Minneapolis to Milan to Eau Claire to Minneapolis

Forewarning: Anecdotal and Diary-like Entry.

An underwater theme could not be a better reason to journey 138 miles with one of your closest friends. Benjamin and I drove to Milan, MN to the Easy Bean Farm to visit another dear friend named Ben, whose beard was fantastic!! The Easy Bean seemed a lot like home, but a home that I kind of fantasized as a mash-up between aspects of my house, my imagination, and something in a Neil Young song. It is hard to appreciate, but seeing people gather in an oblong room decorated with christmas lights and an octopus mural, dancing with flies floating overhead, and skinny dipping under the just-past-full moon pushes a sentiment close to 'what the fuck am I doing in the city' in the mind. I dressed as a pumpkin, wearing parts of a toddler's costume I had found at a garage sale along the way.

I awoke the next day to a rooster. When does that happen? Never in a city. Though once when I was younger, a neighbor bought a couple of chickens and a rooster and they would make so much noise...noise that my dad hated. And one day I was on the swingset and a shock of red caught my eye in the grass - the rooster. My dog Deke had found the coop and made his way inside, killing the poultry he'd been trained to retrieve. I can't say I was surprised to find that my dad had little remorse for this loss of life. So it goes.
I walked on a dirt road, past pastures with cows grazing stupidly and staring at my bipedal progress; the sun and moon shared the sky and I sat on a bridge over the Crow River, anticipating cars for a full minute, hearing them before I could see them. Ben brought Benjamin and I to the fields and showed us rows of ripe tomatoes, kale, collards, eggplants, beans, beets, and peppers. We picked some of each. Another worker named Kevin prepared omelets for everyone; they had spinach, basil, tomatoes, garlic, onions, peppers and cheese in them. They were better than anything I could have made or found in the city - even at Hard Times or Seward Cafe.

Ben gave me a Western hat (so hot) and wooden clogs (that fit my feet exactly!?) - the best souvenirs to a great day away from the city. As Benjamin and I rolled back to Minneapolis, we saw the largest ball of twine made by one man in Darwin, MN. It was completely motivational. If you think you're not going anywhere, do what this one guy did and make your own history, however odd.


After a brief stop at the greatest coffee shop in Minneapolis, Second Moon Coffee Cafe at E Franklin Ave and 23rd Ave S, I drove to Eau Claire for my friend Colin's birthday. I was able to get a couple people on the phone to make the drive less arduous, even though I really love driving anywhere in Wisconsin, and I gained that sense of accomplishment that comes from feeling in touch with people you love - the opposite of the remorse felt when you don't stay in contact. And the party was through and through amazing! Dinosaur pinata, glow-in-the-dark dinosaur puzzle, dinosaur themed gift bags, and dinosaur sprinkles on the cupcake I ate! A couple rousing games of Salad Bowl later, lots of boner/erection cues, and many hugs and goodbyes, Colin, Maggie, Tim and I had a glorious slumberparty.

I dreamt that a cafe across the street from my house was a coffee shop/bar/hookah lounge and some of my friends went there to smoke hookah but I smelled marijuana and knew I had to go over there. When I arrived, they were all leaving and the manager interviewed me for a job. I told him 'I don't fucking tolerate rule breaking' and he gave me the job. He showed me the uniform, some kind of blue canvas scrubs, and introduced me to the staff. I don't know what any of it means.
We went to breakfast at a place called Randy's and visited Colin's new house, where I walloped him in a game of Pokemon Stadium. I strategize. A Kangaskhan that knows how to Surf and use Thunderbolt is going to definitely beat a weak Gengar and the ground-type Marowak. Basics man, basics.

Back in my house, I met a new housemate. I helped her move her things into her bedroom and knew we would get along instantly because A) She's reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows; B) She has a poster from the TV show The Office on her wall. I also learned that the house becomes really empty whenever there is a CRU (Campus Crusade for Christ) meeting...i.e. my time to enjoy a massive space of alone time!

Total Distance Traveled (between cities, not in): 505 miles
...that is over three days!