "Why was it moved?". Last week the city did move a mature maple tree to Veterans Park. My comment is that you shouldn't move mature trees during the summer. You should wait until they are dormant, else there is a good chance they will die.

The second comment is "Why doesn't the city replace the burned out street lights throughout the city?" Supposedly, there are 7 streets lights that are out in the downtown area alone, most of them along Oak Street.

The third comment I heard was, "Why doesn't the city of Minonk capitalize on its distinction of having the first lighted street in the world, by recreating the street lights along Oak Street from Sixth all the way north to the end of the street?" According to old newspaper articles, a friend of Thomas Edison helped Minor Ames light up Oak Street in the late 1800's with a string of light bulbs along Oak Street to the coal mine.

My comment is that I think it is an interesting suggestion and could help create some tourism for Minonk. Remember, there are an awful lot of people stopping in at the I-39 interchange. Anything we can do to lure curious travelers to downtown Minonk will help our local businesses.