Capital For A Day

Monday, May 19, 2008



This year is Minnesota's sesquicentennial year, and the state is celebrating 150 years by selecting a town from each of its 5 biomes to be named "Capital for a Day." Winona was named capital for the Driftless Area, and Friday was the day of celebration.


The morning started with a speech from our governor, Tim Pawlenty. I didn't come for the speech, and missed many of the day's activities, but I showed up to hear Elizabeth's string quartet play for a luncheon at the river. The crowd was enjoying sitting in the sun listening to the classical music, but their concert was cut slightly short when the steam calliope started playing a little early. I always love hearing the steam calliope and the quartet was almost finished, so I didn't mind the timing. After the concert we went through the Italian buffet line and enjoyed hearing Jim Armstrong read a poem that he wrote for the occasion.

That pretty much concluded our participation in the Capital For A Day celebrations, except for watching the fireworks that night. Elizabeth, Tony and I walked down to Huff street to sit on the lawn for the big display that included funky fireworks like a smiley face. The day was mostly clear, but we got a brief 30-minute shower - - the same 30 minutes as the fireworks display. The 3 of us huddled under a small lawn blanket and stayed warm enough.

The day's activities also included a nice run around the lake, balancing on a slackline and a dance show for Claire; all-in-all a pretty good day. I even managed to learn something.

5 comments:

  1. dmarks said...

    Wish I had been there. No military threats from La Crosse over the "Driftless Capital" status?

  2. Tom Smart said...

    Fortunately we have our border secured.

  3. dmarks said...

    Hey, do you have a pic of Bloedow's, or might be willing to take one, to send to me? I plan on blogging about it.

  4. Tom Smart said...

    Sure, I'd be happy to send one.

  5. dmarks said...

    OK, let me know. Thanks :)

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