Cool stuff this last week

* Our friend and contact in England, Paul Fox, was in Málaga, Spain this past week with his lovely wife, Talane. Málaga is one of the oldest cities in the world (2,700 years); birthplace of Pablo Picasso and Antonio Banderas; candidate for 2016 European Capital of Culture...now made even more famous by virtue of a Stumpjack t-shirt clad Paul Fox gracing their beach with his Mr. Universe physique.

 * We are taking the first steps toward making our Blues Fest idea a reality. We're looking at a date in mid-August. Bobbi Schuetze, Doug Day and I have done a bit of preliminary planning and if all goes well we might have a fantastic line-up of Blues musicians and a day of awesome summer fun on the lakeshore for everyone.

* Our friend and artist, Dean Konop, created this funky penguin and gifted him to us. This is just the coolest. Dean knows I love fez's and this little guy sports a great red fez. I'm catching myself smiling as I write this, looking at my new bulbous little friend holding a coffee mug in his flipper. He'll be on the shelf behind the counter...check him out when you come in. Thanks, Dean!

* Every Friday (until further notice) is Free Espresso Friday. Come in sometime from 9-2 and then from 5-9 for a free double shot (in-house & in a demitasse only). Fridays & Saturdays we close from 2-5.

* Last Sunday, May 3rd, Patrick DeWayne gave his performance of "The Mushroom Picker" to, by my estimate, around 300 people at the Two Rivers Community House. It was a wonderful tale and performance about Pat's Grandfather and his experiences during WWII. Pat's Grandpa was a Lieutenant Colonel and a genuine war hero. As Pat narrated and performed the various characters in the story (his Grandpa and Grandma, generals, german soldiers, etc) he sparked plenty of laughter, tears, emotion and appreciation in the crowd for what men like Pat's Grandfather sacrificed during that war.

After the performance Pat and a number of audience members' gathered at Stumpjack to chat with Pat and share stories of their own family members experiences during WWII.

                                                      Myself & Pat.

Odds & Sods

What's it like to be a coffeeshop in a small city? It's alternately wonderful & crappy. I'll be delving into that query in a series of posts in the weeks to come.

We've got a couple of great events coming up next weekend. The first, on Saturday, May 1st, is the return of West of East, the duo of Tim Suchoki and Sara Moilanen. Tim and Sara have performed with us three or four times now.  Their music features female vocals that mix the subtle velvety style of Norah Jones with the power of Neko Case backed by acoustic guitars and highlighted with a "Countrified-Folk" style of electric guitar. They released a gorgeous CD, "Love in the Twilight Zone," late last year. Whenever we play it in the shop we invariably get questions asking who it is and comments about how good it is.

Tim and Sara are coming up from Milwaukee with the show starting at 7:00pm. Come on down and have a beer or latte with us, support the continuation of good live music in town, and enjoy an hour or two of good weekend vibes.

Then, on Sunday, May 2nd, we have a very special event planned at around 4:00. We're normally closed by 1:00 on Sundays so you know this must be good if we're going to come back to open at 4:00 for this. From 2:00 to 3:30 at the Two Rivers Community House Patrick DeWayne will be presenting his one-man show, The Mushroom Picker, which is a beautiful and moving presentation about his grandfather's life during WWII.

Please check out the website link above to get an idea of what a special event this is. And make sure to watch the short film on the site. We'll be closing at our usual 1:00 to go over to the Community House to see Patrick's play. Then at 4:00 Patrick and anyone else who wants to join us will come back to Stumpjack for a post-show discussion. This is an performance that, by all accounts, you would definitely be glad you saw. It's open and free to the public.

Here are but a couple reviews: