And he's humble too...

Palmer and I at the Reptile Palace Orchestra show atop Monona Terrace Convention Center.

A Great Success

Okay, so I didn't win *anything* in the raffle, and there were only three porta-potties this year (I swear there were at least 4 at past events), and I couldn't inveigle anyone in my family to come. Besides those small things, the 11th Annual WORT Block Party was a raging success. I even remembered to wear sun screen on my face so I only have the lightest hint of colour from my hours in the sun.

I think it is fair to say that this Block Party is a must attend tradition for me. Palmer had to be in Chicago, so unfortunately I was on my own for a chunk of the day, but there was plenty to see and do and tons of folks to talk to.

First off, I have to say that WORT volunteers are amazing. I can count myself in their number in an extremely limited capacity, but I see the same dedicated people at event after event, promoting the station, doing community events, and generally just being a presence off air. This was a great block party to be a part of and the block party goers and vendors were all pretty swell.

Cindy is the sweetest poodle. She was rocking a skull and crossbones doggie sweater. Last year I saw her hanging out in the basket of her human's bike. She's a WORT Block Party regular, too!


It was such a fun day! The weather was odd, partly cloudy most of the day, sometimes quite chilly until the sun came out, but it stayed dry. The music was fun, and I took pictures of all the bands but none of them came out very well. The Nob Hill Boys started the day off with bluegrass and had the crowd eating out of their hands by the end of the set.

Conspicuously absent from my photographic record are any pictures of the "No Crap on Tap" beer table, brought out by the Madison Homebrewers and Tasters. Considering how much time I spent near it, I don't know how I got away without even one photograph. How odd.

I did, however, get a picture of my first beer and my lunch. The beer was a Flanders Ned Red from Grumpy Troll in Mount Horeb. It was fresh and tangy with a sour flavour. Really nice beer. Went perfectly with my Dorowat on Injera from Buraka (so happy they were there this year).
I ran into lots of folks I knew, some who I inveigled to come down to the Block Party, some who were staff and volunteers at the station, and the rest just folks I've known from as far back as 18 years and as recently as a month. There were tons of families there, including one with a two-year old who was such a fan of Rockin' John that he made him a card. I overheard his folks saying that they listened to his show every week and the kid couldn't get enough. He was pretty thrilled to meet his radio hero.

Here are the friends of mine I managed to take pictures of, I'm kind of bummed that I didn't take *more* photos. I guess after 3 Grumpy Troll Beers (the Flanders, the Spetznaz Stout and the ass-kicking Maggie IPA) and a delicious Lake Louie Brew that I couldn't even finish, I wasn't much for picture taking.

E and M enjoying a Family Farm Defender's Grilled Cheese sammy.
Miss P and I in and end of the day embrace.N rocking the giraffe umbrellaMe and Palmer's friend K
All in all it was a fabulous day. I highly recommend putting this on your to do list for 2009.

Green!

Veggies at Viet Hoa Grocery store on Monona Drive.

Soon to be a picture post

Yes, soon, this spot will be held by a picture post. My new camera reveals that I am still very much a ham, still love taking self-portraits proving this, and still, IMHO, am totally cute.

So happy Christmas is over, looking forward to New Years Eve (is it New Year's Eve or the way I wrote it first?).

Today I'm pleasantly tired, gently hungover, and grateful that my car did not spin around in circles just now, in the slippery snow.

Ah, winter. Ah, beer (I so am thinking "hair of the dog", but my son has a friend over and I think that would just be wrong...).

So once I get my camera working and pics downloaded, I'll post some pics! Hooray for self-absorption!

Cow

From the Cows on the Concourse 2006 - I wonder where all the cows are now?

Also, why didn't I really take any pictures in 2007? At least I've started up again.

I'm so happy, cuz today I found my friends, they're in my head

I feel like taking pictures of stuff is very important. Helps me remember what happened before now.

I've got some great pictures of Olbrich Gardens. Great, except I realized that I've taken the same picture of a rose about 50 times. They all turn out great, but I guess I don't need that many. I just thought it was pretty amazing that roses were still blooming this late in the season.

Since the next two days are crazy for me, I'm going to forget about posting them until the weekend or next week. But they'll be fantastic worth waiting for fun to see. I promise.

Here's a little live Polyphonic Spree doing Nirvana's "Lithium".

Cheesy

On the way down to the Overture Center last night, we stopped at the House of Cheese and snapped a picture. LOLZ.

I know the cat-captioning thingy is played out, but it makes me laugh anyhow.

Happy Birthday Palmer!