When I came back from the lake earlier this month, it was to head to some appointments and enjoy some time at home (if you call looking at the house that needs to be downsized and putting away much of a summer's worth of stuff enjoying!)
But it was also a treat to spend some time with far-away friends. Rick (below) and Zara live in California, but have family roots and friends in town. Fortunately, we were able to connect for a lovely lunch.
We're wrapping up peak season at the cottage. Yes, there will be more visits, but they will be shorter and the weather will be colder. Soon it will be time to close up. I always dread that. Yet, these later days have their charms. There have been evenings when we could eat dinner on the porch -- or enjoy some snacks as we watch a sunny day turn into twilight.
There's something about the light at this time of day. It's perfect.
Some things just make me happy. For example, when I'm riding up north and straight ahead I start to see this sight!
I mentioned the sunflowers growing in the median of the highway going north before. I forget about them until late August when all of a sudden they burst into bloom.
I promise the next post will be about art camp (unless it's a book wrap up!) But I thought I'd wrap up earlier events first. You may remember that my friend Suzanne came to the cottage for a visit in late July. Most of the time we hung around home, talking, puzzling, farm marketing.
But on one beautiful day we opted for a road trip to Castle Farms in Charlevoix, Michigan. It was a castle, yes, but a relatively modern one. Architecture, garden design, collections -- the place was art in itself.
Rick and I headed home early last week so I could get to a doc appointment. The day after that I turned around and came up for Art Camp, my annual time with friend Kate where we focus on art for two weeks. I'll have posts on that soon! Meanwhile, there have been nature sightings and good times at the lake with Rick. Cooking, friends, Lizzie, and yes, birds!
I finally had a better sighting of Harry North. These pix were taken with the Zoom, as he is pretty antsy and the second the porch door opens, even quietly, he takes off.
It started out down the road when my cousin David welcomed a group of his friends dating back to high school for their annual Otsego Lake summer reunion. I've met all these guys over the years and while I'm not part of the "gang," I delight in their company.
This time, that included a pontoon boat ride around the lake. I hadn't done this for a long while and it was fun to see what had popped up over time, and be reminded of places I'd forgotten, like the old Arbutus Beach hotel that is now a private residence. We also said farewell to their friend, Bill, who recently passed away.
Sometimes (not often), we get dressed up! And most of the time when we do, it's for something fun. But this time, it was beyond fun -- it was for a spectacular evening. (Followed the next day by fun with our grands!)
The occasion was the Michigan Emmy Awards, held Detroit. (For those not familiar with this award, the Emmy is presented for excellence in television production. Awards are first presented regionally and may include everything from video promotion to local news and weather. You might be more familiar with the national Emmy Awards, in which programs you are more likely to see in any market in the country, or even internationally, are honored.
I've shared a lot of nature in recent posts, but those visits (and life in general) have included some delightful "close encounters" with some lovely people, a road trip, dining out, and even a critter or two! So, a look at life in general!
Life in general includes blog friends and one real treat for this month of May was a meet-up with blogger Anno, who came to Lansing for lunch. (Do check out her "Artifacts and Annotations" HERE.) We had such a good long talk at lunch and on our walk to the ditch -- and yet, we both realized there was so much we didn't even get to during that time. Another meet-up is definitely in the offing.
My pal Barb had a birthday this week, so friend Kate and I decided to throw her a birthday lunch! After all, we need a good reason to celebrate something and what could be better that honoring the day that a special friend was born?
I got the table set the night before, using a vintage tablecloth as a base and a smaller cloth over that as a topper. (Rita -- do you recognize the smaller cloth topper? You should!) As the salad was the main course, we dispensed with salad plates or bowls. Mom's silver came out, along with the some Depression glass tumblers. My Mikasa "Just Flowers" pattern seemed to be the right one for spring.
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!
Our schizophrenic weather brought to mind a character from an old children's television show I watched as a child, "The Howdy Doody Show." Princess Summerfall Winterspring was first played by actress Judy Tyler, then after her early death, by a marionette. The character was one of Howdy's dear friends.
Summerfall Winterspring. That's what March is like in Michigan. When the temperature hits 60, drive by any fraternity house near the campus that has a sun roof and you'll see loads of young men in shorts. As for the women, on their way to the bar on a Friday night, tube tops and short skirts are in vogue -- often with no coat or a skimpy jacket. It is summer to them.
The calendar has turned over and I'm doing my best to turn over with it! Some recent doc appointments have brought about some medication changes and I'm feeling much improved! What a relief! And nothing like a pretty fruit arrangement to really make your day!
I've been spending a lot of time at the computer lately, looking at old photos. No, not for blogging. Not even to delete the bad ones (of which there are plenty.) It is to add my own photos to the Aura photo frame that Kevin and Molly gave me for Christmas which is high on my "best gift ever" list. (Left: Covid days/egg hunt; Right: Good times in England)
The kids have moved on to their next Christmas after a good (and exhausting!) celebration. The tree is up and will be for a bit. I need the light and to be honest, have barely had time to sit with it and fully enjoy. I've had rough holidays before. This one has been overwhelming. But, as someone once said to me when I was doing theatre and we were all tired, not always sure of the steps, "Smile, and keep on tapping!"
We're closing in on Christmas and perhaps the best part is spending time with friends and doing some fun things, a bit out of the box. As I mentioned in the last post, my friend Suzanne came for a short visit and we did some Christmas shopping. The stores are looking good!
One spot we like offered snacks (they sell sauces and rubs and such, so it was good marketing!). It made for a nice treat on an impossibly frigid, windy day. They also had a couple of singers with an accordion come in and sing holiday songs. They were rather off key at times (but then, who isn't?) but very holly jolly and it was a nice touch.
Every day in summer is a gift -- at least, it is for me. It's my favorite season -- or rather, it is when I'm at the lake. Apart from a couple of rainy days, the weather has been lovely. Warm, but for the most part, not too hot. Sunny, but even the cloudy days are comfortable.
We've had a couple of major temperature drops, which was actually refreshing. And it gave us the opportunity to have a fire in the fireplace. First of the season.
Those last days before heading north for the summer are always busy ones. This year, they were also the hottest days of the year and it sure wasn't fun doing much but reading and essentials! My life included doc appointments, lots of reading, catching up on blogs, seeing a friend's play, popping corks with Cork Poppers and time with other friends, too. In the morning I would water plants and pull some weeds, bemoaning my strawberry crop.
That was it. (Well, there were about four more that birds and a squirrel got to -- I saw him, sitting out there, a little red berry in his paws and munching away as happily as could be!
I'm having a hard time getting my brain around the season. It's almost June and summer will be here before we know it and yet spring seems oddly erratic -- cold or rainy one day (or two or three), then a short burst of warm, and back to cold. Stormier than usual. The sun was out today and we tried to plant flowers at the cemetery but so many trees were down, we couldn't get to the grave. That's a story for another day. On a cheerier note, things have greened-up a lot! I'm sure you all delight when you have the chance after winter to see what is my favorite color combo come to life -- chartreuse against a blue sky! And now, there is more green!
Sharing with: Share Your Style
Still catching up on pre-storm activities and there were some good times. One such day was celebrating friend Kate's birthday with a road trip to IKEA and a stop at my favorite Italian grocery in Livonia/Northville for lunch.
The time leading up to our departure has been hectic. Loads of doc appointments, trips to the lake, time with family and friends. Here's a brief update.
Labor Day -- our last full day up north before we returned home for a bit. We started the day with a walk down to the public beach.
On the way back, Rick joined up with the fellows who own Bennethum's, the restaurant where we had enjoyed our birthday happy hour the night before. Of course, they talked wine!
Summer may not officially end until mid-September but for me, Labor Day has always felt like the end of the season. Like so many, I used to judge time on when school started or classes began at the university, along with the cooler nights and shorter days. Those school days are long past -- the cooler nights and shorter days are still here (and getting cooler and shorter!) You can tell when out walking too -- the goldenrod is now out in glorious abundance!
