Reflective Twist

Somewhere downtown Minneapolis, shot thru the skyway window.

Hang On

Back by Nope's demand; music for your enjoyment. Seems he missed the mini concert here at the northmetro blogspot.

I queued up Pink Martini's tune, "Hang On Little Tomato" to go with this photo I took last November. I liked the colors, and oddly enough, it is similar to Pink Martini's album (CD) Hang On Little Tomato.

I like this photo, I originally called it Determination, "when times are tough, hang on tight. Courage, Hope, Perseverance. When everyone else has bailed and let go; be strong, hold on to the bitter end and make a difference".

My wife and I made it to the Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul in record time to see Pink Martini in person. We were pleased to see this performance. China Forbes can really sing, just like an angel. The opening tune was their rendition of "Bolero". "Lilly" was beautifully mastered as was "Hang on Little Tomato". My personal favorite, "Una Notte a Napoli" was outstanding.

If you ever get a chance to see them in person, do it! You will not be disappointed. Better yet, buy all three of their albums...er...CD's; Sympathique, Hang On Little Tomato, and Hey Eugene.

For more information, Pink Martini

I Found a Hat!

Mary Tyler Moore is an icon of downtown Minneapolis on the Nicollet Mall outside the doors of Dayton's Department Store. Oops, no, Marshall Fields bought Dayton's. Wrong again, it is now Macy's that took over Marshall Fields that bought Dayton's. At any rate, this location on the Nicollet Mall will be forever etched in our minds as Dayton's.

The statue of Mary Tyler Moore outside Dayton's, oops, Macy's, is forever frozen in time tossing her hat into the air on the Mall. During the opening credits of the television series "The Mary Tyler Moore Show", Mary joyously tosses her hat into the air. The show aired in the years 1970 to 1977. See the link below for an actual photo from the show of the famous hat toss. Much has changed on the Mall since then.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:MaryHat.jpg

This just in from Sally in Sydney, Australia. http://sydneynearlydailyphot.blogspot.com/ She was kind enough to give us Mary Tyler Moore's theme song! Have a listen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ql8G0Ikko5I&feature=related

Bicycle races are coming your way

Bicycle bicycle bicycle

I want to ride my bicycle

I want to ride my bike

I want to ride my bicycle

I want to ride it where I like

Bicycles parked outside Mill City, just behind the farmer's market. A lovely day for a bicycle ride, a lovely day for a bicycle race.

Suburban Barn ( Update; It is an Old Red Shed...or not)

Close to home on our Urban Treks, we pass this old red "barn" regularly. This structure is located in the heart of suburbia, and may be classified as a shed rather than a barn. But as you can see, this structure is red, it is quite old looking, and it represents that classic barn style construction.

The question remains, is this a barn? A barn houses animals, I'm sure there are mice living inside, perhaps a squirrel or two. There is a St. Bernard that lives on the premisis. Yet many barns of today are used merely for storage, not homes for livestock. Oh the delima.

To be, or not to be,
A barn is the question.

I leave the decision to our Esteemed Panel of Judge, MK to decide whether this can be classified as an Old Red barn, or, merely an old red shed. We shall wait patiently for MK's verdict.


The verdict is in. Judge MK declaired that the photo in question, (above) is indeed an Old Red Shed. This is not an example of an Old Red Barn. The ruling was based upon the tree-height principle; whereas any structure that is old, colored red, and is higher than the surrounding trees is indeed an Old Red Barn.

Thank you for your partience and ruling. We here, at this Blog, work hard to maintain a compliance with correct terminology, adhereing to steadfast rulings from our ever helpful panel of Judge. (though our spelling may be suspect).

Whoa! Evidence has been submitted concerning the nature of this structure in question. We shall now reopen tis case for our Panel of Judge for further reviewal.

Eeyore's Relatives

From the far north metro, JH requested donkey photos from her neighbor. donky kong revisited. http://northmetro.blogspot.com/2007/08/donkey-kong.html

I have always thought Eeyore was missunderstood and a crumudgeon before his time. I guess that is why he's one of my favorite characters; he simply understands life as it happens.

Mmm, this grass is tasty. You can tell, Dora's ears are slicked back.



The grass always seems greener on the other side of the fence. Especially when they're hand fed and hae ears scratched.

Leah, patiently waiting for another free handout, almost pointing us toward the freshest cut of grass she prefers.


Family sharing a meal together is what it's all about on a beautiful summer evening. A fine family, JJ and Leah seem so happy and content. I enjoyed my visit with the donkeys, as I am sure they enjoyed visiting with me. But I can't help wonder what they must think; "Hey here comes those bipeds from across the road". "Oh good, act cute, then we'll get hand fed". Yep, seems to work.

Eeyore must be a distant relative...twice removed as this family is very happy.

Old Red Barn

This is just for MK, an old red barn. more to come in the future!

Old Rug Burn

An old fashioned rug burn, fun for the whole family. Grab some marshmallows, we'll make some smores over the burning rolled rugs.

donkey kong

A Donkey herd on my desk space. JH from north of the metro suggested I photo her neighboring donkeys. Well, I just can not get up that way in the near future. Ironically, our sales representative for Big Ass Fans stopped in our office to check on our Big Ass Fan. He was kind enough to hand out these Big Ass plush toys. Cool, talk about perfect timing. I hope this satisfies your donkey photo craving for the time being, JH.

Oh, and the Big Ass Fan is the name of the company. Our fan has a diameter of 24 feet, 7.31 meters.

http://northmetro.blogspot.com/2007/06/062707.html

Like Peas and Carrots...

...Two things that go great together, Beer and pizza - oh so good! A great lunch at Punch pizza, Neapolitan style pizza. wow, delicious pizza, the best pie in town.

http://www.punchpizza.com/

Minnesota Icons

Today, Nopes requested some fun photos of people or objects that define Minnesota. I have chosen two pics per Nope's request; Nye's Polomnaise Room and Murray's. Both of which are fabulous places.

Murray's Restaurant is know for their silver butterknife steaks, excellent dinner place. A favorite venue for our esteemed Sid hartman and all of his "close personal friends".

Nye's ha a piano Lounge and a Polka room where the World's Most Dangerous polka band plays. A 3 person band with a combined age of about 230 years. ;) What a hoot!

I hope this is what you were thinking and will suffice for now.

The Bridge

Kim requested a positive light to the I 35W bridge collapse. A tough order to fill. What was once the Interstate 35W bridge is softly illuminated by the rescue lights. Lights that give the scene a haunting reminder of the collapse. Bright angelic white light that gives a sence of hope and spirituality.

Fans Speak Out- E-I-E-I-O

Old MacDonald had a Farm, E-I-E-I-O!

And on his farm he had a pig, E-I-E-I-O!

I never knew pigs were black and I never knew pigs liked to ride in the tractor wagon. Who knew?

You asked for it, you got it! Fan(s) Speak out! thanks MK-Kakeroo, this one is for you!

A request has been made by Kakeroo, (aka MK), for me to photograph, and I quote, "AN Old Red Barn". Well, Kakeroo, here it is, an Old Red Barn. My old 'Fisher-Price Family Play Farm'.

As you can see, this IS a red barn, and it IS quite old. This is one of my favorite toys growing up as a wee young lad back in the early 1970's. And the barn door still works! My favorite part; open the door to hear the"mmahooooo"! Hours of fun and entertainment with my old red barn set...(even today).

Wow, that was fun! Fan(s) spoke, I listend, I delivered! OKay, Fan(s) of this blog, what is next? Speak out and come up our next photo-op!

Please see this link below;

http://northmetro.blogspot.com/2007/08/fans-speak-out.html

Fans Speak Out

Hello Dusty Lens fan(s)!

To honor my fan(s), I have come up with a fan appreciation-participation theme. Here is your big chance; pick a subject you wish to see photographed here, (within reason, of course). I will then try within the week to get a pick of that subject you specified. Should be fun, could be fun, would be fun.

Maybe we should name and label this the "MK Photo-op"; MK's belated prize.

Please let me know, maybe it will be a weekly installment.

Thanks,
Your favorite Blog thingy?