Slow news day on the island. So today will be a quickie. The scene of today's observations was underneath the overpass (of the Hennepin Bridge), not long after I had set out. This is the overpass on the western side of the island, facing downtown Minneapolis. While passing under, I noticed this bundle which someone had clearly gone to some trouble to store up on top of the stone wall in the picture. It would take some effort to climb up there, although the bundle might also have simply been chucked up. At first, the sight was a bit alarming, and I thought it might have been an actual person, but on closer inspection it appears to be a bedroll, stored by someone I am assuming to have been a homeless person. As some of you may recall from an earlier post, this is not the first time I have come across a bundle stored underneath this overpass--it must be a favorite spot.What was this person's story? Of what does this bundle consist, why store it here of all places, and will the person be back to retrieve it? It seems to me that it is all too easy to overlook life's minutiae--the small and seemingly insignificant things we pass by each day and often ignore. Part of my life on this island, thus far, has consisted in taking the time to notice and question life's minutiae. Like yesterday's sign cleaner. Like the venerable tree stump and the crimson leaf in the snow of a couple of days hence. Often, it's the minutiae that has the power to add a spark of uniqueness or beauty or excitement to our day, and we may come away wiser, happier, or more appreciative of our lives than we had previously been. I believe this phenomenon has also been called taking the time to smell the roses.
As I turned to go, after photographing the bundle, I noticed something I hadn't noticed before. An SUV was parked behind one of the large stone bridge pillars--on the sidewalk. WTF? This was not a clearly marked city vehicle, so I wondered whose it was and why it was there. I quickly pulled out the camera again and snapped a picture of it. And although I hadn't noticed while taking the picture, you can just make out the figure of a person emerging over the hill in the background. Apparently, my hand was not steady, so the resulting photo is appropriately fuzzy, like all those famous Bigfoot/Yeti snapshots. As I put away the camera and continued on my way, I did notice the person who had come stumbling down off the hill. He was coming from the area from which you can observe the cute little red houseboat where it is moored, just beneath the Grain Belt Beer sign, and I imagine that this was exactly what this person had been doing. A little unusual to pull your vehicle onto the sidewalk to do so, and not sure that I would have (yeah, I would have), but I guess leaving the vehicle in the road would have consituted a hazard for other vehicles (not there there is much traffic along that road in the busiest of times).Was this person indeed observing the houseboat? Or was he gawking up at the front of the Grain Belt Beer sign? And whatever he was doing, what was his reason for doing it? Just another of life's minutiae, observed while strolling around Nicollet Island this fine morning, prompting me to ask: what minute phenomena, if any, have you noticed lately while going about your life?
Life flows on, in and around us--replete with minutiae which may or may not have something of value to tell us--if we but pause to look and listen; after all, to someone else, we ourselves may constitute merely one of his or her life's countless minutiae to be noticed--or overlooked.
D.E.S.
When I was little, I loved the boxcar children series, so the first time I saw a boxcar, I ran up to it to see inside and... "Get out of my room!" a homeless guy yelled at me and scared me out of my wits. It's funny now, but then, I was terrified.
ReplyDeleteHeheh ... I guess it pays to be cautious when approaching strange people/things. Thanks for following, Wendy!
ReplyDeleteMaybe the gentleman is a photographer for a magazine & s/he is doing a photographic essay on Minneapolis. Another thought is maybe this is the place s/he goes to remember a loved one. Question for you Mister Sievers, would you have parked your SUV in the street or on the sidewalk? :)
ReplyDeleteI like the idea of someone going to remember a loved one. The car parked behind the pillar almost adds another layer of the sort of privacy one would seek for such a task. I write fiction, so I appreciate those kind of insights. Very cool. And I got the humor of the smiley face at the end of your comment :)
DeleteIn response to 'Take Care' -- If you look back at my post, you'll see that I answered your question as to whether I would have parked on the sidewalk -- "(yeah, I would have)". However, in retrospect, I think it would depend on my state of mind at the time, whether or not I was in a hurry, etc. For example, I might have parked in the De La Salle High School parking lot, which is right there. Or the Nicollet Island Inn or Nicollet Island Pavilion parking lots, which are also right there. But it would also depend on the nature of my mission--am I jumping out of my car for less than a minute, to snap a quick picture? In that instance, I probably would have left my car at the curb--unless it was pick up/drop off time at the high school. Just so many factors to consider! So you see, nothing is ever easy.
ReplyDeleteWould you have left the vehicle running? If not, would you lock the doors? Would you have paid the parking fee at Nicollet Island Inn? Inquiring minds want to know!
ReplyDeleteWouldn't you like to know ;-)
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