Strubbe Time

When we initially mapped out this trip, Wisconsin seemed to be an isolated point on the map.  But, once we were on the road it would be impossible for us to miss seeing our good friends Steve and Melissa in their new Wisconsin home. Steve has been a friend of both Jason and I since college. The guys were housemates, and that is how I met Jason my last year at UT. It took another year for him to ask me out, but 4 years later were were married (a pretty good story itself.)

Anyway, we never thought we’d find a woman to put up with Steve* but lucky for us Melissa came with a friend to our Halloween party 11 years ago. Melissa grew up mostly in Hawaii, and has the patience of a saint. A quality well used in the taming of the Steve.  They have 2 great kids, Wolfgang (6) and Johann (nickname Yo-yo, 3).  Bode was in absolute heaven during our visit. Yo-yo is a real entertainer, tap dancing pant-less outside (it was about 40 degrees) and singing Weezer and Jersey Boys songs. He even does a medley. Wolfie has Melissa’s patience, and taught Bode how to play Wii games and all about Star Wars.

Steve moved here from Austin to follow a major job opportunity. What kind of opportunity? Depends. Like, the disposable undergarment. When he got the job, we made jokes. Lot’s of them. He even wore them for a while to understand the product and empathize with the customer base. Serious business. Working on incontinence products may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but really, this is the big time.

He’s moved on since then. Kotex was next. A logical next step?  Now, we just found out he just moved again to an even bigger brand… Pampers.  Snicker all you want. It’s a multi-billion dollar business.

When we arrived in Neenah, both Bode and Jason were sick. Jason spent the first day in bed and Bode was hardest hit the next. The weather was cold and windy, so the boys were happy to spend a day lounging while their partner in crime recovered.

The police and fire departments of the neighboring towns gave out Halloween candy at the local mega-mart on Saturday morning, so we hit that. It was cold–way cold. But it warmed up that afternoon. Neenah’s official trick-or-treating hours are from 4-7. The boys were ready to go at 3:59. This area is very idyllic, and most families have 3-4 kids, so it was really fun and a much different Halloween experience than Alameda. Wolfang even told the candy distributors, “no nuts for these two, please”.

We used to have hundreds and hundreds of kids from other towns come to Alameda and trudge up and down the stairs to our front door. At 9 (or whenever we ran out of candy) we’d have to turn off all the lights and hide in the back of the house. If there was any activity in our house, the un-costumed teenagers continued to knock.

After about an hour, Johann and Bode were ready for the ‘party’ which involved eating their loot and giving out candy. Wolfie and his dad took advantage of the entire 3 hours and made a good haul.

Also, it’s pronounced Strew-bee. Say it. It’s fun!

*Kidding, Steve.  Really!