Trip to Appleton August 2012 - Day Four

Monday was a quiet day.  Meg worked in her office at the University for a few hours in the morning and I enjoyed the pleasant environment of Harmony Cafe, a coffee house and cafe operated by Goodwill Industries.  I continued reading The Cat's Table, Michael Ondaatje's latest novel.  He is the author of The English Patient which was made into an award winning film.  I highly recommend The Cat's Table.

Pelicans and other water fowl waiting for their supper.

We walked back home where I took my daily and always much anticipated nap.  Lynne was working at home today so the three of us prepared for our evening activities.  These began with a trip back to Vulcan Park to view the the feeding aquatic fowl at the base of the dam.  We had been there Sunday, but I only had my little camera and I wanted to get back during evening light with my Canon and a longer lens.  The light was good and, of course, the birds were there.  I got some nice shots.  It appeared that the various types of birds had somehow worked out their positions and territories in a mutually respectful way.  Either that, or the larger birds took the best spots and the smaller ones jockeyed for what was left.  In any case, there seemed to be settled boundaries with no discernible disputes.

Meg and Lynne in their Cooper convertible.

After that, we went to Noodles & Company which was sponsoring a benefit for the Paper Valley Roller Girls.  Twenty-five percent of every check went to the league.  We enjoyed good food and supported a good cause.  Happily enough, this location was close to a Cold Stone Creamery and a Starbucks and so we ended the evening with some nice ice cream and good coffee as we visited and watched a cloud wall with lightning make its way into the area.  All that threat, however, produced no rain.

Take a look at the updated photo album.

Trip to Appleton August 2012 - Day Three

St. Francis courtyard outside St. Joseph's church

I was up early as usual.  Lynne and Meg slept in quite late and I was just able to tell Meg a sleepy "Good Morning" before I left for the 10:00 am Mass at St. Joseph's Parish, a nice 20 minute walk from the house.  On the way I stopped at the Starbucks for some oatmeal and coffee and a quick review of the NY Times digital edition on my phone.  The parish has been staffed by the Capuchins (Franciscans) since 1877.  the church was nicely full and the presider was effective and affirming.  I was especially impressed with the quality and extent of the congregational singing.

The homily was given by a Servite brother as part of an annual mission appeal.  He spoke of the order's work in Zululand, a region of South Africa.  This brought back memories of our time in Denver where we were part of the Servite parish, Assumption.  I especially remember Fr. Frank Christie, OSM, who came to the parish while we were there.  He had spent several years working among the Zulus.

Lynne, George, and Jim on a tour of Appleton

After Mass I returned to the house.  Lynne and Meg both had roller derby league meetings on Sunday; Lynne's was in the afternoon and Meg's, the evening.  But the exciting event was the visit of George and his partner Jim.  George is a friend of Lynne's from Second Life, a virtual on-line community.  It is an interesting site in which nothing is real but everything is created by real people.  George had created a Universalist-Unitarian Church and Lynne joined.  Their friendship got started and continues there as well as Facebook, but they had never met face-to-face.  Lynne prepared a delicious meal of brats, beans, and corn on the cob. When Meg went to her meeting, the four of us went on a tour of Appleton.  We saw many of the places I had already been but several I had never been to as well.  Also i learned more about the ones I had been to already.  Lynne is fountain of information.  We had a great time and topped it off with a visit to Acocoa, a coffee house cum ice cream.

Lynne plays while Jim listens.

When we got back home, Lynne showed Jim, a trumpet player and music teacher in Columbus schools, her vintage trumpets including the one from 1869 which she plays in a Civil War era band.  They had a great time, playing a bit and talking a lot about these instruments.

I guess you never know how these things will work out but George and Jim were just delightful and added so much to my experience.  I know it was special for Lynne and I was happy to see how well it was for all concerned.

You can see photos of our tour of Appleton in this album.

Trip to Appleton August 2012 - Day Two

Meg and Lynne at the Kangaroostaurant.

Saturday was a big day, the day of the BOUT!  However it began is a rather low key way with a walk to downtown--about four blocks--to the Appleton Farmers Market.  Every Saturday it takes over two blocks or more of College Ave, the main drag through town.

It was a beautiful morning, sunny and even a bit cool.  We stopped for a late breakfast at the Kangaroostaurant, cookery on wheels.  It moves is location during the week and provides quite delicious meals.  We visited several of the booths and I got a lot of interesting photos.  The vegetables were displayed with great care.  Typically the onions were peeled and bunched as you can see here.  We stopped at an interesting shop that was selling semi precious stones with healing properties.  It was called Mystical Earth Gallery.  Meg made a purchase and actually kept her cynicism in check.  Maybe this had something to do with the fact that she was wearing her derby jersey and was promoting the evening's final bout of the season.  Who knows?  She did need to stop by one of the stands and make (buy) some fudge for the refreshment sales at the event.  View more photos of the farm market in the photo album.

Meg on the left with the jammer helmet.

We got back to the house and Meg and Lynne had to get ready for the bout.  Actually there were three bouts:  Meg's team, then the All Stars which is rankable team, and the night cap was a men's bout.  Lynne was serving as a NSO (Non Skating Official) for the second bout.  We drove to De Pere, about a half hour from the house.  While meg and Lynne got everything ready, I tooled around DePere in Mini Cooper convertible...the top was up, just before ask.  I got back to the venue for the warm ups and then meg's bout.  It was quite an experience, my first in person roller derby event....ah, I mean, bout.

Unfortunately Meg's team was not able to hold an early lead they built in the first period.  During the second period, I switched to video and got a couple of good clips.  The below is Meg breaking through the jam.  However the other jammer had gotten out first and ended it when Meg got out.  The was that Meg being a much faster skater than the other jammer would be able to pass her and score points.  There is strategy in every sport.


Take a look at the photo album of Meg's final bout.

Take a look at the video of Meg's grand slam.

Oh, and by the way, since everyone in derby seems to have a nickname, I am now known as Rooster since I am the father of Deviled Meg.

Trip to Appleton August 2012 - Day One

I am in Appleton WI visiting our daughter, Meg, and her partner, Lynne. Usually I am here in January when the weather makes it rather inhospitable no matter how gracious and welcoming Lynn and Meg are. When I landed today, the temperature was in the sixties with low humidity. The lawns have begun to green up as they recover from the hot and dry July. This is similar to Rochester.




Meg picked me up in her Mini Cooper convertible and after stopping at the house for a bit we walked the four blocks to campus and her office. She had a commitment to make a presentation to prospective students and their parents about the freshman studies program at Lawrence University which she is directing for the next two years. You can learn about this very impressive program by going to the Lawrence web site. She did a masterful job.
After a late lunch at a Taste of Thai restaurant, we went back to the house where I promptly took a nap. When I woke up, I found that Lynne had returned early from her new job which is in Green Bay about an hour away. It was good to get caught up with her and the fascinating project she is working on. More on that in a later blog.
I should mention that I am here as Meg's guest for her last Roller Derby "bout" of the season. I kid you not, it is not a match but a bout. You can find out more about her team on its web page or its Facebook page.




Although Meg is a tenured associate professor of physics at Lawrence University, perhaps, her Facebook page is heavy with promotion for the final bout. Roller Derby nom de bout, "Deviled Meg."
Meg went up to DePere to work on getting the venue ready for tomorrow's bout. It took her longer than she thought it would. Lynne and I went out for dinner at Serious Burger and Meg joined us. Back home to grab some Ben & Jerry's and then off to bed.
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Location:N Rankin St,Appleton,United States