Weird Posts

Starving Artist Barter??

Dear Duluthians,
You might have seen some of my art at Bohemia Arts, and if not, please do come see it, because if you like it: I am hoping to trade existing paintings, commissions, and/or mural work for a) a decent bike b) a canoe in working order c) a kayak that floats and/or d) misc hauling equipment and useful accessories for said objects. Or other awesome stuff to trade for might be considered too…

Thank you kindly,
maria sippola
fox wife

This is what happens when the Oscar Meyer Wienermobile gets frisky

Wienermobile sexxin a house

More info here:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090718/ap_on_fe_st/us_odd_wienermobile_wreck

USOs: Unidentified stationary objects

Can anyone help me figure out what exactly this might be?  I was thinking of taking a bike ride from Duluth to Grand Rapids avoiding Hwy 2 and thought this road might be nice, but this “thing” has me puzzled.  There’s another one north west a few miles…

What is it?

What is this meatloaf pan shaped like?

Meatloaf438592

Balls

Article from the DNT today that I found somewhat unusual:

Duluth police say fetish exercise-ball slasher has been at it again

Remember the house

on Dunedin Ave. that had all those styrofoam tombstones in the yard at Halloween? Well, we don’t do that anymore. But we did collect all those punny names and epitaphs and put them together on a website that I’d like to share with you. NameThatTomb.com

les_manly

Feel free to submit your own ideas. Join the graveyard!

Dink Tank McCounaghey Camp Out

Thanks so much to everyone who donated!

Tang Cocktail?

The Duluth Art Institute is hosting a “Space Train” on July 31. There will be music by Tangier 57, a chance to look at stars with telescopes, as well as food and drink. (Get your tickets here.)

TANG

To make it really special I would like to figure out a special Tang cocktail to serve – any ideas?

Abandoned Plans: Hope Center

Hope Center Union Gospel Mission

This picture is hanging in the men’s room on the main floor of the Union Gospel Mission. And that’s amazing all in itself, bathroom decorating decisions. But there’s more … clearly it’s an architectural conception or rendering of a long forgotten plan for a place called “Hope Center.” Many of you will recognize the proposed site and the buildings involved. I used to work in one of them so I find this especially compelling and mysterious for that reason … also amusing, the happy strollers depicted for scale or mood, people in architectural drawings always just seem like life is going perfectly, don’t they?

Now, I did a google search on this project and came up with a goose egg, nothing on this. Which made me even more curious about all of this. My questions are: 1) When was this to have happened? The fashions and cars in the image got me thinking mid 80s, also that would measure up with my memories, because anytime after that I bet I would have remembered this. 2) Why didn’t it happen? And (for extra credit) 3) Are there other abandoned or not yet realized plans out there similar to this one? I mean clear plans like this one, not some wild dream sketched on the back of a cocktail napkin — I’ve got a few of those around myself.

Moving by Bicycle

In June of 2009 I made up my mind to move from one apartment to the other. I also made up my mind to make this move using only bicycles and bicycle trailers. After making up my mind to do this I did some research and found some great testimony to this from other individuals and groups having done this on the Internet.

Two days ago, after I’d decided to move I found out about a contest that Madsen Cycles was putting on. If you’re interested in helping me win, click this link to their site and check out their cool bicycles (it’ll open in a new tab/window). If not, read on and enjoy.

MADSEN Cargo Bikes

Peace out, Duluth!

Maybe you’ve read this post from my Facebook note, but in case you haven’t succumbed to that monster …

As some of you already know, I will be moving out of town soon to be with the love of my life, the wonderful and lovely Rebecca Zaban, in St. Paul.

Road tripping this summer?

Why not take a tour of some of the weirdest and most fascinating places out there? A recently started website, Atlas Obscura, is collecting and mapping the weird and wonderful places in the world. MN only has a few so far. I’m a fan of Weird WI but I really like that this is a ongoing wiki to collect the odd and unusual places of the world.  I’m guessing that PDD folks know of all the best places here in MN and WI so add some stuff.  Then when the kids ask “Are we going to Valley Fair?” you can tell them “No, even better.  We’re headed to Dutch Corners Phillips, WI to see Fred Smith’s Wisconsin Concrete Park.”

So which state has the weirdest stuff? MN or WI? I’m leaning toward WI.

Duluth Fireworks Disaster of 1988

A dud shell fell into a pile of unspent shells, and ka-pow! There were six minor injuries and zero fatalities.

digesting…

An Incomplete and Random List of Beloved Characters in Duluth

Hung – Vo Hung has bought more rounds of drinks than the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.

Richard Wozniak – The longtime proprietor of Young at Heart Records could find anything you needed.

Frank Nichols – He’s lovable, he’s cuddly, he plays harmonica and rides the lift bridge.

Christmas Tree Lady – Claudia Abrahamson put up 37 Christmas trees in 2008, carefully placing them in every room of her house.

Five-mile-an-hour Harold – Harold Nelson was an elderly Duluth Heights resident, known for constantly walking around the city. Sadly, he was struck by a car while crossing Central Entrance at Trinity Road on August 10, 2009. He died three days later. Up until the very end — at age 83 — he was still walking, often stopping to pick up garbage or clear snow from bus stops. In his younger days he worked for the city of Duluth in the purchasing division.