Al fresco season blew into Wisconsin on a charcoal-scented cloud this weekend and we all -- traveling troubadours, weekend skippers, ATV drivers, backyard barbecuers, Timber Rattler tailgaters, cabin cleaners and Midwest munchers -- dusted off our picnic tables and bellied up with glee. Food tastes better when you can eat it outside. Music sounds sweeter [...]
A warm wind blew some perfect summer days into Wisconsin last week and we sent a kite up to say thank you. This is what we wrote on its wings (with our imaginary pen): Thank you for the open widows and the sweet, fresh air; for giving our tired boots and mismatched mittens a break; [...]
Every now and then the sun comes out in Wisconsin and we rub our eyes in wonder. "Why lookee (not directly) there," we say to the youngins, and they turn those pale little faces upward and smile. While it's too soon to swim and too slushy to swing, we invent all kinds of games to [...]
Every now and then my love for Wisconsin seems, how shall we say it? Unrequited. I wax on about my lovely state -- the food, the people, the music, the sunsets and the seasons. Then Wisconsin, God love her, dumps 14 inches of snow on the fifth day of spring. What the heck, Wisconsin? I [...]
I honestly thought yesterday was April Fool's Day. I spent much of the morning thinking about whether the weather was Wisconsin's idea of a practical joke. Other members of my household called it a different holiday. "It's Christmas again!" the four-year old shouted when he came downstairs and saw all the snow. Then, we had [...]