This weekend I finally got back to working on my first day cover project. I uploaded about 100 new covers and decided to re-work the structure of the collection online. Instead of a huge text listing on one page, I’ve divided it into yearly pages with thumbnail pictures that can be clicked to view a close-up of the stamp.
The current issue of Mpls St Paul magazine has a special advertising section produced in association with the MGA. Usually these sections are just a cover for a bunch of ads, but the 2007 edition has some good stories.
Tanner’s Brook in Forest Lake is finishing work on a new clubhouse. The old one was torn down and the new one is going up in the same spot. Scheduled to open in July, they are currently operating out of the barn next to the eighteenth green.
Slowest. Get in Gear. Ever.
It was a beautiful day, though–sunny and about 65 degrees with a light breeze. This was my first outdoor run of the year, so I can’t be too disappointed with the time. These days, just finishing without injury is a success.
FORE! Minnesota, on Saturday, April 28, 2007 (9 am on KSTC-45):
The 2007 edition of the City Pages Best of the Twin Cities is out and their selection for Best Golf Course was a bit of a surprise:
Best Golf Course : Meadowbrook
Reader’s Choice: Theodore Wirth
Out of all of the Minneapolis public golf courses, I do like Meadowbrook the best. Theodore Wirth has a nice layout and overall environment, but the conditioning always seems suspect.
Meadowbrook is better in that respect and the parkland setting with few houses is nice. I don’t like a few of the blind tee shots, but it is a challenging course. Plus the views of Interlachen bring out the golf lust in me…
Does Tom Lehman want you to join his club? I’ve received these letters for several years and finally decided to look into who was really behind this. The return address listed Minnetonka, Minnesota and they do have the “official” PGA TOUR logo, so I was curious to see what was up.
Looks like the other shoe has dropped. Today I received my 2007 Twin Cities Marathon entry in the mail and they are following the lead of Grandma’s:
“USATF rules prohibit the use of headphones, cell phones, and similar devices on the course. This rule will be strictly enforced at all TCM, Inc. events.”
I just emailed them a similar note to what I sent Grandma’s earlier this week. No more TCMs for me either, I guess.
As part of Play Golf Minnesota week, tomorrow is Philanthropy Day. The primary event to be held at courses around the state is a “Crack the Jar” closet to the pin promotion to benefit Special Olympics Minnesota.
For a $20 donation, participants who hit the green during the day will be entered into a drawing for a trip for two to the 2007 PGA Championship at Southern Hills in Tulsa, Oklahoma (event tickets, airfare and lodging included). Prizes will also be awarded at each course to the person closest to the pin.
When we ordered the pool table for the office, we also bought a ping pong topper so we could use it as a conference table. I hadn’t actually played ping pong since college and forgot most of the rules (more at Wikipedia). Late last week, we set up the net and it’s been non-stop ping pong during break times since then. It takes more skill and physical effort than I remember, so not only is it fun, it’s good for you!
In response to my email and post yesterday, I received this reply from Bob Gustafson, the PR Director for Grandma’s Marathon:
The Minnesota Section of the PGA, along with the MGA, have declared this week Play Golf Minnesota week. Each day has a different theme:
My running season is about to begin next weekend at the 30th Annual Get in Gear 10K in Minneapolis. I’ve basically done nothing but sit on my butt since last fall’s Twin City Marathon and I’ve got an extra ten pounds to prove it. That needs to change, so now I’m much more motivated to run. Plus it’s warm out–I’m definitely a fair weather runner.
We played our first round of the year at Willingers in Northfield and the changes are already apparent (at least off the course). As we reported last year, there is a new management team in place, a new logo and new clubhouse construction. The construction isn’t quite done yet–the pro shop has moved downstairs under the old deck, but the upstairs renovations aren’t ready yet (should be another few weeks). I peeked in the window and it looks like they are bringing some of the look of Legends Club down to Northfield.
Well, at least we got to see the best game of the series. My daughter and I attended game four of the first round series between the Wild and the Ducks. My voice was hoarse from yelling at the refs, but the team did a great job of overcoming those obstacles and getting the 4-1 win.
Unfortunately, they did themselves in last night in Anaheim. It was too bad they didn’t have the services of Johnsson and White, but the Ducks were just the better team this year. The vastly superior power play was too much for them to overcome.
I received an email from Disney a few weeks ago that mentioned free, customized maps of Walt Disney World. Since we had just been there, I thought I’d check it out. From this page, you could select all of your favorite attractions in each park and have them printed and mailed for free. They arrived this week and were very nice. My only disappointment was that they were printed double-sided, so we can’t have all four parks framed separately.
On another Disney note, here is a story from a site I follow:
I haven’t been to the Paris MGM park, but these same issues are apparent in other parks too. Such a shame…
Spring cleaning time and we are looking to get rid of a bunch of CDs. There will be two garage sales that friends are holding this week and next. The first sale is at 1635 Oakbrooke Drive in Eagan and runs Friday and Saturday from 8-4. I don’t have the location yet for the second one, but will update this post when I get it.
Lots of variety: promo singles, European imports, full albums, double albums. Mostly alternative stuff, but enough variety to find something for everyone. Around 600 CDs with most prices set at only $1 each…
What an intimidating tee shot to start the year! Today was Media Day for the Minnesota Section of the PGA, held at Minneapolis Golf Club in St. Louis Park. I was paired with Peter Kurvers, the pro from Dacotah Ridge in Morton. We were up against Tom Hauser from KSTP and golf pro Paul Kelley from Bent Creek in Eden Prairie. Peter and I came in last, but it was a beautiful day on a fun course. Watch for more PGA coverage this year on Golfing in Minnesota…
From GopherSports.com:
Gophers Lose Tiebreaker; Finish Second to Top-Ranked Stanford at U.S. Intercollegiate
Congrats to Brad James, Andrew Tank and their team.
Next up: Big Ten Championships at Ohio State, April 27-29.
Today is April 15th, the first day of the season in Minnesota, according to the USGA. All scores have to be posted from today through October 15th if you have one of these cards.
To mark this date, we have decided to make today the “official” launch day for Golfing in Minnesota. While the site has been up and running for almost a year, it was never promoted in any real sense. That changes starting now. Please help spread the word by telling your golf friends about the site and subscribe to the site feed if you use a newsreader.
My May 2007 issue of Golf Digest arrived this week and attached was a little supplemental book with their biennial 100 Greatest Courses list. This has always been my favorite national rankings list, although Minnesota courses always seem to take a back seat to other areas.
In the big list, two Minnesota courses retained their inclusion: Interlachen at #62 (down from #44) and Hazeltine at #89 (down from 72). I love both of those courses and I think they deserve all the recognition they receive. Newer courses like those in Bandon, Oregon are pushing everyone down, so the drops in rank aren’t a big shock.
One of my guilty pleasures, Cirque du Soleil, announced a new traveling show today and it’s coming to Minneapolis this fall. Kooza is described as “a return to the origins of Cirque du Soleil: It combines two circus traditions – acrobatic performance and the art of clowning.”
I’m a big clown hater, but we’ll still see it, I’m sure…
Today we had a lunch meeting at Casper & Runyon’s Nook in St. Paul (across from Cretin on Hamline). We sat at Barbara Streisand’s table, who they claim actually ate there. Last time I was there, I saw former Wild player Andrew Brunette, so who knows…
This is a place that I knew about for a long time when I was growing up in St. Paul, but only started going to about a year ago. I really love their fries and I think the Nook version of the Juicy Lucy is my favorite in town (followed closely by Matt’s Bar and the 5-8 Club).
The place was packed and we were lucky to get the last open table at 11:30. Service is always a little on the slow side, but we had lots to discuss anyway, so no big deal.
Today I took my 2005 Mini Cooper in for an oil change. This was the first service appointment I’ve had that wasn’t covered under warranty and I wasn’t sure what to expect. All of the Honda dealers we’ve dealt with have pricey little packages at various mileage levels that include all sorts of preventive maintenance. I didn’t know if Mini would do the same thing, so I was prepared to spend some money.
It’s been crazy busy at work the past week, but we’ve managed to take in a few diversions. Last weekend my wife and I went to see Grindhouse at the local theater in Eagan. I’m a big fan of past Tarantino and Rodriguez movies like Pulp Fiction and El Mariachi, but this one just didn’t do it for me. It was way too long and I didn’t like the actors nearly as much as the other films. The distressed look got old after a while too. The car scenes were great, though, and I loved the ending. My favorite part of the whole thing was the opening trailer for the “mock” film, Machete. Danny Trejo rocks! I hope they really do make that movie.