Tag Archives: Bemidji State University

Happy trail to us

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It’s been a long time, trail. It was really great to see you today. Sorry we missed your big show this fall with all the changing colors. I bet it was beautiful. It always is …

This has been a really challenging year in terms of getting out on the trail. We were majorly short-handed at work , we were working in a warehouse during a remodeling project, Bethany gave birth to her second child and I was spending much of my free time helping my elderly parents, who live an hour away.

But I don’t think we ever thought we’d miss so many days. The summer flew by, and fall got busy, and it became easy to skip walking. When we did manage to get together, we stuck to the sidewalks, usually because we didn’t have a lot of time.

It was great to get back on the dirt trail along the lake today, and a lovely day for being outside.

We even saw some green:

And here:

But what really struck me was the pink:

I’ve never seen pink berries. I told Bethany they were as pink as one of her daughter Lola’s princess dresses.

I love pockets of color where we walk, little things you never see in cars. We miss so much when we don’t stop to smell the pink berries and such.

I suppose that would mean more if I actually had stopped to smell the berries. I just don’t think berries have much of a smell. :)

 

No jackets today — we wore our red sweat pants and hoodies. Bethany got warm and took her hoodie off.

Doesn’t this look like a welcoming set of steps to go jump in the lake?

It seemed that while we’d been gone, others had trampled the earth down in the spots that were challenging for us after the bike trail was constructed. In one spot, we used to traverse the trail by a sort of “surfing” method involving some sliding and gripping trees, but that area is more accessible now. We were able to walk all the way through to the end of the trail where it comes out on the back side of the Bemidji State University campus:

We had a beautiful blue sky today, and beautiful blue water on Lake Bemidji:

The days are getting shorter and, usually, cooler. The seagulls and the Canada geese are hanging out in separate corners, probably thinking about getting out of here soon. We wish we could go, too!

But this is the taste of what we have coming, that bit of snow that is finally almost done melting.

We can’t complain too much that it’s snowing in mid-November (we’ve had at least a dusting of snow in October most years), but the longer it waits, the shorter the winter feels.

“Today reminded me just how much I miss walking every day… I totally have to do better. Just leave work.”

Bethany’s words say it all. You have to make time for things like this. When we started walking, in February 2009, it was almost a given that we would walk every day — and that was in weather where it was understandable that we might want to skip a day here and there.

Hopefully, we’ll be able to hit the trail a few more times before the snow comes back to stay.

Have a happy weekend and enjoy what is left of the fall. There’s still green grass out there!

Meandering jaunt produces walkers, tree sweater

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Today, we were about as scattered as the seagulls we saw over the water by Library Park. (OK, fine, they’re only flying because I ran toward them to scare them skyward for a photo.)

We ended up starting out from my house four times, each time going a different direction. We had one dead camera and then two additional cameras, each, as it turned out, with no batteries. Finally, I just bought a big pack of batteries at Pamida, where I asked the checkout guy if he could cut the package open (I hate those horrible packages).

“No,” he joked. “I can’t do that.”

“They don’t trust you with scissors?” Bethany said.

“Maybe he has to watch a training video first,” I suggested.

So finally we were on our way, after having also learned we needed to look for a photo for tomorrow’s paper.  It’s a rather wet, drippy day today, so we seemed to be the only ones outside doing anything interesting, but then we ran across Pam Papp and Joann Gardner walking through Library Park.

They work at Bemidji State University and walk every day during their lunch breaks.  So they’re way more consistent than we are. :)

We had no notebooks with us, so I texted their names to Bethany. At first thought, that seems not very professional, but journalists often have to think on their feet, so let’s go with resourceful. ;)

We were dumbfounded by this tree sweater on Third Street. What a fun idea! We are really curious who did this and how the idea came about, so if you know, send us a message!

I thought maybe it was a Master Gardener who has a crafty thumb as well as a green one. The Master Gardeners take care of the downtown planters every year.

We were also curious about how the sweater was placed on the tree, so we circled around and found a back seam, which we are guessing was closed after putting the sweater over the tree.

In any case, the sweater is in nice fall colors. :)

I thought this spine outside Explore  Chiropractic was cute, but I really had to stop and take a photo when I saw the giraffe, since I collect giraffes and this is a nice one!

“Do you have a giraffe neck or a banana neck?” the sign in the window reads.

I imagine I have a giraffe neck. First, because giraffes and humans have the same number of vertebrae (seven, which I remember being very surprised by when I heard that years ago.

And second, because like the song says, bananas have no bones. :)

Here’s a Halloween window display for you …

Have a great rest of the week!

 

A beautiful day for a walk around Bemidji …

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We had a beautiful day for walking today. In fact, we were all over the place. We started out downtown and wandered over to 15th Street and then in the Bemidji State University area, finally coming back around the waterfront.

When we were in the BSU area, we both saw what looked like a cat in the back window of a sealed car, which would have been animal abuse on a warm day like today, but it turned out to be a cat of the fake-fur variety.

The sky was blue, the temperature was wonderful and the view was gorgeous. We saw lots of other people walking around town as well.

Even though some trees are still nearly bar, there’s still lots of green out now, and the spring flowers are coming up beautifully. I wish it was like this all year round.

It was just, overall, a nice spring day for a walk.

What more could we ask for? :)

Oh yeah, maybe … instructions on how to make these cute things:

They look like cement and pretty rocks formed in maybe a meat pie tin?

In any case, they’re very cute and it was fun to run across them!

Clouds, company and skittish geese

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On the first day of my vacation (from work, if not from walking), we had clouds, company and skittish geese.

The geese above were already in the water when we walked past, but the family of four to the right were on land. But not for long, as Mom and Dad rushed the goslings into the water quickly.

Hey, I wonder what a reality show called "The Goslings" would work, especially if they had eight goslings and two parents? 

Today, we had company on our walk as my friend Jean-Luc, who is visiting from Montreal, joined us. JL first walked with us last fall when he was here last.

He and Bethany discovered a soccer-ball hackeysack at Diamond Point Park today. I tried to get some photos of them attempting to play, but photos don’t always show the action very well (taking a picture of a drummer, for example, is a challenge).

So below, JL looks like he’s trying to avoid something icky and Bethany appears to be giving it a wide berth, but I think JL is actually trying to kick it to her.

We saw someone out on Lake Bemidji today at the park, but I think he may have been working for Bemidji State University’s Outdoor Program Center. Piloting a boat would be a pretty fun element of one’s job, I think!

This picture looks like JL is about to strangle an unsuspecting Bethany, but he is actually just gesturing while telling a story.

I don’t know what this is, but I find it pretty. It looks like some sort of pole bean?

Bethany tried to dislodge something from her shoe today, but gave up rather than sit down and take her shoe and sock off. Is that dedication to the momentum of the walk, or did she just not want to bother messing around with the shoe? You decide!

 

I like this new sculpture ("The Plunge" by Deb Zeller) a lot.

I wonder if a follow-up/companion sculpture showing the top half of the body entering the water would be possible?!?

Of the beaver sculptures that have been placed around downtown in the past couple of weeks, I was surprised today when Bethany showed me one that was quite subtle in its coloring and actually looked like a regular brown beaver while we walked up to it outside City Hall. But if you get up close, you can see that "Crinkle," by Linda Brown has a pattern that matches its name and a sheen that shows it off.

I kinda like Crinkle!

Today’s mystery photo:

Take care!

– Laurie

Flowers, plants and trees!

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Today was a really pretty walk. We stayed off the dirt trail and walked the sidewalks and bike trail from the waterfront to the Bemidji State University and Diamond Point Park area and back. As you can see from the reflection in the pond above in the park, it was a still day. It was warm, but not too warm.

I have really liked some of the closeups Bethany has taken lately, so I figured I’d zoom in a little on this leaf in a bush, which is pictured in the center of the photo below. I wasn’t sure where I took the photo, but when I saw who is standing in the background, I realized it was outside the Tourist Information Center!

We ran across our favorite chipmunk — we are going by the assumption that there is one particular chipmunk who is unusually friendly — at the park. I had run out of photos, so I deleted one and took this photo, but then I saw that he was unwrapping and munching on a piece of fancy chocolate. Unfortunately, just after I deleted another photo so I could get him with the candy, he ran off again.

Then the woman holding the bag in the photo below told us the chipmunk had taken the candy from her bag! wat a scamp that little guy is.

Our pretty walk today included lots of flowers, plants and trees.

By the way, when I came up with that headline, I was thinking it was something from a song, but I realized that song was actually Cher’s "Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves!

Anyway, here are some of the flora we saw today:

We saw some trees that appear to have been downed by wind. This one is right in front of where the trail opens up in back of BSU.

It was a nice day for a gathering. Apparently it’s the fifth annual summer at BSU. I could have sworn we’d had more summers than five ;)  Seriously, I think there’s something else on the sign I couldn’t make out.

 And congrats, Oliva, on your graduation! (see photo below)

 

We had two things in the Stuff on the Ground department today.

On the right, we saw the broken front casing for a Blackberry. Looks like someone was not happy with their cell phone. I have a co-worker who has had to replace his twice, but as far as I know he never stomped on it and left it on the ground in pieces!

Below, we have a gocery list of someone who was shopping for Egg Beaters (lots!), canned salmon, chicken breast (again, he or she wanted lots), fresh veggies, Kellogg’s protein bars, whole-grain bagels, beans,  English muffins, feta cheese and tuna.

It all sounds pretty good, except the salmon. Ew.

We were Harmony Food Co-op at the time, so by the healthful foods on the list and the location, I can only assume they were shopping there. It’s a lovely little place (which will be a lovely larger place next year when it moves even closer to where I live!).

Speaking of Harmony Foods, I had to snap a picture of this young woman who was reading outside while drinking a beverage.

"She has that perfect red hair," I whispered to Bethany as we walked past. "And the perfect green shirt to go with it."

I’ve always had red hair, but it’s never been thick and wavy like perfect red hair.

Today’s puzzler:

Yesterday’s mystery photo, the steps to nowhere, were from a vacant lot that obviously used to have something to which the steps led. I can’t remember exactly where it was, but I think it might have been on or near Mississippi Avenue, where we walked to take a look at the Village of Hope, the new homeless shelter.

I hear there is more rain in store for us tomorrow. At least it won’t be cold!

And I have plenty of clothes to choose from, as I hauled five laundry baskets to the Corner Laundry this afternoon and washed more clothes at one time than ever before. I had to get change for a second $20 bill, so I now have $17 in quarters, which I just dumped in a drawer at work for vending machine use.

By the time our walk ended, it had gotten pretty warm, almost hot. The sun must have come out, because I lamented that I had put sunscreen on my arms and legs, but forgot my face. I said I’d rather have the sunburn and avoid the freckles. Bethany just chuckled.

I told Bethany, also, that next time I want to do a bunch of laundry on a hot day in the middle of the afternoon, to remind me that it is a stupid idea.

Here’s to smart ideas!

– Laurie 

 

A visit from Raquel (no, not Welch — even better!)

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It’s been a long time since we’ve seen our former co-worker Raquel, who was the Pioneer’s news clerk until a couple of years ago. She and her husband, Brandon, moved to Duluth, where he is studying pharmacy.

When she told me she’d be in town this week, I suggested she walk with us today and she jumped at the chance. She said she likes to work out at home and it was nice to get in a good three miles of walking.

While her husband is from Bemidji, Raquel was born in the Dominican Republic, where she tells me she used to eat mangoes she plucked off the tree (yum!) and later moved to Florida with her family, so she wasn’t used to anything closely resembling winter until she met and married Brandon.

We were talking about those weather differences today, and Bethany said she likes having the changing of the seasons.

"I wouldn’t mind the changing of the seasons if there were only three of them," I said.

Raquel (who is goofing off in the picture on the right) agreed, and we all said we wouldn’t mind winter so much if there wasn’t so much of it, for so long!

I know, we used a picture of these blossoms last week, but at least this one is from a different tree (I think!). This picture turned out so pretty, I couldn’t resist using it. I also set it as my desktop background on my computer at work, which used to have the robin with tulips from a previous blog post. (We love our nature photos, even if we can’t identify much of nature!)

We didn’t take the trail because we thought it would be too wet, but we at least walked near it and we could look down at elements of it, like the bridge above and the lake view below:

While we were out and about, we saw plenty of activity, including this friendly chap at Baker Park …

… and some folks who were either working or playing (or maybe both!) at Bemidji State University’s Outdoor Program Center, located at Diamond Point Park.

We like to do "stuff on the ground," so here are a couple of odd ones:

Here is a red chicken to go with the rooster from earlier. As for the lower photo, someone apparently really wanted to make sure this brochure stayed together:

 

Our puzzler for today:

Yesterday’s mystery photo was of the Bob Melvin sculpture "Wild Hair," which used to be outside the Wild Hare Bistro and Coffeehouse but is now several blocks away near the Ink Spot Press/Irvine Avenue Shops and the Bemidji Woolen Mills.

This week is going fast. As I write this, it’s 15 minutes from Thursday! :)

– Laurie

Hello sunshine!

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We hit "our" trail again today, and it was beautiful!

Beautiful in terms of the trail itself and the weather. I mean, Bemidji has really been on a great stretch of gorgeous weather — I was even a little pink yesterday evening after spending all weekend outdoors. And when was the last time any of us said that in mid-April?!

I mean, just look at how green everything is getting already!

Of course, we were far from the only ones outside today. I lost count of the walkers, joggers and pet-walkers. But even beyond them, there were a bunch of people just sitting outside of Bemidji State eating and lying on the grass.

You can’t see the people who were lying down, but we walked by them and caught this intriguing snippet of a conversation:

Unknown female student: "I mean, it’s not like I’m going to learn anything there."

Laurie picked up that she was referencing a math course of some kind. So maybe she had skipped class? I know if I was in college, I wouldn’t have gone to class today either. (Then again, I was pretty infamous for not attending my classes very often…)

Speaking of BSU, construction on the campus is continuing this summer:

(OK, I admit I don’t really know what building this is. I had one tour of BSU, but I rarely am on campus and I’m not familiar with the layout of the university very well. But I think this might be Deputy Hall. Someone who knows better, please let me/us know.)

Right across the trail from this view were these little guys: They were so close to us!

Look how close they looked when I used the "zoom" lens:

They weren’t afraid of us at all!  Laurie figured they were smart enough to know we couldn’t (or wouldn’t) jump the fence.

We also made our first venture to Diamond Point Park today, taking a little longer than usual for my "lunch" break. Of course, we had to rough it a bit to get from "our" trail to the bike path, but we did pretty well. It looks like other hikers have been following the same route, so it was worn in a bit more for us this season than last.

And the following photo you can file under the "dumb blonde" folder (although my hair color, admittedly, comes from a box).

I walked past the first bench, the one pictured at right, and wondered why that one had blocks on top of it and the other one didn’t. Laurie gently informed me, at the exact same time I realized it, that the bench is, obviously, upside down. Hey, it’s Monday.

All in all, we had a wonderful time outside today. It made it hard to come back to the office…

Anyhow, today’s Puzzler is…

I am thinking optimistically today, and believing that my husband and I are going to finally close on our house tomorrow. So, assuming that happens (and, trust me, without going into the full story, it would be rather surprising if it does actually happen), hopefully Laurie will update this page in the next few days and provide you with the Puzzler answer.

As it is, though, the answer from last week’s Puzzler was that the snippets were taken from a bench created by BSU ceramics students in honor of 9/11.

Again, sometimes we don’t notice things. And, apparently, we never noticed this bench before. But we loved it. We spent lots of time just reading all of the inscriptions. It was very nicely done.

Have a great week!

- Bethany

movie quotes

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I took a picture of this only because I saw the butterfly flag and found myself wishing it was a "real" butterfly – and the snow would instantly melt away.

Not that I have much to complain abut at all; this winter hasn’t been bad at all … so far.

Today, Laurie and I walked along Lake Avenue and through the Bemidji State University campus. It was a pleasant day, weather-wise, but the wind had a bit of a bite to it. We were definitely warmer on the walk back to town than away from it.

We chit-chatted about upcoming plans, some work stuff and then, somehow, we found ourselves quoting "Field of Dreams."

Me: "They will come, Ray."

OK, I actually know where that came from: We were trying to remember the first name of Kevin Costner’s character, and for some reason, I remember the above line. Mystery solved.

… But I still don’t know how we got on the topic of "Field of Dreams" in the first place.

This was the first time in a while that we walked by BSU, so I had to snap a picture of the vehicles parking on Lake Bemidji.

I just don’t understand the ice parking. I mean, I do remember how frustrating it was to walk 2-3 blocks to school because you can’t get a close parking spot. But it’s just a few blocks. Granted, I have a small fear of driving on ice to begin with, but I just can’t imagine that it’s good for the lake – or safe for the vehicles for that matter.

But, again, I’m not a "true" Bemidjian, so maybe it’s just a learned acceptance.

Anyhow, that was our walk. We had a nice time.

The answer from yesterday’s Puzzler is…

And today’s is…

(Hint it is not a sign for a business!)

Have a great evening!

- Bethany

 

Warm weather, talking crosswalks and Bob Dylan

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Today would be such a gorgeous day to just sit outside and read. I saw this woman outside of Bemidji State University and was completely jealous! Not that I wasn’t enjoying our rather grueling hike today (yeah, the trail is much more demanding than our recent sidewalk treks), but I have a book sitting on my countertop at home that I haven’t touched in two days. And I would like to finish it!

It was actually a wonderful walk today. The views from the trail were beautiful, as always. We were actually quite surprised by the vibrancy of all the greenery we saw. In some cases, the leaves and bushes looked like springtime green, although we know that’s highly unlikely.

It’s hard to believe that it won’t be long before everything is white…

***

Whenever we head to the trail, twice we must cross Paul Bunyan Drive. We always chuckle at the man who "talks" to you while preparing to cross the street. He tells you to wait and, then, when it is time to walk, he tells you to do so. But no matter how hard we try, we can’t figure out what his exact words are.

Today’s quote, from me: "I do find it somewhat embarrassing that for two people who listen and quote people for a living that after six months of listening to that guy we still have no idea what he’s saying."

I’ve always thought he is saying, "Paul Bunyan. It is now safe to cross Paul Bunyan." But that doesn’t really match up.

Laurie today thought she heard, "Paul Bunyan. The walk sign is on Paul Bunyan."

But neither really seems to match up to what the guy is saying. And it’s frustrating. So if any of you better-hearing people can enlighten us as to what the words are, Laurie and I would be incredibly thankful.

On a related note, we did laugh last week when we heard the new talking crosswalk/signal light on Irvine Avenue. She (that one is female) pronounces the roadway Ir-VINE.

***

We also saw some interesting signs along our walk today, which are always welcome. We love seeing new things since we usually walk familiar routes.

The first (outside Hair Teasers) was one of two signs we saw regarding Veterans Day.

The second (outside of Glazed & Amused, which also had a Veterans sign) was a nice reminder of the upcoming holiday season, although I must say that with weather like this, it’s hard for me to think of Christmas right now! Also, I have a birthday coming up and I’m fairly self-absorbed, so I don’t think about buying other people gifts until I get my own! (I’m kidding … mostly.)

***

Today’s puzzler is…

The answer from Monday, as Jeff correctly guessed, is that the artwork is a Bob Dylan mosaic, named "Answers," outside on the corner of Third Street and Irvine Avenue. The artist who made the statue is Nancy Miller.

Have a great day!
- Bethany
 

A different route

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I have good news and bad news.

The good news is that we took a different route today, for the heck of it.

The bad news is that we were without a camera today, so we didn’t have any pictures.

I think we should take the same route next week (Bethany is off Friday, so we won’t be walking. Heaven forbid one of us walk without the other!) and take some pictures to make up for it. It was a really nice walk.

To make up for the lack of photos, here are two leftovers from Monday.

I love the pink and orange colors of the leaves on this tree at Bemidji State University, paired with the red berries:

And look! There are still green trees left! This one is tucked in near the dirt trail along Lake Bemidji:

Anyway, today we headed from my apartment to the Irvine Avenue bridge, walked along Lake Irving for a while and then hit Park Avenue, which we noticed was not near any parks, but was near some open grassy area that would make a great park. We walked by T. Juan’s, which of course reminded me of their fajitas, which sounded much better than the cabbage (don’t ask me why, but I always have to backspace over "caggage") soup I’ve been eating for what seems like forever. I had two bowls of it today at work and I think I’ve got one bowl left out of the cavernous kettle I filled a couple of weeks ago.

We also saw a cool Halloween display that would easily have made it in our blog if we’d seen it earlier. We probably would have included it today, even, if we’d had a camera.

The sickness bug has finally hit me this week. I started feeling crappy Tuesday morning and went home a little early, and I had Wednesday off (although we walked anyway) because I work this Saturday. On Wednesday night, I whined to the cats about my aches and pains, but they were more interested in the kitty treats they know are in the cupboard. Today, we finished our walking around 1:30 p.m. I was planning to go to work around 2:30, but I was so draggy I didn’t make it until 4. Bethany had recently gone home for the day, so I had to call her and announce to her how my voice had gone from normal to a horrible sounding squeak in a matter of a couple of hours.

All this to lead up to the only thing I could think of for the Quote of the Day (I think we were too busy admiring our new surroundings to record our wit and wisdom!):

Me: Hey.

Bethany: Hey.

(Yes, we start every phone conversation the same way, regardless of which is on the other end.)

Me: I just called to let you know how much my voice has changed since our walk.

I almost never get sick. It’s almost like a badge of honor. I average less than a sick day per year, probably less than a sick day per two years, in fact. I barely even get colds. But it’s funny just how familiar this feeling is, of aching muscles, swollen glands and hacking coughs. It doesn’t matter how seldom it comes; you always remember.

I keep telling my daughter and son-in-law that I used to have more colds when I used to smoke, but so far I haven’t sparked anything. :)

The mystery photo for Wednesday was of Vermont Avenue Apartments, one of the Monopoly-based apartment buildings in Bemidji, from when we walked near Vista North town homes. The first time I saw one of the apartments was when my car was in the shop over the weekend and I took Paul Bunyan Transit to Target to buy a DVD recorder. The bus driver stopped at one of the Monopoly buildings, and when I expressed surprise, he told me that all the game properties are represented at different spots in the city. I’ve seen others since. I think it’s an awesome idea!

Since we didn’t have a camera today, we don’t have a mystery photo. Sorry!

Have a great weekend!

– Laurie