Open Thread #68
Happy Open Thread Day!
Ok, I just made that one up...
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Since October 2005
Grand Forks Life is the first and biggest blog covering life in the city of Grand Forks, North Dakota. GrandForksGuy shares local news, rumors, and his own opinions.
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NOTE: The views expressed in original posts on "Grand Forks Life" are merely the views and personal opinions of the owner of this blog. No guarantee is given for the accuracy of content. The views expressed in reader comments are the views of those readers. "GrandForksGuy" and "Grand Forks Life" do not endorse the views of readers.
121 comments:
Happy 1st comment. The sun is shining and the interstate is open again. Have a great Monday everyone!
We drove back from Minneapolis yesterday afternoon/evening and counted about 45 cars in the ditch. About 15 were on their side or completely upside down. One car looked like the person inside was dead. We drove about 30 MPH most of the way.
Why do we live here. :'(
We drove back from Minneapolis yesterday afternoon/evening and counted about 45 cars in the ditch. About 15 were on their side or completely upside down. One car looked like the person inside was dead. We drove about 30 MPH most of the way.
Why do we live here. :'(
Cuz we can't leave w/o getting stuck in a ditch!
Why in the world would you say 'looked like the person inside was dead'?! Esp with no mention of EMTs on the scene...did you stop to help? Did you call an ambulance? Come on!
The top 3 reasons I'll be leaving Grand Forks next year: January, February, March (not always in that order).
2:36 anon...they probably meant the car was so twisted the person that was inside probably was dead... Come on!
2:55 anon ... Don't let the door hit you on the ass ...
How does ACE Hardware stay in business? I find the same items in Menards and Lowes for a lot less. Sure, some people prefer shopping at these smaller stores, but money saved is money saved.
Personally, I would shop at any hardware store in town that was open before noon on Sundays. Come on Grand Forks, if you're going to think you're a city, you have to act like one!
Noon opening on Sunday is a state law. Don't blame Grand Forks for it.
Up until the 1980s, stores were forbidden from opening their doors at all on Sundays! We were the last, or second to last state, to have such a "blue law" on the books, I believe.
I can live with noon opening on Sunday. How much shopping time do you need? Go to church. Relax with your family over a game of Scrabble. Stop shopping and smell the roses (in the spring anyway). Give those poor people working retail a little break! They can go out Saturday night and not have to be to work at 8:00 on Sunday morning.
"Noon opening on Sunday is a state law."
Be nice if ND recognized separation of church and state.
grandforksguy, add to your list of local bloggers? Some UND student government representatives are in Russia. I always have doubts about these sort of trips (they've been sight-seeing....doubtful of their influence on the Russian university...doubtful of the Russian university on them...for the most part this is an opportunity to go somewhere cool for break :\) but it's worth mentioning, anyway... UND getting itself out there and all...
http://www2.und.nodak.edu/our/blog/russia08/
...We should do a Grand Forks Life reader meet-up! hahaha. At Olive Garden in Fargo, obviously. It would be interesting to see who we're arguing with. :P
dear grandforksguy,
can you see ip numbers? or are we all truly just 'anonymous' to you? :)
i just had a funny thought that i could start arguments with myself all under 'anonymous' and what if at the meetup, only 5 people showed up? MBK, lynsey, and the 3 people who constitute all the anonymous posters. lol weird thought :P
Blog administrators see ip's. At the risk of being juvenile (again), If anyone is curious, this nice girl will tell you your ip address...
moanmyip.com
Who says the noon opening on Sundays is because of church?
"Who says the noon opening on Sundays is because of church?"
seriously? or are you kidding.
"How much shopping time do you need? Go to church."
Last time I checked this was America, and I could decide what to do with my own time. Going to church is NOT what I am going to do with my free time.
How would you like it if the churches were forced to stay closed until 12pm so that shoppers could get their retail needs satisfied? Sound stupid? So does forcing folks to go to church with state administered religious coercion.
Anyways, I don't care about going to Ace Hardware on sunday morning... But I do want to find a restaurant where I can get a goddam beer on sunday morning with my breakfast!!
It's understandable that the original ND settlers, good Christians all, sought to have their religion codified in state law. But that was then, and this is now. Still, having seen how difficult it was to even get stores open on Sunday, I don't anticipate the Legislature will actually remove all of Chrisitianity from the books.
Ironically, both the Sunday sabbath, and the date set for Christmas, are steals from pagan Sun cults (hence SUNday).
"Telling people to be moral of their own accord only works with people who are moral to begin with"
Given the history of Christiamity from Constantine to the present, I fail to see any connection with morality.
Also, why would it be the state's responsibility to legislate "sleep in time" for retail workers?
"Why is it the state's responsibility to legislate minimum wage laws, workplace safety, overtime regulations, child labour laws and so on?"
You actually equate these with sleeping in on Sunday?
" without acknowledging its benefits"
And those benefits are?
Legislation aside, I doubt that most retail stores would open on Sunday morning--at least not at the same time they do during the week. Without the sales traffic, there'd be no point. The hours have to justify paying employees to be there, as well as the associated costs of being open.
Maybe some stores like Target or WalMart would be able to make it financially feasible, but other stores, like Macy's or the Gap, might not.
Having said that, I'm not a fan of legislating retail hours. That should be the decision of the malls and the individual stores.
What about...
THE OLIVE GARDEN???
"And those benefits are?
Wow."
Not much of a student of debate, eh?
As for the role of government in business, I am not an Ayn Rand adherent. I see the govt having to deal with workers' safety, child labor, etc. Your "sleeping in" example is pretty much a reductium an absurdum. And of course, workers may also sell their services elsewhere.
Even in other states where there are no laws legislating what time stores can open, most malls and retail establishments do not open until noon on Sunday anyhow.
Sure, Wal-Mart and Target would be open, and perhaps a few restaurants, but the majority would still be closed till noon.
I'll chime in with a point...
The topic of car dealers frequently comes up when states discuss Sunday blue laws. Sunday would be a great day to car shop. However, finance entities are not open Sunday. This kills the whole "drive it off the lot today" m.o. of car dealers. Of course, financing restrictions could be worked around. I'm wondering, does anybody know if credit report agencies are available on Sunday? I would guess they are and the systems are web-based and automated.
Yah sure, my heart spoken post gets deleted but the pathetic olive garden one stays.
What would people think if we adopted the Europe way of life and closed all shops from noon-2pm? We think a couple of closed hours on a Sunday are bad! No more running errands on our lunch breaks, but it would be nice to go have that relaxing lunch time with friends.
I think a Siesta break would be great. I wouldn't have the government require it though.
Glad to see my post sparked some debate.
I guess shopping on Saturday or during the rest of the week is out of the question?
"Even in other states where there are no laws legislating what time stores can open, most malls and retail establishments do not open until noon on Sunday anyhow."
That is simply not true. I (probably like many here) have lived in quite a few states, and traveled through many many more.
Exactly which states are you referring to? I imagine that any names you can possibly dig up would also be states that are tied to archaic, religion based restrictions that are, sadly, passed off as law.
I still think the churches should stay closed until 12pm so that hard working folks don't have to be awoken to the sound of Dueling Churchbells or the pious funk emanating from holier than thou anti-retail cadre always ready to drift a sneer my way when I order a beer at sunday lunch.
I gotta say, I'm a little annoyed with the Sunday hours in ND.
I keep having to remind myself that I can't go to Wal-Mart after 11:30PM on a Saturday or before noon on a Sunday whenever I go up there.
The last time I flew up there, I had a 7PM arrival at MSP and after I drove all the way to GF and checked into my hotel, I realized that I had forgotten to pack any socks, of all things. "No problem, I'll go to Wal-Mart." I get there, and then it kicked in: "Everything closes early on Saturday nights up here, and I have to wait until tomorrow afternoon, wearing the same socks, to buy anything."
Damned inconvenient. The rest of the country can be open, but not ND. I think it's a goofy law that needs to be changed.
I highly doubt everyone on this blog would be lining up on Sunday morning to shop at Walmart. I also doubt these same people would be regulars at a GF Olive Garden.
I ran into another one of those oddities this weekend that are likely unique to North Dakota (and any other backwards states that have blue laws). I took my parents to Texas Roadhouse for the first time on Sunday. We ordered at 11:55 am, and the waitress told me I'd have to wait five minutes for my beer because they couldn't serve until noon. No big hairy deal, but it was a situation I hadn't thought of before: beer-serving restaurants open at 11, but can't serve until noon.
I'm the one who said that in other states, stores generally don't open until noon. I'm speaking specifically of Oklahoma and Texas, but having worked a couple of national-chain retailers, I can assure you that they don't open up until noon on Sundays in any of their states.
It's not because of law, it's because that's the way the retailers/malls/whoever choose to operate. Whether that was once because of a law, I don't know...but I know that it's not anymore and that's just how most retailers operate on Sundays--opening at noon (or 11 am at the earliest).
(Excluding, of course, places like Wal-Mart, Target, grocery stores, etc., who are open just about all the time)
That is simply not true. I (probably like many here) have lived in quite a few states, and traveled through many many more.
It's true in northern IL. I can't think of ANY smaller shops open before 11/12 on Sunday unless they had a specific niche catering to the breakfast crowd (bakeries for example).
In the year and a half I've been here, I can only think of one time I personally have been bummed with the state law.
Mall of America opens at 11 on Sundays. So do the malls I know about in LA and Albuquerque (the bigger ones there). Woodfield Mall (Chicago) opens at 11.
So 11 seems to be a rather consistent opening hour.
About the socks--couldn't you have gone to Pamida? That's in Minnesota which doesn't have the same law. I thought it opened earlier on Sundays. (But it's not a mall....) You could have had clean socks on by midmorning!
No self respecting magificant bastard would be caught dead buying socks at Walmart or Pamida.
magnificantbastard.com
On another note, I went to the Toasted Frog tonight...very delicious! I read on here awhile back where someone thought they were sliding...definitely not the case tonight--I can't imagine the things I ordered being any better.
Businesses should be able to set whatever hours they wish, based on what they perceive to be best for them. States should not have laws, clearly and unabashedly based on relious doctrine, which contramand that right. That having been said, I don't see ND legislators, with their feet firmly planted in the 19th century, ever eliminating the Sunday law. Not do I see them ever dealing again with the ridiculous anti-cohabitation law.
I visited Colorado last week, I was amazed that grocery stores were allowed to sell alcohol, even the Walmart was doing it! North dakota should do the same thing:)
hmmm...in the land where binge drinking and other alcohol problems prevail, let's have grocery stores and convenience stores sell beer and alcohol....yeah right, like that would help the problem.
"hmmm...in the land where binge drinking and other alcohol problems prevail, let's have grocery stores and convenience stores sell beer and alcohol....yeah right, like that would help the problem."
Ahhh yes. Such tainted logic. Exactly why this is the binge drinking capital of the US.
It's obviously NOT the availability of alcohol that is the problem. Just look at areas which profess to have binge drinking issues... are they largely areas that have unfettered access to alcohol? No. They are areas where teetotalerism predominates and alcohol consumption is treated like alcohol consumption rather than a normal, healthy integrated part of a balanced culture and life.
All the local bars cater to binging. It's positively disgusting how many Jager Bombs and other sticky sweet alcoholic drinks flood this town on the weekend.
Where is the encouragement to discover the non-binging facets of drinking? This city and state should be encouraging folks to drink. But to drink in an educated, conscientious fashion... that is the ONLY way to combat wanton, reckless abandon drinking.
Simply trying to restrict access does NOT work. It didn't work for prohibition, it doesn't work for drugs, and it sure as hell ain't gonna work for North Dakota.
Do you really think that folks buy less booze when they go to H. Harry's and then realize that this is their only chance to get any sort of alcohol they might want until they specifically come back to Harry's? No! They "stock up". If it is available in grocery stores, then people tend to purchase only whats needed for the immediate use, without stocking up, or to buy quantities of alcohol that will be integrated with their food purchases at meal time.
Harry knows this. That is why he would fight tooth and nail to avoid allowing a healthier access to alcohol... all under the pretext of preventing alcohol abuse. It's shameful how we American's demonize and pervert such sacred concepts as personal choice/responsibility into exactly the opposite, creating a scare tactic in the process. Just like how we are being sold an evil lie about how allowing bush to wiretap us and our fellow citizens with no oversight or control is actually promoting "freedom". The alcohol issue in ND is the same thing. We are being sold a polished turd.
There are some positive developments, a few years ago ND started allowing freer access to mail order wineries and micro-breweries. How is this positive? Get folks interested in better quality beverages that are designed to enjoy and linger over, rather than encouraging people to slam down sugared up liquor on saturday night or cheap hog swill beer at Denny's after work everyday. That is a positive development.
But, apparently there is still an ingrained mentality rampant here that can't fathom the lessons about restricting access that have been learned by this country time and time again.
...and the nice forward-thinking folks from the ND tax commission shut down the GF winery. Friggen morons.
I personally believe the high binge drinking rate around here is really due to the general lack of other stuff to do. Not as much from GF people, but from many of those who move here from the small towns. In a small town you work/go to school all day, and then by 5PM your options run low on what to do with the rest of your waking hours...not to mention some of those towns are really depressing to live in. The drinking becomes, well, a habit. Half the campus of UND can't have fun on the weekends without the aid of booze...
Since when did Denny's get a liquor license?
I'm for the market solution to under age drinking. Lower the legal age to 19. Now, instead of bad intoxicated young adults running and driving around, we instantly convert them to good intoxicated customers.
Problem solved.
I agree that access is not the problem. Let the free market do its thing, but "encourage" liquor and grocery stores to be responsible citizens. If binge-drinking and driving while intoxicated are problems in an area, create a tax that would fund a range of community programs to deal with it.
Let me qualify my remarks lest all you Libertarians and Right Wingers jump down my throat...A special tax on LIQUOR only.
Ditto anonymous 8:25am. Weekend options for students are parties (booze laden) or the bars for those 21+. A good event I think we had going was the weekly Martini Blue events last spring. They were 18+ at Suite 49, so there was food.. and drinks for the older crowd. The DJs were amazing and they always had a huge crowd dancing and hesitant to leave at the end of the night.
As I heard it, though, they had a fall out with management.. the DJs are now with Level 10, but since it's 21+, the underage students are back to boozing in their dorms. :P
The complaints of deleted posts are making me curious. How does one avoid having their post deleted? Is there a no swearing rule or what?
Finally, has anyone had the egg breakfast sandwich at Dakota Harvest? I love DH a whole ton, been a customer since day 1... But they microwaved my eggs.... err.. :\
Shots fired in the copshop?
What the hell is going on in town?
An affordable entertainment opportunity is to take in the $1 movies at the Columbia 4 Theatre. Admission is only $1. They are open every day in the evening, and on Saturday and Sunday they are open for matinees and evenings. According to www.carmike.com, they have August Rush, Mad Money, Kite Runner, and Enchanted playing this weekend starting on Friday night.
What about some stores that are locally based. I am sick of chain food. Yes, we are opening new businesses but who cares if a TGI Friday's opens up. It all tastes the same if you really sit to think about it.
Wow! Kite Runner for $1? I wanted to see the movie version of this story, but totally lost track of it. Thanks for the heads up.
I'm with you sickofchainfood. Seriously, two Applebee's? And not just because I hate chain restaurants, but my favorite places to eat in GFK are all local businesses: Sanders, Mama Maria's, Dakota Harvest, Amazing Grains.. and Giuseppe's is getting good reviews. Woo hoo. Rhombus is good, even if they could be considered a chain.. But not a chain in the sense that they get everything frozen and premade by SYSCO. Yuck!
Sorry, I hate to call out local businesses but, what the hell is up with Muddy Rivers? The operators have run it into the dirt. I here they've been closed down recently for liquor code violations. Can you imagine if you had a banquet or a wedding there and they told you, oh, BTW, we can't sell booze at your event.
The place is filthy, smoky, and stinks!
I have never eaten at Amazing Grains, but I had to stop shopping there. I have had to many stale food items and the prices are way, way out of line. As much as I want to stay local and do every chance I get--at some point I have to call a spade a spade.
Let's just say that Walmart was open Saturday night until noon on Sunday.........I bet we would all be complaining about the store only having one check-out lane.
I know it's a state law, but even if that changed.........Walmart never has enough staff so how could they staff when they do not have enough employees?
Will the national media come a knockin', again?
Some dude is just walking through the police station with his gun, off to a little target shooting. He drops a box of ammo and one goes off?
Crazy!
Since when did Denny's get a liquor license?
sorry bro... I shoulda been clearer. I meant Denny's Tavern, not the new digs on the south edge of town that's whipping up heaping helpings of boil-in-the-bag processed crap.
Btw Dale, do you have any suggestions for solutions? You paint a pretty gloomy picture there.
What is the auction thing on the Herald website? Charity?
settle down about the "shots fired" in the police station. First of all, it wasn't fired from a gun, it was faulty ammunition - and national media?? PLEASE! They have about 10,000 stories to choose from that would be of more consequense than a guy with a bad box of ammunition coming to the police station in Grand Forks.
I, for one, appreciate Dale's realistic outlook and candid comments. I don't find it negative at all. I'm really sick of seeing the realist perspective shot down time after time with the 'if things are so bad,why don't you come up with a solution' comeback.
Being realistic isn't about coming up with solutions. It's about framing the problem. Once that is established, solutions can be weighed in the proper context, and given the attention they do (or don't) deserve.
Good on ya, Dale. Keep it up, mate!
I am all for selling beer in grocery stores, gas stations, etc, like many of the states do. I wonder if Menards could sell beer in their grocery section? Hmmm, lumber, tools and beer in one store...I am in heaven.
I see no reason not to believe UND students when they say that binge drinking is a result of boredom. That doesn't make it right, but it does explain a major problem in Grand Forks: students have next to nothing to do but party. And that means primarily large quanties of beer. Brown may want to make the city a destination for Canadians and others, but for students all there is are parties.
One minute, your saying that the government shouldn't be telling stores when to be open, the next your saying they need to entertain college students? Whose going to pay for them to babysit? Maybe students should focus more on studying and less on socializing. The smart ones probably already do and leave the drinking for the once in a while blow off steam that happens at every school, not just UND.
Anyone else having probs pulling up Tyen's blog?
I'm really sick of seeing the realist perspective shot down time after time with the 'if things are so bad,why don't you come up with a solution' comeback.
I assume you are directing your comment at my preceding post, although you followed the usual keyboard warrior technique of pointedly criticizing my post without actually addressing me.
Anyways, you obviously have some personal issues to hammer out if you can get all down on a fellow blogger guy for simply asking for a followup and clarification. Dale is indeed painting a gloomy picture, as I stated, and there is nothing judgmental in that statement of fact. Your response however is is rampant with subjective judgmentmentalism befitting a gradeschooler.
Dale is consistently suggesting solutions here on this forum. In fact, your hero Dale often asks other posters to support their comments and suggest solutions rather than just whine. Presumably it's ok with you, anonymous, when Dale attempts to hold others to a higher standard, but if someone else dares ask for a followup from your intertube buddy, then its not ok?! Thats ridiculous.
Anyways, my comment wasn't a "comeback", and there is nothing wrong with asking for someone to suggest a solution rather than just simply complain. Wake up and realize that you are simply viewing the real world through your internet-warrior tinted glasses.
Regardless, whether asking for solutions (me), or realistically describing the problem (dale)... Either of those is better than nut-hugging all over some forum poster's style and flaming yetothers with useless whines (yep, thats you anon).
Did Marylin really review the Central High cafeteria?? Is this really for real?
Why does it seem like everytime a problem or issue comes up in the city of Grand Forks, Most people bounce right to the option of making a tax to fix it. Don't we think there is already enough taxes in this town. Ever try to buy a house here, it will blow your mind what they expect you to pay for property taxes.
GFG,
Shouldn't we be seeing plans for the new GFK terminal soon? Lonnie Laffen blogged here a few months ago about the next generation D1 football stadium and also commented on the terminal. Hear anything?
"One minute, your saying that the government shouldn't be telling stores when to be open, the next your saying they need to entertain college students?"
Would you care to cite from my post where I said the city should entertain students?
Ec99 said:
"I see no reason not to believe UND students when they say that binge drinking is a result of boredom. That doesn't make it right, but it does explain a major problem in Grand Forks: students have next to nothing to do but party. And that means primarily large quanties of beer. Brown may want to make the city a destination for Canadians and others, but for students all there is are parties."
It appears to me you are placing the solution on Mayor Brown. Mayor Brown represents government as he is the mayor, correct? What did you really mean?
"Brown may want to make the city a destination for Canadians and others, but for students all there is are parties."
See, as a chronic whiner and complainer, his point is not that the government should provide entertainment for students, because he doesn't really want to make things better. He just likes to complain. In this case, he's complaining about the Mayor making things better for the Canadians.
Muddy Rivers - lunch yesterday, blue haze of cigarette smoke death choke upon entering - ate there anyway - food, ham hoagie, won't order it a 2nd time, very greasy and flavor was somehow off the mark - price with a soda was nearly $10, too much for that gritty experience
Herald auction is not charity, funny suggestion though. Retailers are able to move product, the Herald makes a couple dollars here and there on a couple business models that are tied into the event, and consumers get product at a discount. Works for me.
Tuey's blog does that when there is no new post for a long time. I saw that happen once before not too long ago when he didn't post for a while.
Tuey's still on vacation in Vietnam. He probably has more to do with his time than feed the blog beast, right now. He should be back on Tuesday -- expect a storm of posts shortly after.
Why do people in Grand Forks drink so much? Just an observation from a visitor who stayed here 6 days...
How many Hugos does the GF area need? I can't go anywhere in town without seeing one of them.
Anon at 10:52 PM. We drink so much because according to anyone you ask we have nothing better to do with our time. We enjoy getting boldly smashed and wildly trashed as early and often as possible. We do this because the main stream media in Grand Forks has labeled us all a group of no good binge drinking party animals and we are endevoring to live up to that stigma. It is our right of passage, some would say our birth right, passed from generation to generation. But do not fear, as all similar civilizations throughout history have shown, within a generation we shall all be extinct because of our self degenerative lifestyle. Until that time I say, bring on the keg stands!!!
"Why do people in Grand Forks drink so much? Just an observation from a visitor who stayed here 6 days..."
what kind of lowbrow, ignorant, generalization is that? grow up. My guess is that you either live here or never visited and just wanted to chime in like a good little sheep on the Fork Phenomena of binging.
If you actually did visit and in process came up with that shocking revelation you were spouting on about...
1)who did you visit?
2)where did you stay?
3)what did you do while here to gain that impression?
4)what specific drinking activities in what types of businesses or homes led to you draw your conclusion?
4)what degree does ingrained teetotalism or ridiculous religiousity dictate your world view?
5)where the hell are you from?!?!? Saudi Arabia?
if you don't want to answer those questions here for our benefit, at the very least you could do a little soul searching, answer them to yourself and then prolly find out that the reason you are under the impression we drink "so much".
First look to thine own self for an explanation as to why you might find the world offensive. ;-)
Someone mentioned hating chain restaurants and liking Mama Maria's. I ate there once and it was the worst restaraunt food/experience I have ever encountered. The owners of the Highlander were running the joint that night. Has it improved?
"How many Hugos does the GF area need? I can't go anywhere in town without seeing one of them."
This must be the dumbest comment yet.
Actually, for a town this size, I'm surprised that we have so many grocery stores, not to mention a Wal-Mart SuperCenter AND a Super Target.
Not that I'm complaining, because it is convenient location- and selection-wise, but I admit that it is surprising.
ehh, jackson, i disagree. to the original poster: I, too, was surprised by the amount of Hugo's when I came to grand forks. Especially with a SuperTarget and the newly expanded Walmart.. plus Sam's Club.. it does seem like supermarket overkill. Hugo's does decent business, though. Leever's may have closed, but the steady stream of Hugo's customers suggests that there is a demand for supermarkets that validates the number of them around here. Hugo's is a local, family-owned chain. No qualms from me about a local business trying to expand, or offer more convenient locations in order to compete with the big box stores way down on 32nd...
By the way, could someone explain the reason the commercial area and "downtown" are separated? Here, and in Fargo. I could see a possible answer in my own horror whenever someone suggests that a Walgreen's be opened up in downtown Grand Forks...
But, yuck. This means that the town has a charming area (downtown) and an ugly, box-building area (commercial)
hooray, i'm all for that. thanks, dale.
Humph, Muddys used to be a cool place to hang out, have a drink or two and eat - I always liked their wraps. My band even played there a handful of times. It's also where I had my first real conversation with the woman I eventually married. Too bad to hear it's going down hill.
not only is it going downhill, but it has had so many liquor law violations it is hit and miss lately when the place is even going to be open.
"WASHINGTON - At a cost of nearly $42 million, the IRS wants you to know: Your check is almost in the mail."
Hardly news, I s'pose...but is part of today's items.
Y'gotta love the leaders of this proud nation, with all the places to better spend an unimaginable amount of money, sending notices to everyone telling them to watch for the money.
I apologize in advance; you folks have been carrying on rather nicely in this blog as of late. It just gave me a chance to rant.
Last anon: Lewis Black did a hilarious bit on that the last time it happened. I guess the government can't take a hint, er... a slap across the face.
Ironically, both the Sunday sabbath, and the date set for Christmas, are steals from pagan Sun cults (hence SUNday).
I realized that I forgot to correct this misconception. The Christian practice of Sunday worship (aside from the Seventh Day Adventists) wasn't "stolen" from anyone.
It, like many Christian tenets, is based on the Hebrew Sabbath, which is from sundown Friday until sundown on Saturday. Jesus was crucified Friday afternoon, in order to not violate the Sabbath, and the first time anyone noticed he wasn't in his grave any more was Sunday morning (again, due to the Jewish belief of following Torah law regarding the Sabbath.) It's entirely possible that he was resurrected on Saturday, but no one would have known.
So it is likely that the early church settled on Sunday (reeshon in Hebrew, nary a "sun" in sight there) for the Sabbath due to the day of resurrection. It's also possible that it was chosen to separate it from the Jewish tradition -- the very early church was entirely Jewish converts, many of whom still followed Torah traditions.
The fact that we, in the English language, call it "Sunday" is due to the language (and Western civilization) coming from the Romans, who named the days after planets (the sun, considered to just be a big planet.) Monday is named for the moon, Tuesday for Mars (Latin for Tuesday is "Martis dies", or "Mars day".) Arguing that Sunday is named for some sort of pagan sun ritual kind of requires finding similar cults of the moon, Mars, Venus, and so on.
Christmas, on the other hand, is indeed celebrated around the same time as the winter solstice. Because the date of Christ's birth isn't known, a date for the celebration mass could be picked fairly arbitrarily, and simply replacing a non-religious festival with a religious one makes sense for a lot of pragmatic reasons.
You may save the polemic of "Jesus wasn't ever born, resurrected, or whatever" -- that's a matter of faith / belief / delusion, whatever you want to believe. I'm merely explaining some of the historic background surrounding Sabbath and other days.
Going to church makes you no more of a christian than standing in a garage makes you a car...
There's no point to that statement. Just something I ran across and found interesting.
*Clap* *Clap*
Dale, man, well said!
I get the whole "Christianity is just a rip-off of (insert random pagan religion)" thing all the time. Usually unprovoked.
All I have to do is merely casually mention that I'm going somewhere for Easter or Christmas, and it seems to give every atheist within 100 miles license to "educate" me on what a "sham" my religion is.
KSC...you make me proud.
Why do people from Grand Forks talk so funny? Just an observation from an Easterner.
Why are all easterners so cranky and grouchy? Every time I call "out east" to order something, they act like I'm intruding or they are doing me a big favor by selling me something.
Now that's "talking funny!"
:-)
Olive Garden.
For those that have traveled to or lived in other states, ND is not the only state with laws regarding Sunday opening. One state off the top of my head is Kentucky, so although some people don't like it, I wouldn't state matter of factly that it's the only state, when in fact it is not. In addition, just because retail does not open until noon on Sundays does not equate to the employees sleeping in. Most new ads start on Sundays, so the employees have to be to work at their normal time, i.e. 6am for Target and Wal-mart employees, to get the sale signs up, etc. I have friends that have worked retail and were still going to work at 6am on Sundays.
Does anyone purchase their groceries at Menards vs a grocery store? Any word how their grocery sales have been?
anon - Menards carries a very limited grocery section. There is no produce section, and it is all boxed things, frozen pizza and milk. (Hopefully) people are not using this section exclusively for their grocery shopping, but it is nice for the randon want when you are shopping in Menards.
anon - Menards carries a very limited grocery section. There is no produce section, and it is all boxed things, frozen pizza and milk. (Hopefully) people are not using this section exclusively for their grocery shopping, but it is nice for the randon want when you are shopping in Menards.
I just saw a commercial for Girl Scout cookies and it made me want some.... Anyone know where they are selling cookies in GF?
Caramel delights and thin mints are my favorites. Slightly chilled of course.
Frozen Samoas!!
Holy yum Batman!
Anyone know where they are selling cookies in GF?
I got some coming through a cookie connect at work, but I am not sure where to get the goods otherwise. Don't they hang outside the grocery stores around here at little guilt-laden tables? (you must buy some, even if you just got some yesterday!) I haven't seen that yet... but that's not surprising given the continued coldness. Maybe they'll be hitting us up soon in front of Walmart (well, actually, probably not in fromt of walmart, I am sure they must have some corporate policy against girl scout cookie solicitors).
Btw... seems like the names have changed on many of the olde standards. I am not a big fan of that, but as long as the recipe isn't subbing in some hydrogenated goop for grandma girl scout's OG recipe then I don't mind switching pace with the new incarnations.
I was thinking the same thing, I saw an ad for the GS cookies and I immediately started pondering where I could get some.
"I see no reason not to believe UND students when they say that binge drinking is a result of boredom. That doesn't make it right, but it does explain a major problem in Grand Forks: students have next to nothing to do but party."
I hate it when people use the excuse of boredom for their binge drinking. There are plenty of things to do in this town to prevent boredom. Go bowling, see a movie, go to the mall or any of the other fine retailers we have in Grand Forks, go down to the greenway. There's a ton to do down there in any season; walking, riding bike, frisbee golf, ice skating, sledding, cross country skiing and there's the new dog park. As for UND students, there's even more to do on campus especially at the Union. As a student at UND for 4 years, I found plenty to do to keep me out of trouble. Yes, I had the occasional night out drinking, but it was like once or twice a semester not once or twice a week, like some people I knew.
I say the real reason for binge drinking is laziness. For not taking two minutes to think of something else to do besides drink and for easily succumbing to peer pressure to engage in that dangerous habit.
Out of all the things mentioned above, how many can you really do after 10pm?
BTW...I really enjoyed my 5th straight weekend of bowling and movies!!!!!
Binge drinking is fun...and its got me laid on more than one occasion. Enough said.
Binge drinking is fun...and its got me laid on more than one occasion. Enough said.
In Minnesota, liquor stores cannot be open on Sundays.
I see no reason not to believe UND students when they say that binge drinking is a result of boredom. That doesn't make it right, but it does explain a major problem in Grand Forks: students have next to nothing to do but party. And that means primarily large quanties of beer. Brown may want to make the city a destination for Canadians and others, but for students all there is are parties.
Funny but no matter where you go in this country kids always say there is nothing to do.
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