Microblog

On my walk, stopped at a small gallery I’d never visited, Midway Contemporary Art, to introduce myself to some of the work of Yutaka Matsuzawa. He seeks to express the invisible invisibly making the viewer part of the creative process. Some of his work is in MoMA’s collection.

Walked under Stone Arch Bridge on my way to meet friends for a walk. Paused to look at the remains of mill tail races (water channels). Three rusty upright girders once supported a railroad trestle. The blue Endless Bridge cantilevers out of the Guthrie Theater.

Spent the morning at the Minneapolis Institute of Art seeing the Vietnam War through the eyes of artists opposed to the war at the time. There’s too many lessons still to be learned.

Extended my walk when I realized I no longer had my hat. Backtracked and found it on the steps of Northrup Auditorium at the University of Minnesota. It’s that time of year: finding a dropped hat or glove is a bonus.

Spent much of the afternoon planning to be snowbirds for two months this winter. Unlike many Minnesota snowbirds (who head south in the winter) we don’t own a vacation condo or recreational vehicle. We prefer to rent.

Picked up (and purchased) celeriac at the local farmers market at Mill City Museum (a former flour mill). I used to be wary of this craggy root, but now happily add it to a braise or gratin.

Walked past the historical (1941) Grain Belt Beer sign on the banks of the Mississippi across from downtown Minneapolis. Los Angeles has the Hollywood sign; we have this.

Enjoyed a fine brunch in this newly refurbished space. In 1885 this was St. Paul’s first fire house. Last summer, when a friend and I cycled to former St. Paul fire houses, the interior was dilapidated and abandoned.

Used grow lights for the first time today. We’re still experimenting, but the plan is to produce a continuous supply of microgreens and herbs. The white rectangle in a small zippered bag wirelessly logs light levels and surface temperatures in a spreadsheet.

It was 6°F (-14°C) outside when I woke up. Looked out at ice accumulating on the Mississippi and decided I’m not going anywhere this morning. The “rock” sticking out of the ice is a slowly crumbling pier for the old 10th Avenue Bridge. The bridge was torn down for scrap in 1943.

Walked past the blue Guthrie Theater set against a blue sky on my way to join friends for a Mississippi walk. Architect Jean Nouvel’s influences included nearby flour mills (industrial shapes), Logitech computer mice (blue siding), and ski goggles (yellow

Built a new, more compact, simpler manifold to distribute water to 30+ house plants. Flow to each plant is individually adjustable. During our recent 24-day trip, we initiated watering over the Internet when sensors told us plants were getting dry. Every

After our travels, we’re back to our Saturday evening home routine: dim the lights for a movie, ice cream in the intermission.

This table, made of ice, at Bachman’s (garden center) wasn’t melting. It was a good day to finally replace my old down jacket

On this chilly day, made my quarterly visit to the cancer center. Afterwards, I headed to our local Japanese eatery. Contentment prevailed as I slurped tonkotsu ramen. As I finished, my nurse phoned to let me know tumor continues to be undetectable. Reprieved for another quarter.

Started filling the fridge.