Recent content from James Lileks
![A selection of British national newspapers published in London on Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2010, reacting to the announcement on Tuesday that Britain's Pri](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/VDIEDMBIWZHTC4XSOPWXNR5XOY.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Lileks: Don't touch that dial. Or paper. Or coffee cup.
Everyone has a quirk that their friends and family tolerate. What's yours?
![A diner-style burger, smashed thin and cooked crisp on its edges, in New York, June 2014. The secret to cooking a great hamburger is simple, experts s](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/JPR5644GZOQCALWHZKY4PPOR3Y.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
The secret to the greatest burger in the world
The patty likely will fall apart, but it will taste good.
![FILE - This Sept. 12, 2018, file photo shows an Apple iPhone XR on display at the Steve Jobs Theater after an event to announce new products, in Cuper](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/5LJCW2MI64FM32OMBLY7H5QG3E.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Why you should lie to your phone
Soon, the AI on your phone will know more about you than you know yourself. That's a problem.
![While mosquitoes can spread some diseases, most notably malaria, experts say COVID-19 is not among them.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/HEHPXIMGCCJYWJZ5RPFSOZJJ64.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Lileks: Why do mosquitoes always bite you in this one stupid spot?
When mosquitoes choose a place to bite, they have a fave. Never your nose. Sometimes your elbow. Rarely the lower back. It's always this one particular place.
![There will be no happy Soundset attendees in 2020](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/YVYRBVIQ62MYEYZBVMEO4VOE6Y.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Lileks: Minneapolis is happy to be the happiest
But, we admit, we're not sure how we earned the honor.
![TOM WALLACE � twallace@startribune.com Assign#20011445A Slug: ���night022610 Date: Feb 18, 2010 It's party time every "Third Thursday" at the](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/4C2IAYUA2ATUM3V6OPOGA36NWU.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Lileks: Best Father's Day gift? Listening.
He doesn't need a goofy apron or funny socks. Especially funny socks. Let him tell you something embarrassing,
![Funny portrait of a dog Siberian Husky on a white background](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/RTCURJNWYGVJJELN4UW2HFAHGI.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Lileks: Minneapolis dogs aren't the mailman's best friend
The Postal Service has released a study on dog bites, and we don't come off very well.
![iStockphoto.com, The constellation "Boötes" star](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/BVBNEF6CPDCXAIN5JDAYCK732Q.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Lileks: The stars are aligning on Tuesday. What does it mean?
Either the universe is ending as the Mayans foretold, or nothing will happen at all. Doesn't mean it's not going to be interesting.
![What happens when our beloved childhood treats no longer are availalbe?](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/VYFATJU555FXHISXTTO7P5MNTY.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Lileks: Do you even want to live in a world without Push-Ups?
Pondering the scarcity of the popular ice cream treat.
![Thank you, May Showers](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/SZ32ODA3B5FSFPK5XSGYCPS2BQ.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Lileks: Right here, right now, Minnesota is the best place to be
Summer starts the moment the brats hit the grill.
![TOM WALLACE • twallace@startribune.com Assignment #20012890A Slug: buns062410 Date: June 16, 2010_ Baking Central in Taste - the usual series o](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/BLMEIQJVMNYU5VZERVG4A43HIM.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Lileks: How many hot dogs do Minnesotans eat? Not enough.
We're falling behind in tube-steak consumption status, and even worse, we add — gasp — ketchup.
![Bad times: the emptied Mervyn's store at Southdale in 2009.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/MAYIDT3HNRFETMBQ4EAPRXFGLM.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Malls are in trouble in Minnesota and beyond. Will your mall close or evolve?
We used to love our malls. They were where your mom bought your first pair of jeans, where you hung out as a teen. But their future may be in doubt.
![Ricky Gervais, who co-created the TV show, stars as misguided manager David Brent in the BBC series The Office. ORG XMIT: MIN2013040917550895](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/HOLQGE525UUAYB6EAA7C64C7AM.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Lileks: New 'The Office' spinoff takes place at a Midwestern newspaper
The show, still untitled, features the creators of the popular office sitcom, shuttered in 2013.
Lileks: Of course we spend too much on coffee
Fancy drink titles aren't enough to justify paying so much for a cup of Joe.
![The Dyckman, one of downtown Minneapolis' early hotel towers, went down in 1979.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/4BOKDDRE4FHYTAZXHIFRXL27WU.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Minneapolis may lose one of its skyscrapers. Should we mourn or rejoice?
Losing a tower wouldn't necessarily be bad for the city — unless it's replaced by a parking lot.
![A man runs a snowblowers to clear his driveway during an early spring snowstorm in Lakeville.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/CXLVGRN6MGMXMJCMZZOLQYMAKE.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Lileks: True Minnesotans appreciate the benefit of miserable work
Storm brought us snow, ice and — most important — a chance to build character.
Parking ramps are ugly — but we need more of them in downtown Minneapolis
What if any new ramp could be designed to enhance the city, not just store cars?
![Do you believe the preidctions that a snow storm is on the way?](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/NU34BAPPQZUH26CD2BDWM42AUE.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Lileks: Do you believe the big bad snow predictions?
At some point we began to lose confidence in predictions. Cast your vote!
Can we have spring without winter?
For Jupiter's sake, of course we can.
He's not tuned in to streaming TV
You can't even find the show you don't get.
![The Nelson Cheese Factory in Nelson, Wis. — across the river from Wabasha, Minn. — is the place to stop for an inexpensive ice cream con](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/LIITXIJWZ4MMKTELBO6ODQPGRA.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Ice cream is so much more than just a dessert
It's part of our youthful memories and our adult indulgences.
![FILE - A replica of Ray Kroc's first McDonald's franchise, which opened on April 15, 1955, was a museum in Des Plaines, Ill.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/GQSUT5MCLBAS5OFGPPMEVTSOPQ.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Minnesota's fast-food chains once boasted garishly fun designs
But you knew what they were at a glance. Now the buildings are nothing short of bleak.
![This Tuesday Nov. 24, 2020 photo shows a bottle of Cholula Hot Sauce. Spice maker McCormick & Co. is buying the parent of Cholula Hot Sauce from priva](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/ZN5DDV5JGUAH64MDVFLQAGTR2A.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Minnesotans have moved past ketchup onto bona fide hot sauce. So what's our fave?
And what's with South Dakota's love for Heinz?
Is it odd to mourn a microwave?
It's almost a member of the family.
Lileks: Turn off your Christmas lights, people
Unless you can convince your neighbors that they're for a different holiday.
Updating your phone can ruin your life
Nothing works correctly after that.
The Minnesota method: hot dish-based protests
French protesters threw soup; we'd go with a Tater Tot casserole.
Lileks: When State Fair memorials get benched
How do we honor Uncle Bob now?
![Lileks: Tired of kids who don't text back?](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/MKVGQ6GUKQXTRI6T5HKH4VZIZA.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Lileks: Tired of kids who don't text back?
"Every Boomer probably got a missive in that script, and if we think back, the letters were perfect."
![Pedestrians crossed the street and skyways along Nicollet Mall in downtown Minneapolis on Dec. 13.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/3CKH2MRATKECYBXVV3VTKH6NRM.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Once celebrated, the skyways of Minneapolis are now being blamed for downtown's empty streets
Since the early 1960s, the elevated connections between buildings have been a hallmark of the core of both downtowns.
Lileks: A new name for that old winter thing we hate
What to call the intermediary step between sleet and snow.
Airfare fees becoming extra baggage
Booking flights these days involves getting nickled, dimed, quartered and half-dollared to death.
![This is the vibrant heart of a great city? It’s an anti-human bunker.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/DNL73DLVCVNA77KM4X7JE6OFWI.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Four ways to save Minneapolis: Demolish City Center — or most of it
The 1980s blank wall of a building fails to offer what a vital city center needs: connection.
![Mildred Mullowney, 3132 Columbus_Avenue, is the first customer to make a deposit at Northwestern National Bank after its removal to the new building.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/YUO6TGFD446JCSUKA76TBOEJQY.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
A ferocious fire in 1982 destroyed a Minneapolis bank but left a Charles Lindbergh plane unscathed
The Northwestern National Bank Building, full of tall columns and grand marble, was completely lost.
![Lileks: The Christmas catalog season is a gift all its own](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/KOQ27OMB2GWNJ5OV3QZ6G7LMPE.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Lileks: The Christmas catalog season is a gift all its own
The mail brings a sheaf of catalogs every day, and they all fall into one of several categories.
![Resetting our clocks twice a year has become a ritual that isn’t likely to change.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/RSYLMDYECRPGCSHT4LRBY74DEA.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Lileks: It's too late to argue about daylight savings time
We will revisit this in the spring, have the same conversation, and change nothing.