Book review: Keystones of the Stone Arch Bridge

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Two Minnesota icons that I hold most dear are the Minneapolis neighborhood where the Mississippi River pours over St. Anthony Falls and runs along St. Anthony Main, and the candy that rolls out of Pearson’s in St. Paul. When The Minnesota History Center folks sent me a copy of Carolyn Ruff’s “Keystones of the Stone Arch Bridge” I spent many delicious hours delving into both. Summer is beginning to wane and the kids have another month before school starts: August is the perfect month to grab a Nut Roll and explore Minneapolis history. Continue Reading

Everyday grillers

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“I think it is weird that T and I are the only ones in our neighborhood that grill every night,” I told my friend Tiffany. It seems to me, I told her, that there are two kinds of people: those who grill, and those who grill infrequently or not at all. Continue Reading

Day tripping in Northfield: What book are you reading?

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This year summer has been about finally reading those books that have spent too many months untouched on the shelf, evenings and weekends spent at the grill, and glorious warm, slow, sunny moments strung together with day trips to great places within a few hours drive of the Twin Cities. We hike for a few hours, grab a cone or a root beer float, and come home feeling like we’ve taken Thoreau’s advice to live deliberately and deep, and to suck out all of the marrow (and ice cream) of life. Continue Reading

Consider the ape

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As a kid, weekends meant hanging at my dad’s apartment. Most Saturdays were spent watching old movies on TV. When “Planet of the Apes” or any of its manifestations played, I sidled up to the black and white set with a bowl of chips and a bottle of strawberry Pop Shoppe, happy to share the afternoon with Charlton and Roddy. I’ve always loved a good ape movie. Continue Reading

Aebleskiver brunch

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Brunch is meant to be a leisurely celebration with good friends and family. Add a pot of strong coffee, perhaps a flute of champagne, and, of course, amazing food and you’ve got the start to a perfect day. Continue Reading

Enduring traditions: Swedish Heritage Day at Minnehaha Falls

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For 81 years a bunch of American Swedes have congregated at Minnehaha Falls in Minneapolis to celebrate their heritage with music, dance, and food. Svenskaranas Dag (Swedish Heritage Day) used to draw as many as twenty thousand people who danced around the maypole and picnicked along The Falls. Honored guests included politicians and celebrities. Fewer folks attend the event these days, although we still get the occasional politician, but we are no less enthusiastic than those who came before us. Continue Reading

Tales in the dark

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With the ongoing weather- and age-related home issues we’ve had in recent years, I have been (sort of) joking to T that I am ready to just pack up the cats and a few sentimental items, quietly drive away, and let nature have her way with our house. She obviously wants our stuff and it is exhausting to constantly fight her for it. Between the wind and water and frequent power outages, these battles are quickly becoming a war. Continue Reading

Toys of the ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s: Childhood revisited

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A while ago I was contacted about a story I posted on this blog about Baby Brother Tenderlove, an anatomically correct boy doll that hit toy shelves in the 1970s. I was told that The Minnesota History Center was planning a toy exhibit and publishing a companion book that would include stories from those of us who were willing to share our memories of that time and those playthings. Fast forward nearly one year and there I am on page 152. Pretty neat! Continue Reading