Blog Archives

Today, we spent a few hours kayaking down the lazy White River, which is north of Muskegon. Jeff’s dad dropped us off at the Happy Mohawk Canoe Livery, and met us downstream. In between, we paddled through lush green terrain bounded by old hardwood trees loaded with birds. Freshly fallen trees in the river made for a twisted course. A chocolate lab named Dakota kept us busy at the takeout while we rested.

Afterwards, we enjoyed a dog of another style: chili dogs for lunch at the historic Dogs and Suds drive-up in Whitehall. Some cool rootbeer to wash it all down.

We finished the day with a crackling bonfire at Jeff’s sister and brother-in-law’s house. It took the chill off an unseasonably cool summer night.

Spotted ONE lone firefly!

Yesterday, when the kids arrived for the big July 4th family meal, our pirate theme (including monster cave and coconuts) was replaced by Batman. Dominick and Natalie became Batman and Batgirl, who kept getting trapped in the walls of the Batcave requiring a brave rescue.

Unfortunately, the kids’ image of Batman had been formed earlier in the day by watching the George Clooney Batman and Robin film! So Jeff became Govenor Schwartzeneger’s Mr. Freeze. And I became Alfed…who aparrently was terminally ill in that film?!?

But good food on the grill (mmmm, homemade bbq ribs), family on the deck, and fireworks over Muskegon Lake saved the day. And of course, we got our daily Whippi Dip fix…vanilla softserve with ‘blue goo’ flavor burst today!

This is Winston. At about 2am this morning, he and Charlie decided to wage a battle on and around my bed in the guest room. I suspect that the other two cats–Molly and Sasha–were egging them on from the shadows.

Yeah, they purr, but they are plotting our overthrow!

And we’ll be easy prey too. I was on the phone today with a client, so I was pulled over in a parking lot for about 45min. I watched as a white minivan drove by, opened its driver-side door (while moving), and threw out a McDonald’s bag full of trash! Who does that? What has become of our society?

Maybe the cats ARE the superior species? We are the ones who scoop their poop, after all!!

If yesterday was about imagining I was a pirate, then today was about imagining that I still have the metabolism of a teenager…or even a twentysomething.

Today, after watching the kids sing in church, we did a July 4th weekend tradition here in Muskegon, and visited the annual downtown art festival. The temperatures were perfect to stroll through the park.

At lunch, caught up in the sights and smells of ‘fair food’, I cashed in a few months at the end of my life to try a Deep Fried Twinkie. Who invented this! It is just a twinkie coated in powdered sugar and batter and then deep fried. Oh yeah, it is dusted (again) in sugar and the drizzled with hot fudge. I described the taste as “a doughnut wrapped around a twinkie”.

Tradition #2 was our nightly ritual to Whippi Dip for really yummy soft serve ice cream.

All I know is that if we go back to being pirates tomorrow…I’m going to sink the ship!!

[Oh the photo. Well, I can only post from my Treo, so this is an attempt at some abstract flower art!]

One of the most important lessons I learned from my father was how to be an introvert and still have fun at a party. The trick is to have a job that allows you to weave in and out conversations. Normally, my job is being the photographer. Today, I was the pancake maker…and I had a blast AND talked with every single guest at Matthew’s graduation party.

Jeff and I also got to spend a large chunk of the day with his young nephew Dominick and neice Natalie. Their topic du jour was pirates…with some ocean-going robots somehow thrown in there.

In one corner of the yard, beneath a dwarf pine, we discovered a “moster’s cave” full of pinecones that they declared to be “coconuts”. We must have collected 100 pinecones…to fight the sharks…or was it the robots?

Maybe Disney will buy this plot for Pirates of the Carribbean 3!