Day 6: Meet at the Mint

Sam had his first breakfast at the Mint Cafe in Wausau this morning. This was a regular hangout for Keith, Kyle and me when we were all in Wausau. We'd go for a morning run and hit the Mint before heading to work. Now I'm in NYC and Kyle is in Calif., but Keith is still keeping the faith in Wausau. He and I got in a good run this morning before we joined up with Liz and Sam.

Last night, Liz was able to catch up with her friend Sarah Wang, who also lives in Wausau. We stopped by her house and then headed to the Applebees by hour hotel, with Sarah's kids. Sam hasn't been able to sit still for long at restaurants on this trip, so I took him back to the hotel early while Liz and Sarah chatted.

Wish we could have stayed longer and done more, but there's always next time.

Dave and Liz at the Big E

West Springfield, Mass., is home to the Big E, the annual state fair of each of the New England states, a six-for-one deal that still isn't quite as grand as some of the state fairs of the Midwest but delivers on the promise of animals, rides, games, music, beer ...

And, of course, food.

We decided this time to fill up on a variety of fair confections until our stomachs couldn't hold any more and report back on the ups and downs of the cuisine. Our taste buds are hopping while our bellies are popping.

1. London-Broil Steak Sandwich: Our first stop was to the stand with the (fake) flames shooting out of the top of the booth. With that kind of decoration we figured it had to be good. But overall, it was mediocre, not much different from a Philly cheese steak, with some veggies and nacho cheese to top it off. Dave succeeded in spilling half the toppings on the picnic table. The steak itself was kinda dry and flavorless. Quite a disappointment.

2. Soft Tacos: We had much better luck with the tacos across the way. The tattooed man serving 'em up didn't look very Mexican, but he sure knew how to work the tongs, throwing a variety of tasty toppings over greasy, seasoned ground beef. One bite, and Liz had grease dripping all over her chin and wrist, always a good sign. Dave succeeded in spilling half the toppings on the picnic bench.

3. Clam Cake Fritters: We had high hopes for these fried snacks, packed into a cellophane bag and served up hot in the Rhode Island exposition hall. They weren't bad, but they didn't really offer much more than a carb boost. We couldn't really taste the clams over the chewy, fried dough. Still, with a little salt, it was a nice intermediate dish on our way to potato heaven.

4. Maine Baked Potato: The Maine expostion hall is know for its long line of people waiting for the state's loaded baked potato. Butter. Sour cream. Chives. Bacon Bits. Mmmm..... Or so we thought last year, even though we decided against waiting in the line. This year we had to try it ... and it was worth the wait. But when we say loaded, we mean LOADED. The full compliment of condiments rises several inches high, with a sour cream allotment that easily could total a cup and a half. We decided against the sour cream and stuck with the butter, chives and bacon bits, even scooping off some of the butter, which the woman had heaped on by the spoonful. Not necessarily worth the hype, but still a great tater.

5. Corn Dog: No fair excursion would be complete without a mustard-laden corn dog, or at least says Dave. The mustard is a no-no for Liz, who prefers ketchup. This is a running disagreement between the otherwise happily married couple — mustard or ketchup, ketchup or mustard. In this case, Dave took charge with the mustard, much to Liz's chagrin. Good corn dog, says Dave. Wait until next year, says Liz.

Bonus item — Strawberry Shortcake: This was Liz's choice. It was between a carmel apple or strawberry shortcake, and it's easier to share the shortcake. Piled high with whipped cream, the sugar-soaked strawberries melted nicely into the biscuit bottom. It was good eatin'!

Conclusion: So, the real reason we go to the Big E is the slide. The video below speaks for itself.

Closing the Book

Liz may wind up writing a little something of her own to cap our vacation journal, but here's my stab at summarizing a few of the details we've missed.

First of all, we made it back safely to Newark, somehow caught our connections into the city and now are heading home on the Metro-North train to New Haven with an ETA of 4 a.m. Not too tired but getting there. Mostly looking forward to the end of travel, after a six-hour car drive, five-hour flight and now a few hours on trains.

As Liz mentioned in her last post, we visited USC on Thursday, the first time I had been back to the campus since my roommate Hanvey and I sealed the final box of our stuff in May 1998 and pointed his rickety minivan in the direction of the Northeast. The campus hadn't changed much in a decade, though I don't know if I'd notice if it had. I still remembered the key landmarks and had a few boring stories to tell Liz at each of our stops, but the place doesn't really have much emotional resonance anymore. Even so, I bought an SC baseball hat and am wearing it now. Go Trojans!


Some of our most pleasant moments on the trip were spent on beaches, starting with the beach at Carlsbad, where my Aunt Liz works. No alcohol allowed on this beach, she says, so we tried to act sober. Ha... just kidding.

And of course, we had a wild time on the beach in Santa Monica, first walking down the boardwalk and stopping by the Mexican restaurant at the end of the pier. Liz suggested ordering the big margaritas, and by big, I mean the biggest you've ever seen. They were also the best I've ever tasted, and they cost the most money I've ever spent on a single drink ($22 a piece!!!). After dark, we followed up dinner with a walk along the beach, running in and out of the surf.


We also had a good time visiting Ginger and Gerard, who had opened their home to me in college when I needed to get away from Los Angeles and school for a weekend. They're good people, and they took us to their local Fourth of July parade, which was more fun than you'd expect from a small-town parade like that. They live in Arcadia, Calif., in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains. My cousin Louellen, who lives about a half hour away, stopped by to say hello and have dinner with us last night.

There's plenty more I could write about, and certainly plenty more photos I could attach — we took a few hundred and will eventually post them in a Picasa gallery — but I'll leave it at that for now, with one last detail. My grandparents are buried in a Mojave desert city called Victorville, not far from where they lived, in Phelan. I wasn't able to get to their funerals several years ago, so I wanted to stop by on this trip and visit their graves, even though the cemetery is about an hour away from Arcadia. We drove up after the parade Friday, and because of the holiday the cemetery office was closed. So we didn't have any help in finding the graves, but after strolling the rows for maybe 20 minutes I finally came across the memorial stone. I didn't know my dad's parents as well as I'd have liked, since they lived far away away for most of my life, but it meant a lot to finally be able to say goodbye in person.

And Then There Was That Rattlesnake

We didn't see one - we ate one. After a day of taking in the views of the Grand Canyon --perhaps the most spectacular sight I've ever seen -- we headed out of the park, looking for some grub. And nothing says grub like Yippee-Ei-O! Steakhouse, where our waitress sported a beer belly and every entree came with a bowl of beans. Without hesitation, Dave decided we needed to try the fried rattlesnake appetizer. And without hesitation, we ate it. It was good. It tasted like a chewy calamari.

We are now on our way to Vista, Calif., just north of San Diego, to see Dave's Aunt Liz and Uncle Richard.