Monthly Grovel: PDD Calendar holds out its hand again
An important message from Perfect Duluth Day’s Redundant Department of Redundancy:
It takes a lot of geek hours to keep this website going strong. So once a month we set our dignity aside and remind readers how much we appreciate their financial support. (more…)
Redstone redevelopment nearly complete
The mansion that was home to the Congdon family while Glensheen was built is being remodeled into luxury apartments. A news release from Heirloom Property Management announces the majestic Redstone Lofts will have “12 modern style loft apartments and a commercial space that will all be available for lease beginning early 2019.” (more…)
Rachael Kilgour – “Game Changer”
The second single from Duluth native Rachael Kilgour‘s new EP, Game Changer.
Postcards from Neptune
This statue of Neptune stood on the edge of Duluth’s shipping canal from 1959 to 1963. The text on the back of the postcard reads:
Neptune — Symbolic Ruler of the Sea
This statue was given Duluth by the State Fair Board and the land loaned by the Corps of Engineers at Canal Park, Duluth, Minn. to commemorate the arrival of the first deep draft ocean going vessel in to Duluth on May 3, 1959. Neptune was God of the Sea — son of Cronus and Rhea. The Greeks called him Poseidon. He was Jupiter’s brother. Neptune controlled all the waters of the earth and was worshiped by sailors. The 3 prong spear he carried was called Trident.
DLH passenger numbers up 13 percent
Duluth International Airport announced today that 280,865 passengers flew through the facility in 2018, marking a 13 percent increase over 2017.
Both United and Delta saw increases, with United’s addition of the airbus flight in May leading to a nearly 30 percent increase year-over-year.
United offers three daily nonstop flights to Chicago and Delta offers five daily nonstop flights to Minneapolis/St. Paul. American Airlines is set to begin direct service to Chicago on May 23.
“We now have the three largest carriers in the country flying out of DLH,” Tom Werner, the airport’s executive director, said in a news release. “We’re hoping to use that momentum to add Denver to the growing list of places we fly and ways we connect our region to the world.”
Endion Station to be converted into ‘brewtique’ hotel
A former railroad depot will soon become Duluth’s first “brewtique” hotel. (more…)
Perfect New Restaurant: Corktown Deli & Brews
A Lincoln Park sandwich shop emerged as the hero in Perfect Duluth Day’s 2019 poll to discern the area’s best new restaurant. Corktown Deli & Brews won 43 percent of the runoff vote in a pool of three finalists that was narrowed down from a list of 25 nominees. Pak’s Green Corner and Martha’s Daughter were runners up with 33 percent and 24 percent of the votes, respectively.
Corktown Deli & Brews opened in June. Jeff Petcoff, the fast-casual restaurant’s general manager, was thrilled to hear the poll results. “That’s one of the biggest compliments you can get,” he says, “because readers and people vote on it; it’s a vote of confidence from everyone. It’s humbling and will help keep us going.” (more…)
Duluth’s Best Website
In 2011 Perfect Duluth Day chose as its official slogan “Duluth’s Duluthiest Website.” It was a statement we felt pretty confident making. Maybe other Duluth websites are better, but certainly none are Duluthier.
But this week we’ve been wondering if PDD truly is Duluth’s best website. This line of thinking was prompted by the Duluth Reader weekly newspaper conducting a poll and ultimately publishing in its Jan. 31 “Best of the Northland” issue that PDD won the title of “Best Local Website.” (more…)
The Slamming Doors – “Clover”
Duluth-based roots-rock band the Slamming Doors perform the song “Clover” for The White Wall Sessions in Sioux Falls, S.D.
The band has Duluth gigs coming up Feb. 13 at Teatro Zuccone during TED at Teatro, Feb. 23 at Blush, and March 15 at Ursa Minor.
Tim Kaiser – “Organelle”
Tim Kaiser appears to be reorganizing his recordings on SoundCloud, and so this gem appears on my feed. (more…)
1970s Duluth Radio
I believe WEBC had a slogan and I had won a T-shirt of this:
“WEBC blew the WAKX outta my ears”
I cannot seem to find any archives of this.
Any thoughts?
The BBC Interviews Duluth Cyclist Leah Gruhn
Photo by Jeremy Kershaw
Leah Gruhn, geologist at Barr Engineering and avid Duluth cyclist, was the first woman to complete Northern Minnesota’s Arrowhead 135 mile race in record-breaking low temps on Tuesday, Jan. 29.
How to Change a Flat Tire
I think it’s been something like 10 years since I’ve blown a tire while driving and had to replace it with a spare on the side of the road. What’s weird about that is I remember having to change flat tires fairly often in previous years — like once every 20 months or something.
The most I have ever paid for a motor vehicle is $4,000. My current car cost $3,500. The seven others I’ve gone through over the years each cost about $1,500 or less. Every one of them was a bargain, but involved a bit more maintenance than newer cars. The well-worn tires on some of those clunkers used to give me my share of roadside adventures. I’m not sure why that has stopped in the past decade, but I’m certainly not complaining.
About 15 years ago, as a public service and also as a reminder to my future self, I compiled a list of advice about changing flat tires. I’m assuming all of it still applies to today’s vehicles and might be useful to the general public at some point in the future or me tomorrow. It’s not really technical advice, it’s more for emotional preparation. (more…)
Glamourous Duluth
Duluth’s Ashley Sullivan, sporting a Duluth Cider hat, is part of a feature in the online women’s magazine Glamour titled “Insanely cold polar vortex temperatures are literally freezing people’s eyelashes.” The article refers to a social media trend of people “posting commentary and photos of themselves turning into Elsa from Frozen simply by going about their lives in a polar vortex.”
“Depending on how cold it is, you can feel them freeze right away,” Sullivan told Glamour reporter Abby Gardner. “It doesn’t hurt and doesn’t affect your eyesight, but by the end of a hike, you get the pretty frost. The aftermath isn’t so pretty as the ice melts and mascara runs down your face. But it’s like Mother Nature’s art on while you’re outside, if you think about it. It’s like you’re your own snowflake with the frost vibrating to your own energy.” (more…)
Entangled lives: Poles and Jews; Europe and Africa
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iha3OS8ShYs
University lectures showed me quite a bit about the entangled lives of the past that shape our present. Last Thursday, Dr. Deborah Petersen-Perlman gave a historical tour of Poland. She opened with a video that shows the borders of European nations, beginning hundreds of years before the invention, even, of the nation-state. (more…)
Selective Focus: Yarrow Mead
Yarrow Mead is a metal smith who works with Northern Minnesota “gems” including local stones, agates and seaglass. The pieces she creates proudly show tool marks and uneven, organic shapes that reflect the North Shore.
YM: I am a silver and gold smith working with primarily local stones, beach glass, and American sourced metal. I was trained in jewelry by Stephen Hoglund, who is a very talented smith out of Grand Marais, as well as through my time working as a Props Master at the Hamline University Theater Department, under Theater Director Bill Wallace. My personal style has been influenced by both of these men, as well as my childhood on the North Shore of Minnesota. I am greatly inspired by the shapes and textures along the shores of Lake Superior, as well as my personal Nordic heritage.
(more…)
The Hopper Shuttle: Catering to Craft Beverage Fans
A new complimentary shuttle service will provide a link between Duluth’s craft beverage purveyors. Starting Feb. 8 the Hopper, a 15-passenger van, will run between Canal Park, Lincoln Park and Downtown every Friday and Saturday night. (more…)
Shinobi – “Risk Zone”
Duluth rapper Shinobi shouts out to his city in this video shot and edited by Daniel Weiser.
Duluth Blogs: How to Collect Baseball Cards
Today, I point to another blog by a Duluthian, this time John Boucha. You can tell because his name is the URL. (more…)
Duluth Reference on The Passage
The latest Duluth mention on a national television show is in season 1, episode 3 of the new Fox series The Passage, which aired on Monday night. (more…)
Ten Years of Perfect Duluth Day on WordPress
Hunkered down at PDD World Headquarters, problem solving the switch to WordPress in 2009: Cory Fechner, Scott Lunt, Paul Lundgren and Barrett Chase.
Ten years ago — Jan. 30, 2009 — Perfect Duluth Day made the big leap to the WordPress publishing platform. Specifically, the upgrade was from Movable Type version 3.2 to WordPress version 2.8. These days PDD is on WordPress version 4.9.9. But enough nerdspeak. (more…)
Duluth Blogs: Sister Scotland
I’ve been discovering blogs by Duluthians lately. Sister Scotland collects the observations of a Superior student as she studies abroad. Some observations, about the taste of haggis … well, I will never be okay with food cooked in a stomach. It feels like duplication of effort; we only need one stomach in this process. But others, they are just playful thoughts on life. (more…)