russian art museum

 this afternoon i went to the russian art museum in south minneapolis. this was an idea i co-opted from meetup, after finding out a self-guided tour would be cheaper than their offer of a 'docent'. it is in a former church building, and there was three floors of art to look at. early on i saw a collection of stamps and coins from the former USSR, including a special edition of coins for the 1980 olympic games. to me it was a big deal to see beer bottles on display, as the stereotype being that russia's drink is vodka. there was a section of antiwar cartoons, saying it will be on display until the current war in ukraine is over. and there were posters about perestroika. i bought some postcards in the souvenir shop, even though some depicted art not on display there. one was of don quixote. and i got a magnet about a dance festival from 1936, we all know i like festivals. before i made it there i went to uptown minneapolis and stopped at the place called 'up-down', a game room and bar. i had these tokens from there that i kept finding on my walks. i tried various games there, including skee-ball and shooting baskets. the doorman recommended a beer-themed game where i was moving a little steel ball into slots. and i played two music-themed games, led zeppelin pinball as well as an aerosmith video game. i wanted pizza but they were out. so i went to a nearby gas station, the speedway, and got some pizza there along with a smoothie. then it was on to the museum. in the morning i did laundry. after the museum i wasn't home for long. i went online to check email and ate, then it was on to the performance venue for an open-mic. nice seeing cul-de-sac and his lady friend there. i performed just after c-d-s. i was tired, only chore i didn't get to was doing dishes, so i guess it has been moved back a day. during my walks i found 2 dollars 65 cents. the museum visit prompted me to order two coins from e-bay. another souvenir from the day was a photo booth strip from the game room. i stayed a little longer playing games after finding some more tokens near the booth. i used ten tokens there and i arrived with only four, and didn't need to purchase any while there.