It's "World Cepelinas Day"

Are you cooking Cepelinai today? We're not, but it's a nice day to revisit the recipe:

The last time Mr. Irene and I had Cepelinai was when we visited Grand Duke's Restaurant:

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Happy Homecoming Day!

Madison, Wisconsin, October 2013. It's game day at Camp Randall.

Happy Homecoming Day!

Camp Randall, University of Wisconsin—Madison, October 2013. Warm up for the game.

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Camp Randall, University of Wisconsin—Madison, October 2013. The student section readies for "Jump Around."

Camp Randall, University of Wisconsin—Madison, October 2013. Bucky fires up the crowd.

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Camp Randall, University of Wisconsin—Madison, October 2013. Hey! It's only the second football game I've ever attended. So I brought my knitting.

"[T]he petition states if they can't walk they deserve to jump."

University of Wisconsin—Madison announces it will play "Jump Around" during graduation ceremonies at Camp Randall.

Here's a segment I filmed during the October 2011 Homecoming Game (it ends abruptly because my camera battery died):

Is today special?

Maybe. It's World Zep Day.

Here's how the United States Embassy in Vilnius commemorated the occasion.

ADDED: Hiroshima's Little Lithuania recognizes the day, too.

Bidding starts today ...

... for the "Haute Couture Helmets" available at the Super Bowl XLVIII Live Auction.

(Michael Bastian covered his design in knitting yarn.)

A New Recruit

University of Wisconsin—Madison, October 2013. This is "Maya." She is a new officer, and she joins "K-9 Odin" on the University of Wisconsin Police Department.

The Chicago Plot

Last year I posted my Dad's snapshots from the November 2, 1963 Air Force versus Army game at Soldier Field. I noted that President Kennedy's visit to the game had been cancelled because of an assassination plot.

WLS-TV, the Chicago ABC affiliate, ran a story about the plot. The piece uses, with my permission, those photos my Dad took.

Nosebleed Seating

University of Wisconsin—Madison, October 12, 2013. Earlier this month, Mr. Irene and I attended the University of Wisconsin / Northwestern football game. It's only the second game I've attended. Some college classmates invited us, and we sat in the "Visitors" section. Although both Mr. Irene and I got dizzy as we climbed to our rim seats, we had a great time.

Odin Reunion

University of Wisconsin—Madison, October 2013. This is "K-9 Odin" of the University of Wisconsin Police Department. We saw him again recently. I first met Odin near the entrance to Camp Randall. He later visited my class.

Tribute

I love marching bands, and I have good memories of Ohio State. Here's a video of the Ohio State Marching Band performing a Michael Jackson tribute during this past Saturday's halftime show.

Be sure to watch until 03:57, when the moonwalk number begins:

Friday Football

Oak Park, Illinois, Autumn 1965. It's halftime at the game.

Cane-Toss Reunion

University of Wisconsin—Madison, October 12, 2013. Third-year students at the University of Wisconsin Law School participate in the cane-toss tradition.

Players

Oak Park, Illinois, Autumn 1965. The Fenwick High School football team prepares for a game.

Make the right plays.

Madison, Wisconsin, October 15, 2011. The Badgers today will play their third consecutive Rose Bowl game. We're hoping the third time is the charm.

Happy Homecoming Day!

Camp Randall, University of Wisconsin—Madison, October 2011. It's Homecoming Day on the University of Wisconsin—Madison campus. Third-year students at the University of Wisconsin Law School prepare for the cane toss.

When Mr. Irene and I observed the cane toss on the field last year, I was surprised that the toss occurred before the game. I expected it to be part of the half-time festivities. Positioning the cane toss so early—well before the players took the field and even before fans had filled the stadium—deflates the excitement of the tradition.

"Badgers football coach Bielema had no idea Obama was on campus[.]"

That's one of today's Madison headlines.

Meanwhile, the UW—Madison Men's Basketball team secured an audience with the President.

The best college football town is ...

... Madison.

(We already knew that.)


Madison, Wisconsin, October 15, 2011. Members of the UW Marching Band move into the stands.

Football at Soldier Field

I spoke too quickly last year when I asserted that I'd never been to a football game before 2011. My Dad took us to a football game at Soldier Field on November 2, 1963. At first, I didn't know what prompted him to get tickets for the game. Dad was not a sports fan, and to him, "football" meant "soccer." The photos initially suggested that one of the teams was the Army one from West Point. Was this an Army versus Navy match? No. Wikipedia reports that an Army-Navy game took place at Soldier Field in 1926, not 1963.

Ah! Then I saw why we went to this game. President Kennedy was scheduled to attend, and it was an Air Force versus Army match. The Secret Service abruptly canceled the trip, however, after it uncovered an assassination plot.

Dad already had taken us to see JFK earlier that year. Dad was not a Democrat, but he recognized the importance—especially for a child—of seeing the President in person.

Soldier Field, Chicago, November 2, 1963. A big crowd attends the game. Perhaps many still were not aware that President Kennedy was not in the audience.

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Soldier Field, Chicago, November 2, 1963. Here's the photo of the Army cadets that prompted me to start digging into the history of this game.

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Soldier Field, Chicago, November 2, 1963. What's going on here?!

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Soldier Field, Chicago, November 2, 1963. It's the best part of any football game: halftime.

Start thinking about spring.

Now that the holiday season is almost behind us, it's time to start planning for warmer weather. During the icy months, you might consider visiting a garden show.

In the 1960s, when my Dad still was well, our family often visited exhibits and museums. It was not uncommon, for example, for us to go to the Chicago Auto Show. When President Kennedy visited Chicago in March 1963, my Dad took us to O'Hare International Airport to see him. When A Hard Day's Night premiered in 1964, Dad drove us downtown to see the movie at its first Chicago showings. He even took us to Soldier Field in 1964 to see a football game: now that was unusual.

So it wasn't surprising to see this photo from the Chicago Flower and Garden Show.

Chicago, Illinois, January 1964. A view of the "Chicago Flower and Garden Show."