Then & Now: Lakeside

 

15 July 2025

Things are very sad for me but I can take a little solace in the beauty of nature.

I saw a couple hawks hanging out today. It took me a bit to get my phone out so I wasn't able to capture them both sitting on the fence. Plus my zoom isn't great. But it's hawks.

Then & Now: Depot

Acewood scenes, 13 July 2025

It was a lovely, temperate morning down at Acewood. The place is lush and verdant.

The sun topped the trees on my walk. 

I felt a lot of stress leave my body as I took in the sights and smells of summer. The stress returned ere long but I at least had a brief respite.

Then & Now: Yahara Hotel

E-S-B - it's dynamite!

With an impending trip to the UK (hopefully), I decided to get in the mood by drinking like a Brit. Lakefront is helping out with this ESB.

I took it out of the frig and let it warm a bit. Very tasty! Smooth maltiness with a really nice leathery kind of taste. Just enough herbal hops too. Well played, Katie.

Walk, 10 July 2025

I am going to miss having Starkweather Creek within easy walking distance. Going out and watching the critters and taking in the scents of summer are a much needed tonic these days.

This guy looked a little worse for wear. Rough night last night? 

This little one was busy chirruping and, remarkably, stood still for photos.

I did not steal the kishka

With the Woodmans close to home dealing with a collapsed roof a couple weeks back, I went to the one in Sun Prairie and found that they had not 1, not 2, but 3 different varieties of kishka. Usinger's doesn't mess around.

Then & Now: Down on State Strasse

I shall have to update this one.

Catching some Gamma Rays: Mothballs 'n Moonboot

Having heard Bucky Pope mention a show with his band/new band he's in called Mothballs last weekend, I figured I'd go and enjoy some music by some local musicians. It was an early show and I'd get to check out the new/newish Gamma Ray Bar.

When I went to the Gamma Ray's site to get the details, I was delighted to see that The Moonboot would be playing too. I've been meaning to go see them as I had a mutual friend with a couple of the band members back in the day.

Walking in, I found that the bar area was much changed from its predecessor's. It was all clean and sleek and, if memory serves, brighter. 

I grabbed a beer and wandered into the performance area where Mothballs were doing their rehearsal/soundcheck. The bar may be new and shiny but the stage area was still cozy and rugged-looking, thankfully. With rehearsal done, Mothball took a break before showtime.

Some familiar faces shuffled in. Bucky's significant other came over and said hello. She asked about the Frau and I told her that we were Splitsville. It was nice to receive a hug from her. Another woman who knows my Frau and I came over and chatted too. When I told her that my marriage was over, she gave me a big hug and a kiss on the cheek. It was nice to receive kindness for a change.

Mothballs started things off.

I didn't know that Stephanie Rearick was in the band, she of Your Mom SRO and Ladyscissors. And that Saul fellow from Bucky's set at the Faun Fables show was in it too. I really enjoyed their set with the off-kilter tunes and the great harmony vocals. And they played the jaunty whatever you call it song that I so enjoyed when Bucky & Saul played it earlier in the week.

During their set I noticed that The Moonboot's drummer, Britt Dichraff, was standing behind me. I said hello. Because of the darkness or my beard or just the intervening decades since I last saw him, he didn't recognize me at first. But, after telling him who I was he flashed a big grin and we chatted for a spell. It was really nice to make his acquaintance once again.

After the Mothballs set, I met the second lady I had chatted with earlier and she bought me a sympathy beer. We talked more before it was time for her to catch the bus. As we parted she told me that things will get better, words that I will try to keep in mind going forward. 

It was wonderful to finally see The Moonboot perform after having put it off for so long. They put on a really fun show with each song being prefaced by some snippets of Werner Herzog monologue. A lot of bouncy synth lines with color added by guitar. And of course a rock solid rhythm section. Just great garage rock tunes.

A fine afternoon out and about.

Then & Now: Bunker

 

 

Notice how the welcoming windows of the Rennebohm were discarded in favor of a more bunker-like look for the Walgreens. A shame.

The Other Half

"Oh crap," I muttered to myself after taking a final swig of coffee and preparing to get out of the car.

Like a total maroon I showed up at Morton Forest without any Deet. The previous time I was there my hike got cut short by rain and I suspected this one would be cut short by mosquitos. I resolved to at least walk the other half of the forest that I hadn't done last time.

Emerging from the car I was immediately enveloped by the wonderful bird song of the forest's winged denizens. The chirps and trills were so loud, so clear and pierced the trees as there was no other sound save the breeze. At home there's always the din of a highway lurking in the background so I felt like I was in a totally different place. And so I was. In addition to the sounds, there were the smells. The air was pungent with the woodland aromas. While it was after dawn, the sun was still nowhere close to rising above the trees.

Things were all bucolic for about 2 seconds before a swarm of mosquitos descended upon me. "Moving, got to keep moving," I thought with a hint of optimism.

I made my way past the ever photogenic windmill to the path which would take me up the ridge on the northwestern part of the park. 

As I walked I could hear the buzzing of skeeters hovering around my ears looking for an opportunity to take breakfast. When I stopped, a cloud of them would suddenly appear in front of my face within a second. I began to fear I'd be completely exsanguinated before making it to the top of the ridge.

The mosquitos were annoying, to say the least, and I think I got as much exercise shooing them away and smashing the ones that landed on me as I did walking. On the plus side, they did a good job of distracting me from the myriad of thoughts I was wrestling with concerning my impending divorce.

I hoofed it rather quickly to one of the lookout points.

It was gorgeous.

Too bad I couldn't stand there and admire it for long.

The sun had risen enough to make some lovely areas of light and shade in the pines that line the path below the ridge. 

Set the Controls for a Jaunt with the Faun

A month or so ago I noticed that Faun Fables was scheduled to play here in Madison. While I was completely unfamiliar with their music, I had heard of them as Nils Frykdahl of Sleepytime Gorilla Museum is a member. As his significant other Dawn McCarthy. For this tour two of their daughters would be joining them.

And then just a few days before the show I saw that H.R. Britton and Bucky Pope would be opening. I know Bucky a little but had never heard of Britton. The description at the venue's site included that he is "a storyteller, actor, educator, and musician" and that "He creates full-length solo storytelling shows". Interesting. Maybe we'd get an abbreviated half hour storytelling opening set.

Before showtime I went to the bar for a refill and met Bucky who was chatting with local drummer extraordinaire, Dan Hobson. I said hello and turned around to find Nils Frykdahl at the bar next to me. I was surrounded by musos.

Britton began the show with a solo acoustic performance.

He announced that he would be doing a set of Pink Floyd songs from 1967-1970. Now that I did not expect. Furthermore, it would be an anti-storytelling set as he said that he'd refrain from any banter between the songs. Let the music prevail.

"Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun" worked really well even without percussion. I thoroughly enjoyed the set but was slightly disappointed that there was no storytelling to be had. I mean, it seemed to be his raison d'être, after all.

Bucky was up next and took to the stage wielding his guitar while his pal Saul grabbed an acoustic bass. (He would later wield an acoustic guitar.) Apologies to Saul for capturing only a sliver of his face.

I didn't recognize any of his songs but I enjoyed them, especially one called "Jaunty Larkabout" or something like that. Before leaving the stage he mentioned that he would be performing with Mothballs the following weekend.

Faun Fables took the stage. Frykdahl was clad in 90s era cargo shorts while McCarthy and their daughters - I never did catch their names - wore what I guess you'd call peasant dresses.

 

 

Their music was described as avant-folk and I wondered what this retro-rural look presaged.

 

Frykdahl played electric guitar but it was used for rhythm and color, to abet acoustic guitar and McCarthy's fantastic voice. Their daughters were great singers as well. There was some basic percussion plus occasional woodwind and keys. Songs usually had a basic beat with voice and other instruments laid on top.

Some of the songs had a very ethereal feel that reminded me of some newer Celtic folk music while other songs were more straightforward in their folkiness. The daughters did a little performance for one song. Or was it two?

An excellent show! I really enjoyed Faun Fables with all of their folky, pagan vibes. But the songs should not be shortchanged. They were great. Wonderful melodies and some gorgeous singing. 

Skies

 

Walk, 6 Juli '25

I went for a short walk this morning. It was grey and gloomy out with the sky threatening to rain again the whole time.

Despite the weather, the red-winged black birds were out and chirping away.

Coming soon, 4 July 2025

Seen at AMC before Malice. I saw an article about how AMC has been putting commercials before the trailers just as their big competitors do. And it looks like it will be getting worse.

Showtime began with about 5 minutes of commercials including one for Amazon that had LeBron James singing "In the Air Tonight". I chuckled. Two minutes of AMC promos followed.

Things wrapped up with a commercial (i.e. - non-banded trailer) for Guns & Moses.

The heron that lasts all day

On my walk to the bus stop yesterday morning I spied a blue heron in the concrete run off creek by Olbrich Park North.

I was quite surprised to find that it was still there when I was walking home from the bus stop in the evening. At least I assumed it was the same bird. It looked as if it had barely moved.

It was still there an hour or so later when I walked by to again catch a bus.

That's a beauty! Blue herons look so serene, so pensive. It was probably just wondering where all the fish were.

It was gone, however, by the time I returned a bit before 10 that night.

Coming soon, 29 June at AMC

Seen before Hot Milk. The AMC website now admonishes "Movies start 25-30 minutes after showtime." They weren't kidding. A lot more commercials now. Maybe with all this new ad revenue, AMC can repave the parking lot which resembles the lunar surface with crater after suspension killing crater.

At showtime a series of commercials started that lasted about 6 minutes - Coke, pickup trucks - that kind of thing. This was followed by 3 minutes of AMC promos which finished with the Nicole Kidman one that freaks me out every time because her face doesn't look real anymore.

Then came a couple Fathom commercials. First was for Ick and the second for the Metropolitan Opera. The trailers proper then began.

Things ended with a Megan 2.0 commercial where she says to silence phones and see her movie.

Then & Now: Where's the Burger King?