Legalectric

Greetings from Duluth!

Moorhead Thursday, Duluth Friday, if I were still driving that KW, I’d have made some real money this week!

I’m visiting Sadie, friend and roommate from ages ago, back from my prestigeous E. Phillips days. First and foremost, Sadie’s a writer, and has one book under her belt so far, and she has also been a union organizer and worked at the Riverside Cafe for a coon’s age. Anyone who did anything political back then knows her, and knew her dog Charisma, who successfully fled persecution and prosecution for not wearing her leash by ducking into North Country Hardware! Sadie and I first met when we worked at General Hospital, even further back, and other co-workers there, who’ve since morphed and resurfaced, included David Bly, Steve Miles and James Kravig.

Sadie’s a bus driver now, and I got a guided tour of scenic Superior’s Billings Park neighborhood.

And she and Laura and Sammy have a new house — moving up in the world. Back during the Minnesota Arrowhead hearing, they provided a home for my client, Linda Hanson, and I, and put up with us through two weeks of “officing” in the garage on a door and crates — now that’s a friend! Well, plus the dog has pointed ears…

And next, the Arrowhead line. As I flew down the hill into Duluth, there it was, and it is butt ugly. Sticks up WAY over the treeline, ugly brown rusty never-needs-painting Cor-Ten steel against the sky. Photos — get ready!

This first one was taken on a Midway Township road to show what it looks like to the local residents:

This one below was taken on another Midway Township road showing the view up the right of way:

This next one was taken on Midway Road, which runs parallel to the Willard Munger Trail, the trail is on the left, behind the row of trees and just under the “unobtrusive” transmission line. W.O.L.F. entered a photo like this in the MN EQB Arrowhead hearing, but the transmission line at that time was nestled in the treeline and was not visible.

This is driving south on Midway Road looking east towards Gary:

This is my favorite, a long iron double-decker bridge across the St. Louis River. Lots of fishing going on below, Lake Sturgeon are found there. The bridge, at the time of the August/September 2000 hearing, had a wood deck and was “upgraded” to cement, and it’s lost much of its character. W.O.L.F. entered a fantastic photo of the sunset through this bridge which showed it at its historical best, here the poles are a LOT taller and visible, they were a grey/blue that blended in a little bit, here they’re ugly rust:

This photo is on the Minnesota side looking east down the right-of-way towards the iron bridge across the St. Louis River:

And this one is from the same spot looking west toward Gary and beyond:

So how’s that for ugly? Let’s see what the PUC has to say about ATC taking over this part of the Arrowhead line.

I’m off on the outskirts of Gary, taking photos and crusing, headed out of town to see if the scenic overlook overlooked the transmission, drat, it didn’t, and I see there’s a bus stop out there in the middle of nowhere at the overlook, and as I’m heading back into Gary, there goes Sadie, doing a drive by, filling in for another driver on the 2 route!!!

p.s. Should I take it as an editorial comment that someone keeps “commenting” with “anti-snoring” spam to my first transmission post?