MN Moder – “Pimp”
Duluth-based hip-hop artist Zachary Moder, who performs as MN Moder, has a new album out titled Sweet Dreams. The track “Pimp” is produced by NorthWood Beats and features guitar by J-Smooth.
Algae blooms on Lake Superior continue
The first confirmed sighting of blue-green algae on Lake Superior was in 2012. Since then, scientists have been trying to determine what’s causing it and if it’s linked to climate change.
Spirit Mountain, Mission Creek trail link ready
A biker crosses the new Sargent Creek bridge on the DWP Trail Connector west of Ely Peak. (Photos by Mark Nicklawske)
A critical bridge is open, a tunnel has been repaired and work is nearly complete on a six-mile scenic trail that uses a former rail line to connect two large recreation sites on the west side of Duluth.
The city’s Parks and Recreation Division is in the final stages of improvements to the Duluth Winnipeg & Pacific Trail Connector which provides a direct link between the Mission Creek trail system in the Frederick Rodney Paine Forest Preserve and Spirit Mountain. A ribbon cutting on the $600,000 trail project is expected later this summer. (more…)
PDD Quiz: July 2021 in Review
Another month of summer has flown by. Were you paying attention to current events? Step up to this week’s quiz and find out!
Duluth movie mentions will be the theme of the next PDD quiz, which will be published on Aug. 15. Submit question suggestions to Alison Moffat at [email protected] by Aug. 11. (more…)
Seagulls dive bombing my shit
Lake Superior Aquaman pink flamingo seagull dive bomb attack, Duluth, Minnesota.
Bob Dylan on Hibbing from 1966 Playboy interview
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4xLk31ZwL8
Dude reads highlights from the 1966 Playboy interview. Dylan on Hibbing: @6:40-8:53. (more…)
Red Flag Warning
It’s almost suspicious how often I happen to be nearby when bodies are pulled out of the water. Am I a jinx or a murderer? No, I just like being by water. And it’s pretty well documented that water is a serial killer.
I’ve already written the essay “Lake Superior Wants to Kill You,” outlining just about everything I want to share on the subject of drowning. There’s one more warning worth putting forward, however, regarding the various ways you can lose your life in the water. So please keep this in mind:
I won’t try to stop you from putting yourself in danger, and it’s unlikely anyone else will, other than maybe your mommy.
Of course, you’ll probably get some general, impersonal warnings. This essay and my other essay, for starters. There are warnings in the media constantly. And then on Minnesota Point in Duluth we have those red flags and warning signs on the beach. But that’s all you get. And it’s not enough, obviously.
Telling someone about the dangers of rip currents is like warning about the potential for pregnancy. The risk vs. reward balance is quickly weighed and then it’s time to get wet. (more…)
Limited tickets available to Alan Sparhawk at Sacred Heart
Sacred Heart Music Center has just released a small amount of free tickets for a studio audience at its Live from the Heart songwriters/storytellers livestream featuring Alan Sparhawk. (more…)
West Duluth’s Allyndale Motel circa 1971
The Allyndale Motel has been in operation at 510 N. 66th Ave. W. since 1952. The backside of the postcard image above boasts the motel’s features circa the 1970s: “Overlooking Duluth – Free TV – Room Phones – Tubs and Showers – Large Units – Individually controlled Hot Water Heat.”
Lake Superior Aquaman graffiti in Iowa City
Thanks to citizen @wiscontron for bringing this to my attention. It reads “Lake Superior Aquaman” with a picture of a trident, then someone has followed that with “<- The Admiral Nelson of Great Lakes.”
A Beaver Dam: Fall to Winter
Here it is, the sequel to “A Beaver Dam: Summer to Fall.” It features more footage from a trail camera on a beaver dam at Kabetogama Peninsula in Voyageurs National Park. (more…)
Low – “Disappearing”
Duluth band Low‘s new video is directed, produced and edited by Los Angeles-based artist Dorian Wood, who also stars in the video. Low’s new album, Hey What, is schedule for release on Sept. 10.
The Slice: Jonathan Thunder
Ojibwe artist Jonathan Thunder talks about his practice of mixing modern sensibilities with traditional imagery.
In its series The Slice, WDSE-TV presents short “slices of life” that capture the events and experiences that bring people together and speak to what it means to live up north.
Superior Waffles opens July 27 on Tower Avenue
A sweet and savory waffle bar opens in Superior next week. Superior Waffles, located in the New York Building at 1412 Tower Ave., is holding a soft opening on Sunday and a grand opening on Tuesday. (more…)
An Elaborate Contrivance for Suicide
One hundred years ago a delusional Superior man hung himself in his home in front of a wall painted with a crucifix. The June 19, 1921 suicide was reported in the Duluth Herald on June 20. (more…)
Chicken Alley Backyard Hangout #1
Leon Rohrbaugh’s backyard adventures in Duluth’s Chester Park neighborhood are making their way to YouTube. In episode one, Leon’s son Miles returns from eight days leading 10 teenagers on a 64-mile hike on the Superior Hiking Trail, and it’s no surprise they want burgers.
LineCheck: Mary Bue
The Current‘s video series “LineCheck” presents virtual conversations with Minnesota’s music community. The sessions open and close with a song. In episode 2, occasional Duluthian Mary Bue performs. (more…)
Ditchbird – “Think She Was Right” (Lyric Video)
Cloquet native Tony Petersen, now based in Minneapolis, has a new music project called Ditchbird. The track “Think She Was Right” is on the forthcoming five-track EP, Some Dreams, out Aug. 13 on DoublePug Records.
Petersen is best known for his work with the band Social Animals. He released his first Ditchbird record, Real Enough for You Now, in April.
The Slice: Superior Porchfest
Local music brings Superior neighborhoods together this summer during Porchfest. Daryl Yankee, a volunteer from Siggy’s Musical Garden, explains the series of events in this video. (more…)
Postcard from the St. Louis Hotel, Duluth
This postcard was mailed July 18, 1911 — 110 years ago today. The recipient was Mrs. Anna Carlson of St. Louis, Mo. The written message seems to be in a foreign language; the sender’s name looks like Mrs. Emma Ellstrand. (more…)
Ride or Die Pizzeria open in Superior
The Superior Telegram reports a new pizzeria has opened in Superior. Terry and Dawn Johnson are the proprietors of Ride or Die Pizzeria at 1623 Broadway St., the former home of Thirsty Pagan Brewing, which moved to new location a block away in 2019.
The Johnsons also own Lee’s Pizza in Duluth’s Lincoln Park Craft District.
Photos from Old Central’s 1890s Classroom and Clock Tower
This oil painting of Old Central was donated to the school in 1970 by the class of 1949. It was painted by Central alum Jo Kossett.
The original Central High School, which later became Duluth Public Schools’ Central Administration Building, aka Historic Old Central, will soon enter its next phase. Saturday Properties, a development and management firm based in St. Louis Park, plans to turn the Richardsonian Romanesque-style building into 121 mixed-income apartments. The project is called Zenith DCHS.
Collected in this post are images from inside the 1890s Classroom Museum at Old Central and the interior of the building’s clock tower, shot during a tour on July 2. (more…)
LineCheck: Charlie Parr
The Current‘s video series “LineCheck” presents virtual conversations with Minnesota’s music community. The sessions open and close with a song. In episode 1, Duluth’s Charlie Parr performs at Sacred Heart Music Center. Parr’s forthcoming album, Last of the Better Days Ahead, will be released July 30. (more…)
Selective Focus: Fishnetstockings at Joseph Nease Gallery
Across the globe, one discovers mermaid tales clinging like barnacles onto historic seaports, sharing themes of the cross-cultural outsider, environmental imbalance, and gender inequality. During the summer of 2021, see Fishnetstockings projections at Joseph Nease Gallery in Duluth during open gallery hours.
A gallery talk, featuring a discussion with the artists and some images of what went on behind the scenes as the projections were created happens Thursday, July 15, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. (more…)