The Green Man now has company

I got my divorce tattoo - a dryad!

Isn't she lovely? A fine complement to the Green Man on my other arm. I adore the twig and the berries in her hair.

I recall the day back in June when I looked at my Green Man tattoo and remembered why I got it 20+ years ago. It is an argus keeping watch over me. I need only listen. When I listened to him in June, I understood that my wife was no longer my partner and hadn't been for some time. It was clear that she is, as they say these days, toxic.

Sitting in the chair as the ink was being applied, I thought about the myriad of things that the new image stood for and why I was there getting it painted onto my arm. Tears came to my eyes. When I look at my new tattoo today, I see that it symbolizes a repudiation of my marriage/wife or, at least, some elements/aspects of them. But that is only a small part of it. Much more prominent are things sacred: nature and the feminine but, perhaps most importantly, it holds the promise of a new beginning. My old life is on its last legs and a new one beckons.

Thanks to whomever did the artwork that I found on the internet and formed the basis of the image and my eternal gratitude to Jon at Forward Tattoo who devised the final design and helped me more than he will ever know by putting the ink on my skin.

Forward Tattoo is filled with artwork and this Ralph Steadmaneque tribute to 2001 caught my eye.

A brace of meals

A couple recent meals.

First comes one from Kutty Leaf, a newish Indian restaurant here in Madison on the far northeast side. According to a Wisconsin State Journal article that resides behind a paywall, "kutty" is Tamil for small. My companion ordered Chicken 65 to begin our meal.

It was right out of the fryer hot. Tasty too. I think those are lime leaves atop the pile of chicken pieces. Why yes, I did eat them.

Although it bills itself as a South Indian kitchen, there was a North Indian curry on offer and, for whatever reason, it piqued my palate. And so I ordered the Kadai Chicken curry. 

While I wish it had had a bit more heat to it, I found it very good. It had a more earthy flavor than the curries I am used to. I'm not sure what gave it that taste. It didn't have the more sprightly flavors of fenugreek and fennel.

The next day I asked my Indian co-worker if he had ever eaten at Kutty Leaf and, if so, what his impressions were. He had indeed eaten there (I think the Indian folks in town are tired of having to go to Chicagoland for the good stuff and try every new Indian restaurant in hope that it has a marked degree of authenticity) and gave it an overall mediocre rating but felt that there were a few items they do well.

He remarked that the Andhra style Chicken 65 and poori with Aloo Masala were good while the chitti punugulu, a common breakfast dish, he helpfully noted, was the real deal. Duly noted.

My conversation with my co-worker happened at Imperial Garden in Middleton. For lunch I had the Lettuce Wraps with tofu but before that was a bowl of hot and sour soup.

The soup was not particularly impressive as it was neither particularly hot nor sour. Edible, to be sure, but on the bland side. My co-worker from China also ordered the hot and sour soup and was surprised to find shredded pork in it. 

Although billed as an appetizer, there was more than enough to the wraps to make a meal. The tofu had a nice grilled-soy taste to it and I generously applied hot mustard leftover from the dumplings. I enjoyed being able to use my hands in eating them instead of utensils.

My Chinese co-worker ordered the Mongolian beef (or was it chicken?) and said it was very good. She offered some to me as meals back at home were always shared. I, in turn, offered her a lettuce leaf and free reign over the tofu.

Hopefully my next meal report shall be of a home cooked one.

And so it begins 2025 edition

Seen on 15 August.

Units. Plural.

Even going into my second visit to the Goose Pond Sanctuary, I was under the impression that it consisted of the various units between County I and Goose Pond Road. I mean, that's where Goose Pond is, after all. But upon perusing the flyer I grabbed there on my last visit, I discovered that the Sanctuary is, in fact, a whole constellation of prairie units.

And so on a recent morning I decided to visit a couple of them that I hadn't previously: Hopkins Road Prairie and the Sue Ames Prairie. I began with the former.

These trails are owned by the Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance and so their primary purpose is to allow birdwatchers access to the prairies so they can ply their trade. I, on the other hand, was there to enjoy the country air and do some hiking. If I spotted any birds, that was gravy. I'll admit that the odds of me identifying any of our feathered friends was rather slim.

It was cloudy but it never rained, thankfully.

Here's the trail along the treeline that went between the 2 units. 

While I heard more birds than saw them, there was a flock circling near me at one point, though I am unsure what type of bird they were.

My first orchard visit of the year

August means apples, even if only a limited number of varieties. And so I went out to Lapacek's Orchard on opening weekend. When I got their email announcement about opening for the season, I paused a second in near disbelief that it was once again the time of year for pomaceous goodness. Tempus really fugits.

Lapacek's is one of those places that my wife and I went to many times. It was something of an "our" kind of place and then became a place my Frau would go with a friend with me in tow on the odd occasion. Now I would have to get used to going solo.

The welcoming committee was Johnny on the spot.

Despite the clouds, the place looked lovely, all verdant with a smattering of flowers. 

As I stood there lamenting the absence of the goats, I heard a call to my left. It was another cat but this one had been working and it was eager to show off its prize.

I walked inside to find Kim behind the counter and the shelves rather bare. I ended up getting a quarter peck of Tony Banks' favorite variety of apples.

A sleepy kitty watched as shoppers walked to their cars, likely making sure the hoomans truly departed.

I also bought a couple ears of corn as August is also when maize is harvested. I am planning on cooking this weekend and the menu so far consists of apple pie and corn.

Where'd the muskrats go?

Scenes from a morning's walk.

No blue heron nor any muskrats. Have they all moved on to wetter pastures? 

The duck appeared to be a teenager. 

I noticed this in a neighbor's backyard for the first time.

The sky was grey and cloudy for the first half of my walk but a smile came over my face when I saw the distant sister sun appear. I quickly grimmaced as I was bitten by yet another mosquito. 

Acorns!

August means Apfeln! 

I don't know what this means but I like it.

Upon arriving at home, I found the neighbor's cat prowling around.

A song about a car

Another song I've been listening to a lot lately. Sadly, these folks no longer appear to be a band. This is a great version of the venerable Rush tune. The band is tight and Tahnee Juryn is lovely and enthusiastic, adding her own energy to the performance.

Coming soon, 17 August 2025

Seen before Shin Godzilla and after a fine dish of Kadai chicken curry at Kutty Leaf.

 

 

I was surprised to learn that there is a Wicked sequel but I don't know why.

 

 

I was also surprised by the sheer volume of anime movie trailers.

 

 

 

 

 

It appears most, if not all, of these anime flicks are a few years old or older. But it appears they are only now making their way to cinemas here in the States.

Scenes From a Cat Café

Recently I made my inaugural visit to The Cat's Brew, a cat café. The café portion is out front while the felines live and play in a couple rooms in the back, one of which is bedecked with cat trees, plush cat homes, etc. as well as places for humans to sit. Cat toys were littered about for us to tempt the felines into jumping, batting, and other cute activities.

I forget the names but this fellow was sleepy during my entire visit. So tired that he neglected treats. Cats need naps, after all. 

Beware the naughty look in those eyes!

"Hooman!" 

There is a wall separating the hooman interaction area from the other room where the cats can escape our clutches as well as use the litter box. A couple of the 9 cats availed themselves of the opportunity to sit atop the wall and look down on us in what I presume was the harshest judgement.

I think this is Ringo. He's taking a break from jumping at cat toys and being hounded by the little boy who was there. 

And I believe this is Evelyn. The staff pronounced it ev-e-lin though I kept hearing the Sixth Doctor saying it as eev-e-lin in my head. She received a lot of pets from me and we had a good time playing.

"You shall limit your pets to my head, hooman." 

Look at those blue eyes! 

"Give me that hand!"

I believe that all feline residents of The Cat's Brew are available for adoption and I certainly wanted to take more than one home with me.

In addition to the interminably cute cats, the coffee was tasty too.

REM joins the playlist

I just bought REM's final album, Collapse Into Now, the other day and love the lead off song, "Discoverer". Great melody, great dynamics.

Muskrat, oh, muskrat

Some scenes from my most recent walk around my little corner of Eastmorland.

I took about 22 photos of the muskrat swimming around in the concrete creek yet none were in focus. This one came closest. 

What kind of tomatoes are these?

 

Someone has habeneros/Scotch bonnets that are coming along well.

Tomatillos basking in the dawn. 

Look at this bee all covered in pollen.