strawberry sour cream pie from norske nook

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Norske Nook. If you’ve hustled your way north to Eau Claire, you might know to pull off at Osseo for this Norwegian American bakery and restaurant.

My family has been pulling over for the Nook for more than 30 years because PIE.

I pulled over yesterday and promptly plopped myself down by the counter. Wanted to try something new, and Strawberry Sour Cream looked like a good wager.

Osseo Wisconsin Norske Nook Strawberry Sour Cream Pie

It was. Very light, with a strawberry whipped cream topping. I ate the entire slice.

Osseo Wisconsin Norske Nook

Osseo is a small town; approximately 1,700 people call it home. I don’t live in a small town but admire the persistence of places like Osseo. And bakeries with pie.

Osseo Wisconsin

Osseo Wisconsin

Osseo Wisconsin

the things that get left behind

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Some items cause pause. Like this.

What was it like to attend a one-room schoolhouse in rural Wisconsin in the late 1890s? My great grandmother could tell me (she’s listed as a pupil in this souvenir), but she passed some 30 years ago. So I try to imagine. And then I pause some more.

This magazine cover features the Norseville School where Olga was a student.

At the time this magazine cover was created, the school had been abandoned. A thing, one of many, that got left behind.

petersen’s old fashioned ice cream parlor in oak park

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I had resigned myself to ordering iced coffee when I wanted ice cream, and I stuck to that goal for… about three days. Ice cream somehow tastes better in the summer, so why not take advantage? Petersen’s Old Fashioned Ice Cream Parlor in Oak Park was a new place to try, so try I did.

Oak Park Illinois Petersen's Old Fashioned Ice Cream Parlor

Mackinac Island Fudge was the flavor, and the ice cream was surprisingly fluffy.

Oak Park Illinois Petersen's Old Fashioned Ice Cream Parlor Mackinac Island Fudge

This ice cream is 18% butterfat. Pretty decadent. Kind of makes me want to visit Mackinac Island for their storied fudge. Summer goals.

trooping the colour

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Posters from the 1920s and 30s–it’s hard to get enough of them. The mother of Chicago museums (the Art Institute of Chicago) currently has an exhibit titled “Everyone’s Art Gallery: Posters of the London Underground.” Good stuff and plenty to admire.

This 1939 lithograph by Charles Mozley is a patriotic announcement.

Other posters feature pastoral destinations.

And this one promises summer sales by the umbrella full. Happy summer.

hunting trolls at the morton arboretum

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If you have an afternoon to spare and enjoy searching for gigantic troll sculptures, the Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois, is a good bet.

The sculptures are huge. If I had to guess, between 20 and 30 feet in height.

Trolls are ultimate mischief makers in Norse mythology. They create natural disturbances and set riddles for humans to solve (or not).