Minneapolis
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After several years, Mike and Meghan finally tied the knot! The wedding hill in Theodore Wirth Park was a beautiful place for the outdoor ceremony and the Chalet on the golf course was perfect for the reception. Even a passing whitetail deer stopped briefly to watch the ceremony.
As we finished our 30 mile bike ride, we loaded up the front of a pontoon boat to cross Lake Minnetonka. The steamboat Minnehaha cornered us at the docks in Excelsior and while this delayed the return to our cars in Wayzata, it was an opportunity to see a boat that has spent an equal number of years sitting at the bottom of Lake Minnetonka as it has ferrying passengers around the lake.
While doing a 30 mile bike ride with friends, we stopped at Big Stone Mini Golf in Minnetrista. The mini golf holes are part of and surrounded by art installations created by the owner of the mini golf course. It was a blast and worth checking out.
I helped plan 23 town hall meetings across Minnesota where average people gave their ideas for addressing the state’s budget situation to Democratic and Republican legislators. Thanks to a youth filled with driving across the plains, I felt comfortable driving to the five meetings I staffed.
Winter in Minneapolis is usually cold. Locals could hibernate, but life is too short and winter is too long to stay inside when it gets frigid. Lake Calhoun becomes a playground for those willing to brave the temperatures.
Today I attended President Obama’s inaugural. My unorganized photos are a snapshot of an incredible day. Enjoy!
The joke about Washingtonians is that nobody is from Washington. This weekend that seems to be especially true; everyone seems to be in town visiting for the weekend - which has lead to several fun parties. Today’s free We Are One concert on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial kicked off the inaugural festivities and people showed up - including both Obama and Biden. While it was breezy with temperatures was in the low thirties (the Potomac is frozen over), the crowd was excited, there was a festive atmosphere, and it was never overwhelming.
Mr. Obama will become President Obama Tuesday and I decided to go to Washington, DC to celebrate. After the first two weeks of the legislative session, flying to Washington for the inaugural is like starting a mini-vacation. While waiting for my flight at Minneapolis’ airport I discovered an observation deck with a view of both the Minnesota Air National Guard station and two runways . You’ll notice the C-130 in the above photo. On Thursday a group of MN National Guard members who trained for St Paul’s Republican National Convention were activated to be a rapid response force for the inaugural. They weren’t on my flight.
During 2008 my friend Kyle did not eat french fries. As a re-introduction to the food he decided to bike around Minneapolis and St. Paul for a sampling of the best fries offered in the Twin Cities. Ed Kohler and I joined him on the 20 mile, nine hour trek. While we didn’t get to some venues that should have been on the list, there was a limit to the number of fries we could eat.
Enduring wind chills on the way to St Paul was worse than riding through sleet and snow on the way back to Minneapolis, especially because on the return trip we made our way onto dedicated bike paths.
Ed Kohler has some great photos on his site as well.
The Edina Grill was a great place to go for breakfast the day after Christmas. The french toast was very well done. Six out of six people at the table agreed that they’d order their meal again. Additionally, the light fixtures are really interesting.
