Lanesboro's Commonweal Theatre

Sylvia is an outrageous comedy that challenges everything we know about love, sex, relationships and the meaning of life. A financial trader facing career burn-out adopts a stray dog who turns his home, life and marriage upside-down. Commonweal’s Sylvia includes a woman playing a dog and a man playing two women. That makes the play sound merely silly, but it turns out to be a fresh, entertaining and ultimately rewarding production (read the full review).  Sylvia runs through August 19.

Playing opposite Sylvia is Little Shop of Horrors.  Seymour is a lonely flower shop clerk living on Skid Row when an unusual talking plant – with a very unusual appetite – promises him fortune and fame…at a price. Don’t miss this smash hit musical comedy! Little Shop of Horrors was a Broadway and Hollywood hit, and with good reason.  The music is an irrisistible combination of girl group-pop and ’60s R&B, given a showtune polish.  The comedy is twisted, but is not threatening (read the full review).  Little Shop runs through October 28.

Starting August 26th is “To Kill a Mocking Bird” based on a novel by Harper Lee and adapted by Christopher Sergel.  The warmth of childhood and the bitter loss of innocence surround one woman’s recollections of growing up in the South during the Depression and the summer her father risked everything to defend a black man falsely accused of a horrible crime.  To Kill a Mockingbird plays through November 13th.

Make your visit to Lanesboro complete by staying in an MBBA member inn.   Lanesboro’s innkeepers have their welcome mat ready and waiting for your arrival.   When you stay at the Hillcrest Hide-Away Bed and Breakfast your stay includes a just-baked loaf of home-made bread delivered to your room each morning, plus a hearty breakfast.  Hillcrest guests may redeem a voucher for a $5 discount to the Commonweal Theatre.

At this year’s annual conference the MBBA elected a new President, Shannon McKeeth of New Ulm (Bingham Hall Bed and Breakfast), Vice President David Vipond of Duluth (Ollcot House Bed & Breakfast), Secretary Carol Eggert of Lanesboro, (Hillcrest Hideaway Bed & Breakfast), and Treasurer Zig Gudrais of  Red Wing (Candlelight Inn). Along with these new board positions, the MBBA hired a new Executive Director, Kim Janke of New Ulm.

According to McKeeth, “The overall message of the gathering was to continue to improve the B & B industry with new methods of social marketing (twitter, Face Book, blog, website updates, google analysis, etc.) These skills are necessary to keep ahead of the marketing curve. The trend is that in a sluggish economy vacationing close to home is popular, practical, and safe. This certainly points to B & B opportunities.

The Minnesota Bed and Breakfast Association is a non-profit organization whose aim is promoting the state’s Quality Assured member inns as well as offering support, networking and education for innkeepers. Organized in 1985 with 12 members, the Association now has 91 members The Assocaition sponsors a conference annually, Aspiring Innkeepers workshops and other Association programs to discuss member’s needs. A guidebook is available online to download or by mail from www.minnesotabb.org.

Should you want to emulate Minnesota innkeepers’ cooking for breakfast or dinner,  a fine book for “grazing” is The Minnesota Homegrown Cookbook published and organized by the creative inspriring nonprofit Renewing the Countryside. They have specialized in promoting small sustainable operations way before it became popular.     

Local food, local restaruants, local inns, local recipes

Try to imagine a meal (AM or PM ) more comforting than Featherbed Eggs, maple syrup glazed ham and rhubarb muffins and then finished off with Minnesota Chocolate Cake. Why is it called Minnesota Chocolate cake? Because one of the ingredients is a cup of good strong Minnesota roasted coffee (leftover from breakfast perhaps)  This menu from Ellery House in Duluth uses nearby Joel Rosen’s Park Lake Farm products.

Then imagine Maple Pecan French Toast slathered with local berries and syrup from the maple tree just outside the window of the Loghouse and Homestead in Vergas Minnesota. Sausages might be a potato sausage or a smoked country sausage also made and obtained locally or Suzanne Tweton’s own wild rice sausage. Hungry for another culinary adventure , try the seclections from Dancing Winds Farmstay (Asparagus with goat cheese and morels on fettuccine and yes the morels are from nearby forests and the the goat cheese from of course the goats at Dancing Winds); or how about an entree from Scandinavian Inn in Lanesboro (vegetarian quiche) ; or Classic Rosewood Inn in Hastings (wild rice zucchini pancakes with roasted green beans with sun dried tomatoes, goat cheese and olives on the side).      

Hungry yet? You have a few options: Buy the book and get cooking OR buy the book and simply enjoy a good read. Another couple options: tour the MBBA website for your next getaway. You might search for the inns with the Green Journey labels who at very least have a Green policy in place and visit their individual sites to see what that means to them and for you. Know that all the MBBA inns serve a wonderful breakfast and many innkeepers would share their “secrets” so you can emulate for breakfast or dinner at home. Another nice option and a really fun cookbook is the one produced by the Minnesota B & B Association and avaialable from this website. It is More Minnesota Mornings and Beyond.

Purchase online from this website

Inns participating in the “Green Journey Program” are on a journey to decrease their environmental footprint and operate their businesses in a socially responsible manner. Participants realize that being environmental and socially responsible, is the right thing to do, good for the environment and the community. Members of MBBA’s Green Committee, which developed this program, do not see reaching a fix goal but rather a journey whereby each year participants seek to advance their environmental level of achievements.

Under this program Bed and Breakfasts are awarded up to five Green Leaves and one additional green plus symbols (+) based upon their level of participation. Five green leaves and a green + represent the highest level of green achievement.

Many Green Journey inns have also been recognized as a green-friendly-sustainable businesses by  “Green Routes,” a Minnesota based independent non-profit authentic travel self-certification program.  Green Journey Inns so recognized also display the Green Routes logo.

Currently over half of the hundred and four MBBA member inns are enrolled in the Green Journey program.

According to Young, “The overall message of the gathering was that occupancy is improving and will continue to improve for the B & B industry and methods of social marketing (twitter, Face book, blogs etc.) are necessary to keep ahead of the curve.  The trend is that in a sluggish economy vacationing close to home is popular, practical and safe. This certainly points to B & B opportunities.”

The conference featured workshops promoting packaging with trails and birding; methods of adding value to inn’s offerings and diversification of small business. Additional workshop leaders included a pastry chef; a photography business owner; a health department expert; an energy resource consultant; a marketing guru and a bird guide.

Green Journey the Association’s new green self-certification program was  “kicked-off” at the conference. This unique program – the first Green Lodging certification program in Minnesota -  awards from one up to five green leaves for varying degrees of sustainability for member owners of B&Bs. Innkeepers will be encouraged to keep making green improvements to their property in practical ways to improve their rating.

The venue Crowne Plaza in Brooklyn Center was in fact chosen partially based on its green initiatives. According to Pam Thorsen, the Association’s director, “We were impressed with their recycling, their energy savings and their willingness to work with us in not serving bottled water for example.”

Many of the vendors at the event also were offering practical “green” solutions to innkeeper’s needs.”

According to Young, “This was of one of our finest conferences.  Through our workshops and vendors, we gained even more knowledge on improving and promoting  our businesses and how we as innkeepers can better work together to improve all our businesses. In addition, I think I can speak for all who attended this year’s conference, we certainly had a great time.”

The Minnesota Bed and Breakfast Association is a non-profit organization whose aim is promoting the state’s Quality Assured member inns as well as offering support, networking and education for innkeepers. Organized in 1985 with 12 members, the Association now has 115 members The Association sponsors a conference annually, webinars at least monthly and is planning regional workshops promoting Green Journey, other Association programs and to discuss members needs.  A guidebook is available online to download or by mail from www.minnesotabb.org.

And one of the great annual events during this beautiful season is coming up this weekend, January 29th.  Events for the John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon begin this Friday, January 29th and runs to February 4th.  One of the favorite and most popular events is the Cutest Puppy Contest on Saturday, January 30th.  This is so adorable and a must see to help kick off the 27th Annual Event!  So consider “embracing” what the beauty of this season, Duluth, and the A G Thomson House have to offer you on your next trip to Duluth! See you soon!!!

Sand, Sand, more Sand..................on the Paul Bunyan Trail

Looking toward the bridge over the Kabekona River on the Paul Bunyan Bike Trail.

More sand on the Paul Bunyan Trail getting ready to be paved

The Paul Bunyan Bike Trail is yet another step closer to the long awaited completion.  These pictures were taken on the trail about 500 feet from Embracing Pines Bed & Breakfast near Walker, MN.  When completed the trail will cross the Heartland Trail so you will be able to ride for 4 different directions without moving your vehicle when you start at Embracing Pines!  Watch for updates as they are available.

This year’s Annual Meeting entitled “Its Inn to be Green” spotlighted developing green sustainable Inns. The meeting featured seminars offering green programs from “Using Renewable Energy,” “What B&B’s are doing to be Green,” to “worm composting.” Meanwhile venders were hawking green and other use innkeeper produces throughout the two-day meeting.  Other seminar topics included marketing, table setting, and more provided useful information.  One new program unveiled at the meeting was a State promoted farm and forest stays where guests would be able to visit and stay at working farms and forested woodlots.

According to Young, “Duluth provide a great venue for this year’s annual meeting, the seminars were outstanding and the many venders in attendances offered us many useful products. But most importantly we had a wonderful time!”

The MBBA represents some one hundred and twenty B&B and Historic Inns from throughout Minnesota.