Well hello my friends out there in 311 nation! Are we ready for the latest fan spotlight? This week let’s get the story from Cathi Bartling!
While Cathi was aware of 311, she didn’t really get a lot of exposure to them until she saw them at the Milwaukee Summerfest in 2008. While she saw them a few times after that, she pinpoints 311 Day 2014 as when she really became a fan. “We walked into Pizza by the Slice on Bourbon St. when “Unity” was playing, and the entire place was unhinged and everyone was dancing and singing. On that day I learned how much the music brought people together. Since then we have met so many great people and made so many friends all because of a common interest in a band. So I guess I will say that I love the music, but a big part of that is the family that the music has created over the years.”
Exact count of how many shows she’s attended, Cathi is unsure of, but it’s somewhere in the 20-30 range. She’s been to 311 Day in 2014, 2016, 2020, 2022, and 2024. As for a favorite, she can’t pick just one, but obviously based on how she really became a fan 311 Day 2014 stands out among them. Also 311 Day 2020, “just because of how utterly surreal it was.”
Favorite song for Cathi, it depends on her mood that day. ” If I am running, it’s probably going to be “Hive” or “Unity.” If I am more in a comtemplative mood, it might be “Running” or “Use of Time”. Tim on “Taiyed” is just amazing.” Favorite lyric though, that she could narrow down: “This moment is a gift. That’s why it’s called the present.”
North Central Wisconsin, Merrill to be exact, is where Cathi grew up. She is the youngest of 5 children. She attended UW Green Bay for her undergrad degree and then attended law school at UW Madison. “After graduating law school, my boyfriend and I moved to Waukesha, Wisconsin in 2007 and have lived here ever since. I am employed as an attorney in a small law office in Milwaukee, and my practice consists primarily of family law, estate planning, and real estate transactions with other miscellaneous areas of law thrown in for good measure. My boyfriend, Brad, and I have been together for almost 20 years, and we have two dogs, Gibson and Aldo.”
Cathi said she probably has too many hobbies. Some of them are running, biking, hunting, fishing, shooting sporting clays, camping, cooking, drinking craft beer, and going to concerts. When she was younger she was a gymnast! She also enjoys watching the Green Bay Packers, Wisconsin Badgers, and Milwaukee Brewers.
Fun fact about Cathi is that up until 311 Day 2014, she had not traveled outside of the upper mid-west. And she’s never flown on a commercial plane. “I still don’t have a passport.” As for what makes her unique, she said that when people find out she hunts, fishes, and shoots sporting clays that many are very surprised. “I don’t think that is an expectation many people have when they come in to meet with a female lawyer.”
Guilty pleasure for Cathi is watching romance and rom-com on Netflix and Hulu. “I think they provide a really good escape from what I deal with on a day to day basis with work. I utterly love “Bridgerton” and a I am totally not a sentimental, touchy-feely kind of person.”
As for other artists that Cathi loves, the list includes The Movement, Slightly Stoopid, Dirty Heads, Surfer Girl, Tool, RATM, Less than Jake, Little Stranger, Jack White, The Elovaters, RHCP, Jerry Cantrell, and Tropidelic.
For a message to 311, Cathi has this question: “Las Vegas is great, but maybe for 2026 could 311 Day go somewhere else so I could visit the world?”
Now here is her message to all her fellow fans:
“Just be nice to each other. Life is short, and it doesn’t make sense to spend it being a jerk to the people around you.”
Tons of thanks to Cathi for sharing her story with us all! Per the usual, my gratitude to all who read each week. Hope you all have an excellent week. Keep being the good souls that you are!
Much Love – The Runt