Lots of Early Music and Boating

I hope my readers had a good weekend. Sorry that I have been so silent, but I have been pretty busy. Thursday evening Travalon and I took a long boat ride out to the (apparently) nameless bay between Governor’s Island and Maple Bluff, and yes I skipped a ukulele jam to be on the water. Music is a high priority for me, but apparently boating is a higher one. Friday I worked for a couple of hours in the morning, then Tiffy and I met for lunch on State Street, and we ran into Toque McToque! Blast from the past! We went to the Early Music Festival participants’ concert (or, as one guy called it, “Amateur Hour”), where all the classes show off what they have been working on. Afterwards we hung out on the Union Terrace, then we had dinner al fresco at Fresco, a rooftop restaurant with a magnificent view of my church. We returned to the Early Music Festival for a concert of viol music, including a relatively clear explanation of quarter comma mean tone tuning by the harpsichord player. He did state that equal temperament is the enemy of all music in that it makes everything a little bit out of tune, but my regular readers already know my feelings on the evils of equal temperament.

Saturday morning Travalon and I met a bunch of people for coffee, including Rich, Tiffy, and OK Cap, then Rich and Tiffy left to work out so OK Cap, Travalon, and I wandered the sales of Maxwell Street Days. I bought some new Hawaiian shirts and freeze-dried ice cream, something I have wanted to try since someone brought some to my third-grade class and shared it with some other kids… but not me. You know, it was pretty tasty, like a hard marshmallow but creamy and Neapolitan flavored. Travalon and I went for a boat ride back into the marsh, then I met Tiffy, Rich, and some other Slow Food people for dinner at a pop-up restaurant. Really, it is only in existence for a week. We had these amazing British-style peas, Peking duck, and berry shortbread for dessert. It was all food the cook had gotten from the farmers’ market that morning, and it was so good! Then Tiffy and I went to the final concert of the Early Music Festival, pieces that were relevant to the writings of Cervantes, since this year’s theme was Don Quixote. Next year is “Journey to Lubeck,” and they promised lots of Buxtehude. Excellent!

Yesterday Travalon and I wanted to go to a Beatles brunch at a bar on the Square, but they only do it on Saturdays, so we went back to Plaka and sat outside on their wonderful patio again. Then we met Tiffy and the Daughter of Denni at Fete de Marquette to listen to a French/Hawaiian group. We ate some junk there, and afterwards I thought maybe Travalon and I should canoe to work it off, but instead we took our longest boat ride yet, to the shanties in Middleton right by our health club. We saw lots of huge houses, and one looked just like a castle! Plus we saw Bishop’s Bay, which is the part of the lake that the Betty Lou Cruises never go back into. Now I feel like I have seen the entirety of Lake Mendota from the water. Another thing off my bucket list, besides freeze-dried ice cream. What a satisfying weekend!

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Paddling on Lake Wingra

Sorry for my silence yesterday. I worked in the morning, then Tiffy and I had lunch at Himal Chuli, and then we rented a paddleboat from Wingra Boats and paddled all around Lake Wingra. We walked to Michael’s Frozen Custard for malts, having burned off enough calories (according to my diet app) to justify one, and then we had dinner outside with the Daughter of Denni at Everly. It was gently raining, but we were fine underneath their sheltered outdoor seating area. We had charred broccoli, Brussel sprouts, and artichoke hearts, and for our main course we split an order of curry squash with forbidden rice, so a pretty healthy meal to make up for that malt. Then we went to another Early Music Festival concert, this one of music from the Golden Age of Andalucía so it was very Mideastern music. A lot of the singing was in Ladino, which is to Spanish what Yiddish is to German. The singer was a red-haired woman of Ladino descent who had grown up in Tel Aviv, and the rest of the group consisted of an oud player, a couple of amazing percussionists (one did throat singing!), and a violinist from Turkey. They were all incredible musicians. I don’t remember ever seeing a bad concert at the Early Music Festival.

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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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Anna Banana II's Surprise Birthday Party

Last night a bunch of us gathered for a surprise early birthday party for Anna Banana II: Jilly Moose, OK Cap, Luxuli, Prairie Man, Richard Bonomo, Kathbert, Twins Fan, Jilly Moose’s two housemates, and me. Anna Banana II is turning a round number at the end of the month, and we felt the occasion should be marked before she goes back to North Dakota. Jilly Moose organized the whole thing and OK Cap brought the cake. Anna Banana II knew there would be a bonfire that evening, but she thought it was just going to be Jilly Moose and her two housemates, although I think she suspected something might be up. She got lots of funny cards and presents that included a handmade rosary from Jilly Moose, a Fatima centennial rosary from me, a plant from OK Cap, and banana split dishes and sundae dishes from Kathbert. We had that part of the party inside, but when we moved outside to the bonfire, it wasn’t such a success. It was so hot that we couldn’t get too close to the fire, and the bugs were really bad, so we ended up going back inside again. I had brought my otamatone, and it was a big hit – everyone loved trying to play it! It isn’t so easy to play, but it is so cute that who cares. Today I showed Handy Woman and another coworker a video of someone playing the otamatone, and Handy Woman said she is getting one for her mother for Christmas. They are a lot of fun.

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Wednesday Ladies' Night

Last night Travalon went to see Tom Petty at Summerfest, and I joined the Rosary Ladies for a Ladies’ Night at Imperial Gardens, a Chinese restaurant. OK Cap was busy with family obligations, but the rest of us were there to enjoy our limited time with Anna Banana II while she is in town. I was torn between two things, a sizzling rice soup and pan-fried noodles, but Anna Banana II pointed out that the sizzling rice soup also came in a sharable appetizer, so she, Luxuli, and I split that, and I got the pan-fried noodles for my main course. Since we also split an order of pot stickers, I couldn’t eat that much of the pan-fried noodles, so I was excited to have them for lunch today… and then I forgot them at home. After dinner, Jilly Moose, Luxuli, and I went for a walk to a nearby park that has a building with a sort of patio on top of it. We had a beautiful view of the lake and the sunset from there. Unfortunately I haven’t been able to take any time off of work for Anna Banana II’s visit, since we are busy with month-end AND year-end reconciliations, but fortunately I have gotten to see a lot of her anyway. And she may even come back for a second visit later this year! Yay!

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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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Trip to Rib Mountain and Roche-a-Cri

I hope my readers had a good weekend. Mine was pretty great because Anna Banana II is back in town for a visit. Friday Travalon and I went to Nonno’s Italian Restaurant to meet the Rosary Ladies, Rich, and the Dairyman’s Daughter for dinner. She had just come from a camping trip with her cousin and cousin’s daughters in northern Minnesota, and she said they went on a marsh tour that was really cool. They saw lots of lady’s slippers and other beautiful flowers. I am a little jealous, since I grew up in Minnesota and always heard about the showy lady’s slipper as the state flower, but I have never seen one. Maybe someday…

Saturday a bunch of us went on a trip to Rib Mountain: the Rosary Ladies, Travalon, Rich, Cecil Markovitch, and the Single B-Boy. We stopped for coffee before leaving town and then got caught in the traffic on the interstate. By the time we got to Rib Mountain (after a stop for lunch), it was around two. Tiffy called to say she was driving through Wausau on the way to her parents’ house, but she didn’t have a state park sticker, so she couldn’t stop by to say hi. We hiked on the top of the mountain, and some people went up the observatory tower. Travalon suggested we go to Roche-a-Cri State Park after that, and some of us (the guys, Jilly Moose, and I) went all the way up the rock. For some reason I thought it was 26 flights of stairs to get up there, but according to my phone it was 20. From the top we had a fantastic view of other unusual rock formations all over Adams County. The B-Boy found a supper club on Castle Rock Lake that wasn’t too far away, so we went there for a wonderful dinner, and afterwards the guys and I watched fireworks across the lake. Cecil said it was a wonderful evening, and when I said, “Wasn’t the whole day wonderful?” it turned out he wasn’t too impressed with Rib Mountain. Oh well, Travalon and I still love it there.

Yesterday after Mass Travalon and I went to brunch with Anna Banana II, then we met Hockey Girl at Tenney Park, and she and I took a rosary walk while Travalon fished. The three of us went to a bluegrass festival at the High Noon Saloon, featuring acts with wonderful names like Milkhouse Radio and Sortin’ the Mail, and they were just as good as those names promised. Travalon and I had a quiet evening at home, but we kept hearing fireworks, so we went outside and were treated to practically a personal show from some house across the river. Then we went out onto our dock and saw what we suspect were the Westport fireworks, but the bugs were eating us alive so that was less fun. Anyway, I can’t say I haven’t seen fireworks this year!

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