Dairy princess

Everything about this story, regarding the butter-carved busts of decades of Dairy Princesses at the Minnesota State Fair, delights me more than I can begin to tell you.

So let me call out just one part.

“I think any time you can see a butter princess sculpted out of butter is a good day,” said Karal Ann Marling, the author of “Blue Ribbon: A Social and Pictorial History of the Minnesota State Fair.”

Ms. Marling said she had always been mesmerized by the skill required to turn a block of butter into a realistic bust in front of a crowd of curious onlookers.

“The hard part of it for me is you won’t be able to eat any of the tailings that come off when you’re sculpting,” Ms. Marling said. “That was always my favorite part.”

How can you not want to read more?

Better yet -- this year, you can watch from home! I plan to.