PDD Video Lab: Knight Family 8mm Duluth Movie
For this edition of PDD Video Lab we’ve pulled the Duluth section out of a 1954 family film and repackaged it with music from the period — Nat King Cole’s “Unforgettable.”
Aerial Bridge raised to pass ore boat into Duluth Harbor
Based on the 3-cent postage rate, this postcard must be circa 1958 to 1963. The description on the back reads:
The Aerial Bridge in raised position for an ore boat passing into Duluth Harbor. When the span is lowered traffic may move without interruption between Minnesota Point and downtown Duluth. Through this canal pass about 4500 boats in a 7-1/2 month season, carrying a total tonnage of about 17 million tons. (Average for five years.)
List of Duluth Winters and What They Are Remembered For
Although Duluth is known for — and by some feared — for its winters, those blasts of snow and cold tend to run together in most peoples’ memories. Everyone who experienced it recalls the Mega Storm of 1991, and there was a long cold snap in 2014, but by and large the memories of various storms and other winter climate events get mashed together.
So, in an effort to sort them out, Perfect Duluth Day has tossed together a brief and somewhat vague list of some winter moments that have been marked on the website in the past (with links) or have been loosely referenced on the web as having been more wintery than other winters. (more…)
City Girl Coffee now in Minnesota Target stores, on Amazon
City Girl Coffee, a Duluth-based coffee roaster dedicated to empowering women in the coffee-growing industry, has announced its varietals and blends are now available on amazon.com and at Minnesota Target locations.
The expanded distribution follows the company’s third anniversary on Nov. 12.
City Girl sources its beans from women-owned or managed farms and cooperatives whenever possible. The brand offers a product line of organic and Fair Trade varietals and blends from Guatemala, Brazil, Sumatra and Peru that are packaged in 12-ounce bags and single-serve cups.
The company was profiled on Perfect Duluth Day in 2016 and featured in Forbes magazine and the New York Times in 2017.
Grandma’s Marathon 2018 Double: Gorilla’s in the Mist
Eric Stand — joined by Zach Strand and Andy Lohn — run the seventh annual Grandma’s Marathon Double. It’s a 52.4-mile trot along the shores of Lake Superior, starting at 2:30 a.m. at the finish line and running to the start, then back.
PDD Quiz: November 2018 in Review
Test your knowledge of November headlines with this month-in-review quiz!
The next PDD quiz, on restaurants and bars of yesteryear, will be published on Dec. 16. Please email question suggestions to Alison Moffat at aklawite@d.umn.edu by Dec. 12. (more…)
New to Duluth
There’s much to love about our enchanting city — the breathtaking views, the closeness we feel as community members, the intimate connection we have with Lake Superior and its surrounding environment. Those reasons are exactly why, back in 2013, my then-fiancé and I chose to move to Duluth from Fargo, N.D. We wanted to live somewhere with an entirely different aesthetic from the Red River Valley yet be close enough to visit family and friends on weekends. The North Shore of Lake Superior was, and still is, a perfect fit.
As a newcomer, it took me an unexpectedly long time to feel bound to our community — more so than other cities I’ve lived in. Most of my initial connections were with coworkers and members of the Rotary Club of Duluth, which I joined through work. These individuals took my husband and I under their wings, providing advice and recommendations for what neighborhood to live in, what doctors to see and what companies to call for air conditioning repairs or garbage service. I trusted these men and women, and to this day, they haven’t let me down. (more…)
Selective Focus: John Heino
This week in Selective Focus, we hear from photographer John Heino about his work, and how he he balances his ever-growing creative wish list as well as evolving travel and equipment wish lists.
JH: I began as an old-school film photographer in the early 80’s as an art student at UMD. With the advent of digital photography, I made the transition from darkroom to computer. I was a bit skeptical about digital in the beginning, but it’s incredible how the technology has evolved over the last ten years. (more…)
Denfeld Lip Dub 2018: “God’s Plan”
Released about six months later than usual and on a budget of $0, the annual Denfeld High School lip dub video is finally out, featuring the song “God’s Plan” by Drake.
Hey there, Duluth, you hear us?
National Public Radio’s Scott Simon begins the Nov. 17 “Saturday Sports” segment on Weekend Edition asking: “Anybody here want to host the 2026 Winter Olympics? Hey there, Duluth, you hear us? Are you just going to stand there with your hands in your pockets?”
Cloud Cult in Concert & Conversation at the Greene Space
Cloud Cult, a band formed by Craig Minowa in Duluth, performed at the Greene Space in New York on Nov. 1 in an event streamed online and available in the video above. Dawn Gross, host of the radio series Dying to Talk interviews Minowa between songs on the topics of love, loss and more.
Missing Person: Janeen Bauer Peters
Update: The body of Janeen Peters was found on Nov. 28 about 500 yards from her vehicle near County Road 2 in Lake County. The vehicle was covered in snow and there were no fresh tracks near it. The cause of death is unknown.
The St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office had asked for the public’s help in locating Peters. She was reported missing on Nov. 19 and was last seen Nov. 11 driving her vehicle north of Duluth on North Shore Drive. Investigators believe on Nov. 13 she was at a restaurant in Duluth.
Beyond the Gridiron: Made in Duluth
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54htLY9p7qc
Season 1, episode 11 of the Minnesota Vikings video series “Beyond the Gridiron” profiles Duluth native C.J. Ham, telling the story of his journey from Denfeld High School to the National Football League.
Jonathan Richman – “They’re Not Tryin’ on the Dance Floor”
Jonathan Richman, founder of famed proto-punk band the Modern Lovers, dropped a Duluth reference on his third solo album, 1991’s Having a Party with Jonathan Richman. (more…)
Giving Thanks for a Perfect Duluth Future
As we move into the holidays it seems appropriate to share our gratitude for the hundreds of Duluthians who have added their name in support of the Bag it Duluth Campaign. In so doing they are showing they care deeply about our community by working to shift a cultural mindset away from a disposal planet and disposable people toward a livable economy that works for all and future generations. And, in this time of unconscionable inequality and climate change we acknowledge that many others feel frozen, unable to act, as what feels sacred seems lost. To those, we extend our hearts. (more…)
PDD Gift Guide 2018
Find something for everyone on your gift-giving list with PDD’s annual curated gift guide. It’s a bit different than most gift guides in that it’s not a list of stores that advertise with PDD — it’s a list of items created in our region, chosen simply because they are nifty. (more…)
Holiday Traditions next to Red Kettles
The Red Kettles are out, and the adorable man next to the adorable eagle is my friend.
The teddy bear on the left is Tim Broman; “Earnie” the eagle on the right is Cara Ellis. As you might guess from the fairly cheesy pun in “Earnie,” Cara is a mortgage specialist at Northern Communities Credit Union, where Tim is a customer service representative.
They are standing outside Cub Foods, where I bought some tasty sushi yesterday, inspired by the PDD post about Wasabi.
I didn’t realize that local businesses partnered with the Salvation Army in this way. I appreciate the generosity of NCCU, I shame my friend Tim for making the lady wear the costume (a gentleman would have worn the scratchy sweaty suit) and I wonder whether any other businesses and organizations partner in this way in the holidays. Post below if you will be ringing this season, please?
(Former) local author Michael Fedo, Well-Reviewed
Don’t Quit Your Day Job by Michael Fedo — Open Letters Review
Smart, determined would-be writers will learn a great deal from this veteran’s favorite stories.
openlettersreview.com
Former Duluthian Michael Fedo’s new book is reviewed on the arts and literature website Open Letters Review:
For all readers interested in the workaday writing life, it’s fascinating to follow Fedo through his many adventures, from writing an authorized biography of Garrison Keillor vehemently opposed by its subject to interviewing Cloris Leachman about starring in a play about Grandma Moses (which flopped).
I enjoy this book well enough, it inspired my Spring syllabus for Writing Studies majors.
Wasabi Japanese Cuisine opening Duluth location Nov. 23
Wasabi Japanese Cuisine will open at 132 E. Superior St. in Downtown Duluth on Black Friday, Nov. 23. The restaurant’s Facebook page notes the grand opening will be from 2 to 10 p.m.
For more information, read Perfect Duluth Day’s previous story on the subject: “Wasabi Japanese Cuisine to open in Duluth’s Old City Hall.”
The menu, shown below, features dine-in and take-out items. (more…)
Paul Bystrican Season 2017/18
As we near the start of the 2018/19 ski season, here are some clips of Thunder Bay’s Paul Bystrican in action last year. Several shots are from Spirit Mountain in Duluth.
Ingeborg von Agassiz: Waiting to Get Old
We’ve shared plenty of Ingeborg von Agassiz videos recently, and with all the videos she has been posting, it would be easy to turn this into Ingeborg TV. But dang, this is a gorgeous song.
Mary Bue’s “The World is Your Lover” Kickstarter
Minneapolis-based musician and occaissional Duluthian Mary Bue is poised to record songs for her eighth album, The World is Your Lover — “a collection of songs about the world, players and cheaters, snow falling on sage, the River Styx, gemini eyes, and tomatoes.”
Up first, a Kickstarter campaign.
Mystery Photo #78: Trio by the Transfer Bridge
It’s not known who shot this photo or the names of the people posing in it, but based on the woman’s flapper outfit and the fact that the Aerial Bridge in the background isn’t a lift bridge yet, it must be circa the 1920s. Can anyone find other clues?
Goose Chase: An Interview with Duluth’s Goosinator
In 2016 the city of Duluth purchased a remote-controlled glider designed to humanely chase away geese. “The Goosinator” was acquired from an eponymous company in Denver, Colo. at a cost of about $3,000 plus shipping and handling. The city made this purchase with the express goal of ridding Bayfront Festival Park of an increasing abundance of goose feces, a consequence of the recovering Canada goose population. In large amounts, goose feces diminish the park’s appeal and utility, and can cause illness in people and pollute the lake.
Two years on, the Goosinator agreed to meet with me for an exclusive, first-ever interview.
No one in the newly-opened Dovetail Cafe & Marketplace recognizes the Duluth park maintenance worker hustling in from the cold for an interview, but he draws notice all the same. The Goosinator stands about 20 inches tall and, at almost four feet long, has to sit sideways as I help him into a chair at a table made of reclaimed birdseye maple. He wears an outsize, toothy permagrin. He’s bright orange. And he seems perfectly at ease with the sideways glances, thanking me with a wry smirk as I pass him the Cascara Tea I took the liberty of ordering him. After all, he’s used to being the focus of attention, as it’s a prerequisite for his unusual line of work. (more…)
Selective Focus: Ice and Frost
Instagram
37 likes, 1 comments - mikemayouphotography on November 15, 2018: "Love living where this is only a 5 minute drive from home.".
instagram.com
This week, some cold and icy scenes from around the area. (more…)