Duluth Harbor Canada Geese Cam
Dennis O’Hara’s video of the lake freighter Walter J. McCarthy Jr. passing under the Aerial Lift Bridge features a couple of special guests.
Postcard from Thompson Hill Information Center and Rest Area
This undated postcard has the following text on the back:
The Thompson Hill Information Center and Rest Area is located at the junction of I-35 and US 2 on a 28 acre site overlooking the St. Louis River Valley and the Duluth-Superior metropolitan area. The Information Center is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with tourist and travel information and road condition reports available during the day as a service of the Minnesota Highway Department.
Video: Duluth stilt walker takes a tumble
Allison Simonson of Princeton, Minn., captured this rather unfortunate moment when a stilt walker took a face plant on the Duluth Lakewalk this past weekend. Ouch.
You could move to Duluth and walk right into Chuck Klosterman’s office
Manhatten-based humorist Micah Osler drops the D-word six times in a May 11 piece in The New Yorker titled “Hi, It’s Your Mom, and I Have Some Advice for Your Job Search.”
The article is entirely from the voice of a mother on the phone, mostly offering employment advice based on hot tips like, “Dolores works up in Duluth, and she says that everywhere in Duluth is hiring.”
Art in an Unusual Place
Photo of Artist by Carrie Boberg
I went to see the exhibit by Rob Adams, as discussed on Radio Gallery. It’s being shown within the workspace of a professional design company in Downtown Duluth. (more…)
PDD Quiz: Parks of Duluth
Now that spring has (maybe) sprung, Duluth’s many parks and green spaces are beckoning. Take this week’s quiz to learn more about parks located in neighborhoods from Central Hillside to Congdon Park. While an earlier PDD quiz explored parks on the western side of town, it’s no longer available because the platform supporting the quiz changed, so we’ll revisit western parks and other neighborhood parks in future PDD quizzes.
Duluth’s Historical Parks: Their First 160 Years, by Tony Dierckins and Nancy S. Nelson, was an invaluable resource for this quiz (as was Dierckins’ Zenith City Online).
The next quiz, reviewing current events, will be published on May 26. Please email question suggestions to Alison Moffat at aklawite@d.umn.edu by May 23. (more…)
Adult Braces
Last year, I got adult braces, which are distinct from kids’ braces in several ways. They were the tooth-colored kind, made of ceramic, so you could not call me metal mouth, just brace face. No one did, which is the first way they differ. I was 14 the first time I had braces. They did their job, but the effects had a statute of limitations.
Getting braces a second time became a priority when midlife seized me. About to turn 40, I had a classic crisis during which I asked the important questions: Who am I? Am I living my best life? And: ugh, can I get my teeth fixed?
I could, actually. My two girls had gone through orthodontic treatments one after the other, and because I was such a good customer, the orthodontist gave me a deal: the price of one person’s braces in addition to two other people’s. Paying for braces three times is another way adult braces differ from kids’.
At first, I was surprised at the pain. Tylenol couldn’t touch the deep soreness the braces caused. Advil, Aleve, margaritas, nothing helped. The pain caused me to hold my mouth half open and make weird hand-shields while talking at work. I apologized to people repeatedly during this period, asking for my grossness to be excused. (more…)
Pictures of Spring
Naomi’s photography blog is great at sharing images of Duluth. Yesterday she shared this beautiful image of the return of Spring.
A Nice Catch of Trout from Northern Minnesota
The text on the back of this undated postcard from Gallagher’s Studio of Photography reads simply: “A nice catch of trout from northern Minnesota.”
The 2019 lake and stream trout seasons open on May 11.
Ken Bloom’s Tweevening
Ken Bloom packed the Tweed for a “Tweevening.” Ken is a photographer who directs and occasionally curates shows, and as he retires, the Tweed is celebrating his medium. (more…)
Missing Person: Julian Daniel Decoux
On May 5 an adult foster care home in Canosia Township, about five miles north of the Duluth International Airport, reported a resident was missing. Julian Daniel Decoux was last seen outside the home earlier in the afternoon. Deputies and volunteers from the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office searched the area around the foster home, aided by both canines and aerial drone technology, and did not locate Decoux.
The sheriff’s office is asking for help from anyone who may have seen Decoux or knows where he is.
Decoux was last seen wearing a bright green winter hat, an orange hooded sweatshirt, a black vest, black pants and new grey tennis shoes. Anyone with information should call 911 or contact the Sheriff’s Office Investigative Division in Duluth at 218-336-4350. (more…)
Shooting with Sparky: Greater Prairie Chickens
Mark “Sparky” Stensaas visits Tympanuchus Wildlife Management Area, about 230 miles west of Duluth, observing greater prairie chickens for his blog, the Photonaturalist.
Thunder Bay loves Duluth
One thing this discounted T-shirt makes fairly clear: Duluth will not automatically reciprocate your love.
Thanks to Tomasz Majewski for finding it.
A People’s History of the People’s Free Skate
Hear the totally true story of the People’s Free Skate Rink from its creators: Lake Superior Aquaman and Robot Rickshaw interviewed by Ryan Welles on his podcast “True Stories and Other Damage.” Featuring the genesis of it, all the behind the scenes information, anecdotes, and a few extravagant claims, finishing up with the harrowing account of our iceberg ride.
Where in Duluth?: First Trailwalk of the Season
Is this too easy? I only get here a few times a year, so it seems alien landscape to me.
Can you tell I have a new phone?
The Stonemans – “Two Kids from Duluth Minnesota”
“Two Kids From Duluth Minnesota” by the Stonemans first appeared as a 45rpm single on RCA Records in 1969. The following year it was included on the band’s album Dawn of the Stonemans’ Age, which was later remastered and combined with the 1970 album In All Honesty and released under the title of the latter. (more…)
Selective Focus: Homegrown 2019: Brunch & Recovery
Select Instagram photos from day eight of the Homegrown Music Festival. (more…)
May the Fourth (Doctor) be with You on Free Comic Book Day
May Fourth was a great day for nerds around the Duluth area. Claimed by Star Wars fans with the slightest bit of imagination, only the slightest, the Fourth of May is Star Wars Day. I cringe, still, every time I hear someone say “May the Fourth be with You.” Except when William Shatner says it, because the irony I read into it is delicious. (more…)
Rawkers top Rollers 4-3 to even Homegrown kickball series
The Friday Rawkers bounced back from last year’s loss to the Saturday Rollers by winning 4-3 in the 20th Homegrown Kickball Classic. The series is tied at 10-10.
The 20th Homegrown Kickball Classic had the sides of the Friday Rawkers and the Saturday Rollers right back where they were two decades ago when the competition started, tied up. Friday mustered a comeback 4-3 win over Saturday to tie the overall series at 10 games apiece. Friday had ripped off three straight wins before losing in 2018, allowing Saturday the bragging rights for a year with a one-game series lead. (more…)
Frisco or Dust Shields?
What that scribbled message on the front of this postcard is all about will have to be left to speculation in the comments. The card was mailed 110 years ago — May 4, 1909. (more…)
