Monthly Archives: August 2012

U.S.S. Minnesota


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U.S.S. Minneapolis
Learn more here.

August 3rd, 2012|General|Comments Off on U.S.S. Minnesota

My Ford


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My Ford is going home for minor repairs. So for the next three weeks, I’m rockin’ out with a minivan with Stow-N-Go seating. That is all.

August 3rd, 2012|General|Comments Off on My Ford

A Farmers’ Market


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I love farmers’ markets. In every city and country I’ve traveled to, outdoor markets are not only great for local produce and good deals, but they show off a bit of the local flavor and people, too. From La Boqueria in Barcelona to las ferias in Santiago; to the back alley market in Wuxi, China (near Shanghai) which included live animals and live fish (but not for long); to fresh fruit from Pier 39 in San Francisco; the outdoor market in Fairbanks, Alaska with giant vegetables, and the farm stands in your local town, the colorful fresh fruit and vegetables flirt for your pocketbook.

As a kid, I remember selling sweet corn for a couple summers at the farmer’s market in Akron, Iowa. My sister, brother and I would wade into the cornfield and load our arms full with stacks of sweet corn, undeterred by the beating sun or itchy pollen. We’d unload them in bushel baskets in our wheelbarrow cart, not stopping until we had several hundred ears. At $2 a dozen, we offered a pretty good deal.

The Curry’s have almost always planted bicolor sweet corn, but in the early 90’s it was more of a rarity than a regular feature at markets or even grocery stores, for that matter. People would ask for our “candy corn.” Sweet corn is not a core part of our family business, but is planted for our family, employees, friends and neighbors. There was always an overabundance of corn, and the farmers’ market allowed my siblings and I to pool together some extra vacation cash. We can’t possibly have earned that much money, but to this day, it remains a rich memory.

Garlic


August 2nd, 2012|Minneapolis, Nature, St. Paul|Comments Off on A Farmers’ Market

Buskers


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When I leave the office each day, I never quite know what kind of gypsy show I’m gonna find on Nicollet Avenue. I say that in the most endearing sense possible. I dropped an Abe Lincoln before snapping some shots, as this group went to town jamming on their (improvised) instruments. I talked with these buskers between songs and learned their band name is “Hateful Bread and the Corn Babies.” Hmm…no more questions.

Video of “Hateful Bread and the Corn Babies” performing on Brady Street in Milwaukee.

August 2nd, 2012|Minneapolis, Music|Comments Off on Buskers

Pianos on Parade

Pianos on Parade
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I did a double take the other day, after noticing an upright piano on the sidewalk next to the Dakota jazz club. That afternoon, I found another decorated piano in City Center. Was it a case of orphaned pianos? No. Turns out, it’s part of Pianos on Parade, a project that places ‘artistically transformed’ pianos around the Twin Cities in outdoor locations for all to play and enjoy. Isn’t that nifty?

Pianos on Parade is spearheaded by Keys 4/4 Kids, a local nonprofit that refurbishes and sells donated pianos. Through mid-September, the Twin Cities will host 20 unique and colorful pianos, inviting people to spontaneously engage with art, music, and one another. But wait, there’s more. As an added bonus, open the piano bench to participate in the free music exchange. You might find a booklet of music by Minnesota composers (as I did), or someone’s gently used sheet music donation.

Pianos on Parade

August 1st, 2012|Minneapolis, Music, St. Paul|Comments Off on Pianos on Parade

Louis Sullivan

City Target, Louis Sullivan building (formerly Carson Pirie Scott)
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Louis Sullivan, an American architect, is considered by many as the creator of the modern skyscraper. I’m a fan of his work, particularly the Sullivan Center (formerly the Carson Pirie Scott building), which features an elaborate and whimsical cast-iron entrance.

Recently, Target opened one of its first City Target locations in Chicago’s remodeled Sullivan Center, preserving both the design aesthetic while maintaining the Target experience guests love. My trip to Chicago ended one day before the opening, so I look forward to checking it out on my next visit. And full disclosure: Besides the fact I work at Target, today’s photo is from the vault (2010) but seemed especially fitting today.

CityTarget

August 1st, 2012|Travel|Comments Off on Louis Sullivan

Basilica of St. Mary

Basilica of St. Mary, Minneapolis
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There was a quiet serenity to Minneapolis’ Basilica of St. Mary as the sun faded, and I walked around the building on a weeknight post-rush hour. Constructed between 1907 and 1915 and designed by the same architect of the St. Paul Cathedral, it’s hard to imagine the contrast in activity in 1908 when 30,000 Catholics, 20 bishops, and 300 priests celebrated laying the cornerstone. The basilica is an example of Beaux-Arts architecture, a style likely most recognized in New York City’s Grand Central Terminal.

Built with Bethel White Granite from Vermont, the Basilica of St. Mary overlooks Loring Park and is located on a main thoroughfare, Hennepin Avenue. The street, the bridge crossing the Mississippi and our county are named after a Catholic priest, Father Louis Hennepin, who in the 1680’s brought the world’s attention to St. Anthony Falls, the only waterfall on the Mississippi River. I’ve lived in Minneapolis a combined seven years, and this is the first time I’ve learned this history. Thanks 365 blogging project.

Originally known as the Pro-Cathedral of Minneapolis, the church cost $1 million dollars to build and held its first Mass in 1914. In 1926, the Catholic Church designated the pro-cathedral the Basilica of Saint Mary, making it the first basilica in the United States.

Basilica of St. Mary, Minneapolis
Basilica of St. Mary, Minneapolis
Basilica of St. Mary, Minneapolis

August 1st, 2012|Minneapolis, Photography|Comments Off on Basilica of St. Mary

Potential

Regional Autism Center
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During my last semester in Notre Dame’s MBA program, I took a class called Community Partners, and my team of friends and I were paired with the autism center in South Bend, Indiana. We were tasked with developing a marketing communications plan to increase awareness for the Center for Autism in the Michiana area (man, I kind of miss saying Michiana) and with awareness, increased volunteer and monetary support. First, I needed to do research because I knew next to nothing about autism.

So, what is autism? Autism is a life-long developmental disability that affects a person’s ability to process sensory info and causes difficulties in developing communication skills, interpreting social relationships, and learning appropriate ways to relate to people, objects and events. Learn more here.

As thanks for our volunteer work, Martha McMillian, an active participant in the LOGAN Center (a community center that serves people with developmental disabilities and also operates the autism center), painted a watercolor of the Notre Dame campus for each of us. I love it, and it reminds me that no matter what our individual abilities or disabilities are, the talents we’ve perfected or the imperfections we acknowledge, or even our failed attempts (see: elementary school wrestling), each of us has the potential to make a unique contribution to the world of those around us. In big ways. In small ways. And ways that are uniquely yours.

August 1st, 2012|General|Comments Off on Potential