My Week that Was - January 17

The Sunrise Breakfast sandwich. 1/10/26 dwm

 My wife suggested a different place for breakfast, a coffee shop named Mercies on Madison's east side. 

 Most of the times I've gone to a coffee shop for breakfast, there wasn't really anything I wanted for  breakfast on the menu. But while Mercies didn't offer pancakes, they did offer breakfast sandwiches. 

 I went with the Sunrise Breakfast sandwich on fresh sourdough bread with egg, bacon, cheddar cheese, tomato, and arugala. I ordered mine without the tomato and arugala and bananas, strawberries, and blueberries on the side.

 The coffee shop is near East Towne Mall in a store that used to be a Christian book store, which is what inspired the shop's name, Mercies. There are floor to ceiling windows on two sides and a gas fireplace that create good feelings on a snowy morning. 

The dining space is comfortable. 1/10/26 dwm

Mercies offers several drinks that aren't coffee, I had one of the best steamers ever made with whole milk and carmel. The sandwich was perfectly toasted and hit the spot. 

Based on their website, I'm guessing Mercies is at least a year old. The page shared their mission which is to provide quality goods and service while creating a warm and welcoming environment to all who walk through our doors. We seek to build up the community of Madison around the purpose of fighting human trafficking within our city and the state of Wisconsin.

They certainly hit the mark in providing a warm and welcome place to eat. In addition to general seating, they have a room groups can rent. 

At home, it was time to replace the dishwasher. Again. The next will be the third, if you count the one already installed when we moved in. When we had the kitchen updated in 2020, we replaced the dishwasher. It lasted about three years, which the installer said is the norm for the machines as the timer, times out.

We found what we think is a good one. It's more expensive than our previous models, so hopefully we can get more than three years out of it. Sunday I unloaded the old dishwasher; took care of the dirty dishes by hand; then had the unpleasant task of getting the standing water out of washer one glass at a time.

Twilight in Verona. 1/12/2026 dwm

 On the drive home Monday I watched the sun drop below the horizon and create a palette of reds and blues.

 It was clear, so there were still hints of daylight at 5:30. A few more seconds each morning and afternoon add up slowly, but it's more noticeable in the evening. 

 Wednesday the dishwasher arrived. The handyman picked up the machine, delivered, and installed it. 

 Lots of people get along just fine washing dishes by hand, but if you're used to the convenience of stacking plates, dishes, and serving ware, it's nice to have a working dishwasher under the kitchen counter.

It was a busy week. I had six appointments, several meetings, and scheduled seven donor events from March to October. The week was unseasonably mild for early January then things fell back to average as snow and freezing rain returned. 

It was a good week for the Wisconsin Badgers basketball team. They upset the #2 team in the country, Michigan in Ann Arbor, then beat the pesky Golden Gophers in Minnesota on a buzzer-beating shot to end the game. Up to this week, the Badgers had been up and down, hopefully they've turned the corner and make a move up the standings. 

That was my week, I hope your week goes well!