On This Date in 1999 (April 15)

This letter will be the last that I send to you in Arizona. JoAnna says that you’ll be back in Two Rivers by the end of the month. Back to reality!

We’ve been experiencing a lot of April showers lately. We had a couple periods of rain during the week, including a soaking downpour that started late Thursday evening and lasted throughout the night. Yesterday we had beautiful weather through the late afternoon when a bank of gray clouds darkened the western horizon. It has been raining on and off ever since, which makes today a good time to stay inside and tackle some cleaning projects or just take it easy. JoAnna’s doing the latter right now. She’s sacked out on the couch watching a biography of Cher on VH1.

“I can barely keep my eyes opened,” she told me a few minutes ago.

The boys are on the other side of the house waiting for a friend to come over, someone who lives just a block away from us.

JoAnna and I started our spring cleaning yesterday. The house was begging for our attention. We started out with the living room/dining area/study, covering every surface from ceiling to floor. The cabinets and buffet were cleared out and cleaned, and then the contents were more efficiently organized. We also tackled the kitchen, again from top to bottom. We didn’t have to clean all the cabinets since JoAnna had rearranged some of them to accommodate the new dishes and glasses we got at Christmas. While I was cleaning the kitchen countertops, JoAnna tidied up the hallway between the kitchen and garage and then removed all the Abrahamson campaign clutter that had accumulated around the computer during the past three months. I’m so glad this election is over. Shirley was easily re-elected to the Supreme Court, beating her opponent handily, by a 63-37 margin. Sharryn Rose couldn’t even win Brown County, her home base.

Friday evening we hosted a card party here. Sheepshead, of course. We started at 7:00 and played until nearly 11:00. Nobody was really into the game. It was the first time this year that the group has gotten together for cards and we were more interested in talking and joking. JoAnna made hot tamales, and our guests brought various snacks – chips and cookies, mostly. Jon Erpenbach brought along Joey and Amy, his two children, so the boys had someone to play with. Amy is just crazy about Boxer, but, unfortunately, the feeling is not mutual. Amy is much too rough with him. Boxer was a basket case by the end of the evening. When we were saying goodbye to our guests, I held him so he wouldn’t make a dash for the open door. He bit me rather forcefully on my left index finger, the little runtski. He was all wound up after having been chased around the house by four wild kids for much of the evening.

JoAnna decided we’d go to church this morning since she didn’t want to get cleaned up for church after our housecleaning and then get all grubby again during the workout at the health club. Andy accompanied her and played basketball while she went through her routine. Eddie and I stayed home. I finished writing a letter to Mom, and Eddie watched TV. Mom, by the way, is doing fine. Dad had become such a burden, the Parkinson’s completely immobilizing him during the last couple weeks of his life. Both JoAnna and I were surprised, almost shocked, by her appearance at Christmas. She had lost so much weight. Some of it is attributable to an overactive thyroid, a diagnosis made by her doctor earlier in the year. I’m convinced that an equal part was a result of the ongoing stress of taking care of Dad. Mom was determined to keep him at home and, fortunately, Hospice was there during his last days so he could die peacefully and with dignity. Now Mom can get back to having a life of her own. 

The boys and I had a nice visit in Warren for a portion of the last week in March, during the boys’ spring break from school. We went shopping a couple times, once to the Jamestown (New York) mall, once to the Warren mall. We took Mom and Barb out to lunch one day. Otherwise we just hung out. Our evening meals lasted for three hours, with the family, including Larry and Kim, who always joined us at this time of the day, gathered around the dining room table for food and conversation.

The boys and I spent April Fool’s Day on the road. We stayed at a motel in Hammond, Indiana, just outside of Chicago. The boys spent most of the evening in the pool. I joined them for awhile, but then wrote a note to Mom while they continued to splash around. We had a great time in Chicago. On Friday, we visited the planetarium, walked through Grant Park to the Art Institute (not a very big hit with the boys, but they did enjoy the arms & armor exhibit) and the Museum of Broadcast Communications (featuring oldtime TV and radio memorabilia), and then walked back to the car – over an hour of walking altogether, which resulted in a few complaints from the boys during our return trip. It was a beautiful day for walking, though.

Around 3:00, we checked into our motel, the Best Western River North, located a few blocks north of the Chicago River and six blocks west of Michigan Avenue. We thought we’d be able to get in a swim before supper, but the pool was closed for repairs. Fortunately, a Nintendo game was attached to the TV in our room. That evening, we saw the Chicago Bulls make history, losing to Orlando by the largest margin in the team’s 33-year history. On Saturday, we went to Lou Mitchell’s, one of my favorite restaurants, for breakfast, took a trip to the Skydeck of the Sears Building, and wandered around the Lincoln Park Zoo. We returned to the United Center that evening to watch a hockey game, the Chicago Black Hawks vs. the Carolina Hurricanes. The Hawks won in the final minute of the game, 2-1. It was, admittedly, an expensive weekend, but I don’t think I went over budget. I have to wait until I get my next Mastercard statement for the final verdict. The boys and I are determined that Mom will accompany us on our next trip to Chicago.

It looks like JoAnna has fallen asleep. I thought we were going to continue with our spring cleaning today, clean the bathrooms, specifically. I should attend to a couple areas I overlooked yesterday – the closet next to the front entrance and the cabinets next to the dishwasher. There’s also a couple loads of laundry to do, and I should go through my closet and chest of drawers and bag up a donation of castoffs to Goodwill. I also need to finish filling out our tax forms. JoAnna has me feeling lazy, though. Maybe I’ll just stretch out on the living room couch and continue reading the book I started yesterday, Little Green Men, by Christopher Buckley, a very funny novel about a George Will-type commentator who becomes convinced that he was abducted by aliens. Buckley deliciously spoofs the pomposities of Washington.

Later that same day.

I was able to check off most of the chores on my to-do list, while JoAnna continued to sack out on the couch. She must have used up all her energy at the health club last night. During the early afternoon, she did get up and prepare a round steak in the crock pot for supper and then completed the meal preparations between 5:30 and 6:00. Otherwise, she was snoozin’ or surfin’, the perfect couch potato. Eddie’s soccer practice was canceled. Andy’s lasted nearly two hours. Right now JoAnna is preparing the boys for their first communion, which takes place the first weekend of May. We hope to see you here then. We send you our love.

On This Date in 1999 (January 30)

We stayed out until 11:30. JoAnna and I came out even playing cards. She won $10; I lost $10, $4 in one hand. Double on the bump, as they say in sheepshead lingo, which I’m not about to explain to you. Just let me say that the great hand I thought I had wasn’t good enough.

The boys were still up when we returned home, still handling the controls of the Playstation game. They are really into this electronic toy. I probably should have paid it for babysitting.

Andy’s basketball game (the real, live version) went into overtime. The first quarter didn’t seem to promise this kind of excitement, Middleton scoring only one basket and trailing 8-2 after the first 7 minutes of play. They showed a little bit of improvement in the second quarter, outscoring their opponents 9-8, but still behind 16-11. Our guys kept chipping away at the lead so by the fourth quarter each of the team’s best guns, Johnny Strnad for Middleton, and no. 21 for Madison West, scored baskets at will. Middleton was down 34-32 with a 9 seconds left when Andy Frasier drove in for a lay-up to tie the score. In the 3-minute overtime period, Middleton nailed down a victory by holding their opponents scoreless. Final score 40-34. The fans on both sides of the bleachers were on their feet at the end of the game. It was a well-played and well-coached game, a gratifying win for Middleton, a tough loss for Madison.



Super Bowl Sunday, and I’m sitting in the family room, alone, in front of the computer, with the TV off. Shouldn’t I be arrested or something? Eddie’s in the kitchen watching the Sylvester and Tweety Bowl on the Cartoon Network. Now there’s an inspired example of counter-programming. JoAnna’s taking a nap, the TV in the bedroom tuned to American Movie Classics. Andy’s the only member of the family who’s getting into the spirit of this special day in sports. He and some other friends were invited to watch the game at Tim’s house, Tim’s weekend house, that is, where he lives with the mom and stepdad in Verona, about a 15-minute drive from here. The group gathered there will watch the game on a big-screen TV.

We’ve enjoyed an almost spring-like weekend with lots of sunshine and temperature approaching the 40-degree mark. In spite of this thaw, we still have at least a 4-inch cover of snow on the ground, as I look out the sliding-glass doors to my left and inspect the back yard. JoAnna and I never did complete the task of organizing the garage that was on our to-do list yesterday. I couldn’t think of a compelling reason to jump the gun on spring cleaning. I preferred to stretch out on the couch and get back into the book I’m currently reading. Saving Grace, by Lee Smith, tells the story of a charismatic backwoods preachers in North Carolina who specializes in serpent-handling during his “performances”. The story is told from the point of view of his daughter. I think you might enjoy this book, Mom. The author very effectively recreates the crackling atmosphere of a rural revival service, as well as the struggles of an itinerant family living on the cusp of poverty. Smith has written about 8 novels. The only other one of hers I’ve read is The Devil’s Dream, somewhat of a fictionalized biography of the country singer Patsy Cline, at least that’s how it impressed me.

Andy’s team won another nail-biter this afternoon against Mount Horeb, 45-41. Middleton is turning into quite a scrappy team. Today they were down 12-5 after the first quarter but fought their way back to take a 1-point lead at the half. They have become a never-say-die team.

On This Date in 1998

At 11 o’clock on a Sunday morning, the house is eerily quiet, at least until a tape on which I recorded Miles Davis’s Kind of Blue rewinds. JoAnna went to her office and won’t be home until 6:00. I gave the boys money to go bowling, the Sport Bowl being just a short walk from the house. Andy’s friend Matt dropped by at quarter to ten. He and Andy played a raucous game of rug hockey in the family room until JoAnna returned home from church. She fixed herself a breakfast of scrambled eggs and toast, and even though Andy had recently devoured a serving of syrup-drenched pancakes, and Matt had eaten before the left his house, the boys fixed themselves what JoAnna was eating. I haven’t even had my usual 8 sections of grapefruit yet; a half-glass of apple cider has been my only nourishment so far today.

Eddie and I enjoyed a quiet, pleasant, relaxing Friday evening together. We sat on the couch in the family room, a bowl of popcorn between us. He watched the Cartoon Network while I read. I was intrigued by this cable channel’s approach to programming. They don’t simply throw, willy-nilly, three cartoons into a half-hour time slot. Friday evening featured three Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies cartoons directed by Tex Avery, a filmmaker whom most animation aficionados would place in the pantheon of auteurs, along with Friz Freleng (Bugs Bunny) and Walter Lantz (Woody Woodpecker). (The auteur theory, by the way, is a view of filmmaking, usually associated with live-action films, with directors like Alfred Hitchcock and John Ford and Martin Scorcese, in which the director is considered the primary creative force.)



Eddie, of course, is not watching these cartoons at the same level that I am, my point of view refined over 40 years of fascination with popular culture. I’m sure that he’s as discerning a viewer, though. My guess is that Eddie is not so much interested in the cartoon’s storyline as he is in the – and here I’m going to throw another French film term at you – mise-en-scene (pronounced MEEZ-ahn sane), the physical setting of the action. Eddie has created this huge file of mental images that he effortlessly riffles through whenever he sits at his drafting table and begins a new drawing.

We took two vehicles to get to Andy’s football game yesterday morning. Andy had to be at the field 45 minutes before the 10:30 kickoff time. If we all drove together, Eddie would get bored and in a complaining mood by game time. The Weather Channel predicted scattered showers (my emphasis), and with the sksy looking overcast but not anywhere near threatening, I left the house wearing jeans and a short-sleeve t-shirt. At the end of the first quarter, we heard a single clap of thunder and saw a flash of lightning. A light rain began to fall. I thought the game might be delayed, but the thunder and lightning went away, as if God had immediately answered the coaches’ and parents’ prayers. During much of the second and third quarters, the Orioles played in a driving rain. I mean, it poured! Fortunately, JoAnna had brought along an umbrella and a poncho, and offered me the latter, so I was able to keep dry above the knees. Eddie wore a windbreaker without a hood. He and his friend Garrett enjoyed themselves for awhile, but the brisk wind was probably bringing on a case of hypothermia. Eddie was soaked from head to toe. When he pleaded to go home, JoAnna was happy to oblige.

The Orioles got trounced, 39-0. From start to finish, the team looked disorganized and mostly disinterested on both offense and defense. This was their 6th loss without a win. I think the team lost its spirit before the end of the 1st quarter, as if someone had suddenly popped the balloon of their hopes for a 1st victory. JoAnna and I aren’t sure if it’s a collective lack of talent or poor coaching. Andy still seems to enjoy the experience, though. He hasn’t made any negative comments or tried to weasel out of going to practice.

Andy had only 15 minutes to get ready for Tim’s birthday party. Tim and Andy became good friends in the 3rd grade, a relationship that cooled a bit during 4th grade, but now seems to be warming up again. Tim lives with his dad and stepmom in Middleton during the week and with his mom and stepdad in Verona on the weekends. The party, of course, was in Verona, which is a 15-minute drive from Middleton. On the way home, I stopped at Cub Foods and made a major purchase of groceries. The West Towne area was clogged with traffic, most of the western half of Dane County deciding that shopping was the best way to spend a rainy day. Andy heavy rains continued into the late afternoon.

We hosted a sheepshead party Saturday evening. Jon and Kathy Erpenbach brought along their two children, Joey, 6, and Amy, 3. They get along so well with Andy and Eddie. Some of JoAnna’s staff members showed up: Julie (and her husband, Ron), Emily, Jen, as well as two other Capitol people (legislative aides): Andy, whose Mom is a librarian, and Scott, who does a dead-on Frank Sinatra imitation. (Based on the one time that I tested his knowledge, he seems to know every song that Frank recorded.) It wasn’t a late night. Both tables shut down prior to 11:00.

Mom, did you ever read A Tree Grows in Brooklyn? I finished listening to it on the drive back from Manitowoc on Thursday. It’s a book that remains very popular 45 years after its initial publication, a fact which intrigued me. What is it about this book that makes it so enduring? I wondered. The answer: Betty Smith writes a very compelling coming-of-age story and her depiction of New York City in the 1910s provides a fascinating glimpse of that city’s history.

A Sunday evening postscript

Andy played soccer this afternoon. Matt’s team, which is the team that Andy will play on next spring, was short a player, and Andy was happy to fill in.

I did notice the article in the Warren newspaper about sidewalk replacement. We had a portion of our sidewalk replaced soon after we moved to Mayflower Drive. Our assessment by the city was $80 per square, if I remember correctly. We’d like to get our driveway replaced next spring. I’m sure that won’t be a cheap project.

I clipped the article about the Watson Home. I knew very little about the history of the place, so I found it informative reading. And unless it was shortly after we first moved to Warren, I don’t remember ever being inside the building.

The Buffalo Bills are turning into giant-killers, knocking off another undefeated team today. The mood is a little tense in Packerland after Thursday’s loss to the Lions. JoAnna wondered if Favre might be abusing drugs again, but the local sportswriters point to the Dorsey Levens injury, which left the Packers without a running game and puts more pressure on Favre to do it all. Brett looked like the greenest of rookies against the Lions. He was intercepted three times, but I saw at least three other passes that should have been picked off.

Andy was just demonstrating his dance moves, with Will Smith’s “Men in Black” on the stereo. He looked ready to strut his stuff for the girls. What a guy!

On This Date in 1998

A holiday postscript.

Labor Day was a very lowkey holiday for me. In fact, I was on my own from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Andy spent most of the day with Meaghan and Matt at Meaghan’s house. She has a trampoline set up in the back yard, which seemed to be the big attraction today. I could hear their voices occasionally seep through the open windows and sliding glass door of the family room. Matt’s name might be unfamiliar to you. He’s a classmate of Andy’s and was also on Andy’s soccer team the past two years. He’s playing soccer again this fall, on the team that Andy will play for next spring. He lives about three blocks from our house.

JoAnna and Eddie traveled to Janesville to walk in the holiday parade there as part of the Erpenbach contingent. The parade started at 1:00, but it was 2:30 before they got moving. Obviously, a big parade.

I spent the day doing a variety of domestic chores and other activities. Laundry, which I just finished folding before sitting down at the computer. Reorganizing our bookcases, of which we have half a dozen of various sizes. Watching the Cubs-Cardinals game while eating lunch. (I missed seeing McGwire hit his 61st home run when it happened. I saw it on replay at least four times.) I even took a bike ride, taking a circuitous 20-minute ride to the library to pick up a book on tape. I had left in my office on Friday. Late this morning I finished listening to The Road to Wellville, by T. Coraghessan Boyle, a sometimes uproariously funny novel that skewers the health and nutritional fads of the early 20th century as promoted by John Harvey Kellogg at his Battle Creek, Michigan, sanatorium. The book is very well research, has at least a half dozen fully-developed, three-dimensional characters, and creates a wonderful period atmosphere. Boyle has a very literary style of writing but is also a very good storyteller. I think you might enjoy this book, Mom.

JoAnna and Eddie returned home shortly before 4:30, just in time for Eddie’s soccer scrimmage. Instead of watching him play, JoAnna and I did a lit drop for Rick Phelps, who is running for the 2nd Congressional District. Tomorrow is the primary election in Wisconsin, and that is one of the key races in the Madison area.

We had some friends here yesterday for a chicken barbecue. JoAnna made pasta and cucumber salads, and that was all we needed. (Our guests brought four pints of different varieties of Michael’s frozen custard – our favorite.) It was hot and sticky, so we ate on the patio, the bugs leaving us alone until we had finished eating. We moved inside around 7:00 and played sheepshead for a couple hours. Just a friendly game. No money exchanged hands.

I found it interesting that both boys wanted to be part of the group last night. Andy actually joined us during the meal and participated in the conversation. Before playing cards, we watched the Chiefs-Raiders football game, and Andy was practically giving us a play-by-play. I’m surprised he didn’t put on his uniform.

It cooled down today, although the weather was still very pleasant. Good sleeping weather is in store for tonight. The temperature is going to sip into the mid-40s.

On This Date in 1998

Another warm weekend. And another busy weekend, but of a different, less focused sort. Not everything has revolved around baseball, although it did start out that way.

Andy was the only one with a game scheduled for Friday evening. On Wednesday, both of the boys’ games were postponed, not due to rain but rather the threat of rain and a skyful of lightning. It was quite an electrical display. They occurred during the late afternoon/early evening at the beginning of the week, during the night later in the week.

Maybe it was the result of a week-long heat wave, but both teams looked ragged on Friday. Most of the boys didn’t seem to be interested in the game they were playing. Every once in awhile, I heard a parent shout out an encouragement that seemed to border on a reprimand.

 “Chase, keep your head in the game!” The second baseman was acting a little goofy.

“Brandon, watch what’s going on on the field.” The rightfielder practically had his back to the rest of the team.

Andy stayed focused. He played right-centerfield for the first two innings, first base for an inning, sat out an inning, and then pitched the last two innings. Like his three teammates before him who pitched, he had a little bit of trouble with his accuracy. With runners at second and third and two outs, he managed to get the batter to look at a called third strike on the outside corner. Good pitch! I missed the final inning so we could start for our next destination right after the game. While playing with a couple of boys who also have brothers on the baseball team, Eddie managed to get himself covered with dirt, a regular Pigpen. We went home so he could clean off his face, arms, and legs and then change his clothes. Our friends Ron and Julie were hosting a sheepshead party, which got underway around 6:00, the same time Andy’s game started. We arrived around 8:30 and Ron fired up his gas grill again and cooked us some hamburgers. Otherwise, our food options would have been limited to chips and salsa, chips and dip. And we were hungry folks. We sat on their new deck, the one we helped put together a couple of weekends ago, until the mosquitoes drove us inside, shortly before ten o’clock, then played until midnight in a chilled living room. The air-conditioner must have been cranked to high.

I had terrible cards all evening. Even so, I was up a couple dollars after the first hour or so. I either had a partner hand, and went along for the ride, or the picker didn’t get enough points to win. By the time we left, though, I was down at least a couple dollars. We don’t play for big stakes: a quarter per hand.

While the adults played cards, the boys watched TV. Air Bud was on the Disney channel. Andy and Eddie were wonderful the entire time, never complaining, never getting in anyone’s way. They always seem to enjoy the time they spent at Ron and Julie’s house.

Oh, by the way, Andy’s team won by a score of 11-2. Andy walked all three times he was up to bat. The opposing team had one marginally good pitcher, but the other three could – literally – barely get the ball over the plate. A lot of runs scored on bases on balls. For that reason, it was a very slow-paced, uninteresting game, at times comparable to watching paint dry. It was a lackadaisical evening all around – for both players and fans.

Saturday morning we began phase one of JoAnna’s pre-Bastille Day Party housecleaning. From the list of locations she had prepared, I selected following: utility room, back hallway, and garage. JoAnna gave the kitchen a thorough going-over: cupboards, stove, floor. She even cleaned the salt and peppers shakers. It was that kind of attention to detail. The boys, of course, lounged in the family room watching TV. I actually didn’t’ get to the garage until Sunday morning. 

Andy had made arrangements to have a friend sleep over. Drew Farrell and his mom stopped by at 2:00. Drew and Andy actually have a mutual history going back a few years. They played on the same coach-pitch baseball team three years ago and the same basketball team the year before last, when Andy was in third grade. Drew also plays on the select baseball team. Drew will be a fifth grader at Sauk Trail School in Middleton this fall. Andy ran into him at the new outdoor pool early last week, and since then things have really clicked between the two of them.

JoAnna and I dropped the boys off at the pool and then continued our party preparations. We stopped at a store called Party City to pick up plastic plates, utensils, cups, wine glasses, tablecloths as well as napkins and a few miscellaneous items. We also went to Target, in the same “big box power center” strip mall to buy some new hand towels for the bathrooms, then to Menard’s for a fan light for the kitchen and a green metal arbor for the side yard.

While Jo fixed supper, I joined the boys at the pool. The water felt great after a couple hours of running errands on a hot day. Eddie kept me company during the hour that I was there. While the boys and I were enjoying the refreshing coolness of the pool, JoAnna barbecued chicken and ribs for supper. The ribs had been marinated with Cajun seasonings. Outstanding! We ate on the patio, one of the few times we have used our picnic table this summer.


After supper the boys decided they wanted to see a movie. Our choices were limited, due both to the quality and ratings of the summer releases. Eddie had been intrigued by the previews he saw on TV for Doctor Doolittle, a movie that had just opened to tepid reviews at best. Not being an Eddie Murphy fan, I gritted my teeth and decided to make the best of it. It turned out to be a very funny and entertaining movie, on that Murphy didn’t overwhelm with the usual steamroller force of his personality. He was relatively restrained, a performance that perfectly fit the character he played. Eddie chuckled throughout the movie, and at one point told me, “This is the funniest movie I have ever seen.” One reviewer remarked that parents might complain about the movie’s rating, but the jokes about a flatulent gerbil or a thermometer getting stuck up a dog’s rectum, for example, were very mild. The movie was rated PG-13, but I would have given it a PG. At least a third of the audience seemed to be kids in the age range of Andy and Eddie. I took the boys to Dairy Queen after the movie, forgetting that JoAnna had prepared strawberry shortcake. I had mind for breakfast the next day. I don’t think the boys would have been interested anyway.

According to the report we heard the next day, the boys stayed up until 12:30. Andy let Eddie join in on the fun. In fact, it was never an issue about where Eddie was going to sleep. We let the boys have the family room, opening up the couch. They watched a video and then some of the X games coverage on ESPN. Another storm blew in around 4 a.m., maintaining the one-a-day pattern. JoAnna turned on the TV to check the Doppler radar. We saw a lot of red covering Dane County and a few minutes later, when we looked out the window, the rain was indeed coming down in sheets. I don’t know if the storm disturbed the boys. They didn’t make any mention of it.

We walked in a parade on Sunday, promoting the candidacy of Jon Erpenbach for state senate. Jon used to work for JoAnna as public relations coordinator. He has a background in TV and radio, and, actually, used to work for the senator, Joe Wineke, who now holds the seat. Joe decided to make a run for the open seat in the 2nd congressional district. JoAnna, Julie, and I handed out Packer and Badger schedules and Andy, Drew, and Eddie, on their rollerblades, tossed Tootsie Rolls to the paradegoers. It took uis a half hour to walk the route. It was a hot day but, fortunately, not as humid as it had been a couple days ago. JoAnna and I were glistening with sweat when we reached the car. Drew’s dad, by the way, is one of Jon’s best friends. They went to school together from the elementary grades through high school. They used to double date and are both married to the “high-school sweethearts”, who are both named Kathy.

After dropping Drew off at home, the family went swimming at the outdoor pool. This was JoAnna’s first visit, my second in two days, probably the boys’ 10th or so. We are making good use of our family pass. Drew, his mom and Sister (Eddie’s age) made an appearance shortly after our arrival, which pleased Andy, of course. JoAnna and I left at 3:30, as she had a 4:00 meeting to attend. Another campaign powwow, this one for Rick Phelps, who is also running for the 2nd congressional district, and whom JoAnna and I favor over Joe. I ran a few errands before returning to the pool – Meikle’s True Value to get more potting soil for the final patch of backyard reseeding, Brennan’s for fresh fruit, and Sentry for groceries for the boys’ lunches this week.

Supper was pot luck, help yourself, whatever you can scrounge up. There was a leftover slab of the Cajun ribs that JoAnna barbecued on Saturday, which I claimed. JoAnna finished the chicken. Later, Andy and I went to one of the high-school ball diamonds so he could practice his pitching. Drew’s team was having a batting practice and I think Andy was hoping he would run into him. We didn’t. Andy threw some heat, pitching the ball very accurately. I was quite impressed.

The boys went to bed relatively early for a summer evening, but I’m sure they were beat. Including the time we waited for the parade to start, they were on their rollberblades for over an hour and at the pool for nearly three, the sun shining relentlessly as a result of no cloud cover. I let them sleep in this morning until after 8:00.

JoAnna and I were in bed relatively early, too. We watched the Game Show network – a line-up of black-and-white golden oldies from the 1950s – until the station became scrambled. This seems to happen every night at 10:30 and I have no idea why. I had soaked up a lot of sun during the day, most of it seemingly absorbed by my face. I look like quite the outdoorsman right now. Ruddy complexion. Sun-bleached hair.

So much for this weekend news update.

On This Date in 1998

A thunderstorm rumbled through Middleton early this morning. The noise disturbed the boys’ sleep, as well as their feelings of safety and well-being, so they joined Mom and Dad in bed until the storm passed over. Not realizing they were up and about, JoAnna let out a startled scream as they entered the room. That jolted me awake. We lay scrunched together, listening to the storm, not saying too much. After one particularly loud crack of lightning, the clock radio emitted a soft click. It was 5:00 a.m. and we were without power.

JoAnna and I stayed in bed past our usual time. JoAnna wanted to be able to use her hair dryer after taking a shower, and I was just being lazy. I finally got out of bed at quarter to seven, 45 minutes past my usual time, wondering why it was taking so long to restore power. I exercise on the Walkfit for 10 minutes instead of my usual 20. On warm, muggy mornings, I like to have a fan blowing air on me, and that was not an option today.

Just as I started to prepare the boys’ lunches, I heard another click and then the grinding noise of the dehumidifier. It was 7:20, so we were without power for nearly two and a half hours. At the library, I learned that none of the other staff members had lost power. Must have been a small area that was affected.

Our invitations for the Bastille Day party have all been sent out, and a few people have already responded. I hope the weather will be cooler than it’s going to be this weekend. We are in store for some hot and sticky days. At least we’ll be outdoors Friday evening, out of our sticky house. Ron and Julie are hosting a sheepshead party on their new deck. Saturday we’ll probably go to a movie and out to eat to avoid the heat. The boys will continue to make good use of the family pass I bought for the new outdoor pool here. In fact, JoAnna and I should start going there, although I imagine it’ll be a crunch of bodies this weekend.

A lotta baseball so far this summer. Eddie plays twice a week in a calch-pitch league. Andy also plays twice a week in the Little Bucks league. Last weekend, Andy played in his first tournament, which was held in Beaver Dam. His team started out on a good note, winning their first game Saturday by a score of 9-4. Then they ran up against a very tough team from Fond du Lac and lost 13-0. Fond du Lac won its first game by the same score. Sunday Middleton lost to Beaver Dam, a game that was close during the first two innings, but then Middleton fell apart on defense. Had they won, we would have had to stay around fore another three hours until the semi-final games. I know that some parents and even some of the kids weren’t that disappointed to leave. Overall, it was a good experience for the boys. They’ll know what to expect the next time. Andy will play in two more tournaments this summer, one of which is scheduled in Reedsburg on the weekend of the family reunion, unfortunately.

Boxer is starting to get bolder. This morning he jumped onto a kitchen chair and then onto the table to slurp up the milk that Eddie had left behind in his cereal bowl.. Last week I opened a can of tuna fish and heard a long chorus of meows. Boxer was begging for a taste, which I refused to give to him. JoAnna is still taking about getting a second cat, a playmate for our kitty meowsers. Is this really a good idea? I wonder. I don’t have any base of knowledge in this area, but then I do work in a library where we have books on taking care of cats and learning about their behavior.

So I followed up on this idea and learned the following. “The building of friendship between two cats takes much longer than people want ti to. Most people expect the first and second cats to love each other and play together right away. If this actually happens, consider yourself lucky. It’s rare. Cats don’t believe in love at first sight. It can be several months before they get used to each other. Be sure that you don’t do anything to cause jealousy in either cat.” In another section of the book, the author says you probably shouldn’t leave two cats alone during the first two or three weeks they come into contact. Hmm.

Maybe we want to rethink this second cat business or talk to Meaghan’s dad, our vet, and get his spin on this.

August 9, 1991

Donovan and I meet at the Durrant office to review our notes-in-progress for next March's workshop.  Then I go out for breakfast and enjoy a leisurely meal at Original Pancake House.  Once again, there is a long wait from order to service, but calendar notes keep me occupied.

I work at the library from 11 to 2.  JoAnna and I leave for Tomahawk at 3 -- another weekend away from our boys, two in a row -- and arrive at Chuck's cottage at 6, making great time.  We follow last year's itinerary and have dinner at the White Stag, a 45-minute drive from the cottage.  The sliced heads of iceberg lettuce always get a laugh from us.  The steaks are great.  I opt for the "pound of pleasure" once again.  We stay up until midnight and chat.  Dave, Chuck, JoAnna, and I play sheepshead.

The Power of Pie

All That's Left

A week ago Thursday, the Friends of the Middleton Public Library hosted a fundraiser at Barriques, a coffee shop/wine seller located in downtown Middleton. The $30 per person/$50 per couple tickets provided each guest with free hors d’oeuvres and unlimited wine and beer samples -- and a great schmoozing atmosphere. (The beer, of course, was from Middleton’s own Capital Brewery.) And what a successful outcome for this first-time endeavor. It was difficult to make an exact head count, but I’d guess that at least 50 people were in attendance during the 2½-hour event.

The Friends Board of Directors had carefully planned the event for most of the year, with Vice-President Mary Drake taking the lead in coordinating all of the arrangements. More than 30 of the local businesses she contacted agreed to contribute in one way or another. Many of these sponsors donated a product or service for a silent auction, which must have brought in an additional $1,000. I successfully bid on two items: a pie from Costco’s bakery and a gift certificate from Carr Valley Cheese. (I did go to the event feeling hungry.)

“Did you get the pie?” JoAnna asked me when I told her about my Tuesday trip to Costco.

“No, I didn’t bring the coupon along,” I said.

After she returned home from work on Friday, she suggested we go to Costco to pick something up for an easy supper. Starting at 7:00, we were playing cards – sheepshead, of course – with a group of friends who live on the east side of Madison, and these gatherings generally run until at least midnight.

“And we could pick up the pie, too,” she added.

“Pie, pie, pie! That’s all you’ve thought about since I brought home that coupon,” I teased. “You and your sweet tooth.”

Costco’s pies are huge. We didn’t have a lot of choices, though. A latticed apple pie. (I imagined what it would taste like after 30 seconds in the microwave – and with the addition of a big scoop of vanilla ice cream.) Chocolate cream. (The kind of dessert that causes weight gain just by looking at it.) JoAnna, though, parked herself in front of a pecan pie and stared at it lovingly.

“I take it that’s the one you want,” I said, throwing up a verbal white flag of surrender.

She even took the pie with us to the card party. We returned home with more than half of it intact, which JoAnna and I whittled away at the following morning. We both had pie for breakfast.

Between the sugar and the caffeine, we experienced a productive Saturday morning. JoAnna reorganized the dining hutch and rearranged the living room in preparation for the Christmas tree we’ll set up two weeks hence. And in-between reading RSS feeds and posting a few blogs, I reorganized and tidied up my work space in the family room – the computer table and rolltop desk.)

Surprisingly, there are still two pieces of pie left on Sunday morning, though based on the picture that intros this post, some may argue with my math.

But not for long. I have dibs on a piece for lunch. (And it will be topped with a scoop of chocolate ice cream. Good thing a long walk is on today's schedule!)