Sargie at Sam's Club. So little time, so many clearance tables...

October 26, 2012 – Friday morning

32 degrees/clear/windy

Pentoga Road

Brrr, fall decided to return yesterday in the form of a cold front bringing rain, thunder, lightening, hail, and clouds that looked as though a tornado might drop from them at any moment. More in a bit.

After writing Thursday morning, I hopped on my four-wheeler to do a quick drive by of the traps and discovered I’d caught another raccoon. For whatever reason, it appears my season of fur harvesting has suddenly turned around and I’m beginning to feel rather… trapply. That’s right, TRAPPLY.

Not such a word you say? Well, I still carry a professorial rank (of some kind) and the university pays me to think deep thoughts. My latest is to invent the word TRAPPLY; add that one to your spell check.

I brought the critter home and laid him out in such a position to be easier to skin at a later date, cleaned up, and we were off to Green Bay.

The first stop was at Woodman’s, a super-grocery, to pick up inexpensive soda. With the holiday season coming and the promise of visiting company, we stocked up. It’s hard to beat the 2-for-$5 twelve packs.

Sam’s Club was next on the agenda. I’m now a certified Sam’s Club member complete with a picture I.D. and all the rights and benefits associated with it. Sargie added me to her account.

I’ve never been a Sam’s member before and have to admit, I don’t feel much different than I did before. But yesterday, it was fun to push that big ol’ cart up and down the aisles, not really purchasing anything, but enjoying all the free food samples given by those trained plastic glove-wearing men and women of culinary descent who work in the frozen processed food department. My personal favorite delight was some kind of prepackaged tortilla. Mmm, I could feel the grease dribbling down my throat and settling into my arteries as I put my best foot forward and asked if I might have another.

Why go to the doctor when one can have her health completely checked for free by a machine at Sam's Club. 

We stopped at Gander Mountain. I needed a good implement with which to skin critters and found one in the form of a small Buck knife, all one piece, and very light. It’s made from very good steel and best of all, it was manufactured in the USA. I’m looking forward to taking it for a test run later today in the form of yesterday’s raccoon.

We whizzed past Lambeau Field from a distance. It was so overcast and the wind blowing so hard that a quick glance in that direction had to suffice.

Ah, the Kitchen Shop! I was eager to take a trip up and down the aisles. We found several small utensils we wanted in the outlet room, but especially enjoyed the free fudge samples that were offered. My favorite was chocolate mint. Sargie inhaled the Butter Finger fudge.

The mall… I could feel Sargie’s heart rate quicken as she speed shifted through all five gears of the Kia. This was what she was born to do. Swallows return to Capistrano, Monarch butterflies to Central and South America, and Sargie to the mall. Instinct can never be denied. The closer we got, the faster we went.  She even managed to find a premium parking place once we arrived.

The girl set her sights on stores such as Kohls, Yonkers, and other places that the female species seems to hold so dear. I kissed her goodbye and headed towards the more manly haunts, places where guys grunt rather than speak in full sentences, like Dick’s Sporting Goods and Best Buy. We promised to keep in touch via our cell phones, especially around our birthdays and the holiday season.

She's on her way into the mall

I bought nothing, but needed nothing. It was fun playing with the newest computers, looking at hunting and fishing equipment, and gabbing with clerks as they hawked their wares. Resigned to being a looker and not a buyer, I walked back across the busy highway and connected with Sargie at the mall. She had looked, more than purchased, but found presents for her nieces’ birthdays and other goodies too numerous to mention.

Yooper Mark sent a text saying we were having strong storms and torrential rains at home. In Green Bay, the skies were cloudy, but so far, it had been a very warm day but dry. Mark also asked if we’d been to the Harbor Freight Store yet.

Oh my God… in Green Bay, Wisconsin? Lambeau Field AND a Harbor Freight both in the same town? My pulse quickened and breathing became shallow, thumbs turned numb as I attempted to punch in the address on my smart phone.

There it was… the address AND a map. We were off.

The only thing that could have made the Harbor Freight shopping experience more enjoyable would have been if Aaron Rodgers, Clay Mathews, and Donald Driver had met me at the door. As it was, I had to settle for some greasy little guy named Tony who needed to brush his teeth.

But still, with Sargie in tow, I happily skipped up and down each aisle looking for treasures I didn’t know I needed, but now felt I couldn’t live without. In the end, there were several, most under $3.

We heard heavy rain hitting the roof. It quit long enough that we might get to the car, but ominous dark clouds were quickly approaching from the west. All kidding and most conversation ceased as Sargie steered us out of the neighborhood and onto the interstate. It was going to be a bad storm and we wanted to be clear of any traffic when it hit.

And it was bad. We joined a parade of cars creeping along, each following the other’s taillights. At one point, I looked over and noticed the gods of passing cold fronts had obliterated Lambeau Field from view. I’m sure it will be there the next time we’re in town.

Lambeau Field is over there somewhere

Sargie’s fingers were white as she gripped the wheel. We were high on the bridge that goes over the Fox River alongside Lake Michigan. Winds would catch the miniature car and as Sargie said, it felt more like we were flying in severe winds than driving an automobile.

Still, we emerged on the other side unscathed. I felt, more than heard, Sargie let loose with a big sigh and we once again resumed our normal talking as we headed north back to Yooperdom.

We stopped in Crivitz, Wisconsin, and had a good old-fashioned fried chicken dinner. The Gateway features some great food and their giant-sized half-chicken dinner was to-die-for good. Thanks for supper, Sargie. I love you too.

It was almost 9 before we arrived home. The house made it through the day’s downpours in good shape. It wasn’t long before we were headed upstairs. I guess I slept well last night. I don’t remember dropping off to sleep and my eyes opened at 5 this morning without a problem.

Sargie has to work today, although she is off early and with the new winter schedule, is free from the Vision Center on Saturday and Sunday as well. Great niece, Aubrey’s, first birthday party is tomorrow. We’re contributing dinner rolls, hundreds of thousands of dinner rolls, all lovingly made by the culinary experts at Sam’s Club. The Mighty Milligans will be there in force and I’m looking forward to seeing them all. It’s always a special time when the Milligan clan gathers.  

I’ll take my five-mile hike first thing this morning. Water season opened Thursday which means I’ll begin to set mink and muskrat traps today… assuming the water level is such that I can get close to the streams. I’ve got other traps to check and the raccoon to work up. It’s going to be a busy one.

It’s getting light outside. Time to greet the day.

So are the tales from Pentoga Road…

I think I'll leave the tag on... adds a bit of class, don't you think? As a professor, I feel there are certain unwritten codes of dress I should follow.