The "Minnesota Project" was spawned perhaps 20 years ago when my parents, Grace and Ken, started collecting rocks from counties that they traveled through. To begin, we started the project consisting of a concrete map of Minnesota with the counties outlined by placing galvanized nails head-by-head at the county lines. My brother-in-law, Bob, made the plans and printed the map so we could place the nails in the right places. My dad built the frame earlier in the week and on Saturday, June 2nd we poured the cement, and in an hour of concentrated effort by us kids, grandkids and extended families, placed each nail to form the county lines. My mom placed the first nail, indicated by the red ribbon, at the southwest corner of the state. The frame is 7'x7' and we used approximately 10 lbs of nails to complete the job. The next phase will include the formation of rivers and the epoxying of rocks collected from each county, to be place in their respective county locations on the map. Click on the photos below to see larger versions of these images.
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June 3rd, 2007 |
June 9th, 2007 - the paper map is off |
June 18th, 2007 - 30 rocks in place |
Stuff about me: I am married to DeAnna, some of whose recipes grace this page below. We have a son, Dan who returned from Minnesota in April to start a family and help his dad. I work at Minntronix, a company that manufactures magnetic components located in Watertown, SD USA, and also at Data Truck, a wireless Internet provider in Watertown. I played in RockIt Science, a band in the Watertown area that disbanded in Dec, 2007.. I also administrate the web site for an event that is also Watertown residents' best reason to clean out their attics, the annual Sunrise Drive Rummage Sale. Need to find our house (15 Sunrise Dr.)? Here's a list of South Dakota counties and their respective license plate prefix numbers.
The Monarch Butterflies came through a few years ago.. Turns out we're evidently in their annual migration path, although this year was particularly spectacular. I have a photo and YouTube video clip for those devoted to this. We're newbies to this, but the activity in our backyard may eventually prove to be our learning ground. There were many more Monarchs than those shown in the small-screen images. My photographic skills don't do them justice.
We recently purchased a new Dell Dimension 3000 for DeAnna for a very reasonable price, but the cooling system cowling covering the fan isn't secured to anything and makes a lot of noise. A wadded up paper towel served to fix the noisy fan problem.
A favorite comic strip of mine by Peter
Kuper. But here's another one,
relevant to people who play music in public.
I am a ham radio operator, call letters: N0DL, and have been active in that hobby since 1973.
Amateur Radio Operators: download the Microsoft PowerPoint (Office97) Telephone Interference Seminar here. I gave this seminar at the 1999 Dakota Division Convention here in Watertown, SD. If you don't have Microsoft Office97 you'll need to download the PowerPoint viewer from the Microsoft web site.
Information on Camper's Paradise near Nevis, MN (where we have vacationed for many years). This year we saw a Toga Party!
You may reach me via e-mail at: me@davelevasseur.com.
Recipes |
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| Jambalaya Soup recipe (see also the Jambalaya Recipe in the next block over) | Deb's Grilled Steak and Asparagus Salad | Our Basil Chicken and Pasta with Roma Tomatoes recipe |
| Here's a good salsa recipe | Here's a great Jambalaya Recipe, and a link to a similar recipe for Gumbo | DeAnna's Pasta Salad Recipe |
| Here's Mike Tallmon's Pico de Gallo Recipe | And here is Karen's "Good for Anything" marinade recipe | The "famous" Flank Steak Sandwich recipe |
| The nearly famous Chicken Salad recipe | From my Brazilian adventures, the Caipirinha recipe | Ed's "Frontier" jerky recipe. (Beef, venison, or what-have-you) |
| Will's Bacon-Wrapped Serrano Recipe | ||
Audio Tech Types: JVC Compulink files viewed using a soundcard.
Dave's Package Tracking Page (links to many carriers' tracking pages - to save on mouse clicks)
Click here for the rules for Six-Card "Racehorse" Pinochle.
Click here for the rules for Eight-Card six-player "Racehorse" Pinochle.
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