Home1 and Home2

First, a little catching up on WI. Readers will recall the new bird feeder setup. Well, it seems it became more of a squirrel feeder setup during the final few days we were at Home2 (we returned to Home1 on the 23rd). Those pesky squirrels can suck a bird feeder dry in no time at all. Ah, but we purchased a special "squirrel feeder baffle" which has yet to be installed atop the new post leading to the feeders. Tune in later for more developments.

While at Home2, we updated the two flower beds that are on the lake side of the home. Here is "mine." Kathie has another at the opposite end of the house. Note the gnome or elf that moved in. He was a retirement gift from a friend. I think this is a great place for him. The weather there was quite dry, so we hope that while we are at Home1, where it rains frequently this year, Home2 is getting at least some moisture. We intend to return to Home2 for a couple more weeks during middle July. Also, here is a photo of meine Frau attempting to catch some fish.

Finally, at Home1 we are busy working to complete the updating of our kitchen and adjacent areas. Here are a couple of samples of some of what we are doing. First, you can see the new kitchen floor, which is all new hickory. We really like the variety of color in this wood and its hardness. The finish on it was able to cure well while we were at Home2 for the three recent weeks in June. If you look close, you can see the new stove, which is also featured in a separate photo. It has two convection ovens, one small one on top and a second, more conventionally sized one on the bottom. The larger oven also has an interesting array of racks, including one which offers a partial shelf for items of different sizes and heights. The burners are gas, but the convection ovens are electric. We had to have 220 service installed, along with some alterations to the delivery of the natural gas supply. (What ever happened to standards?) If you look at the first photo carefully, you will note that the refrigerator still occupies space in the dining room. We are thinking of a new one, since our appliances seem to be switching from the old almond color to a combination of black and stainless steel. Unfortunately, the "standards" issue arises again. We have a 69" high space for our refrigerator, but the one we like best is 69-1/4". I have developed a plan, however, and so we might opt for this favored model anyway. Sawing and cursing will be involved.

Watch this space for more exciting development regarding Home1 and Home2.

Flora and Fauna

It has been quite the menagerie up here in WI. Pictured, you will see some butterflys and some of the flowers that are blooming everywhere. This one is orange hawkweed. There are many others in bloom as well. David Curry took the photo of the yellow swallowtail. I don't know what the black one is. We have tree, bird, and wildflower identification books. I guess we need one for butterflys too.

We have frequently seen deer crossing the roads, and a couple of days ago we saw a large black bear cross the road in front of us. No pictures of these creatures, unfortunately. Last evening, Kathie started out with Josey for a short walk. She had only reached the garage when she started shouting at Josey and calling to me. Turns out that Josey had walked up nose to nose with a porcupine who was extremely bristled about the meeting. Josey had the good sense to retreat before anything really bad happened, and the porcupine rambled on into the woods behind the garage. Again, no pictures, unfortunately.


Then there is the garter snake at left who reminds me of many things my mother said to me. Your eyes are bigger than your stomach. Never put more in your mouth than you can safely swallow. Don't take such big bites, or you might choke. Never eat anything bigger than your face. Last I checked, the swallowing was still underway. Snakes-1 Toads-0.


Finally, you will see here the new setup for feeding the birds. I had tried running feeders out on a rope with pulleys attached to a tree, but the rope was unsightly. This post and hanger system seems to blend into the woods better. However, my system for hanging the feeders on the hooks needs some improvement. I have a long pole with a notch that lets me lift each one up into place (about 12 feet up), but the pole is too flexible, so I need to find something else. I'm also going to need to put a flat plate of some kind on top of the post, or the squirrels are going to have a field day running up the post and then jumping to the feeders to suck out all the sunflower seeds. Chipmunks love to "clean up" under the feeders, and this keeps Josey quite entertained. We have seen goldfinches, purple finches, and a number of other birds.

Cabin Projects

We completed two projects in the last three days here at the cabin. In the spirit of "before and after", the first photo shows the steps down to the lake. This was taken in April, and you can see how we had to store the dock and boat lift on the shore during the winter months. You can also see that the top of the steps are higher than necessary. This was a result of them being built before the landscaping was done, at which time the yard was lowered quite a bit and tapered away from the house and toward the shore.

First project: We cleared the shore on the west side of the steps so that we will be able to store the dock and boat lift there during the winter. That will leave the existing slope open for a better winter view of the lake. Kathie also cleaned up and burned much of the dead and down brush on the east side so that we can create some trails and additional access to the water on that side. The photo looking up from the dock shows the newly cleared part on the left (west) and the existing cleared shore on the right (east). Josey is busy studying the lake--something she loves to do, though she really doesn't like swimming in it.



Second project: We tore apart the upper steps, removed three of them, and built a new deck/walkway that goes straight out from the yard. Kathie cleverly filled in a small space between the stone walkway leading to the steps and the new deck/walkway. She filled it with rocks and stones of all sizes. She also used some of the sand and earth we removed under the old steps to create a better path into the woods and to the right of the steps. Not only are there fewer steps to climb now, but it all looks much more open. We think it looks much, much better and makes the entire yard much more attractive.



Finally, there is a picture of a happy Kathie and her pal, Josey, sitting on the new walkway.

This was all hard work but fun for me and very gratifying for us both.

Hayward Attraction

Those of you who have visited Hayward, WI, will know of the "National Fishing Museum" and its giant musky model. After years of driving by and smirking at the thought of this possible tourist trap, we finally spent $6.50 each and visited the place. Enclosed you will see Kathie, me, and David Curry in the jaws of the beast. There are also shots of our guests, David and Donna, and another of Kathie and me in front of a similarly giant walleye, with the musky in the background.

It turns out that the museum has some interesting features. There are lots of giant fish models all through a park-like area. Most of the local fish species of interest are represented. Then there is an actual museum building filled with several collections of antique and newer items, including artificial baits sorted by type (flys, spoons, plugs, etc.), reels sorted by type (fly, casting, spinning, open-face, closed-faced, etc.), rods, boat motors of all vintages, fishing club patches, and others. There are also numerous mounted fish, some of them record-setting, and there are displays of individuals who have contributed in some way to the sport of fishing. (One of these is Iowa's Tom Bedell--the photo being of a much younger Tom Bedell, I must say--recognized for the contributions he made to preserving the Berkeley fishing company, now Pure Fishing, and helping to start related charitable causes.) Frankly, we enjoyed ourselves and had a number of laughs in the process.

Unfortunately, David and Donna head back to Iowa today. We very much enjoyed their visit and will miss them until the next time we are together. We played numerous games of "Hand and Foot", including trying out some rule variations we found on the web. We ate perhaps too well. We tried our hand at fishing and are just beginning to get a handle on how to work the lake--nothing serious to report yet, however. We played many games of pinball. We have begun to visit about Italy and the possibility of traveling to see David and Donna in Florence while they are there--maybe in October. In short, we have been having fun.

More later!

Gus 'n Us

Kathie and I drove to Minneapolis to stay overnight with Will and Sandy last Sunday evening. We delivered Will's birthday present--a workbench that I had made for him. The next morning, we drove on up to our place at the lake in Wisconsin. Along the way, we passed a chainsaw carving business that I had admired on several prior trips. This time we stopped, and as you will note in the pictures, we found a new friend that we spent at least an hour trying to name. His name is Gus, and his job, now that he is located at the entrance to our lake home, is to greet our guests (or not, depending on the mood he and we are in--please take note of the sign he is holding).

Our friends, David and Donna, are here with us. They arrived on Monday, shortly after we got here, and we have been having a great time. They go home tomorrow, but Kathie and I will be here until later June.

Wish you could be here to enjoy the peace and beauty with us. We are learning to fish the lake!!

TTFN

Warrenville Graduation

I'm a little late on this posting, but I wanted to share some photos I took when we were at Gail and Greg's home to help celebrate Vicki and David's graduation from high school. They are two very talented young adults. It was fun to hear about their plans for college. Grandma Novy came from Florida for the graduation and picnic. Gail and Greg had the house all decked out for the occasion, and Gail put on quite a spread of food. Aunt Kathie enjoyed catching up with relatives. It was a wonderful day. We wish Vicki and David every possible success.