Whew! That was Close!

I am falling off my chair laughing.  I just got a message telling me that thanks to someone's service---which I'm probably eager to pay for-----I have 30 new followers.

Heaven forbid!  That's way too much pressure for me!

I will give you a little update, though, as long as I came over here to check on my 30 new followers.

Good Guy and I just had a little touring adventure around Lake Superior, returning yesterday.  We had the best weather, clear and still, so we had great driving conditions and clear views of the scenery.  It's a perfect combo for families that argue about vacation destinations----woods? beaches? mountains?  hunting?  it's all right there.

Of course, I didn't inquire about hunting seasons or how much a license to hunt might cost---but apparently wild game is plentiful.  Though we didn't see any moose or caribou, there were hundreds of signs warning of their presence----possibly on the highway----likely at dusk or after dark.

Most impressive to me was the rock.  Roads are cut through great crags of stone and forests appear to appear out of solid sheer mountainside.  Of course, the Sea of Superior is ever present.  It is amazing that we could drive around it for the whole week, and it is still the same water we enjoy at my brother-in-law's summer place in the Keewenaw Peninsula in Michigan.

I also was impressed at the amount of recognition given to First Nation presence and history along the northern coast of the Lake.  We walked through one park where the signs were in English, French, and the Ojibwa language.

Once we got back across the border and into Minnesota, we left the shore at Silver Bay and headed west toward Ely, where my family spent some time during my growing up years.  There we spent an afternoon and evening with an old friend of my Mom's.  It was a high spot of the week for me.

Getting home is always great too.  So now the laundry is caught up again, and I've answered my e-mail, and life is returning to normal.  (Except for those pesky new followers.)

Also, by the way, the most beautiful leaf color we saw was along the south shore of the lake, and I must confess Michigan had the prettiest hardwoods in oranges, bright reds, and golds.  Just gorgeous!  You've got to love Fall!

Lightening Up

Over the Labor Day weekend, I vowed to organize my workroom. This task consisted of considerable sorting and pitching-------which is a recurring theme around here, but this was a major purge.

I won't bore you with all of it, but the most wrenching, but satisfying thing was getting rid of magazines.  I found the patterns I wanted to save, and I got rid of the rest of the magazine.  I can't believe how good it feels to be rid of them.  I gave away art supplies, presents that creeped me out, paper products, even fabric I'll never use.

That felt so good, I believe I will do some more.

Tomorrow ReStore is coming to relieve us of old furniture and appliances.  I am in no hurry to fill the house with new things either;  I am grateful to them for taking it away.

In an abrupt change of subject, have you ever read the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society?  I have rarely read anything with such winning characters.  I have read it before and gave the book away, but just borrowed it from the digital library to reread it on my Nook.

It was nice to have an escape, while the government decides what is a proper response to the problems in Syria.  I don't pretend to know and that's enough to say.

Time to get going on the further adventures of throwing junk away.  Happy days are here again.

A Very Good Week

Once in a while, a person has a week of fun that they would like to put in a box and take it out to enjoy again during bleak days.

This was one such week, with Sister Next here to visit and share with us the wonders of her i Pad,  book club met, office lunch mates of old met for their monthly lunch together, and there were hours of yakking, knitting, and quilting with my sisters---and even an evening with The Daughter along for the ride.

In addition to that, the same daughter had her offer on a house accepted; a wonderful house that won't need any refurbishing, has a lovely large back yard, and is close to where she works.  I am so happy for her.

The weather has been rather too hot to suit me, but we are grateful for the air conditioning and the rain is welcome.  It is helping my zucchini grow to epic sizes-----and you know how welcome that is.  Did you ever "phone a friend" and ask them if they'd like a zucchini the size of a canoe?

Have a Happy long weekend!  And a productive school year as well.

A Woman's Prerogative

Yes, yes, I know I told you I wouldn't do this any more.  I was quite convinced it was the thing to do----sure that my life was so boring that I was doing the world at large a big favor by not blogging.  
But yesterday I looked back to see what was happening a year ago, and it was fun to read.  So, selfishly I'm doing this for myself.  Besides, sometimes it's just fun to write.

I have been using most of my creative energy on churning out a succession of baby quilts to send away to worthy causes.  I have lots to send---not all the result of my own industry, but my quilting friends gathered up their flannels and scraps and contributed a great many as well.

So I'll send a box off at the end of the month which will start the September tally for Bundles of Joy group on Ravelry.  The group sets a goal for each month and the 900 plus members knit or sew items that are sent to the OB ward at Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota.  (Nobody ever has to send anything.  We call ourselves a no stress, no guilt group.  However.....it's peer pressure at its finest!)  There's lots of encouragement and affirmation at work here.

Last week Good Guy and Brotherbob spent five days watching live sports in the Quad Cities while I visited an old friend and roommate at her home/cottage at the lake.  We had a nice lazy time of reading, knitting and visiting for a couple of days.  It was so peaceful and pleasant!

She has a wonderful sign on her porch which reads, "If You're Lucky Enough to Live at the Lake, You're Lucky Enough."  So true.

She and her husband retired there, winterizing and enlarging the original cabin, but she closes it up for the winter now and lives in town.  It's too remote for her to stay alone during the snowy months, now that she's alone. Anyway, I was happy to have the time to spend with her.

After a couple days of hot weather, we were overjoyed to have thunderstorms move through and bring us some cooler air.  We are very spoiled here and can hardly imagine what others of you are going through with weeks at a time of 90 and 100+ temperatures!

Be brave, bear up.  Keep the electricity bill paid so you don't expire in the heat!

Riding off Into the Sunset

I'm sure this has been in the process of happening for a while, since I post so seldom.  But I'm signing off for good and probably folding up this tent for good.

There are places with more interaction and I don't have much to share here, so bye for now. Thanks to those of you who check in on me now and then, it's been fun.  But not quite enough to keep at it.

Say it Again so I Can Laugh

Yesterday on Facebook my niece posted a link to aid Outlanders to understand or speak Michiganese.  It was pretty funny-------or mildly amusing------depending upon how you feel about regional accents.

I have lived in a few parts of the country where I couldn't make myself understood, so I know I have an accent.  I can be understood perfectly by native Ontarians, but that's not too helpful in North Carolina.

In the 60's when we lived in Virginia, I nearly had to write down my conversations.  But my accent has mellowed and Virginians have been infiltrated by lots of foreigners who don't speak southern very well.

When in conversation about this I've noticed that nobody thinks THEY have an accent.  It's like the proud mom, viewing the parade, and saying, "They were all out of step but Jim."

Anyway, I'm submitting this link for your entertainment.  Some of it is even true.  We Yoopers do call folks from the Lower Peninsula trolls.

http://melbel.hubpages.com/hub/Michigan-Accent

Gratitude

I know, I know!  This isn't Thanksgiving, it one of those other holiday weekends.

Nevertheless, it has been such a pleasant one, I just have to gather you all around my little campfire of happiness here, and fill you in.

Yesterday we resolved to celebrate Independence Day somehow, so we packed our swimsuits, coolers, folding lawn chairs, knitting, books, etc.  and headed for the lake.

We planned our route for lunch at the Circle in Alpha, Michigan-----and with all that was going on in that tiny town we had a jolly time.  I read this morning that they also had a great firework show in the evening as well.  (We missed that part.)

Then we made a run down the Lake Emily road because I've never been down the whole road before, and then went to Fortune Lake, to Bewabic State Park where there was a crowd (for once) and we had a wonderful afternoon of people watching.  We read and I finished a knitting project before we headed for Dina Mia's for a mushroom, sausage, and onion pizza to cap off our tour.

So now you know how the elderly enjoy the holiday.   We didn't watch the fireworks live.  Instead we listened to them---all over the neighborhood and comforted our critters.  They weren't that upset, actually unless it was specially close or loud, but it wasn't as annoying as other years.  I'm probably deafer than I used to be.

I hope you are enjoying your holiday too.  We are having beautiful weather!  Temperature moderate and just breezy enough for comfort.  I am loving it!