My new boat!

Well, after 10 years of wanting a kayak I was finally able to get one! I went down to Duluth this week and picked up a Wilderness Systems Tsunami 165. I could barely contain my excitement as I drove back from Duluth with the kayak on top of the car. This evening I went for my first paddle in the new boat.


It was a sublime evening on the bay, perfect for trying out the boat and getting a feel for it. I was just going to goof around right in front of the house with it, but it was so nice I decided to actually "circumnavigate" the bay with it. The first thing I noticed was how much easier it glides through the water compared to my canoe. I played around for a little while in front of the house, practicing turning and getting used to the feel and balance of the boat. Then I headed over to the Hat Point Marina and paddled up to the Isle Royale ferry "Wenonah", which looks positively gargantuan from the seat of a kayak! Next, I headed for Pete's Island. After only about 10 minutes of paddling, I was at the island (I thought it would take longer to get there!). I landed and got out for a minute to stretch my legs (not used to the sitting position yet!).

For the next leg of my "trial paddle", I went from Pete's Island to "The Pines", a picnic area on the east side of Grand Portage National Monument. As I crossed the bay there was a gentle swell rolling into the bay and every now and then one of the swells would give me a little push, causing my speed to increase. As the boat rose and fell on the backs of these swells, it was a wonderful feeling. It felt like I could feel the lake breathing. I can tell I'm going to love this sport! This wasn't my first time kayaking, but it had been awhile so the sensations all felt new again. After reaching the pines, I turned and followed the shoreline back to my house. This part of the bay is very shallow and almost entirely sand bottom. It was fun gliding along and watching the ripples in the sand as they passed beneath the boat. When I got back to my place, my brother was sitting there waiting for me. He had seen me paddling and wanted to give the boat a quick try. I pulled up parallel to shore and in my haste to climb out, promptly tipped over on the lakeside of the boat and got completely wet. Oh, well! I also got to try out my new bilge pump :-) I can't wait until the next outing!

Simple & Plain

This photo was taken of an Amish market in East Tennessee.  the Amish are called Plain People.  I've always admired them and would love to live with an Amish family for a few weeks.  I loved reading the Beverly Lewis series about the Amish people.
Laurel has invited me to participate in the 29-Day Giveaway Challenge.  I accepted.  Everyday you give away something.  This can include words of encouragement or a smile.  I  also want it to include my "stuff".  
I met a woman Tuesday while waiting for Darcie to get through with Youth  Chorale.  She makes bags filled with things for cancer patients.  She also makes lap quilts for nursing home patients.  I told her that I had just cleaned out my fabric and was going to be giving away a trash bag full.  I also have several flannel sheets I'm giving her.  I'm so glad that my fabric will be used for such good causes.
Laurel also said that we had to give away something that we didn't want to give away.  Hmmmmmm...that'll be harder.  I want to do it though.  I'm getting better able to let go of some of my things.  It's a good feeling not to be so tied to earthly possessions.  The older I get the easier it gets.  I'm going to keep a list for the 29 days I participate in this.
So, Day 1...I gave away my time in a meeting I didn't want to attend.  That counts, right?

Travels in South Carolina

Here are more pics from last weekend when we attended a horse show where our youngest daughter was showing.
On the way back, I found this little country store where I just had to stop. Isn't it the cutest thing? I bought some benne (sesame) seed wafers, fried peanuts in the shell, and a divinity log. I rarely buy anything home canned as I can do that myself. They had rows and rows of all kinds of preserves, jellies, and syrups. I can make divinity, too but don't usually go to the trouble; except around Christmas. And I do love me some divinity. It's aptly named, for sure.
I love the symmetry of the jars and rows. It reminded me of a little store I found in Stamfort, England. This store looked very British. I made use of their washroom as I had about a two-hour trip home. I really just wanted to go in there and look. It didn't disappoint.
Have ya'll tried she-crab soup? It's delicious. I make that, too, only I leave out the crab row, so I guess mine is he-crab soup?
Click on the first photo and you'll see that the address on the mailbox is 1330 King's Highway. I love that address, especially since it was a one-lane paved lane leading into the country. South Carolina is rich in history going back over 300 years. Not old by European standards, but certainly old by American ones.

What big eyes you have

The better to see you with, my dear!
The Christmas Village craft show is coming up and I've been busy busy busy.
See you soon...

...when there's time to get out and about.

Ahhh... those are the comfy undies I remember

Like rats in a hay loft, hoses in an orchard, pigs in the mud and seagulls at the dump! Man, do I feel back in my element, reinspired for life on a bike and being constantly out of doors! With the life dream resumed, we are happily pedaling into the wayward mulligan. Thank you to everyone in the New Jersey, New York, California and Colorado areas that helped us out with new gear, fantastic meals and many other random acts of kindness. It was nice meeting all of you that I met for the first time and great to see again some old friends.

Bee fly

Major bee-fly, a.k.a. Greater bee-fly, Bombylius major.
Bee flies are what they sound like: flies that resemble bees. This one is the one we see most here, though there are several similar species in the family Bombyliidae.
See photos of several of them at Giff Beaton's site. (You know there are a lot of members in the family when there's a World Catalog of them.)
They hover about like small cute bumblebees, and they don't seem to mind drawing attention to themselves, the way they'll hover in the same position for quite a while. I've also seen them dart back and forth between two positions a foot or so apart -- if it were a bird, you'd say it was a mating dance, though I would assume that flies don't do that.
According to this site, "Its larvae are brood parasites and are found in bees' nests. Adults feed on nectar, using their long proboscises whilst hovering beside a flower." The whilst there should give you a clue that this fly is also found in England.
BugGuide has a species account here with more details, and some nice shots of them hovering.
I haven't found any one article detailing information about this bee-fly, but there are lots of links highlighting certain aspects of their behavior:
Drawing up sand or sawdust to coat eggs (here).
Comparing them, as generalist pollinators, to more species-specific pollinators (here).
Wingbeats in B flat? (here)
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Friday Ark is here.

Knocking Out the Bucket List

I posted on Friday, August 27, about five things I wanted to accomplish before my 55th birthday on October 27th. One of the five was to make a Victoria Sponge Cake.
Well, I made one for my bookgroup last Friday. I'll have to say that it was pretty delicious. But it wasn't perfection. I'm looking for the perfect Victoria Sponge Cake and won't stop until I've made one.
This recipe called for 3 cups of flour. I think I should have made thinner layers. The top layer kept trying to slide off. I ended up holding it together with toothpicks.
I used strawberry jam in the filling. I think raspberry would have been better.
I did nail the icing, though. I used a recipe for petite fours only substituting almond extract for vanilla. It was delicious.
So all I have to do is make thinner layers and add raspberry jam, and I'll have it; the perfect Victoria Sponge Cake!
That book you see in the photo is what we're reading for our next meeting. It's Jayber Crow by Wendell Berry. I've wanted to read something by him for a long time.