We have friends visiting for the weekend and last night we enjoyed a campfire as the moon and Jupiter set in the western sky.
time.
This post is inspired by the Word Press Weekly Photo Challenge: Morning and Margaret at Pyrenees to Peninnes.
Note: this post was composed entirely on my smartphone – an iPhone 6s.
It’s Monday, August 1. Yesterday was Sunday, July 31 – the last day of July. It’s always a bittersweet day. The first day of August means the month of August is here and it means school is coming, soon.
Back to school shopping, school supplies, a regular schedule, and wearing pants (soon) every day.
Yesterday I spent the day boating, reading, and cooking.
I’ve been reading Hamilton by Ron Chernow, but it’s not easy reading. I picked it up last fall and read the first two chapters before setting it down for something lighter. It’s full of facts and details that are interesting, incredibly interesting, but it is difficult to sit and read at the lake. I discovered Audible and have listened to several chapters while driving home and back this summer. I am at the point in the book where Hamilton’s affair with Maria Reynolds is revealed and his reputation takes a hit. ’Say No To This’. America’s first sex scandal.
I needed something lighter, easier to read so I picked up Dead Wake: The Last Crossing by the Lusitania by Erik Larson. I spent much of the afternoon and early evening reading. Despite the subject it is much a lighter topic and an easier read.
After dinner, I enjoyed B’s blueberry crisp. A perfectly sweet finish to the day and remembered I needed to cover the boat.
The sunset. Continue reading last Sunday in July
Friday afternoon getaway traffic all boiled down to the last mile.
The roads get smaller and the trees make them narrower. The last road is the narrowest with trees towering to the sky. The road bends to the left and I go straight, onto the one lane dirt road.
Leaving Chicagoland on a Friday is always a gamble. Accidents and construction, or both. I never know. Yesterday’s drive took over seven hours. It could’ve been longer. Regardless, the drive always ends with the last narrow mile and a one lane dirt road.
I am here. By the lake. It’s race weekend on the river.
Today is gonna be a great day. Summer is winding down, it’s the last weekend in July and Monday is August 1. Gonna make the day count, I always try, especially when summer is narrowing like the last mile of a drive to the cottage.
How’s your summer? Is it narrowing, or widening?
Today’s post is inspired by last week’s WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge: Narrow. This week, let’s keep things narrow (but not narrow-minded!): share a photo with your take on the theme. You could focus on a slender object, or shoot an image where your field of vision is restricted. Alleyways and half-open doors, seesaws and water slides, spaghetti and electric cords… the world is full of narrow things. I can’t wait to see which one you’ll pick for your entry.
Saturday morning by the lake.
“Saturday morning was come, and all the summer world was bright and fresh, and brimming with life. There was a song in every heart; and if the heart was young, the music issued at the lips. There was cheer in every face and a spring in every step.” Mark Twain from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Friday was a great day. We got a few chores off our list. But, there are more, there is always more. Always.
But, after the chores there was the lake and fun.
We took the boat out for a test ride and some fun. O ‘surfed’ and so did a couple of her lake friends from down the lane. It was a fun evening.
I stayed in the boat and ‘filmed’ and shot stills. I still got wet putting the boat away. Continue reading Saturday morning spring in your step
Sunday afternoon, it rained. We needed the rain, it was dry and the fire conditions in the area are low, yesterday they were listed as moderate, but the rain was enough to lower them. No one wants a fire in the forest. On the flipside, no one likes rain, especially at the lake.
I used the rainy day to relax – actually binge watch several episodes of Madame Secretary on Netflix. I am embarrassed, but not really. I watched my first episode a couple of weeks ago and now I am hooked. I watch few television shows but I did get caught up in Downton Abbey, and when it came on Sunday evening we’d watch it together, B and I. We’ll miss that show.
The rain began gently, then it poured. I love the sound of rain on the roof, it’s peaceful and calming. Exactly what I needed, yesterday. Continue reading details – part 2
It’s mid-July, school starts in a little over a month. I am not panicking, but wondering. Focus on the BIG rocks, the details have a way of working themselves out.
We are Up North. Michigan, by the lake. Again.
We arrived late last night, slowed by traffic, and our own desire to get off the beaten path. To slow down and relax.
That’s part of why we are drawn to the lake. The other part is family and tradition. Summer by the lake, playing in the water, boating, grilling, dinner at the table as a family, campfires, ‘s’mores, and reconnecting. Down time.
Last week, I posted a photo of the moon over the lake, and last night the moon shone brightly illuminating the lake and bathing the surface with its light. I pulled out my camera, went out onto the dock, and tried to frame what I saw. You can see what I got. Details.
I am never sure what will come out when I press the button and take a photo. I know what I can see, but I am limited by my ability and equipment. Sometimes it works out and I can see details I couldn’t see. And other times, well, it doesn’t come out and I try again. Last night’s photo of the moon revealed details I couldn’t see, but I knew were there. Continue reading details: a photo challenge
Each morning begins with a new perspective. It’s never the same in the morning.
I’ve been sipping coffee and enjoying the morning view for years by the lake. I miss grandma, who was often up before me sitting in her chair sipping coffee. I’d refill her coffee or brew a fresh pot and join her. She’s gone, now, and now I sit in the chair, sip coffee, Ivy curls up on the footstool and we begin the day looking out over the lake. Continue reading Look Up – a photo challenge
“Be the change that you wish to see in the world.” Mahatma Gandhi
Last night, I grilled burgers and B and I enjoyed dinner together. Earlier, we’d planned to take the boat out and have fun boating, but storms rolled in and we covered the boat, put it on the lift, and came inside.
Done for the day.
B read on the couch, Ivy curled up on her pad exhausted from being in the lake all day, and I started dinner. It was a cloudy stormy evening along the lake in northern Michigan. It rained a little and then stopped. All we got was a little rain and thunder the heavy rain went south. I pulled the grill out and grilled the burgers. We enjoyed our dinner and finished it with fresh Michigan strawberries and vanilla ice cream.
Perfect dinner. Continue reading By the lake, Friday morning thoughts
There is a thin line between independence, and dependence.
It’s a beautiful Sunday morning by the lake and as is often the case, I am the only one awake and it’s peaceful. Independence weekend by the lake, it’s our family tradition. Today, we’ll spend time in the lake swimming, boating, fishing, and spending time together. Tomorrow, we’ll take in the parade and spend the evening marveling at the fireworks display in town. In between, we’ll swim, boat, fish, and spend time together. That’s why we’re here, to rest, relax, and restore.
Life is full of opposites, contrasts and differences. Continue reading opposites – a photo challenge
Summer is full of surprises. Always. Some surprises are good, others aren’t. Wednesday morning B, my wife, asked me if I wanted to go north for a couple of days. I had several things on my calendar and task list, but it wasn’t a request. Michigan. The lake, the boat, summer.
We loaded the car, or cars, and headed north to the cottage. We arrived late and the early summer night sky was ablaze with stars. At home we don’t see the stars as well because of the light pollution, but here it’s amazing.
