So I had my trip to Wisconsin last week. I got home Sunday (Monday a.m.) at 1:30, after spending a day at O'Hare and almost missing my flight because I was at the wrong gate. Honestly. It was a fine day but I did get tired of wandering around, pulling my little red suitcase. When I got to Burlington at midnight, I couldn't find my car in the garage--so there I was again, pulling my little red suitcase and wandering aimlessly. I found it, of course, right where it was supposed to be--I was in the wrong place and didn't think to click the lights and/or horn. Duh. I just don't think in those terms. Remote stuff. Anyway, I got right on the ferry and had a fine trip home.
The trip to Wisconsin was to gather with friends from Rockford--from elementary school, junior and senior high schools. There were 17 of us and it was great. A huge effort on the part of those who organized it and set it all up. We came from Calif., Oregon, Virginia, Boston, Wisc. and Illinois. And me. Surprising how many of us ended up in California. Anyway, this is a wonderful group of women and I had a good time with them. They're all moving along in their lives--some are grandparents, some are retired, and some of us still work. Oh how I'd like to retire. Anyway, we had plenty of activities and fun.
We went on a dinner cruise one night--had the boat to ourselves so it was great. The boat went around the lake so we could see lots of summer homes. There are strict zoning regulations in Lake Geneva so it's pretty and pristine. The lake was beautiful, water very clear ("gin clear" as one of us put it) but it seemed very strange not to have mountains surrounding the water.
We did lots of walking--there's a great foot path around the lake, though the full perimeter is 26 miles so we didn't come close to that. The path goes right along the water and is like the Cliff Walk in Newport. Very pretty.
We went to the beach one day. Some swam, but I'm too fat to wear a swimsuit in public so I just sat and visited. It was nice.
We went to the local museum, which was OK but the docent talked too much. She wouldn't let us into the exhibits until she finished her lengthy presentation. Plenty of stuff to look at, though.
One of my friends had a stroke a few years ago and is in a wheelchair. She's wonderful and is working very hard on her speech, so we all learned how to listen to her and have normal conversations. She's a peach, and the group was devoted to the idea that Joanne would join us everywhere we went. It worked out really well.
Weather was fine--80's and sunny. It was humid when I got there but not later on. We were really lucky to have such good weather--some shopping, lots of walking, sitting on our balconies and visiting.
What was it like to be in the Midwest again? It's always a bit strange. Hard to define what's different about it, aside from the obvious geography. The people are nice, always friendly. They pronounce some words differently, which I always find entertaining. Route (root) is rout (rhymes with about). Chicago is Chicawgo. But the beer is good and so was the cheese.
It was a really nice, nice trip.
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