Category Archives: adventure

I’ve got a peaceful, easy feeling

Saturday, November 30, 2013, @ 11:10 amadventure, country, Family, Hobbies and Fun, Life in General, Reading, teaching, Writingchildren, education, Family, great days, making the days count, reading, teaching, Thanksgiving, writingClay

Thanksgiving has come and gone and I am still thankful. I intended or planned to get up early Thanksgiving morning before everyone awoke and write a Thanksgiving Day post, but I didn’t get up early enough and when I did, I had a difficult time getting the cobwebs out of my mind and focusing. Instead, I gave up. Electing, instead to stay out of the way and help when needed.

W and I drove to Ohio late Wednesday, after W’s wrestling meet – the first meet of the year. We left a little after five and had to return because I forgot something. I learned later I forgot a few more things, but that is water under the bridge. B and O had left Tuesday. We had Ivy for the ride and she was a dream the entire ride over. In fact, the entire drive Wednesday night went well. The lake effect snow, which had been forecast for our route, was not heavy enough to make a difference on the roads. We arrived a little before midnight and B and O were up to greet us.

It was our first trip home to Ohio for Thanksgiving in a few years. Continue reading I’ve got a peaceful, easy feeling →

Movember

Saturday, November 2, 2013, @ 9:49 amadventure, Family, Reading, sports, teaching, Teaching and Learning, travel, Weather, Writingchildren, fall in the Midwest, fall leaves, Family, Grayling, great days, making the days count, reading, seventh grade, teaching, weatherClay

It’s Movember, the first Saturday in November. There is a chill in the air and after a couple of days of gentle rain to soak the ground, it looks like the skies will clear and it will be a sunny day. I can only hope.

Last week at the time, I was just waking up. Friday night I watched W play his last football game of the season and then driven north to the cottage for fall cleanup and a couple of last season chores. Saturday morning I was alone. The phone was ringing and I needed to answer it. I must have sounded horrible because my mom asked if I was okay. I was okay, just exhausted and spent. But, it was a good thing, I told her I would call her back and I crawled out of bed. I brushed my teeth, started the coffee, and began the day. I was still sleepy as I looked out onto the lake, shrouded in grey with the windows splattered with rain. It was a dreary day. It was windy, cold, and wet; perfect weather for a day spent in the yard raking and doing fall cleanup. I sipped my coffee and stared out onto the lake. The lake has power, even a grey cloudy rainy day lake. It has the power to relax, the power to heal, and the power to rejuvenate. I needed the lake and the cottage needed me. I called my mom back, sipped my coffee, and gazed out at the lake as we talked. Continue reading Movember →

After Midnight

Sunday, October 20, 2013, @ 11:04 amadventure, Family, growing up, Life in General, Reading, teaching, Teaching and Learning, Tuesday's Tune, Weather, Writingchurch, education, fall leaves, Family, football, friends, great days, making the days count, Mississippi, Oxford, reading, seventh grade, teaching, writingClay

It is another Sunday morning and the sun is up, the air is cool and crisp, and leaves litter the front lawn. I slept late this morning, or at least later than I should have although I have reasonable excuse – I stayed up too late last night, past eleven – almost to midnight.

I remember (often) the days of my youth when after midnight was truly after midnight, well after midnight. Eric Clapton’s song says it all about what I was doing:

After midnight, we’re gonna let it all hang down.
After midnight, we’re gonna chug-a-lug and shout.
We’re gonna stimulate some action;
We’re gonna get some satisfaction.
We’re gonna find out what it is all about.
After midnight, we’re gonna let it all hang down.
Eric Clapton – “After Midnight”

These days, I can’t hang much after ten, maybe it’s because I have aged or I have gotten wiser, or just that I realize that have to get moving and accomplish something before noon. Continue reading After Midnight →

October morning

Sunday, October 6, 2013, @ 9:51 amadventure, Family, Life in General, Reading, teaching, Writingeducation, fall in the Midwest, Family, great days, high school football, reading, seventh grade, weather, writingClay

Yesterday was our 22^nd anniversary. I have known B for much longer, almost thirty years. The time has flown by. If I close my eyes, it seems like yesterday when we met, got married, and had kids. It was also my younger brother’s birthday. For a short time, we will be consecutive 51-50-49. I am the oldest, the smartest, the best looking, and the most humble, in case you didn’t know. Yesterday was also homecoming for W and it was a day full of activity finishing with a dance. Oh, the memories it brings back. It’s fall in the Midwest, again. It happens every year. The days get shorter and cooler, and the trees begin to turn and then leaves begin to fall. It happens, always. Continue reading October morning →

Blame the dog

Sunday, September 8, 2013, @ 9:14 amadventure, Family, jobs, Life in General, pets, Reading, teaching, Writingchildren, education, Family, Grayling, great days, hard work, high school football, making the days count, pets, reading, seventh grade, softball, sports, Summer Vacation, teaching, writingClay

I am up north for the weekend. It’ll be the last weekend for a while and I enjoyed the sunset last night and the morning view with my coffee for one last time this summer.

I drove up by myself Friday after school. B and the kids stayed home; W had a football game Friday night and again Saturday morning along with loads of homework, I do hope he is making a dent in it, and O had softball Friday and Saturday, too. It’s strange being here alone. I had a long list of things to do and I added to it as I walked around yesterday. The boats are out and stored for the winter, the dock and boat lifts, too. The patio furniture is in the garage and I have shuffled the organization from summer to winter mode with snow shovels and the snow blower ready for action when we come back this winter. I have a few more chores before I close up and leave this afternoon and I am debating about leaving the vents open and scheduling one more trip before winter sets in to close them. Continue reading Blame the dog →

Endless summer

Sunday, September 1, 2013, @ 12:49 pmadventure, Family, history, Life in General, pets, Reading, sports, teaching, Weather, Writingeducation, fall in the Midwest, football, hard work, high school football, history, making the days count, reading, seventh grade, teaching, writingClay

the score board reads HOME 17 - GUEST 14 — the scoreboard reads HOME 17 – GUESTS 14

It’s Labor Day weekend, the unofficial end of summer, and I am home instead of up North. I should be there, we should be there; there is work to be done, boats to be pulled out of the water, and a dock to be pulled out, too and so many more chores – summer is over and winter is coming. We planned to be there but it didn’t happen. We didn’t leave. Usually, for labor Day weekend we leave Friday evening and come back Monday afternoon. But, with W’s football schedule we’d planned to leave Saturday after his practice session. That meant we could take in the varsity game Friday night; it was a big game against the defending state champion who had beaten us the past two years in a row.

Last week was the first full week of school; it was exhausting – mentally, physically, and emotionally. I was drained and with one look in W’s eyes, I could see it had been a long week for him, too. Going back to school (or work) after a vacation is difficult but the weather changed to make it even worse. The week began with a heat wave and ended with a spectacular storm Friday night. If it hadn’t been for the storm, I’d be sitting at the table and looking out at the lake, instead I am home sitting at the dining room looking out at the neighborhood. Continue reading Endless summer →

Summer’s fading

Saturday, August 3, 2013, @ 8:28 amadventure, Family, Life in General, pets, Reading, teaching, travel, Weather, Writingchildren, Family, great days, Harbor Springs, making the days count, Petoskey, Pure Michigan, reading, Summer Vacation, sunsets, weather, writingClay

Yesterday morning I awoke early, too early, around four thirty, it was dark, the kind of darkness that is complete except for the light that spills over into our yard from our neighbor’s security light. I looked out onto the lake and it was dark almost black it was such deep blue. The stars covered by a blanket of invisible clouds completed the late night and early morning darkness.

Ivy was up before me, in fact, she was the reason I was up as early as I was, she was concerned with something in the yard, her yard, and letting me know in her own way, loudly. I let her out and lay down on the couch to read, or try to read. After she had searched the yard, I let her inside and she jumped up and nested between my legs at the foot of the couch, rested her head on my calf, and fell back to sleep. It wasn’t long before I joined her and drifting off with the book open on my chest.

That was how my Friday morning began, slowly. Continue reading Summer’s fading →

Burgers and dogs

Monday, July 29, 2013, @ 10:45 amadventure, Cooking, Family, history, Life in General, racing, Reading, sports, teaching, Teaching and Learning, Weather, Writingchildren, eating, education, Family, fishing, great days, hard work, making the days count, reading, Summer Vacation, weather, writingClay

It’s another beautiful morning by the lake. It’s quiet and everyone is still asleep, including Ivy. I have drained the coffee pot, checked e-mail, transferred photos from photo cards, played games, and done everything imaginable except start writing.

The weekend has come and gone and with it another Ausable River Canoe Marathon. It’s an epic event for the town. There have been sixty-six of them, including this year’s race. The town hosts a festival and it is a big deal. The parade is bigger than the Fourth of July parade. There is a Saturday car show, carnival rides, a craft fair with vendors, and at nine o’clock, the race begins when racers pick up their canoes and run to the river, jump in, and begin paddling to Oscoda – some 120 miles away. It’s quite an event.

We had guests this weekend. Continue reading Burgers and dogs →

Michigan weather

Wednesday, July 24, 2013, @ 9:47 amadventure, Family, jobs, Life in General, Reading, teaching, Weather, Writingchildren, Family, Front Street Traverse City, hard work, making the days count, reading, Summer Vacation, teaching, Traverse City, weather, writingClay

I love northern Michigan weather. At home, when there’s a cool night and warm sunny day, B and I will look at each other, sigh and say “It’s Michigan weather.” Monday was warm, not hot, and it got windier as the day wore on. Monday night, really Tuesday morning, thunderstorms rolled through and brought with them a cloudy cool Tuesday morning. I actually slept late waking just before nine and made a lazy start to the day. It stayed cool windy and cloudy most of yesterday. Today it is cool, almost cold. The cottage thermometer read 46 and fog hugged the lake. The sky was mostly clear with a stray contrail, a few puffy clouds, and the last bit of the moon peeking through.

fog on Lake Margrethe – my first shot – iPhone and Instagram

fog on Lake Margrethe – my second shot – Nikon

Continue reading Michigan weather →

A New Morning

Monday, July 22, 2013, @ 9:37 amadventure, Cooking, Family, Life in General, pets, Reading, Scouting, teaching, Teaching and Learning, Weather, Writingchildren, Family, Grayling, great days, Lake Margrethe, making the days count, moonset, pets, scouting, sunset, weather, writingClay

I didn’t sleep well last night. I woke at 3 and went back to sleep. A couple of hours later, Ivy was up and wanted to go outside and I stumbled to the door, clipped her tether, and opened the door. The full moon shone brightly over the lake and I could see ducks on the water in front of the cottage. I am sure it was more than the ducks that woke her but she silently inspected the yard and was at the door, wanting to come in, moments later. I went back to bed, but couldn’t get back to sleep. I grudgingly got up and took a few photos of the moon hanging over the lake. I took the photos below with my iPhone, couldn’t get the camera to take a snap, too little light. But the iPhone didn’t care.