Microblog

Explored a retrospective at the Walker of Keith Haring’s short career. We benefit from the social activism of artists like Haring. Here, three kids spontaneously react to one of his short animations.

It’s Amazon Prime Day. The first two items on offer “just for Tom” were dog poop bags and skimpy women’s panties. Neither item has ever been on my Christmas wishlist, nor Dwight’s for that matter. My one purchase will arrive Thursday: a 5-pack of COVID tests–we’re running low. I can now go outside and engage… Continue reading Amazon Algorithm Fail

A morning thunderstorm coincided with a reminder in my calendar to clean the air and water filters in our Japanese toilets. We’ve had our TOTOs over five years, now, and they’ve worked flawlessly. We had an early issue with reduced water flow due to construction sand in the water, but the filter did its job.… Continue reading Run, TOTO, Run!*

A storm raged overnight, leaving the odd downed tree to navigate around on our hot and steamy Sunday morning walk. We’re grateful to still have power, knowing many are facing outages today.

Pryes Brewing Company was the perfect spot to catch up with my friend visiting from out of town. Delighted to learn he and his wife are moving back to the Twin Cities from out West and building a house downriver from us.

Imagine my delight finding Sky Pesher, a permanent James Turrell installation, open to the sky, right here in Minneapolis. I first learned about his work while staying on Naoshima Island in Japan’s Seto Inland Sea where several pieces by this American artist are on display. My room even had a signed Turrell print on the… Continue reading Turrell’s Light

In an ELL (English Language Learning) class, covered language and strategies for budgeting. In a subsequent session, assisted learners with the job search process.

Tonight: offbeat musical keying off a cheesy 1960 low-budget B movie on the Guthrie’s thrust stage, practically sitting in Skid Row. We already have tickets for next summer’s Cabaret, as part of a season ticket package.

Today we explored beyond the Twin Cities. Took a bike ride on the Cannon Valley Trail from Cannon Falls to Welch and back. This well-maintained rail trail offers scenic views of the Cannon River, which is currently overflowing its banks. Impressive embankments, built in 1882, kept us safely above the floodwaters and ensured gentle gradients.

Cycled between two concrete planters near our home, as I often do. Presumably they’re placed here by the city to deter drivers from crossing this pedestrian bridge. Some neighbors have taken it upon themselves to keep them looking good with plants that change with the seasons. A couple weeks ago, someone tagged one of the… Continue reading A Sense of Ownership

We did our regular Sunday walk, but today Dwight stopped every now and then to photograph wildflowers for his City Gardener blog. So I took photos of Dwight taking photos.

Feeling a bit lazy today, reduced Sunday dinner to an assembly operation. I like to cook bean dishes a day ahead as they improve by standing. Ingredients include ham shank and hot-soaked beans from the freezer, and fresh mirepoix (ready cut up from Trader’s). I’ll sweat the mirepoix and freeze half for another time. Rice… Continue reading Sunday Dinner: Some Assembly Required

I’ve cycled past the Ritz Theater in Northeast Minneapolis many times, but had never been inside. Tonight, we saw Johnny Skeeky, a modern interpretation by Theater Latte Da of Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi. Comic elements included greedy relatives, a corpse, and rewriting a will post mortem. Earlier this week we streamed Puccini’s short comic opera, performed… Continue reading A Night at the Ritz

Picked up mail-in ballots for the upcoming US Senate and Minneapolis School Board Primary from the mail room downstairs. Today we celebrate the ratification of the Declaration of Independence, rejecting the idea of a king who is above the law.

Fourth of July (tomorrow) looks like a rainout, but today was perfect for a bike ride on half of the Minneapolis Grand Rounds. We cruised the mostly quiet trails (why were the trails quiet?–It was a perfect day to play hooky) and ended with a late lunch/early dinner at our neighborhood watering hole. Here, Minnehaha… Continue reading Post-Hooky Cycle Ride