My Brother's Front Yard

August 30-September 1, 2019

Madison, WI

Day 77-81

On my way out of town this morning, I stopped into an Amish general store in nearby Hazelton, named for original groves of hazelnut shrubs which are long gone. Yes, hazelnuts can either be on trees or shrubs. Most hazelnuts in the Midwest are “American Hazelnut” shrub plants while the ones in Oregon and Italy are tree.

Drove mostly back roads, thru Strawberry Point - world’s largest strawberry, on my way to Luxemberg. My sister in law’s parents live in nearby Sherrill. She dropped my brother off here so he and I could drive back to their house, in Madison, together. Luxemberg is a very small picturesque town with a church at the top of the hill. It’s a beautiful day – the sky is blue with just a few clouds. I wish I had him take a picture of me coming up the hill to the church to meet them. It would have made a great picture with the rig coming up a big hill and the prairie in the background.

After the three of us visited for a few minutes, Jenny was off to see her family again. Will and I took off to Dubuque to have a picnic at Eagle Point Park. Overlooking the mighty Mississippi, this park is gorgeous and considered one of the nicest city parks in the Midwest. Unfortunately, however, no dogs allowed…not even on leash. We went to another park, a nice Wisconsin rest area off the highway, just over the river for our picnic. The good news about this stop is that we got to throw Sparky the ball. Now we’re all happy. Madison is now about 1-1/2 hours away.

The four-lane highway with a grass median was scenic for a highway, but not interesting. We pulled off at Mineral Point, about halfway, for a break. It's an adorable town on a long narrow hill. The main street is about half mile with a variety cute shops on either side. The next block over, on each side, is a steep hill. Funny, no train service here. Seems like the perfect town for that. My brother says a lot of these small towns, including Madison, are lacking good commuter or connecting trains to Amtrak, which is too bad.

Back on the highway, we hit a detour and get lost because of poor placement of rerouting signs. But now the drive is amazing! We go thru green rolling hillsides dotted with livestock and farms. It’s beautiful but takes us off course. By the time we are back on the highway, we hit Friday evening traffic getting into Madison. The bubble has burst. We are now in suburbia.

I am here for 3+ weeks. Since it’s Labor Day weekend, I couldn’t get a campsite reservation until the Tuesday, SO I'm camping out in front of my brother’s house! Immediately, we're greeted by one of his neighbors that was so excited to see the Airstream. He even said I am improving his property value (this is a super nice neighborhood, so I doubt that). It will be ok for me to park here for 3-4 nights. I must say, the location is awesome! I am about 30 feet from his front door. I am not hooked up to power or water. I haven’t done that much dry camping (boondocking), so this will be good experience conserving resources. I am looking forward to enjoying meals with family and taking some long hot showers!

Will and I make dinner, then head off to surprise his son Sam at work. He just graduated from high school is working as a stock boy at a local grocery store. He’s too smart though and recognizes me pretty quickly. We catch up when he gets home. It’s nice to be with family.

Day 2 - Slept ok, part weather, part hip issues. Windows cracked, it’s a little cool and a little humid. My new Faribault purple throw is the perfect blanket. (Glad I treated myself to a few wool blankets at their factory store recently.) Walked 30 feet for a small breakfast and coffee, followed by a short walk for Sparky. Hip continues to bother me. Will and I go to local farmer’s market and stop off at one of the many excellent Madison dog parks. Back home, we have lunch, watch movies and hang out. Jenny’s back from Iowa and her cousins come over for a visit. Will and Jen go out later to celebrate their anniversary and listen to music. I am happy to stay in.

Day 3 - Will, Sam and I go to “Taste of Madison” on the steps of the Capital. Typical food/beverage event. Later we just hang out at home and watch old Bob Hope and Bing Crosby “road trip” movies. Hip is killing me. I am planning on getting an X-ray at Urgent Care either Monday or Tuesday. I’ve been waiting to have it done here for a variety of reasons, mostly because I'm here for 3 weeks. It’s good that I signed up for Cobra before I left (basically this is my old Cigna insurance for 18 mos at a higher premium, but still cheaper than going on Blue Cross). I called Cigna to verify I can go to Urgent Care and they show my policy was cancelled! CRAP. The good news is that I have confirmations that I've been paying into Cobra. The bad news it is going to take a few days for Cobra and Cigna to reverify and reinstate me. That's why I have to wait a few more days.

Day 4 - Laundry, shower and grocery shopping…and another dog park. Watched more movies. And, started to finish the Dakotas chapters.

Day 5 - Hip is really killing me. I am now on the floor, in pain, and on hold with Cigna for over 2 hours. Finally, they confirm with Cobra that I have insurance. Now I can go to Urgent Care and get an X-ray. Will drives me to Urgent Care. I am there for a few hours. X-ray shows I am bone-on-bone and need hip replacement surgery. This news is a strange relief. A relief that isn't not my diet. I knew this would be a possibility one day, because I had my hip checked years ago. I just thought it would be when I was older. Now I need to figure out where to have the surgery.

I am supposed to check into the campsite today, but I am a little overwhelmed and decide to check-in tomorrow. What is this going to do to my trip?