My family and I walk and bike the superb Kenilworth Trail upon which Charlie Lazor’s Flatpak house has intruded [“The Prefigured House,” July]. Now, instead of turning off a city street onto a gorgeous trail flanked with green, bikers and walkers first see Mr. Lazor’s concrete wall. Every lost piece of green growth in a … Read more
Julie Caniglia’s article “Peeping Tom Goes Legit” [June] is an unfair critique of the Minneapolis and St. Paul Home Tour. Because the writer is having trouble finding an affordable home, she seems to want to take it out on the folks who have decided to stay in the core cities for the long haul, show … Read more
Covering a Nalgene bottle with duct tape [“A Watery World,” the Rakish Angle, July] is in fact a clever way for those “outdoor types” to cut down on supplies. Minimalism is key when space is limited. But who could leave home without a roll of duct tape? Some might even say it’s as important as … Read more
Somewhere in the middle of the nation’s heated debate about gay marriage, a new billboard popped up on one of my usual routes. The ad, for Cub Foods, features two women positioned in friendly proximity to each other and to a bag of groceries. The tag line says, “Real People. Real Values.” Wow, I thought. … Read more
In a sweet little house several miles south of mine, a girl named Esmé keeps a box on her dresser. In the box is a collection of necklaces—a painted chime ball, Thor’s hammer, a polished unity stone, and her favorite, a sterling angel. These are all trinkets I’ve given her over the years that I’ve … Read more
Maybe they were emboldened by the frank talk of Dick Cheney. Or maybe they’re feeling a little overextended by their thrilling new store in Bloomington, which finally opened in mid-July. Maybe they just aren’t comfortable with their English yet. But Ikea, the upscale Swedish company that sells lots of unassembled Scandinavian furniture, has recently seemed … Read more
Every year under the sunny skies of a June weekend, the Minnesota Street Rod Association stages its dazzling annual hot-rod show, “Back to the Fifties,” at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds. With the fifties receding further and further into history, however, it takes a greater effort with every passing year to heave yourself out of the … Read more
In a floating restaurant, with buoys hanging from the ceiling and the full complement of other nautical trappings, I ordered my first lobster. I was eight. Not a big seafood fan, I hemmed and hawed over the menu, which was crammed with clip-art renderings of comical sea creatures, until my Uncle John leaned over and … Read more
So you’re as excited as anyone about the new light-rail line—it’s a real step toward sustainable development in the Twin Cities. Your only complaint is that there is not ample parking at the stations for your Toyota hybrid. Also, the rules prohibit consumption of your daily dose of wheatgrass juice on the train. But dig … Read more
Never mind those thin-lipped, controlling dog ladies with their utterly bizarre fashion sense. Alexander Vyatkin is the most serious trainer you are likely to come across in this overfed, underworked nation. He has no time or tolerance for people who let their dogs in the driver’s seat. Today for example, up at Red Star Kennel … Read more