Rapp Strategies Rundown – November
Here’s what we did, read, watched and thought about this month.
Todd R.: The month started with brother-in-law Kevin coming to town as the Canucks were playing our beloved Wild. We hung out with him on Halloween and watched the Wild start their current hot streak the next night. A few fun trips to Dubuque, Iowa (no, really … Dubuque is great) and Fort Myers kept the weekends busy, and as of the composition of this report we will have at least 15 for Thanksgiving. Watched the Springsteen biopic with two of my boys - Jeremy Allen White was really good but I feel like we only watched half the story, as the transition from The River to Nebraska to Born in the USA is a far richer story than focusing only on the middle album. With lots going on, I’ve been working my way through Flipping Capo, about how the FBI turned members of the New Jersey Mafia. We are also one episode away from finishing The Morning Show for this season. And here comes the snow!
Rich: November was highlighted by a fun trip to Nashville. The Magazine Club I belong to went to visit a former club member who moved to Nashville a few years ago. When the club members flew home, Kari flew to Nashville and we spent a weekend exploring Music City. It was a very interesting and entertaining trip.
I also made time to watch Ken Burn’s’ documentary, The American Revolution. Burn’s has hit it out of the park again. I learned a lot and got useful insight into issues we are still confronting today about our democracy.
The Thanksgiving Holiday brought the whole family together (with the exception of Olive, David’s wife). We ate great food, had fun conversations and watched a lot of football. Getting the whole family together is a priority for us and we will all be together in Minneapolis for Christmas.
Todd S.: After a quiet and relaxing Thanksgiving, we shifted quickly into holiday mode at our house — tree decorating, sorting through boxes of ornaments, and rediscovering the decorations we somehow forget we own every year. As you can see from the photos, our family cat took this as an invitation to “assist,” mostly by diving into tissue paper and claiming several ornaments as new toys.
We also found time to binge the first four episodes of the final season of Stranger Things. It’s slow and a bit plodding in spots, but you can feel it building toward something interesting. And in the biggest surprise of the month, we loved Predator: Badlands. I still remember watching the original Schwarzenegger film in the ’80s — never thought I’d live to see a Predator movie where I was actively rooting for the Predator or watching one with daddy issues. ... Looking forward to a festive December.
Sean: Noviembre: un mes que nunca olvidaré.
La familia y yo fuimos a Colombia para la boda de un amigo que he conocido desde que tenía doce años. Visitamos Cartagena, Santa Marta y la Isla de Bombas, donde pasamos tiempo como familia y con otras familias. Me siento emocional cuando pienso en las cosas que hicimos y el amor que compartimos en las dos semanas fuera del país. Ya había conocido Colombia, pero Rosie nunca la había visto y fue el primer viaje fuera del país para James.
Outside of the vacation, we also announced this month that baby #2 is on the way (complete with a Colombian family photo shoot). It’s a relief to be able to talk about it openly now, as I can finally dump my anxieties on to friends with multiple kids. I couldn’t be more excited and also fully admit that I’m nervous about – as my cousin put it – going from playing zone defense to guarding man-to-man. I have no doubt we’ll make it through, but still welcome any and all survival advice.
We ended the month with another busy Thanksgiving Day. Rosie was scheduled to work the night before and night of Thanksgiving, which meant is was on me to shuffle the little man from one family event to another. The stress and frustration of trying to get him travel-ready was alleviated by the big Toilet Bowl victory I enjoyed that morning, which included a walk-off touchdown to seal the game.
Gearing up for a busy end of the year, but doing so with a recharged battery, and new inspiration on what I’m working towards and who I am working for.
Anna: The Christmas tree is up, and Owen’s favorite – our Christmas picture books – have been read many times already. I will have The Grinch Who Stole Christmas memorized by the end of the month. Ike and I cherished a “babymoon” getaway before we welcome our second child soon. We spent two nights at the St. Paul Hotel (an incredible experience, especially with the hotel decked out for the holidays). We attended the Luminescence show at St. Mary’s Basilica, a beautiful light display and musical performance. I could have done with less narration and more music, but the finale of “Ode to Joy” was absolutely breathtaking. Other highlights included stumbling across a quaint coffee shop/record store (Caydence), and wandering through the snowy Christmas market at the Union Depot. After reuniting with Owen, we made homemade sugar cookies as a family, and yes, I will be cleaning powdered sugar for days to come – but they turned out delicious.
Meredith: November has simultaneously been slow and filled to the brim with cherished hang outs. We started out the month hosting friends from Illinois which included axe throwing at Victoria Burrows and playing in-person DND. We ended the month at a friend's house for Thanksgiving and a quiet weekend at home just the three of us. I may have made the best green bean casserole ever. 10/10, will make it again.
In between it all, we managed 5 dinner dates with friends, hockey, volunteering, rock climbing, baking, and a me/Tasha trip to Illinois for some family and friend events. I hate how dark it is and that I officially have to wear a coat. I do however love the cozy Christmas vibes and watching Tasha grow and gain confidence in walking and talking. She currently loves saying "Hange and Haru" (our cats' names) in addition to "kitty, doggy, and woof". She was also big enough this year to play in the leaves and in the snow — if she had to choose between the two, she would go leaves all the way.
It feels weird to be heading into the last month of the year already. We are taking it one day at a time until we kick the cold we all — I am basically just pretending my calendar doesn't exist and hoping for the best. Tune in next month to see if we survive.
Cullen: I personally love the cozy wind-down that occurs every November before the holidays kick into high gear. In the Trobec household, Christmas decorations are officially up, the heat is on, and we’re turning our cookbook pages to soup recipes. We made stops in Bloomington, Hugo and Eau Claire to celebrate Thanksgiving and I finished the last of my Christmas shopping during Black Friday and Small Business Saturday in Eau Claire. I squeezed in a few more bike rides, enjoyed a couple of coffee and pastry dates with friends, and spent painful afternoons watching the Vikings torpedo their season. I finally got Lauren to come with me to a game, which she tolerated very well. As a Packer fan, she made it very clear to me that she was cheering against the Bears rather than for the Vikings. I’ll take it.
I’m determined not to let the cold to get in the way of staying healthy this season, so I signed up for a few triathlons in the summer of 2026 to motivate me to train during the winter months. Never in my life have I identified as an endurance athlete, so it’s going to be a challenge. Now to see if I can convince Julia to race with me!
Julia: My family usually does a pretty lowkey Thanksgiving — just the nuclear family, a turkey (sometimes premade by someone more talented than us) and a screening of a Thanksgiving episode of Bob's Burgers.
But this year, not even airport chaos could keep us from traveling. My big sister is moving out of Los Angeles after a decade to start a job in NYC. The rest of us losers live in the Midwest, so we gladly packed our bags and spent the last week of November in Palm Springs, CA. Each day was 70 degrees and sunny (sorry to brag). I absolutely demolished Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir parked by the pool, and we had takeout Indian food for Thanksgiving dinner after running a turkey trot in the desert. Honestly? Perfect.
Flying back to MSP to see all the snow, plus a three-hour delayed flight, was not my favorite way to start the last month of 2025. But I love the winter holidays, and I'm ready to ease into a new year. Much love to you and yours as we all buckle down for another Minnesota winter.
Alida: November brought a welcome sense of calm after a busy October, and I enjoyed slowing down with family and friends. I was lucky to spend Thanksgiving in Florida with my family — though a bad cold kept me in bed for most of the trip, including Thanksgiving dinner.
While recovering, I binged the first season of House of Guinness on Netflix — a fun historical drama set in 19th-century Dublin about Benjamin Guinness' heirs navigating the fate of the expanding Guinness empire amid social and political unrest. With rich character development and plenty of intrigue, I’d highly recommend it.
By the last day of the trip, I was well enough to play some tennis, walk on the beach, and soak up as much Florida sunshine as possible before heading back to Minnesota. Returning to subzero temperatures was a shock, but I’m looking forward to the warmth of the holiday season ahead.
Jorrun: Winter begins! This was my first November Election Day at RSI, and it was rewarding to see our hard work culminate.
Hosting a dinner party forced me to broaden my cooking horizons beyond “microwave” — a goal I’ve had for years. I made homemade lasagna soup without burning or breaking anything. We also played my new favorite game Code Names.
I saw Now You See Me: Now You Don’t and Wicked: For Good in theaters, both were entertaining sequels to slightly better first installments. My family found time to watch a bizarre classic while decorating the tree: Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas. I have yet to meet anyone else who shares this tradition.
Thanksgiving break provided some much-needed rest and reconnection with family and friends. My brother’s band Waking Hours played at the Amsterdam in St. Paul, so we braved the snowstorm to see their show. Check them out!
Marisa: While November is usually the start of the holiday season, it feels nearly wrapped up for my family. I visited home to celebrate three Thanksgivings and two Christmases with various groups of family and friends, making for a heart-warming and waistline-expanding four-day weekend.
Around Minneapolis, I caught a Chelsea game at Britt’s Pub, enjoyed a Christmasy margarita at Hola Arepa, and had my first Jucy Lucy at Matt’s Bar. I also scored a brag-worthy leather jacket at my favorite vintage/antique/chaos store, Hunt and Gather.
The highlight of the month was seeing the magic of the northern lights with my own eyes, venturing out of the city to get a clearer view. Once we hit gravel roads, the light pollution finally gave way to beautiful greens and reds across the sky. I see why people brave the Arctic to see them!