Fall Tour

Taliesen Estate, Spring Green, Wisconsin, October 2009. It's quieter as the season winds down.

It's the best time of year ...

... for the tour.

Taliesen Estate, Spring Green, Wisconsin, October 10, 2009.

Fishy Reunion

Edgewood Orchard Galleries, Fish Creek, Wisconsin, July 2009. They're not biting.

May Reds

Verona, Wisconsin, May 2009. The first one usually is brighter.

Winter-Blue Reunion

Verona, Wisconsin, February 2009. She's heading to the cornfield for a snack.

Morning Conversation

Verona, Wisconsin, January 2009. Rex and Baci exchange greetings.

Our Christmas Cards: Annus-Horribilis Edition

Verona, Wisconsin, December 2009. The troubles started late in 2008, and they lingered.

Dappled Reunion

Monona, Wisconsin, November 2009. Ghiddi enjoys the camera's attention.

Autumn Tour

Taliesen Estate, Spring Green, Wisconsin, October 10, 2009. Several years ago, the leaves changed color later in the season.

Corgi Reunion

Verona, Wisconsin, September 2009. This is our sweet neighbor, Daisy.

Gallery Garden

Edgewood Orchard Galleries, Fish Creek, Wisconsin, July 2009. Choose a path.

CATcerto

This performance by the Klaipeda Chamber Orchestra is from 2009, but the story is new.

Swallow Reunion

Verona, Wisconsin, August 2009. Several swallow families return to our backyard each summer. They build nests under our decks. The birds came back in the last week. Soon we will have chicks.

The Old Bridge

Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, July 2008. We visit the bridge around the time when it closed for repairs. This is not the bridge on which a motorist got trapped in 2009; that was the new bridge.

Short-Days Reunion

Verona, Wisconsin, December 2009. We're getting adjusted to the change of seasons.

Unmatched

Knitters who work with Noro yarns learn that the long, self-striping fibers are difficult to "match" on a garment because the spacing of the colors is not even within the skeins. You may start out with the stripes matching on either side of a seam or garment opening, but you'll soon find that the lineup gets wonky after a few inches of work.

I embrace the quirk and don't try to match the colors:
 

 

 
Verona, Wisconsin, 2009. This is Design 5 from Noro Collection Book 3, Jenny Watson. Mom calls this the "pregnancy sweater."

October Campus

University of Wisconsin—Madison, October 2009. This is the view looking west from the top floor of Van Hise Hall.

A Friend of the Blog

My friend V and I met because of Amber Reunion. This is the second or third time that I've connected (or reconnected) with someone because of a blog. (The first time was when a beloved, high school friend spotted me over at Althouse. Ah! This also counts as a surprise of sorts.)

V, an active, life-long scout, had been searching for historical photos of Lithuanian scouting. She stumbled on this blog, but she did not see a direct way to contact me. Instead of commenting, V wrote to one of the Madison Lithuanians after she saw occasional references here to Wisconsin life. My friend and former folk-dancing teacher, Nijole, put V in touch with me.

V and I have been email pals ever since that original connection, and I am delighted to report that we will be meeting in person this summer.

Indiana, about 1965. Here's V with her Mom. Mom's folkdress is of exquisite quality. The book is about Lithuania's first President, Smetona. You can read more about Smetona here.

Thanks to my friend V for making this photo available to us.

Santa Polka

LTnews.net writes on its Facebook page: "Bob Dylan must have been inspired by his Lithuanian -Jewish roots when he wrote this holiday polka; Merry Christmas !!"

Take a closer look.

Monona, Wisconsin, November 2009. Ghiddi has stirred from her nap, and she's wondering what is causing everyone to focus on her.