I had to head home for some appointments, and perhaps the timing couldn't have been better, given the wildfire smoke at the lake. They even cancelled parts of Gaylord's annual Alpenfest. Not that the smoke was better at home, it was just a better place to be at the time.
Rick and I had a poignant, interesting and fun day recently. We headed to Kalamazoo, Michigan (where he used to live) for the memorial service of a friend of Rick's. As longtime readers of this blog know, Rick is an avid cyclist, with a racing past and a present that includes a passion for lengthy bike hikes. But he considers his greatest life accomplishment as being the "Father of the Kal-Haven Trail," a cycling trail that goes from Kalamazoo to South Haven, Michigan and the first rail trail in the state.
His friend who passed, Mike, was one of his colleagues when working on the trail. As Rick often says, "the trail was built on the shoulders of many" and Mike was one of them.
Let the sun shine! It's been a lovely week here, warmish (not hot, which is perfect) and sunny. It's awfully nice to see the rain take a little break! Rick's flowering bush is out, so I know spring is really here!
By now, the Ditch is more "filled in" but when I took these photos a few days ago, it looked just as I love it -- that symphony of chartreuse and yellow-green, hanging like a soft scrim over branches and bushes.
This beautiful state of affairs only lasts a few days and I was grateful that those days were lovely ones, good for a walk!
In the last post I hopefully pointed to signs of spring -- melted snow, being the biggie. Well, I knew it would be back, and it was. Not a lot, so I'm not really complaining. I've seen what those in the East are going through. At least the sun has been out (sometimes!) so that's a plus. (And let's be honest -- since I started this post, it has pretty much melted again -- at this moment, it is 54, light snow predicted for today! February and March are always so erratic!)
It's been both lovely and challenging, these final days at the lake. And for the most part, it has been simply beautiful.
Our color is very late this year. You see a great tree here, then another there, but no big swaths of color that are typical for this time of year. I'm suspecting it is late and when Rick returns in another week or so to close up, he'll have a much more colorful season. But when you see something lovely, you go for it!
It's been a busy week since I've been home, with doc appointments almost every day. And the rest of the time? Bringing my house up to "code" -- it's amazing how many spiders start webbing when you aren't there for a huge chunk of time! And, a groundhog has dug two holes under the house. Now looking for a compassionate way to get him to leave!
Sigh. We wrapped up art camp last weekend, after 18 days of friendship and creativity. And a good 18 days it was, filled with lots of painting, walks, good summer food and some good nature sightings. And, I might add, some pretty nippy weather. Even Lizzie hunkered down by the heater!
Our weather turned cool (no, cold!) and we found painting on the porch was no longer a possibility -- well, at least till the last day or two. It didn't stop us but it's not nearly so much fun! Here's some of the stuff I did. These are some cards.
Art camp usually brings warm sunny days and it certainly started out that way. Painting on the porch was a joy -- the sounds of the lake punctuating our foray into color, pattern and image.
More than once we've seen Harry North, our resident heron, stalk the beach for his early morning or twilight meals. And, we had another sighting of Eddie the Eagle, perched high in one of our pines.
I'm enjoying my blog break at art camp and am popping in with a bit of a post to update you on things, before I disappear again. And I also have an update on Rick's bike ride. Being north, with very little media/computer involvement has been a very good thing for me. I've missed visiting (though on occasion I've lurked a bit in the morning before we get going!)
In an earlier post I mentioned that one thing Rick really wanted to do while in England was explore a bit more of his family history. That included investigating a family tree pedigree dating his ancestry back to King Edward I of England.
About five or six generations back, a man named Melville M. Bigelow, who is related to Rick on his dad's side, had his pedigree officially validated by the College of Arms in London. The info Rick had also included written-in lists by someone in Rick's family, continuing the line through his grandparents' generation. We had an appointment at the College of Arms to meet with one of their heralds to see what was involved in getting the pedigree updated to include those "written in" generations and those that followed, including Rick's dad, brothers, and their offspring.
I have been pretty distressed about things going on in our country and our world and while I try to steer clear of politics here, I might have a couple of things to say before returning to the London posts again. And, if has been a very rough month health-wise. But there have been some good things, too. Like our recent Cork Poppers gathering, which I wrote about HERE.
I returned from art camp, excited to see Rick and hear how is bike hike went. (It was good!) Finally we would be able to celebrate his belated birthday! (Thanks to those who wished me one -- it's actually in mid-August but Kate and I celebrated early!)
When I first started writing this -- which was mid-November, right before we visited the kids -- it was a glorious November day, one of several. The temperature hit 65, and maybe even topped it. The sun was out and there was no real wind! It couldn't have been a better (or more unusual) day for the season. When you have a day like that, you grab it. We know what is around the corner. Today there is snow -- and so cold!
There's something about fall that calls for a road trip. And even though it wasn't what I call "full fall" (in fact, it had only just begun), our road trip to Toledo was still filled with loads of fun and yes, a little bit of color!
About a week ago, I dropped off Rick and his bike about an hour or so past home to give him a head start on his ride last week. It was a great day -- a perfect day for pedaling!
I misjudged timing a bit. I forgot that I don't just let him out of the car and off he goes! He has to get the bike out of the trunk and put the pieces back together...
Then attach his paniers (saddlebags) to the back...
Rick celebrated another circle (or cycle!) around the sun this past week. I'm a firm believer in celebrating birthdays -- sometimes it takes a lot to make it through a year and that life should be celebrated!
It has been a week of off and on bits. Last week Rick was away, cycling to Bloomington, Indiana, to watch the Little 500 cycling race. If you have seen the film "Breaking Away," then you know what this is!
He was supposed to cycle the whole way, camping for part of it. But snow and temps in the 30s caused a change in plans, so rather than leaving on a Sunday, I drove him to the Ohio border a couple of days later.
At an earlier Cork Poppers group, one of our members asked Rick if he'd provide a little concert on his classical guitar sometime. So, when he decided to host a pared down version of our group music was on the menu too! (Four of our members were away for the season; two were unable to come -- one of those being the guy who had suggested the music!)
Rick had said "bring finger food and a wine that goes with an Argentinian tango or Italian sonata." We were off and running! (He did say, "Tomatoes should be sliced and on the platter, not whole and ready to be thrown." Protecting the musicians and their instruments is always a good thing!)
When we last left our family and friends, Rick had set off from friends Anne and Clayton's home to attend a memorial for a cycling mentor. He would ride the fifty or so miles and after the event, return to their home for another overnight and then take off on a bike hike. I, on the other hand, would skip the memorial, enjoy time with our hosts and then head home to enjoy two days of just-me time before the next round of activity.
Oh, the things we think we are going to do.
