Cycled with a friend to St. Paul’s Global Harmony Labyrinth, built to commemorate the sister-city relationship between Nagasaki and Saint Paul. From below, all we could see was a flat circular hardscape that looked like a helicopter landing pad. We went up anyway to find the labyrinth. We decided against walking it, and cycling it was way above our skill level.
Category: In This Together
Healing the wound
As I was cycling down this path today, I remembered it was supposed to be a freeway. In the 1970s, a huge swath was cut through Northeast Minneapolis, leveling hundreds of homes and businesses and splitting the historic neighborhood in two. Outraged residents organized and fought back, successfully getting the project canceled. While the homes built in its place lack the character of the originals, they help heal the wound and reconnect the neighborhood.
Crossing the divide
Walked across this hellscape, as I do every time I walk to tutor an adult learner. There’s about 17 traffic lanes at this point where two Interstates run in parallel for three-quarters of a mile. I think of the neighborhoods that were torn apart and destroyed to create this. It’s a relief to be warmly welcomed at the Minneapolis American Indian Center, enjoy a cuppa and a fresh blueberry muffin in the cafe, then settle down to tutor in a nearby, lovely old library.
Quick stop at the Weisman
The U’s Weisman Art Museum was on my walk home, so I popped in to preview new exhibitions that just opened. In the center of this gallery, Vietnamese American artist Tiffany Chung proposes a floating town designed to survive floods. Along the walls, embroidered and drawn maps explore the upheavals of war, displacement, and disaster. I’ll be back for a deeper dive.
Finding good in each day
We had a lovely Japanese dinner at Misono with my sister-in-law and nephew D, catching up on family news and gossip. Nephew C is now in college, and nephew D will be leaving the nest next year. During the meal, a notification popped up on my phone showing that the report from Friday’s PET scan was available. I ignored it until we got home. It’s not good news, but life is good, and we’ll take this one day at a time.
Pain denied, history rewritten
My cycle ride took me past the annoying Pioneers Monument, which whitewashes our history. The Park Board has finally responded to feedback from many people, including me, that it is offensive and untruthful. They are now deciding the best way to dispose of it. My choice would be reusing the stone. Occasionally, people throw red paint at it, which explains the red residue.
The Bell of Two Friends
On a walk with a friend, we came across The Bell of Two Friends sculpture, which neither of us had noticed before. It’s a large-scale half-mold replica of an ancient Japanese dōtaku, a clapperless bronze ritual bell from Japan’s Yayoi period 2,000 years ago, based on an original found in Minneapolis’s twin city of Ibaraki, Japan. A hanging cord operates a functional bell, which we both rang for good luck.
We voted
We both filled out our ballots, front and back, for the November midterms. Since the US Postal Service can no longer be trusted, we’ll hand-deliver our ballots to a city office this week and check online to confirm they’re officially logged.
ADA meets architecture
On Friday mornings, I usually tutor an adult learner at a lovely Carnegie library. I arrived a little early today, so I wandered around admiring the extra details, including this balcony over the entrance. I asked a librarian why there’s no way to reach it, and he explained that the entire entrance had to be rejigged for ADA compliance, including the installation of an elevator that now blocks the route to the balcony. Judging by that low balustrade, that’s probably a good thing.
Stronger together
At Boom Island on our Sunday walk, teamsters were holding a picnic. Amy Klobuchar, our US Senator and hopefully soon-to-be governor, had just given a speech.