Tag Archives: weather

Beware, the ides of November

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my MO, it's growing in
my MO, it’s growing in – go ahead click me!

It does not exactly have the same ring as the classic line from William Shakespeare’s play, “The Life and Death of Julius Caesar” warning Julius Caesar of his impending doom; “Beware the ides of March.” I don’t have a soothsayer to remind me, I don’t need one, because I know the Ides of November – the middle of November – is a tough part of the calendar for me, it always has been.

Last Sunday was my birthday, I rolled over one more year, and I feel great. My birthday was a great time. W treated me to the Bears vs. Lions at Soldier Field. We had a great time. We took the train – the ‘8:15 into the city’ (“Takin’ Care of Business” – Bachman-Turner-Overdrive). Actually, it was the 8:53 and we arrived without fanfare just before ten. W read his book for English class and I read a book, too. Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick was just beginning to get good when we pulled into the train station. We caught the express bus to the stadium and we were inside watching the teams warm up before eleven. It was W’s first professional game. Even though he’s seen countless high school football games and a couple of Division III College games, the NFL experience is something to experience. It was my first time at Soldier Field for anything. I was impressed. I grew up on games inside in the Astrodome in Houston. They don’t play pro games there anymore, and I have heard they are thinking of tearing it down. Sad. The stadium is right along the Lake Michigan shoreline, America’s great inland sea. It was an absolutely beautiful day – clear skies, cool and sunny. The temperatures stayed in the forties and we were comfortable the entire day. It was Veterans Day weekend and the game was one of the games the NFL selected to be “Salute to Service” games where the league recognizes America’s soldiers, sailors, marines, and airmen. American military and national pride was prominently on display. Continue reading Beware, the ides of November →

Movember

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MG474-MO13-LogoIt’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 →

October morning

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22Yesterday was our 22nd 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 →

Summer’s fading

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chair crop
a slice of what is to come

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

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old fishing bobbers and Petosky stones
old fishing bobbers and Petosky stones

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

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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

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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.

the moon slips down across the lake
my view from grandma’s chair

I’ve been up ever since. Continue reading A New Morning →

Windows

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My office is downstairs or was downstairs in the basement. This summer it has moved upstairs to whatever flat space I can find. Some days it is on the deck and others, like this morning, it is in the dining room looking out on a bright sunny morning. Below is what I see, it beats the heck out of the basement view.

the side view looking south… when look up this is what I see.
the front view, looking east, to my left
standing up and looking through the chandelier

The rainstorm in April provided us with a reminder nature always wins. We had some minor flooding in the basement. Not a lot of water, but enough to have it repaired. And having it repaired meant taking down the paneled walls to expose the cracks. Before the April storm, we knew we had at least one crack – where it had leaked before, but we located a couple more near the window wells. Since, I’ve been destructing the basement; we’ve found a couple more. I have almost half the walls open and I’ll be working most of the day today to pull down the rest with my trusty assistant, W. Boy, did he work hard yesterday and we got quite a bit yanked off and hauled out. The concrete repair folks have been by to look, explore, and give bids for the repair and we have another coming this morning.

Today will just be work and dinner – no games, camps, or places to be except home. I have rib steaks and salad and I plan to grill for a 6PM sit down dinner. O won her game last night and they play for the championship tomorrow morning, so it will be an early night – he have to be at the field ready to go at 8AM. That is early, way too early for a summer Saturday morning. Today is gonna be a great day, I know it, and I can feel it, Ivy can, too. So we had better jump up, jump in and seize the day. Making the Days Count, one day at a time.

What windows do you see when you work or when you start your day?

Midsummer’s Night Dream

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canoeing with W and cousin John
canoeing with W and cousin John

Yesterday, Ivy greeted me at the bottom of the stairs when I came down. She had that look on her face that gave away where she’d been sleeping. I checked the living room chair, it was warm, and I looked at her, pointed to the chair, and looked again, sternly. She knew. I don’t think ‘my look’ is going to fix the issue, but I do believe she understood I was unhappy. I made coffee, let her out the backdoor and began the day. Yesterday morning it was sunny, warm, and muggy and Ivy and I could feel the air outside when we got the morning paper. This morning was a bit different, the weather had changed and it was cool enough to sleep with the windows open, significant benefit of living in the Midwest.  Instead of waiting for me to wake, she came upstairs to greet me at 3AM. I climbed out of bed and went downstairs with her. She wanted to go outside but at three in the morning and it being dark, very dark, I feared an encounter with a skunk – she stayed inside. I fell asleep on the couch and W woke me at 6.15 reminding me it was time to go to football camp. Ivy eagerly jumped in the backseat and rode along it’s sort of a summer tradition. She loves going for rides. When we returned the coffee was ready and it was quiet; time to read the newspaper, sip coffee, and listen to the birds call and chirp in the backyard. It is summer after all and the pace of life is slower, even at home. Last week we were up north at the cottage, where life’s pace is slow and peaceful. Continue reading Midsummer’s Night Dream →

Cottage Time

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Ivy WILL NOT be left behind
Ivy WILL NOT be left behind

I am at the Michigan cottage now, it has been 1600 plus miles in one week. That’s how far I driven since my trip to Mississippi and back and to the cottage last Friday morning. That’s a long way. The drive down to Mississippi didn’t seem to faze me, but the drive back took its toll. I was whacked, the following day. All I wanted to do was sleep, I would sneak off to lie down and catch a short nap, if I could. It only frustrated B because there was much to do, there always is, especially when we were packing and heading north for a week. Continue reading Cottage Time →