At the request of absolutely nobody, I have decided to blog the two years (so far) of the Boys of ’65 luncheon dates. The idea for monthly lunches sprang from the fertile mind of Little Mayo who decided it would be neat to drive up from Burnsville to have lunch with Bradley and me, and Dr. Kiehne whenever he was in town from Texas. The idea was also to visit a multitude of fine dining facilities within (so far) a 30-mile radius Alex. Why? Because we’re retired with a degree of disposable income. And Mayo went to the trouble of creating the following Power Point reflecting activities to date.
[The Protagonists. A four person bromance that goes all the way back to the time we began hanging out with each other. And as you’ll recall from those early years, such relationships seldom extended beyond four people because that would involve algorithms beyond modern computing capacities.]
[Back in the day . . . ]
1) Lakeside Ballroom, Glenwood
[I’m not sure of the date, but it just involved Brad and Mayo the first time out. That may have been the day I caught my cumberbund on a low hanging branch which snapped it up around my neck, momentarily causing me to pass out, and then awaken to visions of crazed Norwegians trying to smother me in blankets of lefse.]
2) Etnier’s, Ashby]
JUNE 20, 2016
[The Boys of the Summer of ’65, with Tom’s dad, Merill. Many thanks to Helen and John for hosting a lovely afternoon on Ashby’s Pelican Lake!]
3) Tutti Frutti, Sauk Centre
JULY 26, 2016
[Greg “Little Mayo” Johnson was coming up from Burnsville, and Bradley Arland Anderson and I were coming from Alex, so we decided to meet half way – Sauk Centre. OK, so it isn’t exactly half way but Brad and I had a 2-on-1 numbers advantage. We ate at the heretofore unknown Tutti Frutti where “Mayo” and I had the commercial (just because if you eat the whole thing you don’t have to eat again for 2 years, kinda like a snake – I couldn’t finish, but then I was looking forward to dinner) and Brad had a burger. When the ladies meet for mini-reunions in the Cities, they call themselves The Wallweeds. So, we needed a name. At first I thought our old high school nickname, The Stud Muffins, would be a good one – then someone pointed out we were actually only The Muffins. So, we opted closer to the precedent with The Tumbleweeds, reflecting our abilities to take a real tumble whenever we trip.]
4) La Ferme, Alexandria
AUGUST 2, 2016
[The Boys of the Class of ’65 fine lunched at La Ferme today. Soliciting ideas for future such monthly events – anywhere within the 5-county area . . . and beyond?]
5) Herby’s, Carlos
SEPTEMBER 19, 2016
[The Boys of ’65 monthly lunch took place today at Herby’s in Carlos. Mayo proclaimed the broasted chicken the best he has ever had! Mary Franson was our server.]
6) Water’s Edge, Starbuck
OCTOBER 12, 2016
[Where were the boys this month? Buoyed by the appearance of Professor Doctor Colonel Kiehne all the way from Texas, at Water’s Edge in Starbuck! We are taking suggestions for the locale of future lunches, though it is unlikely Professor Tom will be able to make most of them.]
[Throngs of coots appeared on the Lake Minnewaska waterscape . . . ]
7) O-Town Tavern, Osakis
NOVEMBER 17, 2016
[The Boys of ’65 monthly luncheon date. Today, the O-Town Tavern in Osakis. Good burgers, and a 3 1/2 hour use of our table. As they say, we remembered a lot of stuff that probably never happened. Oh, and it looks like the ’21-22 Silverstreaks had a bit of trouble with our Cardinals!]
8) Knotty Pine, Brandon
DECEMBER 12, 2016
[This month the Boys of ’65 took their repast at the Knotty Pine Grill in Brandon. And a Merry Christmas to all!]
[Present from Mayo to the boys . . . ]
9) Muddy Boot, Forada
[This was another Bradley and Mayo only. I believe the Super and I may have been cruising the South Pacific.]
10) Leaf Valley Mercantile, Leaf Valley
FEBRUARY 20, 2017
[This month the Boys of ’65 had our fine dining experience at the Mercantile in Leaf Valley. Little Mayo is holding the program from Butch Krebs’s funeral in Hutchinson. Many discussions about Brad, Greg, and Butch growing up in the same neighborhood. Oh, we shared the Merc with several members of the class of ’63 – they seemed to be quite a bit older than us! Oh (again), and thanks to Anthony Miltich for performing live music for us (OK, I made up that last part – I believe it’s called “fake news” or “alternative facts”).]
11) Hatchery, Lowry
APRIL 17, 2017
[The Boys of ’65 visited the Hatchery in Lowry today for our monthly confab. We were two today but hope to have Brad back next month. Can you count the bird swarm around the watertower? And would you know which restroom to use?]
12) Sidewalks, West Union
MAY 1 2017
[Undeterred by the May Day blizzard, the Boys of ’65 met at Sidewalks in West Union for this month’s fine dining event. Brad was able to join us again – we’re hoping to keep him out of the hospital for a while. Being old is no excuse!!]
13) Boulder Tap House, Alexandria
JUNE 19, 2017
[I have no evidence that this event ever took place. Of course, it may have been just the two other guys. I may have had an appointment for a dye job and permanent?]
* Lakeside Ballroom, Glenwood (See No. 1)
JUNE 19, 2017
[The Boys of ’65 had a full contingent today. Dr. Kiehne was in town from Texas for Father’s Day (his brother Jerry also came and met with the class of ’63). We dined at the ginormous Lakeside Ballroom in Glenwood and then went touristing – to the Lake Minnewaska overlook, to Minnewaska Golf Club, and to Minnewaska High School (proudly educating kids from Glenwood and Starbuck since 1991). You may rest assured that in our hours of discussions this afternoon we solved all the world’s problems.]
14) Hatchery, Lowry
JULY 10, 2017
[The Boys of ’65 went to the Hatchery in Lowry today (yes, it’s a repeat because Brad couldn’t make it the first time). I forgot to get an outside photo (just like I forgot to get any photos at the reunion lunch, was it last week?). Our server remembered us (who knew Mayo and I would be so memorable, it was months ago?). Mayo and I had the special, burger, homemade potato salad, and beans – Brad had a burger and onion rings. Mayo pronounced his burger the best ever, I loved the potato salad. Notice Brad is looking pretty good – nice tan, lost a little weight, and is now walking 4 blocks daily (a big improvement!). We had fun with our server again – she demanded we do a little signature graffiti in the place and take a photo of their specials sign for advertising.
AND NOW FOR THE REST OF THE STORY . . .
Our server is from Alex, so we asked her which route she takes home. She said 28. She said it’s curvy but the shortest route. Not being a denizen of Pope County, I’d never heard of 28 – but what the heck, we took it. To say it was curvey would be an understatement – most Formula 1 tracks would be straighter! After dizzying our way for quite a while, we didn’t seem to be coming upon any familiar sights. Finally we saw a small sign pointing left for Alex – it was 27, another county road. Again, drive drive drive, no clue where we were. Finally Brad pulled out his phone, checked GPS, and said we were heading toward 82. I said what? I was going to drop Brad at WalMart on the way home, which would have been no problem if I had taken the 55 to 29 route right from the beginning. HItting 82 between Alex and Nelson meant we were off by, and overshot by, about 10 miles! Now we would have to go back through Alex to get to WalMart. Aha, but how ’bout if I take East Victoria Road to Hazel Hill Road, I would miss all the big city traffic. So we did . . . until we came to a Road Closed to Thru Traffic. Oy! So, I turned right and in about a mile or so discovered we were on a deadend road. Turn back, go down the No Traffic road to see what it tells us. Hit a point where we could only turn right – it was Hazel Hill! Woop-woop! But then I forgot they were building a roundabout at Hazel Hill and McKay – road closed! Only option was to turn right on Rosewood Lane, drive all the way back to 7th Street in town, and take the route we were trying to avoid in the first place. By now my back teeth are floating. Brad decided he was too tired to shop, so I dropped him at his home, and sped to my home (just in the nick of time). All-in-all, we covered the 18 miles between Lowry and Alex in about an hour.]
15) State Street Cafe
AUGUST 17, 2017
[Yesterday the Boys of ’65 fine dined at the State Street Cafe in Garfield. But I committed a major cub reporter faux pas – my camera battery was dead! So this is a photo from the archives of a previous visit there by the Boys. I can report that Bradley has dropped 25 lbs., has walked up to a mile and a half, and plans on doing marathons before our next reunion!
p.s. I can also report that I fine dined with the HQ and 3 of her grandchildren at Bug-A-Boo the previous day though there is no photographic evidence of such.
This just in from the backup photojournalist at yesterday’s lunch. Li’l Mayo had his cell phone photos Amazon-droned to the editor-in-chief for publication. In all the hubbub, we forgot the exterior shot. Thanks to our server, who took the group photo – she thought, rightfully, that we were a bunch of loony old men.]
16) Backroads Steakhouse, Evansville
SEPTEMBER 14, 2017
[This month the Boys of ’65 wined and dined (coked and burgered?) at the Backroads Steakhouse in Evansville. Litte Mayo got the 2/3 lb. burger, so we had to put more air in the tires to get home (OK, to be fair, he only consumed half the thing)!]
17) Garden Bar, Alexandria
OCTOBER 17, 2017
[Little Mayo and I were a duet yesterday for our monthly fine dining and scrapbooking congregation. We stayed in town for my new/old stomping ground, the Garden Bar on 6th, nee Sixth Avenue Wine & Ale. Bradley was on injured reserve and couldn’t join us – we’re hoping he obtains medical clearance in time for next month’s shenanigans.]
18) Corral Saloon & Eatery, Nelson
NOVEMBER 23, 2017
[The Boys of ’65 were all together again today for lunch at the Corral in Nelson, site of our 40th class reunion. We were joined by Tom’s dad, Merill, a day after his 96th birthday, and the Super. We turned Little Mayo loose early for his drive back to the Cities . . . we’re under a winter weather advisory, our 4th snow since October 25, but the first that will involve a measurable amount! Hang in there everybody, and celebrate with Josie at the winery tomorrow afternoon and with the Salty Dogs at the Garden Bar tomorrow night!]
19) Melby Outpost, Melby
DECEMBER 17, 2017
[The usual photographer let his camera battery lapse. Little Mayo stepped in in relief with his smart phone. The Boys of ’65 attended the Melby Outpost yesterday. Mayo drove up from Burnsville despite icy conditions in the cities; the drive from Alex to Melby and back took place during a beautiful light snowfall. In light of recent goings-on, everywhere, the discussion of the day is pretty much represented in “photo 3.”
p.s. If you follow my blog, you will note that I’m still wearing the same cap and coat that I wore for the header photo of the blog – taken 16 years ago! The houses in the background have changed significantly more over that same time frame than has my attire!]
20) Palmer House, Sauk Centre
FEBRUARY 6, 2018
[The Boys of ’65 cut up at the Palmer House in Sauk Centre yesterday. The building dates to 1902, making it slightly older than most of our classmates. Despite our best efforts, we were unable to locate any ghosts this time. I made a new friend who laughed at all my jokes. The Sinclair Lewis mural on the back wall is a relatively recent addition. It was a beautiful bright and sunshiny day, but the temperature was about 400 degrees below zero . . . ]
21) Gingerbread House, Glenwood
MARCH 12, 2018
[Today the Boys of ’65 monthly glue sniffing involved luging down the hill (why yes, my ears did pop on the way back up) to Glenwood for fine dining at the Ginger Bread House Cafe. We left when rumors began floating that we were about to be picked up for vagrancy . . . ]
22) Cozy Cup Cafe, Parkers Prairie
APRIL 16, 2019
[Where the excitement never ends . . . This month the Boys of ’65 piled into the Mayomobile, past a still frozen Lake Le Homme Dieu, for a gastronomic adventure to the Cozy Cup in Parkers Prairie. At no time were we escorted from the facilities in handcuffs! Next month: The Rose City Bar & Grill.]
23) Rose City Bar & Grill, Rose City
MAY 14, 2018
[The Boys of ’65 trundled all the way to the Rose City Bar & Grill today. Not even Rand McNally was aware that it’s a half hour drive from Alex, yet still in Douglas County? We had to use my talking smart phone to find our way there! It was a lovely place, doing well since it’s opening under new ownership just this year. We enjoyed our meal and our usual repartee with our server, who labeled us the best customers ever! Little Mayo also architected (is that a verb?) this lovely power point presentation of all the eateries we have visited over the last 2 years. Professor Doctor Colonel Kiehne arrives for a few days in the June, so we should have 4 at the next get together. (The 1st photo is the throbbing main intersection in Rose City.)]
The most remarkable thing about my mother is that for thirty years she served the family nothing but leftovers. The original meal has never been found. ~ Calvin Trillin
UP Next: Cripes, we’re packing to move!
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