Time In A Bottle

Getting ready for guests is a pretty streamlined effort these days. It involves getting the grands to help me put clean sheets on the bed in the spare room, putting out some clean towels, and making sure that there is a bowl of freshly washed blueberries on the kitchen counter. Really, that is about it. Pared down to just the important elements. My lovely niece arrived 7ish, and will be with us for a few days before heading home. The rain took a break just as she arrived, so she got to walk out to the deck and say Hello to the lake, first thing. It wasn't beach walking weather, but we were all up for a walk around the neighborhood a bit later on.

She spent a lot of time roller blading through the streets of Idlewood as a teenager, so this evening she got a chance to get caught up on the changes that have occurred here over the last few years.  It's still a nice circuit to walk, and it also was a good time to get caught up on the recent changes in her life as well.  We saw a photo of the current leading contender for her dress, for example.  Quality time to reconnect.  It doesn't get better than this.

Prepared -- for September-like Weather

Sometimes a walk in the rain is what passes for exercise for me on a Sunday afternoon.  It seemed to me that these flowers looked like they've recently been rained on.  They had.  I have a newish yellow raincoat that worked fine, though.  It even has a hood.  So I was pretty comfortable for the short time I was out.  It was just a loop around the neighborhood, about a mile total.

As I approached the house on the return trip, I saw 4 of my neighbors hunkered down underneath the overhang on the garage next door.  (The California people's house.)  The guys were dressed for the weather, wearing jackets with hoods.  The women were not, and were unhappy about getting wet from what was at that point, a pretty steady rain.  One of the guys -- probably joking -- called out asking if I had an umbrella.  Well, I live next door to where they were seeking shelter, so while I wasn't carrying an umbrella with me, I was close to some that I own.  I offered them up, they accepted my offer,  and my good deed for the day was done.  (They returned them later in the afternoon -- not that I was worried.)

Today wasn't any warmer than yesterday, but it was drier. I own a ridiculous amount of bicycle gear, so I used some of it to dress in layers, and I rode my bike.   I passed a field of blueberries that are not yet ripe.  So in spite of the fact that everyone's favorite Blue Crop berries have shown up at Bowerman's, and their season doesn't last forever, there are still plenty of green berries on the bushes.

Checking off that 69 furlong thing.

The long ride we took earlier this week was more of a stretch than I thought it would be, and I didn't really feel like riding again until today. I had to break out my cool weather gear, since the thermometer seemed to be stuck in the low sixties, but I got in a ride without getting wet. Or chilled.  It was short -- more than 69 furlongs, though.  The usual weekend crowd of bicyclists all seemed to have deserted the lake shore and were gathered in a large group at Bowerman's.  Their sign said something about a celebration, so maybe it was more than blueberries drawing in the crowd.

It is the season when the Rose of Sharon bushes/trees begin to bloom here.  I found these across from the church in the bottom photo.  The blossoms remind me of the old hollyhocks that used to be by the kitchen door in Coleraine.

I turned away from the flowering bushes to put my camera away, and noticed that something was going on at the church across the street that I hadn't noticed until I stopped.

It looked to me like she was waiting for her cue to enter the church.  Little slices of life, observed from a bicycle.

Traditions Are Powerful Things

The other retired professor and I have done some fairly epic bike rides in July over the years. We've been to Door County in Wisconsin and the Mission Peninsula near Traverse City, for example. We've done The Ride Across Minnesota together twice.  Some rides have been closer to home -- Saugatuck, Fennville, Muskegon, Spring Lake and Ferrysburg, Grand Haven -- to name a few. Silver Lake, Pentwater and Herring Lake also come to mind -- it's an impressive list.  This year neither of us had done enough biking to want to take on a multi-day tour, and we settled on something close by that neither of us had done yet this year.  We rode first to Hemlock Crossing Park, where we stopped to rest for a while in the shade of some old trees near the Pigeon River.

The bike trail that connects Lakeshore with the highway along Croswell has been extended as far as Hemlock Crossing, providing some authentic new pavement.  The bicycle park that used to be on the corner next to the West Olive Party Store is up for sale, and that area looks even shabbier than usual.

The ride west along Croswell parallels the Pigeon River and felt all downhill today.  (The only part of the ride that did.)  Her longest ride this season, before today, was 15 miles and mine was 21, so we were both happy to stop at the Sandy Point Beach House Restaurant for a late lunch.  We split a sandwhich and ate outside on their deck next to our bikes.

By then we were back in familiar territory, with just 8.5 miles to go to get home. The winds were manageable, though not light, and the temperature never quite got to 70.  By the time we rolled up in front of our houses, we'd ridden 26 miles.   Pain was involved, but that seems to be the way it is at this point in our lives.  We high fived each other, and congratulated ourselves for another successful ride.  It wasn't epic by the standards of some of our earlier rides, but it was a plenty nice ride and we're pleased we could still pull it off.

Red Flag Day

No red white and blue flags here, just the red ones that indicate that it was not safe to go in the water today.  We've had two of those days recently, and the previous one took two lives.  One was a 15 year old girl visiting from Lansing, swimming with her 14 year old sister in full view of their father at the Muskegon State Park, north of here.  Onlookers saved the 14 year old but couldn't save the other sister when they both got caught in an undertow.  Rip currents are real.  The other drowning victim was a father in his 30's, boating with his family, who went for a swim off his boat.  Today's toll is unknown, but a helicopter just flew past my window.  My granddaughter was visiting here for a couple of days so that she could go to the county fair with some friends.  This morning we were discussing today's big waves and the earlier deaths.  She commented that most of the people who drown tend to be "not from here."  I agreed, and am thankful that our local schools do a good job of educating kids on the dangers of off shore currents and rip tides.  Today was the day that the other Retired Professor and I were scheduled to take our annual birthday bike ride.  25 to 30 mph winds changed our minds, and we've rescheduled -- perhaps for tomorrow.  By this evening the winds had diminished quite a bit and I walked down to the beach to examine the changes to the beach that big winds and waves make.

Hippie House

I watched yesterday's TdF coverage which finished with two, yes two, climbs of the Alpe d'Huez. It is the first stage I've watched this year, and probably the last.   Since I've already pre-judged the relative dopiness of the competitors (mostly dopers), I decided to let history be the final judge, and settled back and enjoyed the show. As entertainment, it was pretty good. I was also surprised that I was still familiar with most of the actors on the stage. By the time it was over, it was too hot for me to ride.  Rest day.  This morning I waited longer than I should have to leave the house -- it was very windy, and I wasn't sure I wanted to battle a 22 mph wind with gusts to 38. But eventually I did.  Oh, and it was hot.  At 10 am.  Ugh.

My grandchildren call this the hippie house. For obvious reasons. It's pretty close to the Great American Bagel Shop, so I made that my turn around spot. I was already feeling a bit ill from the heat at that point, so headed straight home from there. Lesson learned.  I wonder how many calories knitting burns?

Heat Advisory

The current heat advisory that we are under goes through tomorrow night.  It applies particularly to old people, people with chronic health problems and the very young.  So.....   I considered hunkering down.  It is an especially attractive option at 7:30 am -- about the time I should be starting to get organized if I'm going to be out the door by around 8:00 am.  Still, when November arrives, I'll be longing for days when I can ride without multiple layers in light winds and warm air.  So I went.

I didn't go very far.  Barely into double digits.  Even the early morning air seemed thick.  A dew point of 72 when I returned explained why.  The ride along Lake Mac provides lots of shade and the chance to dodge several lawn sprinklers. Watering the asphalt is popular with home owners in this zip code.  I don't know why.

This is not my bike, but the owner didn't seem to be anywhere near by.  The surface of the water was just beginning to show the signs of a lake breeze kicking in.  They don't usually start up quite that early in the day around here.

I rode through the back gate of the fairgrounds, thinking that there might be some early fair preparations going on.  I found nothing except this sign.

A self portrait?  There's a pretty decent breeze out there now, so that is probably yesterday's air and water temperatures.  The caution about the hot sand is a good one.  Anyone planning to walk on the sand any time soon should have some sort of foot protection with them.

Summer Doldrums

I believe I want to start with a little "Point/Counter Point."  I took a day off from riding yesterday, and though no Guy With Tools arrived, the people who mow my lawn did.  (They did a fine job with the grass, then swam, backed up OSLO's computer on a terabyte hard drive, ate spaghetti and headed home.)  I usually ride late morning and early afternoon, but it was already warm and muggy at 8:00 am today, so I loaded up two water bottles and headed out for a ride.  The pink one is Crystal Lite pink lemonade, the other is water.  I drink on a less rigid schedule than some, but I do work hard at staying hydrated.  Even though my planned ride was pretty mellow -- essentially the same one that I took on Saturday -- I figured I'd need more than one bottle.

 I was correct, and returned home with less than half a bottle of water and no Crystal Lite.

Today's bicycle clothing note:  I am not a card carrying member of the lycra clad bicycling crowd.  My shirt is a technical shirt, but I bought it for wogging and now use it for riding.  The shorts are loose fitting but have a chamois -- a hard combination to find.  The shoes are running shoes, the socks are from Sock Guy and match the shoes.  I don't own any Castelli, though I recognize it when I see it.  Who doesn't?

Today's bicycling gear note:  I'm on a flat surface next to my garage in the first photo, but in the small ring anyway.  The first .16 miles out of my garage are slightly uphill.  The second photo is at the entrance to Tunnel Park, big ring.

Additional note:  I ride with platform pedals.  Always have, except for a brief experiment in 2001.  Let's just say that I have attachment issues.

No elitist bicycle snob note, and although I do shave my legs, it is common among my gender.  Though not necessarily true for my age group, I have begun to notice.

That was fun.  So, the ride today.  Up Lakeshore Drive, past Stonehenge.

 The morning light at Kouw Park was nice.  A light east wind was flattening out the water near the shore.

The U-Pick blueberry farm on Quincy and 160th was busy by 9 or so this morning.  My examination of the blueberry fields leads me to speculate that the berries that are currently ripe are of the low bush type.  I could be wrong, the ones I saw may have been young bushes.

The current string of 90 degree days is supposed to continue all week.  I found a few inflatable water toys on clearance at Walmart, and they seemed to be popular with yesterday's visitors.  The water here is usually not calm enough for inflatable chairs and rafts, but yesterday it was pretty close to dead flat and it looks like it will be again today.

Kouw Park

At the corner of Van Buren and Lakeshore, less than 6 miles from here, there is a township park that has had some improvements made to it over the last two years.  Last year the improvements all seemed to be near the parking lot -- a bigger and better playground, picnic tables, a rest room and a paved parking area.  This year the improvements included a paved walk to the big lake, with a deck at the top of the dune.

It's a lot of stairs to the beach, but that didn't seem to discourage beach goers today.  We've been promised the hottest week of the year coming up, and today got that off to a good start.  It was 89 when I got home, with not much wind.  Sticky, but not quite unbearable.  Tunnel Park had a line of cars waiting to get in when I rode by and the overflow parking lot was full.  More public beach access seems like a good thing.

Two Pounds of Blueberries

Six dollars.

Gravel

It would not be fair to say that I don't like summer.  It is really more like I just don't do well in the heat.  And I completely wilt when high humidity gets thrown into the picture.  A dewpoint in the sixties is muggy to me, and when it gets over 70?  The air is too thick to breathe.  Today the temperature hit 90 degrees here for the first time this year, if you believe the Weather Channel, with a dewpoint over 70.  An early morning fog faked me out a bit -- I left the house before it had fully burned off, and the temperature was still in the mid 70's.  When I got home two hours later, it was 91.  The good news is that I lived to blog about it.

I do have a bike that was designed for cobblestones, and I have ridden this stretch of gravel road several times.  It is less than a mile long, and there is a blueberry farm at the end of it.  (The early season blueberries are now available here.  I haven't actually bought any yet, though.)  I stood at this point for a while and considered my options.   The surface really isn't that challenging, even on a road bike.

I was already more than 10 miles from home, the heat was building, the sun was hot and I was going to have a headwind on the way home.  (On purpose, sort of.  When it's really hot, a little headwind feels good.)  I decided that I'd ridden far enough and made the turn towards home.  I think I'll get my berries at Bowerman's.

Idlewood Fourth

A neighborhood 4th of July parade is an annual event in our little community in the dunes.  The Grands no longer participate, but I still like to watch the silliness unfold.  The Other Retired Professor and I chose to watch it from the driveway of a neighbor who provides baked goods, fruit, juice and even alcoholic beverages for those who are up for that sort of thing at 11:00 am.

OSLO and friend headed north for the long weekend with their friends, but the Grands had done a fair amount of travelling recently, and a six hour drive didn't appeal to them.  That left them free to hang out with us for the day.

The beaches started filling up in the early afternoon, with chairs placed in rows in anticipation of the evening's fireworks over the lighthouse.  We headed down to the beach with our chairs and blankets about 9 pm.

Sunset was about 9:30, fireworks started around 10:00.  The throng on the beach was not as well behaved as we would have liked -- the mix of morons and fireworks is not a good one.  At least a few fireworks were shot into the dune grass, and a couple into the crowd at the south access beach.  Fortunately no one was hurt.  The grands wondered aloud at one point if we were the only sober people on the beach.  Probably.  That may have affected our appreciation of the real fireworks when they began -- they seemed less impressive than in years past, with large gaps in the display.  Whatever.  Today the Grands will head back home to take care of their dog, after mowing our grass :-)  They're old enough to handle being on their own for a few days, and they have plans to see a movie or two.  We'll probably take them out for dinner one night, but for the most part our holiday celebration is over.  Familiar routines are looking good to all of us.