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Slalom Presents: Realizing Racial Equity

Many thanks to Slalom Consulting for their Slalom Presents: Realizing Racial Equality program. Hearing the more complete story from Ruby Bridges in her school desegregation experience, Dr. Condoleezza Rice and her views on race and education, and a musical closing from Leon Bridges was a good backgrounder on the work we are pursuing to address racism in our society.

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Last night as we were getting ready to go to sleep I noticed that a helicopter had been circling overhead for a while. It was circling large swaths around Highway 62 and France Ave, just a few blocks from our house. Tammy found out via NextDoor what as up, and we quickly heard what turned out to be a mugging attempt that turned into a shooting at Fairview Southdale. We later learned the victim survived despite a gunshot to the head, but the suspect fled on foot and was “at large”. The helicopter was searching. The police asked everyone to leave their exterior lights on which we did. They didn’t catch the suspect, and still haven’t.

Links to local news coverage:

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It was great to be on a panel today as part of Twin Cities Startup Week talking about Managing Global Teams During a Pandemic. Many thanks to the organization and fellow panelists Shivani Stumpf, Teddy Bekele, Jadee Hanson, and Amy Patton!

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Two Second Test

I spent a lot of my career in media and publishing on the web. During that time one of the things that I came to appreciate more completely was the unique journalistic voice that news organizations have. Being responsible for the websites of a number of these sites, I felt it was absolutely critical that whatever Content Management Systems (CMS for those in the business) and other publishing systems we had must allow the journalists to express that unique voice to the reader, via the website. To this end I coined something that I called the Two Second Test.

The Two Second Test is simple. You should be able to show any person the front page of a news website for just two seconds and they should be able to have a feel for what is happening at that moment. Is there big news? Did something great just happen? Something bad? You should be able to intuit it from just those two seconds.

I was reminded of this concept recently when Larry Kramer shared How 9/11 looked on a newly created Internet on that day. His article includes pictures of two framed screen grabs of the MarketWatch page from that day.

I looked at those in Two Seconds you knew something big was happening.

This might seem easy, but the vast majority of news websites even today fail this test. Pick your favorite sites and go to them, look for two seconds, and see what you know. Ask yourself if you know anything? Mostly you don’t.

Most organizations fail this test because of the constraints of their content management system. In order to make their sites work, they have dozens of templates, and they flow articles and blurbs from their CMS into various templates. They change the template for what is going on in the world, but they are always working in a template.

In order to pass the Two Second Test you have to give your newsroom a canvas to work on, not a color-by-numbers template. Along with that power comes risk. The newsroom could put something on the site that has a technical flaw of some sort. Having a strong operational connection between the newsroom and the technology team limits that risk though.

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Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center

Before leaving the Lanesboro area we stopped at Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center and did a casual hike on their trails. We hiked down to the Root River on a forested loop.

We had the place all to ourselves, plus a lot of bugs, two snakes, and some frogs and toads.

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Orchards aren’t doing U-pick this year but Honeycrisp Apples are ready. We got some apples and delicious snacks at Blossom Hill Orchard & Farm in Preston, MN.

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Root River Trail, Lanesboro to Peterson

Tammy and I had a great 28 mile out-and-back ride on the Root River Trail today. We went east from Lanesboro and rode to Peterson. With Covid-19 some places were closed. We were bummed to find Aroma Pie Shoppe, our favorite stop for pie in Whalan, was closed for the season. We did get a snack in Peterson at Burdey’s Cafe and turned around.

The trail was in fabulous shape and the temperatures where in the mid-60’s all day. It was a great day for riding. The rain held while we were on the trail too!

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Lanesboro is a great central location on the Root River Trail to explore a variety of different cities in Southern Minnesota.

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Picture stop at the Lanesboro Dam, built in 1868. Long exposures taken with Spectre.

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We took a morning walk around Lanesboro. It had just finished raining and everything looked nice and there weren’t very many people out. We spent some time in Lanesboro Arts. They always have interesting work from local artists.

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Habberstad House Bed & Breakfast

Tammy and I are spending the weekend in Lanesboro and staying at the wonderful Habberstad House Bed & Breakfast. We have the Carriage House for the weekend. Lanesboro is a great place for cycling and has a number of unique places to stay.

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First Day of School

Today was the first day of school. First day of school during a pandemic. First day of school via distance learning.

We still kept tradition. I made chocolate chip pancakes and fresh whipped cream for breakfast. We went out front for all the traditional first day of school photos.

But then things were different. Instead of going off to school, we went back in the house.

Mazie and Tyler each have a space setup to attend school. We made sure they were ready. Last minute I realized they needed extension cords. Then I went upstairs to my office and got to work. They all connected via Google Classrooms for their classes. And we were off!

Tammy helped with anything that wasn’t working. Both kids had a good first day. Mazie had one teacher that couldn’t figure out some technical issues. Tyler’s class seemed to go really smooth. They both were uploading videos they took to Flipgrid to share with their classes.

Overall I would say first day of school via distance learning was a success!

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Mulan via Disney+

We watched Mulan tonight on Disney+ with Premier Access. The movie was great. None of us had seen the animated version so the story was all new and hooked us right away.

The film itself was impressive and the action was phenomenal. Watching it at home was just fine. We don’t have a full home theatre but it was still a great experience. We forgot to make popcorn though. 🍿

It would be a welcome change to be able to see movies right away on digital platforms.

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Lucky got shaved down at the groomer today. She had too many mats in her fur. She looks way different! An okay look, but we’ll let her fur grow out again. 💈🐩

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Family movie tonight, National Treasure. Tyler’s pick. Fun story. 🍿

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Nice lunch today at Keepsake Cidery outside of Northfield. They have a great selection of ciders, sandwiches, and snacks. Worth the drive and they have a great outdoor space. Dogs welcome too. 🍎

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Some serious weather rolling through Cannon Lake tonight. Constant lightning. Heavy rain and thunder. Multiple waves of hail. Wind is only thing missing. Also learned we have a window with a leak. 😬⛈💧

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Mighty Fine Coffee

Stopped by Mighty Fine Coffee today to check out the newest coffee option in Faribault. Met the two owners and brought home a bag of freshly roasted beans. They are just getting started and I like where they are going! ☕️

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Good night for s’mores! 🔥

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Heather’s in South Minneapolis has quickly become a family favorite for dinner out on their large patio. Our food has all been great, and the space is relaxing and enjoyable. Recommended. 🍽