I’m sure you have all wondered where I have been the last couple of weeks. Anybody? I’ll tell you anyway. I was in Wisconsin, (or as I call visiting Northern Wisconsin, behind the cheddar curtain), visiting my oldest son and taking care of some of business. I was in the City of Oshkosh, by gosh, (Clever little use of words there, don’t you think?). Yes, the city is the former home of the famous Osh Kosh bib overalls. The manufacturing plant and headquarters moved out long ago, but the connection has stuck. I am pretty sure that my wife and I once purchased a pair of those Osh Kosh bib overalls for our sons when they were young. Unfortunately, it seems that bib overalls are delegated to farme, my wife in high school and guys with stills in the backwoods. Am I stereotyping here? My cousin Burford is standing here; let me ask him.
Oshkosh is located on the shores of beautiful Lake Winnebago. I think the motor home was named after the lake, not vice versa. The lake is about 30 miles long, 8 miles wide, and about 2 feet deep. Ok, that may be a bit of an exaggeration, but it is a very shallow lake for being so big. The lake is famous for summer activities like sailing, water skiing, and fishing. In the fall, tourists enjoy visiting and seeing the trees changing into fiery colors. In the winter, the lake is famous for its ice fishing. In spring, ice fishermen return to retrieve their pick-up trucks that went through the ice in the winter. I was there in February and saw actual footage of trucks sinking through the ice. Since the lake is so shallow, they won’t have difficulty finding their Titanic of a pick-up truck.
The City of Oshkosh is not a quaint little town but an actual city. At one time, it was home to a lot of industry, and much of it is still there. It is also home to the world’s busiest airport, for one week. The Experimental Aircraft Association, headquartered in Oshkosh, stages its annual get-together at Oshkosh’s Wittman Regional Airport every July. The annual event draws thousands of aircraft from all over the world for the special event. Not all the planes are conventional; remember, experimental is in the event’s name. As a result, some of the aircraft fall out of the sky during the event. This event is something to see if you love flying and to avoid if you hate heavy traffic, crowds, and noise.
I was visiting this wonderful city because my wife and I bought a home to rent to one of my sons when he moved there. Well, plans changed; he is staying in SoCal for now, and we are renting it out to someone else. We are OK with that. Recently, I saw an article online that stated that the City of Oshkosh is the hottest real estate market in the country. When we bought the house, it was winter; everything was gray, brown, wet, and cold. After my summer visit, I discovered we have a house in a beautiful, lush, green area and a wonderful neighborhood. I can see why people in the Midwest want to live there. My wife and I thought for a moment, maybe we should move there…just a moment. Being from the Midwest, I explained to her what happens between November and April, and she agreed we have a nice place in Southern California. Plus, how could I golf and play softball when the courses and softball fields become a frozen tundra, only suitable for games of the Green Bay Packers?
Speaking of the demon span that play at Lambeau Field up there in Green Bay, the people there must not have much to do. Everything is about the Packers. I went grocery shopping and had to use the shopping bag with the Packer logo on it. Being a dyed-in-the-wool Bears fan made that very tough. My son, also a Bears fan, who lives in the area, begged me not to taunt any Packers fans while I was there. He would have to live with the consequences. Ah heck with him…I did a lot of “Bear Down” greetings when I could. Hey, he has a good health plan from the government. He’s young and will recover quickly.
I did get all my research and shopping done and just kicked backed and enjoyed the beautiful weather that set in on the area. The day I arrived it was 90 degrees and about 120% humility (or somewhere around there) but the next day the temps dropped and the week was beautiful. Back here in California it was as hot as hell itself and the sun was blazing. Timing is everything. I did fly back to the temps in the 100s back here in Southern California, but at least I got a few day break from it. I enjoyed my short visit to Wisconsin and my son. I accomplished a lot but was happy to get home.
Despite requests from my other son, I chose not to bring any cheese home to him. Those people wear the stuff on their head. I think I’ll pass on getting whatever disease they may have in their hair.
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