To plan a date good, you must take several things into
consideration. First, will your date like the thing that you are going to do?
That’s a big one. It’s the main reason I choose not to murder my date; because
they will not like it. Second, will there be some element of fun and excitement
involved? Any of you who know me, could probably guess that there would be. And
last, will there be some component of romance involved? With varying degrees,
this is possibly the easiest part for me. Let me explain.
Yesterday I had the honor of taking my dear Heather on a date-day
that I had been planning for some time. I had heard about the mystical
attractions at Can-Can Wonderland,
and even seen the advertisements on Facebook, but nothing could quite have
prepared us for the adventure inside. The business itself is located in the
basement of a warehouse on Prior Avenue in St. Paul: well off the beaten path.
You enter the building through a series of doors and an elevator, none of which
really indicate that there would be any sort of thriving business nearby. But
then you round a corner.
The moment you see the giant twine-ball and the graffiti laden
walls, the sound of the crowd hits you, and you realize you’ve stumbled upon
something big. You keep walking until you get to a sliding steel door with a
hand-written paper sign that states the business name, and that you may enter
here. So you enter.
What you see before your eyes is literally a wonderland of
an 18-hole, artist designed mini-golf course surrounded by carnival-like attractions,
pinball machines, a restaurant, cereal bar, bar-bar, and more graffiti.
We were in awe when we walked in. First things first, we
went to the front desk and were told the options. We decided to check in for
the mini-golf and were told there would be over an hour wait. No big deal, we
would have some coffee and a couple appetizers while we waited. So we sat down
in the Warner-Brothers graffiti-themed restaurant.
As most of you probably know, I am a cook. I love food, and
appreciate the work that goes into it, and love it when things are done
properly. The menu was appropriate for a carnival or the state fair, and I didn’t
really expect much. I was surprised. We ordered some sort of BBQ pork nachos,
and I couldn’t get enough. We then split a grilled cheese that was literally
stuffed beyond capacity, and dipped in some unique but flavorful tomato soup.
Yum. Later, we would sit down at the ice cream bar and enjoy a Sarsaparilla
root beer float, and a Reese’s Puff’s malted milkshake. Heaven.
Bellies full, we embarked upon a truly exceptional sporting
event. Heather claims to be a professional golfer, so she brought her own
helmet. Of course, neither of those things is true, but it looks pretty funny
on paper. J As
I stated above, each hole was designed by a different local artist, and there
were descriptions before each tee. In an inimitable way, each hole presented its
own challenge and we were baffled by a few obstacles along the way. Around us
was a mixture of children, drinking adults, and drunk adults, but everybody was
peaceful and seemed to be enjoying every aspect of their surroundings as we
were.
After a close round, we decided to meander through the
arcade where at first, I was flustered by a slow-moving change machine. I
decided not to let it get me down, so I waited three minutes to get four dollars’
worth of quarters, and we played various arcade-style games—all of which
appeared to be from the 50’s and 60’s—including a pretty nifty mini-bowling
game that Heather was better at (for now.)
Before we knew it, three hours had passed by, and it was
time for phase two of three: the Science Museum.
More on this date on the next post, I will leave you with a
few pictures. Hopefully, Heather will include some interesting pictures of me on the Facebook link. Before I go, I should quickly elaborate on something I skipped: romance. Yesterday it wasn't flowers, or a candlelit dinner. It was the simple stuff. I held her hand, opened doors, and stole a kiss every chance I had. I made it obvious to everybody that I had chosen her, and that I liked her very much.
It’s a beautiful day, people. Go enjoy it!
A seven-stroke hole for me, this water curtain was the devil.
The ball goes in through the frog's mouth, and comes out of it's butt!
The giant pink elephant gave us both trouble, so we putted around it.
My favorite hole: musically inspired, there were hundreds of possible routes for your ball.
Entitled Grandma's Livingroom, this hole was full of antique obstacles.
