my week in Wisconsin

Hello everyone!

I am back from Wisco and only slightly worse for the wear. I always seem to get sick on my last day of traveling and it happened again this trip. So forgive me if my grammar is less than perfect...I'm not fully functioning at this point. At least I'm not on Dayquil, that stuff makes me feel crazy.

I arrived in Milwaukee on Wednesday evening. Dad picked me up from the airport and we went home to eat with Mom. We watched the news in horror as the situation in New Orleans unfolded. Later that night I drove to Kevin's parents house and chatted with them for a bit before Kevin & I went to a bar in downtown Waukesha. We had some beers at the House of Guinness and talked until bar time. When I got home late that night I stood in my parents' dark driveway in amazement at all the nighttime noises. Oregon doesn't have the crickets and cicadas of the Midwest so I enjoyed listening to the nighttime chorus.

Thursday I watched the news for hours with my mom. We yelled and the tv and yelled at the government. We simply could not understand how no one had arrived to help the hurricane victims after days and days had passed. I know I pay taxing with the hope that if my house was blown away or submerged underwater that my government would come rescue me or at least drop food & water until they could rescue me. UNBELIEVABLE!!!

I spent a long time in the afternoon taking pictures around my parents' house & garden. They put their pond back in again this year so I loved taking pictures of the frogs and the waterlilies. I love my parents' backyard. It wasn't in it's normal spectacular state because of a drought but it also meant I only saw ONE mosquito during my whole trip!

For dinner that night Mom made her wonderful homemade pizza as requested by my dad for his birthday. Dad opened his presents and we ate the yummy pizza. Later that night I met up with Kevin again and we drove into Milwaukee to hang out with a band that he's been recording. I loved driving into the city and smelling that wonderful yeasty stink from the breweries. I've never smelled that anywhere else. I must say it was pretty entertaining to hang out with a pack of 20 year old Michigan boys. We played cards and then they wrestled in the living room until blood was drawn. They refer to it as Feats of Strength a la the Seinfeld Festivus episode. There was no metal pole though.

Friday was my day on the boat with Brendan. Kevin & I drove to Oconomowoc where Brendan was replacing the propeller on his parents boat. Brendan's friend Thomas had also come up with Brendan from Chicago for the weekend. The guys water skied while I only swam. I was so happy to swim in the warm Wisconsin lake water. It's really hard to find warm water in Oregon to swim in. I was even nostalgic for the lake weeds that wrap around your feet while you swim....so silly...I'm nostalgic for weeds!!! Some of Kevin's friends met us later and we all swam and drank beers in the warm water. I had to drive Kevin's car back to meet my parents for dinner and hang out for a few hours before catching the bus to Madison.

Erika picked me up from the bus depot in Madison and we went to her house that she owns with her husband, Adam. They have a great place with a deck and yard. We headed out to a show at the Annex. We saw a band from Chicago called The Dials, one of the women used to live in Madison. They were really fun to watch play. I saw Ricky and Terrin and was amazed to hear that their eldest son Izik had just had his first day in the first grade! I used to babysit him when he was a little baby! I also talked with Big Mike who is a Madison institution...a big guy with a goatee in the shape of a question mark who I first met when I was 18!

Saturday Erika and I drove downtown. We parked by the Capitol which was crazy with the Farmers' Market ending and the Taste of Madison being set up on the square. We walked around the Capitol building both inside & out & I took tons-o-pictures. I was so spoiled living just a few blocks away from that beautiful building for so many years! We then went to the Overture Center which the HUGE new arts center in Madison. Erika hadn't been inside yet either so it was new for both of us. We saw some bad art and some interesting architecture. We then walked down the length of State St to the Memorial Union where we got beers and sat on the Terrace on the Lake Mendota. I always have to have a beer at the Terrace when I go to Madison! We left and realized that the football game must have gotten out. There was a sea of people in red and white. I had forgotten how nutty that town gets on game days. We walked up State St and ate lunch at Himal Chuli, a Nepalese restaurant that I love. From there we drove back to Erika's house and relaxed for a while on her back deck.

Later that night Adam's friend arrived from Illinois and we all went out to eat at the Plaza. We then drove up to the square and parked. Erika and Adam got married on August 6th in a very small civil ceremony. A few weeks later they had a big get together for their families. I was in town for the big bash for all their friends to celebrate their wedding. They had rented out the Corral Room for the party. It wasn't opened yet so we went upstairs to the Tornado Room for some drinks. We then went downstairs to cut the cake and await the arrival of guests. People started showing up and the whole night was a whirlwind of friends I hadn't seen in years(Alpy & Bootsy!), a band I hadn't seen play in ages and tons of fun. Transformer Lootbag played which is made up of guys I went to middle & high school with. It was so great to stand up front with Erika and go crazy while they played. Next up was Lozar (a combo of Erika's & Adam's last names). They were a cover band that existed solely for this wedding party. They played a favorite song of Erika's then a favorite song of Adam's for their whole set. It was a great time! We stayed until bar time and were exhausted and giddy from the night's events. I had a blast and it seems a great time was had by all! We took a cab back home and crawled into bed.

Sunday morning I ate breakfast and hung out with Erika & Adam for a while before Erika drove me to Lake Mills. She dropped me off at Pam's house (Greta's mom). Greta had driven down from Minneapolis for the weekend with her daughter Valentine who I was thrilled to meet for the first time. She is seven months old now...last time I saw her she was just a bump in her mommy's belly! She is such a sweet and mellow baby and Greta seems like a content mama. Pam bbq'd and we ate with all of Greta's grandparents. My mom had knit Valentine some teething dolls which were a big hit with her. Later that night Greta's brother Ben showed up with his girlfriend. We all talked and had drinks. Later we sat around the fire out back and watched the stars.

In the morning I snuck up to Greta's room where she was sleeping with Valentine in the bed after her morning feeding. I crawled into bed with them and they woke up all drowsy and smiley. Valentine just looked at me with her huge eyes and grinned and swung her arms and legs around. It's amazing to look at the baby of your dear friends...she is a wonder! We all got up and ate breakfast before heading our separate ways. I felt so lucky to have been able to share an afternoon, night and morning with Greta & Valentine! They drove back home to Minneapolis while Pam and her friend Ken drove me to my parents in Waukesha.

At home I sat around the pond with my dad and talked for a long time. My mom and I watched the news and yelled at the tv some more. That night mom continued her greatest hits of dinner for me and made Chicken George. Later that night I met Kevin at the studio where he works in Milwaukee. He showed me around and we listened to music really loud on amazing $8000 speakers! We then drove to a bar called Highbury where we met up with Brendan, his brother Shawn and his girlfriend Michelle, and his friend Thomas. We all had beers...I was getting my fill of New Glarus Spotted Cow which I cannot get outside of Wisconsin. Afterwards we went to Shawn & Michelle's apartment just up the street and hung out there for a while. I had such a great time hanging out with those boys. I'm so glad we've remained friends after all these years!

Tuesday was my last day in Wisconsin. I walked around the yard with my dad and we sat by the pond talking. Mom and I yelled at the tv some more. For dinner Mom made her wonderful bbq ribs and I was off to the airport. I was starting to feel sick at home and it escalated while I was traveling. At the Denver airport I just wanted to curl up in my bed and sleep. When I finally landed in Portland it took hours for one of my ears to pop. I think I'm starting to feel better. I feel overwhelmed by everything I experienced in Wisconsin: celebrating Erika's wedding, meeting Valentine for the first time, seeing so many old friends. It really was a great trip and I am so very grateful to Erika for flying me out for the occasion. I love going home and seeing everyone! Thank you to everyone who went out of their way and traveled to meet up with me! It was so wonderful to see all of you!

xoox,
carolyn