At Day Block Brewery, glimpsed into the work world of 2025 while catching up with three lovely people I worked with 15 years ago, who are still working. We laughed heartily about times both past and present.
Category: Living
Conflicting honors
This morning, flags were still at half-staff outside the American Red Cross building near our home, a tribute to the children killed in a recent school shooting. Meanwhile, the president has ordered flags at half-staff at federal buildings for a man who believed that gun deaths are a price we must accept for the Second Amendment. (The light and dark blue flag is the Minnesota state flag.)
Firing up the Weber
Simple Sunday, last gasp of summer, grilled chicken thighs for dinner.
Hostile ground
The road was sandy and rutted under increasingly tangled concrete overpasses. I pushed my bike until the place’s hostility became too much, and I turned back.
Gold-plated lunch
I didn’t have much time between appointments, so I popped into Rose Street Patisserie for a quick lunch. I preceded this “rich chocolate mousse layered with ganache and flourless chocolate cake atop a chocolate hazelnut crumble” with one of their super-tasty and flakey spinach and feta croissants. Yes, that’s gold leaf.
Signs of the times
Spent my morning in a safe place, a classroom, where I get to practice kindness, patience, and respect. On the notice boards, instructions are posted that attempt to empower us in the face of external threats.
Guilty pleasures
I was in the neighborhood of our nearest Asian supermarket, so I popped in for some Japanese guilty pleasures: dark chocolate and orange Kit Kats, curry cubes (great for transforming leftover veggies into a tasty lunch), and a rice cracker mix. At the exit, the claw cranes, ubiquitous in Japan, were thoughtfully arranged so that even the youngest could experience disappointment.
Where industry meets art
Got a preview of Chroma Zone Mural & Art Festival later this month in an industrial area of St. Paul. Over the years, more than 80 murals have been painted on industrial buildings in the neighborhood, and it’s surprisingly free of graffiti. This year’s festival includes this new mural, “Pitzik’ Q’ij: Court of the Sun” by local artist Cadex Herrera. His mural depicting George Floyd against a massive sunflower is recognized worldwide.
Beyond the pretty path
Cycled with a friend visiting from the UK. Decided the route didn’t need to be pretty all the way, so we included some industrial areas. This GAF roofing shingle plant fit the bill, especially since the asphalt fumes seemed… robust.
Smoky Sunday Stroll
On our Sunday morning walk, an overnight multi-alarm fire had done a number on the air quality. Here we’re standing on the 10th Avenue Bridge looking across the river towards the East Bank Campus of the University. Normally we’d cross by the truss bridge, Northern Pacific Bridge Number 9, but it’s closed for repairs.