We walked one Sunday morning around Juneautown, a neighborhood on the east side of downtown Milwaukee. We enjoyed the buildings and the good weather. The city was empty. At noon, there was still no one in the streets. Strange feeling of life missing.

We saw the gas building, with the flame that tells the weather. The flame was not working or maybe you only see it at dark.

To remember the meaning of the color of the flame, there is a song that goes like this:

When the flame is red, it’s warm weather ahead.

When the flame is gold, watch out for cold.

When the flame is blue, there’s no change in view.

When there’s a flickering flame, expect snow or rain!

The Wisconsin Gas Building is an art deco building with a beautiful door. Apparently some rooms and boardrooms have preserved the original architecture but sadly, you can not visit them. Next to it there is a mural of basketball player Giannis Antetokounmpo.

We continued our walk around the neighborhood, around 2 hours. Still wondering where everybody was.

The book guide I had, Walking Around Milwaukee, ended this walk with a visit to a replica of Solomon Juneau’s cabin, the founder of Milwaukee. It had been temporarily squatted by a group of Summerfest visitors. They had a tent at the back, and were using the bench in the cabin to hang some towels. I don’t think this cabin was worth the detour, maybe the squatters would disagree.

We went a couple more times to the city and had a less eery experience. To be continued …

Other Things I Liked

Caste by Isabel Wilkerson. I listened to the audiobook read by the author.

Lex Fridman interviewing Susan Cain and talking about Leonard Cohen.

This recipe for pie crust from Smitten Kitchen blog.

Field Notes notebooks for German morning practice.

Walking around Lapham peak with my daughter.