Enjoying Spring

I love that we have four full seasons here.  They give us something to look forward to and to celebrate when it arrives. Right now, you can almost feel mother nature cast off her white snowy blanket and inhale her spring breath. It's hard to believe that just five short weeks ago I posted a video were Mark and I hiked into the Lake Superior Park, a short 1.5 miles away, and took photos and videos of the lake iced over, where we walked on ice cliffs that were over 30 ft tall and extended about 150 yards out on the frozen lake, and that looked like the lunar surface.

 I cannot believe how quickly the snow melted and turned the lake from a very bright white to the most beautiful royal blue, the sun glinting off of its surface. In the video below you can see how the high school and college kids are drawn to the shore to enjoy the beautiful spring weather.  I bet in another week, there will be no ice at the shore at all.

 
I hope I never take this view for granted!  We are now enjoying the 40-70 degree days with lighter breezes and bright blue skies.  Everyone here is smiling and most locals are running around in tank tops, shorts, and flip flops...we're not quite that hearty yet.  Mark and I are still in long sleeves and light jackets - unless we are working in the sun. 

The climate, seasons, and remoteness here make these people who they are - the U.P. makes up 1/3 the physical size of the state of Michigan, but yet only has 3% of its population.  No big box stores - most are locally, family owned.  You can't get everything you want whenever you want.  Therefore, people here have had to become creative, self reliant, and are VERY community oriented.  Neighbors know each other here, call to check on each other, and stop by for a cup of coffee or chat.  They smile and wave when they drive by or see you in town. It reminds me of how Columbia, Illinois used to be in the mid 1960s - before it became a bedroom community for St. Louis, doubled its size, and became in a hurry ALL THE TIME.  Mark and I had been sucked into that life for years, you can't help it, you can have everything your way on your time frame.  It did take some getting used to here, but we are better off for it.  You'll see how as you continue reading this blog...

You may remember me telling you about our neighbors, Judy and Bill, that had asked for us to help them build their hoop house last summer?   Judy called me Friday and asked if I'd like to come over and dig up new strawberry runners (volunteer plants) as she had way too many and didn't want to rototill them under if I wanted them.  We visited as she helped me dig them up; she offered me other "volunteer" plants and then came home with me to assist me in figuring out where the best place would be for our new strawberry patch.  Lovely lady!

Yesterday, I volunteered at the Little Brothers of the Elderly.  We worked on crafts that would be sold at the yearly fund raising event held next weekend.  I helped paint garden rocks and sat next an elderly woman, a high school student, and a little eight year old boy.  I was amazed that young people came (some of the teens without their parents) to volunteer.  On top of it, the weather was in the 60s that afternoon so you would think that they would want to be outside.

I would NEVER have experienced this in Columbia or St. Louis - and I have been responsible at work for engaging volunteers and I would have loved this turn out. Not many would have taken time out of their busy Saturday to volunteer - you couldn't even incent them to give time.  We even had a young lady sit down at their VERY old upright piano and serenade us as we worked - no one asked her to do this - she just asked if she could play...AND she even played classical music...I felt like I was not in 2015!!  I think Mark and I will enjoy attending the fundraiser to support this worthy cause.

On the home front - with all the good weather, we've made more progress on the patio, patio and veggie gardens, and pond maintenance....but that is another posting.  Here's wishing you a wonderful spring day!