Oh Vacation

You call it a balloon, I call it a bad breath holder.

So the first formal vacation is slated for this week. Due to the gas prices, my fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants (or at least the seat of an airline) is quickly diminishing. My ticket for the UK almost doubled in price since I last checked, so needless to say I won't be going this year.

On another note, I've decided to add some media-vacation-notes. So with this being the first day of vacation, lets see what transpired.

So my old running shoes have long worn out. I've decided that breaking in my new shoes would be a great way to spend a Monday morning/afternoon. I was a little nervous about spending so much dough on shoes, but around the 10th mile around the lakes, I realized it was a wiser investment then google.

After the run and a much needed lunch, I decided that I should go for a bike ride. Since I don't think I have any flicks of the new bike up, I decided to post some around the city of Minneapolis. I actually gave in and used a digital camera because with the heat, I felt it best not to carry my film around (hence the less-then-good photos). This is from Harriet looking towards downtown.

Another one from Harriet with the Bandshell and Downtown.

After visiting cities from around the US and the rest of the world, places like this are great to have in your city.

After about 2 more hours on the bike doing the Minnehaha Falls/Nokomis/Harriet/Calhoun circle I walked for a bit towards Harriet. This is the rose garden. It smells better then it looks. During the middle of the day it is occupied by old people and 1st date couples.

So I found a nice tree to prop the bike up against and relax for about a half hour. But guess what? Five minutes into it, this beastly woman flops down 100 feet in front of me to read a book (which I'm sure wasn't a good one)...No joke. It's quiet as could be and she farts. I heard it...FROM 100 FEET AWAY!! Within about five minutes of sitting there, she starts to sweat through her shirt. Thanks obesity.

The bike parked up against the tree. It's much easier to ride now that I have foot holds and a front break....

I got home and decided to make dinner. As you can see, Italian sausage looks pretty similar to

something........But anywho, Broders has the best Italian meats in the city (or at least that I can find).

So heat up some olive oil, add the sausage, onions and a whole bunch of other things and let it cook. Hours later my kitchen still smells good.

Add some cheese and bake. mmmmmmmm. If you look to the top-right, you can see the pictures some of my students have made for me. (Yes, I actually do hang them on my fridge-along with the topgun flicks).

Some good red wine with bread later and it's a night!

So this is a video I took while sitting under my tree at Harriet park. In it, you can see the sweaty woman and a couple that made out for about 15 minutes.

This is a short clip of Lake Harriet from a dock. I'm pretty sure you can't see all the fish in the water.

Tuesday is the Ma's birfday so I don't think there will be many photos, but the rest of the week should be good for flicks.





The All-star game is also this Tuesday. I may or may not watch it. It sorta reminds me of the probowl. People are there, but don't really try. Also, Derrick Lee got snubbed...The home run derby is also a waste of time. At least the slam dunk competition can be good. My problem is that people don't participate anymore. I remember the days of the Michael Jordan/Dominiqe Wilkins showdowns. There are no big name players anymore. Why won't Dwayne Wade or Carmello partake in the event?? Perhaps they are worried about bruised egos.....I think more "big name" athletes should participate in things like that. It's good for the sport. If Ryan Howard or Alex Rodriguez were participating, I'd probably watch. Don't get me wrong, Justin Morneau is the home-team guy, but not exactly a charismatic player. And out of all the pro athletes I've met over the years, he's one of my least favorite in person. Heck, Shawn Merriman (who you would think would be arrogant) was much more pleasant to talk with--but that's another story.





On another random meeting, I met David Crosby this past Thursday at the IDS center. I was down there for lunch with Kristen and who should walk out wearing a jean jacket outfit?? Mellisa Etheridges' baby-daddy! I didn't' get a chance for a photo or a long chat, but it was cool none-the-less to see him.





Everyone should check out the Nicollet farmers market. It's one of the best in the Twin Cities.
Other then that, the Lyndale and Mill City farmers markets are really good in the summer months.

Well, have a good week everyone. Enjoy the weather. I'm off to the Minneapolis Institute of Art and then the Sculpture Garden.

-JB