Mike and Kurt’s Kiteboarding Session in Mahtomedi, Minnesota
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQT2Jf8Qi5Y
Breaking News from American Library Association
Heart of a Samurai (Amulet) by Margi Preus, a Duluth resident, has been named a Newbery Honor Book at the ALA’s midwinter meeting in San Diego. Dark Emperor (Houghton Mifflin) by Joyce Sidman of Minneapolis, illustrated by Rick Allen of Duluth’s Kenspeckle LetterPress, has also been named a Newbery Honor Book. They are two of four Newbery Honor Books — basically they were the four runners-up to the book, Moon Over Manifest, that won the Newbery Medal this year.
The Newbery Medal is given each year to the author of that year’s most distinguished contribution to American children’s literature.
This is a very big deal, congratulations to Margi and to Rick!
New Lava Lake mix available for download!
There is a new set available for download from my friend James Larson’s new electronic project, Lava Lake, combined with an overhaul of my website, and a new page for his music.
Minnesota woman’s pregnancy survives
falling cow, tornado
And the dish ran away with the spoon!
From the Star Tribune.
A Minnesota woman who was pregnant when a tornado dropped a cow on her last summer has given birth to the baby.
Do words, language and images matter?
I grew up with a father and friends who were hunters. Hunting is a way of staying connected to the land and procuring food, at least that’s what it was when I was growing up. My father rented a meat locker, we ate venison, and Mom and I each got a leather coat, gloves and matching purses. Mine was a buckskin fringe jacket, the envy of my Minneapolis cousins. I wore it for five years, then my brother wore it for another five years. One thing we did not do: Joke about guns or shooting someone.
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Nerd Nite #7
The nerds are at it again. Come on out for accidental learning and intentional awkwardness.
Shawn Thompson Photography Exhibit
Featured photographer Shawn Thompson’s natural landscape photography will be exhibited at the Duluth Photography Institute, 405 E. Superior St. in Duluth through mid-February. There is a free public reception at the DPI facility on Friday, Jan. 14, from 5-8pm.
Shawn will be available to discuss his work and refreshments will be served. RSVPs are encouraged, but not necessary — e-mail dpi @ duluthphotographyinstitute.com, go to the DPI website at duluthphotographyinstitute.com, or look for the DPI on Facebook. For more information on Shawn and his work, go to shawnthompsonphotography.com.
Trampled by Turtles to play Brewfest
Trampled by Turtles are playing a concert at the Great Twin Ports Taste-Together Brewfest and Wine Tasting at Black Bear Casino’s Otter Creek Event Center on Saturday, Feb.19. The Brewfest runs from 4-8pm and features live music by the Fractals before the Turtles take the stage at 8:30pm. You must have a ticket for the Brewfest to see the Turtles.
Find out more at TwinPortsBrewfest.com
It’s kind of a Drag
Who will be our shining light at WDIO?
Station press release:
Eyewitness News at Five anchor
Sandy Drag is making a change
Duluth, MN — Eyewitness News Anchor Sandy Drag has decided the time is right to step away from the anchor desk and the newsroom. The announcement was made today by News Director Steve Goodspeed.
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The Duluth Mongoose
The true story of how an aroused public saved the life of a single little animal condemned to death by the Federal government.
Skiing at Duluth’s Bagley Nature Area: Nearly free and always fun
Smack dab in the middle of eastern Duluth is the only ski trail that costs a quarter to ski … if you’re really fast. Most people should bring three quarters. 75 cents buys you 60 minutes of parking at UMD’s Bagley Nature Area. That’s enough time to ski the 2.7 lovely kilometers of loops and hills twice.
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Ski Hut Cross-country Ski Weekend
January 14 and 15
Lessons in classic and skate techniques. World Cup skate ski, boot and pole demos. Details at Duluth XC Ski Club website.
Huck Finn
Just wondering what the PDD community’s thoughts and opinions are on taking the n-word out of “Huck Finn.”
MinnAqua/Great Lakes Aquarium
Ice Fishing Camp
Date: Monday, Jan. 17
Time: 9 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Ages: 3 – 12
Cost: $15/non-members, $10/members
Join the DNR MinnAqua program and Great Lakes Aquarium for one of the Northland’s most popular winter adventures! Participants will build their own jiggle sticks, discover life beneath the ice, and go ice fishing on a local lake. All transportation, program materials and equipment are provided!
Please contact Lindsay Brandt for more information: 218-740-2027 or lbrandt @ glaquarium.org. Pre-registration is required! Registration deadline: Wednesday, Jan. 12
Early Bird Music Special at Chester Creek Wine Bar!
Get in on some early music with the contemporary folk sounds of Hillside Heidi and Loose Gannon at Chester Creek Cafe Wine Bar. Enjoy a serving of our Nachos Grande with our special Rooster Q sauce and $2 dollars off of all beer and wine.
Giant Panda becoming China King Buffet
The Giant Panda restaurant at 215 N. Central Avenue in West Duluth has closed.
No, Amsoil isn’t moving its corporate headquarters into the Spirit Valley Shopping Center. A woman unloading the truck said a new Chinese restaurant, under different ownership, is moving in. She said it will be called China King Buffet and be open in a few days.
NASA Astronaut Jeffrey Williams at the Lake Superior Ballroom
The Duluth Squadron of the Civil Air Patrol is honored to have NASA Astronaut Jeffrey Williams as the keynote speaker for its upcoming Awards Banquet. Colonel Williams will provide an inspirational talk and photo presentation of his nearly one full-year of living in space. The public is encouraged to attend.
The event will be held the evening of Thursday, Jan. 27, in the Lake Superior Ballroom of the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center. Tickets are $29 ($35 after Jan. 10) and include dinner.
For more information (and to purchase tickets) visit the squadron’s website at duluth.mncap.org/2011banquet.
Karen Diver and Barack Obama
Fond Du Lac Chairwoman Karen Diver seated next to President Barack Obama at the 2nd White House Tribal Nations Conference in December. You can read about it in this months’s Fond Du Lac Band Tribal newspaper.
This story also made the DNT but somehow it only rated a “Faces and Names” mention in the DNT, below Shania Twain, Jermaine Jackson and Stephen Baldwin in the online version that I called up today. Who knows? Maybe they did another story somewhere but I missed it.
Scott Tridgell has been found!
Duluthian Scott Tridgell has been found in Oklahoma City. He’d been missing since Dec. 14. (more…)
The Bombay Sweets – First Fridays at Lake Avenue Café
This Friday, Lake Avenue Café plays host to Minneapolis band the Bombay Sweets as part of its First Fridays series. (more…)
Duluth Christmas Tree Disposal
It’s about that time to take down the tree and we are looking for a place to dispose of it. Does anyone know of any organizations or businesses that aid in this? Burning isn’t an option.
Duluth News Tribune: Online vs. Paper
I am looking for some advice regarding the Duluth New Tribune. I recently stopped my paper subscription and am now reading the news online.
My problem is the online edition seems very hard to navigate. I feel that not all the daily stories are available online, or they may be hidden underneath one of the many tabs. (I emailed the News Tribune about this and was told that all stories printed in the paper copy are available online but I recently compared them and did not find this true.)
I have also noticed that the stories are displayed in a list, with no separation between “today’s news” and other recent stories. This has a tiring effect on my mind since I am seeing the same stories for days.
Can anyone recommend a good way to read online so the same information is gleaned, or is this not possible? I may go back to the paper edition.
Aegri Somnia
For some reason YouTube now allows me to upload clips longer than 15 minutes, so I’m able to put this online without breaking it apart. I shot most of it in Duluth on some very hot summer days back in the early 1980s. The film is older than my adult kids. I’ve never been completely happy with the narration but I still like some of the images. The title translates to “a sick man’s dream.”