The Kook Aunty Guide to the Perfect Summer Weekday in Wisconsin

The faint sounds of my childhood best friend puttering around the kitchen downstairs infiltrated the guest room I was inhabiting for the long weekend. I was staying in the sweet A-frame cabin where she and her husband spent their summers.    

Despite Mercury being in Retrograde (and my belief in this phenomenon affecting my travel), I’d decided to fly from San Francisco to visit her in Door County, Wisconsin. After spending forty minutes stuck on a tarmac, one missed connection, no help from United Airlines, and a four-hour car drive later in a rented car… I arrived in the small village of Sister Bay at 2am.

Luckily, being on central time allowed me to sleep in past the 5:50am wakeup call I usually endure. I start my workday at around 7:30am on the West Coast, so sleeping in until 8am felt like a luxury.

 It also, I discovered, made for the perfect summer day in Wisconsin.

Here’s what I recommend for recreating this perfect day:

Tip 1: Start the day with a delicious cup of coffee (or two)

I made my way downstairs toward the sounds of my friend in the kitchen. A metal spiral staircase led from the upper level to the ground floor of the cabin. After hydrating first with water, I greedily filled a mug with coffee that was being kept warm in a thermos.

Taking a deep sip, I felt the utter joy that a strong, hot cup of coffee can provide. My friend and I had previously discussed our attempts to give up both alcohol and coffee. We’d found it much more difficult to cut the latter out of our lives. Despite the fact that this is probably not healthy, per se, coffee allowed us to keep so many other good habits in our lives that we felt the pros outweighed the cons.

 If that weren’t reason enough, I can’t imagine anything better than how it felt to sit outside on the striped lounge chair on the cabin’s front, book beside me, and cup of coffee in hand, watching light reflect off the sliver of Green Bay visible from between the houses.

 Tip 2: Get outside before your workday even starts

 As I sipped on the roasted brew in my mug, I absentmindedly mentioned that I wanted to go for a jog before starting work.

 My friend slyly asked if I’d be up for a trail run, promising the hills would be teeny tiny and that we could run at my glacial pace.

 Running in the woods sounded way better than road running and isn’t something I get to do often in San Francisco (I don’t have a car and only get to run trails if I head to the parks or out on a hike for the weekend).

 We hopped into her car and began the drive down wide-laned, wildflower-lined roads, past red and blue wood barns, to Newport State Park.

 We parked and took a moment to appreciate the early morning sun hitting the water which looked to me like the sea, turning the rippling liquid a mercury silver. Then we walked to the trailhead to start the short 3-mile jog through the forest.

 In the dappled sunlight and curving sandy trails, we gossiped, commiserated about lost headphones, and tried to ignore my out-of-breath huffing and puffing up the three “teeny-tiny” hills that were located in the second half of the jog.

We looped around, arrived back at the car, and hopped in to head back to the cabin where I’d begin my work day. 

 After a quick shower, I signed onto work, and began plugging away. I chose to work from the dining room table facing the floor-to-ceiling glass doors that allowed me to stare out at the porch and garden, observing the small black and white cat who peered in curiously, making his rounds with one missing ear.   

 After spending time outside, expending enough energy to move through three miles, and feeling that dappled sunlight on my face, the rest of my day seemed far less imposing than it normally does.

Tip 3: Treat yourself to a delicious lunch

 I’m usually careful and strategic about what and when I eat during the day. My workout window is at 3:30pm/4pm so I have to make sure I eat early enough to digest but not so early that I’m too hungry for the gym by the late afternoon.  

This results in a rushed meal, often devoured between calls, while standing at my desk. Though I enjoy the lunches I whip together for myself, there’s something so special about indulging in a lunch out on a Friday.

I had a break between meetings, so we drove five minutes into town where we were lucky enough to snag a spot at the Roots Inn. It’s hard to catch this place open to the public, as it’s primarily an Inn, but if you’re lucky enough, you can find a seat on the back porch surrounded by greenery and boasting a menu that can be made entirely vegan.

I indulged in the vegan Ceasar salad and some potato cakes, while my two friends got brats (one vegan, one real meat). We sipped on flavored water and enjoyed the light breeze that rustled the leaves that tinted the sunlight green next to us.

 Tip 4: DO something fun after work

 After I arrive back in the city after work, I am often unmotivated to do anything other than cook myself a meal, watch a show, and fall asleep so that I can wake up early to do it all again the next day.  

 However, with only a few days to spend with my friends in Wisconsin, we wanted to take advantage of every open hour. Once we had all signed off from work, we decided to spend an evening enjoying the fantastic weather and each other’s company.

On the front porch of the cabin, a circular table with cushioned seats was set up, and we each chose one for ourselves. We cracked local beers and sparkling waters, piled sourdough bread high with produce and proteins to make delicious sandwiches, then gathered the pieces for a game of HaiClue.

The sun dipped into dusk and as we finished our food and drinks, we calculated the scores to declare who had one the last round of the game. Then, it was finally time to head back inside.

Tip 5: End the evening with brainless TV and dessert

The sky had darkened, and we decided it would be fun to finish the evening off with a movie.  

We picked one that would be entertaining but not serious. It was the perfect choice so that we could exit without missing much if we wanted to turn in early.

To make the day even more perfect, my friend brought out slices of her chocolate olive oil cake. We drifted in and out of the movie, enjoying the touch of savoriness to the sweet dessert, then turned in at a reasonable hour, ready for the weekend and everything else Wisconsin would bring us.

5 Tips for Spending the Perfect Summer Weekday in Wisconsin

1.        Get yourself a good cup of coffee

2.        Spend at least 30 minutes exercising outdoors

3.        Treat yourself to a healthy vegan lunch quaint

4.        Spend the evening outside with a good boardgame & good beer

5.        Watch a stupid movie (with a slice of cake)

6.        Call it a night so you can do it all again (and more) tomorrow