Codie Posts

Lost guitar pedals (Found!!)

UPDATE: Thanks to perfectduluthday.com, the sound guy at the Rex emailed me and said he found my pedals! Sure enough, one of the bands I share a practice space with accidentally grabbed it.

Instead of deleting this post, I will use it to illustrate how important PerfectDuluthDay is to our community. Thanks Paul & the gang!

Giant Panda reopens downtown

Want a filling meal on your lunch break, but don’t want to break the bank? This lady will serve you right up. Qihui Li and Yi Zhong moved out of their West Duluth space and re-opened downtown just one week ago in the old Saigon Cafe location. They own and operate this restaurant, which almost has a fast-food feel. The food was served quickly, relatively cheap, and surprisingly good.

2012 Duluth Bike/Ped Public Meetings

Save the date for one of four upcoming bicycle/pedestrian meetings in Duluth. Each two-hour meeting starts promptly at 6 p.m.

“Carless in Duluth” Teaser

Carless in Duluth is a short documentary showcasing people in Duluth who walk, bike, or take the bus instead of driving. Notice how easy it is to forget that pedestrians and bicyclists exist when the environment is designed only for cars.

Premiering this March at a local downtown independent cinema near you.

Damn you La Niña! What do I do now?

According to the Duluth News Tribune, and pretty much every other website I’ve seen, it’s gonna be a cold one this winter. My question is… How do I get out and enjoy it without spending any cash? I’ve thought about buying snowshoes or ice skates, but even a good pair of those would set me back. Does anybody know of any nooks or crannies in this area that would make for some enjoyable winter exploring?

Mapping Inequality in Duluth

Mapping Inequality in Duluth

Hey everyone! This is a map I made in college a couple years back that shows patterns of income and racial segregation in Duluth. I have been going through all the files on my computer and figured the fine folks at PDD would appreciate this one. If you want to see more, I have started a photoblog: http://codiemaps.wordpress.com. I will try to post something new every couple of weeks. (Spoiler: My next map is a pseudosociological breakdown of Minnesota’s core regions.)

Is this you? Then we want you on film!

I am making a mini-documentary about people who live in the Twin Ports but do not drive a car. The goal of this project is to tell the people’s story about the other side of transportation. If you rely on walking, bicycling, or taking the bus, I’d love to interview you! I’m particularly interested in interviewing seniors, parents with kids, students, and ethnic minorities who get by without an automobile. I would also like to do one interview with a professional in economics or geology to discuss the future of energy.

I’m free almost every afternoon, and my schedule is pretty flexible. Just email me when and where you’d like to be interviewed, and let your voice be heard! My email is: [email protected]

Walk? Bike? Bus? Don’t own a car at all? We want to hear from you!

I’m making a short video about alternative transportation in the Twin Ports, and I’m looking for people who would be interested in being interviewed. The goal of this project is to show different reasons why people don’t drive, and why it’s important to support alternative transportation (buses, sidewalks, bike routes, etc). I am looking to interview people from all walks of life, including, but not limited to…

– People who walk, bike, or bus by choice
– People who walk, bike, or bus out of necessity
– The youth
– The elderly
– The physically disabled
– People who don’t drive much and have kids
– People who live walking distance to everything they need
– The guy who clears the sidewalks for the City
– Anyone else who might be interesting for this project

If you have something to say and think you would be a good interviewee, or know someone who might fit the bill, please email me at lesem002 @ umn.edu. Interviews will be held between February and May.

Am I the only one who sees this coming?

I have been reading a lot about peak oil and peak natural gas production lately. To me, these seem like they will be the biggest issues of the 21st century. We need oil and natural gas to drive our cars, heat our homes, grow our food, transport our goods, etc. Our whole economy relies on cheap, non-renewable fossil-fuel energy, so why is nobody talking about this?! I honestly feel that most of our national problems (the war in the Middle East, the economic recession, etc.) are largely due to a declining production of energy.

I know that some people are aware of this issue, but it seems most folks either don’t understand the full implications or simply just don’t care. It just grinds my gears when people assume that we will always be able to run our economy the way we’re running it now. What do you all think about this? Should we start preparing Duluth for a post-oil world, or do we just ignore it and see what happens?

Duluth is now on the map … in 3-D!

Google Earth 3-D Rendering of Duluth

If you Google “Duluth” and go on the Maps section, there’s a button on the upper right that says Earth. Click that, and you can see a 3-D rending of Duluth including some of the buildings downtown! It’s still a work in progress because this is such a small city, but it’s still very interesting. You might need Google Earth for it to work … I’m not sure exactly. I just found out about this moments ago.

Sat 8/14 – The Final Kurtfest in Eveleth!

Mark your calendars, because this is a once-in-a-lifetime true northern Minnesotan experience!

What? Seventeen local bands in an all-day festival with two stages
Where? Eveleth, Minnesota (an hour’s drive up from Duluth)
When? Polish sausage at 3pm, music starts at 4pm
Huh? Only 5 dollars! More info at myspace.com/Kurtfest

Last Chance Bikers: Show Us Your Routes!

Monday, May 3, and Tuesday, May 4, are your last opportunities to show us how bicycling can be improved in your area! Fit City Duluth and the Metropolitan Interstate Council are working together to learn about the habits of bikers in Duluth. At these meetings you will be asked where you currently bike, where you would bike if it was easier, where bike racks should go, and other biking issues, and you will learn why this information is important for Duluth.

Food will be provided! Both meetings start at 6pm:

  • May 3 – Central Hillside Community Center (12 E 4th St)
  • May 4 – Portman Community Center (4601 McCulloch St)

Last-minute Reminder for Bicyclers

Fit City Duluth is hosting public meetings to survey bicycle riders in Duluth. Information gathered from these meetings will be used in a recommendation to the city and various other agencies who are interested in bicycle route development. The five remaining meetings will be held at 6pm at the following locations (and good food will be provided):

  • Monday, April 26th at the Piedmont Community Center
  • Tuesday, April 27 at City Center West
  • Thursday, April 29 at the UMD Garden Room
  • Monday, May 3 at the Central Hillside Community Center
  • Tuesday, May 4 at the Portman Community Center

Please visit fitcityduluth.com/bike for more information!

Public Input Needed for Bicycle Routes

If you ride your bicycle in Duluth, here is your chance to help improve the existing bike route network! On March 8, the Duluth City Council unanimously approved a Complete Streets resolution that would help instruct city engineers on how to design roadways for all users, instead of just for automobiles.