Madison

The day after the trip to Timms Hill, I decided to visit Madison. I lived 2 stints in Madison. The first stint was living in Sun Prairie when I was working on my bachelor’s degree at Herzing. After I could take online classes and move back home, I then lived in Marshfield. After graduation, I took a job at DirectNetworks and lived in Fitchburg for 8 months. After 8 months, I got a job at Marshfield Clinic and moved back to Marshfield.

My first stop was Herzing University to see if anything changed. The campus was pretty much the same as when I had graduated in 2010.

Exterior of Herzing University building with modern architecture featuring white and brick facade under overcast sky Herzing University official seal mounted on interior wall, displaying torch logo with laurel wreath, motto "Discite • Florete • Vincite," and founding year EST. 1948, with informational brochures displayed below

After visiting a little bit, I drove downtown past the Capital.

Street view approaching Wisconsin State Capitol building with its distinctive white dome visible in distance, modern glass building on left, traffic and bare trees lining the street

My route took me past Camp Randall.

Traffic stopped at intersection near stone memorial arch, viewed from behind vehicles on tree-lined street in spring

One of my stops every time I visit Madison is Strictly Discs. They have a lot of cheap used CDs that help build my music collection. Having a nice music collection is definitely good for long road trips. They have a, buy 12 and get one free special. I made sure to buy enough CDs to get a free one.

Strictly Discs record store storefront in historic brick building with colorful polka dot awning, retail signage reading "Get Physical With Your Music" and "It Feels Good"

After buying a bunch of CDs, I drove to Fitchburg to see if anything changed.

Road sign for Fitchburg, Wisconsin along commercial street with traffic and spring landscaping

It was definitely crazy seeing the development. The building in the background was not there when I lived there. It was actually a farmer’s field and my apartment was on the absolute edge of Madison\Fitchburg.

Multi-story apartment complex with tan and salmon colored siding, surrounded by parking lot with various vehicles

There were new apartments also going up in that area that used to be the farmer’s field.

Residential building under construction showing Tyvek house wrap, exposed framing, and concrete foundation on sloped lot

After I was done exploring Fitchburg, I drove out to Sun Prairie. I was going to meet with one of my former bosses and catch up. I decided to drive by my old apartment. I see, unlike Fitchburg, not a lot changed.

Brown-sided multi-unit townhouse or apartment building with mansard roof style, wooden fence in foreground

I went to Prairie Lanes to meet up with Dave, my former boss at Roehl Transport. I decided to have a Baja Burger.

Restaurant plate featuring bacon cheeseburger with waffle-cut french fries and side of cheese sauce, Bud Light promotional materials visible in background

After catching up with Dave, I met up with a buddy who graduated high school with me and was a roommate at the Sun Prairie apartment when we both pursued our bachelor’s degrees in Technology Management. We went to McGovern’s for a drink. I stuck to soda since I was driving a long ways back to Marshfield. After we talked a bit, I headed back to Marshfield to wrap things up before I headed north to Duluth. In the meantime, the Focus hit 200,000 miles insert link.

See more blog entries here