If your hardwood floors discolor due to Goo Gone, hit the spots with a hair dryer.
26 April, 2024
Our Canadian friends celebrate Wisconsin polka
The polka became the official dance of Wisconsin 30 years ago this month. This article notes that the push to make it the state dance "started as a class project by local educator Violet Bergum and her second-grade class at Lindbergh Elementary School in Madison. The class approached a state senator, who drafted the bill."
That was news to me. I was under the impression that Wisconsin folklorist Prof. Jim Leary was the impetus for it. Still, he did testify before the state Legislature in favor of it. You learn something new everyday.
It is nice to see Bruce Triggs celebrating the anniversary on his radio show, Accordion Noir, this week. Check it out here.
25 April, 2024
Caught on camera during my repast
Nick's Restaurant on State Street is closing next month so I went in for perhaps my final meal earlier this week. A local news crew paid a visit as I was eating and I ended up on TV, albeit in a supporting role way in the back.
24 April, 2024
Harmonious
I picked up my latest CD today:
The Frau and I attended this performance by the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, "Harmony in Black", last October. Neat to have this recording of some wonderful music by Patrice Rushen and Dr. Bill Banfield.
Earworm - 24 April 2024
I've been slowly expanding my Pearl Jam horizons lately, which is a bit odd since they're a quintessential 90's band and you'd think a Gen Xer like me would have been into them since 1992 or so.
However, I've loved this song for years. Maybe since 1996. Simply beautiful. I absolutely adore the part after "Just a little time before we leave"! That bass line, the harmony vocals - just sublime.
Scenes from Madison - 23 April 2024
I hoofed it around town a bit yesterday.
Madison is by no means a big city but it has gotten bigger. Lots of human-scale buildings have been replaced downtown with ones that dwarf pedestrians. Not quite concrete canyons, perhaps, but downtown has a very different feel than it did when I moved here.
Parking ramps and lots have also been replaced.
Goodbye, Silver Dollar. I will always remember that guy who, when the Packers played the Chiefs, would yell "Kansas City cheats!" when things did not go our way.
I was glad to see that something is going to open in the former BarleyPop Live/The Frequency space.
The Madison Municipal Building was giving off some end of Twin Peaks season 3 vibes last night. I was going to scream but ran into someone I knew and talked movies instead.
23 April, 2024
22 April, 2024
Feeling awful as in full of awe
I saw Deep Sky over the weekend.
The prophetic words of Douglas Adams came to mind: "Space is big. Really big. You just won't believe how vastly, hugely, mind-bogglingly big it is."
It was wonderful to see a documentary on the IMAX again - one made for the format.
Deep Sky has a running time of about 40 minutes so it quickly ran through the story of getting the James Webb Space Telescope up into space and into its viewing position nearly 1 million miles from Earth. While the telescope's mirrors aren't as big as space, the mirror array was pretty large, as mirrors go.
But it was the photographs of space that were the main attraction. This was perhaps as close to a Total Perspective Vortex as we'll get. It was one amazing view after another. First we saw what to our eyes is a teeny tiny speck of black space become under the JWST's probing mirrors a menagerie full of galaxies. Hundreds of them. Thousands! Then came a series of photos of colossal clouds of interstellar dust and gases that churn out stars like our sun. The Pillars of Creation!
Contemplating the vast distances between our blue ball and those star factories as well as the sheer size of those clouds was absolutely mind boggling, truly awe-inspiring.
I came out of the theater a bit exhilarated yet feeling quite insignificant. Also hoping that we get more IMAX documentaries here in Madison.
20 April, 2024
Today's earworm - 20 April
I started watching season 4 of Babylon Berlin yesterday and the first thing we get is Charlotte looking for a record of this tune. Just blatantly catchy.
19 April, 2024
Lame, Lake Louie, Lame
I was contemplating heading out to Wisconsin Brewing Company and enjoying a brew or two with some comrades - outside, if it was warm enough. So I head to the Lake Louie website and click on the big button that says "WHAT'S ON TAP" in friendly letters.
Expecting a list of what I could choose from on my visit, including limited test beers, I was disappointed to find that I had been unceremoniously dumped on the front steps of Untappd.
I am not on Untappd. Is there a way to get a list of what is on tap at the brewery if you're simply a visitor? I just see a list of what other people have supped and a short one at that. Presumably I could see more if I logged in.
If they've got Smoke Show on tap again, I am there.
This is lame. Why should I have to register with Untappd to try to scroll though a bunch of posts in the hope of being able to piece together a list of what's on tap?
This is lame.
Lame, Gencon, very lame
Every year Gencon has an official beer brewed by Indy's Sun King Brewery. Last year I voted for the Kölsch but the English mild with honey proved victorious.
This year we're stuck with garbage. All entries are based on junk food breakfast cereals.
Why can't we have grown-up beer instead of flavors aimed at the palates of 12 year-olds?
Abigail
My Frau and I went on a date last night to see the new horror flick Abigail.
Not really my cup of tea but there were some funny parts. I know it was totally puerile but I still laughed at one character waking up after another one had drawn a cock and balls on his cheek in permanent marker.
Beyond that, the sets for the spooky mansion were just perfect. Victorian looking with stuffed animals, tons of bookshelves, dark wood, and the like. The characters, however, were one dimensional cliches but the 14 year-old actress who played Abigail, one Alisha Weir, did a very fine job. Frank sported some classic 70s cop glasses. I also enjoyed Melissa Barrera's generous cleavage which was shown in some well-crafted high angle shots.
I simply got tired of the jump scares and the hissy screams.
Our new mallard neighbors
A mallard couple has been hanging out in our backyard recently. They enjoy spending time underneath the bird feeder and gobbling up all of the seed that the messy birds leave for them.
A couple days ago they decided to lounge on the terrace by our house after their meal.
After some preening, they did some serious relaxing.
My new dice tower
A friend of mine printed a new dice tower for me shaped like the head of The Great God Cthulhu.
Tentacles!
I am sure to fail my sanity checks with it.
The Corona Diaries Vol. 111: The Silk Road Runs Through Madison
(late September 2023)
(Listen to the prelude.)
One morning the Frau was eager to get out and about and I suggested we go to Goose Lake State Wildlife Area and she obligingly consented. I hadn’t been there since last summer so I thought it’d be fun to make a return trip to introduce her to the lovely vistas as well as the flora and fauna that call it home. Since we were looking for a leisurely stroll, the easy trail with only a single incline that qualified as even moderately steep fit the bill.
It was a cloudy morning but temperate. The poofy clouds diffused the sunlight and made for some pretty sights, though my camera wasn’t able to capture the real beauty of the scenes with sunbeams reaching down to gently caress the landscape.
Unlike my hike last year, we didn’t run into any other folks (or dogs) on the trail.
However, I did spy some interesting flora such as these berries which are, no doubt, highly poisonous to humans despite their alluring colors. They reminded me of raw coffee beans.
I’ve seen these pale berries before but don’t know what plant that is.
I followed a path through the tall grass down to the shore of Mud Lake which was littered with lily pads. I heard the frogs croaking but didn’t see any leaping around in the shallow water.
In addition to berries, there were some very pretty flowers. Are these daisies?
The trail at Goose Lake isn’t very lengthy and we didn’t walk the whole thing but it was nice to get out into the country to stretch our legs and get some fresh air.
********
We also made a return trip to the North Side Farmers’ Market this month and were greeted by this fellow wielding multiple mallets per hand and he entertained shoppers on what I think was a vibraphone.
He must be a Gen Xer as he seemed to play mostly 90’s alternative rock. I’d swear he was playing "Black Hole Sun" by Soundgarden when I walked within earshot.
Looks at these chilies!
It being September, there were gourds. And ground cherries still sheathed in their husks.
This basket of rosemary made the stall it was at smell just delightful.
African eggplant? I wonder if it tastes different from the conventional eggplant that I am used to. And fresh okra. Perfect for gumbo.
The Frau bought some vegetables and chatted with a friend of hers who works at the market. I drank my coffee, ogled the colorful produce, and listened to some more tunes before slipping the busker a couple bucks.
********
For our anniversary, my Frau and I went to a new restaurant called Sultan which features the flavors of Punjab. The flavors come in the form of small plates and the restaurant is, as far as I know, unique in Madison for being a no-tipping establishment.
I began my meal with a cocktail called A Night on the Silk Road which was comprised of Jaisalmer gin, saffron, rosemary, lime juice, fig syrup, orange bitters, and tonic. This was a $16 cocktail and I don’t think I’d ever had one that expensive before. Not being a big cocktail drinker, I indulge only once in a blue moon and, besides, $16 is something like 2.25 beers.
The drink was served in a martini glass that has been relieved of its stem and foot and so it sat atop a small bowl of popcorn. It was very tasty. Sweetly herbal but not cloying. The bitters, lime juice, and tonic added just enough tartness/bitterness to keep the sweetness in check and the gin got a boost with all of those extra herbs.
The Frau tends to go crazy at small plate restaurants. I think her logic goes like this: if every dish comes in small portions, why don’t we just order one of everything to make sure we get enough?
One time we were in Chinatown in Chicago and went for dim sum. By the end of the meal, the table at our booth did not have one square inch that was not covered by a plate or bowl. I think she ordered everything on the menu except the chicken feet as there were plates of buns and dumplings and chunks of meat and so on just everywhere.
We (i.e. – my Frau) ordered a feast that would have had Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan himself singing its praises.
At the top there a chicken leg in a brown sauce. I believe that was Murgh Shahi Korma, chicken cooked with cashew, pistachio, raisins, and cilantro. The dish down and to the left with a clean chicken bone was, if memory servers, Murgh Karahi – chicken in a tomato-yoghurt-cilantro sauce. (I deduced that “murgh” means chicken in Punjabi.) Both were rich and flavorful.
In the middle we have Kachumbar Salade, a cucumber salad in yoghurt and with pomegranate seeds. That panini/pasty thingy at the bottom was, methinks, a Keema Kareley Toastie which involves minced beef and bitter melon tucked inside a couple pieces of bread, toasted to perfection, and served with more cucumber salad but without the yoghurt. Not sure what you call that.
For dessert we splurged and had two. It was our anniversary, after all. The Frau ordered this, Kaddu Aur Naryal Ka Zarda.
Sweet basmati rice is gussied up with pumpkin, toasted coconut, maple syrup, almond, pistachio, and raisins. It was perfectly scrumptious and I really enjoyed the American touches to it.
I went with Shahi Tukray, a.k.a. – bread pudding.
As someone who loves pistachios, I was thoroughly delighted with their use throughout the meal. Yoghurt too. I really enjoy it in dishes where someone like me with a Central/Eastern European culinary bent would expect sour cream. We didn’t get anything exotic or old school such as a dish with brains but I really liked the use of what I think of as being American touches such maple syrup and squashes.
The bill was a bit over $100 but I haven’t done any cipherin’ to figure out what it would likely have been if the dishes weren’t priced with tips included. Not that it mattered as this was a special occasion (and my mother’s gift was footing the bill).
********
Bonus photo. I did a double take when I saw this sign. Apparently the owner/chef is Mexican but cut his cooking chops at Chinese restaurants around town. In my estimation, they have the best Americanized Chinese food in town. Nothing tasted like it came from a can courtesy of Sysco; the hot & sour soup wasn’t a gelatinous mess and portions are generous. A twist on the normal seasoning here, a fresh taste there. Good stuff.
(Watch the addendum.)
First cup of the day
I am having my first cup of chicory coffee that I brought back from New Orleans.
This is some fine stuff, Congregation. Extra intense nuttiness. Very tasty indeed.
17 April, 2024
Stoopid app
When I was at The National WWII Museum last week, I took oodles of photos. At one point I was looking at some of them on my phone and came across one taken in the gallery about the Holocaust. My photo app made an unfortunate touch-up suggestion for a photo of two Jews being humiliated by some Nazis.
15 April, 2024
12 April, 2024
Under Pressure at the Mecca
It was 40 years ago today that Rush released what is perhaps their most synth-laden album, Grace Under Pressure.
"Distant Early Warning" and "Red Sector A" survived in live sets for a long time with the former lasting until the very end. But most of the album didn't survive much beyond the tour in support of the album. ("Red Lenses" did make it to the Power Windows tour, oddly enough.) And so I am going to celebrate this anniversary with the album's closer, "Between the Wheels".
It was recorded in Milwaukee on 25 June 1984.
10 April, 2024
Clasping Later That Same Evening in Madison
Jethro Tull's The Broadsword and the Beast was released on this day in 1982. 42 years ago!
To celebrate, wrap your ears around this live version of "Clasp" recorded here in Madison on 2 November 1984.
05 April, 2024
Somebody tell me what's Carnival for: Mardi Gras Bock by Abita Brewing Company
In anticipation of making my first trip to The Big Easy, I recently started buying a weekly bag of Zapp's potato chips despite the chips not actually being made in Louisiana and Zapp's now being a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Utz potato chip empire of Hanover, Pennsylvania. And so it's only appropriate to eat them while listening to Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Born On the Bayou", a fantastic slice of swamp rock by a band from California that I don't think had ever stepped foot on the bayou when they recorded that song. Thinking that I ought to consume something other than potato chips for this endeavor and something actually from New Orleans, I mistakenly bought some beer from Abita.
Although not brewed in New Orleans, Abita is at least brewed in Louisiana. Looks like 40ish miles north of there. That's close enough, I suppose, for them to legitimately use New Orleans iconography. Besides, they use more generic bayou stuff in their beer names too. It's like New Glarus. They use a lot of Wisconsin imagery on their labels but I don't think anyone would object if they brewed a smoked rye lager and put a flamingo standing on a hill on the label. I for one would welcome such a thing.
For my sampling, I recreated a small bit of my past. One time back in the days when I prepared food for a living, one of my fellow cooks brought in a Mardi Gras mixtape to celebrate the season. It was through this tape that I learned that New Orleans R&B extended way beyond Fats Domino. Irma Thomas, Earl King, Clarence "Frogman" Henry - ooh! - "Sea Cruise" by Frankie Ford. But there was this 3 song stretch that I listened to while sipping my Abita:
"Jolie Louise" by Daniel Lanois (who knew he did more than produce U2 and Bob Dylan?)
"My Toot Toot" by Rockin' Sidney
"Go to the Mardi Gras" by Professor Longhair
Fess!!! "Big Chief"! "Tipitina"! "Bald Head"!
Oh mama! I can remember many other songs from that tape but it's only those 3 that I can recall the order of.
While Mardi Gras is done and Christians the world over are enjoying Lententide by ignoring all of their chosen denomination's injunctions against fun, the season for pale bocks, a.k.a. - Maibocks, is not. As it happens, Abita is a fairly large brewery and their brews are found even here in Wisconsin. Furthermore, their Mardi Gras/Lenten seasonal is a Maibock called Mardi Gras Bock. A perfect choice as I get the New Orleans factor and the drinking seasonal element all in one fell swoop.
Looking at this lovely beer, I felt like I should have thrown some beads at it. It was a gorgeous gold and clear as day. The big, off-white head had staying power and the clarity allowed me to see a few bubbles inside. The aroma was a nice mix of the malty - caramel with a bit of bread - and the hoppy - grass with a hint of white pepper. If only there was a hop that smelled of cayenne.
A medium body and a medium dose of fizz greeted my tongue. There was a definite malty smoothness but it was cut by a bit of astringency. While there was a little taste of bread, the malts generally gave honey and caramel flavors. Despite this, the beer wasn't overly sweet with those flavors being balanced by some spicy/peppery hops.
The malty sweetness faded on the finish rather quickly with hops on the peppery side coming in to give a firm dose of bitterness and a solid dryness.
Would it have been cool to have a little plastic baby inside one of the bottles of my 6-pack? Yes. Would I have preferred some hot decoction action to strengthen that bready taste? Of course I would. But nonetheless, this stuff has a nice malty flavor and I really appreciate that the sweetness was moderated. Its 6.5% A.B.V. strength provided a little warmth on a chilly evening. Mardi Gras Bock is a fine brew as the pale lagery goodness just hit most of the Maibock notes for me.
Junk food pairing: I've been pairing Mardi Gras Bock with generous portions of Zapp's Evil Eye potato chips. Their Worcestershire sauce/tomato paste combo complements the beer's hoppy zing perfectly.
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