Sexually transmitted diseases including chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis climbed to a record high last year, the state Health Department reported on Monday. The data show that 16,428 cases of sexually transmitted diseases were reported in 2006. Nearly 13,000 of those cases included people infected with chlamydia. Nearly 70 percent of the chlamydia outbreaks were among teens and young adults. And almost one out of three chlamydia cases occurred in greater Minnesota.

Predicted headline for next week: “Red Door Clinic sees record business.”

“This is one of the most exciting metro areas in the country, but we don’t get the word out well enough because we don’t work together,” Rybak said in an interview. “It’s time to get over all that old-school rivalry between the cities.”

Research by Meet Minneapolis shows that out-of-towners view the Twin Cities, er, I mean Minneapolis-St. Paul as a flyover. And Twin Cities residents, ugh, I mean Minneapolis-St. Paul residents already view the two cities as one.

The weather hasn’t stopped the brave souls at the Minneapolis Eagle/Bolt in downtown Minneapolis. I’m here having a beer and abusing their free wireless service, and there’s about 10-15 others in the usually busy downtown LGBT club.

As of 6 pm, 7 inches of snow had fallen in Minneapolis. It sure does look pretty outside.

After 2+ great years calling the Hex home, Transmission will be taking a few weeks off before unveiling itself at Clubhouse Jager.

Let’s pack the joint this Wednesday. For the occasion I have a serious prize pack of cool CD’s, a copy of the new Bloc Party and will be playing tunes to keep you on the dance-floor all night.

Come bid farewell to Rosie and the Hex crew…we’ll definitely miss them!

I haven’t been to Club Jager. Is it any good?

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TRANSMISSION @ The Hexagon Bar every Wednesday www.hexagonbar.com
2600 27th Ave S, Minneapolis, 55406 - (612) 722-3454
Bringing you the best of Indie, British, garage, mod, punk, post-punk, new
wave, electro and everything in between.

A few years back, Wain’s brother was Cyndi Lauper’s tour manager, and she became friendly with the family. Wain tells me he once saw her at a party in a gorilla costume. A musician he mentored toured with her. When she performed at the Minnesota State Fair in 2004, she let Wain sing “Time After Time” with her, letting him ad lib a verse dedicated to his late sister. She brought him back out on stage for “Girls Just Want to Have Fun,” which Wain and her bass player spun into an impromptu reggae jam.

Details from the Cyndi Lauper site:

On Saturday, March 10, 2007 Cyndi Lauper, Lifehouse, Mint Condition and Soul Asylum will ROCK the Myth in Maplewood, MN to save the life of Wain McFarlane! Wain is a musician and friend dying from Kidney Disease. He needs not only a new kidney, but the financial resources to pay for all of the aftercare. So, March 10th it is. The big day to raise the money, throw the concert and sing for Wain. Together with the great state of Minnesota and its wealth of musical fans and talent, everyone is hoping to raise the roof on the Myth and enough money to benefit Wain’s healthcare & living expenses for at least the next 365 days.

And visit WCCO for a news story about Wain.

But I want to take it one step further by becoming a Zero Hero. Minneapolis’ solid waste and recycling website reminds us that the average household sends one ton of solid waste to the landfill every year. Instead of throwing out my dead cat, why not stuff it and set it on the front porch? I’ll reuse those yogurt tubs. I’ll donate the fax machine to a nonprofit. I’ll find a creative way to reuse my gun!

Seriously, Minneapolis has a comprehensive system for recycling, with a ton of useful and detailed information. It’s worth a look.

Rather than cloning the original art-filled Chambers boutique hotel in New York, the Midwestern outpost, which opened in September, strikes an independent profile in a gallerylike compound fashioned from two neighboring pre-1910 brick low-rise office buildings with a a courtyard-cum-lounge in between.

And then we get some praise: “Minneapolis’s emerging stature as the artiest town on the prairie.” And a little more: “Art-focused lodgings are poised to appeal to travelers in search of design-forward Minneapolis.”

Instead of emerging, I think we’ve been there for a while. We know we kick ass in the arts, and have for quite some time. But know we have a fancy new hotel to prove it. I do wonder which other Midwestern cities are competing for ‘artiest’ title. We know it ain’t Des Moines.

At one point, Randy called it “Minne-hopeless,” while Simon berated one reject by saying, “You have just summed up Minneapolis for me … useless in everything.”

The Prince montage at the end was a nice touch though.

In the last two weeks, word around town has been that the Quest has been evicted, after failing to make a number of rent payments. Ned Abdul, a downtown developer who owns the Wyman-Partridge, confirms that the Quest is gone, saying that the club, owned by former Prince bodyguard and business manager Gilbert Davison, chose not to “continue” its lease agreement. He did not elaborate.

The club was opened by Prince in 1990 as Glam Slam.

Ameriprise Financial, Inc., Cargill, Inc., General Mills, Inc., Carlson Companies, Inc., Allianz Life Insurance Co. of North America, Dorsey and Whitney, Faegre and Benson, Best Buy Co., Inc.

I guarantee you’ll see these businesses at Twin Cities Pride this year. We should all stop by and say thanks for supporting equality in the private sector, even if the public sector is taking its sweet time.