Winds-day
Fierce north wind, with ice pellets and a little snow.
But Ellie, Maddie, and Becca over for some afternoon fun, and then a sleep-over.
Mimi did pretty well, too.
Parent Teacher Conferences...
...which actually are a good thing when you are a retired teacher, and today resulted in Katy and Will visiting us in Whitewater for some bike riding and lots of ping-pong. (Ping-pong is the thing these days.)
Everyone was so busy that no one took any photos. Therefore this one from a few days ago:
A dark and damp day, but not so bad as to preclude biking and some time at the playground.
Actually, there is one photo. Thanks to Abby.
Storms!
Storm windows to be exact.
Witch Hazel...
...flowers in the fall.
Fascinating shrub. Flowers are little filaments of yellow. Oddly enough, the plant has both this year’s flowers and last year’s maturing fruit on board at the same time. And the fruit capsule is explosive and can eject the seed up to thirty feet. (Note: none of us here have been struck by flying seeds.) The leaves and bark can be macerated and distilled into an astringent decoction. Maybe, someday, the bottle in the bathroom will be replaced by a bit of home-brew.
Day of Sun And Wind
Perfect for yard work and computer work, including a bit of writing.
Perfect also for a good long sit on the back patio as the sun was sliding down in the west.
On an outing, Pax and I visited the lovely, volunteer built Haumerson’s Pond ice skating warming house in Fort, which is only a year old. Halloween festivities have been cancelled, and it looks like some dry weather will be necessary before freeze-up.
The Old Routine
Rather quiet, rather slow.
Niki headed back towards St. Paul (after a fun visit), and Sue down helping Irene after her hip surgery. Pax and I took our first big loop walk since arriving back here from Kagawong, and we both enjoyed it. Then in the afternoon we followed the old routine of a bike ride/run to and around the prairie.
Chilly and breezy, and now a fire in the breezeway stove.
Walking The Dogs...
...in the park and prairie.
Pax and Ari having fun together.
Listening to Chicken Salad Chick on the How I Built This podcast, and, after dinner (which includes home grown squash) , watching the new Netflix cooking show Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat.
Forgot to mention world famous waffles for breakfast.
Photo by Nik
Photo by Nik
Books, Squash...
...and so much more.
Victoria Lane
Catching up with the Nies family.
Lots of fun there.
Cold and gray outside. Rosemary moved indoors.
Long Time No See
Visit to Foxpoint.
The weather has turned. Rosemary covered tonight as frost precaution.
Not as bad as Florida...
...but still not the kind of weather you’d hope for in October in Wisconsin.
Pax and I got in a bit of a bike ride as the rain was moving out, and came across lots of purple aster, which pretty much wraps up the prairie’s seasonal flowering.
And then the hickory tree where we try to scavenge nuts every fall, only to be outdone by squirrels and weevils. We did find a few whole nuts without weevil holes. We’ll have to see if they float.
Squared Away
Pretty much everything sorted and stowed. Too hot and buggy to check the garden. On an afternoon bike ride I watched a biggish cloud float my way figuring it was mostly scenic, but no—totally drenched.
Lovely Kentucky Coffee Tree in the park
Climate Change
Forty-four in St. Iggy on departure, eighty-four in Whitewater on arrival.
And then, once here, more lifting, dragging, and shuffling. About 7 hours on the road, over half of it in rain. Flooded fields all down through Wisconsin, and the Rock and Crawfish rivers both way out of their banks.
Still, it is good be done with traveling for a while, and good to be settling in for the season.
Color Tour...
...from Kagawong to Saint Ignace. Some bright color against long gray skies.
It takes a village to pull a waterline
Waterline pulled, everything drained and antifreezed. Not super fun, but not the total worst. Done by noon, but departure delayed until 12:30 while we searched for the missing garage key.
And that’s it for this year.
Tamia Has Been Busy...
... and so have we.
Tamia spent a good part of the day excavating the center of this old stump right outside the back door. She would dive in, grab a mouthful of dirt, pop back up, spit up her load, scratch it behind her, and go back for more. Will this be a new winter home, or perhaps a larder hoard for all the delectables that are being cast outside?
Last cookout—no chairs available
And for us, this may be the worst day of the season, although we have to wait to see what tomorrow and shutdown of the water system brings. Infinite number of end of the season chores, most of which involve heavy lifting.
Enough Wind To Send Us Packing
Strong blow from northeast with big surf. Cold, Be well advised to keep out of the wind. Major cleaning, organizing, packing, stowing kind of a day. Second worst day of the season, in other words.
Photo from yesterday
Seiche...
...following last night’s storm, which dropped perhaps 3 inches of rain. The Susie Pea, which was upright, almost full to the brim.
Super high water this morning, then low water at noon, then high water again by dinner time.
Photos by Sue.
Here’s my “newsy” article for the Expositor:
From Manitoulin To Madeline
The 2018 Great Lakes Islands “Summit”
By Jim Nies
At its annual “summit” meeting, October 1 and 2, the Great Lakes Islands Alliance (GLIA) (formerly called the Great Lakes Islands Coalition) celebrated its second birthday and formally adopted the Charter it has been working on the past year.
This document has as its mission: building relationships, fostering information exchange, and leveraging resources “to address shared challenges and embrace opportunities to benefit islands.” One of its key goals is to” amplify island voices to mainland audiences.”
The “summit” brought over 80 representatives, from thirteen year-round-inhabited islands, to beautiful Madeline Island, a 20 minute ferry ride from the village of Bayfield, Wisconsin, in far western Lake Superior (surrounded by the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore). Jim Nies and Joe Shorthouse represented the Manitoulin Island GLIA team.
Also participating and providing support were the Michigan Office of the Great Lakes, Northland College, and the Island Institute—all the way from Rockland, Maine.
Apparent on arrival was the immense amount of preparatory work done by the Madeline Island planning committee—effective agenda, a lovely meeting place, free lodging for those needing it, fabulous food, opportunities for socializing and networking, even guided tours of the island.
Highlighting the first day of the conference was the keynote presentation by Peter Annin, author of The Great Lakes Water Wars. This book has become the definitive work on the history of attempts to divert Great Lakes water outside the basin, and on the Great Lakes Compact, the legislation that seeks to prevent it. Peter brought the revised and newly released second edition with him which now details the “war” now going on in southeast Wisconsin with the Waukesha, Foxconn, and Pleasant Prairie diversion issues.
After-dinner entertainment included a musical review featuring whacky island tourist questions. And then the representatives from Pelee Island performed a wild and wonderful island trivia game in which the prizes were bottles of that island’s most famous product.
Tuesday’s breakout sessions (in-depth discussions) were devoted to Sustainable Energy, Water Levels, Affordable Housing, and Economic Development. Subcommittees have been formed to compile resources (including grant funding opportunities) in each of these areas and will be available to all GLIA members.
As a member of GLIA, Manitoulin also has access to Maine’s Island Institute, which has been working to improve the lives of Maine islanders for 25 years. The Institute has, among other things, assisted small business development, advanced aquaculture, brought high speed broadband to the islands, helped islands dramatically reduce energy costs and convert to sustainable sources, and has lead planning for climate change adaptation.
“Great Lakes islands have a lot in common with Maine islands,” said John Allen, director of the Michigan Office of the Great Lakes. According to Allen, what the Institute is doing is profound, insightful, and totally in tune with their communities. “We want some of that, too—to help our island communities in a meaningful way.”
Next year’s “summit” conference will be held on Mackinac Island. And the year after that—possibly Manitoulin?
If you are interested in islands, the Great Lakes, love Manitoulin, and would like to be part of the Manitoulin GLIA team, please email : editor@manitoulin.ca
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Home To The Storm
Drive not too rainy, but once back on Manitoulin...heavy rain, slashing wind, and occasional thunder.
Cold in the house on arrival, but half a dozen splits in the stove along with a carrot cake, and now all cozy, though the rain continues to hammer the roof. Swales filling and rivulets running.
We are in the zone... between southern warmth and a big northern cold front. Lake level rising.
Heading to Pinebox soon for a foul weather chicken dinner.
On The Return Road
In the Michigan Sault.
Depart Madeline on the 1:45 ferry. Good conference.
Heavyweight Meeting
Long day sitting, but with a number of fun conversations with folks from various islands.
Photo by Sue
Next year’s “summit” on Mackinac.