...random thoughts, opinions and secrets on children... aging... cooking... crafts... nature...divorce...second chances...
and whatever else I deem curious...
~Copyright 2017. Hootie~

Monday, June 30, 2008

Buried Treasures...



This is what I recall of my youth.  I grew up just blocks away from Lake Michigan.  In the summers we would walk to the beach with our mom, her "mom" friends and their kids.  We'd take a lunch or snacks and spend the day playing at the waters edge.  

I don't recall when I first saw the ocean.  It was not a big deal for me because it was pretty similar to the Lake.  To me, anything smaller than Lake Michigan was a pond.  And anything bigger, seemed the same.  As I have aged I now know that they are indeed NOT the same.  The ocean has a sense of wild about it.  An ocean can be tame, but there is always that wildness in it.  On the other hand, a Lake such as Lake Michigan can be wild, but there is always that sense of tameness in it.  

When my step-dad and mom died two years ago my siblings and I had the task of cleaning out the house.  It was a huge task, but some times it felt like a treasure hunt.  While in the musty basement, I found a very dust, water-spotted, unframed, oil painting.  One look at it and I knew my mom had painted it and it was inspired from my young days in Miller, IN.  

With a sly smile on my face I took the painting home and showed my husband.  He was a bit skeptical of my plans.  I washed the painting off with plain water and a soft cloth.  Then I took the picture in to a frame shop.  The end results are what you see in the bottom picture.  If you are in my house and you look closely you can still see some of the water spots.  I am sorry my mom didn't sign or date her work.  It must be from the early 70's.  

This summer, when the days are sunshiny and hot, I find myself looking at this painting and thinking of the Coppertone girl with her dog.   I see my mom, sitting in the sand and looking out at the water.  That sly smile crosses my face again as I know I found a treasure that only I could truly appreciate.  

Peace...

I do not tire of looking at such beauty.  

Not the best picture in the world, but I snapped this while the van was moving as we drove home from dropping our daughter off at camp.  We were near St. Joseph, MI driving  along Lake Michigan.  


Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Look what we saw...on our way to camp!

Another Bear Hunt!  

While driving up in Michigan to Interlochen, we saw this sign.  I did not take this photo but instead nabbed it from the Michigan DNR site.  Apparently 90% of the 15,000-19,000 bear in Michigan live in the U.P.  There is a section of highway M-115 that runs through bear habitat.  From the article I read, in the past five to seven years 11 bears have been hit and killed by cars on this and an adjacent section of highway.  It says there have been numerous reported "close calls" too.  

No bears spotted on our trip.  I'll keep looking on the next trip north in two-and-a-half weeks.  :)

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

The Hyper-miler and the Bear Hunt

About 20 mile into our fresh tank of gas - just past Morgantown, W. Virginia - our transmission seemed to be acting up!  

We limped the last 200 miles to our in-laws house near DC.  We would creep 40 mph up the hills, which were really mountains; and then hold our arms up for the roller coaster ride hitting 70+ on the downhill slope.  It was truly a lesson in being a hyper-miler.  

Every so often I'd see a wildlife sign with a deer and a bear silhouette on it.  Wouldn't it be great to see a bear!?  We certainly were creeping a long at times and my camera was just itching to snap that shot.  

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After making the 600+ mile return trip and nay a problem with the transmission, my husband was able to disconnect, then reconnect the fuse which caused our check engine light to turn on.  

Can't wait for our next adventure...I wonder when, and where, we'll get stuck!  I hope there is cell service.  :)


Friday, June 06, 2008

The Nut in DC....May 08

In order to see this whole picture you need to click on it...


The nut

Tuesday, June 03, 2008

Wow! Uncanny likeness.


The former Surgeon General and a recent judge in the Electric Vehicle event at Science Olympiad Nationals at The George Washington University in DC.  

My research shows C. Everett Koop is 91.  Highly unlikely that this was him on Saturday.  


Photos from the Science Olympiad Nationals - May 31, 2008