Secrets of the City

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.

Vita.mn prints their annual List of Lists, their user-generated list of the best the Twin Cities has to offer. MnSpeak shows up once again as one of the best Web pages, so obviously they aren’t totally crazy, but what do you think about their other picks? Is the Triple Rock Social Club really the best bar? Would the Lagoon have been your pick for best movie theater? Do we really need more Adam Turman on our walls?

KARE11 runs a story on Pedal Pub, the bar that’s basically a big, multi-user bike. I can’t stop being tickled by this.

I’m not sure if anyone has heard this radio ad yet. It is an ad by the Aquacide company, which makes herbicide pellets designed for aquatic use. Simply stated, the ad is terrible, with such tag lines as “lake weeds serve absolutley no purpose, for mankind Or the planet”,and “Aquacide…kinda rhymes with homicde, huh?”, as well as “Even a peace activist will love using aquacide”…. The ad portrays lake vegetation as serving no purpose–any anglers or ecology-minded folks know this is simply untrue. Folks at the MN fishing blog agree. 

The main thing is though, is that the ad does not even mention state regulations about using aquatic herbicides, making it sound like someone can order the product and use it without caution or the need for a permit. MN DNR clearly states that there are  some regulations required for using products like these. The ad is sort of irresponsible, and if users of the product are fined by the DNR, perhaps the company will catch a lawsuit. (More inside)

From the Strib:  Daniel Hauser has what doctors consider one of the most curable types of cancer, Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

But the 13-year-old from Sleepy Eye, Minn. and his parents don’t want him to have chemotherapy and radiation, the standard treatments. For the past three months, they have ignored the advice of his cancer specialists and turned to natural therapies, such as herbs and vitamins, instead.

According to his doctor, he will likely die. Is this the point where the state should step in? When should parental decisions such as these be overturned?

Well, this is rather astounding. We Like It Here points to a channel of Super-8 movies produced by St, Louis Park’s Troop 379 back in the 1970s. But these aren’t you’re ordinary home movies. Many of them are acrefully edited and narrated, with a professional score that sounds like the soundstrack to old Disney films. Fascinating.

I know mnspeak used to be a hub for Richard Florida’s “creatives,” so I wonder if present users agree that MSP is well-positioned (more like NY or San Jose, less like Cleveland or Phoenix) to do well on the other side of the depression. His brief comments to Strib editors here.

Usually there’s no real need to post on the weather in Minnesota during the winter. It snows. So what. But, man, it is a solid white wall of death out there, and Twitter users have already dubbed it snowmaggedon. What is this going to do to your day?

A friend of mine just had the water turned off in her Loring Park area apartment building because the landlord hadn’t paid the bills. One of her neighbors also claims that the owner owes over $40K in property tax. The building owner, JAS Apartments has several other properties in Minneapolis, Kansas City, Portland and Pittsburg. A quick look at the Minneapolis Utilities web site for this building says they currently owe about $1400 in city utlities, including more than $800 that is past due.

Update: Looking at their other buildings in Minneapolis, it seems they owe several thousand dollars in unpaid utilities.  A call to JAS CEO, Steve Frenz, was not immediately returned.  More details below.

After pointing out that City Pages uselessly serves local ads to international viewers (so, for example, people from Cleveland see ads for W.A. Frost, where they are not likely to go anytime soon for supper), The Deets looks a little deeper into Kevin Hoffman’s claim that the online readership has jumped from 35k to 250k in three months. The Deets makes the case that this is not an organic growth, but instead the result of Village Voice Media gaming Digg, a social networking site. Why is this an issue? Because traffic from Digg is not going to be very useful to local advertisers, or, as Ed points out, “If Digg users are what you’re looking for, you could just as easily buy traffic directly on Digg.”