We Booked

And we will book no more.  We are suffering the aftereffects of playing a younger person's game.  I walk 8K once a week but on solid ground not snowshoes.  The course was much to be desired.  Case ended up taking off his skiis and walking his way across the finish line.  At least the stars were bright and the entertainment along the way, and the band in the victory tent was good.  This event will be listed on the category:  Been There, Done That.

Walking Lake Superior

Guess what I am doing...snow shoeing across Lake Superior...at night.

Oh, the crazy things that go on in the Northwoods.   On Saturday evening I (along with 4,000 of my closest friends) will be snowshoeing 6 miles across a small bay of Lake Superior.  The ice is 30 inches thick.  There are 3 food/comfort stations along the way on the ice.  The entire route is lit with 1,000 ice luminary.  Case, of course, is taking the skiing route that parallels the snowshoe route.  It is called "Book Across the Bay." 

Alive and Kicking in the Northwoods

The good part is that the procedure is over and recovery is going as expected.  Today I am going to finish my taxes. 

The last two blog entries are to let you know that retiring in the Northwoods isn't ALL fun and games...just most of the time. 

Another blog entry of: he retired too early

I have another dental procedure - extraction of a tooth with a root canal that split.  It can't be saved and it can't stay because it is really bothering me so out it goes.  Argh!  Another retired dentist in the area recommended an oral surgeon that he used...so off to Rice Lake - 75 minutes away...instead of driving 5 minutes away to oral surgeons who I know by first names.  Life in the Northwoods.

SUPERBOWL

Even though the Packers weren't in the game, I enjoyed it anyway.  Got to see Clay Matthews in a suit in the pre-game; lights going out was fun; game was close; watching a man in full football gear make a confetti angel on the field was a nice finish. 

Al, the mailman

Here in the Northwoods you can still call the letter carrier a mailman.  There is a woman who delivers it on Saturday.  Everyone just calls her the "sub" or "late" because she isn't as quick as Al.  If there is an over-sized package, he drives the quarter mile lane and 1 big hill to deliver it to our door.  This happens often because we have taken to the internet to procure supplies:  special food for our birds, gifts from catalogs, car parts, etc.  Sometimes it comes by UPS, FEDEX or a shlock outfit called Speedy Delivery (Not).  Most of the time it is the United States Postal Service - in our case - Al.  He doesn't wear the uniform or drive the special truck with blue and red signage.  He sports a handlebar mustache that curls on the ends.  And he drives a Buick.  To manage in the Northwoods, the rest of us have trucks, or SUV's,  a 4 wheel drive of some kind - probably with bags of sand in the back for weight.  Not Al.   He drives a 1994 Buick sedan.  Never been stuck.  Always delivers on time.  Goes up and down some crazy lanes like ours.  A Buick.  I guess that is what I need to shop for next time.  

We Won!

Hayward was the "winner" in today's temperature contest in Wisconsin.  We were at -23 degrees this morning.  We beat out Tomahawk, which was just -20. 

It stopped the outdoor activities but not jumping in the truck and going to town for lunch!






















































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