We have snow, so as far as prior seasons’ highlights, here goes

Now that its time for the winter solstice, it’s high time to do a wrap-up of what’s gone on as far as nightlife prior to when the snow arrived.
— A houseboat that cost millions ended up being grounded in the St. Croix just feet away from the cruise ship that navigates the river all summer long. The three-story boat had its lowest level submerged and run aground late one summer weekend, and it was the talk of Hudson partygoers walking nearby, some of whom spread the rumor that the owner could afford the ship because of a lottery winning. It took more than one all-hours attempt to get the boat righted and pulled over to the side of the dike road — where it has been since. Even the very expensive, successful foray had reportedly ended up bringing damage to the boat’s contents, as well as workers’ noses and elbows. A bartender friend from Dick’s said he saw all the initial activity and went up and down the street prior to his shift just to see if what was apparent was real. It isn’t clear just why the boat was there in the first place and how long it will stay moored where it is; it was supposed to be hauled down the Mississippi River for repairs months ago.
— My friend Brandy found out during a late afternoon phone call that she had won tickets to a Jack Johnson concert, near the front row as some would say, to be held that very evening! The radio station giving the tickets away demanded that Brandy show up before the end of the business day to fill out paperwork. What followed was a barrage of phone calls and driving excursions that reached the northwest end of the metro to take care of things such as child care. The good news is that, in the end, Brandy was able to go and see her fave in concert.
— A trio of guys who have been at the Green Mill at least once recently referenced going golfing on “the tour.” One of them said he didn’t really respect the ability of those who were on the tour’s “second tier.” But to top that, another added these affiliations have benefits that were shown when they met three members of the rock group Rush and hit the links with them. This led to getting concert tickets in a prime location, autographed photos that were taken — and the trio of golfers getting in a tightly packed limo with members of the acclaimed power trio.
— Also at the Green Mill, it’s Randy Vs. Mr. Rogers. The patron has lots of the actor’s classic T-shirts, and had heard that country star Keith Urban buys them for lots of money. So, he was about to make the call to the music great and see if they could do business.
— A late-night stop at Kwik Trip led to a renewed acquaintance with a Pudge’s bartender from around the turn of the millenium. Angela said that she since has been helping operate a ranch out near the Rocky Mountains that was breaking new ground with their methods. This was her first stop back in Hudson in years, and it only came by chance. Angela and a friend had been on a cross-country road trip with the aim of getting back to the ranch, and said that it was dumb luck that they didn’t trek back via La Crosse, and that they even pulled off the freeway here to put in gas. They were in the middle of an all-night, virtually non-stop trip.
— A karaoke cohort of mine named Cara had a chance encounter with David Cassidy of Partridge Family fame, and may have even gotten behind the mike with him. Cassidy recently was arrested for the second time for DWI, and Cara said that he is really a nice guy, and thought this to be out of character for him.
— The owner of Guv’s Place in Houlton a while back was runner-up as an individual at a national darts tournament in Las Vegas. He said it was distracting, although the crowd enjoyed it, for the dart-by-dart coverage to be displayed directly above the boards on a TV screen the size of an average living room. People from all over the world were able to watch the games transpire, and for his part, Guv was able to get pictures of much of it on his cell phone.
— Back on Black Friday, Yesna and a friend were sharing a soda at the Village Inn in North Hudson close to closing time to check their cell phones and see where the next shopping stop should be. They already had done a lot of store trooping, but wanted to extend it into the wee hours, and The Village seemed to be the perfect place to regroup — although most of the newest buys they were able to scope out were simply for toilet paper.
— By the way, there is no truth to the rumor that the football analyst wife of embattled Viking quarterback Christian Ponder, who took out their marriage license here in Hudson, returned to St. Croix County to seek divorce papers.
— While getting a haircut at one of those places that says their stylists can do guy talk and sports, I told the person cutting my hair about an experience I had with a competing salon. I told that stylist that I wanted my sideburns down on my ear only a little bit, not like Joe Mauer. She said, “Joe Who?” Kind of clumsy guy talk, for sure. As I relayed the story, the TV above on ESPN news ran this headline, “Will beards save the Red Sox?” That’s the World Series of guy talk.
— Lastly, some prominent downtown people have passed on in the last few months, amidst other deaths of note. Two men, who like models are known by just one name, Duncan and most recently Bones, are no longer with us after being regulars at places such as Dibbo’s and Pudges for years and years. Who can forget Duncan’s booming voice shouting out from the deejay booth, for example. The two men both served in Vietnam, and a little-known alleged commonality is that Bones thinks they at one time met up there, although Duncan always scoffed at that idea. As far as Bones goes, once back home he had many chance encounters with people whom he had known overseas and who served in the war, these verifiable.