Monroe: Family Luncheon and Swissfest

Sunday, November 1, 2026

Jay, Laura and I left for Monroe, WI, on an overcast, misty morning that turned bright and sunny as we made our way.

We stopped at an historic site in Beloit to view the Beckman Mill.

The park also features a weathered wooden barn with a colorful geometric quilt mounted on the upper facade

https://www.beckmanmill.org/

Jay arranged a luncheon with his brother Mark and their cousins at the Swiss Haus.  I already knew Mark, and was introduced to their cousins and spouses/friends.

There were plenty of choices on the menu, but I spotted Usinger's liver sausage on marble rye; I ordered that with raw onions and added catsup.

After nice conversation, we parted for a short walk to Turner Hall and Swissfest.

Turner Hall is a massive Alpine-style building with a bowling alley, gymnasium and auditorium larger than a basketball court with a huge stage.  We sat in the first row.

The 58th Annual Swissfest program began with Alphorns,

And included yodelers singing to the tune of men rolling stones in bowls and

a mixed chorus singing traditional songs, with the director giving an explanation of each.

Also included was a violinist and soloist accompanied by an accordionist.

This was a well-rounded program and very enjoyable.  After a full lunch, we did not stay for the buffet that was offered in the lower level.

We waited almost fifteen minutes for the hotel manager at the Eugene Hotel.  The communication system has much to be desired.

The door to my room must have been filled with lead, it was so heavy.  The room was extremely dark; whoever thought of painting walls and ceiling dark navy with heavy velvet deep red drapes. However, the furnishings were very comfortable with all the necessary amenities.

We took a slow walk around the square with a magnificent courthouse,

walked past shops and into an antique shop where I bought two cereal bowls.

We wanted something lighter for dinner and settled on Bullets for pizza; the hotel manager's favorite.  Laura ordered a large sausage, onion, mushroom pizza for us.  After taking a few bites, Jay said it didn't taste like Italian sausage; it didn't look like Italian sausage either.  I said that it looked like ham.  Jay asked our waiter what the meat was.  She was horrified; she gave our pizza to another customer.  Now, what to do?  Settle for this one, or get the one we ordered? Since we started some of the ham pizza, we didn't want another large pizza, so we settled on a small pizza with our requested toppings.  The pizza was OK, but I'm glad we weren't that hungry.

After a very full day, I got to bed early, but awoke much too early.

Monday

Jay had an early morning conference call, so Laura and I went to Ami's Corner Cafe, a busy place filled with locals.

Laura had scrambled eggs with a big slab of ham and toast; I had French toast and bacon and some of Laura's ham with plenty of coffee.  We really enjoyed our breakfasts and the atmosphere.

We were on our way at about 10:30 a.m. on a misty day.  

Jay found one more point of interest on the way: the bur oak that marks the halfway point between Lake Michigan and the Mississippi River.

I arrived at SRS at 1:00 p.m., but wanted just to relax instead of going to the Needlework group.

2026 Skeletons

Friday, October 23, 2026

Jackie Haessley and Dan Di Domizio joined Peter and me for a ride to Slinger to view this year's skeleton display.  It was moved from the previous location near Holy Hill for traffic safety reasons.

The strip mall location provided ample parking and better walking.

This year the theme was Bonestock, a take-off of Woodstock, with a lot of rock musicians and dancers.

We stopped for coffee and a muffin at the restaurant and browsed the gift shop.

I bought a bag of Cortland apples and a caramel apple at the orchard stand just as it was closing.

Jackie found a scenic route that went through Holy Hill and the Glacier Trail that would take us to Ma Fisher's to finish the day with dinner.

The day was perfect for this outing and having Jackie and Dad was very pleasant.

I finished the day enjoying my caramel apple, which was almost a meal in itself.

New Cass Street Playground

 Tuesday, October 13, 2026

On this spectacular fall day I took my knitting to the reconstructed Cass Street Playground.  It is magnificent, colorful and inviting.

The children were out for recess and enjoying all of the equipment. (I'll edit this blog to include more pictures).

St. Rita Square was kept informed and involved in the progress of the playground.  I made a donation for a brick that would be included in the construction.  I walked the paved paths and found a half circle with bricks of donors. 

 Mine was at the very corner.

I met a few teachers supervising the playground and when I told one teacher about practice teaching at Cass St. School and my brick, she insisted on taking my picture with the brick.

No Austrian Club Meeting Today

 Sunday, October 11, 2026

I had a beautiful plum coffee cake for the Austrian Club meeting, but no one was there, except Adolf and Magdalena Menhardt, who were also confused that no one was there.  Adolf had  the September newsletter that gave the meeting for today, but my newsletter gave only the date of the Austrian American Day at Kegel's.  Both Peter and I failed to see that there was no meeting today.

To take advantage of the day, we headed for Bandaro Country Wood Grill to watch the Packers.  As we were getting our bearings, Peter noticed Silver Spring Dr.  Going to the Bavarian Baer Haus made more sense.

We watched the Packers beat the Bears 31 - 7 while having a beer and a pretzel with Peter's free coupon.  We also split a Reuben.

Now, what to do with my plum coffee cake?  I could take it to the Pot Luck that starts at 4:30 p.m.

That Pot Luck had a better selection of food than last time, and more people were participating.  There was not a crumb left of my plum coffee cake.

I watched the start of the Brewers/Dodgers game in the Club Room, but the commercials were driving my crazy.  I also had a knot in my shawl.  I went to my apartment and watched the Brewers beat the Dodgers 2 - 1 in a nailbiter last out, and could work on my shawl watching much of the game on mute.

In desperation, I cut my yarn and continued on the shawl.

Symphony Friday

Friday, October 10, 2026

The concert was again another winner.  The highlight was a violin concerto featuring a local artist, Julian Rhee. a graduate of Brookfield High School  

https://www.jsonline.com/story/entertainment/arts/2026/10/08/brookfield-east-grad-featured-in-next-milwaukee-symphony-concerts/92127028007/

He played the very difficult Violin Concerto in D major, Opus 35, by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, who was the subject of the preconcert talk about artists who were subjected to the Nazi regime in Austria. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erich_Wolfgang_Korngold

Julian included a Bach encore.

Also on the program was Medea's Dance of Vengeance, by Samuel Barber and Sergei Rachmaninoff's Symphonic Dances Opus 45.

Our bus was at a stop light on Wells and Water when a car ignored the stop light and turned left, lost control of his car, drove into some barricade and smashed his left front of the car.  It looked like a mess.  Abby Hauser alerted an approaching police squad car.  The driver got out of the car, apparently uninjured, but he was waving his fists for some reason.

Pediatrist/Hair/Pizza

Thursday, October 8, 2026

I had to reschedule my hair appointment, because my toenails needed attention.  My appointment was for 11:20 a.m. and I was finished before that time.

I should have taken the dominoes before going for my hair, since I was having a color and would not be finished in time to set up the game.  I called Michael Bruske while my hair was processing to get my bag from behind my bedroom door.  The wind was very strong and gave my hair another style

The game was in progress when I arrived and we eventually had six players.

Peter suggested Pizza Man which I thought was a great idea.  We had red wine and an appetizer before Pizza Man pizza: very thin, crisp crust, loaded with meat, and an attentive waiter.

I ordered suspenders for Peter when we got to my apartment.

Blessing Hello Dolly

Wednesday, October 7, 2026

Pets were blessed after mass on Sunday on the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of the environment and animals.  I didn't think Dolly would have been too happy getting into the carrier and being amid all the other critters, so we did not go.

Cookie Anderson had a special prayer for pets that she wanted to share and asked if I'd like to participate in blessing Dolly.  

Dolly greeted Cookie and Sue Cottrell this afternoon when they came to offer a prayer for Dolly.  I said a special prayer, and then Cookie and Sue said another.

Hello Dolly participated by rubbing ankles and lingered about.  Hello Dolly is such a lovable kitty, I hope these prayers prolong her life with good health.