Pine Needles

My walk in the woods today was scented by pine needles which were falling and had fallen.  They can be up to 6 inches long.  It was 70 degrees, overcast, and a strong breeze - perfect for enjoying the autumn smells.

We are still working

...lest you think we just play...

Logs in our driveway waiting to be split and stacked for winter 2018-2019.  If you heat with wood, you need to have the following winter's wood drying for a year before use.  In the last few weeks Case and I felled these trees, cut them into the size to fit in our wood stove, and stacked them here to be split. 

These trees are all birch trees which don't get much wider than this.  All of these trees did not have any leaves on them this year.  That means that the wood will begin to rot and eventually fall on its own.  We look for trees that are between healthy, having leaves and beginning to rot.  We are not clear cutting the Northwoods.  🌳🌳

Potty Talk

The last two Tuesdays at my hiking group has been interesting in a potty way.  The first week the woman who hosted at her house rented a port-a-potty for the day.  There were 45 or so of us=at least 90 flushes.  She didn't think her septic could take it.  What a hoot!  She did have seating for all of us which included seating around the fire ring.  Wow.

The following Tuesday we gathered at Grand View town park to walk the snowmobile trail.  Walked four miles in the shade-very nice.  The park was very nice with several pavilions, tennis courts and a statue of Chief Namegagon who was reported to have found a silver mine because he always paid his bill at the trading store in Ashland in pure silver. Nobody has found the mine...but I digress.  There was an inside flush toilet in the town maintenance building that was unlocked for us.  However, there was one stipulation with so many of us - again around 45 - flush every third person.  Enough said. 

Canada Quirks

Just returned from a short stay in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada.  Only 5 hours door to door - lucky for us.  Here are the quirks in no particular order.

• No ice cubes.  We try to eat at Ma & Pa places and not at chains.  Ma & Pa places are usually European style - which is no ice cubes.  We frequented a Polish Bistro.  I ordered cold water with ice in Polish mind you.  Nie ice.  Oh.  At least the food was good.
• No cookies.  On a trip to walmart.ca (Walmart.Canada) to pick up supplies, we kept looking for the aisle labeled "Cookies".  No luck.  Snacks, Chips, Candy. But NO COOKIES.  In the snack aisle we found a 3 foot section of Canadian off brand cookies for 99 cents a box.  They were very hard - glad that we didn't break a tooth.  
• Better bags.  At this same Walmart the plastic bags used to carry the cookies out of the store were heavy mil.  Labeled walmart.ca (see above) these bags could haul rocks.  The plastic bags labeled Walmart (Hayward) are so flimsy that sometimes we don't make it out of the store before disaster strikes. If we can put a man on the moon, why can't we have heavy mil bags like Canada?

I've Been Busy

This is the link to the photographs of Lucyna and Shane's wedding in May in Iowa.

http://www.gregoryhitchcockphotography.com/Complete-Wedding-Events/20170520Lucy/

It was a beautiful weekend and a wonderful day. Just go to the pics that you want to see.  There are 1071 of them thanks to the digital age.  Wowser! 

(The photo on the church altar is the groom's father who died just a few years ago.  Flower girl is bride's niece -Kata just 3 and a half- Tad's daughter.  The little one year old boy is her brother Alek who thoroughly enjoyed himself.  The couple and witnesses signed the marriage license on the altar during the ceremony.  Father/daughter dance was Unchained Melody which was planned since she was a young girl.)  

Alek is One!

"Our grandson Alek had his first birthday.  He was already a toddler walking at 11 months.  This guy is so happy to be upright like everyone else.

Tad (our son and Alek's father) and Alek driving at the mall

Let me eat cake - and frosting!

Two days later he is dressed for his Aunt Lucyna and Uncle Shane's wedding

At the reception Alek shed his vest to bust a move on the dance floor

He is always happy and ready for action.  We so enjoy his company!

Federal Consultant

Case has now become a consultant for United States Government vehicles.

What happened was the substitute letter carrier Amanda got a flat tire on the road to our house.  She took a chance that someone would be home and have an "air hose" so she drove our quarter-mile lane.  Yes, we were home.  Yes, Case could definitely handle the situation.  Little did she know that she couldn't have stopped at a better place.  (We are 1 of 3 mail stops on our 3 mile road so I guess it was 1/3 of a chance that she would stop here.)  A sharp, pointed rock punctured her front passenger tire.  The spare was needed so she unloaded her entire trunk of a Chevy Impala full of packages for folks on her route to get to the spare.  While Case changed the tire, she loaded the trunk back up.  Then she was on her way giving many thanks.

And that is why Case is now a Federal Consultant.

Fun in the Northwoods...