Saturday we spent the evening at my parents house to take in the annual fireworks on the lake. Warm weather, cloudless skies, and a tolerable amount of mosquitoes made for relaxing evening. While grilling on the deck, a bug with obnoxiously long antennae came to visit.
The traditional pontoon parade this year was bit more interesting than normal, as it included my parents' newest addition to the dock, a paddle-wheel pontoon boat. My Dad and my brother have been working on it all summer. Fitting a custom made paddle wheel to a back of a old pontoon boat, and then engineering the power drive, steering, etc themselves. They happen to get it in the water for its maiden voyage the day before and on a whim, added it to the boat parade. That is my brother Craig at the wheel with his wife Lisa.
The boat is not complete yet. They want to give it a few voyages on the lake, to work out any mechanical or balance issues if they come up. The plan is to create a more permanent seating solution on the deck, possibly adding enclosed cabin. For the time being this summer, it will be making its rounds on the lake.
Lounging lakeside, watching the sun drop below the horizon.
And then, darkness falls...
Zach and I recently went to our second renaissance fair of the summer in Bristol, on the WI/IL border. We brought my parents along for the fair too. Despite being a bit humid, it was great. We were happy to see The Suitcase Shakespeare Company at Bristol this year. We saw them perform at the fair in Chippewa Falls last month for the first time. The crowd seemed to love them too, so hopefully they will come back again to Bristol in the future.
Barely Balanced is another favorite act of ours, back again with new muscle-aching stunts.
Adam Crack, the world champion bull-whip cracker.
Of course the usual artichoke we have to get every time, among other tasty dishes.
This past winter, we started a piggy bank at home for a fun fund for this summer's renaissance fairs. So while at Bristol, browsing the shops, a potter's shop made us stop in our tracks. He had a full selection of piggy-dragon banks. Obviously we had to get one, to have a more suitable piggy bank for our future renaissance fair trips.
We also picked up a fire rock. A rock with a wick, and a hidden oil well underneath.
