Modern Vespa

Here in Frost Bite Falls Minnesota, I have had to either snow blow or hand shovel my driveway 5 times since last Saturday. Two weeks into Spring we are still fighting snow and freezing every night.

Our professional baseball team (Gave up a domed Stadium for a new open air stadium) is playing the Season Opener in 35 Degree F weather today. Adds a new meaning to the pitcher warming up before the game.

My riding group's first scheduled ride is in two weeks. In summary: After being spoiled by four mild Winters (More scooter riding), we are back to historically classic long Minnesota Winter Weather.

Ba Humbug,

Bullwinkle J Moose
Minnesota Twins Baseball Team

Spent 1.5 winters in Rochester and that was enough for me. Hated when the plows shoveled the snow back onto my driveway after I had already cleared it.

Well, the good news is...

...

...?

...it makes Idaho look good?

Doubt that does you much good, tho.

My husband sent me a photo of our driveway in Breck this morning with a "going skiing" note.

If you could blow a bit harder and send some my way - hasn't rained here for about 6 months.

My brother says he's been looking at his house in Google Street View just to see the green grass and trees. (sigh)

...and i was talking to a guy from twin cities yesterday here in Bangkok and he reckons that Minneapolis is the third most expensive city to live in NA.
More expensive than San Francisco or the real Vancouver.

Go figure or should that be go freize.

Waspmike,

We do have high State Income Tax. Perhaps the trade off is good decent
infrastructure (roads/schools/public works). Still, the tax is to high.

One Minnesota hallmark, the horrible winters keep the indigent and homeless population low. Nothing against the less fortunate, they simply go South.
Maybe they are smarter than the rest of us.

The historic Minnesota Scandinavian local culture of providing for public works feeds right into tax the heck out of you. King Haraldsen - Queen Sonja of Norway, and King Carl Gustaf of Sweden visit here annually to meet with their
ex-patriot population.

So, Yah Sure - Colder than a well diggers behind here.

Bullwinkle(son) J Moose
Frost Bite Falls Minnesota (17 degrees driving to work this morning)

With a median home price of $240,000 not even close. That's lower than Houston's $315,000.

San Francisco for comparison is $1.6 million
Vancover $1.4 million Canadian

Our Houston house goes on the market next week so I've been spending too much time looking at real estate comps and interviewing agents.

Our oldest son lives in Amarillo, TX where they went 118 days last i heard with no rain.

We are set here in KY to get a snow tonight that may set a sort of record.

I'm remembering when I was in H.S. in KS that one spring I was outside for track practice throwing the discus and it landed in the snow (think of skipping a rock on water) and took off for a cars w/s with exciting results. Seems it was late April but nearly 60 yrs ago makes it hard to remember. Before global warming???

Must be doing something right:

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2017/11/where-to-find-the-good-life/

Find that hard to believe.
Even articles I read despite the report. You can get a house for less than $300,000. You can't buy a Condo in Washington DC for that. Hell I am 30 miles outside Washington and you can't buy a 1 bed room cono for less than $300,000

Hawaii has to be in the top 5 most expensive places to live in the USA. About twice a year i hit Burger King for a whopper. Went the other day and handed the lady a $5. She then says it's $6.69 !! Another couple of bucks and i could of had a Kua'aina burger made with fresh meat and a fresh roll.

Aye, Hawaii is the only place I've ever visited where we've brought our own bran flakes.

TD the milk that goes on them is over $6 a gallon.

My county has zero fast food unless you count a local pizza place. More than a few of you would be sort of lost here for the typical stuff that's around you like retail, jobs, industry, entertainment venues, something besides trees and more trees...

[quote="Kantuckid"]My county has zero fast food unless you count a local pizza place. More than a few of you would be sort of lost here for the typical stuff that's around you like retail, jobs, industry, entertainment venues, something besides trees and more trees...
Milks $2.23 @ wally next county over but a 50k RT. ~$3 @ Dollar General & IGA here-the only food store in the whole county.

Judy,

Obviously, you have to import a whole lot. The price of living in Paradise.
I meet a gentleman running our tourist snorkeling boat in Hawaii. He had visited Hawaii 20 years earlier as a tourist and never went home.

Plus, you get to scoot all year.

Bob Copeland
Minnesota

Not as high as California at 13.%
New York state has the highest total tax burden when you combine property, sales and income taxes.

FWIW, Minnesota come in #5 on the total tax burden list.

Houston milk is $2.97 a gallon.

Yeah, but you get poi.

MS YUCK. Wouldn't make a good Hawaiian. Altho it is good for you.

...and our report from the Scandinavia proper: so do we.

I dug my lil' one out today for the first time.
Did not install the battery yet, but did some dusting up after the winter.
Soon, soon....

Post some pics please of your rides in the forest. I'd love to see them. I'm glad that it's almost ready to ride for you.

Cool ride RRider! I mean the MC. Snow coming yet again here in KY tonite...

I can't take it any more! It's time to get the bikes out of hibernation -- even if it starts snowing again before I can actually ride them.

Freeze dried tulips in our yard...

Will do!

Here's a sample in vid form - not very nice from scenery viewpoint, but gives an idea what I use this bike for.

This was literally a shortcut that saved me 15km on a dull road. The forest around looks pretty boring, because it had been recently logged quite a bit. I knew about this and took advantage of the forest machine & tractor path. Just decided to switch the GoPro on...

Cool video. I can see how the larger wheels of your bike compared with a Vespa would help traversing those forest trails.

Whoa, that's serious snow, not just a residual dusting!

If it helps, after my Friday ride it's simply dumped rain and blown 30 mph winds all weekend....

Is that better or worse than 25" of fresh snow since Thurday morning?

Not snow but RAIN Lots and lots of RAIN. I got caught in a really torrential downpour yesterday. It was raining so hard it was ponding on the roads. The water went thru my wheel spokes. Bad karma to the asshats who think it's funny to hit the ponding like a bat outta hell and have the wave of water hit me. Very easy to kill somebody that way. I have a couple of gulches i have to go thru to get home. Needless to say i arrived home soaked and cold. So glad i have a Heidenau all weather tire on the rear. I felt it grabbing for traction a couple of times. Also my ribbed grips allowed me to have a firm grip since i don't wear gloves. Since i live in the country the road was covered with our red dirt. Which when rained on turns to something akin to black ice.

Thanks Kantuckid! I've been told its a sofa with wheels, but I like it.

Watching the Astros play in Minnesota tonight and it was 35 at game time. The sportscasters stated that a game last week had to be postponed on a account of snow.

Watching the Astros play in Minnesota tonight and it was 35 at game time. The sportscasters stated that a game last week had to be postponed on a account of snow.

I live north of Minnesota so I'm not feeling sorry for ya.