Plenty Of Pride To Go Around

June 26, 2016

Minneapolis, St. Paul, and Hastings, Minnesota

For only the fourth time on this four-week tour, I had a meal in a restaurant (my first breakfast) and I mainly did that because I noticed a cool-looking retro 1940's-era diner as I rode into town yesterday. Plus, it was only a block from my motel so I thought I would check it out.

The Classic Diner--silvery and retro-cool and, thanks to me, blurry.

The host led me to a booth next to a window and said my server would be with me in just a minute. Before even looking at my phone, which is generally the first thing people do when they're eating by themselves, I noticed a photo of Charlize Theron. Apparently a scene from one of her movies was filmed here.

"Is this for real?" I asked the server when he arrived. "Charlize Theron was here?"

"Yup, it's true."

"Right here? Right in this exact booth?"

"Right there," he confirmed, pointing at the seat across the table from me.

Of course, I'm much too sophisticated to be a celebrity worshiper, so I did not get up and change positions to the other side of the table. G-2, however, had no such restraint.

I hadn't heard of the movie "Young Adult," but I have heard of Charlize Theron and, yes, she is very pretty. It was fun to be sitting in this particular booth but I wasn't overwhelmed by it.

G-2, on the other hand, was obsessed by her beauty. Here he is staging a remake of "Young Adult." (A little constructive criticism: I think he needs a little work on his pouty look.)

It wasn't until I started looking at the menu that I realized The Classic Diner was actually a Denny's Restaurant. Perhaps it hadn't ALWAYS been a Denny's, but had I known in advance that it is now I wouldn't have eaten here and G-2 would have missed out on his brush with fame. You're welcome, G-2!

*****************

As a resident of the southern part of the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro area, I'm less familiar with the northern suburbs. I got lost a couple of times. I blame The Feeshko (my wife, in case you forgot) for one of those times. She called me on my cell phone and, like any good husband, I answered. I guess I can accept part of the blame. It probably wasn't very smart of me to keep pedaling while talking to her because it resulted in a missed turn. Thanks to a fairly decent sense of direction, I was able to get back on course, but only after rudely and abruptly telling The Feeshko that I had to get off the phone. I felt bad about that.

I spent quite a few miles on roads with names like "East River Road" and Mississippi River Boulevard" but I only got a couple of brief glimpses to the river itself. Once I got to Minneapolis, though, I got this outstanding view.

The Mississippi River and the Minneapolis skyline beyond.

As I got closer to downtown Minneapolis I started hearing the beats of some very loud drums. A little later I heard some music to go along with it, and I remembered from last night's news that today is the Twin Cities Gay Pride Parade, which is the culmination of the four-day Pride Festival. I crossed the river to check out the festivities.

Hundreds of thousands of people lined the streets for the parade.

My touring team is in full support of the LGBT community.

After an hour of maneuvering my loaded bike around the crowded streets of Minneapolis, I decided it was probably time to finish up the last leg of this trip. I know the route home so well I could almost do it with my eyes closed, so I just powered my way to Hastings, stopping only for a couple more photos.

Fraternity Row on the University of Minnesota campus.

The home of the Minnesota Golden Gopher football team.

I rode through the heart of downtown St. Paul too. Looking back from the Wabasha Street bridge, I realized I almost forgot to show a picture of that fine city.

Thumbs-up to my hometown and to a fine roundabout-gadabout bike tour.

Minutes after the "Hastings" sign I was home. I felt my own sense of pride. I walked in the door and my dog, Diggity, licked my face and squealed in excitement for the next ten minutes. The Feeshko was glad to see me too. Much to my relief, she only had five fingers on her left hand.

Today's ride: 61 miles (98 km)
Total: 1,263 miles (2,033 km)

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