St. Anthony Falls Heritage Trail Photographs

In June, I took an evening into nighttime photography tour with Midwest Photo Safari. I learned a little of the history of the St. Anthony Falls Heritage Trail in Minneapolis, and I gained a few photography tips. It was quite enjoyable; the tour guides were nice and informative, and I highly recommend it.

Here are some of my favorite photographs from the nearly 200 shots I took. These are lower resolution JPG files, and I used a Nikon D90 camera.

Third Avenue Bridge (north face) over the Mississippi River

Third Avenue Bridge (south face) over the Mississippi River

St. Anthony Main - Shopping/Dining Area

Minneapolis Skyline - West Bank

Stone Arch Bridge (street level) & Minneapolis Western Skyline

Stone Arch Bridge (river level, north face)

Stone Arch Bridge (river level, south face)

July 01, 1994 - Happy 16th Anniversary, My Love!

I wrote the poem below to and for Janice when I was creating "Break," a dance performed in May of this year by my Companydance students at St. Olaf College. For me, the poem encapsulates what Janice, my loving, devoted, talented and beautiful bride of 16 years on this very day, means to me. It also offers a slight glimpse into the challenge she faced [and continues to endure (;>) ] when contemplating a life with me as her partner. I am ever thankful and prayerful that she said yes.


As cheesy as it may sound or read, Janice and I were made for each other. I thank God. I thank Janice. I thank her family. I thank the community of people, family and friends, who were there 16 years ago in Salt Lake City to witness and lend their support, approval, words of wisdom, humor and love to Janice and me on our wedding day. Our lives and partnership have been deeply enriched by these relationships.
We,  Janice and I, were made for each other...here's to 'gouda love'. I look forward to many, many more years of love with Janice.


You Are Here

You are here.
I searched for you forever, it seems.
Yet, sightless and forever stumbling,
I failed to recognize you when, at last, you crossed my path.

At first, you were my shadow.
Connected to every step,
Every move I made.
My darkness forced you to fade away.
Even on the lightest of days.

But you emerged as a sun star, with your lovely light
Shining through the dense fog of my confused heart,
To help alter my ill-fated destiny.
Even on the darkest of days.

Without you I would still be bounding aimlessly
Through a desolate existence.
You are my savior.
With you, I can break this pattern of restless solitude.
Know love, give and receive love.
Even on the darkest of days.

 

Application in Lieu of Audition for Black Label Movement

Dear Mr. Artistic Director Flink,

I am writing to apply for the BLM position of "male and female physical risk-takers with strong athletic contemporary dance technique and partnering skills."
In lieu of a hoity-toity resume, I am e-sending you an accurate list of my qualifications that should appropriately woo you into realizing that I am in fact what your company has been looking for.

QUALIFICATIONS

• I am a male, so I meet one of your company's basic requirements right off the bat, even without lifting a finger and expending unnecessary energy. Verification of my maleness will be sent upon request.

• I am a dancer in my 6th decade of life; therefore, I  bring lots of good, old experience to your company.

• I take physical risks every time I jump into the air or roll along the floor. Heck, sometimes just standing still without looking foolish and embarrassing my teenage daughter is challenging.

• I am willing to continue this risky behavior as long as someone is willing to watch and/or pay me for it.

• My partnering skills are impeachable! I strive to arsefully give and take weight with any partner, even those upwards of 80 lbs. I perform daily piggy-back rides with my 8-year old, spinning around at breakneck speeds while peddling on one arm, holding a 'Skinnie' in my other hand, and being frantically chased by our mini-dachschund, Zacchaeus. Yes, everyman in our house is small.

• I am restricted to performing partnering routines with women of the female persuasion only. Any woman, up to 80 lbs and possessing excessive hotness is acceptable.

• Another consideration that will hardly be an issue is my rare skin condition that allows me to wear only head scarves and heavily talced dance belts. My contract will state that I will provide the scarves, but the company must provide the dance belts and blocks of talc. If this is a deal breaker, I may be convinced to break into my vault of gold lemet dance belts from my days with Ted Shawn's Men Dancers. The shiny belts were a highly prized commodity then, and with the current gold market, I imagine they have simply skyrocketed in value and fashion sense.

• As kismet would have it, I am located in Northfield, just an hour south of the Twin Cities, so it will not be much of an inconvenience for your company to travel down here for our hourly rehearsal each week.

• Due to the hazardous materials used in a long ago solo about Hiroshima and the male gaze, I have developed a unique attribute called Frozen Facial Scoliosis. Please see attached Head Shot. A picture is worth a thousand words. Although screaming children, women and weak men can add to the ambiance of a performance experience, I recommend a substantial number of the solos you choreograph for me include ample upstage facings and/or silhouettes.

• In closing and due to the strength of my application, kick-butt dance-ability and previous experience, I do not plan on attending the formality of an audition. Please let me know when rehearsals start and what tax bracket the pay will place me in.

My best to you and our wonderful collaborative future with the new BLM.

Anthony Roberts, Country Boy Done Good

Yin Yoga

In the spring of 2009 both Janice and I were on sabbatical, and we began practicing yoga twice each week. We have continued to practice at least once/week, depending upon our work schedule, and we recently started practicing Yin Yoga. We really appreciate the gentle and prolonged body positions (asanas) that result in a deep, relaxing stretch.

Some of the Yin Yoga Asanas (body positions) we have experienced and recommend.
Butterfly - loosens up the spine for deeper forward bends
Dragonfly (aka Straddle) - opens the hips and the back of thighs
Child's Pose - grounding and soothing
Half Shoelace (similar to Shoelace, but with the bottom leg extended forward) - hip opener, as well as decompression for the lower spine when folding forward, but I felt the stretch primarily in the hamstring of the extended leg
Sphinx and Seal - loosens up the spine for deeper back bends
Melting Heart (Anahatasana) - good stretch for the upper and middle back, opens shoulders, softens the heart
Cat pulling its Tail - counterpose to strong forward bends, decompresses the lower back, opens the quadriceps and upper thighs
Snail - one of the deepest releases of the whole spine
Happy Baby (Ananda Balasana) - This pose gently brings a greater awareness to the hip joints.
Lying Twists - at the end of the practice helps to restore equilibrium in the nervous system and release tension in the spine, bringing the bent knee more to the chest can relieve sciatica, tones the stomach
Shavasana (corpse pose - literally 'dead posture') - time to rest the body so that the body becomes stronger and healthier

Terms and definitions credited to: The Home Page of Yin Yoga

A Reunion, A Wedding, & A Funeral -- There is a Time...

My family recently returned from a 10-day road trip to Colorado, visiting family on my wife's (Janice) side of the family. The vacation turned into a larger family reunion when two of Janice's sisters and part of their families flew in from Arizona and North Carolina.
Ed and Elizabeth Haws, the dear patriarch and matriarch of the family, are in their ninth decade of life and reaching their seventh decade as life partners. They are graciously playing the complex roles of parents, grand parents, and great-grand parents (not to mention loving in-laws). Ed-lizabeth relocated to Lakewood, Colorado, escaping the baking Arizona summer sun, to be closer to their eldest child (and only son), Michael, his wife, Joanne and their family (four daughters, one son and one grandchild), almost all residing in Golden.
Also in the Denver area, Littleton to be exact, are my wife's cousin, Julee Bate, her husband Terry, and their two fabulous sons. Julee and Janice have always enjoyed a special bond. Their relationship is more akin to that of close and loving sisters rather than cousins, and we are assured a fine and fun time when we visit.
Mary Ann Ogle (Ed-lizabeth's eldest daughter), her daughter, Rachel, and youngest son, Josh, flew in from Charlotte, North Carolina. Rounding out the reunion were Jeri Manos (Ed-lizabeth's third daughter and next-to-youngest child), her husband, Tim, and daughter, Zoe, visiting from Chandler, Arizona.

Like Daughters, Like Father

I am so in love with my daughters and proud to be their dad. It continues to be amazing to be a part of their life journeys.
Abby, now 13 and pictured here with her dad, is at times so very mature for her age. An independent, yet social soul, she is a woman, a young lady, and a kid all bundled together, trying and succeeding in figuring out who she is, what she likes, wants, needs--and doesn't in life. I know I need to giver her space, and I am never really successful in doing this. I want to be a part of her life so much, that I often step over the line and intrude upon her independence. But I am learning. I love it when she gets my humor and smiles or giggles at my jokes, even if it is uncool for a teenager to laugh at her parent's old fashioned humor.

Naomi, now 7 and in the video below, is quirky, comical and a bundle of energy. A natural gymnast and borderline contortionist, she doesn't seem to ever stop moving, and I mean percolating, until we put her to bed at night. She is initially shy, really shy, until she reaches her comfort zone. Then, look out! I just want to pick her up and swing her around or let her climb on me like she would a jungle gym--and she does. Right now, her passions are: toys, playing, toys, treats, playing, sleeping over at Grandma Roberta's, playing, toys, her puppy, Zacchaeus.

I see some of me in both my girls, which is fun and scary. They are teaching me how to be a more patient, compassionate, understanding person, parent and teacher.

Thank you, God, for my daughters.

38 in a 30

We planned to get on the road at "0-Dark:30", which is how my dear friend and self-proclaimed curmudgeon, Gene Ganske, describes an unreasonably early hour to have to set out on a trip. We awoke to my cellphone alarm at 5:30am. Having showered and packed the night before, we were leaving the Holiday Inn and on the road away from Kearney, Nebraska, a via point from Denver, Colorado to Northfield, Minnesota, at 6am. 10 hours later I left the 70-75mph interstates behind and was driving through the small town of Dundas, MN. Perilously close to our final destination and heading toward Hwy 3 and Cub Foods to pick up 3 different types of milk (skim, soy and lactose free) and a few other things to get us through breakfast the next morning, my wife saw the officer in the white car parked along the side of the road, before I did. I did, in fact, notice him but too late, and I knew as soon as I passed him that I was busted.
He was both courteous and observant.
He noticed:

1. Naomi sleeping in the back seat (for the first time of the entire 10-hour trip)--thank goodness she was in her booster seat.
2. I did NOT have my seat belt fastened. I am in the habit of taking it off when reachig for my wallet (or our streetside mailbox), which I keep in a compartment between the two front seats when I am driving (the wallet, not the mailbox). I didn't stop to think that he would need to see that I was legally buckled in when he came up to the van. He informed me that he couldn't see whether or not I was buckled from where he was parked on the side of the road. So, if you are ever driving without your seat belt fastened and are stopped by the law enforcement, buckle that baby up, ASAP.
3. I was wearing headphones around my neck. Asking me if I had these on while I was driving (apparently against the law) I inadvertently told a non-truth, and said, No. I actually had been listening to a favorite playlist on my iPod during much of the trip, but I honestly was NOT listening to music with headphones when he stopped me.
4. I was driving 38 in a 30 mph zone.

As I was looking at the officer's premature hair loss and wondering if I could pose as a Rogaine rep, offer him a discount on a treatment in exchange for a forgiven ticket and be on our way, he surprised me by saying he was not going to cite me today, and he let me off with a warning.
So, I was impressed with his courtesy, powers of observation, and compassion for someone who obviously was not operating at full capacity. Well done, city of Dundas!