Secrets of the City

The Lion’s Tap in Eden Prairie has won a lawsuit against McDonald’s, crediting them with the “Who’s Your Patty?” phrase.

Thirteen-year-old Daniel Hauser, who gained acclaim for running away to avoid chemotherapy treatment earlier this year, is scheduled for his last round of chemo this morning.

The School Nurses of Minnesota association will be honored today at 4:30 at the Doubletree Hotel in St. Louis Park for 100 years of professional service in the state.

Joyce Preschool — “an independent, nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide children from diverse ethnic, linguistic and economic backgrounds with developmentally and culturally appropriate preparation for success in school and lifelong learning” — just earned accreditation from the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

Today is the big day. (Or is it?) In an effort to thwart Democratic leaders’ efforts to lock down votes for the health care reform bill, Minnesota Representative Michele Bachmann will be rallying her troops on the steps of the Capitol (Washington) at noon.

In appealing to demonstrators, Ms. Bachmann called the health care vote, tentatively scheduled for this Saturday, the “Super Bowl of freedom.” She has repeatedly accused Democrats of pursuing “socialized medicine” and a “government takeover” of the health care system.

Does this large-scale media moment have anything to do with the recent resignation of Bachmann’s top aide, Michelle Marston? Bachmann’s Mad Hatter reputation may be scaring away staffers.

What kind of support will Bachmann garner today? On Wednesday, Fox News estimated a crowd of 64,000 — but then this is the same Fox News that substantially overestimated (by almost a million) the 9/12 tea party crowd, and the same Fox News that reduced the 1900-page bill to “five pages that matter.” (Still, a quick Internet search shows a fair number of people — primarily East Coast — looking for a ride.)

One person we know will be there for sure is actor Jon Voight, who just left Minnesota last night, after speaking at a fundraiser for Gov. Pawlenty.

Meanwhile, the Stand Up America PAC, an anti-right-wing-extremist organization, has spent the last two days trying to raise $10,000 in order to “ruin Michele Bachmann’s day” by proving they can rally just as much support against her as she can rally against the health care legislation. A noble (or at least peaceful) counter-attack? Or a cheap way of raising much needed funds (that will in no way benefit health care reform)?

Crispin Natural Hard Apple Cider is king of cool, and always on the lookout for new discoveries, and artful renditions of life on the edge. So Crispin, founded in the Twin Cities, is challenging you to capture a Secret of the City.  Whether represented by a photo or an illustration, we want to see your image of what is so damn cool in these towns.  Think of an Ah Haa! discovery, a small wonder, a fresh perspective…something we will be delighted to know about.  In short, we want to see your artistic impression of a Secret of the City, Crispin style.

Email your artwork or image (up to three per person) in a jpg or gif file format, under 1MB, to CONTESTS@secretsofthecity.com, with subject line: Crispin Cool.  Please include your full name, and a description, if needed, of under 25 words. The contest is open through November 29.  A select group of finalists will be invited to show their work at a special event (details TBD), and receive very cool Crispin on Ice products. Who knows what other Secret prizes might be revealed? Perhaps a night on the town with stops at the top Crispin Cool destinations? All entries will be judged on their coolness factor, artistic merit, creativity, and originality. Watch for entries and comments posted here.

{fine print: Judging by Icebox Gallery, Crispin Cider, and Secrets of the City. Note: all images remain the property of the artist/photographer.  However, by entering, it is agreed your image may appear on Secrets of the City and may be used for promotional purposes by Crispin.} Contest sponsored by Crispin Natural Hard Apple Cider. Judges Debra Fisher Goldstein, Kate Iverson, and Howard Christopherson are ineligible to win, but we’ve accepted their images here for display.

GIFT OF WINTER by Debra Fisher Goldstein

JAGER by Kate Iverson

LOVE by Stephanie Glaros

GHOST-HORSE by Stephanie Glaros

MINNEAPOLIS SKYLINE by James Durham

FEARLESS by Steaphanie Glaros

MEARS PARK RNC by Kate Iverson

KIDS ON THE BLOCKS by Jason DeRusha

GOD IS IN THE DETAILING by Debra Fisher Goldstein

PIRATE SAILBOAT, LAKE CALHOUN by James Durham

EGGS by Jen Scotty

HONEYBEARS by Jen Scotty

RHUBARB by Jen Scotty

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It’s been almost a year since we merged MNSpeak and The Rake into Secrets of the City.  Our goal was for the content of both sites to complement each other, but it ended up being a bit clunky, especially on the MNSpeak side.   So we tried again.  Michael Amundson designed and built the site in WordPress.  We’re still working on getting the last few features working, but feel free to log in and play around.  All existing user accounts should work.  Check out the new and improved entertainment/restaurant/happy hour database. Discuss here if you have any issues or comments.  All Rake archives and old blogs will be moved to a stand-alone site when we launch. Enjoy. Note: Any content created during the beta will be wiped out when we launch (soon). 

Local singer/songwriter Dan Rodriguez  has put out a new video, which you can find on Perfect Porridge. Wht’s in it? Spricket, WCCO’s Don Shelby and Jason DeRusha’s living room wallpaper.

Last week, a local PR firm sent out a bunch of email to local bloggers to inform them of a video of an obviously computer generated vine creeping up the IDS tower. It doesn’t look like many blogs responded, although The Deets offers his own commentary on the video, asking if this sort of viral marketing isn’t counterproductive, as it involves an element of deception: Stunts can be a fun way to get attention. Lying to people to get them to pay attention is idiotic. “PR 2.0″ messages from companies like this boil down to: “We lied to you to get you to pay attention, but now believe us when we tell you what we’d like you to hear.”

The PiPress does a story about Foursquare, which is sort of a hard thing to explain simply. You register with the Web page, and then, whenever you go out, you check in via cell phone and get points. What are the benefits? Well, mostly virtual, such as badges saying that you have completed certain challenges and, if you go someplace often enough, they’ll declare you mayor of that place. (Some business are trying to cash in on this by offering real-world benefits to Foursquare users.) Interviewed in the story include MnSpeak’s own Kaeti, Erica, Jason DeRusha, and Aaron.