Everyone in that small, Minnesota rural town had a nickname, and I mean everyone, including the high school chemistry teacher, Sammy Stiff Neck, who limped around the classroom on account of his crooked spine and stiff neck; and while Sammy Stiff Neck couldn’t always catch you doing whatever mischief you happened to be up to, he wasn’t afraid to even the scales and keep you on your toes by shooting a large Bunsen burner flame at your head.