day 3

Today was another intentional short riding day.  I was staying in Duluth, MN with my aunt Karen and uncle Dan.  I needed to exchange some Duluth Trading Co. pants and check out the Aerostich store, where I picked up a few small items for my trip.  I also stopped at Aerostich on my last trip to pick up an additional Ortlieb dry duffel bag (the red one in the pictures of my bike).  After so much riding on relatively flat roads, it was a bit of a challenge dealing with the hills of downtown Duluth (http://attic.areavoices.com/2012/04/09/the-steepest-streets-in-duluth/).

In addition to these errands, I also planned on visiting my 98  year old grandmother and my aunt Kathy.  Karen and I visited my grandmother just after lunch.  She is still very lucid for being 98 (almost 2 1/2 times my age) and was very inquisitive of what is going on in my life and with my family.  She keeps busy with her bridge clubs (she usually wins) and making jewelry.  She makes earrings and beaded bracelets and necklaces.  Some of the beading is so intricate that I don’t think I could even do it.  Later in the day we met Kathy at her house before going to dinner, and I got to see more of her intricate basket weaving skills.  Her latest baskets are made with pine needles.  Her husband David and their son Doug were on a fishing trip in Canada, but their dog Mattie was more than willing to let me rub her ears and belly.  I guess she likes men; sounds like some other dogs I know.  We then had a nice dinner at the Lighthouse at Emily’s in Knife River.  It’s interesting to hear the different variations in stories between my two aunt’s and my father.