July 2020 Posts

Nautical Milestone for the Duluth Autonomous Navy

Announcing the formation of the Duluth Autonomous Navy, with co-Admirals Jim Richardson and performance artist Troy Rogers aka Robot Rickshaw. We want you. Every time you touch water, it becomes a naval engagement…

I would like to use my newfound powers of the co-admiralty to declare Troy a menace for his recent naval actions (see below), and I hereby issue a call to the new city attorney, who is a personal friend of mine, to charge him with sedition and place him under arrest before he causes an international incident. And then where will you be? I’ll tell you where: you’ll be in a room with the mayor and she’ll be saying, “Will you please just start listening to Jim Richardson, he’s Secretary of the Navy around here and in fact I’m giving him your office.” It’s a funny story, involving as it happens, my secret contact on the police force – another personal friend of mine – and what kind of superhero would I be if I wasn’t cultivating levers of law enforcement power from within the machine, a lot like Batman? I am all up in the Deep State of this chooch town.

Like I was saying, the public might recall the former autonomous-watercraft hijinks of this madman Troy and myself, from our iceberg ride, to going solo with my Flamingo Patrols. Then we were going to have a team-up for the Floaty Flotilla, the weather-sensitive non-event recently canceled at the last minute due to winds above 10mph, albeit blowing toward the Lakewalk – you’d be unlikely to blow out to sea, is the best I can say there. I’d had an irrational hope that the winds would dip below 10mph and perhaps be manageable. But there were whitecaps, and a small craft advisory and everything, so: no way. I found out later someone put in on some kinda floaty, and paddled it a short ways using shovels; I feel horrible and I shouldn’t be surprised these brave citizens didn’t get the message about the last-minute cancellation. So right there I’m like: I gotta quit doing this stuff.

Selective Focus: Teri Glembin

Artist Teri Glembin recently made the most of pandemic social distancing, her Scandinavian heritage, and the gift of some new art supplies to tackle a daily drawing project. This week she shows off that extended project along with some of her other work.

TG: As a graphic designer, I’m usually glued to my laptop… so it’s funny that my inspiration BLOOMED on the end of my couch with Sharpies and wood.

I’ve always loved flowers and patterns and when my friend, Kate Kebbekus, came back from a Zentangle® workshop a few years ago, I began to explore the line flow and techniques she taught me. This led to my “couch crafting” obsession. In the evenings, I’d curl up with my border collie, Lussi, and work on my “Teri-tangles”. Using various mediums to illustrate flowers, tangles, and mandala patterns, I started with black ink on paper and later transitioned to Sharpies on canvas. Wood burning with those same flower and design styles became my next obsession last summer. I currently make earrings, shelf and wall artwork, and ornaments that are wood burned and often embellished with oil or watercolor paint markers.

Postcard from Duluth’s “Business Section”

This undated postcard was never mailed, but at some point a message was scrawled on the back:

This is the main street in the business section of Duluth. It runs in the low part of the city and follows more or less regularly the shore of the lake.

Mary Bue – “Shit Storm”

Former and perhaps future Duluthian Mary Bue has a new 14-track album set for release on Aug. 21. The video for the opening track, “Shit Storm,” was directed by Jeremy Ylvisaker.

Duluth Cross City Trail 2020 Update: Segment 2 nearly complete

The River Route segment of Duluth’s Cross City Trail has been under construction this summer in West Duluth. It should be paved and ready for bicyclists in a matter of weeks.

Duluth 2020 Primary Election Sample Ballot

Depending on where you live, your ballot might look slightly different than the sample shown here. All Minnesota ballots, however, have a slate of partisan races that are divided on the front and back, and it’s potentially confusing.

PDD Video Lab & UMD Viz Lab: Hartley Park Hike 360 Reframe

In this edition of the PDD Video Lab we’ve stolen footage from the UMD Viz Lab and added music. The video features hikers in Duluth’s Hartley Park, shot in a 360-video reframe technique. At PDD we’ve enhanced it simply by adding the title track from the Who’s 1973 rock opera Quadrophenia.

Torment with Collin Sabbatini – “Drown in Piss”

In this recently released clip from back in the days when people crammed together tightly for concerts, Duluth band Torment performs live at Blush with Collin Sabbatini filling in on vocals for Caden Dudek, who had been recently injured in a hit-and-run incident.

Duluth You & Me: Wade Stadium

Use the link below for a printable PDF for your drawing and coloring pleasure.
Duluth You & Me: Wade Stadium

Follow the Duluth You & Me subject tag to see additional pages. For background on the book see the original post on the topic.

Live STEAM! Brothers Burn Mountain roast Sacred Heart stage

The Brothers Burn Mountain landed the hottest, steamiest, most oppressive weather of the summer to torch the Sacred Heart Music Center altar stage with their patented end-of-the-show drum breakdown.

Note: 19th Century cathedrals were not equipped with air-conditioning.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, sound engineer Eric Swanson and video director Rich Narum were the only people on hand to capture the July 18 scorcher.

Watch with an ice cold beverage in hand.

Classic photos of Lake Superior Zoo and Kingsbury Creek

This photo of an elk is dated 1926.

Duluth’s municipal zoo opened in 1923 after the city council gave a small piece of land to print-shop owner Bert Onsgard and hired him as zookeeper. He was paid $1 per year for tending to a white-tailed deer and a few native birds. The zoo would eventually expand to cover 16 acres of land surrounding Kingsbury Creek in Fairmount Park, and hold hundreds of animals from around the world.

Trampled by Turtles – “Victory”

Trampled by Turtles performs the “official quarantine” version of “Victory,” a track from the band’s 2010 album Palomino.

Video by Banjo Dave Carroll.

Duluth blog brings Bible to Recent Events

I follow Paving Stones Ministries, and I love the new post about “All Lives Matter” from a scriptural perspective.

There are people in today’s society for whom racism and marginalization are a constant and persistent problem. I have seen it on the streets of our cities. I have seen it in the hallways of our universities. Unfortunately, racism is alive and rampant in our country, and there are people who are being crushed to powder under its millstone. They are broken, they are hurting, and they are weary. THEY are the ones who need our ministry right now.

Ripped at La Belle in 2000

[Editor’s note: For this week’s essay we’ve once again pulled out a relic from the archive of Slim Goodbuzz, who served as Duluth’s “booze connoisseur” from 1999 to 2009. La Belle was a nightclub operating at 1014 Tower Ave. in Superior until 2013. The Sultan of Sot documented his experience there in the July 26, 2000 issue of the Ripsaw newspaper.]

After spending two hours drinking monkey wrenches while listening to Minneapolis band Puafua and watching cartoons, I got the urge to be in a cartoon. I got the urge to go to La Belle.

Located on the classiest stretch of Superior’s distinguished Tower Avenue, La Belle is a dive specializing in cheap drinks for undiscriminating tastes. Like anyone else whose clothing wasn’t purchased using Marlboro Miles, I had never been to La Belle. But it had to happen sooner or later.

Before I could even get myself a drink, I met the quintessential group of La Belle patrons. Three or four middleweights stood huddled around a SEGA Out Run video game, attempting to drive a video car around a video racetrack. After some extensive bragging, they decided the one with the highest score would drive home.

Corner Stores on West Third Street in Duluth

Does anyone remember the two corner stores that were across from Bryant School on West Third Street? What were the names?