20 Years of “Bledded Wis” (Part 2)

February 14

Valentine’s Day was chosen as our wedding day to help me remember the date. For many years I thought Valentine’s Day was February 12. I was never good about Hallmark holidays. One makes the required adjustments.

I require three things in a man: he must be handsome, ruthless, and stupid. ~ Dorothy Parker

2011

[Several people of DNA or legal connection cruising Lake Darling with Grandson Tom at the helm . . . ]

[The Biddies prepare for an assault on the American countryside in Rita’s Rialta . . . ]

[And then waving Rita goodbye at the end of the trip. I survived their absence with the usual bachelor sustenance – sourdough toast w/ butter, potato chips, cheese and crackers, pot pies, canned chili, & M&M Peanuts . . . ]

[Getting a scalp massage at Sixth Avenue Wine & Ale from Jo Colvin, erstwhile acclaimed reporter for the local newspaper . . . ]

Don’t accept rides from strange men – and remember that all men are as strange as hell. ~ Robin Morgan

I am a woman meant for a man, but I never met a man who could compete. ~ Bette Davis

[The Biddies at our annual August getaway, Indiana University’s Camp Brosius on Elkhart Lake in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin . . . ]

[A camp day trip to local places of interest . . . ]

The male is a domestic animal which, if treated with firmness and kindness, can be trained to do most things. ~ Jilly Cooper

It’s not the men in my life that counts – it’s the life in my men. ~ Mae West

[Camp games!]

[The camp theme that year was pirates. I was confused and initially came dressed as Roberto Clemente . . .]

[It’s hard to say goodbye after a week together at camp . . . ]

[Corn? Did someone mention Schonberg’s corn?]

[Julie Patchouli and Bruce Hecksel as “Patchouli” at the winery . . . ]

[Despite obvious shortcomings, assumed duties as the chronicler of the homecoming parade . . . ]

Basically my wife was immature. I’d be at home in the bath and she’d come in and sink my boats. ~ Woody Allen

[With Anne & Bill Gross at Grandma’s (home of the marathon) in Duluth . . . ]

[We crashed the barrier of a yet unopened Lake Superior overlook . . . ]

[Sunrise over beautiful Lake Darling . . . ]

[Friday after Thanksgiving. Fort Alexandria. We gather for the lighting of the Christmas lights on Broadway . . . ]

[Photojournalist practicing his craft . . . ]

[Seriously. This was Christmas Day. In Alexandria, Minnesota . . . ]

2012

[I was kidnapped once again for a snowbird trip to Sarasota . . . ]

[And then the grandson’s graduation cruise on the Caribbean . . . ]

[Seriously, she could live on one of these things!]

[They never found the contraband, and I lived to smuggle another day . . . ]

[Sitting on my ass in Dorset, Minnesota’s (population 22) famed restaurant row . . . ]

[A Jess Lourey book signing at Cherry Street books . . . ]

2013

[A winter trip east to visit the McMullens in Salem, Massachusetts . . . ]

[There was no snow but it was really cold in D.C. . . . ]

[Plying my trade on the basketball court. At no time was I hit with a “fake news” epithet!]

[Venice, Italy. They have subsequently banned large cruise ships. Good for them, and we apologize . . . ]

[Probably my favorite photo ever of this particular model. The setting was Sorrento, Italy . . . ]

2014

[Another book signing with Jess Lourey. She is prolific. Still introducing her books to appreciative friends . . . ]

[With the previously mentioned Jo Colvin, and her daughter Brianna, at Sixth Avenue Wine & Ale . . . ]

King of the World (Atop the Arc de Triomphe)

[To the best of my knowledge, have never had any run-ins with the Elkhart Lake constabulary . . .

[A William Kent Krueger (“Kent” to his book signing friends) book signing at Cherry Street Books . . . ]

[The Super, once again with her close personal friend Sid, as we seek access to Basketball Dan’s annual turkey day . . . ]

2015

[It’s something about the hats . . . ]

[It’s something about the wine . . . ]

[The Super shooting BAT at the winery . . . ]

[We’re so proud. Celia was amazed. Grandson Tom ordered the gigantic burger on the Arrowwood deck and polished it off without breaking a sweat . . . ]

[Kettle corn with the Hasz family at the winery. Megan and Bethany, of course, were track and cross-country state champions for the Alexandria Cardinals and are doing the same as 4-year Minnesota Golden Gophers . . . ]

2016

Wives are people who feel they don’t dance enough. ~ Groucho Marx

You never see a man walking down the street with a woman who has a little pot belly and a bald spot. ~ Elayne Boosler

[A book signing with Carl Hiaasen at the Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul . . . ]

[With Dangerous Dan, the Boy Tenor, and Rita at SAWA . . . ]

2017

The ability to have our own way, and at the same time convince others they are having their own way, is a rare thing among men. Among women it is as common as eyebrows. ~ Thomas Bailey Aldrich

[At Brewster’s in Bloomington, Indiana . . . ]

[With The Biddies at Mini-University on the campus of Indiana University . . . ]

[With Rita at Showalter Fountain on the campus of Indiana University . . . ]

[Going home from our week of higher education in the Hoosier state, leaving from Rita’s classic log home in the unique village of Nashville, Indiana . . . ]

[The Super’s favorite orange moose in Black River Falls, Wisconsin . . . ]

[Enjoying Josie Nelson at the winery . . . ]

[Carlos Creek Winery’s famed fun bunch . . . ]

[They were subsequently released on their own recognizance . . . ]

I want a man who’s kind and understanding. Is that too much to ask of a millionaire? ~ Zsa Zsa Gabor

[Bullwinkle & Rocky . . . ]

2018

[Ruthie meets and has a chat with Mark Twain at Alexandria Area High School’s Performing Arts Center. Mark Twain was portrayed by Don Shelby. Don Shelby is a Hoosier. Ruthie is a Hoosier. It took off from there . . . ]

[Ruthie meets University of Minnesota’s basketball coach Richard Pitino at the Legacy of Lakes Museum during the Golden Gopher Statewide Caravan. Richard is not a Hoosier. Nevertheless, we invited him to share our table . . . ]

Miscellaneous

With some senators or senator-wannabes . . .

[Another time at the Daily Grind . . . ]

[The Villa Bellezza winery in Pepin, Wisconsin, one year on our way to camp, exploiting the good life . . . ]

And finally, for this past year in pandemic quarantine, we survived by doing puzzles, blogging, reading, ZOOMING, watching such as “Professor T.”, “Scott & Bailey”, and “New Tricks”, and ultimately adopted Guinevere and Galahad who keep us moving trying to save household artifacts from destruction . . .

And so, February 14, 2021, outside with a “feels like” temperature of 40 degrees below zero . . .

And toasting to another 20 years, pandemic free of course . . .

Tomorrow, February 15, we will each receive our second COVID19 vaccination, and hope that will be the start of the beginning to the end . . .