Quite A Day

August 15, 2022

Scenes From Hennepin Avenue

A few noteworthy things happened after I finished writing yesterday's blog. I could have gone back and added them to that post, but I'm pretty sure it would go unread. Seriously, who would revisit that crap if they didn't have to?

So, I'm going to trick you into reading it by adding another post. I am pretty twisted that way.

After eating my smoked turkey & swiss on rye, I thought it might be fun to take an evening walk along Minneapolis' famous Hennepin Avenue. Its a strip full of popular bars and restaurants. I saw a couple of rooftop bars full of young people having a really good time. The loud, booming bass beats certainly contributed to the party atmosphere.

At street level, I walked past a lot of people who weren't having such a good time. Some of them were just hanging out. Some of them were talking to themselves. Some of them were searching the streets and parking lots for discarded cigarette butts. Some of them begged for money.

I ducked into a little bar for a nightcap. It was next to the Orpheum Theater, where a play called "Wicked" was being performed. I heard that play did pretty well on Broadway.

"I should be able to get a decent beer here," I thought. As it turned out, I could have. But I opted for something else.

I've often read about the beauty of a good single-malt Scotch whiskey. I've never tasted one and, at that time, I couldn't think of a better place to try my first than in "An American Bar with a Scotch Flavor."

I asked to see their Scotch list. It had about 50 different brands, most of which I had never heard of. I studied the list for a few minutes and randomly chose one with a very Scottish sounding name.

All I'm going to say is that I paid way too much money for something so disappointing.

I left the Mackenzie, walked around some more, then worked my way back to the Hampton Inn. Remember when I said Minneapolis was Prince's town, but I had nothing to offer as proof except for his gold star at First Avenue? Well, I came across a Prince mural right across the street from my hotel.

How could I miss such a thing? It's three stories tall!

The view inside my room. It's so tidy. I could get to like this minimalist touring idea.

While on my walk, I had picked up a bag of Doritos. I started eating them while watching the nine o'clock news. I almost spit out a mouthful of them when I saw the lead story.

There had been a shooting at the George Floyd Square. According to the news, it happened in broad daylight at about 12:50 p.m. That would have been about 25 minutes before I arrived on the scene. That probably explains why I saw such a strong police presence in the area.

This looks a lot like the picture I took.

That's enough for now. I'll write about today's ride home tomorrow.

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Comment on this entry	Comment	3

Kathleen JonesYeah, deserves a separate entry.
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2 years ago

Rachael AndersonHow sad! I hope some day things can get back to normal! I hate what has happened in Portland, also.
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2 years ago

Gregory GarceauTo Kathleen JonesThank you. In that case, I'm glad I did it.
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2 years ago