Thursday, June 28, 2012

Urban Dwellers

That's my fancy word for those of us who grew up in the inner cities.  I too grew up in the inner city of St. Paul Minnesota (it's a little city next to it's big brother, Minneapolis, but I digress).

I just read an article today on NBC that the for the first time in 100 years that the cities are growing much faster than the suburbs.  Here is the article if you would like to read it: Cities Growing Faster than Suburbs.

Look what is happening in Detroit: Detroit   What a rebirth some parts of that city are seeing.

Or look at

Being a former "urban dweller" (or as my friend Maria would say, a "city boy." ) I can understand this why.  Although I now live in suburb of St. Paul I do miss some things about the inner city.  I miss the people, the sounds of the traffic and trains (I know call me crazy) and the feeling of something always happening.

If you watch the daily news you may think that the inner cities are full of criminals and crime is rampant.  Yes there are parts of St. Paul which are not the best but that is true of any place, including some suburbs.

Here are some pictures of my hometown that perhaps you weren't aware of. 

This is a fountain in Irvine Park which is blocks away from Downtown St. Paul


Here's a snapshot of the Como Conservatory (open all year long).



Farmer's Market in Lowertown:


Segway Tours of the city: 
Segway St. Paul


I could go on an on. I encourage you to explore the city nearest you. Think of it as an adventure and go off the beaten path.  Who knows, you may discover things you hadn't known.  Who knows, perhaps someday I too will move back to the inner city.   Now maybe I should take my own advice and venture on over and explore that city west of St. Paul.....

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Winery Visit

This past weekend Maria and I went to the Alexis Bailey Vineyard in Hastings, Minnesota.

We got to sample 12 wines for only $10 for both of us.  It was very relaxing.  Here are some photos of the winery.  I can only claim one photo is mine, that is of the band.

 


There was a great band playing too. The one thing I noticed is that everyone seems to be in a good mood as they sip their wine and chat among each other.  I was so relaxed I didn't want to leave. 

Both Maria and I seemed to prefer the white wines most.   My favorite was their Country White while I think Maria's was the Golden Gris.   I will definitely have to go back for more. 

Here is the vineyard's website if you would like to check it out for yourself:

Friday, June 8, 2012

Big Dock from Japan

As I was watching the evening news one story  really caught my attention.  It was about a big floating dock from Japan that was torn off its moorings during the big Tsunami and has just recently washed up on the Oregon shore.  There is some concern that the dock could be radioactive and there is also some concern that it is carrying sea life that could negatively impact the ecosystem of the West Coast.

A few things came to my mind immediately. 

1. Didn't someone see this coming?! It's not like it suddenly showed up out of nowhere.  Look at it! With all our technology someone couldn't see this big chunk of steel and concrete floating in the ocean?

People check out the huge dock that washed up this week in Agate Beach, Ore., 100 miles southwest of Portland. The dock carried hundreds of millions of individual organisms from Japan to the West Coast.
















2. If someone saw this coming why and the heck didn't they sink it out in the middle of the ocean or tow it back to Japan?  Now they aren't sure how to get it off the beach and it's going to cost taxpayers thousands to clean and remove it. Geesh!

3. The authorities weren't sure if it was radioactive yet there are children and adults playing around and on it! Cmon kid's, let's check it out!

Here's the story if you want to read up on it.   Japanese Dock


Wednesday, June 6, 2012

British Comedy

In honor of the Queen's Jubilee I thought I'd offer  you some of my favorite British comedies.


  • Are You Being Served? This quirky comedy dates from the 1970's. It has such great characters such as Mrs. Slocumbe, Captain Peacock, and a  young and hot Mrs. Brahms played by the late great Wendy Richards.  It takes place in the Grace Brother's Dept store. You can find may episodes on YouTube but here is a sample: 


  • Another comedy took place in the small town of Dibley.  The town Vicar had passed away and he was replaced by Geraldine Grainger, the Vicar of Dibley played by actress Dawn French.  Again you may have to go to You Tube to find some episodes. Here's a sample...


  • Keeping Up Appearances: This comedy revolves around the life of Hyacinth Bucket (pronounced Boo Kay) and her husband Richard.  She also has a half witted sister Daisy and her slob of a husband, Onlso.  Hyacinth tries to hard to show everyone that her and Richard are aristocratic but it usually ends up going south for her. Again, most of these videos can be found on You Tube.  Check out this video

  • The IT Crowd. This comedy is about 3 goofballs in an IT dept. One is a geek called Moss, the other is Roy who very crazy, and their boss is Jen who knows nothing about IT but due to an embellishment on her resume, this is where she was sent.  See how much fun Roy and Moss have with her in this clip..

  • Monty Python's Flying Circus.  What more can I say, this is a classic show.  Here's a sample: 



Most of these videos can be found on You Tube. 

Do you  have any favorite foreign comedies?  



Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Queen's Jubilee

Watched the Queen's Jubilee celebration tonight.  Wow was it spectacular.

The Queen looks great but I was impressed at how good Katie Couric looked too.

But I was really surprised how great Grace Jones looked. Damn! She's still got it.  


And what about the fireworks show!


Say what you want about the monarchy, those Brits know how to throw a party!