Croatian Day

 Sunday, July 20, 2025

Peter sent me a text with the Croatian Day information; however, he copies it and it loses its clarity in a text.

Peter picked me up at 2:30 p.m. and we drove to Franklin, which seemed like a pretty long ride.

A few cars were parked, nothing resembling a fest.  Some men were there for a soccer game.  I examined the ad more carefully; it was yesterday!  Peter was sure it was always on a Sunday.  A man told him, that was 10 years ago!

Now, what to do?  Make lemonade out of lemons!  How about going to Bass Bay that we'd been talking about?  Great idea.

We could have been seated in ten minutes, but Peter wanted a less crowded area in view of the lake.  We waited another 30 minutes and got a nice table just where we liked it.

We had gin and tonics and chicken club sandwiches that was one of the day's specials.  We both enjoyed our meal.  We passed on dessert; we had a better place in mind.

I got in line at Leon's, and would have waited longer, but another window opened and we ordered butter pecan cones.  Peter set up two lawn chairs in the extra-lot parking, and we savored our treat.  It was a perfect evening, not too hot and humid so the custard didn't melt too fast.

When we got to SRS we looked for information that would help Peter cancel a hose unit that he bought.

Beaver Dam via Green Bay

 Friday, July 18, 2025

Peter and I started our day trip to Beaver Dam on a perfect summer day at 9:00 a.m. 

I mapped out our destinations beforehand that would make for an enjoyable time.

We had no trouble finding the Odyssey restaurant in Menomonee Falls where Peter had a veggie omelet and I had a bagel with smoked salmon.  We had plenty of coffee.

From there is was all downhill.  We seemed to be driving forever, even seeing signs for Green Bay 68 miles.  Peter "jokingly" said we should have gone to Green Bay, and that would have been a very good idea.  I kept entering Beaver Dam in my phone and it kept shutting down.  It seemed to work when I held the phone in my hand with a finger on the screen.  

We turned around, heading south.  When Peter inquired at a bar how far we had to go to Beaver Dam, the owner told him about 40 miles.

We finally got to Beaver Dam about 1:00 p.m. and found Great Harvest Bakery on Front Street where I bought a loaded potato bread to go with the chicken salad I brought: Peter selected a slice of layer cake.  The clerk said Swan Park would be the closest park which we opted for instead of Edgewater Park that had been on my list.

We found a picnic table and arranged our luncheon.  It was good to relax and enjoy our salad, bread, kiwi, cheese and crackers with green tea and that delicious layer cake with a hint of mocha.

We drove along roads that gave us views of Beaver Dam Lake with lovely homes along the shore.  I'm sure we could have spent more time exploring, since this is such a large lake.

We headed back to the main street to check out any unique shops Unfortunately, we didn't find any; many storefronts looked shut down.  We were in luck to discover Nancy Zieman's Sewing Studio, with the newest Bernina sewing machines and enough fabric to satisfy any quilters dreams, plus items to aid in making quilts.

I stopped in a gaming and video store, hoping that the salesperson could help me with the settings on my phone; a gaming person should have some tech skills.  I was in luck!  He set the phone to not go off while charging, and set my screen time longer.  He also looked at Peter's phone, removing his security and setting the time longer.

It was too early to think about dinner, and we did not want to linger any longer.  We could get to Von Rothenberg just in time for beers and brats and meet Rudy Mintler.  

This time the navigation worked perfectly and we circled around a couple of times to find parking in a very crowded lot and joined Rudy and a few other men at their table.  We each had a regular brat and a half-liter of beer.

We did not get good directions getting to my house, missing the turn-off to Milwaukee.  We took the Oklahoma exit and managed to find St. Rita Square at 9:00 p.m., exactly twelve hours from when we started.

July Red Hat Luncheon

 Wednesday, July 16, 2025

Sacred Heart at Monastery Lake was the setting for our July luncheon that Rita Bruce arranged with Jane Worzalla, June Krueger, Kathy Schlagl, Julia Rice, Terry Harvey and me in attendance; Joy Kilimann and Janice Rochwwerger were unable to attend. 

We started with salads and warm rolls before our server brought bowls of mashed potatoes, green beans, carrots, buttered noodles and beef stroganoff and platters chicken on each side of the table. All the food was in easy reach and delicious.

We sang "Happy Birthday" to Rita and had Birthday cake for dessert.

 I drove Terry to the Muskego Library, but did not stay to play, because the weather forecast predicted bad weather.

Danish Dinner

 Tuesday, July 15, 2025

I finished a shawl yesterday, and started another one this morning.  After casting on 64 stitches, I did NOT know how to start the four-stitch pattern of k2, k behind, p1; I had to look up the directions after making maybe fifty shawls.  Should I be worried?

At 11:30 a.m. there was a Lunch and Learn program on Alzheimer's, the symptoms and early detection.  I don't seem to be having any problems, except that I do have difficulty expressing myself, finding the right words.

Fewer people played sheepshead due to vacations.  

I did the petitions at the 4:00 p.m. mass

I picked up Annika for our Tuesday dinner at Jay and Laura's where we were able to enjoy a perfect summer dinner on the deck, now that the humidity past and a light breeze prevailed.

Laura prepared Danish open-faced sandwiches called Smørrebrød with four different toppings: beef, ham, salmon and shrimp, each garnished attractively.   It was an adventure in eating.

She completed the meal by serving Danish butter cookies.

Kids From Wisconsin

 Monday, July 14, 2025

Diabetes was the topic at Osher.

I picked up a few groceries afterwards,

Betsy drove a group to see the Kids from Wisconsin at Rainbow Summer.  

There were colorful fabric sculptures on the grounds.

An energetic, talented group of singers, dancers and musicians performed on a lovely summer's night.  

Twisted Fisherman/Sobermans

 Thursday, July10, 2025

Peter suggested going to the Twisted Fisherman at noon.  I'd have to be back before 2:00 p.m. for Dominos; I suggested sometime after 3:00 p.m.  Peter said he'd pick me up at 4:30.

I was watching the news and fell fast asleep.  I don't know why I awoke at 4:45, but Peter was already calling me as I was walking in the hall.

Harley Anniversary is this weekend and they are here in full force, including the Twisted Fisherman, which is very close to the Harley Museum.  We changed our plans and headed to Sobermans and sat outdoors at a large barrel.

We had a super waiter.  When we each ordered the breaded pork tenderloin sandwich, he said that no one has been able to finish an entire sandwich, it is so large.  We ordered one to split with two Riverwest Steins.  The sandwich was just as described, even larger.  The meat extended an inch over the bun on all sides.  We ate it mostly with a knife and fork.  On second thought, it would be good to order one apiece and take the rest home for a cold sandwich.

We made a good decision not going to the Twisted Fisherman; it was not the most ideal weather to sit beside the river.

New Cleaning Service

 Tuesday, July 8, 2025

It started to rain as I was watering my plants this morning.

Kristie's Kleening cleaned my apartment today.   We had discussed our cleaning services at breakfast recently when Barbara Todd said that she had to have the same service that we both use come back to rewash her floor.  Jackie had been very satisfied with Kristie's Kleening and I decided to give her a try.

Kristy did a marvelous job, leaving my apartment spotless after about 1 1/2 hours, charging $44.00; I paid $85.00 for the other service.  Kristie will be coming back in two weeks, instead of the four that I previously had.

We celebrated July Birthdays with pizza on the piazza and apple pie ala mode for dessert.  A pianist played some familiar, enjoyable music.

We had two tables of five playing sheepshead; I lost 5 cents playing with Bob Koebert, Annie Hahn, Shirley Bascom and Bob Miller.

I read scripture and Dwight Morgan read the petitions.

Annika was already at Jay and Laura's, so I did not pick her up.  The weather became quite sultry, so Jay suggested that we eat indoors.  Laura had a Thai dish of  grilled flank steak with spring rolls, each with a distinctive sauce,  Absolutely delicious, with just enough heat.

Annika showed me a board she made with pressed flowers for Aleksei; he will be delighted.

Aleksei's cat Lavender is staying at Laura's while he is taking care of business in Lake Tahoe.

Laura at Osher

 Monday, July 7, 2025

Laura joined me at Osher today where we learned about pets helping people.  We had the largest attendance we've ever had in a long time.  The presentation was very well done with a lot of information on how this organization works with their therapy dogs in various ways throughout the community: hospitals, nursing homes, schools, individuals and groups.

I had a waffle at Canali's with Doris Fons and Gerri Halaska.

I shopped at P & S.

We had a large turnout for the complimentary happy hour.

I showed the last two segments of Harvard University's Constitution.

The Fourth

 July 4, 2025

I did a couple loads of laundry and started a scrubby dish cloth.  When Karen joined us at breakfast, I introduced us to her and she remarked how she appreciated the scrubby that I gave her.  Madeline Soo said she never received one, and Dwight said that he never got one either.  I got behind in making them, so I'll start catching up.

I took the Friendship Cookies that I made on Monday to the pot luck.

Peter and I joined Bob and Barb Farriday at Jay and Laura's along with Annika and her friend Lucas on a very hot day.

We munched on an assortment of appetizers before Laura put burgers and brats on the grill, and then gave them a Sheboygan bath that she served with baked beans, a noodle salad and home made pickles.

We finished the evening indoors with pretzel torte for dessert.

Shrimp Kabobs on Tuesday

 Tuesday, July 1, 2025

All of my slides are in the trash.  I had not viewed my slides in twenty years, and I don't anticipate renting a projector and screen to view them in the future; I doubt my heirs would have any use for them.  

I went to a bee program for young children, when I missed the morning program.  Char "Bee" gave such a clear description of the life of bees, better than a textbook.

I was about to do the Petitions at mass when I noticed that the Petitions were the same as the Psalms that Dwight Morgan would be reading.  I called Father Tim's attention to it, and after checking it out, he said that he would do the Petitions.

My balcony planters need more color; the impatiens begin to get droopy when just a little dry.  Maybe I should buy a couple of other plants to replace the impatiens.  What was I thinking?  I have plants to replace the impatiens - my beautiful petunias.  I took out the impatiens and put in the petunias.

I picked up Annika for our Tuesday dinner with Jay and Laura.  Laura announced this is her 100th day of no alcohol!   

Laura served shrimp kabobs on the grill, and a noodle salad garnished with fresh cucumbers.  Annika's friend Chris joined us.

Laura's garden is getting more beautiful every time I see it.  I especially like a plant that she has in her front garden, Ptilotus Exultatis Joey (from Australia).