Local Fungi, Madison, WI

It seems like mushrooms have been more common this year than I can remember in years past. I noticed many posts about early spring morels on social media, and I seem to keep seeing them growing wild almost anywhere I venture. It has been consistently damp in most places, so that might be a factor. I found the big guys below a couple blocks from home, growing on someone's front yard. They certainly caught my attention. I don't know enough to know which ones to eat and which ones to leave. Better not try if I'm not sure.

I have a medium-sized hand

Quote of the Day.

"Only when we allow others to be who they are, rather than who we want them to be, will we have peaceful relationships."

Quote of the Day

As Will Rogers wryly noted: “It is not what we don’t know that gets us into trouble; it is what we know that ain’t so.”

Riley House (1908), Madison, WI

If you've been playing along on this blog of late, then you know I've been out for some walks... well, the neighborhoods I've been investigating happen to have some pretty neat historic houses, one of which is featured below...

Stalzy's Deli, Madison, WI

After the hot tea, I needed some real food, and needed to be able to use a debit card. I knew this deli was across the street, and again, it seemed like high time I went in too. Having worked in a deli-bakery in my late teens, I was curious to see how this local version stood up.

They talked a big game, and I have to say, I was eager to try the sandwich I'd picked out ahead of time online, The Brooklyn Breakfast.

They did not have a beer tap at the deli I worked in... probably for the best.

Service was pretty typical for Madison, not "amazingly fast", but friendly and helpful. They took my order within about 10 minutes, I grabbed a beverage out of the self-service cooler and sat at the counter (pretty old-school, and just like the Victory had too). They had plenty to look at while I waited another maybe 10-15 minutes for my order to arrive, and a lot of it reminded me of my days working in the deli in Skokie, IL.

Fresh baked bread is a good sign in any deli, imo. There's no sound quite like a bread-slicing machine in full flight. It's unmistakable.

And when the Brooklyn Breakfast arrived, which consists of Pastrami, a Fried Egg, Brown Mustard, and in my case Muenster cheese, I was ready to devour it... did I mention I was feeding a cold too?

Not even the pickle had a chance of escape.

While I didn't manage to take a picture of it, you can bet their sweets case was very well appointed and both a chocolate covered and plain macaroon both made their way home with me. They were excellent as well, perhaps some of the best I've ever had.

I'll be back to Stalzy's soon, and would be happy to bring out-of-town guests as well.

The Victory, Madison, WI

On a recent and gorgeous Saturday morning, since I was under the weather, I decided to head out for a walk and see if the sun didn't make me feel a bit better. It had a good effect and once I'd gotten a good bit from home, I decided to see if I could get some hot tea to see if that could continue my "feel better" streak. Thanks to Google Maps, I found a very nice coffee shop close by and walked right in for a cup of their White Apricot Ginger tea.

Friendly staff, a full menu, nice patrons, and even pooch-friendly will keep this place on my short list for neighborhood spots. They are cash-only, but the proprietor said I could just pay him next time, luckily I had enough cash for the tea that visit. Still, kinda unheard of this day and age.

They make an "authentic" Hawaiian Shaved ice... U'm going to have to go back for one of those AND they offer Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream, one of the area's favorites.

Cool stool, Dude.

This guy below was all muscle... and probably the biggest one was his heart. We wanted to see everyone that came in and would have loved to have had you pet him too. Plus, he sat right in the walkway, so you couldn't help but get down to his level and pet him. Smart dog.

I don't normally comment on bathrooms, but I liked theirs enough to mention it... nice to see a decent restroom in a small business.

Memorial Mile, Madison, WI

As I came home from a Memorial weekend spent out of town, I noticed a large number of these small white "tombstones" along my street. I quickly got the gist of the idea, but was pretty amazed at the length of the art installation. It is called the Memorial Mile here in Madison, and seemed to be about that long on the Atwood Avenue corridor, near Olbrich Gardens and Park.

I was glad to step out and get some pics of it on a recent Saturday, as I came back from this walk, they were pulling all of it up and had I not gotten them on the way out, it would have been too late. Phew.

From what I could see, they didn't have all Us wars, but only the ones from this century, I believe. Still the amount of men and women we've lost, laid out like they have, is pretty impactful.

I didn't shoot in sequence or in completion either, it would simply be too much, but I hope this gives some idea of their work and the impact of these wars.

Taking a note off their signs above, I believe you can find out more at VeteransForPeace.Org