Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s office today announced that the seventh annual Minnesota Governor’s Deer Hunting Opener will be held near Thief River Falls on Nov. 6 and 7.

According to a news release from his office, Pawlenty had this to say about the opener: “The opening of deer hunting season is a special time, and I look forward to enjoying Northwestern Minnesota’s great outdoors.Thief River Falls provides an ideal setting for friends and families to come together and celebrate the long-held Minnesota tradition of deer hunting.”

Pawlenty came up with the deer opener as an autumn counterpart to the governor’s fishing opener in the spring. Since the first one, held near Brainerd in 2003, openers have been held in the woods near Grand Rapids, Perham, Rochester, Hibbing and Cambridge.

Pawlenty, who has conceded he isn’t an avid hunter, has been skunked every year but 2004, when he bagged a whitetail buck, according to news reports.

For many (most?) Minnesotans, it only seems like the tug-of-war between Norm Coleman and Al Franken has been going on forever, with no end in sight. For folks who haven’t been keeping track of its twists or turns — or those who want to relive the highlights, the folks at The UpTake video site have boiled the whole mess down into a tidy 16-minute documentary.

It’s worth a look.