"Once More into the breach, dear friends, once more,"

"How like a winter hath my absence been
From thee, the pleasure of the fleeting year!"


gone again, see ya in a fortnight

Perfect Wrenshall Day

My day started out with a family get-together which was a lot of fun. Here is my nephew doing his thing on the swing.



I then traveled to the country to the film festival. (http://www.freerangefilm.com)



While I was there the fog was hovering over a field filled with hay bails, with the moon shining through the clouds. I probably took 75 photos of this. I still have no idea which one(s) I like best. But this one is one of the better ones.



To me the festival is summed up in this photo. Nothing like hay bails to section off the seating.



BTW: I'm addicted to black and white photog-y now. Secondly, I showed up around 10pm to the film festival, and most everyone cleared out before the last film, which was definately the best that I saw. Tis a shame. (no idea on the quality of films pre-10pm.)

Baby Judy Memorial

I recieved this information and decided to pas it on.

There will be a gathering of hearts and minds for Nate this Sunday at
"Red" from 6PM until 1AM. Everyone who is able is encouraged to attend.
Come raise your glass to and share your memories of our dear friend
Nate.

Some food will be provided along with a cash bar.

Red is located in the Foshay Tower in downtown Minneapolis.

821 Marquette Av. (in the Foshay Tower), Minneapolis
Sunday August 1st, 2004 6PM-1AM.

FRFF Tonight, Tomorrow

This is the weekend for the Free Range Film Festival in Wrenshall.
Directions, schedule, etc are on the web site.

I hear there will be a popcorn machine.

Threnody to Baby Judy

post? not post? post? not post? post? not post?

After having these kinds of thoughts for the past week, I finally decided to post this on PDD.

I wrote the following column the night of Nate Forneris' (aka. DJ Baby Judy) viewing as soon as I got home.

I'm not looking for comments, attention, adoration, sympathy or critiques. I simply wrote what I felt had to be said in my own way and thought maybe some of you might be interested in reading my threnody.

Go to http://www.mnartists.org and click on "The column: Threnody" about half-way down the page in the left column.

It was was the least I could do. I'm tired of sitting on my hands about this.

take care, everyone.

Ellen: The Follow-up

I just got back from meeting my friend Ellen in Grand Rapids. I must say that overall it was a very pleasant visit. Bringing along my friend Maria sure helped with conversation. Maria was successful in minimally offending her throughout the night. Luckily, Ellen was not so nearly the Christian fanatic as she came off to be. At first I was quite worried because she was wearing a shirt with a quote about God with large cross in the background. But she was kind of one of those progressive "do good" christians. We ate at Brewed Awakenings, a real cool coffee shop/sandwich shop i would highly recommend. We dissed Bush and company. Then, we tried to go bowling, but the bowling alley was closed at 8 o'clock on a Thursday evening. But Maria did get a free pair of new socks out of the deal. We took pictures in front of the Judy Garland House. And We finished the evening with a visit to DQ. Overall not bad. I'm still alive. And no mention of marriage. And i'm no christian. Not to bad for one night.

Movies at sailboat park

Some of the cheesiest sci-fi I've ever witnessed. It's so bad it's funny. That's my recommendation for the next showing... you?

Ahhh....Zoloft

The keeper of my happiness,
Yet the messenger of my sickness.
The instant happiness I love,
yet the cause of my pain.
Ah, but we have to depart,
At least for some time.

Look Ma, No Wires!

Ahh technology. I am sitting upstairs at the Brewhouse as I type this completely free of wires. My new Powerbook G4 is performing flawlessly courtesy of the Brewhouse WiFi. I love gadgets way more than I should.

By the way I purchased my new puter from Smalldog.com and I enthusiastically recommend them. I purchased an Apple refurb which saved about 500 bucks and comes with a one year warranty.

Cheers.

Splitting heirs

Turns out that where Ralph Nader is having trouble getting signatures, republicans are there to help hoping that he'll split the democratic vote.
Well, two can play that game! RECRUIT PEROT!!!
Okaaay, never thought I would be saying that... back to work now.

Ahead of the curve

Apparently, PDD is on to something. (If you need to register, go here.)

Capitol Hill Blue: Bush Using Drugs to Control Depression, Erratic Behavior

Capitol Hill Blue: Bush Using Drugs to Control Depression, Erratic Behavior

First off sorry for multiple posts.
Secondly this is... Odd. Some of you know that issues of mental illness strike closely to home for me because of people in my life, so I have to step carefully in addressing this issue. If true, this story could explain much about Bush. Amusingly (in a dark way) it shows if your family has money you can become president, if not, you end up in a treatment facility. I don't know weather to feel sorry for the Prez or scared... Perhaps a bit of both?

weird

This is ptrety cool....   Cdnoult blvelee taht I cluod aulacity uesdnatnrd waht I was rdgnieg.   The Paomnnehal Pweor of the Hmuan Mnid Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, is deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.     Ptrety Amzanig Huh?

All this for only $2.95

twins separated at birth

 

we're moving into this house in one month.  i wish everyone could come over right away, but brian is too horrified by the pink wood paneling and won't let anyone past the front door until it's gone.  hmm, maybe i could sneak you in through the kitchen.  anyway, we'll soon have plenty of room to host craft night!

The Fair

The Head of the Lakes Fair is in town.  This is the Real Fair, not "Captain Ridemore's Mighty Duluth F***fest" or whatever in a parking lot.  This fair has stock car races, Molly Hatchet, and 4-H rabbits.  I think real fairs were started in rural areas and were focused on agricultural competitions like who could grow the biggest pumpkin or cow, or who could make the best pie.  I like pie, and so does my friend Bubba, but he doesn't want to go to the fair - he thinks it sucks.

Granted there are a lot of losers at the fair, but that's what I like so much about it.  I guess I revel in lameness and futility.  Once, we biked there and climbed over the fence to get in free.  Later, a guy walking past me, looking like a Village Person , burped super loud right in my ear.  I was really mad at the time but now its one of my favorite memories (?)  Bubba, won't you go to the fair with me?

Big lay-offs at work today - and amazingly I was not one of them (HR hates me). I feel sad for the laid off people, but I guess I'm happy that I still have a job. Survivor's guilt I guess.
Then I drank beer at the Anchor and watched Catwoman. It was pretty horrible, but since I'm a comic-geek, I had to see it (and Halle Berry's pretty).
Sleepy time now, and set an alarm for tomorrow - go me.

PDD Poll Results

Is Kelly:) Real?

Yes [50 votes, 53.19%]
No [44 votes, 46.81%]

Coming Home!

Getting ready to head back home to the Northland for two weeks of no work, no big city and no responsibilities.  I have been taking ice cold showers to prepare for the chill of Lake Superior, loaded up Lilo the dog with her Frontline and Lymes disease booster shots and added new tunes to the I-Pod. 
Looking forward to night swimming, celebrating Purple's birthday, seeing my old friends and maybe meeting some of the unknown folks of PDD. 
And the bonus-I Since I am cabletvless here in Chicago I can watch the rest of Shark Week on the Discovery Channel on Dad's sattelite dish!

Tren Loco, Train Fou

Not to be confused with the Rock & Roll Kami-Kaze Trainwreck (which has a sign-up deadline of Friday, August 31--register at the Electric Fetus or online at [email protected]--and a show date of Friday, September 10).

Bastard

Attempting to mind my own business, already having a sucky day and not trying to spread ill will, I run into a bastard. As I am coming out of the co-op an old man angrily says to me, "Voting for Bush?" I just look at him. He yells, "I didn't think so fucking retard." Damn, some of these people are getting so crazy and violent about this. This reminds me of a similiar situation that occurred during Bush's visit. There were a group of protesters trying to cross the street, an angry mom in a minivan full of kids whipped around the corner almost hitting the group, yelling at them like her head was about to explode. This behavior is getting all too common.

The Magical Properties of Cheese

What CAN'T be accomplished with food nowadays?

Wow. Old-school.

This picture was taken July 11 in Superior's Allouez neighborhood; the sign has recently been changed.

I don't know if this is a tax-exempt church, but if it is, I guess it recently dawned on the congregation that the IRS considers this type of promotion of a political candidate to be a prohibited activity.

Working Blue...

...has been updated with new material.

Here we go.

she's almost sea worthy

 
boat rides this weekend

My time is NOW! Or perhaps in the Fall

I knew that someday I'd be IN!
 
P.S.  My B-day is next Friday, August 6th. I'd like the washable suede jacket & leather booties on page one, the jeweled pendant and open-toed pumps on page three,......Hell, just get me EVERYTHNG!
 

So i had this friend named Ellen in 7th grade when i lived in Leesville, LA. She wasn't a great friend or anything. I had her in an english class of mine, and she was kind of the class nerd. She didn't have very many friends. I knew her for about one year. After 7th grade, my family moved to Bemidji, MN. I haven't seen my friend Ellen since that summer when we ran into each other and exchanged addresses. Now she lives in Illinois. We kept in contact fairly well and wrote letters every so often. Our contact ended 5 years ago, and i hadn't heard from her since. About three months ago, i got a letter from Ellen. She told me that she runs the youth group at her church now and hopes to someday attend seminary. She also told me that she was going to be in Northern Minnesota in July. She was going to be heading up a bible camp group. When she was in the area, she wanted to meet in person. I thought that it might be cool to meet up with an old friend. So i wrote her back saying that it would be alright, but in my head i never thought it would work out. Well, i get this call today from her. She is in Minnesota and wants to meet up. I thought this was all kind of weird but okay until she said that her bible camp group wanted to meet me too. And that they want me to marry her. But she told me that we'd have to meet first and take it slow. I didn't know what to say. I don't know when this whole thing became a date! I am supposed to meet her at the Burger King in Grand Rapids on this Thursday at 9:30 pm. It's gonna be awkward. I hope she doesn't try to save my soul when she learns more about me.

Hello.

Hey PC users: If you're one of those people who likes to post pictures, but don't want to resize them for PDD, you might want to try Hello, yet another member of the Google family. Hello has a function called BloggerBot, which you can use to make picture posts on PDD. It's pretty easy to use once you get it set up.

I'm using Hello to make this post. Well, I was at first. I see only two problems.

1. You can't make a title.
2. When you hit enter, the post publishes. So you can only make one paragraph, unless you want to use Blogger to go back and edit, which is what I'm doing now.

Anyway, it's something to look at. I think the best thing is that when you click the picture above, you can see a larger version of it.

Reactor Gypsies

Speaking of bad grammer, I've been writing down some of the more interesting spam messages I've received lately. Most sound like pretty decent band names. Any others out there? I apologize that there is no holy ass fucking involved, but I'm sure something will surface in future spams I receive.

1. Abusable Bouquet
2. Bigger Banana
3. Salad Dressing Haunches
4. Impudent Shoulder
5. Exception Camel
6. Dick Begay (in the sender's field)

...and of course, Reactor Gypsies.

HOLY FUCKING SHIT.

two weekends in a fucking ROW, man! that's right, i'm in madeline island with barrett chase and paul lundgren and there is a puter in the bar, AGAIN, and i am drunkenly blogging. oh, sweet, sweet long island iced teas, help me be fucked and funny. we just saw some ass-fucking northern lights, it was like we were, you know, being ass-fucked by the beauty of the darling lord jesus. beautious jesus (is that how you spell beautious? fuck spell-check), thank you for your borealis. how does it feel to be the victim of two of my drunken posts in a week? not as reveliltory (sp, again) as being ass-fucked, i bet. now here's barrett chase, ass-face!

===
This computer has a warning. 3.86 w/ 13.3 modem. So it's a little slow. A guy behind me just requested that we "look up some dirty fucken porn. right now." I fucken agree. I'm here with the fucken pumpkin instigator and the fucken victim. And we better go before this shit freezes all over our recently fucked asses. Adios.

BWCA #3, 4

I don't have a whole lot more of these, because I took a disposable camera instead of a decent one (afraid to get it wet). However you can look at my slowly developing site to see the rest, the site will have other cool photos from over the past 18 years sooner or later, which I will shamelessly promote as long as the majority do not rise up and bicker about it.

Mara-blog

I am taking part in Project Blog's 24 hour blogging marathon - writing and updating my blog every half hour for 24 hours. I started at 8am EST. I am raising money for One Parent Families here in the UK.

Pop by and say hello... :)

Words are flimsy

An odd week here at Pdd, loss and loss and family woes. My sympathies to those who lost their friend, and adios Neal.


hmmmm... Perhaps this will help? The Velvet Underground's White Light White Heat played on banjo, bass guitar, ruler, music box, violin, toy piano, electric guitar, accordion, squeezebox, euphonium, ukulele, kazoo, xylophone, pixiphone, uumskither, mbira, pod, delay, turntable and percussion.

A new way to vent your spleen!

In the interest of keeping PDD a happy and warm place, I'd like to offer a quick invite to a new way to spend more of your time on the internet. http://www.pist.com ! Yes here we welcome angry cold people. From dirty tricks and intra-cubie warfare to office sex and reviews of hateful memos, PIST.COM is your online home for un-abashed venting and no-holds barred ranting.

Just go and register....if you want to join the pist.com ranks, you could become a cry baby and administer the forums, disgruntled and post reviews or articles or one day even become POSTAL and have the keys to the whole site. Revel in the dark side.

Goodbyes

I've never posted on here but i've been reading it for many months.

First a goodbye to Baby Judy.  I remember acting with him in "Much Ado About Nothing" and being at way too many Two Sleepy People Shows. And who could forget Swank Night at the 'Shore.

Second, goodbye Duluth.   After 11 strange and wonderful years, I'll be heading to Madison.  Most of you probably know me as that little quiet guy w/ the black glasses that worked at Disc Go Round forever.  I've been at all the shows hanging out quietly in the back corner tapping my toe.  I know that Madison is this all hip town and everything, but could anything compare to the frozen winds and the warm community of duluth?  I wish I could take that lake with me.   I have many friends and friends of friends and friends of friends of friends here.

Duluth, keep making great music and wonderful art.  Keep supporting the little guy.  Keep encouraging those creative minds at Washington Studios, Renegade Theatre, the MAC, and all those creative places.  And please take care of my wonderful girlfriend Carrie Mohn, AKA Trinity, who stays behind in this Northern Town (a hey o ma ma).  She requires a Luce chocolate martini a day.

Whenever you see obnoxious tourists, please moon them for me.

-Neal

No Blood Ties

Well, except for the little pirate, whom I'll except even when he tells me to go to HE double hockey sticks. So, needless to say, I was feeling like complete shit after the Nate news. One of the things I remember about Nate was that he was the youngest in his family (of 8, I think), he was the black-sheep, and (like myself) could be a belligerent AHole.
 
So, I broke it off with my family, in the most unseemly manner. I already regret the drunken, grief-stricken, voice-mail message that I left. But not the reason behind the message. If they want to see Lp, they have the number. Otherwise, my calendar is free for all holiday gatherings.

4NERIS 4EVER

 A follow-up on the sad news.

Nate will be missed.

Memorial information:

There will be a wake for him tomorrow Friday, Jul 23rd, 2004 from 6-7 PM at Bell Brothers in West Duluth.

The funeral service will be held Saturday Jul 24th, 2004 at St James Catholic Church in West Duluth as well.

Thanks to Craig L from duluth.happypenguin.org for the info.

Polling data galore

If you are a bit of a political junky Rasmussen Reports may appeal to you. There are a few annoying points about it though. Over time it looks like it may have a slight right bent to it, and they tend to overinflate minor shifts in polling data, when it can be expanded by "margin of error"

Very very sad news

I just read this on the Duluth 80's people website.  I am shocked and saddened to say the least.

Bad news people, Nate Forneris was found dead in his apartment from an apparent suicide. I have been working with Nate at the Wedge Co-of where he was a supervised in the meat department and all of us at the store are shocked and saddened as I know you are upon reading this news. If you have questions or answers on any service give me a call at **************. I am guessing there will be something down here in the cities as well as something in Duluth.

Families Are Weird...

I'm letting this all out here because if I don't let it out somewhere, someone will become the victim of my emotional explosion. Are there others PDDers out there who, through little fault of their own, are the black sheep, or scapegoat, for all their family's problems?
 
Well, that's what I am. And I'm fucking tired of it. I can't even go into the details of why my sister and step-mom are mad at me because, frankly, I don't know. I get entirely no support from them and I'm just tied of feeling emotionally gutted by their lack of support and understanding, and the way that they talk about me behind my back and to others.. If they don't want to communicate with me, then fine, but then they blame me for not getting in touch with them! 

 So, I had a kid out-of-wedlock. Big fucking deal! So, getting my Masters Degree, a good job, and raising my son to be a respectful, thoughtful person, are higher priorities on my list than getting a husband or engaging myself in their catty little two-some. I'm tired of having to apologize for who I am and made to feel like shit because they can't deal with their own inadequacies!

Short(s) Notice

It didn't look like a beach day earlier, but as of 4:10 p.m. it's 95 degrees out there. I'm throwin' on the ol' Speedo and headin' to the Point after work. See you there.

Apparently someone doesn't like Duluth

I just read this article in the paper today - it's hysterical! Apparently someone has an anti-Duluth website and the city is contacting it's attorneys! Holy over-reaction Batman!

Voyageur Voyeur

I just got a letter from a guy in New York who wants to come to Geek Prom and is looking for inexpensive lodging. I recommended the Voyageur Lakewalk Inn. Then I did some research and found this.

Duluth Rocked

Someone sent me a press release about this a while back, but for some reason I didn't post it. Check out duluthrocked.com and listen to samplings of local bands from the 1970s, and maybe buy the compilation CD. The one they sell on the site is Volume 3, I'm not sure what happened to 1-2, or what was on them.

I'd really like to see some photographs from past times in the Duluth/Superior scene. Peter Scholtes of Complicated Fun recently posted some ultraswank images of Morris Day and other Minneapolis funk legends from the '70s. I know we were never that cool, but does anyone out there have any pics from the olden days? Hell, I'd like to see some shots from the Cove in 1978. This is the perfect venue to share them, if you got 'em. Don't be shy.

bwca 2

Kicked a kid off the trip, and one sliced his hand open pretty good, got a monster bruise on my left leg that I show everyone shamelessly, and don't ask me about teenage boys and what they are led around by. More photos as the days go by. -end

Be careful out there

So, last year when the waves picked up and people were getting swept out in the lake, I was skeptical. I'd been in the lake with even bigger waves and never had trouble swimming back in. Then there was the boogie boarding hero who saved a number of people.

I was just out there with a kayak and a boogie board, and there were several people having trouble getting back to shore at the tot lot beach. Myself included. Now I'm not trying to claim the throne of 2004 boogie boarding hero, but I did help someone in. With a boogie board. They're really quite useful! Then she screamed at her friend "I'm never swimming in this lake again!!!"

Somethings definitely going on in that water. Maybe it's all the extra bird poop. I didn't check today's fecal coliform warnings, but I sure swallowed a lot of water. Mmmm

As we were leaving there were a bunch of fire trucks, a rescue boat, and ambulance heading farther out on park point. Not good. Watch yourselves PDDers. Remember, swim parallel to the shore, perpendicular to the rip current, wait an hour after eating, always have a buddy with you, and use that sunblock.

Renter's Rights?

I went away this weekend and came back to a refridgerator full of rotten food. My fridge was dead and I had, unfortunately, spent my last 40 bucks on filling it with doomed food.  My landlord is replacing the fridge today, but does anyone know what my rights are as far as getting reimbursed for the lost groceries?  I'm hungry.

bwca #1

A perfect way to raise a generation of prudes...

It's all lies! I'm perfectly healthy (no hunch-back or anything)! ;)

happy perfectduluthbirthday foggy!

This Land is Whose Land?

You must watch this.

Perfect Duluth Weekend

So,
 
-50 hours of fun, sun, parking cars and excellent music...
-barely 4 hours of fitful sleep...
-talking sh$t w/ c-freak, Mr. Boo, and the rest of the working staff over the motorola...(it's surprising what's good for a laugh when you get punchy from being overworked, sunbaked, and just plain wore out)
-That One Guy, Low, Devil in a Woodpile, and Savage...
-Random Radio filling in the voids between bands...
--Perfect Duluth Weekend
 
thanks to everyone.
 
 

My Best Green Man Pic

 
I was way too laid back and sunbaked to carry a camera around.  Nontheless, this pretty much sums the whole thing up.

perfect thunder bay

yo, dawgs, this is john ruvelson and i don't know my password or whatever. anyway. Awlrightvmoveoverbitch! You know not so  far north is the salt fish down the ole the finnish hall. Or "my old fininshed hole" I'm funny in Canada . I watch marias beer while she smokes and she does and I  digres to my bloody and "the the devel and i went down to gerorgia". tomorrow after Georgias done i'l lgo on back to duluth or return from my States escape to the sorry realities of all that stuff that too much attention is paid.. I'm now turing down a nice Canuck's offer of another free beer .I'm not coming back divde my CDs amongst yourselves.

thunder fuckin bay

so, dunno if all y'all realized this, but there is a computer IN THE BAR here in the sleazy thunder bay hotel that zoey, i, etc. are at, and we are all typing this shiznit with a beer in one hand and a cigarette in the other. (well, smoking in bars is illegal now in t-bay, so the cigarette dangling from our lip is merely metaphorical. we are hypothetically badass.) and we are listening to, and singing, karaoke. BADASS, i tell you. --i think we're alone now.-- uh, so, i could type a few hundred more words but i don't want to infringe on kelly's (artificial) territory of senile randomness, so i will bow out. just know, bloggerati, that thunder fuckin bay is kicking our asses. i talked to a stoned punk rock boy in a tree a few hours ago. during a hipster rummage sale. i won't be returning to duluth ever again.

Funderbay

Well, here we (Zoey, Ruvelson, Little Patrick, Mary and Maria) are in Canudia.  That's right, we are staying at the Shoreline Motor Hotel for a weekend of pure fun.  It has been surreal.  Last night I won $30 for singing some Tom Jones at karaoke night.  Right now the DJ is singing "Papa Don't Preach". Can it get any better that this?? John thinks Thunderbay is the new Duluth.

Stuff I thought was cool

Well I just found a jackpot of old Duluth pictures at duluthhistory.com. Maybe there was 1 "h".
Population of Duluth
1860 - 71
1870 - 3,131
1875 - 2,953
1900 - 52,969

I wanted to add some pictures, but I'm not sure how anymore. I did it before...

Chester Creek Tunnels...maybe

So today I went over by the laundromat on 4th street. The 6 of us climbed down and there was a short tunnel there. I dont know if these are the Chester Creek tunnels, but I kept going. So we had a hard time, some of the boys whining about getting their shoes wet. Then we got to the big tunnel. There was this drunk native there, he was our native trail guide. (Nothing against natives, just it seemed more nature-y that he was native.) Either way, he led us through the tunnel. It was long, and quite dark with one low battery flash light and a few lighters. Well, a ways in, it gets real deep. Like, up to my waist. About 8 times, the boys kept saying they were turning back, and my ex boyfriend and another friend dead-stopped at that point. They were soo concerned about keeping dry. Well eventually they came, but anyways...It was real fun, and the native guy, who we continually called "Guy" was a big help. I would do it again, even if these aren't the creek tunnels. I dont think they were, considering someone said something about an uncrossable place. The boys called it a sewer. But it was just the normal creek, going through tunnels. Oh it was great, sooo great.

my perfect duluth day

Was out near the steam plant taking photos around bar close last night. Drunk people are anything but clever. . . "Yes, as a matter of fact I am taking a picture so it WILL last longer."

Pure genius.
 
 
 

Sweet. They made a bobble-head doll for Wally.

Damn I loved those Wally the Beerman "buy-for-less" Budget Liquor TV ads ten years ago. Now, my hero has a bobble-head doll. Most fitting tribute ... ever.

Green Man cometh.

I will be heading up to the Green Man shortly to set up Random Radio (93.5fm). We will commence broadcasting around Noon and continue on through Sunday at Noon. We should cover West Duluth pretty well so give it a listen.

Or, buy a ticket and get on up to Spirit Mountain. There are some pretty great bands playing and the price came down after Willie cancelled.

out.

Fun with Flash!

I went to **CENSORED** and picked up some Avery "Insertable Plastic Dividers" Basically colored folder dividers. They are made of light see-through plastic. My project is to tape the colored plastic over my flash. I basically have filters for my flash. I've also thought of putting these over my flashlight to make a colored spotlight for my night photography.
 
"Clean" Flash:

 
Filtered Flash:
        
 
Best $1.77 I've spent on my camera

PDD

I came up to Duluth yesterday because I knew the weather would be great. And it was absolutely beautiful. I drove up the North Shore, swam in Amity creek, hung out at Hawk Ridge, walked around Canal Park, viewed some of the classic cars on Superior street, and ate dinner at the Hacienda del Sol. The best part was seeing my favorite bridge on Seven Bridges Road get ripped to shreds by this monster. A perfect Duluth day!

going underground

So the other day I stopped by the local Inn and nailed a parchemnt to the wall..."party forming for dungeon adventure" I was contacted by a half elf rouge, and a comely one to boot, and we stole away to seek our fortune in the dank abyss of the chester creek tunnels.

We were confronted with many horrible monsters, the gelatenous cubes being most unfriendly.

The trip is not without it's lovely ascpects and we soon found ourselves deep in the infernal abyss...by walgreens...the ruins of previous civilizations lay, half buried, in the silt of time

At the end of the deepest tunnel we found the way blocked by a nearly unsurpassable trough. The rouge's climbing ability was good and we continued. Finally in a clearing, we found the throne of the creek king. He likes to quaff from a Colt from a 64. ANyone up for more urban adventuring?

Moms are weird.

My mom sent me an e-mail this morning with the subject line: RE: Dream. My immediate thought was: this is going to be the best damn thing I will read all day. Let me explain why by giving you some background on my mom and her dreams.

When I was in high school, my mom would fall asleep on the couch every night while watching TV, usually around eight o'clock. Once, I woke her up to ask her a question, and she replied with some crazy nonsense answer like, "The car wash is tomorrow at six, so get your bunnies ready and we'll eat the pizza on the roof." My mom really likes pizza (and washing the car, and bunnies). And she had absolutely no recollection of the discussion the next day. This gave me an idea. My mom is full of material! I've gotta write this stuff down and start using it. So I did. Every night, around eight or eight thirty, I would gently wake her up and wait for the magic to happen.

That's why I was so excited about reading her e-mail this morning, and she did not disappoint. So, here it is, in its entirety.

FYI: My parents call me Kab, and Malia was my best friend and next-door neighbor when I was a kid.

RE: Dream

Hi Kab, I just have to tell you about the crazy dream I had just before I woke up this morning - It was you, Malia and me and we were all going to high school together. We would move from class to class and the two of us just giggled and didn't pay attention to the teacher, but Malia was writing down a lot of stuff and then we would ask her to tell us what the teacher had said. We also had gym and for some reason we had to put on these plastic grocery bags that were lined with some kind of cloth. It was a crazy dream, but I wanted it to go on and then I woke up.


My mom. She's great!

dumpsta diva.

ATTENTION!!!!

Big orange dumpster at 717 E 8th St. is chock full of goodies for you to take. DO NOT go in the Blue dumpster which is full of Dooglas dirty diapers. This dumpster will be on site till Saturday.

Thank you for your attention.

german low

On Low's last tour a German dude named Sebastian Schrade followed us around with a bunch of cameras. He has now edited that footage into a 50 minute Documentary called Low in Europe. You can view a Trailer right here.

Teen-age hi-jinx or political anarchy - you decide...

Everyone has different opinions and different ways of expressing those opinions, and that's what makes ninjas so sweet. Sometimes you just have to go out and do things that others don't see the point of. Does the yuppie gay guy in San Francisco like being in the same parade as the gay guy in the leather zipper-mask? No, but he knows that the gimp is just expressing his opinion differently. So can't we learn a lesson from the gimp and yuppie and all just get along?
Bad Cat once found 1,300 PVC crosses on the lawn of the Cathedral (some abortion protest), and Bad Cat may or may not have been involved in turning every one of those crosses upside down a few hours before Sunday mass. Some may have viewed this as a "hate-crime" against the church, whereas others saw it as a crazy teen-age prank (perpetrated by a 26 year old woman).
The point is, expressing yourself sometimes means doing stupid/crazy/silly things. So let's stop all the political name-calling, and get on with stupid/crazy/silly stories! Bring 'em on!!! Ever try to set a flag on fire - and burn yourself? Did you throw red paint at someone wearing fur? (or fake fur - oops!) Did you make a big deal about protesting something, and find out you had your facts wrong? Come on and spill!

Mega Yummy or... Somebody's paying attention

After the First Ave TMBG show (which was fantastic.), Paul and I had become peckish. While deciding over drinks where to eat I perused a local (for Minneapolis) Upscale Rag and Lo and Behold the is a rather large Article about the Ups and Downs of the Duluth scene. I enjoyed it. I don't know if this has already been posted but the only mention of this mag on this blog is from Oct 2003. We decided to check out a cool place that neither of us had been to but I had read about.

It was fantastic.

They had cool bathrooms also.

So....how about Bush

Well anyways. I heard someone was a little upset by my ripping up the bush posters. Well, it was just a harmless joke. It was fun for both sides, like I said. Well, I do appreciate the free speech thing. It's great that even when the president was in our town, people could voice their opinion against him. Free speech is a beautiful thing. It was more of a debate. A teen thing. I hope that you understand. And anyways, I'm glad to be here and glad you guys like me most of the time. I know some people are against me, but hey, I'm just trying to liven things up. Well, I dont know what else to write on the subject, and since I probably shouldn't switch subjects, I better go. And I love whoever my fan club is!

Perfect Duluth Beach Wednesday

The last time I called a Perfect Duluth Beach Wednesday the weather immediately turned crappy. Well, I don't quit easy.

Let's go to Park Point after work. Bring your concealed alcohol and your polka-dot singlet, bring your kites and water balloons, bring your Frisbees, portable grills and boom-boxes. Arrive at 5:30ish, or whenever you can make it. If it takes you an hour to bike there and you'll be late, so be it. If you get off work early, start building a sand castle and wait for someone to arrive and occupy it with you.

The meeting point will be ... oh ... somewhere around the Beach House at the end of Minnesota Avenue. See you there.

I'm kicking myself this morning.

Dang. I should have bought the playing cards.
I wonder whose face is on the joker.

i just got searched by a BCA agent!

they searched the saddlebags on my harley!!! i went out earlier for a smoke and walked over by the loonies and walked back to the loading dock and went in the building. then i get a call to go to ticketing and this thug shows me his cred & says there was suspicious activity by my bike. asks me what's in the bags! i say stogies and my sweatshirt. he says let's have a look! jeezus h christ on a cross!! police freakin state!!

Baron von Pumpkin

"Baron von Raschke is a jewel. I always hoped my daughter would marry a guy like him, and I hope all her kids are like him."
-- Bobby "The Brain" Heenan

All the people need to know about the Baron is available here, including his appearance this Saturday at the American Legion in Eagle Lake and his gig as the featured guest speaker at the Lady's Auxilliary Annual Regional Meeting at Bethany Lutheran Church in Lake City this September.

Oh, and his Perfect Duluth Day was when he appeared in the Low video "Shame."

Why does he have to come here?

Evil approaches. Will you be protesting? I will be. Below are two events I know of.

A "Yes to Freedom, Yes to Justice, Yes to Peace, No to Bush" rally will run from 4-5 p.m. in front of Duluth City Hall. A number of community leaders will attend, including Duluth City Councilors Laurie Johnson and Russ Stewart. The event is sponsored by Progressive Action.

Grandmothers for Peace and Women in Black will gather at the Fifth Avenue West bridge over Interstate 35 in downtown Duluth to protest the Bush administration and policies. Participants should wear black and bring signs or banners.


I am more inclined to hang out with the Women in Black but will prolly end up at the Duluth City Hall. Look for me with the big Pace Flag.

I hate it when I'm right.

So I had this theory that W. would for whatever reason would be elected for a third term. Either by repealing the amendment that limits presidential terms, or some other unknown means. I haven't been proved right yet, but I did just see a news segment talking about possible plans to post-pone novemeber's elections in case of a terrorist plot. How interesting. Of course it's nothing unless it actually is delayed etc etc.

I just think it's interesting how close to a dictatorship America really is.

Autoerotic Death

I'd like to thank Mimi Smartypants for alerting us to this.

This, on the other hand, we could have gone without knowing.

proof

that bigger is better

Concert Sunday, July 11th

The boys from Kearney are coming. The band Pewep in the Formats will be in Duluth joined by special guests IPA and Ricky Flours. See the snake mouth for details. Sure to brighten your Sunday.

Concert Tonight Saturday July 10

Haley Bonar

with special debut of Devil's Flying Machine

Washington Art Co-op
315 N Lake Ave
Doors open at 7 pm
Just go already.

MasterCard Format:

Plane ticket to Texas: free (well 25,000 miles and $65/yr on that facking Northwest Airline charge card).

Admission, camping, grocery store food, cigars, booze, T-shirt, and bike rental: figure a couple a hunerd bucks.

Knowing that yer going to the Austin City Limits Music Fest in September...gauldamm priceless! (check out that lineup!)

Lunch on da Point

I had lunch on Park Point today.

Normally when I refer to doing something on Park Point, I mean anywhere on that 7-mile-long glorified sandbar which now-a-days commands entirely too many dead presidents for one to call it home.

However today was different - I actually went all the way down to the end of the p...- excuse me - da point, and masticated my mid-day victuals AT Park Point.

Still, referring back to the technicality, I never actually had my lunch AT Park Point. As is often the case, the speed at which I was able to undertake my little automotive constitutional was impeded by a driver of seniority who feels that her horseless carriage's velocity should correlate indirectly to her blood pressure. SO, I took the "opportunity" and ate lunch along the stretch between da bridge and The Park.

I had been meaning to go fly a kite for some time now. Ever since the idea had come up in conversation earlier this summer I've had an itch... I visited Carr's Hobbies a few days ago and procured a couple kites that looked promising, including one labeled a "Stunt Kite," with two, COUNT 'EM - T W O strings! That's not the one I flew today.

Today, I just enjoyed spending my lunch hour flying a regular, kiddie-style, easy to learn, easy to master, one-sting kite. Yes, it did look a bit silly - a grown man, alone flying a kite. Granted, as we had the smallest of breezes today, it did take a few attempts and a bit of finessing to coax it aloft. But when it did finally take to the "wild blue..." - WOW! Holding that simple string, on the end of which was tethered a simple, millennia-old toy, I did not care. I had forgotten the simple, pure joy of it.

If ever you have the chance to take lunch AT da Point, bring a kite. For my money ($5.00, by the way) there is no better way to forget office politics for an hour and come back from lunch completely refreshed.

I'll work on mastering that two-string'd bad-boy some other time.

What a perfect Duluth lunch.

Lumpy G's Problem is Your Opportunity.

The Situation: They Might Be Giants are playing tommorow at First Avenue (doors open at 6 with one opening band.)and I have 2 tickets.

The Problem: I have no ride.

The Opportunity: 1 free ticket to the show plus a free Chipotle burrito of your choice.

The Cost: A ride to the show from Duluth to Minneapolis. I will pay for the gas. Send me an email [email protected].

George W. Bleghaahahgsh

Well, George W. Bush is coming to Duluth next Tuesday. Looks like he planned the trip because he knew I would be out of town. ;) Anyone want to throw a pretzel for me?

well hello again and I am glad you guys like my posts. I am just getting the hang of this but I guess it's fine. So has anyone heard of graffiti graveyard? Its this little place, well not really little, place under the freeway by the depot. Some real creative things down there. I saw a duck in the water the other day. And one time i fell in that water. I think its gross water too.
I also have a particular liking to the london road mcdonalds. The food at the "masturbation station" seems just to taste way fresher than the one out West. I really think it tastes different, better. Has anyone ever thought that?
Well, I really wish they wouldnt have torn down the warehouse i mentioned before. It was real nice for "urban exploring" I really liked it. I dont know why, but it was a neat place.

can ya help me out?

I am looking to borrow/rent an RV for the Green Man Festival. Random Radio will be broadcasting from Noon Friday till Noon Sunday and we need a space to do it from.

The first year we used a tent which was OK till the torrential rain and winds forced us to shut down. Last year LumpyG broadcasted from inside the Chalet at Spirit Mtn. This was OK but hidden.

So this year we need a trailer or an RV of some sort. It does not need to be too fancy, just enough to protect from the elements and give us a spot to rest.

If you have an RV or can hook us up with someone that does drop me a line.

A Superior Scene

So I'm zippin over to Bingham's Hardware Hank the other week to get a new fixture for an old light table, when I see a cop parked by Bev's Jook Joint on Tower Avenue (see pic). The cop is looking in the direction I'm heading - south. I cross the North End tracks in my truck and it must've been break time because a slew of Amsoil women come out of their building - you know, the overly tanned ones with great legs who wear short skirts or sharp pantsuits with racing jackets, and have wrinkles from smoking too much.

Then I see what the cop was looking at: a gangly scraggly-lookin' guy (much like myself, btw) wearing a parka over his orange jumpsuit, a railroad engineer’s hat and earmuffs (despite the fact its 75 degrees out). He was sitting on one o' them big chunks of basalt that CCTap uses for traffic control in its parking lot. Fortunately I hit the red light at Broadway Ave. at the perfect time so I can see what's going on. This guy is ogling the women and I see a smile emerge on his face as they approach him. Well the women finally see him and part like the Red Sea. Half of 'em go east and half of 'em go west on Broadway. Then the light turned green and I had to get going. I don't know what happened next, but I saw another cop speedily approaching the situation for backup...

Looking south from North End tracks. Cop was parked by red Mustang. Amsoil, CCTap and traffic light in background

Me, me, me.

It's all about me. And some other people, too.



To Mollee Francisco: Great job. Thanks.

Starfire Story

a neighbor up the street thought Tony could publish this.

I Otter get to work.

Audience precipitation time

What's your favorite instrumental/vocal-less song?

My 2nd post, for you guys to get to know me.

Well, its only the next morning of when I did my last post, but I was so tired I didn't get to talk more. So btw, the fair is in town. I think today is the last day. I rode the zipper till I got sick. The games are not that hard this year either. So, if anyone goes today, play the basketball game. The one with big nemos. My boyfriend might be working it, he's a fun guy. Hot too if I do say so myself. Anyways, the fair is worth it, and feed my friend, Downtown Bob the donkey. It's only 25 cents. So, I used to go to these concerts at round about records. Anyone else? Why are there so many antique shops here, anyways? And Tim....I didnt think you could say that stuff here. So does anyone want kittens? I know where alot are at the moment. Actually, I have a 7 week old kitten named Lucky, but I found her outside 3 weeks ago. Beautiful little gray kitten. I believe her brother, an orange kitten, is up for grabs. Lived with kids and small dogs.
So.....a perfect duluth day for me would be to wander the shops downtown, maybe see a movie, definetely go to the beach, hopefully go swimming, maybe sitting on the bench next to the statue of jay cooke. You know, the normal Duluth things for someone who has lived here all her life.

aloha

Well, off again, tomorrow I head to the Boundary Waters for 14 days of canoeing with the juvies. Have fun pdders, Green Man, Triangle Movies and all the rest that makes a Perfect Duluth Day

Hi I'm Kelly

Well, my name is Kelly. I am new here, so hello to everyone who sees this. I don't know what to do here just yet, but I'm sure I will. I just wanted to name a few great places in Duluth.
I love Leif Ericson park. Maybe because I'm mostly norweigan. There is the greatest beach there too. Beautiful place to spend the day. Plus, there's a stage there, and little turrets on the side.
In West Duluth there used to be this empty warehouse. At one time, it was Kemp Fisheries. I heard my great-grandpa worked there. After that it was "blank" jensen sanitation or something. But both burnt down. Kind of. Well after the arson at the Jensen place, most of the place was stranded. There was this great big warehouse part, and a few kids made a skate park there. It was quite interesting. And there was a basement too. It had a quarter ramp and stuff. It had an old elevator. Well, lets just say it was neat.
If you go down Recycle Way in West Duluth, past the railroad tracks, there is this beautiful spot in the bay of Lake Superior. There is some very beautiful spots down there if you are the nature-y type like me. Little geese running around all the time. There's alot of Deer there too.
The Last Place on Earth- This is a neat place to check out. A nice homely-type business. There is a whole wall of t-shirts, with alot of odd things on them. There's posters. There's cigarettes. And even walking in there, you can tell its a friendly place. Every employee there seems in a great mood, joking with each other and the customers. If I were to have had a Godfather, it would've been the man who owns this place. His name is Jim, and he's been a family friend for years. He treats me like family, but he is the greatest worker there. He loves to talk.
Well I will write again,after I figure this out better.

Rock, Paper...

Judge: ONE PAPER!
Saddam: TIGER HAND! RAWR!!!!! RAWRR! rar. Hahaaa, hi. Tiger Hand. Come on! You Know! ... You don't know Tiger Hand? Tiger Hand beats paper. Like totally beats paper. Always

Maybe it's just the fact that I'm tired and sick, but this totally cracked me up...
Rock, Paper, Saddam

Making My Wishes Known

"Summum first introduced the public to Modern Mummification in 1975. Since that time, Summum has continued to research, develop, and refine the exoteric and esoteric art and science of Modern Mummification. Today, Summum is the only organization in the world to offer this remarkable and distinguished service."

And it only costs $67,000.

Two election news stories, two different sources

CNN.com - Bush campaign looks to organize churches


US lawmakers ask for poll observers

It is an election to boggle the mind. According to the 1st story Bush spent about $150.5 million in June, just to end up neck and neck with Kerry.

You don't have to be a geek to get free comics (but it helps)

Stop by a participating comic stores on Saturday, July 3rd for Free Comic Book Day - a day when comic book shops around the world are giving away comic books absolutely free to anyone who comes into their stores.
Duluth comic stores that are participating in Free Comic Book Day include Collector's Connection (be sure to say "Thanks Tim"), and Robin Goodfellow (be sure to say "Thanks Russ").
So if it's been a while since you've read comics, you've missed a lot! If you've never read comics, now is the time to start! (I consider comics to be great literature and great art wrapped up into one great little package)

Collector's Connection
Miller Hill Mall
(near the American Bar & Grill entrance)

Robin Goodfellow
23 North Lake Avenue

tiddly winks

Just wanted to say thanks to the Masters of the Blog for 1) the existence of this space and 2.the week of surprises. Hopefully the movies are still running when I return from part 2 of the wilderness, er... Experience. As "The Life of Brian" did not seem to make it to Duluth on it's rerelease I'd like to provide a copy for the Outdoor movie triangle. What's a good mid-eastern/Jewish alcohol to go with this movie? (Kosher wine can be kinda... well lets leave it at that, so other suggestions?)

Anniversary Surprises Pt. 5: Jed's Blog

DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed by Jed are highly personal and often caustic, and do not necessarily reflect those of anyone but herself.

People have been bothering me for the secret URL to Jed's blog for six months and I have vehemently kept my promise to keep it under wraps. But now, Jed has graciously agreed to let it become public. Ladies and gentlemen, to conclude our week of surprises, I give you the aptly named ... Pandora's Blog.

Play nice.

happy birthday!

ohhhhh woe is me, i feel so bad i missed the party (the story of my life), but happy bday to the assorted bloggerati, poopers and nerds who help me feel connected to the big lil' city by the lake.

if you think life is a drag too, you have to check out this girl, watch some of her movies and your day is sure to get better, and be sure to tell her who sent you.

Anniversary Surprises Pt. 4: Dorothy Swings Heavy

A long, long time ago, C-Freak loaned me this record for the purpose of sharing it with the PDD community. Well, finally, here's a little bit of Everybody's Mother:

Tiny Bubbles [mp3, 3.29 Mb]

You're out of your element, Donny!

I had a great time. I lost my lens cap though :( anyone find one?



One of the best shots of my life... (reposted since it was archived so fast)

fun | fuN | fUN | FUN

Thanks to all the fine folks who came out last night. I never imagined this website could be as great as it is. It was extra nice to meet the PDD'ers I had not yet met.



The picture above is a screen capture from the movie. Hopefully we can use the same projecter again, if not someone oughta buy one because watching movies outside is the best.

A detailed analysis:

Anyone else here hear Aeromsith honkin’ on bobo to day on the World Café? Some one on this website was rippin on them before. But remember In Independence Day when Randy Quaid blew up the aliens with his plane? Now Will Smith is in I, Robot this summer. Those robots look scary.

Happy effing birthday, website.

only 33%

One of the best shots of my life...