Sidewalk Rating: Volatile
Until one can ride with one hand, and search for, secure and use a pocket-handkerchief with the other, cycling is necessarily a constant series of descents…. Until the cyclist can steer with one hand, his face is given over to Beelzebub. Contemplative flies stroll over it and trifle absently with its most sensitive surfaces…. And again, sometimes the beginner rides for a space with one eye closed by perspiration, giving him a waggish air foreign to his mood and ill calculated to overawe the impertinent.
[The Wheels of Chance, HG Wells c, 1896.]
[The window of the Mall of St Paul on Selby Avenue.]
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On a street outside the flea markets, Zelda stopped in front of a wall covered in graffiti. “Take one here,” she said, and posed herself winking, blowing a kiss to the camera, jutting out her hips. There were some Algerian kids smoking in the alley, looking over at us.
[this.]
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| What a Minnesotan Says | What s/he means | What the transplant thinks |
|---|---|---|
| "I'll get right on that!" | I will never do this. | This will be done very quickly! |
| "Um, I guess that might be okay." | No. | Yes. |
| "That's different." | I hate that. | He likes my unusual choices! |
| "Maybe you should think about . . ." | DROP EVERYTHING AND DO THIS NOW. | She's offering me her thoughts. |
| [longish pause] "Yeah, that's [smallish pause] good!" | That is disgusting. Do not ever order this under any circumstances. | What I am about to order at this restaurant is good and I will enjoy it. |
| "It's a mite nippy out!" | It is 30 degrees below zero with a wind chill of minus 60. | Perhaps I should put on a sweater! |
| "Wow! It was so nice to meet you!" | Goodbye. | I made a great impression on that guy! |
[here.]
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1 comment:
IIRC, those old-style Nicollet Mall traffic signals lasted until the early '90s.
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