Friends In Milwaukee and DC

We haven't driven to Milwaukee since we moved to DC nine years ago. We have visited several times, but we flew. We are in the road trip mindset and hoping our eleven year old Subaru will keep going! We always stay with our wonderful neighbors who lived right next door to us.  Before we go we always try to set up at least three dates - two with four ladies and another friend we have both known for the last thirty years, and one with a friend and colleague I worked with who likes John Wayne. So we did and are hoping our plans work out. So we are on the road heading north and then straight west to Indiana because we are stopping off to see someone else before heading north to Wisconsin. That one is a surprise, but it gives us a completely different route that we've never taken. As we left I got an email from a friend and colleague here wishing us well and another from a friend last evening. It's so great to know such great people in both places. And that's one of the few things that makes DC and Milwaukee the same. 

The Surprise Package

It's always fun to receive unexpected packages in the mail. For whatever reason I can usually figure out what might be inside by looking at the return address. This large envelope seemed a little bulkier so I was a bit unsure. But when we opened it we were pleasantly surprised. In the land of the Internet, Facebook, email, and everything else digital it was a treat to actually get hard copy photos. The best part about the pictures was they were sent from a variety of sources funneled through one person and were pictures of very familiar faces.  We visited Milwaukee over the Fourth of July weekend and had an opportunity to visit with friends, colleagues, and neighbors - several that we have not seen for many years. Both my husband and I have such fond memories of all of them. We stay in closer touch with some more than others, but it was so heartwarming to see all these kind and wonderful people. That is what we miss most about living here after being in Milwaukee thirty years. But then I think of the snow and ice and am convinced we made the right choice. Just thinking about these occasions warms my heart.