And he's humble too...

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

Lunch

I had: Sushi from the cart on the corner of King and Pinckney.

Arch had: Coffee and a ham sandwich*.

*(metaphorical).

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.

And the "lam" lies down on Broadway

The weirdest thing about being with Palmer is how I will suddenly get a prog rock song stuck in my head and it will take me HOURS to get it out.

Playing Scrabulous just now I hit one out of the park with LAM in a corner (triple word and double letter I think) for 19 points.

And IMMEDIATELY, Genesis pops into my head...

Beers, Beats, Battlestar Galactica

So I dragged myself out to Gomeroke last night and had a grand time. My dates bailed on me and Palmer had to be up early to travel out of town, so I was on my own. Hesitated on the sign up and found myself near the bottom of the second set - I really *did* try to pace myself (even drank some water, go me!), but I think it's safe to say I was not sober by the time I got up to sing.

Being their anniversary show, there were plenty of performers and audience members who were really revved up about the event, and some great performances. I will definitely be scheduling another Gomeroke night, because it is fun.

It was a good time, people were gracious afterward, and I ended up running into someone that I hadn't seen in a while and bitched about school, which is a nice thing to do every now and again. Got myself a nice cab home and was safe and sound in my bed by 1am watching Battlestar Galactica, which my friend T has been kind enough to addict me to.

Thanks, T!

Dreams

I've been having lots of dreams lately, half-remembered (if that) once I wake.

Vaguely remember being on/watching a British quiz show where "what is longitude" was described very oddly, but it was the right answer.

A few nights ago had another strange dream which I cannot even remember now, but trust me, it was of the same ilk. I woke half remembering something which felt as though it had happened already.

Being able to describe one's dreams well is a talent I fear I lack at the moment.

The dreams themselves have been very vivid, at least.

Northside Farmer's Market: the non-review

So Palmer and I managed to get ourselves to the Northside Farmer's Market this morning, and it was cold and rainy, and frankly, I had no patience for taking pictures or noting exactly what vendors were there.

I *do* know that I was able to use my Quest card to purchase tokens which I exchanged with vendors for food items. I picked up a bag of really nice (well washed) spinach, two bags of rhubarb, a few nice hot house tomatoes, some delicious italian sesame seed cookies (which were, apparently, my Mother's Day gift to myself, as I ate them all), and some green onions.

I used the tomatoes and spinach for M Day brunch, and I'm looking forward to making a crumb topped rhubarb pie tomorrow.

At some point later in the season I'll do a proper post with pictures and more of a rundown of what's available at the market. Today there were a lot of gorgeous flowers available, but I'm just not shopping for plants at the moment.

One nice touch were colourful paper bags with "Happy Mother's Day" stamped on them and little pansie plants inside, free for the taking. So I have one plant to try and keep alive. Wish me luck.