400 Years

After I met with Maggie, the curator of the Louisa May Alcott collection at BYU, I had the chance to visit her new exhibit at the library: The Life and Legacy of the King James Bible: Celebrating 400 Years.

Maggie, Eric the exhibit designer, and their team of students did an impressive job! It's definitely worth seeing the collection of old books that influenced or were influenced by the King James translation. And you can through the spring of 2012!

A Good Day

Well, my summer is officially over. I'm back to business. All sorts of projects took me all sorts of directions today.

• I've got two new classes full of English 1010 students! We got off to a great start, and I think we'll have a good dynamic with both groups.
• My transition skills program proposal for my work at the jail was approved and I worked on some of the details for that, including doing some research at a local bank. One thing I learned about is a service called check systems that banks use to check up on potential account holders to make sure they don't owe another bank for overdrawn funds.
• I dropped in to see a key person in the community to discuss the possibility of turning the old city building into a temporary art exhibit before it gets torn down next spring. He was very enthusiastic, and not just because he's an enthusiastic guy. I'm that much closer to being convinced it's an opportunity we shouldn't miss.
• I set up an appointment with the curator of the Alcott collection at BYU to finalize the items they will lend us for our Alcott show at the Springville Museum of Art which opens September 10.
• I did four loads of laundry. The last load is still sitting in the dryer, so I guess it's not technically done. I still need to fold it all and put it away. But I'm too worn out.

Reborn

Jack spent a good part of the day rebuilding one of his Lego ocean liners. It's his own design, and he calls it the Ocean Born. I wonder if he will rename it the Ocean Reborn.

Don't Try This If You're in a Rush

We picked up Jack's friend Gracie, who used to live across the street, but now lives across the valley, and headed here to pick up supplies.

Then we headed up American Fork Canyon past Tibble Fork Reservoir to do this.

It was a first for us. We weren't exactly sure what we were looking for, but we're pretty sure we saw some tiny flecks of gold. Roger tried to put them in a vial to bring home. We're not sure they made it in.

Too bad we didn't have enough cash on us (the prospector supply store didn't take credit cards, which I suppose isn't a real surprise), or we'd have picked up the tweezers with the attached magnifying glass.

Harvest

This afternoon I met an old college friend I haven't seen in at least 20 years in downtown Provo for lunch. As we walked back to our cars, we passed the old county court house on University Avenue, and my friend noticed that there were vegetables, including huge squash plants, growing among the flowers in the court house gardens. I'm very curious to know the story behind them, and I hope the fresh food they produce feed souls as well as bellies.

I so enjoyed catching up with my old friend, reaping the seeds of friendship we sowed all those years ago. And I'm thankful that we watered our friendship from time to time with Christmas cards and email messages.

This evening I got a call from a new friend--an 80-something neighbor I've known for only a year or two. She needed some help getting gas for her car. When we got back to her house, she asked me to help her carry in an enormous melon she'd bought from a roadside stand earlier today. She sent me home with some beautiful tomatoes from her garden.

My soul is well fed.

Memorial

The new Martin Luther King, Jr. memorial in Washington, DC has been all over the news this week. I was thinking about his legacy as Jack and I finished reading To Kill a Mockingbird tonight. I wondered what he would say about the increasing marginalization and vilification of the poor and the "other" we've seen over these past years of recession and war. I believe he'd want us to rise above our fears. I believe he'd inspire us to cry out against it.

This one is for you, Dr. King.

On the last page of the book, Scout is telling Atticus the story of the Gray Ghost, who had apparently been wreaking havoc all over town.

"An' they chased him 'n' never could catch him 'cause they didn't know what he looked like, an' Atticus, when they finally saw him, why he hadn't done any of those things . . . Atticus, he was real nice . . ."

His hands were under my chin, pulling up the cover, tucking it around me.

"Most people are, Scout, when you finally see them."

Love

Today was extraordinarily uneventful. I was a bit under the weather, so I just laid low and got some work done on my computer and did some reading.

And so I turned to Google to help me find something new. I found this site: LSNED (Learn Something New Every Day). I scrolled down until I found this post, in which I learned:

"In tennis scoring, love means zero. This is believed to come from the French word l’oeuf, for egg. The egg shape signifies a round zero, just as they say “goose-egg” in American baseball."

Who knew? Or should I say qui savait?

More Consuming

Went downtown to Mountain Rock Music on Main Street this afternoon to pick up a copy of the the instruction book Jack needs for band this year. What an awesome place! I'd never been in before. Now I'm cooking up reasons to go back. I'm a big fan of cool shops on Main Streets.

Consuming

One of our family traditions is to take Jack out to dinner on the first official day of school, his choice of restaurants. He's a bit of a creature of habit, so he decided we'd go to Panda Express, which is an old standby.

I was happy to discover they had a new dish, one chock full of vegetables.

Jack prefers his meals without any vegetables.

Speaking of eating vegetables, Jack was thrilled with his very first trip to buy school supplies. See?

Elementary schools are apparently restricted by Utah state law from requiring students to purchase things, and through the years Jack's teachers never specified any supplies he could voluntarily bring. So we never bought anything (though we did donate office supply gift cards to the school from time to time).

But now that he's in junior high, we get to outfit him. And I'm such a geek, I couldn't wait to get home and organize his binders and supplies the way his teachers want them organized. (As a nod to sound parenting, I did try to involve him as much as he could stand it.)

Reality

Okay, I confess. Every once in a while I get sucked into a reality show. Today I got sucked into an Undercover Boss marathon. CEOs go undercover as entry-level employees at their own companies and learn all sorts of interesting things. Lots of heart warming stories about hardworking people and some valuable revelations for people at the top.

A surprisingly life-affirming way to enjoy a little downtime before heading into a busy, busy week. (And the business junkie in me enjoyed a little fix.)

'Nuff Said

Typing up my blog post on my new MacBook Pro.

Luck

Jack got up early and went to junior high for the first time this morning. The lucky seventh graders started a day before everyone else to help them get their bearings before the eighth and ninth graders fill up the hallways.

When he was done, I picked him up and we ran some errands, including meeting Roger for a late lunch at Iggy's Sports Grill. We've never eaten there before because it's always been jam packed whenever we think of it. It's not packed at 2:30 in the afternoon. The food was just okay (I did like that you can substitute a veggie burger for any hamburger), but it was fun watching part of a Little League World Series game on the huge screen! I felt bad, though, for the pitcher who got hit with the ball because they kept showing the replay over and over and over. So let me share it with you here.



Actually, it's sort of artistic the way his arm and glove are the last bits to drop out of the shot. He was okay. Luckily the bill of his hat took the brunt of it.

Last but not least, and in a deliberate attempt to hold onto summer even though school has started, Jack and I headed for the Spanish Oaks Reservoir where his fished for the first time (no luck) and played in the sand for the umpteenth time.



Invigorated by a refreshing swim, we drove home with the sun low in the sky, enjoying a perfect breeze in our topless Jeep. Lucky us.

Some Peace of Mind

We met all of Jack's teachers at the back-to-school open house this afternoon, and so far I'm impressed. Actually, very impressed. They were all sharp, enthusiastic, and personable.

My mind is at ease for the time being (as long as they know the Es are backwards on the school marquis).

Or Not

Disclaimer: I don't want this post to discourage anyone from donating blood. It really wasn't a horrible or painful experience. It was just sad that I couldn't follow through on my donation.

And, so, the story is that I went to give blood and the needle didn't go in quite right. After a minute or so, the blood stopped filling the bag and started leaking out inside my arm. Several people came to help, and when they saw my arm, they each said, "Oh. OH!"

They gave me ice packs. I don't think the bruising will be too bad.

The Enterprise

Technically, today's trip to the new Western Metals Recycling facility in Provo's East Bay was our second, but since this is a post about recycling that somehow seems okay.

A couple of years ago, I offered Jack the income from our aluminum can recycling if he did all the work of taking full bags out to the garage, loading them in the car, going with me to drop them off, etc. Today's price was 65 cents per pound. Nice.

It is so much easier to take our cans to the new place. We can now also drop off paper and plastics there (though I still take our paper to the bin at Jack's elementary school--I understand it gets a teeny bit of money from that). Western Metals even collects donations for the Community Action Services food pantry.

I know our town implemented curbside recycling a few years ago so it seems a little nutty to put so much effort in. And if I ever hear that program is in danger of falling apart due to lack of participation, I will support it by signing up.

But in the meantime, I like supporting Jack's little enterprise.

So Civilized

More treats from friends! Shelley, Trevor, and their three adorable girls stopped by with a loaf of rustic homemade bread and wedge of brie. Such a fun visit and such a lovely addition to our evening meal!

Will They Ever Come to Utah?

Our neighbors went on a trip and brought back some Trader Joe's dark chocolate peanut butter cups for us while Jack and I were away. Roger saved some for me, and I just tried them. Mmmmm.

Smooth

I often think about using my blender to make tasty treats, and then I don't because it's just enough of a pain to pull it out, clean and reassemble it, and put it away again.

About a month ago, my friend Mindy raved about her new Cuisinart Smart Stick Blender. Simple to use and easy cleanup. She totally sold me, and I ordered one straightaway. Tonight I christened it.

I was very smart to trust Mindy.

PS: While we were at the grocery store picking up some groceries, including fresh strawberries for the smoothie, we ran into our friend Shannon. She told us a story about the time she was biking on the canyon trail and nearly hit a squirrel when it ran out in front of her. She screamed, and she swears the squirrel screamed, too. The squirrel actually screamed. Her husband was laughing so hard, he had to stop riding!

Together

A full day with a family funeral this afternoon and a neighbor's wedding reception this evening.

Roger's Aunt Susan passed away earlier this week. One of the beliefs Mormons hold most dear is that family relationships continue after death. It's nice to think that Susan could be with her husband Gary, who passed away last summer.

Amy and Brandon united. Susan and Gary reunited.

Always Wear a Helmet

In all the years I've enjoyed the Hobble Creek Canyon bike path, I've never actually biked it. Until today. I even made a point of tackling the big hill after crossing the road at the golf course. I tried taking a picture of it from the top, but it doesn't look as steep as it really is.

There are a few obvious differences between running or walking the path and biking it. On a bike I covered more ground in less time, it was much harder going up hills, and it was much easier coming down them.

What surprised me, though, was how often I was whacked in the head by giant dragonflies. That never happens when I'm on foot.

Revised

I'm trying to cling to summer for as long as I can, but school is looming large.

After registering Jack for school yesterday, I headed up to Utah Valley University to pick up the books we're using this semester for English 1010: a new edition of the primary text and an updated handbook.

I did a quick review of them today, and I don't think I'll have to adjust my syllabus too much. Just a little extra work before the semester begins. I hope.

I'm happy to see the revised text still includes one of my favorite quotes from a professor of business management about how students need to learn how to "wallow in complexity" and then figure out how to work their way out.

We are expected to focus on helping students develop critical thinking skills in our freshman composition classes. I love that. It may just help them save the world someday.

Fit

Oh, man. Jack is starting Jr. High in less than two weeks. Even though we got the smallest size available, he's going to swim in the new gym clothes we picked up at registration today. I'm not ready for him to be this old. Can't we wait until he's big enough to fill out his uniform?

Breakthrough

Monday morning after getting home from vacation meant getting back into daily math practice for Jack. I expected some serious push back, but there was none. Zip. Zero.

Instead, Jack said he'd been thinking about a story I told him a long time ago about how I went through this weird period in college when I was suddenly afraid of flying. Then one day I was on a plane, feeling nervous, and I realized that if the plane was going to go down it was going to go down, and my feeling nervous wasn't going to stop it. From that moment on, I've been fearless on planes.

Jack took my story and applied it to fighting against the math assignments. "I'm going to have to do it anyway whether I complain or not, so I might as well just do it."

Smart kid. I'm impressed with how often he takes something he's learned in one context and applies it to another.

Just last week, for example, I unexpectedly lost my temper. It had nothing to do with Jack, but I saw the look on his face as I railed against something I've been frustrated about. A couple of hours later he was helping me carry some things to the trash bin at the end of the driveway, and I apologized to him for my behavior and tried to explain that I wasn't nuts.

"I know, Mom. I figure you just had a Jem moment."

"A what?"

"You know, when Jem is so mad at people saying bad things about his dad that he lops the tops off that lady's flowers with Scout's baton." We've been reading To Kill a Mockingbird together this summer.

Exactly, Jack. Exactly.

Loops

Now that I'm back in town, I'm getting up to date on all sorts of things I've missed around the neighborhood. Lots of life being lived.

Among the stories are these: One neighbor just had her last round of chemotherapy. Two other neighbors had heart problems that landed them in the hospital under very scary circumstances; one has another surgery scheduled next week and the other is hoping a test goes well tomorrow so they can fix the problem and he can avoid ending up on a transplant waiting list.

Roger and I went around the block this evening and ran into all three of them (and their spouses) taking a walk. Lovely to see the convalescents out and about, banding together!

Happy Ending

We really don't go to movies very often! Jack turned 12 in May and tonight was the first time we had to buy him an adult ticket.

The final Harry Potter movie. We wanted to see it all together so we had to wait until after our trip. Loved it. Especially loved grown-up Ron at the end being all sentimental sending his daughter off to Hogwarts.

But another happy ending happened later in the evening. We were back in Springville when Jack realized that his wallet had fallen out of his pocket, probably at the theater. And so we drove back. The manager couldn't have been nicer, luckily the next movie hadn't started yet, and--accio wallet!--Jack found it intact underneath his seat.

Ballet?

We took Jack and his friend Cooper to Marley's at Riverwoods for sliders and fries. After dinner we wandered around a bit. Bought some books at the Borders going out of business sale (mixed feelings) and watched the kids play in the fountain while listening to a couple of college students play horns on the outdoor stage. Sort of an odd choice for live music on a Friday night, but we were entertained!

Home, Home on the Range

After a very nice visit with my aunt and uncle in Boulder, Colorado, this morning, Jack and I headed west on the last leg of our trip and we are now safely home. (Well, I'm safely home. As soon as we unloaded the car, Jack ran off to a friend's house. We're going to go wrangle him in a few minutes).

It was a pretty run-of-the-mill drive home except for horrible construction traffic east of Vail that added an hour to our trip and a tense moment on I-70 just after crossing into Utah in which we came across an antelope in the middle of the highway. There was a car just ahead of us in the other lane, and the antelope zig zagged the center line trying to figure out which way it could go. It finally leapt off the highway by the other car, which had slowed to almost a stop in the shoulder.

Yes, so glad we are safely home. Especially with dear Roger.

Schooled

Drove from Jefferson City, Missouri, to Denver, Colorado, today with two important stops.

The first stop was unplanned, but I was sucked in by signs on the interstate. I pulled rank as Mom to spend a bit of time at Monroe Elementary, one of the schools involved in the Brown v. Board of Education case.

Somehow it seemed fitting to snap a shot of Jack using the drinking fountain there. A little over half a century ago, that might well have been impossible.

The second was planned. We stopped in Manhattan, Kansas, to take my niece Saralyn out to lunch. She's spending the summer at Kansas State University doing research in a chemistry lab.

I might have gone my entire life without setting foot in Manhattan, Kansas. Thanks for the excuse, Saralyn! We enjoyed seeing you!

Steamy

We crammed a ton of stuff in today: Driving about 200 miles. Crossing the Mississippi River three times. Crossing the Missouri River three times (including a round trip walk on a new pedestrian bridge in Jefferson City). Touring the wainwright and blacksmith shops and the Browning gunsmith shop in Nauvoo. Touring Carthage jail. Eating ice cream. Visiting with sister-in-law Joan and some of her family. Visiting with brother-in-law Jim and his wife. Touring the Missouri State Supreme Court building (1908) where Jim works (after hours so it was mostly dark, which was very cool). Touring Mark Twain's childhood home in Hannibal, Missouri. And a riverboat ride!

In temperatures that went as high as this:

That could explain why Jack and I pretty much had the street to ourselves in this web cam screen capture that Roger took of us today (from the comfort of his air conditioned office in Utah).

Karma

Frustration (and subsequently my tongue) has gotten me in trouble a couple of times in the last few days. Maybe it's because I've got a wicked blister on my toe or I've been in the sun too much or I haven't gotten enough sleep or I've succumbed to the high humidity here in the midwest. Or maybe I'm simply in need of an emotional growth spurt.

Today I headed into a four-day road trip with Jack, who desperately wishes we could just get on an airplane and be home in a few hours. After a rough go of things this morning, I made a conscious decision to try harder to send good energy out into the world.

Moments later I was pulled over by the police for speeding. (I promise I wasn't being a crazy driver. I was heading out of town a bit faster than the signs said to. Not 100 yards after I passed the officer, my speed matched the signs.)

I handled myself with great aplomb. Only a warning. Maybe I could make a karmic shift.

After a long afternoon of driving and a bit of sightseeing in Nauvoo, Illinois, we headed south to Keokuk, Iowa, to our hotel. The road hugged the shores of the Mississippi River, and we were blessed with this for miles and miles.

Yes, shift, I'm ready.

The Last Day

There is nothing new about being sad to leave the lake every summer. I'm going to suspend my blogging project today to revel in my favorite memories about our last day, which I was so busy enjoying I forgot to get my camera out.

• Perfect weather. Hot enough but not too hot. Sunshine and blue sky. A good wind.
• Taking a morning walk on the shore path.
• Doing yoga on the point with my sister Maryann.
• Sailing with Uncle Tom and Aunt Sandra who were up for the day.
• Enjoying the flowers Roger sent to me for my birthday and our anniversary (today :-).
• Watching Jack and cousins Jordan and Oliver jump to my rescue when I lost my (cheap) sunglasses in the lake upon diving in. Oops. They didn't find them, but I was very impressed with their chivalry.
• Visiting with everyone one last time.

Good, good times. Until next year!

The Third Leg

It is done. My alarm went off at 6 am and we headed down to swim across the lake and back--my sister Maryann, my friend April, and I.

When we arrived at the pier, we were met with a host of good omens. The early morning sun was shining, the sky was completely clear, and the water was even clearer. A gaggle of geese swam by. We saw three hot air balloons over Williams Bay. A fisherman even caught a large bass in Rainbow bay as we got ready to dive in.

We basked in all of that goodness as we set out.

Dad, our able chaperone, kept power boats from running us over. We took a leisurely two hours to go a little over two miles roundtrip. As we neared the far shore, though, my Dad said he wanted to see some real swimming, so we stepped it up a little. And Maryann saw a heron land on the pier we were heading for. Another good omen!

Back home to Rainbow Point!

48

I'm taking the easy way out on today's post: I have never been 48 years old, and now here I am--as many years old as there are contiguous United States. (Hmm. Maybe I should plan now to end up in Hawaii for my 50th. That would be fabulously appropriate!)

My niece's husband Scott expressed hope that I'd blog about something wildly awesome on my birthday. I'm afraid the day was pretty uneventful. Very nice, but uneventful. Sorry, Scott.

Although come to think of it, there was a lot of canoe swamping going on.

The Second Leg

We had a late start because of rain this morning, but my sister Maryann and I were not going to let our chance to hike around the lake slip away. The second leg of my "triathalon" is now complete!

Our risk paid off. We were only rained on twice the entire day. The bigger challenge was dealing with all sorts of mud and water hazards along the way. We're guessing they added at least an hour to our hiking time. The whole adventure took 10 hours, about nine of it hiking and an hour's worth of stops.

My favorite part of the day was calling Roger when we reached the Eleven Gables Inn a little over halfway. Earlier in the day he discovered that they have a web cam that broadcasts live video over the internet. When I called him at his office in Utah, he described what he could see online and we moved to get in view of the camera. Then he got this screen shot. Maryann is on the left, and I'm on the right in the red hat. What a hoot!

After a luscious dip in the lake at the end of our hike, we and our aching feet are gratefully back home.

Change of Plans

I need to write and post this fast because there's a thunderstorm out there and I don't want to fry my computer (it no longer believes it has a battery and I can only use it plugged in).

We woke up to a crazy thunderstorm this morning, which meant that my sister Maryann and I could not hike around the lake, the second leg of my lake "triathalon." Rainy days at the lake always unfold in unusual ways, and today was no exception.

While I was waiting for the rain to stop this morning, I actually got some work that I brought with me from home done. Work! I try to avoid doing that here. When it stopped raining, Jack and I went to visit cousin Jody at her house and then we headed out on some errands.

In the village of Fontana a mile down shore we bought live bait from a vending machine and stocked Jack up with a couple of scoops of ice cream from Gordy's Bait Shop. Then we drove down to the city of Lake Geneva to return the shirt that I had bought for my reunion but wasn't really happy with and to buy Jack a Lake Geneva hoodie. Funny, both were the same price so it was a wash on my credit card!

Then we decided that we'd be spontaneous and bought tickets to go on the Lady of the Lake tour of Geneva Bay. We sat right at the open bow on the second level and enjoyed the cruise despite the fact that it rained on us a bit. We figured we'd get dry.

I was able to squeeze a run in before dinner and then a swim in the rain (no thunder and lightening, I promise!) with my sister Linda. After dinner, I went on a stroll down the shore path with my mom and then we enjoyed a nice breeze as we sat and chatted on the pier.

All of a sudden the sky lit up with lightening and we hightailed it up the hill to the cottage where we are once again cozy and dry. I will now unplug my computer and stick my nose in an old-fashioned book.

The First Leg

Sometime this spring, when I was feeling a bit sloggy after a generally sedentary winter, I got a bee in my bonnet about doing a "triathalon" at the lake this summer.

Over the years, I've (1) swum across the lake, (2) hiked around the lake on the shore path, and (3) biked around the lake on roads. But I've never done all three in the same summer. Barring extenuating circumstances, this is the year!

Swimming across the lake from our pier is about a mile each way, though some people think it's a bit further. I'm going to have to google map it and measure it more precisely. Hiking the shore path with all of the bays and points is about 22-23 miles. Estimates I've found vary.

Biking around the lake is exactly 20.1 miles. A very, very hilly 20.1 miles. I know this because I had an odometer on my bike when Dad and I made the ride today.

One leg down!

Composite

Another early morning after a late, late night. My sister Linda picked me up at 8:00 and we met up with her real estate agent in Stoneham. Linda has been teaching third grade there for four years and is thinking about trading her 45-minute commute for a house in town.

We visited six properties and at the end of it all we mostly wished we could combine all of the best features of each house. The yard from the first house, the airy kitchen of the second house, the upstairs laundry room of the third house (as opposed to all of the laundry rooms in creepy basements), the amazing woodwork in the fourth house, the overall feel of the inside of the fifth house, all at the price of the sixth house (pictured above).

In the afternoon my mom, my sisters, and I got on a flight to Milwaukee and we are now all settled in at the Lake Geneva cottage. Linda plans to process the house hunting expedition over a relaxing week on the water. Sounds like a wise way to make wise decisions.

Alfresco

I started this daily blogging project to help me find adventure in my every day life. Today exceeded my expectations.

After far too little sleep, I got up this morning and drove to Providence, Rhode Island, to meet my sister Maryann and her friend Amy, who lives here:

As soon as I pulled up in front of her house and saw the front garden, I knew I was going to like Amy. And I did.

The three of us spent the afternoon riding bikes along the East Bay Bike Path for about 15 miles along the shore, 30 miles round trip with lots of fun stops along the way.

After we turned in our bikes at the rental place (slightly late), we hopped in the car and drove to a beach for refreshing dip.

Then back to Amy's house, where their friend Sheela joined us and we cooked up pizzas on the grill (one with caramelized onions and goat cheese and one with tomatoes, mozzarella and basil pesto).

Which we ate in Amy's magical backyard.

New friends, fresh air, invigorated bodies, salt water, a happy house, tasty food, laughing far into the night.

I will sleep well.

Reoutfitted and Reunioned

Not much happened according to plan today. I thought I got to the airport in plenty of time to catch a flight this morning, but I was too late to get a seat on a plane I thought I already had a seat on.

I ended up taking a flight almost six hours later.

And I managed to make it to my high school reunion, the very first one I've ever attended.

I even had time to stop at a store to buy a new outfit (a lovely deep purple linen shirt and a pair of slate gray linen capris). I wasn't really happy with the shirt I bought the other day and the new linen shirt didn't really work with the full black skirt. But I did wear the lacy green tank underneath!

It's so funny that I stressed so much about what to wear, but I wanted to feel confident and comfortable. You know, the opposite of how I felt most days in high school!

It was a good night. I'm glad it all came together in the end so I could reminisce with Billy about being his spelling partner in third grade and with Michelle about eating giggle noodle soup. I loved learning that Linda is a kindergarten teacher, that Donna served in the Air Force, that Leslie lives in Norway, and that Liz is reinventing her life by going to law school in the fall. And it was fun finding out how many classmates ended up together, especially Mike who confessed he had a crush on Erin since the seventh grade and finally got to marry her 13 years later.

Eat It Up

Today was all about eating. Lunch with cousin David, his wife Cori, and their two kids. An evening out at the Friday night fish fry with the Pringle and Kinnick cousins and the Karsten family.

And this.

David and Cori bought this Venus Fly Trap at the Home Depot. We've gotta get us one of those!

Hot Dog and Beans

Cousin Jody, our friend April, and I headed to the farmer's market in the city of Lake Geneva this morning. I meant to bring my camera and sure wish I had. I'd have taken pictures of the huge bunches of onions and beets and the buckets full of fresh flowers. I'd have taken pictures of the apple cider donuts and basil mozzarella we tasted.

As a consolation prize, here is a picture of the beans I bought and cooked up for dinner tonight.

And as a special added bonus, here is a picture of April's dog Whimsy cooling off in the lake this afternoon.

Worn Out

So. Much. Heat. Then add eight miles of hiking on the shore path and lots and lots and lots of swimming. In fact, we are heading down for an after sunset swim as soon as I post this.

We just came back from dinner at the Dari-Ripple. Since I did so much hiking today, I thought I deserved a milkshake with dinner. Ugh. I think I might just roll down the hill and into the lake.

And then, when I'm dry, I'm going to roll right into that bed of mine!

Update: Floating on my back watching the stars come out = bliss.

Outfitted

Today I did something I never do here in Wisconsin (or really anywhere if I can help it). I actually went shopping for clothes. I need something to wear to my 30th high school reunion on Saturday, and I was completely uninspired by everything in my closet at home.

Putting together outfits is absolutely not my strong suit. (Take the pun. Please.)

I spent over an hour trying on different things, hoping to find something stunning, but ending up with something pretty typical for me. Except for the lacy bit. That's a little something new.

Sigh. At least it was an hour spent in air conditioning. The thermometer in my car registered 101 degrees at one point on the way home!

There and Back Again

The real voyage of discovery consists not in

seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes.

--Marcel Proust

While we were waiting for some good friends to arrive from Omaha to stay in the little cottage next door (a cottage which has gotten a surprising amount of coverage in this blog over the past few days), I decided to hike a few miles on the shore path to Black Point and I arranged with Dad and Jack to pick me up there in the sailboat.

Here's the shore path as I emerged from the little stretch of woods on our property.

Here's one of the most impressive gardens along the way.

And here's the path as I reached Black Point, which is being protected from further development.

Here is the able crew, picking me up right on schedule!

Shortly after I took the picture above, the wind picked up dramatically, Dad took the tiller, and we had a wild and wet ride home.

Here's just a little taste:

Oasis

Oh, it was so hot from the moment we woke up this morning! And they say it is going to be hot all week. Thankfully we can do this:

But of course, we can't stay in the lake all the time. That made Annie's invitation to dinner in the little cottage next door--which has air conditioning!--so inviting.

Friends and family, good food, good conversation, and cool, cool air. Nice.