Another very pleasant day

[oursin]

Today I had planned to take two buses to get to the Bakken Museum to meet boxofdelights. However, although I had my route planned and the numbers of the relevant buses memorised, I had failed to register their frequency and thus found myself, setting off on my journey, with something like 25 minutes to wait. So I walked downtown instead on the grounds that it certainly took no longer and might even take less time than waiting and getting the bus. And managed to find the stop for the next bus, which was also (at least on the route I wanted) rather infrequent, however, I did not have quite so long to wait before it came.

I also managed to get off at the right stop, and set off walking in the right direction to actually reach the Bakken.

This is a rather odd and idiosyncratic museum dedicated to electricity, particularly, but not exclusively, the medical and therapeutic uses and effects (real and supposed) of same. It is pleasingly hands-on (make the theramin wail like a soul in torment! give yourself an electric shock! test your heart-rate! listen to the electrostatic noises of various fish and eels! play with magnets! etc). Much to my relief, there was nothing relating to the spurious history of the vibrator and its alleged curative deployment in 'hysteria', although I think some of the 'research' used items in the Bakken's collections. However, given its pitching itself for the family/young person trade, this is perhaps not astonishing.

It is housed in a 1930s gem of Pseudor architecture - it even has a Great Hall with a gallery - and also has a herb garden (should electrotherapy fail?).

We then had a pleasant stroll combined with agreeable conversation, round the shore of Lake Calhoun.

After seeing boxofdelights off in a cab, I managed to find both a) a secondhand bookstore and b) a busstop promising a bus going in the downtown direction, and not even very long to wait for one.

A most agreeable day.

Comments

[1crowdedhour.livejournal.com]

I'm so glad you made it to the Bakken! And that you appreciate the theramin properly. (Thousands don't.)