The questions and multiple choice answers in this quiz didn’t quite fit me, I took my best stab at appropriate answers. Enjoy.

You Are A BCBG Black Leather Clutch You’re a modern, urban chick who’s more than a little tough (Well, as tough as you can be while carrying a purse) Black leather is like your denim – goes good with everything You’d even wear it to work, if you could get away with it What Kind of Handbag Are You? Take This Quiz

[Link Courtesy of Dowdydiva]

I love the idea of “The Ministry of Reshelving“. Check out the photos of people who are reshelving 1984 by George Orwell from Fiction into the Current Events category. I really want to do this next time I am in a bookstore.

[Link Courtesy of boing^2 and jennie.]

Looks like Young Joel is feeling inspired to post again. I loved the post titled “and yet”.

I often have the same reaction Joel describes when I come through the door and two children rush at me, hug my legs, pull on my laptop case and shout “daddy” happily at the top of their lungs. If you look closely enough, Jesus even makes a guest appearance in the blog indicating to me that perhaps seminary isn’t quite finished with Joel.

Welcome back to the blogosphere! Pull up a chair and pour yourself a tall one.

When you are walking in the woods, there is nothing quite as welcome as a patch of wild blueberries.

This year when I was on my annual camping trip with my niece and nephew we happened to be camping during when the blueberries were thick and ripe.

Seth, my nephew and Matthew, my son, accompanied me on a walk across a 640 rod portage from Trout Lake to Pine Lake in the BWCA. We weren’t carrying a canoe; we just were out for a stroll. We kept encountering thick patches wild blueberries.

If you’ve never had wild blueberries you have missed out on one of nature’s best treats. The blueberries in the store are much larger, but have far less flavor. At first Seth seemed uninterested in the berries, but after watching Matthew and I greedily pick and eat handfuls of berries he tried them. He was an instant convert. Everyone tried to outdo each other finding the sweetest and biggest berries. Matthew was convinced he could spot them better since he was so close to the ground. He always chided me for leaving too many.

Wild Blueberries occupy a special niche in my mind. There are so many things in life you have to work for. If you have a garden you plant, water, fertilize, and harvest before you eat. Blueberries are different. No one seems to have planted them and no one tends them; you simply have to be mindful enough to look for them. In my experience difficult walks & rambles are almost always punctuated by blueberries just where you need them.

Halloween, Alaska will be having a CD release concert at First Avenue on Saturday, September 10th. I loved hearing them back in June and am looking forward to seeing them again.

I’m bummed that I’ll miss them since I’ll be out sailing that weekend.

The co-worker who would prefer to be called my favorite co-worker and her husband went with my to a Thai Cooking class at Supatra in St. Paul. I had never been to Supatra as a patron before but the class piqued my interest because it began with a tour of the St. Paul Farmers Market.

When class began, Supatra Johnson took us all across the street to visit the market. She pointed out all the Asian vegatables and helped explain a little about how they might be used. It made me feel a lot more comfortable about buying some of the more exotic vegetables and herbs that are available in the farmers market. I also found out that my favorite herb, Thai basil, is very easy to find if you are just looking in the right place, i.e. not Byerly’s, Cub, Rainbow or Fresh & Natural.

Supatra then demonstrated how to make Thai Lettuce Wraps. They tasted great, but they were served with lettuce that was a poor choice for wrapping anything in. The poorly suited lettuce aside, the marinade for the meat & seafood and the tamarind dipping sauce were outstanding. The sauce seemed especially easy to make and had a lot of flavor. I wouldn’t mind serving this at home, but would get a lettuce that was easier to roll up.

My favorite dish by far was the Som Tum or Green Papaya Salad. It was very easy to make and the flavors were a great blend of hot, salty and sweet. I’ve had Som Tum before I think, perhaps as a garnish to a larger dish, but I never knew what it was. I’m going to get the supplies to make this dish A.S.A.P. If you ask me to bring a salad to your next event this is likely what I’ll bring.

It was a treat to not only learn some new cooking techniques but to have a great meal included. I enjoyed the class and I’ll be back to check out the restaurant.

I don’t remember where I first saw Lindsay’s Satellite Map Mural, but it a super cool way to decorate a wall. I love the way it is both abstract and super realistic at the same time. I would love to paint a wall like this.

So lately I’ve been bicycling more. I have one question. When on a mixed use trail, when I say in a clear voice “Passing on the left”, why do people panic and move in every direction?

So tonight I was walking across a parking lot, to my local theater. Someone in their car passed me and shouted “Man Whore!”

I understand the reference is likely from the movie “Deuce Bigelow, Ace Gigolo” or perhaps the newly released part two, “Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo”. My question is why do I get the special attention? This is the second time people have shouted memorable things at me this year.

I know the breathless 90′s with the hype about the web is over. Something special still happened; buried under the hype a kind of human freedom that is still being explored and discovered was born. Check out Kevin Kelly’s article in a recent edition of Wired for more thoughts on this topic.