So it goes...

Because it's that time of year that we celebrate all things we are thankful for, I would like to run down the list of a multitude of things large and small that I take pause at and consider myself lucky to have. I am thankful for: Not one but two good kids experiencing life in college - away from home. College years are some of the best memories of my life. I am living vicariously through them. Along those lines, I am also thankful for... An empty nest. It was weird for the first few days, then we sort of adapted to the quiet, and now have come to embrace it. CollectiveMKE - my church. We are a house-based church with a focus on acceptance and service. Cool people breaking the mold of conventional church. New jeans. A simple pleasure, one we take for granted in this country. My 95 year old house. It leaks a little and creaks a lot, but it is my haven.  A decent job. Big changes ahead with my boss retiring in January, but still consider myself extremel...

If you are reading this on Thursday, I am on my way off the grid. It is that time of year again. Muskiefest! This is the one weekend a year completely dedicated to searching for Esox masquinongy - the largest of the pike species. I wouldn't say it's a weekend I can barely wait for every year, but it really is. If you know me, you know that this is my latest obsession. This will be my eighth consecutive year going up to the Manitowish Waters area with a couple of buddies, one of whom owns a place up that way and graciously lets us crash for the weekend. I was fortunate enough to catch a muskie up there five consecutive years in a row. These past two years I've been skunked, so am super revved to get one this year. They are the fish of 10,000 casts, so they are hard to come by, but if you don't try, you'll never get one, right? 10/14/2011 The occasion falls on the weekend of a couple of significant birthdays as well. My nephew and godson Nick's birthday ...