The wedding plans crystalized as the slow lake melt continued. A perfect new venue for the reception was revealed to my daughter and her fiancé. They locked it in, chose the cake, menu, and completed engagement photos. All while spending time with us visiting the lake. The wedding itself will be on the beach below, sugar…
March 31st: I was fooled (Flunk Day)
May 18th last year I commented on the Flunk Day tradition at my undergrad school (Coe College). I linked a video of nothing but squeaky clean fun. It was a surprising transformation from the wild Flunk Day celebrations of my four years at Coe. Now today, I was watching a few YouTube videos and up…
March 28th: Engagement photos weekend
Springtime in Michigan commences with my daughter and soon to be son-in-law coming for engagement photos, cake sampling, venue confirmation, etc. Warm weather and blue skies would be fantastic. Instead, we are due for rain, wind, cold… and a little snow. Today we saw the winter recede further. The nasty looking sand covered ice hills…
March 25th: White River Lighthouse
It was a beautiful day, the sun beat down I had the radio on, I was drivin’ The trees went by, me and Del were singin’ Little runaway, I was flyin’ Yes, another Tom Petty cruising day. We took a short trip just north to the White River Light Station. We heard good things about…
March 24th: You’re the best, Sammi
“You’re the best, Sammi.” Every day, multiple times, my wife would tell this to our dog. And she was right. The best dog we have ever owned. A gentle, kind, loving member of the family for the last 12 years. And now she is gone. We had a veterinarian come to our home yesterday and…
March 22nd: “Seattle is dying”
I loved living in the Pacific Northwest. Beauty on display everywhere. The mountains, the ocean, waterfalls, lakes. The trees. The smell of pine and flowers in the air. And the cities with so many fantastic things to enjoy. Portland was at our doorstep. Seattle to the north. San Francisco far to the south. But that…
March 21st: Looks are deceiving
Sure looks like sand dunes, but actually ice imbedded with sand. We still see a few people venturing out on them, but fortunately no one has been killed. At the beach just north we have witnessed large “sand hills” fracturing and breaking off. We really thought this would all be gone by now. Spring please!…
March 17th: Tatooine or Risa?
Who knows Tatooine? Who knows Risa? Who knows both? If you know both, you are most probably a serious science fiction fan. They are planets from Star Wars and Star Trek fame. Both happen to exist in binary star systems. Yes, binary star systems actually do exist. So which planet is this? Tatooine is a…
March 12th: A night of beef, turkey, venison, duck
Last night was meaty on the shores of Lake Michigan. First stop was for the beef… a beautiful, juicy, inch thick medium rare burger at our favorite brewhouse. Expert tip for those accustomed to fast food burgers. Flip your upscale burger upside down immediately after delivery to your table. Otherwise the poor bottom bun risks…
March 11th: Ice in, ice out
March 15th, 2018, when we visited Grand Haven, the beach was clear of ice and snow. This year the blue water comes tantalizingly close to shore, then the wind changes and it ice as far as you can see. An east wind pushes the ice out into the lake. The west wind packs it back…