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This Saturday I'm participating (so is Joe as a wonderful artist's husband) in an art & science field trip for adults to help with art activities. The program takes place at Lightfoot Bay, a remote recently-acquired-public-nature-area. We took a planning trip on Sunday for the first time. There's also a 1920's vintage lodge, and we get to stay there for the weekend to enjoy a mildly rustic camping experience.
We walked the shore to check things out... and were informed that there's various wildlife preserved in the area, including moose. We don't get to see much of them, but it's a fact that there are moose in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Sure enough! we spotted moose tracks on the beach. 
Definitely not a deer. Look how big the tracks are!! It's going to be a neat experience staying at Lightfoot Bay this weekend.
Probably more like "hooch" or "bathtub booze." Yup, it's our very first time trying to make homemade grape wine. Check back in after 10 days of fermentation. Now all we need to do is stir daily and wait. I already told Joe that I'd let him taste it first to see if he goes blind or not. I think he appreciates my honesty. 
Last night we stayed up late making two batches of grape jelly. Joe patiently dripped and squeezed grape juice while I chatted with my mom on the phone, for about an hour. Everything seemed to have been under control (Joe was very careful with any red splatters) until the final few seconds of boiling. We watched the whole pot of jelly foam come up and spill over in vain. It was rather comical. Definitely a blog pic opportunity. 
Jars of grape jelly, freshly canned and inverted on the counter... still very much in chaos. This was at midnight yesterday.
This is today: all jars have popped and cooled, standing in rows.Yes, we did sample our jelly already. It's very good, tangy and sweet.
Of course, we've checked on our grapes now and then, throughout the summer... but as our August flew by and gone, the grapes seem to have grown and ripen all of a sudden. After a week or so of hot weather the first couple days of September brought cool autumn air to us. Sure enough! our grapes are ready to be picked.
About a month earlier than last year and not having seen any frost, these grapes are actually pleasantly sweet. We won't have to put as much sugar to make jelly. Tonight Joe picked the ripen ones, approximately 5-6 lb., leaving enough for another pick.
Good night, Grapes! Sweet dreams in the fridge....
Look how long my hair has gotten... to the point where it was constantly getting in my way. But why waste such perfect hair? And so much of it? I decided to donate my hair to Locks for Love.Before:
After:
We are off to the State Fair on this beautiful cool summer evening!
It's not that we had fallen off the earth.... Quite opposite. This past week Kayo managed to complete her small mission in keeping our U.S.-Japan relations in tact. We only mean that Kayo didn't screw up badly translating for the delegation from our sister city in Japan. And we got to meet quite a few new and interesting people both from Japan and around here. Joe mostly played a good translator's husband role, but for the "sayonara" party he became a hero, bringing a warm plate of fresh local fish to eat. That early morning Joe and his dad went fishing and caught lots of fish! (Of course, I had to work....) 
A great catch of the day!! 
Every one at the party loved Joe's fish and couldn't get enough of it. And here in the photo, the delegates started playing music and singing songs, while everybody else sang along to familiar tunes. Yes, Leinie's beers were shared and a bottle of sake emptied. We had a good time!
We walked the shore to check things out... and were informed that there's various wildlife preserved in the area, including moose. We don't get to see much of them, but it's a fact that there are moose in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Sure enough! we spotted moose tracks on the beach. 
Definitely not a deer. Look how big the tracks are!! It's going to be a neat experience staying at Lightfoot Bay this weekend.
Jars of grape jelly, freshly canned and inverted on the counter... still very much in chaos. This was at midnight yesterday.
This is today: all jars have popped and cooled, standing in rows.
About a month earlier than last year and not having seen any frost, these grapes are actually pleasantly sweet. We won't have to put as much sugar to make jelly. Tonight Joe picked the ripen ones, approximately 5-6 lb., leaving enough for another pick.
Good night, Grapes! Sweet dreams in the fridge....
The victorious gladiolus and sunflower both survived chipmunks and rabbits.
Here I post the only photo from the State Fair this year. Joe and his dad were very, very disappointed that there was no shoot-out-a-star game. No huge huggable prize this year, but they managed to win a smallish Garfield at the coin-pushing-prized place. 
After:
We are off to the State Fair on this beautiful cool summer evening! 
A great catch of the day!! 
Every one at the party loved Joe's fish and couldn't get enough of it. And here in the photo, the delegates started playing music and singing songs, while everybody else sang along to familiar tunes. Yes, Leinie's beers were shared and a bottle of sake emptied. We had a good time!
