July 2016 Posts

Where is the Leadership?

I will remind Mayor Larson that alligator attacks have been recorded in Duluth since at least 2011 as documented here. Just because she claims she didn’t see one on the beach yesterday doesn’t mean they aren’t out there ATTACKING INNOCENT CONSTITUENTS. It goes without saying that it will be hard to get re-elected if you are eaten by an alligator.

Wrestling with a $90 turkey

12243176_10153326734618562_1760330127768819617_nNinety dollars for a pastured turkey. Are you kidding me??? When I agreed to take the extra bird off the farmer’s hands, I assumed it might cost about half that. At the time I was working minimum wage as a part-time farmhand. I traded nearly two days of work for this bird, and probably half that in bike time just to get to and from the Food Farm. Take a peek at Ed’s Big Adventure to find out if the final product was worth all the blood, sweat, and tears. You just might wind up planning your Thanksgiving celebration today.

Boat – People

I found this poem on my desk — you step away for a week, and everything you see when you come back is bright and new. These are just the last stanzas, because I want to honor copyright and because they move me:

Amy Lynn Clark Boat - People

Where (and What) in Duluth?

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I have walked by this marker for years and the other day stopped to take a closer look, and a photo. Anyone know what it says and why it is here?

With a half hour spent on search engines I found this explanation.

Still doesn’t explain why the marker was placed there originally.

“Alluvial”

My contribution to the collaborative “Alluvial” photo project. Brainchild of Duluth artist Tina Fox, two local photographers (Leah Beltz and myself) took photos of her in different natural settings in different seasons. “Nature is my church.”

Duluth Mayor Larson MIA on Alligator Attacks

vlcsnap-2016-07-04-17h26m08s625A plea for action. After all that Mayor Ness did to keep Lake Superior shark-free, now is the time for the Larson administration to finally step up and tackle the growing alligator problem. We demand RESULTS.

Three Beach Flips

Duluth Waterfront by Knute Heldner

Duluth Waterfront - Knute Heldner

Knute HeldnerImpressionist painter Knute Heldner lived in Duluth for a good part of his career. The book Minnesota Prints and Printmakers, 1900-1945 dates his etching of Duluth’s Waterfront as “circa 1925.”

He was born in Sweden; differing accounts online put his birth year as 1875, 1877 and 1886. According to Hiro Fine Art he emigrated to Duluth in 1902 and “began working as a cobbler, miner, and lumberjack.” (Askart.com indicates he was a “lumber camp cook” and also notes he arrived in the United States “first in Boston” and later moved “to the Great Lakes region.”)

Sunshine Rock

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One of the more recognizable hunks of mineral matter in the Duluth area is Sunshine Rock. It’s located in Hermantown on Stebner Road between Morris Thomas and Hermantown roads.

There are two things about this rock I’m curious to know:

1) How long has “Sunshine 1ML” been painted on it? I’m certain that particular graffiti goes back at least 25 years.

2) What does “Sunshine 1ML” refer to? The rock happens to be sitting one mile outside of Duluth city limits, so maybe that has something to do with it, but it sits on the south side of Stebner facing northbound traffic, so it’s only noticed by cars heading out of Duluth. Is the insinuation that the sun only shines one mile outside Duluth?

This Week: the Fourth, fairs, farmers and more

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Here’s a bit of what you’ll find in this week’s PDD Calendar:

It’s Independence Day, so that means there’s plenty to do, out there: the Mighty Thomas Carnival is offering midway thrills in the DECC parking lot, the Great American Picnic is taking place at Fitger’s, the Duluth Huskies baseball team is battling Willmar at Wade Stadium and the 2016 Fourth Fest offers up a full slate of music and tops it off with the region’s signature fireworks display.

Non-Fourth fun: the 2016 South St. Louis Country Fair, the Duluth Farmer’s Market, a marble-making class at Lake Superior Art Glass, Duluth MakerSpace’s Intro to Hand Plane class, the 2016 Spooner Rodeo, 21 poets reading 21-second-long poems at Duluth Art Institute, the Madeline Island Summer Film Series takes place all weekend, Glitteratti releases a CD, it’s plane-mania at the Duluth Airshow 2016, Trampled by Turtles play another big fat gig at Bayfront Park and it’s Mad Science at the Duluth Playhouse.

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Thu 21

Give to the Max Day

Thu, Nov 21
Thu 21

Seniors Get Savvy

Thu, Nov 21, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Thu 21

MNsure Application Assistance

Thu, Nov 21, 12:00 pm to 6:00 pm
Thu 21

Honduras and the Roots of Migration

Thu, Nov 21, 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm
Thu 21

Kraig James – “Ode to Joan”

Kraig James & the Campfire Stars are releasing a new song each month in 2016 for a project called Campfire Americana: Volume 1. “Ode to Joan” is an original song; the video includes photos and statistics from the Alzheimer’s Association to raise awareness about Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.

PDD Quiz: June 2016

juicepharmgiselleJune happened. Now, what do you remember? Take the quiz and find out.

Where in Duluth?

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Moose Lake brewery opening soon

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According to the Brewers Association, Minnesota had 105 craft breweries in 2015. This number continues to rise, but the majority of breweries are still heavily concentrated in bigger cities, and particularly around the Twin Cities. But the founders of Moose Lake Brewing Company are bucking this trend; they believe every small town deserves its own brewery.

The opening of Moose Lake Brewing at 244 Lakeshore Drive in Moose Lake is planned for the end of July. Moose Lake has a population of 2,787. It supports a handful of restaurants and a municipal liquor store/bar.

Graduation Day

Arne Vainio - Saturday EssayWe were at the graduation ceremony for the Harbor City International School in Duluth, and the commencement address was by Gaelynn Lea Tressler. She is the winner of the 2016 National Public Radio Tiny Desk Concert series and she knows about and exemplifies overcoming hardships and truly appreciating the things we take for granted. She is beautiful and eloquent and she speaks from a position only she can speak from. She sings and she plays her violin from somewhere deep in her soul.

She talked to the graduating high school seniors and she talked to our son and she reminded them to always enrich their own lives and to enrich the lives of others. She talked to them of pursuing their dreams and never giving up. She played her violin and she sang to them and the crowd was speechless and the auditorium was silent as her last notes were fading. Below is an excerpt from her NPR Tiny Desk concert performance. Please don’t pass it up; it’s five minutes and six seconds you will never regret. You have time to watch this: