... But Enough About Me

"We walk in the world of safe people, and at night we walk into our houses and burn." — Dar Williams

Friday, May 11, 2007

Happy Birthday, Minnesota!

   Map of Minnesota, c. 1910
I think I can see my house from here. (Map of Minnesota, c. 1910)
[U.S. Digital Map Library]
From today's Writer's Almanac:
On this day, in 1858 the state of Minnesota was admitted into the Union. It was from Minnesota that we got the stapler, water skis and roller blades, Scotch tape, Bisquick, Bob Dylan, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Spam.
Mmm... Spam. I do so like Spam.

Minnesota also gave us Garrison Keillor, the creator of The Writer's Almanac and much more. Can't forget Loni Anderson, also a Minnesotan. Or Jesse "The Mind" (née Jesse "The Body") Ventura. Judy Garland. Winona Ryder. Prince.

Apart from Scotch tape, Scotchguard, Post-it Notes and various and sundry other 3M products are all from Minnesota. Kitty litter was invented in Minnesota in 1947 by a guy named Edward Lowe. And where else but in the Land of 10,000 Lakes could teenager Ralph Samuelson have invented water skiing in 1922.

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1 Comments:

Blogger laurie said...

and kevin garnett! and jacqui banaszynski! sort of. and laura ingalls wilder! sort of. and CJ! sort of.

speaking of maps that show your house.... i went to zillow.com and they had an aerial view of our house. creeped me out. glad i wasn't nude sunbathing in the backy yard, or something, the day they shot it.

May 13, 2007  

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