Douglas Lake, II

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

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