World's Largest Ball of Twine, Darwin, MN

 

If you ever find yourself in this small town in (relatively) rural Minnesota, or if you ever find yourself within say 20 miles of this town (because honestly, most people might not have a need to visit otherwise), make sure you stop, get out of the car, stretch your legs, and see this impressive ball of twine.

And no, I never thought I'd write those words either, but that's the kind of fun that can be just around the bend in MN. To be fair to other twine ballers (or do they say "ballerz"?) - this is the world's largest from Guinness' 1991 edition and also wound by a single person. I guess we could have newer records and larger balls since that time or perhaps wound by multiple people (A Twine Balling Ball, for example).

In any case, I give Francis A. Johnson a lot of credit for getting this thing done. As I was told by my travel buddy for the night (more high-jinx from the night in the next blog posts), this ball used to sit under something of an old pole barn on the farmers' property. The coworker used to stop and visit it each time they were headed to that part of the county. Now, it sits in this out-building in the heart of Darwin, donated by the man's estate... for all to enjoy for as long as it remains balled.

[You can see my reflection in the shot - sunny day made it hard to capture a clear pic]

[photo courtesy of J.A.]

 I have to hand it to Francis (though don't hand him any twine you want to re0use) - he really did build an impressive piece of Americana and I'm happy and proud to say I've seen it. I feel like native Minnesotans even look at me in a little bit better light because of it. Fine by me, thanks, Francis.

Quote of the Week

Just like you need air to fly a kite - it's not the kite, it's the air.

- Pharrell Williams

Wright County Fair 2014, Part 3: Demolition!!!

Since I've only been to the Wright County fair twice, no fair would be complete for me without some demolition derby! Now, I wouldn't normally consider myself a car guy, or a demolition guy, but it's really really hard not to like this whole event, every time. They basically just line up some old junkers (that people have spent countless hours soupin' up and painting ridiculous themes) and have at it. This day at the fair was combine derby night. That's right, old farm combines would be smashed up and ran til dead. I truly was surprised how much force these hit each other with, and also how many of them just kept going and going.

Of course, the night started with the kids getting in on the action, Power Wheels Derby. I s^%t you not!...

It actually was both cute and scary at the same time. Like in the first pick one kid's parents are getting him to the "ring" finally and as soon as he got there, another competitor came over and smashed right into him - welcome to Derby, son.

Then the big boys (and girls) came out...

You have your General Lee theme. This is generally considered racist now, right?

This big gray one was easily one of the best decorated, as a big elephant - quite nicely too. This was also one of our female drivers for the event

They really "got up in there" with their implements , though they were not allowed to reposition their implements during the event. I was surprised by the force these combines hit each other

After two rounds of qualifiers, plus a lawn tractor derby (for the teenagers, again not joking, it's a family affair), they brought out the remaining three combines for the final round. I already forgot who won, but I know it was glorious.

Once the sun was setting on the lights went on, this is the final round. It was the original "fast & furious" for about 5 minutes. Winner winner, chicken dinner!

And now on to the next county fair. There's one next weekend, Carver County, but I don't have anyone I know heading out... not sure I need to have so much fun solo.

Wright County Fair 2014, Part 2: Vittles

Fair food - if food was the only thing there, I'd still go. I've also figured out not to try anything new at the fair in the savory category. A seafood vendor in the middle of farm country - no way, Gorton. A mexican food stand - no way, Jose. A Scottish sausage cart - no way, Seamus. But if there are new sweets, I'm usually on board. How would we have discovered deep-fried Twinkies or last year's amazing Sate Fair feature, the Red Velvet Funnel Cake - so good.

Since we just wanted something light to start the day, as we didn't know if we could participate in the pie-eating contest that afternoon, this is how I started my fair food day

You CANNOT go wrong with a classic corn dog. It was fresh and delicious

 And it was good we got something in quick as we weren't able to participate in the pie-eating this year. That afternoon's round was for police, firemen and county workers. Ok, fine. I can sit this year out. So, on to something light... like corn on the cob and mashed potatoes, found at the same vendor...

Garlic mashed potatoes with bacon bits & cheddar

This didn't take but a minute, though it was odd to eat top-to-bottom instead of side-to-side (aka, "typewriter")

Then, on to dinner with a bit of theatre as we decided to take our mains to the Bingo Tent. We won all around... to the tune of pulled-pork and $8 cold hard cash.

This was smoked on site and included a scoop of bacon coleslaw for an extra $2

Oh yeah, easy to win bingo when only 12 other people are playing

Finally, a sweet treat before heading into the grandstands for the evening's entertainment...

Chocolate Malt, please. Only one is for me, unfortunetly

And I decided to save this bad boy for next year...

Wright County Fair 2014, Part 1: Livestock

What is your favorite season of the year? Christmas? Halloween? Easter? It's OK, you're wrong. The sweetest season of the year is county fair season!!! Let the games begin in Minnesota's Wright County. This county is almost straight west of the cities and it's well-worth the drive. Sit back for the next three nights to gobble up a three-part post on the animals, foods, and "entertainment".

 The first thing most people do (ok, I have no idea what most people do) is hit the barns to see some cute and not-so-cute animals. As I understand it, it helps you work up an appetite and, for me, thank god I don't own any pets.

Now we only managed to walk the goat barn (yes, there's a goat barn... as well as cows, birds, sheep, etc... c'mon, you get this, it's not rocket science) on accounta we had to make sure we saw a special show in one of the viewing areas...

These two baby goats ("kids"?) were cute as heck, but as ornery as the devil. They would eat anything in front of their mouth (My shorts? Yes.) and head butt each other all around the pen

[Insert Cubs' curse joke here]

 So, less time in the barns because we had to make the llama show. Llamas were dressed up in themed costumes by their owners and paraded around the viewing area. It's like a big deal for the 4-H crowd, and I did think it was pretty unique, to say the least. This was the big ribbon winner... basketball llama.

I'm sure you can see why from the picture too. There was a "moving truck" llama, a pirate llama (pirates are big everywhere) and a hot air ballon llama (don't ask), but I was really hoping there would be a Dalai Lama (buzinga!). Much to my chagrin, there was not.

There was one other rare "animal" that I do enjoy viewing at the fair, "homosapien redneckicus". This is a rare two-legged, upright animal that is quite common in these parts.

Notice the bucket of fries, fanny pack, and mullet - a beautiful example of the species

Speaking of fries... since I stepped into the fair, I had food on my mind, which as luck would have it is the next post. It will be up tomorrow. Stayed tuned...

Quote of the Week

"To quote from Whitman, 'You are here — that life exists, and identity; that the powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse.' What will your verse be?"

- Robin Williams' character from Dead Poets Society

Minneapolis Restaurant Week, Part 3: Sanctuary

Spoiler alert - I'm fine with a so-so meal at Sanctuary last week to round out my three stops during Restaurant Week (see posts on Coup d' Etat and Corner Table). Now, I know what you're thinking, "Wha!? You're ok with a mediocre meal?!" Yes, I am, as the night itself couldn't have been spoiled by just an alright meal. One of the things I enjoy most about dining out (or dining in for that matter) is the interaction of friends & family. And we had that nice of a time last Friday that the meal was secondary (or maybe thirdary?).

Personally, I liked that this started the night off right - delicious

  Overall, the food at Sanctuary wasn't bad, they just seemed to be a bit off their game, though they've told us they have participated in Restaurant Week previously. The chefs got backed up and our entrees were very very late. I was just about to comment to the waitress, when the item below came to our table "gratis", as if sent from on high - it helped ameliorate us and was delicious.

Fresh Burrata Mozzerella with Heirloom tomoato and, we believe, hibuscus honey

A few other things we noticed while we waited for foods:
1. The restaurant participates in the Restaurant Week, but doesn't seem to care that much about it. This is evidenced by the fact that they had one first course listed on the special menu and one dessert, plus just two entree selections. Maybe this is a ploy to get people to order off the normal menu, I'm not sure? What I did know is that if you didn't like beef ribs or a tofu with veggies dish, you'd have to go off the main menu.
2. Our waitress was 6-9 months pregnant. I'm no doctor, but I think she was closer to nine... her "popped out" belly button poked me in the shoulder (kidding!). This really wasn't an issue, but did give us something humorous to talk about and think about later. Do you tip more since she's waiting for two? Is she going to wait tables until her water breaks? Did she want to sit down with us and take a load off? Well, kudos to her for plodding on.
3. They weren't prepared to be busy. First courses and salads came out with no problem, but someone in management forgot to tell the main chef that it would be busy. Entrees took forever, though from what I ate, it would have been quick to plate up some already cooked ribs and polenta.

Speaking of that, here's what we ate...
We started with a salad course for the four of us to share, about one bite per person:

Cantaloupe with blackberries and preserved walnuts (that was a new one)

Then our first courses - we all had the same thing, as it was the option (is it an "option" if it's the only choice?):

Dolmas (or Dolmades if you're Greek - shout-out G-Dog!) - these may have been the best I ever had. We all wolfed them down (ok, maybe just I "wolfed")

So then it was that burrata course pictured above, and then some time later... our entrees arrived:

I chose the braised beef ribs, which were served with the "silver skin" on. It was also not possible to remove the skin from the meat, so I ate it all - ugh! Is it possible that braising requires the silver skin be left on? In any case, the polenta underneath would be good on anything, like an old shoe even

Dessert finished the meal, but it was so pedestrian I didn't even take a picture. They had one option for diners, tiramisu. One person in our group left about 3/4 of it on her plate, it was that hum-drum. I mean, who leaves dessert on their plate? One saving grace on this course was a delightfully summery lemon sorbet. I could have eaten much more of that than the tablespoon on the plate.

In the end, I just didn't see why a 6 year-old restaurant in a bustling part of the city, just blocks from one of the best performance centers in the country, would be so off. Nothing was really really bad, just passable. They have outdated decor, handing you menus on big wooden dowel rods (for reals!), really odd art on the walls (think "aggressive" local art), worn out dining chairs, and just the feeling that they're stuck in the past. I don't think they can hold a candle to the other big boys in Minneapolis, with many located right down the street.

Luckily, we all still had a great night. That's the best part of dining with friends and perhaps Minneapolis' Restaurant Week. I look forward to dining with these same friends again soon, but there's no way it will be at Sanctuary...