Masthead
July 8, 2014
Executive Director Update

I'm back from time off and a busy week in Colorado. Although I always enjoy my visits, there's no place like home -- I'm glad to be back in the neighborhood!

Join me Thursday for an exclusive opportunity to meet and talk to artist Teo Nguyen whose work will be exhibited at the Burnet Gallery in The Chambers. After our Thursday afternoon program, the gallery will be opened to the public for an opening reception from 6:00-9:00 pm. Many thanks to MCC members Madeline Betsch and Patty Connelly for making this unique venue possible. 

There's lots more going on this month -- for details see below! -- Linnea
Summer Music at Plymouth Church 
Tuesday, July 8, 7:00 - 8:30 pm 
Plymouth Congregational Church, 1900 Nicollet Ave 
Join Sonia and John Cairns at a lively summer concert featuring Monroe Crossing at Plymouth Congregational Church.  Monroe Crossing is Minnesota's premier bluegrass and gospel quintet.  The concert is free, is in Jones Commons off of LaSalle, and there is parking in the LaSalle Avenue church lot, on Groveland Avenue across from the church, and on adjacent streets.  Try to come 15 minutes early to get seats, as they are not reserved.
  
MCC members and guests.  No reservations required.

Social Bridge

Wednesday, July 9, 3:00 - 5:00 pm

Stone Arch Lofts Community Room, 600 S 2nd St

Join advanced or intermediate bridge players for a round of social bridge.  You are expected to come with a partner at your level.  (Advanced players play all major conventions comfortably).  If you need help finding a partner, contact Carol Jordan at 612-817-0466 or caroljordan@millcitycommons.org and she will assist you.  Play beings immediately at 3:00 pm.

 

Members sign up here; Guests email MCC. 

Our Turn:  A Conversation for Women 
Thursday, July 10, 9:30 - 11:00 am
Carlyle Community Room, 100 Third Ave S
MCC women, you are invited to attend Our Turn:  A Conversation for Women. This group meets every other Thursday alternating between morning and afternoon times. Charlotte Davnie hosts "Learning Together" with guest speaker Sara Tucker, Early Stage Services Manager with the Alzheimer's Association of MN-ND.  Ms. Tucker will address what Alzheimer's is, how it can be distinguished from simple forgetfulness, what we can do to forestall it, and what progress has been made to battle Alzheimer's.

Women MCC members sign up here; Guests email MCC.
Burnet Gallery Exhibit 
Thursday, July 10, 4:30 - 5:30 pm
Burnet Gallery at Le Meridien Chambers, 901 Hennepin Ave
Join us for an exclusive opportunity to meet artist Teo Nguyen and preview his exhibit, Alone & Together:  The Tender Dissonance of Passing Through, before its opening at the Burnet Gallery in the Chambers.  Experimenting with the expression of beauty has motivated Nguyen since he first picked up a paintbrush as a grade-schooler in his fishing village in Vietnam.  After high school, Nguyen moved to Paris, where he was a student at the prestigious École des Beaux-Arts.  Gallery curator Jennifer Phelps calls Teo's work "...beautiful, haunting."  Cash bar available.  Members are also welcome to join the public for the opening reception from 6:00-9:00 pm.

 

MCC members sign up here.

The Lost Gateway District of Minneapolis Tour 
Saturday, July 12, 10:00 am - 12:00 pm
Gay 90's Nightclub, 408 Hennepin Ave
During the early 20th century, the Gateway, or Lower Loop, was the largest skid row in the Upper Midwest, including flophouses, missions, and bars mixed with a variety of other businesses that needed cheap rents and a central location.  Between 1959 and 1963, in an effort to clean up the area, Minneapolis demolished 25 blocks, or almost 40% of its historic downtown, turning this part of the city into a wasteland of surface parking lots. Revisit its history and learn about current proposals to develop this area.  Cost:  $8.  

MCC members sign up here.
Great Decisions 
Tuesday, July 15, 7:00 - 8:30 pm 
The Towers Garden Room, 15 S 1st St
Ukraine's recent political upheavals, Russia's assertiveness and Western uncertainty have combined to raise concerns of a new Cold War, a fresh need for NATO - or a sense that this isn't really an outsider's fight.  MCC member Bill Davnie has been in Ukraine pre- and post- independence, and served in Moscow.  He will seek to untwist some of the strands of this complex and worrisome situation.  This event is for members who have signed up for Great Decisions 2014.
 
MCC Great Decisions members sign up here.
Men's Coffee and Conversation 
Thursday, July 17, 7:30 - 8:30 am
Elsie's Restaurant, 729 Marshall St NE

Coffee and camaraderie for the male members of MCC! This group meets every other Thursday and is hosted by various members who get the conversation going.  Tom Carrier will be this week's Conversation Leader and will be introducing Executive Director Mary Pat Lee and her colleague Joel Bergstrom who will talk about their work at the Greater Minneapolis Crisis Nursery.  Last year, 4500 children in Minnesota suffered abuse and neglect and 7 died as a result.  Come hear how the Crisis Nursery works to end abuse and neglect and create strong, healthy families.  

 

Men MCC Members sign up here; Guests email MCC.

Twin Cities River Rats Aquatennial Water Ski Show 
Friday, July 18, 7:00 - 9:00 pm
1758 West River Rd N
During daring and beautiful acts on water including barefooting, pyramids, doubles, and more, a storyline will unfold.  Bring a blanket or chair and grab a spot on the river to watch this public Aquatennial Water Ski Show.  Concessions are provided on-site.
 
MCC members and guests.  No reservations required.
Sunday Salad Soiree 
Sunday, July 20, 4:30 - 6:30 pm
Humboldt Lofts, 750 South 2nd St #901
Join your friends and neighbors for the MCC Sunday Salad Soiree hosted by Mary and Tom Racciatti.  Please contribute to the potluck by bringing an appetizer, salad, bread, or dessert and your own beverage.  As you register, let us know what you will be bringing by answering the "Question" that will appear on the screen.

 

MCC members sign up here.

News from Members

MCC member Walter Mondale will be speaking at the Westminster Town Hall Forum (1200 Marquette Avenue) this Thursday, July 10 at 12 noon.  He will be discussing the 1984 presidential campaign and his selection of the first woman to run for vice president on a major political party's ticket and the state of politics today with MPR's Gary Eichten. Westminster Forums are free -- for more details, click here. 
 
MCC member Sabina Sten is volunteering for the Mill District Block Party on National Night Out and is wondering if others would like to volunteer.  Help is needed with set-up at 4:30 pm or clean-up at 9 pm on Tuesday, August 5.  If you're interested, email Cynthia Kriha or call 612-940-3827.
 

Hearing loss keeping you away from the movie theater?  MCC members Allan & Lou Burdick have discovered a solution. Regal Theatres in Minneapolis and Brooklyn Center offer closed caption glasses which project text of the actors' dialogue about 10 feet in front of the user (invisible to other patrons).  Just ask for them at the box office when you buy your ticket. Regal Cinema's CEO, whose son is deaf, was inspired to develop the technology that allows hearing accessibility for every show time, for every feature.

 

MCC member Carol Jordan invites members to an interesting author talk sponsored by the Friends of the Minneapolis Central Library on July 17 at 6:30 pm in the Doty Board Room at the Central Library.  Listen to Bryan D. Palmer, author of "Revolutionary Teamsters:  the Minneapolis Truckers' Strikes of 1934," to mark the 80th anniversary of "Bloody Friday" and the strikes that had state-wide significance and galvanized the labor movement in Minnesota.

 
Peter Gillette, an MCC member, is arranging a tour to Iran for MCC members during a two-week period in September-October 2015. "Iran is spectacular and safe." Exclusive of air fare and personal incidentals, the anticipated price will be $4,900 per person, double occupancy, based on 14-16 travelers. If interested, contact Peter at 612-331-8233 or epgillette@gmail.com.
 
MCC Member Allan Burdick wants the men to know that the Men's B&B Lunch will be held at Elsie's the following Thursdays:  July 10, July 24, and August 7.  This dutch treat lunch alternates with Men's C&C and requires no reservations.
Around Town

 

Sample Performances at MacPhail Center for Music:  Summer Extravaplaza

July 19, 12:00-1:00 pm

The MacPhail Summer Extravaplaza is a free outdoor lunch concert series featuring students from ensembles, camps, and individual lessons.  Bring a picnic lunch while enjoying live music on MacPhail's front yard.  In case of inclement weather, the concert will be moved indoors. 

 

Minnesota Center for Book Arts Unabashedly Bookish Bash

July 19, 7:00-10:00 pm, MCBA in the Open Book building

Take a trip to the tropics and support MCBA's programs that are offered to artists. Tickets are $30 and include food, open bar, live music, and great art.  View the "Art Mart," featuring donated work by local, national, and international artists and the "Cover-Up" gallery of altered book covers.  To purchase tickets, click here.

 

River Trip Planner

Want to have fun, stay fit, and reduce environmental impact while exploring a national park?  The National Park Service - Mississippi National River and Recreation Area has a easy-to-use Google-based map that will help you plan a route anywhere in the park.  Click here for more information.

 

Mill City Times

It's a metro website devoted specifically to our neighborhood and a place to go to find out what's happening, whether it's a new restaurant opening, a local event, proposed construction, etc.  Check it out at MillCityTimes.com. 

MCC Upcoming Events 
View the July Calendar here

 

July 8:  Summer Music at Plymouth Church.  Members click here.

July 9:  Rendezvous on 5.  No reservations required.

July 9:  Social Bridge.  Members click here.  Guests email MCC.

July 10:  Our Turn:  A Conversation for Women.  Members click here.  Guests email MCC.

July 10:  Burnet Gallery Exhibit.  Members click here.

July 12:  The Lost Gateway District of Minneapolis Tour.  Members click here.

July 15:  Great Decisions.  Members click here.

July 16:  Rendezvous on 5.  No reservations required.

July 17:  Men's Coffee and Conversation.  Members click here.  Guests email MCC.

July 18:  Twin Cities River Rats Aquatennial Water Ski Show.  Members click here.

July 20:  Sunday Salad Soiree.  Members click here.

July 23:  Rendezvous on 5.  No reservations required.

July 23:  Social Bridge.  Members click here.  Guests email MCC.

July 23:  Torchlight Parade.  Members click here.

July 24:  Our Turn:  A Conversation for Women.  Members click here.  Guests email MCC.

July 26:  Target Fireworks.  Members click here.

July 27:  A Day at Canterbury Park.  Members click here.  Guests email MCC.

July 29:  Nosy Neighbor Tour:  Hennepin Cultural District.  Members click here.

July 29:  Last Tuesday Happy Hour.  No reservations required.
Mill City Commons   
Did You Know?

...that 1 in 25 adults has at 
least one food allergy?
 
A food allergy is a specific type of adverse food reaction involving the immune system.  The most common foods that cause allergic reactions in adults are peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish, and fish.  Symptoms can include itching in the mouth, gastrointestinal symptoms, a drop in blood pressure, tightening of the throat and difficulty breathing. 

A food intolerance is an abnormal response to a food or additive but it doesn't involve the immune system.  Common intolerances include milk, food additives (MSG, sulfites), and gluten (wheat, barley, rye).  Symptoms include headaches, vomiting, stomach pain, nausea, and heartburn.
   
Because symptoms of food allergies can be serious and reactions to food intolerances can be problematic, we'd like to know if MCC members have to avoid certain foods.  Do you have a food allergy or intolerance?  If so, please e-mail Mary  with your food restrictions so we can be sure to label foods at upcoming Soirees and MCC-sponsored events.  
 
Source:  NIAID
 

MCC Ongoing Social Opportunities

 

Rendezvous

Readers' Book Chat
1st Wednesday of the month
Guthrie Theater Level 5 Express
   No reservations required.
Driftless by David Rhodes

Rendezvous on 5

Guthrie Theater Level 5 Express

Drop in and join your friends and neighbors for fellowship at this neighborhood haunt.  This weekly adventure requires no reservations!

 

Men's Coffee and Conversation  

Elsie's Restaurant,

729 Marshall Street NE

Caffeine and camaraderie for the male members of MCC! This group meets every other week and is hosted by various members who get the conversation going.

Our Turn: A Conversation for Women 

Relax and chat with other MCC women. This group meets every other week and alternates between morning and afternoon times. Look for details in the body of this newsletter.

 

 

MCC Ongoing Fitness Opportunities


SBS Class

                            Thursdays

2:00-3:00pm
501FIT,
501 Washington Avenue
Created exclusively for MCC, this class at 501F1T focuses on strength, balance, and stretching. 
First time participants, please contact 501F1T at 612-767-4415 and arrive 20 minutes early to complete paperwork. Cost varies depending on commitment.

  

  River Walkers

Tuesdays and Thursdays,

7:30-8:30am

Stone Arch Lofts Riverside Parking Lot

All level of walkers welcome for this early morning walk along the banks of the Mississippi River. An MCC volunteer leads each walk.

  

Hatha Yoga

Wednesdays and Fridays,

8:00-9:15am

Yoga Center Minneapolis, 212 3rd Ave N., Suite 205

This is an alignment-based class. Purchase a 12-class pass for $132 directly from YCM to use as your schedule allows, or drop in on a class for $12.50. Contact Dena at 612-436-4700 for details.

Drop-ins welcome.

 
Mill City Commons | 219 Main Street SE, Suite 401, Minneapolis, MN 55414
www.millcitycommons.org | info@millcitycommons.org  
612-455-3329