Weekend up north

The Caribou Trail to the cabin.

Drove up north with my friend Jenny for a Memorial weekend. We left Saturday morning for Jenny and Andrew's cabin on Lake Gust.

There was a memorial planned for Dick Frye, a long long time resident of Lake Gust. Dick died last year. He was a naval veteran and had helped many people build their cabins on Gust. I had not met him but Jenny and Andrew had.

We made it in time for the memorial and heard many amusing stories of Dick and the Gust Lake cabins. The whole group then walked over to the minnow barrel the Dick had set up for everyone to use. Paul, who had lived in a Gust cabin, scattered Dick's ashes around the barrel. Todd, who now lives in Dick's remodeled cabin, had repaired the minnow barrel so it functions again. It is fed from a spring up the hill.

Saturday was a nice day. It had been forecast to rain but it was just mostly cloudy. Jenny had started a new puzzle and was anxious to get to work on it. We spent most of the weekend working on the puzzle.
Saturday night we grilled corn, brussel sprouts and turkey brats.

Sunday was a rainy day. We had planned to go canoeing but decided to go for a walk while it was raining very lightly. We ended up doing a 4 mile hike. It was very nice. We didn't see any wildlife bit did see traces... moose poop, bear poop and moose tracks.

When we got back to Gust Lake road, we ran into Bob and his dog, Gus. Bob and his wife have a cabin. Bob is a talker. It started to rain hard so we retreated back to Jenny and Andrew's cabin and worked on the puzzle. Sunday we grilled chicken thighs and beets.

Monday, Memorial Day, was gorgeous. We got up early and drove with the canoe to Brule Lake and paddled around for an hour. The birds were singing like crazy. It was so beautiful.

Grand Marais

We took the canoe back to the cabin and drove down to Grand Marais. It was an absolutely perfect day on Lake Superior. Jenny bought me a mesmerizing owl carved on a stone. She has bought many pieces from this artist and ordered a piece she wanted for her brother. We ate a late lunch and laid in the sun on the rocky beach. It was fantastic.

Jenny and me with the finished puzzle.

Monday night we combined our leftovers into a large salad. Yum. We finished the puzzle then played cribbage. We were really hoping for northern lights. The prediction center had said the likelihood was high. It was a clear night but we didn't see any northern lights.

I stopped at Palisades Head on US 61. See photo. Jenny was staying up at the cabin and Andrew was coming up today.

A weekend of mud.

Road trip food. Fritos, jerky and coffee.

a turtle on Brule

Palisades head. This is what Northern Minnesota is made of.

wild clematis in the woods behind the cabin

Juiced Nutrition projects

Making benches out of wooden pallets. Thanks to JT for finding two good pallets. I found photos of different examples on Pinterest. None provided instructions. I based mine on a series of photos that used two pallets.

I sawed the pallets on half slat-wise. Stack three halves to form the seat. Used the 'best' half for the seat. I'm still trying to decide about the back. I think I prefer a lower back (the fourth half). It allows more attachment points.

I think I will lightly sand the seat and back so your clothes or skin don't get scratched.

My old wooden-handled hammer lost the battle with the pallet. These things are really put together. You can see the broken handle in the bottom image.


I'm also working on two chalkboard menu signs. I'm using chalkboard paint for the first time. I plan to use pallet slats form the border.

My handsome Frankie

Look at my handsome boy. He's enjoying the front porch now that daddy put the screens in.

And an update on his health. He continues to lose weight but doesn't show any signs of illness. Last week he was down to 7.4 pounds. He pretty much just eats some treats and a little bit of heavy cream.

He loves being picked up and carried around on my shoulder.

Active weekend

Whew. What a weekend.

Saturday morning ran 6.4 miles with Tracy to coffee in St. Louis Park. We ran/walked 3 miles back to my place.

At 12:30 I rode my bike 7 miles to downtown and the Grain Belt building in Northeast. I joined friends for the annual Art-a-Whirl event where we walked 3+ miles viewing art, beer gardens and bands.. I then got back on my bike and rode the 7 miles home via Cedar, Kenilworth and Midtown Greenway bike paths.

Sunday morning I joined the crew from Minnesota Martial Arts Academy to workout by running hill sprints!

That was all more than enough activity and doesn't include the yard work, painting and house chores.

Minnesota Martial Arts Academy crew and me

Backyard bunny

Caught my backyard bunny relaxing under the lilac. I've never seen her so calm. I think there is at least one young bunny, too.

Japanese (tree) peony

The Japanese peony, also known as a tree peony, has started to bloom.

I don't think there are as many blossoms this year as in the past. Looks like the rabbits ate bark over the winter which could potentially cause a few branches to die off.

Sunshine

We've had a rainy April and May so even a little sunshine is nice to have. But I really love the way the sun shines through the buffet window sheers and mom's Frankie and Uno stained glass gift.

Spring garden

Love seeing the garden change in the Spring.

lilacs

seedlings and pepper plants

azalea

Visit with Mom part 3

After Luray Caverns, Mom and I drove back to Warrenton to meet up with my brother and sister-in-law. My brother and I had not set a place to meet. We were going to decide once Mom and I were close. I decided to go to my brother's father-in-law's furniture store. I mentioned this to mom as we approached town. Mom thought that was a really good idea. I nearly fell out of the car laughing because she agreed with something I said. We had been joking all week about our differing opinions.

We met Spade and Bev and Bev's dad, Mr. Rankin, at the furniture. Mr. Rankin is being celebrated for fifty years as a business man in Warrenton. He showed me the accounting general ledger book that he used back in 1966.

On Thursday Mom and I dropped her old tube tv off at the county refuse and recycling center. Then headed to the National Zoo in Washington, DC. I used to live near the zoo and was a frequent visitor. We were mostly wanting to see the pandas.

It turned out to be colder than we had planned. We were dressed for the rain but not the cold so we grabbed a hotdog across from the zoo to try to warm up.

The landscaping at the zoo has grown so much. I guess after 30 years that is what happens. It was surprising and nice to see the trees so tall. The two adult pandas were out in their enclosures so we had no difficulty seeing them. We could not find the entrance to the inside and didn't see the baby panda, Bei Bei.

Thursday evening I did a thorough cleaning of mom's bathroom. Mom didn't seem to happy with me but I think it resulted in a more inviting environment.

Mom and I had a great time traveling around Virginia. It was a great trip.

I've often mentioned how lovely mom's apartment building is. The photo below shows the building as you approach up the drive.

A run in the park

Sunday hill sprints this week was a solo run. The sprints are in Theodore Wirth Park, part of the Minneapolis Park System. It was a beautiful day and so much nature... Canadian geese parents with goslings, a buck and doe, countless birds and frogs.

Visit with Mom Part 2

Wednesday we met great niece Annika and her father, Jason at Luray Caverns in the Shenandoah Valley. We stopped at Washington, Virginal, a tiny town with a world famous inn and restaurant. The restaurant was closed on the day we drove through.

Luray Caverns is a privately owned natural wonder. I remember touring the caverns when I was little. Mom really wanted to see it again. I was concerned that there would be a lot of walking. I did convince her to bring her cane which we referred to as her 'get up stick'.

The photos do not do the cavern justice. There are a number of chambers some of which are enormous. There are all types of stalagmites and stalactites in many different colors.

water reflection

The famous fried eggs that now look more like oysters from years of people touching them.

My great-niece, Annika, in the garden maze. We got really lost.

Visit with Mom Part 1

Old PanAm terminal

I arrived late Monday after a big storm passed through northern Virginia. I am very familiar with National airport so made it quickly to the car rental and out to I395.

Tuesday we drove to the Blue Ridge Mountains and Shenandoah National Park. We stopped in Warrenton, Virginia where I went to all 12 years of school.

Just off Main St. The mural behind us is interesting

We placed flowers at Forrest and Ella Heflin's graves and their son Bernard. The Heflin's were our neighbors and owned a farm.

It was raining by the time we got to Shenandoah National Park. We got a $10 senior annual national park pass and drove Skyline Drive to Skyland Resort. I had reserved a cabin for us for Tuesday night.

Cloudy, foggy, rainy Skyline Drive

The weather was changing by the minute... cloudy, sunny, foggy, windy. The dining hall was positioned for sunset viewing. It looked like we were going to get a good one until the last minute when clouds rolled up from the valley and fog rolled down from the top of the mountain. It was classic.

Water feature cleaned and bubbling

The birds were so excited to have the water bubbling again. They would fly in and splash around While I was still working on the rocks.