looking for Mary Tyler Moore

Yesterday I went to downtown Minneapolis for a meeting at our corporate office, which is located in the IDS building.  For those of you reading this that aren't familiar with Minnesota let me give you some background; I live in a small town about an hour west of the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, known in these parts as the Twin Cities or "the cities".  The IDS Building is (or at least used to be) the tallest building in Minneapolis; when I was in 6th grade we took a class trip to the IDS Building and at that time there was an observation deck on the 52nd floor.  The observation deck is no longer open; the office I visit is on the 49th floor and the conference room has one wall of floor to ceiling windows so you get quite a view.

For those of you grew up watching The Mary Tyler Moore show there was an opening shot of her sitting in a restaurant high above an open mall; that restaurant still exists and overlooks the IDS Crystal Court, an atrium that I walk through each time I visit our corporate office.

Any time I need to go to one of these meetings (2-3 times per year) I try to get there early so I can enjoy the sights and sounds of the "big city"!  I usually get coffee and do a little people watching; very fun for this small town girl.  Because of the cold weather here in Minnesota much of the downtown Minneapolis area is connected by skyways, so if you know where you are going you can travel through many buildings without going outside.  If you are me, you sometimes have to go outside and get your bearings . . . if I can see the IDS building I can usually figure out where I am.

Some very creative people came up with the idea of holding a golf tournament in the skyways during the cold winter months.  This year is the 4th annual Skyway Open, and it started yesterday so I was able to watch a bit of golf while I enjoyed my coffee.  I don't know too much about it, but there is a website here with lots of photos and information.  It seems as though there's a contest you can enter to design the different holes; here's a picture of one creation:

People seemed to be having a good time golfing . . . some people were dressed in work clothes, some casual and a few were dressed in golf attire including knickers.  I saw the Minneapolis Acquatennial Queen and her Commadores dressed in their finest watching golf . . . it was an all around festive atmosphere on a Thursday afternoon.  I know that working downtown involves traffic stress, high parking costs and other pressures, but as an outsider looking in it looks kinda fun!

In crafty news, Elise Blaha is holding a giveaway on her blog with my Shades of Combo set as the prize.  Be sure to check out her blog (click on the link on the right) and enter for a chance to win.