Anthony Junior High School

I attended Anthony Junior High School from 1978-1980. At the time I attended, Anthony was grades 7-8. As of this writing, it is called Anthony Middle School and includes grades 6-8. I'm now a teacher with Minneapolis Public Schools and have recently attended some workshops that were held at Anthony. It looks exactly as it did when I attended there in the late 1970's and, I believe, has held up quite well. It was at this school that I met two of my lifelong best friends, Heidi and her brother Rob.

Page Elementary School

Page Elementary School was a Minneapolis public school that I attended from Kindergarten to fourth grade (1971-1976). Sam attended here for Kindergarten (1976-1976). The school, along with many others in Minneapolis, was closed in 1982 due to declining enrollment. It was torn down shortly after and townhouses now occupy this site. I have very fond memories of this school. I loved the teachers, I loved the other kids, and I loved my time there.

Annunciation Grade School

Annunciation School was created by Father Francis Lang and the founding members of Annunciation parish. The Dominican nuns of Sinsinawa, Wisconsin provided teachers and staff at the school from 1923 to 1992. The school opened on September 1o, 1923 with 72 pupils enrolled. Joe and Sam began at the school in 1976 when Joe was in 5th grade and Sam was in 1st. Joe went on to Anthony Jr. High in 1978 but Sam continued on at the school and graduated the 8th grade in 1984. Pete began at the school in Kindergarten in 1981 and graduated from 8th grade in 1990.

Lake Harriet Rose Garden

The Lake Harriet Rose Garden is quite beautiful. I used to love taking the family dog, Willie, there.

Lake Harriet Part 2

From Wikipedia:

"Lake Harriet is a lake in the southwest part of Minneapolis, just south of Lake Calhoun and north of Minnehaha Creek. The lake is surrounded by parkland as part of the Minneapolis Chain of Lakes. The lake has an area of 335 acres and a maximum depth of 85 feet. Lake Harriet is named for Harriet Lovejoy, who lived with her husband Colonel Henry Leavenworth at Fort Snelling. The two came to the area in 1819. The lake and the surrounding land was last owned by Colonel William S. King who donated the land to Minneapolis in 1885. The lake was called 'Mde Unma' meaning other lake by the local Dakota people."

(Above photo is from my own collection and was taken 8-24-09. This is the main beach at Lake Harriet. Mom would sometimes take Sam, Pete, and me here to swim in the summer.)

Lake Harriet Bandshell

As a teen I loved biking around Lake Harriet. On many a summer evening I'd stumble upon a band concert at the Lake Harriet bandshell. The current bandshell is the fourth or fifth. I remember the one prior. It was built in 1927 and remained standing until 1985 when the current one was built. Supposedly the sound for newest one isn't as great those previous, but I will say that I find this one to be quite beautiful.

Lake Harriet Part 1

Lake Harriet is my favorite in the Minneapolis chain of lakes. I have fond memories of riding my bike around it and summer evenings when there was music at the bandshell. As kids Mom usually took us swimming at Lake Nokomis but we would go to the beach at Lake Harriet once in a while. I

remember in college taking the family dog, Willie, walking on the frozen lake in January during the six-week winter break.

Our Lady of Perpetual Help - Minneapolis

I was baptized at the church of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Minneapolis. According to my mom, this Roman Catholic church was located in the West Bank area of Minneapolis and was torn down long ago. I can't find any records or photos of it online. I have early memories of attending mass there when I was very little. My mom, dad and I moved out of the West Bank area in 1969 when I was just turning 3 years old.

Dairy Queen - 60th and Portland Av. S., Minneapolis

The Dairy Queen we frequented the most was just off 60th Street and Portland Avenue South in Minneapolis and is pictured above. The white stucco house with brown trim that is just beyond the Dairy Queen sign in the photo was actually a driving school. The house had a retaining wall that we'd sit on as we ate our summertime Dairy Queen treats.

Dairy Queen - Mr. Misty

Another favorite of mine from Dairy Queen was the Mr. Misty. It was basically a flavored ice-slush and very refreshing on hot summer days. I liked lemon-lime the most. To this day I call that headache you get from drinking too fast something that is cold, a 'Mr. Misty Headache'.

Dairy Queen - Buster Bar

Another favorite treat from Dairy Queen was the Buster Bar which debuted in 1968. I loved them. They consisted of frozen soft serve, peanuts, and caramel.

Dairy Queen - The Dilly Bar

As a kid I loved going to Dairy Queen. One of my favorite things to get was the Dilly Bar. Underneath the chocolate coating was vanilla soft serve ice cream. Yum. I did some research and found out it's called the Dilly Bar because of the curly 'dilly' on the front of the bar. The dilly bar was a treat that you could grab from the freezer at the front of the store and bring up to the cash register yourself.

Dreaming of Warm Weather and Dairy Queen

I love winter but as it drags on I dream of summer. I have fond memories of summer visits to Dairy Queen.