This little guy came from a hoarding situation in September. All the dogs have found new homes and he’s the last one! He’s being fostered in Duluth through the Range Regional Animal Rescue. He’s learned how to be a pet and is ready for his forever home.You can see his PetFinder page for more info.

The shelter named him ‘Kelsey’ and we’ve changed it to ‘Dasher’! You’ll understand why when you see him outside!

Because of Dasher’s background, he cannot go to a house with small animals. He is a younger dog and needs a yard to run around in.

Here’s a nice profile of musician Darin Bergsven. Thanks to the Lake Voice for singing about one of our local unsung culture heroes.

Full disclosure: Darin’s a good friend, and I’m quoted in the article, but that does not detract from his, or the article’s, awesomeness.

Zygi buys new apartment in NY

I am looking for some training assistance.  I want to start competing in triathlons but my swimming skills are awful.  I would like to learn proper form, efficiency and technique.  Here’s the rub, I work out of town for 21 days and then home (Duluth) for 21 days so the tri teams and clubs are not the right fit.

The Arrowhead Regional Arts Council approved on October 20, 2011, grant applications totaling $22,220 to be awarded in Arts and Cultural Heritage Community Arts Learning Grants. (more…)

Come see me at Beaner’s Central on Dec. 9! The show will be recorded and filmed for posterity and a potential video release.

The Arrowhead Regional Arts Council approved at its November 17, 2011, meeting grant applications totaling $20,650 to be awarded in Rural and Community Arts Grants. (more…)

Hello fellow Duluthians. I would like to take a moment to ask for your assistance on a class project we are doing for a Market Research course at UMD. I’m placing this post under the “Help Wanted” category, because that’s exactly what we want: help! (This is not a job posting, sorry for the confusion.) This favor will be reciprocated with good karma!

If any of you would be able to take five minutes out of your busy crazy lives to help out four fun-loving students it would be greatly appreciated! Here is the link to the survey.

If you have any questions or comments about the survey, please feel free to e-mail me: bomga002 @ d.umn.edu

Thank you all very much! Enjoy this beautiful, sunny, Duluth winter day!

Kelsey Bomgaars
Student of Marketing
University of Minnesota Duluth

A few weeks ago, I posted that I wished that businesses in need of help to make it through a rough patch would tell us, so we could eat there more often or buy more goods. Today, I got this message. -db

Dragon Port Games & Comics LLC
We would like to thank the wonderful gaming & comic community for another year serving all of you in Downtown Duluth. However as 2011 has been a tough year sales wise and the store is in a bit of a bind. Now as when we got started, Dragon Port needs to make an appeal to the community to give us a hand. (more…)

Wednesday, Nov. 30
Matt Ray and Those Damn Horses headline Legacy Glasswork’s November show with a free raffle. The Duluth Energy Efficiency Program (DEEP) and Ecolibrium3 host the grand opening for DEEP’s One-Stop-Energy-Shop and Community Sustainability Classroom.

Thursday, Dec. 1
Target Behavior, opening at UMD, is a seriocomic look at a young girl coming to terms with who she really is.  Lorie Line presents her “Christmas Bells and Ringing” concert at the Mitchell Auditorium.

Friday, Dec. 2
Disney Live! presents Three Classic Fairy Tales at the DECC Symphony Hall. Some Girl(s), a play by Neil LaBute opens at the St. Scholastica Theater. Katie McMahon brings her Celtic Christmas show to the Mitchell Auditorium.

Saturday, Dec. 3
Join the Lake Superior Zoo in celebrating Berlin the polar bear’s birthday. Support the Duluth Public Library at the all-day book fair at the Miller Hill Mall Barnes & Noble.

Keep checking the PDD Calendar for new events.

Timothy LaPara and a team of researchers at the University of Minnesota in the Twin Cities, testing water pouring from a modern water treatment facility in Duluth, found genes of drug-resistant bacteria in the discharge. Most American cities do not have facilities as good as Duluth’s, but no one knows for sure how much worse the situation may be at those facilities because it has not been measured.

Inside Science News Service: The best wastewater treatment plants can’t filter out superbug fragments

Read all about the joys of community composting and why you should pay the Western Lake Superior Sanitary District to take your waste and sell it back to you in the spring.

Nature of Modern Life blog: Black Friday — Dig It

Guess how I celebrated Black Friday? With a trip to the WLSSD Composting & Yard Waste Site, of course!

Would someone tell me what Brad Bennett said yesterday on his 710 AM talk show re: “Indian giver?” A friend of mine (who is Caucasian) said it was disrespectful, insulting and racist.

I’m seeking a little help from the PDD community. I work for 50 Below Sales & Marketing and, like everyone else there, I haven’t been paid in over a week. That’s roughly 300 people who have had to get through Thanksgiving without the money they earned. Some have gone even longer due to bounced checks.

I don’t really want to get into how this came to be, maybe someone else can step up with that info if anyone is curious. What I’m here for is some advice on what (if anything) I can do. I’m sure everyone will see their money at some point but that’s not enough. Who does people recommend I talk to to try and make sure we don’t get screwed again? Lawyers? I hear they cost money. Unions? Some kind of labor group?

Any thoughts are welcome.

(more…)

I’m thankful the server that hosts the PDD Calendar is back up and running, after a day of problems. (Ironically, in setting up the links below I noticed that last year my personal Internet service was down just before Thanksgiving, and I was thankful for it being restored. Ah, the joy of technical issues around the holidays!)

Anyway, what are you all thankful for this year, fellow Duluthians?

(Here’s what PDDers were thankful for in 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004 and 2003.)

Does anybody have any idea what might be in store for the old Washburn Edison Charter School at 201 W. St. Andrews St. now that it is no longer being used as a school? I have a hard time imagining it’s all that cost effective for the Duluth Bible Church to continue there alone.

Singer/songwriter Caitlin Robertson’s first CD will be released in December. She will be performing Dec. 9 in Duluth at Fitger’s. She was interviewed for Ennyman’s Territory this past week and it is posted there today.

OK first, this is a first. Me writing to suggest we organize an effort to get someone on the stage of A Prairie Home Companion when the show comes to Duluth in February. It’s not quite like calling a local radio station to request a song, but not all that far off either.

It reminds me of the time I called Sirius XM ’60s on 6 host Phlash Phelps when Duluth was the mystery city of the day. I actually sent him about a dozen quick facts which he used throughout the morning. Patty was not amused.

I like Trampled by Turtles (listening now while I pour through data for a report) and believe they’d be a natural for the PHC audience. So, I’ve posted on the PHC Facebook page suggesting they contact the group to see if they’re available. Maybe you’ll consider a similar post.

Tuesday, Nov. 22
The Harbor City International School hosts a night of cultural experiences.

Wednesday, Nov. 23
Aftershock is playing at a Pre-Thanksgiving party at the Gopher Restaurant and Lounge. Gallus, Old Knifey and Snobarn play a show at Luce.

Thursday, Nov. 24
The DECC is hosting its 21st annual free Thanksgiving Buffet.

Friday, Nov 25
Find some great snowmobile action at the Duluth National Snocross at Spirit Mountain. There will be two nights of rock at Clyde Iron with Hairball performing Friday and Saturday. The What Four opens on Firday. Hypnotist Gabriel Holmes brings his act to Teatro Zuccone.

Saturday, Nov. 26
Hairball night two with opening act Menace. The jazz trio from Minneapolis, The New Standards, plays at the Mitchell Auditorium. Local group, Excuse Me, Princess plays a CD release show at Beaners.

Check the PDD Calendar for more events!

Here it is, the annual gallery of local goods, submitted for your holiday shopping approval. If you’re going get all material this Christmas, it might as well be local material, right?

In most cases you can acquire these items in retail stores or shop online. Click on the images for more information and links.

We know there are more ways to spread the holiday cheer, so add to the list of ideas through the comments to this post. And if you can’t get enough of this stuff, check out the PDD Gift Guide 2010 and PDD Gift Guide 2009. Most of those items are still around.

Saturday was the Asian & Pacific American Culture Show at UMD.
“How We Came to Be Here” was hosted by UMD’s Asian Pacific American Student Association. Kate and I enjoyed a night of Asian arts, cultural performance, and delicious Asian cuisine catered by Sala Thai. (more…)

Are you:

• An alum of the School of Fine Arts at UMD?
• Still living in the Twin Ports area?
• Currently making a portion of your income through creation of your art (music, visual arts, theater)?

A student group through UMD’s School of Fine Arts is looking to organize an alumni panel event and discussion in the Spring of 2012 for students of the SFA. Our mission is to provide our students the opportunity to a.) hear from those in the area who have succeeded in creating their art for a living and b.) ask questions about the ins and outs of doing so.

If you are an alum of UMD’s School of Fine Arts and are interested in helping to provide an important educational experience for our students, please email ellis477 @ d.umn.edu with the subject: SFA Alumni Panel.

Look forward to hearing from you talented people!

The DNT ran a story today detailing a new mixed-use residential/commercial plan for the site of the former Woodland Middle School.  The developer bought the site from the school district in September. You may be familiar with the developer’s other projects like Boulder Ridge and Campus Park.

Currently the plan is to reuse the school building itself, and add one-to-three additional buildings. The student-focused housing would have 300 beds in mainly four bedroom units. If demand is high enough this could be increased to 1,000 beds. The retail aspect of the new development would include restaurants. The DNT story named  Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods as some potential additions.  A hotel is also being considered.

Sounds like the new development would open in Fall 2013 or 2014.

The full story can be found here.

What do you think about this plan? Is it a good idea? If not what would you propose? Personally, I think no matter where students go in high concentrations that residences in the same area will take a “not in my backyard” attitude. This development may not solve all the student housing issues, but it will alleviate it to some degree, and create jobs.

On the retail side what would you like to see at the site? A friend of mine would really like to see a Chipotle, Panera, or faster food pasta place. I would love to see more locally owned restaurants go in. Duluth Grill part 2?

If you are trying to make sense of the “Proposed Property Tax for 2012″ statement you got in the mail last week, check out the following link on the Minnesota Dept. of Revenue website. I found it helpful in explaining the changes related to the axed Homestead Tax Credit: “Understanding Recent Changes in Homestead Benefits
For Property Tax Purposes.”

Does anyone have any recommendations of where to get a simple professional head shot taken?  I am just looking for a photographer perhaps in downtown Duluth that would do a good job for a fair price.

The past few Sundays we’ve noticed that our favorite Caribbean Roots/DJ Mouse programming on KUMD seems to be lacking DJ Mouse. Does anyone know what happened?

Below, just a few photos from Nerd Nite at Teatro Zuccone in Downtown Duluth, November 2011.
Nerds, can you chime in with your best memories? (more…)