August 12

*  I turns out I still had a lot more from 2004.  Our 3rd year of retirement and this year really set the tone on how to do it.  OK, this post is mostly family diary stuff.  You are excused to go watch reruns of Gilligan’s Island.

I looked up my family tree and found out I was the sap.  ~  Rodney Dangerfield

[Aunt Pearl and Uncle Ted from Loveland, Colorado, came for a visit.  It was by a quite circuitous route – they were somehow in Western Canada, took a train from there to Winnipeg, and then drove to Alex from Winnipeg.  I don’t remember how they got back to Loveland?  Maybe we mailed them for that was back in the days when the USPS still functioned.  But here we’re cruising beautiful Lake Darling on the Moby Obie . . . ]

[And then Cousin Barb joined us from the Cities . . . ]

[Barb once (twice?) won the Resorters, so it seemed a natural for all to go do a little practicing at the Alexandria Golf Club . . . ]

[And Mom joined the fray . . . ]

[I don’t recall how much money changed hands . . . ]

[As the Super gives it a run, that was my Ford Expedition in the background, parked illegally . . . ]

[Then Mom gave it a go . . . ]

[Then it was on to Carlos Creek Winery.  Remember this bar configuration?]

A man’s womenfolk, whatever their outward show of respect for his merit and authority, always regard him secretly as an ass, and with something akin to pity.  ~  H.L. Mencken

[And then it was off to their home in Colorado . . . ]

[While I took off with the pictured “Weakie” for a golf adventure in Minnesota’s faraway north country – the Quarry and Giants Ridge courses in Biwabik . . . ]

[I prepare to hit on this dangerous par 3 . . . ]

[We met some of “Weakie’s” old friends from working days . . . ]

[They were both left-handed hockey players who hit the ball a ton . . . ]

[But “Weakie” and I were able to fend them off with our shorter, but keeping the ball in play, game . . . ]

[And then the Super’s sister Rita came up from Nashville, Indiana, and we visited Aunt Mary Kay and Uncle Tom at their place in North Oaks . . . ]

[They were adding a sun room or porch . . . ]

A cactus doesn’t live in the desert because it likes the desert; it lives there because the desert hasn’t killed it yet.  ~  Hope Jahren

[And then, before we knew, we were at Mary Kay and Tom’s other home in Desert Mountain, Arizona.  I forget how long they maintained both places before they settled permanently in Arizona . . . ]

[They treated us to a round of golf at one of the multiple courses at Desert Mountain . . . ]

[Where we again run into Aunt Pearl and Uncle Ted . . . ]

[The Super and I switched positions . . . ]

I don’t look like a desert person because I stay indoors most of the day and fool around at night. That’s what the desert animals do – they don’t have a tan either.  ~  Don Van Vliet

[Tom and Mary Kay owned an African art gallery, Zuva, in Scottsdale . . . ]

[Most of the art was stone sculpture . . . ]

[In the El Pedregal marketplace . . . ]

[And then to their home, which we loved . . . ]

[The front door . . . ]

[The view . . . ]

[The house from the road . . . ]

[African stone sculptures both inside and outside the house . . . ]

[And several patios – each bedroom had its own . . . ]

[Outside looking in . . . ]

[The main patio . . . ]

[With a forever pool and view . . . ]

[Not too shabby a place for a party . . . ]

[And a hot tub . . . ]

[Kitchen eating area . . . ]

[Dining room . . . ]

[Loved his office . . . ]

[And more golf?]

[No sun?]

I like the desert for short periods of time, from inside a car, with the windows rolled up, and the doors locked. I prefer beach resorts with room service.  ~  Anne Lamott

I grew up in Arizona. I love it. I’m a part of the desert. I feel like, really, I’m from the Sonoran Desert, which is – extends to both sides of the border. I’m really from that part of Mexico, also. And I hate that there’s a fence, you know, running through it.  ~  Linda Ronstadt

[This was fun!]

I always thought the desert was the antithesis of peace – something that attacks you. So you don’t go to the desert for peace.  ~  Sam Shepard

Up Next:  More 2004 . . .

August 10

Although golf was originally restricted to wealthy, overweight Protestants, today it’s open to anybody who owns hideous clothing.  ~  Dave Barry

The Resorters Golf Tournament has historically been the highlight of the Alexandria summer season.  We always used to comment that the town seemed to go dead at the end of Resorters week, that summer was somehow over.  Well, as you may be aware, this has been somewhat of unique summer – in a way it has never begun.  So, the Resorters, the 99th annual by the way, came and went and it seems nothing has changed . . . 

August 3

[Tourists come to town for the Resorters from places hither and yon . . . ]

[The weather forecast for the week was magnificent.  We are usually at Indiana University summer camp at this time of year (also always the first week of August), so we looked forward to attending the golf  tournament for the first time in years – hiding out behind the 9th green, far from the madding (and possibly infectious) crowds.  Here’s the Super on the first day of qualifying . . . ]

[The area around the clubhouse putting green, scoreboard, and food tent was singularly uninviting for health reasons . . . ]

[Looking back up the 9th fairway from our vantage point . . . ]

[The course, as usual, was beautifully groomed by Donnacha O’Connor and his staff . . . ]

[Yes, I know Gretch – where are the masks?  They had to worn inside, and I don’t think any food was served or available inside all week . . . ]

I don’t want to play golf. When I hit a ball, I want someone else to go chase it.  ~  Rogers Hornsby

[Our box seats in a great location.  We had a lot of old friends we hadn’t seen for a while drop by for a chat . . . ]

[And here come our first golfers . . . ]

[These were some of the top level women golfers . . . ]

The reason a pro tells you to keep your head down is so you can’t see him laughing.  ~  Phyllis Diller

[Speaking of Donnacha, here he is caddying for his daughter Aisling . . . ]

[Aisling and her older sister Ciara are on the Alexandria high school golf team . . . ]

[Ciara upset the #1 seed in match play but I didn’t get to see her play.  The golf season for her senior year was cancelled, but she will play for St. Kate’s next year (COVID permitting).  Aisling will be back for the Cardinals . . . ]

Golf appeals to the idiot in us and the child. Just how childlike golf players become is proven by their frequent inability to count past five.  ~  John Updike

[Donnacha’s a pretty good golfer himself . . . ]

[But I don’t know if he can beat his daughters?]

[I hope dad gave her a good read . . . ]

The most important shot in golf is the next one.  ~  Ben Hogan

[And we’ll call it a day . . . ]

August 4

[Match play begins . . . ]

[We’re at the 10th tee.  Erik Schultz of Salty Dogs fame is at the mic announcing the players, which in this instance included our partner in music, Dave Berg, on the left, and his opponent next to him, Pat Ellingson, grandfather of multiple Cardinal girl hockey players including an upcoming twin riding in the golf cart with him . . . ]

[And Karin Berg, generously sharing her cart with Dave . . . ]

[The Super sharing some final advice with Karin . . . ]

[And Erik sends them off . . . ]

[Here goes Dave . . . ]

[Not too bad for an elderly gentleman . . . ]

[The Super, sharing the frame with a lovely garden . . . ]

[The garden, not sharing with the Super . . . ]

[We wandered from the 10th tee to the 11th green (18th green on the right) . . . ]

[Looking back across the 18th fairway and County Road 42 to the putting green . . . ]

[Abreast of the 11th green shooting up #17, a par 3 . . . ]

[A closer upper view of 17th green activities . . . ]

[Here comes Dave again, hitting his 2nd shot on #11 . . . ]

[And we have contact . . . ]

[11th green, Dave won to take a 2-up lead . . . ]

If you think it’s hard to meet new people, try picking up the wrong golf ball.  ~  Jack Lemmon

[And here comes another friend, Al Grundei, coming up #11 after Dave . . . ]

[And we have contact . . . ]

[Dave on the 12th tee . . . ]

It took me seventeen years to get three thousand hits in baseball. I did it in one afternoon on the golf course.  ~  Hank Aaron

The only sure rule in golf is he who has the fastest cart never has to play the bad lie.  ~ Mickey Mantle

[Looks OK . . . ]

[Again, at the confluence of the 11th green and the 12th and 17th tees . . . ]

[Another dining tent between the 16th green and uphill to the 17th tee . . . ]

[Dave’s 2nd shot on 12.  He went on to win his match against Pat . . . ]

Golf and sex are about the only things you can enjoy without being good at.  ~  Jimmy Demaret

[Thank you Dr. Sandra Johnson for my Gopher mask!]

August 6

[We didn’t make it back to the Resorters for the rest of the week.  It turned out the weather forecast was a little too optimistic.  We had decent weather for our Fat Boys morning stroll, and then . . . ]

[The sun came out again that evening for Tuesday Night Club at the Garden Bar.  Here trumpet player extraordinaire, Bill Riggs, models his new T gifted by wife Anne . . . ]

[Terry and Bill were joined for the evening by old stable mate, Al Lieffort . . . ]

[Another fun night in the alley . . . ]

[We and the Bergers, on the left, were early arrivals . . . ]

[Evening clouds indicative of . . . ]

[Evening clouds . . . ]

[The regular crowd began shuffling in . . . ]

[Let there be music and laughter and wine . . . ]

[But most importantly, let there be ramen . . . ]

[And music, again . . . ]

August 8

[On Resorters championship day, we had a date at the winery with Elsa Lee . . . ]

[With a cameo appearance by Alia Kopischke’s wedding . . . ]

[Alia was one of our favorite hockey players, Class of 2012 . . . ]

[And during her college years she worked at the winery . . . ]

[As did her mom and dad.  One might say a family affair . . . ]

[Meanwhile, Elsa took the stage.  At least we got there early enough that I could be her roadie.  I saw the keyboard in the back of her car.  She said she could handle it, she does it all the time.  I asked her how much it weighed.  She said 40 pounds.  I let her carry it.  I think I was able to handle her bench seat and mic stand . . . ]

[We hadn’t seen her for quite a while.  And as a performer, she hadn’t been able to perform much.  A bunch of her schedule was wiped out by COVID of course . . . ]

[And I got a chance for some zoom lens shots with my new camera . . . ]

[My first attempt at a video with the new camera fizzled.  Unfortunately, it was “Border Song,” which Elsa knew to be the Super’s favorite.  I didn’t know this song was coming when I started to video – but I liked it . . . ]

[Oh, the Bergs did join us, a little late.  They had a gig at the golf course.  Dave won the Masters Division, 1st fight championship at the Resorters.  Not the way he wanted, his opponent had to forfeit because of a death in his family, but his son came up to play with him the last day.  It was a total surprise for Dave . . . ]

[She’ll be back for Grape Stomp – weather and COVID permitting . . . ]

August 10

[Technically, the day after Resorters week, but who’s counting?  My birthday present, allowing 3 weeks for further aging . . . ]

[The Boys of ’65 returned to the golf course for lunch . . . ]

[The three of us have been meeting for lunch on a monthly basis for several years now.  Little Mayo comes up from Burnsville, and we attend various eateries in the greater Alexandria metropolitan area . . . ]

[But of recent times, between COVID and Brad’s various health issues, we’ve only been able to do this a few times in the last couple years

[I picked Brad up, put a bag over his head, and threw him into the trunk for our trip to the club . . . ]

[A final Resorters accounting . . . ]

[And Dave just magically appeared again – to play 9 holes with Karin.  He is technically also a ’65er, but he only lived in Alex from 7th through 9th grade and did not graduate here.  We did not remember him from them, meaning he likely didn’t try to steal our lunch money . . . ]

[Panorama shot from the deck . . . ]

[And here again is Taylor Breitkreutz.  Taylor has been carrying our food here all summer and during the Resorters . . . ]

[Just as she used to carry the puck for the Cardinals (yes, because whom amongst doesn’t like girl hockey players?).  She’s soon off to start her sophomore year at the U . . . ]

[And she took our final photo . . . ]

[Live long and prosper!!]

Golf is a game whose aim is to hit a very small ball into an even smaller hole, with weapons singularly ill-designed for the purpose.  ~  Winston Churchill

Up Next:  Constantly in flux . . .

 

 

August 7

*  But not intentionally.  I just happened to find more stuff from 2004.  Who knew?  That was quite a year considering there were no overseas trips involved.  Probably because we were into our 3rd year of retirement and ready to let the good times roll . . .

[Beginning with what was then the new abode on beautiful Lake Darling . . . ]

[You may have figured out by now this was winter . . . ]

[Then a trip to the Cities at the invite of one of the two guys on the other side of the table – Little Mayo Johnson and Basketball Dan Brick – to a new hot restaurant (now of some unknown ethnic origin) as I recall on University Avenue near the U campus . . . ]

[Back home to the ever popular open water from the Lake Cowdry channel created by the strong flow in from Lake Taylor . . . ]

[Whoa!  Then back to the Cities (again) for as I recall (again) a fine dining experience at the Golden Valley Country Club at the invite of Alex classmate and neighbor, Kathy Skadsberg . . . ]

[Because of the time of year, I would posit we were in town for an Alex girls hockey game . . . ]

[And then back again to the Alex winter wonderland . . . ]

[And then suddenly, we were in Kansas.  Yes, Kansas . . . ]

[On the way to the Hills of Lakeway, Austin, Texas, to visit another high school classmate, Professor Doctor Colonel Tom Kiehne and his wife, Anne . . . ]

[LBJ’s boyhood home . . . ]

[A tree and me on the Johnson ranch . . . ]

[The Super and a longhorn (as you may recall, she speaks cow) . . . ]

[And then on to San Antonio to visit old family friends from both Minnesota and D.C., Liz Lindell and her dad, Wally . . . ]

[On the way home, a stop at the William J. Clinton Library and Museum in Little Rock, Arkansas . . . ]

[Not sure if I ever cared for the Gulfstream trailer design . . . ]

[It’s certainly unique . . . ]

I like that about Republicans: The evidence does not faze them.  They are not bothered at all by the facts.  ~  Bill Clinton

Up Next:  Still more 2004 . . .

August 4

2004 – a year that will live in infamy in that it occurred exactly 16 years before 2020.  I don’t recall much about that year other than I what I have discovered in recently unearthed discs containing photos from that time.  I believe this to be the last blog post displaying such.  And I appear to have posted the great western driving trip in reverse order of its occurrence.  So, we begin here in snowy Minnesota before heading west in the spring.

[Important PSA:  I would not recommend a visit to South Dakota at this time.  So far, COVID-19 has granted carte blanche to operate in the state . . . ]

[Locals will recognize the Amazon, the channel between Lakes Darling and Cowdry.  Because it is running water, it stays open even if the temperature is below zero . . . ]

[Locals will recognize the bike/snowmobile trail, looking SE toward town and passing over the Amazon . . . ]

[Now going for the artsy look . . . ]

[Not too shabby (I always remember this shot).  My equipment then was just a snapshot camera . . . ]

[Further along the Amazon . . . ]

[The fish houses on Lake Cowdry from the trail . . . ]

[Shooting the other directions on Cowdry . . . ]

[Oh, the hoars!!]

[Closer upper to the fish houses . . . ]

[Along the trail . . . ]

[And away we go.  Everything you need to know is contained in the photo . . . ]

[Pierre, South Dakota . . . ]

[I take a certain amount of pride in knowing that I am one of only three people not from the state who have ever visited the capitol.  These were the halcyon days when public buildings were actually available to the public.  We walked right in – the doors were wide open – no sign of security guards, no sign of metal detectors, no sign of anybody actually.  I cajoled the Super to veer from our westward direction when I saw the sign along the interstate that it was a mere 60 miles north to Pierre – it was a detour well worth taking . . .]

[Badlands National Park . . . ]

[Despite such information terminals, I never discovered what they did that was so bad?]

[A sign of grand canyons to come . . . ]

[A rather unique topography . . . ]

[The Super discovered a bridge to somewhere . . . ]

[Indigenous inhabitants . . . ]

[They were rather sheepish . . . ]

[One notices the diminishment of greenery the further west one goes . . . ]

[An incredible natural rock formation.  Not unlike chimpanzees with typewriters being able to replicate Shakespeare in several million years . . . ]

[The flags, however, were man made . . . ]

[Incredible how through the millennia, nature was able to produce the scree field at the bottom of the mountain . . . ]

[And we finish with a human scree field . . . ]

I learned more about the economy from one South Dakota dust storm that I did in all my years of college.  ~  Hubert H. Humphrey

Up Next:  Likely Resorters stuff . . .

August 2

Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate. Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, and summer’s lease hath all too short a date.  ~  William Shakespeare

OK, control yourselves.  This is just another trip down memory lane, i.e., a family slide show.  In the year already blessed by the driving trip through the great American West, the summer was blessed by the Super being “hit on” at Carlos Creek Winery by Joey Dee of Joey Dee and the Starliters rock ‘n roll fame.  We’re thinking of making this into a move (title at the top).  Let us begin . . .

[Hard to believe Big Ole’s been in his current location for at least 16 years . . . ]

[This was the summer Grandson Tommy’s (10 years old then) grandparents from Noblesville, Indiana, came for a visit.  That’s Tommy with Grandma Fran, above, and with Grandma Supervisor, below . . . ]

                                                                                                                                                            [And with Grandpa Ed pontooning on the Moby Obie on beautiful Lake Darling . . . ]

[And Fran.  As you can tell by the attire, this was July!]

[I know it was July because . . . ]

[This is the Lake Carlos Independence Day boat parade.  Below is our neighbor Dangerous Dan’s extended family from the west coast . . . ]

[And Tommy went tubing.  Scared at first, he soon realized that a 50 HP Yamaha pushing a pontoon didn’t give him enough speed . . . ]

[With the Super driving, and Ed and Fran spotting . . . ]

[The Ed joined in – the excitement was such that the camera jiggled . . . ]

[And here’s Fran and Ed and . . . Joey Dee!]

[You remember Joey Dee?  If you do, then you know that in 1962 Joey’s “Peppermint Twist” had a summer-long battle for No. 1 on the pop charts with Gene Chandler’s “Duke of Earl” . . . ]

[Fran and Ed hit the dance floor.  The yellow-garbed Starliter is Frankie Valli’s brother, Bobby . . . ]

[Then Ed gave the Super a twirl . . . ]

[That’s Joey in the stylish purple suit.  Uff da . . . ]

[And then back to the regular and routine activities of grandpas with their grandson.  Ed and I never wet a line.  As soon as we baited up Tommy, he’d catch something . . . ]

[It’s a monster sunny!]

[Ed enjoying what Minnesota is all about . . . ]

[Checking up on the neighbors . . . ]

[A toast – to Lake Darling!]

[Ed is an avid golfer and was delighted to pose under the Tom Lehman sign . . . ]

[A rare marine mammal – seldom seen in its native habitat any more . . . ]

[Ahhh, the wonderful days spent on the Moby Obie . . . ]

[Morning, all . . . ]

Summer bachelors, like summer breezes, are never as cool as they pretend to be.  ~  Nora Ephron

Up Next:  There’s at least one more ’04 . . .

July 31

Opera is when a guy gets stabbed in the back and, instead of bleeding, he sings.  ~ Robert Benchley

Luke Williams

OK, my turn . . . 

[First shot of the day.  The light shining in our bedroom window awakened me in the wee small hours of the morning.  Not too bad for a hand held shot . . . ]

[I believe all operatic festivities are required to begin with a fine dining activity.  Here the group alights at Interlachen . . . ]

[Because I know about as much about opera as I know about . . . opera, this missive will be interlaced with quotes from those who actually know (or pretend to know) something about the subject matter . . . ]

[The Super knitted (crocheted?) a mask for Karin, making them pandemic twins . . . ]

[Arrival at the venue . . . ]

[From our box seats location . . . ]

[Random backwards shots over my head at the arriving aficionados . . . ]

The new nine muses are Commerce, Operatic Music, Amor, Publicity, Manufacture, Liberty of Speech, Plural Voting, Gastronomy, Private Hygiene, Seaside Concert Entertainments, Painless Obstetrics and Astronomy for the People.  ~  James Joyce

[These are either theater board members, or baseball fans.  I guess you could be both . . .]

[Known to be local practitioners of vocal talents . . . ]

[Never met a jazz or blue grass concert they didn’t like . . . ]

[A shout out again to a board member and sponsor of the event . . . ]

[Who was that masked man?]

I can’t listen to that much Wagner. I start getting the urge to conquer Poland.  ~  Woody Allen

[Executive Director Nicole Mulder takes the stage with Out of The Box artistic director David Lefkowich to introduce the program . . . ]

No good opera plot can be sensible, for people do not sing when they are feeling sensible.  ~ W. H. Auden

[Let ‘er rip!!]

Staid middle age loves the hurricane passions of opera.  ~  Mason Cooley

[And a brief introduction as to what Out of the Box is all about . . . ]

The activity of a singer that sings opera is similar to that of an athlete.  ~  Andrea Bocelli

In opera, there is always too much singing.  ~  Claude Debussy

[Leading off, tenor David Walton (not to be confused with the Boy Tenor of the local Salty Dogs) . . . ]

For me, a diva is like the great opera singer, the great film star – out of reach, in their own world, with a real gift for invention: attention-demanding performance artists with a flamboyant, compelling sense of their own importance so special and inimitable it verges on the alien.  ~  Grace Jones

Even in today’s opera world, the position of the black tenor is problematic.  ~  Bobby Short

[Batting 2nd, soprano Siena Forest . . . ]

What opera isn’t violent? Two things happen, violence and love. And other than that, name something else. You can’t.  ~  Cab Calloway

[And the bass, Luke Williams . . . ]

Sergio Leone has this weird western opera thing.   ~  Ethan Coen

[And it may have been somewhere around here that Siena mentioned she had to kiss David during a performance.  He had eaten chili as the pre-performance meal, and she found that a bit unsettling.  She said one should always cleanse one’s mouth before such a performance.  And she noted that he tells that story on himself . . . ]

[Which begs the question, I wonder if I . . . ]

When you are up close to an opera singer, hearing this incredible volume of noise coming from a human being – it’s beyond belief.  ~  Eve Best

The opera always loses money. That’s as it should be. Opera has no business making money.  ~  Rudolph Bing

The favorite thing I like to do is nothing. I’m such an expert at doing nothing. I have a boat. I make training films for the Coast Guard. I listen to a great deal of opera.  ~  Charles Nelson Reilly

The voice muscle doesn’t last forever. I have a lot of friends who are classical and opera singers. My friend Beverly Sills stopped singing in her 50s, so I’m careful with mine. But I’ll keep going as long as it lets me.  ~  Johnny Mathis

I also met, early on Ella Fitzgerald. Her songbooks are some of the most amazing bodies of work.  ~  Johnny Mathis  [Full disclosure:  I have “Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Gershwin Songbook,” one of my all-time favorites.]

More and more, we’re used to taking things in through the eyes rather than through the ears, and opera is more of a spectacle.  ~  Daniel Barenboim

[A wonderful evening of opera . . . ]

[and of show tunes . . . ]

[of fun . . . ]

[brought to us by people of extraordinary voice . . . ]

[on a beautiful evening in Vacationland USA . . . ]

[Many thanks again to Out of the Box opera company . . . ]

[Who know how to bow like opera performers . . . ]

Opera is the most complete art form. It includes drama, acting, technology (lighting), art (the sets), dance, and the epitome of the human voices. But mostly, go for the glorious music. The arts are crucial to the life of every community.  ~  Karen DeCrow

[We’re going to hold them to their desire . . . ]

[To come back to TLHD again some day . . . ]

[We enjoyed after the show commingling, masked of course . . . ]

[The Super was particularly excited to discover . . . ]

[That Siena and Mark are Indiana University alums . . . ]

[We should have asked for a rendition of “Indiana, Our Indiana” . . . ]

[Didn’t take any live videos.  Not kosher, certainly if not OK’ed.  In lieu thereof, a very recent YouTube post by one of our favorites (we have CD’s to prove it) . . . ]

[Here we all are – a panoramic shot with the new camera.  Until next time . . . ]

Opera in English, is about as sensible as baseball in Italian.  ~  H.L. Mencken

Up Next:  Surprise me . . .

July 30

In times of pandemic shutdown, what could be more fun than watching a slideshow of someone’s 2004 family vacation?  In continuation, therefore, we bring you such national treasures as Mt. Rushmore, the Black Hills, bison, Yellowstone, Little Bighorn (closed), and the iconic Devils Tower.

[To my knowledge, this still exists . . . ]

[This as well?]

[Brother Cam’s favorite place in the country . . . ]

[The national ungulate . . . ]

[Also featuring biological lawn mowers . . . ]

[A la the Grand Canyon, the first sighting is breathtaking . . . ]

[And to think, 40.5 million years ago this did not exist . . . ]

[Then it was subsequently discovered by Richard Dreyfuss in Close Encounters of the 3rd Kind . . . ]

[Our neighbor’s (on Lake Darling) daughter has climbed this at least twice . . . ]

[We decided against attempting a climb . . . ]

[Because the boulder field at the bottom appear impassable . . . ]

[Closed!  No, not for repairs, but who remembers there were national park funding issues even way back then . . . ]

[A river, I’m guessing the Yellowstone . . . ]

[Yes, as the people, we enjoyed it . . . ]

[A thermal tower (no, not the Super) . . . ]

[Yellowstone, as we usually perceive it . . . ]

[And we end with . . . ]

[Wolf pack followers.]

It is by the goodness of god that in our country we have those 3 unspeakably precious things: freedom of speech, freedom of conscience, and the prudence never to practice either of them.  ~ Mark Twain

Up Next:  Likely archival . . .

July 26

Maybe this world is another planet’s Hell.  ~  Aldous Huxley

Our tools are inadequate to mend the harm done by racism, mass incarceration, inadequate housing, poverty, and cruel immigration policies.  ~  Colleen M. Farrell, MD, Bellevue Hospital

On this Sunday, Mother Nature fought back.  And on this day, the pandemic, the economy, the racism, at least momentarily, took a back seat to a perfect summer day . . . 

[And what could be more summer-y?]

[Our sunflower and its new siblings . . . ]

[Its’s summertime, summertime, sum, sum, summertime . . . ]

No man can terrorize a whole nation unless we are all his accomplices.  ~  Edward R. Murrow

[And somehow in the midst of all this, a bee aids our survival . . . ]

[Don’t worry, bee happy . . . ]

[The Super and I were able to give the reasonably humble abode a complete once-over, to include a few plumbing projects, before venturing out into the day . . . ]

Some men know that a light touch of the tongue running from a woman’s toes to her ears, lingering in the softest way possible in various places in between, given often enough and sincerely enough, would add immeasurably to world peace.  ~  Marianne Williamson

If the bee disappeared off the face of the earth, man would only have four years left to live.   ~  Maurice Maeterlinck

When the bee comes to your house, let her have beer; you may want to visit the bee’s house some day.  ~  Congo Proverb

[Our tall, lean friend decided to spend the day island hopping . . . ]

Work is not always required. There is such a thing as sacred idleness, the cultivation of which is no fearfully neglected.  ~  George McDonald

[After lo these many months, the AMGC (Anthony Miltich Fan Club) was finally able to reunite on the Lure Lakebar patio hard by the shores of Lake Le Homme Dieu  . . . ]

[Club members were properly distanced . . . ]

[Just a short walk from their home . . . ]

[And behind us, a bad, over the shoulder shot . . . ]

[With boats in the background . . . ]

The comfortable people in tight houses felt pity at first, and then distaste, and finally hatred for the migrant people.  ~  John Steinbeck

[And I’ll have another Corona Extra – thanks . . . ]

[Texting her music review to Rollingstone . . . ]

[A proud wearer of the N95 mask . . . ]

[Anthony opted for the Leinie’s Summer Shandy . . . ]

[I hadn’t videoed Anthony for a long time.  But it was such a nice day, I asked if there was a particular song he’d like me to shoot (at least his legs wouldn’t be backlit).  He said he recently learned this song and liked it.  It was a song for a wedding . . . ]

The right to be heard does not automatically include the right to be taken seriously.  ~  Hubert Humphrey

Farewell Angelina – July 15

OK, we didn’t think we could have any type season in this our 60th year.  Yet somehow, in the midst of the pandemic, Executive Director Nicole Mulder was able to perform her magic to attract Farewell Angelina to our campus.  They were on the original schedule for the season, but like all performing artists have been in total shutdown until now.  They were delighted to be here – they noted for their first drive in concert – and we were delighted they came.  Everybody was distanced in accordance with the rules – and you could sit outside your car – but those who didn’t could listen easy enough with the aid, if desired, of 97.1 FM.  And in their cars, they could honk their appreciation of each song, to the delight of the performers.  Thus, with further adieu . . . 

JULY 15, 2020
4:30PM & 7:00PM
OUTDOOR CONCERT!!

[The line up before entry – each car guided to a specific spot to maintain distancing . . . ]

[Someday, that power line will be put underground . . . ]

[The stage was on loan from another theater – it worked perfectly.  This was from our vantage point . . . ]

[A blind backward shot with the Super still in our car and others filling in behind . . . ]

[The anticipation builds . . . ]

[And here they are, from Nashville – a video of self-introductions . . . ]

[Arrival on stage, in admiration of the weather in Vacationland USA . . . ]

[Introductions, acknowledgements, and thank yous from Nicole . . . ]

[And away we go . . . ]

[And on loan from a neighboring attendee . . . ]

[In the meantime, in between time, ain’t we got fun . . . ]

[The technicians . . . ]

[Then some guy wandered through the crowd for close-up shots . . . ]

[Oh, ‘hi’ Paul . . . ]

[Of all the shots, this would have been the favorite but it was slightly out of focus . . . ]

[A 75-minute show, with no intermission, in hopes of making “potty” trips unnecessary.  And allowed for the group to have a break before the 7:00 show.  It was scheduled to have more attendees of likely younger fans . . . ]

[And a complete song for your wining and dining pleasure . . . ]

[Yep, another fan has been created.  10 of us from the early show (the blue plate special crowd) then went to Interlachen for outdoor dining.  It appeared to be unanimous among us that the group and performance were terrific . . . ]

Attendance addendum:  4:30 show – 52; 7:00 show – 73.

Theater is life with the dull bits cut out.  ~  Alfred Hitchcock

Up Next:  Surprise me . . .

July 15

From the Cub Reporter’s source on everything Alexandria:  “Dick Wiles built it as Bronc’s on Broadway. He was an heir to Sunshine Biscuits. The little baker on the box of Cheez Its was his grandfather. He grew up summers at the Minnesouri Angling Club on Lake Miltona. There were two houses there. The turret on the restaurant was part of the Frank Englund home and was the only thing Dick saved from that house. His first idea was a casual rib joint, p-nuts on the floor. Janet Baker, a bonified chef, his wife at the time wanted fine dining. It was a special occasion venue and a county of 30k could not sustain it. When they divorced Dick shut it down. Then the Bistodeaus bought it, added more dining to the north and the gift shop extending out from the building back by the alley, the gazebo and the lawn. Frank sold it to Jill Blashack and Joni Nielson from a Tastefully Simple. They incorporated some TS products into the menu. They ran it for about three years and shut it down. They put it up for sale. Mark Weston wanted it but he and Joni were $300k apart and he knew he couldn’t cash flow it so he walked. Chris Anderson (Anderson’s Outpost out on State Park Rd Carlos) opened it for one summer. Then it sat empty until Jason Mueller opened one of his Bello Cucina’s there. He is a genius. He got divorced, had a heart attack and closed it. I think he is involved in some way with the new development. I hope so. The building probably sat empty as long or longer than it was open. There ya go. Roy always says, “If you ask Patty the time she’ll tell you how to build a watch”! 😂 The big house on the left was the Frank W. and Mildred Danielson home. Mildred was my mom’s sister. The house on the right was the Englund home with the turret.  Aunt Mildred’s home was torn down years before Dick bought the turret house. He built Bronc’s from the ground up in about 1986.  And feel free to share our family picture. Gloria Danielson Watson, my cousin from Class of ’63 grew up in the big house.  Dick had a bar shipped from Ireland. His daughter asked me about it yesterday. I think this is part of the back bar. At least it was rescued. The girls gave me all the old Alexandria framed and matted photos that had hung in the Broncs. Out of everything at Wileswood, when they asked me what I wanted, they were amazed I said those pictures. I should have asked for the solid sterling box that had belonged to Adolf Eichmann. Bad juju! Side note. Dick Schultz from Best Buy bought Wileswood after Dick died.”  See, I told you.

[Upon the news of current events . . . ]

[We’re going to the red dot in the middle, then crossing the street to the south . . . ]

[When I Googled “Bronc’s, Alexandria,” this is what I got . . . ]

[Old Broadway . . . ]

[Bello Cucina . . . ]

[Rune, the new structure to built on the entire block with a scheduled completion for the end of 2021 . . . ]

[Your crack snoop reporter on the beat . . . ]

[Some shots of Bello Cucina.  Back in the days of Old Broadway, we ate all our special occasion meals there.  Mom’s birthdays, when she always ordered prime rib, with a couple martinis, in the corner, in the library . . . ]

[Then on July 15th, the entire block began to disappear . . . ]

[Opening a view to the armory on the other side of Broadway . . . ]

[The last vestiges of Bello’s still standing on the left . . . ]

[The Edward Jones building on the corner will remain.  Back in the day, that was the location of Vernon Studio, where all the high school classes (including ’65) had their graduation photos taken . . . ]

[Now looking back toward 3rd Avenue . . . ]

[And view from the corner of 3rd Avenue, looking south into downtown . . . ]

[Lotsa changes going on in the old home town . . . ]

The duty we owe to history is to rewrite it.  ~  Oscar Wilde (1854-1900), Irish writer

Up Next:  More out West?