I recently spent a whole day at a conference in Saint Paul. I had a presentation to make at 1130 and then lunch and some networking. Because BlueTulip had also been performing at the conference, we had ridden together. But she left early, inspiring me to try to get further stranded. I had several opportunities to get a ride back to Minneapolis, to go into the office and do my work at my desk. Instead I stayed, worked the conference more, and helped break down our booth. The guy I helped was going to Minneapolis, but not to the office or anything, and I said it'd be great if I could at least get a ride to the city, and that I'd take it from there.

I'm really starting to get into these situationist and quasi-situationist activities. My intentional stranding left me in Saint Paul longer than it needed to, but that was just kind of an appetizer. The main stranding took me to a cool part of town, and made me think about what was convenient or inconvenient about the places I go vs. the places I want to go. When I stepped out of my co-worker's apartment building and down the tunnel of their awning, I felt like I was about to get into an adventure, like the city was waiting for me to dive in, play, and explore. I tried out a little game of pointing my phone camera down the various streets and whatever direction "looked prettiest" through the lens was the way I went. I pretty quickly got into places I hadn't really seen before. I've driven by the area, but not had any chance to look at the buildings up close or experience what it feels like to walk in their shadows. I felt like there were many little surprises to be found and always felt like there was opportunity lurking around the corner. I also was surprised by how empty everything was. This neighborhood has a school in it, it is a pretty good mix of "artist types" and a healthy number of tony, well-to-do gay couples. I figured there'd be people about, on the go to their favorite restaurants or cocktail hours. Perhaps it was so cold even the free spirit people were locked away at home. It's exciting to look at the city this way, as a fount of continuous possibilities, a playground for the sharp eye and a location where transient beauties can be found in the play of natural light upon the streets, or there in the architectural bones of the buildings themselves. Where the city's living pulse offers up wonders for your eyes, and confrontations with your preconceptions.

Eventually my (aesthetic? lomographic?) ccd-driven wanderings brought me into the entrance of Loring Park. It was beautiful all abandoned and cold. Descending into the park I got a phone call from BlueTulip who wasn't sure she'd be able to come get me right away. This brought me pretty much to the most stranded sensation of the day. I was really not sure where the nearest bus line was. If it was where I thought it was, then I was kind of inconveniently placed to it. On the other hand, if she eventually did get away to come get me, I was totally inconveniently placed to get a ride just then. I started to regret my games a little, feeling cold and alone and my feet were very tired from presenting and standing around all day.

I applied my camera test one more time, and headed toward the basilica (I think I would have gone west, but the moment of fiery beauty shown in the picture below had long passed as I stood there wrestling with phone problems). As I trudged up out of the park, having to go a little more circuitous route than planned on account of the lack of paths cut thru the snow, I arrived on Loring Place, which is where there's at least two good bars and restaurants. I was delighted to discover a third, Nick and Eddie, a new place that supposedly serves comfort food and has a terrific bar. I didn't have a lot of cash, so I just ordered a beer--and they had Old Speckled Hen, which I've always found to be very calming and uplifting for me when served on draught. My sense of disquiet and solitude began to fade. My phone rang, and some cousins had showed up at the house, allowing BlueTulip to leave Eleanor & Henry with them. So my ride came through, and I was unstranded at last.