Desert Snow

There were some interesting tracks next to the ice rink on Stricker's pond. I wondered where they led.

Wait, is that a pyramid?

A Little Nip

I got a Turbo Scratcher refill for Dexter's Mardi Gras present which I guessed he wanted more than beads. He acted as if he's never gotten a new toy or scratcher before and even enjoyed the nip that came with it. He's normally not a nip guy so it must have been good stuff.
Doesn't he look a little too fascinated with the turbo balls?

Dude, have you ever really looked at these balls? I mean really looked at them? They're soooo cool

Patio Seating

I hope you like your Red Stripe cold.

Crash and Freeze

This Little Tikes Cozy Coupe reminded me of my daredevil cousin who was always building ramps and riding anything on wheels over it. I wonder how far the rider of this Cozy Coupe got without snow tires. (This far). I hope they wore boots.

I'm betting the kid in green crashed his little brother's car since the footprints lead directly to him

And Put Up A Parking Lot

The snow and bright sky were doing something interesting to the Westport tree sculpture yesterday. It became an even more fascinating tree after it was killed then turned into a sculpture in 1998. Artist Alberto Chavez carved out a tale from the old oak which features a woman, an eagle, a man, a bear, a snake and some otters. I can pick out the woman and eagle in this shot but I'm not 100 percent on the bear.
I think of this artwork as a living thing that makes my life more interesting than it is. Here's a little history from an earlier post.

It was the oldest oak in Dane County before they killed it to put up a parking lot or in this case an apartment complex

You Wouldn't Like Him When He's Angry

We love Bill Bixby and think Ed Norton and Mark Ruffalo are okay too. We do not love our new diet.
An accidental overdose of gamma radiation didn't alter Dexter's body chemistry but I think he could use a snack.

Don't make me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry.

Suspicion

I thought when Aaron Rodgers broke his collarbone in the first quarter of that Viking game in mid-October it was some kind of karmic payment for a relatively snowless and mild winter. Except for a few eyeball freezing days here and there, it's been one of the more *pleasant winters on record.
However we're looking forward to the "snowiest week of the winter" just as Rodgers is healing up nicely in the Pebble Beach sun with Danica Partick. I find it suspicious is all.

A community of ice people is forming in Middleton on Lake Mendota

Looks like a good place for a sandwich and hot chocolate. Watch out for lunatics on ATVs

I almost got stuck down the road from here where I shouldn't have been in the first place. Hoorah for good tires and AWD

*Pleasant meaning no disasters like the one in 2008 shown in the video above

I Just Wanted A Diet Coke

Yesterday was Ice Cream For Breakfast Day.  My first question is, "Why?" followed by, "Who gets to make these things official?" A short and lazy search for answers came up with a family in upstate New York who created it between winter holidays. Their kids spread the word in college and word of mouth put it on the calendar.
If all you have to do is get tired of winter and tell your college friends something weird about your parents involving ice cream then I submit My Dad Is Hiding The Good Ice Cream Under The Gross Ice Cream Which Makes No Sense Because Why Even Get That Kind In The First Place Day.

Mackinac Island Fudge topped with raspberry sauce on top of a freshly made waffle

We went to the Chocolate Shoppe which used to be the Chocolate House which is where my dad had ice cream baristas fill gallons of covert layers. Unfortunately I couldn't stomach any of the creations I'd been planning on such as Lucky Charms in banana ice cream or Caramel Apple Pie with Cinnamon Toast Crunch crumbles. When I asked for caffeine I was pointed to a caffeinated espresso ice cream with fudge swirls and chocolate. I meant do you have a Diet Coke.

She did an admirable job of putting away this monstrosity

It was too early for anything except wake up soda and a bit of toast as I'm not an early riser and usually can't eat breakfast until it's close to lunch. But my cousin Nanci was up for anything. She's one of my favorite go-to taste testers and has eaten worse than this for the sake of a post.

Are we not trying to discourage this trend?

People were feasting on Greenbush Bakery donut ice cream sandwiches and freshly made waffles topped with many imaginative and disgusting things, some in pajamas, some not.

If ever a child did not want to be seen with their parents

A UW student most likely armed with freshly acquired knowledge and a shiny new sense of self-importance objected to my taking a picture of the food on her table. I was going to trash it when she said, "I'm going to stand here while you delete it." The way she said it set my teeth on edge so I went against my policy of request and delete. It's a pretty crummy photo and the young lady in profile seemed as thrilled to be in the middle of her friend's drama as the kid eating breakfast ice cream with her parents.

Wafflegeddon

When I walked over to her friends and showed them the photo I got the feeling they'd been through this before. The drama queen was going to show me proof I was acting illegally—which I was looking forward to—but couldn't come up with anything so threatened to "call someone." We lingered a bit to see if "someone" would show but she strutted off down State Street in search of a new 15-minute cause, blowing me a kiss through the window.

My dad, taker of unwanted photos and kind of ice cream camo

Although the Chocolate Shoppe was promoting this as a media event and encouraged posting photos to Facebook and Instagram it helps to know some of the basic laws of street photography (I found #6 especially helpful).
What experiences have you had when taking photos of people, I'd love to hear about them in the comments or email.

What The Cat Saw

We haven't had much snow and people were happy we got some today.
Quick Tip: It helps to clean off your car windows if you want to see. (Someone backed into my car in a parking lot as I was waiting for an elderly gentleman to back out in front of me. The guy's excuse, "I didn't think to look.")
Shortly after that I almost ran into a speeding ATV which was racing down a county park driveway onto the ice. I won't even talk about breakfast at the ice cream shop.
So tonight we're content to look out the window and listen to one of our favorite radio shows.

I have no desire to go out there

Honey, I'm Home

I know someone who lived on the ice one winter behind the Memorial Union in the '80s. This isn't him.

It could be a food truck, mmm, Umami Buns.

From When I Had More Energy To Walk Down Trails

This photo from Buckhorn State Park is from my first non-disposable digital camera, a slow and clunky point-and-shoot from 2003. It took compact flash cards which have been storing forgotten photos.
There are eight trails at Buckhorn State Park, this might be the Central Sands Nature Trail. I remember shooting something sandy somewhere at some point. Do they make memory cards for people?