Take long walks in stormy weather or through deep snows in the fields and woods, if you would keep your spirits up. Deal with brute nature. Be cold and hungry and weary. ~ Henry David Thoreau
Now is the winter, and spring, of our discontent. We had a second tornado hit our area within 18 days of each other. The water is as high as most locals can ever recall (high being a relative term not dealing with hallucinogenics). The winds keep blowing and temperatures have kept outdoor acitivities to a minimum. Neverthess, we persist . . .
Come in, she said, I’ll give ya shelter from the storm. ~ Bob Dylan
[Guinie keeps an eye on the outdoors on May 30, seemingly aware of what was to come later in that day . . . ]
May 28
Even the weather page is in a state of moral decay. What’s wrong with red, white and blue, USA Today? This rainbow weather map is just another example of the homometeorlogical agenda. ~ Stephen Colbert
[This afternoon was so exceptional, weatherwise, we were stunned. Jeff James was performing at the winery and – it was sunny and comfortable!]
Too often man handles life as he does the bad weather. He whiles away the time as he waits for it to stop. ~ Alfred Polgar
Don’t knock the weather; nine-tenths of the people couldn’t start a conversation if it didn’t change once in a while. ~ Kin Hubbard
[Hail, hail, the gang’s all here . . . ]
Girls in Their Summer Clothes. ~ Bruce Springsteen
Restaurants with peppermills the size of fire extinguishers and big red menus with the entries spelled with f’s instead of s’s are always expensive. ~ Miss Piggy
Thunder is good, thunder is impressive, but it is lightning that does the work. ~ Mark Twain
Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass… Life is about learning to dance in the rain. ~ Vivian Greene.
The storm is an artist; the rainbow is its masterpiece. ~ Matshona Dhliwayo
Remember to play after every storm. ~ Mattie Stepanek
Birds sing after a storm. Why shouldn’t we? ~ Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy
[On the drive home from the winery, the properties along the NW shore of Lake Darling reflect the recovery efforts from the tornado of May 12th . . . ]
At quarter past eleven on that momentous night, the storm breathed its last gasp. ~ Stephen King
The fishermen know that the sea is dangerous and the storm terrible, but they have never found these dangers sufficient reason for remaining ashore. ~ Vincent Van Gogh
Two thirds of federal disaster aid is weather related,and though we cannot prevent bad weather, we are getting better at predicting it. ~ William M. Daley
May 29
Never trust the food in a restaurant on top of the tallest building in town that spends a lot of time folding napkins. ~ Andy Rooney
[We were back at the winery the following morning. Anthony and Jim Miltich were performing from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm in conjunction with 5k and 10k races sponsored by the winery . . . ]
[It was every bit as beautiful a morning as was the previous afternoon. We delighted in the thought of sitting there all day. The Miltiches were followed on stage by the Robb Justice Band from 1 – 4:00 pm. Age and a change in weather prohibited us from sitting there for all six hours (though we did last for four) . . . ]
[Ostensibly a singing duet, they usually double as a comedy team. Jim has been living in Iowa for a few years now. He says Iowa means “idiots out walking around” (but with love in their hearts) . . . ]
Faith is not a delicate flower which would wither away under the slightest stormy weather. ~ Mahatma Gandhi
Something about me has always liked the drama and inconvience of bad weather. The worse the better, really. ~ John Green
I’m in favor of liberalizing immigration because of the effect it would have on restaurants. I’d let just about everybody in except the English. ~ Calvin Trillin
[Karin and Ruthie wend their way back through the crowd with their bottles of Carlos Creek Marquette . . . ]
This will go good with the breakfast pizza we ordered. ~ Ruthie
[Anthony looks on in complete bemusement . . . ]
Money doesn’t talk, it swears. ~ Bob Dylan
[And then, the Robb Justice Band, with Robb on guitar, Abram Heyn on bass, and David Stanoch on drums . . . ]
The real problem with reality is the lack of background music. ~ Anon
It’s not that I am ignoring you, it’s just that this is a really good song. ~ Anon
[Robb grew up in Villard (something I didn’t know until this day). I told him that the Boys of ’65 recently had lunch at the Office Bar in Villard. He said he played a lot of pool there as a kid. And, as is common with Villarders (Villardites? Villardians?), he lived in Alaska for 12 years before he moved back to Minnesota . . . ]
My neighbours listen to some excellent music. Whether they like it or not. ~ Anon
If everybody was happy in relationship there wouldn’t be any good music. ~ Anon
I hate it when I’m singing a song and the artist gets the words wrong. ~ Anon
Sometimes we pee on each other before we go on stage. ~ Trent Reznor
I wish my life had background music so I could understand what the hell is going on. ~ Anon
Let me be clear about this: I don’t have a drug problem, I have a police problem. ~ Keith Richards
To get your playing more forceful, hit the drums harder. ~ Keith Moon
May 30
Bad weather always looks worse through a window. ~ Tom Lehrer
[We had to go to our tornado shelter again. Raced around the house trying to catch the kitties. We spent about 45 minutes here, listening to Tommy Lee on KXRA describe what was going on outside. This is where we heard the tornado had hit Forada, about 12 miles south of Alex . . . ]
[The kitties got to explore a new hideaway . . . ]
Bad weather makes for good photography. ~ Ansel Adams
We have very beautiful bad weather here at present – rain, wind, thunder – but with splendid effects; that’s why I like it. ~ Vincent Van Gogh
I like storms. I would say I actively like stormy weather. I would not be afraid of them. I think that if I had not pursued journalism, I think storm-chasing would’ve been a really fun career. ~ Chuck Klosterman
May 31
I can hear your whisper and distant mutter. I can smell your damp on the breeze and in the sky I see the halo of your violence. Storm I know you are coming. ~ Robert Fanney
[Tuesday Night Club was actually performing on Tuesday night. At the Garden Bar, where I hummed along while noshing on a Greek bowl with ahi tuna . . . ]
[My tablemates were equally sated by whatever it was they ordered . . . ]
[How can one ever exist without one, particularly in this area?]
[Terry, Jim, Bill, and Al once again beguiled us with their musical acumen . . . ]
[Al, singing here, drives all the way from the Twin Cities to perform on these nights . . . ]
[Terry, hidden far left, on guitar with Jim on the bass and Bill on the trumpet . . . ]
If I could be a bird, I’d be a Flying Purple People Eater because then people would sing about me and I could fly down and eat them because I hate that song. ~ Jack Handey
You know the oxygen masks on airplanes? I don’t think there’s really any oxygen. I think they’re just to muffle the screams. ~ Rita Rudner
Life is like a trumpet – if you don’t put anything into it, you don’t get anything out of it. ~ William Christopher Handy
The bass is just the crayon that I picked out of the box. I’d probably be writing similar stuff if I played guitar or trumpet. The pictures I want to draw I do with this crayon I chose, which is the bass. ~ Les Claypool
Some people ask the secret of our long marriage. We take time to go to a restaurant two times a week. A little candlelight, dinner, soft music and dancing. She goes Tuesdays, I go Fridays. ~ Henny Youngman
Anybody who doesn’t think that the best hamburger place in the world is in his home town is a sissy. ~ Calvin Trillin
June 1
I never eat in a restaurant that’s over a hundred feet off the ground and won’t stand still. ~ Calvin Trillin
[The usual Wednesday night fine dining at the golf club . . . ]
[Historical as occurring one month before I was born . . . ]
[Historical as occurring one generation before I was born . . . ]
[The Super brought home most of her shepherd’s pie stuffed green peppers, it was just too much. My split pea with ham soup was so good I got two take out orders as well. Our two meals that night produced four meals the next day as we had my soup for lunch and her stuffed peppers for dinner . . . ]
I like these cold, gray winter days. Days like these let you savor a bad mood. ~ Bill Watterson
There are times when a storm is just a storm. ~ Erin Hunter
. . . that is a very, very, common phrase to comment fatalistically on things one can’t change or can’t prevent to happen. “That’s life”. . . .
As I type this, all TV is covering Uvalde. This, about a week after a similar mass shooting in Buffalo. A tornado tore through Alexandria. The Super and I went to three celebrations of life this week. One is left just thinking, “and so it goes” . . .
May 19
What other people may find in poetry or art museums, I find in the flight of a good drive. ~ Arnold Palmer
[After Joyce Kakac’s celebration of life earlier in the week, in mid-week we were at the Catholic funeral mass for Bob Annen (a golfer, a fan of golf and of Arnold Palmer). I posted a couple blog stories about our 20-year friendship with Bob and Vivian. After the service, there was a military salute to Bob outside the church . . . ]
I don’t like to commit myself about heaven and hell – you see, I have friends in both places. ~ Mark Twain
[Shortly thereafter, the Super stopped in for the Runestone Museum’s annual meeting. Seated in the back row middle, checked shirt, is John Seim, father of the museum’s executive director and my next door neighbor growing up in Victoria Heights. (Echo Press contributed photo.)
[Amanda Seim, the museum’s executive director on the left, with her parents John and Carol (photos here and below in Fort Alexandria taken by Ruthie) . . . ]
…That’s why we have the Museum, Matty, to remind us of how we came, and why: to start fresh, and begin a new place from what we had learned and carried from the old. ~ Lois Lowry
I love doing normal things … I also love to go to art and history museums. ~ Christina Aguilera
Nobody ever flunked a science museum. ~ Frank Oppenheimer
May 21
[Another museum, the Legacy of the Lakes Boat House, where the Central Lakes Symphony Orchestra (CLSO) hosted it’s donors . . . ]
I went to the museum where they had all the heads and arms from the statues that are in all the other museums. ~ Steven Wright
Museums are like sports stadiums, hotels and hospitals: they are in the category of captive-audience dining. ~ Danny Meyer
I’ve seen beautiful art on the sides of buildings. I’ve seen beautiful art in museums. I’ve seen beautiful art in galleries. Beautiful art is everywhere. ~ John Mellencamp
Museums are good things, places to look and absorb and learn. ~ Alan King
I’m one for rushing off to museums at the crack of dawn, eating fabulous things on terraces for lunch, and enjoying long dinners on balmy evenings. ~ Jane Birkin
Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. ~ Walter Isaacson
[Tim Tharaldson’s, an Alexandria native and brother of Theatre L’Homme Dieu’s (TLHD) executive director, Nicole Mulder, first compostion for symphony orchestra would be performed by the CLSO the next day . . . ]
I write as a sow piddles. ~ Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
[Brad Lambrecht, CLSO’s maestro . . . ]
[CLSO violinists, Lesley and Greg Donahue . . . ]
[John and the aforementioned Nicole Mulder . . . ]
[Nicole and Jim Pence, president of the TLHD board of directors . . . ]
May 22
[A late addition to the day’s activity calendar. We had a mid-afternoon date with CLSO but discovered an old favorite was performing at the winery (further down the page). Also in the direction of the winery from where we live is Government Point on Lake Le Homme Dieu. We hadn’t ventured there for a while, always a scenic drive, and the word is a local famous person had recently purchased the propery on the point . . . ]
[Trending straight ahead to the point on the dead end dirt road . . . ]
I haven’t been everywhere, but it’s on my list. ~ Susan Sontag
[Well, what have we here?]
Still, round the corner, there may wait, a new road or a secret gate. ~ J. R. R. Tolkien
[The end of the road is nigh . . . ]
[And this is as close as one can get. There is more than one building on the property. You really can only see the point by rounding it by boat . . . ]
[We had a full day planned – then we noticed BAT was at Carlos Creek Winery. He was a late addition to the winery’s music schedule as he and Brenda were wending their way north from Florida for our alleged summer season . . . ]
[Since we have been in his audience for I would guess at least 10 years, we had to at least drop by the say ‘hi’. We enjoyed a full half hour of his show before we had to leave . . . ]
It’s better to be absolutely ridiculous than to be absolutely boring. ~ Marilyn Monroe
Music is the only noise for which one is obliged to pay. ~ Alexander Duma
Three farts and a raspberry, orchestrated. ~ John Barbirolli on modern music
[Over the years I took many videos of BAT. You can find them on YouTube (search “tomruth1933”) . . . ]
[We left BAT for the final performance of the season for the Central Lakes Symphony Orchestra at the high school’s Performance Arts Center . . . ]
My voice is small but disagreeable. ~ George Gershwin
A musicologist is a man who can read music but can’t hear it. ~ Thomas Beecham
Composers should write tunes that chauffeurs and errand boys can whistle. ~ Thomas Beecham
Usually composers need a reason to write. I need a deadline. ~ Krzystof Penderecki
Let us not forget that the greatest composers were also the greatest thieves. They stole from everyone and everywhere. ~ Pablo Casals
. . . and the band played on . . .
Music-making as a means of getting money is hell. ~ Gustav Holst
Never look at the trombones, it only encourages them. ~ Richard Strauss
[Sandy Susag, CLSO executive director, member of the school board, and all-around good person . . . ]
I was always drawn to Broadway musicals, and obviously composers like Gershwin, Rodgers, Berlin and Porter were writing music that I found wildly impressive. ~ Marvin Hamlisch
My music is best understood by children and animals. ~ Igor Stravinsky
[Mike Odello and his magic tuba . . . ]
A tenor is not a man, but a disease. ~ Hans von Bülow
[The Central Lakes Symphony Chorale also performed. I somehow managed to not get a picture of the them?]
Thanks again, Fred!
[After the symphony, we hied to La Ferme in downtown Alexandria for a celebration of life for Beth McKay Teeuwen. Our family had known Beth since we were kids growing up in Alexandria. She was best friends with my sister Gretchen, and they regularly kept in touch with each other even after Gretch moved to Washington, D.C. in the late 60’s . . . ]
Obituary
Elizabeth “Beth” Helen (McKay) Teeuwen, born April 3rd, 1949, died on December 26th, 2021. A widow at her death, she was married to Paul until his passing in October 2012. She is preceded in death by her parents: George and Myrtle McKay of Alexandria. Beth is survived by her brother: Bill McKay; and her two children: Stephanie (Paul) Drange and Christopher (Cecilia) Teeuwen. She had 5 adoring grandchildren: Noah (12), Carlos (12), George (10), Elsa (8), and Jack (6). Beth will always be remembered for her quick wit, generous spirit, and never-ending honesty. She enjoyed working as a social worker for Douglas County and her travels in retirement that followed. She would not want us to travel in this cold winter weather, so a celebration of her life will be held in May 2022.
[Beth and her husband Paul at a hangar dance in 2011 . . . ]
[Terri and Bruce Kakac at La Ferme . . . ]
[We had just been with them earlier in the week for Bruce’s sister Joyce’s celebration of life . . . ]
The imaginary friends I had as a kid dropped me because their friends thought I didn’t exist. ~ Aaron Machado
A good friend is a connection to life — a tie to the past, a road to the future, the key to sanity in a totally insane world. ~ Lois Wyse
It’s the friends you can call up at 4 a.m. that matter. ~ Marlene Dietrich
[Beth’s son Chris . . . ]
[Beth’s brother Bill . . . ]
[The front door to La Ferme on Broadway . . . ]
Friends are the family you choose. ~ Jess C. Scott
‘Are we going to be friends forever?’ asked Piglet. ‘Even longer,’ Pooh answered. ~ A.A. Milne
Tis the privilege of friendship to talk nonsense, and to have her nonsense respected. ~ Charles Lamb
[The back door to La Ferme in the alley . . . ]
There’s not a word yet, for old friends who’ve just met. ~ Jim Henson
[The old bank vault with the penny floor . . . ]
[It was a relatively nice day, so we decided to check on Theatre L’Homme Dieu in the aftermath of the recent storm. The landscaping makeover is in process . . . ]
[The main lodge, looking back toward to entrance/exit and the lake . . . ]
[It appears the foundation of the old lodge may now be listing to the left . . . ]
[The old cabins . . . ]
What we call the beginning is often the end. And to make an end is to make a beginning. The end is where we start from. ~ T.S. Eliot
The two hardest things to say in life are ‘hello’ for the first time and ‘goodbye’ for the last. ~ Moira Rogers
Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened. ~ Dr. Seuss
Up Next: I think there’s some summery stuff ahead . . .
People who shop in health food stores never look healthy. ~ Amy Sedaris
We have reached that age in life, mid-70’s, where every activity revolves around eating.Of recent vintage, the Boys of ’65 (the three usual suspects, joined by our fourth member who resides in Austin, Texas), with spouses, lunched at the Lure (the Alexandria Golf Club (AGC) was booked); the Super and I had a wine pick up party at Carlos Creek Winery; the monthly road trip for the boys featuring the Office Bar in Villard; and our usual Wednesday night fine dining group at the Lure (again, the AGC was booked) . . .
I thought I’d become an actress, but then I realized I eat too much. ~ Chelsea Handler
There is no sincerer love than the love of food. ~ George Bernard Shaw
May 13
Food never ends. It’s one of the greatest things about working on food – we’re always going to need food. ~ Kimbal Musk
[Pam, Ruthie, and Linda are seated with a view of the lake. We guys, accordingly, had a view of them . . . ]
Food is the new Internet. ~ Kimbal Musk
[I have no recollection of what we were shown, but it must have been humerous . . . ]
The only way to keep your health is to eat what you don’t want, drink what you don’t like, and do what you’d rather not. ~ Mark Twain
[Tom, from Austin; and Bradley . . . ]
[Linda and Mayo . . . ]
I, personally, think there is a really danger of taking food too seriously. Food should be part of the bigger picture. ~ Anthony Bourdain
I love comfort food – it’s the basis of everything. ~ Katie Lee
[Proof we were at the Lure overlooking Lake L’Homme Dieu . . . ]
I am not Jewish, but I think that America invented nothing so fine as deli food. ~ Mike Newell
[The Super always ends up walking away with more food than what was ordered. But she doesn’t set off any alarms at the exit, so it must be kosher . . . ]
Health food makes me sick. ~ Calvin Trillin
[At least once a year, the four of us have to be photographed together to prove to each other that we’re all still alive . . . ]
I learned long ago, never to wrestle with a pig. You get dirty, and besides, the pig likes it. ~ George Bernard Shaw
Now, occasionally I will still have that quarter pounder because I love fast food, but you have to keep it to a minimum. ~ Aretha Franklin
Food is kind of the conduit that brings people together. ~ Sebastian Maniscalco
May 15
With messy food, or foods with a lot of sauce, you do ‘The Hunch.’ I learned it in Philly, watching the dudes in suits eat cheesesteaks. You keep your elbows above your hands because if you don’t, the grease runs down your sleeve to your elbow. ~ Guy Fieri
[We’re at the winery enjoying the musical entertainment provided by our friend Anthony Miltich . . . ]
It was my Uncle George who discovered that alcohol was a food well in advance of modern medical thought. ~ P. G. Wodehouse
I love it when someone starts a conversation – romantic, platonic, small talk – as long as it’s related to food. ~ Rohit Saraf
[After the wine tasting, we went out to sit on the winery porch. It was a beautiful day and we haven’t had many “sit on the porch” days. We had to add to the atmosphere with (next slide please) . . .
[A big pretzel with cheese dip (stock photo) . . . ]
May 18
The Boys of ’65, on this rare occasion accompanied by Dr. Kiehne, held our monthly get together at the Office Bar in Villard (population 316, 17 miles south of Alexandria). These posters, and the one at the top of the page, are on the walls there. Always fun to have something to read while you eat . . .
Murals in restaurants are on a par with the food in museums. ~ Peter De Vries
Nobody in Singapore drinks Singapore Slings. It’s one of the first things you find out there. What you do in Singapore is eat. It’s a really food-crazy culture, where all of this great food is available in a kind of hawker-stand environment. ~ Anthony Bourdain
My gosh, I love food. If I wasn’t an actor, I could be a completely different body shape right now. ~ Hugh Jackman
I’m girlie in the sense that I like makeup, but I also love sports and man food. ~ Carrie Underwood
I want to make wines that harmonize with food – wines that almost hug your tongue with gentleness. ~ Robert Mondavi
[We hedged out bets, each of us threw in a buck at the start . . . ]
Food is the great connector, and laughs are the cement. If we go out to eat and have a nice meal, that’s one thing. If we can share a laugh, now we’re friends. ~ Philip Rosenthal
[Yet another in a series of enjoyable small town restaurants. Each of us had a different variety of hamburger, with plenty more still available on the menu . . . ]
Without food, man can live at most but a few weeks; without it, all other components of social justice are meaningless. ~ Norman Borlaug
I didn’t get this physique by not eating tacos. ~ Jon Tester
[I asked for documentation. It was not forthcoming . . . ]
The highlight of my childhood was making my brother laugh so hard that food came out of his nose. ~ Garrison Keillor
Ounce for ounce, herbs and spices have more antioxidants than any other food group. ~ Michael Greger
I don’t cook. I don’t know anything about food. I’ve never reviewed a restaurant. ~ Calvin Trillin
We have these weapons of mass destruction on every street corner, and they’re called donuts, cheeseburgers, French fries, potato chips, junk food. Our kids are living on a junk food diet. ~ Joel Fuhrman
Everything goes better with tacos. ~ Rachel Caine
[Downtown Villard . . . ]
I’m kind of obsessed with food. I like to eat. When I tour, it’s like, well, like a food tour as much as a comedy tour. ~ Aziz Ansari
If you love food and you love red wine and they put you in France, you’re in a good place and you’re in a bad place at the same time. You have to weigh yourself every day, and you have to have an alarm number. When you get to that number, you have to start putting it in reverse. ~ Selma Hayek
[The Wednesday night group descended on the Lure en masse . . . ]
Hey, I used to eat at McDonald’s: I liked the taste of the food, especially the French fries. ~ Eric Schlosser
[The place had previously received reservations from two large groups. They had to assemble some high tops with bar stools for us. It worked . . . ]
It would be nice if I had a faster metabolism, because I love food. ~ Michael McIntyre
I don’t own a scale, and Tao banned the word ‘fat’ from our house. If we eat too much, we say, ‘I feel clogged up.’ ~ Olivia Wilde
[Barb and Karin are giddy over food . . . ]
I swear I want to be a food model. ~ Amy Sedaris
I love Indian, Italian and Mexican food. And if it’s a romantic type of thing, I like a good French restaurant. ~ Dolly Parton
I love food. ~ Amy Winehouse
I grew up eating fried food. I thought that macaroni and cheese was a vegetable. ~ Lauren Alaina
[The view across the bar, to outside and Lake L’Homme Dieu . . . ]
The right use of food can end hunger. ~ Jose Andres
The most I ever ate? In one sitting? Maybe four big plates of fried chicken, biscuits, chitlins, gravy. Then dessert. Apple pie, sweet potato pie. My mother cooked that stuff, good Southern food, and when I was 300 pounds, I never missed a meal. ~ Bruce Smith
If you see a black family, it’s looting, but if it’s a white family they are looking for food. ~ Kanye West
Always remember Goliath was a 40-point favorite over David. ~ Shug Jordan / Auburn
I’m not a fan of horses or horse racing (though admittedly Secretariat was quite spectacular). But this year’s Run for the Roses annual friendraiser for Theatre L’Homme Dieu at Carlos Creek Winery was blessed with an amazingly entertaining Kentuck Derby . . .
The best thing about the Kentucky Derby is that it is only two minutes long. It is the quickest event in sports, except for Sumo-wrestling & Mike Tyson fights. Maybe Drag-racing is quicker, but I have never been attracted to it. ~ Hunter S. Thompson
[This photo is on loan from the internet . . . ]
[This poster is on loan from Theatre L’Homme Dieu . . . ]
[Many thanks to my fellow theatre board members who actually worked on putting this really fun event together . . . ]
[Entertainment provided by the dynamic duo of Greg Donahue and Erik Schultz, a/k/a, one-half of the Salty Dogs . . . ]
[Adult beverages, bring your own designated driver . . . ]
[And what good are adult beverages without equally adult hors d’oeuvres (I always have to look up the spelling because I forget the ‘u’ . . . ]
[The Derby screen at the far end of the winery’s Grand Hall . . . ]
[The folks who make it work. Many thanks . . . ]
[As the room begins to fill with fans dressed in best estimate Derby attire . . . ]
I’m still a horse that can run. I may not be able to win the Derby, but what do you do when you retire? People retire and they vegetate. They go away and they dry up. ~ Mel Brooks
Unless tracks cut back to three days a week of full fields, a lot of people will really hurt down the road. Horse racing, to survive, has to go to that. Let’s face it: Churchill Downs only does well on Derby Week. ~ Rick Pitino
My favorite Saturday, outside any Saturday that Louisiana State University plays football, is the Kentucky Derby. ~ James Carville
[My 20-year walking buddy died in the preceding week. His daughter, Angie, came up to Alex from the Cities to make arrangements . . . ]
[This was a good event for her to get away for a while . . . ]
I shy away from celebrity status because I don’t want to be known as that guy. But I had a chance to partake in the events and the festivities of the Kentucky Derby, and that was a huge honor. ~ Teddy Bridgewater
One only needs to see a smile in a white crape bonnet in order to enter the palace of dreams. ~ Victor Hugo
Cock your hat – angles are attitudes. ~ Frank Sinatra
Come fill up my cup, come fill up my can, Come saddle your horses, and call up your men; Come open the West Port, and let me gang free, And it’s room for the bonnets of Bonny Dundee! ~ Walter Scott
You can be any one you want to be, with the right outfit. ~ Melody Minagar
[Delan Tharaldson, the father of the theatre’s executive director, Nicole Mulder, joined Angie at her table . . . ]
[Then Nicole came over for a hug from dad . . . ]
I gave my father $100 and said, ‘Buy yourself something that will make your life easier.’ So he went out and bought a present for my mother. ~ Rita Rudner
[The dapper looking ‘CEO’ and ‘CFO’ of the theatre . . . ]
[Jim and Jan Pence . . . ]
[Mike and Miriam Svobodny . . . ]
[John Mulder and Jack Reuler, not related . . . ]
Wearing a hat is like having a baby or a puppy; everyone stops to coo and talk about it. ~ Louise Green
Women are vain. They think they look better in hats–if they have any sense. ~ Louisa Hagood, 94 years old
You can flirt with a fan in your hand. You can flirt holding a cigarette, too. But a woman can really flirt with a hat. ~ Dolores Foster
[Dennis and Sandy Schroepfer . . . ]
[Paul and Deb Trumm . . . ]
[Katie Eiser, theatre board member, and Nicole announce the final results of “stuff” . . . ]
[While musicians in the background ponder the existence of black holes . . . ]
Horse sense is the thing a horse has which keeps it from betting on people. ~ W. C. Fields
[Did someone call them “Dumb and Dumber”?]
Friendship is not possible between two women, one of whom is very well dressed. ~ Laurie Colwin
[Ruthie always ISO a good photo op . . . ]
[The Super and I have joined Angie and her friend Ken . . . ]
[Karin and Dave Berg . . . ]
Get off your horse and drink your milk. ~ John Wayne
A difference of opinion is what makes horse racing and missionaries. ~ Will Rogers
[ (. . . is that a bugle?)]
Now the race is on, And here comes pride up the backstretch, Heartaches are goin’ to the inside . . . ~ George Jones
[The race has the rapt attention of the attending masses . . . ]
[Dennis had Rich Strike – he struck it rich!]
[And other winners are . . . ]
Whenever you wear your hat, your day will be special. ~ Margo Nickel
I myself have 12 hats, and each one represents a different personality. Why just be yourself. ~ Margaret Atwood
We just know inside that we’re queens. And these are the crowns we wear. ~ Felecia McMillan
[The winning hat . . . ]
Why do you always wear a hat? ‘Cause it fits my head. ~ Robert Redford, in “The Horse Whisperer”
[Best outfit, I think . . . ]
[Terri Bursch, theatre board member . . . ]
[AND ALSO A WINNER!!]
The only sport I’m not interested in is horse racing. That’s because I don’t know the horses personally. ~ Nat King Cole
[Photo on loan from the internet . . . ]
Rich Strike with Sonny Leon wins the 148th Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs, KY 5.7.2022
Alimony is like buying hay for a dead horse. ~ Groucho Marx
Luxurious, flirty, and, at times, a bit sexy. We’re out to prove a great hat can change your day. ~ Plaza Suite, New York.
Live your life, do your work, then take your hat. ~ Henry David Thoreau
Up Next: Probably something that doesn’t involve hats . . .
Some national parks have long waiting lists for camping reservations. When you have to wait a year to sleep next to a tree, something is wrong. ~ George Carlin
Continuing the legacy of Weakie (a Carlin fan), despite some initial emphasis on our differences we obviously had to have many things in common. Probably first and foremost of these is that we both agreed food is a necessity – even for an unhealty diet. Food was often the major topic of discussion on our strolls (with age it even supersedes discussions about representatives of the fairer sex). Bob had always been a gourmet. He enjoyed and did most of the household cooking. In fact, he and Vivian developed full home menus for a week at a time. I can’t figure out what I’m having for the next meal! Bob had both upstairs and downstairs stoves. He had multiple outdoor cooking devices. He had a smoker and a wine cellar.
It is one of the blessings of old friends that you can afford to be stupid with them. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
It was shortly before the hockey team won the state championship in 2008 that word of the Super Fans reached the crack reportorial staff of the local newspaper, the Echo Press. Jo Colvin of the Echo interviewed the four of us about our fandom and wrote a lovely column about it. It was during the interview Jo also learned of Bob’s excellence in the culinary arts. She subsequently wrote a column about that, replete with Bob attired in his alpine hat. He regularly ordered food from all over the world, if mostly from Germany and New York delis – breads, meats, fish, pickles, condiments, et al. He said UPS or Fed Ex trucks were making food deliveries to his house almost daily. He was fortunate that his 100+ year old mom was living with them – she’s was the only who could open all the jars, an ability established through years of hand milking cows . . .
2010
The most remarkable thing about my mother is that for thirty years she served the family nothing but leftovers. The original meal has never been found. ~ Calvin Trillin
[Weakie was joined at a hockey game by noted area vocalists . . . ]
[My brother Cam joined us on a trip through Rice Park on the way to a girls state tournament hockey game. I have a dim memory (in general) of where we stayed when in St. Paul for tournaments – at one time the parking garage for our hotel was some blocks away and we got lost in the skywalks trying to find it . . . ]
[Once a New Ulmer, always a New Ulmer. At Ridder Arena on the U of M campus where the state tournament consolation games are played. New Ulm and Alex, usually, as small outstate schools end up here after losing to the dreaded Big City private schools in the first round. Another area where the Weakster & I were in total agreement was a shared animus toward private schools . . . ]
I’ve reached the age where ‘happy hour’ is a nap.
[Since we were in town, we went to see a women’s hockey game between Augsburg and Gustavus Adolphus. Both teams featured Alexandria alums . . .]
[Brother Cam, of Mounds View, Minnesota, fame, self-proclaimed troglodyte when it comes to girls sports, deigned to join us again . . . ]
[After the game with Danielle Justice of Gustavus. Danielle was the Cardinals all-state goalie on our state champion team and led the Gusties to at least three Frozen Fours as goalie nonpareil . . . ]
[And the aforementioned Toft sisters played for Augsburg. They were the stars in what Weakie called the greatest game ever played – the Cards beat Totino-Grace (a dreaded private school) 3 – 2 in two overtimes to win a section championship. Sara scored the game winner and Andrea also had a goal on their 18th birthdays. Andrea is now an assistant professor of nursing at St. Catherine’s University. . . . ]
[Super Fans surround Alexandria’s all-time leading scorer, Abby Williams, at the Xcel Center . . . ]
[A pre-game nosh at Mort’s Deli in Minnetonka. To make us feel even older, my high school classmate Kathy Skadsberg (next to Ruthie) has a granddaughter with her. Said granddaughter, Taylor Woodson, will be a senior at Hopkins High School next year, has started for their multiple state champion basketball teams since she was a freshman, and has committed to play for Michigan . . . ]
Sharing food with another human being is an intimate act that should not be indulged in lightly. ~ M. F. K. Fisher
[Referring back to the top, there are multiple examples ahead of our mutual fondness for food. It looks like we’re back at Vescio’s in Dinkytown again . . . ]
I like to think of bread as really bland cake. ~ Jim Gaffigan
[Here another Mother’s Day brunch at the Alex Golf Club . . . ]
Once, during Prohibition, I was forced to live for days on nothing but food and water. ~ W. C. Fields
[Said brunch from above . . . ]
Ask not what you can do for your country. Ask what’s for lunch. ~ Orson Wells
A party without cake is really just a meeting. ~ Julia Child
The most powerful social media… it is not the internet, it is not Facebook – it is food. This connects all human beings. ~ Alex Atala
Life’s too short. Start with Dessert! ~ Barbra Streisand
[Angie and her dad at Carlos Creek Winery . . . ]
Destiny may ride with us today, but there is no reason for it to interfere with lunch. ~ Peter the Great
[Our morning stroll on this day led us to the new Y, opening soon . . . ]
I like this place and could willingly waste my time in it. ~ William Shakespeare
Part of the secret of a success in life is to eat what you like and let the food fight it out inside. ~ Mark Twain
[Weakie with Dave “Robo” Rogoesheske at the golf club . . . ]
There is no sincerer love than the love of food. ~ George Bernard Shaw
[Weakie with Alice and Jack Juettner at the golf club . . . ]
Instead of past, present and future, I’d prefer chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry. ~ Ashleigh Brilliant
[The regulars at the winery . . . ]
After a good dinner one can forgive anybody, even one’s own relations. ~ Oscar Wilde
Food is an important part of a balanced diet. ~ Fran Lebowitz
[This was our trip to Bemidji to watch Abby Williams play some D1 hockey . . . ]
[Pretty much the whole group of Super Fans . . . ]
[The senior golf league guys who “stay behind”, i.e., don’t snowbird, at our annual Christmas get together at Arrowwood . . . ]
[Jami, Danny, and grandson Tom were in town for a game at the RCC and were sharing some bon mots with Weakie . . . ]
2011
How glorious a greeting the sun gives the mountains! ~ John Muir
[This is a photo taken by Weakie on the morning I emulated the legendary Jack “The Shot” Foley of Holy Cross by making 36 free throws in a row before we started our walk at the Y . . . ]
[Again, the annual “those who stay behind” shindig at Arrowwood . . . ]
The real question is should we trust people who don’t like cheese? ~ Jim Gaffigan
The only time to eat diet food is while you’re waiting for the steak to cook. ~ Julia Child
2012
Life expectancy would grow by leaps and bounds if green vegetables smelled as good as bacon. ~ Doug Larson
[You guessed it, Mother’s Day at the golf club . . . ]
Never trust a skinny cook. ~ Iain Hewitson
[At the winery . . . ]
Strength is the capacity to break a chocolate bar into four pieces with your bare hands – and then eat just one of the pieces. ~ Judith Viorst
[Listening to Matt Velline perform at the winery . . . ]
You don’t need a silver fork to eat good food. ~ Paul Prudhomme
Everybody likes to have a place to think, to meditate, to eat a burrito. ~ Sherman Alexie
[Back to Bemidji to watch Abby Williams play hockey again . . . ]
I’m at the age where food has taken the place of sex in my life. In fact, I’ve just had a mirror put over my kitchen table. ~ Rodney Dangerfield
[We’re here to watch the Beavers play . . . ]
[Photos w/ Abby after the game . . . ]
[Each couple got a shot . . . ]
[Even her mom and dad, Martha and James . . . ]
[When in Bemidji, go Paul Bunyan style . . . ]
[Finally, at the Beavers’ game, joined by another former Alexandria Cardinal player, Beth Rindy, who was a defenseman a couple years before Abby . . . ]
[Back in the day, they didn’t play hockey in New Ulm – so neither did Weakie (which end is up?) . . . ]
[But he gave it a shot in the puck shoot and just missed the $100 hole – just like a pitch and run golf chip . . . ]
2013
I love nature, I just don’t want to get any of it on me. ~ Woody Allen
[Holding fort at a hockey game, joined by Ken “The Crane” and Jeanne Howell. Ken is a way too thin Fat Boy . . . ]
[And hockey moms always came for a visit. Here with Denise Drown, the family of the bison farm among other things, whose daughter Stephanie was a Cardinal goalie and daughter Melissa who once led the Cardinals in scoring and played club hockey at Minnesota . . . ]
[And the aforementioned Martha Williams, who was always looking out for us . . . ]
[Walking the skywalk from the parking garage to the XCel Center for a game . . . ]
You better cut the pizza in four pieces because I’m not hungry enough to eat six. ~ Yogi Berra
[Back at the golf club for yet another Mother’s Day brunch . . . ]
Time is an illusion. Lunchtime doubly so. ~ Douglas Adams
[The regulars were joined by “James the Giant Peach” (a banned book, BTW) . . . ]
One should not attend even the end of the world without a good breakfast. ~ Robert A. Heinlein
Time for another soliloquy: As mentioned in his obituary, the Annen family lived in Brussels for four years. Weakie said those years were not good for his waistline. He discovered the 40 million varities of Belgian beer amongst other gastronomic delights. The Super and I have been to Belgium a couple of times, so we often discussed the available calory intakes of the area. And Weakie loves fine dining in fine restaurants. We waited with baited breath for his reviews. And he often had bad luck at places he had enjoyed before. We hated to revel in his agonies, but sometimes we just couldn’t help ourselves. The classic we said, even for him, was when he and Viv and Angie and Ken went to restaurant that he had enjoyed before. They placed their orders, and since the place wasn’t crowded, they expected to be served soon. Well, their food didn’t come and didn’t come. They finally were able to flag down a server to ask what was taking so long. She told them she’d go ask. She came back crying, saying the chef quit and walked out. Then he went to new place that had chocolate malts on the menu, except the day he was there they were out of ice cream. The next time he went there . . . they were out of ice cream again. He demanded to speak to the manager, the tell him/her that they shouldn’t have it on the menu if it was never available. It could only happen to Weakie . . .
[With another Cardinal hockey player from the championship team. Shanee Herd was only a 7th grader at the time. (In a family rarity, both her brothers played for state champion teams at Breck.) She went on to become a volleyball star at St. Catherine’s University while getting her degree in nursing . . . ]
[Back to the winery for the musical stylings of Josie Nelson. Josie is now in medical school at the U of M . . . ]
The way you cut your meat reflects the way you live. ~ Confucius
A fruit is a vegetable with looks and money. Plus, if you let fruit rot, it turns into wine, something brussel sprouts never do. ~ P. J. O’Rourke
A balanced diet is a cookie in each hand. ~ Barbara Johnson
[Why yes, I have forgotten what this was all about. I went all over town taking photos of people giving this “WT*” expression. If anyone remembers, please send the answer, and $25.00, to Merkel Press, p.o. box . . . ]
[At Vivian’s 55th class reunion, Roosevelt High, Mpls. Weakie sat with one of her classmates, Greg Larson, who played football for the Gophers and the New York Giants as an interior lineman at 6’3″, 250 pounds . . . ]
[The day the Weakster discovered a photo app on his phone . . . ]
Most of us don’t need a psychiatric therapist as much as a friend to be silly with. ~ Robert Brault
There is nothing like puking with somebody to make you into old friends. ~ Sylvia Plath
2014
Avoid fruits and nuts. You are what you eat. ~ Jim Davis
[Oh my, must have been another Mother’s Day lunch at the golf club . . . ]
[There are fans, and then there are FANS! This was the annual Lions Club sponsored cross-country meet at Arrowwood in early October. Thousands of teams from all over the state participate. We were there for two reasons: Hasz and Hasz. The twin sisters, Megan and Bethany, from Alex were state champions for several years and several distances, and then went down to star for the Gophers where they have been Big 10 champions. As you can see from our attire, it was a beautiful day but I think the wind chill was around zero . . . ]
2015
You can tell alot about a fellow’s character by his way of eating jellybeans. ~ Ronald Reagan
[The annual (absent COVID) Education Foundation Hall of Fame Luncheon . . . ]
Get out the rye bread and mustard grandma, cause it’s GRAND SALAMI TIME! ~ Dave Niehaus
[With my fellow high school classmates . . . ]
[Scoured the high school library looking for something interesting – found this . . . ]
2016
“Weakie” enjoying his new Ford Edge, with my Edge (cinnamon colored) in the background. In the apparent absence of further news from 2016, I can share some further Weakie history. He was offered a full ride to Notre Dame out of high school but turned it down (which he later regretted) because he had wearied of a Catholic education (which he had K – 12). And he wanted to be a pilot and received an appointment to the Air Force Academy. Once there, however, he was told he couldn’t be a pilot because of his bad eyes. He ended up at St. Cloud State, whose diploma did him just fine in life. He worked at the family bar and restaurant in Brainerd and commuted daily to St. Cloud for classes. He earned a few shekels on the side by playing clarinet in polka bands. He never displayed that talent for us . . .
2018
Growing old is like being increasingly penalized for a crime you have not committed. ~ Anthony Powell
Weakie’s 80th birthday gig with the Fat Boys at Boulder Tap House. Chocolate malts? Another area in which we were in total agreement . . .
This was Weakie’s 80th Birthday celebration at Murray’s in Minneapolis. I always looked forward to his detailed reviews of dining experiences at the elite eateries in the Cities. I lived vicariously through them. Of the major “M” restaurants in Mpls. – Murray’s, Manny’s, Morton’s, and McDonald’s [sic] – I can recall partaking of only one (can’t recall which one) years ago when the Final Four was in Mpls., and the only reason I can recall it at all is that Jerry Tarkanian was at the next table. I have no recollection of the meal . . .
There’s nothing better than cake but more cake. ~ Harry S Truman
[We had a really good girls track team that year, so Weakie thought we should go see them . . . ]
[So, we did. Our throwers were tops in the state – 6 deep in both shot put and discus . . . ]
2019
I hate reality but it’s still the best place to get a good steak. ~ Woody Allen
[Weakie and Viv’s 50th Anniversary at 4 Bells in Loring Park, Minneapolis. Angie said it’s closed now. I guess they decided that once they’d served Weakie, there were no other moons to shoot for . . . ]
2020
[Some days, like the early days, there was just the two of us on the morning walk. We were still taking the trail across County Road 22 in “those” days (two years ago?). As a group, we seldom cross Co. Rd. 22 anymore because you have to be pretty nimble to avoid the traffic . . . ]
[I guess he found another phone app . . . ]
[We were feeling pretty frisky on this day and decided to loiter. “Come and get us, coppers!”]
[Carol Wenner was running for the state house at this time. We ran (er, walked) into her several times on trail. I think as a result of her trail briefings, she got all our votes . . . ]
[Unfortunately, in this area, our votes weren’t enough . . . ]
[This is when international stardom struck the boys. The Echo Press ran a full page story on the Fat Boys Walking Club. This photo and the three following were all taken by the Echo. How they were able to focus on us moving at speed is beyond me . . . ]
[Now some may think it wasn’t such a big deal. But subsequent to the article, I was walking in downtown Kuala Lumpur one day and a local came up to me and said, “Hey, you’re a Fat Boy!”]
[Weakie and I usually brought along our walking sticks lest we were set upon by overly enthusiatic fans . . . ]
[Like most people in our age group, we look better walking away . . . ]
[An early morning dalliance into the rising sun . . . ]
[There was an artsy-fartsy appeal to the shot . . . ]
[So I kept shooting . . . ]
Neither snownor rain norheatnor gloom of nightstaysthese amblers [sic] from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.
[Yes, Virginia, there is a Big Ole camera. My sister Gretchen in Washington, D.C., watches it regularly because she’s nosy. When she sees us walking she snaps the photo and sends it to me. Weakie is in the green puffy coat. It was December 1, but still no snow on the ground . . . ]
2021
Aging seems to be the only available way to live a long life. ~ Kitty Collins
[One month later we have snow, Lake Agnes is frozen over, and Weakie is still in his green puffy coat . . . ]
[Weakie in red, leading the stroll . . . ]
[The first get together of the Fat Boys with spouses – lunch at the golf club . . . ]
I’m not a vegetarian! I’m a dessertarian! ~ Bill Watterson
[Weakie and Shackie cooling it at home . . . ]
[Weakie and Viv and Shackie moved to Grand Arbor in the summer. Here’s the view from their balcony in winter . . . ]
2022
The Fat Boys last dined with Weakie at Boulder Tap House for his 84th birthday in March . . .
What I say is that, if a man really likes potatoes, he must be a pretty decent sort of fellow. ~ A. A. Milne
I cook with wine, sometimes I even add it to the food. ~ W. C. Fields
Red meat is not bad for you. Now blue-green meat, that’s bad for you! ~ Chi Chi Rodriguez
One of the benefits of eating salad is that you can eat tons of it and never be satisfied. ~ Jim Gaffigan
So long, Weakie! It’s been good to know you . . .
On December 31, 2020, Weakie advised his fellow Fat Boys that he was no longer a Republican. Needless to say we were dumbstruck to hear those words from an 82-year old lifelong Republican. But he said when the GOP continued to push the Big Lie, that the election was stolen, that he had had enough . . .
In every other free society with a functioning market economy, socialism is an ordinary, rather general term for sane and compassionate governance of the public purse for the purpose of promoting general welfare and a more widespread share in national prosperity. ~ Dr. David Bentley Hart, religious scholar and cultural critic
Now Weakie may not have agreed with the entirety of the above statement, but two things really stuck in his craw: income inequality and, even as a top executive in a major manufacturing corporation, any attempts to weaken or eliminate the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), whose provisions he always championed.
ADDENDUM
The military salute after the memorial service outside the church . . .
ADDENDUM2
[Recently unearthed, Weakie when he became a member of the “zipper” club after knee replacement surgery (photo dated July 16, 2011) . . . ]
ADDENDUM3
[Recently unearthed,Weakie proudly and happily standing over the dispatched tree on hole No. 16, the bane to anyone who went to the right off the tee! (Date, June 16, 2007)]
Sometimes all you need is a great friend and a tank of gas. ~ Thelma and Louise
Just a little over a month ago I started off the “Remembering ‘Rock'” post this way:
“The Fat Boys Walking Club lost a founding member last week. We offer our sincerest condolences to the family and friends of Paul ‘Rock’ Fieldhammer. Rock, for some unknown reason, was a follower of this blog. So I hope to do him well, we will miss him. Walking and hiking quotes will be featured throughout, just because. Before the Y was built, the Fat Boys did our winter walking in the mall. Paul arrived one day, and for several thereafter, wearing a backpack. In his backpack, he carried a rock. He said it was in preparation for his winter hiking in Arizona. At that moment he obtained the appellation of ‘Rock,’ bestowed upon him by the club’s giver of nicknames, Bob ‘Weakie’ Annen.“
All you need to do to be my friend is like me. ~ Taylor Swift
Bob & I initiated the Fat Boys Walking Club 20 years ago. It’s now internationally fabled in song and story. Bob & Vivian moved to Alexandria from Plymouth in 1997 (as I recall) shortly after his retirement from Honeywell. They wanted to live on a lake, and I think their original plan was to live within a 100-mile radius of the Twin Cities. Somehow that got expanded, and in their expanded search area they came up Alexandria. They had never been here before. Yet within two hours of their first ever visit here they bought a house. That house was in the L’Homme Dieu View Townhome Association, where my mom lived. So we got to know the Annens even before we retired to Alex in 2001.
[L’Homme Dieu View Townhomes, c. 1987. Weakie and Viv’s house is in the lower right hand corner hidden among the trees on the shores of Lake Le Homme Dieu. Mom’s house was on the lefthand side of the middle two-story duplex. There are now houses on both sides of the road heading south out of the association and all the grassy areas in the center and on the right are now all covered with houses . . . ]
Bob and I would hike in the area around his neighborhood before switching to the Central Lakes Trail. In the early years, we would walk west from Big Ole on the trail to West Lake Cowdry Road, then down West Lake Cowdry Road to County Road 82, and back again. That walk took a full two hours, and covered 43.2 miles (estimate, at best). Based on our physiques, people found that hard to believe. So we had to tell them we celebrated completion of our daily routine with a dozen doughnuts. In times (or seasons) of inclement weather, we walked the mall for two hours, after which we would go to the gym for a half hour every other day. Bob was the giver nicknames. While walking the mall he established nicknames for all the other walkers. In fact he was the one who gave himselfthe nickname, “Weakie.” After some medical procedure or another he returned to the golf course only to exclaim he couldn’t hit the ball as far as he used to – “I’m a real Weakie.”
The following are five photos Weakie recently sent to his fellow Fat Boys . . .
2004
[These are the first photos I unearthed from the time capsule. Bob took me along on a road trip to Biwabik for a couple days of golf at the Quarry and Giants Ridge golf courses . . . ]
[Bob’s friend from Honeywell, me, and Bob . . . ]
[Bob and I took on the two young bucks, lefthanded ex-hockey players who could hit the ball a mile, but we won because age & experience beats youth & enthusiasm every time . . . ]
2005
So, the question was raised – how could the two of us stand to be with each other for two hours every day? Bob was 10 years older; he was business and I was government; he was a church every Sunday Catholic and I, like Ron Reagan, am a lifelong atheist; he was a conservative Republican and I am a liberal Democrat; he was pro-birth and I’m pro-choice; he hunted (though he gave up NRA membership many years ago when it became a political action committee) and I didn’t. Actually, it was quite easy. He’d call me a Commie and I’d call him a fascist, and we’d take it from there . . .
[This was the year we walked every street in the Alexandria city limits. Bob was not from Alex and wanted to the see the whole town; and, though I was raised here, there were plenty of neighborhoods I’d never seen before. It took us 5 weeks, walking 6 days a week. We took Sundays off for good behavior. I wrote a story of our daring adventure, and the Echo Press published it.]
[Bob at the finish line. I thought it’d be cool to end our grand trek at Noonan Park . . . ]
[And then Bob and Viv came over to our place for a celebration . . . ]
[This was our first trip to Terrace, Minnesota, an unincorporated community on the Chippewa River (it was originally named Chippewa Falls, but since there was already one of those in Wisconsin), about 38 miles straight south of Alex . . . ]
[We went there a few times around Christmas to the lone restaurant, which at the time was owned and operated by two guys, one from New York, and the other from Key West. It was quite good . . . ]
2006
“It” actually begins here. This photo is now so old, the date inscription on it messes with my mind. This has to be from 2004. The young ladies in the background surrounding Weakie (actually many years before he became Weakie) are Ashley Holmes, Kat DelZoppo, and Abby Williams. When they were all seniors, they led the Alexandria Cardinals to the girls state hockey championship in 2008. I believe they were all 8th-graders here but had already convinced us great things were in their future. And thus were born the Super Fans, the precursor of the Fat Boys Walking Club . . .
An early connection between Bob and me was the absence of any urge to become snowbirds (Bob and Viv later tried a couple months in Florida for a couple years, didn’t like it, stopped doing it). So, what do retirees in Minnesota do in the winter? We go to girls hockey games! I jumped in first, talked Weakie into joining me, and we were both hooked immediately. At first Bob & I had the whole center section of the stands for ourselves – friends and families of the players sat in a section to our left. They had never seen “other” fans at girls games. Pretty soon a couple of them bravely crept into our section to see what we old bucks were all about. At first we were asked if we had granddaughters on the team. We responded “all of them,” and we were suddenly accepted by one and all. Hockey moms made sure we were aware of all the goings on. We were invited to team parties and graduation parties.
[Here we are at the Andrea and Sara Toft (don’t ask me which is which) graduation party in 2006. They were a lot of fun and went on to play hockey at Augsburg . . . ]
[In the summer, we golfed. This is the senior men’s league annual steak fry and putting contest, including significant others. Can you find Weakie?]
[This was Weakie’s tree. It was situated in the right hand rough on the 16th hole on the Alexandria Golf Course. It came into play a lot for players who had a tendency to go in that direction. Weakie hated it. But in this photo you can see the tree is in bad shape. When it was cut down, Weakie went over to the course with a bottle of Jack Daniels (I think) to celebrate its demise. I took a photo of him with arms raised, Rocky style, standing over the trunk. I can’t find the photo?]
[Later in the year, back at a girls hockey game. By now our reputations were preceding us. More and more seniors (a/k/a, retirees) were joining us. The team named us the Super Fans . . . ]
[Back in Terrace the next Christmas season, here was the restaurant . . . ]
[Inside, Bob was the lead photographer in those days . . . ]
2007
[A representative group of Super Fans at a girls hockey game . . . ]
[Throughout the 2010’s, our girls teams regularly made it to the state tournament in the Twin Cities. We always had to join them, of course. Here we’re standing on a corner in Dinkytown on the U of M campus with the Minneapolis skyline in the background . . . ]
[And as much as anything, from what Ruthie and I learned having attended 25 Final Fours, dining was as big a draw as the actual games. This appears to be post-game celebration at Vescio’s in Dinkytown . . .
[And here’s all the senior golfers again – can you find Weakie?]
[And here the Super Fans have a pre-game nosh at Sixth Avenue Wine & Ale in Alex . . . ]
[And then to the game. I believe it was the Shaughnessys, on the far right, who brought a bunch of small red flasher lights with a German beer logo on them that we all turned on when Alex scored a goal. The team thought how cute of us . . . ]
Talk radio has almost ruined the sports fan. ~ Phil Simms
[Now that we were experts, Weakie got invited to the post-game radio report with Dave Harris on KXRA. We obviously won . . .]
2008
Another year, another year of girls hockey. This was the year the Cardinals won the state championship – and we Super Fans predicted it from the start of the season . . .
[Viv & Bob at a game in Detroit Lakes (yes, we actually did road games in those days) where we visited our first Zorbaz restaurant . . . ]
One good reason to only maintain a small circle of friends is that three out of four murders are committed by people who know the victim. ~ George Carlin
[Home ice, the Runestone Community Center in Alexandria . . . ]
[For many years we attended girls hockey fund raisers at the Eagles club. It took a few years before we learned we were eating bison burgers (raised by the Drown hockey family) . . . ]
We are keenly aware of the faults of our friends, but if they like us enough it doesn’t matter. ~ Mignon McLaughlin
[Patty Wicken, local radio personality, joined our table that year . . . ]
Lots of people want to ride with you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down. ~Oprah Winfrey
[At the state tournament in St. Paul where the Science Museum of Minnesota is conveniently just across the street from where the hockey games are played. We’re more than just sports fans, after all . . . ]
[If only I could remember all our fine dining locations? Dave and Joyce Rogosheske, as you may have noticed in other photos, often joined us in those years . . . ]
[Celebrating the girls hockey state championship with some bubbly at the St. Paul Hotel . . . ]
[Blocking traffic at The Landmark Center off Rice Park in downtown St. Paul . . . ]
[Weakie and Peppermint Patty in Rice Park, the Ordway Center in the background . . . ]
[Bob & Viv’s daugher Angie and her friend Ken joined us after a tournament game. I believe this was at Cecil’s Deli near the campuses of St. Thomas and St. Catherine . . . ]
When you’re in jail, a good friend will be trying to bail you out. A best friend will be in the cell next to you saying, Damn, that was fun. ~ Groucho Marx
Friendship is like peeing in your pants. Everyone can see it, but only you can feel the warm feeling inside. ~ Robert Bloch
[While mall walking, Bob got to reminisce about his youth . . . ]
[ . . . growing up on a farm near New Ulm . . . ]
[We were invited to the team party celebrating the state championship. The parents of a team member hosted in their beautiful remodeled barn . . . ]
[With the aforementioned Ashley Holmes, a team captain, an all-stater, a Herb Brooks Honoree, played D1 hockey at North Dakota, and is now an assistant women’s hockey coach and assistant sports information director at Augsburg – always one of our all-time favorite players . . . ]
[At the team’s summer party with hockey mom, Martha Williams, who was an original discoverer of the Super Fans . . . ]
[It was an annual tradition to celebrate Mother’s Day with the Annens and my mom at the golf club . . . ]
Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another, ‘What! You too? I thought I was the only one! ~ C.S. Lewis
[The Super Fans hosted a dinner for the hockey team at the golf club. Here’s Bob with the aforementioned Kat DelZoppo. He nicknamed Kat “The Sniper” because she had great hands and scored in a lot of scrums around the net . . . ]
[New Year’s Eve (and birthday eve for the Super) at the Annen’s . . . ]
In Hawaii, it was forbidden – ‘kapu’ – for men and women to eat together. Women were also barred from eating certain foods, notably bananas because the sight of females consuming phallic fruit offended Hawaiian men. Breaking a kapu was a crime . . . ~ Sarah Vowell, “Unfamiliar Fishes”
2009
[The Super Fans at the MAC in St. Cloud. It must have been a girls hockey sectional game . . . ]
[Weakie was a long-time avid Cathy Wurzer fan . . . ]
[So when I heard she would be at Cherry Street Books for a book signing, I had to make sure he would be there with bells on. We had a nice visit with her . . . ]
[April 16, with club pro Ron Rebrovich (middle), the boys ready to play the first round of the year . . . ]
[The L’Homme Dieu View madcap quilting and rutabaga club: Bob & Viv with their best friends in their townhome association, Jack and Alice Juettner on the left, and Dorothy and Paul Arnesen on the right . . . ]
[Wanted in several states for attempting to purchase bootleg Malbec . . . ]
[The boys in the Cardinal Foundation Golf Tournament. We may not have done well in golf, but we won the tug of war . . . ]
[The senior guys again – 13 years later, by my reckoning, 12 of us are still “here” . . . ]
[The senior men’s league formed random teams with each outing. I think the reason for this photo was this team beat all other entries biggly while being the three oldest players that day. Bob was the last survivor of this group – I did a similar piece on Dave in 2012 and Dar died last November at age 96 . . .]
[The Friday after Thanksgiving, the annual lighting of the city Christmas lights with festivities beginning at Fort Alexandria (that’s Weakie on the right filming) . . . ]
[A December afternoon at the winery . . . ]
This wraps up Part 1. When I started working on this homage to Bob, I discovered I had well over 200 photos of our times together. I weeded some out but decided the best approach was just to add a second post. See you there . . .
A final message from the Weakster . . .
We learn from experience that men never learn anything from experience. ~ George Bernard Shaw
I dream of a better tomorrow, where chickens can cross the road and not be questioned about their motives. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
Addendum 7-10-22
[A photo recently popped up as a memory on FB. We are with Beth Rindy, a former Cardinal hockey player, on July 8, 2010, at an event which escapes memory . . . ]
In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks. ~ John Muir
Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together … all things connect. ~ Chief Seattle
You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make. ~ Jane Goodall
The good man is the friend of all living things. ~ Mahatma Gandhi
[Gene Rose – Douglas County Lakes Association]
The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it. ~ Robert Swan
We need joy as we need air. We need love as we need water. We need each other as we need the earth we share. ~ Maya Angelou
[Viola Riggle – Audubon Society]
Avoiding climate breakdown will require cathedral thinking. We must lay the foundation while we may not know exactly how to build the ceiling. ~ Greta Thunberg
Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything. ~ George Bernard Shaw
Earth Day should encourage us to reflect on what we are doing to make our planet a more sustainable and livable place. ~ Scott Peters
[John Riggle – Audubon Society]
If every day were Earth Day we wouldn’t be in the mess we’re in. ~ Neil deGrasse Tyson, on Earth Day in 2022
I have learned you are never too small to make a difference. ~ Greta Thunberg
Those who have the privilege to know have the duty to act. ~ Albert Einstein
Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL) is an international grassroots environmental group that trains and supports volunteers to build relationships with their elected representatives in order to influence climate policy. The CCL is a registered 501(c)(4) with approximately $680,000 in revenue in the United States in 2018. Operating since 2007, the goal of CCL is to build political support across party lines to put a price on carbon, specifically a revenue-neutral carbon fee and dividend (CF&D) at the national level. CCL is supported by notable climate scientists James Hansen, Katherine Hayhoe, and Daniel Kammen. CCL’s advisory board also includes former Secretary of State George P. Schultz, former US Representative Bob Inglis, actor Don Cheadle, and RESULTS founder Sam Daley-Harris. Founded in the United States, the CCL has chapters in over 70 countries (Wikipedia).
I’m not that special. I can’t convince everyone. I’m just going to do what I want to do and what will have the most impact. ~ Greta Thunberg
The earth is what we all have in common. ~ Wendell Berry
When the last tree is cut, the last fish is caught, and the last river is polluted; when to breathe the air is sickening, you will realize, too late, that wealth is not in bank accounts and that you can’t eat money. ~ Alanis Obomsawin, Indigenous filmmaker
We are the first generation to feel the impact of climate change and the last generation that can do something about it. ~ Barack Obama
A nation that destroys its soils destroys itself. Forests are the lungs of our land, purifying the air and giving fresh strength to our people. ~ Franklin D. Roosevelt
Do something. Pay your rent for the privilege of living on this beautiful, blue-green, living Earth. ~ Dave Foreman
When enough people come together, then change will come and we can achieve almost anything. So instead of looking for hope — start creating it. ~ Greta Thunberg
My faith is an enormous motivator for me to engage as well, because climate change is not just an issue that affects the entire planet, it is one that disproportionately affects those who do not have the resources to cope with this change — those whom we are explicitly told as Christians to care for. ~ Katharine Hayhoe
[Tim Schoonhoven – Alexandria’s City Engineer]
For Christians, doing something about climate change is about living out our faith — caring for those who need help, our neighbors here at home or on the other side of the world, and taking responsibility for this planet that God created and entrusted to us. ~ Katharine Hayhoe
[John Riggle]
Nature is painting for us, day after day, pictures of infinite beauty. ~ John Ruskin
The main solution is so simple that even a small child can understand it. We have to stop the emission of greenhouse gases. ~ Greta Thunberg
The environment is where we all meet; where all have a mutual interest; it is the one thing all of us share. ~ Lady Bird Johnson
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has. ~ Margaret Mead
I shouldn’t be up here. I should be back in school on the other side of the ocean. Yet, you all come to us young people for hope. How dare you? ~ Greta Thunberg, UN Climate Change Summit New York, September 2019.
To my old brown earth / And to my old blue sky / I’ll now give these last few molecules of ‘I.’ / And you who sing, / And you who stand nearby, / I do charge you not to cry. ~ Pete Seeger, “To My Old Brown Earth”
Global warming is, quite simply, the biggest thing that humans have ever managed to do. ~ Bill McKibben
There is no such thing as away. When you throw something away, it must go somewhere. ~ Annie Leonard
The climate crisis has already been solved. We already have all the facts and solutions. All we have to do is to wake up and change. ~ Greta Thunberg, TEDx Stockholm, December 2018.
Only we humans make waste that nature can’t digest. ~ Charles Moore
We have the opportunity to create the perfect home for ourselves and restore the wonderful world we inherited. All we need is the will to do so. ~ Sir David Attenborough
I have a dream that the people in power, as well as the media, start treating this crisis like the existential emergency it is. ~ Greta Thunberg
Now, out of sheer momentum, (we are) thrusting more and ever more roads into every little remaining patch of wilderness, which in many cases is is sheer stupidity. ~ Aldo Leopold
Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts…. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature—the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after winter. ~ Rachel Carson, “Silent Spring”
[Jake of Jake’s Bike’s on cleaning up the bike trail . . . ]
To leave the world better than you found it, sometimes you have to pick up other people’s trash. ~ Bill Nye
We children are doing this to wake the adults up. We children are doing this for you to put your differences aside and start acting as you would in a crisis. We children are doing this because we want our hopes and dreams back. ~ Greta Thunberg
I have to work with young people today so that we try and raise new generations to look after this poor old planet better than we have, before it’s too late. ~ Dr. Jane Goodall
[Bryan Van Gorp – Citizens for a Sustainable Future]
The more clearly we can focus our attention on the wonders and realities of the universe about us, the less taste we shall have for destruction. ~ Rachel Carson
Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s need, but not every man’s greed. ~ Gandhi
Look deep into nature and you will understand everything better. ~ Einstein
When the well’s dry, we know the worth of water. ~ Benjamin Franklin
Our school strike has nothing to do with party politics. Because the climate and the biosphere don’t care about our politics and our empty words for a single second. ~ Greta Thunberg.
Man is still the greatest miracle and the greatest problem on this earth. ~ David Sarnoff
The earth has music for those who listen. ~ William Shakespeare
We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children. ~ Native American Proverb
On Earth there is no heaven, but there are pieces of it. ~ Jules Renard
If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world. ~ J.R.R. Tolkien
Teach us to walk the soft Earth as relatives to all that live. ~ Sioux Prayer
Humans are very adaptable: we can still fix this. ~ Greta Thunberg, Houses of Parliament, UK, April 2019.
Save the Earth, it’s our only source of chocolate! ~ Anonymous
[Returning home after the program, we had waves for the first time on Lake H2Obert . . . ]
I don’t really like being in the center of attention. I’m not used to that. All my life I have been like the invisible girl at the back that no one sees or listens to. ~ Greta Thunberg.
Until a man duplicates a blade of grass, nature can laugh at his so-called scientific knowledge. Remedies from chemicals will never stand in favorable comparison with the products of nature, the living cell of a plant, the final result of the rays of the sun, the mother of all life. ~ Thomas Edison
Up Next: Maybe shorts and t-shirts (well, in a couple more weeks) . . .
A crust eaten in peace is better than a banquet partaken in anxiety. ~ Aesop
One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating. ~ Luciano Pavarotti
April 13
As you may know, for several years now the Boys of ’65 have been visiting small town restaurants in the area. So, yesterday Little Mayo snuck in the long drive from Burnsville on a day that wasn’t weather adverse. Yes, we are in the midst of another large snow storm today, with another due on Sunday.
[A beef commercial at Nutcrakers Cafe in downtown Starbuck (population 300). Starbuck is on the western edge of Lake Minnewaska, a little over 7 miles from Glenwood, which is on the eastern edge of Lake Minnewaska. A “commercial” is such a Minnesota established dining entree, there are statewide contests to see which restaurant makes the best. Of recent vintage, Mike Bump’s (resident in good standing of the Fat Boys Walking Club) restaurant, “Bump’s” (now run by his son-in-law) commercial in Glencoe has been rated #1 . . . ]
The many years of road trips with Greg (Mayo), Brad, & me, to include Professor Doctor Colonel Kiehne when he’s in town from Austin, Texas. The last couple years because of COVID and Brad’s health we have had to stick to local restaurants multiple times such as the Lure (6 times), the Alex golf club (4x), Traveller’s Inn, and Casa Jalisco . . .
[As the name indicates, the Nutcracker Cafe was all Christmasy (even a decorated tree in the women’s restroom). It had an extensive menu, but Mayo and I opted for the special beef commercial. Some would say there’s a fine line between fine dining and pigging out (made worse by getting a couple of caramel rolls to go)! We had a nice visit among ourselves, and with the powers that be in the cafe whose knowledge we sought regarding other similar eating places in the greater Alexandria metropolitan statistical area. We have 5 or 6 future destinations lined up. We began the day with coffee and coffee cake with friends, then this lunch, then our usual Wednesday night fine dining experience with a group of 14 at the Lure. As dear old mom always used to say,”EAT! EAT! EAT!”]
I’d much rather hang out in a cafe. That’s where things are really happening. ~ Joe Sacco
I don’t want to be famous. I like to be able to sit in a cafe and watch the world go by and observe people. ~ Sophia Myles
[Mayo practicing the Norwegian two-step . . . ]
[Bradley scouring the Nutcracker’s extensive menu. Hey, we always opt for the burger or the special . . . ]
We can get carried away with our heads in books, and although there’s so much to be learned from that, I think sitting in a cafe and speaking with someone – whatever it is, their mannerisms, their choices, are just as valuable as any class you can go to. ~ Rose McIver
[Bradley, as is his wont, opted for the burger and onion rings . . . ]
And I’d like a pint of hot sauce. ~ Bradley
Strangely enough, the first character in Fried Green Tomatoes was the cafe, and the town. I think a place can be as much a character in a novel as the people. ~ Fannie Flagg
[There were inquiries as to how three old men were able to take photographs of the women’s restroom. Well, the door was open . . . ]
[The cafe had an adjoining banquet room as well – come help decorate the tree . . . ]
[Of course the main reason we go to these small town restaurants is that we’re less likely to be recognized and reported to the local constabulary . . . ]
If I don’t feel like writing on a certain day, I just go to the cafe and hang around. ~ Elizabeth Berg
I saw the Nutcracker to be a dummy as I thought of its mouth moving like a nutcracker – and also find them pretty scary as they almost have a life of their own. ~ Matthew Bourne
Sometimes me think, ‘What is Friend?’ and then me say, ‘Friend is someone to share the last cookie with.’ ~ Cookie Monster
[That evening was the usual gathering for fine dining at the Lure. This was the only photo taken at that event. For further explanation send $1.23 and a self addressed envelope to Merkel Press, c/o whoever opens the request . . . ]
[Lest you forgot, the fine dining group on a previous occasion . . . ]
April 14
A DATE THAT WILL LIVE IN INFAMY: On this date – April 14, 2022 – thousands of Minnesotans permanently moved to Florida. As a result of this vast internal migration, however, Florida subsequently sank into the ocean under accumulated weight of the new arrivees . . .
Blossom by blossom the spring begins. ~ Algernon Charles Swinburne
Spring won’t let me stay in this house any longer! I must get out and breathe the air deeply again. ~ Gustav Mahler
If winter comes, can spring be far behind? ~ Percy Bysshe Shelley
April prepares her green traffic light and the world thinks ‘Go.’ ~ Christopher Morley
[It’s a Thursday night. That means Tuesday Night Club must be playing at the Garden Bar . . . ]
[Instruments stand ready to obey the commands of their respective musicians . . . ]
[This is the Super’s – the Schatzki burger, various stuff with 42 pounds of ground beef . . . ]
After a good dinner one can forgive anybody, even one’s own relatives. ~ Oscar Wilde
[This is mine – the New Yorker, pastrami and stuff on a baguette . . . ]
[The Dreamsical cake . . . ]
Life is uncertain. Eat dessert first. ~ Ernestine Ulmer
[Terry Kennedy – guitar; Jim Faber – bass & voice; Bill Riggs – trumpet; as a group, Tuesday Night Club. On this night, Al Lieffort – mandolin & voice, decided not to make his commute from Minneapolis because of the ongoing daily blizzard. The tip jar, in its luminescent orange color, adds to the overall ambience . . . ]
Feed the body food and drink, it will survive today. Feed the soul art and music, it will live forever. ~ Julie Andrews
I’m in an area where I want to make music that I’m thrilled with, but, you know, I do have to worry about putting food on the table. I’m in that position where I cannot always be gauging what things might become. I have to look ahead, because I’m cautious. ~ Jakob Dylan
Solitary pleasures will always exist, but for most human beings, the most pleasurable activities almost always involve sharing something: music, food, liquor, drugs, gossip, drama, beds. ~ David Graeber
We are nowhere forbidden to laugh, or be satisfied with food … or to be delighted with music or to drink wine. ~ John Calvin
[Terry, a.k.a. Dr. Kennedy, is a retired orthopedic surgeon. Orthopedic surgeons must have good hands to perform their work. Terry subsequently put his good hands to work building guitars, an example of which is in this photo . . . ]
If music is the food of love, play on. ~ William Shakespeare
[Bill, a.k.a. “They call me Mr. Riggs”, is a retired history teacher. He has been playing the trumpet longer than Louis Armstrong . . . ]
Food – like art, like music – brings people together, it’s true. It begins, though, with a private experience, a single person stirred, moved, and wanting company in that altered stated. So we say, “You have to taste this.” We say, “Please, take a bite. ~ Jessica Fechtor
Jazz is my comfort music, like comfort food. ~ Molly Ringwald
I was born with music inside me. Music was one of my parts. Like my ribs, my kidneys, my liver, my heart. Like my blood. It was a force already within me when I arrived on the scene. It was a necessity for me-like food or water. ~ Ray Charles
[Jim, a.k.a. Mr. Bass Man, Alexandria high school class of ’64 making him the kid in the group, unless Al is there . . . ]
My best hostess tip is to have good food and really good music! ~ Jennifer Aniston
There’s sure no passion in the human soul, But finds its food in music. ~ George Lillo
It is the part of a wise man, I say, to refresh and restore himself in moderation with pleasant food and drink, with scents, with the beauty of green plants, with decoration, music, sports, the theater, and other things of this kind, which anyone can use without injury to another. ~ Baruch Spinoza
Music with dinner is an insult both to the cook and the violinist. ~ G.K. Chesterton
The game is an analogy for life: there are not enough chairs or good times to go around, not enough food, not enough joy, nor beds nor jobs nor laughs nor friends nor smiles nor money nor clean air to breathe … and yet the music goes on. ~ Steve Toltz
I love music more than food!!!!!!!!!! ~ August Wilson
April 16
[The day before Easter. On Easter, it actually snowed all day . . . ]
[Saturday mornings for as long as I can remember are doughnut pick up days at the bakery. We have had extraordinarily bad weather for every pick up day this year . . . ]
Spring will come and so will happiness. Hold on. Life will get warmer. ~ Anita Krizzan
[That afternoon Josie was back at the winery . . . ]
[Josie is just wrapping up her first year of medical school at the ‘U’. She hopes to someday perform at the winery for us as Dr. Nelson . . . ]
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – OCTOBER 11: Goldy the Gopher, mascot for the Minnesota Golden Gophers performs before the game between the Minnesota Golden Gophers and the Northwestern Wildcats on October 11, 2014 at TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
Children must receive music instruction as naturally as food, with as much pleasure as they derive from a ball game, and this must happen from the beginning of their lives. ~ Leonard Bernstein
Qualities you need to get through medical school and residency: Discipline. Patience. Perseverance. A willingness to forgo sleep. A penchant for sadomasochism. Ability to weather crises of faith and self-confidence. Accept exhaustion as fact of life. Addiction to caffeine a definite plus. Unfailing optimism that the end is in sight. ~ Khaled Hosseini
A Harvard Medical School study has determined that rectal thermometers are still the best way to tell a baby’s temperature. Plus, it really teaches the baby who’s boss. ~ Tina Fey
You could be a corrupt doctor, but at least you have to go to the medical school first. Right? ~ David Fahrenthold
When I went for my medical school interview, I had an old paperback of ‘Henderson the Rain King’ in the pocket of my coat. ~ Ethan Canin (Editor’s note: I read “Henderson the Rain King”, Saul Bellow wrote it (1959).)
I really put the medical school thing on hold and really chased after my football dream. And I guess I’m still chasing. I’m eight years in the NFL, and I feel very fortunate to be where I am. ~ Kirk Cousins
As my mentor in Medical School, Dr William Strong taught me: Never wear a white coat; it separates you from a fellow human being. I never have from that day on. You are your patients guide, counselor, and defender, not their ruler and dictator. ~ Steven Gundry
All of the details that most of us memorize in medical school – you don’t have to learn those things. They’re going to be in your computer. ~ Leroy Hood
Instead of writing thrillers to pay for my train bills, I was actually now going to medical school in order to have something to write about. ~ Michael Crichton
Loves music. Loves dance. Loves the moon. Loves the Spirit. Loves love and food and roundness. Loves struggle. Loves the Folk. Loves herself. Regardless. ~ Alice Walker
No one teaches you how to think about money in medical school or residency. Yet, from the moment you start practicing, you must think about it. You must consider what is covered for a patient and what is not. ~ Atul Gawande
[The Josie “in” crowd . . . ]
Ask not what you can do for your country. Ask what’s for lunch. ~ Orson Welles
The only time to eat diet food is while you’re waiting for the steak to cook. ~ Julia Child
Life is a combination of magic and pasta. ~ Federico Fellini
[A Josie original, one that she will put on an upcoming CD when she finds the time in her rigorous academic schedule . . . ]
I’ve long believed that good food, good eating, is all about risk. Whether we’re talking about unpasteurized Stilton, raw oysters or working for organized crime associates, food, for me, has always been an adventure. ~ Anthony Bourdaine
Tell me what to eat, and I will tell you what you are. ~ Anthelme Brillat-Savarin
Vegetables are a must on a diet. I suggest carrot cake, zucchini bread, and pumpkin pie. ~ Jim Davis
Up Next: As they say around these parts, it all depends on the weather . . .
Indoors or out, no one relaxes; In March, that month of wind and taxes; The wind will presently disappear; The taxes last us all the year. ~ Ogden Nash
ONCE UPON A TIME, in the days of yore before COVID and kitties, the Super and I would inflict ourselves upon friends and relatives in Florida, Texas, Arizona, and California for the last two weeks of March and the first week of April. It’s not that I want to escape winter – I think it’s the most beautiful season of the year – but for these three weeks local climate goes through “the change.” We leave the cold, dank, dirty snow, ice-covered lakes after the winter sports state tournaments and often returned to green grass and open water. It was the perfect segue. For the last three years, however, we have had to remain at home. So, what happens here . . .
The first day of spring was once the time for taking the young virgins into the fields, there in dalliance to set an example in fertility for nature to follow. Now we just set the clocks an hour ahead and change the oil in the crankcase. ~ E. B. White
In the Spring, I have counted 136 different kinds of weather inside of 24 hours. ~ Mark Twain
March 6
In ancient times cats were worshipped as gods; they have not forgotten this. ~ Terry Pratchett
[The Super got tired of my complaining about my aged smart phone’s inability to take good pictures, so she bought me a new one. There are times when I want to take photos absent the inconvenience of schlepping along the real camera. Here are my first photos with the new phone of the babies rising to great heights in the house . . . ]
A cat will do what it wants when it wants, and there’s not a thing you can do about it. ~ Frank Perkins
March 9
In those days, though, the spring always came finally but it was frightening that it had nearly failed. ~ Ernest Hemingway
[Again with the new phone camera of the Wednesday Night Fine Dining group at The Lure . . . ]
[This group has been know to, on occasion, have a good time. Karin and Dave, on the left, had recently returned from their two-month getaway to Palm Desert . . . ]
[The rest of us stayed all winter to make sure the snow had company . . . ]
March 13
The expression “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” actually isn’t usually true for human beings. It is for bacteria, however. ~ Michael Lewis
[We hosted the non-fiction book club. No photos were taken due to the large number of members in the witness protection program . . . ]
March 17, St. Paddy’s Day
Early spring is the time for vigorous change, a preparation for the heat-driven oppression that is to come. ~ Henry Rollins
[Senior College – Global Labor Markers w/ Alfred Marcus, U of M . . . ]
Everybody is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day, but if your name is Eisenhower, you’ve got to wear something green to show it. ~ Dwight D. Eisenhower
[After college it was off to Longtrees Woodfire Grill for a St. Patrick’s Day special of corned beef and cabbage . . . of course! What we didn’t know was an old family friend, Jason Hines, had been back in Alex for two years and was working at Longtrees . . . ]
March 20
You can not look at a sleeping cat and feel tense. ~ Jane Pauley
March 21
Spring is nature’s way of saying, ‘Let’s party!’ ~ Robin Williams
Why should society feel responsible only for the education of children, and not for the education of all adults of every age? ~ Erich Fromm
[It was Community Education movie night at the Grand Arbor theater . . . ]
[It was my night to host – my movie: “The Biggest Little Farm” . . . ]
[The usual masses have gathered, running the range of 25-30 people . . . ]
[After each movie, those who desire go across the hall for a discussion of the movie . . . ]
[After the discussion, we put all the chairs back in place and take a head count of those going to dinner . . . ]
[I think we had seven diners on this night – it can range up to 14 -16 . . . ]
[Autumn, in the background, is the Longtrees Woodfire Grill manager and endures our group showing up every other Monday . . . ]
I am always ready to learn although I do not always like being taught. ~ Winston Churchill
March 22, Jami’s Birthday
A man has every season while a woman only has the right to spring. ~ Jane Fonda
The older you get the better you get, unless you are a banana. ~ Betty White
I was brought up to respect my elders, so now I don’t have to respect anybody. ~ George Burns
You are only young once, but you can stay immature indefinitely. ~ Ogden Nash
A diplomat is a man who always remembers a woman’s birthday but never remembers her age. ~ Robert Frost
Yes, I deserve a spring – I owe nobody nothing. ~ Virginia Woolf
Eventually you reach a point when you stop lying about your age and start bragging about it. ~ Will Rogers
Life really does begin at forty. Up until then, you are just doing research. ~ Carl G. Jung
Life stands before me like an eternal spring with new and brilliant clothes. ~ Carl Friedrich Gauss
As you get older three things happen. The first is your memory goes, and I can’t remember the other two. ~ Sir Norman Wisdom
[Apres birthday party: Senior College – Forces Driving Inflation in the COVID Era w/ Kelly Hughes, Alexandria College . . . ]
[For a short while it actually appeared as if spring was going to make an appearance . . . ]
March 23
Nouvelle cuisine, roughly translated, means: I can’t believe I paid $96 and I’m still hungry. ~ Mike Kalin
[Another Wednesday night of fine dining at The Lure overlooking still solidly frozen Lake Le Homme Dieu . . . ]
In a restaurant, choose a table near a waiter. ~ Jewish Proverb
[Discussion of things of world import has begun . . . ]
The other night I ate at a real nice family restaurant. Every table had an argument going. ~ George Carlin (George, it’s really . . . )
It’s easier to be faithful to a restaurant than it is to a woman. ~ Federico Fellini
March 24
When you wait for a server in a restaurant, doesn’t that make you the waiter? ~ Unknown
[And once again Thursday Night Club performed at the Garden Bar on a Tuesday . . . ]
There are advantages to being a star, though. You can always get a table in a full restaurant. ~ Ingrid Bergman
Some people ask the secret of our long marriage. We take time to go to a restaurant two times a week. A little candlelight, dinner, soft music, and dancing. She goes Tuesdays, I go Fridays. ~ Henry Youngman
[At the next table, Paulette and Ralph were celebrating their 53rd wedding anniversay . . . ]
Never look directly at the sun, instead look at the sunflower. ~ Vera Nazarian
[Paulette is known as Alexandria’s storyteller. Ralph fits into that somewhere . . . ]
March 25
Fear not, get your shot. ~ Abhijit Naskar
[The Super and I got our second booster vaccines. I wore a t-shirt that I thought would be the viral equivalent of brother Chris’s John Prine shirt below . . . ]
I don’t like to see Christmas trees torn down. ~ John Prine
When vaccination programs are successful to the point where the disease is unfamiliar to physicians and public alike, then concerns can arise with real or perceived side effects of a vaccine that affect a very small minority of those vaccinated. Such concerns lead to fewer children being vaccinated and to increasing occurrence of the disease. ~ Peter Parham
Who are you going to believe? Leading authorities on medical science, or 800 memes on your cousin’s Facebook page? ~ Samantha Bee
If only there was a vaccine to protect against breast cancer, we’d be lining up – wouldn’t we? ~ Judy Blume
If everything is God’s will, then so is the invention of the vaccine, just like the seatbelt. ~ Els Borst
There is no vaccine against stupidity. ~ Albert Einstein
A classical Game Theory case. People are not taking vaccines in the hope that everyone else would be vaccinated and they would be safe. ~ Vineet Raj Kapoor
[Feeling super safe with my Tweetie Bird bandage . . . ]
March 26
The public is like a piano. You just have to know what keys to poke. ~ Al Capp
[Elsa Lee, fortunately for us, is a regular entertainer at the winery. These photos were my first headshots with the new phone camera . . . ]
There’s nothing remarkable about it. All one has to do is hit the right keys at the right time and the instrument plays itself. ~ Johann Sebastian Bach
Life is like a piano. What you get out of it depends on how you play it. ~ Tom Lehrer
In wine there is wisdom, in beer there is freedom, in water there is bacteria. ~ Benjamin Franklin
Quickly, bring me a beaker of wine, so that I may wet my mind and say something clever. ~ Aristophanes
I drink to make other people more interesting. ~ Ernest Hemmingway
March 27
Cats are connoisseurs of comfort. ~ James Herriot
Spring makes its own statement, so loud and clear that the gardener seems to be only one of the instruments, not the composer. ~ Geoffrey B. Charlesworth
[The third concert of the Central Lakes Symphony Orchestra’s season . . . ]
Pay no attention to what the critics say. A statue has never been erected in honor of a critic. ~ Jean Sibelius
The music is not in the notes, but in the silence between. ~ Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
At a certain place in Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, one might feel that he is floating above the earth in a starry dome. ~ Friedrich Nietzsche
People ordinarily don’t think of their orchestras as important as we’d like them to be. People don’t care about their friends and neighbors who sit down to commit excellence three or four times a year, but they will go see the tall bald guy with three names from television. ~ David Ogden Stiers
I can’t stand going out to one more dinner with some Mrs. So-and-So who might leave a million dollars to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra when she dies. ~ Daniel Barenboim
Good conductors know when to let an orchestra lead itself. Ninety percent of what a conductor does comes in the rehearsal – the vision, the structure, the architecture. ~ Joshua Bell
A man who wants to lead the orchestra must turn his back on the crowd. ~ Max Lucado
March 28
I glanced out the window at the signs of spring. The sky was almost blue, the trees were almost budding, the sun was almost bright. ~ Millard Kaufman
[When a Canada Geese couple are meandering the back yard and neither the Super nor Galahad pay them no mind, spring must be in the air . . . ]
A goose flies by a chart which the Royal Geographical Society could not mend. ~ Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.
[Said geese couple . . . ]
March 30
The first day of spring is one thing, and the first spring day is another. The difference between them is sometimes as great as a month. ~ Henry Van Dyke
It is amazing how quickly the kids learn to drive a car, yet are unable to understand the lawn mower, snowblower and vacuum cleaner. ~ Ben Berger
I have a cousin Ernie who buys stuff. He’s got a big snowblower that’s actually the biggest snowblower you can buy, with a remote control, so he doesn’t even have to go outside. He’s got the microwave and a satellite dish, it’s all in one. He cooks and watches at the same time. ~ Louie Anderson
I used to be Snow White, but I drifted. ~ Mae West
Schizophrenia beats dining alone. ~ Oscar Levant
[Why, yes, another Wednesday night dining adventure at The Lure . . . ]
Too many people just eat to consume calories. Try dining for a change. ~ John Walters
March 31
Education is learning what you didn’t even know you didn’t know. ~ Daniel J. Boorstin
[Senior College – The Favorable Economics of Solving the Climate Challenge w/ Jay Coggins, U of M . . . ]
The only thing that interferes with my learning is my education. ~ Albert Einstein
Human history becomes more and more a race between education and catastrophe. ~ H. G. Wells
It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it. ~ Aristotle
Oh stop it, you’re having an affair with your college professor, that jerk that teaches that incredible crap course, Contemporary Crisis in Western Man... ~ Alvy Singer (Woody Allen)
Real education must ultimately be limited to men who insist on knowing, the rest is mere sheep-herding. ~ Ezra Pound
35 million people in the U.S. are hungry or don’t know where their next meal is coming from, and 13 million of them are children. If another country were doing this to our children, we’d be at war. ~ Jeff Bridges
[A tradition in which the Super and I have participated in for some time . . . ]
There are genuinely sufficient resources in the world to ensure that no one, nowhere, at no time, should go hungry. ~ Ed Asner
[In the Common Area of the high school, which we noted at the time is now eight years old. Begin the fund raising now for the next one?]
Food is the moral right of all who are born into this world. ~ Norman Borlaug
A hungry man can’t see right or wrong. He just sees food. ~ Pearl S. Buck
[The students also displayed their art work . . . ]
Hungry people cannot be good at learning or producing anything, except perhaps violence. ~ Pearl Bailey
I am grateful for each and every food bank that helps families in need. No one should ever go hungry. ~ Marlee Matlin
[And played with the Rainbow Strings . . . ]
If you desire peace, cultivate justice, but at the same time cultivate the fields to produce more bread; otherwise there will be no peace. ~ Norman Borlaug
April 1
This is my house and I’ll talk as much as I want to! ~ Stella Kowalski
[A road trip to Stella’s in Battle Lake for an evening with Anthony Miltich . . . ]
[A fish named . . . Stella??]
In springtime, love is carried on the breeze. Watch out for flying passion or kisses whizzing by your head. ~ Emma Racine deFleur
[Pizza, pizza . . . ]
Only become a musician if there is absolutely no other way you can make a living. ~ Kirke Mechem
[Anthony . . . ]
My music is best understood by children and animals. ~ Igor Stravinsky
In order to compose, all you need to do is remember a tune that nobody else has thought of. ~ Robert Schumann
[And the spotlight is on . . . ]
My sole inspiration is a telephone call from a producer. ~ Cole Porter
If a man whistles at you, do not respond. You are a lady, not a dog. ~ Adele
Never look at the trombones, it only encourages them. ~ Richard Strauss
[The requisite artsy-fartsy shot . . . ]
April 3
In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt. ~ Margaret Atwood
[ . . . and then it happened, all afternoon . . . ]
[Nope, no dirt smell here . . . ]
It’s not Spring Break until somebody dies! ~ Daniel Tosh
I’m not sure why I like cats so much. I mean, they’re really cute obviously. They are both wild and domestic at the same time. ~ Michael Showalter
My girlfriend asked me how long I was going to be gone on this tour. I said, “the whole time”. ~ Steven Wright
I was once walking through the forest alone. A tree fell right in front of me, and I didn’t hear a thing. ~ Steven Wright
. . . the following morning
Springtime is the land awakening. The March winds are the morning yawn. ~ Lewis Grizzard
I’m not into working out. My philosophy is no pain, no pain. ~ George Carlin
Have you ever noticed that anybody driving slower than you is an idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac? ~ George Carlin
I like to reminisce with people I don’t know. ~ Steven Wright
Let the storm rage on. The cold never bothered me anyway. ~ Elsa from Frozen
‘Snow in April is abominable,’ said Anne. ‘Like a slap in the face when you expected a kiss.’ ~ L.M. Montgomery
Is it snowing where you are? All the world that I see from my tower is draped in white and the flakes are coming down as big as pop-corns. ~ Jean Webster
Up Next: Depends on whether or not the snow ever leaves?
The Fat Boys Walking Club lost a founding member last week. We offer our sincerest condolences to the family and friends of Paul “Rock” Fieldhammer. Rock, for some unknown reason, was a follower of this blog. So I hope to do him well, we will miss him. Walking and hiking quotes will be featured throughout, just because. Before the Y was built, the Fat Boys did our winter walking in the mall. Paul arrived one day, and for several thereafter, wearing a backpack. In his backpack, he carried a rock. He said it was in preparation for his winter hiking in Arizona. At that moment he obtained the appellation of “Rock,” bestowed upon him by the club’s giver of nicknames, Bob “Weakie” Annen.. . .
Cannot read your blog any more without getting hungry. So much for Annen’s request for food pix. ~ The Fieldhammers (lived in Slovakia for three months a few years ago)
Hiking—much like drinking—is something that sounds more fun to the uninitiated than it actually is. ~ Mindy McGinnis
Hiking is just walking where it’s okay to pee. ~ Demetri Martin
Paul Fieldhammer
Published March 28, 2022 03:01 PM (Echo Press)
Feb. 15, 1943 – March 24, 2022
PHOENIX, Ariz. – Paul Fieldhammer, 79, Alexandria, Minn., died Thursday, March 24, in Phoenix. A private family memorial service will be at a later date. Arrangements by Anderson Funeral Home and Crematory in Alexandria. (The photo above is from the Anderson Funeral Home site.)
Rock was a proud native of Sacred Heart who matriculated to Augsburg College (became University in 2017), where his subsequent contributions and service to the university led the Fat Boys to tease that several campus buildings must be named in his honor. He was tech support to we other members of the club, and also in that capacity he donated much time and energy to Someplace Safe in Alexandria and to a similar organization while wintering in Arizona. In recent years, he and Pris spent much of their time trying to keep up with grandson Henry . . .
Some people only get called by their nicknames. Usually, it sounds weird to even say their real name. ~ Kishore
[Legends in song and story, this photo was taken April 22, 2013 at the Y. “Weakie” (in the middle) named the others, l-r, “Coach”,” Bumpster”, “Rock”, “Cub (Reporter)”, “Tenor” . . . ]
There is nothing better than a friend, unless it is a friend with chocolate. ~ Linda Grayson
[Photo taken June 19, 2021 in the garage of Pris and Rock’s new house on Lake Geneva. The Super is holding a new computer that Rock built for her (since deeded to me . . . ]
Remember: Always walk in the light. And if you feel like you’re not walking in it, go find it. Love the light. ~ Roberta Flack
[With Pris and Paul at the Alexandria Golf Club (AGC) on August 11, 2010 for the Senior Men’s League Annual Steak Fry and Quilting Bee . . . ]
I was walking down the street wearing glasses when the prescription ran out. ~ Steven Wright
[The Fieldhammers arriving for yet another exciting event at the AGC on June 29, 2011 . . . ]
Everywhere is within walking distance if you have the time. ~ Steven Wright
[I captured Rock and his granddaughter while participating in the Homecoming Parade on September 24, 2011 . . . ]
Walking is magic. Can’t recommend it highly enough. I read that Plato and Aristotle did much of their brilliant thinking together while ambulating. The movement, the meditation, the health of the blood pumping, and the rhythm of footsteps… this is a primal way to connect with one’s deeper self. ~ Paul Cole
[Pris, Beryl, and the Super on a Moby Obie pontoon ride on September 30, 2012 . . . ]
Friendship is like peeing in your pants. Everyone can see it, but only you can feel the warm feeling inside. ~ Unknown
[Rather than on Rock, the camera opted to focus on the background trees . . . ]
Friends are people who know you really well and like you anyway. ~ Greg Tamblyn
[Photo dated May 22, 2013 in the Alexandria Golf Club clubhouse . . . ]
Until you walk a mile in another man’s moccasin, you can’t imagine the smell. ~ Robert Byrne
[Photo dated July 4, 2013 in the Fieldhammer’s yard on beautiful Lake Darling where invited guests could sit, imbibe, and snack with an unobstructed view of the Arrowwood fireworks display . . . ]
A true friend is someone who thinks that you are a good egg even though he knows that you are slightly cracked. ~ Bernard Meltzer
[The numerous beyond the pale mutterings of his fellow walkers often led Rock to exclaim, “I can’t believe you guys!” 🙂 ]
Walking is great, I guess. ~ Brianna Wu
Jean Shrimpton was the most beautiful of all the models I have known. To walk down the King’s Road, Chelsea, with Shrimpton was like walking through the rye. Strong men just keeled over right and left as she strode up the street. ~ Mary Quant (Well, this is about walking . . . )
[Past and current members of the Senior Men’s league (with spouses) engage in fine dining every Wednesday night at the golf club. On this date, June 17, 2020, we were in Mulligan’s on the lower level of the clubhouse. The Super does not recall the green wraps on her wrists . . . ]
I’m a walker. I enjoy walking, which I think psychologically expresses my feelings of wanting liberation without exerting myself too much. ~ Janeane Garofalo
All truly great thoughts are conceived by walking. ~ Friedrich Nietzsche
[The Wednesday night fine dining group in the clubhouse on May 5, 2021 . . . ]
It is one of the blessings of old friends that you can afford to be stupid with them. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
If you’re a human being walking the earth, you’re weird, you’re strange, you’re psychologically challenged. ~ Philip Seymour Hoffman
Hiking’s not for everyone. Notice the wilderness is mostly empty. ~ Sonja Yoerg
[My last photo of Rock on September 29, 2021 with the Wednesday night fine dining group at the golf club. He and Pris would soon be off to their winter home in Arizona.]
Regret: That a much-discussed walker race between “Rock” and “Weakie” never came to fruition.
We’ll end with a couple of walking quotes from Hippocrates (like Rock, past owner of Gibbco Scientific, Inc., in the medical supply business):
Walking is man’s best medicine. ~ Hippocrates
If you are in a bad mood, go for a walk. If you are still in a bad mood, go for another walk. ~ Hippocrates
Addendum:
Recently discovered in the archives, Rock had to “raise” his yard back in August 2011 when beautiful Lake Darling got a little frisky and was rising over its banks . . .
Addendum 2:
More photos unearthed in the archives on August 10, 2023
[Paul in the background at the Y on June 4, 2010, with our old neighbor Dan Nelson in the foreground . . . ]
[Dining at the golf club on September 28, 2011 . . . ]
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