Here I sit again, ate too much ice cream watching the Gophers basketball team lose a close one to a team they could/should have beat. There is stubble on my chin, but I don't mind. Alise will though. My shave-less campaigns (mostly just to jest) are not taken lightly by one redhead in the Sjostrom household; there is something about me with facial hair Alise does not like. Maybe she wants to live the good ole' days of Minnesota Junior Holstein Conventions when I couldn't grow any. Wait, that was still two years ago, but I digress...November came in and out with a bang. Alise and I had a ton to do and had lots of fun doing it. Actually, November really started in October, since the 31st was a Saturday. We didn't go to any parties or host one, but we did sleep in, carve our massive pumpkin (see left), hand out sticks of cheese, and watch the Gophers football team beat Michigan State. Alise did an amazing job cooking to keep us fed and all in all it was a great day. It was actually required to be a great day for the last day of October, because for much of November I would be in Wisconsin, Minnesota and Texas.
The first "official" weekend of November I got to go to the first ever Golden Gopher Football Game in the new TCF Bank Stadium. I served on a couple of committees as a student that were helping to plan the stadium, so I was very interested in its success. Plus I paid a small fee on top of tuition my last two years, so I really can take part ownership.For a number of years, my immediate family has had Gopher football season tickets. I dare to say that the Gophers are not yet a top-tier program, so tickets are relatively easy to get through promotions and such. That being said, many games turn into a family reunion of sorts as various cousins, aunts, uncles, and sometimes even grandparents go to the games on their own, or use our tickets. I was able to run into my mom, sister, 3 aunts, and 4 cousins, with more family still in the stands. My dad and brother were finishing (or should I say starting) harvest so they had a good excuse not to be there. I was in the area because I gave a presentation to dairy farmers in Wisconsin Dells earlier in the day, and more times than not the flights in and out of Wisconsin can be routed through MSP airport at the cheapest or similar cost. While I think Alise did miss me while I was gone, luckily we have a friend that travels more than I do, and was in the New England area for the same amount of time. So, as usual, they stayed busy cooking, even making a challenging meal of sushi... and saving some for when I got home. It looked good and tasted better:
The next week took me to Texas for the National Milk Producers Federation annual convention, held jointly with the folks that make up Dairy Management, Inc., the farmer-funded check-off program that helps dairy farmers market their milk. It was a great convention because of the many people I met and caught up with, in addition to the dairy bar full of cones, milk, string cheese, and sandwiches.
Since my return to Vermont from Texas (November 12th), I am not scheduled to travel until mid-January, which is good for both catching up at work, and catching up with Alise.
The next weekend (Nov. 21) one of Alise's co-workers hosted a wine/beer and cheese pairing party, featuring cheeses matched with beer and/or wine from the store where Alise works, the Grafton Village Cheese Company. The cheese from this store is high-end stuff, and tastes awesome. It leaves Kraft in the dust when it comes to taste. Plus, the Midwest has a quirky tradition of dyeing cheddar cheese yellow (cheese is white!), so they skip that part too. Unfortunately we don't have any pictures, but a good time was had by all.
For the grand finale of November we decided with one week's notice to head to the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. 
It has been a dream of Alise's to go, and after an old friend told me of some great places to eat and drink in Manhattan, I was all for it. It took only 3.5 hours to get to our, ummm, unique, hotel, The Gershwin. It was a great location and close to the parade, for a reasonable price (in Manhattan) and smaller European-style hotel room and bed. We woke up at 5:30 a.m. on Thanksgiving morning and got one of the few remaining curb-side seats at 6:08 a.m. Our view of the parade was spectacular and Santa passed by at about 11:35. After that, we napped. Besides being tired, and the parents who showed up at 9 a.m. trying to get their kids to the front of the line (umm, the balloons are in the air, sir.) it was a very enjoyable event. We sat on the curb until 8 am, when the NYPD pulled the gates 4 feet into the street. At 8:30, 4 feet more, so that there was plenty of room for spectators.
It has been a dream of Alise's to go, and after an old friend told me of some great places to eat and drink in Manhattan, I was all for it. It took only 3.5 hours to get to our, ummm, unique, hotel, The Gershwin. It was a great location and close to the parade, for a reasonable price (in Manhattan) and smaller European-style hotel room and bed. We woke up at 5:30 a.m. on Thanksgiving morning and got one of the few remaining curb-side seats at 6:08 a.m. Our view of the parade was spectacular and Santa passed by at about 11:35. After that, we napped. Besides being tired, and the parents who showed up at 9 a.m. trying to get their kids to the front of the line (umm, the balloons are in the air, sir.) it was a very enjoyable event. We sat on the curb until 8 am, when the NYPD pulled the gates 4 feet into the street. At 8:30, 4 feet more, so that there was plenty of room for spectators. We spent Thursday evening at a bar called Rodeo (like the cowboy, not the fashionable Rodeo drive of L.A.) and had the traditional Thanksgiving meal: frozen margaritas and chicken enchiladas. The only reason I say "traditional Thanksgiving meal" is because it was our first Thanksgiving meal together, so at this point it truly is tradition.
As the last few days of November ticked by, Alise transformed the house that began the month as a black and orange place of horror from its Thanksgiving decor to the traditional Christmas celebration. We had 6 Christmas trees up within 2 hours of getting home from New York. Yes, 6. A 3' tree outside, a 4' tree inside, and four 1' trees on shelving units, but the place does look good.
Other than that we are beginning to attach to hobbies. I have a basketball league to stay in shape for, and Alise set a goal for herself to bake two kinds of cookies per week-can anyone say oxymoron? We are both settling into our "groove" for work now, feeling that we are past the point of being the "new kid" and actually being contributers rather than takers for our companies.
It is December 2nd, and my sugar high from the ice cream is wearing off now that it is 11:15 p.m. We need to write a Christmas card, and fill our new bedroom furniture with the clothes that line our hallways and closets before we can "officially" celebrate the season upon us. Merry December to all, and to all a good night. Talk to you in a month.
