Category: In This Together

Remnant of WWII

On my cycle ride: World War II guard tower built to protect a Norden bombsight factory. Today, tenants of the old factory buildings include a distillery and a company that develops LEGO military model kits. (The LEGO Company has a strict policy against selling military models.)

Pride

Cycled to the Pride Festival. Here, Nick Kor (chatting with a cyclist) is standing for city council. His mom has cut our hair since he was a baby. In 2012 he worked full-time to defeat an amendment to the MN constitution to ban same-sex marriage.

Civil War Veterans

Cycled through Hillside Cemetery with a friend, taking in great views of downtown Minneapolis. The big surprise for us was a section for Civil War veterans. The markers honor veterans who joined units in states other than Minnesota.

Categorized as War

Celebrating July 4

On our July 4 walk: the neighborhood was a backdrop for a group of Hmong women in traditional dresses. The Twin Cities are home to over 65,000 Hmong people.

Ethylenediaminetetraacetic

Cycled to a clinic to get blood drawn by a phlebotomist. Later, held a biweekly ESL (English as a second language) Zoom session with an adult student who is studying to be a phlebotomist. We’re working through a text book learning to say words like “ethylenediaminetetraacetic.”

Peonies With a Story

Peonies on display in our home from a bush Dwight’s grandmother planted in North Dakota maybe 100 years ago. A few years ago we moved the bush to his sister’s yard near the Twin Cities. It has a pleasant scent, unlike modern hybrids.

(Almost) Self-Sustaining Building

On our walk: a mill worker depicted at the Pillsbury A-Mill. Completed in 1881, it was the world’s largest flour mill for 40 years. Today the building is well-appointed artist lofts; a hydroelectric generator, combined with geothermal, produces 75% of the building’s energy needs.