Conner's Blog

I’m sorry to disappoint everyone, but there isn’t a Where? this week.  What happened?  Well I moved, drank to much on Monday, and felt like crap all day Tuesday.  On top of that I don’t have an Internet connection at home yet so I can’t dig through my archives from work.  This means no Where? this week, but I promise a return next week, and it will be better than ever(maybe).  

Even though I didn’t get a Where? up I’m still sharing a few things with everyone.  First, I’m trying to cook once again.  After hardly touching a frying pan in months, I am attempting to cook myself meals on a daily basis.  Last night I made tacos.  Nothing too exciting, I did  try out Doniree’s tortilla recipe, which was good but not great.  This wasn’t because of the recipe but due to the fact I used whole wheat flour.   I made beef taco meat and fresh guacamole.  The tacos were good and definitely worth the effort.

Of course the best news is that Thursday is tomorrow  The next four days are some of the best times of the year for a sports fan.  Of course everyone knows March Madness starts tomorrow which is the one of the best sporting events of the year every year.  I love the first two rounds because you never know what to expect.  Too make things even better, there are two local angles.  First the  Gophers made the tournament.  Second the NDSU Bison made it and are playing at the Metrodome.  Now, I am a UND grad so I have a bit of a bias against these two teams, but I still wish them well.

On top of the NCAA basketball tournament kicking off, the best hockey tournament also comes to St. Paul this weekend.  It’s the WCHA Final Five, and the Fighting Sioux are scheduled to play on Friday night.  They will be playing either the Golden Gophers or Duluth, depending on who wins the game on Thursday night.  I’ll be honest, I despise the Gophers, but I almost want them to win so I can see the Sioux beat them on Friday night.  I won’t be cheering for them out loud, but a little piece of me will be secretly happy if they score. I’ll be at the game on Friday night and know the Sioux are not going to disappoint me like they did last year.

As promised here is my list of things to do in MN during 2009.  At 72 items I’m not sure I’ll be able to do them all, but I’m going to try my best.   I hope to write about most of these experiences here.  Any other suggestions are welcome and if not added to this list will probably carry over to 2010. 

• Summit Brewery Tour
• Choose the best Jucy Lucy
• Take the Schell Brewery Tour
• Go to a Timberwolves game
• Go to a Wild Game
• Go to a Gopher hockey game (preferably against the Sioux so I can be harassed by Gopher fans)
• Go to a Gopher football game
• Go to a Vikings game
• Visit the Minnesota History Center
• Go to a Gopher basketball game
• Visit the North Shore
• Photograph eagles by Lake Pepin
• Go to a concert at First Ave
• Visit the Russian Art Museum
• Go to a Saints game
• Go to a Lynx game
• See a show at the Guthrie
• Bike the entire Grand Rounds
• Go fly fishing
• Visit James J. Hill House
• Attend a meat raffle
• The Grand Meander
• St. Paul Winter Carnival – Review
  
• Sunday brunch at Campiello
• Wabasha Street Caves
• Pavek Museum of Broadcasting
• Visit Keegan’s Pub
• A concert at the the state fair
• Animal judging at the state fair
• Mill City Farmers Market
• Bike the Greenway
• Minnesota Zoo
• Broomball
• Make lefse
• Miesville Mudhens
• Schaar’s Bluff
• Tour the state capitol
• Outdoor movie at the Walker
• Movie on the rooftop at Solera
• Renaissance Festive
• Concert at Pevey Plaza
• Autumn Brew Review
• The Walker – Review
  
• Mill City Museum
• History Museum
• Bell Natural History Museum
• GLBT Pride Festive
• Cinco de Mayo in St. Paul
• Saint Patties day in St. Paul
• Milk Carton Boat Races
• Minnesota Orchestra
• Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra
• Fringe Fest
• Fort Snelling
• Paddleboat on the Mississippi
• Minnesota Opera
• Weekend in Duluth
• Punch Pizza
• Grumpy’s
• Science Museum of Minnesota
• Nina’s – Review
  
• Kensington Runestone
• Holidazzle
• Sea Salt Eatery
• Jay Cooke State Park
• Gooseberry Falls
• Two Harbors
• F. Scott Fitzgerald’s house
• Conquer both Minneapolis and St. Paul sky ways (I have Minneapolis’s nearly figured out)

This is just a tiny portion of the things there are to do in Minnesota and the Twin Cities area.  After starting this list I realized I wanted to limit myself so I could actually finish it by 2010.

It’s been a while since I posted anything.  I took the entire Thanksgiving weekend off of participating in social media of any sort, including my blog.  I posted approximatly 3 Twitter updates all weekend.  It was a nice break, but now I’m back.  Here are the latest thoughts and links from the world at large.

• If you ever wondered how not to write an about us for your website, check out the CIA’s HR page for details.
• Alexis posted this wonderful looking recipe for Corn and Chayote Soup.  I may make it this week and let you know the results.
• Ana Marie Cox posts a letter she received and her response.  I do hold out some hope for future generations.
• Via Kottke.  Photography is for Jerkoffs funny but definitely not safe for work.
• I believe I’ve mentioned Margaret and Helen before, but as long as the two of them continue to write I’ll keep linking.  Margaret’s last post is great, but her Thanksgiving letter to her family deserves a gold star.  Here is an actual thought; this is why the Internet is great, where else can a couple of wise old ladies be heard by thousands of people, we all need to get our grandparents a blog.
• In case you wondered, the Timberwolves do have a playbook and it supposedly contains 75 plays.  I’m not sure if this includes out of bounds plays or not but either way this is further proof Randy Whittman is insane.
• I went out to moto-i on the Friday after Thanksgiving.  It was a great experience, really good food and the sake is as good as advertised.  The atmosphere was more bar like than expected but I still give it my recommendation.
• Finally, a zoo in Japan discovered something any 15 year old who lives on a farm would know.  You can’t mate two polar bears of the same sex.  It’s just not possible.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend.  Remember to avoid the stores at all costs for the next three weeks, and if you are traveling for the holidays be safe.