Famous Last Words: “I’ll plant all the seeds. They’re old seeds, probably only a few will come up.”  Actual result: the tomato jungle, home to more than 50 plants.

Famous Last Words: “It’s a good time to travel. I’ll be back in time for most of the Packers-49ers game. I can listen to the beginning on the radio.”  Um, AM radio. See below. Not so easy.

Famous Last Words: “I don’t need directions. I’ll use my GPS.” Actual result: I forgot I was going to be in Stevens Point, central Wisconsin, the Black Hole of all things electronic. Smart phones, GPS Navigators, whatever, data connectivity is next to nil in this area. How do the UWSP students survive?

I did manage to get where I was going with a combination of gut feelings, a slight knowledge of the town, a stop at a gas station, and a quick call to Chuck who pulled up MapQuest and confirmed what I’d heard from the gas station guy. I’d actually passed the place twice. It wasn’t well marked.

The irony here is that I was headed to the Democratic Party’s HQ to pick up yard signs destined for our local office. The Portage County Democrats’ office has a good location, but poor signage. Maybe they should have kept one sign instead of sending them all with me.

After I finished my errand (road trip), delivered the signs to the local office, and then headed for home, I watched my Packers start the season poorly. Sigh. Aaron Rodgers just wasn’t in his prime form for this game. I didn’t need to rush home after all.

So after the game, I spent some time tearing up another dish towel to make more tie-ups for the tomatoes. See above: I ran out and needed more to hold up the volunteer tomato plants. Like I needed any more tomato plants this year – I’ll nurture them anyway.

P.S. Eating the Opponent: San Francisco included swordfish steaks, California oranges, and a seafood dish with rice that Chuck assures me is authentic to the area.