Along The Ad Routes

by Mike Reilly

Saturday morning breakfast took us to a very familiar place just to the southeast. We had a full SUV with Tom driving with Bob, Terry, Dewey, Potsie, Royce and me all fitting into his 7-passenger vehicle. It does get a little bit tight in the “way back’ with three of us (Bob, Potsie and me) sitting there, but it worked! Oh and Dave joined us! We went to the Viking Cafe in Blanchardville. We have been going there since before Niveah Gross worked there and she’s now 21 years old. Her sister Mikaela, a Pecatonica High School senior was one of the waitstaff. We had a familiar Brooklynn Johnsrud as our waitress. (I spelled her first name right for the first time!) Her grandfather and grandmother, Jeff and Ann, are friends I’ve know for many years. They live in Hollandale. Brooklyn will be a catcher on the Pecatonica softball team this spring. She did a pretty good job taking our orders and then remembering who got what food. We had several omelettes, 2x2x2s, French toast and eggs and bacon. Everything was exceptionally good. There was so much food that Bob, Potsie and Dewey couldn’t finish theirs - but of course I did my 3-egg omelette, hash browns with cheese and onion and toast!

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On the way down and back we checked out the spot where a fellow was killed on 191 near Highway W last week. We weren’t real sure if we found it, but were pretty sure of the spot.

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Also we took Highway K out of Hollandale down to Blanchardville. It was a route several hadn’t been on before. It comes into Blanchardville from the Yellowstone Park (west) way. We took the conventional Highway F to 39 to 191 way back to Hollandale on the way back.

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Saturday afternoon there was a 100th Birthday Reception for Maurice Althaus at the Masonic Temple in Dodgeville. I have know him since I was just a youngster. He is a retired barber and former alderman in Dodgeville.

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I also made an apparence Saturday at the International Foods Potluck that was held at the Merrimac & Main Center at the Congregational Church in Dodgeville. Everyone brings a dish to pass from their heritage. They all stood up and told about their dishes, explaining what their ingredients were.

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The Mineral Point Wrestling Team proved their power Saturday when the won two matches and claimed the WIAA State Division 3 Team Wrestling Championship! Congratulations!

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Barneveld’s girls basketball team will be heading to state in Division 5 as the result of claiming the Sectional Championship Saturday in LaCrosse. Good luck to them this week at state!

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The Dodgeville Co-op Gymnastics Team (Dodgeville, Mineral Point, Iowa-Grant, Highland) claimed 3rd at state in Division 2 last weekend in Wisconsin Rapids. This is the highest they have ever placed, being at state a bunch of times in the last decade. Maddy Klein, an Iowa-Grant gymnast became the program’s 1st star champion when she won the uneven bars. She also took 2nd in All Around which is pretty great!

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Finally, Mineral Point’s boys basketball team will face a familiar foe in Darlington Thursday night in the D4 Sectional semifinal, two games from reaching a second consecutive state berth.

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I’m going to drop back one day and talk about Wednesday, March 12 as my special day. It’s “Girl Scout Day” and little known to anyone, I am an Honorary Girl Scout. I was given that honor many hears ago when Joan Balk was one of those in charge of the Girl Scout Troop in Dodgeville. I did a lot of promoting of them back then! Anyway,  the Girl Scout birthday is celebrated annually on March 12 during Girl Scout Week. The day commemorates when Juliette Gordon Low registered the first 18 Girl Scouts in Savannah, Georgia in 1912. Gee, maybe I should be out selling cookies!