abracanabra | Entries tagged with urban

I voted, hurrah! I am a precious snowflake (with a red sticker).

Seriously, pretty much everybody I am acquainted with votes and is mercilessly harassed by the others until they do. I wish there was a personal way to reach out to the whatever-percent who don't. Who are these people? Red stickers don't quite seem to be enough. Reaching outside the peer group has only been successfully done once, when I and the manager sent home a co-worker who "hadn't had time to vote." Unanimous response: "Um, you need to go now!" I work with a lot of poor, disenfranchised people, what can I say?

In the category of "best places to hit on quality people," I've gotta give the polling station props. As I approached, there was a charming gentleman who leapt forward to open the door. He seemed to be lurking around the polling station and being nice to random people. As I say, charming. And a damn good move. If you're looking for a certain caliber of mate, you could do worse than make the polling stations your hunting ground.

(This stream-of-consciousness post has been brought to you by NaNoBloMo--30 posts this month, and this is the 2nd.)

A man on the bus, in his early 50s. He was wearing a leopard-print fur shirt, a leather and fur coat, a huge gold chain, heavy rings on both his hands, and--yes--a hat with a twelve-inch feather in it. Pimping it old-skool!

14:59 Saxophonist playing 'Eleanor Rigby' on Nicollet Mall, in the muggy heat of the farmer's market.

I was out weeding today, with some hopes of attracting a person in need of cash who wanted to mow our lawn. Instead, this is what I observed.

There is an apartment building at the other end of the block and kitty-corner from us. I kept hearing voices of some sort, and I couldn't figure out why. I kept glancing over there. Finally, I saw the cause of the commotion.

A man brandishing two machetes rounded the apartment building. "I'm trying not to hurt you," he hollered at the woman who was pursuing (and yelling at) him. "See," gesturing to the small crowd gathering on the sidewalk, "you all are witnesses. I'm trying not to hurt her."

I was about to go call the cops when a squad car pulled up. That is the only time I've seen policemen pursue somebody at a run with their own guns drawn.

The coalition of teenage mothers out for a stroll afterward said the man and the woman had been married for several years.

My living room is 5 minutes in the future, though my study, where I write about robots and flying cars, is always in the present.

At my job, the computers are on time, but the clock in front of me is 2 minutes in the past, and the one behind me is 7 minutes into the future. Even the clocks give up trying to do a proper job.

In downtown Minneapolis, Gluek's bar is forever trapped at 2 o'clock, which is bar close.

The bus stop at 3rd Street & Hennepin used to be outside of time entirely, as if the hours and minutes hopped a bus and went off to see what time other clocks were keeping.

The quest for the perfect coffee shop continues! (And yes, I went here a while ago, but I'm keeping track anyhow. Ask me how my CSA posts are going sometime.)

Note the very strange mural in the background, which portrays (maybe?) the Lewis & Clark expedition with animals. Rabbits and groundhogs and such.

Despite its good location (not too far from Dreamhaven!), this coffee shop had two fatal flaws.

1. Not enough seating. The only seating for a group of people (ideally, I'd like to be able to seat 5 together at a minimum) was smack-dab in the middle of the room with not-so-comfortable chairs, and no easily available power outlets.

2. It closes at 4 PM. Even on a Saturday. What city coffee shop interested in making a profit does this? I do not like being kicked out of a coffee shop a couple of hours before I'd like to go. 11 PM is an acceptable coffee shop close time; 4 PM is not.

Verdict: Not someplace I'd choose to go. Its desired customer base appears to consist of middle aged women who go for a walk, have one cup of coffee, and then go home.

Cord Reflections, originally uploaded by aswiebe.

Just off Lake Street.

17:37 Was studying martial arts notes on bus, got propositioned by man who wanted me to be his "personal trainer."
18:12 Slumdog Millionaire: The sweetest romantic movie about the slums of India that uses framing devices of police torture and a game show.

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Mono, originally uploaded by aswiebe.

I do not think this was as good a name for a business as they thought it was. Taken in Uptown.

I had been told that I would have a work project this morning, but before I was able to leave I got a phone call telling me that there wasn't any work. So I called back later, once the manager was in, and she told me that there was a project, but it would need to be cleared with the Elder Gods before she could tell me anything more about it. She would call me back after the appropriate sacrifices had been made.

So I puttered around for an hour or so (after getting to sleep in, hooray!), and then she called and told me to come in.

It was a lot later than when I usually go into work, so I took a different bus combination. It's always interesting, taking new bus routes. It's always interesting to take a different route. You see new places, new people. You have to pay attention. They say that change and new things are great ways to avoid depression, and I believe it. There's that little spark of interest that fires your brain. In a good way.

I was early leaving the house, but I saw a bus coming and ran to catch it, because only one bus route goes along the street. Me, with a bad knee, sprinting over the ice to get to the bus stop. Then I saw that it was one of the ghost buses. I wish the "Not In Service" signs were easier to read from farther away. Don't get me wrong, I think the ghost buses serve a valuable purpose. After all, ghosts won't get to where they're supposed to go on their own. And it's very important to transport broken hearts, ambitions, dreams, and lost mittens. I understand the negative repercussions if these things were left to find their own way. I just wish they'd schedule the ghost buses on different routes than the regular lines, to avoid confusion.

I ended up getting in to work around 11 AM, but not having had the time to really get much else done. When I got to work, I found that NgithOwl's head Elder God has let it be known through numinous signs that the business needs to expand its assets in order to survive in these difficult economic times. This expansion should involve the hiring of several thousand new employees, including those skilled in firearms, swords, and martial arts. I think I may be able to persuade them to give me a part-time supervisory position, though I'd have to move to Asia.

http://crisper.livejournal.com/26562.html

17:57 - Working the weekend again. + Hours! Haven't had those in a while!
22:42 Awesome! Minneapolis is #7 on Forbes's annual list of the 30 most broadband-connected cities in the U.S.

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Sunrise Commute, originally uploaded by aswiebe.

This is where I'm *not* going to be tomorrow. Instead, I will be snug in my bed, dreaming of the fun and productive things I'll get done on my day off. What? I said it was dreaming.

Sunday, it's back to work. Amazing how quickly my mood swings from "must get work hours" to "would really like a day off."

Shoes Abandoned at Bus Stop, originally uploaded by aswiebe.

This bus stop tends to end up with a lot of abandoned clothing. Not sure why....

06:53 Two very young squirrels are pouncing and frolicking in the back yard. ::slain by cute:: #
14:36 Worked, mailed off photos, renewed ID, deposited check, at home found men in alley sternly warning me of danger of being robbed in alley. #
14:37 Charlaine Harris' "From Dead to Worse" a creditable addition to the series, which reminds me a lot of Robin McKinley's "Sunshine." #
16:49 It's strangely appropriate that I'm printing all my materials for the 4th Street Fantasy convention on the back of old redmarked manuscripts #
23:09 Agh! Light rail is going to be shut down during part of the time I was planning on using it to get to the convention! Darn apartment complex #

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Black sesame oil, china pearl milk tea, Yogu Time yogurt drink, vegetarian Peking mock duck, coconut milk, Chinese noodles, black bean and garlic sauce, sweetened condensed milk, whole oyster mushrooms, orange extract, bean sprouts, whole bulbs of garlic, extra firm tofu, wasabi green peas, honey garlic sauce, tempura batter mix, strawberry pocky, spring roll shells, and chicken bouillon.

I do so love our every-couple-of-months pilgrimages to Shuang Hur. It's the best Asian supermarket I've found in Minneapolis.

...I'm still a little scared of the gallon jars of food coloring, though. Among other things.

08:43 Co-worker listening to idiotic talk show. Urge to smash...rising. #
09:14 The movie "Anchorman"? Not worth watching. Mostly crap. But there are 3 hilarious scenes. #
09:37 New coding minion keeps slapping his forehead and muttering "idiot" or "stupid" when he's wrong. I find this disturbing and Gollum-like. #
10:05 Huh. They just put me in charge of the floor for a couple of hours. #
11:45 My internal clock is entirely convinced that it is about 2:30 PM, and that I should go home in an hour. Alas, not the case. #
11:48 Castleberry? What a perfectly lovely last name. #
12:16 Note to self: next time you take lasagna for lunch, bring a real fork too. Plastic fork not cutting it (pun intended). #
12:31 Listening to romance audiobook. "the secret entrance to her body" - Bwahahahaha! #
16:40 It was raining when I left work, sleeting when I got off the bus, and snowing by the time I got home. #
17:15 Have been keeping scrapbook to figure out what my decorating taste is (step 1). Who knew I'd be so fond of trompe l'oeil? #
17:36 Cool space thought: www.damninteresting.com/?p=960 So glad I follow DamnInteresting. #
17:43 I <3 Mpls 311 & being able to send in graffiti reports and have it *taken care of*. #
22:06 Lifehacker is talking about "maximizing the lunch hour." Ahahahahaha. They get an hour? #

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09:03 Yay! I have confirmed room space for CONvergence! #
09:55 Male boss assumed waxed paper bags were from when we used to make cookies - were actually for female sanitary products. #
11:17 Sigh. My cellphone is sitting at home, happily charged. I am not. #
11:36 Reading form for registering for BBQ food. Controlling urge to drool. #
12:32 SciAm article about the color of plants on other worlds (useful for worldbuilding): tinyurl.com/65p3st #
14:06 Big boss was just reassuring little boss as to the necessity of a perpetual hiring/firing cycle. #
15:21 Must remind self: You only work 2 minutes, the minute you punch in and the minute you punch out. #
16:41 A bit surprised at *just how pissed* I get when I see a guy in gang colors lounging on *my* corner. #
16:56 And my Roomba's dying. New battery would cost $70--think I'll just wait for another one on sale at Woot. Universe, why are you being mean? #
16:57 OTOH, am v. amused that iRobot's new Roomba strongly resembles a Cylon: www.irobot.com/sp.cfm?pageid=122 #
21:36 Rather like the idea of adopting Peg Kerr's, "Persephone, you *slut*!" response to snow in spring: pegkerr.livejournal.com/997830 ... #

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(Originally for

ethel, but I figured others might find it helpful.)

I do like it.

Out and About
My laptop has a really old internal wi-fi modem that has some serious issues connecting to the signal, so I can't really use it *directly* most places. My husband's laptop, OTOH, is newer and has a better modem and has no problems sending and receiving.

At Home
I wouldn't recommend it to anyone in an apartment building unless they could check out how the reception is *in their apartment* using the special modem beforehand, and I wouldn't recommend signing the several-years contract. It also doesn't work very well on the ground floor. I would recommend it to anyone still on dial-up, because it costs maybe $5-$10 more and is *way* better. The speeds are still not as good as DSL or cable, but they are better than, say, the free wi-fi you'll get at a coffee shop.

The main annoying thing is that it only works perfectly about 95% of the time. 5% of the time, at least in our area, it will intermittently be unable to connect. This seems to be related to the weather, the phase of the moon, or something else we can't figure out. It's not "out for two hours" unable to connect, it's "one minute it works, the next it doesn't, the next it does, the next it doesn't."

But for the price, it can't be beat. Just make sure you buy the special receiver/modem they sell, 'cause it really makes a difference.

* Note: We're on the tier 2 level.

So far, today has been a mostly good day.

I didn't have to go in to the day job (always a good start), so I slept in a bit and got a fair chunk of writing done. Critically, I started actually writing "Tree of Life"--always the hardest part of a new story. Also, usually the worst writing. In this case, that bodes well for the rest of the story, because I think I might win for awesomest opening line ever.

I called the insurance people again, and they said, no, you won't actually owe tens of thousands of dollars, your information and that document must have just crossed in the mail.

Physical therapy today involved lots of electrodes and biofeedback. It works surprisingly well, but I could learn to hate blinky lights that beep at me.

Walking home, I had a chat with the sign-painter decorating the windows of the corner store nearby. It has sat vacant for a few months now, ever since the candy shop-that-wasn't opened and closed its doors in the space of three days. Soon it will be home to one of those catch-all urban corner "stuff" stores--cell phones, urban fashions for ladies and men, copies, and faxing. I complimented his work, and he told me that he was also a tattoo artist and showed me some of his sketches. Then he asked me a "confidential" question about whether I indulged in what sounded like epinephrine but was actually some sort of tea (ideas,

malcubed?). He said it was better for you than cigarettes, but I told him I didn't indulge in those either. Besides, he had few teeth, so I'll reserve judgment. I said no, and went on my way with a "God bless you, baby," farewell. Soon it will be summer, and I'll be walking more, and will have more random encounters.

And now I'll be researching a CSA, the idea of having a share in which makes me all warm and fuzzy inside.

Reviews, Recipes, and Random Slices of Life

Being the journal of an all-too-human writer, reader, and eater of deliciousness

On Polling Stations

Pimp-Watching

Points of Interest: Nicollet Mall

Your Sentiment Is Unconvincing, Or, Machetes of Love

Clocks Outside of Time

Tillie's Bean

Photograph: Cord Reflections

Details of the Day - Slumdog Millionaire

Photograph: Mono

Busing to Work

Details of the Day: If Only Some of That Broadband Were Mine

Photograph: Sunrise Commute

Photograph: Shoes Abandoned at Bus Stop

Video: Abandoned Crab Shack

Details of the Day

Best Asian Grocery Award-Winner

Twittered Today

Twittered Today

USI Wireless Review

New Story, Chat with Sign Painter, etc.

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April 2025

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