Sailing Away

On Saturday, Alanna and I drove to Bay City to take a sail on the Tall Ship Appledore IV. It was an incredible day for sailing! Although hazy when we left, by the time we arrived there was nothing but blue skies. There were whitecaps on Saginaw Bay which meant the wind was 12-15 knots. Perfect for sailing!

We motored up the river but when we reached the bay it was  time to hoist the sails. Alanna, being an experienced sailor and current Commander of the Power Squadron volunteered to 'heave to'.

Once the sails were raised, we dashed across the bay and back. There were squeals every now and then when the spray would come over the ship but nobody was seriously soaked.  All part of sailing.

We returned to the dock much too soon.  The Appledore IV has public sails on the weekends and is available for private parties and wedding receptions, etc.  It's non-profit and the dollars earned from public sails are used to fund educational sails for school kids the other five days a week from April to mid June.

Now I'm reading Diana Gabaldon's 3rd volume in the Outlander series called Voyager. In it, the main characters are traveling by ship from Edinburgh to Jamaica in 1768. Maybe on a ship much like the Appledore IV? 

If I Had A Boat

It's been almost a week already since Cindy and I travelled to Meijer Gardens to see Lyle Lovett. The concert was fantastic! Over 2 1/2 hours without an intermission. Beth saw him at Common Ground the next night and loved that concert also.  I don't know how performers do it night after night.  One of my favorite songs is "If I had a Boat". In the song, Lyle says that he would take his pony on his boat out on the ocean.

I just finished reading "A Salty Piece of Land" by Jimmy Buffett. He must have liked Lyle's song too because it is a story about a character who leaves Wyoming and takes "his pony on a boat out on the ocean" and all of the characters they meet and the crazy adventures they have. It's interesting how a line from a song can influence a whole novel. (Like when a photo or a texture can inspire an entire quilt. Cindy, I still haven't done my 'sing a quilt' project...) It's great summer reading.

Cindy enjoying the crowd before Lyle. Note, her chairback is just slightly higher than regulation (they officially measure them).

Debra and Tom having a picnic.

Margaritaville

What a wonderful summer evening to be outside! Especially enjoying fun music, friends, food and a few beverages. Tonight, Carol, Daisy, Ruth, Tish and I went to Reno's to hear the band Living Soul. The band plays Jimmy Buffett music.

That's Carol and Daisy behind the shades. Daisy commented that there weren't many white-headed people on the patio.  We're glad that she's adventurous and willing to kick up her heels with the 'kids'.  You go girl!

Ruth and Tish. You can see their beverage of choice! Tish has been refinishing a challenging door and earned the rest.  Living Soul is playing most Wednesday evenings so if you're interested, let us know. The food's great and you don't have to cook!

Summer Evening

Tonight was my night to babysit Cubby while his mom went to school. One of our favorite things to do is 'stroll' down to the Tollgate Wetlands to check out the ducks. There are all kinds of wildflowers in bloom right now and if you look carefully along the path, you can see a whole bunch of new Japanese Iris, Sedum, Daisies, and other flowers planted by the Drain Commission in the last few weeks. The mulberries are almost done and the the baby ducks (7 at last count) are now 'youth' ducks - the male mallards are starting to get their shiny feathers.

Cubby spent a few days with his other grandparents at the lake and Claire and I just barely survived being without him.  Sunday afternoon he came over and said, "up,up, pease, pease, pease." He wanted to play in the sink. (His mom didn't know we had done it before - what happens at grandma's...). He's wearing Gennie's packable water dish as a hat.  It struck me that it looks kind of like a graduation cap... oh no! He's never growing up!