Friday, July 10, 2009

Aunt Jane

Waking up early on Wednesday morning, Ted went to the restaurant on the corner and bought coffee for him and Wanda and also me.

After loading up the bikes, we headed out of Milwaukee; a much easier task than riding into or around Milwaukee. Not long out of Milwaukee, the rain started again. We stopped for breakfast at a Perkins and continued on into Illinois. The I-90 turnpike was busy, as expected, but we made it to I-39 and headed south. By now the rain was heavy and steady. After a short trip west on I-80, we took Illinois 29 south to Peoria. This should have been a scenic drive along the Illinois River but with the rain, we barely caught an occasional glimpse of the river. In Henry, soaking wet, we pulled into the parking lot of a small diner and all four of us ordered soup. The food was down home great and everyone, including the other patrons, were very friendly. Soon it was time to get back on the road to Peoria.

In Peoria, we stopped at a Wal-Mart so Ted and Wanda could shop for replacement rain gear. Theirs had fallen apart from the constant use on this vacation. Then it was onto Hanna City to see Aunt Jane.

Aunt Jane Davis is the only aunt or uncle David and Ted have on either side of the family tree. It was so great seeing her again. Aunt Jane and her husband Uncle Jim were motorcyclists with the Peoria Motorcycle Club for years and were avid Harley enthusiasts. She really enjoyed looking over our bikes and hearing about our adventures. Later, we showed a slide show of the pictures we had taken including the Harley-Davidson museum. Of special interest was the history of the Jack Pine races and Bruce Walther. Uncle Jim was the "hack monkey" for Bruce Walther when he rode in the Jack Pine sidecar races. The Harley museum has Bruce Walther's bike and sidecar on display - more than likely the exact same sidecar the Uncle Jim rode in.

That evening we all went out to eat with Aunt Jane, Jane's daughter Janice and her husband Dick along with Janice's son Michael, wife Bridgett and sons Ethan and Cody. It is a shame that we don't get together more often and most often for funerals. We need to change that.

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