By the light of the silvery moon....

Back in the 80's, Scary movies were still somewhat primitive. In the respect that we had not evolved to the level of Jigsaw, or The Grudge. We were still in the early stages of developing Jason Vorhees, Michael Myers and introducing a new villain Freddy Krueger. During the evolution of horror movies, an edgy director came onto Hollywood boulevard. John Landis, the man responsible for me looking at the full moon in a whole new way. In 1981, American Werewolf in London premiered and groundbreaking transformation effects in the movie changed the face of horror movies forever I remember the night, I saw the movie and that particular scene where David Naughton transformed into a werewolf frightened me. The Oscar's were equally stunned and created a new category for the outstanding makeup in the film. Where did one man get such an idea?

     Werewolves are mythical creatures that possess the ability to shape shift from a man into a wolf during the full moon. These beasts have been scaring horror movie buffs for years, myself included. But is there some true to the myth. If you live in Elkhorn, Wisconsin, you are apt to believe in the myth.

     On a dark back country road that meanders through farms and fields, there is a creature that hunts by the full moon. It is said to resemble a canine and can stand upright like a man. Witnesses have said that the creature smells of decaying meat. Along Bray Road people have seen the creature hunched over along the roadside,and others have had very close calls with the beast. Doristine Gipson had the fright of her life. On October 31, 1999 she was driving along Bray Road, when her front tire was lifted off the ground, like she had stuck something. When she got out to inspect, what had happened, she saw a dark figure racing toward her. Luckily she was able to get safely into her car, as the creature jumped on the front hood of her car. It had been raining so the creature could not hold on.
     The rumors of the werewolf grew, and a local newspaper sent a reporter out to Bray Road to cover the story. Linda Godfrey was very cynical but as she heard the stories from the witnesses, she was convinced that something was happening on Bray Road. This reporter became a serious cryptozoologist and wrote a book. "The Beast of Bray Road:Trailing Wisconsin's Werewolf".

Recently a man named Steven Krueger who worked for the highway department was removing roadkill from the highway. He came upon a deer carcass that looked fresh, he decided even though it was not part of his inventory, he would pick it up. The animal was very heavy, and it took some effort to get it into the truck. As he took notes in the cab of the truck, his truck began to shake, startled he looked in the rear view mirror and saw a creature with its arms outstretched, trying to get the deer. Shocked Mr. Krueger drove away. Whatever the creature is, that is out on Bray Road, the residents of Elkhorn know better than to snoop around those parts after dark.

     For unstructured Halloween fun you certainly can camp out on Bray Road, however, I would not recommend it. Just 36 miles north on Interstate 43, is the city of Milwaukee, where there are Halloween attractions that are safer than being alone in the country with a werewolf. The Mars Haunted House , is one of Wisconsin's truly haunted houses. The home of a horrendous family murder suicide, of the Milton Family, people say they still roam the upstairs of the building. If you are looking for a scare to keep you up at night, be sure to sign up, and in case you don't believe there is plenty of paranormal evidence to back up their claim of being "Milwaukee's only TRULY Haunted, Haunted House".
     For Milwaukee's best burgers AJ Bombers is the place to go. The Milwaukee burger, is a combination of what is great about Milwaukee. 1/4 pound of beef, topped with a double portion of Nueske's Applewood smoked bacon (from Wittenberg,WI), double portion of Wisconsin Colby cheese, and fried onions that have been cooked in Schlitz beer. This burger reigned supreme on Travel Channel's, Food Wars, the battle of the best burger. Honorable mention goes to Sobelman's Pub and Grille , although they did not win, Sobelman's Burger fans will defend the Sobelman Burger to the bitter burger end.

Wisconsin Beer Cheese Soup

1 pound of bacon, diced

1 cup of onions, rough chop

1 cup of celery, rough chop

1 cup of carrots, rough chop

4 cloves of garlic

8 cups of chicken stock
6 ozs of butter
6 ozs of flour
3 bottles of New Glarus Fat Squirrel Nut Brown Ale
2 cups heavy cream

6 cups of shredded 1 year aged Sharp Wisconsin Cheddar

1 tablespoon Guldens spicy mustard

1 bay leaf

healthy shake of Tabasco

2 tsps Worcestershire sauce

salt and pepper to taste

In a food processor, process all vegetables including the garlic. The soup will be smooth so getting fussy about the vegetables is a waste of time. In a soup pot,render the bacon until crispy, add the vegetables and saute until somewhat tender. Add the beer and simmer for a few minutes. Add the chicken stock and bay leaf and bring to a slow boil. In sauce pan melt the butter and add the flour and cook for a few minutes on low.(this is to remove the flour taste from the roux) Ladle some of the hot stock into the flour mixture until it is mixable, add that back into the soup pot. The soup will thicken.

Add the shredded cheddar and heavy cream and mix well. Season with mustard, Tabasco, Worcestershire and salt and pepper. Garnish with buttered popcorn.

Age does not diminish the extreme disappointment having a scoop of ice cream fall from the cone.~Jim Fiebig.