Month: September 2017
“Restoring” Chester Creek?
This afternoon I went running in Chester Park for the first time in a while. I parked at the Chalet and immediately noticed this posting on a light pole:
Apparently the city and the Soil and Water Conservation District will be removing the old dams at the foot of the ski hill, revegetating the stream banks, and building a pedestrian footbridge. My first reaction to this was, “Cool! It’ll be great to have a restored stream habitat.” But as I thought about it a little more, I started wondering what it was exactly that needs restoring here. (more…)
Piano teacher has openings for new students
Openings for piano lessons for the 2017 school year and beyond! Email [email protected] or call 218-464-3287. (more…)
Charlie Parr – “Peaceful Valley”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SkdelUlaLXE
“Peaceful Valley,” from Charlie Parr’s album Dog is a fantasy of closing the door, drinking coffee, listening to records and becoming a good recluse.
Animation by Jake Huffcutt.
Charlie Parr discloses depression in City Pages feature
Duluth musician Charlie Parr is featured in this week’s issue of the Twin Cities tabloid City Pages. In an interview with freelance writer Erica Rivera, Parr acknowledges a life spent battling depression and suicidal thoughts.
“It affects everything that I do, all day, every day — and all night,” he says.
Story link: Man of constant sorrow: Charlie Parr’s quiet battle to stay alive
Parr performs at Sacred Heart Music Center on Thursday in support of his new album, Dog.
Breanne Marie and the Front Porch Sinners – “Carousel”
New video for “Carousel” by Breanne Marie & the Front Porch Sinners. Shot at Chester Bowl by Michelle Truax of Duluth.com. From their upcoming album Wildflowers & Tumbleweeds, recorded at Sparta Sound with Rich Mattson.
The record release party is Saturday, Sept. 16 at Beaner’s Central. (more…)
Nat Harvie Trio – “Nat Harvie’s Birthday”
Directed by Caitlin Nielson. Crowdfunding campaign info at indiegogo.com.
Delivering Mail on Minnesota Point in Winter
Never mind the seasonal sentiment, this postcard was sent in the summer. It was in the trusted hands of the United States Postal Service 110 years ago, traveling from Duluth to South Dakota. It was postmarked at Duluth on Sept. 4 and received in Carthage, S.D. on Sept. 6, 1907. (more…)
Lost Duluth Trolley in Minneapolis
This former Duluth trolley makes frequent trips back and forth between Lake Harriet and Lake Calhoun in Minneapolis. Trolleys are restored and operated by the Minnesota Transportation Museum. (more…)
Shrooming in Duluth’s Lake Place Park
A notable fairy ring of large white puffballs, ending with the biggest ‘shroom I’ve ever seen, bigger than a basketball or a human head. Lake Place Park.
Historic home tour offers rare look into original Tweed Museum
Duluth Preservation Alliance boardmember Dennis Lamkin, left, and homeowner Leslie Broadway stand along a newly installed garden outside the Tweed House in Chester Park. The home is part of the Duluth Preservation Alliance Historic Properties Tour Sept. 17.
The largest art museum in Duluth started on the first floor of a Chester Park home but the glamorous history was hardly recognizable when Jared and Leslie Broadway purchased the property six years ago.
“It was just a room you passed through to get upstairs,” said Leslie, as she led visitors into the 103-year-old Tweed House at 2531 E. Seventh St. “Jared had his exercise equipment down here.”
Working with Duluth preservationist Dennis Lamkin and a stable of contractors, the couple transformed the dreary ground floor basement back into a place for treasured art and lively social gatherings. The public will get a rare look at the historic gallery during the 32nd annual Duluth Preservation Alliance Historic Properties Tour on Sunday, Sept. 17. (more…)
Kuwaiti vlogger visits Duluth
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCOScS2uxv0
Bader Alabkal of Kuwait takes a trip to Duluth with his pals Qutiba bin Yahya AlHashemi and Yousef AlMunaies. The first stop is Minneapolis; they hit Duluth after the 5-minute mark.
As often happens, the tidbit that Lake Superior is the largest lake in the world gets tossed around with some uncertainty. For clarity we note it is considered the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface area.
Missing Person: Julie Huntington
The Duluth Police Department is seeking the public’s assistance in locating a missing person. Julie Marie Huntington was last seen on the 300 block of South Lake Avenue in Duluth’s Canal Park district on Sept. 1 at approximately 7 p.m. She is described as a 34-year-old Caucasian female, 5-foot 7-inches tall, 300 lbs., blue eyes and blonde hair. Huntington was last seen wearing a grey tank top, black hooded sweatshirt and black leggings. The DPD would like to check the health and welfare of Huntington along with getting her home. Anyone who knows of her whereabouts is asked to contact the Duluth Police Department by calling 911.
I Hafe a Feller in Duluth
Presenting yet another “Dutch Kid” pennant postcard, similar to “Mit Best Wishes from Duluth,” “Vilkome to our city of Duluth” and “Iff you vill come to Duluth ve vill lock up all de cops.” This one was mailed from Duluth to Minneapolis on Aug. 20, 1913. Translating the written message on the back will win someone the Internet championship of the day. (more…)
Notes from the Wayback Machine
Most of us emerge from infantile amnesia around the age of three. Until then our memories are catch and release. After that some stick, some don’t, until, alas, we come full circle. Unsettlingly, what we do recall is not the original event, but our last memory of that event, not something etched in stone or set in amber, but fuzzing at the edges and swapping facts like stage props, our solo game of “Telephone” played across time.
My first memory, as far as I can remember, is being held on my mother’s hip as she stood in the water at a public beach on the south shore of Lake Superior. I was looking down her one-piece suit at her breasts. Having never been suckled, this may have seemed a novel and compelling sight. Something worth remembering.
Decades fly by and summers pass like weekends. But between the ages of three and thirteen time was much-expanded. Time lost, but if the trigger’s found it’s not for sure forgotten.
My family moved when I finished kindergarten so there’s a clear line defining before and after. Subtract my amnesiac beginnings and it hardly seems possible a home could hold so much. Here we lived in a frame house with a dirt cellar, damp and spidery. There was a big garden, a half a dozen apple trees and a play house near the garage. This was the center of a universe measured in a few city blocks. Occasionally the quiet would be broken by distant explosions at the Dupont plant, where, I was told, they were testing dynamite. (more…)
Selective Focus: Bryan Hansel
Bryan Hansel lives in Grand Marais, working as a photographer and educator. His photos have been published in many national magazines including National Geographic, and his classes take students to sites in the region and across the country to National Parks.
B.H.: I could say I developed my style from years of practice starting with three years of black & white photography in high school — I graduated in 1989. But, that’s not really how I came to do what I do. About ten or so years ago, I decided I needed to make my photos eye-catching and worked toward a style that accomplished that. Then about six years ago while reading a book on haiku I had an “aha” moment. I was reading about juxtaposition in poetry and it occurred to me I could do the same thing with photography. After messing around with the approach, I started teaching it at my photography workshops. Basically, it’s all about using simplicity to create flow and relationships in an image. Now I approach all my photos that way.
(more…)