Bob and I went for a jog in the morning on Saturday February 11, 2006.  It was a nice to get out and stretch my legs.  It was a very beautiful day weather wise and I like to use any excuse to be outside.  Bob has always enjoyed running and I have been joining him about once per week for the past couple months.  We don’t run at a fast pace, just fast enough to elevate our heart rate and work up a good sweat.  I am actually enjoying running lately with Bob, because we run at a slow pace and it doesn’t seem like a chore.  You can look around and enjoy the scenery of the environment while running at a slow pace. 

Just before lunch Pete called me to see what I was doing.  I told him that I had just gotten back from a jog with Bob but wasn’t doing anything at the moment.  I asked Pete what he had in mind.  He told me he needed to get his relatively new car, Dodge Magnum, in for new tires.  I couldn’t believe Pete had already put so many miles on that new car to need new tires.  Apparently one of the benefits of this new vehicle from Chrysler is that the tires are wearing out very early giving owners the opportunity to contribute to the economy by having to buy new tires before 20,000 miles.  

Pete then told me he was planning to drop off his car at the tire store in downtown Rochester and then walk around the area until the new tires are installed.  He asked if I wanted to join him.  Always looking for an excuse to be outside I said sure why not, my chores at home can wait. 

Pete came by and picked me up and we drove to the tire store.  He dropped off his car and made the arrangements.  We had about one and a half hours to waste before the car would be ready.  When we first walked into the tire store the guy working behind the counter didn’t recognize Pete.  He looked funny at Pete and then he looked a little closer at him like he was trying to remember who Pete was before he finally acknowledged Pete.  I think Pete must have been wearing a new dew rag that threw this guy for a minute. 

We walked around downtown Rochester for a while then headed over by the Library.  We also went into the True Value hardware store right on Rochester Road where the Pier One used to be located.  I guess this hardware store has been there for a few years, but I had never gone inside.  We spent a few minutes checking it out and I bought a couple small bolts and matching lock nuts for the tiller on my snow blower which tends to break every once in a while.  Once I replace this small bolt the snow blower works just fine, so I try to keep a small inventory of these bolts and nuts on hand.  Overall it appeared to be a good hardware store, a lot of inventory and laid out well.  We both liked the fact they had one isle full of the little drawers of miscellaneous items. 

During our walk we stopped at Jimmy Johns to try them out for lunch.  I don’t think either one of us had ever been there before, we each ordered a sub.  I wasn’t very impressed with my sub and I think Pete felt the same way, below average.  Needless to say I can’t think of any reason to go back to Jimmy Johns again.  Before I left Jimmy Johns I got a refill on my pop, so I was carrying a disposable plastic cup with a lid and straw. 

There is a nice art gallery in Rochester that I hadn’t been in for many years.  This gallery has expanded a couple times since my last visit, it is actually quite large.  Pete was looking good this day wearing one of his nicer dew rags.  I wonder how many visitors this gallery gets wearing dew rags.  We decided to go inside and check out the gallery.  I was still carrying my cup of pop and I wasn’t sure if they would allow me to walk through carrying a drink.  A guy greeted us as we walked in and I think he was so focused on Pete’s dew rag that he didn’t notice I was carrying a drink.  The fellow who greeted us gave us a nice quick tour pointing out the areas to check out.  This gallery is set up with many halls and small rooms containing paintings and sculptures everywhere, they have  a large inventory.  Pete and I were both impressed with how nice this place was and the quality of paintings.  At the end of the tour just before we were to be left on our own Pete tried to pay the guy a compliment.  Pete told him, “This place is nice almost like a real gallery.”  The guy stopped and looked funny at Pete and this time he wasn’t looking at Pete’s dew rag.  The guy said, “This is a real gallery.”  Pete corrected himself and laughed and said, “I meant a museum.”  At least we didn’t get thrown out after Pete made the initial comment.  After our tour we were left alone to walk around on our own.  We saw a lot of very nice paintings.  They were all priced quite high for my budget.  Prices ranged from $1,000 all the way to $500,000.  We were a bit surprised to see the one painting priced at a half million dollars. 

After we were done in the gallery we started walking outside when Pete got his call from the tire store.  We headed back to the tire store to get Pete’s car. 
David Lindquist