Twinsight 46 of 50: Eat Your Way Across the Twin Cities

What's your favorite Twin Cities restaurant? We're no NYC, but for a Midwestern, smallish U.S. city, I think we have a nice variety of restaurants. Here's a list of some of my favorites along with favorites of friends who responded to a question I asked on Facebook. I love places with fresh, flavorful, healthful food and a nice ambiance for having a good conversation so you'll probably detect that bent in this list.

New Favorites

• Spoonriver - Downtown Minneapolis next to the Guthrie. Wonderful new restaurant I went to yesterday for the first time. Owned by Brenda Langton. (Remember Cafe Brenda?) Gourmet, contemporary, natural food that was presented so beautifully that I had to take it all in for several minutes before I started eating.
• Rosa Mexicano - Downtown Minneapolis. Fresh contemporary Mexican. Must try the fresh guac that they make at your table.

 Great Food, Great Ambiance

• Blvd Kitchen - Minnetonka. "Urban loft meets European farmhouse." Heidi's favorite.
• Biella - Excelsior. Quaint spot for an intimate dinner. 
• Broders - Minneapolis. Authentic Italian. Lisa's favorite.
• Cafe Latte - St. Paul. Come for the salads, stay for the desserts.
• Egg and I - St. Paul & Minneapolis. Classic breakfast spot. Lucinda's favorite.
• Haute Dish - Minneapolis. Creative twist on the basics. Lisa's favorite.
• Lucias - Uptown Minneapolis. Creative menu that changes weekly. Jane's favorite.
• Meritage - Downtown St. Paul. French cooking with local ingredients. Rebecca's favorite.
• Oceanaire - Downtown Minneapolis. Even more appetizing if someone else is picking up the tab. Both Joel's and Phil's favorite.
• Sample Room - Minneapolis. Wide range of plates you can share. Rebecca's favorite.
• Solera - Downtown Minneapolis. Great array of Spanish tapas. Rebecca's favorite.
• Travail Kitchen - Robbinsdale. DeLonn said that it's a fabulous place for a special night out. 

Favorite Standbys

• Big Bowl - Minnetonka, Edina, Roseville. Just good fresh Asian.
• Chipotle - All over. Steve's favorite, and our family's choice spot after church.
• Good Day Cafe - Golden Valley. Great breakfast food at any time. Worth it just for the popovers and pistachio butter.
• Good Earth - Edina and Roseville. My all-around favorite place to eat, other than at home.
• Lord Fletchers - Spring Park. Best summer lake hang out.
• Punch Pizza - All over. Our family's favorite pizza spot.
• Starbucks, Caribou and Dunn Bros - All over. Love all the Chai tea places we have. (I hear some people go there for coffee.)
• Zelo - Downtown Minneapolis. Always good business lunch spot.
• Yum - Uptown Minneapolis. Fun atmosphere and exceptional desserts.

Bon appetit!

Twinsight 45 of 50: Navigate the Rapids of Change

Cleaning out my office before our move

I love change.  Wait, let me clarify. I love change when it means something new and exciting, and I choose what it is…when it happens…what it involves…how it affects me. Yes, it’s all about me. Change by choice. Yes, that’s more like it! It’s refreshing to choose to get involved a new project that I’ve been looking forward to working on, get a change of scenery and temp by going on a warm-weather vacation about now, or spend time getting to know a new friend.

But what about change and the associated transitions that I didn’t choose…or didn’t expect…or might like but not right now…or never stop coming? Now, that can lead to change fatigue and be exhausting mentally, emotionally and physically.

I really have done my part to keep life reasonably steady in the last couple of years. Same husband. Same kids. Same house. Same job. But then there’s been unexpected change...not all bad, but not on my plan—a new parent company for my firm, lots to learn in my work with health care reform, new neighbors, the loss of some people I was close to, the economic downturn with all its ripples, the exponential growth of social media and the associated messages coming at us, a daughter moving to college, a new volunteer task force, and on and on. Even though I desire to move forward, something in me still wants to hang on to the musical chair behind me. It’s not that I want everything to be slow and boring. It’s just that the pace and sheer volume of change can leave me feeling like a gerbil on a wheel that eventually propels me into bed each night.

My coworkers and I are in the process of packing up our offices to move to a different location. Yesterday afternoon when I was packing and pitching files, I had a mental flashback to the day I walked into that office space on my first day with the company 14 years ago—actually almost to the day that we’ll move. In some ways, that day seems like yesterday. In other ways, so much has changed in the business world and in my personal life that it seems like a lifetime ago. But now it’s time for a physical change and the opportunity to get to know people in other parts of our business in our new location. So it’s exciting in many respects, but still change.

So how can we elegantly navigate life through the rapids of change? At times, I take it in stride. Other times, I become unglued! I honestly don’t have the answers and would love to here what’s working for you. Here are some things I’m learning:

• REMEMBER and process the past. Shakespeare once wrote, "He that lacks time to mourn, lacks time to mend." In the normal course of my life, I'm consciously allowing myself to think back to the days when our girls were around more, grieve my friend, Nancy, and even miss the good ol' days when the pace of change seemed more manageable. I'm finding that it's important for me to reflect back so I can move forward.
• PROCESS with friends who understand. We're not alone. Wahoo! Sometimes it's helpful just to vent and find out what works for others.
• STAY steady in who I am—my faith, my values, my family. Irene Peter, an American epigrammmatist (whatever that is!), once wrote,  “Just because everything is different doesn’t mean that anything has changed.” I remember once asking my dad why he had so many routine habits and why he kept his office and closets so neat and decluttered. He said it was because so much of owning a business and farming was out of his control so he controlled what he could to offset the uncertainty. For the first time in my life, I understand what he meant.
• MOVE forward in the face of uncertainty. I'd prefer complete clarity and certainty before moving forward. Like that's going to happen! In an article on the HBR Blog Network, Rosabeth Moss Kanter suggests that, "Uncertainty is one of the primary reasons that people resist change...Motivating people to try something new, or to get on with innovation is tough when the rules of the game are up in the air." The truth is that I need to make decisions, lead and follow in the rapids of life. I find that it helps to have some semblance of a plan. I know it will change, but editing seems less daunting than starting from scratch at any hint of change.

What works for you in navigating change?

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Twinsight 44 of 50: Ask Yourself, "What Would Nancy Do?"

Nancy Quinnell: 1960 - 2012

i'm in abbott. you could visit. new tough info. short on time in the world.

That's the text I received from my friend, Nancy, from the hospital a week ago Thursday (1/5 @ 10:45 am). We had planned to have lunch the next day at the Good Earth, the only place we ever had lunch. I'm thinking we had met there about 100 times (25 years x 4 times a year...yeah, that's about right). We only rescheduled under extreme circumstances. And this was really extreme. Nancy was dying after only a little over a year of battling cancer. Her body started rapidly failing and her amazing family surrounded her to say their goodbyes. She died the next day.

I had no idea how hard it would be to lose such a dear friend, particularly the human Energizer bunny who never met a challenge that she didn't take on with gusto. I hope heaven was prepared because I expect she's rockin' the heavenly places. Now I'm reminded of her at every turn - when I looked at the book on my night stand (which was one of 70+ books that our book club of four couples has read together...or at least skimmed during hectic months), when I made roasted sweet potatoes last night (which she turned me on to), when I grabbed spices (which she alphabetized), when I saw someone's bald head (which she took in stride), when we were deciding to go to the later church service (which she said was for slackers), and when our dog, Pabby, licked the tears from my face after I heard she had died (which reminded me of the way she always cupped his face in her hands and said, "Oh Pabs").

Right now it's all very raw - for her family as well as the hundreds of us who loved her. I'm so grateful for all the great memories I have of her. Here are just a few.

1998: Book club friends with kids swimming at the Siemons -
Joyce, Dawn, Christina, Caroline, Grace, me, Chloe, Nancy & Abby

1999: Photo for Tastemakers column in the Star Tribune...they selected Nancy's Red Snapper recipe to feature -
Karen, me, Nancy & Joyce

2008: Nancy loving their Lake Vermilion cabin when our whole group and our families stayed there for a weekend

2008: Celebrating Nancy & Tim's 25th anniversary - Nancy, Tim & Joyce (front); Scott, Steve, me, Karen & Jay (back)

2009: Celebrating Christina's Sweet 16 with our daughters (a book club tradition) -
Abby, Nancy, Christina, Karen, me, Leah & Chloe

2010: Celebrating Nancy's 50th - Joyce, me, Karen & Nancy

2011: Celebrating my 50th - Nancy, Tim, me, Scott, Steve, Jay & Karen

I’ve been thinking about what Nancy would do if our roles were reversed… and what she would say to all of us about how to spend the limited time we have on earth. Here’s what I think she’d say:

·    Love People, Animals and the Earth. Do something in your community that helps someone else. Be an advocate. Never compare yourself to others. Surround yourself with humans and critters of all shapes and sizes who can make you better every day. Enjoy making flavorful, healthy food with them and for them. Do your part for the environment by recycling and reusing perfectly good stuff.

·    Just Do It, For Crying Out Loud. Live life to the fullest. Push yourself to be your best. Don’t spin your wheels. Be decisive. Get to the heart of the matter and act on it. Create efficient systems so you waste as little time as possible. Stay in shape. Use failures to improve. Take the lead when leadership is needed. Get on the solution side. Focus on what you can impact. Find work-a-rounds to barriers.

·    Live Your Values. Start by knowing God and trusting that He will be there in the best and worst of circumstances. Fight for what’s right, even if it’s not popular. Do everything with integrity. Don’t think of yourself as better than anyone else. Stay positive. Keep the faith. Understand that in the end, that’s all that matters.

Oh, Nancy Carol. You've left a tall order. You packed more life into 50 years than most of us could into 100. We'll see each other again in eternity. In the meantime, your earthly legacy will inspire me every day.

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Twinsight 43 of 50: Keep a Running Dialogue with God

Friends from a Westwood prayer group:
Rebecca (and Kingston who born within days of this photo), Mary, me and Crystal

I grew up going to church, and it grounded me in many ways. For one thing, the importance of being faithful to the God who created me and loves me unconditionally was modeled. My dad grew up in the days when dressing up for church was an important symbol of reverence. He always wore a suit, didn’t ever miss a Sunday that I can remember, and was never late. One Sunday when I was about 12, I overslept and he and mom just left without me in lieu of being late. (I think she felt a little bad about it.) I was never late again! I also learned how important it is to love and serve the people around you as Christ did. I can recount literally hundreds of ways that I saw people serve one another in quiet, humble, yet meaningful ways during my growing-up years. I am grateful for this underpinning in my life.

But for some reason, I didn’t quite get the prayer thing. To me, prayer was language that someone else had written that I could repeat while half asleep and it was often far, far from what was really going on inside me. It was tune-out time. I did, however, learn how to send up 911 prayers—you know, when there was an “emergency” and I desperately wanted to God to fix something—NOW!

I can’t remember the precise moment when I started genuinely desiring to pray and have a running dialogue with God during my day. Maybe it was when we were trying to figure out if adoption was right for our family or when I faced work situations in which I felt way over my head (and probably was). Or maybe it was when I was coming to grips with the fact that my parents weren’t long for this world or feeling flawed and ill-prepared to raise strong, godly girls in this crazy world. I guess my growth has been, and continues to be, a gradual process. And that’s how God is. He doesn’t hit us over the head and knock sense into us (although we probably all could use that treatment at times). He is patient, loving and merciful and redirects us over time as we seek His best for our lives and direction through the ebbs and flows of daily life. Wow, I love that about Him.

Through all these situations and more, prayer has become critically important in my life—my lifeline, in many ways. It:

·    Puts me in the flow of what God and His Spirit are doing around me. In The Me I Want to Be,  John Ortberg writes, “Prayer, more than any other single activity, is what places us in the flow of the Spirit. When we pray, hearts get convicted, sin gets confessed, believers get united, intentions get encouraged, people receive guidance, the church is strengthened, stubbornness gets melted, wills get surrendered, evil gets defeated, grace gets released, illness gets healed, sorrows are comforted, faith is born, hope is grown, and love triumphs. In prayer—in the presence of God—we come closest to being fully ourselves.”

·    Gives me moment-to-moment strength and grounds me in his presence. In a little book called Perfect Trust, Chuck Swindoll writes, “Strength comes from choosing to fully trust, pray, and praise. Our circumstances may not change, but in the process we change.”  Some days—even this morning—I wake up and start to go into panic mode about something that’s concerning me about my day or have an ongoing uneasiness about something that’s lurking under surface of my life. Because I can fall out of trust so easily, I have learned that I need to discipline myself to wake up and immediately start my day praying about what He wants to accomplish through me in my day and for specific people He has put in my path. I put a daily alert on my phone with my prayer list so I don’t forget, and often write out my prayers and what I’m sensing God is saying so I don’t get distracted. I’ve been very high maintenance for God to train!

·    Bonds me with others like nothing else can. One of the deepest joys in my life comes from praying with others—one-on-one with a friend, more formally with a group, or with an attender who wants someone to pray with after services at our church.  When I think about some of our best times as a family, my mind’s eye goes to the four of us spralled out on our bed or sitting in our living room praying about something—a decision, a project, a friend…and together waiting and trusting.

Sometimes I am amazed at how the God of the universe wants to have a moment-to-moment relationship with me. I can’t see Him, but I know He’s there. And when He feels really far away, I know it’s more important than ever to restart the dialogue since He's not the one who has moved.

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