Outside Octo Fishbar, Lowertown

It’s opening night at the Premiere Playhouse

Wish I could’ve pulled the other two colors

Best Father’s Day card ever

Such pretty graphic design

Basking in the glow of the lofty lighthouse

Six Satisfying Years!

The Beaver House

…at Puffin Point

I found all the goodies, Two Dots

These are my people

I think I was four spots too high

She’s just a baby bird

Studying nature’s colors

In honor of Mother’s Day 2020, I thought I would finally start the “Hummel Project.” As part of the sale of the house on Lombard, I bubble-wrapped most of mom’s Hummel figurines and filled several bins that now take up half of my dining room. I’m not sure what to do with them – the market for Hummels was bad even before the current situation. My goal is to take photos of each one, then try to find them new homes.

If you see any you’d like (or know of a place that might be interested in them), please drop me a note. Photo gallery of the first bin after the jump.

Thanks again, Two Dots, for the entertainment

Following the flow in Mergansers Bay

I’ll keep trying for a two digit ranking…

Delightful treasures littered the Canine Collection

Social distancing is hard

But my mom really liked it

…in the Launch Pad Lair

Not too shabby for limited attention

Like many people around the world, the pandemic has been a difficult thing for me to process. I don’t have any particular expertise in the science behind it, but I’m married to the Corona Queen, I like to follow sites like this and I spent a lot of time last week getting our office configured and trained for an indefinite work from home scenario. Most of the things listed in my Twitter bio have shut down and it will likely be months before things return to some semblance of normal.

But we are very fortunate to still get outside to walk, run or bike, have money to order take-out from our favorite local restaurants and have reliable high-speed internet to cross off shows we always wanted to watch from our Netflix and HBO lists (and, of course, work from home). MK is doing the distance learning thing for the rest of the school year and SK has picked up some hours here and there helping out the Nive Man with take-out downstairs.

The Minnesota COVID-19 numbers so far pale with those in the hardest hit parts of the country (and world). The reports out of places like New York and Italy are terrifying and I worry about those on the front lines, like my Twitter friend @susanruns, who bravely works long hours to save lives in unimaginable conditions. My colleague was scheduled to start a new position in Hong Kong on April 1, but he is currently in limbo until the international travel and quarantine picture becomes clearer. I’m not sure what will happen with my work, but I’ve been trying to mentally prepare for all the different possibilities.

On the medical front, I had a 17-month MRI check-up this week at Hennepin Healthcare (which I thought might get cancelled under the non-essential procedure executive order). The new clinic building was empty – I was the only one in radiology and only saw one other person in the general waiting room. I never really had claustrophobia before, but now that MRI equipment feels like a torture chamber. Thankfully, the tech was done after two shorts scans (one 30 seconds, one four minutes). The resident that met with me pulled up the image and said everything looked great. Dr. Tummala will make the final call, but I shouldn’t have to go back for two more years. At that point, they will decide if it will be another MRI or a more invasive CT angiogram.

Lastly, the situation with my father’s estate made significant progress the past two weeks. With assistance from our friend John Schuster at Richfield Bloomington Honda, we were able to pay off his car loan and sell the car. Today, with the help of Kary Marpe from Edina Realty, we sold the house on Lombard. I thought that process was going to be challenging, given the hoarding nature of my mom (that would be one of my elementary school pictures above), various repairs needed and the pandemic’s impact on the economy. Kary was amazing, though, accurately pricing and listing the property, resulting in multiple offers by day two. If all goes according to plan, we will close on April 10. All that will be left is my dad’s taxes for 2019 (which shouldn’t be too hard).

Stay safe, y’all!

Back to nothing to do again

Inspired by Miyazaki-san

Through sunny shores and snowy slopes

A stealthy approach is best

And now I have no Two Dots left

…at the Mad Queen’s meadow.

Those were some hard “easy” levels!

Just my cup of tea

Ice sculptures in Rice Park for Saint Paul Winter Carnival

…in the doors domain

“Boy with Apple” is used as the concierge of the year award at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel

He would’ve totally loved this trip

Curiouser and curiouser

Difficulty level: high

Gorillaz: The Complete Backstory

Run before you turn into stone

Let’s toast to old times and new beginnings

Everest is a great ride

Troll’s Terrace, Two Dots

Glad I didn’t pass that one up

Huldufolk’s Haven, Two Dots

Still hard, still cute

…at the Gushing Geysers

Take the Grand Circle Tour and travel exotic lands

Leif’s Luminous Flip

Super Bowl LII artwork

Hello purple doge

…in the enchanted library

This artwork is so great

your ghost host…

Turning lead into gold in the Alchemist’s Alcove

Rose Street Patisserie

We wound our way through the Wizards Warren

Met Stadium and the Metrodome

That one had some challenge to it

Reconnect with nature

Welcome, September 2019

Inside the top 250

You’re greeted by marvelous monsters as you enter the Alarming Attic

Ultra Hard, Two Dots

Two Dots (and their artists) rock

We heard a creak in the cursed corridor

Take the Open Road

XGMN19 – now with e-sports

Still under 15K hours later

Hide yourself until dawn…