Most Exciting Day After

No, we didn't go shopping on the day after Thanksgiving. We went caching. We started out to do some maintenance on our cache at Sharon. It turned out to be dry and didn't really need maintenance, but we did unload some geo-junk and reload it.
While we were there, we tried some nearby caches and had great success. We were really surprised at how much snow was on the ground in Kalkaska County.
While traveling slowly down a gravel section of Blue Lake Road, we hit an icy patch and spun off the road. So next week we'll be renting a car while ours is in the body shop. Thank goodness for insurance.
The damage is not too severe, and we were able to drive it home, but Dick had to crawl through my side to get out.

Happy Thanksgiving

It was a very quiet Thanksgiving here in Lake Woebegone. (Apologies to Garrison Keillor)
The turkey roasted really, really fast in the electric roaster - it was actually done in half the time. I was shocked. But it was yummy, and all 3 of us (count 'em, 3) enjoyed it.

Next to the River and in the woods,
To Mom and Dad's we won't go.
It's too far away, it would be a short stay,
And besides, there is no snow.

Next to the River and in the woods,
It's Grandmother, Dick and I.
Hooray for the fun! Is the pudding done?
Hooray for the low-carb pie!

Next to the River and in the woods,
Just we three with creaky knees,
A ho-hum day, no games to play,
And no one to pass the peas.
http://www.walkthroughlife.com/midis/christmas/overriver.htm

Marasco Ranch

Laurie and Chip found a great place to have Dylan's birthday party. The Marasco Ranch has farm animals and ponies to ride. They specialize in children's parties. Sounds much better than a jungle party at home! We shipped off our remaining bandanas from GenFest so everyone at Dylan's party can look like a farmer. These days, it's not just kids - the parents go and party too!

Dylaninvitation2004.jpg (0.03 MB)

Treadmill Tuesday, or The World's Longest Post

Although not a great achievement in the overall sphere of athletic endeavor, today was a great achievement for me! At 5:30 a.m., I walked for 15 uninterrupted minutes on the treadmill downstairs! WooWoo! I was supposed to do it yesterday, but I was afraid to try it, so today I just went down and did it and I didn't even have to rest. The key is to get up and do it right away before coffee or anything. This afternoon I'm to ride the stationary bike for 15 minutes - and that's easier for me.


Last Saturday, all of our kids were in California. Tom is always there, of course. Laurie was working with a 10 hour layover in L.A., and Jana was at a Media Conference at the Renaissance Hollywood Hotel from Thursday to Sunday. CQ was nominated for 3 awards, and didn't win any - Jana thinks it's because they won last year!


Dylan has decided that for his birthday this year they'll have a party at home (instead of taking all of his friends to Disney World!) The theme will be jungle or rain forest or some such. When our kids were little, the theme was always cake and ice cream.


Dick has thought up an idea for a new cache. It's a mystery cache based on team animal mascots of Michigan High Schools. In order to figure our the coordinates of the cache, you have to figure out various mascots. It's not as complicated as it sounds. Sunday we went for a drive and found a good hiding spot for it, but it's not finished yet. This is Dick's rough draft:


This cache is dedicated to those nutty fans (Fan comes from Fanatic) who zealously follow Michigan High School sports. These are folks who attend the football playoff and basketball tournament games no matter who is playing. You will see them at regional and state meets for all sports from wrestling to softball and track. They are people who grab the paper or get online each Saturday morning to find the Friday night scores. For you who don’t know one, they are fonts of trivia about Michigan High School sports. They know the mascot of each school or town.

Who else could tell you that Kingsford are the Flivvers or Mt. Clemens the Battling Bathers? That Colon are the Magi, or Ishpeming the Hematites? They know about the Goodrich Martians, the Gwin Modeltowners and the Bessemer Speedboys. Some of them are coaches, some write about sports for the local paper and some are just obsessed with High School sports. For them this cache will be a piece of cake. For normal people you will have to find one and pick their brains, make some phone calls, send some emails or do some on-line research.

The listed coordinates are for the Traverse City District Library. The reference desk and computers are on the second floor.

The cache is an ammo can in the woods a short walk up the hill from a parking area that is alongside the road about 15 miles away. Once you’ve done the research this is a 1/2.5 (Because of the hill) stop and grab. The cache is winter friendly up to about 2 feet of snow cover.

Many of us went to schools whose team mascot represented the ferocity and courage of heroes of the past such as Spartans, Trojans, Titans, Gladiators, Warriors and the like. Others attended schools that chose to be represented by valiant, courageous and often dangerous creatures of the animal kingdom such as Tigers or Stags or Wolverines. These talismans that are used in Michigan by schools large and small can be divided into the following categories:

1)Birds; 2) Insects; 3) Rodents; 4) Cats; 5) Sheep; 6) Horses; 7) Dogs; 8) Bears; 9) Deer; 0) Fish.
To find the cache coordinates, determine the school mascot and assign it to one of the categories above. In the following lines, determine the school mascot and substitute the numbers matching the categories above to determine the minutes. For example, if Belleville or Houghton Lake are the Eagles, the first digit of the minutes would be 1.

N44 Degrees (Belleville, Houghton Lake) (Holly, North Branch) point (Reed City, Genesee) (Southfield, Bellaire) (Saline, Bridgeman) Minutes

W085 Degrees (Ludington, Engadine) (Mesick, Litchfield) point (Ashley, Highland Park) (Pickford, Alpena) (Algonac, Ann Arbor Huron) Minutes



Saturday was a great day for University of Michigan football. We beat Northwestern 42-20, again mostly in the second half. For some reason, our kids don't get warmed up until half time. This from mgoblue.com:

The No. 9-ranked Michigan football team broke open a close game with touchdowns on its first five possessions of the second half and defeated Northwestern 42-20 on Saturday, Nov. 13, in Michigan Stadium. After U-M led 7-6 at halftime on Michael Hart's 34-yard TD run, Hart added a pair of scoring runs and Chad Henne threw TD passes to Jason Avant and Steve Breaston, who completed the Wolverines scoring with a 64-yard punt return for a touchdown. U-M (9-1, 7-0 Big Ten) is assured of at least a share of the Big Ten title.


And then, for the icing on the cake, State clobbered Wisconsin 49-14. Wisconsin had been previously undefeated. This from msuspartans.com:

The Spartans (5-5, 4-3 Big Ten) handed the Badgers their first loss and knocked Wisconsin (9-1, 6-1) into a second-place tie with Iowa in the Big Ten behind Michigan. The win keeps Michigan State's bowl hopes alive.

We were happy campers Saturday!



Dick worked at the Agency on Monday. He had two face to face appointments, and several phone calls. Wednesday he's making a presentation in Fife Lake about the Medicare Prescription Drug Cards. Busy week for MMAP.

P.S.
The day after I posted Basswood Bend Breakdown, the battery died on our Ford Explorer. What will be next?

Basswood Bend Breakdown

This has been a week of breakdowns. The dishwasher was first, then the wheelbarrow, then the Yardman tractor. Mr. Dishwasher Man came on Thursday, checked it out, and said it was his fault - he made a loose connection the last time he was here. So there was no charge - they should pay me for treating my dishpan hands!

The wheel from the wheelbarrow is at Junior's tire place, and Dick can put that back together. In the meantime, we went to the Tractor Store (ex-Farm and Fleet) and bought a new wheelbarrow with 2 pneumatic tires. It should hold tons and tons of firewood.

The tractor has been delivered to Lark Lawn, and hopefully we'll get it back some day. Our John Deere is still at Classic Motor Sports - they've had it since last June. When we break a tractor, it stays broken.


Laurie reports that for his birthday party, Dylan wants to take his friends to Disney World. That boy has big dreams!

Thursday was Veteran's Day and Dylan had no school. When I was teaching we always had school on Veteran's Day. And when I was a student, we called it Armistice Day. The world keeps changing.

DinoDuo

Today we met DinoDuo (Tim and Sue) for brunch at the Big Boy in Kalkaska. Then we all went caching - did 3 together and then went our separate ways. It was very much fun. Dick and I wound up going to Petoskey - ate an early dinner at J W Filmore's, and got home around 6 p.m. It was a very full day, and most enjoyable. Cool, chilly, damp, penetrating day (temp 38). Time to get out the winter jackets.

Yesterday (Monday) Dick had his annual physical, and he's as healthy as a horse :) Then he worked at the Agency, came home and moved a cartful of firewood. After that, from the living room he spotted a bobcat down on the riverside deck. It was very exciting - we've lived many many years and have never seen a bobcat in the wild. I hope we see him/her again.
http://encarta.msn.com/media_461517331_761568386_-1_1/Bobcat.html

I began the third week of my personal exercise program Monday. In the morning I walked on the treadmill for 10 uninterrupted minutes. It was the first time in a long, long time. Lately, I've been needing to sit and rest after 5 or 6 minutes. It doesn't sound like much, but I have to be encouraged because for me it was a big improvement. This week I walk in the morning, bike (stationary bike) in the afternoon, and walk again in the evening. MWF. Now I'm expecting even more improvement as time goes by. This condition has been in remission since around October 1, and now I am beginning to feel very near normal. Wouldn't it be great if it was permanent? WooWoo!

Also on Monday, our wonderful new Bosch dishwasher broke down AGAIN. I'm expecting the guy from Max's Service to come out on Wednesday to fix it. He last came out on October 15. Really now, are we really going to need service every month from now on? Harrumph.

Sunday we took Mom veggie beef soup, three kinds of apples by way of Tom McLenithan, and fresh library books - she's fine - better than ever! Tom B. came over with a nice print of historic U of M buildings that he found on EBay. Very nice, and very thoughtful!

McLenithan has a trapper setting out traps for beaver - we've lost several trees right next to the perennial garden. Mary B. reports that by their house the beaver is building a bridge for Dylan! Tom B. also set out some traps. I'm not a big fan of traps, but I do like our trees...

Quiet Saturday

Started out at Glen's Market mailing letters and donating bottle receipts to a Unit that has just been re-deployed to Iraq. They're collecting bottle slips in honor of the 3rd boy from the left in the poster picture who lost his life in the first deployment. The money will be used to buy treats and necessities for the Unit.
Chef Ricardo made a huge kettle of veggie beef soup.
A bye week for Michigan. We were really pulling for State, but alas, it was not to be. This from msuspartans.collegefootball.com:

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) - Ted Ginn had three touchdowns and Ohio State rallied by scoring the last 15 points in a 32-19 victory over Michigan State on Saturday.

We wanted State to win and Wisconsin to lose, and neither one of those things happened.

Retrospective

Well, let's see...it's been a while...Oh yes- the election. Dick walked again Last Sunday distributing literature. Then on Election Day we spent the day at the UAW Hall - we were runners delivering food to the Democratic challenger at Precinct 1, East Bay Twp. Then from 4:30 on, Dick was making calls from the challenger lists reminding people who hadn't voted yet to get to the polls. The atmosphere in the afternoon of Election Day was very positive - we were getting feedback about exit polls across the country and it sounded so good. But as we now know, the exit polls were totally wrong, and Kerry lost.
Wednesday, we really didn't want to watch TV or read any newspapers or listen to the radio, so we loaded the car with CDs and drove over to Houghton Lake to take some pictures, leave a travel bug, and find some caches. It would have driven our kids crazy - John Denver, Mamas and Papas, Kingston Trio, Willie Nelson, Paul Simon - we loved it.
Thursday - Dr. appointment - results from Ann Arbor. Added tenormin 25mg, increased amaryl from 1/day to 2/day. Feeling good - no bleeding.
Saw mother on Wed. and Thurs. - doing just fine.

Football Fan Stress Test

The day started off with Dick walking around town distributing Kerry literature for about 2 1/2 hours. He got some great exercise, and his walking partner was interesting. He's planning on doing it again Sunday and Monday.

We took delivery of a beautiful plant - big yellow mums with a huge blue bow - from Sue and John. Go Blue!

Somewhere around 10 a.m. our power went out. Tom Barker said that all of River Road was out. I worked on catalogs for a while, read my book, and thought about my wet clothes in the dryer. It got very dark and windy outside, and so to see my book better, I tried turning on the light - still no power. It finally came back on around 1 or 1:30. If it hadn't come on, we would have gone to a bar to watch the game.

At 3:30 we settled down to watch the Michigan - Michigan State football game. I wasn't worried too much because we are ranked, and the line was Michigan by 11. Well then the roller coaster ride started. State took complete control of the game. They controlled it for the first 3 quarters. The Michigan team was beaten at every turn. We here at home were beginning to feel like whipped puppies. I watched part of the third quarter with a bag over my head.

In the 4th quarter, with 8 minutes to go, I perked up. It was encouraging, but I still didn't expect to win. However... (this from mgoblue.com):

Braylon Edwards caught three touchdown passes, including the game-winner in the third overtime period, as the No. 12-ranked Michigan football team completed a remarkable comeback and defeated Michigan State 45-37 on Saturday, Oct. 30, in Michigan Stadium. Trailing 27-10 with 8:43 left in regulation, Michigan scored 17 points, with the help of two Edwards TD receptions, to send the game to overtime. The teams traded field goals in the first OT and touchdowns in the second before U-M stopped the Spartans in the third.

Yes that's right - 17 points in the last 8 minutes to tie it up. Overtime? How about 3 overtimes. Yes that's right - Three Overtimes. And MICHIGAN WON!! They actually won. Braylon said later it wasn't so much winning, it was more refusing to lose. We were too exhausted to really celebrate.

Poor Tom out in San Diego called us with 2:28 to go in the 4th quarter - his ABC had switched to the USC-Washington State game, and he wasn't able to see The Game. We talked him through to the end, and what an end it was!

The State quarterback had to leave with a shoulder injury, and that's always sad. But then again, Dowdell is not exactly a back-up quarterback. It reminded me of the game where State broke Jim Harbaugh's arm and went on to win. It's always heart-breaking.

State most likely really deserved to win this game. They played the best they could possibly play for as long as they possibly could. We really didn't play until half way through the 4th quarter. But MICHIGAN WON!! Thank you Braylon. Thank you Chad. This game is one for the books.

Sharon, John, Sue and John really had quite the football experience in our end zone seats! Spartan green and white Sharon sent this great letter. You almost feel like you were there:

Actually, I think we certainly got "your money's worth"! What a game! Although I wish the outcome would have been different (can we have those 5 minutes back in the 4th quarter?). It was an outstanding game to experience. What emotional highs and lows, and certainly from the Spartans side, so many "if only's." I think I am still a little heart broken this morning...but pleased with the way we hung in there even after Stanton went down...at least until 6 minutes to go. Then of course it became the Braylon Edwards show. I happen to be one of those that thinks that, especially after the 2nd overtime, you just say it is a tie because neither team deserved to lose that game. I thought the officiating was very bad (but equally bad to both sides). Both teams certainly left everything on the field. We missed you! It was fun visiting with Susan and John (but not the same without you). Susan's John is trying really hard to make Michigan his 3rd favorite team (but it is still a struggle)! Your friends in the stands were great even to John and I although when the score was 27-10 I think they were ready to blame it on you! I don't think I have ever seen The Big House so quiet for most of the game. The real explosion of noise finally came after the on side kick and then didn't let up until the end. Your friends in the stands encouraged us to "Beat Wisconsin" for them. I hope we can! I hope the Spartans can regroup since we have Ohio State next weekend and Stanton is expected to be out 2 to 3 weeks at least. I think Michigan is glad they have a bye week to recover. John and Susan parked by Molly's dorm and I think they were fine getting back to their car. Because I remembered when we went to the games with you how crazy the traffic patterns are after the games (one way streets, etc), and not being too familiar with the streets in Ann Arbor, John and I parked at Briarwood (Kensington Hotel) and took the bus shuttle in. It was great for us. Especially since (except for the few people that left when the score got the 27-10) everyone stayed for the whole game. What a mob scene leaving the stadium! We didn't have to wait more that 5 minutes for a bus and then we got right on 94 west at State Street. The line on State Street going to 94 east was very long. Susan and I thought a lot about you both during the game. We kept saying "D & N aren't happy right now" then Susan would say "her Mom and Dad must be very anxious now", etc. You certainly were missed, but your Go Blue vibes came through in the end. I think people will remember this game for a long time. Thanks so much for letting us experience it first hand!

My Dell is Back!

This morning we ran errands in town - mailed a birthday card, took shirts to Progress, went to drug store, etc., etc., and PICKED UP MY COMPUTER from the Computer Doctor. Then we had to go to Circuit City to get a USB port replicator and a Norton Anti-Virus 2005 upgrade. Now I'm ready to start shopping on the internet!! WooWoo!

This evening we went out to dinner at The Harbor Watch (buy one get one free) and had great salads. Then we went over to the UAW Hall for a meeting of Democratic Party volunteers for Election Day. I think we'll be runners (in the car) and Dick signed up to make phone calls. I must say that the Grand Traverse County Democratic Party is perhaps not the most highly organized you could find. In fact - well - it was a Chinese fire drill. Let's hope Election Day runs more smoothly. See you at the polls :)

MMAP Training

Dick had the quarterly all-day training today at the Agency. This is the fist time I didn't go with him. I haven't been working at the Agency for some time now, mainly for health reasons. Now that I'm feeling better, I've found that I'm in no hurry to return to the office. I gave him talking points for today, because I didn't want him going into any great detail of what we've been dealing with. So I asked him to just say that I'm a MMAP drop-out. I enjoyed it for 5 years, but now I'm moving on to other things. So I guess that worked, mostly.

I stayed home, read books, played computer games, went grocery shopping at Meijer, and just generally enjoyed myself.

Old Stomping Grounds

When you're a senior citizen, you keep winding up at a doctor's office or at Munson for tests. This time it was Dick. He had an esophogram this morning and it showed that he has no tumor or ulcer in his throat. Whew! So now it's up to the good doctor to figure out what the problem is.

Whenever we have a procedure at Munson, we end up going out to breakfast. I chose the Green House Cafe - I love that place! We're trying to stick to an Atkins type diet for several reasons, and it was hard not ordering the English muffin toast! But it was a fantastic breakfast.

Spent the afternoon looking through catalogs getting ideas for Christmas. I love ordering on the internet. I'll be getting my computer back from the Computer Doctor on Thursday morning, and then stand back!

Today is Tom's birthday! Happy Birthday Tom!

Soup of the Evening

For some reason, having soup for supper reminded me of Alice in Wonderland and the mock-turtle soup song. For the lyrics, go to:

http://ingeb.org/songs/beautifs.html

Thanks to Lewis Carroll. " Soo-oop of the evening, beautiful beautiful soup."

For an "exquisite rendering" of the song, go to:

http://www.soupsong.com/mocksong.html

In this case it was bean soup made with a hambone from Heavenly Ham. It was made by Chef Ricardo, and it was heavenly.


The Lions actually won today. It was a little flukey, but it was a W. (No, not that W)

We visited mother, balanced her check book, took out the trash, and did her recycling. And we took her some soooooop of the evening.

Sharon Vescio, one of our seatmates at the stadium, called to see how things went at the doctor in Ann Arbor. So she got the full story.

Interesting Week and Go Blue

It's been a whole week - seems like just a couple of days!
On Tuesday we drove down to Ann Arbor to consult with Dr. Grace Elta about gastro-enterological issues (my insides). She is renowned in her field, and she's also a Professor at U of M Med School. Dr. Elta was full of praise for the treatment I've been receiving in T.C. and she was very complimentary regarding Dr. Burke's report to her. It was all good. We liked her, and she liked us.

She feels that based on some low platelet counts in previous tests, the culprit could be my liver (NASH - non-alcoholic steato-hepatitis) which can cause bleeding in the intestines. (Go figure). So she suggests changing my blood pressure medication - prinivil (zestril) to tenormin (atenolol) because tenormin might be more helpful for the liver.

She also suggests a mild estrogen (birth control pill) which inhibits bleeding. It's interesting because this bleeding never showed up until after I stopped taking estrogen because of the national scare about it causing heart problems. So I stopped the estrogen and started bleeding. It's probably not that simple, but it's interesting.

So after talking to Dr. Burke we'll probably try the prescription changes for several months and see if there's improvement. If not, then we'll get more aggressive in checking out the liver.

It was a successful and worthwhile visit. I had some blood tests to check on liver function and current CBC (complete blood count). U of M Hospital is huge, but luckily there is a parking structure right next to the place we had to go (Pod A- Level 3 -Taubman Center)

We ate dinner Tuesday night at the Olive Garden (blast from the past). Spent the night at the Fairfield Inn. Wednesday morning we started a leisurely drive back to T.C. with geo-caching along the way. In all we did 7 caches on the way home. We came by an unusual route - brunch in Elsie (not kidding) at Tyler's Diner and dinner in Big Rapids at Bennigan's (a great place if you ever get the chance).

Eric sent me an exercise program specifically tailored for me - I'm so happy. I'm starting it on Monday.

Our new porch roof is finished and I think we'll be very happy with it. Dick will build a floor in the spring.

Well, Michigan has to play Purdue today in West Lafayette - it should be a battle of the titans. Go Blue.
State has a bye to prepare to play Michigan next week.

Somehow Michigan pulled this one out and won by a very narrow margin, 16-14. This from mgoblue.com:

Garrett Rivas booted a 35-yard field goal with 2:45 left in the game to lift the No. 13-ranked Michigan football team to a 16-14 victory over No. 12 Purdue on Saturday, Oct. 23, in West Lafayette, Ind. The U-M defense clinched the victory when, with Purdue driving, Ernest Shazor forced a fumble that was recovered by Leon Hall at the U-M 43-yard line. Michael Hart rushed 33 times for 206 yards, becoming the first Wolverine since 1990 to run for 200 yards in consecutive games, and caught a 25-yard touchdown pass from Chad Henne.

I'm hoping that our luck will hold for 3 more games!! Wouldn't it be fun to play Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl?

Rain, Rain, and Then Some Rain

Our day was brightened by the Michigan game, which Michigan finally decided to win after a dismal first half. This from mgoblue.com:

The No. 14-ranked Michigan football team scored 20 unanswered points to rebound from a seven-point halftime deficit and defeat Illinois 30-19 on Saturday, Oct. 16, in Champaign, Ill. Michael Hart turned in another workhorse effort, carrying the ball 40 times for 234 yards and U-M's final touchdown, while Chad Henne connected with Tyler Ecker for a touchdown through the air and scored the go-ahead TD on a two-yard quarterback draw. Scott McClintock had a pair of interceptions, including one that clinched the win.

Meanwhile, State was scalding Minnesota 51-17.

But it's still raining, it's windy, and all of the leaves are falling down like snow.


Dark and a little bit dreary.

We have to make our own sunshine today.

VisionInGTC

Dick spent the day at the visioning meeting (9-3).
http://www.visioningtc.com/

He'll have to write about what went on there.
I stayed home with the construction crew and the dishwasher repairman. We had a party. Well, maybe not. At least now we can use the dishwasher. A wire had burned out somehow.

We got a great picture in the mail - thank you Dylan. He drew a picture of our property with all the paths and everything. It's a masterpiece.

Oak Wood

Six cords of oak wood were delivered today by Lake Ann Hardwood (Mark Gabrick). It's all cut and split! Hooray!
Barkers came over so I could proof read some labels.

A-Kayaking We Will Go

Dick ran errands all morning - got his haircut, went shopping, etc, etc. I was at home doing laundry and washing all of the dishes that were in the dishwasher when it quit working. Yes, that's right - our fancy new Bosch dishwasher that we've had for just a little over a year, quit working. Max's Service said they would come out on Friday. So meanwhile we're hand-washing everything. It's like camping out in the kitchen !

The construction crew didn't show up until almost 11 a.m. - I was surprised. But they have a good start on our new porch roof, and I think we will love it when it's finished.

When Dick got home, he loaded up the kayak and we drove over to Torch River to get a cache that's out in the middle of the river. I kid you not. It's called the Torch River Paddle In. I think it took Dick about 5 minutes to go out there and back from the boat launch. It was another absolutely gorgeous fall day.
http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?guid=ec4c79d9-d5db-419e-ac38-ba61997e59cd

We decided to drive home by way of Elk Rapids. At the corner of Aarwood and Crystal Beach, Dick spotted the most spectacular wooden carved gatepost! It has a porcupine on top and a raccoon peeking out of a hole on the upright. It's almost hidden because it blends in so well with the background. We visited a couple of boat launches on Elk Lake to check them out for possible cache hiding purposes. Found at least one really good one.

We were too tired for debate watching. I watched Lost on TiVo, went to bed early and listened to the debate on the radio. Didn't learn anything new.

Back to Old Mission

There was a new cache placed North of the village of Old Mission, so after Dick talked to the crew chief on our construction project, off we went to find it. It was a gorgeous day - cool temps and warm sunshine. We hiked on a trail in a new park, and it was beautiful. The cache had 3 stages, and it was an interesting and enjoyable hide. We were the First Finders.

This is what Dick posted on the geocaching website:

October 12
What fun! You could drive back here when we were kids, haven't been back in many years. We loved the various methods of conveying the coordinates to the next stage. We found the cache with no trouble (After rereading the instructions and then following them.) and started a first finders dance but decided that it would be best if we dispensed with our arthritic efforts and replaced them with a simple "high five". We took the Blue Jays energizers, (Thanks, we needed that.) and left one of our Michigan quarters, (In a pinch, call for help.) the Lone Ranger, Tonto, and Scout, (In dire straits, they'll ride to the rescue) and Thumb Buddies Dream. (Give a man a fish ... ) Next we checked a TB in and out for some miles. We then signed and stamped the log and headed to the Grill for lunch. Thanks Blue Jays for a fun adventure.

Finished Blowout by Catherine Coulter, my new favorite author.

What a Squeaker!

Michigan was finally victorious but it wasn't easy. 27-24 (by the skin of our teeth)

This from mgoblue.com:
It didn't take freshmen Michael Hart and Chad Henne long to make a mark in the Little Brown Jug series. Hart rushed 35 times for 160 yards, a U-M freshman record, and one touchdown, and Henne was 33 of 49 passing for 328 yards and two TDs as the No. 14 Michigan football team earned a 27-24 comeback victory over No. 13 Minnesota on Saturday, Oct. 9, at Michigan Stadium. Henne completed 5 of 6 passes to march Michigan 87 yards for the deciding score with 1:57 to play, hitting Tyler Ecker for the 31-yard game-winning TD.

87 yards in less than 2 minutes - it was amazing. I almost couldn't watch because I was so afraid they would make a mistake! We love Tyler Ecker. Whew! State won big over Illinois, so it was a good football Saturday. Go Lions.

To celebrate, we went into town to mail some bills, and get coffee and iced tea.

Driving into town along US 31 North, we noticed that all of the motels had no vacancy signs - and even the smaller motels closer to town had no vacancies - is it the fall color, do you think?
Downtown Traverse City looked like the middle of July because of all the people out walking around. I don't know exactly what was going on, but people were swarming all up and down Front St. A lot of them were carrying shopping bags too - hooray.

At the Division St./Parkway intersection there were three police cars lined up behind a car that was being searched by an officer - we couldn't tell what was going on. Strange happenings.

We drove out to Old Mission Point because the cache that was out there has changed ownership and been moved, so naturally we had to go find it. It was easy. We couldn't believe how many people were out at Lighthouse Park - it was really a busy spot. It was a gorgeous day to be on the peninsula - the water was bluer than blue.

Tom called while we were on the way home. He was at a Porsche auto event - hoping to come in third. He's going out to dinner tonight with Kevin Washington - they'll have a great time. Tomorrow he and Todd are playing Fantasy Football with the Koss brothers. What a good old Belleville group is that!