Silver Lake Sand Dunes. . . a pile of sand
and a pile of memories...

I spent a good part of my vacation a couple of weeks ago at Silver Lake Sand Dunes. The dunes cover approximately 2500 acres. They are divided into three sections: the ORV section; the "dead" dunes area, where vegetation has caught the shifting sands; and the living dunes, moving approximately two feet a year.

By the time everyone jumped on the "family camp" plan, there were fifteen of us hanging out together. Fitting, as Silver Lake was the place we loved to come as children. I have pictures of my brother J.R., my father, and me on one of Mac Woods Dune Scooters dated 1956.

I had thought that I would just take the Dune Scooter rides, leaving the climbing of the dunes to the younger set. Well, you know how that goes. The State Park has added stairs to get you halfway up the first dune wall. How could I resist? So while I couldn't keep pace, I did make it out onto the gigantic sandpile, for the first time in more than twenty years.

And oh, the memories. As I stood atop the highest ridge, I could see Lake Michigan a mile and a half to the west. I could see the dune buggies to the north, coming down a sand face. Silver Lake lay below me. And I could see that family of yore, seven then eight strong. Too many memories to enumerate.

And new memories were being made, as the younger kids played ball, dune dove, and took the trek over to Lake Michigan.

The circle keeps on turning.

It's amazing. It's the last day of July. Where the heck did this month go? Do you know?

The Winds of Change . . .
Rune is packing up for a move to California.
Kat is back from Greece.
Bryn is counting down the days.
Mandarin meg's Mandarin Rob is having a birthday.

Victory at Last!!! One Less Rat on the Ship!

Ack!

I'm late! T.G.I.F. . . and I'll catch y'all later!

Yes. It's true. I've become obsessed. As have all my office-mates. Say something funny so I'll be able to sleep well, please?

it's time to bring out the big guns now...
this critter must be destroyed... Don't you have a
catapult in your office?

It's time to get tough. The office "critter" slipped two traps yesterday and dined in the bookeeper's drawer.

Here's the plan. Over the weekend, the critter got onto my "toy" shelf. (Oh quit snickering, you over there, you knew I'd have toys somewhere *smile*.) I have had this crocodile head with two yellow balls for the eyes. You blow in the neck of the croc and the eyes rise and float on the stream of air. (Bernouli's effect, or something like that.) Well, the critter played with one of the balls this weekend. Yes. There were teethmarks. So, I loaded my trusty catapult with the remaining eye, setting it at the edge of the credenza. I'm betting the critter will attempt to play with the ball, be flung along the wall, hit the door handle and fall on the trap.

Alternate outcome: The ball will be removed and the trap shoved into the waste basket. This is one smart animal.

So Happy It's Thursday.
(Susan, you should trademark that.)
If you have a moment and like movies, go play Scott's game in the comments here.

Will there be a Rat in the Trap - Day 4?

Still waiting to catch the varmint at work. More traps were set yesterday. It appears that s/he may be going in and out of the building at a certain spot, so that area is being plugged. Hopefully there will either be a capture or lack of sign of the animal this morning. Hopefully.

Visiting Tasha Tudor. At 89.

Freudian Inventory Results

Genital (56%) you appear to be stuck between a progressive and regressive outlook on life. Latency (56%) you appear to have a good balance of knowledge seeking and practicality. Phallic (50%) you appear to have a good balance of sexual awareness and sexual composure. Anal (43%) you appear to have a good balance of self control and spontaneity. Oral (30%) you appear to be stubbornly and irrationally against receiving help even when it might be the more intelligent option.

Take Free Freudian Inventory Test
personality tests by similarminds.com

Swiped from LDH.

it's Wednesday now and meg gives us a perfectly good challenge...
let's break out of the box and play with code...

Okay, here we go, playing with great stuff from MandarinDesign and seeing if we can make it run or not. Oh, meg, do you know how much we love the pull quotes and opacity? Do go visit her and see how this effect is supposed to look. Michelle is the daughter of a teacher (I hope I haven't mixed that up??) and it shows . . . she conveys information so well!

This is the coast of Lake Michigan, from the view atop Big Sable Lighthouse. That's 110 steps up a circular staircase. I didn't think I'd be able to do it . . . but I did!

What are you waiting for?

Newsweek tells us how to announce breaking up: Go to Break Up News and see for yourself!

Empty Trap Yesterday

The critter traps were empty yesterday morning. However, there was more evidence of the varmint. Our bookkeeper had left a foil-wrapped chocolate rose on her desk. (It had been there for probably a year.) It was shredded around her phone yesterday morning. There was also a freshly dug hole in the soil of one of our planters. (Do you suppose this is a lady critter? It keeps going after the chocolate. ) We all pounded our file cabinets yesterday before settling down. (Don't know if the pounding would scare a creature, but it made us feel better.)

Anyhoo, the Orkin man is coming at 7:00 a.m. this morning. Wonder what he'll find?

And a happy hump day to you too!

Will there be a Rat in the Trap?

Argh. As if Mondays aren't bad enough, we started Monday at work finding evidence that a critter had invaded our offices over the weekend. A big critter! Rat traps have beens set. *shudder*

I'm so very glad I'm not the first one in in the mornings.

Going Through the August Issue of HOW:

Smith Design.
Friends of Animals.
Colorcom.
ColorMatters.
Color Marketing Group.
Pantone Color Institute.
Molly.com.

Which Extremity of the World Are You?
From the towering colossi at Rum and Monkey.

Link via LDH

In the interest of honesty and fairplay, I need to make this statement:

Politically, I am an independent. All opinions are welcomed here, but none (at least I don't think any) will be expressed here.

I grew up with a mixed bag of political ancestors. I'm used to listening to all sides, then finding my own way. The process of politics fascinates me; however, I take a rather jaded view of both political parties at this time. Personal politics is not a deal breaker for me.

Just thought I ought to say this here.

Carry on!

Will she or won't she post this? Hmmmm.

Flor Nacional de Cuba

The things we learn from fellow bloggers. Cybertoad fills us in on the details and has pictures here.

Monday Madness

Here is the beginning of each of the following questions.....
'If you had your choice between this and that, what would you do?'

1. Skipping and Running::Skipping
2. Coke or Pepsi::Pepsi
3. Rock or Hip Hop::Rock
4. Laptop or Desktop::Laptop
5. Cold Weather or Hot Weather:: Spring. Sorry. I just can't commit to extreme weather
6. Swimming or Bicycling::Swimming
7. Chocolate or Vanilla::Vanilla
8. Day or Night::Day. A bright sunny day.
9. Looks or Brains::Brains
10. Cable, DSL, or Dial-Up::Dial-Up is what I have. *sigh*

Just a reminder. Five months until Christmas. Thought you ought to know. *grin*

This is Arial Normal.
This is Courier Small.
This is Georgia Tiny.
This is Lucida Grand Large
This is Times.
This is Trebuchet Normal
This is Verdana Normal.
This is Webdings

Query:

How many blogposts do you compose in your mind that never make it to the web?

Spotted at Karen's:

DogToy or Marital Aid?

I blew the warm-up round, but did all right on the difficult round. Go figure.

Project Blog:

I've been watching Daria who is blogging for UCP (the charity I blogged for two years ago) and she has just an hour to go. Awesome job!!!!

Unconscious Mutterings!

Week 77

I say ... and you think ... ?

1. Sleep :: deprived, perchance to dream
2. Stats :: Baseball
3. Portfolio :: Artist
4. Lipton :: tea
5. Telly :: television
6. Immigrate :: land of hope
7. Viable :: can live
8. Serene :: peaceful
9. Mountain :: magic, Montana
10. Natalie :: Wood, Portman

The Bourne Supremacy.

Saw it last night. Good action flick, and I especially liked Joan Allen in the role of Pamela Landy. A couple of things:

1. I know I saw Bourne Identity, but for the life of me I can't remember it.
2. Agamemnon, from Troy, is in this film.
3. Matt Damon is alway going to look like a 14-year-old to me, I'm afraid.

Okay, that's three things. I can't count.

Project Blog.

The blogathon is taking a rest this year, but Project Blog has stepped in to fill the void. This is the event where bloggers blog for 24 hours for pledges for their favorite charities.

I did the Blogathon a couple of years ago, and it was an eye-opening project. There is the good that is done for the charities, and there is also the chance to meet new bloggers. If you have a chance, check some of them out.

I saw Kane's citation of Project Blog first, then Crayons and Playdoh's post.

More TypoGraphical fun!

There's the one that started it for me at EBC. Then meg at MandarinDesign began playing. Roscoe has a neat design, and cybertoad's is here. And Cindy weighs in here. Too much fun playing and too much fun seeing what other folks have generated!

(Have I missed seeing yours?)

Edit: New one posted here, by otto! Excellent!

Edit the Second!! Two more TypoGraphicals. Susan on the other-side-of-the-world has hers here. It's winter in Oz, so if you have a little spare warmth please send her some. Pandora's are here, and she's taking votes!

Edit the Third!! Another player added: Lynn's TypoGraphicals are here! Check out her Arthritis page while you're there!

Edit the 4th! Kymberlie's are here. She used Neurotic Fishbowl and gets some great results!

Hey, it's Friday!


Now I REALLY see the benefits of having Monday off. We got to Friday in just 4 days. Whee!

Got milkweek? Look for the butterflies. Monarch caterpillars and butterflies love the stuff! So do these little butterflies.

Have a super day! What's on the docket for your weekend?

You are the Crayon Box. You have a multicolor
personality. You mix well with all the other
colors because there's a small part of every
color inside you.


What Color Crayon Are You
brought to you by Quizilla

[Link via Infinite Pink.]

Oh, this is too much fun! Found at EBC: The TypoGenerator.

Getting to the "Other Side" of Lake Michigan.

Wisconsin abuts Michigan. In the Upper Peninsula, that is, which means a mighty long drive if you are in the Lower Peninsula. You can also get to Wisconsin by driving through southwest Michigan, the tip of Indiana (wave at Oprah as you go by), Chicago (or you could go around Chicago) and then up into Wisconsin.

Or you can take the ferry from Ludington. The Badger, the standard ferry, gets you and your car to Wisconsin in about four hours. There is a new ferry that cuts that time to about an hour and a half. Pretty cool!

The Clearing.

I saw this movie this evening, as I was trying to avoid a rainstorm and high humidity. I'm reading the reviews at IMDB now. I saw a great movie. Not all the reviewers there saw it. Subtlety may be a dying art. (Or maybe I just like Robert Redford. *smile*)

Susan, I shirley did think about you during this movie. They filmed it down your way, didn't they?

Something to think about:
You can't have rainbows at high noon.

There are places I remember
All my life though some have changed
Some forever, not for better
Some have gone and some remain

Happy Hump Day! Yay!

Now I see the benefits of starting the week on Tuesday! We're already to Wednesday.

A picture says a thousand words, and Pandora's picture here shows why I love Montana.
Edit: Ack! My apologies. The picture is perfect . . . but it is of the Grand Tetons in Wyoming. (I fell in love with those when I was 16 . . . I'm surprised I didn't recognize them!)

Busy Folks!

Lots going on for folks. Rune is pulling up stakes and moving to California. She also recently had a birthday, and sent me a present! Thanks for the book, Rune, and we'll be following your move with interest.

Susan from Oz had a contest awhile back, and sent prizees to all the players. I came home to find mine in the mailbox . . . too cool! Thanks for the views of Australia, Susan, and for the book. . . and the ladybug!

Onyx has a housing change in the works. Cross your fingers for her that it works out.

Kat is in Greece. And just had a birthday!

And speaking of birthdays . . . we want to welcome Beverly over to the "other side"! The view on this side of the hill truly is nice, kiddo!

I've enjoyed trying to catch up with everyone. Now I'd better go get ready for work!!!

Ouch!

I thought coming back from a vacation on a Tuesday could somehow fool me into not having a Monday. Wrong. This feels like Monday. *sigh*

No Pictures At 11. *sigh*

Hmmm. What can I say, I'm a dork?!!!
I use a Sony Mavica digital camera. It uses either a memory stick or 3 1/4" floppies. I use the floppies. I have about ten and a half from vacation.

Yep. A half is in there, because, like an idiot, I didn't check all my pockets and washed one. (I had been wondering where the one with the Mac Woods Dune Rides had gone. Now I know. It was in my gray shorts.)

So, rather than just call it a loss of one, I have to stick this bedraggled disk into my "A" drive and see if anything will read. Sheeeesh, we all know what happens, right??? Not only does it not read, it mangles my "A" drive. So now, when I go to the computer store to pick up ink for my printer I'll have to pick up a floppy drive.

Sorry, Mom, but you did raise a dork!

And speaking of Mom . . . several of you know that she did a 5K walk for the first time this spring . . . at the age of 75. Last Thursday she walked the same amount as we traipsed down the dunes to the Big Sable Lighthouse. She's quite the trooper, and eventually I'll be able to post the proof.

If I ever get over being a dork.

Well hello there! I am back, and I see that blogger has been busy with some dashboard changes. (Fortunately I had already stopped by Mandarin Design and EBC and gotten a heads up on the issues.) Go away for a few days and the blogworld has to change. Sheesh! *smile* We'll see if we can make this thingee work.

and so, it's off we go!
Leaving you with one word.

L O V E

This is one of the beaches we'll be
hanging out on. I'll try to get a
better picture.

Big Lakes. Big Ships.
St. Joe Lighthouse.
We'll be farther north,
near Pentwater and Ludington.

Big Lake. Big Lighthouses.
This is Big Red, the Holland Lighthouse.

One More Day of Work . . .

and then, vacation. I'm ready.
The family is convening over at Lake Michigan throughout the week.

Now, growing up in Michigan I take the Great Lakes for granted. They're big lakes. Big, big lakes. And I was intrigued by this quote from our U.S. Senator in the City Pulse:

Twice last summer, Stabenow hosted senatorial conclaves on Mackinac Island, glowing with pride as officials from landlocked states gaped in amazement at Michigan’s inland seas. “I remember Sen. Tom Daschle of South Dakota looking out from the Grand Hotel onto the straits,” she recalls. “He said to me, ‘I’ve never seen so much water. When you said “Great Lakes,” I thought you meant a big lake I could look across.’ I was very pleased to be able to show off to my colleagues.”

So here are a few Lake Michigan facts:
Lake Michigan, the second largest Great Lake by volume with just under 1,180 cubic miles of water, is the only Great Lake entirely within the United States. Approximately 118 miles wide and 307 miles long, Lake Michigan has more than 1,600 miles of shoreline.

Made it Through Monday!
And how about you?

Yesterday I spent part of the afternoon at the Michigan State University Horticulture Gardens. Sometimes I forget what treasures are in my backyard . . . almost literally!

Ken is STILL going strong on Jeopardy. Help!

The Sarcastic Journalist blogged a baby today. That is truly impressive!

A little Monday Madness to start the morning out!

Let's try some 'true or false' questions this week! Feel free to elaborate as you wish!

1. I like my job. F
2. I find time to 'smell the flowers' so to speak. T
3. I have no problem thinking of things to write about in my blog. F
4. 'Organization' is my middle name! F
5. If 'Plan A' doesn't work, there's always a 'Plan B.' T
6. I adjust easily to new surroundings. F
7. I'd rather work 'behind the scenes' than 'in the spotlight.' T
8. I'm happy where I am, at this point in my life. F
9. I can wake up in the morning without an alarm clock. F
10. I can function pretty well on less than 8 hours of sleep. T

I'm not that fond of Toast.

Yesterday at the mall I wandered through Williams-Sonoma. Would you pay $320.00 for a toaster?

okay, okay Chris! Here are my Mutterings!

I say ... and you think ... ?

1. Crippling :: Mind set
2. Tough :: Guy
3. Slinky :: a great toy
4. Slogan :: Campaign
5. Stuffed :: Toy, Beanie Baby
6. Instructions :: Simple
7. Expletive :: deleted
8. Cartoon :: Garfield
9. Toddler :: Tot
10. Insinuation :: Innuendo

Question for blogger.com users:

Can we pre-post? Write a post today and have it publish, say, Thursday? Thanks!

Innocence. Like a child, you seem to think of
things with more a curious look then an
explanative. The answers aren't important to
you all the time, sometimes it's just enjoying
the questions and finding new ones. When the
end came, you survived through the simple means
of not being in the wrong place, or, following
a butterfly away from the blast zone. Meeks...
damn you all.


How would you survive the end of the world?
brought to you by Quizilla

Link via Roscoe Ellis.

Backwards Saturday.

My Saturdays usually start with getting up, doing chores, and blogging. I decided to be different this Saturday. Oh hush, there, what do you mean I'm always different? *grin* I got up and headed to the Arboretum first thing this morning. It was 8:08 a.m. when I got out of my car in the parking lot.

The Arboretum is home base to a dozen or so deer. I scared one up from its breakfast of berries. Or she scared me. As often happens, I was fiddling with my shoe when I saw her jump. Drat.

The rest of the walk I was accompanied by mosquitos. Ick. The rains this spring and early summer have created a bumper crop of the rascals. I know, things are bigger in Texas, but I'll put our skeeters up against yours anyday.

After my walk, I stop from a breakfast buffet at the Country Buffet and am reading my newspaper. Lead story on page one? West Nile Virus Gets Early Start in State. Oh great. Now my arms really itch.

I decide that I'm up and awake enough, might as well take in a morning movie. I've never done that before. I saw King Arthur. Surprisingly good movie.

After the movie I bought birthday presents, then came home and made reservations for my vacation, coming up Wednesday. The family is gathering on the west side of the state, to play in big old Lake Michigan. Yeah!!!

Summertime in the Blog World.

It seemed that blogger and blog*spot had issues over the holiday weekend. This morning YACCS comments and blogrolling hitched a couple of times. Oh yeah, it's summertime in the blog world all righty!

Firefly Update.

A few fireflies have started to appear. However, yesterday we never got into the 70s(F). Way too cold for the critters. How are they doing in your area?

Missing the MSU library.

One of the downsides of the internet is that I don't visit the Michigan State University library as much as I did in the early 90's. I realized this today, when I stopped there on my way home from work. I got that old familiar tingle as I smelled that wonderful scent of moldering paper. They need to incorprate that aroma with google somehow.

The big change I noticed was that the library now has sliding stacks. Yup, it was too cool. Stacks were clumped together, and you could make your own aisles by pushing buttons. I'm sure there are sensors so a person couldn't get squeezed by someone shifting a stack when you are in it, but wouldn't that be a great CSI death? Argh.

Speaking of television . . . is Ken EVER going to lose in Jeopardy?

Later!

Which Winnie the Pooh
character are you?

Take this quiz at
Sparrow's Song Quiz Page.

Link via Petals Art

As Susan says:

So Happy It's Thursday!

Twenty questions here. I beat the computer, but the computer said I cheated. Argh.

[link via Adventure Journalist]

I Mangled My Mango!!!!

I needed diced mango for my 4th of July Picnic salad. For the next time I make the salad, can someone please tell me how to open a mango????

Thanks in advance for all your help!

S O M E W H E R E . . .

Existence is uncomplicated. One foot in front of the other. Eat, sleep, function. Living, truly living, with all the emotion and risk that entails, is hard work. Every risk presents the possibility of both success and failure. Every emotion has a counterbalance. Fear cannot exist without hope, nor hope without fear.

~~Tami Hoag, Dark Horse

Squirrel exercise.

The Berries are Ready and Croquet is the Name of the Game

Today was our family 4th of July picnic. It was held in my mother's backyard. She lives in a working class neighborhood, but the yards in the area are huge. She has a garden path that takes visitors through the south side of the yard, ending in the Victorian roses, Sunflower house, and berry patch. The berries are ready.

Years ago my sister-in-law and brother gave her a "Garden Tours 5 Cents" sign with a bucket. We all drop change in it through the spring and summer. (If you stick change in it during the fall it could get forgotten and get buried in the winter snows.) Each year Mom and the kids decide how they are going to spend the money. This year they bought a croquet set, and today we broke it in. What a blast, and what memories for my sister and brother and me, as we had grown up playing it with our grandparents.

And the very best part: my mother won, followed in second place by our 80-year-old aunt. Too cool!

Notes:

Ferrolad has moved here.

Personality Type

Karen has a link to a Type A quiz. I'm more than I thought I was. Uhoh!

What does your score mean? Score was 55.

You seem to be in the middle between the Type A and Type B personality. In this case, the middle ground is good. You know how and when to cut loose, forget your daily pressures and simply relax. Nonetheless, you realize that taking on challenges and being competitive is necessary to reach your goals...but you don't want to take it to any extreme. Generally, you are easy to be around, and people tend to feel relaxed and comfortable in your presence - with the exception of the occasional stress attack or highly charged day. The equilibrium you have achieved is healthy; so don't let your hostile, aggressive, and competitive alter ego take over too often...or things could get ugly.

Monday Madness. (Without the having to go to work. Yay!)

Tis Monday once again! This week we're going to try some more 'fill-in-the-blanks' questions.....

1. I usually clean my house on _________, or about every ____ days. a little bit each day.
2. My favorite Sunday night program to watch on television is __________. none
3. Monday morning I usually waking up thinking, "__________." that was a quick weekend.
4. To wind down at the end of a busy day, I like to ___________. read a few good blogs
5. I try not to call anyone on the phone until after ______ a.m. eight
6. And I NEVER call anyone after ________. 10:30 p.m.
7. When I don't have to get up to go to work or school, I sleep in until _____. about 8:30 a.m.
8. I have ____ telephones in my house. two
9. I usually answer the phone on the ____ ring. third
10. When I know I should be sleeping, but am having a hard time falling asleep, I usually _________. *smile* Can't tell ya!

It's a Holiday, and you know how I can tell?

Blogger and blog*spot are acting up. It's a holiday tradition. Hang in there folks!

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.

I'm up, so I'm going to Unconsciously Mutter:

I say ... and you think ... ?

1. Resignation :: I Quit!
2. Coupling :: PVC
3. Grounded :: Based
4. Habit :: Pepsi
5. Chainsaw :: Massacre
6. Rental :: Car
7. Deleted :: Entry
8. Online personals :: Never tried them
9. Penguin :: Farrago
10. Offend :: Sorry

Question raised in Newsweek:

Was Shakespeare a She?

Good Saturday Morning!

And Susan is up with the Saturday Morning me! She's not been feeling well, so it makes my Saturday to see her up and posting! (What about Coach K, Susan? Do you think . . . ?)

Blog people are moving. Not their blogs this time, their physical locations. Rune is moving to California, and cyber brother Jeeem (three e's) is moving from China to Thailand. Yikes! (and here I sit) Kat isn't moving, but several family members are, and she blogs beautifully about the woes of separation.

MZ, queen of the Red Hats, is posting about her son's wedding (oops, almost spelled it weeding) in Las Vegas. JJ sure sounds like a handful!

Bryn says that's a "Buck Moon" out there. And . . . we have a blue moon this month. Yay!

We have a Holiday coming!
The company I work for allows six paid holidays. The second of the year is about to come up . . . good old 4th of July. It's on a Sunday this year, so we have the Monday off. (I'm glad you have it off too, otto!) Yum. A three-day holiday!

The last few weekends have been so busy that I've designed this weekend to be a relaxing, unwinding one. There will be fireworks on Saturday, at the mall. Back in the 1870's my great-great-grandmother and her two sons cleared some of the land where the mall is located. Mom played there as a child. That's kind of cool.

Monday we'll have a family picnic. I do so love picnics.

The rest of the time I'm gonna chill.

What's up for you this weekend?

Jennifer, at fortysomething, reminds us of the 26Things Project.

Uh-oh. Susan is sick. We need to send her some good thoughts!

Happy July 1st!

I hope this month finds you relaxing, just like this feller:

As always, monkey see, monkey do. Saw a blogpoll over at Adventure Journalist and had to play.