Warming Up To Winter

I've been kind of whiny lately, complaining about the sub-zero wind chills, gray skies and seemingly, never ending snow. I've tried writing to friends and family in sunny locations, asking if they'll adopt me for a couple of months and, so far I've received no replies. Maybe I'm not getting enough sunlight, or maybe I need to eat more chocolate. Yes, I'm sure that's it, I need more chocolate.

Yesterday afternoon, after watching another rerun of Alaska State Troopers , followed by The Weather Channel's report of 48 degrees below zero temperatures in International Falls, Minnesota, I had an epiphany. There's nothing like the realization that there's a whole lot of places worse than Michigan to live in during the winter to make a person get up off the couch and change into a pair of clean pajamas.

I also realized January is almost over and I haven't wished anyone a Happy New Year. So, using some of the words stolen from lasts year's greeting...May your year be purposeful, productive and fulfilling. May you find wonder, joy, love and...a little warmth everyday. Have a wonderful 2011. Happy New Year, love Julia!

Elliott Beagle Bakes

Elliott Beagle and I have started our Christmas baking. In my family, everyone has their favorite "must have" treat that helps make their celebration complete. I start with the ones that have to be mailed out: chocolate crinkles for Dan, snickerdoodles for Caitlin and maybe some fudge, some sugar cookies and a cranberry-pumpkin loaf. Next, ginger cookies for Kate, cherry bars for Dale, scotch-a-roos for Don, lemon squares for Kay, more chocolate crinkles for Amanda, and scrabble for Mark. My dad likes sugar cookies and Mom likes white chocolate cranberry cookies. My favorite? I like peanut butter chocolate cookies.

What is Elliott Beagle's cookie baking role? His job duties include sleeping under the kitchen table while I work at the counter, listening to CBC Radio 2 while I bake and always helping with spills and clean-up.

Mother-Daughter Roadtrip

Not too long after I returned to Michigan, my mother was ready to take her own roadtrip. We'd both been hearing about the Dale Chihuly exhibit at the Fredrick Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park in Grand Rapids, Michigan and thought we should see it before the snows start. We left Van home in the garage and Elliott Beagle with my dad, then headed west.

Why I don't go to Grand Rapids more often is a mystery to me. It's the second largest city in Michigan, about three hours west from where I live and only about 40 miles from Lake Michigan. As a kid, I used to go with my parents to visit my mom's relatives in Holland, Michigan, not far from Grand Rapids, but I can't remember visiting the west side of Michigan since my children were young. For some reason whenever I go on a roadtrip in Michigan, I seem to head north or east, towards Lake Huron or Lake Superior.

Grand Rapids is a great town, with loads of things to do and places to visit. At the top of the list is the Fredrick Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park. The gardens and sculpture park is a hard place to describe. You could easily spend an entire day there without getting close to seeing everything. It's one of those places which will surprise you every time you visit. There are both indoor and outdoor exhibits, permanent and temporary displays, a sculpture trail and a fantastic children's garden. Mom and I probably spent an hour playing in the children's garden. It made me wish my kids were still little.

All throughout the gardens were installations and displays by world-class designer and glass artist, Dale Chihuly. His fantastical blown-glass creations added a sense of whimsy, wonder and beauty as we explored the gardens. We spent the entire day wandering about, both on foot and by tram. After a little time in the gift shop and the cafe, which has a Chihuly installation on the ceiling, it was closing time. We left wanting to see more, but knowing we're sure to visit again.

Goodbye Gray

After a month of mostly gray, gloomy weather I was glad to return home to Michigan. It feels strange for me to be writing that last sentence because, during certain times of the year, Michigan is infamous for its overcast skies. I'm not saying I didn't enjoy my trip. I had a good time visiting family and friends, and I saw a lot of the country I don't usually visit. It's just that I expected to have better weather for hiking and photography. Of course, there was no way to predict the remains of a hurricane traveling up the East Coast.

I was too early for the changing autumn colors, too. It wasn't until I returned home that the reds, oranges and yellows appeared. Just looking at the warm colors and walking on the crunchy leaves brightens my day.

Wandering Around Maine

About the time I entered Maine, the remains of a hurricane were heading up the East Coast and the weather turned nasty. The rainy, windy weather wasn't conducive to sightseeing or photography; most of the time I didn't even want to leave Van. It was cold and my solar panels were useless with the constant gray skies, so I camped for two nights at a commercial RV park in Skowhegan to charge up my batteries. It was a friendly little park with warm showers and a inexpensive coin laundry. It had great Internet reception, so I was able to watch a couple of Netflix movies, too.

From Skowhegan, I drove up to Baxter State Park, where I spent a few days hiking. Mt. Katahdin, in Baxter State Park, is the northern terminus of the Appalachian Trail. The southern terminus of the trail is over 2000 miles away at Springer Mountain in Georgia. For the last ten years, or so, I've been exploring the AT through a series of day hikes. In my teens and twenties, I thought I would like to through-hike the trail; sometimes I still do. But, while I love the wilderness experience, I know I've grown soft and too fond of hot showers and comfy mattresses. Still, the thought of through-hiking provides me with hours of excellent day-dreaming.

Mirror Lake

I found these photos while organizing some of my photo files from my Northeast trip. I'm not sure where it was located but, I'm guessing western Maine near the New Hampshire border. I wouldn't bet my life on it though. I remember driving down a little, twisty two-lane road, on a gloomy, gray day. Suddenly, I saw this unbelievable view on my left. I made a u-turn in the middle of the road and pulled off as soon as I could find a safe place to park. I never learned the lake's name so, I've decided to call it Mirror Lake.

Ever Wonder How I Wander?

When I travel, I make few plans in advance. Usually I open my AAA road map then circle my starting point and the location of my destination with a neon-colored highlighter. I then "connect-the-dots" choosing a likely looking route. Next, I take a different color highlighter and circle all of the public parks with campgrounds along my highlighted route. Finally, with a third highlighter, I circle any interesting sights or towns I've heard or read about. Also, any that interest me while reading the map. Of course, the route I draw on the map is seldom the actual route I take. I favor small, unlikely looking, roads. Often, especially if I miss a turn, I let Van decide which road to take.

I'm an extremely casual, laid-back traveler. It's probably a good thing that I'm a solo traveler, for I'm sure the way I travel would drive most people crazy. On an average travel day, I probably drive about 150 miles, but 50 could be a good day, too. I rarely make reservations and usually don't know where I'll stop for the night. When I find a place to camp for the night, I'm seldom disappointed.

Vermont's Grand Isle State Park, in the middle of Lake Champlain, was a good find. I chose a grassy campsite, in full sun so I could recharge my solar panel batteries. Then, I walked down to the lake to do a little beach combing. While scrambling over the rocks, I found a comfortable rock chair creation provided by a previous camper. The chair was in the perfect location to eat my picnic supper, listen to the waves and watch the rising moon.