The Assassin

I wanted to give a shout out to my host the last couple nights up in Minnesota, Mike G. Mike and his Carleton College roommates provided me suitable accommodations while I was in the land of 10,000 lakes. Located in the small town of Northfield, MN Carleton owns land next to the campus called the Cowling Arboretum aka "the Arb". It consists of approximately 880 acres of forest, field, and floodplain, and it includes many miles of trails. There are two sections to the Arb: The Upper Arb has greater trail density, some trails designated for bike use, and generally smaller areas of natural communities and the Lower Arb, which has populations of rare plants and animals and has primary conservation and education importance. The Lower Arb has fewer trails, no bike use, and large contiguous areas of natural habitat.

The reason I bring up this fascinating reserve is one, because it is an official protected prairie land and two, a few of us went out onto the Arb late on Monday night to do some exploration in the dark. We went out for a midnight hike in what felt like a night out at the beach. Given that I am averse to poisonous native snakes I was definitely wary of the reptile as we trekked thru the tall grasses. But all in all it was a good time and I'm sure Mike and his buds will get out there as much as they can as long as the temperature stays above zero and their workload doesn't get too suicidal.

The picture is of Mike G. and his recently purchased Nerf toys, which he will find useful during a competition that happens on campus called Assassins. For explanation I have copied this text from Wikipedia:"The Assassin Guild is a student-run group on campus dedicated to the pursuit of friendly competition and team-building through senseless violence. Students attempt to "kill" one another with a variety of nonlethal, though potentially annoying, weapons. Rounds are run several times throughout the term, during which participants can be seen skulking about, hiding nerf guns under trenchcoats, and engaging in mock swordfights."

Needless to say, Carleton is a unique place.

On the Banks of the Missouri

Here I am in Chamberlain, South Dakota at the same point where Lewis and Clark and their Corps of Discovery stopped to rest as they made their way along the Missouri River north through South Dakota on their way to the Pacific Ocean.

Just a note about driving through South Dakota today: The skies were clear, the weather was perfect, and I could see for miles all around me. The small town I'm in tonight looks ripe for overdevelopment and a Robert Trent Jones golf course. It's perfect with its small rolling hills along the banks of a beautiful river. It just seems like some uncovered gem for a great vacation spot.

Anyways this spot also represents a change in the focus of my trip as I begin to see many of the great natural wonders of the West. Tomorrow I'll continue to head west towards Rapid City, the Black Hills, the Badlands, and famous Mt. Rushmore.

The House That Corn Built

I wonder why it's the world's only.

Eats At the Sacred Corn Palace

No better time to have my first (and last) corn dog, honest truth.

The Sacred Corn Palace!

This photo was taken inside the Corn Palace in Mitchell, SD. Corn is
the chosen décor for this basketball arena. I'd say the NBA missed the boat on this one.

Bugs

Lots of dead ones splattered all over the windshield.

Update: I couldn't take it any longer, had to get a car wash.

My First Time...Indoors

Followed the Chi Sox up to "the Baggy" (Minny). Twins need to take
all three to make it interesting.

Update: Saw an interesting game tonight. But not just the game itself, but the experience of watching baseball indoors made it interesting. The Twins won 9-3 and got to within a game and a half of the Sox. The fans in Minnesota are really into their ball club. They all stand up when it gets to be two strikes on the opposing hitter and they don't need those stupid fan graphics to tell them when it's ok to cheer, which is refreshing. The Twins play a fun type of baseball too relying on pitching, fundamentals, and aggressive base running. With 35,000 rowdy fans in attendance it felt like a playoff atmosphere. (Although there's no reason I should know what that feels like)

There were several quirks about the game/stadium that should be pointed out. First of all, you feel like you're at a hockey game because it's so chilly inside. It also feels like you're in a completely sterile environment, which is not fun if you like Washington, DC humidity or really dry hot air. During the game a fly ball hit the roof of the stadium and somehow it was called foul, although I thought it was almost impossible to tell that high up whether the ball would have landed inside or outside the lines. Another exciting moment came when someone ran out onto the field and got chased by 20 of Minneapolis' finest , which was very entertaining.

What else? Because they pump air into the dome when you exit the stadium you get whooshed away when you open the door. It's quite exhilarating! I missed out on the excitement the first time I left because I used the revolving doors, but when I looked back and saw what a foolish mistake I had made I turned right back around and experienced the thrill. From speaking with several fans about their new OUTDOOR ball park that is supposed to be ready for 2010 I got the feeling that everyone hates the Dome, but from looking at the faces of kids and adults alike as they exited their Dome, you can't help but think how they will miss the "whoosh".

OK, now that concludes most of the MLB stuff I'll be doing on the trip. So now seems like a good time for me to post my official biased stadium rankings of the one's I've visited so far over the years:

PNC/Pirates (great views from the upper deck)
Camden Yards/Orioles (no explanation needed)
Great American/Reds
Tiger Stadium/Tigers (classic old time stadium with character)
Wrigley/Cubs
Edison Field/Angels
Fenway/Red Sox (definitely overrated, but I was there 9 years ago and have not seen recent renovations)
Citizens Bank/Phillies
Nationals/Nationals (almost identical to Philly, except with the terrible view of the parking lots)
Jacobs Field/Indians (too many club suites and the upper deck view of the field isn't as good as Phils/Nats)
Kauffman/Royals
Memorial/old Orioles
Busch/old Cardinals
Yankee/Yankees (if not for games that have been played here this would be further down...the stadium is a dump)
Shea/Mets (dump)
Metrodome/Twins (fun once, but just once)
Veterans/Old Phillies (dump II)
RFK/Old Nationals (no explanation needed II)
Cinergy/Old Reds (couldn't get down to the lower deck during batting practice w/out a ticket)

Sunday's Meal

BBQ and Blues at BB's BBQ in Kansas City. I'd post a picture of my
meal, but I don't want to get my Aunt Jan too upset about my
cholesterol. Let's just say the music was excellent.

For those interested in the ribs email me.

The Things You Find!

Found this in a display case outside Governor Culver's office. Looks
like he's not afraid to rep his hometown.

R e d redddd h o t hottttt ... The Barons are Red Hot.

This is Iowa?

Yep. Des Moines, Iowa.