So there I was, taking the girls out for their evening trip to the dog park, and as we traversed the very snowy field before the leash-free area, Miss Ellie Mae looked up and barked. There at the other side of the field was a guy out in the snow with one of those great big kites, the kind that people fly from cliffs with in sunny vacation destinations. He seemed to be tying the rope to a light standard. The kite itself, a big orange item was blowing around close to the ground. When we emerged from the park three quarters of an hour later, he seemed to be doing the same thing all over again. I never saw him take flight.

In the summer I saw a fellow out there a few times with a similar outfit except he had a giant fan-like item on his back. It appeared to be a pull-start gas-powered thing. He would get it going, get into position, and then the kite would crash to the ground. I’m sure he managed to fly from time to time. Otherwise, why would he keep trying? I just never saw it happen. I don’t even know if it’s he same guy or if there are two or more people living in Anchovy-ville dreaming about taking flight. I resisted the temptation to go talk to him for a couple reasons. One was that the girls were clearly nervous of the kite (and who can blame them?). The other is that I kind of like preserving the mystery.