Secrets of the City

With all due respect to Ms. Michelle, who I have seen play and think is great, she ain’t the only local who plays ukulele. Ahem.

But she’s the only one who matters.

That’s it! Oatmeal or no meal, but I got to go!

I have a (cheap) ukulele. I don’t complain about it not staying in tune because, like I said, it was cheap ($30 at Guitar Center). But I still have as a goal learning to play “Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head” sometime before the snow flies and the lakes freeze over.

George Harrison used to travel everywhere with a ukulele.

Kudos to Michael Maetzger of alerting us of Ms. Michelle’s oeuvre. And to you too Max for posting this piece here on mnspeak. I love it!

Accordion players, banjo players and ukelele players. Oh, I love them all so much.

My grandma played the accordian well into her 90’s, andy. She was awesome…

Accordion players, banjo players and ukelele players. Oh, I love them all so much.

My irony meter’s been a little out of whack lately, Andy. Can you help by rating your post on the irony scale (0-10, with 0 being not ironic at all, and 10 being dripping wet)?

Oh my.

i don’t know andy all that well, but from little I do know my guess is that there was probably ZERO irony in that statemetnt.

I would say it’s a hard zero.

I LIKE UKE

as the old buttons used to say.

I look forward to arguing with arthappy about whether or not accordian players, banjo players, and ukelele players are properly called musicians.

My grandma played the accordian well into her 90’s, andy. She was awesome…

Before I was born, Mother, Grandmother and Grandfather Bixby were bored one summer so they decided to take accordion lessons. Apparently, they would all sit on their front porch and practice the accordion. My mom says she’s glad that didn’t make it past that summer.

But to be fair, it was either that or spend the summer sitting on their porch in Rondo wondering if the government would save them if they moved to North Minneapolis.

Bernadette Peters in The Jerk? Drool drool drool.

So that was how The Porch Bixbies got their start!

That’s racist!

(haven’t said that in two days)

But to be fair, it was either that or spend the summer sitting on their porch in Rondo wondering if the government would save them if they moved to North Minneapolis.

That’ll learn ‘em.

as I drove through frogtown last night in search of chinese food, I got the same sort of feeling that I used to get driving around detroit in my early 20’s trying to score drugs.

No snide anti-government potshots in this thread! We are here to discuss ukeleles and the beautiful, often well-dressed individuals that play them and the allied instruments of banjos and accordions! There’s fifteen-thousand other threads here where you can complain about the government.

That’ll learn ‘em.

Yeah, they were definitely schooled. If only you’d showed up on Wednesday night to school them, Maz. If only.

Anyway, I’m wondering where one can take lessons in the ukele or accordion (or bagpipes – although, I’m pretty sure you can do that at Macalester)?

My wife wants to take Uke lessons, too.

I’m self-taught on the uke, but I played guitar since the age of eight, so it was pretty easy to transfer what I knew, to an extent. Although the uke is only four strings, so my approach general is to just keep hitting string and putting my fingers down until it sounds like I want it to.

There should be no trouble finding accordion instructors in the Twin Cities. This is, like, the accordion capitol of America.

I would say it’s a hard zero.

Thanks, Andy. I suspected, but just wanted to be sure. Where do you stand on the issue of kazoos?

I look forward to arguing with arthappy about whether or not accordian players, banjo players, and ukelele players are properly called musicians.

What’s the argument? Course they’re musicians.

I took accordian lessons from this guy, but that was a looooong time ago.

By the way, you can hear quite a number of Lucy Michelle’s songs on her MySpace page.

Tiny Tim died and is buried here in Minneapolis, if you don’t know it. He had just finished playing “Tiptoe Through the Tulips” at an impromptu performance at the Women’s Club and he keeled over.

Tiny Tim died and is buried here in Minneapolis, if you don’t know it. He had just finished playing “Tiptoe Through the Tulips” at an impromptu performance at the Women’s Club and he keeled over.

I thought he got thrown out of a window. Lost his bearings after years of hard rockin’ (uke-style) living…

You thought Tiny Tim was defenestrated? He was a uke player, not Jacopo de’ Pazzi.

It’s a joke son, I say, it’s a joke. Boy’s about as sharp as a sack of wet mice.

I think I’ll post a question on Ask Metafilter about where I can take uke and accordion lessons in the Twin Cities. Does anyone know where either item can be purchased?

For the uke I would try The Podium and… damn, there’s this place in SW Mpls (maybe Edina) where my wife got me a mandolin case… they specialize in string instruments… I have to google a bit to come up with the name.

Homestead Pickin’ Parlor!

I asked.

Bixby, you may as well add banjo to your repetoire and get the trifecta.

It’s a joke son, I say, it’s a joke. Boy’s about as sharp as a sack of wet mice.

I was riffing on the more glamorous, rockin’ deaths of these two other Tims of (roughly) Tiny Tim’s era.

I thought I was funny, but of course it’s probably a good thing that I didn’t go into comedy writing…

I’m more of a fan of bell ringing. you could say it gets me excited.

I think you can procure banjos at Schmitt.

Wait, that place still exists, right?

Well, Lucy’s no Israel Kamakawiwo`ole, but she aint bad….

In other local music news, Palbasha Siddique (the girl who sang in the Dancing Matt YouTube) has a new song.

Did you find any Geoff? (good Chinese in Frogtown.) I usually go to New Asia which is just off University on Lexington. However, I’m always looking for someplace new (in the area.)

At the Musashi MNspeak get together, I was wearing a tshirt with Warren Buffet playing a ukulele.

It’s not very interesting, or local, but it is what I have to add to a ukulele conversation. BTW he is playing a DQ ukulele. That is all.

Further down University is Little Szcheuan, amazing chinese.

Little Szechuan FTW University and Western. but they close @ 9pm sharp during the week, so don’t dawdle.

I brought home dandan noodles, cumin lamb, hotsour soup and quick fried lotus root. winner winner chinese dinner.

I don’t know why the link won’t work, is it just me?

That one worked.

Do their dandan noodles have sesame or peanuts?

I’m in!

didn’t seem to have peanuts, did smell a hint of sesame oil. a lot of little tiny bits of beef. I haven’t tried it, but most of the patrons there during the week are chines, and all of them seem to order some sort of big dish with tofu (and fish?) in a bright red broth that looks very spicy, and very delicious. problem is that it’s a dish for more than one, and my co-diners usually like it mild-medium.

Now I want Little Szechuan and I’ve already committed to Los Ocampos for dinner. Boo to that.

we’re headed to Jasmine 26 and then Dark Knight 2-nite. any menu recs for J26???

My office is very close to all of these places, so I frequently do the University Ave greasy chopsticks for lunch.

The sandwich buffet at Graves was a nice change of pace. Besides, I’m back in Weight Watchers again.

Recs for J26 is the salt and pepper tofu app. very tasty. I’d stay away from the hot pot. The adult buble teas are good, but too filling for a drink, I’d share one for dessert.

Bob, where do you go to WW. I need to get back on, for real this time. Do you have a good leader, or are you just doing it on your own?

there’s a Weight Watchers in the Baker Building DT (7th and 2nd) with a sign on the inside corridor door that says “Weight Watchers bans guns”…I want to get a pic of a fat guy flexing his biceps in front of it. anyone want to take my pic?

I once had this amazing sichuan roast garlic crusted sea bass. I want that now.

i got my camera here today, g rote . . .

This one, kc!:

RAINBOW VILLAGE – BLAINE
429 87TH LANE NE
MINNEAPOLIS, MN 55434

It’s on my route home. Years ago, when I first joined, they had a GREAT leader, sadly, she retired. Lost 70 pounds with her help. I have gained some back in the past five years, but I am no way as heavy as I used to be.

You show a monster eating a ukulele and the conversation turns to food. (glorious food!)

Are all threads going to devolve into food threads today?

I approve!

Lucky you bob. I lost about 60 lbs the first time around and I way more now. It is truely depressing. Blaine is way to far away for me though. I need to find a good one close by work or home.

I had a leader once who lipsank and did ASL to the whole Wing Beneath my Wings song. cjc and I were in tears from giggling so hard and trying not to show it.

yeah, that’s weigh more not “way more”.

Oh, never “boo” a meal commitment at Los Ocampos! Their food is delicious, and they never laugh at me when I order in Spanish. To my face.

There’s a meeting locator on the WW site. Just punch in your zip code.

I love Los Ocampos, I just want Chinese.

And bob, I was hoping for a rec on a good leader, not one I want to punch in the face after a few minutes.

KC, there is a good leader at the WW meeting at the YWCA on Thursday evenings.

Grote, I second KC’s recommendation of the salt and pepper tofu. They also have a veggie crepe dish that is wonderful, and I actually love the coconut hot pot.

:-0#

(bearded bob lipsankin’)

The Uptown YWCA, that is.

Chuck Olsen raves about that salt ‘n pepper tofu, too…

Thanks Tara. I’ll try it the Y next week.

I used to be at the Uptown Y at the same time WW meetings were going on. Sometimes they ordered pizza, which struck me as odd.

Maybe they had flex points and wanted to use them.

My wife came home with this:

It’s about 70 years old. Her brother bought it an estate sale. It sounds good!

How was the Lucy Michelle concert?

So anyway, anyone want to answer how the concert was? Anyone? Bueller?