Hungry at Last!

 I'm starting with a lovely glimpse of blue sky behind clouds. That is always good to cheer a Michigander in February!

The health report for the day is mixed bag. I sat up more than I have any day since Janary 4. I set a goal to get groceries and walk a mile outside. However, by noon I realized that I was going to be just too tired to do both of those. I did get the groceries.

And, I realized that I was actually hungry! A few foods are still not tasting right, but most are. I came home and made some "glop." That's what I call it when I put some sort of tomato sauce on macaroni and add stuff. Today was onion, green pepper and mushrooms.

I also cleaned my vegetable tray that I keep stocked with things to add to lettuce for salads. It was getting pretty gross. So a picture of it all sparkly and colorful is in order.

All in all, I did quite a few things and about an hour of screen time, but I was also very tired in between the accomplishments.

I still consider it to be moving in the right direction, but things don't seem to go in a straight line. The neuralgia is just weird- little, intermittent flashing pains through my face and eye, and the bones still itch.

I am listening to a 1922 audiobook mystery. It's moving impossibly slowly, and it's read poorly, but I seem to be drawn like a moth to a flame. Almost at the end where I will FINALLY find out "who-dun-it." Hopefully, I can find something a bit more engaging for the next audiobook.

See Snowy Riverside Walk

Almost Before

 Here's the afternoon sky. They are predicting the first snow of the season for tonight. Does this look like snow clouds? Not sure, but I like the lighting.

If we get snow, it's not going to last.

I found out about an herbicide from a friend that supposedly really kills the autumn olive. Roundup, when put on the cut stumps only slows it down. In about 3 years, it's back. However, this one, Tordon, motivates me a lot more effectively since it apparently really kills the stuff.

I'm going to keep working on the hedges of it that now surround our yard this fall until the weather becomes too big an issue. I like it cool for doing the hard work of sawing and hauling.

This is an "almost before" picture because I didn't think to take one before I had cut out several of the trees. There is a picture of this area from the other direction in the link in the footer. It will also motivate me to do enough work on this that you will be able to see a difference when I decide to do an "after," or at least a "partway" picture.

The hole is a garden pond I dug, and actually had water in one year. The deer and Maggie punched holes in the too lightweight liner, and I never could afford to get a sturdier one. But, ever the optimist, I don't want to fill it in... just in case. I'm not dead yet, right!?

The larger tree, right of center, is a mulberry that gets to stay. Near center back are the maple I told you I planted 30 years ago and some quaking aspen. Behind them you can see the white pine that I blogged about last year. It was 4 inches tall in 1992, because I ran over it with the mower. Almost everything else is autumn olive. Will I get it all this year? Heck no. But I'm going to try to make a dent.

The autumn olive is alleopathic which means it kills other plants that try to grow near it. I'm hoping that the aspen clone will reassert itself if I kill this horrible stuff.

It was a heavy, heavy editing day. I'm working on some of my own stuff too. And still contemplating the next few chapters of Vacation from DMS.

See I want my garden back

A Random Visitor

  This is not my favorite visitor, but I guess it's better than the red squirrels. This is a fox squirrel. S/he has been running across the deck rail all month. No good pictures. The only advantage to a fox squirrel is it's not trying to get into the house like the red squirrels did.

Lousy picture, but I am trying to stay focused on work today, not pictures

I am having to go through the campsites list yet again and change some format because I need to cut down the total number of pages. Just full-out panic mode now. Back to work. Tomorrow, I have to get ready for the Muskegon Lakeshore Art Fair on the weekend. I'll have some time for the book, but not all day. I am not at the goal I was shooting for.

Hey, I just discovered the sky is really pretty right now, so that's quality!

See Just Hangin' Out

Swoopy Sky

 Today's big event has to be the storm that swooped in early afternoon.

Literally.

I looked these up, and this kind of cloud formation has a name. It's called Asperitas clouds. It is defined as a low layer that looks like the upside-down surface of a roughened sea. Interestingly enough, these rarely carry rain.

There sure was a good suggestion of rain. I could see the radar. I could smell the rain falling somewhere (actually the smell of the newly wetted earth). Even better, I could see the rain falling behind these interesting clouds.

The "waves" were moving fast. The heavenly sea was roiling.

Quickly, this formation moved off to the east. You can see that ragged edge on the back side. Sure enough, not with these clouds, but behind them, within a few minutes the rain reached me.

It was almost like a spring rain, gentle and falling straight down. A half-inch total. Very nice.

I pretty much took the day off. I did write a newspaper column, but other than that I goofed off. Hopefully, tomorrow morning I'll be ready to jump back into working hard.

See Yesterday's Storm

Clouds and SOLAR

 On the way to Livonia today (3.5 hour drive), the clouds put on quite a show. I never drove in more than some sprinkles, however.

The purpose of the drive was to give my program for the SOLAR Outdoor Club, which has been around since the 1970s and is still going strong. There were about 70 people there.

I had a chance to visit with some people afterwards, and some went out for a social time after we had to be out of the building.

I'm spending the night with one of the members. Great day, but I'm beat. Have to sign off and get flat.

See Sky Day

Same Old?

I'm beginning to want to walk again. But I have to be honest and say that my three-mile road loop that is easy to do from my house is not feeling very appealing. However, I looked back, and the last time I shared pictures from it with you was three years ago! The best feature is the tiny pond/wetland.

I have to admit that for mid-November, this sure looked more like an October sky!

It may open even more, but the gazania I brought inside has all three buds opening. I took it out in the sun today to try to coax it to spread its petals. I'm enjoying the final hurrah of color. I wouldn't mind getting some of these in a variety of colors next year. They seem to be happy in my soil and obviously bloom well for me!

In other news: I edited, I puttered on the household mess a little, and Vacation from DMS is up to 8441 words.

See Three Mile Loop Again

Sky Day

The sky was impressive this evening. This is actually southeast- the late sun was reflecting off the clouds

All of these pictures were taken over a 20-minute period. I think we are doing a transition from the rainy day to something else. Maybe not sun, but lots of changes happened up there. This is the view south.

Just a sliver of a sunset to the west.

Big changes off to the northwest. All that roiling appeared in a half hour as a black cloud broke up.

But the rain's not over for someone yet!

I edited and did a few other things. My back is still not right. Sigh. I hate that it takes time to recover from whatever sets this off occasionally.

See Hikin' in the Rain

Sunrise from the Train

  Marianne from the Toledo area was a total trooper, agreeing to take me to the train station at 2 in the morning. I caught a quick nap on her sofa before we headed out. Our friendship began because of the trail, but discovered we have many more things than that in common, including trains.

The train was full, which is sort of interesting in its own right. This is the Lakeshore Limited from Chicago to New York and Boston, with a split at Albany. I got on in Toledo and got off in Albany. The first time I took this train was in 1975, the same year Amtrak established the line. I took toddler Steve and went to NY to see my mother. We had an entire train car to ourselves. That sure wasn't the case today.

I've taken this route four times, that 1975 trip, then once in the 1980s, and once in 2002, and today. This is the first time it's ever been full when I rode, and it's also the first time that it was pretty much on time. The worst was in the 1980's when I had to sleep on the floor in the station in Rochester and wait for 12 hours because there were mechanical problems.

Anyway, I managed to get a couple more hours of sleep on the train. My seat mate went to get breakfast at about sunrise, which was great for me, because I was able to scoot over to look out the window. The sunrise was spectacular with mammatus clouds lit from below. Even through the crummy train windows the pictures aren't bad. This color is accurate.

Sunrises and sunsets have to be just about the most ephemeral sources of beauty in our lives. It was still looking nice about 5 minutes later, but then the sun actually rose, and all the glory faded.

It's a long way across New York State, by train or car. Train was a great option for this trip. I didn't have to drive. The price was less than I would have spent on gas, and it didn't take much longer. I can't really do that 17-hour drive in one day any more, although I used to. And we were just going to park my car at Marie's house and only take one vehicle to Philadelphia, so there was no reason I had to take the car.

I packed enough food. There was a cafe car in the train, but I opted to not have to spend any extra money. I took my pillow and a blanket. I didn't need the blanket, but I think I'll get a neck pillow before the return trip.

Finally, we crossed the Hudson River to arrive at the Albany-Rensaleer train station.

Marie picked me up and we crossed back to the west side of the Hudson and headed south to her place. The Thruway runs between the Hudson and the Catskills. We think this is Timmerman Hill ahead.

We arrived just in time to fix dinner, and then go do some prep work on a project she is involved in. Now we are crashed. We'll take a picture of us tomorrow. For now, you know I'm here safely. Really tired, but all is well.

See Working My Way East

Fog, Sun, Clouds

  Today was about the weather...We started with thick fog.

But the sun was working hard to deal with it.

For just a little while, the sun succeeded. Best autumn view yet this year, and it's in my own backyard.

The afternoon was alternately blue and cloudy, with some sprinkles. I like the layers of clouds from dark gray to white.

I'm going to a play tonight, but I don't know if they'll allow pictures. We'll see. I'm ready for some theater!

In other news: I edited all morning and worked on the trailer all afternoon. Lots of progress, but no crossing anything off the list yet. Part of the problem is that some things I thought I had crossed off have come back with more work needed. Not trailer stuff, but other things. 35 BIG ITEMS to do (27 done) and 25 small ones (11 done) to do. 38 days to go.

See Ghostly

Ludington State Park Loop

  Cathy and I took a hike this morning. We did a loop that I haven't done this year, maybe not for a couple of years, starting with a walk out to Big Sable Lighthouse.

The morning was hazy with cloud cover- the big lake just faded into the sky, but I liked the curves of the beach

Not quite in focus, but one chipmunk held still long enough for a picture.

We took the Coast Guard Trail to cross the park from Lake Michigan to Hamlin Lake. I liked how the light was catching the sand on the treadway.

There were adorable little horsehair mushrooms popping up all over

Nice reflection of the railing in the water

The afternoon cleared and treated me to another lovely blue and white sky.

We hiked 6.4 miles. The park was getting crowded by the time we finished, but the first hour we had things largely to ourselves. Ran into some friends too. That was fun.

In other news: I worked on the trailer in the afternoon, and did a couple of little things. Big List is still at 73 items with 24 crossed off, leaving 49 to go in 52 days.

Ludington State Park, Michigan: sand road to Lighthouse, Coast Guard Trail, edge of Lost Lake, Sauble River Trail. Total 6.4 miles

See Nordhouse Dunes Hike