Random Images from the Upper Peninsula

I'm getting a little behind again so I thought I'd pop up a few images from our time in the UP of Michigan... the first two weeks in September. I think it's plain to see why we like this part of the USA so much.

view from the bus-house

foot dip in the river

some time to chill and let the stresses of this summer go 

looking for an evening snack

a little exploring...

ho-hum... another nice day in the UP.

makes cool evenings a little more tolerable

We've been back in the Beaver Dam Wisconsin area since the 13th and are busy with projects and preparations for Sabbatical II. Should have the camper next week and we're anxious to get it out and spend a few nights aboard.

Sept 3 - Good Days Ahead

Sept 1 - UPpity for a Couple Weeks

After the rough summer we've had this year we were primed and ready to go somewhere... anywhere. So yesterday, without too much thought or planning, we fired up the bus-house and headed north, into the land of pasties... the UP of Michigan.

The route was all north - US151 to US141 at Green Bay, to MI95 from near Iron Mountain to Camp. Light winds and a few clouds made driving easy and enjoyable. Taking the bus-house on what could be it's last excursion with us aboard added a touch of emotion for us too. Making this a family outing, our little Ford Focus toad made the trip too... following the bus-house like a little lost puppy.

Out of respect for the owner's privacy we strive to keep the precise location of our "Camp" up here in the UP confidential. But I will tell you it's on a lake and the property is surrounded by trees. That oughta' narrow it down for the curious.

We hope to get close to two weeks of R&R in before returning to Beaver Dam for the Fall and all the tasks associated with moving most of our "stuff" from the bus-house to the apartment out at the farm, and then getting the new truck camper prep'd and ready to go. I'm sure we'll also make a few short excursions while we familiarize ourselves with the new rig and make sure all systems are "go". During the next couple weeks I'll write more about all that, as well as fill in a few other gaping holes in the record created by this blog-weary writer's sins of omission.

Facebook is Loosing Me

My first attempt at a post on my thoughts about Facebook has been discarded... wadded up and chucked in the virtual waste basket. It really wasn't very "friend"ly... actually came off rather mean-spirited. I'm not sure why. It's difficult to be critical of something that so many of my "friends" and relatives use... and, apparently, think highly of... without coming across as being critical of those using it. I don't want to do that... and I certainly don't want to come across as seeming to tell others what to do.

Let me just say this: I check in on my "friends" on Facebook to see what they're doing, where they are, why they are where they are, and to, maybe, see what they have to say, what they're thinking about, and how they feel. That's the reason I signed up for FB in the first place. I love reading about my Grand-kids, the family and extended family, seeing photos of them all... following the travels of nomadic friends... getting into their minds for just a few seconds. Quick efficient updates.

But, increasingly, it seems to me, my screen is filled with posters, signs, or e-chain letters (click "like" if you love Jesus, hate Obama, or think the world will end this year) written by someone unknown, that contain a message a "friend" wants to share with me. Often that message contains a political or religious agenda... an agenda I may not appreciate or agree with. Even if I am in sync with the message, I don't like having to wade through all this clutter to find out how my kids or grand-kids are doing. This evolution of FB might be fine for some, but it's not for me.

Call me old-fashioned, but I'd much rather hear from YOU... about YOU.

I think that's all I'll say about Facebook today.

Found Alive, Author Vows to Return to Old Ways

To all those folks who tenaciously check this blog every day (something like a hundred a day)... even though there's been NO activity or posts for a month and a half... take heart, the author has been found, alive, and is currently in rehab, where a team of professionals is working every day to help him regain the ability to think clearly, to write, and to get back his passion and excitement for blogging. With a little luck, he should be back to his old ways in the next few days.

There's so much to write about. One of the first topics will be Facebook. What's happened to Facebook recently that, at least as far as I'm concerned, is making me think seriously about leaving?