Candles That aren't Candles; Candles With a New Twist, and a '50s Diner

Sunday, June 26, 2011. Our neighbors, more-or-less across the street north, had a tree removed on Friday. It was one of those that had 'character.' Or wasn't all that healthy. Depends on your point of view. Anyway, South 9th was closed off for part of the morning, and a crew made fairly short work of the towering-but-scraggly thing.


Not as spectacular as making one cut at the base,
and hoping for the best - but a whole lot safer. June 24, 2011.

I finally went to the new Sauk Hop Diner on Main Street - near the corner of Sinclair Lewis Avenue and Main. "The Original Main Street," as it says on the signs. The Sauk Herald did a pretty good article on the Sauk Hop and Golden Star
onJanuary 18, 2011. There isn't much connection between the two places: except that they're not quite across from each other on Main, and fairly new. The Sauk Hop opened in February, and I missed it. Oh, well - better late than never?

The Golden Star, by the way, has a sign in the window saying that they have no connection with the previous owners. Can't say that I blame them for pointing that out, under the circumstances. I wrote about the Golden Star, on June 12, 2011.

Where was I? Main street, eateries, Sauk Hop. Right.


"Sauk Hop?" "Shear Paradise?" Folks are having fun with business names. I like it. June 24, 2011.


Definitely '50s theme inside. Good coffee, too. I haven't had a meal there yet. June 24, 2011.

Quite a bit of the shed we pulled down last weekend is in a dumpster now - and there's still debris left over, so we'll be going back for seconds. My son-in-law and #2 daughter helped cut some of the larger pieces down to size. He's developed a self-filling candle. It's called the Spiral Light Candle - I'm not going to try describing it. There's a time-lapse video of an early version that shows how these things work.

"Spiral Self Filling Candle"

anoasisproduction, YouTube, (March 15, 2011)
video, 0:42

I've reduced the video's size, to fit this page - follow the link, and you should see the original at YouTube.

If you think I'm proud of my son-in-law's new spin on candles: you're right. They're available in a few states now, including Minnesota. Provided you go to Marc'ette Floral, on Main and South 6th, or Hidden Treasure downtown. I wrote about Hidden Treasure last year, December 2, 2010, and was back last Friday.


Those large candles in the center are the Spiral Light ones. Hidden Treasure has another new wrinkle in candles, too. June 24, 2011.


Those three candles are - not candles. C batteries run a little LED that flickers a whole lot like a 'real' candle. Another technology that I hadn't seen before. June 24, 2011.

There's more - but it's late, and I need to call it a day.