I can see there are a lot of us out here that enjoy capturing the beauty of Duluth and the surrounding area. If you’re up for a fun challenge this Saturday, check out 12 Hours in Photography. A group of us from around the world have taken to occasionally having a “12 Hours in Photography” day from time to time. If you’d like to take part go to the site and follow the directions!
Cheers!

Paul Lundgren kind of stole my thunder on this with his excellent photo-essay on the North Shore earlier this week, but I was out in the same neighborhood for a work project last week myself. Truly I was in a big hurry and swamped with about a dozen things, but I just couldn’t help but stop for half an hour and snap some photos on the way back. It was the same day as the big Vikings-Packers game and I thought if they turned out it might make a good PDD post/tip for armchair quarterbacks on a great (brief) weekend road trip, but … that didn’t happen and now we may be past peak colors up in those woods. Still its a great drive anytime of year. And it’s fun going through the tunnel, too.

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You’ll probably be surprised to discover there are two questions on the Nov. 3 ballot regarding amendments to the City Charter. There’s nothing highly sexy about the questions, so there hasn’t been much reporting about them. Read the questions and you’ll pretty much get the gist.

Another note: There are more races going on than the ballot image below indicates. What will be on your ballot depends on what precinct you vote in.

A complete and more legible list of candidates can be found here. PDD presents this ballot image because, well, some of us are visual learners.

In reference to the Captured by Robots show at Pizza Luce, I believe Lumpy G put it best: “It’s like Chuck E. Cheese meets David Lynch.”

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John Ramos’ Cheerleader Blog presents: “How to Control the Media: A Rant.”

On his DNT blog, Buzz Duluth, Brandon Stahl interviewed St. Scholastica Econ Professor Tony Barrett about the city council’s frequent talk regarding “expanding the tax base,” and what that actually means. In the post, Barrett explains that the only direct way that the council can expand the tax base is to attract new business “through subsidies or TIFs,” or through zoning changes, or “to eliminate steps” involved with business development.

Barrett then goes on to explain that Duluthians are often resistant to this kind of growth.

“Every community has certain groups that oppose growth; environmentalists who don’t want to see trees cut down, or less green space… people who fear that growth is going to require higher taxes,” he said. “Duluth has a strong element of people who just don’t want Duluth to change. They like it the way it is. That’s why they didn’t move away to the Twin Cities, maybe get a better job. Duluth, of all the communities I’ve lived in, has the strongest anti-growth sentiment. And I think it’s really our culture of people liking Duluth just the way it is.”

The comments, of course, blame the DFL and “environmentalists.” But in light of the recent Honking House fiasco, the Lakewalk townhomes, and the debate over the reorganization of Duluth’s schools, it seems that the conflict in opinions is far more complex than some would like to admit.

So what do you think?

Mississippi Civil Rights Project Fundraiser: Music and Performance

Carmody Irish Pub, 308 E. Superior St, Duluth, Tuesday, October 27, 2009, 7:30-10 pm
Peace Cabaret: Welcome by Claudie Washington. Barton Sutter, Rabbi Amy Bernstein, Mary Cameron, David Comer, Portia Johnson, and Claire Kirch read short pieces by Martin Luther King, Jr., Robert F. Kennedy, Fannie Lou Hamer, Stokely Carmichael, Sojourner Truth, and Barbara Jordan. Jazz by Perfectini.

This November, photographer/activist Sue Sojourner is returning again to Holmes County after working there in the Civil Rights Movement for five years in the 1960s. This time the Oral History Center of the University of Southern Mississippi-Hattiesburg is holding a gathering for the surviving veterans of that Movement. The event uses a workbook Sue created on the Holmes Movement History as a memory catalyst. It will be a unique local-community-led oral history documentation project.

This fundraiser will help defray travel costs to Mississippi. It will also help Sue finish her memoir and catalog her historical collections for transfer to two archival institutions.

We’ve posted three tracks from our album on the interwebs as well (MySpace. Tumblr. Facebook.)

Check out the plans for Duluth’s western middle school. Click here to see the PDF file.

The Green Door, a liquor store and bar in Beaver Bay, has a framed tribute to Ellen E. Perkins. She was the inventor of “certain new and useful Improvements in Sexual Armor.”

The account on the wall of the bar reads:

Surprisingly enough, the sexual armor invented by Ellen E. Perkins of Beaver Bay, Minnesota is not for defense against assault but to keep the wearer from playing with himself. In her 1908 patent she calls the practice that the garment is designed to prevent one of the most common causes of insanity, imbecility and feeblemindedness — especially in youth — and equally true of both sexes. Her profession, by implication nursing, had made her very familiar with the subject. (more…)

Someone left this for me to find on the footbridge across Penn Creek. Kudos to the artist. (more…)

On Sunday, October 12, I took off from my backyard in the lower Chester park neighborhood. It’s too damn cold now, and I need help finding my humans. I am an adult female (spayed) Springer Spaniel, mostly brown with some white on my paws and face. I was last seen either above or below E. 8th Street, east of Chester Creek.  I would like to go back to my humans, Nick and Echo, as long as they promise to take me on long walks each day and feed me bacon grease. Please call them at (218) 213-7817.

P.S. My human is either too much of an idiot, or not worthy enough, to post a photo of me.

… that is, unless Duluth has produced any Nobel laureates (has it? Does anyone know?)

Superior native Oliver Williamson shares this year’s Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences…. stories here and here.

and I can barely remember all the things we did together over the past 27 years… and  I know people who’ve been bumping around with him longer than that…

He’s been a friend who, after many attempts,  saved my life.  I wish I could have returned the favor. Once we tried to save each others lives by taking a trip to Isle Royale. I left my cigarettes behind and he left behind his overeating. We hiked and breathed the fresh air to rid ourselves of life-threatening toxins. We were in our 30′s. As soon as we got back on the mainland we ate a big pizza. We drove 30 mph and felt like we were flying. A few days later I smoked another Marlboro.

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The Last Five Years, at the Duluth Play Ground. Next to Pizza Luce in the Tech Village. Performances are at 7:30, $15.00 a ticket.

A couple of reviews:

http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=305810235077&ref=mf

AND

http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/event/article/id/148623/

Could someone give me the 411 on upcoming ski swaps? I’m looking for X-country and downhill.

With the cold weather starting to arrive I’ve been roused to start looking at ways to keep warm.

I found a very cool stove kit that uses a 55 gallon steel drum. The kit adds a door, legs and vent to the drum to make an inexpensive wood stove for my garage.

Trouble is, I have no idea where I can get a 55 gallon steel drum around these parts, can you help?

Free or cheap is best otherwise I could end up with a stove costing more than a cheapo cast iron one from Menards!

Leif Ericson Park

I just thought it would be good to pay some respect to Mr.  Leif Erikson on his day.  Or is it Ericson?

I will stick with his nickname “Leif the Lucky” that’s catchier anyway. Either way he was a great explorer and discovered this great continent 500 years before Mr. Columbus and was way cooler. Get out and celebrate and have a beer for your favorite Norse explorer.

And screw you Google, why no respect for Leif the Lucky? O’well we will give him the Google love he deserves here.

Send your love to Leif and comment how much he means to you on this Leif Erikson Day 2009.

The Spin Collective Fire Dancers performed at Lake Place Park as the grand finale to last night’s Fire on the Water dance show at Teatro Zuccone.

There are two more performances, Oct. 9 and 10. See original post.

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Chip Stewart has passed away after a long battle with cancer. Thousands of people knew Chip and his wife Marcie as proprietors of the amazing Amazing Grace Bakery & Cafe in the DeWitt-Seitz Building in Canal Park.

I don’t have any more details right now, but hopefully those will materialize as is possible. But what I can tell you is that Chip was a very great man who I first met in 1997 when I was working on a story as a freelance reporter. Amazing Grace was hosting a counter-rally when anti-gay freakshow activist Fr*d Ph*lps was coming to Duluth. And that was the beginning of many, many conversations. In 2004 he gave me the biggest business break that I never deserved when (despite owning a successful food service operation of his own) he allowed my little food stand to come in and sling some wienies during events at the Historic NorShor Theater, which he was hoping to revive at the time. Chip was a friend to many, many people. The bread, coffee and all the food at Amazing Grace is fantastic, he provided a great venue for live folk music in Duluth, and he also provided a great place for people to sit in a non-rushed atmosphere. One of his least heralded but possibly most important gifts to all of us was providing a safe and fun place for young people (and sober people) to gather, play cards, surf the net and socialize, there was nothing quite like it in Duluth before it opened, and it remains a one-of-a-kind institution with Chip’s fingerprints all over it. He gave big breaks to many more musicians, artists, waitresses, bakers, baristas and entrepreneurs than just me, dozens, maybe hundreds of people’s lives and careers were enhanced by contact with this man. I feel safe in saying that his impact on our community will reverberate not just for days and weeks, but for generations.

My heartfelt prayers go out to his wife Marcie and all of his family, and to the rest of us, his chosen family. May you rest in peace, my brother.

If someone has a good photo or two of Chip, please post it here or provide a link to where we can all see them.

Finally with the announcement of two wind turbine manufacturing plants, one in Duluth and one in Two harbors, I can get off that rant. How long did that take, ten years? I hope they work. Now if we could have a pilot program to test stormwater retention through the use of boulevard raingardens, (which have had suceess rates of up to 90% retention in places like Seattle and Burnsville) I could get off that one. But I’ve only been talking about that one for 15 or 20 years. I have another one in my head that would have major economic impact on Northern MN but it is so simple that it would be too complicated for the no republicans and the help everybody else out except the working people democrats, so I’ll leave that alone.

Ten years ago this weekend, music history was made.

Missing promo photos, Homegrown 2003

With the likes of Ricky Martin, Lou Bega and Sixpence None The Richer dominating the charts, backlash was inevitable. The world clamored for a band which did not suck; did not dance on stage [at least, with choreography]; and had the good sense to combine the best parts of Guns N’ Roses, the Misfits and Mötley Crüe into one girlfriend-thieving package.

This band, of course, was Bone Appetit.

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Captured By Robots homepage:
http://www.capturedbyrobots.com/index.htm

Playing Pizza Luce (11 E. Superior St.) Tuesday, Oct. 13th, 10PM, all ages, 8 bucks

Brought to you by Gonzo Science
http://gonzoscience.com/GonzoUSA/

and the Transistor
http://www.transistormag.com/

No UFO Convention this year, just malevolent robots.

This is a little short notice, but I didn’t hear about it until I received the letter from his office yesterday, so anyway, Russ Feingold will be holding his 2009 Douglas county listening session in Solon Springs at 2pm this sat. If you live on the other side of the bridge and would like to meet the only senator to “Nay” the Patriot Act check out the details below.

What: Russ Feingold’s 2009 Douglas County Listening session.
Time: 2 P.M. Saturday, October 10th
Place:Solon Springs Community Center
11523 South Business 53
Solon Springs, WI

Looking for a local knife sharpening to put a good edge on my kitchen knives.  Anyone have any suggestions?

This is a free event with more than 30 booths covering everything from family planning through pregnancy, birth and babies.  Discussions on baby-wearing, diapering and informed birth choices, and drawings for awesome prizes.

I am in town for the week and the little one is getting junkie in his chest and nose. We need to buy some echanasia and on the east coast I can only find it and all the vitamins we need at the local health food store. My wife saw Betty Lou’s through Google. Is there any others that you might suggest?

Was this Perfect Duluth Day’s first logo?

Circa 2003

Friday, February 19, 2010

http://www.kumd.org/

Any chance the DECC can get a better beer situation figured out by then?