Friday, June 30, 2017
Peter and I went to the Wilson Center for the Arts concert. We were packed for our regular picnic. This time Peter made sandwiches with the ham he had; he also had surplus beer. I provided cheese, crackers, cherries and wine. As we approached the area, many people having their picnics close to the parking area and a couple told us that because of the wet grounds the concert would be indoors. We found one of those sculptured cement logs and parked ourselves around a mostly level one. Dick and Jan joined us. We had our food, Peter took our gear back to the car and we headed to the auditorium. Because we took so long eating, seating was almost non-existent. We were fortunate to get seats in the balcony with an unobstructed view. The concert was marvelous. The Wisconsin Symphony began with music from WWI, then WWII, Korean and Vietnam, with a salute to those who served in the armed forces. Peter attempted to stand, but I told him to sit down; they were honoring U.S. veterans, and he's not even a citizen. We met the conductor in the hall afterwards and told him how much we enjoyed the evening. Being indoors enhanced the interaction between him and the audience and the improvement in acoustics was so much improved instead of being outdoor. We went home via Pilgrim Road and that was blocked off just as Lily Road was last week. We followed a car around subdivision and were really turned around. My GPS got us on Calhoun Rd. and we were back on track. But it was too late to have a beer/wine at Elm Grove Park like we intended doing before wasting time driving around.
Saturday, July 1, 2017
Breakfast, but no pickleball today. Sandy said she would not be going to Gloria's picnic after the bike ride on the 4th, because Ron's email specifically said "bike riders only". Since we are not bike riders, I guess we are excluded, even though Don is leading the race and Peter is joining the group.
Peter and I met at the Hales Corners P&R to drive to Dale Sievert's moss and hosta garden. I remembered last year when we were using that P&R it was full with cars parking for Summerfest. Our alternate parking was Andy's gas station. We agreed to meet there, but when I passed the P&R there was plenty of space, so we went there after all. Cars were lined up all along the road with garden visitors. It was a beautiful sunny day, perfect for viewing the garden. As Peter was walking through he remarked how many of the planters, pavers, etc., that he had and what he could do with them after seeing what was done in the garden.....In your dreams!
It was a beautiful experience, and I'm glad that I could share it with Peter
We were six minutes from Nancy and Joe's, so I gave them a call and asked if they were receiving visitors. Of course they were. We had a lovely reunion and they met Peter. We had wine/beer on their patio and had a nice visit.
It was just about time for something to eat. At first pizza seemed like a good idea, but the places nearby didn't appeal to us. So we settled for Fortune Restaurant. By the time we got to the P&R it was full.
A full and satisfying day.
On our way out Peter got his hand stamped, for what reason I don't know because we were not going to re-enter. We headed to Laura's and admired her garden; she has a really chic haircut. We didn't stay very long, just to pack up her plants and wish them bon voyage. We were heading to the Esterbrook Park Beer Garden. As we were driving, Peter noticed the hand stamp smeared on his leg and a little on his shorts and it was still wet. So we changed our plans and headed towards the Bavarian Inn where he'd have better facilities for getting cleaned up. It was a better choice. We were in time for the Happy Hour where beer was half price. I had a ham/cheese sandwich; Peter had a specialty that he liked. I had one beer, Peter had two while watching the US Open at Erin Hills. Claude called and said he just heard my message, and had been at Polishfest and was sitting towards the back at mass. It was strange that we didn't meet somewhere on the grounds since the crowd was rather spread out.