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Showing posts from July, 2018

Heirloom

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In the middle of all the crazy, it's important to just sit back and enjoy for  minute, even when you can't plan for it. This afternoon I read that Heirloom was closing...tonight. And we still had a $100 gift card that we had kept saving for the "perfect date night." So after a long day, we grabbed a reservation and brought Beatrix out to experience. It was not the perfect night. They were slammed, and it took forever. We got the last of a lot of things. But the important things is that we got in one last time, and we had a lovely dinner together as a family. These are the things that mean a lot. We'll miss you, Heirloom!

Full STEAM Ahead!

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Ok, you are all used to me raving about my clients, and Circus Juventas in particular. But do yourself a favor and see Steam, because: -  It's the hardest-to-rig show that patrick has done, which means to you as an audience member that he tricks are amazing! -  It's Beatrix's favorite show to date. -  Not only are the tricks great, but it has great acting performances too! -  Steampunk! The steps and costumes are also amazing! -  You can see a Cirque du Soleil style show at a fraction of the price! (and there are a few tickets left for the next few weekends) -  If you don't, you'll miss all my family's inside jokes for the rest of the year. Seriously, you are going to love it!

When Constraint Makes Opportunity

My friend just posted a picture of "Date night at the best Patio in town (Sweeney's)," which led to an online discussion of that patio's merits. I've lived across from Sweeney's for 25 years, and yes, I love that patio too. But it wasn't always so great. It used to be basically a gravel expanse out the back door that led to a kind of ratty parking lot. No one really wanted to be out there, but hey, it was a patio, and it was Minnesota in the summer, so.... The neighbors banded together to complain. It was way too loud, it was open until close, people drinking spilled out onto the sidewalk and into neighbors' yards. Bones form chicken wings littered the gravel (until the neighborhood wildlife came to scoop them up). Yes, we all were aware that we had purchased homes by a bar (though technically this homes all predate the bar...). But we also had likewise expected Sweeney's to follow basic liquor licensing regulations, including crowd and noise

A Girl with a Big Heart

Today was Beatrix's cardiologist visit. She was born with 2 small issues — a small (2mm) hole between chambers, and an open PDA, When she was 11 months old, part of this was solved by inserting a small coil, and the hole has closed, though she still has a small murmur. Today was her first visit in 5 years. There was a scheduling snafu and she could not see her regular doctor, which was really upsetting because Dr. Dummer is leaving this month to move to California and this was our last visit with her. In the end, it was probably a good thing, because we got transferred to the care of Dr. Chu, who was also great. It's nice to have a new doctor that we know assigned to us with Dr. Dummer going, rather than just anyone that we would have gotten assigned to, and he even Facetimed her so we could say goodbye. The staff there is all fantastic. The only remanning issue is that Beatrix still has a slightly enlarged aorta. As heart issues go, it's not a huge deal. She can partic

Why a House is More then Structure

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I've recently encountered a rather toxic person whose views on the built environment could not be more different than my own. Which got me thinking about our house on Summit. When we inherited it, we knew we wanted to use it to do good. And as I sit and think of what this house has been able to host, I'm pretty impressed: -  A friend working in China, home for the summer. -  The mother of a friend, who wanted to spend more time with her family. In fact, that has happened four separate times (with separate people). -  My aunt and her friend, swimming almost daily. -  Two different sets of circus artists moving here from abroad, and several that have just been here for workshops. -  A short film based on Dessa's spoken word art. -  A fashion photoshoot. -  A short film. -  Two weddings. -  Several other families here attending weddings. -  A friend's mother here for the birth of their child. -  People coming for school reunions. -  A missionary here for part

Iceland in a Nutshell

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1 July, 2018 Delta flight was 4 hours late due to mechanicals so we were wrecked. Supposed to be a 10pm departure but instead 2am, so we lost a ton of time and sleep (did get to see Lean on Pete starring Charlie Plummer on the plane though, so not all was lost). Got car from Sixt, drove along the water road to AirBnB, which was located on a farm outside of Hella. Stopped at black sand beach (not THE one, but A One). The whole way we remarked on the beauty — the lava fields! The shoreline! The mountains! The steam coming from the grouns! The Icelandic horses! Grabbed some snacks in Selfoss — Lion Bars! Hobnobs!   Liked the big Kronan store there. Found AirBnB — loved it. The cottage was pristine — so clean, so spacious, so well outfitted. Amazing to have this whole space to ourselves. Napped an hour, and made a quick dinner (we had brought food to save money). Beatrix got to see the horses and the lamb (and dog of course). Around 8:00 we drove up to Guilf