Let's see, last time I checked, clothes were basics. Maybe I'm a little out there for preferring hemp or organic cotton to the stuff grown with massive amounts of pesticides, but they're still clothes.
Also, last time I checked, Dinkytown is still part of Minneapolis, as is Hennepin Ave. South and Johnson St. If people really want to know about my basics like TP and toothpaste and laundry detergent, well, I get those at Mississippi Market, along with my groceries, for four more months until the Eastside Food Coop opens about seven blocks from me. It'll be nice to walk to the market again like I did with my mom as a kid. Keith is certainly correct that I am a single person. I make $39,000 a year, so yes, I have some discretionary income. And I try to spend as much of it as possible in the city, which sometimes means St. Paul. And yes, Sears is a big box, but as I've admitted before, there are some cases where a big box makes sense. Appliances would be one of them, though if I find a small appliance store in the city like the one that used to be on Central Ave, I'd shop there instead. If anyone has suggestions, I'd love to hear them since I'll probably be looking for a refrigerator soon. MY whole point against big boxes is that there seems to be a fixation that they are the only solution to what ails West Broadway and the Northside and I think that's a pretty poor approach to take. I failed to mention any of my dollars being spent on the Northside because for the almost two years I've been participating in this Forum, I've heard only, "There's nothing on the Northside, the Northside sucks, the few stores around are dirty, with bad service and understocked, everyone has to go out to Robbinsdale or Brooklyn Park or come Northeast to get their groceries, their clothes, anything above and beyond toothpaste or TP." So why should I waste my time going to where there's supposedly nothing but vacant storefronts and a crappy Target that's closing in a month? If I wanted to shop at Target, there's one less than a half a mile from me at the Quarry. But here's a tip, if you want to get people to shop in your area, share some GOOD things that might draw us. I suppose I could've mentioned the liking I've taken to AJ's Smokehouse, but I've only been there twice so I can't really call it a part of my routine yet. Is Friedman's Shoes still open? My sneakers are starting to get pretty worn. I think I remember hearing something good about a hardware store on Penn and Lowry - maybe I could check them out since I hate Home Depot. But more big boxes aren't going to draw me to the Northside. Maybe something unique will. It's kind of like that guy that wrote in the Strib recently about Block E - why should he make the effort to go downtown for Border's and Applebee's when he's got those kinds of places back home in Eden Prairie or wherever he lives? As far as Jerry's Cub coming to West Broadway, I hope it works out and I hope the Houston's Market across the street thrives when it opens next month. The jobs are certainly needed. But I won't be shopping there or at any Cub Foods if I can help it. Not when there will be a lot better place for me to get my groceries that's a lot closer to me. Mark Snyder Windom Park Hitting the sack now so I can get up for the NE Farmer's Market on Saturday morning - http://www.eastsidefoodcoop.org/farmersmarket.htm TEMPORARY REMINDER: 1. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. 2. If you don't like what's being discussed here, don't complain - change the subject (Mpls-specific, of course.) ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
