My Grandson's 2nd Birthday

My Grandson celebrated his 2^nd birthday this past weekend.  My Son and Daughter-in-law held a small party at their house, with good food and beer served.  My Grandson had incredible energy throughout the afternoon and evening.  He is a typical little boy in love with his toy cars and trucks.  During the party he put down his toys and decided to throw rocks at the windows, shattering one on his first try.

My Son cooked rotisserie chickens which were delicious and served with an incredible tuna salad and a potato salad.  My Daughter-in-law and her sister made an owl themed cake, cupcakes and decorations.

During the cake eating and present opening, we cheered and clapped many times, at my Grandson’s direction.  It was a very fun celebration.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Richland Center, Wisconsin

I am currently working in Richland Center, Wisconsin.  This small town of 5,000 people is located in Southwest Wisconsin in an area known as the "driftless" area.  The geography is unusual with high hills and deep valleys.  It is believed the last round of glaciers missed the area.  The countryside is beautiful. The Pine River runs along the city and is spring fed.  Trout fishing in the area is excellent.

Richland Center is a city that time seems to have passed by.  It has a Mayberry feeling and look.  That is not meant to be a bad thing, however the humble little downtown probably hasn't changed in 50 years. The red brick county courthouse is amazing. I went to the local furniture store to buy a bed, and the lady recognized me as someone from out of town. She seemed excited that I was moving into their town and told me about some upcoming events, including a country music festival and tractor pull.

Country music plays everywhere and the town has its own radio station. I originally thought there were only 10 country songs ever recorded, but I now know there are more than 20.  Just kidding country fans.

I have developed a nice little routine to my life here.  First thing in the morning I go for my run and workout at Symons Recreational Center on the UW RC campus.  It opens at 4:00 a.m., so I can get a full workout in before work.  On Fridays, the Church of Navarone near my apartment sells bratwurst for  $2 including sour kraut and onions. 

Two blocks away is the Alcam Creamery which has the most amazing butter, produced from the milk of nearby Amish farms and then handrolled.  Rumor has it that the Ruth's Chris steak chain uses their butter, and melts some on top of their steaks.  I now know their secret. Surpisingly, I first heard about Alcam while living in Taiwan.  An ex-pat friend living in Taichung told me about the great butter he found while visiting a factory nearby.

Richland Center has a number of large dairy processing plants, a foundry, a Rockwell automation factory and other manufacturing plants.  Employment seems plentiful here and finding a decent apartment is tough.

I am a fan of the architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright.  While most people think of him as a resident of Spring Green, he was born in Richland Center.  Only one building in town was designed by the master-the A.D. German Warehouse.  The building is famous with Wright fans and many people seek out Richland Center to see his early career work.  Once I moved here, I planned to go find the building.  One night I was cooking dinner on the grill on my second story deck. I looked up and realized the building was across the street.  I recognized the Mayan patterned tiles around the top of the building, peering through the trees.

Richland Center has a super Walmart and I'm thankful for that.  Life here isn't too bad.  The people are friendly and it takes me between 3-5 minutes to get anywhere, including work.  I've never before had a job that I lived so close I could go home for lunch.  That's kind of nice.  On weekends I return to our home 2.5 hours away to enjoy my life there.

Madison, Wisconsin

My wife and I spent two days in Madison, Wisconsin.  She had been to a conference at UW many years ago, but had never spent any time touring the city.  Everyone I have ever met that has either gone to school or lived there loves the city and I can understand why.  I had to show her Madison. 

The night before, we had dinner at the home of my wife's friends from China.  Their 14 year old daughter, a food network junkie, prepared a multi-course dinner that was fabulous.  Such a talented young woman.

After sleeping in late, we went to tour the State Capitol building.  I had been there on school tours as a child, but not since.  The marble work is incredible and the views of the city from outside the rotunda are amazing.

My daughter-in-law and son, both UW alums, suggested we eat lunch at Dotty Dumpling’s Dowry.  Dotties has the best burgers and we looked forward to the lunch.  When we arrived, workers were renovating the building and the owner was standing outside supervising.  He apologized and said they were closed until the following week.  We had no plan B, so we walked towards State St. and had lunch at State Street Brats.  The weather was nice and we sat outside drinking local beers, eating bratwursts and deep fried cheese curds.  A more Wisconsin lunch you cannot find.

Montee Ball, the University of Wisconsin’s Heisman award hopeful running back, was badly beaten by five men after leaving State Street Brats late at night.  It wasn’t my wife or me; we were both sleeping at our hotel at that time.  The beating is alleged to be revenge for an earlier fight involving Ball.  Again, it wasn’t us; we did not fight with Montee.

After lunch we walked to the Memorial Union on the lakefront for an ice cream.  We sat on the patio watching the sailing students launch their boats and people ordering brats and beer from the outdoor stand.  It was very relaxing.

Later we went to Monona Terrace, the Frank Lloyd Wright designed conference center, built 40 years after his death.  The views were incredible and a FLW history pictorial was interesting.  I borrowed some photos from the website.

Madison is a very livable city and a great place to visit.

Fun Weekend

My good friend from Texas visited, as he does every year at this time.  On Saturday the two of us joined two other good friends for golf.  The weather was hot and humid and the cold beer served by some talented employees on the course was very tasty.   After golf, my friends and their wives, my son and his friend, wives and my grandson came over to the house for a party.  There was a great deal to talk about, and a number of new stories told and old stories repeated.

On Sunday morning my son’s friend invited us to his apartment downtown for drinks and then took us to the professional beach volleyball tournament at the lakefront.  He played volleyball at Ohio State and was one of the NCAA kill leaders during his day.  So his perspective was good. Sunday’s weather was cooler with low humidity.  The Jose Cuervo girls handed out free stuff and generally entertained the crowd, especially the males.  We watched a few matches and then enjoyed the beach, where my son, daughter-in-law and grandson were having fun.

The weekend was great fun and very relaxing.  My friend left the house this morning at 4:30 a.m. and I drove long distance to my job.  We have been enjoying a version of this weekend for years and I hope there are many more ahead of us.

Type 2 Diabetes Drug

My wife is part of a scientific team that developed a new type 2 diabetes drug that is targeted for the Asian markets.  This new drug (DPP4 inhibitor) has fewer side effects than drugs currently on the market in the U.S.  In December they received US FDA approval for clinical trials and became the first Taiwanese to receive US FDA approval.  Recently the drug began clinical trials in Taiwan.

My wife led the development effort and writing of the Investigator's Brochure submitted to the FDA.  We spent at least two vacations last year working on this-she wrote and I proof read, so I fully appreciate the work she and the other team members put into this drug development.

A press conference was held in Taipei earlier this year to announce the new drug.  Major television and print media were present, with at least 30 cameras setup in the back of the room.  I joined with my camera, but only to document the event for my wife.  As the only Caucasian in the room, and having a major camera hanging from my neck, many people assumed I was a representative of the foreign press.  I can be seen in one photo near other members of the press.

The drug development has been a source of pride for Taiwan and the institute that my wife works at.  It is also a source of pride for me, knowing my wife’s hard work and commitment continues to contribute towards medical advancements.

American Players Theater Spring Green Wisconsin

My wife and I attended a play at the American Players Theater in Spring Green Wisconsin.  Spring Green is in the “driftless” area of Southwestern Wisconsin, featuring rolling wooded hills and scenic valleys.  It is also home to Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin design studio and home.  It is a perfect place for an outdoor theater, and the ATP was founded on a hilltop in 1980.

The theater originally focused on Shakespeare and classics, but now has diverse genre.  My son watched Hamlet with his high school class years ago, and told me about the theater with great excitement.  After seeing a play there several years ago, I have been a fan.

We saw the Royal Family, which is a 1920ish story about the New York Barrymore theater royalty.  The family was renamed the Cavendishes, probably to appease esteemed actress Drew Barrymore.  The Cavendishes are totally dysfunctional, providing a humorous backdrop to an otherwise senseless story.  The acting was great and everyone at the 1,148 seat theater has a great seat.

The temperature during the day was 96° F or 36° C.  However by evening, the temperature dropped and with a slight breeze, the weather was perfect.  A number of times during the show, bats swooped through the stage, chasing insects.  The actors seemed oblivious to the sideshow. 

If there is a better theater venue, I haven’t seen it yet.

Hiking Trails Southern Kettle Moraine Forest

My wife and I spent a day hiking some of the trails in the Southern Kettle Moraine Forest of Wisconsin.  The first trail was the Scuppernong Springs trail, which is both scenic and has an interesting past.  The area covered by this trail follows the Scuppernong River, which is spring fed and very clear.  Native Americans had a camp near one of the springs, and during the late 1800s the area housed a marl plant (fine grain marine deposit/minerals), railway, hotel, cranberry bog, sawmill and a large trout farm that sold fish to stores and hotels in Chicago.  During the peak, the businesses of this area employed thousands of people. The site was restored to its natural condition to improve the trout habitat downstream.  Remnants of the past uses are still visible.   The river and nearby marsh supports numerous birds, including Blue Herons and Kingfishers.

The second hike was at the Emma Carlin trail system, which serves both hikers and mountain bikers.  The trails move from pine plantation, through meadows and hardwood forests.  While there are a variety of trails of different lengths, the system is geared more towards the bikers than hikers.

We finished with a very short hike at the Paradise Springs nature trail.  This site was a former estate, hotel and had a horse race track almost one hundred years ago.  A spring generates 30,000 gallons of water per hour and creates a great trout habitat.  A pond constructed in 1870 was originally used as a trout farm and is now a catch and release fishing spot.  There are more than 190 plant species, including some non-native plants planted by earlier inhabitants.

The weather was good and the trails were diverse.  A few pictures of the Scuppernong Springs trail are included.