meet marcie

In a long overdue post about one crazy, crazy, fun girl:



My friends and I met Marcie at a beach volleyball bar near the campus of UW when I was in Madison a couple weeks ago. The guys I was with wanted to go play a few games and I was along for the ride and some fun. We grabbed a drink and while the guys were waiting for a court, Marcie came traipsing right up to us and asked "Do you guys have a lighter?" Nope sorry, we answered. She then went on to tell us her signature joke, which got us all laughing and pretty much sealed the deal that we were going to have a blast talking to her which we did:

"If we were both squirrels, would you bust your nut in my hole?"

Oh Marcie, Marcie, Marcie...

Now, my friends and I were stone sober, but laughed our butts off. She was a few sheets out and an absolute riot. Drunk or sober, Marcie is the kind of girl you want at your party and one of the reasons I like to meet road people. We took a photo of our crew and Marcie jumped in the background:



Did I mention she later told us she didn't even need a lighter, that she had one, just wanted an excuse to walk up and talk to us for the hell of it? Hilarious- I love it.

The boys went on to play volleyball for a couple hours while I talked to Marcie and her friends like we knew each other forever. Her crew was a blast. They were all about my road trip and even started giving me names and numbers/info. of folks in Alaska that I could try to meet up with. I told Marcie I'd post her as one of my road people, I mean- how could I not after her stellar joke? Of course I started posting about other food and travel stuff and hadn't put her up yet, so sure enough she wrote a comment here and asked where she was. Yeah! persistence, I like it! I never thought in a million years she'd remember the name of my blog or log on to look so what a great surprise to hear from her. (Marcie, I cannot find you on Facebook still? I guess you have to friend" me!)

Thanks for being patient while I got you up as one of the road characters Marcie, you are one fun chica. Don't ever change being that life of the party. The world need more wide open and fun people like you. Cheers to squirrels and nuts!

saturday breakfast variety

For someone like me that gets excited by the tiniest of things (especially when traveling) it's killing me that I can't stop every 20 minutes and share the next funny, ridiculous or crazy story or photo from Canada. Then again, I'd never get to my destination if I did that and I can't exactly power up in a bail of hay or a tree. I can however power up in a local diner and look like such a fish out of water you may as well paint my face with; "I'M NOT FROM HERE IN CASE THAT WASN'T PAINFULLY OBVIOUS FROM WHAT I'M WEARING AND THE FACT THAT MY VEHICLE IS THE ONLY ONE PARKED IN THE LOT THAT'S NOT COVERED IN DIRT AND A HUGE TRUCK!!!"



The waitress at the place I'm at definitely used a half bottle of Aqua Net before she came to work this morning. She gave me the twice over like who the hell do you think you are? when I first walked in, but after camping out looking like a complete idiot with my camera and laptop chords all over I think she's starting to warm up. (I think she feels sorry for me. HA!) She looks like she wants to say something like; Hey sweetie, put that stuff away. We don't do that around here. Instead she keeps filling my white ceramic coffee cup with that bitter but somehow delicious coffee you get in these places on the road. I am listening to a table of 4 gents behind me gobbling their breakfast. They're all wearing work jeans with hats, and talking about guns, grizzly bears, loggers, safety hazards and what "they" are doing to the highway these days. Perfect. I'd expect nothing less. There a special place in my heart for people and places like this that are just like the movies and the whatchya see is whatcha get. It's exactly like where I grew up and will never lose it's charm or special place in my heart.

Although this quite different from my last Saturday breakfast of fancy-schmancy brioche french toast with fresh berry compote. at Marigold Kitchen in Madison...



...I love it just the same. And I wonder why I can't figure out what I want to be when I grow up:)

Now three days have passed with no shower and I am so good at rigging my car for sleeping privacy I'm like the firefighters who teach new moms how to strap in the baby seats. After my initial, OUCH- how the heck did I sleep in that position for the last few hours? feeling when I woke up this morning, I had my first thought of Ok Diane, you might be getting a little offensive. That was quickly followed by a, meh- who cares. I don't really smell that bad, even if I did I really wouldn't care right now, and besides, this is becoming a game for me. I did think I might get a hotel one night between WI and AK but now? Hell no- I'm fully testing patience and creating the makings of my second longest run with no shower. (My finest record to date is 8 days.) Also, I might be able to charge Honda a huge consulting fee someday when they beg me to help them design the BLR inspired super road-tripping-pimped out convertible sleeper car. My current Honda is like a test lad.

Ooh! A few other gringos just walked in. More out of place travelers like me. Time to order some eggs or something that will not have words like brioche or compote involved , chow down and hit the pavement. (At least I hope it's paved.)

i love attentive companies

Check it! I emailed the Ian's Pizza folks complimenting their product and service yesterday and quickly go this email back from their Management. Talk about on top of it. This place wins points left and right in my book:

Diane,

This is awesome! Thank you so much!
A link is definitely going up on our website and for sure a print-out
is going up in the staff area of the restaurant so we can all give
Jack his 15 minutes of fame!

I totally agree with everything you said -- I've worked here for 4
years and this is the best group of people I've ever had as coworkers,
hands-down. I'm so glad to see someone recognizing the people who work
behind the counter... they do such a good job with such a wide variety
of people (business folks on down to severely drunken coeds)
every single day and they make it look effortless. I've worked counter
jobs too, and I know it is one of the most demanding jobs ever (there
are definitely days you have to fake it!) and they all make it look
easy.

Of course it helps that the pizza is excellent (duh!) but in Madison
there are so many places to get top-notch food (it's almost
ridiculous...) and I think our staff is what really is the key to our
success.

Thank you so much for recognizing that and for all your kind words.
Next time you are rambling through Madison let me know & I'll hook you
up with a couple of free slices (or a salad & a slice -- our salads
are amazing too!).

Thanks again, and safe travels to you!
Staci

midwest corn fields a plenty

Oh how delicious the sweet corn was:

another round of thank you's

*Thanks to Al for Windy City fun as usual. Feasting and catching up continues to be fun year after year. Who would think two girls could clear a table at Osteria like this at lunch time?





*Thanks to JW and Nelsy. I'd expect nothing less than a tour of another house renovation, a 4-wheeler show and a beer with some pizza. Good old Kaiser's Pizza & Pub in Gurnee, Illinois. Here's a photo from the walls for your archives:



*The final midwest thanks goes to Bill and Julie for my Wisconsin Capital area burb stay. Holy cheese-fest and gorgeousness!





Love you guys. It's was great spending time and feasting with you all!

get up and out in madison

I just finished up an 11 mile bike ride with a couple of friends on the Capital City Bike Trail. This is after going for a run around lunch time. (I've got to do something to burn off all this great food I'm eating on the road!) The city of Madison and surrounding towns have more parks than I've ever seen in my life and so many bike trails it'd take months to hit them all. It's so green, lush and corn-field covered here it's like being in the movies. The exact replica of my summers growing up in Vermont, just a few less mountains. This is the haven for Locavores, the fit and the want to be outside adventurers. If you can hack some cold winter temps and a bit of snow, like a mid-sized city and are an active person- I'm not sure you'd be able to find a better place than Madison to live in the states. I'm super excited I have good pals here so now I have an excuse to come back again to visit soon!

meet jack

Here's another ditty! My second road person named Jack!

Jack works at a place called Ian's Pizza. I wandered into Ian's randomly during a late afternoon last week. I was greeted by the friendliest chatty young guys you could hope for as a first time customer walking into a place. This isn't the typical pizza joint that the staff half mumbles hello and chucks your pepperoni slice at you. These guys were great sales people, knowledgeable about all the ingredients and aware of everything/everyone that was there. I chose a slice covered with pesto and fresh tomatoes and they informed me that the pesto was made from fresh basil that came from a farm in northern Wisconsin. They offered to make any kind of slice I wanted or add any additional toppings on my slice but I stuck with my initial choice and it was fabulous. On my way out the door I spotted this guys t-shirt that said "Get your mac on" and then realized one of their pizzas was actually mac n' cheese pizza. Whoa. I introduced myself and asked what his name was and if I could take his picture to post here and he happily agreed. He then grabbed a slice of the mac n' cheese to pose with:



I paid another visit to Ian's (different location) late night a day later with some friends. Even though my second time round the place was swamped with stumbling wasted college kids and the line was 20 deep, the staff showed no signs of annoyance or frustration. They were again smiley, helpful, efficient and cranked out the hot slices accommodating every customer perfectly with exactly what they wanted. I grabbed a few slices so we could try the bbq chicken, the mac n' cheese, and another pesto tomato. All delicious.

I'm a huge fan of Ian's. Not just because of the yummy pie, but because of the fantastic, friendly service and overall vibe of it. The staff all clearly love their jobs and they sell a quality, fresh product. It's a pleasure for a foodie like me who's on the road, eating food in all kinds of places, to watch a well-oiled machine of kick-ass food and service. I've found you usually only get one or the other, not often both. Ian's covers it.

Go Ian's and thanks to Jack and Tyler at the State Street location. Keep smiling and doing what you're doing!

cheese head

Some long time friends of mine moved to Madison abut a year ago. A perfect stop on the way to Alaska to see their new home and catch up. Another friend from back in VA happened also to be visiting this weekend, and yet another in the group of our old pals is in town for work so it's a big ol' reunion of fun. We all went to The Old Fashioned in Capital Square for lunch yesterday. The place was packed and staff was friendly. This is where we ordered fried cheese curds for an app. (Yeah, I know. I have blown any kind of balance in my diet during my stay in Wisconsin. Talk about an all-out cheese fest. I'm glad I can still strap on my running shoes and pound the pavement from anywhere for free.) Here's my sandwich:



Grilled cheese with cheddar, swiss, hickory smoked red peppers, cukes and tomatoes. This was one of the best fancy grilled cheese sandwiches I have ever had. The fresh local veggies stuffed in there put it in that category. It's such a spoil to have fresh produce included in what you order in a restaurant. The melty cheese and butter help too of course. As if I wasn't full enough after that sammy, I had to grab one of their enormous chocolate chip cookies to go. I couldn't resist! They had plates and plates of these coming out fresh all over the bar area on plates for self-serve. When the bartender said; "That's one American dollar please!- and help yourself!" I wanted to kiss him. It was delicious. The chocolate chips were still warm and melty as we gobbled it up.



I highly recommend this spot if you're up for lunch out when you visit Madison. The prices are more than reasonable and every last thing coming out of the kitchen looked delicious. The kind of lunch stuffing that you need a nap after. Good food, full belly and catching up with old friends sure makes for a spectacular Friday afternoon!

to market to market

I'm off to the biggest farmer's market in the country around Madison's Capital Square. What a green and gorgeous place this is. There are more parks and bike paths in this midwest city than you can imagine. There's certainly no excuse not to get out and be active here. Being from VT I love it. It feels like a slice of home in the summertime with farms abound, miles and miles of corn fields and kids playing outside with grass stained knees.

Off to scour the market. I've got some photos of Wisconsin characters I will upload and share later...

lets get ready to rumbaaaaaaaallll!!!

Hello Madison Wisconsin!



Even though I was excited about my arrival here and seeing old friends, I ended up sitting at their kitchen table last night looking at maps and mileage to Alaska again feeling like someone just kicked me in the gut and told me there was no such thing as Santa Claus. I still have 2,900 miles and 75 hours driving from here to get to Alaska. Holyfegginsh*t.

Being the last U.S state I will be in before hitting up Canada, The Wisconsin state motto of "Forward" is just what I needed to read this morning after staring blankly at my computer screen last night and the sleepless night that followed. Seeing/knowing and actually doing are oh so different. If I've never had this lesson before- oh am I getting one now. I can't quit. I won't quit, but I will run out of money either before I get there or as soon as I cross the state line. This is going to make for some crazy good stories. I've planned and thought and contacted, but as we all know in life- 90% of "plans" usually get thrown out the window. This last HUGE leg of my trip is likely going to come with me throwing an eff-bomb or 50, some tears, exhaustion, confusion, doubt, loneliness, frustration and all those other words and things that happen when we attempt to reach a goal. (But the wahoo! parts too of course.) I can't lie, I'm freaking out a little. Ok maybe a lot- but I'll be damned if my happy ass isn't standing on the Frontier State line by my 32nd birthday.

Here's to screw it, just do it and owning all the rewards and consequences along the way. (Am I some kinds of bad-ass? Probably not, but I'm going to try to be anyway.)

"Forward" it is.