Thursdays are our service days: Dwight in a university greenhouse, me in ELL classrooms. This leaves us with little energy for cooking, so we typically have dinner out. Tonight: our local Izakaya (Japanese bar/restaurant).
Category: In This Together
Incredible Pastries
It was plenty warm enough to relax on these chairs and enjoy a cuppa with a friend. The coffee shop’s Web site promised “a magical experience that will transport you to Paris with every bite” of their “incredible pastries.” Coffee sufficed, there were no pastries, only dog treats, and that’s OK.
Doctor’s Orders: Chat at the Clinic
My friend and I planned to have breakfast at this diner, but it was closed this morning despite Google saying otherwise. We ended up getting a pastry and a surprisingly decent coffee at a nearby multispecialty clinic, but the important thing was to catch up and have a good conversation.
Expanding the Repertoire
View from the lobby of Orchestra Hall while enjoying a pre-concert glass of wine. Tonight the Minnesota Orchestra featured pieces by six black composers, including two women. The art form tends to be Eurocentric, sometimes stodgy; tonight was refreshing, mixing it up.
Never Give Up
First day of my new weekly ELL (English Language Learning) gig with adult learners. Three classes, great attitudes and determination, spiffiest facilities yet.
We Voted
Election Day is next Tuesday, but we already voted by mail today. This was the shortest ballot I’ve ever seen, with just one contest for a city council member. I’ve come around to Minneapolis’ ranked choice voting system.
Confirmation Selfie
I caught his attention by saying we needed a selfie to prove we were in church this Sunday morning. Of course it was a special occasion: our youngest nephew’s Confirmation at Faith Lutheran in Forest Lake, Minnesota.
Paella Journeys
I’m making paella for dinner with Dwight’s sister, a reminder of shared experiences in Nerja, Spain. We enjoyed paella cooked over an open fire of burning pallets in a restaurant by the beach. I’ve just made the sofritos base (in the pan) which fills our home with wonderful aromas.
Important Conversations
As I ate my lunch at the worker-owned Hard Times Cafe, I overheard nearby diners discussing labor history and class struggle. Later, I walked past double barriers outside Northrop Auditorium that symbolized the gulf between protesters and Justice Amy Coney Barrett.
A Beacon of Upward Mobility
From a conference room in a beautifully designed Minneapolis school that provides basic adult education, a view of the 1853 Minneapolis Pioneers and Soldiers Cemetery. The school is in high demand, with a waitlist of people eager to learn. Below, Lake Street was the scene of protests that turned into riots in 2020.