October 25, 2020. "Follow your dreams and find your bliss," the self-help gurus say. Ah, but there is often a backside in this path towards dreams and bliss. Not a dark side, or a bad side. Just a backside. I'm bumping into it as we chop, drag, burn and scrape to create a big open … Continue reading The Backside of Bliss
October 20, 2020. A pink dawn brings thoughts, again, of the in-between's. The halfway. The middle. Pink is a middle color, halfway between red and white. Twilight is a middle time, halfway between daylight and darkness. (It occurs in both morning and evening.) Morning twilight is referred to as dawn -- that first light before … Continue reading Twilight Pinks at Dawn
October 10, 2020. Such beauty. And, trepidation! Autumn is a time of paradox in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, as the parade of colors announces the approach of winter. Many people call autumn their favorite season here. Former residents yearn for it. Tourists flock to it. Hikers (including me) are giddy in it. But autumn means that … Continue reading Autumn’s Paradox
September 20, 2020. A kayak can take you places a larger vessel can't - like into the weeds. Places where noise won't penetrate - like into the marsh. Paddling in the silence can help you breathe more deeply. See more clearly. Think more calmly. Get acquainted with your core -- muscular and spiritual. At Camp … Continue reading Paddling Into Silence
September 16, 2020. Anyone who's experienced a good campfire knows how mesmerizing it is. Dancing flames grab the eye and don't let go. Maybe it goes back to mankind's early days, when fire was invented. Suddenly, light. Warmth. Comfort. Imagine, back then! A chimney logs grabs you even harder, and plays a vertical visual symphony. … Continue reading Dance of the Chimney Log
September 11, 2020. We've arrived at "the in-between." In the far-north, summer exits abruptly while autumn enters hesitantly and winter awaits at the door. The skies record this jerky transition. Before the changing of leaf-color comes the changing of sky-color. Moody. Uncertain. Evolving. Kind of like me. If we're honest, like most of us. Like … Continue reading The In-Between Skies
September 8, 2020. This is my wake-up view, before I even leave my tent. It's 50 degrees, and my cozy camper is just 30 feet away. So why am I sleeping here? Look again. That's why. Nature is so close, in a tent. I've been sleeping in tents since my teens. I made some adjustments … Continue reading In Praise of Tent Camping
Sept. 1, 2020. Cedar trees engage all your senses. Their fragrant needles tickle the nose. Their crooked, twisted branches confuse the eyes. Their sinewy bark agitates the fingers. Their snap-crackle-pop in the campfire delights the ear. The cedar tree stands for strength, and they live 100 years or more. I wonder why we've lost so … Continue reading The Life & Death (?) of a Cedar Tree
July 29, 2020. We lost two ducklings. Yesterday, there were seven. Today, just five. I know it's silly to personalize it that way. This is wildlife, and they succumb to the wildness of nature. Nature = natural! But still, I still feel sad. This duck family swims by our dock several times a day, and … Continue reading And Then There Were Five
July 25, 2020. You don't have to live on an ocean or river to experience high water. Here in the Great Lakes, it's caused by a seiche (pronounced saysh) -- an oscillating wave in a standing body of water. Folks here call it "the bathtub effect." It's the inland equivalent of a tide, but it … Continue reading High Water – The Seiche Effect
