Regina: The Saga Begins

Starting last Friday, myself and my colleague -- henceforth to be referred to by the clever pseudonym "Rachel" -- headed for the sprawling metropolis known as Regina, Saskatchewan, for the fabulous Industrial Problem Solving Workshop at the University of Regina.

We went by way of the Twin Cities -- it was actually cheaper to drive all the way down and fly out of Minneapolis, than to fly out of lovely Houghton International-state Airport. It was also a chance to hang out with our mutual friend, whose name I shall describe as "Rob".

We spent Saturday morning at some of the local lakes where Rob sails. Rob was dock captain ("I get to yell at people and make them do what I tell them!"), while I wandered around taking photos of the boats.

In a terrifying foreshadowing of the future which was yet to happen (yes, I know what I wrote), I ran into these two ducks poking their evil little noses around the lake shore. I would be seeing many of their comrades in the coming days. They might look cute, but their mad little eyes betray their true nature. (YouTube video is weird, but I love the song.)

In the meantime, Rachel was running a 5k race for fun (I know, I can't believe it either). After all that, we had dinner at a pizza joint called Punch. Calling it a "pizza joint" doesn't exactly do it justice -- these pizzas were amazing. They were covered in ingredients like spinach, feta cheese, grape tomatoes, and smoked ham, and then cooked in a wood-fired brick oven for a few seconds. I had mine with a Surly beer (also local, also amazing).

In the evening, we took a bike ride through the Twin Cities, along a path which is part of the "Grand Rounds" tour. It was pretty grand -- Minneapolis is supposed to be the second most bike-friendly city in the US, and I can believe it. We went 20 miles and hardly crossed a street -- and we were never on a street! The Cities have really spoiled me for Houghton roads now!

More to follow, as the saga continues...