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OCTOBER 2013 | VOLUME 13, NO. 10
the free press A
Digest
of
Coulee
Region
Culture
Penokee Uprising
Dispatches from Wisconsin’s Peaceful Mining Rebellion [P. 3]
The Art Threat Incidents of Visual Arts on the Increase [P. 5]
Best of La Crosse Music [P. 9]
PLUS: SOCIAL NETWORKING [P. 2] | BEER REVIEW [P. 10] | THE ADVICE GODDESS [P. 12]
2 // October 1, 2013
FIRST THINGS FIRST
Social Networking
Second Supper | The Free Press
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The Top Calendrical celebrations 1. Oktoberfest 2. March Madness 3. Thirsty Thursday 4. No Shave November 5. Sunday Funday 6. Rocktoberfest 7. January Jones Things you don't want to cross 1. The Tea Party 2. The Rubicon 3. The Illinois border 4. Walter White 5. Proton packs 6. Jumper cables 7. Carlos Gomez
Second Supper | The Free Press
October 1, 2013 // 3
SPECIAL REPORT
Harvest Camp fights the iron mine Orderly rebellion deep in the Penokees By Bob Treu
Contributing editor The drive from La Crosse to Hurley is a long one, a diagonal tour through every kind of landscape Wisconsin offers: rocky bluffs, marshland, rolling glaciated farmland, and hours of forests and lakes, before ending at the Upper Michigan border. It includes towns with magical names, like Mather, Merrill, Hazelhurst, and Manitowish. It even passes by Little Bohemia, where Dillinger shot it out with the F.B.I., and where visitors can check out the bullet holes, which no one has bothered to fill. People from the two towns rarely visit each other — unless you happen to come from La Crosse to cover a DNR hearing on the proposed strip mining of the Penokees, the heavily wooded hills along Lake Superior’s south shore. The DNR is required to hold two such hearings before granting a mining permit, the first of which took place on Aug. 15, in the gym of the Hurley High School, on a basketball court covered with folding chairs, a bleacher section, and a couple of those standard folding tables where DNR representatives sat patiently listening to testimony. Republican legislators had warned of “eco-terrorists,” but the hearings were orderly and quiet. The DNR had threatened to close the hearings at any sign of protest. Still, hundreds of people testified during the day, with a crowd of around 60 at any given moment. The testimony was overwhelmingly against the permit, partly because pro-mining people stayed home, saying the hearings were irrelevant. Nor did the mining company, Gogebic Taconite (a.k.a., GTac), see fit to send a representative. The company is asking for a permit to do something called bulk sampling in the Penokees. This is a major undertaking, since their idea of a sample is 4,000 tons. If they are successful they will then ask to mine a 4½ mile long seam. The sample would be taken from various parts of that seam. No one is suggesting the ultimate mining project will be confined to the 4½ section currently under consideration. Ashland and Iron counties, the two counties affected, are very different places. Ashland County, a haven for upscale tourists, is largely against the mining. Iron County feels more working class. In places it feels desolate, abandoned. Hurley, the county seat, was once a town famous for two industries, iron mining and the oldest profession. Its fabled Silver Street is now a caricature of that epoch, its aging bars host to motorcycle gangs. On the door of Fred-
Photo by Bob Treau
DNR officials heard testimony at Hurley High School in August on the proposed strip mining of the Penokees, along Lake Superior's south shore. die’s Bar and Grill customers are greeted by a sign proclaiming: “Iron mining is our history; iron mining is our culture; iron mining is our future.” Beneath that: “Governor Walker: Believe in Wisconsin Again.” Iron County generally supports the mine. In any case, Freddie’s sign says nothing about the present. You won’t find miners with their lamp hats stumbling into Silver Street saloons during their off hours any longer, and the ladies have been packed up and sent away. The controversy surrounding the hearings is the result of Wisconsin’s new mining law, which local Assemblyman Steven Doyle says undoes generations of environmental and resource protection. He also told how this law came to the assembly, lacking either author or co-sponsor, and was intended to pass that way, except that some meddlesome Democrat pointed out that is not how Wisconsin law gets passed. Jeff Fitzgerald, the Assembly speaker, then cited all Republican assemblymen as either author or co-sponsor and challenged them to object. Which leaves a tantalizing question: Who actually wrote our new mining law? Doyle thought Gogebic Taconite was the prime suspect. So I asked Al Gedicks, a wellknown environmentalist, who explained that the Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau has released those names in answer to a request made under the Freedom of Information Act. The authors are attorneys from Whyte, Hirschboeck, and Dudek, the firm that represents GTac. This is how legis-
lation works now in Wisconsin. It avoids the unsightly errors and confusion of getting actual legislators involved before a bill is voted upon and has all the efficiency of outsourcing democracy to the interested companies. But the DNR did come to Hurley to listen. They were greeted by people from many walks of life and who expressed a wide range of reasons for being there. Adrian, a Native American with a black pony tail that came to the middle of his back, moved gracefully as he spoke, almost as if he were dancing. He spoke without notes, but there was a rhythm to his sentences, a rising and falling that reminded me of Native American singing. He paused frequently as if needing to meditate before each statement. The Native American way, he explained, was to share the earth, not to destroy it for profit. Another man ended his testimony by saying: “This is our home. We live here. This is about the environment and the health of our families.” Outside, in the parking lot, Adrian told me he had come over from the Lac du Flambeau reservation, and that he had been in Madison to protest the mining bill. He recounted spearing walleyes as a child with his father while surrounded by angry white neighbors carrying rifles. Then he suggested I visit Harvest Camp, 20 miles west of Hurley, where the Lac Courte Oreilles people have made a traditional camp to educate people about the sacredness of the forest. Eventually we were joined by a young man in bib overalls who works an organic farm north of the mine site. He moved here from Madison
after seeing his first Lake Superior sunrise and now it is home. He didn’t testify, because he isn’t political, but he worries about what the runoff will do to his vegetables. Other opponents were professional environmentalists, engineers, and scientists, including Al Gedicks, who has spent decades working in the U.S. and Latin America to protect the rights of native peoples from attacks by mining or petroleum companies. He and his group successfully defeated a mining proposal near Crandon a few years ago. The concerns seem real enough. Along with iron, the rock formations of the Penokee range include large deposits of pyrite, which turns to sulfuric acid in water, and grunerite, one of the more toxic forms of asbestos. This sort of taconite pollution eventually halted a Minnesota company from dumping train car loads of tailings into Lake Superior decades ago. GTac claims it can prevent asbestos from being released into the environment, but Joseph Skular, a geochemist for the University of Wisconsin, says, “Their response is either a lie or it indicates scientific incompetence.” But there is another part of GTac’s statement of intent that has so far escaped much discussion. The company has proposed enlarging a railroad spur and installing newly developed electric mini-furnaces north of the site to form taconite pellets from the raw ore. This technology has made iron mining
CONTINUED ON PAGE 4
4 // October 1, 2013
Second Supper | The Free Press
SPECIAL REPORT
Mines CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3 attractive to companies like GTac, but the furnaces would also require a new natural gas line. The morning after the hearings I decided to visit Harvest Camp, but it wasn’t easily to find. After driving back and forth for 30 minutes through what seemed like endless forest, I backtracked to a tiny town and asked directions from a man I found working on truck. He told me how to find the forest road that leads to the camp and ultimately to the mining site. After some nervous minutes driving through the forest, I finally came upon some pickups and a boat. The air was suddenly heavy with the smell of wood smoke. Deeper in the woods, a few wigwams and tarps were visible, but no people. Then, as I started into the trees they began to appear, silently, but without menace.
Sudoku
Answers on Page 10
The first was a couple who had come over from Lac Court Oreilles to help build a sweat lodge. They directed me to a fire circle where a young woman named Rose sat wrapped in some sort of plastic sheet. It had been a chilly night, so I asked if she was keeping warm. She smiled and answered no, it was mosquitoes. Then she arose, keeping the plastic wrapped around her, and volunteered to show me around the camp, where people had been drying herbs and mushrooms. Hunting and gathering on these lands is a right the federal government ceded to the Anishinaabe(or Ojibwe) long ago. Then I spoke with Karl, who works for the tribal radio station. He told me the asbestos released by strip mining would destroy their rice beds and ultimately their culture. “That’s genocide,” he declared. That seemed a bit strong, but Karl insisted that his dictionary calls destruction of a culture genocide. I haven’t been able to find that dictionary, but I get his point. He also averred that if the mining company or the governor tried to remove them or abrogate their rights, there could be serious confrontations. There had already been one famous scuffle where a woman named Katie Kloth grabbed a smart phone from the hands of a mine employee. This became an online video, and while no one was hurt, it was an excuse for GTac to hire Bulletproof Security, a private army from Arizona. They wear masks and carry automatic weapons. All this was deemed necessary to protect mineworkers and environmentalists from eco-terrorists. Eventually they were removed because Wisconsin requires private armies to be licensed. No surprise then, that soon after the DNR hearing, state Sen. Tom Tiffany introduced legislation that would ban all hunting, gathering, hiking, camping and almost any activity but mining in a vast portion of the Penokees. Currently public use is granted through an agreement with landowners, which gives them a large tax break in return. The governor, the senator and a GTac lobbyist have all called for the removal of illegal camps. A Bulletproof spokesman has claimed his force is the only one capable of searching out and removing them. That also means keeping out anyone
trying to monitor the condition of the land and water, other than the company’s experts. When the Bad River tribe sent in a scientist to survey wetlands, the company threatened legal action. They have also refused the tribe access to any part of the sample. Harvest Camp is on township land and operates under a permit, in spite of GTac and the state putting considerable pressure on the town to revoke the permit. The town stubbornly refuses to do that, although it is beginning to back down. The Bad River camps are also perfectly legal, and are apparently situated on land owned by the nature conservancy. They maintain they sought the permit so others could camp with them, but they have the right to be there anyway. It can be difficult to find people in the Penokees, which has led Sen. Tiffany to refer to the protestors as “shadowy characters lurking in the forest.” Neither he nor the GTac people seems to recognize that many of these protesters are Native Americans with explicit rights to be there, and in the end it may be the federal government, rather than our DNR, that saves the Penokees. Meanwhile, it may take months for the DNR to make a decision about granting a permit to GTac to do bulk sampling. Sen. Tiffany’s proposal to close thousands of acres of Wisconsin forestland is on hold, because he says he doesn’t have the votes at this time. But Bulletproof is scheduled to come back and will be ready go rout out the ecoterrorists. Winter comes early to the Lake Superior shore, and the earth freezes hard, but strip mining works best under those conditions, and the trucks can move back and forth without getting stuck in the mud. The Anishinaabe are used to northern Wisconsin winters and have no intention of leaving. The mosquitoes will go away and there’s lots of wood. As you read this they are winterizing their camps. Fall is also deer hunting season, when they traditionally take to the woods with their rifles to harvest winter meat. Add a private military with masks and automatic weapons and you have what Peter Russo, the Ashland County chairman, calls “a cocktail for disaster.”
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Families with low to moderate income interested in learning about building with Habitat for Humanity-La Crosse Area are invited to one of two upcoming informational meetings. Applications will be accepted at the meetings from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 1, and 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, Oct. 5, at the South Side Neighborhood Center, 1300 S. Sixth St., La Crosse. Habitat for Humanity-La Crosse Area is seeking to partner with individuals or families for two new, single-family homes to be built in the La Crosse in 2014. The homes will be built with donated money, materials and labor. When the houses are complete, the partner families will buy them from Habitat for Humanity through a zero-interest mortgage. Applications are being accepted from Oct. 1-15. Attending the informational meeting is the first step in becoming a Habitat homeowner. If you are unable to attend but are interested in applying, please call 608-7852373, ext. 602. Attendees will learn about Habitat for Humanity, how it works, and be asked to complete an application. Those interested in applying must bring the following items: • The last two pay stubs and 2012 income tax return. • Proof of other monthly income, such as food stamps, child support, disability, SSI, etc. • Addresses/phone numbers of employers, landlords, and references for last two years. • A copy of most recent bank statement. • Proof of expenses, including rent, car payments, insurance, childcare, student loans, alimony or child support, credit card payments, etc. (Proof includes receipts, cancelled checks, payment coupon books, court orders, etc.) Selection is based on applicants’ present housing need, willingness to partner (including completing 350 hours of “sweat equity”), ability to pay the interest-free mortgage, and residency in this community for the past 12 months.
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Second Supper | The Free Press
October 1, 2013 // 5
ARTS
The art threat
No. 1 for the 4th frame in a row X
Incidents of visual arts on the increase By Andrew Chulyk Special to Second Supper Yes, folks, random and premeditated art incidents are happening in your neighborhood and city. Be on the lookout for visual stimulation that requires you to momentarily stop and think about something other than your daily routine. Please consider the above warning seriously. It is not something “in the future,” but is here now. In the coming year prepare to see and experience more of these incidents as an art community struggles to emerge from its cocoon and spread its wings. The threat is real and updates will be provided during the course of this article. With that aside, hello art lovers, Art Rumba here, back from an art reviewing hiatus. As summer winds down or winds up, depending on your perspective, I thought I’d take a look at how artists and the arts are surviving in the Coulee Region. In this past year of reviewing exhibits, I got to meet a lot of artists, learn about their work and why they chose to be artists. I got to write about their medium, style and subject matter and relate it to you, the Second Supper readership. But, most importantly, I got to hear about the struggles and frustrations that professional artists experience here and in surrounding communities. Now, don’t wince and think this is another “oh the poor artists” whine. Au contraire. As an artist and business person, I speak from the experience of someone who has worked on both sides of the fence and sometimes under it. Alert! Alert! The art threat warning color has been changed from a light cobalt blue to a yellowish teal. Ah, sorry for that interruption, but as I was saying, professional artists whose majority income is derived from gallery representation and sales, websites, studio sales and commissions struggle just like any other business. The old adage “Don’t quit your day job!” is even more relevant in today’s economy. Many artists take their well-paid -for education and wind up teaching the many untalented. Others ply their skills in graphic design, carpentry or in some other low-paying job to make ends meet. Trying to create viable work and compete in the “Art World” becomes an exhausting and frustrating endeavor, let alone trying to find time for relationships, marriage or children. Recently, La Crosse lost an important art venue, Vitamin Studio, a workshop/ open studio for younger and older artists alike to develop printmaking and painting skills, receive instruction and have work critiqued. Vitamin was an oasis in a very arid art scene. There was nothing else like it. And yet so much of the community hardly even knew they were there. Matt Duckett, a UW-L graduate art student, and Jenn Bushman, a graphic design major, worked tire-
lessly to keep the doors open. Originally, they started out in a warehouse as Green Bay Street Studio, named after their street address, but after two years, it was location, location, location that brought them down town to Sixth Street, right next to Channel 8 news. They changed their name to Vitamin and slowly grew, until a floor collapsed in their building. Then they cut back their rental space to save money, and then Jenn’s job as a graphic designer took them to Chicago. They are missed. La Crosse has no concentration of artists living and working in downtown. There is no “artist’s building” like you find in other towns and cities. Normally, a city with empty buildings and storefronts is a magnet for attracting artists, especially young artists who can turn cheap, raw space into active art studios and galleries. But, that doesn’t happen here. Building owners are reluctant to improve their buildings and tend to see artists more as a nuisance, an unwanted group of individuals that will do nothing to enhance property values. And so if there are artists here, where are they? Alert! Alert! The new art threat color is raised to mauve. Repeat mauve! Damn pesky these alerts, but they’re important for protecting us against unwanted visual arts. Well, like I said, “Where are the artists!” Well, many artists who do live here have studios at home, or in converted garages or in remodeled or newly built out buildings. They do not congregate and pretty much keep to themselves, except for the occasional party or bar outing. Another reason for not congregating is that there is no focal point or hangout. Also, there are no real commercial galleries located down town; ones that represent more, dare I say, intellectual, contemporary art work. You know, that abstract stuff or the kind of work you see in big cities. Let’s face it, La Crosse is provincial in its tastes. So, if you think finding artists is hard, then try finding audiences. Here I will give credit to the Pump House Regional Arts Center for maintaining a steady stream of art work to entice the general public and tourists. .Artists looking for potential venues to bolster their art credentials, apply for the coveted one-person show opportunities that the Pump Houses offers. We interrupt this article to issue an arts alert. ... OK, enough of that! Back to The Pump House. On the one hand, if you are an artist from the local area you can be guaranteed a large and noisy opening populated with your friends and supporters. If, however, you are from elsewhere, say another state, expect the opposite unless you’re really, really famous. I’ve been to many sparsely attended receptions there and stopped going because it was too painful for me to see an artist who put time, energy and money into their show and have
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6 // October 1, 2013
Art CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5 only six people show up. So, if you think it’s hard to find artists and audiences, then try finding that elusive creature, the art buyer/collector. Yes, there are some sales, but the Pump House is not a commercial gallery. It is an exhibition venue where you are invited to see and experience art. So you ask, “Where is all this going?” Hmm, let’s see, I’ve talked about struggling artists, the loss of the Vitamin Studio, why there are no marauding bands of artists in downtown La Crosse, no artists buildings, the Pump House exhibits. … Now I remember, the re-emerging arts community! Re-emerging you say! Where has it been hiding you ask? Well that’s a very good question and I will try and answer it honestly. It hasn’t been hiding. It just stopped evolving and growing. Now, I can hear the clamor from the old guard, those who carried the art banner forward through the 1970s, '80s and '90s. The economic climate was different then, disposable income from high paying jobs abounded. People were open to new ideas, businesses were booming, arts and culture ruled --- and then the world changed. Large malls sucked the life and vibrancy out of the downtown, big companies downsized, people left with their money and thirst for culture. So, who then is this re-emerging arts community? Let’s take a look. An arts community is made up of many types of people in many different professions; the common connection always being an avid appreciation of the arts and the desire to promote and develop arts and culture for the benefit of all. This is not a monumental task, just one that takes some solid creative leadership and a commitment from residents and art supporters to roll up their sleeves and participate. Yes, there are various small art clubs and associations in La Crosse, but they tend to serve their own memberships more over involvement in larger community arts projects. There are also self-contained university art departments populated with professional artists who have no outlet for their work here other than a show at the Pump House and the faculty shows at their university gallery. These artists and other professional La Crosse artists seek their fortunes elsewhere in cities that have artists, audiences and art buyers. And so what we wind up with here is an insular community. La Crosse is an island made up of islands. But don’t we have an arts board you ask? We do. Isn’t their job to help unify our fragmented creative community, to reach out to artists, musicians and poets, to help stimulate local economy by sponsoring and funding down town and neighborhood events? Warning! Warning! The new color alert is burnt orange. Repeat, burnt orange. Please do not look directly at unapproved artwork or attempt to understand it. Oh my god! This article has been hacked! Where was I, ah yes, The La Crosse Arts Board. I looked up city arts boards online to
ARTS get a better understanding of what other cities do and how they interact with their communities. As I approach this subject, I again speak from experience having served on the Massachusetts Arts Council for four years and the Lanesboro Arts Board for three years. Again, unsurprisingly, there is an insular consistency with how the arts board views its role in supporting the arts. Not that they haven’t tried, but they miss the mark. My research showed arts boards respond to artists by offering grant programs for creative individual and group projects that help enrich the culture of the community. Recently, an arts board representative stated that “the city arts board is a city committee with representation from the city, county and region. That makes it a unique body and implies that the government is interested in citizen input. It is a body whose 'ear' is tuned to the input of the community, including especially artists and those who value the visual arts and a broad range of arts.” So, if you want to input, you can always go to the once-a-month, 7:30 a.m. Monday morning roundtable meeting and bend their “ear.” It’s all very nice and cozy, but with little money and no staff, the board can only listen and then continue on with its own agenda. This is not a very dynamic approach to stimulating creative growth within this city’s arts community. So you may ask, is this arts board relevant? Is city government at all interested in promoting arts and artists? How are they working to encourage and support downtown and north side businesses to support the arts. A while back, some banners appeared on lamp posts with the words ARTS LA CROSSE. I’m still trying to figure out what that was intended to mean. (Sirens wailing in the distance) Be on the lookout for creativity approaching the area. Art threat forecasters are predicting a heavy downpour of ideas. Take shelter immediately. The threat color is now crimson red. Repeat, crimson red. Crap! These updates are a royal pain in the ass! Wait, what’s that I see rising from the mediocrity of provincialism and city government? Is it the new community of arts supporters? Yes! However, this is not an army, just a few individuals looking to make something happen. Now, I don’t want to appear as if I’m ignoring all the other arts that are here in La Crosse. There is the symphony, theater, live local music and dance. The universities provide a large portion of arts entertainment by bringing in productions and performers from around the world, and don’t forget those big name monster truck events at the La Crosse Center. But for the small, low-budget independents like The La Crosse Community Theatre, The Pump House and The Muse Theatre, it is still a struggle. Everyone is competing for same public dollars. But, there is hope. Smaller venues that offer visual art and music, such as the Root Note, are helping to rebuild the arts community. Coffee shop/art houses are becoming the venues for local artists, poets and musicians providing younger artists more opportunities to display their art work, read their poetry and experiment with their music. And even as Vitamin Studio fades from
the scene, its creative flame is now kept burning, at Studio Gallery 1311 on Market Street. The Wednesday night figure drawing sessions, which were a staple at Vitamin Studio, continue at SG1311. Artists are gathering around the small but growing Vitamin flame for creative warmth and to share experiences. Eventually, this flame will grow into central heating. So how can citizens, like you the readership, become more involved in the visual arts? There was a time when art galleries took on the responsibility of educating the public. Well-attended openings led to lively discussions. Artists talked about their work. Art dealers and gallery owners courted their patrons and advised them as to who and what was worth investment. But, alas, the dollar rules, times change and it’s a struggle for the galleries as well. There are two commercial galleries in La Crosse that represent professional local, regional and national artists: State Street Gallery, down by the UW-L campus on State Street, and Studio Gallery 1311, on Market Street. State Street Gallery has been surviving in La Crosse for the past 12 years and offers a unique mix of painting, sculpture and jewelry. SG1311, with limited weekend hours and by appointment hours during the week, concentrates its energies more on opening and closing events. There you will find contemporary photography, figure, landscape and abstract painting, as well as sculpture and furniture. The role of SG1311 in the redevelopment of the visual arts in La Crosse has become important in bringing collectors, art buyers, business owners and artists together. So visit these galleries, start educating yourselves and then buy some art. Another grass roots organization that has risen from the marsh of mediocrity is the La Crosse Arts Initiative. Now in its second year, the arts initiative brings visual arts to the streets, literally. Last summer Downtown Main Street commissioned them to install historic photos on the façade of its building on Main Street. The project title, “Back in the Day,” was meant to be a catalyst for other businesses to show off La Crosse’s historic past. But, a lack of interest left the project without sponsors. Chalk drawing hit the sidewalks last year as well and continues on with cooperation from Downtown Main Street. This fall The arts initiative sponsored a weeklong plein air (in open air) painting event called “Between the Bluffs.”Even Mayor Tim Kabat got in on it, reading and signing a proclamation at the artist’s exhibit and reception making the third week in September “Between the Bluffs Plein Air Painting Week.” On Oct. 12, Mayor Kabat will be at Jules Coffee on Pearl Street from 1-4 p.m. having his portrait painted by local and nationally known portrait artist Peggy Baumgaertner. This is a unique opportunity to get up close to the mayor and watch a master portraitist at work. Other arts initiative art events are already in the planning stages for 2014. So there it is -- new life in the old city. A few drops that start a trickle, a trickle that starts a stream and before long it’s a river of fresh inspiration and creative flow. Your attention, please!. The art threat has passed. The new threat color has been lowered to sky blue. Repeat, sky blue. No further updates at
Second Supper | The Free Press
The Rumba Beat Ongoing and upcoming arts events in and around the Coulee Region Fall has finally arrived and as the year starts its seasonal cool down, the arts scene is just heating up. So art lovers, let’s see what’s to do. Lanesboro Arts Center, 103 Parkway Ave. N., Lanesboro, Minn. (www.lanesboroarts.org): Sarah Wieben – New paintings now through Oct. 13; “Ink Pressed On Paper”– Lennis Moore, Oct. 19-Dec. 22, opening reception, 6-8 p.m. Oct. 19; Paul Brokken – “Paintings Inspired by Scotland and The Cave of Smoo,” Oct. 5-Nov. 17, opening reception, 6-8 p.m. Oct. 5. The Pump House Regional Arts Center, 119 King St., La Crosse (www.thepumphouse.org): “Mark My Words Again”– Artists respond to short poems. Through Oct. 19. Poets read works Friday, Oct. 18; “Places To Enter”– Marti Schwem and Nancy Ellingston, Oct. 24 –Dec. 7; “Light Color and Age”– Stephen Wysocki; ‘The Art of the Penguin of Tuscany”– Matt Thurston. Red Horse Gallery, 116 S. Main St., Fountain City, (http://red-horse-gallery. com): John Durfey – oil and acrylic painting, opening reception 7-9 p.m. Oct. 5. Viva Gallery, 217 S. Main St., Viroqua (www.vivagallery.net): J J Lynes – Woodcarving; Barbara Decker – Paper painting, Opening reception 5-7 p.m. Oct. 3. UW-L Center for the Arts, University Art Gallery 333 N. 16th St., La Crosse (www. uwlax.edu/art) Biomorph “Contemporary Metal Invitational” through Oct. 12th; “Erasure,” curated by Roger Boulay, Oct. 25-Nov. 16, reception 4-6 p.m. Oct. 25. State Street Gallery, 1804 State St., La Crosse (608-782-0101): Paintings, sculpture, jewelry and ceramics by local, regional and national artists. Studio Gallery, 1311 Market St., La Crosse (www.sg1311.blogspot.com): Check for upcoming shows. The Wine Guyz, 122 King St., La Crosse: Lisa Middleton – Map artist, through Oct. 4, reception 5-7 p.m. Oct. 4; Jean Donohoe – Fall paintings, Oct. 5-Nov. 2. And don’t forget to check out the Root Note on Fourth Street, Grounded Coffee on Main Street and a new addition to the coffee/alternative music/art house circuit on the North Side, Old Towne Grounds on Caledonia Street. Enjoy the art, support the artists and Rumba On!
this time. Well, I’m glad that’s over. I wasn’t really worried. There is new energy afoot. So don’t be afraid of the art. The next time you read about a show, go see it, ask questions and talk to the artists. And like theater, music and dance, applaud and ask “What can I do to help support the visual arts here in La Crosse?” Remember, the only danger in looking at art is that it might make you see things differently. Is that so bad?
Second Supper | The Free Press
October 1, 2013 // 7
8 // October 1, 2013
Second Supper | The Free Press
THE PLANNER
October
The Month in Preview Oct. 2 & 7
40 different breweries of U.S., Canadian,
LEARN TO CURL
drink, but choose wisely because you’ll
@ Green Island Ice Arena
have free-reign as far as sampling goes.
music | entertainment | oktoberfest fine arts | halloween | wine | theater fall
colors
|
haunted
houses
and German origin. You choose what to
There are two types of wristbands: A VIP Curling’s a sport that involves ice, brooms,
wristband ($60 pre-sale, $65 day of event)
and a big smooth rock, so why is it called
allows you to sample specialty and aged
curling? Because it’s all about making the
brews and gives you access to the Free Food
rock curve or “curl” as it glides down the ice!
Tent. A general admission wristband ($25
It might sound easy enough, maybe even
pre-sale, $30 day of event) gets you endless
a little boring compared to contemporary
sampling of general admission brews.
body busting sports, but its long history
Everyone gets a free commemorative glass.
(it’s been around since the 1500s) proves
Tasting starts at 4 pm and goes till 8:30 pm
otherwise. Skill, technique, and strategy are
on the Southside Festgrounds in the Festzelt.
all part of the game; it isn’t called Chess on Ice for no good reason. Join the friendly curlers at Green Island Ice Arena and learn how it’s done and how it’s fun. Times are 6-8 p.m. & 8-10 p.m. on Oct. 2 and 7-9 p.m. on the 7th. No charge.
Fri., Oct. 4 SO MANY CHOICES @ Southside Festgrounds Might want to keep your bloodstream relatively alcohol free before coming to this Oktoberfest’s Craft Beer Night. Might be good to brush up on your beer-tasting skills while you’re at it. This year’s Oktoberfest Craft Beer Night will have 115 brews from
Sat., Oct. 12 HISTORIC FUN
opportunities, and an 1860’s shoe shine
Parks and Recreation Dept. continues the
@ Downtown La Crosse
stand. Of course there’ll be all kinds of food
sweet and scary tradition of a safe and fun
too. This is an all day event.
Halloween. There’s way too much frightening
La Crosse is a historic place A lot has happened here since its founding in 1856, and much more probably happened before that. The 18th annual Historic Downtown La Crosse Day happily reminds us of the
fun you won’t want to miss: costume contest,
Oct. 12, 18, 19, 25, 26 & 31
magic show, face painting, games, s’mores, witch’s brew, trick-or-treating (of course!), and more. Field of Screams begins at 5 p.m. and ends at 8 p.m.
about having a good time. There will be
LITTLE (HAUNTED) HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE
a whole bunch of family friendly activities
@ St. Feriole Island, Prairie du Chien
Oct. 25 - 30
Make the drive to Prairie du Chien for one
TRUE TO LIFE TERROR
of the Midwest’s biggest and best frights
@ Historic Batavian Bank Building (319 Main St.)
city’s unique history, even though it’s mostly
in which to participate. These are only some: trolley & horse carriage rides, stage & street entertainment, pumpkin painting, historical exhibits & building tours, photo
of the year. You’ll be glad you did, and possibly traumatized afterward. The Halls offers over 20 rooms, plus a new haunted outdoor area, which together will allow you to face every fear you’ve ever had and then some. This isn’t recommended for children, but on the 26th, from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m., a kid friendly version will be held. Admission to hell this month is only $6, $1 off if you bring a canned good.
Fri., Oct. 25 FIELD OF SCREAMS @ Copeland Park This one’s for the kids, and it’s free. The sixth annual Field of Screams, put on by the
Downtown La Crosse’s only “Haunted Event” is looking to focus more on the less fictional terrors that have come to haunt humanity. For six days, the old Batavian Bank Building will be transformed into a Death-Row like setting to gruesomely re-tell the events of the nastiest serial-killers, which you could say are some of the more true terrors known to humankind. The gore goes from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. every night. All ages are permitted till 8 p.m. After that, those under 12 will need to have a guardian. Tickets are $8 at the door, and one of those goes to the school music program you choose to support.
Second Supper | The Free Press
Jukebox
1. E Bar (42 percent) 2. JB’s Speakeasy (23 percent) 3. The Cavalier (19 percent) Supper says: Refusing to jump on the Internet jukebox train, Del’s rocks their house with a classic, colorful jukebox that still has users (gulp) push buttons! You’ll find a medley that spans every genre from outlaw country to hip-hop. Even La Crosse musicians get some play on the ol’ box. Our favorite? The ever-rotating slew of hand-made mixes by your favorite bartenders that are as unique as they are.
Rock Band
1. Porcupine (28 percent) 2. Shot to Hell (20 percent) 3. Orwell (16 percent) Supper says: The men of Porcupine have been making well-crafted indie rock since before MySpace was even a gleam in Tom’s eye, back when electronica was underground and major labels still had some clout. Today Porcupine is still keeping it real with even finer songwriting chops, split-vinyl pressings, cool T-shirts, and an independent spirit that has seen them open up for some of the hottest musicians from the underground. More significant, in an era of disposable music, a La Crosse Porcupine show can still be an event. Voters say: “You need some classic rock options for us old fogeys.”
Acoustic/Bluegrass
1. Muddy Flats and the Hep Cats (38 percent) 2. String Ties (31 percent) 3. Fayme Rochelle & The Waxwings (22
BEST OPEN MIC: ROOT NOTE
Editor’s Note: Our fourth annual Best of La Crosse contest drew approximately 1,775 voters, all through our website (www.secondsupper.com). We would like to thank the voters, as well as the many local businesses that advertised in this issue, for their support of the free press in La Crosse. Winners in the other divisions were announced in our August edition.
October 1, 2013 // 9
MUSIC
Dane Gonzales and Corrie Brekke of Root Note, selected as Best Open Mic by Second Supper readers in the 2013 Best of La Crosse contest.
percent) Supper says: Something about the Coulee Region makes it a perfect place to hear old-timey string music. And when it comes to local acoustic bands, it’s hard to get old-timier or stringier than Muddy Flats and the Hep Cats. Channeling early blues, Texas swing, and a bit of bluegrass, they’re the perfect accoutrement to barn dances everywhere. Voters say: “5 stars for Fayme.”
Jamband
1. The Smokin’ Bandits (37 percent) 2. Moon Boot Posse (25 percent) 3.Bandsaw Brothers (16 percent) Supper says: Sometimes it feels like a large portion of La Crosse grew up with the Smokin’ Bandits — to the extent that we even grew up at all. With a sorta-bluegrass, kinda-rock and prettybluesy songs, the Bandits play music for all occasions, but their songs all sound like they were written just for La Crosse. In a year in which the band celebrated its tenth anniversary and experienced another lineup change, it’s only fitting they would continue their streak by being named La Crosse’s favorite jamband.
Indie/Alternative Band
1. T.U.G.G. (64 percent) 2. The Sweet Nothings (14 percent) 3. Neon (10 percent) Supper says: By now it seems T.U.G.G. may well win this indie/alternative category every year of their existence. They’re an independent band, yes, and an alternative the traditional reggae sound they most closely resemble. But T.U.G.G. is also hugely popular, tour nationally, record prolifically, and
seem to get bigger by the month. So catch the boys. next time they’re in your neighborhood and celebrate one of La Crosse’s finest musical successes. Voters say: “There are more than 5 bands in La Crosse, guys.”
Hip-hop Artist
1. The Cool Kids Committee (34 percent) 2. Cat Robey (21 percent) 3. Hyphon (16 percent) Supper says: Admittedly it can be difficult to follow the hip-hop scene in La Crosse, but if there’s a rap show happening somewhere in this city, there’s a fair chance The Cool Kids Committee are somehow involved. A collective featuring Kalyst, Father Focus Confucius, and other MCs whose names we forget (no beef), we celebrate the CKC for keeping hip-hop alive in our fair city. Voters say: “I should get out more.”
Open Mic
1. Root Note (42 percent) 2. Popcorn Tavern (25 percent) 3. Del’s Bar (20 percent) Supper says: The combination of coffee, organic food, mircobrews, and earthy décor always seems to indicate a haven for artsy types. Root Note’s Open Mic Night is a well-attended weekly affair, with the kind of atmosphere that makes you wonder if you’re supposed to snap or clap after each song. We’d guess that a large portion of used acoustic guitars on the La Crosse Craigslist page are purchased immediately after the Root Note closes at night. Voters say: “Could have more heckling.”
HELP WANTED: ADVERTISING SALES & WRITERS Second Supper needs an advertising sales rep and writers to cover music, food, features. No experience necessary; perfect for students Email roger.bartel@secondsupper.com
Live Music Directory FEATURED SHOWS Tuesday, October 1st Popcorn Tavern – Dave Mackay Group, with Moon Boot Posse • 9 p.m. Thursday, October 3rd. Pump House – Rob Gonzalez • 8 p.m. Friday, October 4th Robin’s Nest – The Stoney Ridge Band • 8 p.m. Pump House – Rob Gonzalez • 8 p.m. Cowley Hall Planetarium – 8 pm. Album Encounter • 8 p.m. JB’s Speakeasy – Actual Size • 8 and 10 p.m. Saturday, October 5th Veteran’s Memorial Field Parking Lot – FurLow Riders • 11 a.m. Robin’s Nest – The Fabulous Baloney Skins • 8 p.m. JB’s Speakeasy – This Could be the Day, with Double D Express • 10 p.m. Friday, October 11th JavaVino – Mark and Janette Hanson • 10 p.m. Black River Beach – West Salem Adult Jazz Band • 7 p.m. The Pump House – Adrian Legg • 7:30 p.m. Saturday, October 19th JavaVino – Mark and Janette Hanson • 5 p.m. Black River Beach – Dance, with music by Wally Tranberg • 6:30 p.m. Fine Arts Center – La Crosse Symphony Orchestra • 7:30 p.m.
WEEKLY GIGS
Sunday La Crosse Queen – The Journeymen • 6 p.m. Popcorn – Innocuous Voodoo (funk) • 10 p.m. Monday Popcorn – Acoustic open Jam • 10 p.m. Del’s – Cheech's open Jam • 10 p.m. Tuesday Jade Café – Open Mic Night • 7 p.m. Root Note – 3rd Relation Jazz • 8 p.m. Popcorn – Paulie • 10 p.m. Thursday Starlight – Kies & Kompanie (jazz) • 5 p.m. Huck Finn’s – Joe Cody, Jan-Arden Petersen • 6 p.m. Root Note – Open Mic • 8 p.m. Popcorn – Dave Orr’s Blues Jam • 10 p.m. Friday La Crosse Queen – The Journeymen • 6 p.m. Saturday La Crosse Queen – The Journeymen • 6 p.m. Send your music listings to editor@secondsupper.com no later than Oct. 28 for inclusion in our November Live Music Directory.
10 // October 1, 2013
Second Supper | The Free Press
DIVERSIONS
The Beer Review
"Thinking of view" So listen carefully By Matt Jones
Answers on Page 10
Lederhosen Lager Pearl Street Brewery La Crosse, Wisconsin By Adam Bissen adam.bissen@secondsupper.com
ACROSS 1 AMA members 4 Defiant stayer's stance 11 Race participant? 14 Black Eyed Peas singer will.___ 15 Place for a friend to crash 16 SOS part 17 Bed linen where bad stuff goes on? 19 Hosp. diagnostic 20 "___ fair in love and war" 21 Smooth fabric 22 Random link from some stranger, say 23 Late comedian Phyllis 26 Island show 28 Planner square 29 "West Side Story" actor Tamblyn 32 Site to search for stomach remedies 36 Drinkware crafted between the mountains? 40 "In ___ of flowers..." 42 Clearer, as the sky 43 "Silver Spoons" actress Gray
44 What sports car engines have? 47 Put at, as a price 48 Sinn ___ 49 "But ___ Cheerleader" (Natasha Lyonne movie) 52 "The Georgia Peach" 55 "Primal Fear" actor Edward 57 Roo, for one 60 Disaster relief org. 63 Better Than ___ 64 Major miner concern? 65 Technical genius at filmmaking? 68 Animation studio drawing 69 D, E and F, but not F#, on a piano 70 Quit fasting 71 Daily ___ (political blog) 72 Instant coffee brand 73 Common omelet ingredient DOWN 1 Total one's totals? 2 Mexico's national flower
3 Reason for insoles, maybe 4 "Was ___ das?" 5 Pursue with passion 6 Deep-sixes, to a thug 7 Language spoken in "Avatar" 8 Government IOU of sorts 9 Lizard that pitches insurance 10 Kind of poem 11 Easy win 12 A psychic may claim to see it 13 Barber's quick job 18 Adult ed. course 22 "Jackass" crewmate once on "Dancing with the Stars" 24 Pitching stat 25 Rough game on a pitch 27 Abbr. in personal ads 30 Toby Keith's "Red ___ Cup" 31 Tobacco type 33 Event where 13 is a good number 34 1051, to Caesar 35 Opium lounge 37 Utter madness
38 Late golfer Ballesteros 39 Senator Hatch 40 Jazzophile's collection, often 41 Detroit suburb Grosse ___ 45 General ___'s chicken 46 "Bed-In" participant 50 Pat of "The Karate Kid" 51 Headwear of yore 53 Bingo call 54 Jeff who bought the Washington Post in 2013 56 Court judge 57 Sporty stereotype 58 Brand with a "Triple Double" variety 59 Slippery critters 61 "Walking in Memphis" singer Cohn 62 Coloratura's offering 65 Earn a title 66 Cool, to the Fresh Prince 67 Suffix for sugars ©2013 Jonesin' Crosswords (editor@jonesincrosswords. com)
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Hello, loyal readers and guests to our fair city. Welcome to Oktoberfest 2013! By the time you read this you may be face down on a street corner or curled up beneath a lonely barstool, drifting to slumber under the warming of pages of a local independent press. If this is the case, may I suggest that you are doing it wrong? You are in La Crosse, Damen und Herren! We’re a classy city with a proud drinking heritage, so set down your Budweisers and your mixed rail vodkas, and Prost your fellow festers with a worthy beer! With all due respect to City Brewery and its perfectly fine FestBier, when it comes to La Crosse Oktoberfest brews, I’ve always turned to a fresh pint of Pearl Street Brewery’s Lederhosen Lager. I still encourage everyone to quaff Lederhosen pints, but for the first time this year La Crosse visitors and local grilling enthusiasts have something else to look forward to: six-packs of Lederhosen Lager bottles to wash down your bratwursts or bring to your thirsty friends back home. Besides being a totally bitchin’ party, an Oktoberfest— also known as a Märzen —is a style of beer with a strong malt body that typically gets released at the beginning of autumn. It’s an excellent beer for the season, and it’s no wonder that Pearl Street has been brewing the Lederhosen Lager since its earliest days. So if you’re reading this review in a bar, make sure to order an Oktoberfest
at your next round. If you’re pursuing this, perhaps, at our newspaper racks in Festival Foods or Woodman’s, go inside the liquor department and buy yourself some of these beautiful bottles. Purchase: 6-pack of Lederhosen Lager from Festival Foods, $6.69 Style: Oktoberfest lager Strength: 5.5 percent ABV Packaging: The Lederhosen Lager comes wrapped in a checkered blue label. At the center is the torso of a burly man, likely wearing the title garment, sipping a stein the size of his head with two hands. It’s an image that practically belches Gemütlichkeit! Appearance: The beer pours a clean golden amber color beneath a frothy grey head. Aroma: Typical of the style, this builds on a base of malty biscuits and cracked wheat. The Hallertau hops are prominent on the nose, helping solidify the Märzen style. Taste: Lederhosen Lager stakes out a space above most Märzens. It doesn’t have the caramel-y sweetness of many craft Oktoberfests. Instead, it takes a lighter tack, focusing on the grassy, lemony hops and letting the German yeast carry much of the flavor. Mouthfeel: This has a rather thin mouthfeel. Drinkability: Lederhosen Lager is extremely drinkable. Especially during a parade or hefty bratwurst session, it would be easy to wash down a few. Rating: This beer doesn’t have enough ratings to register a score at either BeerAdvocate or RateBeer. I wouldn’t consider this the finest Märzen on the market, but it’s a fresh take on the style and La Crosse’s very own. Prost!
'Detroit' to be performed this month at UW-La Crosse The UW-La Crosse Department of Theatre Arts will present the Pulitzer-Prize winning play "Detroit" by Lisa D’Amour at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 18, Oct. 19 and Oct. 24-26, with matinee performances at 2 p.m. Oct. 20 and 27 in Toland Theatre in the Center for the Arts at 16th and Vine streets. "Detroit" is billed as a sharply comic
look at the “American Dream.” Tickets go on sale at 1 p.m. Oct. 14. Box office hours are 1-4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday; 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays; 10:00 a.m to 2 p.m., and one hour before show times. Tickets are $16 for adults, $14 for senior/non-UW-L students and $5 for UW-L students. Call 608-785-8522.
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Second Supper | The Free Press
Oktoberfest Schedule
I Like to Watch By Dean Robbins Special to Second Supper The Millers Thursday, Oct. 3, 7:30 pm (CBS) Multi-camera, laugh-track sitcoms have been in decline, but here’s one that works. Nate (Will Arnett) and Debbie (Jayma Mays) have always kept their distance from their insufferable parents (Beau Bridges, Margo Martindale), but that becomes impossible when Mom and Dad break up. She moves in with Nate, he moves in with Debbie, and madness ensues. Bridges does one of the best dumb acts I’ve ever seen on TV, while Martindale specializes in inappropriate behavior. Their fight about whether he masturbates correctly is one of the fall season’s funniest scenes. Then there’s the scene where Mom crashes a party with Nate’s friends. He’s horrified at first, but finally gives in and dances with her because he knows it will make her happy. “This is either gonna be very sweet or very creepy,” says Nate’s friend Ray (JB Smoove), observing the spectacle. The genius part is: It’s gonna be both. Welcome to the Family Thursday, Oct. 3, 7:30 pm (NBC) The parents of Molly (Ella Rae Peck), an underachieving white girl, are overjoyed at her high school graduation. “Suck it, doubters!” her dad exclaims. “She’s Arizona State’s problem now!” Meanwhile, the parents of Junior (Joseph Haro), an overachieving Latino, are overjoyed for a different reason. He’s giving his valedictorian’s speech and preparing for a college career at Stanford. As he reads the speech from his laptop, he gets a message from Molly: “I’m pregnant.” Thus begins a culture-clash comedy, one of the best I’ve seen in a while. Welcome to the Family throws two unlikely families together and forces them to get along. Mostly they don’t, and the comedians work wonders with resentment, anger and misunderstanding. Mike O’Malley and Mary McCormack are particularly good as Molly’s parents, trading mordant wisecracks about her limitations. To everybody’s dismay, Molly and Junior decide to get married. It’s a terrible decision that, as a viewer, I fully support. Once Upon a Time in Wonderland Thursday, Oct. 10, 7 pm (ABC) This companion to Once Upon a Time reinterprets Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Alice (Sophie Lowe) faces a panel of doctors in Victorian England who don’t believe her stories of an invisible cat and a hookah-smoking caterpillar. They consider her insane and propose a treatment that will bring her back to drab reality. Just in the nick of time, the White Rabbit (voice of John Lithgow) and the Knave of Hearts (Michael Socha) appear, offering to spirit her off to Wonderland. How can anyone say no to a rabbit in trousers and a derby? Once Upon a Time in Wonderland is worthy of the “wonder” in its title. Lowe possesses one of the most interesting faces of the new TV season, with big, sensitive eyes to take in all the strange sights. The cinema-
October 1, 2013 // 11
DIVERSIONS
tography has a hallucinogenic quality appropriate to subplots involving genies and evil queens. If it’s between drab reality and Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, I’ll take the latter. Reign Thursday, Oct. 17, 8 pm (CW) In 16th century France, the virginal Mary, Queen of Scots (Adelaide Kane), is swept up in palace intrigue. Her fiancé (Toby Regbo) cares less for her than he does for France, nattering on about the political advantage of their union. An evil queen (Megan Follows) plots against her, while her ladies-in-waiting indulge in Elizabethan-style naughtiness. All the French characters worry about English plots, even though, puzzlingly, they all speak with English accents. Reign is basically Gossip Girl in doublets and puffy sleeves – a soap opera about beautiful young people and their transgressive behavior. But it has an advantage over Gossip Girl, in that transgressive behavior was much more dangerous in the 16th century than it is in our own permissive times. Here, if Mary loses her head over some cute guy, she’s in danger of literally losing it. Three cheers for a setting that has a few societal rules left to break. The new series is quite watchable, thanks to all the lovely images of castles and carriages. The loveliest image of all is Mary herself. Even a hardened TV critic can’t help melting at the sight of her dewy eyes, raven tresses and ruby lips. If I were Mary’s fiancé, France would be the last thing on my mind. Dracula Friday, Oct. 25, 9 pm (NBC) NBC puts Bram Stoker’s characters through their paces one more time, assuming we’ll thrill to the names Van Helsing, Renfield and Harker. Oh, yes, and… DRAC-u-la! Victims rasp out the word after the suave vampire sinks his fangs into their necks. I know I should be scared, but why am I snickering instead? Maybe it’s because this new drama takes its awful script so seriously. Given the sophisticated modern vampire tales we’re used to on cable TV (Being Human, True Blood), NBC was crazy to think we’d go for this old-fashioned hokum. Dracula (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) struts through the foggy sets, proclaiming his enemies “preening little peacocks.” The pilot features seduction that’s not seductive, horror that’s not horrible. Weirdest of all, it asks us to root for Dracula in his crusade against the late-19thcentury oil industry. Say what? The series is funnier than some of the new season’s sitcoms, albeit unintentionally. Despite my reservations, I just know I’ll tune into episode two to see another preening peacock feel the wrath of… DRAC-u-la!
Saturday, September 28th Fest Activities 7 a.m. – YMCA Maple Leaf Walk Run (pre-registration required), Riverside Park. 10 a.m. – Maple Leaf Parade. 12 p.m. – Best Buy Ga.m.ing, NS LHI Community Festplatz. 2-5 p.m. – Photo Contest, La Crosse Public Library. Entertainment 2:30-4 p.m. – Mr Blink, Kaplan Garden Stage 2:30-5:30 p.m. – Soap Box Project, Bier Halle Main Stage 4-7:30 p.m. – Justmann Band, Festzelt 4:30-6:30 p.m. – Craig & Ash Band, Kaplan Garden Stage 5:30-8 p.m. – Horseshoes and Handgrenades, Bier Halle West Stage 7-11 p.m. – Jim Busta Band, Kaplan Garden Stage 8 p.m.-Midnight – The Remainders, Bier Halle Main Stage 8 p.m.-Midnight – Rhythm Playboys, Festzelt Sunday, September 29th Fest Activities 7:30 a.m.-11 a.m. – Parade Marshal’s Pancake Breakfast, NS LHI Community Festplatz 10 a.m.. Ecumenical Service, Mary Mother of the Church. 11 a.m.-2 p.m. – Authentic German Luncheon, SS Festzelt. 11 a.m.-5 p.m. – Oktoberfest Strongman Challenge, NS LHI Community Festplatz. Entertainment 11 a.m.-2 p.m. – Copper Box, Festzelt. 11:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m. – Local Variety Show, Kaplan Garden Stage 2 p.m. – The Journeymen, Kaplan Garden Stage 2-5 p.m. – Sonic Beats, Bier Halle West Stage 5-6:30 p.m. – New Colony 6. Bier Halle Main Stage 5-8 p.m. – Craig & Ash Band, Kaplan Garden Stage 6:30-10 p.m. – Studebaker 7, Bier Halle West Stage Monday, September 30th Fest Activities 11 a.m.-2 p.m. – Lederhosen Luncheon, SS Bier Halle. 7-8 p.m. – Oktoberfest Dance Competition, NS LHI Community Festplatz. Entertainment 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. – Concord Singers, SS Bier Halle 6:30 p.m. – Bret Michaels, SS Bier Halle Tuesday, October 1st Fest Activities 9:30 a.m.-12 p.m. – German Heritage Day, NS LHI Community Festplatz. 11 a.m.–2 p.m. – Ladies’ Day Luncheon,
WTC Lunda Center. 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. – Special Fester Day, NS. 4-7 p.m. – YMCA Fa.m.ily Fun Night, NS. Entertainment 7:30 p.m. – UW-L Screa.m.ing Eagles Marching Band, NS LHI Community Festplatz. Wednesday, October 2nd Fest Activities 7:30-9:30 a.m. – Senior Breakfast, SS. 4-8 p.m. – Authentic German Dinner, SS Festplatz. Entertainment 4-7 p.m. – Crazy George, Festzelt 4-7 p.m. – Click Track, Kaplan Garden Stage 8-10 p.m. – Sing & Swig Karaoke Contest Finals Thursday, October 3rd Fest Activities 9-11 a.m. – Rock ‘n’ Roll Breakfast., NS LHI Community Festplatz. 9 a.m.-7 p.m. – Oktoberfest Needlework Show, La Crosse Public Library. 7 p.m. – Torchlight Parade. Entertainment 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. – Don D Harvey, Kaplan Garden Stage 5-9 p.m. – Good Tymes with Mark Viner, Kaplan Garden Stage 6:30-9:30 p.m. – Abbey Lane & The Backbone, Bier Halle Main Stage 8 p.m.-Midnight – Far Outs, NS LHI Community Festplatz. 9:30 p.m.-Midnight – Pat McCurdy, Bier Halle West Stage. Friday, October 4th Fest Activities 5-8:30 p.m. – Craft Beer Night. SS Festzelt. Entertainment 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. – Gideon’s Radio, Kaplan Garden Stage 7-10 p.m. – Pop Rocks, Bier Halle West Stage 7-10 p.m. – Gary’s Ridgeland Dutchmen, Kaplan Garden Stage 10 p.m.-Midnight – Too White Crew, Bier Halle Main Stage Saturday, October 5th Fest Activities 9 a.m.-2 p.m. – Big Muddy 5k and MiniMuddy 1 mile run, Myrick Park. 11 a.m.-5 p.m. – Oktoberfest Cornhole Tourna.m.ent, SS. Entertainment 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. – The Executives, Kaplan Garden Stage. 3-6:30 p.m. – Misha Sigfried and His Band, Kaplan Garden Stage. 5-8 p.m. – Pinsetters, Bier Halle West Stage 7-11 p.m. – Pat Watters Band, Kaplan Garden Stage 8 p.m.-Midnight – Oil Can Harry, Bier Halle West Stage
12 // October 1, 2013
The Advice Goddess By Amy Alkon amy.alkon@secondsupper.com Another brick in the wallow
I’ve missed countless opportunities because I fail to speak up in the moment. A pretty girl smiles at me on the bus. Ten minutes later, I will wish I’d stayed on the bus and struck up a conversation. The same thing happens with business opportunities. At the critical moment I need to act, I go into a fog of some kind, weighing my options. Much later, I’ll realize that gold was put in my lap, and I’ll endure a lot of shame from not being present enough to recognize that. I’m all man when I have a girlfriend (which I don’t now) and will do anything to make her feel secure. But because of my problem with seizing opportunity, I’m much lonelier than I need to be. I’m realizing that I’m an irretrievable mental defective. — Hopeless
Second Supper | The Free Press
THE LAST WORD You’ve heard that 80 percent of success is just showing up? Well, the other 20 percent is not acting like you got glued to the toilet seat shortly afterward. You diagnose yourself: “I’m an irretrievable mental defective.” Um, no — probably just a drama queen with risk aversion jets set a little high. Your freezing in the face of opportunity is probably due to an “approach-avoidance conflict,” a type of inaction-producing psychological stress that occurs when an opportunity has both positive and negative aspects that make it simultaneously appealing and off-putting. For example, with the girl on the bus, there’s a possible date versus a possible rejection. The closer (and more possible) the opportunity the larger the negative aspects loom. This leads to indecision and, in turn, inaction. When you have some distance (say, a few hours after you get off the pretty girl express bus), the positive aspects take center stage, and going for it seems the thing to do. Only then, this no longer takes a nervous “hello” across the bus aisle; you need one of those “missed connection” ads and $3,000 for a private detective. You need to practice opportunityspotting and preplan what you’ll do when it knocks so you won’t respond like a bratty preteen girl: “Go away! Nobody’s home. I hate you!” Recognizing opportunity
takes knowing your goals. Articulate them, and then identify five opportunities a day and seize at least two of them. This requires simply taking action despite your indecision. Assuming you aren’t weighing the opportunity to blow through a bunch of stop signs, what are the likely damages? Step back and do a little cost-benefit analysis. If, say, you’d talked to the girl on the bus, worst-case scenario, she might’ve glared back at you, giving you an ouchie in the ego for what, 10 minutes? Doing nothing leaves you with lasting regret, shame and selfloathing. Doing nothing repeatedly should help you get a headstart on becoming a bitter old man, thanks to all the years you’ve invested standing near the ladder of success yet never once having a woman in a bikini shinny down and hand you a mai tai.
Sum girls
Why does my girlfriend say she loves me more than I love her? There’s no anger behind it; she says it teasingly. But it’s making me uncomfortable and a little annoyed. I’m beginning to wonder whether I love her enough. I mean, I thought I did. —Bugged “I love you more than you love me!” is just the thing to say to a boyfriend — if you want him to take you in his arms so he can look over your shoulder for your
replacement. The problem with the subtext — “You know, you could probably do better” — is the “principle of least interest,” sociologist Willard Waller’s 1938 theory that the relationship partner who is less emotionally invested calls the shots. Even if that less committed partner isn’t an exploitative creep, he’s likely to get his way in ways he wouldn’t in a more equal partnership, and Waller felt this didn’t bode well for the relationship. Current research supports this. Social psychologist Susan Sprecher, for example, found that unequally involved partners were less satisfied with their relationship and more likely to break up. If you aren’t already eyeing the door, ask your girlfriend whether there’s a problem — maybe something she needs that she isn’t getting from you. If she’s just playfully needling you, tell her you need her to stop. It’s okay, in a relationship, to ask that a phrase or two be a no-go zone. This “I love you more than you love me!” business, for example, is a cousin of the lose-lose question, “Do I look fat in this dress?” There is a right response to that question, and it isn’t “Yes, come to think of it,” “No!” or “No, you look like a cow landing with the world’s largest parachute”; it’s hiring somebody to be there to clock you with a tire iron before you can answer. (c)2013, Amy Alkon, all rights reserved.
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