PortLand Malt Shoppe ~ Picnic Table Graffiti
If you haven’t been to the PortLand Malt Shoppe in its little historic section of Duluth, MN on E. Superior Street you are missing out. While you are spoiling yourself with the best malt in town you can carve a little graffiti into the picnic table leaving behind a little trace of yourself in history.
This is my first Milky Way in a long while and I was fortunate enough to even capture it. Despite the chaos it was another small adventure, quiet time under the stars, and a new moment in time captured to savor into the future.
This being one of my first Lensball shots, I waited and waited for the sun to come to the tip of the ice shard, then realizing it had already set beneath the tip since the view in the ball is inverted via refraction.
Thanks to the Minnesota Wild Youth Hockey Spotlight along with US Bank, last night’s Bantam B game is the talk of the town today in both Proctor and Hermantown, MN. What a class act this event was, and the element of surprise for these kids… simply brilliant. It was heartwarming to see my nephew, the smallest player for Proctor, with the biggest smile as he roused the crowd in the third period and again at the end of the game engaging the fans in this celebration of youth hockey.
Truly… the ultimate goal of this event was in the net from the start. Read more about it through the NHL HERE.
Watch the game on You Tube HERE.
Minnesota
Subzero
House of Chaos
Backyard ice rink
Father v. daughter
Game on…
…he doesn’t stand a chance.
Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after. ~Henry David Thoreau
Watched these two for awhile fishing Rice’s Point yesterday as the sun was setting…
A quick shot of the masses traversing the Minnesota Slip Bridge during the Tall Ships 2016 Festival in Duluth, MN… I assured her she made the shot.
Ms. Lizzy came over for an evening of art and a movie in the studio with me. It was completely delightful. I remember at her age taking art lessons at the Duluth Art Institute. My mother, from a very artful family herself, encouraged me to develop a love and appreciation for art early. It’s wonderful seeing my sister do the same with her kids.
Urban Art Series [1]
The Duluth region has a rich creative spirit which emanates from its shores, forests and surrounding communities into local studios, shops, restaurants, and galleries. The area urban gallery often displays some pretty impactful art in many forms, too. Aside from unfortunate episodes of vandalistic displays, I find it fascinating.
Caught my son Josh for this shot a few weeks back preparing for last Friday night’s “Plys With Purpose” event presented by Prøve Gallery and the Gary New Duluth Community Center and Recreation Area. At the event, 30 constructed skateboard decks by local, national, and international artists were exhibited and auctioned off with proceeds to benefit the Gary New Duluth Skatepark Fund. The Prøve Gallery also premiered two skateboard films that night, including “ISM” by local filmmakers, Mike Rapaich & Stephen Pestalozzi in which Josh is also featured as one of the skaters. The filming and editing are fantastic… proof, once again, that Duluth, MN is really a hot spot for the arts in all forms.
There is something about the gathering of family and friends that rekindles the soul.
My cousin Sara and her husband Dean host a fabulous pig roast this weekend every fall along with the most delectable dishes from their Birch Point Gardens produce. These two are amazing, and this is one of my favorite events of the year. It is rather fitting that the term harvest is the “gathering” in of crops.
Thank you, Dean and Sara!
View from Fitger’s. Duluth, MN
The extended deck at Fitger’s (standing on for this shot) is one of my favorite spots as it is lovely to sit at the tables for this view of the Fitger’s courtyard, Lake Superior with the Aerial Lift Bridge and the Lakewalk. I had just grabbed a café at a little Italian restaurant a few doors down. This shot was taken about midnight so the activity was minimal and the outdoor cocktail bar was just closing… a quiet glass of wine would have been perfect with this view. The outdoor staff were taking peeks at what I was shooting and were kind enough to show me how to turn on the string of outdoor lights if I ever needed to.
The John A. Blatnik Bridge is a bridge over the Saint Louis Bay, a tributary of Lake Superior, between Duluth, Minnesota, and Superior, Wisconsin. This is the view to the south from my parents’ on the bay side of Park Point. It has been a gorgeous weather week here in Duluth and this was a beautiful evening enjoyed outside on their deck.
Cityscape of Duluth, MN from Park Point.
Friday night I spent the night with my parents on Park Point. They have a beautiful view of the Duluth mainland and harbor from their apartment. I usually come with all my camera gear, tripod and computer and get in a little night shooting after all have gone to bed.
I was looking through my photo library and found a really dark shot with a row of curves. Normally, I would just delete, but when I brightened it to see what it was, I discovered a shot of CN rail cars from the rail yard in Proctor that I took on a beautiful sunset day in April. A little color boost is all it needed. The star burst is not the sun, but a light from the rail yard.
South Pier, Canal Park. Duluth, MN
Each year I gain just a little bit more with my attempts at capturing the 4th of July fireworks. My habit of surfing the web in a panic for settings 5 min before the fireworks go off has never yielded the results I desire, but certainly fits with my “In a Marcie Minute” lifestyle. This year I came across some tips the day before… and voilà!!
Gorgeous skies over our port city tonight. It was a long day at work as it has been for many months and evenings like this are refreshing. I think this shot looks a little “painted” which seems to work.
It was a yin and yang day at work as one patient asked me if I was retiring soon and another told me I didn’t look old enough to have kids.
Had a chance to catch Lake Superior Waves in action. Two Harbors, MN.
“Repotting a plant gives it space to grow. Repotting ourselves means taking leave of our everyday environments and walking into unfamiliar territory—of the heart, of the mind and of the spirit. It isn’t easy. The older we get, the more likely we are to have remained in the same place for some time. We stay because it’s secure. We know the boundaries and, inside of them, we feel safe. Our roots cling to the walls we have long known. But remaining inside can keep us from thriving. Indeed, without new experiences or ideas, we slowly grow more and more tightly bound, eventually turning into less vibrant versions of who we might have been. Repotting means accepting that the way is forward, not back. It means realizing that we won’t again fit into our old shells. But that’s not failure. That’s living.” ~Heather Cochran, The Return of Jonah Gray