I told my significant other about Wolfe Park and how much I loved it and told him I want him to see it.
He agreed. We went.
We sat on a bench overlooking the lake.
He broke up with me. His ex called. She wants him back. He’s taking her up on it.
Just…
…………..fml.
Blindsided.
On the corner of Excelsior and Grand (technically in Saint Louis Park, less than a block west of Trader Joe’s), there is an obnoxious set of luxury condos above some luxury boutiques and such. Do not be discouraged. Park on Grand Way in the free two-hour diagonal parking and follow Grand past the roundabout till you hit Wolfe Park.
It’s tiny and quiet and eerie and magical. There’s an amphitheatre and a playground (or two) and a lake/pond (or two?) and it’s a wonderful place to collect one’s thoughts.
Apologies for the redundant photos. My stupid cell phone can’t do this place justice.
When you’re merging from one freeway onto another, and you have to take one of those cloverleaf exits that takes you down to 25 mph in a sharp little loop of doom, so you’re braking, and then you know there’s a really short onramp onto the next freeway, so you floor it as soon as you can in order to get to 60 or 65 mph so you can smoothly merge, and then you realize they’ve started peak traffic flow enforcement and those stupid stoplights have gone from flashing yellow to alternating red-green and you’re doing 65 mph about to slam into a double line of cars eight deep and you have to whiplash brake.
I LOVE WHEN THAT HAPPENS.
BAH.
Another shot of my favorite skyscraper.
Fantastic bit of graffiti on the corner of Groveland and LaSalle.
The only splash of red on all of Groveland. :)
I find it delightful that Uptown Pizza refers to their giant pizza size as magnum. That’s hot. Also, dude. It’s on West Lake and Grand Ave. It’s open till two or three, the pizza is super dank, they have every topping you could imagine (coconut?! WHO KNEW), and you can buy pizza by the slice for $3. And by slice I mean a slice the size of… Okay, it’s so big even my stoner dude friend got full after only managing to eat half of his slice. Just keep in mind they don’t have seating. You get your pizza and then go sit on a park bench and enjoy. Or something. Totally worth it. Next time you’re hungry and bored in Lyn-Lake, check it out. I was with some friends, we went in only because not much else was open that late, we were pleasantly fucking delighted. Do it.
Max Beckmann at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. Which is free, btw, and which has a mixer involving alcohol (SUMMIT, no less) and live music on the third Thursday of every month. Nbd.
Fuck yeah Mpls.
It bothers me lately that I have no creative outlet. I no longer play any instruments. I’m too solitary to play sports like I used to. When I’m upset I have nowhere to channel it.
So I decided to teach myself how to draw.
I took my colored pens and colored pencils and a sketchbook out for a walk with me.
I totally don’t have the patience for this. I started out all hopeful and ended up getting frustrated and just scribbling. Ugh. I’m a grownass woman, I have no excuse for not being able to sit still for an hour. I’ll blame it on the ADD.
I’ll get the hang of this, I swear.
WORD.
A while back I said Minneapolis is the wonderful city that it is because there are people who put so much love into it. They make it a place they can be proud of. I see volunteers cleaning Loring Park just because they want to keep it beautiful.
So today I went to North High School to do a tutor orientation. I am volunteering to assist in adult basic education classes through Minneapolis Public Schools.
The volunteer coordinator called me yesterday and asked whether I’d prefer to go to the north or south location. I hesitated. I’m equidistant from them, but north Mpls has a bad rap. Last time I was in north Mpls, I thought I was going to get shot. Last time my friend Devin was in north Mpls, his friend who was with him DID get shot. But that’s far more north that what we’re talking about now. I asked her where they need more volunteers. The north location is desperate for them, she said.
So this morning I went to tour the Adult Education wing of North High School at 1500 James Ave N. I was pleasantly surprised to find that it’s in a rather cute neighborhood—I guarantee no one’s getting shot there anytime soon. I doubted my ability to get carjacked or mugged even if I wanted to. Pretty sure it’s safer than MY neighborhood. North Mpls’ reputation is mooooostly undeserved. Then again, there’s a difference between being somewhere in daylight and creepin’ around it at night when you have no business there.
ANYWAY.
I loved it. Minneapolis Public Schools offer pre-GED, GED prep, and ELL (English language learner, formerly referred to as ESL) classes. The teachers are all there because they care about the students and believe in the importance of what they are doing. There is such a sense of community. The adults who are in these classes clearly want to be there and are there to learn and to improve their lives. Everyone is welcoming, enthusiastic, kind, motivated, and appreciative. I’m honored to be part of it.
I’m told that people seeking their GED tend to struggle most with math, and the teachers are in terrible need of math tutors to help students with homework, especially in larger classes where the teacher just can’t give as much one-on-one time as is needed. These classes take place 9am-1pm Monday through Friday, and you can volunteer anytime, even committing to a couple hours one day a week. You can help in a math, reading, writing, computer, science, or ELL class.
Here’s why I believe in this. I dropped out of high school at 16 in a terrible suburb far north of here. I was on a lot of drugs, mostly cocaine, and struggled to get my diploma. I was shuffled from school to school and alternative program to alternative program. I finally got clean and finished high school through independent study. I did the work online or on worksheets and checked in just to take the final exams. It was discouraging and anticlimactic. It was completely out of touch with my learning style.
Minneapolis puts time, money, and wonderful people into helping adults get a second chance. It offers them an encouraging environment where people want to see them succeed. They get to work toward a goal and even have a graduation ceremony when they complete it. This program strengthens the community by showing people that even if you fuck up we still want to help you succeed and you don’t HAVE to stay on coke wondering how you could ever possibly do something better with your life. This place is so full of positivity and hope.
And they need volunteers.
So here’s why you should do this:
1) It’s a chance to give back to the beautiful city of Minneapolis.
2) You’ll make new friends. I already met a supercool chick who’s a grad student in public policy at the U of M and is also tutoring math simply because she wants to give back to the neighborhood she grew up in.
3) It’s easy. You’ll always be working alongside a licensed, qualified, appreciative, helpful teacher. You don’t have to know all the answers, you just have to be willing to show up and help.
4) You get to see my beautiful face.
5) You can put this on resumes and shit, if you so choose.
6) If you got time to Tumble, you got time to teach.
Here’s how you can do this:
1) Click here to read about Minneapolis Adult Education.
2) Click here to fill out the quick and easy online application to become a tutor, which only asks basic things such as your name, strong subjects, address, and availability. Nothing scary.
3) Talk to the adorable and endearing volunteer coordinator, Ellen Lipschultz. She’ll call/email you after reviewing your application, or you can call her at 612.668.1863 to ask about touring the school, sitting in on a class, et cetera.
4) You’ll complete a short online tutorial about classroom policies and effective tutoring in your chosen subject.
5) You pick a class that works for your schedule and start as soon as you’re available!
Do it. Do it. Do it. Every time you don’t show love for Minneapolis, God kills a kitten.
Saw this bumper sticker on my way back to my apartment the other day. I am so proud to live in Critical Parking Area 15.
Great mural downtown. Wish I could’ve gotten a better shot, but you have to walk around the building to get the full effect. Hennepin and 11th.
1) City Hall as viewed from the Hennepin County Government Center, downtown Mpls.
2) This is my favorite skyscraper in downtown Mpls. I don’t know who owns it, but I refer to it as the onion building because it looks like it’s peeling in layers. As seen from Nicollet Mall across from the WCCO building / kitty-corner from Peavey Plaza.
