Memorial Day Weekend

Rock Island, IL
Mississippi River Visitor Center
May 25, 2015

This reminds me of the song by Otis Redding, "Sitting on the dock of the bay..."!  The rain was coming at the boat and the little bit of sun was shining on the rain.  Rainbow, actually two rainbows for a minute or two.  The rain was heavy enough that the I-74 bridge, about a mile upstream, was hidden by the rain. This photo was taken from the back deck of a boat in the Lindsay Park Marina in Davenport, IA.

Today is the end of my first month at the Mississippi River Visitor Center.  It has been a busy month, learning the information about the river, the locks, the bridges, the river traffic, and always the surrounding area.  As a former Iowan, it is interesting to come back for more than a few days at a time.  I get to reacquaint myself with the folks I knew growing up in Muscatine.  I get to revisit those neighborhoods I haunted as a lad.  Some have changed big time, some not so much.

I am working on Monday (Memorial Day) so on Sunday, my sister Anne and I drove to Muscatine to meet with our Wheeler Cousins, Bill, Sue and Kathy.  We met them at the graveside for their parents, Raymond and Emma, at Memorial Park Cemetery.  Afterwards, we drove to St Mary's Cemetery to visit our parents, Bernard and Elizabeth, and our brother Patrick.  It was very nice to reconnect with the cousins, as I had not seen them in about 30 - 40 years.  After our memorial visits we adjourned to Boonie's Restaurant in downtown Muscatine for lunch and conversation.  We had a great time and it was good to reconnect after so long a time.

Whenever I come to Iowa, for a week or a day or a summer, I like to seek out the tastiest Breaded Pork Tenderloin sandwich I can find.  Last year, we (wife and I) stopped at Morg's Diner in Waterloo, IA.

It was a taste sensation.  Hand breaded and cooked just for me.  I would return to Morg's for another in a flash.  The recent tastings have been less meaningful.  The Machine Shed, in Davenport has come the closest to Morg's taste treat so far.  I ate there about three weeks ago and the sandwich was splendid and the coleslaw and chunky applesauce were a perfect accompaniment.

And the crispy sweet potato fries were just right.

Of course this Pork Tenderloin Sandwich search is an ongoing effort.  Consequently, on Friday evening, I enjoyed dinner with my sister Anne and her husband Al, at the Lindsay Park Marina clubhouse.  While the sandwich was good eating, it did not match up well against the Morg's Diner selection or the Tenderloin from the Machine Shed.

The Tenderloin was thin and crispy, but the flavor was just not there.  While I would return to Morg's or the Machine Shed for another round, probably not to Lindsay Park for the sandwich.  It wasn't a bad sandwich, just not great.

Yesterday, for lunch with the Cousins, I gave Boonie's a shot at greatness on the Pork Tenderloin trail. 

Again, theTenderloin was thin and crispy.  And, as you can see from the picture, much larger than the bun.  The flavor was better than the Lindsay Park sandwich, but the texture was similar...thin and crispy.  The cole slaw was a fine complement to the sandwich and the hand made potato chips, still warm from the fryer, were absolutely splendid.

The search goes on!

Let's talk about the Mississippi River a bit.  The Mississippi is a very powerful river.  The current can be very dangerous.  Current, or the movement of water is typically measured by checking the movement of the water past a point or gauge.  That current is measured in cubic feet per second or 'cfs'  The volume of those cubic feet per second can be huge.  For example:

And the weight of the water depicted above would have been '146,643 X 62.5 =9,165,187.5 lbs.

Enough for this episode.  Stop in and check on the blog, you never know what you'll find.  Comment on the blog, let me know what you think.  Until next episode, good eating.