Hello Allie

Allie says hello to her aunt and uncles who could not come to Labor Day on Little Blue Creek.


Allie enjoyed the weekend.


She got passed around to all her relatives,





took a nap outdoors while momma played with Ethan,





















and slept like a princess.

Labor Day Antics

We can always count on Katie (and Luke) for games.




They kept us entertained this weekend; not just adults either.







Even Ethan got a chance to chase Katie on his quad.

Ethan is thrilled to have aunts and uncles, and wants them all to come visit.

Lock me up

My mother told me that the locks would be boring. I am glad I didn't listen to her.

Nothing new there.

Visiting the locks was incredible. Sault Ste Marie is so interesting. Established in 1688 , it is the 3rd oldest continuous settlement in the US (I don't remember learning that in Michigan history).

Technology has been a part of life in this area since 1797, when the first lock (Canadian) was established. The first American lock was built in 1855. Today there are four locks in use. They allow ships to pass from the Atlantic Ocean, past St. Mary's rapids and into Lake Superior.
We went through 2 locks. The first (pictured above) shows the gate from inside the US lock, and the passage way toward Canada (see the bridge in the background?).

To get our boat raised up high enough to enter Lake Superior, we entered the lock at about 12 (or maybe 14 feet) depth. Then the gates closed and water was added, raising our level. We ended up at about 48 feet. Then the gate opened.

We traveled past the steel production plant, under the International bridge, then around and back through the Canadian lock (now only used for pleasure craft - no shipping boats).

Entering the Canadian lock you can see we are at Lake Superior level.


After the gates close, water empties out - over a million gallons - and lowers us to Lake Huron. Notice the water level from the discolored sides of the interior walls.


There is a nice little animation on the USACE website, that shows how the locks operate, if you are interested.

The peaceful north

Mackinaw Island in the UP is a gem. While it is a tourist attraction, regular people also live here. There are no motorized vehicles - no quads or motorbikes, and residents move things on these carts.

This is a residential area outside the city. This boy and dad are heading home after moving crates in town.

O - Caa-naaa-duh

The International Highway bridge in Sault (Soo) Ste Marie connects the US to Canada and is 3 miles long.

I skipped the drive over and took a boat. More interesting and no passport required.

What's wrong with this picture?

Sault Ste Marie Michigan is lovely. Along the water's edge is a park where you can watch the ships and peer out at Canada across rhe narrow channel.

But this fountain seemed a little odd. I thought combining water and electrify was a health hazard.

Notice the sign. Can you read it?

It sits in the middle of the water, which is surrounded by an iron fence. The sign reads "DANGER! HIGH VOLTAGE - KEEP OUT"

Irishness

I love Katie & Luke's neighborhood. Their house is on Gullway Bay Drive. The next street is Guinness Ct. Then there is Donnegal, Shannon and Tralee, all towns in Ireland, and street names in Dublin, Ohio.
Living in Dublin, they, of course, have a big Irish festival each year. I like it here.

Queen Lucy

As soon as everyone leaves the house, Lucy - Luke & Katie's cat - takes her place as queen. I forgot something after leaving so went back and found Lucy lounging in style.

I don't think she is supposed to be on Katie's new dinning room table. And, she knows it.

House on Gullway Bay

On a whim I decided to drive down (from Michigan) and see Luke and Katie in their new house. Pretty awesome; even has a finished basement for Katie's home office.

Germanese

Welcome to Frankenmuth, Michigan. I must remind myself I am here on business.

The Germans really know how to put things into words. Take this sign, for instance. You get a pretty good idea that this town does not tolerate spoiled children...either that or their idea of taking care of them is part of their daily entertainment.

Christmas is a whole 'nother issue. Here it lasts for 12 months (including carols and lights) and they don't leave anything out of possible venues of celebration. Every single nursery rhyme, fable and Bible story about the holiday are displayed someplace on the premises.


There are acres and acres of this stuff, both indoors and out, even a snowman and several steep, man-made hills for sledding.

Totally touristy, but a nice way to kill (or grill) and afternoon.

Not so out there

Nebraska is a nice surprise. Yes...it IS in the middle of nowhere, but some how it is a lovely place.

I thought it would look something like Iowa or even South Dakota - sort of bare and endless. But 80 miles west of Omaha, it is slightly hilly with surprising amounts of trees! something you don't see a lot of in the aforementioned places.

The Platte River Valley is especially beautiful. Sunrise this morning was awesome, and sunset even more incredible. Right now, pretty noisy thunderstorms, another favorite.

Who would have thought nowhere could be so lovely?

On the road again...

On the road again
Goin' places that I've never been
Seein' things that I may never see again,
And I can't wait to get on the road again.

Sick person that I am, this is SO true. On my way to another new place....someplace in the middle of nowhere.

That's where Nebraska is, right?

The Obvious Eluded

Who ever heard of a Sports Bar that didn't serve mixed drinks.....
OR
What about a Mexican Restaraunt that doesn't have Margaritas?

Welcome to the Bible Belt.
I had my mind set on certain things, and neither of the above options provided them. I promptly left two establishments after asking about their prohibition menu.

Not in so many words, of course.

I did manage to find a nice steakhouse yesterday that had a local red wine (very nice). I decided to go there again.
They only had one vegetable choice on the menu tonight, instead of the two they had last night (either green beans or corn on the cob) but, Hey, they did serve a nice Angus steak.

Can't have everything, I guess.

OOOOk-lahoma

Ooook-lahoma, where the wind comes sweepin' down the plain
And the wavin' wheat can sure smell sweet
When the wind comes right behind the rain.

OOokkk-lahoma, where the fields are golden with their grain
And the soaring heat makes hell feel sweet
While sweat pours freely just like rain....

------
I took this photo in my car today while driving.
Notice the outside temperature. Yes, it really says 106.

the complete original lyrics and tune

Date Night

Ethan and I spent an evening in the park. Nothing like a nice ice cream cone, then playing on the toys. Night time at the park is great because no one else is there, and Nana can play on the toys too.

They have COOL slides.

Ice cream makes you feel better

"She HAS to wear her Ice Cream suit." That is what Ethan said when Amanda was dressing them to go to the doctor.
He insisted she wear it. He said it would make her feel better.

I wonder where he got that idea. :-p

Poetic Justice...

I slammed the door. Hard.
It would have been nice had I removed my fingers before walking away.

I thought they were broken. My fingers, that is, not the cabinet door.

It turned out that they were only strained, or jammed, or whatever the official term is for screwing up your fingers; bending them backward while in continual motion.

They have turned black and blue. I can't feel them at all. Except when I try to move them.

The middle finger survived, completely in tact, unbruised...that must be poetic justice...somehow. What comes around, goes around, so they say.

I seem to go around once too often, and leave body parts in places they don't belong.

So, the question is, who was I really out to get?

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