Grin and BEARS It! By Jonathan Suttin

This is addressed to you...Packer Fan.

I know it's been annoying to hear about the Bears return to the Superbowl after 21 years, but keep in mind it's been a long, lonely and rather bumpy road for almost two decades. When I was young, the Packers and Bears were both terrible. A winning season meant beating the Packers twice or at least spliting the series with them. Of course, there were the glory years of the mid- 80's, but after only one visit to the Superbowl it was all downhill for the Monsters of the Midway.

I've been talking with younger Packer fans in the office who were only 4 or 5 years old when the Bears went to the Superbowl and they really don't remember what life was like for the Packers before Number 4. It's amazing to me. I don't feel that old! The tide may have turned a bit, but in this day and age of paraody the Green and Gold won't be down for very long. Heck, they almost made the playoffs this year.

All that being said, please endulge me as I talk about the experience of going to the NFC Title game a couple of weeks ago in Chicago.

I always seem to forget what an "event" a pro football game can be. You can feel the energy before you even get into the place. The mass of bodies heading to the stadium all talking about the game and what they hope happens. Everyone hoping for a victory because somehow a win will make us all feel better. As fans we don't have much to do with the win. Of course, we make noise during a few key plays, but really it's up to the players.

The mood in the stadium was tense as the Bears only led by 2 points at halftime, but as we all know they turned it on in the second half and cruised to victory. Everyone was hugging and slapping hands and some were even taking off their shirts. For some reason showing skin when it's 10 degrees out makes you more of a fan.

What may have been even more amazing to me was the activity after the game ended. Pro sports has really become a cult for this nation. Don't get me wrong, I'm the first in line to drink the Sports Kool-Aid. However, it was still amazing to me that there were hundreds of people jammed around the merchandise booths and elbow to elbow in the "Bears Den" to buy whatever they could get their paws on. You could buy a nifty hat for a mere 30 dollars, a pair of sweatpants for 50 bucks or how about a sweatshirt for $75! People couldn't buy the stuff fast enough. I resisted, but just BEAR-LY.

Itzhak Perlman ROCKS!

O.K., it's been a while since I posted anything on here, but then again it's been a while since I have had the kind of concert experience that I had last night. As I was sitting inside the Overture Center my mind wandered to a recent interview I saw with Eric Clapton- of course I couldn't find that interview when I started writing this, so I'll get the quote wrong or miss his entire point, but I remember Clapton talking about how his skills have diminished (yeah, right!) as he has gotten older. Not being a big fan of classical music, I didn't know what to expect when I walked into the Overture Center- there were people in tuxedos and formal dresses and then there was the guy at the coat check with the spikey hair checking the denim jacket with the big anarchy symbol on the back (maybe he was there for something else???) and there was everything in between.

Itzhak Perlman walked out with two others- his pianist, Rohan DeSilva and Rohan's page turner. What a job that would be, dress in a tux every night, walk out on stage and sit there, reading the music as it's played and then turn the page at the right time. I wonder what that pays? I wonder what happens if he messes up and turns the page too early or too late or accidentally turns two pages at once? I wonder if he would be fired for that? I wonder if he has groupies? Hey I'm a Rock & Roll guy at heart. These are the kinds of things I'm thinking about as the show starts. That and the fact that nothing is amplified in any way and I'm sitting in the balcony and I can hear everything perfectly- this place is great!

As the show gets going we are listening to Schubert and Beethoven and DeBussy and this guy is amazing on the violin- If Clapton played violin...and my mind goes to that interview. Clapton and Itzhak Perlman are about the same age, so if this guys skills have also diminished as he has gotten older, what must he have been like in his prime? I can't even imagine. As the main part of the show ended, the program said that other works will "be announced from the stage." I wonder what could be coming next? Will he light the violin on fire? Smash it to bits and throw it into the audience? Take requests? No, none of that. But at this point Mr. Perlman (that's how the program referred to him) started thumbing through sheet music, looking for something to play for us..."No, that one says it's 'difficult' to play- just for the advanced performer. No, I think I played that one last time I was in Madison." He finally settled on several pieces that really gave him the opportunity to show his skills.

You know, if the Devil had met up with Itzhak Perlman when he went down to Georgia, there would be no contest. And, if Eric Clapton believes that he's not as good as he once was, fine, but I'll never believe it. And I'll never believe Itzhak Perlman was any better than he was on Tuesday night at the Overture Center.

Roughing it with a city boy (Jonathan Suttin)

For years, I've made fun of Kitty because of her fear of going to large cities such as New York and Chicago. She worries about battling traffic and is even afraid she'll get caught in the subway doors and make news all around the country.
Perhaps it was payback time for this city boy when I went camping for the first time ever in mid-September. I knew I had to go with someone who had camping experience. The gal I invited along has not only camped a lot in summer, she actually took part in snow camp as a kid! I didn't even know you could camp in the winter. Aren't the camping areas closed because of the snow?
We decided to go to Governor Dodge State Park. She thought this would be a good "starter" trip for me. Gov. Dodge is beautiful and also not that far away, in case I freaked out.
When we arrived and checked in the with ranger at the entrance, I noticed all the stuffed wildlife inside. There were racoons and owls to name a few. I thought I would be funny by asking the ranger how they keep the animals so well behaved in-doors. She looked at me and asked if it was my first time camping. I told her it was and she said, "I bet you're scared tonight in the dark."
We went to the Hickory Ridge Section of Governor Dodge. This area is normally for larger camping groups (up to 20 people), but since it was late in the season it was available for just the two of us. It turns out the other four sites in our area were empty. In other words, we had a whole lot of woods without anyone around.
I loved setting up camp. It was fun to put up the tent and gather wood for the fire. We decided to take a hike in the afternoon and even came across some baby snapping turtles. I was loving it. We also saw a Wolf Spider which was really big. I don't really like spiders, but it was in the nature mood and he didn't bother me...yet Our walk ended up being longer then we thought and we arrived back at camp as the sun was rapidly setting. We started to build a fire, and very quickly it became DARK. I mean it was DARK. Keep the latern or flashlight in front of your face dark. I got mildly freaked out at how DARK it became.
We borrowed a small propane grill from a friend and cooked up some pasta. It was good, but it was also DARK out! Something else strange, the noises that seemed harmless during the morning where quite scary at night. Is that an acorn falling from a tree or an ax murderer waiting to slice me up after I fell asleep? The sounds of owls and coyotes in the night reminded me of loud neighbors laughing it up at a party.
Finally, it was time for bed. No problem, but as I was falling asleep I kept thinking about my friend the Wolf Spider and wondering if he was in the bottom of my sleeping bag. Of course, in the middle of the night I had to go to the bathroom. As I was "out" in nature, I wondered if Wolfie would come out of a tree to say hello.
I have to admit I was glad when morning arrived. The second day including a canoe trip and more hiking. I was much calmer on the second night except for the part where I cut my finger with my Swiss Army knife as I was trying to prepare a stick for Smores.
Overall it was a great trip. Before we left I went back to the place where I first saw the Wolf Spider. He was, of course, gone. I kinda wanted to see him one more time. When I got into my own bed that night in my apartment, I couldn't help but think perhaps Mr. Wolf Spider was a stowaway in my gear. Yikes! Someone turn on the lights. I need to check my bed!!!

Memories, like the...oh, never mind.

It's Wednesday morning, I'm still pumped up from the Tom Petty show last night at the Dane County Coliseum (I'm Old School, I still call it the Coliseum). As I stood towards the back of the floor, all those shows that I have seen at the Coliseum came rushing back to me. I can't say that I remember every moment of every show, but I think there was something from just about every show that stands out. Some great musical moments, some fun things that happened before or after the show, some things that didn't relate to the show at all, but that I relate to the show...

There was my very first show at the Coliseum. It was Neil Diamond in 1978 or 79. I went with my family, my sister and I were pretty young and we had great seats, 8th row, dead center. The people sitting directly in front of us didn't show up, so we had a perfect view of the stage and Neil Diamond had a perfect view of us. In fact, part way through the concert, he stopped the show and waved to us and said "Hi kids." How cool was that!?!

I saw my first Cheap Trick show there- during the break between Off Broadway and Cheap Trick, some big jock realized that someone had ripped off his pot and just started swinging at anyone who looked like they may smoke pot. I was pretty safe there.

There was the Aerosmith show where for some reason a bunch of us piled up all of our winter coats and took turns diving into them. Big Twist and the Mellow Fellows were playing that night at Headliners, so we all left the Aerosmith show early to go to Headliners. We were sure Aerosmith would show up. Big Twist and the Mellow Fellows put on a great show. No Aerosmith.

I remember Def Leppard opening for Blackfoot and watching one of the guys from Def Leppard sneak behind the stacks of speakers to get high. I just recently heard that the guys in Def Leppard were incredibly homesick on that tour (they were only 16 years old) and the guys in Blackfoot were brutal, wanted nothing to do with a bunch of cry-baby kids.

Van Halen was always fun at the Coliseum. I remember one show, seeing a guy from a local band standing towards the back of the floor with his girlfriend...until a roadie handed her a backstage pass, but not him. She was gone in a flash!

I met the bass player from Loverboy after they opened the Kansas concert! To this day I have no idea who plays bass for Loverboy, but it was pretty cool at the time.

When the Kansas show ended they played "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" on the sound system to clear the room. Cool for two reasons- 1) "We're not in Kansas anymore" is what was going through my mind as the song played, and 2) The next show I saw at the Coliseum was Rainbow.

Pat Travers opened the show for Rainbow and came out on stage with his new short haircut. Pat Travers sans MULLET! My world has been turned upside down.

I didn't get to see Springsteen. I smashed up my parents car the weekend before tickets went on sale. There was no way I could a) ask for money for tickets, or b) borrow the car to go buy tickets with my own money.

What I Drank on My Summer Vacation

Typically, a vacation for Mike and me includes visits to the many breweries and brewpubs that dot the Wisconsin landscape. This time, we made it to our favorite out of town brewpub, the Northwoods Brewery in Eau Claire. Our favorite brews here are Bumblin’ Bubba’s, a delicious honey ale, and Floppin’ Crappie. They also have incredibly great deals on food—on Mondays you can get a pint of beer, a cheeseburger and fries for $5.95. And I should mention the pints here are 20 ounces! Tuesday is the all-day happy hour—and Tuesday night is open mike night. We saw a guy play incredible classical guitar---on an electric bass. Totally unexpected and cool.
A trip to that neck of the woods wouldn’t be complete without a stop at the Leinie Lodge in Chippewa Falls. The store is a little too slick—I miss the old smaller pub atmosphere that used to be located right inside the brewery. Whether you take the tour or not, they give you two free 7 ounce beers. Our favorite barmaid Ione was setting ‘em up as usual—if you see her tell her Mike and Kitty said hi. By the way, the Sunset Wheat is extra delicious on tap.
Then we set out looking for a new brewery we discovered at the Great Taste of the Midwest. Rush River Brewing Company is supposed to be located in Maiden Rock on the Mississippi River. We couldn’t find it, but did see the same dead raccoon three times. We stopped in at a bar called the Lakeside on highway 35 and tried one of Rush River’s beers. Can’t remember what it was called but it was pretty good.
Thanks to a tip from a Triple M listener, Breasly, a truck driver from Galesville, we headed to Fountain City to find a bar located on a barge in the Mississippi River. It’s called the Dam Saloon, and it really is a floating bar. We drank Schmidt out of a can (for $2.50 apiece) and really enjoyed the atmosphere. It’s the only floating bar on the northern half of the Mississippi River. Every summer they hold a bikini contest that might even be bawdier than Mardi Gras at the Club Tavern.
Then we drove across the bridge to Winona, Minnesota and paid a visit to the Backwater Brewing Company, which is located in a bowling alley. You can watch the bowlers, catch the Twins game on TV, and enjoy a microbrew at the same time. The Nut Brown here is very creamy and almost butterscotch flavored, but the nachos were not that great.
Our next stop was LaCrosse to find the Pearl Street Brewery. We had to drivepast some barricades in an industrial area to get to it, and we found it! Unfortunately they have no tasting room, so we’ll have to put their beers on the agenda for another trip.
Oh just so you know---we didn’t visit all these places in one day. Visited a cool brew pub in Wisconsin or surrounding states? I’d love to hear about it.

Cheap Trick and a cheap trick

O.K., I admit it- I’m a geek, a weirdo, a dork. Actually, I’m probably a dork for using the word “dork,” but that’s another story. I’m admitting to being a dork after my weekend following Cheap Trick around the Midwest. No, not quite like the deadheads used to do with the Grateful Dead, it was only two nights and we didn’t camp out. Instead my wife and I got really expensive hotel rooms and enjoyed a little mini vacation checking out Cheap Trick, or at least trying to check out Cheap Trick- but more on that later.

On the Saturday night of Labor Day weekend Cheap Trick played in Rockford as part of the “On The Waterfront” festival. Seeing Cheap Trick in their hometown is an event. I would imagine Neil Diamond, Barbra Streisand or Simon & Garfunkel would cause the same type of craziness in New York. Everywhere you turned as you walked the streets of Rockford there were people in Cheap Trick shirts- young, old and everyone in between. There was the guy in the bar (The Carlyle- a really cool little brew-pub) before the show, telling his buddies about his Cheap Trick hat (“I got it at a show in 1978…”), there was the 20-something kid with the pink mohawk sitting in front of us at the show, he was there with his girlfriend, sister and mom- they were all singing along to every song and high-fiving when favorites were played. There was the radio station giving away a “Tricked-out ATV” all decorated with pictures of the band and Cheap Trick logos. There was a crowd that sat through Buddy Guy’s opening set, politely clapping after each song. BUDDY GUY! A Blues legend gets polite clapping after each song?!? Rick Nielson spent a lot of time talking to the audience. Not the way most artists do, but actually talking TO the audience- you know, talking to his pharmacist, his neighbor, Bun E and Robin’s families and other assorted friends and relatives.

That was Saturday night- Sunday morning when we woke up, we were flipping through the TV stations and came upon VH1 Classic and a special on, you guessed it, CHEAP TRICK! When the VH1 special ended it was off to Chicago for the Ravinia show on Sunday night. Or at least that was the plan. We checked into our hotel and grabbed a cab to Piece- a cool pizza place/brewpub in Buck-Town. Rick Nielson happens to be a part owner of Piece, so there were several tables full of Cheap Trick fans hanging out at Piece. We enjoyed some pizza (one of my top 3 favorite pizzas- along with Lombardi’s in New York City and Maria’s on Main Street in Oregon) and some of their award winning beer. We did a little shopping after lunch (I got a really cool pair of shoes and a nice shirt if you must know) and then went for a drink. Then it was back to the hotel. From there we planned to catch the train out to Ravinia to see Cheap Trick once again. We got bad directions to the train station and ended up missing our train and the show. I hear good things about the show, but I guess it was not to be.

I know, not a great ending to the story, but that’s the way things work out sometimes- It’s happened before- in 1998 when I caught a cold and missed most of the last night of their 4 night stand in Chicago. A few years earlier, I was at a convention when they played Summerfest. My wife took her then 70-something mother and her mother’s pre-teen neighbor to the show. Then there was the time the rain hit and I mean really hit hard and flooded the South side of Milwaukee and the state fair show was cancelled. Talk about your Cheap Tricks.

Pat Gallagher is Bike Crazy

By Pat Gallagher:

Let me start by saying that I AM NOT A BIKE NAZI! Although I do have those thoughts from time to time when I’m riding as close to the right hand side of the road as is safely possible and a car blows by honking at me with the driver shaking his fist at me, or worse, but that’s a different story.

I rode my bike to work this morning for the first time in about a week. I had a flat in the middle of last week and then we had all the rain and then I was just plain too lazy to fix the flat. Well, I fixed it this morning and took off for work at about 7. On the ride in I realized how much I love to ride. Oh, there’s the usual reasons- it’s good for the environment (yeah, I’m a genuine tree-hugger), it’s good exercise, etc. But the real reasoning hit me as I was climbing a small hill; coming down that hill was a woman walking her dog, I smiled and said "Good morning." She smiled back and wished me a good morning also, a couple of blocks later there were two women out for their morning jog- same exchange, then there was the old guy who was on his way home with the morning paper under his arm. We had another similar exchange.

I started thinking about those 3-second conversations as I rode along. I tried to remember the last time I had that type of interaction when I was driving in my car, it hardly ever happens- sometimes at the gas station while I’m filling up for $45 (it’s a small car), I commiserate with the person next to me, but that’s not the same. I feel better when I ride my bike. I feel worse when I put $45 into my gas tank, even if it does give me the chance to commiserate with a perfect stranger. So, I admit it, my reasons for riding are totally selfish. The environment, the exercise…whatever! I just like the friendly smiles and the energy I have when I get to work in the morning.

Back To School

By Kitty Dunn:

It’s almost time for the kids to head back to the classroom. Crews are repainting the crosswalks in front of the schools. Folders and notebooks are so affordable it seems buying just one is hardly worth it. Protractors are so cheap it makes me want to measure some angles. Brand new sweaters are piled up neatly, waiting to be purchased.

Am I the only person who feels ripped off because I no longer get to experience that back-to-school excitement? I’m not a teacher, and I don’t have any kids, so the only thing I get to do is walk through the aisles of Target and dream about the good old days.

Don’t get me wrong. As a kid, I loved summer. Riding my Schwinn with the banana seat through the streets of Stevens Point. Running through the sprinkler. But by August I was ready to go back, ready to small the freshly tarred playground, the tempera paints and the chalk dust. Ready to meet my new teacher and perhaps some new friends.

The start of a new school year was always a fresh beginning. It was an opportunity for me to unveil the new me, the one that would get to sit with the cool kids in the cafeteria. I couldn’t wait to wear my new wardrobe, but those new sweaters would always have to wait until the temperature dropped 10 or 20 degrees, since schools back then didn’t have air conditioning.

I suppose since I can’t really go back to school—I could just buy a new sweater and sit in the house with the air conditioner turned off. And measure some acute and obtuse angles for old time’s sake.