Microblog

Over a welcome beer at our local, Dwight described his time at the greenhouse battling pests and mold on these grapevines. Meanwhile, I’d been caught in a Catch-22, ping-ponging between a vendor and Amex over fraudulent charges. Eventually, Amex took responsibility and issued a refund, leaving me free to enjoy my beer.

The cycling and walking paths beside the channel connecting Lake of the Isles and Bde Maka Ska were underwater this morning. I knew from experience my feet would have been submerged even on a bike, and the water’s resistance would have been a challenge. Meanwhile, the canoeists seemed right at home.

On my random cycle ride down the Mississippi: a motorcade of black SUVs left Eastcliff, temporary home of our Governor, escorting Tim Walz to MSP. We’re delighted with the choice of this former high school teacher whose values align with ours. He’s authentic.

Downtown had its head in the clouds, it rained pretty much all day: time for LEGO. Instead of relying solely on a solid state gyroscope, I wanted to develop a better intuitive grasp of the physics involved. So, I built a test rig with an actual spinning flywheel. It flew apart, leaving my electronic robot… Continue reading Practical Physics

As usual our Sunday morning walk took us across Boom Island. Workers were busy tearing down after a two-day music festival, the Basilica Block Party. There was visual evidence this had been a large event.

Cycled through this calm place on my random steamy ride. Industrial areas like this one in St. Paul are best explored on weekends, away from the hustle of weekday truck traffic.

We’re saving this lone ripe tomato from our balcony plant for a ceremonial tasting at dinner. About sixty others are still green. We did this mostly for fun; we also have herbs in pots, which are far more practical all summer.

After last night’s imagined English Language Learning classroom, I stepped into a real one today for the final day of summer school. School starts again early September when I’ll continue working with the same teacher. I enjoy working with her: she prepares thoroughly, she uses my time well, and the students love her.

Tonight at the Guthrie: English, set entirely in an English Language Learning classroom in Tehran. I couldn’t help comparing with my own experience–the teacher was overcorrecting and there was a level of emotional intensity I’d be uncomfortable with in a classroom–but that was missing the point. Ultimately it was about identity, and that felt authentic.

10:00 a.m. A leisurely catch-up with friends over ice cream. I usually go cycling with one of them, but he’d broken his fibula in a bicycle accident and is getting a plate inserted on Thursday. DQ offered a flat, accessible path from the car to our outdoor table. His wife also broke a bone earlier… Continue reading DQ, Practically Breakfast

On my random cycle ride, noticed The Kid’s House was being refurbished. In the 1984 movie, Purple Rain, the Prince character (The Kid) lived in this modest house with his mother and abusive father. It sat empty after Prince bought it in 2015. His estate recently signed off on it being an Airbnb ‘Icons’ property.… Continue reading The Purple One Slept Here… in a Movie

Built a self-balancing two-wheeled robot, a copy of a design I found on the Internet. It wanders around autonomously ‘seeing’ with an ultrasonic sensor and maintaining balance using a gyro sensor. After about ten minutes the robot suddenly accelerates and falls over, hence the carpet. I need to slow down and understand the algorithm from… Continue reading Balancing Act

Aquatennial fireworks from our balcony capped off an evening of Olympic action. We’ve splashed out $15 for NBC’s (proud as a…) Peacock service for commercial-free on-demand access to every event. Paris is 7 hours ahead, so we can fast-forward through the boring bits.

While cycling past the BNSF Northtown Yard today, watched a freight train roll by. The air quality is noticeably poor due to wildfires in the West and Canada.

Wet-wiped eraser dust and pencil marks from classroom tables, as I do every week before class. Meanwhile, Dwight cleaned the drains at the greenhouse.

Cycled a favorite loop today, including breakfast sandwiches at Bread and Pickle overlooking Lake Harriet. Plane traffic approaching and departing MSP had been shifted to the southeast, so we didn’t get to watch planes. Coincidentally, actual ducks were also absent.