Terrifying...

… high speed ride on ATVs (one piloted by Bri, the other by Renee) on a narrow, steep, twisty, puddle-pocked and boulder strewn trail in the Harrison Hills of northern Wisconsin, surrounding the Nies cottage. It was cold, but the kids—even the little ones, and the dog—seemed to love it… and everyone survived. Tel père (et mère) tel fils (et filles).

The Rain Held Off...

…until the fun was done.

To Boulder Junction for lunch, where, alas, we found the recommended place would not be opening until 3. Not to be distracted, we chose the Boulder Beer Bar—and the choice was fortuitous…great Bloody Mary and excellent pulled pork, along with the full “up-north” Wisconsin ambiance.

On the way back, on County M, we diverted to a Northern Highland State Forest campground, and then drove a few miles on a tunnel of trees—along the east side of Trout Lake.

Well, That Was A Flop

The Whitewater Chamber of Commerce and its Economic Development Authority came up with the idea of a “Story Telling” weekend to promote the town. Various activities, such as open mic at the bandshell for people who like to talk. And things like that.

One component was intended to feature local authors—so, in a closed-off alley downtown, local authors were invited set up tables featuring their wares, and, at scheduled times, to read selections of their work. Being what some might loosely consider an “author” I agreed to participate (although pretty sure I should have been far, far away, perhaps picking up hickory nuts.)

Here’s my table. (Thanks to Sue for helping me set it up.)

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Needless to say, on this chilly and very windy day, the narrow alley became a wind tunnel, and good parts of the 5 other “author’s” tables shredded and blew “from far and eve and morning, and yon twelve winded sky.”

For the three hours I was in attendance, the entire venue had a total of 3 bonafide customers, all of whom bought my books. No one else made a sale. Nonetheless, 3 of the other “authors” went up to the mic and read, although their words blew beyond comprehension before anyone in the non-existent crowd heard even a smattering of them. I caught snatches…of a monster rising out a a bay in Japan, of something intended to be poetry about something I couldn’t decipher, and then a list of a watercolor painter’s favorite colors—pretty sure red was at the top of the list.

Ah, well. Good practice, eh?

Nuts on the Noggin

I had despaired of finding hickory nuts this fall since we got back from Manitoulin long after the squirrels got into the trees. But, today, on our walk in the prairie, we passed under the majestic hickory I have probably showed off here before, only to hear thwaps and whallops of something falling from the sky whenever wind shook the tree limbs.

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Although the squirrels (and weevils) had been busy, as evidenced by all the shrapnel and drilled nuts lying on the sidewalk, when we went off the path and into the goldenrod we were able to collect a good number of what might be viable seeds, especially since some of them fell as we were gathering.

The experience of standing under hickory rain made me remember the hickory tree at the lake end of the sidewalk, by Wolf’s, in Crystal Lake. I’m almost certain I remember listening to nut drop under that tree, and I am certain we harvested the nuts and ate them.

All About Trees

A walk in the park today with Sherry (chair of the WW Urban Forestry Commission) and Ginny (long time Whitewater resident and donor of $10,000 to the Arboretum At Starin Park [AASP]). I’m trying to convince Ginny to head up a small adult AASP Stewardship Team.

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White ash, not as susceptible to EAB

White ash, not as susceptible to EAB

And, closer to home, Vi’s magnificent crab. These little apples will be gone by February, of not sooner—robins, cedar wax wings, starlings, etc, and eventually squirrels.

Dim, rainy, windy, and cooler today.

Tech Troubles

Two frustrating hours in a chat room (typing back and forth) with a Squarespace tech trying to get this image problem fixed, but to no avail. After all that time the tech decided the only option was to kick the case up to the next level (programmers I assume), and that they would get back to me. Aaaarrrghh.

Kentucky coffeetree, started from seed and in need of a new home

Kentucky coffeetree, started from seed and in need of a new home

So, for now, if I want an image to be undistorted, I have to take it into Photoshop, resize it, and then upload it to the blog via computer. Could this be the end of my blog?

Keep On Trikin'

A pleasant 7 miles or so on the Glacial Drumlin trail, on a very warm October day.

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Kayak drying out in preparation for sanding.

On the down side, I upgraded my iPhone to iOS 15, and now the Squarespace app doesn’t work at all. (Come on Squarespace, get your act together.) So now, to do a blog, I have to go through the computer, with is more onerous. Blogs might be more brief until the tech issues are resolved.

Boosted

Kind of a crazy day, what with basement remediation, window replacement, and truck to the shop (again), not to mention haircut. No naps for the wicked. Nice morning rain, though damp and too warm after.

Turtle in the prairie, a long way from the pond

Turtle in the prairie, a long way from the pond

I think I forgot to mention that we also got our Covid booster shots.

The Last of the Pie

Morning walk, long forenoon bike ride (both of us), afternoon hike up Bald Mound, and tuna steak with homemade pesto pasta for dinner. Settling back in to our boring routine.

Note: Squarespace has updated their app, and now photos appear stretched horizontally. Once again I’ll have to help them fix the software.)

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