The Big E and I sent our kids to Lakeside Presbyterian Preschool and we think its a pretty neat place. Our kids are alumni, but one of the teachers there asked me to post this flyer in a nutshell:

Open House Thursday, March 1 5:30-7pm. Preschool for 3-5 year olds.

LPNS Open House flier

That’s all the info I’ve got. Call them for more.

Rick Nolan is running against Chip Cravaack in the 8th Congressional District.

Bonus time is almost here and this new Duluth resident would like to add air conditioning to the upper floor of the house I bought last August. (With our current weather, it seems like summer is just around the corner.) Home uses hot water to heat, so no ducts! Can anyone recommend someone?

There’s been a lot of heat on PDD, on the DNT, and apparently, even on NPR, about the “Unfair” campaign to raise consciousness about the existence of structures that result in white privilege. As a result, questions of race and class and gender are flaring to the foreground.

Just for a brief counterpoint, I want today to take a look at a program that “does it right” — that recognizes that race is one variable, an important one, but only one in a matrix of privilege and works to destabilize that matrix. (more…)

Can anyone suggest a Duluth-area finance institution that borrows 15 years + fixed rate for a mortgage, and keeps the loan local/in-house?

I’m just wondering if anyone has any good places to go get an oil change for a 2010 VW Jetta TDI.  This will be the first time it won’t be performed by a VW dealer because the free oil changes have expired. I’m assuming Foreign Affairs might be my best option. Normally I change my oil in all my vehicles but this is the first diesel engine I’ve ever owned, so I’m a little nervous to do it myself.

I need some advice on my circa-early-1900s plumbing. The tub plugs up about every 6 to 9 months. We snake out a good hair clog and move on with our lives. Tonight we can’t snake the clog. This happened one other time and we paid Roto Rooter a couple hundred dollars for a visit. The Roto Rooter guy tried to sell me some treatment for another couple hundred dollars that would smooth out the pipes and stop future clogs. It sounded like snake oil last time, but now I’m wondering if they can actually do something to help. So A) I’d like opinions on a good Duluth plumber to work on a clog and B) would like to know if the Roto Rooter treatment is worth $200 (or whatever it costs these days).

Wondering if there are local photographers/graphic designers in Portslandia who are willing to help others figure out what they should/should not be doing in their digital workflow. I’m talking everything from camera settings to output. I’m sick of looking for answers in online forums. I need someone to sit down with me at my computer and let me throw questions at them. I’m running Lightroom 3 and Photoshop 4 on a Mac. Paid or unpaid help is appreciated!

We are looking to replace our furnace this spring. Can anyone recommend some places that sell and install furnaces?

Last night I attended a very special evening of area writers sharing essays, poems and stories at Teatro Zuccone. It’s really exciting to see this kind of event assembled. Kudos to all involved. If winter is the off-season for the Duluth arts and culture scene, you’d never know it by all the things happening in our community these days. Here’s a link to my review of the event last night and the writers who alternately made us laugh or think more deeply about the meanings of our lives, sometimes at the same time.

The Podium at Teatro Zuccone

We have an upcoming, at least week-long, visit to the Mayo in Rochester. We’ve stayed at the Fiksdal. Does anyone have any recommendations for not-too-expensive but not awful lodging etc. in Rochester?

I have a small plate for my guitar that I want to have engraved with my initials. After a quick search I’ve found a few places that would be able to do this for me, but I was hoping some of the fine folks here have any experience or recommendations with any of these companies.

Ideally, it would be laser engraving about 1×2 inches.

Jack is working with Nate Rendulich of Blue Water Dance and Keith Yanes of Coal Car Caboose and will be playing around town starting this Spring. Download the EP for free!

http://jackcampbell.bandcamp.com/album/control

Let’s say you were sending a care package to someone. You want it to reflect Duluth. The female recipient is in college out of state and isn’t from Duluth (although her parents are recent transplants). What would you send?

The Duluth Public Library is working on updating its list of places (other than the library) where patrons can access computers for internet access, word processing, etc.

Even with expanded hours coming, it’s good to give folks options if they aren’t near a library, need access when the library is closed, or have used up their computer time for the day.

The library has a pretty good list going, but I thought we could crowd-source a bit and see if anyone out there can suggest additions. We know about local colleges (UMD, St. Scholastica, and Lake Superior College) that offer some level of access to non-students, as well as the UPS store, which offers computer time for a fee. What are we missing? Where else can we refer our patrons?

Thanks!
Jeremy Osgood
Duluth Public Library

The other night my p.o.s. car took a poop. It seems to be something electrical. After a few attempted jumps nothing will power on, of course this happened on the first cold morning we’ve had all damn month.

I’m going to have to have it towed. Who should I take to? I live in the Hillside, but I’m a little leery of Hemlock because of a past experience, and my boyfriend recently had sub-par service from Murphy’s.

Open to any suggestions!

My parents are taking a little vacation from Minnesota down to Apache Junction, AZ [they will hike more in the 6 weeks they are there than my wife and I will all year]. They have an iPad and very little technical moxy. The condo they are in does not have ISP; and they would like temporary internet service.
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Where do people go for fun or to hang out on a regular basis? I am trying to find a fun place to hang out other than on Friday or Saturday. I am 28 and don’t like to sit at home all the time.

Real people. Real Duluth. Downtown living is real living, folks… not that other neighborhoods aren’t “real,” but come on, the casino is my neighbor!

http://duluth.craigslist.org/apa/2764171933.html

I moved here a few months ago and love the area. My wife is looking for two types of stores: A Hobby Lobby type of store, and a good baker’s supply store. Can anyone help me out here?

I’m getting married next summer and we are looking for a venue for our reception. I’m hoping to be able to either choose a caterer or do our own food and hold 250-300 people. I saw the post from last year and looked into several of those suggestions but I thought I’d see if anyone had any new ideas.

This summer I took the folks out west to visit family and began what I hope may become a growing gallery on PDD. Shots of the PDD sticker/logo and where it has traveled (or been spotted).

The Mount Rushmore shots turned out ok ….

Perfect Duluth Day sighting at Mount Rushmore

But it’s the accidental pictures with the roaming, wild asses that turned out to be even more of a treat for me.

Wild Ass PDD Sighting, South Dakota

Now, who’s got some more?

Can anyone point me to good places to ice skate or cross-country ski on lakes around Duluth this week? Looking for lakes with a sheet of smooth-ish ice or with an inch or two of snow to ski on.

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My parents are up in town this weekend and wanted to know where to get good wild rice. They indicated they wanted cracked broken pieces and whole grain. I am by no means a wild rice expert. Can anyone help?

I just moved to Duluth and I’m a homebrewer. I was wondering if there is any local places to refill Co2 tanks for kegerators?  I have my own tank.

I am contemplating joining the technologically advanced, putting down the dusty library book and purchasing an e-reader. Does anyone have any opinions about the pros and cons of the Kindle versus the Nook? I don’t necessarily need the tablet aspect of it, primarily I would use it for reading, probably listen to Pandora while reading, but that’s about it. I’m not big on games so I can live without that feature.

I heard a good question I have not been able to find the answer to yet. Is the Nook limited to only Barnes and Noble books or can you get books from Amazon too? Is one easier to use than the other? If you have any suggestions, I’d love to hear them.

We have been trying to get a hold of some leather rivets and other tools for working leather to no avail.  Obviously the internet will have plenty of what we are trying to find, but the internet is for wussies.

I’ve tried Michael’s, Hancock Fabrics, Menards, Kmart, Target and Harbor Freight ToolsThatSmellBad.  While we were able to find a leather punch tool, nobody has any rivets for joining pieces of leather together.

There has to be someone around town that specializes in this kind of work, other than some place like Duluth Pack which doesn’t actually sell the stuff.

Extra points for a place with a variety of supplies.

I am about 90% sure I am getting my first pair of snowshoes for Xmas this year. I have always wanted to get into this but need some advice on a few things. Besides the actual snowshoes, what kind of actual shoe is best to wear? Is snowshoeing something that needs to be practiced or is it pretty much walking in the snow? I live very close to Hartley Nature Center so that will be the main trail but where are some other good places to go in town? Any advice would be appreciated.

I am looking for a videographer that can help me with a project. I am looking for someone that is creative, unique, and likes people. It will be a compensated project, and needs to look good. Any suggestions or contacts?

Winter is upon us, and we have decided to get a remote car starter. We are new to the area, and do not know much about these things. We thought the nice people here might have some advice on what remote starter to get and what local Duluth/Superior business is good to install it. We would like to have a remote starter that can start the car from far away, and have it installed by some good people in the area. Does anyone have experience with this? Thanks!