Here's the news from FoxValleyFun.com:

Appleton Children's Parade

Join us for the first ever Appleton Children's Parade which will be held Wednesday, July 29! Any child 13 and under is welcome to march in this non-motorized parade that will travel from Avenue Jewelers on College Avenue and end with a reception for families at Houdini Plaza. Decorate your bike, wagon or yourself for this first ever event! Donations will benefit the Building for Kids. All children participating in the parade will receive a special treat.

Registration is FREE, but required for all children wishing to participate in the parade. Registration forms are available at The Building for Kids, Appleton Park and Recreation and online at www.appleton.org or www.buildingforkids.org. For more information call 920-734-3226. Hope to see you for this fun, safe family event!

Don't miss the incredibly huge EAA Air Venture Show in Oshkosh this week. Check out the daily events and plan a full day or so for this internationally famous aviation spectacle.

Just one more reason why this part of Wisconsin is such a terrific place to live.

Art in the Park on Sunday, July 27 was another big success, bringing in thousands of art lovers and many dozens of great artists, filling Appleton's beautiful City Park with booths and excitement.




I would like to feature one outstanding artist that I met during my brief visit. Gisela Magdelena Moyer's beautiful paper-based creations caught my eye, and when I talked with her, her story touched my heart. This woman was born in Silesia on the borders of Poland of Germany, and fled with her family due to the terrors of World War II. She has overcome many barriers and much heartache, including the loss of her husband. Art helped her to cope with the pain and darkness her life has faced. When her husband died, she thought that the color would leave her art, but it came back even brighter.

One of her motifs is the image of a butterfly above a hand. It is a symbol of freedom and release. Much of her art is filled with symbolism that can create powerful stories for the viewer. Her combination of texture and color is striking and beautiful. For more information, see her website, GMM Paper Treasures: Moyer Art Studio. Below is a photo of her, taken and used with her kind permission.

Yes, at last! One of the coolest events of the year, in my opinion, is Appleton's Art in the Park festival. It will be tomorrow, from 9 am to 4:30 p.m. in Appleton's beautiful and central City Park. Amazing artists from all over Wisconsin and beyond gather at this event. There will be live entertainment and plenty of interesting sights. Great for a pleasant stroll after church for those with morning services.

Martyn Smith, a professor at Lawrence University, has written and narrated two valuable video documentaries about the Fox River. Part One deals with the Fox River in the Neenah area, and Part Two moves into Appleton. Both look at the history and geography of the river. Nicely done.

We just had a small family event at the Franklin Street Inn, a bed and breakfast establishment with two beautiful and historical homes in the heart of Appleton, very close to City Park. The facility at 318 East Franklin Steet is most well known, but there is also a wonderful facility around the corner at 310 N. Durkee Street, shown below.



We have a little gathering there to celebrate the recent wedding of Daniel Lindsay and Jennifer Yankey on July 10 in the beautiful Washington, D.C. Temple (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints). They stayed in the inn on Franklin Street, but our gathering was on Durkee Street. The owner, Judy, is terrific and so helpful. I was very impressed with the service and the low price for such a beautiful establishment. My son and daughter-in-law were impressed as well. Just a beautiful place!

Here's a little Youtube offering about the Inn, which I place here just to say thanks to Judy for her terrific work.

Here's a photo of my daughter-in-law at the Inn.

A couple of terrific magicians are doing an unusual magic show in Neenah on July 25 at the beautiful theater owned by Perfect Presentations. Here's the posting on their event calendar:

July 25th: "One Magical Summer" Magic Show. 1PM Matinee Show.
A la carte lunch items available from 12:00-1PM before show. Great entertainment for all ages.
Cost is: $15.00 per person.

I spoke with the owner of Perfect Presentations and learned more about the show. It's not going to be the cutting-a-woman-half kind of show, but one that includes more of the highly-skilled kind that I love. Real sleight of hand, close-up effects, mind-blowing stuff. I plan to be there!

Call 920-729-9566 for reservations. You can pick the tickets up there.

Perfect Presentations is at 1534 Lyon Drive in Neenah, just behind Copps at the intersection of Bell and Commercial. It's on the street just east of Commercial on Bell/Breezewood. Lyon Drive heads south from there and wraps around the back of Copps. The beautiful theater inside the Perfect Presentations building seats well over 100 people and is a great place for corporate meetings.

Had lunch today at CSI, the small but delicious little spot inside City Center Plaza) (10 E. College Avenue). Surprised at how many soups they had. I tried the Chicken Jerk Soup and it was perfect - not too salty, with a rich flavor that made it really stand out from typical chicken soups. Tried a sloppy joe, which I rarely eat, and enjoyed it. CSI makes their soups and cookies from scratch. CSI = cookies, soups and ice cream. Tasty.

Be sure to visit them Saturday morning out on the street during the Appleton Farmers Market.

Phone: 734-0100.

Update 2010: Lone Wolf is now closed.


Tumbleweed Mexican Restaurant is no longer. In its place on Casaloma just west of the Fox River Mall (actually 1104 Mutual Way, Appleton) is the new Lonewold Mesquite Grill. Awesome place with an exciting menu. Good mix of steaks and pasta to choose from, but what I tried was the buffalo burger - a big, thick patty of delicious buffalo meat. So good that I'm naming this as the best burger in Appleton, at least that I've tasted so far. My wife and I were also very impressed with their fries.

Service was outstanding. Background music is low enough for easy, pleasant conversation. A patio lets you dine outside, if you wish.

Lonewolf Mesquite Grill: (920) 832-0422

"Appleton East Student a Finalist in National Forensic Tournament" in the Post-Crescent reports that Jenna Huebner of Appleton East was one of six finalists in the recent National Forensic League tournament in Birmingham, Alabama in the Prose Interpretation area. She was also in the final round last year in Las Vegas at the national tournament. In fact, I was in the audience then and was wowed by her performance last year. Nice to see that she made it to finals again this year (got 5th place both years - tremendous!).

My son, Mark Lindsay, also gets a mention in the Post-Crescent article. Mark and Ruth Markwardt, competing in the public forum area, broke past the preliminaries into the top 60. That was their goal. Congrats!

Appleton East really has a terrific forensics program. Learning how to communicate and persuade in debate or other forums is a wonderful way to prepare for many career and for "real life" in general. Many thanks to coaches Deb Weiher-Traas and her husband Michael Traas, who run the program and do a lot for the kids. I'm a grateful parent!