Upper Chester: Not so fast there people!
Duluth took a beating this past year. But thanks to everyone pulling together we’ve made a remarkable comeback. For proof, you don’t have to look any further than Chester Park. Thanks to the indefatigable Dan Proctor and others the Lower Chester trails are probably in better shape than they were before the floods of June, and that’s saying a lot considering the scope of the mudflows and washouts that ravaged pretty much every inch of the ravine.
Upper Chester, however, is another story. Despite good intentions, there’s been a lot of jumping the gun to clean up or improve things that one could make the argument has ended up doing more harm than good. I’m not going to run down the list, but the latest chapter seems to have taken place largely under the radar, and I think it deserves a public airing.
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Harbor City Roller Dames: Results
I was out of town: I need the score, I need photos, I need narrative description of the bout; I want a list of media and political celebrities present!
Lake Superior Debris
My wife and I noticed an unusual amount of debris on the shore Saturday morning — lots of shards of glass, clinkers, ceramic, etc. Why now? Was a shipwreck dredged up?
Duluth and Helsinki forever — and maybe Stockholm too
I attended a screening of Helsinki Forever, a 2008 montage of video clips taken by Finnish documentary and feature film makers over the past 100 years. It opens with this scene from the 1920s. (more…)
Duluth Coffee Company
Downtown Duluth has recently been bestowed with a new coffee cafe and roasterie on Superior Street. Located at 105 E. Superior St., Duluth Coffee Company is founded by owner and roaster, Eric Faust, whose passion for coffee is obvious upon walking into the elongated cavernous space. For the unprepared, all your senses will be hit with coffee at its finest.
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Duluth’s 1937 West End Baseball Team
Brian Bécotte of Edgartown, Mass., shared this 1937 photo with PDD on Facebook. His father, John Bécotte is standing, second from the left.
If anyone knows additional names of players on the team or anything about the team in general, well, that’s what blog comments are for.
Berserkon
There is a Kickstarter project running right now to fund “an entirely epic gaming convention taking place in the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center over Memorial Day weekend.” Board games, RPGs, wargames, TCGs, LAN gaming, celebrity guests and contests. Project closes December 22.
Low — The Invisible Way album trailer
There’s a new Low album coming out on March 19. It’s not titled Exceptional Peaches, and it’s hard to know how they resisted that urge and went with The Invisible Way, but that’s really no matter.
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Duluth Pest Control Recommendations
We have a lovely craftsman in Lakeside we are renting out and they just texted telling me they’ve caught nine mice in four days. Yuck! And now I’m anticipating getting screwed over by an exterminator. I’m from Duluth and yet I’m viewed as an outsider because I’m not there to deal with this and I call from an out-of-state number. I need someone to figure out the point of entry and seal it up. Help fellow Duluth folk!
Duluth Carburetor Service
I am having some trouble with my 1986 Toyota pickup. I think it has something to do with the carburetor, but diagnosing the problem is beyond my limited mechanical skills. Since carburetors are not very common nowadays, I’m not sure where I can bring it for service/beta in Duluth. Know any good carb shops in Duluth? Or grumpy old men who fix things?
Tickets for Cloud Cult in Silver Bay
I have three Cloud Cult tickets for Saturday night, Dec. 1, in the Silver Bay High School auditorium that are up for grabs. It sounds like a fun trip up the shore for you and two of your best mates! E-mail kristinebergren @ gmail.com if interested.
Armory: Love it, but would also love this
I was reading the Duluth News Tribune coverage of the Duluth Armory flood damage and happened upon this comment:
I wonder if the Armory Arts Org has bitten off more than it can chew. This place is really a white elephant but that is the regretful truth. The scale of difficulties in dealing with a place of this size, age and state of disrepair – now with flood damage and other problems – It’s just not going anywhere! (more…)
Portage “Landings”
Portage is putting out its second album today. Listen and buy at Bandcamp. Physical copies will be available Saturday at the Minneapolis CD-release show (Icehouse 11 p.m.) and earlier next week at the Electric Fetus in Duluth. Cheers!
Van Halen at Duluth Arena, 1978 and ’79
A while back we started a master list of concerts at the DECC (formerly Duluth Arena) to help people sort out their fuzzy memories of rocking out back in the day. Since the list is kind of a slap together of info submitted to PDD in comments, it contains some incomplete and inaccurate information. (We would like it to be complete and accurate, but that would require a level of diligence we are unwilling to accept.)
We received a note over the weekend from PDD user “duluthyouth” pointing out that “Eddie Money opened for Van Halen in 1979, not who you had listed.”
A search through newspaper microfilm found no review of the 1979 concert, but the advertisement above (from the Duluth News Tribune) indicates “special guests” and specifically notes the band Screams is on the bill. (more…)
Where should I get my Christmas tree?
Does anyone know of a good place where you can chop down your own tree?
What’s the story on this place?
Ads for this place have been on Craigslist for a good deal of time:
Not that I have any interest in renting it, but it’s so … different … that I can’t help but wonder. An inspection via Google maps leads to some interesting scenery, and driving by it makes one even more curious.
Anyone know anything about it?
Kicksled Rental
Now that it’s a winter wonderland outside, my family and I can’t wait to play in the snow! When we’re down in the Cities having fun, we like to rent kicksleds, but here in Duluth I can’t find any place that seems to offer them. I know where to find skis and snowshoes, sleds and ice skates, but I have yet to locate any kicksled rental. Please tell me I’ve missed something. It’s hard to imagine a place much better suited to the fun that kicksledding has to offer, but it appears the Duluth area might be missing out. Thanks for any insight!
This week: Cloud Cult, roller derby and Zuzu’s petals!
Here’s a sampling of what you have to look forward to this week on the PDD Calendar.
Tuesday you can meet the architect of the new Vikings Stadium, Bryan Trubey, at the Holiday Inn.
On the theater front:
- Singin’ in the Rain opens at the Playhouse on Thursday and runs three weekends
- It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play opens at UMD on Thursday and runs two weekends
- Fezziwig’s Feast by Wise Fool Shakespeare opens at the Holiday Inn Ballroom on Friday and runs four weekends
- Diggity Dog Days plays the Play Ground this Friday through Sunday only
Murder of Crows opens for Cloud Cult this Friday at Clyde Iron.
The Harbor City Roller Dames take on the Minnesota Roller Girls Rockits at the DECC this Saturday.
So what are you doing this week? Can we tag along? Any upcoming events that you want to promote? Let us know!
Kids’ book set in alternative-universe Duluth
I’m a writer who grew up in Duluth and use the city as part of the setting for a middle-grade ghost adventure called Johnny Graphic and the Etheric Bomb. Johnny is a 12-year-old news photographer who lives in an alternative universe in 1935, in which Duluth is called Zenith. Ghosts are real in this world and a few of them have something very nasty in mind for the city. The book is available as a print-on-demand paperback and e-book through Barnes and Noble and other online retailers. Right now, I’m also giving paperback copies away through Goodreads, for any readers who may belong. The book’s website is johnnygraphicadventures.com.
Styrofoam recycling in Duluth
I have a basement full of pieces of hard Styrofoam blocks in all shapes and sizes that I need to get rid of. I hate the stuff, but cannot bring myself to send it to the landfill, due to environmental concerns. I have six years’ worth of it and it is time to do something so I can reclaim the large area of my basement that is currently overrun by it. Does anyone know of anywhere local that I can bring this stuff where they can recycle or reuse it? I know shipping places take packing peanuts, but several have told me they do not take the larger pieces or blocks that come in the packaging of appliances. I thought I had heard something a few years ago about Lake Superior College having a recycling program for Styrofoam, but I have been unable to find any confirmation of this.
On a related note, I also have several very large pieces of cardboard (about 5’x3′) up for grabs. If anyone wants it let me know and you can pick it up in the Piedmont area.
Canal Park Brewing Co. Reviews
Does anyone know if the new brewery is open yet?
In Case You Missed It
This is too stupid to not let go unnoticed: Welcome to UMD. Again.
Duluth RecyclaBell
For the sake of Duluth music history, and inspired by a reunion show, we take a look back at the RecyclaBell and the mid-1990s Duluth music scene. (more…)
Where in Duluth?
Who was here before the current business expanded into this area?