Spent a full day being observed for my second dose of the study drug: plenty of time to finish The Traveler, a biography of polymath George Forster (ethnographer, travel writer, political radical, …). Aged 18, he joined Captain Cook’s second voyage. He defied prevailing Enlightenment thought by rejecting human rankings and hierarchies, maintaining that being a good or great person “is not bound to any particular place on Earth or to a privileged tribe.” Amen to that.
Category: In This Together
A community’s values
After a cycle ride and cuppa with my friend, I made my way through Seward, a neighborhood where it was no surprise every stop sign had been carefully changed to “STOP ICE” and lawns carried community-minded messages. I couldn’t stop myself thinking administration officials must have never read the Beatitudes despite claiming their love of the Bible. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness… Blessed are the peacemakers.”
Breathing unhealthy air
Viewed downtown through smoky air on our usual Sunday morning walk. American and Canadian firefighters are working side-by-side to control blazes in Minnesota’s Boundary Waters, even as the president threatens to impose tariffs on Canada over their forest fire smoke, a power he actually lacks. Meanwhile, the administration is busy rebranding terms like “climate change,” canceling wind farm developments, and promoting the construction of new coal-fired power plants.
The ability to suffer (and the anticipation of a fall)
I’ve never seen so many homegrown protest signs as I have this past year. I spotted this one on the way to Seward Co-op to pick up veggies for dinner. Displays like this really help keep hope alive. Some historians tie the Humpty Dumpty rhyme to the fall of King Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485. We eagerly anticipate a great fall for our own wannabe king.
Seeing with clear eyes
After a routine eye checkup, I walked over to the memorial at the site where a federal agent murdered Alex Pretti, a VA ICU nurse, six months ago. There were so many flowers and sad and defiant messages. The words of Anne Frank described Operation Metro Surge as if she had been in Minneapolis in January.
The joy of voting
Dropped our primary ballots off at the Minneapolis early voting office. The election judges were in a great mood, and one insisted on taking my photo. I thanked them for running a system we can all trust.
Independence Day 2026
Filled out primary ballots for U.S. Senator, U.S. Representative, Governor, and all the way down to school board members. In doing so, we asserted our right to choose a government that “shall seem most likely to effect [our] Safety and Happiness,” as declared in the Declaration of Independence. I’ll hand-carry these ballots to a drop-off point, especially since the Federal Government is threatening to block mail-in ballot delivery in states that don’t accede to their demands.
A bridge too far
Our objective was a bridge over the BNSF Northtown Yard, a rail yard that stretches for over three miles. It was another heat advisory day, and the weather caught up with me at the bridge as my pedal power faded. My friend, knowing my aversion to hydration, had brought an extra water bottle that worked wonders. I made it back home, but my blood pressure was abnormally low due to dehydration, prompting a firm vow to always carry water from now on.
A Meccano moment
Thought of my dad in the 1920s and myself in the ’50s and ’60s, modeling the world with Meccano. A freight train rumbled overhead as I took shelter under the Short Line Bridge, briefly escaping the sun’s direct rays. Motivating me forward was the promise of fish tacos for lunch at Sea Salt in Minnehaha Park, and the knowledge that today’s extreme heat warning would deter the usual long line snaking out the door.
Joy is resistance
Trapped at a red traffic light on our bicycles, a sign warned us that God hates people like Dwight and me. White “christian” nationalists shouted at us through a bullhorn, promising that Tr*mp would punish us. Arriving at the Pride Festival, we joined a crowd of many thousands, got to see the world’s biggest rubber duck, and sipped a Deschutes Fresh Squeezed in a beer garden on a gloriously sunny day.