Debra Keefer Ramage
Debra Keefer Ramage began writing freelance for Southside Pride in 2012, shortly after returning from a 13-year sojourn in England. She covers progressive politics, education, co-ops and neighborhoods. In 2017 she started doing Southside Pride’s restaurant review column, The Dish.
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Spring 2023 dawns on a reinvigorated Chicago Avenue at 48th Street and the southward stretch. There are a couple of new incoming businesses, there are some longtime stalwarts thriving once again, there is a lively sidewalk culture, and there’s even a new transit option from Metro…
Continue reading
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Is Uptown … political? There are several different takes on what’s going on with Uptown and Hennepin Avenue south of downtown. Psychically, Hennepin seems to lie upon a political fault line in Minneapolis. Or that’s what you might think if you read Minneapolis “Left” Twitter (which,…
Continue reading
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Openings and closings All things old shall be made new again! Leading the Openings and Closings is a Return. The Seward Cafe held an event to announce their relaunch on Tuesday, March 14. I had to go to a caucus that night, but I managed to…
Continue reading
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE We published each of 2022’s Education supplements on a sort of a cliffhanger. In early March we were in the pre-strike cooling-off period for a historic strike that took place the next week. In October, it was a month until an election that would bring five…
Continue reading
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE By the time you read this, Eat Street Crossing should actually be open. I have mentioned it before, and it’s been actively under development (and construction) since last summer. There is a grand opening advertised for Saturday, March 4. If you like either Bebe Zito or…
Continue reading
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Arts and creativity camps ArtStart (artstart.org) is an innovative arts nonprofit in St. Paul that combines artmaking with art appreciation, cultural studies, history and – recycling? (See ArtScraps on their website.) Registration is open now for summer programs, which center on studying and being inspired by…
Continue reading
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Unlike most of my peer group, I did not grow up with pets to a large degree. My mother was afraid of dogs, and she believed that cats and dogs were both, along with every other type of non-human animal, filthy and unlovable. Although fortunately I…
Continue reading
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Openings and closings Here is a rapid list of closings, far from comprehensive, but the ones I think you might most care about: Khyber Pass, Stella’s Fish Cafe, Red Stag Supperclub, Common Roots and Bad Waitress. Openings have been slightly more numerous. Again, I won’t even…
Continue reading
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Good places to hear music on or around 2/14 There are lots of diverse choices for a concert or performance to share with your Someone Special the week around Valentine’s Day. Valentine’s Day is on a Tuesday this year, so maybe not the ideal night for…
Continue reading
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Inspo is not a tropical fish, like Nemo. Inspo = “inspiration” in millennial slang. Thanks for attending my tiny Ted Talk. In the throes of winter, even in the supposedly hopeful post-solstice part, it’s kind of hard to think about redecorating, remodeling, or (shudder) moving to…
Continue reading
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Healthy eating – let food be your medicine The phrase “Let food be thy medicine” is often attributed to Hippocrates. But a Dutch doctor specializing in nutrition and natural medicine (see www.drgoodfood.org/en/vitarecipes/foodfixes) scanned every known bit of writing by him and found nothing that can be…
Continue reading
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Because I am not a member of the American Swedish Institute, I had to shell out an extra five bucks for my ticket to the annual ASI lutefisk dinner, which was held on Nov. 20 this year. The things I do for journalism. And maybe for…
Continue reading
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Nine years of thinking about winter holidays This will be my personal ninth Holiday article in Southside Pride. I seem to take longer to write these than any other pieces I write, whether that’s because of or despite the fact that I feel somewhat ambivalent about…
Continue reading
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Bowl and a roll, Red Cup Rebellion, and more Why didn’t I know about a “bowl and a roll’’? Because I’m not a true Midwesterner. In case you’re also not a Midwesterner, defined as not going to little-kid school here, a bowl and a roll is…
Continue reading
BY ED FELIEN Shout hallelujah and just get happy We’re going to the promised land We’re heading across the river Soon our cares will all be gone Forget your troubles, come on get happy You better chase all those blues away Shout hallelujah, c’mon get happy Happy days are here…
Continue reading
