Milwaukee via Chicago

This weekend we went to Milwaukee for a Marquette basketball game. We do this every year with Chris and Mike and our friends Sandy and Ryan who live in Appleton, WI. Sandy lived on my floor freshman year, and then was Chris' roommate senior year. Ryan also went to Marquette (where he met Sandy, of course) but I didn't get to know him until after college.

I love this trip because it means a lot of things: I get to see and catch up with old friends, I get to talk nostalgically about college, I get to see the campus, reminisce and see what's changed, and I get to see a Marquette game live.

Stein and I started our journey over Friday night after work. We were able to get out at a decent hour and had an uneventful trip most of the way. Wouldn't you know it, the part of the trip that we worry least about (in terms of weather) was the toughest? Just as we got over the Indiana border, the snow started. We didn't know it was supposed to snow. Stein navigated our way through the blowing stuff, and got us on the sky way. I breathed a sigh of relief as we got on the sky way knowing that we only had about a half hour to go. I realized I spoke too soon when I saw the brake lights in front of us. We spent over an hour on the sky way. Sometimes at a complete stop with the car in park.

We ended up meeting up with Rick for drinks (Stein and I had dinner) at 42 North Latitude. We had been there before with my family, and the food was really good. This time it didn't disappoint either. I had a crab cake sandwich, and Stein had a chicken pasta dish. We were both extremely tired, so we ended up calling it a night a short time later. We went back to Chris' and immediately went to bed.

Saturday morning, we headed north to Milwaukee. I suggested that we make a pit stop in Kenosha to go to Frank's Diner.

This diner was featured on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives on the Food Network a few months ago. I thought it would be fun to check it out. They didn't disappoint either. The diner is a really small place, with a counter along one side, and booths along the other. People stand along the wall behind the customers at the counter to wait for a table. When we got in, the whole length of the diner was filled with people waiting! We were so glad when the opportunity came up for us to sit at the counter. We had front-row seats to the show that was going on behind the counter. This is where the 2 owners cook breakfast. What a scene that was!

Their specialty is the garbage plate which has hash browns, eggs, peppers, onions, jalapenos, eggs, and your choice of meat(s). The grill is constantly full with the makings for these garbage plates. And the 2 owners are really friendly. We had a good time chatting sporadically with them (after all, they were cooking!) Stein and I split a 1/2 garbage plate (which took up half of a dinner sized plate), and biscuits and gravy. We also split an order of french toast with Chris and Mike. Oh mama, was everything good. They make their own bread, so the toast and french toast is homemade. Yum. We all waddled out of there, ready for a nap! The only drawback to sitting at the counter? We reeked of grease when we got out of there. So much so, that I bought a bottle of Febreeze for all of us to use. We doused ourselves with it and the smell was a little more tolerable.

We met up with Sandy and Ryan at Marquette's bookstore. I wanted to see what was new there, but felt a bit overwhelmed at all the stuff. Oh well, I didn't need to spend the money anyway!

We usually go to afternoon games, but this year we decided to go to a night game. It had a completely different feel this time. Before the game, we hung out at Buck Bradley's, a restaurant that is right across the street from the Bradley Center. We had a great time catching up. We luckily got there ahead of the crowd, so we were guaranteed a table (and a seat) until we left for the game. On the way out before the game, Stein asked the waitress to reserve the table we had for when we returned from the game. After giving her $10, she quickly agreed.

The game itself was a good one (we won - hooray!) but a nail biter at the beginning. Marquette was really cold and behind DePaul for a while until they got it together. I don't know how far they'll go this year if they don't continue to keep it together!

After the game, we went back to Buck Bradley's and lo and behold, our table was reserved! We all thanked Stein for his good thinking and settled into our table for some after-game drinks and food. As the night went on, everyone got more tired. After everyone ate, that was pretty much the end of the night. (I think we're getting old. And I don't mind admitting it, either!)

Unfortunately, the flash on my camera didn't go off, nor did I feel like futzing with it. Here are 3 (blurry) pictures from Buck Bradley's:

Ryan and Stein yuck it up

The girls (from right: Chris, Sandy, and me)
The cool, ginormous wood bar (this was a small section of it!)

Sunday morning we all went to Miss Katie's diner, which is near Marquette's campus. It was fun to be there to rehash the night before and catch up a bit more before we had to get on the road. Stein and I had a five-hour ride ahead of us, so it was good to have a full belly before hitting the highway.

I like that this trip has become a tradition for us. It at least guarantees that we see Ryan and Sandy once a year. It would be nice if it were more often, but I'm grateful we have the time together. What a fun time it is.