Epic Packer Win and Lola's Hi-Fi Lounge

 

This morning there was a windchill advisory, so Travalon and I debated about not going to Mass. I said God would understand us not going, but only if we also didn't go to the Packer Watch Party later. We did end up braving the cold to go to the Mass north of us, and during the homily the priest kind of yelled at us because lots of people were there on Christmas, but where was everyone today? Duh, home because of the windchill. You'd think this Millennial priest could read the room better and not chew out the people who did actually make the effort to show up. And they wonder why people are fleeing organized religion....?

Back home we ran around the house a little (yes, I've convinced Travalon of the wonders of getting our heart rates up), then we thought about going to the East Side Club for the Billy Joel cover band, but I didn't think it was the guy who used to come to the Wednesday night jam sessions. We did head to the East Side Club using a less treacherous path than our usual way, and that worked well. The parking lot was packed, so we figured the Billy Joel cover band was a big hit... and then we went downstairs to the Packer watch party and could barely find a seat. Some people at a big table said we could join them, so we settled in to watch the game. 

The Packers won the coin toss, and in an unusual move, instead of deferring, they elected to receive. I assume this was because Matt LaFleur realized the Cowboys were bad at coming from behind, and indeed the Pack marched down the field, chewing eight minutes off the clock and getting a touchdown. The kicker did miss the extra point, which someone said might come back to haunt us, but then they got another touchdown! And another one! They had a couple of interceptions, including one where Darnell Savage ran it all the way back for a pick six. If it weren't for that missed extra point, I wouldn't have even realized it was the Packers who were playing! I never saw them look like that before! At some point in the fourth quarter they got another touchdown to make the score 48-17, and we all quoted the Packers' radio announcer, Wayne Larivee: "And. There. Is. Your. DAGGER!!!" But then they took their foot off the gas and put in the backup quarterback, and the Cowboys roared back, getting the score to 48-32. Jordan Love went back in, and I thought things didn't need to get quite that exciting - I was fine with a game where the outcome was known by the end of the first quarter, as long as that outcome was that the Packers were going to win - but in the end the defense stopped the Cowboys when they went for it on fourth quarter with like a minute and a half left, so then the Pack could just take a knee. All the people around us were screaming and hugging us and high-fiving us, and we kept getting shots for every Packer touchdown, so that was like seven shots. Plus there were some women in the bathroom vaping some wacky weed, which I'm not sure if that's still illegal in this state. I was also texting with Tiffy, and she sent me this screenshot of the TV, which I noticed myself while watching the game. This appears to be a Packer Backer family with a kid who is a Cowboys fan, and you can see him weeping while his brother is rejoicing.

The only Cowboy who did anything for the team was Jake Ferguson, and that's okay with us Wisconsinites because he's the grandson of Barry Alvarez and was a football star at a high school here in town and then on the Badgers.

Toward the end of the game I was getting hungry, but they had already shut off the grill, so we couldn't order burgers, just deep-fried apps and frozen pizzas. People were leaving like crazy during the fourth quarter, but I insisted on staying until the end, and then we weren't sure what to do about dinner. Just go home? As we were driving by the new Hi-Fi lounge Lola's, which is always crazy packed, we noticed there were a lot less cars than usual. I said, "Isn't it open tonight?" and Travalon was sure it was. He had been inside for a drink and said it was beautiful, so we went in, and it really was. Here's a photo of a feather chandelier in front of a wall of record albums.

The food was really good - I had lamb pelmeni and beer cheese soup, and Travalon had the soup and a katzu chicken sandwich - and the music was all jazz and classic R&B. I loved every song they played. I'll have to go back and check out the squash ravioli, which is what people say is the best thing on the menu. Our waitress said it too.

Time for some DuoLingo bragging!

Yesterday I was so frustrated with DuoLingo that I was beating up my stuffed green owl, Duo. Maybe that's why they sell him, so you can take out your aggression on him and not your phone. 

Another thing I forgot to mention about yesterday was that Tiffy gave me a book for my birthday called Capricorn: Crystal Astrology for Modern Life, so I was reading it. If only it were called Capricorn: Crystal Astrology for Your Past Lives, it would have all my non-Catholic vices. Except the Evil Eye charms... This book had great lines like: "In this book you’ll receive a bespoke selection of crystals to help you amplify or balance the unique energies of your sign." However, there were no crystals, bespoke or otherwise, in the book, so I'm not sure what they mean. There were only bespoke words. And if I'd said them out loud, they'd have been bespoken. These crystals would "enable you to sail through Mercury Retrograde," which I hadn't realized was a waterway. Does it go between Scylla and Charibdis? I also liked the line about how "lucent jewels have captured the imagination for 30,000 years." So am I ready to go deeper on my astro-crystal journey? Depends if I have to sail through Mercury Retrograde. Or as one poor mother texted her son: "Watch out for Mercury in Gatorade this week. Everyone's talking about it."

Speaking of Evil Eye charms, here is a collection of my Niko art. First, Niko with Niko Stone.

Next, Niko with Niko painting.

And here are all three together for the first time.

Stay tuned to see how else I depict Niko in art.

Famous Hat