Pink Flamingos on UW Madison's Bascom Hill date back to a time when I could climb it while smoking a cigarette and drinking a Tab. Leon Varjian and the Pail and Shovel Party ruled campus when I first saw the hill filled with birds "blown in from Hurricane David." Those goofballs made life more interesting and, Mandatory John Waters Reference: It was Divine.
A fundraiser called Fill The Hill the Friday before Halloween brought the flamingos out again and an overwhelming sense of nostalgia brought Little Rat and me to campus.
His ascot was neither apricot nor ninja
We foraged for parking down by limnology first
Stop judging me, bird or I'll pee on you next—is that a tow truck?
Everyone loves me
I better get treats and walkies after this nonsense. What are you looking at?
Special Forces
I'm pretty sure ninjas don't have leashes. Is that a tow truck?
The Prairie du Sac dam attracts Eagle watchers, fishermen, kayakers and photographers. I won't bore you with stories of a younger me popping out of a kayak in class three rapids at the dam oops too late. We stopped by last week because my cousin isn't happy unless she's spotting an eagle or heron or pelican or egret or some such thing. I didn't get very good shots of whatever large white bird I was attempting to capture, but of course, she did.
I was however fascinated by this guy zipping right up to the gates.
Dam.
My fisherman cuz, Phil3, says, "Been there done that." He is insane.
After rambling around Sauk County in the rain for hours last Saturday I didn't take the turn that would have lead me to this lonely little upright in Ableman's Gorge. I later found out my car has a bad water pump so driving back as planned was not an option until... My cousin took pity on me and we visited Map Stop #36 on the Farm/Art DTour yesterday.
There I discovered that 36 is the loneliest number.
Red Piano in Ableman's Gorge
Lying down on the stage with the excuse of taking this shot
"Morning, noon and night it's drink and dancing."
Three different people hoped up on stage and played for us while I rested my aging carcass.
I kept expecting Lili Von Shtupp to tell me to get my feet off the stage.
I broke my own record for getting lost this weekend. I don't understand why people enjoy getting lost, have they never seen an episode of The X-Files?
"Oh look, glowing lights and blood beasts, you'd never see that on a map."
Speaking of which, $5 bucks for the tour map this year. I downloaded the free version which may explain a lot.
I'm talking about the route map for Fermentation Fest's Farm/Art DTour, my favorite fest held in one of my favorite parts of the state.
Despite dreary weather and torturous mosquitoes befitting of a Klingon Rite of Ascension, I stumbled on infectious music, creative conceptions and a lot of mud.
Yid Vicious plays Yiddish Dance Music on The Last Supper
The artwork in the video is called The Last Supper by Matthew Mazzotta. It's a portable table made to serve regional and endangered resources. There were menus and most notably working taps at every seat. Saturday they were serving a witches brew called Haymaker's Punch~Ginger, Honey, Maple Syrup, Apple Cider Vinegar and Water.
I would stay away from the punch Yid Vs
Ahh yup, Haymaker's Punch makes the sun come out
The day started out all dank and Halloweeny.
I was already lost about what, eight miles from the starting point?
And then it started to rain. Which really sucked because I had to go to the bathroom. But it looked pretty.
Wrong turn number two was fairly scenic
The rain and this sign did not help. The sun came out for a few seconds, hurrah.
The cows were staring.
From The Gallery of Stitches II Farm Form. This cow looks grumpy, but the quilt pattern is radiant
The little guy gave mum a sloppy calf kiss just before I got the shot. Don't you wish your eyes were cameras?
More from the Gallery of Stitches.
Getting looks from the sheep
Please be little bathrooms, please be little bathrooms.
Enough for part one already ("Part one? Oh. Mah. Gawd.") it's already Monday so bring on the tunes. Sorry you're singing John Mellencamp now, but remember the title. I know it seems like a long time since you've read it.
