The Last Known Whereabouts held a reunion show at the Contented Cow last Saturday. The former Northfielders (2 Carls, 2 Oles) went their separate ways in 2009 after forming the bluegrass band in 2003.
I happened to sit next to Stewart and Marylyn Stroup, the parents of Jake Stroup (Vocals & Mandolin) who came from Madison WI to watch the show. I twisted Jacob’s arm during a break to pose for a photo with his parents.
Here’s a 3-min video clip from their riveting show:
The threat of rain chased the Prairie Creek Group indoors last Saturday during the 2011 Mayfly Festival at the Contented Cow. Members: Alisa Leonard, lead vocals; Dave Drentlaw, drums; Peter Diggins, guitar and vocals; Bo Aylin guitar and vocals; Joel Cooper, bass and backup vocals; Peter Diggins’ daughter, piggyback.
I spotted this partial double rainbow over Northfield last night at about 8pm. while driving along Prairie Ave. near Jefferson Parkway. I didn’t have my good camera with me so I had to use my G2′s video cam instead.
Last Friday night at the Cow, local superstar musicians Peter Diggins and Steve Jennings wailed for a couple of hours, much to the delight of the crowd. Robbie captured this 2-minute video on her phone.
They’re playing again tonight at the 620 Grill, 9 pm, and they’ll be joined by Minnesota Music Award winner “Bassist of the Year” (3 times), Erik Fratzke.
Minnesota produces some of the highest quality apples in the country. Varieties developed at the University of Minnesota are grown all over the country, but are especially bred and adapted for the Minnesota climate. There is tremendous growth potential for the apple industry to grow across the state, but more research, innovation from growers, and support from consumers are all slices of the local food economy.
I got this email from Northfielder and Happy to be from Iowa blogger Margaret Colangelo:
Merry Christmas Griff! Thought you’d enjoy this local “flash mob”. On Wednesday 12/22 my daughter Jean arranged a surprise serenade for her Secret Santa at Northfield’s Caribou Coffee – Mgr Amanda George. The guys involved are some members of the NHS group BCG. From the left they are Dan Remes, Connor Fink, Peter Duba, Cole Harding, Steven Carson, Sullie Ojala-Hembolt, and Theo Hofrenning. Customers there were so happy they were able to witness this! I was able to film the whole thing.
As Robbie and I got out of our car in downtown’s west side parking lot last night, we heard music coming from both the Cow’s outdoor stage and the back deck of The Key. Northfielders who ventured downtown, it turns out, got a real treat from the bands at both outdoor venues—with warm temps, spectacular skies, and later on, a full moon.
Below: a two-minute video clip of The Big Strong Men (Facebook page). The band wowed the audience (wide age range) in ways that I’d not seen in a while in Northfield. Members include:
Ben Greenwald: Guitar/Vocals Christopher "Philly" Williams: Keyboards/Vocals Joe Silberschmidt: Drums/Vocals Jon Camp: Bass
Below: a 30-second video clip of Jacob Mullis and Amy Hager of Fort Wilson Riot (also follow them on Twitter and Facebook). Marie Fischer also has some photos in a post on The Key’s blog where she thanks them “for playing the most incredible drum-free show The Key has ever seen.”
He was in Northfield yesterday afternoon and captured this video of a rainbow over Carleton College. How amazing is that? All I can say is, the Lord works in wondrous ways. Click play to watch. 57 seconds. PG-13 for language.
I was surprised to see wildflowers blooming in the lower Arb yesterday (no idea what these are. Anyone?)
But I was even more surprised to hear the frogs. It’s still March! I assume these were Western Chorus frogs, judging from the audio on this MPCA page on frogs for kids. Here’s a 14-second video clip with audio:
Peter Seebach and my wife both alerted me to a massive ice jam on the Cannon River today. It apparently extended from the 5th St. bridge back to the Hwy 3 bridge by Babcock Park. But by the time I got there at 5 pm to take a photo, it had broken up and mostly cleared.
Robbie and I attended last night’s To Brasil and Back fundraiser for the Northfield Rotary Youth Exchange with our niece, Ellen. I was relieved of photo duty by Vicki Dilley but couldn’t resist capturing a little video of the music and energy of Beira Mar Brasil, the combination of music by the Robert Everest Expedition (“a Minneapolis-based Latin-American and Mediterranean influenced world music ensemble”), Samba dancers Edilson Lima and Vanessa Dos Santos Luiz, and dancer/vocalist, Dandara. The audience, led by inbound students from Brasil from around the region, really got into it. Watch this 4-minute video clip:
[show_avatar email=tim@kymnradio.net]After three days and 8,341 still shots from our KYMN camera on the historic Scriver Building in downtown Northfield, Adam Gurno and I put together a time-lapse version of this week’s 8-10″ of snow during blizzard conditions and a full-out snow day! Watch closely as there is a quiz at the end of this 3-minute video presentation. Grab some hot cocoa and enjoy!
I took video instead of photos of the bank raid re-enactment at last month’s Taste of Northfield. I discovered that the camera can take low-res photos of video frames so here’s a dozen. My favorite is the one showing gun fire. Who is that guy?
See the album, the large slideshow, or this small slideshow (the 7-minute video is below):
They hired me to help them get set up with a WordPress-based website and to think about how social media could be used for the variety of initiatives they were planning. They then began working with Northfield-based Neuger Communications Group who, along with various marketing and communications work, took on the design of the website… now waaaaay cooler than I could have ever done.
… will march 1000+ miles from Texas to Minnesota, starting July 4, 2009. With the help of kids across the nation, he is raising funds and awareness for programs that help kids who have been traumatized by war to realize new possibilities for their lives.
During the Taste of Northfield festivities tomorrow, there will be an informal reception at the Archer House from 5:00 – 8:00. People can stop by to meet Dina and Gunnar and other volunteers and hear more about A Soldier’s March for Peace.
They’re also hosting a kick-off event on Bridge Square next Thursday afternoon, June 25th, 2-5 PM. More to come on that.
Every food I’m tasting Every line I’m waiting in Searching vendor to vendor Hogan Brothers ice cream makes me feel a whole lot better Stop and grab a smoothie at James Gang The world’s best desserts at Ole Café Cheesy, gooey Domino’s pizza If you’re hot, get an icy at Sweet Pea’s Loft
At Bridge Square it’s The Taste We hope you’ll be there, I just can’t wait! What would be a great downtown without the NDDC? And what would be the Taste of Northfield without anything to eat? What would be a summer without a hotdog at Tiny’s? And doesn’t it just make your day when you see Maggie Lee? It’s the Taste, it’ll be great At Bridge Square, it’s The Taste
Make sure to stop at Rueb-n-Stein Their burgers are amazing I’m sure you’ll find And you just can’t miss the food at the Cow I guarantee you’re gonna say – delicious!
At Bridge Square it’s The Taste We hope you’ll be there, I just can’t wait! What would be a great downtown without the NDDC? And what would be the Taste of Northfield without anything to eat? What would be a summer without a hotdog at Tiny’s? And doesn’t it just make your day when you see Maggie Lee? It’s The Taste, it’ll be great At Bridge Square, it’s The Taste
In case you’re hearing-impaired like me and can’t hear the “variety of pitched and unpitched sounds as the piano strings heat and break,” then entertain yourself with this piano burning:
Northfield High School English teacher Tom McKown talks about what it took to create Rock n’ Roll Revival VIII this year. He sat in front of the camera for the interview on stage a few hours before Friday’s sold-out performance.
About twenty years ago, Northfielder Rob Martin (Rob Martin Insurancy Agency) hoped to build a 43-foot steel sailboat from scratch in three to five years in a lumber yard in Dundas, even though he had no prior boat-building experience. The process wound up taking a bit longer than that. Today, the vessel is about two years away from completion. Martin agreed to a video interview update on his progress this week.
Local musicians Meredith Fierke, Steve and Dylan Mckinstry, and photographer Dan Iverson are arriving in Austin, Texas today to participate in the South by Southwest music and film festival. Fierke is performing at the Touche bar on Saturday and will play “Train’s Song,” a song inspired by the trains traveling through Northfield, Minn. Below are video interviews with Fierke and Iverson shot in Fierke’s home on Monday.
john george: Peter- I’ll be glad to do that, if I can figure out how. I’m technologically challenged, to say the least.
Peter Seebach (Seebs): John, that sounds lovely. I will try to remember to call. If I don’t, ping me (email is usually good for reaching me) to remind me, because I have a really bad memory for things I was going to do.
john george: Peter- I was just thinking that I would enjoy a cup of coffee with you sometime. You can ask Grifff- I don’t bite! My days off are Monday & Tuesday. I’ve bee a little tied up recently with new grandchildren being born...
Peter Seebach (Seebs): I think we are probably pretty close to agreement on that one. One of my hobbies is nudging things along to get people out of some of the various poverty loops. It is amazing how little money it takes to move someone from...
Peter Seebach (Seebs): A clarifying note: Consequences of Gay Marriage. No one is proposing making homosexuality a civil right. Marriage is already a civil right, and gays are already a protected class for discrimination purposes in most cases....
Curt Benson: Hvistendahl’s strange request for omerta from the Rescue Squad’s auditors doesn’t seem so strange today, after Suzy Rook’s NFN article: http://www.southernminn.com/no rthfield_news/news/article_...
Griff Wigley: Props to the newspaper and Suzy Rook for mentioning LoGro twice in the story: Fire Department officials, including Fire Chief Gerry Franek, did not respond to several requests from the News for association financial records or...
Griff Wigley: Posted to Northfield News at 1pm: Ethical questions arise over Northfield Fire Relief Association expenses Donations made to Northfield Fire Relief Association aren’t public dollars, but that hasn’t extinguished city...
Griff Wigley: Curt/Robert, There’s a summary of the Rescue Squad on Page 21 of the 2009 NFD report to the City. It doesn’t mention that there’s a Rescue Squad Association. The last paragraph states: The Northfield Rescue Squad is...
Robert Palmquist: If Hvistendahl’s motivation was to keep the financials from getting known, his submitting a memo like that just really backfired. I agree, why would these financials be such a secret??? And why did the NRSA hire a lawyer to...
Griff Wigley: Today’s Nfld News: Rescue Squad’s agreement with speedway concerns Northfield leaders The consultant’s June 2011 report to the city found that the three city employees who also serve on the Rescue Squad were being...
kiffi summa: I’m known… or thought to be… pretty tough on ‘doing the right thing’, i.e. as much transparency as possible. But I don’t require, or even feel the need of any more info from the Fire Relief Assn; I...
Griff Wigley: Nfld News editorial: Public, city of Northfield deserve transparency by Fire Relief Association It doesn’t appear that the Relief Association has done anything illegal, as the organization is not required to release documents to city...
Griff Wigley: Suzy Rook has a sidebar to today’s Nfld News update on last night’s Council meeting. Excerpt: The city administrator and finance director say they have asked for the information on several occasions, including last month...
Barry Cipra: Hayes, I agree. I remember thinking Wallace’s work would fit wonderfully well in Northfield’s historic downtown.
Hayes Scriven: Barry, that is great idea! It pulls together both history and art!
Barry Cipra: A few years ago I saw a striking sample of sidewalk art in San Antonio, Texas (whose River Walk, I understand, was cited as a model for Northfield’s own stretch along the Cannon). An artist there named Anne Wallace took a...
Curt Benson: If this is an ongoing project, I would suggest sandblasting the poetry into the existing concrete with the next round. This is not difficult. One could have the sandblasting stencil mask cut at a sign shop, like Graphic Mailbox. I bet...
Hayes Scriven: Griff, the money the Arts and Culture Commission got from SEMAC is to go for projects like this! That is why the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment was passed! Now, yes there are some programing projects I have heard bout that I...
Tom Kotula: Despite rumors you may have heard to the contrary, I have not thrown my hat into the ring.
Sean Hayford Oleary: I was glad to hear Erica Zweifel is running again. She’s done an excellent job and has advocated well for her ward. I’m eager to see some filings for mayor.
Griff Wigley: Good turnout last night for the Cannon Valley Mountain Bike Team meeting at the high school. I’ve blogged a summary with the ppt presentations.
Griff Wigley: Jordan Osterman, the new Sports Editor for the Northfield News, scooped me on Saturday. I’m glad! Northfield high school mountain bike team forming As a club sport, mountain biking would have no official affiliation with either...
Griff Wigley: Good suggestion, Curt. I’ll do that for next week’s blurb. I have been verbally emphasizing the importance of having girls on the team, especially since their points on race days count more than boys’ points. Other...
Curt Benson: Hey Griff, I wonder if you shouldn’t put a bit more emphasis on the idea that you’re recruiting both boys and girls for this team. And that the scores for both the boys and girls make up a team score. I think that in the...
Griff Wigley: It should be noted that this team does not yet exist! So this meeting is for those student-athletes (and their parents) who might be interested in joining this new team.
john george: Living where we do, it is only a few blocks walk to North Street and a grand view of the sunsets. Also, with our neighbors’ mature white pines & spruce, our covered deck affords outdoor enjoyment with a fair amount of...
Jim Haas: Happens to me a lot. So much that my lovely wife had to coin a term for it: she says I have datelexia.
norman butler: Since coming to my adopted country 16 years ago I have observed, amongst other things, that not putting the day with the date is both common and peculiar to Northfield (MN? USA?).
John Thomas: Just a reminder, advance tickets for Girls Night Out 2012 can be purchased on The Grand’s website at http://www.thegrandnorthfield. com/public-events. Your tickets will then be available at a special “Will Call” at...
Liz Reppe: This is a great place to buy plants! Jeni is very knowledgeable and they are both really helpful. You get great service and plant expertise, but the prices are not higher than other places in town.
bill metz: While most of how Jake is being remembered revolves around, and rightly so, his great and wonderful talent as an artist and teacher and the works of sculpture he has left for our and the next generations enjoyment, I have had the...
Ross Currier: It was an honor for me and the NDDC to work with Jake. His pieces of sculpture in our community send a powerful visual message that Northfield is an Art Town. I still marvel at his clever and creative approach to building social and...
paul krause: The memorial service will be held at 11am. Doors to the Chapel will open at 10am for a chance to visit with family members and friends to share memories of our dear friend. Anyone who would like to view the documentary Harvest (which...
kiffi summa: Come on, Griff… you say you’re “more than a little clueless about about investments” but you “just happened to notice”… and from what you said, were reading analytically, etc etc… Once...
Griff Wigley: I’m more than a little clueless about investments but I noticed on page 14 in the April 24 Council packet that the Fire Relief Association has 85% of its pension portfolio in stocks. Isn’t that a bit risky/aggressive for...
Griff Wigley: Has there been any media reporting on the intergovernmental meeting in Bridgewater Township that was held on April 25 re: the Rural Fire Protection District and the City of Northfield?
Vicki Serreno: I wish I’d known – this is my neighborhood since I left Northfield in 2010. I’d have shown up to support them.
Kathie Galotti: My neighbor and sometimes babysitter Maggie Kennedy appears in this video as well! Go Maggie, and Cliff and Sophie and Parker and everyone else! Well done, guys!
Sandy Vesledahl: Thanks for blogging our garage sale Griff! We are at 2018 Jefferson Rd, Suite 1, thanks to the Jasnoch Family for allowing us to use the space. We will be there until 5:00 today and again from 8-2 on Saturday. We’ve had a...
Bright Spencer: I have an 8 year old dog that has not been neutered, has not reproduced and never been out unleashed except in our yard. It costs nothing to care for your pet properly.
Arlen Malecha: I wish more establishments had outdoor seating & dining. Now that our offices (Coldwell Banker South Metro www.CBSouthMetro.com are downtown, I love to see people sitting and dining outside. It is fun to walk up and down...
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