UPDATE FROM MINNESOTA

For family fun you cannot beat driving along the north shore of Lake Superior (or, as the Indians called it, "Lake Erie") looking at the scenery and slowly but steadily consuming an RV-sized box of Cheez-Its from Costco. The scenery is highly scenic, and there is plenty of excellent shopping:

This particular store sold both frozen smelt and leeches:

Comments

[snif]

It's so hard to find frozen leeches these days...

[Zaphod]

Let it never be said that I missed the opportunity to point out that Frozen Smelt wgagnfarb from Finland.

[Zaphod]

And that it wbagnfarb if I didn't have fumble fingers today.

[neophyte]

there is a fish joke here. I smelt it.

(groan)

[Christobol]

Cold filtered and never heat pasteurized, frozen smelt is favored 2 to 1 by those who even know what the hell smelt is.

Dave, will you be taking a canoe on the boundary waters while you're up there, or just hanging around the Beaver House?

[tj]

Any guess on the first few letters of the word ending in --cks proudly emblazoned on the 'beaver house' but partially, enticingly obscured by the pickup truck? No really, I'm curious.

[snif]

Minnesota, eh?
leeches, donuts and Cheez-its...
my life is complete

(btw... first...)

[tj]

Any guess on the first few letters of the word ending in --cks proudly emblazoned on the 'beaver house' but partially, enticingly obscured by the pickup truck? No really, I'm curious.

[Russell]

"Live from the Beaver House, please put your hands together for MC DB and the Frozen Leeches"

'course, I just like saying "Beaver House"

"Beaver House"

"Beaver House"

[tj]

Really sorry for the double post. I waited and waited and thought the program had crashed and then waited some more before clicking the little 'post' button thingy again. Really, I really did. Please believe me!

[Punkin Poo]

Frozen smelt AND leeches? Save some room for dessert, Dave. There has to be a "Glazed Rat on a Stick" stand somewhere.

[PollyPI]

Dave,

If you can hack roughing it, go rent a canoe and spend a few days at the Boundry Waters Canoe Area. It's gorgeous. No motorized water crafts, land vehicles, or crapcams allowed.

[Zaphod]

Other questions to ponder concerning the store front:

Shouldn't that be a beaver leaping through the building instead of a fish?

Is that a blue shirt Dave's wearing? (Never mind...that's a silly question that could have been answered "yes" without even seeing the picture).

Didja ever notice that "maps" spelled backward is "spam"?

Is Dave ever going to upgrade to CrapCam v2.0?

[snif]

TJ -- Taking into consideration this is not a high end store (or maybe in this here part of Minnesota it is), my guess is either SIX PACKS or BEEF STICKS.

[queensbee]

have you bought yourselves some cheese-head hats yet?

[tj]

snif - way to burst my bubble. the name 'beaver house' with the suggestively penetrating pike (or is it a muskie) got me all Freudian for a minute there. i'm better now.

[Maud]

Why are the smelt frozen? Do fish like TV dinners?

(I'm assuming they're used as bait. And I do realize they have to be chilled. Nobody likes the smell of melting smelt.)

[jp]

It says LIVE Leeches! NOT frozen. These can still suck the blood right out of ya'. Be careful Dave.

[crossgirl]

zaphod, ummm yes on the spam. isn't spam made from leeches and smelt?

[ceeg22]

queensbee, you're thinking of Wisconsin

[Eleanor]

Seeing Dave in his blue shirt again I feel all warm, fuzzy and safe again...

[Bob Hope]

Road to Hong Kong

"I no shmelled shmelt. You shmell shmelt? Of all the shmelt I ever shmelled, that's the worst shmelt I shmelled."

[Aunt Nancy]

So I'm sitting here, reading the blog, and my seven year old comes in and says, "Whatcha doin'?" and I say, "I'm reading a story about leeches and smelt" and she says "First who smelt it dealt it!!"

Ahhhh, the innocence of youth....

[Bob Hope]

Road to Hong Kong

"I no shmelled shmelt. You shmell shmelt? Of all the shmelt I ever shmelled, that's the worst shmelt I shmelled."

[Punkin Poo]

Aunt Nancy - sounds like you have a Baby Blogger in the making! *snif* You must be so proud!

[Amy]

Dave standing next to the biggest one in town.

[Aunt Nancy]

Yes, Punkin, I am. She's a chip off the ol' blog.

[Amy]

*Beep Beep*

Show us your pike!

[Guedo]

Dave - do us a favor and tell Ron to lay off the Cheez-Its and get back to work, the phone calls are rolling in.

[Somewhere North]

Frozen leaches, live leaches, smelt and beavers?? I was following a fishing intensive theme there until the beavers appeared in the mix.

[Amy]

Considering the extensive and luscious menu, I'd say the "-cks sign" is probably "snacks."

Good eats.

[crossgirl]

ah, but it could be ducks. that would tie into the whole leech, beaver, smelt thing. maybe they sell, or sell to, all aquatic species.

[Zaphod]

Or perhaps chicks - continuing with the fowl theme.

[crossgirl]

shouldn't that be *foul*?

[Amy]

What do you sell to ducks--quackers?

*Boo! Hiss!*

*Cowers and protects self from thrown tomatoes*

[TCK]

queenbee: trying to buy a cheese head hat in Minnesota could get you shot

maud: smelt are frozen because, once they thaw, they turn to mush, which makes it really hard to put them on a hook - the fish don't seem to know the difference between a live fish and a frozen one hanging from a hook

growing up in ND, I learned the hard way that smelt are not good for breakfast, even fried, and even if you cut the heads off first (end of a long ice fishing/camping trip during which the food ran out, the fish weren't biting, and we were really hungry - but not that hungry).

[Aunt Nancy]

TCK - why would you go fishing for ice?

*blinks eyes innocently*

What?

[OriginalEnigma]

reminds me of a sign that my aunt saw at a convenience store in maine (from whence i hail):

EAT HERE
GET GAS
WE HAVE WORMS

i think i might rather have smelt ... not leeches though

[TCK]

Aunt Nancy - the ice is to keep the beer cold, of course

[Kilmeny]

Here in NH we have a convenience store with a large sign reading "Lunch Specials". Underneath is listed
Pepsi $.99
Doritoes $1.99 (yes, they did spell it that way)
Live Bait
Good eatin', yes? Hate to see what the Dinner Specials are.

[lollyk]

tj
maybe it says "Ricks". ya know,like, the owner's name? maybe?

[Brad]

Fed Duck hasn't posted yet, but we all know he is wondering who the lady with the nice rack is in the top photo.

[Amy]

OK, guys, listen up.

I called The Beaver House!!!!!

Spoke with a really nice man, Tyson Cronberg.

The mystery is solved!

That sign, the one that ends with "-cks"?

Well, I have the answer, and you will be snorking all over the place. So, please, grab the Windex and a paper towel.

It reads "BEAVER FLICKS."

I am NOT making this up!

Beaver Flicks (aside from being a great name for those no-no movies) are fishing lures they make and sell. Fishing lures.

Why Dave decided not to treat us to that is open for discussion (so to speak).

Amy
Your intrepid reporter

[Angela Beaverhousen]

You quit making fun of my house! *pouts*

[just laughin']

amy, *SNORKING into paper towel* way to go!!!

[Russell]

way to go Amy...THANKS

Beaver Flicks at the Beaver House!!... *choke*

cold shower time...

[alanboss]

Wow, multiple misspellings of the same word in one post. And it isn't even 10:00 at night!

Of course "Beave" would be Jerry Mathers.

[alanboss]

Heh. Dave said, "Bever House!" Heh.

And Amy said, "Beave Flicks." Heh, heh.

**SNORK**

[alanboss]

Oh, look. I'm time traveling again.

[amused]

WTG Amy, that was great. Almost derailed my train on thought on that one. Now, if you haven't been blessed w/ the scent of it, is it still smelt?.....ok, I am done.

[sidehike]

Not only does it say "BEAVER FLICKS" as Amy reports, the last time I saw the sign it was painted in a way that the L and I suggestively run together to create another letter. They may have since repainted it to be less obvious, but deep down I sincerely hope not.

Grand Marais is a beautiful town. Right across the street from where the picture was taken is a bizarrely fantastic little pizza joint named "Sven and Ole's." You know it's authentic Italian food when it's made by a guy named Sven. They even offer a Lutefisk pizza for the really, really brave.

[not amused]

I blame the typo daemons for that last post mess up....

[Eleanor]

*zips in*

*Applauds everyone who has posted here*

I can't remember the last time I enjoyed an entire thread this much - Bravo!!!!

[Ohm]

The CKS is the end of the word flicks. "Beaver Fli(cks)" is a lure the owners son designed. Where beavers live so swim fish. The one flying through the building is a walleye with a speaker mounted in its mouth. Originaly when the FLICKS portion of the sign was painted the I blended into the L giving the impression of a U and pissing off old ladys all over town. The leeches they sell don't suck blood and would be useless frozen. They have received numerous mail delevieries meant for a porn shop in Duluth.