I was able to squeeze in a short ride on the Trek, down to the Minnesota state capitol, about three miles distant. It was clear, nearly windless and about 68 degrees. As close to perfect as ever a Sunday was. I meandered on the ride, while your Unky Herb was out blistering the paths down along Old Man River. We left home and returned within minutes of each other and compared mileage totals at the end. He had twice the miles, but I had these photos and enough energy for ninety minutes of crushing forehands at St Clair playground with Tennis Dennis. It was a reasonable exchange. There is a sculpture park just across the street from the Sears store on Rice Street. It is the home of several imaginative sculptures of a variety of materials. The park is next to some apartment buildings that house a number of immigrants from Somalia, I think. One of the kids talked at me in his language as I left, but as I did in Japan last May, I could only smile and nod. I took the first photo near where the conversation took place.
Large, long-legged creature looming over Trekkie.
On Memorial Day for the last few years, I have biked down to the Capitol grounds to see the Minnesota memorials to the various wars that we've been afflicted with, most of them in my lifetime. On Memorial Day there are always a bunch of Viet Nam veterans at the memorial to that conflict, guys about my age and their families. They'll be there tomorrow. I guess it was my war. I never served in the conflict. I was one of the lucky ones. I'd like to thank any and all who did serve for their sacrifices, including those with their name on the wall pictured below. I am forever grateful that the names on the wall do not include any of my family or close friends.
Minnesota's Viet Nam War Memorial and the words of Archibald MacLeish:
As John Lennon wrote many years ago "All I am asking, is give peace a chance."
2 comments:
Nice job with the photos. Meijer's Gardens in Grand Rapids has a sculpture garden. Perhaps we should visit it sometime when you're here. Thanks for the comment on my hill riding skills. Is Ibuprofen a performance enhancing durg? I suspect it is, so I guess I'm guilty, too.
I didn't do too bad on my picks, by the way. All three were there until just before the end. Marco flipped his car, but was apparently fine. Danika was number 8, I think, and the third guy was in the top 20 finishers. If it was a bike race, they'd all have done well.
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