Jeremy, Ben, and I were streaming live on the web today from the Expedition en route to Fort Wayne, Indiana while we were powered by Mike & Ike’s. Rock on.
This was done using two webcams, and audio mixer for each mic, and a MacBook Pro pushing out the camera and audio feeds. It worked kinda well near big cities and not all that well elsewhere.
One of the complaints I’ve heard in the past from people who weren’t entirely sold on the Birchwood Cafe was that you had to bus your own tables after you’re done eating. Well, that policy has apparently gone the way of the dodo bird.
Things were hopping today with packed sidewalk seating. Lots of bikers.
Birchwood is using a local CSA for much of their produce. Very cool.
I found this YouTube video of Minneapolis graffiti embedded within a story about the topic on the Minneapolis Mirror:
It’s amazing how many of the walls shown in this video get tagged over and over again. For example, the first part of the video shows walls along E 38th St. Regulars along that road surely recognize the walls that are hit. The last part of the video gets up to E Lake St, and the middle part seems to cover 35-36th Streets.
There used to be a time when the Catholic church was bad ass and took no prisoners. For example, there was a time when babies who died before they were baptized would be stuck in a special place between heaven and hell called “Limbo” for eternity. Tough luck little ones. That’s the way the Catholic church rolled.
This went on for something like 800 years. Think about how many babies we’re talking about. It has to be in the millions just from Catholic families. Throw in all the babies who died to non-Catholic families and we’re talking about standing room only for dead infants in limbo-land.
So, when did this obscene time in the Catholic church finally come to an end? Well, it hasn’t. It still with us today. But, it looks like Ben 16 is going to go soft on infants:
April 24, 2007 — Limbo, the state between heaven and hell where almost eight centuries of traditional Roman Catholic teaching consigned the virtuous but unbaptized, is expected to be abandoned soon by Pope Benedict XVI.
The only one entitled to sanction the limbo’s abolition, the Pope has blessed a 41-page report of the International Theological Commission, titled, “The Hope of Salvation for Infants Who Die Without Being Baptized.”
What’s the deal here? Did God tell Ben on poker night, “how about letting up on the unbaptized infants, Ben. And pass the pretzels.” Or have unbaptized infants formed a 501c3 non-profit to educate Catholics about limbo along with an independent PAC where they can throw campaign money at issues like this?
My biggest worry is that this is the start of a slippery slope leading to more humane treatment of other humans as well. Can you imagine living in a world where women have the right to hold the same positions in the Catholic church as men? Or a church that recognized lifetime commitments between people of the same sex?
You heard it here first: giving rights to unbaptized dead infants hurts traditional bigoted values in the Catholic church. It’s just a matter of time.
Guys, some would say that we’re only good for one thing, but if scientists in the UK get their way, we may not even be needed for that . . . one . . . thing:
Women might soon be able to produce sperm in a development that could allow lesbian couples to have their own biological daughters, according to a pioneering study published today.
Scientists are seeking ethical permission to produce synthetic sperm cells from a woman’s bone marrow tissue after showing that it possible to produce rudimentary sperm cells from male bone-marrow tissue.
No word on how close science is to allowing men to make babies on their own so we can live in peace on another planet.
I checked out Spill the Wine with Katie and Kyle on Sunday night. Cool spot. They serve flights in fancy 3-glass wine racks that take up a lot of room, but they’re fun to look at. We weren’t sure if we were supposed to start at the bottom or top, so we mixed it up. Later - after some wine - we asked, but I forgot.
Jeremy Iggers has some thoughts on Spill The Wine on his new personal food blog:
Back when I worked at the big paper, we had a rule that we wouldn’t critically review a restaurant until it had been open for at least a month.
But then I realized - hey - I don’t work at the big paper any more.
The wine, service, and layout of the place were all up to par on my visit. I really liked my Cobb Salad since it was made with real lettuce rather than the iceberg variety.
It didn’t have as intimate of a feel as I’d expect. The lighting was a little bright, and it seems like the pace of foot traffic is a bit fast for proper wine enjoyment.
As of right this instant, I’d rank my top-5 wine bars in the Twin Cities thusly:
1. Riverview Wine Bar - Minneapolis in Longfellow Neighborhood
2. Cesare’s - Stillwater
3. Toast - North Loop
4. Spill The Wine - Minneapolis on Washington
5. Willie’s Wine Bar - Minneapolis near Loring Park
My flight from Toronto yesterday afternoon approached MSP over Stillwater, along I-694 to Maple Grove, then made a U-Turn taking things toward the airport from the West starting around Wayzata.
While heading East, I grabbed shots of three high schools and their athletic fields:
Hopkins:
I count 8 tennis courts, eight baseball/softball diamonds, a hockey arena, a football stadium, a football practice field made of turf grass, etc.
St. Louis Park (Flory, is your new house in this photo?):
Washburn:
It’s interesting to see how the acreage gets progressively smaller as I moved into the city from a 2nd and 1st ring suburb. What’s funny is that while Hopkins dwarfs Washburn for field sizes, it’s nothing compared to what Eden Prairie or Chaska have to offer.
The Deets is the personal blog of Ed Kohler. Views represented here are his own. Views of comments on The Deets are their own and Ed does not necessarily endorse the views of commenters. Ed's wishlist can be found here.
