If some of you peruse the blogs listed to the right, you may have learned of a new term recently. It was new to me, at least:
mancation. Last weekend was potentially Steve's last mancation. Mostly due to his impending vows. To celebrate, we headed east, to the bustling village of Athelstane, WI, home of
Wildman Whitewater Ranch. Friday night consisted of what you would expect of a bunch of late twentysomething guys hanging out: beer, video games, meat, poker, and beer.
Here's Minneapolis Car 2 breaking out the Mike Tyson's Punch Out. Interesting note on that. Cameron beat Mike Tyson by decision, something I (as well as everyone else) thought was impossible. and Cameron's knowledge of Punch Out has no bounds. Only Anton's no hesitation recital of the code to get directly to Tyson was as impressive.
If Steve's around, you just know
beer pong (aka Beirut) is being played.
Lots of meat was consumed. Props to Dave for stocking us well. Brats, burgers, and most importantly, bacon. I believe this is Steve eating a bacon wrapped brat.
When poker time came around, we couldn't find a table big enough. Fortunately Zim broke out the big wood.
Bacon and Jiffy Pop, what a combo. I had never had Jiffy Pop before. It was good, but you've got to remember to take the cardboard off...
Here the Minnesota folk take on the 'Sconis in a game of
tippy cup. I was a switch hitter, playing for alternate teams depending on who needed reinforcement.
And what happens when you've had too much to drink? You wrestle, I guess. Having never been a wrestler, I abstain from the practice. But Cameron and Mike decided to have a go. Having seen this before, I felt I knew what the outcome would be.
That.
Saturday brought more cold weather. While the bachelorette party was probably enjoying mid 60s, we had mid 40s. What better weather to go whitewater rafting in? That's right, we took on the mighty Peshtigo River and it's 40 degree water. Fortunately we were outfitted well, with wetsuits, booties, lifejackets, and helmets.
We hardly knew what would come. We had small inflatable rafts, so it was three to a raft.
The crew of the SS Popinski. It was supposed to be a tribute to Soda Popinsky because of all the Punch Out we played the night before. We might as well have called it the SS Tippy Cup. It seems that I have a natural affinity for the wet stuff, because I went swimming four times. And let me tell you, that water was damn cold! The best (or worst) was when we completely lost the raft, and we all took a dunk. Unfortunately the raft didn't stop, and Zim and I ended up hiking down to it, while Mike got picked up by another raft. Hopefully I'll have more rafting pictures later.
What night in Wisconsin is complete without fireworks?
I had arrived a bit early (traffic was light due to Memorial Day). Here's Steve, one hour to go.
The program was exquisitely designed by Christina.
Even a four piece string arrangement! Mike and I settled on it being two violins, a viola, and a cello. 
The happy couple!
Groomsmen: Adam, Anton, and Dave. Adam and Dave are Steve's brothers.
4/5ths of the Larson family. Kristen was the Maid of Honor.
Here we are at table 7. The odd thing about the Gale Mansion, is that no one room is very large, so the dinner was spread out over many rooms and two floors.
Heidi, Megan, Mike and Erin.
Once the music got going, the party really started.
Ginny, with her mysterious eyes.
Yes, the guy in front of Christina is wearing a kilt. It was very entertaining watching them dance.
After all that, the end of the night brought out the inevitable Journey, Don't Stop Believing. As one of the best songs to dance to, I had to to bust a move. Some serious air guitar made an appearance. The below picture only hints at the outcome...
... a serious pants malfunction. I mean, it was hot in there and all, but I could have done without the extra air conditioning.
In spite of the wardrobe failure, we headed out to Brit's Pub to end the night.
I had a great time all night! Ginny must've not agreed.
Steve and Christina are off to Australia and New Zealand for the next couple of weeks for the honeymoon. I'm sure they'll have a great time!
