Music
It’s a Wonderful Life - because it is
Moulin Rouge
Gershwin
A
short ways from Minneapolis, we headed to the Wisconsin border to look
at the Glacier potholes on St. Croix river. When the glaciers melted, the
water formed a great river in the St. Croix river valley. As in any river,
eddies and whirlpools formed in the river. Gravel carried by the whirlpools
swirled into the hard rock. Gradually, slowly drilling holes sometimes
30 and 40 ft deep.
From there, we went into Minneapolis.
With a bit of trial and error, we found the St. Anthony Falls and the Upper
Lock on the Mississippi River. The falls have been reinforced by the Army
Corps of Engineers because they were deteriorating. The lock raises and
lowers boats 50 ft.
Watched a barge go through a lock on the Mississippi. You know, a barge can carry the equivalent of the load carried by 100 semi-trucks.
Okay, at this point, some of the sights we had seen started to come together. This fort was built in the 1830’s to keep out the Hudson Bay Fur traders, like we saw in the fort in BC. But where that fort was built from wood. Workers producing goods to trade to with the natives.
Fort Snelling was all soldiers, not
to fight the Indians (that’s not for another 30 years), but to put an American
presence on the frontier.This fort was built from stone to impress the
natives. Look see what a mighty fort we built. Don’t trade with those icky
English. We’re much cooler.
And yet some similarties. As at
Fort Langley, the barrels were bound with bark (metals hard to come by).
Buildings built with as few nails as possible. Nicer furniture there, again,
natives to impress.
From there we went to the Mall of America. Where better to shop, it’s our American duty don’t ya know. Help the economy.
