skipping stones on ice

it is that time of year, here in minnesota, when the lakes begin to freeze over. This morning on my walk around the lake of the isles, with hot coffee and pup in tow, there are signs of impatient skaters throwing rocks on the lake-ice to judge the substantialness of their personal back-yard glaciers, hoping the ice is getting there.

At 40 degrees and sunny they may need another week.

Last year was my first time walking on a frozen lake, at the art shanty festival on medicine lake in plymouth. It took me a while to feel comfortable, but when i saw an ice fisherman's line cut through and it was 2 feet deep i felt more confident, i felt like gliding. being carried by something i don't even dare to question.

This year, i already have my new ice skates and skis and i can't wait. i threw a rock out on the lake this morning and it didn't go through. The city set out the warming house yesterday, with all the signs that say 'it's not safe yet'. it's not ready yet, but it's getting there!

patron saint of bauhaus

"Act as if you were going to live forever and cast your plans way ahead. By this I mean you must feel responsible without time limitation, and the consideration whether you may or may not be around to see the results should never enter your thoughts. If your contribution has been vital, there will always be somebody to pick up where you left off and that will be your claim to immortality." -Walter Gropius, founder of the Bauhaus school of Architecture and mentor and professor of Bruce Abrahamson.
Mr. Abrahamson began the architecture firm HGA in the 1950's and sadly passed away last week. His vital contributions to design and his innovative vision will continue. The words of Walter Gropius, his instructor at Harvard, constantly inspired him. We will miss you! to read more about him please click here.

belle & sebastian on the joanne fabrics in-store radio

i love when two of my tiny universes collide, like saturday night shopping for fabric at a major craft retailer and hearing my favorite little indy band playing in the background. okay, i guess after the juno soundtrack they could be stepping into more mainstream...but joanne fabrics?? it put a little sprite in my step, humming along i bought too much fabric. i guess they know what they're doing and i am not complaining. I figure it is like when payless shoes used the band pas/cal to promote 'buy two get one free'...after hearing it i went straight to the strip mall and bought three pair, only to support pas/cal. If me purchasing fabric helps to encourage good music, then let that be my call to duty.

free

Like millions of other Americans, I waited in a long line this morning to vote for my next president. I arrived a half hour before the polls opened on a chilly but beautiful Minnesota morning. By the time we arrive inside I was at my cold level, although hidden under my coat my candidates t-shirt kept me warm and motivated.

My ward’s polling station precinct is located in the inner city of Minneapolis, bordering highway 94, in one of the cities most colorful, diverse neighborhoods. We stood outside the community church, a 1960’s postmodern that has not been updated ever since. Inside the vestibule was a wall filled with hundreds of the original bibles in different states of disrepair with a handwritten sign saying “Free”.

And then the familiar smell of church-basement coffee hit our noses.

Absentee ballots are so convenient and probably the best way to go for efficiency, yet I can’t help but secretly wish that every voting experience could take place at a community church or school with volunteers, separate from the government, handing you coffee and homemade brownies at 7:00 AM, smiling at you, wishing you well...silently reminding yourself that you are doing the right thing.