this is twins territory

For nearly my entire lifetime, and as long as I can remember, the Minnesota Twins played inside the Metrodome. They shared the space with the U of M football team and the Vikings. I have attended several Twins games in the dome, and I have marched there with the U of M marching band. The dome seemed perfectly adequate, mainly because I had nothing to compare it to. It wasn't until I went to a bowl game and marched in an outdoor stadium that I wished the U had its own stadium to call home. And it wasn't until I went to an Angels game that I wondered what it would have been like to watch the Twins play outside, at home.

Last April was the Minnesota Twins' inaugural season at Target Field. Thanks to Facebook, I got to see several of my friends' photos of the new ball park. Judging by all the photos, it seemed that everyone in Minnesota was at Target Field at some point during baseball season. And this made me really jealous. I'm as excited about the new field as any other Twins fan, but I was bummed to miss the inaugural season.

So I was very excited to check out the new field on this trip to Minnesota. But seeing as how it wasn't baseball season, I wasn't expecting to see much. On our first day in Minneapolis, Drew and I wandered over to Target Field to have a look. I snapped pictures and tried my hardest to see what I could see through the gates. At some point, the baseball stars were aligned because at some point when I peered through the gate, a tour group happened to be walking by. I didn't know it was a tour group until they called out to us and told us to take the tour. A tour! I had no idea such a thing was possible! So, due to a sheer stroke of luck and good timing, Drew and I returned the next day for a tour of Target Field.

This is where it all begins:

I have seen so many photos just like this on Facebook, and now I have one of my own!

Our first stop was for a photo break. There were only 6 of us on the tour, us and a family of 4. (tip: if you go on the tour, don't go in the summer. our tour guides said that there can be as many as 100 people on a tour in the summer and winter is the best time to go)

Our tour lead us around Target Field, deep into the underbelly. We got to see the Metropolitan Club and the Legends Club, two clubs accessible only to season ticket holders. The Legends Club pays tribute to a few legendary Twins players, including Rod Carew, Harmon Killebrew, and Kirby Puckett. Below is a giant wood carving of Puckett:

And one of about four memorabilia cases:
We also saw a few event suites and the press box:

Another tribute to some Twins legends (the numbers in the middle of the frame, not the Budweiser sign):

We learned that the artist, Ray Barton, who created this Minnie & Paul logo in 1961 earned $15 and then later a $25 bonus. I guess that back in the day, people in Minneapolis and St. Paul rarely crossed the Mississippi River to visit the other city. It was feared that if the Twins field was built in St. Paul, then people from Minneapolis wouldn't go to any games, and vice versa. I think this logo might have been developed as a marketing tool. It shows Minnie & Paul shaking hands over the river that divides them, but joined by the bridge that unites them. When a Twins player hits a home run, Minnie & Paul light up and greet one another.

Here we are from upper deck in left field:
A nice view of downtown Minneapolis in the background:

Our tour continued with a visit to the Visitors Clubhouse. We weren't able to see the Twins Clubhouse because it is still in use by the players. I, of course, would have had no problem with the possibility of running into a certain catcher that wears the number 7.

We are told that the visitor clubhouse is quite similar to the Twins Clubhouse, except a bit smaller. There is a weight room and a kitchen where players can get ballpark food cooked to order. They can even send the kitchen staff out to fetch non-ballpark food, like subs from Jimmy John's.

Our next stop was a visit to the Visitor Dugout:
And then a visit to the Twins Clubhouse:

And that pretty much ends our tour of Target Field. It was a great tour, and I definitely recommend it. There is no Twins Museum, so many of the things that would be in such a museum (memorabilia, artwork, paintings, etc) are sprinkled throughout the ball park (some of which is accessible to the public and some of which is not).

I snapped lots of photos outside. The best thing about visiting in the winter is that there's no competition for photos and no strangers to wander into the frame. Along the walk up to the field are pennants of several former Twins players. Here are a few of my favorites:

Kirby Puckett and Kent Hrbek are like Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau of the 1980s and 1990s. I was a fan of both players, but I leaned a little more towards Hrbek.

Below are nine renditions of baseball bats. During the games, one lights up for each inning played.
There were many statues of former Twins players, all covered with snow, like this one of Rod Carew:

And Kirby Puckett:

I didn't let the snow stop me from having a seat in the Golden Glove. Our tour guide said that now would not be a good time to lick the Golden Glove, but really, is there ever a good time to lick it?

I waded through the snow for this picture. It certainly resembles a certain catcher, doesn't it?

These flags line the field, extending into downtown Minneapolis:

We made a quick visit to the gift shop for a license plate holder. Here I am with the Twins mascots.

I came home with a Twins decal, a license plate holder, and a homer hanky, but my favorite Twins souvenir is this 1987 Wheaties box given to me posthumously by my grandpa.

snow, and lots of it

It is with great pride that I announce that Drew and I were in Rochester, MN, my hometown, when it broke its previous record for the most snow in December. Congratulations, Rochester, I knew you had it in you. And to think, you still have a couple more days to completely obliterate the 2000 record of 35.3 inches. In case being in Rochester during the snowiest December on record doesn't impress you, let me tell you that of the five snowiest Decembers, I have now been in Rochester for 3 of them: 2010 (37.8 inches and counting), 2000 (35.3), and 1996 (30.2). Surely this is an event worthy of commemoration, like on a t-shirt or a certificate that I hang on my refrigerator. It could say "I survived 3 of the 5 snowiest Decembers in Rochester, MN." Wait, that didn't come out right (sounds like I died the other 2 times). What I mean is "I was in Rochester, MN for 3 of the 5 snowiest Decembers, and I survived." There, that sounds better.

Drew has survived his first trip to Minnesota in the winter, surely a feat worth commemorating. The daytime temperature was in the teens when we arrived, but then it warmed up to the twenties. We saw lots and lots of snow, which is to be expected when you're hometown is busy breaking records.

We spent the first few days of our trip in Rochester, where I showed Drew around. The city is expanding, but it has still retained its familiarity. There are many new restaurants sprouting up, but many of my favorites remain. We went to Mr. Pizza, a locally owned restaurant that my friends and I frequented many times for lunch while in high school. And we went to John Hardy's Bar-B-Q, another favorite. If it sounds strange that I was excited for us to eat at John Hardy's even though we're both vegetarians, well then, you haven't had the Jo-Jo potatoes, have you? Try them, and you'll see why the place is on my must-eat list every time I go home.

We also got pie at Baker's Square, a place that became a post-football/basketball/hockey game staple while I was in high school. I was in the marching band (colorguard) during football season and the pep band during basketball & hockey season, and after practically every game, my goody-two-shoe friends and I would gorge on the pie and mozzarella sticks at Baker's Square. In case you're wondering, I have had nearly every single variety of pie on the menu (I don't like meringue, so I skipped the lemon meringue), and I recommend them all.

A trip to Rochester wouldn't be complete without a trip to the Mayo Clinic. Without the clinic, I'm not sure there would be a downtown Rochester (or a Rochester, for that matter). The clinic is comprised of many, many buildings, and it includes Methodist Hospital and St. Mary's Hospital. Not surprisingly, everyone knows someone who works at the clinic. The buildings themselves aren't too interesting, but the Plummer Building (below) might be the most interesting and the most recognized.

There is also the Gonda Building, which was built about 5 years ago.

I worked a few summers at the Mayo Clinic while I was going to college in Rochester. I worked in the medical records department the first 2 summers, and I worked in the cardiology department during the third. (funny story: for the first summer, I was offered a job as a surgeon's assistant, if I remember correctly. Well, it was something in surgery. I put down that I was planning to be pre-med, and my application was misread. They thought I was a college graduate, not a high school graduate.) So, in the cardiology department, I was basically a go-fer. I picked stuff up and dropped stuff off for cardiology. There wasn't a whole lot of supervision, and nobody appeared to care about what I was doing as long as I picked stuff up and dropped stuff off. There was another go-fer, and we became good friends. When we weren't being paged, we wandered around the clinic, visiting all of our friends who worked for the summer in other departments. And we hung out a lot at the Barnes & Noble downtown (formerly the Chateau Theatre, and beautiful inside- not sure why I didn't snap indoor pics. oh well).

The first part of the trip in Rochester was loads of fun. We had fun eating, introducing my parents to vegetarian cooking, bowling, and chilling out at home. And I got to introduce Drew to my Mom & Dad's dogs. Here is Rosie:
And Ginger:
And together:
Here we are, modeling our Christmas presents given to each other:
In case you're wondering, my Twins shirt has a 7 on the back and says 'Mauer.' Stay tuned for the Minneapolis part of the trip.

a 26 hour delay

Greetings from Minnesota! Well, we finally made it. After a 26 hour delay, we are finally in Minnesota. The flight itself went smoothly. There were about 20 of us (everyone else was smarter and rebooked). By the way, I think that there is correlation between rebooking and age; I'd say the average age of the people on our flight was like 28. There were some perks to holding out and not rebooking. Boarding and deplaning were super quick and easy. We were served snacks and beverages as soon as we boarded. There were no crying children. We each had our own row of seats and could spread out and sleep. Holding out for 26 hours was a bonding experience. We applauded when we took off in LA and landed in MN. It was practically a party.

And now we are in Rochester. There is a lot of snow here, and I don't think the temperature has been above 15 degrees. There is cold and then there is really cold. Turns out that we had cold weather gear for cold, but not really cold (necessitating a search for warmer hats and mittens). Good thing my parents don't live in like Duluth or International Falls, where I'm sure it is really, really, really cold.

Like I said, there's a lot of snow here, and there's more to come. I just hope it warms up. When I say warm up, I mean hit at least 20 degrees. More to come, with pictures.

delays, delays, delays

I think the universe is trying to tell us not to go to Minnesota. Last night, Drew and I went to LAX for our flight to Minneapolis. We're still in LA. Our original flight was canceled due to a mechanical failure. Delta put us up at a nearby hotel, and we were supposed to fly out at 7am. And then that turned into 1pm. And now we're delayed until 5pm. The reason for the delay? The weather...in California, not Minnesota. Oh the irony. It is 55 and rainy here. Compared to where we're headed, it's paradise. But apparently, the weather is bad enough to cause delays. Upon hearing about the delay, my first thought was "I don't think I can repack everything in my suitcase so nice and neatly."

let it snow!

Well, the rumors are true: Drew and I made a last minute decision and decided to go to Minnesota for Christmas. We kept hearing all the reports of the record snow, below zero wind chills, and the Metrodome roof caving in. It all sounded so enticing, we asked ourselves how we could possibly resist a visit. (when I say 'we,' I really mean 'I') It certainly sounds like quite the winter vacation destination, wouldn't you say?

I haven't been to Minnesota in 3 years. You're probably thinking to yourself "well, I can see why, what with all that snow and cold!" We're probably pretty crazy to go right now. Yesterday it was 80 and sunny and we went to the beach, while temperatures were in the single digits in Minnesota (I think I'm being generous with that estimation). Despite the weather forecast, I am looking forward to having a real winter. In fact, I genuinely miss the cold and snow.

Drew, however, is not a fan of winter. When the temperature dips below 60, he's in his scarf and mittens just like all those California natives. I'm just kidding. This isn't entirely true (it's the California natives, not Drew, bundled up in cold weather gear). But he does get a little whiny and complain about the "cold" weather.

This is Drew's first trip to Minnesota, and I hope the weather doesn't scare him away. When we decided to make the trip, I strategically booked plane tickets before checking the weather forecast. And before showing Drew a Facebook photo of my cousin's car buried under several feet of snow. When I told Drew about the weather forecast, I told him that there was good news and bad news. The bad news was that the temperature was like 1 degree, but the good news was that it should be in the 20s during our trip. It appears to be warming up.

I'm crossing my fingers for warm weather, so about mid 20s. Do you hear me Minnesota? That's all I'm asking for. Three years is much too long.

baking!

Have you been to Trader Joe's for the "Astounding Multi-Flavor Joe-Joe's"? Well why not? Go get yourself a box, I'll wait.

The Astounding Multi-Flavor Joe-Joe's, as they are called, is a box of 4 different kinds of Joe-Joe's (which are kind of like Oreos). Each kind of Joe-Joe is dipped in chocolate. There's peppermint, double chocolate, peanut butter, and ginger. Great for the holiday season (I swear, I'm not getting paid to say this). Well, I decided to make my own Joe-Joe's, a vegan version. My dearest friend is vegan, and well, why should she miss out on the Joe-Joe fun? (this sounds a bit x-rated, but trust me, I am referring to cookies)

I made peppermint, plain, and peanut butter. The cookies were so rich and decadent, so I dipped only half of them in chocolate. I also made a gingerbread cookie bar in my snowflake pan. I heard that a Trader Joe's recently opened up in Rochester, MN, which is great news. Now my parents can get in on the Joe-Joe fun and I don't have to mail them a box.

on grad school

One of my dearest friends has a new boyfriend. She is a grad student; he is not. She wondered how she could possibly explain what grad school is like to him. I said: "Just tell him that grad school is a perpetual feeling of inadequacy." Sounds harsh, but it's pretty much the truth.

It's not an easy task to try to get people to understand what Ph.D. programs are like. I can see why. Grad school experiences differ by school, degree programs, and departments, among other things. I think that most people think that graduate school is like college, but on steroids. It's not. Sure, grad school is classes, reading, writing, and constant homework, but that's where the similarity ends. If college is like dining in a restaurant, then a Ph.D. program is like learning to be the chef.

I am always curious as to why people go to grad school, particularly a Ph.D. program. What sort of person subjects her/himself to the emotional rollercoaster of grad school? What sort of person subjects her/himself to constant criticism? What does this say about us? About me? I always wonder if we really know what we're getting ourselves into. I mean, we can think we know what grad school is like, but we don't really know what it's like until we're there. I imagine that it's like getting married. You may think you're prepared and that you know what it's going to be like, but I imagine that there are some surprises.

I recently heard grad school described as a hazing process, and I think this sums it up quite nicely. It really is a hazing process, and well, if you survive, then welcome to academia. When I started grad school, everyone said you have to have a thick skin to survive, and I didn't quite understand. Now I do. Everything you write, everything you think, and everything you say is subject to critique, all in the name of "contributing to knowledge." Whenever I get feedback on my papers, I sometimes have to remind myself that the critiques are meant to help me improve, not hurt my feelings. And it works. We learn, we get better, we improve. I've heard grad school described as a video game; once you master one level, you move onto the next. This too is true.

I'll end this on a positive note. I just finished a full draft of my prospectus, which is like a detailed research design of my dissertation. It's like my road map of what I intend to study and how I intend to study it. Coming up with my research question seemed like it took forever, and sometimes I wasn't sure that there was one out there that I'd like to answer. But it turns out that there is. It didn't just fall from the sky (these things never do, as my adviser, DK, says); I found it after a lot of reading, writing, and rewriting.

After I submitted my draft, DK congratulated me and told me that she was really looking forward to reading it. She asked if I felt good about getting it done, and I really hadn't thought about it. Sometimes our accomplishments seem so anti-climactic, and many times we forget to pat ourselves (and each other) on the back. But amidst the criticism and negativity of grad school, it feels great when your adviser (and others, of course) pats you on the back and recognizes that you've cleared a hurdle, no matter how small, even if you yourself don't recognize it. Grad school does have its rewards.