Microblog

Picked up gai lan, Chinese broccoli, from an Asian supermarket. My new favorite vegetable has a stronger, slightly more bitter taste than regular broccoli. We stir-fry the stalks for a while, then add the rest. We might include garlic, fresh ginger, sugar, shoyu, and fish sauce.

Appreciated the warmth in the sun as we walked with a friend. Couldn’t resist taking this standard shot of Stone Arch Bridge and Downtown.

Preventing another concussion was probably not uppermost in his mind when a friend presented me with this old-time football helmet that had belonged to his uncle. Coincidentally, the Vikings football stadium is behind me.

Right now, we’re not going to warm places, but we can bring warm places to us. Thank you, Dwight.

On our walk at Bde (Dakota for Lake) Maka Ska: Your Dog ice sculpture. The Minneapolis Institute of Art has this sculpture by Japanese artist, Yoshitomo Nara, in fiberglass in their collection. Inevitably, for me, it evokes anime or manga.

On my walk: Aphrodisiac Telephone ice sculpture. The Minneapolis Institute of Art has this Salvador Dali surrealist object in plastic and metal in its collection. Yes, that’s a lobster on top of the handset.

Walked to the Dinkytown neighborhood to a place that’s just opened up specializing in pasties. Bought two for us to enjoy today, and two to freeze for another time. I’m partial to British-style savories en croute

Walked through almost deserted skyways and tunnels in downtown Minneapolis. Stopped for an Americano and pastry in a comfortable place I haven’t visited in over a year. Looked forward to a time these places will be bustling again and commerce will be in full swing.

Spent way too many hours hacking data streaming out of a game controller. I don’t do video games, I’m figuring out how to use it to control seven servo-motors

Steam from heating plants working overtime reminded me it was a good day to stay indoors and play with my toys.

Woke up this morning with steam rising in the frigid (-22°F) air above St. Anthony Falls.

Went paperless: pulled together photos from previous Valentine’s Days, including these cards from 2016, to display on our kitchen assistant.

Posted Theater of the Absurd.

With a high of -4°F, stayed in, continued my home energy review. All our lights are LED… except this holdout in the clothes dryer. Decided to keep the 10 watt incandescent bulb because it’s only on for a few minutes per week. Besides, it lets me healthily embrace imperfection.

Stocked up at Wedge Co-op. We’ll be back for another cart-load in three weeks.

Satisfied my inner nerd, at least for today: modified wiring to make lights in the range hood smart, probably invalidating the warranty. The lights are now included in scenes with other kitchen lights, and can be adjusted by voice.