Which weenie won the race?!

Two things led to a summer weekend trip to Milwaukee:  1) we had a free night at a Marriott and 2) Brad Compton loves the Dodgers, who were scheduled to play the Brewers.  Brent and Connie were in charge of making the arrangements.  Come trip time, we stayed at a Holiday Inn and the Brewers played the Padres.  This may be the last trip the two of them are assigned to plan.

Our hotel was in Port Washington, just north of Milwaukee on Lake Michigan.  With great views of the Port Washington Marina and Pierhead Light, Connie had plenty of opportunities to share pictures with her Instagram consort, SofaSlayer.  Brad, being from Shelbyville, had a difficult time admitting that he liked Port Washington and Lake Michigan.  He was quick to point out the similarities between the two towns and their respective lakes.  Nobody else could see the similarities.  Obviously.

Although Veronica, our not-so-trusty GPS system, failed at navigating through Milwaukee, we still managed to tour the Miller Brewing Company before the game.  We're no strangers to brewery tours--we've got Anheuser Busch, Schlafly, Coors, and Guinness all under our belts--so we know how this system works:  listen to a story, view a few buildings, do some tasting, and visit the gift shop.  What we weren't expecting at Miller was a visit to the storage caves predating refrigeration.  A welcomed surprise on a warm day.  After the brief cave visit, we were off to get our samples and... visit the gift shop.  Off to Miller Park!

Amanda likes baseball.  She likes the atmosphere, the energy of the crowd, the stadium food, and the beer.  But there was really one reason she agreed to this journey--The Klement's Racing Sausages.  The bratwurst, the Polish, the Italian, the hotdog, and the chorizo are the five competitive weenies that race at the bottom of the sixth inning at all Brewers home games.  Each traveler picked a sausage to cheer on during the race (Amanda, the Polish; Connie, the hotdog; Brad, the chorizo; and Brent, the bratwurst).  Bets were made.  And the much anticipated race ended as quickly as it began.  The bratwurst won the race.  Kudos to Brent, whose weenie picking skills are superior to his team picking skills.  With a Brewer loss, this was one more professional team that has lost in his presence...

Heading back to Port Washington, we decided to stop at Five Guys for some gnash.  Although our ride lost some rubber on the way, we made it safe and intact.  This was Brad's first Five Guys experience.  Living in a county deprived of restaurant chains, we were excited for Brad.  His wife, on the other hand, had a cheese sandwich.  Reminiscent of our Rendezvous Memphis trip where Connie exclaimed that there were herbs in the bread of her cheese sandwich, we continued to eat without uttering a word while food flew and dripped in our decadent eating frenzy.

And as we travel back to central Illinois, we can't help but think that, "yesterday, we had it all."  However, we should remember that one thing we do still have is... a free night at a Marriott!