365.05
To say I enjoy reading magazines is an understatement. More accurately though, I subscribe to a lot of magazines. With my travel schedule (personal and work) the past couple years, it seemed more sensible to get a $10 subscription than pay $4.99 per magazine. But lately, there just hasn’t been much time to read them.
I keep thinking that someday soon winter will actually set in. And, I’ll be ready. My 57 magazines and me.
365.04
My earliest memory of milk (no, we’re not going there!) was in Kindergarten. The teacher’s aide (and staff tooth extractor) would pour milk into 25 wax-coated cups after recess and tell us to “Drink your bubbles!” Which was more fun than it probably should have been.
Actually, milk has a special place in my family’s history. My namesake and great-grandfather, J.J. Curry, would milk cows twice a day and deliver bottles to homes around his South Dakota town. He was both a dairyman and farmer until 1935, when as my grandpa would tell it, J.J. came to a crossroad and had to decide “Was the family’s future in milk production or cornfields?” The outcome: a box of 5,000 unused milk caps and 77 years later, a family seed corn business that’s still going strong.
365.03
From rivers to rails and back again. Tonight I visited the birthplace of Minneapolis…St. Anthony Falls, the only true waterfall on the Mississippi River and the source of water power for sawmills, textile mills and flour mills that would build a city in the mid-1800s. Contrast that with Chicago, a city whose railroads contributed to its rise as a major transportation hub connecting the eastern and western U.S.
One side effect of moving includes a lingering sense of geographic disorientation. By day, I’m in Minneapolis; by night, my mind is in Chicago.
In random moments between being asleep and fully awake, I’ll make a mental checklist of the errands to make, the stores to visit and the roads I’ll take. And, then it hits me that I’m 400 miles away. From Chicago. I won’t be taking the Eisenhower, the Blue Line or Butterfield Road. Or, it suddenly occurs to me that my favorite pizza I’m pining to share with pals is now either a 7-hour drive or a “free” Diet Coke and a bag of pretzels away (if you’re lucky). My daily discourse with McFamily friends has shifted to Likes and comments. And, the two fitness centers (and regulars there) I often saw 5-6 times a week are no longer part of my routine, nor are my running buddies who helped me break a 3 mile plateau to finish my first half-marathon last June.
My four years in Chicagoland were the longest I’ve lived at the same mailing address in my adult life….many memories, stories and laughter shared, and friendships made. These are things not meant to be left behind, but to carry forward. And thanks to technology, I’m ever connected to those who have shaped my life in large ways and small.
It’s said that changing jobs (in addition to a relocation) can be one of the most stressful experiences you have. Luckily for me, it’s been a fun and relatively smooth transition as I find my new groove. I’m thrilled to once again call myself Minnesotan. You betcha.
365.02
The sun came out, but I still welcomed the Skyway on my walk to the IDS Center, the tallest building in the state of Minnesota. Here you can see the glass canopied atrium of the Crystal Court.
365.01
Four months ago, I returned to live (and work) in one of my favorite cities, Minneapolis.
In the past six years, I earned my MBA, met many new friends, studied abroad in China and Chile, worked for two amazing brands, traveled the country and lived in Chicago.
I visited many times since 2005, though Minneapolis is not the same as when I left. Though, neither am I.
It’s the first time in 12 years that a geographic move doesn’t mean starting over. That’s why 2012 is a year of rediscovery.
Rediscovering Minneapolis/St. Paul,
… my music,
… friendships,
… adventures,
… my abs (gotta set goals, right?!)
… and all things familiar and new.
I hope to share stories along the way and a photo from each day (while becoming a better photographer.) The photo above is the popular Spoonbridge and Cherry in the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. Is it my best photo? Certainly not, but my hands were freezing, so this is the shot. The symbolism though is fitting for my year of rediscovery, which I’ll be taking one day (and one spoonful) at a time.
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