Heckler

Ok, so I'm quietly minding my own buisness in my phillies jersey when
this old lady stands up, turns around and says, "ha ha" after a
brewers home run. Hmmmm ....

Cheese!

If Illinois is totally flat and full of corn fields, then Wisconsin is
all about cheese! This particular sign is for a cheese castle. Hmmm,
I bet the wolf could chew his way right through this cheese castle.
Look out little piggies!

It's better than it looks

I tried a new French toast recipe this morning. It was pretty easy to
make but I could have cooked it a little longer. I grated fresh
cinnamon for the top and it was really good. I've never had fresh
cinnamon (except in winter warmers), so I was surprised at how strong
it tasted. Yummy!

I needed a big breakfast to fuel up for the trip to see the Brewers
and Phillies. Go Phillies!

Beer caps!

My adopted city is trying to kill me. I don't think I did this many
things in eight years in Philly. We have seen Brandi Carlile - three
times, including last Friday at the House of Blues. We had a nice
dinner before the show and saw this guitar hanging on the wall. It's
made out of beer caps. I've been saving cool beer caps for a while for
a project, and I think it will be cooler than this guitar, if I ever
get around to making it.

The concert was pretty good, but ended with two slow songs, one of
which was new. We all agreed that it was an odd choice. Next up - a
Phillies game in Milwaukee!

Week 2 down

My second week on the job is winding down. It is the end of the
quarter, so things are pretty hectic. Fridays are usually pretty
quiet, but today is an exception. I drafted my first opinion and I'm
happy to have one under my belt. I hope to get more efficient with
each case. Also, I'm finally feeling pretty good about knowing how
things work. I have a lot to learn, but I don't feel quite so
overwhelmed. Everyone has been patient and very helpful.

Urban assault ride

Sunday was an interesting (and fun) day. We had signed up for the New
Belgium urban assault ride. It was sort of like a bike race /
scavenger hunt through the city. We biked 3 miles to the start line,
then biked about 20 miles around the city to various checkpoints where
we performed random tasks (e.g., a modified three-legged race). We
finished at the same place we started and had one task left - ride a
big wheel around a course. It was lots of fun. I made at least one
mistake, however. Or maybe it was 6 mistakes. After 23 miles of biking
on an empty stomach, I thought it was a good idea to have a few (6)
beers. Needless to say, that was about 5 too many. Overall, everyone
had a good time and I think we will do it again next year in some
crazy costumes. Someone suggested Catholic school girl outfits, but
there was already a team of them this year. If you have any
suggestions, please post them here!

Also overheard

From a very nice straight female friend:
If you go to five Ani DiFranco concerts, you're going to end up sleeping with a woman. It's just true.

Still more on cows

You may not be able to see this cow very well, but she sees you! She
is looking through a telescope and spying on us all.

A funny thing I overheard

By pip - I'm so gay, my dog can't even run straight.

More on cows

Ok, I guess the Midwest truly is addicted to cows! This one is inside
one of the state buildings downtown. I guess that is a sunburst from
underneath. I'm not sure whether this is from the parade of cows or
not, but I hope it is! Otherwise, there's no excuse.

What is it about the cows?

I know I'm now in the Midwest, but there are some crazy cows out
here! I'm not sure how the cow ended up orange. Or how the woman
ended up green, for that matter. I guess I'm just way out of the loop
on fashion because this neon cow was in the window of a very hip
store! I'll take my brown cows thank you very much.

Motorcycle!

After a tough day at my new job, i needed a ride on my motorcycle! The
job was interesting today and I am excited about the next four months.
And I was very pleased with my ride on the bike because I have not
ridden since before my self-discovery trip.

I looked at this picture and realized a few things: 1) my bike is
small; 2) I need cooler riding gear; and 3) I would ride the franchise
to the end of the earth. Some day my rents will learn that I bought a
motorcycle, but you probably don't want to be the person who tells them.

If you would like a ride (jf or as) I'm just about ready to oblige.

New job

Today is the first day of my new job. I'm nervous and feeling very
anxious, so I made sure to get to the office early. The only problem
is that I do not have a security pass and I cannot get into the office
until someone else is there to authorize my admission. And I got here
before the mail person delivered the paper, so I don't have anything
to read. Sometimes I wonder whether I made the right choice to take
this job.

I'm excited to clerk for the judge, but there is a big difference in
the resources available here as compared to the large law firm where I
worked. I think the thing I will miss the most is the copier/scanner
that converts images directly to PDFs.

Tired dogs

I went for a 9.5 mile trail run this morning after taking a break from
running while on vacation. It was a beautiful day today - sunny and
about 80. My dog (the Weimaraner) got a ride around the trail in a
doggy trailer. The dog I was dogsitting had to pull me around the
loop. Bad draw for her. As you can see, both dogs were exhausted
from the work out. I got them large Jimmy John's sodas to wake them
up, but it didn't help. Didn't help me much either as I got home and
crashed on the couch to watch tennis for the rest of the day.

Trolley party

The fun continues! In honor of some friends who are getting married
this fall, I am taking a trolley tour through Chicago. Shhhh, don't
tell because it's a surprise! (at least for 5 more minutes)

The Sampler

Although I was disappointed not to see any former gymnastic stars, I
enjoyed the tour and the sampler. I tried six varieties of beer and
two sodas. I have had all but one of the beers before. My favorite is
still the Domaine DuPage, but the non-alcoholic root beer was a close
second! The cream soda was also good, but I'm not a big cream soda
fan. I recommend the tour and lunch at the tap room.

Brewery # 3

Continuing our brewery trips, we drove out to Two Brothers brewery
this afternoon. The building is really large and not well-marked on
the outside. The inside, however, still has the logo of the old
gymnastic academy that used to be located there.

I look like my passport photo

I think it was Erma Bombeck who said that she knew it was time to go
home when she looked like her passport photo. Well, I have two
corollaries to her theory.

First, my passport photo is not bad, but my driver's license is
horrendous. It is more fitting for me to reference my driver's license
because I was exploring the U.S. (even though Arkansas feels very
foreign). I'm not attaching a photo, but trust me, I look like my
driver's license so I knew it was time to go home.

Second, you know it's time to go home when your eyebrows have grown
together. Maybe this is more a comment on the quality of the hotels at
which I have stayed in the last few days. Since my first night in the
luxurious Hilton in St. Louis, I have not stayed in a room with one of
those lighted magnifying mirrors. As a result, I was ready to head
home to use my mirror (for about half an hour).

I'm also ready to sleep in my own bed for the first time in ten days.
I would say that I hope I sleep past five, but I'm getting up early to
play tennis. I hope to have a chance to reflect on my journey tomorrow
and maybe even post some thoughts on what (if anything) I've learned
about the Midwest, my job, my relationship, my new life here and
myself. I think I can fit it in a sentence or two.

The dog is exhausted!

You would think the dog did all the driving! She has been sleeping
since she got home from the kennel. Well, after her bath!

The Cider Mill

I worked at the cider mill for two fall seasons while I was in high
school. I think this was my favorite job ever, although being a lawyer
has been a close second so far. I worked the register over 20 years
ago, but remembered the codes for a half a dozen doughnuts and a quart
of cider. More impressive is that the codes haven't changed! I was
disappointed because they were not pressing cider or making doughnuts.
I had a fresh quart of cider and a powdered sugar doughnut. Both were
as good as I remembered.

My least favorite job at the cider mill was putting the sticks in the
apples that would become candy apples. It sounds easy, and for the
first five or six, it feels easy, but try doing 250 apples in an hour
and your hands will really hurt.

I enjoyed going back, but it also made me sort of sad. I have not
found anything like the cider mill in my adopted home and I doubt I
will.