The first weekend in April was supposed to be my rock climbing outing - I was so excited for it! Initially the plan was to go on April 2, but the outfitting company rescheduled us to the 3rd. Go figure - the 2nd was beautiful, and the 3rd poured rain. We were 1/2 way to Devil's Lake (a 2 hour drive from piddly little Waukesha, where the climbing was gonna go down) when I got the call that they were cancelling the day. Discouraged, but not defeated, Jim decided to take me for a day in Madison since we were practically to that point anyways!
Our first stop: Greasy diner food! I 'Googled' best breakfast places in Madison on my phone (god bless the smart phone) and we ended up at the Blue Plate Diner. In the words of Guy Fieri - It was so money! Nothing to start off your day like artery clogging fried eggs, bacon, and biscuits that tasted like they were made of pure lard. DELISH. Have I mentioned that I've been slacking on going to the gym? That's neither here nor there though....
#1 reason I can't be a vegetarian. Show me fake bacon that tastes this good!Stop 2: The Capitol building. I pretended to protest - but since I'm not a union worker, it felt half-assed. Security checked us for any contraband crock-pots or snakes (Yes, these things were on the list of items you are not allowed to bring inside) and in we went. There's not a whole lot going on inside the Capitol on a Sunday except 2 small boys racing their dad in circles under the dome and a group of dread-lock clad college students holding a badger flag and chanting in tongues... Not entirely sure if they were praying or hexing, but I haven't broken out in boils, so whatever it was, it wasn't directed towards me.
This state has an odd fascination with badgers. They even have statue busts of them! (Please look above my head)
Wisonsin: Are you my home?Stop 3: The world's shittiest free zoo. I don't know if this zoo was just sad because it was a rainy day, or if it was just sad. We came, we toured, we laughed, we left. If they ever decide to charge an admission, maybe they can update themselves out of 1983. Only if anyone decides that zoo is worthy of paying an admission....
See what you look like as a dino by holding up these masks while you sit in front of a mirror. Who can resist?
Trying my hand at rock climbing since we didn't get to go
Taking a naptime cue from the bear in the back. Stop 4: The Cave of the Mounds. After telling Jim about my spelunking trip in CO for the millionth time, he suggested we go to Wisconsin's own cave spectacular! Not quite a down and dirty experience since there were handrails the whole way through, but pretty never the less! And I did get dripped on a few times - how rugged and outdoorsy!
Nothing says "I'm ready to go caving" quite like a bat hat.
I wish I could have crawled under there!
Still pretty (even if the tour wasn't dirty!)Finish that day off with some cheese curds and ice cream and I call it a rainy day well spent!
This past weekend was fairly eventful as well! I took another trip to the Miller Brewery (cause free beer is always good) A note to fellow adult beverage consumers: attending brewery tours with non-beer drinkings will guarantee you their extra drinks.
Saturday I joined a hiking Meetup.com group near North Kettle Moraine state park for a 15 mile trek. Nothing like spending your Saturday walking through the woods with complete strangers! We started with five of us, but somewhere around the 5-6 miles mark, 2 bailed out. Feeling ok at the time (and having nothing else going on that day) I chose to tally forth - a decision I would regret come Sunday. Everyone I met was very nice, but the guy who organized the hike, Tom, was a hiking mad-man! He was soooo fast. I had to jog at some points to keep up. Had I known where I was and how to get back to my car, I may have turned around, but my massive case of disorientation kept me pressing on. Thankfully, the other remaining hiker, Masuo, was a sweetheart and although he could have easily kept up with Tom and left me huddled somewhere in the woods, fetal position and crying, he would wait up for me and made sure I wasn't dying along the way. Roughly 4 hours from the start time, I finished the whole route and have a blister the size of a small country to prove it! I was rendered an invalid Sunday due to sore legs and the pain didn't subside until Tuesday. Maybe I do need to hit that gym more...
I'm amazed all my photos didn't turn out blurry from how fast I was going! Photographic evidence I was there!
The poor snake I almost trampled
Not quite green and lush yet, but nice in its own way
Upcoming? Hockey game, Fish Fry, and a trial run of attempting to bike to work! Wish me luck!
