Most every year, Ms. Brugger and I head to her folks' place in Midland, Michigan, sometime in
the late fall or early winter for a dual celebration of Thanksgiving &
Christmas. This week was it.
Thursday, November 30, 2023: Hurry Up and WaitGetting a decent price on flights out of Greensboro usually means taking
an ass-crack-of-dawn flight, and now that we're an hour (rather than 15 minutes)
from Piedmont Triad International Airport, our pre-dawn wakey-wakey time has
become
pre-pre-dawn wakey-wakey time. Our United flight — Greensboro
to Saginaw by way of Chicago — was scheduled to depart at 6:45 a.m., which meant
getting to PTI about 5:30 a.m., which meant leaving Martinsville at 4:30 a.m.,
which meant getting up at 3:45 a.m. Both Brugger and I had gone to bed
relatively early on Wednesday night, but thanks to a houseful of restless cats,
neither of us bagged much sleep — less than two hours for the old dude, I fear.
We arrived at the airport with just enough time to get through security
(already busy at an early hour) and visit Starbucks for coffee and a light
breakfast. Boarding began right on time. As soon as we settled in our seats,
some alarm on the plane started chiming nonstop, and there we sat for twenty
minutes waiting for the crew to figure out what the hell. Eventually, the
captain informed us that the issue required maintenance, and they would be
there in about five or ten minutes (which, in airline lingo, means no less
than half an hour).
Half an hour later—right on time!—the
maintenance crew arrived, and after another twenty minutes, the captain called
the all-clear. So, off we taxied to the runway, number one for departure...
only to sit in place for another twenty minutes, probably waiting for an open
window to Chicago. We had only a 45-minute layover at O'Hare, so to say things
looked dicey for making our connection is fairly polite.
But our pilot hauled ass. The flight typically takes an hour and a half; this one lasted barely over an hour. There was no circling or holding around O'Hare — we barreled
straight on in and were parked at the gate no more than ten minutes after
touchdown (twenty-to-thirty-minute taxis in Chicago are far more common). Our
connecting flight was at a relatively nearby gate, so Ms. B. and I made haste,
this time without plowing over anyone (which might have happened on a hairy Chicago
connection a couple of years ago). We arrived at our gate with a few minutes to
spare before boarding. Whew!
Anyhoo... our flight to MBS was quick and easy, although a couple of bumps in
the air raised a few wary murmurs onboard. No worries, though. Kimberly's
parents, Del & Fern, were waiting for us at arrivals, and we made the easy
drive back to their place in under twenty minutes. Still... wakey-wakey time
to darkening their doorstep was a good six-plus-hour endeavor, and on less
than two hours of sleep the previous night, Old Mark was a zombie for the rest
of the day and evening. Regardless, come sunset, Ms. B. and I headed out for
dinner at
Molasses, a nice BBQ joint in downtown Midland, and the brisket sandwich mostly
rocked (the meat was a tad dry, alas, but the flavor was still incredible).
Our typical evening with the Brugger folks consists of relaxing in the family
room watching news and/or cooking shows. This evening's edition was slightly
abridged, but all things considered, all's well that ends well.
The old dude finally got a good night's sleep.
Friday, December 1, 2023: And So It Begins...
It's rare to be in Michigan at this time of year and see no snow. There was
none on the ground when we arrived, but shortly after we were up and at 'em,
the white stuff started coming down in earnest...
Del & Fern regularly recruit Kimberly and me to play chef for at least
one, usually several dinners on our trips here. I always enjoy this
opportunity, and since the folks are particularly fond of my spicy meatloaf, I
volunteered to provide today's midday dinner. I don't do the spice for the
parents-in-law at the level I otherwise would, but it still has a wee kick via the
chipotle ketchup and black pepper that I hit it pretty hard with.
You know what? I love this stuff! And Ms. B.'s roasted veggies rocked.
After lunch, the rest of the crew sought and found treasures at local shopping
areas. I busied myself blogging, promoting
Deathrealm: Spirits, and otherwise spilling words into the pixel realm. For our evening drinks
and vittles, Ms. B. and I headed to
Three Bridges Distilleries & Taproom, which we've enjoyed in the past. It's loud as hell (it's that open industrial
architecture that has not one sound buffer, which will no doubt result in total
deafness for anyone spending more than two hours at a time there, particularly
when they have live music, as they did tonight) but the interior is attractive
and otherwise welcoming. A Rye Old Fashioned for me (decent), a red blend for
Ms. B. (okay, I'm told), and smoked mixed nuts for the both of us (not bad).
From there, we wandered next door to
Grape Beginnings Winery, another traditional Midland stop for us. Kim had a local shiraz, which she
really liked, and I tried a spicy, pepper-infused white
that, perhaps surprisingly, I loved. It was a blend of jalapeno,
habanero, and ghost pepper in a sweet white, and the spice knocked out the
sweetness that I otherwise would have poo-pooed. As an accompaniment, we had a bruschetta app that was, sadly, kind of meh.
For dessert, we wandered another door over, to
Aviator Cookie Company and picked up an assortment of their homemade cookies to take back and share
with Del & Fern. My favorite was this big honking cranberry-white
chocolate monstrosity that made me holler for help to get out of my chair.
And we finished up the night with our traditional family time and episodes of
Guy Fieri's
Drive-Ins, Diners, & Dives to keep us hungry.
Saturday, December 2, 2023: Godzilla and Other Goodies
I preceded Ms. B. out of bed by an hour or so this morning (as I usually
do!), had a lovely waffle & sausage breakfast, and wrote some words in
my current horror tale. Once both of us were feeling lively, we hit the road
for
Live Oak Coffeehouse, another of our traditional happy stops, and caffeined ourselves. I'm
cooking up yet more dinners over the next couple of days, so we hit the
nearby
Meijer to pick up the necessities. A quick geocache. Then back to home base
for a brief spell before the day's big highlight: heading over to Saginaw
for
Godzilla Minus One, which has been on the highest priority list since the day I first heard
it was going to be A Thing.
The show was at 3:05 at the
Quality Ten Powered by Emagine Theater
in Saginaw. I'd purchased tickets well in advance, just in case. Ms. B. and
I left a bit early so I could grab a few geocaches on the way. Done and
done. For Ms. B., the theater held some special personal significance
because she and her old gang used to frequent the place (in an earlier
incarnation) when they were wild and crazy young mutants.
I'll write a separate review of
Godzilla Minus One (which is now here), so suffice it to say
that I enjoyed it muchly. I've heard it from many quarters that it's the
best Godzilla ever. I wouldn't go that far, but it was certainly a
no-nonsense good flick, and it'll occupy an honorable spot in my personal
Godzilla collection as soon as it's available.
Another geocache, and then dinner — at
Veedu Indian Restaurant in
Midland. Veedu used to be
Whine, our favorite wine destination in
this area, and damn, we were sorry to see Whine close down. However, Veedu
serves excellent Indian fare, and the bar is still a lovely place. I had a
super-spicy Biryani with goat meat (fantastic!), and Brugger had a Channa
Masala (also fantastic!).
And then home for family time. Ms. B. and I traditionally watch
A Christmas Story on Christmas Eve,
but we have plans for Christmas Eve, and it was on TV this evening, so we
watched it. Needless to say, Godzilla made my day. Not to mention the
caching, the food, the drink, the company, the place... all these things.
Sunday, December 3, 2023: Christmas (or Thanksgiving) Piccata and the
Lovecraft eZine Podcast
I spent most of the morning working on my fairly comprehensive
Godzilla Minus One review (
right here: Godzilla Minus One). I cooked again for the family, this time our "Christmas" (or
"Thanksgiving") feast —
Chicken Piccata — so I got that going a little
before noon.
Damn if it didn't turn out merrily, monstrously good.
We were just finishing up our midday dinner when I received a shout from
Mike Davis, the proprietor of
Lovecraft eZine, letting me
know they'd be talking about
Godzilla Minus One on today's
podcast, and would I care to join in? Why... sure! So, for the next couple of
hours, the podcast gang and I carried on about monsters and such, and it was
fun. (
Link here: Lovecraft eZine Podcast 12/3/2023).
I wrote for the rest of the afternoon and early evening. Along with
A Christmas Story, Ms. B. and I traditionally watch National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation on Christmas Eve, but we have plans for Christmas Eve, and it was on TV
this evening, so we watched it. Then some cooking stuff, including
Beat Bobby Flay, for which I have developed
a fondness.
The weather has not been conducive to outdoor walking, and I miss it. A lot.
I'll be cooking again tomorrow, but it might be a better day for walking and
geocaching. Here's hoping.
Monday, December 4, 2023: Geocaching at Last!
Since the weather has not exactly been conducive to outdoor activities,
I have only managed to snag a handful of caches since we've been here, usually
while going or coming from someplace or another. Some snow came down
overnight, but it was little more than a dusting that coated the layer that
already covered the ground. This morning, the temps weren't bad, so it looked
promising for those outdoor activities.
I had promised Del & Fern that I'd clean their gutters while we were here,
and today was the first day since we arrived that this was even a conceivable
project. So, bright and early (or, more like kinda dim and early), I bundled
up, hauled out Del's ladder, and set to work. The leaves in the gutters were
mostly coated with ice, so I found a crowbar and kind of scraped the gutters
free of obstructions. My gloves are pretty heavy, but my fingers turned frigid
nonetheless.
Then, since I'm cooking another family meal, I got a nice big pork shoulder
going in the crockpot for BBQ tonight. I think it'll be good.
Del & Fern are kind enough to allow me to use the car when I go
geocaching, so out I went. There were only a handful of caches near the
inlaws' place that I hadn't already claimed, so I set my sights on these.
Happily, three of the five were on trails through the woods, so I got a fair
amount of walking in. It was still pretty chilly out, but by the time I was
done, I'd worked up a fair sweat. Fun caches. Finally. Yay!
Ms. B. had to work her day job, so I spent the afternoon making progress on my
latest horror tale.
For dinner, I believe I ate the best BBQ pork butt I've ever fixed. And
believe me, I've fixed a lot of butt. The rest of the family went at it whole
hog, so I think the cookin' for this trip was a big success.
Afterward, Ms. B. and I went out to have a couple of drinks at
Whichcraft, which serves all Michigan-made spirits. I tried a rye and a bourbon, and,
rather like the Michigan wine we've sampled, it was pretty damned good.
Color me surprised. Kimberly ran into an old friend she hadn't seen in
something like twenty years, so she enjoyed the opportunity to catch up.
On the way back to Casa di Brugger, we drove through some of the nearby
neighborhoods looking at Christmas lights. They do Christmas up big time here,
and I really enjoy the spectacle. Kinda gets the spirit flowing, don't you
know.
Then there was the hanging out with the folks in the family room. We leave
tomorrow morning — thankfully, not too early. Hopefully, the pilot will drive
carefully, and y'all will hear from me again. Till then.
