24 in 2024 -- Visit at least one new brewery -- Bare Bone Brewery

 When I was talking to Danielle about this book challenge Brenda Novak is doing, I told her I wanted to do the things WI is famous for -- Beer, Brats, Cheese, and Packers. She said I should go to Bare Bones Brewery in Menasha with her. I always wanted to check it out but not being a big beer drinker and the hubby isn't a beer drinker at all, it is difficult sometimes. 

Bare Bones Brewery in Menasha is actually just a Tap Room. Their main location is in Oshkosh. The tap room is open Wednesday-Sunday. Hours vary by the day of the week. It is located right downtown. There is street parking or the ramp/lot behind the buildings.

Bare Bones has a dozen different beers on tap. There are 3 regulars -- Dog Daze, Amber Ale, and Oshkosh Lager.

Danielle had a buy 1 get 1 free coupon from some Menasha establishment passport otherwise we might have done a flight. I am either a sour or shandy kind of gal. I've started to figure out what I like. We both decided to go with Dillion -- a fruitier beer. That was a great idea until the tap ran out and she didn't have to another. So I randomly picked Bare Bones Switfy's Irish Red. 

I decided I am not a fan of Irish Reds. It tastes too much like beer. I didn't even finish it. If I had more time, I might have nursed it and finished it. However, the quarter of a pint was starting to get to me and I had to drive home. 

Water to the rescue. Good old Menasha Tap Water.

Our lovely bartender did give us the glass of Dillon since it was too much beer to waste. The Dillon was actually very good. I would have finished that pint no problem but I had to drive so I left most of it for Danielle.

Bare Bones is a lovely place to hang out. It has regular bar seating but it also has some couches for more comfortable seating. It is actually the perfect place to hang out on a rainy Sunday afternoon. There were a few TVs with the hockey game as well as the Brewers game on.

There is a small brewing operation in the tap room as well.

I will definitely be back and I might even have to take Stacy the next time she is town. It is definitely worth checking out. 

World Book Day Book Swap

 World Book Day is April 23. It is the perfect holiday for me. What makes it even better is free books. When Danielle asked I wanted to meet her at Heckrodt for a book swap for World Book Day, I was figured I could knock out my walk, get some fresh air, and get some new books. Not that I needed any books.

Heckrodt Wetland Preserve honored World Book Day with a Book Swap. They said Take a book, Leave a book. It was simple enough. 

They had several baskets of books set out for you to peruse. I brought 3 books with that I figured my book club would not enjoy. I did find 3 books to bring home with me. The hubby probably won't be happy if he finds out but gotta love free books. 

After swapping my books, I hit the nature trail. I did a 1.5 mile loop through the preserve. The deer were not active but I did see some birds and this grass snake that I nearly stepped on.

This was a great idea. It got people out of the house, books got exchanged, and people were able to enjoy nature. I hope they do it again next year. 

24 in 2024 -- Try a New Restaurant -- Random Lake Pizzeria

My brother kept telling us we needed to try Random Lake Pizzeria. The hubby had no game so we took a drive. We stopped at Johnsonville Village to check out the brat products, picked up some string cheese at Cedar Valley Cheese, and even stopped to visit the my parents. We planned on doing Random Lake Pizzeria for dinner on our way back to Appleton. 

Random Lake Pizzeria is located in Random Lake in Southern Sheboygan County. It is opened Wednesday-Sunday with hours varying on the day of the week. It is not open later than 9 PM. Luckily we were there by 5 PM. If you weren't looking for it, you might not find it. It's in a small building set back from the road. Luckily, I was advised of that.

We stepped inside and was told we could sit anywhere. This restaurant reminds of me of something you'd find on the beach. Very laid back and casual. The decor is more Southeast Asian than beach but it works. It is not something I would expect in a small town  in Wisconsin. I found it kitschy.. the hubby not so much. 

We ordered pizza and cheese bread. They also have pasta dishes. The cheese bread was almost on Vienna Bread. It was a thinner sliced bread than I am used to for garlic bread but it works.

The pizza was okay. The sauce was very mild. It kind of reminded me of Sammy's in Neenah but not really. The crust was slightly thicker but still crunchy. It is definitely unique.

Everyone said we needed to get the ice cream. It is made fresh daily. They have chocolate, vanilla, and the flavor of the day which was Peanut Butter Cup. I went with chocolate and the hubby went with vanilla. I was expecting plastic bowls that I could take with if I didn't finish it. Instead it came in metal bowls with metal spoons. We got a single scoop and it was more like 3 scoops. It was fantastic. 

Our only compliant, as the pizza snobs we, the place did not smell like pizza. Usually a pizza place smells like Italian seasoning and pizza. This did not. It was rather disappointing but it does explain the boring sauce as it was not heavy on the spice either. In our opinion, a really good pizza place should smell like pizza and Italian Seasoning.

The ice cream alone is worth a return trip. We can take or leave the pizza. I think Cranky's just has spoiled us and it's tough to find really good pizza. Just because we are not a huge fan of the pizza, doesn't mean it's not good. It is but we prefer a little more flavor. Definitely get the ice cream.  

7803. Do scrape painting

 When I saw that April's Make and Mingle at Kaukauna Library was Squeegee Painting, I had to sign up. I always thought squeegee painting looked fun and was willing to try it especially when there was no cost to me. 

Squeegee painting or scrape painting is a relatively easy concept but it is harder than it looks. You basically need a paint and something to scrap it with -- a squeegee, a knife, a library card, an old credit card. Basically anything with a flat edge. We used library cards.

We taped down our practice paper. Then we put a drop of paint on the tape. This was to be our palate. Then you scraped the paint towards the bottom of the paper. You are supposed to hold your scraper at a 45 degree angle. You can also make wavy lines. It is supposed to make really cool designs... except I forgot to hold my scrape at a 45 degree angle so it was not as cool.

You could also apply paint directly to the scraper edge to make the rainbow effect. 

You could also apply drops of painting directly to the paper in random patterns and then scrape down. This was supposed to make a really cool looking design. Mine looked like a really bad finger painting. Again I forgot about the 45 degree angle. 

Needless to say this was not my best work of art. I learned that I need to remember to pull down at a 45 degree angle. Danielle agreed this would be a good painting activity for a girls' get together. Maybe next time will be a success. 

Book Talks 2024 -- J. Ryan Stradal

 The 2024 Fox Cities Book Festival was only a handful of days including the events centered around the Fox Cities Read book. Two authors were going to be at Gibson Hall for the main event. I decided that no matter what I was going to go see J. Ryan Stradel as I've read a couple of his books.

Gibson Hall is downtown Appleton. I've never been there as we are not really the live music type of people or bar people. They usually hold live music events. I was excited to cross Gibson Hall off my Fox Cities Experiences list. It was actually a nice intimate location for an author talk. There were tables for groups of people plus a few chairs for single people like me.

J. Ryan Stradal is from Minnesota and has written several books set in the Midwest including his latest Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club. He's also worked on several hit TV shows including The Bachelor/Bachelorette and Ice Road Truckers.

He talked about growing up in Minnesota but working at a supper club across the river in Wisconsin. He talked about how he got from the Midwest to California along with his break into reality TV. 

It was a very fun hour. He was very enjoyable to listen to. I could have listen to talk about his books and life for hours. He has such charisma. 

After he was done talking, he did sign books. Luckily, I was able to snag the last copy of Great Kitchens of the Midwest, his debut novel. I still haven't figured out how to talk to authors yet so I just had him sign my book.

Because I had other plans later, I was not able to stay for  Brendan Slocumb. I have not read him but I do have one of his book on my audio book hold list on Libby. 

Even though it was a much smaller book festival, I was glad to have such big names. Usually I have to live voraciously through friends and book Facebook groups with all their author visits. Hopefully I will have a chance to see a few more authors this year. 

5038. Paint something at Catch Fire Creations in Menasha

Thanks to a post on Facebook, I discovered a new artsy place I had to visit. During the month of March you could painting 3D printed Easter Eggs for a dollar each. Unfortuntately I didn't there in March but Danielle shared an adopting a bee project for April. I was game and we met up at Catch Fire Creations to paint some bees.

Catch Fire Creations is in downtown Menasha between a liquor store and brewery. It is a paint your own object place except all the objects are 3D Printed. I'm saying object because they have animals, planters, and things like wine bottle holders. They are open Tuesday-Saturday 11-7 and 10-3 on Sundays. Prices vary based on the project. Our bees were $5 and that included a vial of wildflower seeds.

The process is pretty simple. You pick out what you want to paint from the store and pay for it. Then you gather your paint and brushes. They have a wide variety of colors.. like a whole wall. Some were even glitter glue to make your creation sparkle. They also had ribbons, fabric, pom poms, etc. to decorate with your creation with. 

Once we had our paints, we got to work. It was not as easy I thought it would be to paint a small plastic object. My lines were not perfect so the colors are not perfect. It is a total Amy project.

The bee was harder than the hive. I didn't realize the "feet" looking things were actually his wings. I initially painted them yellow. Oops. Eventually I figured it out and painted them black along with some stripes. My bee definitely looks like he got into a fight.

After we were done painting, either a color or the entire thing, they had these hand held fans to dry the paint quicker which was nice. They were also heavy duty dryers in the back in if you needed them.

We probably spent about 30-45 minutes painting our bees. The bigger the object or the more detailed you want to be, probably will take you longer. 

Catch Fire Creations is a perfect rainy day activity for kids or adults. They are definitely worth checking out. I may have to paint the axolotl next time. I can't wait to see what May's project will be. It sounds like they have a monthly project every month.