My husband and I just spent a few more days on Douglas Lake. A highlight of the reprise was a walk in Otsego County’s Louis M. Groen Nature Preserve, in Johannesburg, Michigan. The park is new and still in process; the bequest will eventually total 800 acres. The first thing you notice at Groen is… Continue reading Douglas Lake, II
Author: Nancy J. Moncrieff
Douglas Lake
We were fortunate to spend a few days with a daughter and her husband at a cabin Up North this week. The cabin sits in the woods on Douglas Lake—the small one in Otsego County, not the large one in Charlevoix County—and belongs to the family of one of our daughter’s lifelong friends. It… Continue reading Douglas Lake
Favorite Sounds
Friends and relations have been sharing their favorite sounds recently. Usually they pause a moment to think what those sounds might be. Becka didn’t, though. “Lately,” she says, “one of my favorite sounds is my granddaughter’s little giggle.” Happy grandfather John agrees. Said granddaughter is closing in on her first birthday, and I’ve seen the… Continue reading Favorite Sounds
Shop and Fetch
Yesterday, for the first time since the pandemic closed everything, I worked a volunteer shift at the Ann Arbor Thrift Shop. I’m excited to be there again. We’ve been in business since 1932 and provided millions of dollars, both in gifts in kind and in real green money, to individuals and organizations that need it. … Continue reading Shop and Fetch
Random Reading
One of my profs in grad school espoused what he called random reading. “On the way to the library,” he said, “memorize a license plate number. If the first number is odd, turn left when you enter the library; if it’s even, turn right.” Succeeding numbers determined floor, aisle, shelf, and book. However many numbers… Continue reading Random Reading
Baby Business
Wildlife nest-and-baby season is well upon us near the end of a Michigan June. My friend Sue saw wren babies hatch, fledge, and leave. She said they were remarkably cute. So are the baby mallards we’re seeing now. They’re at the stage where they have pretty gold markings incised into their brown fluff, each duckling… Continue reading Baby Business
Hot as Hot
“HOT AS HOT” was the TV weather report this morning. The map behind the cheery meteorologist proclaimed “SEVERE STORMS.” We woke to rumbling thunder. The sky got darker and darker, till it looked like the last moment of twilight before night falls. The dog was frantic. He always is when there’s thunder. He… Continue reading Hot as Hot
Ooh. Ahh.
“Do you want to go for a walk?” Marilyn asked, after dinner. I’d already been for two long walks that day. We set off. “Okay, but I don’t want to go too far. Or too fast. Also, I don’t want to use my right leg.” “How’s that going to work?” my sister… Continue reading Ooh. Ahh.
Flights of Fancy
There is a boardwalk at the halfway point of one of the walks the dog and I take. It offers an elevated view of a large pond, and we always pause there while I look out over the water. We stopped there on a windy day recently. There were the usual Canada geese in the… Continue reading Flights of Fancy
Rain n’ Cats n’ Dogs
I visited my sister and brother-in-law in northern Michigan a couple weekends ago. Carol and I were at their house on Friday when she got a phone call. Black River Ranch was on fire, the caller told her. A moment later, Paul walked into the house and she shared the news with him. “I just… Continue reading Rain n’ Cats n’ Dogs