Sunday, June 19, 2011

Dog-Sitting Week: Day One

Captain's Log: Dogdate 20110619.

First day of puppy sitting for my friends' chocolate lab, Molly. For the week, I have decided that when she is good, I will call her "Molly Bean!" When she is bad, she is simply "The Beast" as imagined below.
We woke at 0700 for breakfast and a pee/poop before I headed out for the morning. Upon returning at 1000 Molly Bean and my husky Annika had some play time before I left again at 1100. Shortly before departure, the pup jumped up onto my bed, then proceeded to squat and pee. The Beast then ate a slipper while my back was turned to throw the sheets into the washer.

I have a feeling Doggy Sleepover week is going to become Doggy Bootcamp...

Friday, May 20, 2011

Wise Acre Eatery

I'm sorry it's been a few weeks since I posted. Too be honest, I was enjoying some lazy time in between classes and my job. I will be working at the new Wise Acre Eatery, a sister to Tangletown Gardens in South Minneapolis. In fact, it's right next door!

Wise Acre is going to be a fantastic group of people working at a fantastic eatery. We feature an express window for guests who want a quick coffee, a burger, or frozen custard treat to-go. We will also have seating inside during the day for those who want to enjoy a hearty breakfast, delicious sandwich, burger or salad. During the evening, these items will be joined by delicious chef specials like maple-rhubarb braised beef and vegetarian fare such as asparagus and mushrooms with basil whipped brie and charred onion wild rice. My favorite part (aside from the bacon we serve) will be the espresso/beer & wine bar. Hand-crafted beverages from ethically sourced, fair-trade coffees and flavors without high fructose corn syrup. Beer from local breweries. Wine from organic and sustainable farms.

Just wait til you see the place! The color palette is beautiful and to reduce waste, much of the existing building remains in tact. The bar area (which I love already) features reclaimed and repurposed wood from the Twin Cities. I won't tell you from where just yet...

Come in when we open on May 26th and ask me. I'll make you a cappuccino to live for!

HEY! Follow Wise Acre Eatery on Facebook and Twitter, @wiseacreeatery and #wiseacreeatery

Thursday, May 5, 2011

"Deathers" and Conspiracy

With all that has happened regarding President Obama and the "birther" conspiracy (thanks in large part to The Donald), it was obvious that right-wing conspiracy theorists would immediately latch on to something new and amazing once the President's birth certificate surfaced. Conspiracy breeds conspiracy.

So now, CNN.com reports that "deathers" are filling in the gaps. According to "deather" theory, Osama bin Laden was not actually killed, and the reports of his demise are only a means of saving Obama's presidency. Granted, Osama bin Laden has proven notoriously difficult to capture or kill. It's been like trying to kill Rasputin... but really, I think these people are just so anti-black, anti-government, anti-peace, that they need something to fuel their hellfire and brimstone existence. I wonder what Fred Phelps has to say about all of this. I don't actually want to find out, because that man's bile makes me vomit a little every time I see him. Instead, I found something to combat what I call "Limbaugh Disease." I call it that because Rush Limbaugh was always around growing up, kind of like a plague, and his rhetoric has spread, killing brain cells in the likes of Glen Beck, Sarah Palin and Mike Huckabee. All of these people contribute to Fox News, which has a penchant for making typos regarding the President's name.

Luckily, failblog.org has posted a number of screen stills highlighting this phenomena. I used to think that Fox was just so stupid that they hired uneducated boobs to edit the screen graphics. Now I wonder... Perhaps this is not a mistake. If you look at the pictures below, it's easy to see how Fox News is purposefully producing these typos in order to promote the right-wing agenda. The message is barely subliminal. If you see the "mistakes" enough, you might get people to equate Obama with Osama, or you might even be able to correlate Osama with the current state of the union when you see "USama bin Laden" on the screen. I can only hope that Rachel Maddow picks up on all of this.





Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Morning Walk

This morning, Jeff and I woke up at his place (oooh, a sleepover!) and had a simple breakfast of orange juice, banana, and donuts. It was such a bright, sunny morning that we decided to grab some Dunn Bros. coffee and take Annika around Lake Harriet.

I would say that Lake Harriet is my 2nd favorite lake here in Minneapolis. In the summer it is swamped with people, like all of the lakes here in the city. Today, probably because it was early on a Wednesday, it was populated mostly by other dog walkers like us. Living in between Lake Calhoun and Lake Harriet, it's very easy to walk to the Linden Hills business district for some coffee and continue on to the lake. I love being able to do that, because Annika and fabric seat covers in my car are not the best combination.







On our walk, we saw a lot of ducks, and a couple geese. I managed to get some pictures before Annika jumped in the water for a swim (or a hunt). Jeff is studying urban forestry and we talked about a lot of the ecological problems affecting the ducks and other wildlife that make the lakes their home. Of course, when he saw a bottle floating in the water, he picked it up and discarded it. By the way...buy a reusable bottle folks! It was sad to see so much trash in the water when we looked closely. It really damages the "natural" habitat of these beautiful birds. I say that because it's hardly natural for a bird to live next to a busy street. Still, the original efforts to make the area more appealing for residents do provide a great home to wildlife. So, yeah, pick up your trash. Pick up any trash you see. Protect birds like the ones you see below and other wildlife too!








Speaking of wildlife... what kind of creature lives in here? It's either the entrance to Wonderland or Piglet's house. Either way, it's pretty spectacular, don't you think?




Sunday, May 1, 2011

Saturday Celebration

On Saturday, my grandmother's family surprised her with a 90th Birthday Party. Sorry, SURPRISE party! It was wonderful to see so many family members and old friends. I used to see these people every Memorial Weekend at the Alma Highland Festival.












Now that all of the grandkids are grown, and grandkids are arriving, we don't see as much of each other anymore. But any chance to gather in Alma, eat good food, drink a few beers, and work on a puzzle at Grandma's is a wonderful excuse for a vacation!

Friday, April 29, 2011

Sunny Day in Michigan

Today I drove from Roscommon to West Branch to have a beer with an old high school classmate and his wife. Coincidentally, his name is also Jeremy.

 Then I took a detour on the way back to my parent's and visited the Michigan Firemen's Memorial, erected in 1980. A spur of the moment, but it was a fun trip out of the way.


Thursday, April 28, 2011

Arrival in Michigan


I arrived in Michigan today for a weekend visit with friends and family. The flight was somewhat turbulent, but not bad, and we flew above it.

My first stop when I landed was Cracker Barrel, where I had lunch with Erica. 3 hours, we left smiling. Here's why!


We couldn't help but play a game of giant checkers on a woven rug (I used to have one of those as a kid!), or making fun of all sorts of things we saw!

 This is a Christmas ornament. Fitting.
 "I Love Michigan," but we both thought the lighthouse was a traffic cone, of course!
Dishtowel advertising pricing= whore.

More to come...