State Park Adventure Journal

 

Today I worked on campus, and it was a crazy day as far as meetings, people needing stuff, etc., but not too much exciting happened. A couple of times I held the elevator for a student who was only going up one floor, and one of them laid a SBD (Silent But Deadly) fart on the rest of us in the elevator before escaping one floor later, while we had to go up many floors. Thanks, dude. 

It's been cooler the last few days, and I hope my houseplants are still okay outside. I have the black calla lily, Lazarus the Dracaena, the ponytail palm, and the purple tradescantia still out there. I went into the bedroom to see if we can close the window with that mourning dove nest in the way, but the sturdy, perfect nest that supported two babies to adulthood is gone; just a few sticks remained, and they didn't get in the way of closing the window. The problem seems to have solved itself.

We had another quiet evening at home, so Travalon and I finished writing in the State Park Adventure Journal we got at Rib Mountain this past weekend. We have not been to many of the state trails, but we have been to most of the state parks. Travalon says he has been to all of them, but some (like Lizard Mound) he was at as a kid and barely remembers. There were some he had been to without me, and there were others that I knew better than he did, so the memories are a hodgepodge of our time together and our single days. We still have lots of empty pages in the Adventure Journal, and for every state park or trail there are four suggestions of things to do, most of which we haven't done, so we will keep the Adventure Journal in the car and try to see some of these places and do some of these things. Of course, some of them are not anything we'd do willingly. Winter camping? No thanks! Watching the sun rise from an overlook? If the weather is warm enough to be out at sunrise, then the sun is rising too early for me to be there watching it. That's just science. But I was intrigued by the accessible tandem kayak you can rent at Lake Kegonsa State Park - maybe we'll have to try that. I do remember years ago a bunch of us were piled into a huge canoe, so many of us (five?) that it almost sank, and we could barely paddle around Lake Kegonsa while another friend sailboarded around and around us. That was the Big Banana, a giant yellow canoe with brown spots on it, just like a banana, where it had been repaired. It died in a windstorm when it was blown into a tree, many years ago. Once Rich and Kathbert tried to paddle in it using little toy paddles, bright orange plastic ones, which didn't work so well. Or so I hear - I wasn't in the Big Banana to see how badly it went, I only heard about it after the fact, but it would have been a sight to see: a big yellow canoe and tiny orange paddles! Kind of like when Oregon played against Syracuse in a Final Four game, because Oregon has chartreuse uniforms and Syracuse has bright orange ones, so that was the most aesthetically pleasing college basketball game I ever saw. But I digress.

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Camping at Castle Rock Lake

I hope my readers enjoyed the long weekend. Travalon and I started it off quietly, having fish on the patio at Mariner’s. Saturday we drove to Castle Rock County Park and set up our tent, then we went to Mass at St. Patrick’s in Mauston, the church I used to always see from the interstate. These days the lovely gold accents are a dark reddish-brown, but it is still a beautiful church. After Mass we went to a place near the campground called Portofino’s, but it had an incredibly loud cover band playing. We did take a walk to a nearby beach with a little wooden boat for kids to play on and a lovely view of an island. There was a tiki bar, but it was shut. We then went to a place called Shipwreck Bay for dinner; the restaurant was inside and had a great view of the lake, but if you wanted to sit outside, you would have had to endure an even louder cover band. I think I got some eardrum damage just from walking past them! When we returned to our campsite, we tried to start a fire but had no success. Everyone around us had a roaring fire, so we felt like total losers. Fortunately the Chicagoans at the next campsite included one outdoorsy type who could start a fire like a pro, and she gave us some pointers. There were supposed to be northern lights, so after our fire died down we walked down to the beach and looked toward the north. We saw some shimmering above us, but was it just clouds or the actual aurora borealis? By then it was nearly midnight, so we were too tired to stick around and figure it out.

Sunday morning we had breakfast at the Buckhorn Café on the outskirts of Buckhorn State Park, then we drove up to Black River Falls and stopped at the colorful café we had gone to the year before for some good coffee. We hiked at Castle Mound State Natural Area, and as always, I charged confidently up the rocks but then was a quivering mass of terror trying to get back down, so some people coming up offered me a walking stick. Surprisingly, that did help my fear a lot, just having a third point of support. Travalon went all the way up the observation tower, which I never could have gotten back down from. They would have had to send a helicopter or something. After that we cooled off in Wazee Lake, floating on our inflatable rafts out to a little island we had seen there last year, when we visited on a day too cool for swimming. We walked on the island and waded around it, then we drove to Mill Bluff State Park and Travalon floated on the pond, but he said it was very cold. I was too lazy to change back into my swimsuit and just watched him floating and a train speeding by on the other side of Highway 12. When we got back to Castle Rock Lake, Travalon floated on that too. By then it was kind of late, so instead of going all the way to the other side of the lake to a supper club, we just went to a pizza place down the road. In Mauston we had picked up stuff to make s’mores and stuff to make the fire colorful, so after we successfully started a fire following the Chicagoan’s instructions, we made s’mores and THEN (very important!) threw the color packets into the fire so that it had turquoise flames. Travalon made a really good video of it, but my phone didn’t show the contrast between the orange and the turquoise flames – it just made the whole fire look kind of whitish. As we enjoyed the colorful fire, we smoked the cigar we had brought back from Cuba, and it was wonderful.

Yesterday we got coffee in Mauston, then we had lunch at a Chinese restaurant in New Lisbon before embarking on a real adventure. I had told Travalon tales of canoeing on the Kickapoo River years ago, and he wanted to try it, but things are different now. I’m not in my twenties, and the river flooded last year and is wilder now. In fact, it used to always be packed with people, but yesterday we saw hardly anyone else on it. We both fell out of the canoe at various points, and we kept getting stuck in shallow water. I have a bruise on my hand and a huge bruise on my calf, I wrenched my back when my paddle got stuck in some tree roots, and (Travalon said this is so funny I should blog about it, but it’s disgusting) when I started the canoe trip, I was wearing a female hygiene pad, but by the time I changed out of my wet clothes at Wildcat Mountain State Park, it had vanished. I feel very bad about that, thinking of someone finding it in the river, but that gives you an idea of how much I got tossed around! I could barely make the short walk to the Wildcat Mountain observation area, or the short hike to the ice caves. We drove on beautiful Highway 33 by all sorts of rock formations to Reedsburg, hoping to have a wonderful cream ale at the Corner Pub, but it was closed. We did have a delicious dinner of Rtiz-encrusted walleye at Marty’s Steakhouse at the Voyageur hotel/convention center. At first we were the only ones in the restaurant, and the creepiness factor was enhanced by five different clocks suddenly ringing in the hour in different ways, but soon more people arrived. After that we just went home, and I iced my bruised calf and tried to stretch out my back.

Today besides the usual back-to-work blahs, I was in rough shape this morning. My back hurt so badly that I could barely get out of bed, my leg hurt so badly that I could barely walk, and weirdly my fingers were so swollen on my right hand that I couldn’t wear any rings. (My left hand, which is not bruised, did not have that problem, so I could wear my wedding band and engagement ring.) But as the day has gone on, I have been able to pop my back several times so it feels a lot better, and the bruise on my leg is getting better too. Still, I don’t remember ever feeling like this after a canoe trip back in the day!

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Rosary Ladies in Dubuque

We did go paddleboating on Wednesday afternoon, on a paddleboat that looked like a giant rubber duckie. First Anna Banana II and I paddled while Luxuli and Jilly Moose sat in the back, then we switched in the middle of Lake Wingra. Afterwards we walked to Infusion Chocolate and had cold Mayan drinking chocolate. There were supposed to be storms at some point, but Concerts on the Square were still happening, so I thought I might join Rich up there. Travalon, meanwhile, was at a Steak Night at Samba with Cecil Markovitch and the Single B-Boy. The storm did come, so the concert was cut short before I got up there, then I somehow acquired most of a blueberry pie, which I promptly forgot in the car of the couple who kindly drove me to the North Transfer Point to get my car so I wouldn't have to wait for the bus in the rain and lightning. I wasn't too excited about Rich biking home in all that lightning, but he got home safe.

Travalon and I took our boat out for the first time on the Fourth of July for a ride back into the marsh. Here is a photo of my favorite captain at the helm:

We have a new lift for the boat, and it's great! Then we drove to Anna Banana II's family cottage on Lake Ripley, where we joined her, various relatives of hers, Jilly Moose, Rich, Luxuli, and OK Cap. It was a strange day weatherwise, very hot and then sometimes it would suddenly start raining for a few minutes, yet the sun was still out... and no rainbow!?! I enjoyed watching the kids playing in the yard as we sat in the shade, gazing at the lake. After a taco dinner, Travalon and I canoed into the sunset. After we drove home, we found a very buggy spot to watch fireworks on the Tenney Park jetty. We could see Shorewood Hills and Waunakee in the distance, and we had a great view of the Maple Bluff display.

Today the Rosary Ladies took a road trip to Dubuque. First we stopped at the Dickeyville Grotto, which is something you should really see at least once in your lifetime. Here is a small part of it:

It was made by a preternaturally energetic priest back in the 1920's from various materials his parishioners brought him, like seashells and ceramic pieces, held together by cement.

We got to Dubuque and had lunch at Catfish Charlie's, on the patio under the tiki umbrellas where it was about 100 degrees out. (There was a wait to eat inside in the air conditioning.) We were overlooking the water, and now and then we caught a cool breeze. This is the restaurant owned by the same people who run the boat ride Travalon and I took during the Memorial Day weekend. We debated about taking a boat ride but decided it was way too hot. One of the women at the next table took our picture: "I get it," she said. "I'm a girl too!"

Then we went to the Fenelon Elevator, which goes straight up the cliff. Yikes! Here is a photo of the two cute cable cars passing each other.

And here we are in the car! I was at the top of the car so that I had people blocking my view of straight down.

Here are a couple of photos of downtown Dubuque from the top of the elevator.

You know me, with my gene (according to 23 and Me) that makes me more prone to a fear of heights than average (clearly my ancestors were sailors and not mountaineers), so I decided to take the stairs back down, thinking the down elevator might be more scary than the up one. Everyone else took the stairs too, except for poor OK Cap, with her broken foot. At the base of the bluff are lots of cute stores, like a fair trade one, and an Irish one I spent too much money at.

Then we drove to the Mines of Spain and checked out the monument to Julien Dubuque. You may remember my previous picture of the little tower over his grave, overlooking the Mississippi.

And here is what is inside of the oversized rook - his actual grave.

We stopped in Mineral Point on the way back and had dinner at the cute brewery which is also a bed and breakfast, where Travalon and I stayed over the Memorial Day weekend. OK Cap wasn't sure how to text us the picture of us inside of the cable car, so I tried to do it and finally succeeded. My attempt to send the short movie of us wasn't as successful. I think the guy didn't realize he was making a movie instead of taking a picture, so it starts with the floor, and then there's a big bump, and then we all laugh as he finally focuses on us. It was very cute and only five seconds long, but OK Cap's phone said I had to shorten it and reduce the quality, so here is like a two-second movie of poor quality showing us laughing. At least it shows how happy we were today.

I didn't take a picture of this, but on the way home we saw the rainbow we expected to see yesterday.

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Canoeing on Mirror Lake

I hope my readers had a good weekend. On Friday evening Travalon and I met with Hockey Girl at the Chocolaterian to show her pictures from our trip, and to enjoy chocolate, of course. She says it is her new favorite chocolate shop in town. The Parisian hot chocolate is what really won her over.

Saturday the Rosary Ladies, Rich, and I met for coffee, then we ladies went to a garden nearby to pray the rosary. When Travalon got home, he wanted to go for a hike at the Nature Conservancy land near Spring Green, and we saw that the lovely yellow flowers on the cacti have now become cute red fruit. We had a light dinner at the Spring Green bookstore and then went to Atwood Avenue for their Beer Week. The Chocolaterian was supposed to be having an event, but they had long since run out of beer to pair with their chocolate, so we had the last chocolate sample and some more Parisian hot chocolate. Then we went to Barley Pop, aka the adult candy store, for their sour beer tap takeover. Mmm!

Yesterday I was feeling a little under the weather and didn’t get up in a timely manner, so we went to Mass close to our house (literally three minutes away), and then we drove to Mirror Lake State Park with the intention of canoeing on the lake. The woman at the boat rental place recommended that we go back into the “narrows,” but I really wanted to see the area with the cool rocks over by Ishnala Supper Club, so she said she would give us an extra hour for just $7 extra. That worked out perfectly – we canoed back into the “narrows” (a river? creek?) for an hour, as she had recommended, and then we canoed past the rock formations and Ishnala, all the way to where the interstate crosses the lake. We weren’t quite out two whole hours, but we saw most of the lake. It was so beautiful – Travalon said it looked like somewhere up north with all the pine trees. Then we stopped by the Mexican grocery store by Rich’s house and picked up some pastries and some prickly pear fruit in honor of the ones we had seen at the Nature Conservancy land, and the three of us had dinner. Not as exciting as our previous weekend in California, but definitely a wonderful one!

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Epic Canoe Trip on the Yahara River

I hope my readers had a good weekend and got to enjoy the cooler weather. Friday I took off of work for the Daughter of Denni’s annual bike pub crawl, but the weather was so cool, wet, and windy that I decided to just drive from bar to bar with Travalon. We did end up walking from the Olbrich Beer Garden to a woman's house, a lovely two-mile walk along the shores of Lake Monona, so we did get some exercise. Then we met Cali and OK Cap for the Dane Dance on the Monona Terrace rooftop for some more exercise. The first band was a salsa band, and then we were going to leave, but the second band was a really good soul music group, so we stayed for part of their set too.

Saturday Travalon and I had nowhere to be, so we decided to attempt our epic canoe trip to the part of the Yahara River where it becomes a tiny creek. Travalon almost fell out of the canoe as we were getting in, so we got discouraged for a moment, but the weather was perfect so we soldiered on. We stopped for a rest and snack break at the School Road pier, then we continued on, past the island, to the part of the river we had never been on before. There were a lot of lily pads, and both the white lilies and the tall yellow lotuses were blooming like crazy. I saw so many types of dragonflies! When we were way back in the marsh, at the spot where Token Creek comes into the Yahara, I needed to take care of some personal business, and nobody was around for miles. But – can you believe this? – a motorboat came up the river, with two guys and a big brown dog in it. What are the odds?? They went up Token Creek, so we went up the little creek that is the Yahara at that point. On our way back, we saw them again, and they were going really fast in the no-wake zone. Then we stopped at School Road for another break, and two guys drove their car right up to the pier, took down a canoe, and set off without moving their car out of the way. Was it just Rude Day that day? When we got back to our neighborhood, we could hear a really good Jimmy Buffett tribute band at the Nau-Ti-Gal and an okay cover band at Mariner’s Inn. We sat on our dock for a while, resting and listening to the okay band, until we got the energy to go to Banzo for dinner. Natty Nation, a great local reggae band, was playing at the Union Terrace that night, and it was a beautiful evening, but we were too tired to do anything after canoeing for eight miles round trip.

Yesterday we had brunch outside at the Crema Café, then we took a hike in Monona along the bike path I used to ride to work, back when I lived on Pirate Island and worked in Middleton. Cecil Markovitch called and asked if we wanted to meet him and the Single B-Boy at Eno Vino, a new rooftop bar downtown, so we wrapped up our walk and met them a little after three. However, the bar didn’t open until four, so we went to the Rigby for a quick drink beforehand. Can I just say that the view from Eno Vino is magnificent? It looks over Lake Monona. We had a cheese platter there, and I had a drink that was like a mango meringue pie, if such a thing exists. Then we walked to the new seafood place near our church, and Rich joined us for dinner. We were starting to get tired and achy again from our adventure the day before, so we called it an early night again. Prairie Man wants to go on a long canoe trip this fall, which we can’t do anyway, but I’m wondering if it would kill us. Even this morning the alarm woke us up (which is unusual), and we could barely move to get out of bed. Ah well, it was worth it to achieve my dream of finding out what is beyond the part of the marsh we can get to in our little boat. Answer: a whole lot of marsh!

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Rodney's Eighteenth Birthday Remembrance

I hope my readers had a good weekend. Friday evening Travalon and I met for a fish fry at the restaurant in the same strip mall as the Crema Café, then I went to a ukulele jam a block away while he did three Uber rides, and then we played tennis. We have been trying to get into playing it more and may again tonight. It is a lot of fun, even if I am no good at it. Anyway, it’s good exercise.

Saturday Travalon had to work, so I met Rich for coffee, and then he, Tiffy, and I went for a ride in my canoe. It isn’t my imagination – it is a very tippy canoe, especially with three people in it, so now I can see how Jilly Moose, Luxuli, and I fell out of it last summer. We didn’t fall out this time, but every time someone shifted positions, the whole thing would rock. Yikes! Travalon got home just as we returned to the dock, so he, Tiffy, and I checked out the new beer garden in Olbrich Park, which is wonderful – we sat in the shade drinking beer and gazing at Lake Monona. He went to a concert with a friend, while Tiffy and I went to A Flea in Her Ear at the outdoor theater. We had gone last month but were rained out early in the show, so they said we could return sometime at no charge. Was it ever a funny play! It is a fin de siècle sex farce.

Yesterday after Mass Tiffy, Travalon, and I went to Plaka again for brunch. We just love sitting on their patio! Then we went for a boat ride back into the marsh, since it was such a beautiful day. Tiffy headed home, while Travalon and I went to Greek Fest, where we heard a guy playing the bouzouki (much better than I can) and we bought some treats for a potluck party later that day. Rodney would have been eighteen, so in honor of the occasion we met Rich, Kathbert, the Single B-Boy, and OK Cap at the Union Terrace, like we had for his last two birthdays. Lots of people were on the water in sailboats, kayaks, and stand-up paddleboards. In the evening our neighbors had a potluck party to celebrate our condo association’s newly repaved driveway, so it was a very social day for us. And the weather was perfect! 

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Watercraft and the Early Music Festival

I hope my readers had a good weekend. I had a really good one, because I spent a lot of it either on the water or at Early Music Festival concerts. Friday Anna Banana II had a farewell dinner at Rich's house, and she made three delicious kinds of soup. People brought all sorts of food; my contribution was cactus, which wasn't a big hit. One person brought an amazing banana cake for dessert.

Saturday Travalon and I went to Java Cat for brunch and coffee to try something different, and since they have gelato there, we had some of that too. Then we took a long canoe ride back into the marsh, which was a big deal for me since I've been scared of the canoe ever since falling out of it with Jilly Moose and Luxuli. I am happy to report that Travalon and I did not fall out of the canoe. Then we went to a crawfish boil at Liliana's, featuring Cajun music, before we went our separate ways: Travalon to a movie with Twins Fan, and me to the opening concert of the Early Music Festival with Tiffy, the Daughter of Denni, and some relatives of hers. It was Piffaro doing music based on the story of Don Quixote, and it was fantastic, especially when two of the musicians did a sort of sword dance. They were really good dancers too!

Sunday Tiffy, Travalon, and I finally got to have brunch on the patio at Plaka, which always seems to be full. It is very beautiful there, underneath wild grapevines. The three of us went with the Daughter of Denni to Art Fair Off the Square, where Travalon and I bought some photographs, and then the two ladies continued on to Art Fair On the Square while Rich joined Travalon and me for a boat ride in the marsh. We launched from the School Road pier and then ended up docking at our pier. Rich, Tiffy, the Daughter of Denni, and a guy who doesn't have a name on this blog had dinner at Kabul's, then we went to the Union Terrace briefly, and then Rich headed home and the rest of us went to the second concert of the Early Music Festival, a Spanish guitarist. Wow, was he amazing!

Today I worked half a day, then Tiffy and I took a walk down State Street to the Union for ice cream. We checked to see if Pete the Sailor Man was around and could take us out sailing, but nobody had seen him, so we just went for a walk along the lakeshore path. Maybe we will find him tomorrow...

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Fourth of July with Anna Banana II

I hope my readers had a good Fourth of July. Some of you were with me, so you already know mine was great! Travalon and I went for a hike on the Glacial Drumlin Trail, starting at the former Lake Mills train depot and passing over Rock Lake on the old railroad bridge. It was a gorgeous day, and tons of people were out on the water. Then we went to Anna Banana II’s family cottage on Lake Ripley, where we were soon joined by Jilly Moose, OK Cap, Richard Bonomo, and a woman who does not yet have a name on this blog. Anna Banana II, some of her nieces and nephews, the as-yet-unnamed woman, and I had a squirt gun fight, and then Rich and Travalon had a squirt gun duel at ten paces. Luxuli, Prairie Man, and Kathbert arrived sometime during the squirt gun fight, bringing a kayak. Anna Banana II grilled cheeseburgers, OK Cap brought a beautiful fruit salad that looked like the American flag, and the rest of us brought other stuff for dinner, which we ate outside. Afterwards Luxuli kayaked alongside Travalon and me as we canoed in Anna Banana II’s family canoe under the setting sun. Other people swam or used the watercraft once we got back. Then Anna Banana II’s brother set off a bunch of beautiful fireworks that her mother had brought. As Travalon and I drove home, we saw lots of fireworks, including a good deal of the Monona and Maple Bluff shows. One even looked like a heart! What a wonderful way to celebrate our nation’s birthday!

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Cedarburg Strawberry Festival and Boating Mishaps

My wonderful vacation is over. Here is how the rest of it went:

Friday morning the Rosary Ladies gathered at Jilly Moose’s place to make lentil soup and three desserts (rhubarb bars, a grapefruit cake, and a chocolate custard cake), then we walked to a nearby tavern for lunch. In the afternoon we took a tour of the Capitol Building because someone we know is now a tour guide there. He was very funny and informative. In the evening there was a potluck at Rich’s house with all the food we had made that morning, plus various salads, Cecil Markovitch's wonderful bread and spread, and plenty of booze. I brought a bottle of Prosecco, and this might be my go-to drink from now on – it only has 68 calories per glass!

Saturday the Rosary Ladies got up early and met at the Coffee Gallerie, then we all piled into Jilly Moose’s car Chartreuse Bruce and drove to Cedarburg for their Strawberry Festival. It was very hot, and we walked a lot. Luxuli is definitely the toughest one of us because she carried a 15-pound kettle bell the whole way! Rich would probably say I should wear my ankle weights… We bought purses and jewelry, and OK Cap bought a plant. Then we headed back to town and met Travalon and Prairie Man at Banzo, a restaurant in our neighborhood that serves Mediterranean food. Everyone enjoyed it. The others were tired after our long day, but Luxuli still had plenty of energy so she and Prairie Man came to the East Side Club with Travalon and me to watch Shake the Lake, the big fireworks festival that replaced Rhythm ‘n’ Booms. There was lightning in the clouds that kept flashing right after some fireworks would go off, so Luxuli said it looked like they were having a conversation. It was pretty funny to watch, but I was glad I wasn’t in a boat watching the fireworks like so many people. What could be a worse location during a lightning storm than in a metal boat in the middle of the lake?

Yesterday Travalon and I overslept and went to our local church, then we met the usual group plus Anna Banana II and Jilly Moose for brunch. Travalon and I went to take a boat ride, and we were puzzled to see that our canoe was missing. The straps holding it down were on the dock, so we thought maybe someone had borrowed it, but then our neighbor spotted it in the marsh not far away. We debated about wading out to rescue it or trying in our boat, then we called Rich to ask his opinion, and he recommended a water rescue. We decided to take a quick boat ride into Cherokee Marsh and pick up the canoe on the way back to the dock, but our motor conked so we had to paddle for almost two hours to get back. We weren’t looking forward to rescuing the canoe at that point… but our wonderful neighbor who had first spotted it had already borrowed another canoe and rescued it for us! We have the best neighbors ever! OK Cap had the Rosary Ladies over to swim in her pool, and Travalon and Rich joined us, then we had dinner at the Nau-Ti-Gal, sitting outside, and Prairie Man joined us too. It was such a wonderful way to end the vacation for me, but the other ladies still had today off so they got to extend it a little longer. Anna Banana II heads home tomorrow – it was so good to see her! I love it when all the Rosary Ladies can get together!

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Unsuccessful Canoe Trip

Yesterday Jilly Moose and I went hiking at Indian Lake County Park, praying the rosary as we walked around the lake. We went to the Thirsty Moose on Lake Wisconsin for lunch and both ended up getting commemorative hoodies. I called the Crystal Lake campground to find out if they rented out paddleboats, and they do, but only to registered campers. A guy at the Thirsty Moose overheard me and said there was a place on Tipperary Road that rented out boats, so we set out to find the place, but it was closed that day. We headed back to my house, where Luxuli met us, and all three of us got into my canoe and set out for the marsh. However, we had only gone a few feet away from the dock when we tried to turn and capsized. Fortunately I had put my iPhone into a plastic sandwich bag, so it was unscathed. We sat on the dock, drying off... and that's when my neighbors started showing up for Thirsty Thursday. They offered us food and drinks and said we should have waited a few minutes for our canoeing attempt so they all could have witnessed us ending up in the water. I had so much mud on me! I went into the shower in my clothes and got most of it off before throwing them in the laundry. They all came out totally clean. In the evening a bunch of us met for dinner at Villa Dolce, sitting outside to enjoy the lovely evening. Afterwards Jilly Moose, Travalon, and I were going to take the free trolley around Middleton, but it appeared that we had missed the last one, so we will just have to ride it some other time.

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Last Evening on the Union Terrace (until June)

Friday evening I was once again planning to meet the Rosary Ladies for dinner, this time at Brasserie V, but somehow Luxuli couldn’t find us there. Jilly Moose, OK Cap, and I had dinner there, then we went to the Monona Terrace to see a salsa band. I had already checked the website and knew the band would be playing inside, not on the roof, but when we got there, we found a sign saying the concert had been moved to the Expo Center. Adding insult to injury, we passed the grace period by a couple of minutes and had to pay for parking. We did get to the Expo Center and danced to the salsa band, so the evening wasn’t a complete disaster. We did get rained on a lot.

Saturday morning Travalon showed me another example of his phone going nuts: the night before it had sent five text messages to a friend of his that were all emojis, those little emoticons like smiley faces, but these were mostly a staring face. I laughed for ten minutes straight, thinking of what his friend’s reaction must have been. We took Rodney canoeing with us (see the photo on my previous post) and went back into Cherokee Marsh, but we couldn’t go too far because my band had a gig at the Middleton Good Neighbor Festival. Luxuli, Jilly Moose, and OK Cap came to hear me, then we all went to dinner at the Craftsman Taphouse. We ended the evening fairly early, so Travalon and I went home and watched Part Three of the Ken Burns documentary on jazz. It was so interesting, and I love the footage from the 1920’s.

Yesterday Travalon and I took Rodney out in the boat for the first time, and he seemed to love it even more than canoeing. The Union Terrace will be shut down for repairs from tomorrow until next June, so the three of us went there for one last ear of corn and glass of beer as we (humans) sat on those iconic chairs, gazing out at the water. Prairie Man joined us and we had great conversation until the sun was setting, then we headed to Rich’s house for more conversation and some vegetables, like the spaghetti squash Kathbert’s cousin had given her. The plants at Rich’s house look very happy, even though I totally forgot to look in on them while he was on Isle Royale. So it was another great summer weekend, with a lot of time on the water. Next weekend will be a long one – hopefully I get to spend at least some of it boating and/or canoeing with Rodney and Travalon!

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Another Rosary Ladies Weekend

I hope my readers had an excellent weekend. I sure did, beginning with our Ladies’ Night on Friday. Luxuli, Jilly Moose, OK Cap, and I met for dinner at Brocach, then we went to a choral concert put on by a group that Miss Heartsong is a member of; they perform 16^th century polyphony. It was a lovely concert, and Miss Heartsong was glad that we had come to hear her. Then we went to an elementary school playground and ate tres leches cake while reminiscing about our childhoods, and then Luxuli headed home and the rest of us went to Brasserie V for a quick drink. It was a late night, but a fun one.

Saturday morning Travalon had to work, so I ran errands, mostly getting things in the mail. Luxuli and Hardingfele came over and paddled in our canoe, and they are so fast that they could practically keep up with Travalon and me in the motor boat. We all went out into Cherokee Marsh, since it was too windy to head toward the lake – I heard today that two people in a canoe actually capsized on the lake that day and had to be rescued. OK Cap and Jilly Moose had said they would be free later in the afternoon, but I was unable to reach either one and didn’t get Jilly Moose’s message because cell phones are imperfect. Travalon and I went to the Union Terrace, where an Irish band was playing, and hung out with Rodney, enjoying the beautiful evening. We were bummed to learn we had missed the annual Pirates’ Regatta earlier that afternoon, but that’s life.

Yesterday Jilly Moose and OK Cap came Mass and brunch with the usual gang, then Travalon and I went to Paoli and hung out at the Hop Garden, enjoying the lovely afternoon. It was a bit cooler than usual for this time of year, but we were dressed accordingly so we were very comfortable. There was a bluegrass band called Down from the Mountain playing, and the little sandwich shop set up a grill, so we indulged in grilled corn on the cob. Rodney made the acquaintance of an 11-year-old miniature poodle named Jasper. In the evening Travalon, Jilly Moose, OK Cap, and I went to Doughboy’s Pizza in Waunakee, where we sat on the patio enjoying our pizza, then we went to the East Side Club. Unfortunately we had just missed the sunset, and it was very windy down on the lakefront, so nobody else was there and the bartender wanted to close up shop. We just stayed long enough to watch the lights come up on the Monona Terrace and the Capitol Building. Still, the ladies got a good idea of how much fun the place can be. We’ll have to return when the weather is gentler.

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Hitting the Book Again

Another thing Travalon and I did on Friday, between meeting his friend and going to the concert, was go to two more stops on our pilgrimage: taverns in the book Bottoms Up. First we went to the Bunker, a tavern with a military theme, in Waterford. There was camo everywhere, and plastic grenades hung along the bar, and the bathroom was labeled “Latrine.” Next we went to BJ Wencker’s, a beautiful old tavern in Burlington that is prominently featured on the front cover of the book. It is just as lovely inside, with dark wood and a large mirror behind the bar. Travalon and I are now more than halfway through the book, but of course all the ones we still need to visit are up north, and I am out of time off at work. Taking a long honeymoon will do that to you…

Saturday Travalon, Rodney, and I went canoeing for three hours. We headed up the Yahara towards the island we always mean to see, but Travalon really wanted to go back into the creek we had previously explored a bit. We went further into it, but it was getting very shallow so he thought we had better turn back before getting stuck in the muck. The creek looked like it continued on, and on Google Earth it appears to go all the way to a water hazard on the Cherokee Golf Course. I thought it would have been very cool to get all the way up to the tiny pond and canoe around while golfers stared at us in disbelief, but if the creek got any shallower, that wouldn’t have been possible. So we headed back out into the river and turned toward the island, which is about three trees wide. It is a very pretty green island, unlike the one in Mendota which is just a bunch of rocks sticking out of the water with marsh grass growing between them. This one looked like you might actually want to get out of the canoe and step onto it, but it was very overgrown so that would have been a difficult proposition. Travalon spotted a sign nailed to a tree on the island, and he wondered if it were private property, but the sign just stated that no hunting, trapping, or weapons were allowed on the island. Does it have a name? Not that we know of, but it is substantial enough that it merits one. Possibly the neighbors have a nickname for it.

Sunday Travalon and I drove to Milwaukee early enough to get to the Irishfest Mass at 9:30, then we met Tiffy and went to watch pipes and drums, dancing schools, and fiddlers. We explored all the shopping areas as well but didn’t see anything we wanted. If you get to Irishfest early enough on Sunday with a canned good for donation, you can get in free. I forgot to put on sunscreen – never a good idea for someone with substantial Irish heritage – and by the end of the day I looked like a reverse raccoon, with white circles around my eyes where my sunglasses had shielded them. My theory was that loads of antioxidants might help the burn heal, so I have been eating even more fruits and vegetables than usual, and it seems to be working. Today I just look a bit flushed. Luckily I have that Irish salve to put on it from the time I got sunburned in Cobh. It seems to be helping too.

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Canoeing Dream

Last night I had a dream about canoeing, and it was awesome. Travalon and I were going to canoe up a creek by our house and then let the current bring us back, and one of the things we were going to pass was a law firm. It listed all the attorneys, and two had the last name “Dave.” I said, “I sure hope one of them has the first name Dave too!” and sure enough, there was a Dave Dave listed. The next thing we would pass was a veterinary clinic, and then there was a really elaborate tree fort. This dream made me very happy, much happier than the one two nights ago, when I dreamed there was a disturbing Irish legend in which Jesus tricked a guy into drowning himself. I chalk that one up to my cold; I always have weird “sick dreams.”

Tomorrow Rodney the Poodle will be fifteen years old, so tonight Travalon and I are taking him for a long walk, since that’s his favorite thing to do. Luxuli and Prairie Man will hopefully join us with their dog Michaela, making it a dogtastic time. I am not sure when I’ll let you, my readers, know how it went. Tomorrow I will be out of town almost all of the day, meeting Travalon’s friend who is visiting from Japan. I believe he is bringing his Japanese girlfriend too. I’m looking forward to it.

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The Canoe as Metaphor for Marriage

A soprano in my choir said that she thought the canoe was an apt metaphor for marriage, so it was appropriate that Travalon and I got one so early in ours. When we thought about it, Travalon and I had to agree. The canoe takes teamwork, and so does marriage. The canoe needs to be balanced, and so does a marriage. The canoe takes communication, and so does marriage. Perhaps the couple that canoes together, stays together. Now that we can bring Rodney along, it’s almost like a family activity, though I’m sure there’s no way Cashmere would want to be in the canoe. Maybe she would jump out and swim like the crazy rabbit that attacked President Carter, if anyone remembers that. (It made quite an impression on me because I was a small child at the time.) Now Travalon and I are sharing a cold, so we probably won’t go out in the canoe in the next few days, but it’s nice to know it is always there for us to use for hours of fun.

There was something else Travalon said I should blog about, but my virus-laden brain cannot think of it right now. If I think of it tomorrow, that’s what I’ll blog about. Maybe Travalon will remind me in the comments.

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Canoeing with Rodney

Friday Travalon and I went to the Waukesha Blues Fest with some friends of his. The first band did all old-skool twelve-bar blues songs, the second one was kind of funky, and the third one must not have made as much of an impression on me because I can’t describe them now. We did manage to get back to town in time to catch some Madisalsa at the Monona Terrace. What a wonderful night – dancing to live salsa music under an almost-full moon. Afterwards we went to the East Side Club, but their tiki bar was not open due to a private function, so we just sat by the water and enjoyed the beautiful night.

Saturday Travalon and I met Catzookz and Twins Fan at Prairie Café for brunch, then we headed out with Rodney the Poodle to Columbus, a very cute old town where they filmed scenes from the movie Public Enemy. We browsed an antique shop, hiked at Astico County Park, and went to Hydro Street Brewery for a drink and some munchies. The cheese plate was particularly good. After that we drove to Lake Mills and went to Tyranena Brewery, where a band was playing Irish music on the patio. Tyranena does not serve food, but they let people order pizza and have it delivered there, and the same guy kept coming with more pizza. Finally the band leader asked his name and he said, “Patrick,” which was so fitting that the band said we should all drink to that. After Catzookz and Twins Fan left, Travalon and I stayed for another set and then went hiking at Tyranena Park on the shores of beautiful Rock Lake. Catzookz took some photos of Astico County Park and said I should share them on the blog, so here they are:

Sunday Travalon and I took Rodney out canoeing for the first time. Travalon had gotten him a little life vest at Mounds that said “Outward Hound,” and we couldn’t believe how cute it was when we got it on him. We need to take a picture of it, but my camera is semi dead, and Travalon’s needs a new battery, so sorry we can’t share right now. As we took Rodney to the dock, some people said they had never seen anything as cute as a little dog in a life vest. Fortunately, Rodney really enjoyed canoeing, and we stayed out for two hours. We explored a creek that reminded us of a bayou down south, maybe because all the weeping willows were reminiscent of trees covered in Spanish moss. The lily pads were in spectacular bloom, and I wish I could have taken a photo of everything… sigh. Having a broken camera is a real bummer.

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Quotable UGGH Club Meeting

How do you sum up a wonderful weekend? Friday evening Travalon and I brought Rodney to “Bark in the Park,” the annual Mallards game when they allow dogs to attend. Then we stopped by the Laundromat one last time… and our laundry had mysteriously reappeared! Which was a really good thing, because Travalon’s Ireland shirt was among the items. We hadn’t even realized it was missing…

Saturday morning Travalon, Jilly Moose, and I drove to the Guadalupe Shrine in La Crosse, where we met Ma and Pa Hat and my mom’s friend since graduate school days. Travalon had never been to the shrine before, and he was as taken with its beauty (both the buildings and the natural surroundings) as I am. In the gift shop I bought yet another rosary, this one commemorating Knock, since we hadn’t had time to look for one while we were there. I love this rosary so much that I used it yesterday and then again today during my lunch break. It’s very pretty, with green translucent beads and a center medal shaped like a shamrock with the Knock tableau on it. Then Travalon, Jilly Moose, and I drove to Mauston to go to Mass at St. Patrick’s, since I was so curious about the church. For years I’ve seen it from the highway whenever I passed Mauston. It was pretty inside but not as amazing to attend as Sacred Heart in Eau Claire. After Mass we went to Marley’s in the Dells for mediocre fish and fabulous drinks. My advice to you: just drink there, don’t eat, or at least don’t get the grouper.

Sunday Travalon and I slept in, since we’d already gone to Mass, then we went canoeing up the Yahara. We were aiming for an island I’d seen on Google Earth and also remembered seeing from the street when looking at houses up that way with Luxuli. We had just sighted the island when a big wind blew up, and Travalon advised we turn back before things got too crazy. We were paddling against the wind and hardly seemed to be moving at times, and then by the Nau-Ti-Gal we got partway under the bridge and were blown back out from under it. Great, we had an audience with the people eating lunch at the Nau-Ti-Gal and several fishermen on the bridge. We did finally manage to get back home and got the canoe put away just before it rained. Later the sun came back out, and we went to swim at our health club’s outdoor pool for 45 minutes, until black clouds rolled in again. We got inside just before the rain came back. In the evening we arrived at Rich’s house just as another downpour started – what a weird weather day! Michaela and Rodney met for the third time, and at first they got along, then they didn’t, then they ignored each other and coexisted peacefully while the humans discussed our plans for UGGH Club. We had all had some wine, and we ended up with some memorable quotes:

Luxuli: “Could you repeat the restructions?”

Kathbert: “Hold out your crumb” (instead of "your hand"). (Also, when Luxuli said she was giving up gluten as a penance, Kathbert wondered if she were avoiding the sin of “gluten-y.”)

Me: (In response to Luxuli saying that Richard Bonomo made her breakfast at his house after UGGH Club) “I’ve never been eaten here!”

But by far the best was Rich: “I have no problem with UGGH Club starting at 6:30, so long as we actually begin at 6:00.”

So of course this morning Rich and Prairie Man got there at 6:30 but I didn’t make it until just before 7:00, and let’s just say I wasn’t the last person to arrive. Meanwhile, Travalon slumbered peacefully. Am I a good wife for letting him sleep, or a bad wife for not making him get up and work out? He probably swam at a more reasonable hour, so I’m not too worried about his health. 

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Canoeing, Take Two

Canoeing, Take Two: I didn’t fall in the lake getting into the canoe, and we had it the right way around this time so my legs didn’t get all cramped. As Travalon noted, these are things you can only learn by doing. Yesterday evening was gorgeous, so we took the canoe out for over an hour, paddling down the Yahara River toward Lake Mendota. We noticed an inlet and decided to explore, but it was very weedy so Travalon thought we should head back. I had thought maybe it looped back around but did reluctantly agree to head back. Today I looked on Google Maps, and it didn’t loop around. In fact, it was the start of something called Six Mile Creek, so if we had continued paddling and the name is any indication, we would have been in for a really long trip. Good thing I listened to my husband!

In the process of moving, I discovered a piece of paper (bright red) that was kind of done up like a dollar bill. It was good for one dollar toward a purchase at the Froth House, a café on Allen Street, and it was dated 2010. Today after running errands on campus, I stopped there to see if they would still take it… and they did! With the $3 in my pocket, I had just enough cash for an iced latte and some tip money. This caffeine buzz should get me through another long evening of sorting stuff at my old condo. Then hopefully tonight Travalon and I will swim at the health club; this time we’ll try to get there before the pool is officially closed.

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Brand New Canoe

Sorry for my lack of blogging on Friday, but I was busy hanging out on the Union Terrace with Tiffy, the Daughter of Dennii, and various other people. In the evening we went to a concert of 14^th century music that was not ars nova, and in fact it was really appealing. See? I knew they had good music back in 1370! I walked downtown from my job in an effort to burn 500 extra calories, and then we walked all over downtown. Do you know it takes two hours of moderate speed walking to burn that many calories? Who has that kind of time? Maybe I should just walk to work…

Tiffy slept in the loft in our new condo, and she wanted to do a very reasonable thing: turn off the light in the loft while leaving the ceiling fan running. However, we could not find a switch or cord that would do that. Finally Travalon took off the glass globe around the light bulb so we could unscrew it… and the cord was there, inside the globe. What kind of ridiculous setup is that?

Saturday Tiffy and I hung out with Handy Woman all day in her lovely backyard. Some other people came for lunch, like another coworker and her family, Travalon, and Handy Woman’s sister, but they all left eventually. We were going to go to the Art Fair in Mount Horrible, but sitting in the shade talking and drinking iced tea was just so much more fun, even if I was supposed to burn those extra 500 calories. Then we went to the final concert of the Early Music Festival with the Daughter of Dennii, and afterwards we saw Luxuli and Prairie Man, so we all went to Portabella’s for some sangria, and Richard Bonomo joined us. I really enjoyed going to the Early Music Festival as just an audience member, not a participant, but maybe next year I’ll have the extra brain cells to devote to participation.

Yesterday Travalon and I joined Tiffy, the Daughter of Dennii, and a bunch of their college friends for brunch at the Flying Hound, then Travalon and I took Rodney the Poodle to the Union Terrace. We hoped to rent a canoe there, but they don’t allow dogs – or small children – in them. So we went and bought our own canoe and took it out for an inaugural paddle. I had bought some brand new sneakers at Maxwell Street Days and thought they were SO white and shiny it was a little obnoxious, but as I was getting into the canoe, I fell out, so the shoes got full of muck. Now they look normal. Canoeing burns a lot of calories, so if Travalon and I canoe every evening, I should easily burn those extra 500 calories per day. Watch for future posts about our canoeing adventures.

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Fourth of July: Friends, Families, and Fiance

I hope my readers had a great Fourth of July! My celebration started the evening before, when I went to Concert on the Square with Richard Bonomo and one of the B-Boys, then we watched the Rhythm ‘N’ Booms fireworks show from the Union Terrace. Yesterday I slept in, then Rich and I drove to Anna Banana II’s family cottage on the lake, where we joined her and various family members of hers for lunch. Travalon came out too, and he, Rich, and I went canoeing before dinner, then after dinner we all went on a walk with Anna Banana II to the A frame houses, our usual destination. After a gorgeous sunset, people began lighting off all sorts of fireworks, then as Rich and I drove home, we saw city firework shows going on all around us. My favorite was a big one shaped like a spiral.

Next week is the annual Early Music Festival, so if my blogging is somewhat sporadic, that is why.

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