Get off the tracks!

from flickr user rjjacobson
It looks as though this train engine is dangerously close to the daring Moorhead, MN photographer who captured this image of a train steaming through the still-frozen landscape of the Red River valley.

Dave's Popcorn

from flickr user tjdewey
I guess slapping a new(er) business name -- such as "Dave's Popcorn" -- is one way to repurpose a vintage Coca-Cola sign.

Bridge

from flickr user davidphenix
Hwy 99 bridge in St. Peter, closed due to high water on the Minnesota River.

Spring Meltdown

from flickr user djsime
This brave deer is literally on thin ice. Even with today's late-season snow storm any remaining ice won't last long.

Minnehaha Creek

from flickr user Richard A2010
Beyond the flooding happenign across the southern half of the state, another sure sign of spring is the melting of the Minnehaha Falls in Minneapolis.

Ebner's Bait

from flickr user tjdewey
Old signs are amazing to see and usually make for a great photographic subject. There's far more craftsmanship that went into these old signs made of steel and other metals and they were usually of a unique shape -- not just confined to a position above the building's door. This photo of a sign for Ebner's Bait falls perfectly in line with my theory.

Seasonal Shutdown

from flickr user Doug Wallick
This boat and dock giving way to ice fishing houses on frozen Medicine Lake, as seen in mid February, the ice houses are now off and the melt down has begun.

foggy morning

from flickr user carrow1
Having a terrible memory, I'm not sure if late winter is usually such a hotbed for hoarfrost but this morning, like the morning depicted in this serene rural photo, was another frosty morning. Finally a precursor to spring here in Minnesota.

Cross country skiing

from flickr user wleif
I'm all about the peacefulness and serenity that a scene like this (taken at Cedar Lake) conveys but as we close in on the record number of consecutive days (it's 136 - we are at day 122 I believe) with snowcover in the Twin Cities I have to bluntly state that I'm ready for Spring.

Japan Earthquake/Asia-Pacific Tsunami

from flickr user canadianredcross (Via Reuters)
Wow. The devastation left behind from an 8.9 magnitude earthquake and the ensuing tsunami in Japan today is striking. Entire blocks of homes appear to be washed off their foundations and pushed together in groups surrounded by water. How do people recover from destruction of this magnitude?

Color under grey skies

from flickr user Istuck
With a thick blanket of gray clouds -- a right of passage as we wade through the typical dirty March weather in Minnesota -- the colorful lights of downtown Minneapolis truly leap off the screen in this photo overlooking the Mississippi River. Taken in Minneapolis, MN. USA.

my burning bush

from flickr user big juicy kris
Yes, winter in Minnesota has been a rather stark affair but even with the mountains of snow (shouldn't they be mostly melted by now?) covering seemingly every square inch of real estate, there's some beauty to be found in a simple black and white photo of a naked bush.

Dropkick Murphys

from flickr user Adam Brown!
If you're unfamiliar with the Dropkick Murphys, they're an Irish American punk band from just outside of the Irish hamlet of Boston, Massachusetts. This photo is from Thursday's show at First Avenue in Minneapolis. I like all things punk and Irish but I'm more of a Flogging Molly guy when it comes to this category but her in flyover country -- even with it being a creative mecca -- you take what you can get.

Honk, Honk

from flickr user waiting line (ren)
Trumpeter Swans at Swan Park in Monticello, MN on the Mississippi River. Let's hope that this is a sure sign of spring being just around the corner.

Interesting NE Building

from flickr user nlongtin
A very interesting building in NE Minneapolis covered in old growth vines and an old mural.

Geomagnetic Storm coming to Minnesota?

from flickr user NASA Goddard Photo and Video
NASA space physicist James Spann sends this picture from Poker Flat, Alaska, where he is attending a scientific conference to study auroras.

A solar wind stream hit Earth's magnetic field during the early hours of March 1st. The impact sparked a polar geomagnetic storm that was, at first, minor, but the storm has been intensifying throughout the day. Spotters are now reporting auroras over Northern Ireland, Latvia, Norway, and Sweden. If the trend continues, high-latitude sky watchers will likely witness bright auroras after nightfall on March 1-2. Northern-tier US states such as Maine, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Washington could be favored with photographic and/or visual displays.

Minnesota Nice

from flickr user David Schwen
Maybe Minnesota Nice is actually a myth but it's definitely a t-shirt AND a print available for purchase. (It's also a pretty kick-ass piece of artwork that I felt worthy of showcasing here.)

Available for purchase at Society6: Prints & T-shirts.