A New Kind of Incentive Program

I'm completely going to out myself here.
Perhaps bring a little accountability into my life.
And I promised my friend Jill that I would share this with the world.

I need to go to the gym and get back into a workout routine.
I have both the desire and need to go, but apparently those are not enough to actually get me there.
I even attempted to bribe myself with a new Fossil bag I was drooling over.

After obsessively monitoring the price and availability of this cute new tote, I decided that perhaps its purchase could be a two-fold win: a new work bag AND provide some incentive for working out.
So I bought the bag, with the caveat that I wouldn't use it until I went to the gym consistently for a week.

I bought it at least 2 months ago.

I still haven't used it - I like to push the envelope, but I'm also a rule-follower.

However, if we're being totally honest here, I should also mention that in the meantime I found, purchased and am using a totally different bag.
While continuing to stare at this one each morning, thinking I should really get myself to the gym.

The moral of the story? Incentive programs are great.
Kinda.

Life on an Extra-Large Dairy Farm

Last week, on my quest for the Wisconsin Idea, I learned a little bit about a lot of new topics.
Like about the existence of a place that makes microtools, that are smaller than a human hair.
They're call end mills (kinda like a drill bit, for all you other lay folks like myself), and they are designed and made in Janesville, WI at a place called Performance Micro Tool. There are some pretty cool pics on this site. Fascinating.
And very, very, very tiny.
And then there was the opposite of tiny, a dairy farm that houses 3000 cows.
Three thousand cows.
That they milk three times a day.
You did that math correctly.
That's essentially NINE THOUSAND COWS.
Crazy.
And a little crowded.

(They don't actually live like this - this is the tail end of the milking process [no pun intended] - the last of the cows getting ready to be milked before the line of 3000 begins again. This loop takes about 4 hours.)

They live in the largest barn I have ever seen.

It is 7 stalls wide. This picture doesn't even begin to capture it - just know that this road in the center goes off in both directions (we are on a walkway above the barn). It is wide enough so a truck can drive through and deliver food. They eat a lot.

These cows have just finished the milking process. It's quite the trip they take around the barn.

I couldn't help but take this picture. When I was in South Africa I seemed to regularly catch the back-sides of all animals, so this was a little throw-back to my time in the Motherland.

It's a little blury, but I couldn't help but share this 'one of these things is not like the other' shots.

We also visited the "subway."

This is where the magic happens.

Sorta.

Fifty cows are milked at a time, for around 4 - 5 minutes apiece (the machine is hooked up to the udders by a herdsman, but they drop on their own when the cow is dry). The  milk passes through here, where it's measured and all that jazz. Each cow has a number and a microchip - her temperature is taken, as well as all other sorts of health stats for each one. VERY different than the farm I grew up across the street from. Technology is everywhere.

This place was fantastic in theory, but when seeing all the cows in person, it was hard to decide what I thought of the place. I'm still not sure, though I do feel like I know more than I did a week ago. And while I think it could be great for the cows to spend some time outside (does it matter if they don't know any better?) and the manure lake smelled beyond horrific (it was a lined-pond that doesn't go into the ground water), it was pretty organized and systematic. And the cows didn't seem to audibly be complaining.

So I'll keep drinking my milk and eating the tasty Wisconsin cheese. (I learned that most of the milk here is made into cheese because it's so tasty).





The Tulip: Perfect Simplicity

There’s just something about tulips.

I don’t know if it’s their perky demeanor, bright colors or their gorgeous simplicity, but I have always loved tulips.

I think the long winter has only intensified this.

Maybe even turned it into a borderline obsession.

Because when I see them, I want to stop in my tracks, take a little time to admire their perfection, and depending on time, snap a quick photo on the phone.

Luckily, spring has arrived in Madison and is currently offering a gorgeous display for me to work with.

So here’s my homage to the plucky flower: for when you see them, you just can’t help but smile.

See?

You Win Some, You Lose Some

I spent today furloughing. [Yep - we totally made that into a verb].
For those who aren't familiar, I paid the state to take the day off.
This apparently helps our budget.
:)
It's my last full furlough day of the year - Only 1.5 hours left to take in June, and then I'm done with this randomness.
At any rate, I slept in, and was pretty productive, in between the severe thunderstorm warnings and downpours throughout the day.
I crossed quite a few tasks off my list - some that I have been avoiding for some time [like returning broken luggage to the store], boring household tasks that just needed to be done [laundry] and a couple of fun things like checking out a new library branch [normally I'd be quite excited about that, but they seemed to be having some A/C issues on a day when it was over 80 degrees outside, so it was like visiting a swamp with books. However, overall, I'm excited about this new place, and will go back. And hope to goodness that they get that under control before summer hits!]
So while I feel pretty good about this, two other things happened that bring me back down from my productiveness-feeling:
1. While waiting out the weather warning (when they mentioned the possibility of baseball-sized-hail, I thought it best to NOT be driving in it), I tried to be productive, including some time online. Only my internet wasn't working. I probably tried 15 times in a 20-minute time period. Just as I was getting ready to call my cable company to complain, I noticed the end of the ethernet cord. On the floor. NOT in the laptop.
Good job.
Perhaps I should invest in a darn wireless router.
2. I attempted to replace the empty toilet paper roll with a new one. This is typically not a difficult task. But today, before I could complete this, I backhanded the brand-new-totally-full roll into the toilet (clean bowl, in case you are wondering). It soaked up A LOT of water very quickly. I don't know why, but I am very sad that this has gone to waste. It's toilet paper. In the grand scheme of things, this is clearly not-even-remotely important. And yet, I feel like this one thing has negated all those other tasks that I was able to complete. Flushed them down the drain, if you will.
:)
Or maybe it was a sign I should take up tennis.

Ah the Glory Days . . . of Mix Tapes

I recently found a nice card from a friend who sent me a conglomeration of music on a cd. It was good stuff - gave me a little insight into my friend, and gave me new music to listen to. In the card, he mentioned the back-in-the-day mix tape. Which got me thinking.

How great was the mix tape? I loved everything about it.
If  you wanted to give a inexpensive (but thoughtful) gift - or a token of yourself to anyone - a friend, a beau, a teammate, a possibility - then you made them a mix tape. (Love the Avenue Q song that describes this so well). I loved finding new music and putting it in just the right, very meaninful order, as well as, getting new music, and of-course, the over-thinking that came along with the tape of music from your secret crush, and wondering what the songs REALLY meant when he put them on there. I also loved decorating the case.

Now we make them on CDs. Or we just make playlists with iTunes and share them.
But I like the tactile-ness of the cd, the ability to decorate a case . . . the possibilities are endless.
And so when I saw this new blog button, (top of the page on the right). I was inspired to write, and add the decor to the page.

But here's what I need you to do. If you were to make a mix tape today - what song(s) would you put on it? Please add your suggestions to the comments below.

I'll even play along with you.
1. On MANY of my mix tapes I had Beauty of Grey by Live. Please see previous post if you don't know the song.
2. I also enjoy Journey, so I might put a  little Don't Stop Believin' on there.  But perhaps that's because I just saw that today is the 1 year anniversary of the OSU Flash Mob at the Ohio Union. And so, while you are pondering what song you're going to share, enjoy a few of my friends in this amazingness:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDNOB6TnHSI&feature=player_detailpage

p.s. In case you're wondering - I do, in fact, still love getting a mix o' music from friends. :)

Fantastic People-Watching

On Saturday I went to the Capital with my friend MB.
Our plan was to visit the farmer's market and check out the mortocycle parade and rally.
The Harley-fan in me needed to see this.
And I wasn't disappointed.
In fact, my desire to own a bike might have been reignited.
But I digress . . .
So.
The people-watching on Saturday was amazing. And I am confident a mix of people like this can only happen in this lovely town.

1. First, we had the participants, runners and walkers from the 30th Annual Crazylegs Classic - a run/walk to raise money for UW. According to the website it's also a 'much anticipated kick-off to spring.'
If this is the case, let it be known, Madison, that the kick-off has commenced. Spring can arrive ANY DAY NOW.
Digressing again. Sorry.

2. Then we had the folks who came to the square for the Dane County Farmers' Market - everyone from yuppies to hippies and everyone else in between. Love it.

3. Also present (not as close to the capital, but they were quite hard to miss), were the drunken revelers participating in the craziness that is known as the Mifflin Street Block Party.
It might have made me thankful that I wasn't working in res life.
In fact, I started to look up links, and just couldn't do it. So you can search it yourself, should you desire. Let's just say there were loads and loads of very loaded people. Not always wearing enough clothes. And a fascinating open container policy and two stabbings.
Yep - it was kinda a hot mess, and is all over the news, in between a couple of other big things right now.

4. And then there were my favorite folks, the bikers who are supporting Wisconsin Workers via the "Thunda Around the Rotunda" Event.
It.Was.Amazing.
Here's a cool video that someone put together - some great shots from start-to-finish.
I am a total sucker for the roar that emits from a hog. And when they are en masse, it's pretty damn cool.
I probably drooled a little bit.
But that also could have been from Stella's Hot & Spicy Cheese Bread.

What more can a girl ask for on a Saturday afternoon than sunshine, great people-watching, gorgeous Harley's and some of Stella's bread fresh out of the oven?
Not a thing.
[On a side note, now that I've mentioned this bread twice, I should tell you that you can order it online. While I'm sure it's still delicious - you should just come and visit some Saturday, and we can get you addicted to this tastiness.]
And the fabulous people-watching.