After my buddy's bachelor party last week, I had a week to kill before the wedding. I decided I would run some errands and then take a trip up the the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (UP).
My mom was off of work last Monday so we ran some errands around town. Our first stop was Shopko. The nose guard on my glasses fell off during laser tag, so I needed to get it fixed.
We then went to World Buffet.
The mall that World Buffet is in has seen better days. Another anchor store is closing and looks pretty barren.
I guess the mall was nice and quiet for the cats at the pet shelter.
We then took my Cougar out for a drive to North Wood County Park. I got a few pictures there by a dam.
On Tuesday, I worked on blog entries. Jordy kept me company.
On Wednesday, I headed to the UP. I stopped at a Holiday for breakfast. I hit the divided highways until they turned into two-lane roads that brought me into Michigan.
Along the way I stopped at a Wisconsin wayside and also a Michigan roadside park. These are the old school rest stops that have been there a while.
A little more driving brought me into Watersmeet aka "Nimrod Nation."
After getting a good laugh, I drove through the small UP towns to get to Gay, Michigan.
In Gay, there was a bar that liked to play up its name,The Gay Bar.
After eating a Spam and cheese sandwich at The Gay Bar, I explored a little bit. I found a cool park right on Lake Superior called Tobacco River Park.
From Gay, I headed towards Hancock. That's where I stopped at Pat's Foods to get a pasty.
Once I was done eating, I hit the road and made a quick stop at the Keweenaw Waterway Scenic Turnout.
I then headed up to Copper Harbor. I wrote a separate blog entry on just Copper Harbor.
I was thinking about staying the night, but I decided I could make it home. I got to watch the sun set as I drove back south.
On Thursday, I brought the Cougar out to my parents' house. I pretty much hung around the house and relaxed.
On Friday, Victoria flew in and then picked me up in her rental car. We then headed to Wausau Country Club for the rehearsal since I was standing up in the wedding.
There was so much stuff going on during the next couple days, I only grabbed a few pictures. We ended up staying at the Country Inn & Suites.
We then went to the rehearsal dinner and a fire by Jake's house.
The next morning I met up with the rest of the groomsmen. We ate at the Green Mill for lunch.
We then headed back to Wausau Country Club and got dressed. The ceremony went off well and then we headed to bar hop before the reception (this is a Wisconsin tradition).
The meal was good and so was the reception. The next day, I returned my tux and then headed back to Marshfield. This Monday Victoria flew back to Austin. I'm just in Marshfield for another day or two to wrap things up and head back to Austin.
It was definitely a nice trip in Wisconsin. Congratulations to Jake and Katie on their wonderful wedding!