I Fixed It!

Have a peaceful evening!

Peace!

Offspring #2 came over because we are planning a back pack camping adventure. We needed to get our back packs in order. I asked whether a certain sculpture in the driveway was noticed. It was not noticed.  Later when pointed out, it was noticed.  "What is it?" asked Offspring #2.  I thought it was obviously a peace symbol. "There is supposed to be a line down the middle," says Offspring #2. I point out there is a line down the middle.  I spent a full hour with a hammer and a chisel gouging that line down the middle. Actually all that hammering felt good because I was am still angry about the tree cowboy who butchered this black walnut tree. Offspring #2 informs me that line down the middle is supposed to go all the way through the circle.  Jiminy Cricket! I was trying to artistically display a symbol of peace and instead I am advertising for Mercedes Benz.

Here Comes The Rain Again!

I rode my bike on Thursday and got caught in multiple rain showers on the way home.  I made it home fine but I was so upset about it I took my car on Friday. One Friday it didn't rain one bit all day.  On Saturday I took my bike out for a ride.  The sky was blue with fluffy white clouds that looked like cotton balls. I come out of the gym and see rain clouds! Did I get caught in the rain?  Yes, I did. I was soaked.  Today I go out again.  The sky is blue with puffy white clouds.  And guess what?  I come out of the gym and there are rain clouds again! I would have made it home dry if only the traffic at the fairgrounds wasn't so bad.  I got a cramp in my left hand from holding the clutch so much.  Pedestrians made it through there quicker than I did.  I took shelter at a gas station. Also, I had to buy gas. Four other bikes pull in and we complain together.  We buy gas and wipe off our bikes.  My bike is the smallest. Two Harley Davidson's and one Indian bike made mine look tiny.  Later a Kawasaki pulled up. We all nod and commiserate as we wait out the rain.  Eventually the rain gets lighter.  I take back roads home through neighborhoods at 30 miles per hour.  I don't like driving in the rain. I worry about the oil on the road making it slippery.  I try not to drive where I think the oil falls. I try to stick to where the car wheels go. I am almost home when the rain stops. So what do I do?  I decide to go around another block in my neighborhood just because I can.  As soon as I pass my block the rain begins again. Yep, here come the rain again.

Laundry Day!

The Music Shop

You are in for a treat if you decide to read this book by Rachel Joyce.  She also wrote The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Frye and The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessey. I enjoy her writing. But the ending!  Oh the ending of this book is especially splendiferous. I could just picture myself at the scene in the shopping mall. I could imagine the food court and the escalators and the mall security guards. I could almost smell the burgers and fries.  I could definitely hear the sounds of the mall.  I could picture the looks on people's faces as the scene changed from a normal Saturday to a special Saturday. I should not say too much more or I will give it away.  Better you get a copy of the book and read it for yourself.

Fair Time!

This time of year makes for a fun commute.  One of my most traveled routes takes me past the fair grounds in Anoka. The fair makes the traffic go slower because of all the pedestrians crossing the highway but that is okay with me.  I enjoy watching the whole process. Activity in the area gradually mounts. First come the porta potties and the trash cans. The kiddie rides arrived last weekend and were parked. The stall doors are opened and bales of hay arrive and are stacked up. All the 4H equipment is delivered.  On Sunday evening the other rides came and the carnival workers parked their recreational vehicles along the fence.  Those people sure live in close quarters. Now that the fair is open I can hear the sounds, smell the smells, and see some of the sights as I drive by.  I see the Lions Club members working in the beer garden.  I see the lemonade stand, the donut stand, and the corn on the cob stand.  The ferris wheel is turning.  Music is being played on stage.  Horses are awake and looking around at 6:30 this morning even though I didn't see many people about yet. I know a woman who camps there with her daughters and horses every year. The fair is part of their family tradition.  Another tradition for some families who live near the fair is to sell a parking spot on their lawn for $3 or $5.  Their front lawns are full of cars. Perhaps these people don't know they can park for free just a little further. I have memories of my own trips to the fair.  I have enjoyed tractor pulls, demo derbies, putting my offspring on the ponies who walk around in a circle.  One year I was on the Ferris wheel with  my niece.  As the Ferris wheel went high she got scared. She told me she was scared. The problem was I was scared too.  Way up here I could see very far and this ride didn't seem very sturdy. I would have preferred to have my feet on the earth.  This was one of those occasions where I faked bravery.  I told her there was nothing to worry about and proceeded to babble on quickly to keep her from saying anything until the dang ride was over. That was my last ride of a Ferris wheel. I had some good times there at the Anoka County Fair.  Even if I don't go in I enjoy driving past it.  Except I didn't really enjoy driving past the fair tonight. I did not think it was going to rain today.  If I thought it would rain on me four times on the way home I definitely would have taken my car to work instead of the motorcycle. 

Don't Worry. He Won't Get Far on Foot.

Some friends and I met up at the Lagoon Theater to see this movie about the famous cartoonist John Callahan.  Twenty years ago a friend gave me one of his cartoon books.  I enjoyed it very much although I can see his humor is not for everyone. For example, he draws a picture of a man in a wheelchair. The wheelchair has tipped over and he is lying in the street. Two police officers stand near him and one of them says, "Don't worry.  He won't get far on foot."  Black humor can be funny sometimes.  My favorite cartoon by John Callahan was a person at an amputee support group. This person is surrounded by people without arms and he says, "I need a hug."  Again, that kind of humor is very bleak.  The movie is not only about a guy in a wheelchair but also his journey through the 12 steps toward sobriety. I really enjoyed it.

Rum Diary

I decided to read The Rum Diary because my nephew went to Puerto Rico and I thought it would be good to read a book set in that island.  After reading this book by Hunter S. Thompson I am tempted to brush my teeth, take a hot shower, drink only cold water, refuse anything to eat and perhaps join a convent. There is so much sinful indulging in this story that I felt guilty reading it in the lunchroom at work. This novel is loaded with unhealthy people making huge mistakes over and over and over again. The sad thing is they're not having any fun while they make their mistakes even though they are living in a tropical paradise.

Ham Lake

Today was a beautiful summer day and I took full advantage of it by using both my motorcycle and my kayak.  This time I kayaked Ham Lake.  I would like to do a river but the rivers are running high around here and lakes seems to be a safer option. I have been on Ham Lake before. When Offspring #1 was in Cub Scouts I took the kids to an ice fishing contest on Ham Lake sponsored by the Scouts. My memory of that day has faded. I think we failed to win the contest.  I don't think we caught any fish at all.  People were catching fish today on Ham Lake. As I prepared to launch my kayak a county employee approached me for an invasive species inspection. She asked me to remove a blade of grass from inside by craft. She looked inside my storage compartment where I keep my rope, my bungee cord, and a pair of paddling gloves.  She said this lake had three invasive species. I asked which ones. She said Ham Lake had milfoil, curly leaf pond weed, and Chinese mystery snails. As I put in I could see Temptation Island in front of me. The lake was busy with pontoons and jet ski's so I went counter clockwise around Temptation Island. The watery path in this direction was thick with bullrushes and lily pads.  I asked a couple who were sitting in the sun fishing from their kayaks if I could get through this way.  They told me I could but they warned me the weeds are thick.  I went under the wooden bridge leading to the island.  I struggled to paddle through a choking display of lily pads. When I finally made it to open water I stayed there and followed the coast so I could spy on the people who own homes on this lake.  A loon called as I made my way around the lake. I saw many floating snail shells. These shells were pretty large; about the size of a quail egg.  All of them were floating pointy side up.  I wondered if these were the Chinese mystery snails but I later found out that they were a native snail. This lake is known to have a lot of native snails. After a little more than an hour I made it back to the public landing.  A man was fishing with three kids on the dock and they were catching tiny silver crappies and having a good time.  My boat was inspected again.  I was asked questions such as what lake did I kayak last time, what lake will I kayak next time, and how long has my boat been out of the water. She put all this information into her iPad.  I thought about how much I like my job but today, at this spot, her job seemed better than mine.  I asked her about suggestions on where to kayak next. She suggested Martin, Linwood, and Coon Lakes.  I might take her up on that!

Sweaty Eddy

Last night Offspring #2 and I went to see a performance of Sister Act at the Fridley Community Theater.  My nephew played a police officer named Eddy.  He was great.  He can sing.  He can dance.  He can sing and he can dance at the same time.  I have seen him perform before and I have never been disappointed.  As we all stood and clapped at the end of the show I had the thought, as usual, "I should get into community theater myself!"  I always think that because it looks like so much fun during the applause part.  I am sure for every hour of applause there were 100 hours of no applause and hard work.  Oh, well.  Maybe, someday, I will get into community theater.

House Wrens

Right now my chicken coop and run is situated right next to a blue bird house. A nest of blue birds did fledge and then the house wren moved in.  The house wren is a very noisy bird first thing in the morning and I am considering moving that house farther away from my bedroom window before next spring.  Now, when I turn the corner of the house to bring water to the chickens, the house wrens fly up. They like to sit on the east side of the house in the bare sand and soak up the sun. I often see them perched on top of the chicken coop and the chicken run.  Yesterday I saw one eating chicken feed that was spilled on the ground. I guess the chickens and the house wren get along just fine. The house wren has a habit of filling every bird house with two inch twigs. The birds fill the houses to the top with twigs and they are wedged in there tightly.  When I take a nest out of a bird house it expands in my hand and I can't fit it back in again.  I had to do that once when I saw the nest had baby house wrens in it.  I am glad the house wren doesn't fill in the chicken coop with two inch twigs!

Determined!

This black walnut tree is still trying to grow. It has sprouted a new branch even though it was cut and fell to the earth on Feb. 14, 2018 which was five months plus one week ago. I just have to admire that level of determination.  I don't admire the tree but I admire the determination. 

Dumb on Purpose

Every once in a while don't you want to do something, um, shall we say, ill-advised?  A little stupid? Somewhat dangerous but in a controlled sort of way? That is how I felt Tuesday morning so I texted a sibling and she agreed to help me.  I drove my bike  to Roseville after work where I donned an inflatable T-Rex dinosaur costume and rode my motorcycle up the street. That was a ton of fun!  I have a burn mark on my right ankle but still, it was a ton of fun.  I put on the costume and I could hardly make it out the front door. That T-Rex head is much higher than my head. I walked like a dinosaur down the 3 steps and down the sidewalk. I could hardly see to get the key in the ignition. I put the key in with my short little T-Rex arms. I didn't have shoes or boots on.  I wished I wore black socks instead of white socks. Once I got my T-Rex leg over the saddle I quickly moved my leg off the muffler. Ouch, man.  I got the bike started but I could not look down to see if I was in neutral or not. Let me tell you it is not easy to change gears on a bike without shoes on. My toes are not made to move metal like that.  I got the bike into first gear and took off. As soon as I got a little speed going the wind made the T-Rex head lift into the air and I could not see a gosh darn thing. Jiminy Crickit!  I was blind.  So I stopped the bike. The head drifted down and I could see again. I started again and the same thing happened. I stopped again.  The third time I mastered the art of balancing just slow enough so the dinosaur head did not lift so high and I could see. Driving a motorcycle while blind is no fun at all. I went up past my aunt's house to my Dad's house.  I prayed they weren't looking out the window.  I stopped the bike. My sibling helped me get my head out of the costume and I turned around and drove back to her house where I got off the bike quick as a fox and went into her house so no one could see me. Aw, geez, that was a fun experience. She filmed the entire escapade and added music from the Benny Hill show. I could add it to the list of dumb things I have done but this one goes into the "on purpose" category.

Lost City Of The Monkey God

Someone in my book club suggested this book but the group never voted to read it. I decided to read Lost City of the Monkey God by Douglas Preston on my own. Douglas is a journalist for National Geographic. He went on an adventure in Honduras to find some ancient artifacts. He writes about the dangerous jungle with venomous snakes and pesky flies in great detail. They had a difficult trip. I guess photographers and journalists are accustomed to dangerous situations.  Sometimes I got the feeling he was bragging about how the dangers but I don't know for sure.  Turns out he did suffer medically from this excursion.  Disease may have been the reason this lost city abruptly ended. We don't know for sure. I liked his descriptions of the howler monkeys, the jaguars and the snakes. I could really get a sense of how thick the jungle is when the poor guy got lost finding his tent which was only ten feet from the fire.  From reading this book I learned about archaeology and politics and disease but not a whole lot about the country of Honduras.

Found a Woodchuck Den!

The last time I used Offspring #1's canoe was on 2011. It has been lying in the yard for the past seven years not getting much use, or so I thought.  As it turns out it has been getting used regularly by woody woodchuck and family as a den. I tried to move it last weekend and it would not budge. I had to dig the two ends of the canoe out of soil because it has submerge five inches into the black soil.  It still would not budge. I lifted each end and placed a brick under the metal and then tried to turn it over.  Finally it did budge but gallons of soil came over with it. The woodchucks had been kicking up soil under there filling the sides. Vines had grown under the canoe and through the seats.  Many long legged spiders made their home under the canoe. One adaptable boxelder tree was rooted right in the center of the canoe so it grew sideways and them up.  Now it has a very strange curve in the trunk right next to the ground. Lord knows what might have happened if I never moved that canoe. Maybe it would have submerged into the soil or maybe the trees would have carried it aloft and it would hang in the sky. Those Alumacrafts are made of sturdy material! Now the canoe is sitting upright.  I am not sure where I want to put it. I have a suspicion the woodchuck is keeping an eye on me and might move along with it.

Luau

Last night I went to a luau sponsored by my Minnesota master naturalist group. I wore a flowered shirt and shorts covered by a grass skirt I got from the dollar store. I brought fried rice and we all shared delicious food including chicken wings, sweet and sour sauce, rice, pineapple, coconut cookies, s'more pie, vegies, fruits, Hawaiian bread, mango pie, heavenly hash and drinks with tiny umbrellas in them.  The evening was warm and still.  In this tropical climate we had many good stories to tell. One friend told me about a recent trip to Necedah National Wildlife Refuge. She showed me a picture on her husband's phone of a whooping crane that was standing right next to the road on which they were driving. So now I want to go there!

Drive Down a Country Road

This lovely road is inside Lake Maria State Park coming from Lake Mary to the exit of the park.  My camera  is sitting on my rear view mirror. Watch for the butterfly fly in front of me about one minute and 25 seconds into the six minute film.  When I watch it I am impressed by the beauty of this basswood forest and the rolling hills.  I can almost smell the dust in my nose.

Songs of Willow Frost

Jamie Ford is the author of this book and also On The Corner of Bitter and Sweet. Both of his books are very emotional and both set in Seattle and both about immigrants from China.  Since the people in my book club were discussing immigrants we naturally strayed in and out of current politics.  We had a lively discussion that ended with suggestion that we all advise the young adults in our lives to engage in their civic duty to our nation and go to the polls to vote every chance we can. So let me take this opportunity to advise all my readers to vote. Please, vote. I would also advise you to read this book about Willow Frost.  Willow was a maverick. She was a good mother and a survivor. I think you will enjoy Jaime Ford's writing.

Chickenson Caruso Lays An Egg

Call it a banner day!  Chickenson laid her first egg of 2018. For a chicken who is six years old, she looks pretty good and she is still laying eggs.  Last year she laid 3 eggs.  She is a good mother hen.  With her feathery thighs and tawny feathers she makes a very good looking chicken! She has become a natural born leader.  She is always the first one out of the coop.  If it is time to go back into the coop, if I can get her to go in the others will follow.  If I put a treat out like a piece of cucumber or a strawberry, she is the first to taste it. Once she does taste it the other chickens will shove her aside to get at it. One of my neighbors always mentions that her mother's favorite breed of chicken was the Buff Orpington. I can see how she came to that opinion.

Little Mary & Sunfish

This weekend I kayaked on two lakes.  I traveled to Lake Maria state park. I thought the name of the lake was Maria but it turns out to be Little Mary lake. I put in and, as always, the first question is clockwise or counter clockwise?  I like to kayak close to the shore to looks for birds and turtles. I put in at the dock and to my right I saw two heads in the water. Two women were swimming and talking so counter clockwise it was!  I saw a little island out there and thought I would come around the other side on my way back. While propelling my little green boat through the lily pads I saw green herons, two kingfishers, great blue herons, pelicans, red winged blackbirds, an eagle and some turkey vultures.  I went quite a way before I saw a house so the lake must not be entirely enclosed by the state park.  I got to the far end of the lake where a man stood on a dock with a girl. They were looking at minnows. I asked if  it would be possible to kayak through the culvert right there under the road.  He said it was possible and that would take me into Silver Lake.  So I went under the road and into Silver Lake.  Silver Lake was much busier.  Silver Lake had pontoons, speed boats and jet skis while Little Mary Lake had 4 kayaks, one canoe, and one inflatable paddle board.  I didn't stay long on Silver Lake.  On my way back I could not see where I entered the lake. I kept to the shore line so I knew eventually I would come back to the beginning but it is a little disconcerting not to know where you started; much like leaving work at the end of the day to see your car is not in your parking spot.  I looked for ten minutes before I spotted that island I saw on my way in. I would definitely kayak Little Mary lake again. I thought it would be very beautiful in the fall when the leaves turn color.  On Sunday I wanted to do a short kayak trip.  I had worked hard all day and it was getting late.  There is a lake near me called Sunfish Lake where the city allows the residents to rent canoes at no charge. I brought kayak there. Some young men were hanging out at the picnic shelter. When they saw me dragging my boat they offered to help but I declined with a cheerful thanks. I asked about leeches.  One boy said he didn't think there were any leeches but there were snapping turtles. He said he has swum in that lake.  For some unknown reason I was wearing a summer dress so I tried to get into the kayak like a lady and without getting my dress wet.  Here I have four teenage boys watching me. No pressure or anything.  I do get in the kayak but I should have gone a little further out before sitting down because now I am stuck.  I paddle backward and jerk my body to get moving. I make slow progress. One of the boys comes to help me out.  He wasn't a knight in shining armor but he had cargo shorts and black sketcher shoes.  The  lily pads are very thick in Sunfish Lake.  I could hardly get moving because they were growing right on top of each other.  People were fishing on the pier. The lake has a few homes on it.  Several of the homes look like paradise for children with swings over the water, trampolines, and home made tree houses with a curly slide exit.  I saw a coot with some chicks. Green frogs were calling. A  nice breeze from the west helped cool me down as I headed back to the shore where I came in.  Maybe if the rains hold off for a spell I can try kayaking a river one of these days.

Rabbit Cake

I stumbled upon Rabbit Cake at the library and picked it up having no idea what a great author Annie Hartnett is.  Her story about a family is narrated by a ten year old girl named Elvis. Elvis is very curious and has a scientific way of thinking. She tries to understand the reasons why her parents and her older sister act the way they do. Her mother and her sister walk in their sleep which is something I used to do when I was a child.  I used to wake up in the middle of the night at the bottom of the stairs curled around the vacuum cleaner wondering how I got here and why did my arm  hurt.  Lucky for me I grew out of it because sleep walking can be dangerous. Although much of the story is about grief and loss, this book is heartwarming and as pleasant as a cake shaped like a rabbit.

No Need to Decide Today

Finally, today, on Friday, the weather looks like it might hold back on precipitation long enough for me to get to work and home again.  I decide to take the bike to work.  I put on long pants and throw my lunch and my work out bag in my saddle bags.  I back the bike out of the garage and make sure I drive down the  middle strip of the driveway where the weeds grow.  I like to make sure those weeds are trampled by the motorcycle tires since the car tires don't touch it.  I proceed down the street in second gear. I want to go slow because some families have moved in with little kids. No one else is on my street at 6:40 this morning. I turn left onto the highway and no one is coming south so I have my side of the road to myself for a few miles. I feel the cool air travel up my sleeves to my elbows.  I see my reflection on the west side of the road. I straighten my spine so I don't look like a woman with scoliosis.  With a straight spine the air moves down my jacket behind my neck and up my jacket behind my behind.  That feels good. My jacket is all puffed out. I drive into Anoka and cross the Rum River on the Pleasant Avenue Bridge. I take a right on Fourth Avenue and proceed past the jail and past the large Lutheran church. We have a roundabout now behind the bakery so I go around that and take a right onto what becomes Coon Rapids Boulevard.  I proceed past the hospital. I think the commuters are driving decent today. No one is tailgating me.  I see one woman on her phone and I see a man playing with his hair but I am not worried. What does worry me is a city bus at a bus stop. When is that bus going to pull out into my lane?  I shift into the fast lane and go past the bus just as it pulls out into the slow lane. I decide that 89th Avenue in a very bumpy road. I make it to work 15 minutes early. During the evening a company came in and shampooed the carpet. The carpet is wet and the office is damp.  I hesitate. I am wearing my muck books.  I hate to dirty this clean carpet with my muck books.  I check my boots.  They're not as dirty as I thought. I go to my office to put my helmet down and change into my blue shoes.  All day I think about the nice ride I will have when the day is done. At 4 I put my muck boots back on and get on the bike. This day is perfect for a motorcycle ride; not too windy and not too cold and not too hot.  I start up my bike and begin to walk backwards out of the space into the lane when I realize I can cut between two parked cars by going forward at an angle. I go slow and my plan works. I take the back roads through Blaine.  Driving on residential streets at 30 mph is just fine with me. I can see the clouds. I can smell the fresh air. I cross over Coon Creek.  One of those motorized trikes approaches. This one has two wheels in the back. Normally we  motorcyclists greet each other by lowering our left hand in greeting. I am unsure whether to lower my left hand for this vehicle that is coming. By the I figure out it is a motorcycle it is too late. I see the driver's hand was held out in a greeting for me.  Oh, well, next time! I make it to the gym and park in the motorcycle parking. Only one other bike is there today which is unusual.  I work out for a short time and hop back on to go home.  Now there are four motorcycles at the gym. I leave and proceed south on Hanson Boulevard.  I could take a right on Coon Rapids Boulevard because that would be the quickest way home.  I am hungry. I still have to make dinner. I really should go straight home. Instead I travel farther south on Hanson and take a right on Mississippi River Drive.  I enjoy going 30 mph past all the fancy schmancy homes on the Mississippi.  I really want to avoid those long patches of repaired asphalt because those can get soft in the sun. Beyond the expensive real estate I can see the river is high and brown in color. I come out by the community college and turn left on Coon  Rapids Boulevard. I head to Anoka and this time I take Third Avenue through town.  I see some very nice houses with well maintained yards.  I go past the Masonic Hall and the old post office. I take a left on Main Street because there is something about riding my bike on Main Street on a Friday afternoon that makes me feel good. I take a right on Ferry. When I come to the Pleasant Avenue the right lane is wide open.  I try to merge into the left lane before I get to the railroad tracks but it is too late for that. The left lane is at a stand still waiting for the Northstar train to go by.  I feel like I am butting in line but I glide past a dozen cars and merge in later without even having to put my feet down.  I wave my hand as a thank you to the car that allowed me in.  I go over the tracks. I think about cutting through the fairgrounds but I decide not to do it.  Traffic seems light today. I always enjoy those two sharp turns near the fairground. I proceed north hitting all the lights on green. I try to improve my posture and the wind goes down my back making me realize I am a little bit sweaty.  I take a right on the road I live on.  I wave and say "Hello" to a lady up the street who stopped her car to get her mail.  My helmet visor has been up most of this trip.  I wave at two neighbors who are outside in their lawn.  I put my bike in neutral and glide to my mailbox.  With my left hand I reach into my safety green vest and open my garage door with the opener. With my right hand I take out two pieces of junk mail. I put one back into the mail box to scrape out all the ant eggs inside the mailbox.  Ants crawl around excitedly. Some go up my arm.  I shake them off and shove the junk mail under my windshield. Somehow, since the last time I got the mail, a quarter cup of white ant eggs has collected in here. I drive up the driveway making sure I stay on the grass between the tire tracks. The garage is open so I glide right in and park between my car and my kayak. As I hang up my jacket and helmet in the garage I question whether I am ready discontinue riding the motorcycle.  I only got into this as a way of coping with the fact I couldn't hike anymore because I was in so much pain.  Now I am not in pain.  I can hike again. I could trade this motorcycle in for a very, very nice bicycle.  I know I won't own a motorcycle forever.  I want to quit riding a motorcycle BEFORE I have an accident, not AFTER.  There is no reason to make that decision today. Today I had a good day. Today I had a great ride. Today I was safe.

Ponzi Scheme Plays Again

Last night I enjoyed the music of the Ponzi Scheme who played their music at an outdoor concert in my city.  The sun was shining. A slight breeze from the west brought in fresh air. The bugs were nonexistent. The grass was green and lush. Swallows flew overhead.  Kids were dancing and jumping.  Heads and hands and feet nodded along to the music.  I had a magical summer evening!

Beneath The Lion's Gaze

Several people in my book club recommended Beneath The Lion's Gaze by Maaza Mengiste. I borrowed it from the library and started reading it today when the rain interrupted my outdoor work.  I sat down and read a third of it at one sitting. I read the middle third of it at lunch.  Later, when rain ended my kayaking excursion on East Twin Lake, I came home and read the last third. I read the whole book today, July the 4th. The story is about Ethiopia in the 1970's. The leader of the country, Haile Selassee, has been in power for six decades. His reign is coming to and end. Times are tough in Ethiopia both before and after Selassee is smothered by a guard. I think this was a good book to read today.  I read about gun shots as firecrackers and bottle rockets explode in my neighborhood. I read about political unrest and violence in my peaceful little abode.  This book prompted me not to take the tranquility of my life for granted.  Not everyone lives in peace.

Watch Me Throw A Bucket Off Of A Bridge!

More Block Lake Birds

Pelicans in Petey's Bay quickly moving off the branches into the water.

A bald eagle giving me the eagle eye!

Green Heron!

So far this year I have kayaked five times in five separate lakes. I prefer lakes to rivers when we have had so much rain the streams are flooded.  I kayaked in  Crooked Lake (where I struggled to get out and got my pants wet), Round Lake (where I got a medium leech on my foot which I didn't notice until I was home), Diamond Lake (where I got caught in a wind storm), Block Lake and Belmont Lake. This picture of a green heron was taken on Block Lake. I woke early and put in about 6 a.m. The water was quiet so I went past the cabins before anyone was awake.  I rounded stoney point and admired the large boulder where I spent many a summer hour fishing. I went around the shallow end of the lake near the road where I saw the heron.  I went past some more cabins where one of my cousins saw me but I didn't know that at the time.  I explored the area where the dam was installed.  I saw there was no gate over the dam.  We used to have a gate over the dam.  I used to walk over the dam holding on to the gate.  Now the dam has no gate and there is much less vegetation in front of the dam.  I could have easily slid over this sloping dam and then I would not be in the lake. I didn't want that so I kept a safe distance away.  I harvested 3 cattails. I turned the sharp corner at Petey's bay where to my surprise I saw seven white pelicans standing on the branches of a tree that had fallen into the water. I said, "Oh," The pelicans saw me and proceeded to get off the tree and swim along the shore.  I guess the surprise was mutual. I cut them off so they could go back to their tree and relax. As I floated along the shore and watched the pelicans return to their quiet bay I glanced up and right in front of me was a bald eagle.  This majestic eagle was watching me closely.  I thought it looked nervous so I moved on.  When I got to the sand bar across from the cabins a wind came up.  I had no idea how much time had passed but instead of a quiet lake I now had white caps.  I let the wind help me reach the shore by the road and paddled close to the shore where I thought it would be easier.  The waves rocked my little boat as I cut between them to the point where I thought it would be safer to approach the waves straight on. "Yee Haw!" said I as the water splashed me in the face.  I was riding those waves up and down. The wind was trying to push me back to the road so I really had to paddle hard to make progress. The wind was very exhilarating and the water was warm.  My arms were quivering by the time I made it back to the public access.  Sometimes I struggle to get out of the kayak and when the waves are tipping it back and forth, back and forth, it's even harder to get out.  But I made it out. I was already fairly wet from the waves so it would not have matter so much if I did fall in. Now I was ready for some hot coffee and some breakfast!  

Bang Bang!

For the past several months I have made it a habit to play a tune or two on my piano first thing in the morning and also again in the evening.  I won't always have this piano so I may as well make the most use of it before it is gone.  Anybody want a piano? In any case, this is the song I have been playing lately.  Last week a neighbor came over to give me something and he heard me singing and playing.  I had to admit I was practicing a more than a little violent song.  Oh, well.  It's a catchy tune!