Takin' the Blog for a Walk

Have been tired lately but don't know why. I got a good night's sleep Saturday after a late tether of the Re/Max balloon in Richfield and woke up at 4:30 a.m. Sunday to crew again. We set up alongside another balloon at a dairy farm on Hwy. G in Delafield and this time, instead of chasing the balloon, I rode in it. My second flight ever.

Yes, I heard about the two hot air balloon deaths in Canada the day before. I don't know what the cause of that fire was, and may not know for quite a while, but with the safety precautions we take here, I knew I'd be safe. Pilots have to be licensed, winds have to be calm, have to have enough daylight and weather prediction has to be good. We're in radio contact with competent crew, and redundant controls virtually eliminate accidents. (the balloon I flew in had two burners, two tanks, two vent ropes, three people in the chase vehicle...)

Winds were dead calm for my flight so we travelled just a mile or two in an hour, from north of Hwy. 18 on G to just south of 18 on G. There was a little wind at 100 feet so we used that to find a spot to land and took the envelope down on a driveway between a row of trees. It was neat to see Lake Michigan, Pewaukee Lake, Lapham Peak...

After a quick breakfast, and more coffee, I headed to Maier Festival Park for my fifth ethnic mass and festival of the year, Mexican Fiesta. Honduran Cardinal Oscar Andres Rodriguez Maradiga lead the two hour Spanish Mass, along with Archbishop Dolan and Bishop Sklba. When the cardinal remained seated for the homily, that should have clued me in. The half hour sermon must have been great because he gestured, raised his voice, got a few chuckles and a large applause, but I only knew about twelve out of the thousands of words he spoke.

I was still in the dog house for spending nine hours at Irish Fest the previous weekend, so I didn't stay at Fiesta very long. I did enjoy what I saw very much though. I got a good look at the Ballet Folklorico and Milw. Ballet II in the Cultural Village, along with many handcrafted items and demonstrations. There was a lot of music, food and activity, as you'd expect, with approx. 70,000 attendees anticipated for it's three day run.

To make a long story not as long; Soon as I got home gave son ride to party. On way home from party stopped at an acquaintance to visit. They're disabled and needed to mow the lawn that day because landlord coming. Mower not working -- grass real long. Went home, got my mower and finished what they had started. When done, rushed home to get ready for evening balloon crewing. Was pretty windy but we waited until after 6:00 and pilot, Rod, was able to lift off with two passengers. We chased the swift-moving balloon all the way to just this side of Holy Hill and walked it out to a gravel road through 6 foot tall weeds. It was dark by the time we got back but still only 8:30 so I went home, ate something, read the paper, and contemplated this blog entry.

Time to get the blog fodder out before my head explodes.

I dropped off my son at North the other day so he could turn in money from a sports fundraiser. An ambulance passed me on my way out and was heading toward Jr. Northstars practicing football, so I assumed one of the tykes got a concussion or scratch or something. A few minutes later, I came back for a parent meeting and was going to tell the director that four days isn't enough to sell the card, that it's impossible to read and that it's overpriced. I ended up not saying a word because in four days the $20.00 discount cards the kids were selling raised $9000.00 to purchase needed equipment for all the sports and the top seller was given a hundred dollar bill! Found out later the ambulance was called for a kid who had broken his arm -- and that kid was my nephew!

Last week the featured performer for the Cutler Park jazz concert said "bon voyage". I rode the ten speed downtown to check out Rhythm Voyage Wednesday the 15th and the only one there was one homeless person. Had an OK conversation and all. Nice enough guy. Sleeps in the back of a friend's truck and occasionally cleans up at Salvation Army... I don't know if this week's entertainment, Robin Pluer, played in the rain last night. I was too busy.

Governor Lee Dreyfus no longer has a column in Thursday's Freeman. I occasionally enjoyed reading his take on history or politics but especially enjoyed reading anything about his marriage to Joyce. Listening to him talk I feel he probably has the perfect marriage. I first met Mr. Dreyfus seventeen years ago when I recognized his red vest and introduced him to my future bride. The only other time I met him was maybe four years ago at a parish men's cookout where he was the speaker. It was there I learned that he has been to church at my former home on Summit Ave., now the Episcopal monastery Order of Julian of Norwich. I must admit that when Mr. Dreyfus was in the hospital, then the long period of recovery, I didn't think his column would return. It seemed like a year went by and every week there was yet another "best of" column. He did come back and we appreciated it. Now I just hope he'll continue his monthly column in the free 50 Plus paper found in several stores and churches.

Was watching the common council on Channel 25 and raced down to City Hall for the public comment period for something that mattered to me. By the time I got there it was over but when I got back home they were still talking about the topic. It's because I was watching the taped broadcast of the previous meeting. The council hasn't moved back to the chambers yet so there is still no live broadcasting.

Went to a sold out baseball game Friday and no matter how hard we tried we could not get the wave going. Over 40 thousand fans in the stadium would have made a good wave but they were taking the game too seriously.

@#$%&*8wZ BOOM &4##=xyZ?!!

Danny's no longer a boy. My nephew, seventeen years after he was ring bearer at our wedding, was married today.

Weddings are usually emotional for me, but especially so with Dan's because I feel I wasn't there when he was growing up. He's now a handsome young man with a bright future and a beautiful bride but I didn't know where he works or lives and didn't even know where he went to school. I last saw Dan and met his fiancee two years ago for my dad's funeral. Since bag pipers concluded both ceremonies, the funeral and Dan's wedding today, I was over-filled with emotion.

I heard a lot of great things said about my nephew by his many friends. Saw a lot of pictures of the two of them as they grew up, and even saw the wedding video which someone was nice enough to quickly edit in time for the reception.

The cakes and decorations were the most unusual I've ever seen at a wedding reception. Everything was black and white; the groomsmen wore black tuxes, the bridesmaids - black dresses with pastel ribbon waistbands. Chair covers, tablecloths, everything, black and white. Even the bride wore a white dress with black accents -- and the cake matched her dress! The groom had a cake too -- it looked just like The Nightmare Before Christmas.

No one I talked to could figure out the significance of all the black and white and spooky stuff but we were all curious. Did the couple meet on Halloween? Was The Nightmare Before Christmas their favorite movie? Finally found out she just likes the contrast of black and white. Turns out a lot of other people do too, because that's what all four in my family were wearing as well as many more we saw wearing similar.

I came away from the wedding and reception with a very good feeling. A lot of positive things were said about the goodness of love and marriage and everyone in the pews promised to support the couple in their lifelong commitment to each other.

Hope my wife doesn't mind, but I spent nine hours at Naga-Waukee Park yesterday with an older woman. We were there to hear performers on the last day of two day Waukesha BluesFest, a Waukesha Noon Rotary fundraising event. Besides the music, my mother-in-law and I enjoyed jambalaya, crawfish bisque, blackened catfish and barbequed ribs.

We washed the spicy food down with several of the many interesting beers offered and the music was washed down with rain. The rain came sometime after the 6:00 p.m. act, Shemekia Copeland, and stayed long enough to wet the grass but not make muddy waters. The sturdy tent holding close to 2000 chairs could have withstood a much greater storm but didn't even need the side curtains closed for this one.

The seven groups seemed to progress in quality up to headliner, Mavis Staples. I enjoyed them all, but my favorite was Ollabelle, an interesting New York quintet with two agreeable female singers who play accoustic and electric guitars and mandolin. Ollabelle is also one of Mavis' favorites and she's godmother to one of the female singers.

The sparse crowd for the first Waukesha BluesFest became a running joke for many of the bands so I gave it some thought. Obviously the $40.00 or so per day ticket price is the first thing to look at. As a fundraiser wanting to showcase quality acts it's understandable, but tickets should be low enough to fill the seats until it's well established. Besides, even if Waukesha was a big blues area, it would be hard to find another venue with prices as high. As a matter of fact there's a fun-sounding music, barbeque and fun festival coming up Sept. 28th through 30th at Menomonee Falls Village Park. The three day free "Big Pig Gig" offers 23 musical acts on three stages versus fourteen on one during BluesFest's two days.

Other things to look at would be the accompanying vendors or attractions. I saw the favorable crowd at the 2007 Waukesha Car Show in the Park today and wondered why a bike or car show couldn't be combined with blues music. Also, it was nice to have fourteen art vendors with the artists present but I saw the same thing for free during last week's art crawl.

On the happy side of the blues, with at most two hundred people in attendance, there was no waiting for anything and we could sit anywhere, taking up as many chairs as we needed. What the small crowd lacked in numbers it made up in enthusiasm and I was glad to be part of it, me and mom-in-law. Our quality time together.

Friendship Day was three days ago but I was too busy worrying about things I can't change to notice. I'll be losing another good friend in two days when Scott leaves work. I've been working with Scott the last 20 or so years and he's been a help in many ways. Tim, the young athlete with leukemia I've written about before, is Scott's son.

Today is Tim's 18th birthday. There's been times when he wasn't sure if he'd make it, something I hope my kids won't have to think about.

Scott gave his two week notice the same day everyone else learned they'd be laid-off at my work. Last Friday was the mechanics' last day and I had more than my average fear of the next Monday. Would I be so extremely busy without enough extra help? Or would it be deathly quiet? I was just beginning to be productive Monday morning when all of a sudden the power went out for blocks around. I felt that was the sign. No mechanics in the shop, no power, no work gets done. It's too bad Scott's leaving because, as our computer expert, he was always the guy to call whenever anything went awry with the machines we all use.

With Scott leaving I won't be seeing Tim as much and I'll try to write about other things. But for now I did volunteer for the Luekemia & Lymphoma Society's annual neighborhood fund raiser where I have to send pleas to neighbors who aren't interested in donating. Unless I can come up with a unique angle then I'm afraid this drive will produce as many donations as other years -- almost nothing. I'm looking for your ideas. No, I'm pleading for your ideas.

I watched a Public TV show the other day, "Respect Yourself: The Stax Records Story," after reading about it in the J-S. That's why I found it curious when I read Barbara Dembski's short column in today's editorial section. She mentioned her wonderful visit to the Stax Museum of American Soul Music last spring and Stax's 50th anniversary. The Stax artists she mentioned in the one paragraph "Quick Hit" included Otis Redding, Booker T. and the MGs, The Staples Singers and Sam & Dave.

I found it more curious that Barbara's editorial paragraph was in the same section of the paper as the ad for Waukesha BluesFest, the fest this weekend at Naga-Waukee featuring Booker T. and the MGs and Mavis Staples. My BluesFest flier tells me Booker T. and the MGs provided instrumental backing for Sam & Dave and Otis Redding, among others.

Booker T. and the MGs are performing at 9:00 Friday, Aug. 10th and Mavis Staples at 9:00 Saturday, Aug. 11th. Many other artists will be performing between 1:00 and 10:30 p.m. both days, with food and drink available. I would like to go but tickets are around $40.00 per day so I don't know. If you're interested, tickets are still available at all Waukesha State Bank locations as well as Almont Gallery and Citizens Bank of Mukwonago.

Joey was singing and playing guitar outside Steaming Cup yesterday during downtown Waukesha's Art Crawl 47. He wasn't the only one having to deal with the rain. There was also a drum circle outside Plowshares and a painter outside Almont Gallery trying to keep dry, not to mention the Wauk. Symphony Wind Ensemble, dancers, other artists and "crawlers," all trying to keep dry. Fortunately the rain was on the light side and not too cold.

I always enjoy "discovering what's new in Downtown Waukesha" and yesterday I visited several galleries, and a coffee shop, for the first time and revisited galleries I haven't been to in a while. I only rarely buy art but go to these crawls because, among other things, they're entertaining. Even in the rain.

Let me see if I have it straight; Jazz Wednesday, Civic Band performance Thursday, Friday Night Live on four stages Friday and lots of art and more music on Saturday? All free of charge? Can this be Waukesha?

African World Festival is the seventh. Last week I pointed out the six ethnic festivals at Maier Festival Park having Sunday religious services. Add another to the list because African World Festival also holds one. And, like all but one of the rest, allowed free admission to the fest.

Six of the festival masses, including African World, are Catholic so I'm comfortable. I had to be comfortable to sit through a two and a half hour service at the lakefront today. It seems this year I'm trying to go to as many ethnic festival masses as possible. As I may have mentioned; it's not only an inexpensive way to get into the different fests to try them, but diversity of prayer is also a great way to learn about other cultures.

The 10th Annual Sacred Liturgy at African World Festival was engaging, vibrant and electric. There was enough energy emitted from the choir, drummers, dancers and musicians to spread to the audience and we clapped often. The choir may have received the most applause but the sermon also got it's share. A Dominican priest from Chicago gave the homily and it started out in the usual way. But soon Father Paul gained speed and momentum and his sermon started sounding more like song than speech. His words all came together so rapid-fire that I thought I was at an auction for Jesus' Love and Father Paul was the auctioneer. It was wild, it was why I was there, and I applauded him.

After mass I walked around and tried to find lines of people at food stands, which would indicate to me which ones to be the best. I didn't find any lines, there weren't a lot of people there, so I bought some gumbo and worked up a sweat eating the spicy meal out in the sun. As I walked around the marketplace I kept seeing the same product offered -- one I'm not familiar with. Shea butter was being sold at probably more than half the stands and looked messy, especially when the sun got to it. African shea butter is made from the seed of the shea tree and is supposed to be better than cocoa butter for skin and best when it's not processed. There were huge chunks of it everywhere I looked.

As I headed toward the exit I discovered some long lines at the fried catfish and wings stand, but by then I was full of gumbo and had to get going.

Downtown Employee Appreciation Week concluded for Milwaukee workers yesterday. All week there were activities like dancing, walking tours, games, Vball, Downtown Idol, Office Rock Star, besides giveaways and discounts, to show the downtown workforce how much they're appreciated.

There wasn't much celebrating at my company this week. Of the fifteen men who were let go Friday, three had given the company over 30 years of service. No watches were handed out because there were no retirement parties. To large companies a layoff like this probably wouldn't register a blip, but to my small, family-owned company fifteen people is almost half the workforce. Most, including me, probably imagined they'd be there their entire career as long as they did a good job, kept improving their skills and got along with everyone. We've had layoffs before, but in 91 years of business we've never totally closed two full departments.

I've given much thought to appreciation this week. I appreciate having a job but I definitely don't appreciate losing so many of my friends and co-workers. One way I see companies can show appreciation to their current employees is by fair treatment of long term workers when they have to be let go. Sad to say, even with all the activities Downtown, I didn't feel much appreciation at work this week.

********* 8/5 addendum ********

Went to the annual Waukesha County Picnic for county workers yesterday at Naga-Waukee Park. The weather and food was great and there were plenty of activities for everyone. The picnic is one way the county shows appreciation to employees past and present. All are welcome. It's a great reunion where old friends can meet again even after retirement.

It's time to think about the 10th Annual Kettle Moraine Jazz Festival coming to Riverside Park in West Bend September 7th and 8th. Just 40 or so miles northeast of the City of Waukesha, West Bend resembles Waukesha in that it too has a river running through a delightful downtown. Be sure to get your tickets in advance because the gate prices are $125.00 for both days or $75.00 for one.

Or you could travel just a few blocks to the Les Paul Performance Center in Cutler Park any Wednesday in August for free jazz. The music starts at 7:00. I was one of many enjoying the warm weather, beautiful park and surprisingly good tunes last night . . . and really got my money's worth!

Resting on an Indian mound, bare feet on soft grass, I watched a young girl beg and plead with her grandma to not make her leave the concert early. I know how she must have felt. When the weather is right and everything is fine I sometimes get the kind of feeling that I don't want to see end either.

I don't consider myself a jazz fan but I appreciate good music. Does that make sense? The lineup for August is: Aug. 8th - Mestura Fina. Aug. 15th - Rhythm Voyage. Aug. 22nd - Robin Pluer. and Aug. 29th - Nabori Salsa.

Thanks Andy