On This Date in 1999 (January 24)

Well, I didn’t get much of a start yesterday. Having to get ready for Andy’s basketball game interrupted my progress.

Our weekend has completely revolved around basketball. Friday evening I dropped him off at his 6 o’clock practice, then returned home to keep Eddie company until JoAnna returned home from the health club. By then, it was time for me to make the rounds for dinner – McDonald’s for Eddie, Grand China for JoAnna, Pasqual’s for Andy and me – before picking up Andy, his cheeks full of color after an invigorating 90 minutes of drills, running, and a scrimmage.

One of the reasons yesterday was such a lazy day is that our primary focus was Andy’s basketball game, a later start than usual. 4:15 p.m. Plus we had a half-hour drive to Stoughton in less than ideal conditions. When we left the house, a crusty frosting of snow covered the streets and sidewalks in our neighborhood, but the main roads were more passable, fortunately.

Andy’s team got off to a sluggish start, scoring only 4 points in the first quarter, and trailing by a score of 17-11 at the half. They kept themselves in the second half of the game with some aggressive defense and improved shooting. The final score was 31-30, an absolute thriller of a game, with Middleton able to hold onto a one-point lead for the final 30 seconds of the game. They held Stoughton to a single point in the 4th quarter. Andy played well, grabbing his usual numbers of rebounds but he didn’t score any points.

Once we returned home, we ordered pizza and sat in the front of the TV for the Wisconsin-Iowa game. The Big Ten is very competitive this year, with seven teams in the Top 25 rankings, though none of them in the top ten. Iowa and Wisconsin are ranked 14th and 15th, respectively this week, so this game was built up as a major showdown, as well as being a battle for sole possession of second place in the conference standings. An additional element of drama was the presence of Sam Okey, former Badger who now plays for the Hawkeyes. Okey was the most highly-regarded and sought-after Wisconsin high-school basketball player three-four years ago, and the fact that he chose Wisconsin made a lot of people think that our years of basketball mediocrity were over. A funny thing happened on the way to the NCAA Final Four. It turned out that coach Dick Bennett and his highly regarded recruit didn’t get along. Most of the blame has to be placed on Okey, a prima-donna type of player who craved the attention that came his way but didn’t know how to effectively deal with it. He left the team in the middle of last season, a disastrous one from start to finish for the Badgers. This year, without Okey, the team is playing as good if not better than the expectations that were pinned on them three years ago.

Last night, Okey got the crowd fired up with an early slam-dunk, but otherwise the game was all Badgers, who rolled to a very impressive 72-52 victory. They might finds themselves in the top ten in next week’s poll.

More basketball today. But first we went to church, 11 o’clock mass at St. Bernards and attended their spaghetti dinner afterwards. We had about an hour and a half of “free time” before traveling to Andy’s game. I stretched out on the coach and continued reading the book of short stories I started last week, The Summer Before the Summer of Love, by Marly Swick, a very observant writer. She creates some wonderfully interesting characters in these stories. I must admit that I dozed off for about 20 minutes, which left me just enough time to complete one story.

Another exciting game today. This was a rematch with Verona, whom Middleton beat handily (40-17, I think) in their first game of the season. Verona looked much improved, although Middleton did built a ten-point lead by half-time. Verona chipped away determinedly, but either a turnover by them or a key basket by Middleton allowed us to maintain at least a 5-point cushion. In fact, that was the margin of victory, 37-32. Andy played a lot of minutes, the entire first quarter, in fact. He grabbed 8 or 9 rebounds and scored 4 points on the boards. Only his defense in the last minute of the game looked a little suspect. He let his guy drive by him and score a basket both times. Overall, though, it was the best game he’s played this season so far.

I guess I started supper too soon. Everything was ready 15 minutes ago, but JoAnna and Andy haven’t returned from the health club yet. I baked boneless chicken breasts, brushing two of them with soy sauce, since the two side dishes I’ve prepared are rice and a Birds-Eye stir-fry vegetable medley, an item that a newspaper coupon encouraged me to buy. Everything’s on warm, so I’m sure it’ll taste all right. The boys will probably eat just the chicken, although I think Andy has tried rice before without grimacing.

We’ve had more snow today, close to an inch, enough so that I’m going to have to shovel off the sidewalk and driveway later this evening. The dirty gray snow that made everything look so ugly has now been covered by a thin blanket of white.

It’s Monday morning, with no time to add anything substantial to this letter. I want to get your belated card in the mail before I go to work, but before I do that I still need to take a shower, get dressed, and rouse the boys out of bed.

On This Date in 1998

Eddie and I are going to spend the evening at home since he isn’t in the mood to attend the high school football game. I’m content to stay in myself. I worked an abbreviated schedule today – from 8:30 to 2:00, no lunch – as I had a series of errands to run and rides to provide that would take up most of the latter half of the afternoon. Cash my check. Refill Eddie’s Ritalin prescription. Pick up Andy and drive us to Best Buy to pick up a birthday present for his friend Tim. (I allowed myself the indulgence of buying 2 CDs for myself, the first time this year I bought any new – or old music. Dale and Lar might also enjoy and music on Urban Hymns by the Verve and Great Divide by Semisonic. ) Return home so Andy can change into his football uniform. Drop him off at the high school football field, where the orange and white Oriole teams will be playing against each other in a short scrimmage during the halftime of the sophomore game. (The high school also has a freshman team, so there is no junior varsity, per se.) Buy stamps and mail a stack of bills at the post office and drop off the water bill at city hall. Pick up three pirs of slacks at the cleaners. Pick up Eddie at After School and then return to the high school football field where the scrimmage in already in progress. I decided not to buy $3 tickets for a series of plays that will be over in a few minutes. From a distance of 70 yards, it’s hard to tell what is going on. After Andy’s teams poses for pictures (for what purpose, never did learn), the boys and I return home via McDonald’s drive-through. Before Andy can chow down his McNuggets and French fries, I have to drive him back to the high school where the 5th through 8th grade band members will be practicing for their pregame show. (It’s a homecoming weekend.)

JoAnna just left for the game a few minutes ago. She and some other people will be distributing candy while Jon Erpenbach, our state senate candidate and hometown boy, greets the crowd. (Jon is a 1980 graduate of MHS.) 
Tomorrow, as you’ll learn in a later report, is going to be an even more hectic day. Right now I’m a paragraph or two away from sacking out on the couch and starting a new book.

I spent Wednesday night in Two Rivers with Larry and Alice since I was conducting a workshop at the Manitowoc Public Library Thursday morning. Larry talked about his latest health problems. For most of this year, ever since an afternoon of bowling during a visit in Florida with Bud (Alice’s brother) and Shirley (Larry’s sister) in February as he pinpoints it, he has been bothered by arthritis. During his worst attacks, he is practically immobilized; he can barely move around with crutches. He’s taking medication, which seems to make his face puffy. Either that or he’s put on some weight this year. Alice seems to be doing well. She hasn’t smoked a cigarette since New Year’s Eve and here I thought she wouldn’t last in a smokeless environment through the spring.

The two main topics of my workshop were conducting a reference interview and integrating electronic reference sources into the library reference services program. The library system, headquartered in Manitowoc, is the smallest one in the state, but 20 people attended. The visit also provided me with an opportunity to see Wisconsin’s newest public library, a 52,000-square-foot facility in a downtown redevelopment area just a stone’s throw from Lake Michigan.

When I picked up Andy at school yesterday, after he completed his duties as a school crossing guard, I almost didn’t recognize him. I watched a strapping young lad emerge from the school and walk toward the car. He wore a red polo shirt with a school band logo, the style of shirt having a lot to do with his more mature look, with shiny black knee-length gym shorts. His calves have the well-developed shape of an athlete’s. His short, dirty-blond hair stuck out of his head like nubby sunbleached quills. He carried his trumpet case in his right hand, and his walk exuded a sense of confidence. Of course, I knew it was Andy all along, but he seemed to have climbed a few rungs up the ladder to maturity all of a sudden.

I feel the same sense of pride and wonder observing Eddie. I accompanied him to his Cub Scout meeting last night. He looked so assured in his navy shirt and orange scarf. When I look at pictures of the boys from three or four years ago, I never fail to be amazed at the changes that have taken place. If it weren’t for all the pictures we have, I’d probably have trouble remembering the boys when they were toddlers. When I do the math for 11 times 2, that is, Andy when he’s twice as old as he is now, I want to slam on the brakes and let the engine idle in neutral for awhile. I wish our lives weren’t on the fast track so often.

May 7, 1992

JoAnna has a series of evening meetings, including county board, so I pick up the boys at daycare.  Andy has gone a second day without choking anyone, so I reward him with a cheeseburger kids' meal at McDonald's.  Eddie gets the chicken McNuggets, and Dad opts for three chicken fajitas.

May 1, 1992

Great day.  It's almost as though I were single, but of course, if I were single, I wouldn't be contemplating yard work.  I'd've fired up a mega-doobie and baked my bare back in the hot sun as I pedaled around Madison and environs.  After dropping off the boys at daycare, I drive to the credit union and cash a check that is half what I expected.  I stop at Mickie's Dairy Bar for breakfast, parking the car within view of Larry and Martha's.  I think about going to visit, but my stomach leads me elsewhere.  As I'm sitting at the counter, I imagine what a sense of deja vu this place must have for UW grads (and dropouts from my era).  Remodeling and renovations have been kept to a minimum.  So anyway the rest of the morning and afternoon is spent planting peas, lettuces, spinach, and radishes.  I pick up the boys and stop at McDonald's to get them supper.  As soon as we get back to the house, I make a path between the picnic table and the boom box trying to retape tunes from the British Invasion era.

April 7, 1992

During the morning, I can avoid thinking about the election because of the need to focus on my ETN presentation, which goes well.  Like the Nuts and Bolts program, I feel as though I have skimped on the preparation time, but my delivery is smooth and confident for the most part.  Amazingly, about halfway through the program, I have to put a lid on the discussion so I can get to the heart of my notes.

After driving home, I find that I have no appetite for lunch.  I take a container of yogurt out of the refrigerator and methodically spoon out the contents.  The afternoon at the library is fairly unfocused.  I leave at 4 to pick up both boys at daycare.  We eat out at McDonald's -- yesterday it was Burger King -- where I chow down three chicken fajitas, a fast-foot entree I actually find myself salivating over.  I'm actually feeling less stressed out, even a bit more confident about JoAnna's chance.  I endure a rather comical Common Council meeting, but considering these are the folks that will be voting on the library budget later in the year, it's a frightening display of pigheadedness and ignorance.  Before the meeting, Bruce Kaufmann addresses Don in such as way as to suggest that Don has the election in the bag.  I remain poker-faced but am chuckling on the inside.

The results are a long time comin'.  Yesterday Tim said he'd have all the totals tabulated by 9:15, 9:30 at the latest.  Guess again.  Considering the speed with which he gets the checks mailed out, I certainly should have known better.  Still hoping for speedy returns, I wait with Jim Wexler and Mike Duren in the administrative office.  Who should join us but Don and his wife, who seems a real friendly sort but studiously avoids eye contact with me.  Once they learn about the delay, they decide to wait things out at the Village Green.  I decide to join the party -- in progress at home, the tension mounting each time the phone rings -- and it rings, chirps, actually, every five minutes. Around 11, Jim calls with the news that JoAnna has won, the 1st, 3rd, and 5th districts he clarifies after JoAnna hands me the phone.  But the 5th is Don's district  so we are heartened.  Fifteen minutes later, Jim calls to ask to speak to the new supervisor from the 26th district.  I relay the news to JoAnna across the living room and a joyous communal cheer raises the roof. JoAnna takes the phone and I give her the hug of a lifetime and feel the pleasant sensation of my eyes welling up with tears of joy.  It's a feeling that rivals the birth of a child.  I'm so proud and elated that I hug everyone in sight.  It's especially nice to have JoAnna's parents with us to share this fantastic moment.  For them it will be a memory of a special time that ranks with the best.  It will certainly be for me.

Tuesday, December 17, 1991

I use a free morning to do chores:  laundry, vacuuming and dusting, tidying up the kitchen, as well as taping the Four Seasons, mostly.  And do those guys sound good after all these years.

I sorta coast through the afternoon.  A few minutes before 4, I leave to pick up Andy and Eddie. Eddie doesn't look good at all.  Red eyes and such a forlorn look on his face.  It's been a rough day for him.  It's fine during the first half of the drive home, but then he fusses the rest of the way. We pick up Jesse and supper at McDonald's.  Food seems to settle Eddie down.  Jesse reports that he goes to bed early.  Since JoAnna's at the Capitol Christmas party, Andy and I stay up and watch Green Acres together.

June 19, 1991

JoAnna is able to get Andy out of bed early enough so that I don't have to drive him to daycare.  I take care of a number of continuing education teaching activities that I have been regularly postponing:  reviewing the final batch of ETN assignments and composing the brochure copy for the Nuts & Bolts workshop.  Otherwise...phbbt!  Andy and I go shopping.  I buy him a couple of pairs of shorts at Kohl's and replenish by beer supply at Apollo.  I promise him dinner at McDonald's, but he will not settle for drive-through.  After Andy eats his cheeseburger, he wants to hit the play area.  He can't understand why he has to take his shoes off, so we leave.  JoAnna is home when we return.  A surprise.  I water the garden , play catch with Andy in the driveway (his ability to field high pop-ups is amazing),

March 29, 1991

I plan to work a few hours in the morning as Deb is scheduled to attend an all-day workshop.  "On Good Friday?" I neglect to ask myself yesterday.  Once I realize there'll be more than adequate coverage, I decided I'm only there to pick up my paycheck.  I call JoAnna to inform her of my change in plans, and she requests that I stop by her office before going to the credit union.  After my visit there, I make my usual Friday biweekly rounds:  Pic-a-Book, a record store (where I buy a copy of Savoy Brown's Getting to the Point, and learn that my two Savoy Brown favs, Raw Sienna and Looking In, are scheduled for CD release next Tuesday) -- plus a bonus, a visit to Paul's Book Store where I make a thorough and successful search of the architecture shelves.  I pick up Andy at daycare and we walk to JoAnna's office.  We take the little guy to McDonald's for lunch.  Their filet of fish sandwich is still as unappetizing as ever.  I spend the afternoon doing laundry and taping 60s music.  Later on, we all go shopping.  We buy a TV-VCR cart and a mirror at Menard's.  I begin to lose patience with our outing at the mall.  Andy's all over the place.  I take him to the food court, mostly to avoid an argument with JoAnna.