How do you define “fun?”

Is it participating in your favorite physical activity such as running, walking, bowling or golf? Or does your idea of fun include a lot of socializing and a ton of laughs? Maybe your thoughts of fun are all about being with that special someone or maybe, it’s simply being alone.

Fun! What if you’re invited to a “fun” activity that included your back getting scraped by hooves, getting kicked in that special spot and even having your mat being urinated on by a little kid? Still sound like fun? Well, yes and no…

Recently a trip was planned to visit our son and his wife in Chicago. He plays in a rock band there and that was one of the reasons for the visit. But there’s more. Our other two sons had been invited to play as an opening act for the rock band and we could not miss such an experience!

Seeing our sons play together again would be terrific! Their band, Preacher Row, played together throughout their college years and the Chicago gig would be their first time playing together in many years.

Like many of our times together we did a variety of interesting activities — one of which was to take a tour of Few Distillery in Evanston, Ill. The history of distilling is very interesting in that area because the city didn’t allow distilling until the mid 1970s and, when Few was given a license, it was only allowed to open at the end of a long and dirty alley.

Our tour of the facility was very interesting and I gave them a bad time about not using Minnesota grain in their products. We had a lot of laughs about that but they did tell me their barrels come from The Barrel Mill in Avon. That’s good enough for me!

After the tour, we got to do some taste testing of their gin and bourbons. One of the products tasted was a bourbon whiskey infused with coffee. It was amazingly good and I have a bottle of it to enjoy. We tasted their American Gin which has a mild juniper aroma and taste — very nice! We also got to taste their American Rye Whiskey and I found it to be one of the best tasting rye whiskeys I’ve ever sampled. It was soft, smooth and had a fantastic sweet finish.

After the distillery tour, we had to go to Ten Ninety Brewing in Glenview, Ill., for the band’s gig. I’ve been there before and have always liked the facility. It was a nice chance to wander through the brewery and just let the aura of the environment sink into me. Then, the music began!

Holding a glass of Ten Ninety Imperial Witbier (a very nice Belgian style ale brewed with honey and oranges) in my hand, I sat and enjoyed the music being played by my sons and their friends. It was extremely enjoyable and the crowd really got into the music. I like it when people begin to sing along and dance to the beat of the music.

After the band finished playing, I sampled a glass of Mohua Sauvignon Blanc (Marlborough, New Zealand) — a wine I’ve never tasted. It was what I expected from a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc — a bit acidic with nice soft lemon/lime tastes. Very pleasing…

While waiting for the boys to finish their gig, my daughter in law told me they were going to participate in a goat yoga class the next morning. At first, I thought she said “go yoga” and I didn’t think that fit the usual slow paced and measured activity. Then she started talking about the kids walking on people’s backs and I suddenly realized she was saying goat yoga.

Having been raised on a farm, this didn’t add up for me. Goats and yoga? That’s your idea of fun?

The next day we drove to the park area where we helped herd 17 goats — kids and mama goats — into the fenced in yoga area and the “fun” began. Have you ever had a 25-pound kid goat jump onto your back as you are kneeling in a yoga pose? I haven’t either — I graciously let the “kids” (meaning our sons and daughter in law) do it.

I kind of laughed at their discomfort and how they were trying to do yoga poses while the kids were walking on their backs, urinating on their mats and kicking them in rather sensitive spots on the body!

After seeing goat yoga, I can’t say it’s something that seems wisely paired. How can you concentrate on the activity with goats nibbling at you, bothering you and, well, just being goats? It was humorous for a bit but I wondered where the fun was.

After the class, we cleaned up and went out for dinner at a local restaurant where we talked about the scrape marks on their backs and the other “cute” things the kids had done to them. I ordered a nice bottle of Reissdorf Kölsch from Cologne, Germany. I loved its light full-bodied mouth feel and easy sweet taste. It helped me listen to the humorous exploits of my companions during their experience with goat yoga.

I just kept thinking: “And you call that fun?” Well, to each, their own…

Next week, an iconic summer cocktail.

As always, eat and drink in moderation but laugh with reckless abandon!

Cheers!