Happy New Year

Well, I have not written an update in more than a month. So I figured since Jon is watching the Packers game, I may as well write as I sit next to him and write while semi-watching the game as well. We have had a lot going on despite the lack of updates on The Enger Cafe. I also have some pictures I have been waiting to share while Jon takes them off his camera. But, since New Years was the latest excitement, I thought I'd at least start with this and maybe give some photo updates later on.

For New Years, Jon and I traveled up to Manitowoc, WI where I had originally grown up before moving to northwest Wisconsin. I still feel connected to that area and really enjoy visiting my friends who still live there. In high school, I used to visit my friend, Paul and his family almost every New Years. During this time, we would go to their church where they had fun options for the celebration of the New Year. One of those activities was a Scottish Céilidh, that their Scottish pastor and wife led. A Céilidh is a social gathering where people can tell folk stories and enjoy some traditional folk dancing. I have never been interested in any modern dancing, but really loved the Scottish folk dancing and wanted Jon to experience this with me as well. It had been several years since I had been back for the Céilidh and I was pleasantly surprised that I still remembered many of the dance routines. There are many different types of dances that include pairs, groups of 4, 6, 8, or even higher depending on how the routine. Let's just say, it's a lot of hopping, kicking, spinning, and running. Jon and I danced almost all of the dances, so we were pretty tired by midnight since we had been dancing since about 8:00.
In the Céilidh, they also play a game, called Knight, Horseman, and Cavalier. I would liken this game to a crazy intense game of musical chairs. In this game, you need to keep an eye on your partner as the men walk in a large circle clockwise and women walk counterclockwise inside of this large circle. When the leader stops the music, he yells out "Knight, Horseman, or Cavalier," and you have to run to your partner and perform the correct action while not being the last person or you are out. When Knight is yelled, the guy has to kneel down and the woman sits on his knee. For horseman, the guy gets on all fours and the woman sits side saddle on his back. For Cavalier, the man must pick up the woman. We did pretty well for it being Jon's first time with the game, but it gets pretty chaotic when there are 100+ people running for their partner. I may or may not have knocked over some people. I was also impressed that Jon was able to catch me after Cavalier was yelled because I definitely jumped in the air hoping that he'd catch me in time. I wish we could have gotten some video of this, maybe next year.
But, I found some videos online that will give you a better idea of what we did, in case you're overly confused.
1. Gay Gordon's Meledy
2. St. Andrews Dance
Anyways, we had a lot of fun meeting some new people at Paul's church as well as hanging out with them at their house. We hadn't seen them since they got married two years ago, hopefully it won't be that long until the next time!


Happy New Year!