From Prep

Here is a Plainsilly Update:

I made the first trip this season up to the cabin last weekend. 
The weekend was devoted mostly to golf with some cronies, but we 
did open the cabin and stay there. The new roof is intact, the hot 
water works and the drain field doesn't smell too bad. The toilet 
is listing a bit to the starboard side, and it rocks somewhat if you 
lift an ass cheek to wipe. Therefore, to avoid falling off the crapper 
in mid-dump, your options are to a) lift the right ass cheek so as 
to shift your weight to the port side and thereby counteract the rocking 
effect, b) shit in the woods, or c) don't wipe. There is a plunger 
nearby for the all too frequent load which the crapper can't handle. 
(Hey, the place is 70 years old.) 

On the outside, things look fine. There's plenty of room for barbecuing 
and bocce ball, and we'll be up this weekend to put the boat, dock and 
lift in the water. Early walleye reports around the state have been ok, 
not great, but with any luck you'll reel one in before you have to order 
one at Mr. Roberts.

Golf is plentiful on the way up and at Plainsilly. We followed highway 
169 last weekend, and a good stopping place is Mille Lacs Lake. The lake 
is huge, a very popular walley spot with guides aplenty, a rapidly expanding 
casino with attached hotel that offers rooms in the range of $35.00 Sunday 
through Thursday and a Pete Dye course 10 minutes away. 

The local nine hole track is 1/4 mile from the cabin. The PGA tour hasn't 
found it, but its got several good beer trees. There are 4 or 5 other choices 
within 30 minutes and one of them, the Mesaba Country Club in Hibbing, is a 
good candidate for this year's Cyberzahm shootout. If you want the track 
that Lanny Wadkins designed (the best design in the state, for my money), 
you're looking at a drive of 1 hour, 15 minutes and green fees of $60.00.

Dining details: Nothing fancy unless you want a 30 minute drive, and in 
any event nothing is really fancy on the Range. There is a very good 
Italian restaurant in Chisholm, and we may want to consider a meal 
there which would be all the more pleasurable if Albert were present 
(Hint, hint, Al.) Chisholm also has some good little waterholes, where 
you may see some of the oldtimers who learned to play the button box 
before they could walk. I can fill you up with blueberry pancakes, Fred's 
sausage and omelettes in the morning unless you want to make the three 
mile drive to the Wauk Inn. I'm toying with the idea of throwing a 
porketta on the grill, but ribeyes and corn on the cob are not bad 
for second place.

I'm setting aside August 13-16 unless anyone has strong objections (I 
know some of you can't make it, unfortunately) and I dug deep for a 
new Odyssey putter (psychotherapy was getting too expensive.) I'll 
give you more updates in the near future, and I've attached a few 
tidbits to give you a feeling for what you're getting into.

Prep