Keep cool @ Cascade Bay

It's 100 degrees Fahrenheit (37 Celsius) today. Taking a swim or splash around Cascade Bay, the largest outdoor municipal waterpark in the Upper Midwest, is a refreshing option! A 9 hole mini-golf course, lazy river and more are also part of the park.

Changing of the guard

The Eagan Rotary Club held its 24th annual yearend Charter Banquet on Wednesday evening. Incoming club president Scott Swenson, a local banker, received the club charter certificate from outgoing president John Rhody, a local printing company owner. We begin our 25th year on July 1.

Congratulations, Eagan Rotarians!

Beautified body

Victoria Welch is a self-taught body ornamentation artist. She does Henna, Mehndi, Indigo, Harquus and Glitter Tattos. She runs a stand weekly at Market Fest.

Esperanza

My niece, Hope, just turned 16 and passed her driving license test. Hope's Grandma Wanda used to own this car until she bought a new VW Bug. Then Hope's parents bought this 2005 red VW Bug for Hope's birthday. Hope hopes hopefully to be a Spanish teacher someday. See other "Ruby Tuesday" meme participants here.

Let's get artsy!

Theresa Charpentier was selling her glass creations and jewelry pendants at the 17th Annual Eagan Art Festival on Saturday and Sunday at the Eagan Festival Grounds. Crowds came to visit the 100 artists' stands filled with woodworks, jewelry, photography, paintings, clothing, rugs and much more. Food options and free kid art activities were also available.

Paul Imholte, a hammered dulcimer musician from St. Cloud, was playing his 74 stringed instrument for the art crowd.

Do you like those cooper, metal artworks?

Check out these colorful quilted pieces!

We found 2 metal yard ornaments which we "needed"...

Back in 1959

This Ford 1959 Skyliner was showing off at Wednesday's Market Fest. I guess Elvis music played in those cars and people drove to drive-up theaters back then. What are your memories from 1959? (I wasn't born yet)

Dedicated service

Over 1,100 guests, city officials and police officers celebrated with the Eagan firefighters in dedicating the new "Eagan Fire Safety Center" on Yankee Doodle Road east of Lexington Avenue. The 38,000 sq. ft. facility, to be known as Station Two, combines two previous fire stations, improves response time and creates new training opportunities. It earned the first "Green Globes" designation in the US for a fire station. Fire Chief Michael Scott posed with their restored 1942 Chevrolet Fire Engine. The Minnesota State Fire Service Memorial Pipe Band played for the ceremony. An invocation, remarks, recognitions and a symbolic fire hose ribbon cutting highlighted the grand celebration followed by station tours, vehicle displays and refreshments.

Elvis in Eagan

Classic cars and Elvis were the highlights of Wednesday's weekly Market Fest. Art Kistler is an "E.T.A." or "Elvis Tribute Artist" according to Judy who sat next to me in the front row. She also told me that 300,000 ETAs worldwide sing the King's songs, wear the glitzy costumes and move their Elvis hips for audiences. Are you an Elvis fan?

Eagan dog series #28

Emily and Wendy went recently on their weekly "girl time" neighbors walk past the Eagan Community Center with Emily's chocolate lab, "Duke."

Going on clearance

This temporary, springtime Linders flower market in the parking lot of Kowalski's grocery store will close at the end of June. One finds clearance sale prices now.

Connected to Luther

My wife, our next door neighbor lady and the neighbor lady beyond her all graduated from Luther College in Decorah, Iowa. We recently attended our nephew's Decorah High School graduation. I saw this 10,000 square foot barn there that can trace its history back to 1868 and English settlers, Captain Anderson Ashmore and Thomas Filbert. After a bad wheat harvest in 1874, Ashmore returned to England and Jacob Jewell, a Yankee settler, bought the place and built a second barn. In the 1880s, Jewell's son, Frank, added another section and at the turn-or-the-century, the barns were connected and the long section extended. Frank sold it to Luther College in 1929. The barn housed livestock and produced milk, meat and eggs for college students and staff until the 1960s. The Amish later restored the barn. To see other "Barn Charm" participants, click here.

Symphonic music in the woods

The Minnesota Sinfonia , a 25 member professional chamber orchestra in the Twin Cities, played music ranging from Dvorak to Harry Potter on Sunday evening at Caponi Art Park. Over 200 people gathered for the first of the summer outdoor music series.

Next concert: Sunday, July 25 @ 6:30 pm - Dakota Valley Summer Pops Orchestra

Happy Father's Day!

Don't forget to thank your father, husband and/or grandfather on this special day!

Cheers, fellas!

From Burke to Mark

A month ago, Mark's father-in-law sold him his 1930 Ford Model A car. The current odometer reads 83,000 miles and the former Wisconsinite car is now a nearby Minnesotan car!

"It's the Culligan Man!"

Chad delivers our monthly 5 gallon jugs of water to my office. He makes 50 deliveries per day totaling about 180 jugs. His truck holds up to 208 jugs.

An explosive lunch

The St. Paul Bomb Squad showed our Eagan Rotary Club this $210,000 bomb robot after our weekly lunch meeting. Rotarian Michael Proebstle volunteered to put on the 80 pounds of protective bomb gear. We had a blast with the two bomb squad officers!

Trumpet, tuba, percussion & banjo

Last week, the Dixieland Pick-Up Band entertained Market Fest visitors from the back of Tom Owen's very cool, 1930 Ford Model AA truck.

For info call: 651-771-1243

Happy Birthday to me!

My wife and our three daughters helped me celebrate my birthday in advance. June 14 is my birthday and also America's "Flag Day." I'm the luckiest guy in the world!

Cigarette damage...

On June 6, a cigarette fire in an outdoor ashtray placed outside the LeMay Lake Apartments building at 3025 Eagandale Avenue displaced 150 residents. Nobody was injured by a cat died from smoke inhalation. Six units were severely damaged and are now uninhabitable. Eagan firefighters were assisted by Mendota Heights, Rosemount and Apple Valley fire departments.

A happy doggie place

A pit stop. A pet stop. Along the south side of Wescott Road and east of Lexington Avenue, dogs can find this backyard station. Put your dog's "do-do" in the silver bucket and let "Spike" enjoy water & doggie biscuits!

Ruff, ruff!

Kathy & her chicken

Kathy Arndt sells her homemade yard and garden ornaments made out of recycled glass at the weekly Market Fest. For $60, this chicken could be yours...

Special orders: 952-888-7244

Built by Dustin

This new rambler house at Cliff Road & Lenore Lane just east of Highway 35E will have 2,300 square feet with 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. Dustin Endres has been building homes with his dad for 10 years and now at age 26, he has his own company. Eagan is a built up, well developed suburb with little remaining land for residential development. Six lots remain for building next to this house.

Arbor Day poster champions

Ten 3rd grade students from 10 different elementary schools each competed for a prize for the best Arbor Day poster. The fourth student from the right won. They posed at the brand new pavilion at Wednesday night's kick-off of Eagan's weekly Market Fest.

Purple gone wild

These wildflowers appear all along Cliff Road right now. I love the purple color!

"Locks of Love"

Directly after school, our oldest daughter donated 11 inches (28 cm) of her hair at Cole's Salon. Her hair will be used by the "Locks of Love" program to create wigs for cancer patients and others who have lost their own hair.

A roaring good time!

These Eagan Lions were meeting and greeting people who passed their booth at the "Showcase Eagan" at the Eagan Civic Arena on June 2nd. Over 60 community and civic groups, churches, city services, city equiptment, fire trucks, police motorbikes and more were assembled for all to see!

Floaty friends

The crowd was building just before lunchtime on Saturday morning. Schulze Beach is our best local lake for swimming and sunbathing in Eagan.

A fragrant stroll

These pink and white crab apple trees were in full bloom last week bordering the front sidewalk of the Eagan Municipal City Hall.

My 800th blog posting!

Glitz & glamour x 8 couples

These Eagan High School kids dressed up and had a great time at last Saturday night's Prom, a great finish to the school year!

Biker Brian

Eaganite Brian Keeler and his UW-River Falls college buddy, Dan Rusk, will bike 1,500 miles around Lake Superior in July to raise money to battle ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). Brian lost his maternal grandfather and mother to this illnes also known as "Lou Gehrig's disease." To learn more or to support their fundraiser, click here.

Good luck, Brian and Dan!