Category: Minneapolis

The Summer That Was ________…

I’m back in Tianjin and, honestly, not loving it yet… “Tea and Gin” is just one of those cities that needs to grow on you. And it’s taking its sweet time this round. Oh well? Let’s focus on the past 2.5 months, instead! This summer was grand / busy / emotional / wonderful / sad […]

Summer Me Go Home Home

I apologize for my poor English skills ahead of time… I’ve really immersed myself in Chinese this semester and my native language has definitely taken a nose dive. Don’t tell the university where I teach English! They’ll never know. Summer Me Go Home Home = Heck yeah, I’m coming home for the summer! (Is that […]

My Favorite Songs, Albums, and Live Shows from 2009

If you couldn’t tell, I love music. And I’ve only come to really love it in the past few years… way too late in the game, I tell you. In my opinion, appreciating and enjoying music is an art that can help you in numerous ways. For example – music increases brain function. It relieves […]

The Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

These past two years, I’d like to think that I’ve perfected my chocolate chip cookie recipe. I made a batch almost every week and gave them out to various friends and family. The only negative feedback I got was from my mother, who commented, “Too many chocolate chips!” Please disregard – everyone else has loved […]

Life, liberty, and the pursuit of China…

It’s official. I only have two weeks of normal life left. I’m quitting my decently-paying, full-benefits-giving, 9-5 job to become a nomad. Not just any nomad, I guess… a nomad with a destination in mind. For most of my life, I’ve known that I’ll be living overseas. And now that time is upon me! These […]

Pak Zam Zam

If you’re in the mood for Pakistani food (and when are you not?), my friends and I found the perfect place. For this “birthday” dinner, we visited Pak Zam Zam on Central in NE Minneapolis. It’s completely worth it and highly recommended! The first thing we noticed, of course, was the décor – bright bright […]

Best Places to Buy Vinyl in Minneapolis / St. Paul

The four building blocks of the universe are fire, water, gravel and vinyl. -Dave Barry There’s nothing like listening to a Keith Green record…. unless, of course, you’re listening to him on vinyl. Last year, I just so happened to acquire my parent’s old record player. And it couldn’t have been better timing! It was […]

Great Music Lives Here

Twenty aught eight was truly a great year for music, regardless of which genre you prefer… Better than ‘07, I think, and close to ‘06. It’s all relative to your music taste, I guess. Tons of wonderful albums came out this year, and many that came out last year become prominent this year. Even more […]

Multiple “groups” of friends…

Before last night, I thought I had two separate groups of friends. You know what I mean? I had my friends that I’ve known since high school and through church and that have stuck around the MN area… AND, I have my friends that I’ve met at the Honor Academy in Texas. After a semester […]