Grandma's

Outside Grandma's Saloon in Duluth is Grandma's Boxcar. Serving up ice cream and hot dogs in Canal Park.

Shooting Mode Manual Exposure

Tv( Shutter Speed ) 1/100

Av( Aperture Value ) 11.0

ISO Speed 100

Focal Length 70.0 mm

White Balance Mode Daylight

Crystalized Ice

Strange how ice forms after run off from our roof.

Take the Cannoli

Ever had one of those moments where you feel the need for something sweet? My sweet tooth began to ache, I felt the need for a cannoli. The solution was in my Buca di Beppo cookbook; Sicilian cannoli. I do not have frangelico, so I improvised using kahlua instead. And it was delicious, almost as good as the Cannoli from Cosetta's on West 7th street in St. Paul. I am now a happy man!
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Camera Model Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XTi
Shooting Mode Manual Exposure
Tv( Shutter Speed ) 1/25
Av( Aperture Value ) 8.0
Metering Mode Partial Metering
ISO Speed 400
Focal Length 47.0 mm
Image Quality RAW

Glamour Shot

Daydreaming at the Como Zoo, St. Paul, Minnesota

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Shooting Mode Manual
Exposure Tv( Shutter Speed ) 1/5
Av( Aperture Value ) 5.6
Metering Mode Partial Metering
ISO Speed 1600
Focal Length 85.0 mm

Flowers

More flower shots from the Conservatory
Winter drags on, we are becoming even more anxious for the first signs of spring. For now, we must settle for indoor flower photos, enjoy.

Fish School

Ice carving competition at Rice Park, St. Paul, Minnesota.
Cold and windy evening for photography. cold on the hands (-4 F, -19 C). Even colder on the camera battery. I kept a spare battery in my pocket for when the battery in the camera froze; I exchanged batteries and keep shooting. Quite difficult manipulating the tripod to frame up a shot and firing a photo with the remote shutter release cable with frozen fingers.
Spotlight illuminating each ice sculpture brought out the details the sculptor created.

Two Things Challenge - Shiny / Dull

Shiny and Dull. The shiny ice compliments the dull blue hydraulic ram on the Coon Rapids Dam.

Floating Cone

More flowers from the Conservatory. The purple cone appears to float.

Unicorn Earth

Ice carving at Rice Park, St. Paul, Minnesota

Curious George

This curious little monkey lives at the Como Zoo
Cute little bugger. I had my camera lens pressed up against the glass trying to follow this monkey. He would move, then I would slide the lens for a better angle. All the time we were playing "cat and mouse" with each other, he kept looking into the lens as if trying to see me inside the camera. We had fun for a few moments, then he was off to more monkey business.
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Shooting Mode Aperture-Priority AE
Tv( Shutter Speed ) 1/15
Av( Aperture Value ) 4.5
Metering Mode Partial Metering
ISO Speed 1600
Focal Length 28.0 mm

West Seventh

Street scene from Patrick McGovern's Pub upstairs window. Thanks to Team Just Roaming the Cities, the Irish Coffee was excellent!

The Incredible Mr. and Mrs. Limpet

Fish pond inside Marjorie McNeely Conservatory

Grumble...

What you looking at?

Black Flora

Tropical plants inside Marjorie McNeely Conservatory - St. Paul, Minnesota
The bright white lines and deep green of these leaves caught my attention for this image.

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Shooting Mode Manual Exposure
Tv( Shutter Speed ) 1/20
Av( Aperture Value ) 8.0
Metering Mode Partial Metering
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 17.0 mm

Two Things Challenge - Corner / Door

This week's Two Things Challenge is Corner / Door.
I searched around town high and low to bring you a local interpretation of this week's challenge. With dreary cold sunless weather, I was uninspired in finding anything locally worthy of this challenge. I searched my archives and found two photos for this challenge.

Corner
Paris, France

Taken in April of 2008 from the top of Arch de Triomphe in the center of Place Charles de Gaulle. I believe this corner to be between Avenue Carnot and Avenue Mac-Mahon. Somebody in Paris will surely know and verify.

Door
San Gimignano, Italy
Taken September of 2006 during our all too brief visit. A lovely city to walk, explore, and get lost.

Green Lillies

Lillys in the pond at the Sunken Garden. Marjorie McNeely Conservatory. Yes, an indoor pond.
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Shooting Mode Manual Exposure
Tv( Shutter Speed ) 1/13
Av( Aperture Value ) 11.0
Metering Mode Partial Metering
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 85.0 mm

Chevron Spell

This looks like minty chocolate. One of the plants inside the Conservatory. Photo courtesy of Mrs. DL.

Stitched Stalk

At the Conservatory, a perfect place to wander inside out of winter's chill.

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Shooting Mode Manual Exposure
Tv( Shutter Speed ) 1/20
Av( Aperture Value ) 5.6
Metering Mode Partial Metering
ISO Speed 200
Focal Length 85.0 mm
Image Quality RAW

Inside the Conservatory

Sunken Garden at Marjorie McNeely Conservatory

The Sunken Garden is a busy area filled with flower aficionados and photographers trying to get their images.
Image courtesy of Mrs. DL
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Camera Model Name Canon PowerShot A710 IS
Shooting Mode Aperture-Priority AE
Tv (Shutter Speed) 1/500
Av (Aperture Value) 2.8
ISO Speed 200

Inside the Sunken Garden looking back toward the Palm Dome.
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Camera Model Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XTi
Shooting Mode Manual Exposure
Tv( Shutter Speed ) 1/80
Av( Aperture Value ) 11.0
Metering Mode Partial Metering
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 17.0 mm

Got Peanut Butter?

Three things I hate in the kitchen; an electric cook top stove, and nonstick pots and pans. OK, I guess that was two things.

Cooking with an electric stove is difficult with the unpredictability of heating times. With gas, you turn up the burner and instantly, you get more heat. Not so with electric where you turn up the knob higher and you must wait until more heat is generated. However, I prefer an electric oven for baking bread.

The non-stick coated cookware is impossible for caramelizing foods. Thus deglazing the pan with wine becomes unnecessary because nothing sticks. If you eliminate the deglazing process , flavor is lost, sauces become bland, the result is a mediocre meal. And we can't have that!

I found this recipe and simply had to try it last night. The result was excellent! Are you reading this J.B.?

Thai Peanut Chicken with Spaghetti

• 1 pound chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1/4 cup crunchy peanut butter
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 4 green onions, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 red pepper, cut into strips

In a saucepan, saute the chicken in olive oil. When done, remove chicken, keep warm. Add broth, honey, and soy sauce to the pan. Whisk in peanut butter, cornstarch, and ginger. Add green onions and garlic - stirring constantly over low heat until blended. Add red pepper and chicken, increase heat to medium, cooking until sauce has thickened. Toss over warm spaghetti. Serves 4.

Recipe by Phyllis Klassen, Keremeos, British Columbia. First Prize winner in the 2007 Peanut Butter Recipe Contest of the Old Farmer's Almanac.

Blood Orange for desert. Expensive, but well worth the added cost over a plain navel orange.

A recipe recommended by JB - Chicken Parmesan Bake

Herb Brooks

Herb Brooks (August 5, 1937 - August 11, 2003) born in St. Paul, Minnesota, made a career of hockey, first playing college hockey for the Minnesota Gophers. He later became coach; best known for coaching the U.S. hockey team to win the 1980 winter Olympics gold medal.

Coaching statistics

Note: GC = Games coached, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OL = Overtime loss, Pts = Points, Pct = Winning percentage

Season	Team	League	GC	W	L	T	OL	Pts	Pct
1972–73	Minnesota Golden Gophers	NCAA	34	15	16	3	—	33	0.485
1973–74	Minnesota Golden Gophers	NCAA	34	17	12	5	—	39	0.574
1974–75	Minnesota Golden Gophers	NCAA	42	31	10	1	—	63	0.750
1975-76	Minnesota Golden Gophers	NCAA	38	23	14	1	—	47	0.618
1976–77	Minnesota Golden Gophers	NCAA	42	17	22	3	—	37	0.440
1977–78	Minnesota Golden Gophers	NCAA	38	22	14	2	—	46	0.605
1978–79	Minnesota Golden Gophers	NCAA	44	32	11	1	—	65	0.739
1980	USA Olympic Men's Team	IIHF	Olympic Gold Medal Team
1980–81	HC Davos	Swiss-A	28	11	16	1	—	23	0.411
1981–82	New York Rangers	NHL	80	39	27	14	—	92	0.575
1982–83	New York Rangers	NHL	80	35	35	10	—	80	0.500
1983–84	New York Rangers	NHL	80	42	29	9	—	93	0.581
1984–85	New York Rangers	NHL	45	15	22	8	—	38	0.422
1986–87	St. Cloud State Huskies	NCAA	36	25	10	1	—	51	0.708
1987–88	Minnesota North Stars	NHL	80	19	48	13	—	51	0.319
1991–92	Utica Devils	AHL	80	34	40	6	—	74	0.463
1992–93	New Jersey Devils	NHL	84	40	37	7	—	87	0.518
1998	France Olympic Men's Team	IIHF	11th-place finish
1999–2000	Pittsburgh Penguins	NHL	58	29	24	5	0	63	0.543
2002	USA Olympic Men's Team	IIHF	Olympic Silver Medal Team
	NCAA career totals		308	182	109	17	—	381	0.619
	NHL career totals		507	219	222	66	0	504	0.497

(from Wikipedia)

Outside Xcel Energy Center, home of Minnesota Wild hockey.

Marjorie McNeely Conservatory

Como Zoo and Conservatory
Yesterday morning, Mrs. DL, my sister, niece and myself, met up with our fellow Twin Cities photo-bloggers, Team Just Roaming the Cities , snapshutter , Mitchster , St. Paul Photos for a morning of photography fun in the McNeely Conservatory in St. Paul, MN. A pleasant morning to spend indoors in warm humid weather to take photos of tropical plants. A nice way to spend a winter morning.

Two Things Challenge - Hot / Cold

Hot

Cold
This week's theme for Two Things Challenge is hot /cold. I had to go back to my archives and dig out a couple appropriate photos.

The Last Supper

St. Paul, MN Winter Carnival Ice sculptures

Close-up in color.

Rice Park

St. Paul, Minnesota
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Shooting Mode Manual Exposure
Tv( Shutter Speed ) 2.5
Av( Aperture Value ) 8.0
Metering Mode Partial Metering
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 17.0 mm
Image Quality RAW
Camera on Tripod

Ordway

Outside Excel Energy Center looking across the street to Rice Park in St. Paul, Minnesota. In the background is the Landmark Center. Directly to the left is the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts.
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Shooting Mode Manual Exposure
Tv( Shutter Speed ) 1/20
Av( Aperture Value ) 8.0
Metering Mode Partial Metering
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 17.0 mm
Image Quality RAW

I am Batman

Batman on ice
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Shooting Mode Manual Exposure
Tv( Shutter Speed ) 1/6
Av( Aperture Value ) 8.0
Metering Mode Partial Metering
ISO Speed 100
Focal Length 47.0 mm
Camera on tripod

French Baking

Bonus image - Robin Red Breast shot today.
While we were eating lunch, I noticed a large group of birds out our front window. Birds typically flock around our North Metro feeder stations, but these birds caught my attention. They were Robins - a flock of two dozen or so! Robins here in Minnesota on February 3rd with temperature at 10 degrees F (-12 degrees C) is quite odd. Robins typically return later in the spring after much of our snow has melted. Could this be a sign of an early spring? I sure hope so!

Dough is final proofed for 1.5 hours. Ready to be slashed then baked.

Finished French bread.

Key Reflections

Long Keys

We got the tickets for Pink Martini's June show. I sure hope they play Bolero.

Bolero - Pink Martini

2 Things Challenge - Many / Few

The Stone Arch Bridge

Two Things Challenge, Many / Few.
This scene has many lights, many unnatural lights illuminating Minneapolis. However, there are few natural lights, a few faint lights. Look real hard, there are five faint stars in the sky shining. Also, there are few lamps on the Stone Arch Bridge.