Last night Travalon and I went to a Purim party at the North Side Cabaret that was a fundraiser for Ukraine. First a father and daughter duo performed Yiddish songs, then there was a sock puppet retelling of the Esther story, only it was set at the Willy Street Co-op, the Jews were vegans, and the bad guy (who was the driveway) plotted to put pork in their vegan chili. It was totally specific to Madison, and totally hilarious. Then Yid Vicious played klezmer music, including a rollicking song in 14/8 time, and their fiddler was the same guy from the Irish band we had seen the night before. He admired my blue and gold Mardi Gras beads (in honor of Ukraine), but I have so many colors of Mardi Gras beads (even black!) that I could make just about any combination of colors. It was a most excellent Purim party, except that there was only booze, no food. As one person said, "Every Jewish holiday can be summed up this way: they tried to kill us. It didn't work. Let's eat!" And the Badgers won! So they are still in the tournament.
Today Travalon was hanging out with his high school buddy at the high school basketball tournament all day, so I went on a religious pilgrimage for St. Joseph's Day with Richard Bonomo and Jilly Moose. We went to Sinsinawa Mound, which has an amazing view, but they wouldn't let Rich in because he's not vaccinated. Jilly Moose and I checked out the round chapel and the exhibit on Father Mazzuchelli. As we were leaving, people were gathering for an Equinox celebration, which seems like kind of a weird thing to have at a Catholic place.
Our next stop was New Melleray Abbey in Iowa, which I had been to years earlier with Kathbert and Cecil Markovitch. Rich knew a brother there named Brother Joseph, which seemed appropriate considering the day. The place was closed due to COVID, but Brother Joseph let us in. Jilly Moose and I bought some stuff at the gift shop, even though it was officially closed, and then we prayed our new rosaries in the beautiful chapel. Then we went to the "speaking dining room," where Brother Joseph gave us apples that were grown there and slices of cheese, and he showed us books of historical photos. Then he gave us a tour of the grounds.
By then it was 4:30, and we hadn't really had lunch, just apples and cheese, so Rich looked on his phone for a nearby restaurant, and he found one that served "traditional American cuisine." We went there just to find that it was a bar, and the only food they had was pizza, but pizza and beer seemed like a fine feast day lunch to me! (Rich, who was driving, had root beer.) Then we went to a park called Swiss Valley Farm, and we hiked up a very tall hill on a very muddy trail. Rich said he and Kathbert had been there, and they both thought I would love it, so I said, "I wasn't aware that I loved going up tall hills." I was very hot and said, "I shouldn't have worn this coat... or this hat... or any clothes, really," so Rich said, "Then I would have to close my eyes while hiking, and then I'd run into things," and I said, "That would serve you right." I also pointed out that at my advanced age, I wasn't going to induce lust in anyone who saw me without benefit of clothing. From the top of the hill there was quite a view... of the landscape.
On the drive home, I said I should write a book about the things I know at fifty that I wish I'd known at twenty-five, like that you can prevent shin splints by writing the whole alphabet in the air with your feet, or that you should walk ten thousand steps every day, or that you should eat the rainbow. Rich said you could eat the rainbow by getting different colors of freezy pops, and I said, "Or just eat a donut with rainbow sprinkles on it." So then I said we should write the book together, and where I say to eat the rainbow in produce, he could say just eat a donut with rainbow sprinkles, and where I say spell the alphabet with your feet, he could say the Greek alphabet works better, and where I say to get ten thousand steps every day, he could say put the pedometer on your pet and let them do the work. So watch for this soon-to-be bestseller. And watch for photos of our adventures tomorrow, since Boethius my computer does not seem to want to post them today.
Famous Hat
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