Monthly Archives: July 2019

11.

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50th anniversary of the week of the Apollo 11 moon landing

I was 11

on the cusp of everything 

we went over

to my parents’ friends’ house

everyone was transfixed

air was electric

all gathered around the tv

watching

silent and awestruck

gobsmacked

as the first man walked on the moon

spoke his first words on the moon

 lots of emotion in the house

I ran to the window to look at the moon 

hoping I would see him up there

right in the middle of all of this

the hostess

left to go to the hospital

to have her baby

she named him neil

after that man on the moon.

“we ran as if to meet the moon.” 

― robert frost

 

 

image credit: Ann Arbor district library archives

helpers.

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grandie f and his friends take a short walk

through their neighborhood

(and now mine)

to help bring a few first things over to my new digs.

the friendliest movers ever.

 

“i get by with a little help from my friends.”

-John lennon

 

creepy.

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so creepy unpacking from the family trip
and finding this giant scary baby surprise
in my suitcase.
could have been most anyone
there’s more than one suspect in the group
with this sense of humor.
once narrowed down
it was clear that she may soon
be making a surprise appearance
somewhere else
I’m just saying…
thanks, family!
“I tend to scare myself”
– stephen king

rejoice.

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headed off on a family fun river raft float trip 

not real relaxing as expected

but lots of adventures/misadventures instead

so many laughs and we all survived

who could ask for anything more?

“rejoice as summer should…chase away sorrows by living.” 

-melissa marr, darkest mercy

 

 

argo park, huron river, Ann Arbor, michigan, u.s.a. – summer 2019

this year.

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what a year it’s been

on July 15th of last year

I put my 100+ year old cottage up for sale

through 2 sales – (the first a near miss, the second a hit)

showings, open houses, fixing, cleaning, clearing, minimizing, negotiating

a roller coaster ride

filled with lots of ups and downs

lessons learned

money spent

tears and laughs

fingers crossed

then moving and storing and staying with family

while waiting for the place I wanted to be next

hoping someone would be wiling to sell it

at just the right time

at just the right price

and with all this

somehow

it has fallen into place

here I am

exactly 1 year later

on july 15th once again

and today

I’ll be taking ownership

of the place that is exactly where I want to be

a simplified life begins

 in the perfect home for me

happy to make it my own

in the ‘july’ of my life

near family, near the trees, near the water, near the town

what a wonderful difference 1 year can make.

 

“my life, i realize suddenly, is july.

childhood is june, and old age is august,

but here it is, july, and my life, this year, is july inside of july.”

-rick bass 

 

 

photo credit: mark bugnaski – MLive.com

floor candy!

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an exciting and  cost-effective option

offered up to

the adventurous sweets eaters of the world

inside the dam candy store

“all the candy corn that was ever made was made in 1911.”

-lewis black

 

dam candy store, fishtown, leland, michigan, u.s.a. – July 2019

baseball is drama.

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great fun

at a game of

the traverse city pit spitters vs. the wisconsin woodchucks.

nice field

light attendance

good seats

cheap food and drinks

dinos, mascot, lively fans, crazy promos,

singing, dancing, kids on the grass,

nice weather, music, good company

all that

and a baseball game too

a very pleasant way to experience an evening.

 

“baseball is drama with an endless run and an ever-changing cast.”

-joe garagiola

 

 

 

traverse city, michigan, u.s.a. – summer 2019