hiking the pictured rocks national lakeshore trail
upper peninsula, michigan, usa
autumn equinox – northern hemisphere
—
‘autumn was ripening and the forest grew crisp.
so deep my soul ventured, I retuned with her scent.’
-angie welland-crosby
‘paradise is a state of mind.’
-dolly parton
lake superior – way U.P. in michigan
summer 2025
up north
on glen lake
the light
at the end of the day.
—
‘happiness is not always loud and bright and crowded.’
-e.l. konigsburg
—
autumn 2o24, glen lake, empire, michgian, usa
townies and visitors
listen to the powerful sounds of u’neek
at the end of summer sol festival
in the charming small town of pentwater
where we were visiting friends
realizing just how small it was
when we kept crossing paths with people
who we’d seen or met in other places
doing other jobs or in different circumstances.
chad was the fill-in musician between sets and bands
also the bartender at the ‘yacht club’
also the second place trivia night champion in town.
next we saw the guy who was the host
at the cafe across the street where we had lunch
now a paying customer at the festival pub.
then we ran into the artist who was also a caretaker for his parents and his dog
who we encountered on the beach an hour before
now sharing stories with my friend and dog-bonding.
—
if i lived there and had multiple roles, i would like to work one day a week at the magical toy store as a storyteller, work one afternoon a week selling ice cream at the beach, be known as the pretty good crossword puzzle champion in town, and sit on a bench in the park watching the town go by and writing my homespun recipe column for the local paper, like how to make my baked potatoes.
—
‘one of the important things about being a small-town reporter is knowing what not to put in the paper.’
-terry pratchett
on the first day of fall with friends
lake michigan
—
‘not every lake dreams to be an ocean.’
-memet murat ildan
“the sky broke like an egg into full sunset and the water caught fire.”
-pamela hansford johnson
—
summer on glen lake, empire/glen arbor, michigan, usa
The annual summer festival, a celebration of the Upper Peninsula’s quintessential cultural cuisine held in the Keweenaw Peninsula village of Calumet, Michigan, is hosting a Pasty Olympics on Aug. 19 from noon to 4 p.m. The zany new competitive event is “probably a world’s first,” according to its website
In addition to the long-running festival’s traditional bake off and pasty eating contest, this year people can vie to win “eternal pasty glory” through an array of Olympic-style competitions that add a strongman-style element to Pasty Fest, “speaking to the history and culture of pasties and the Keweenaw’s copper mining history,” organizers said.
“Expect opening and closing ceremonies and the spirit of competition to prevail!” said Leah Polzien, Main Street Calumet executive director.
One of the new events, the Pasty Relay, involves teams racing to craft a giant pasty — using pool noodles for rolling pins and mops to apply egg wash — with awards for fastest time, most appetizing and best team costumes.
Meanwhile, contestants in the new Pasty Pull are challenged to “harness pure pasty power” in an attempt to pull a truck as fast as possible down a 100-foot track along one of Calumet’s historic streets.
A new Pasty Fest Art Prize competition, featuring two dozen pasty-themed works of art, is already underway. The art includes pasties immortalized in paintings, mixed media, crochet, and even a tiny copper pasty sculpture. Anyone can view the art in the online virtual gallery and vote for their favorites through August 18.
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“the pasty is the yooper burrito of the upper peninsula.”
-daily mining gazette (said by a naval recruiter in the u..p. in the early 90s)
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headed straight north
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“you got to head north. it’s always about going north, you know?
-aaron bruno
s
I didn't have my glasses on.... 