This evening I walked from the motel into town, a minor hike of about .5 mi. I was wearing khaki trousers, a white shirt with narrow vertical brown stripes, a red bowtie with blue and silver stripes, and my brown Homberg hat.

When I walked into the bar I was greeted by a few of the locals. They greeted me friendly enough but I could see the imaginary question marks hanging above their heads. That was ok with me as I like to keep 'em guessing.

I had a reasonably good time there. The locals warmed up to me after it was obvious to them that the bartender remembered me and I had been there before. One fellow offered me $20 for my hat, mistakenly calling it a Bowler. I simply replied "Not gonna happen".

I did think it was kind of amusing that most of them spoke to me with an unusual amount of respect. I figure it was either the bowtie or the hat

The bartender mentioned that she was having a party at her house and she was hoping to close up early to get there. She said they were cooking out and grilling brats (bratwurst, which is very common in WI).

I happened to mention that I had never eaten a brat. Well, that raised some eyebrows in the place and one guy expressed just how foreign that concept was to him. Well, what the heck? I had never eaten one.

The bartender immediately got on the phone and called someone at her party and told them to bring a "beer brat" up to the bar right away so "this guy from Florida who has never had one can try it".

I have to say that I did enjoy the brat. Very tasty. A sort of smoky flavor to it, with the texture of a Polish sausage but less greasy. I will have one again at some point.

I am now back at the motel enjoying a bowl of Bishop's Move before turning in for the night. I have to say it was a very relaxing evening.