Thoughts Along the River

Another year, another birthday

2009-03-15T23:41:00.002-04:00

There's something about the passing of another year. With the nation's economy in a deep free fall, there hopefully will be "one more year, another year wiser". I don't know if it really means "smarter" or not, but I do know that it means paying closer attention, choosing the battles more carefully, and living wiser.
Other than the mortgage and car payment, debts will be zero month to month. I do enjoy the privilege and convenience of credit card purchases. As long as I pay them off before interest accrues, I feel comfortable managing them.
The garden is expanding to continue to provide some relief on the food budget. I learned a lot about growing food and storing it for Winter last year. While there was not that much put up, the experience will be very helpful for the future. Lots of fruits and permanent crops are being added this year to continue the plan toward greater sustainability
Adding in chickens and a few rabbits will also be a help. The chickens will be providing lots of eggs and between them and the rabbits, both garbage disposal and compost building will be greatly improved. There may even be surpluses available for sales and barter once everything is finalized.
All in all, the coming year is looking good and build upon the goals I have laid out - chiefly to have great sustainability and self sufficiency now and in the future.

Not Sick, just Tired . . .

2009-02-04T13:24:00.002-05:00

of Winter and its cold temperatures. January had two brutal cold blasts down to nearly -30 not even counting the wind chills. Last night was sort of the last straw. After a few scattered days of warmer temps (but still near freezing) we have another cold blast - this time onluy -15 or so.

The silver lining is that we could reach into the 40s by this weekend. Yea, I know, its only February and there's a lot of Winter left, but I'm really tired of it. This is the first Winter I've spent this fair North and Im remembering why. At least in the city there are places to go, be warm(er) and have things to do. Much of my January was spent between the wood stove and the wood pile. I know, I chose to heat with a wood stove so who do I expect to feel sorry.

I selected wood heat for a couple of reasons, one of which was to see what it would be like. I've learned a lot. It took a while, but I figured out how to make a fire that didn't go front barely warm to 80s in a flash of fire. I figured out how to make a fire last overnight - for the most part. I figured out how to empty the ashes into a metal ash pot (instead of the left over plastic cans from joint plaster). And, if I believe my neighbors, I've saved some money.

Round these parts there are two things about propane heating. One is, you won't have enough to make it through the Winter if you go to warmer climates. You'll end up on the phone finding out why your summer home is at or below freezing (and I won't go into the water/freeze damage when below!). Second, is the price of propane will likely cost you nearly a thousand dollars to keep you in heat this Winter. In my case, I keep a close rein on my wood pile and try to keep enough on hand to make it through the Winter. As the pile shrinks, I can adjust my burning to stretch it. Secondly, instead of $1,000 I'll have about $500 in wood for the entire Winter.

Its a pain to get up to cold floors and cool temperatures, but it sure is a warm feeling seeing that extra $500 on my side of the column instead of theirs.

2009 - The Year of Dreams

2009-01-02T11:12:00.002-05:00

2008 has come to close and 2009 has begun. I think that 2009 will be the Year of Dreams. I have spent 2008 preparing for the next stages in my life and I have establish many of the things necessary for me to settle into the next few years.

I've completed the transition into retirement. I've worked to live within my retirement income having briefly reached a six figure income while working. When I got to that level, I realized that I had a few good years to prepare for the kind of life I wanted after retiring. My 2004 heart attack and subsequent quadruple by-pass made me realize that I had many more things I wanted to do but couldn't while I was working fulltime. It maybe accelerated my movement toward retirement, but I haven't looked back from that time onward.

By 2008, I knew I needed a place on this Earth to call my own in retirement and so I purchased and readied my 10 acres and cabin for my retirement. To return to my interests and education as a naturalist and field biologist I knew that my place would need to be in a natural area and the woods and trout streams of northen Michigan would fit the bill. While the move pushed me out of the cities, it also allowed me to feed the birds, grow some of my own food, walk in solitude through the woods, and spend time watching and studying the natural world outside my windows.

The cabin was new, but just a shell. I wanted to invest myself in finishing it off and so I wired, hung dry wall, plastered and painted, floored and bought the things I wanted and needed to live here. I worked weekends and days off to transition the cabin from walls and a roof to a place where I could be comfortable and spend my time.

Needing to understand the full cycle of the seasons, I decided to stay in residence for a full year - including through an entire winter. I rely on wood to heat with supplemental electric heat and had to learn to hold a fire overnight as well as all day. Because of my health, I needed to eat healthy and learned to plan meals, store foods, and better balance health and eating.

And now that 2009 has arrived and I'm finishing my first taste of Winter, I can begin to dream of how I want my future to fit and feel. I am a man of lists, and even though I haven't checked off everything for my first year, I have sat through the passing Winter days making my lists for 2009. Lists of vegetables and fruits to plant, structures and sheds to build, goals to set and tasks to accomplish.

While the rest of the world struggles through the changes of the coming economy, changes in leadership, and changing Earth, I am ready for 2009. Armed with my lists, I await the end of Winter and the start of another Season in a cabin on my 10 acres.

Kindness in Winter

2008-12-13T13:38:00.006-05:00

I am a field biologist and naturalist, so I understand how Nature, survival, and evolution work. I know that the focus of these fundamentals is on a species level and not on the individual. At the same time, it's not easy to feel empathy when the affects of Mother Nature act on the individual.

During winter, as I sit watching the birds and animals at my feeder, I can't help being moved. Currently we have about 2 feet of snow cover on the ground. The "gang" of five turkeys continue to come in and spend the day picking through the fallen seeds and loafing about in the clearing around the feeders. With this last snow, they have been joined by a few deer that have moved out of the deep forest seeking an easier time surviving the Winter. While most are does with their yearlings and one or two bucks, the group includes an outsider.

This is the one I call "Baby Deer". He (or she) is shy and reserved, not quite sure of itself. He always stands off in the background and if too forward is chased back by the others. Baby is an orphan yearling. Mom, for whatever reason, is no where to be found and so Baby fends for itself.

Because of Chronic Wasting Disease and bouvine TB, there has been a baiting and feeding ban for White Tails. I can not take the chance to feed the deer that come in, but I can allow them the little seed that falls from the bird feeders - especially Baby.

Late last Winter, before the ban, another yearling came out of the forest to feed as well. This one was thin, but held on through Winter and needed just a little help to make it through to fresh growth and food in the Spring. I didn't mind the extra corn and seed it took to help out. I will never know, but would like to think that this yearling made it through and survived.

And now I hope that Baby Deer will too.

I also have a large flock of Blue Jays that have moved down from further north, to wait out Winter at the feeders. There is one I keep an eye out for as it too has had Natures ill-will befall it. This Jay has an injured leg that prevents it from perching normally. I noticed it when it was huddled agains the trunk of a tree working to break open a peanut early in the Fall. Unable to fly in and out as regularly as its flock mates, I often see it belly to the ground picking at the sunflower seeds that shower down from the feeders while others are feeding. As difficult as it may seem, survival seems to be favoring this individual and with luck and prays it will make it through the Winter and maybe even nesting next Spring.

Rant Warning - Oil

2008-10-03T17:11:00.004-04:00

I am so sick and tired of hearing the "Drill-baby-Drill" cries that I can't stand it - especially from politicians! They just don't get it. The problem is not about supply - its about demand. Let's say we do succeed in Swiss-cheesing the environment to squeeze out what ever oil/natural gas that we own, what makes us think that it will last indefinitely?

While I agree the foreign debt and economic disparity this country has is very much related to our oil dependency, that is less of an issue than the affects of global climate change and the fact that "Drill-Baby-Drill" will not lower our costs for gasoline, heating oil, or anything else. There are huge demands and a willingness to pay in other countries that any oil that we extract from our natural resources will be on the open market. What makes us think that the multinational corporations that control the flow of oil will not continue to sell to the highest bidder? They would be foolish not to do so!

I've read that the amount of oil available directly from US natural resources, would, in fact not lower the consumer costs, would not address issues of carbon foot printing, would not address global changes, and would not stabilize the US economy. In fact, the grade of the crude and associated extraction costs will most likely continue to move consumer costs even higher than what we currently pay in the US.

The reality is that its about demand. We can create an atomic bomb (thought to be theoretical but not probable), put a man into space, put a man on the moon, cure diseases, and a host of other "unthinkable" tasks, but we can't produce a nonpolluting, non-oil based mode of transportation that is economically feasible? Give me a break. Shifting our oil needs to domestic products will not extend the earth's supply of oil by one second, let alone anything longer.

The problem is not about oil there is or where it is. It's about how much can we process, for how long, to meet our demands. That's the real issue. At some point in time, without curtailing demand, we will reach a point when we've used up all of our domestic fuels, continuing our dependence on oil to keep our nation functioning, and then, where will we be forced to look to meet our desire for oil?

It should not be "Drill-Baby-Drill" but "Conserve-Baby-Conserve" tied to "Develop-Baby-Develop (Alternative fuels and alternative attitudes)"!

How Did They Find Out?

2008-09-22T20:25:00.005-04:00

Who told them? Regardless of the fabulous weather and blue skys today, at 11:44 AM it changed from Summer to Autumn. I have taken to eating lunch out on the deck, but I was not alone.A new neighbor moved into the area - this Chipmunk! I guess he/she decided lunch time was a chance to eat. I watched it for the longest time when I realized what it was doing.

Ol' Chipmunk Cheeks was really eating. Apparently someone mentioned that it was Autumn and that meant that Winter was closer rather than further. Time after time, the cheek stretched to capacity as they filled up with sunflower seeds. After about five minutes, all I'd see was :

as Chipmunk Cheeks headed down the woods path to stockpile food over Winter and next Spring. Maybe the animals know something about Winter that we don't - Will somebody please tell us?

Sigh. . .Frost. . .Autumn

2008-09-09T12:26:00.002-04:00

Fall is beginning to . . .well, fall. While I've had a very light frost back in late August, a wide scattered one is predicted in the next few nights. That first frost tinted many of the bracken ferns yellow and curled a few leaves in the garden, I guess its time to realize that Autumn is falling.

I heard a few guns being sighted in for the coming deer and turkey season; fishing is slowing down; and the last of the tubes and canoes have made there last fun runs down the river.I guess it is only a matter of time before the few maples and oaks at the cabin begin their colorful leaf drop and we'll be in the "brown" stage until that dreaded first covering snow.

The birds are flocking back up after breeding this year - the Red Breasted and White Breasted Nuthatches have rejoined the increasing crowds of chickadees at the feeders. The Woodpeckers of various types are eyeing the suet feeders but still prefer the sunflowers yet. I've been seeing the last few migrants headed south and expect most will be gone by the end of the month.

At the end of September I will have been at the cabin for my first six months and can decided if I'm looking forward to the coming first full winter with dread or anticipation. Oh, I've lots to do yet - put the garden to bed, clean the yard, ready my winter supply of wood, arrange the pantry, check the well and insulation in the crawl space. So there's still lots to do and lots of days remaining before that first cold snap and hopefully before the first snow.

Predictable or Rut?

2008-08-17T08:54:00.002-04:00

A little over 4 months ago, I moved up to the cabin full-time (well at least for now). With all of the moving, packing, unpacking, and getting settled, I thought my life was anything but predictable.

I'm the only one in the "neighborhood" who is here all the time, and so I note most of the comings and goings. A couple of weeks back, I noticed my southern neighbor's nice big black storage trailer (where he keeps all his tools and equipment while his pole barn is being built), was gone. Not having noted anything unusual, I attributed it to his nearly finished pole barn and the fact that he wanted to get the trailer back downstate. Unfortunately, it was nearly two weeks before he and his wife were back to discover that the trailer had been stolen!

Because I was the last to recall seeing it, I became the de facto witness, telling the story over and over to police, insurance agents, and the neighbors. It was then that I realized how predictable I'd become.

"When did you last see it?"

"Well, I spend lots of time outside reading until dark, so it was about 8:30 that evening. I know the time, because there's nothing worse than turning on the TV on the half-hour because your in the middle of everything on screen."

"When did you notice it was gone?"

"The next morning before 9:00 AM. see every morning I'm up at 7, check my email, drink a cup of coffee, Shave, shower, get dressed and then go outside to check to see what the squirrels and raccoons have left in the garden overnight. Then its on to breakfast down at the little restaurant to have scramble eggs, sausage links, whole wheat toast, and some more coffee. I'm there until 11:30-noon, and return home to await the mail. By 1:30 the mail is here and then I read for a few hours, head to fish before dinner and then read a few more hours. So it had to be before 9:00 AM because my garden faces there place and its kind of hard not to notice a huge black trailer that isn't there."

And it seems, that every day is the same. Predictable. But I'm going to work to change that as fast as I can. Life is way too short to continue sitting at the bottom of a rut not even knowing it, and then lamenting all of the things you missed doing. So slowly, I'm headed up the sides of the rut-walls to see exactly what's out there in the real world.

The Problem with Global Warming

2008-06-18T09:14:00.002-04:00

Here it is just a few days from Summer (on the calendar), and the daytime highs struggle to stay in the 50s, nights in the 40s, and cool, damp air round the clock. I guess I should be thankful that I don't have the severe floods as the upper Mississippi River folks are dealing with.
This crazy weather is why I think there's a problem with global warming. Not the facts or results, but the name. The public has a real misunderstanding of what's possible because of the name. They think that everything will be getting warmer - when it doesn't they don't hold much stock in the theory. My reality is that is should have been called Global Climate Change.
The idea of GCC is that the climate you remember as a kid growing up is gone! It's been replaced by something very different than what you remember. For me, that seems like, warmer, snowier winters, longer wetter Springs and Summers, and Autumns that stretch nearly to January.
The big difference for me is not the temperatures as much as it is the precipitation. It seems like there is more rainy, damp days which might seem like a good thing. Unfortunately, the surface of the earth becomes saturated and the rains that fall move across the land as floods and high water in the rivers rather than soaking into ground water. When the sun heats things up, this actually dries out the soil deeply and, combined with the increased runoff, leaches the minerals and fertility out of the soil. (This is similar to the deserts where Spring Rains are actually floods and the rest of the year its parched.)
Well, Summer is here on Friday evening, so hopefully things will stabilize a little and heat up. The tomatoes and peppers are begging for the good old hot days of Summertimes past.

Heat & Humidity

2008-06-08T13:00:00.002-04:00

For the last several days, I've been living with the heat and humidity of the upper Midwest. Daytime highs have gone as high as the low 90s with stiffling humidity. Fortunately, the cabin has remained quite tolerable.
Lots of people thought I was a little off the wall for super insulating the cabin while I finished it's construction. I put R 64 in the ceiling and R44 in the walls even though R48 and R19 were recommended respectively. It cost a little more to do this, but it'll pay off in the long run.
The pay off is not only in cooling costs, but obviously, in heating. Because the cabin is super insulated it helps to hold both the heat in as well as the cool.

Consumer Prices

2008-05-29T10:46:00.002-04:00

It seems the crisis with gas and oil is continuing to creep into all consumer products. Of course, gasoline is at a record high, but even things like food and other staples are continuing to inch up with transportation costs. All the more reason to look closely at personal consumerism and become less dependent upn "stores" for the things of lfe.

In my case, the garden will be a god send for the little things in life - lettuce, radishes, peas, broccoli, tomatoes, and the like. A small contribution, but welcome just the same. As long as the weatherman doesn't throw any (more) curves, the garden will be in full production by the middle of June.

With luck, I'll continue to see payoffs from the CF lights installed, and minimal useof other electricity. Once I have current projects settled, I'll be looking into ways to tap into solar energy for some things - inaddition to my yard lighting.

Energy and Sustainability

2008-05-19T15:28:00.002-04:00

When I bought my cabin, I had lots of planning to do. It was an unfinished shell and that meant that I had the chance to put decide nearly everything that went into it. One of my goals in moving to the cabin was to have a more self sustained life. That meant that one thing to consider was energy.

Almost all of my neighbors have propane pigs (or tanks) sitting in their yard. While the convienence of oripane would be nice, I elected to go in other directions. My choices might mean some sacrifices for me, but in order to become more sustained and self-sufficent those choices were the way for me to go.

The cabin came with a 100 amp circuit from the road so that was one thing I didn't chose. It does provide all my electrical needs which include refridgerator, lights, computer, well pump, and cooking. However, I installed solar yard lights and hope to continue to convert over to more solar in the future. All the lights are CF lights which helps to minimize consumption.
An interesting thing that I read was to consider using the smallest possible cooking source available that will complete a task. For me, that includes a small microwave, a small broiler oven, a 4 cup and single cup coffee-makers, smallest standard refridgerator, and smallest electric range. I strive to cook one-pot meals rather than fixing lots of smaller dishes.

I also rely on my wood burning stove for heating along with warming meals. It does mean that I have to chop and haul wood, and I have some concern for the emissions, but overall I feel that the trade off is worth it.

as I continue my cabin adventure, I'll be looking forward to calculating my energy footprint and then decide ways to further reduce it. Time will tell if this "experiment" will provide the pay-offs I anticipate.

From river to river to river

2008-05-07T17:40:00.002-04:00

My move into retirement is now complete. I've somehow struggled and muddled through construction, snow, electrical service, plumbing, finish woodwork, decorating, appliances, satellite TV, and of course Internet service. But regardless, the struggles have been worth it a thousand times over.

At night, I can go out and see stars from treetops to the horizon. The only sounds are the birds, insects, and breeze. Very few humans are the neighbors, and the antics of the deer, turkeys, raccoons, squirrels, and birds keep me informed and entertained. Forging my garden out this raw land is a challenge, but satisifying. Soon radish, lettuce, spinach, and Spring Onions will become part of my mainstay - the results of my efforts. These will be followed by peas, beans, tomatoes, squashes, and storage onions - all grown by my hand on my ground.

And there's the river. I grew up on the Saginaw River, a large transportation river that feeds into Lake Huron. For the last twenty some years, I lived on the Huron River a much smaller, faster river coursing through Ann Arbor on its way to Lake Erie. And now, I'm learning to live with the Au Sable - a world premier trout stream with all of the fishing opportunities it brings. I wonder how much of the Saginaw, Huron, and Au Sable will course through my veins as I move through life.

Return to Thoughts

2008-02-25T11:14:00.002-05:00

After spending all of 2007 working on retiring and finishing the cabin, I'm set to return to regular blogging here. As I purchased materials for the cabin, I have come to realize how important it will be to become what I call a "localist".

Unlike the isolationist, I'm not interested in becoming a hermit - politically or personally. For me a localist means being environmental conscientious, a responsible consumer, and looking to a smaller, more local environment to meet one's needs. Part of that is having an in-season garden, securing a local source for fresh produce, meats, dairy, and fruits, and becoming more in turn with a balanced environment - both consumer environment and natural environment.

As our county struggles with its place in the world, being a localist provides not only a good feeling, but it also provides for the independence from world markets, a carbon dependent society, and improves the local economy and community. Realistically it isn't possible to meet all of my needs locally, but I'll be on the look out for ways to increase a localist's perspective in daily living.

"With the Wind in their Souls"

2006-09-07T21:27:00.000-04:00

Every Saturday, I travel nearly 200 miles in search of a meaning for my life. And on every one of these journeys I find the same simple answer over and over. You see, every Saturday I make this journey to see Charlie and Max, my two Labrador Retreivers who live with mother nearly 2 hours away. They came into my life over a year ago after my best friend and first Lab, Sam passed after nearly 15 years of faithfulness and love.

Charlie (chocolate) and Max (yellow) are not related, but the three of us are now best friends as far as man and beasts go. Every week they live quiet lives with my mother awaiting my next visit. Like them, I too idle the week away waiting for the next trip to see them.

After excited greetings and searches in pockets for a treat or two, we or more accurately I, spend moments looking deep into their eyes wondering what doggy thoughts float inside their soul. I don't know if its typical of the their kind, but they both have very expressive faces and eyes.

Charlie always seems a bit anxious as he awaits a chance to get into the fields and if the weather permits, a cooling game of fetch in the river.

He is the youngest, but only by a week, and his energy is as boundless as his youth. The first to greet me his green eyes reveal a inner soul of sensitivity with an immense desire to please. He doesn't crave human attention as much as he has the need to be a part of the human world. His playful spirit provides his day with activity, exercise, and dedication to the things he enjoys in life. And much of that is being with people. His smaller frame gives no hint to the strength he possess both in muscle and in spirit. He easily controls his massive strength that seems so odd coming from such a friendly face. Yet that strength is always in reserve and ready for the call - whether to play hard or to work hard while swimming or running in the field.

Max, on the other hand is the worrier. His eyebrows wrinkle up and down with his mood as he listens intently to the human conversations around him. Fiercely loyal, no strange sound or footsteps go unnoticed. Knowing his territory, all interlopers must pay him heed. Yet with his gentle expression, his protective alertness seem almost out of place. Once he sees that a suspicious sound or intruder presents no threat, his face reveals the gentle giant inside. Like nearly all Labs, Max enjoys the water, but his element is really on the land. He races through the tall grass seeking out the sources of all the odd smells and listens intently for the slightest ruff of leaves or calls of a distance bird.

While all of these personality traits they show, the part that touches me the most are their eyes. I would never attempt to look so deeply into the eyes of a stranger dog, but when I look into Charlie or Max's eyes, I can not help but think that they ar looking back into mine.

I know that it really isn't fair to them to see them in human terms, but I can not help but think that there are things going on behind those eyes that I will never understand. Yet sometimes I feel like they are trying to help me see and understand that which is in their soul.

Through their eyes one can see the devotion, companionship, pleasure, playfulness, warmth, and caring that make them very special to me and, I think, I to them. As every weekend rolls around and I travel that journey to where they live, and as they run to greet me as I arrive, I can not help but envy their lives and remembering Sam and now Charlie and Max, thank them all for the meaning they share with me as they run and play in the field.

Rest well my friends for weekend will soon come and all four of us will be together again, with the wind in our souls.

-Dave

Some Place Between Then and Now

2006-08-13T21:44:00.000-04:00

Different folks have different favorite seasons. Some enjoy the heat and sunshine of Summer; others the bone chilling cold and blowing snow of Winter. I always have a hard time choosing between the two seasons of change - Spring and Autumn.

I really enjoy the glowing warmth of Spring especially those sunshiny days in late February and early March when it looks blindingly bright outdoors and the sunshine warms through even the stiffest of winter coats. Of course, there is also the Spring migration of birds - especially the wood warblers - as they move through my area headed to the reaches further north to nest and raise the next generation. The Spring woodland flowers also begin the season with danty bloosoms long before the last of the snow has melted away and the traditional blankets of flowers fill the landscape. Spring brings warm days and adventures outdoors after the long Winter.

Autumn is also about warm days. But on the other hand there are those wonderful, sleeping weather cool evenings when the temperature dips down into the 50s overnight. Rather than the brightly colored migrants of Spring, the Autumn migrants are drab and less dazzling in their colors as there is little need to attract a mate this late in the year. Unlike the Spring migrants, shorebirds are much more clearly seen on the dwindling mudflats of Autumn. Stopping on their journey South this time, they stock up heavily on the small plants, insects, fish, and others that they find in the shallowing waters and mudflats. They gather in swirling mixed flocks of plovers, sandpipers, stilts, gulls, and terns all feasting on the water's harvest.

In the gardens and orchards, the hardiest of vegetables - main potatoes, winter squash, sweet corn, and the like are in full season making the tasty delights coming from the garden plentiful and varied. The trees in the orchards are beginning to show signs that soon they will give up their bounty as well providing, pears and apples, as well as late stone fruits. The grape arbors are become weighted nearly to the breaking point with handfuls of green, red, and purple grapes.

Just as Spring is the season of beginnings, Autumn is the season of endings. The mirgrants who pass through this area will soon be gone. The plants in gardens will be dried ghosts of their former selves before being gathered into the compost bin. But before making that journey they will have given their harvest to feed those who tend them and those who don't. Before long, the crackle of autumn bonfires will be the crackle of fresh snow and frozen puddles. And while Autumn is the end of Summer, like Spring, it is also the new beginning - of Winter the season of planning and hopes.

Life's Interruptions

2006-07-21T07:37:00.000-04:00

It is seldom that a week goes by without Life being interrupted. Sometimes the interruptions are cataclysmic like 911 or the recent fighting in the Middle East and sometimes it is just a minor disruption at some personal level. Sometimes its even a combination of size and personal impact that gives the interruption greater meaning. Such was the case with my own heart attack two years ago. It definitely was not on the scale of terrorism or regional war, but for me it was nearly the end. To modern medicine's credit, a quadruple heart by pass operation and I am feeling renewed and living life fullest again.

This week, the interruption was much much smaller than the heart surgery, but still it has disrupted my comings and goings for most of the week. I had been having some gasteric discomfort due to a dysfunctional gall bladder which since Wednesday this week, has joined that list of things that will not happen again for me. Again through the wonder of modern medicine, my gall bladder was removed beginning at 7:31 AM on Wednesday and I was home sitting on my couch at 1:30 PM! A few hours labor by the fine doctors at University of Michigan Hospitol (literally my neighbors to the west), four small laproscopic incisions, some "super glue" sterile closures, and one less gall bladder.

My brother, who had his removed a several years back, spent three or four days in the hospitol for the same operation and I was barely from home 6 hours. Granted, I'm sore and tired, but generally pain free and quickly recovering enough to return to normal activities early next week.

However, this interruption does mean that any major work planned for this weekend will be delayed until next weekend when I should be better able to continue the Studio construction, getting the gardens and landscape settled for summer, and the like. I will however, be able to use this time off to make a few new plans for the coming months and start to visualize the new greenhouse that will be started this Fall.

With "Hats off" to modern medicine, I'll sit back this week, continue my brief recovery, enjoy the interruption, and will be back on track next week.

Hello, my old friends

2006-07-16T07:48:00.000-04:00

As one moves through life, it is not common to remain friends for years and years. As I rested during the 90 degree weather this past week, I was able to spend some time with two of my oldest friends. We really didn't have much to say, just long enough to say "Hello" and to spend a few moments together. Over the years, our friendship has been much like that - stolen moments here and there.

My first friend is nearly as old as I am - 55 years old. A Siberian or Chinese Elm it is the only one of several that were planted in the early 1950s to provide shade for a new home that my uncle had built. Since my uncle passed away in the 1980s the home and its trees have passed to me.

Like most Siberian Elms, this one is multi-trunked and reaches some 40 feet toward the sky. Every year it sheds loads of sticks and twigs as it continues to grow onward.

While it may not show well in this photos, the trunk at chest height is massive and easily over 15 or 20 feet in circumference. I'd guess the diameter to be 6-8 feed.

This monster has survived summer and winter storms, sheets of ice, blowing gales, and just the rigors be being road side since what everyone remembers as 1951 or 1952.

Someday, I'm sure I'll lose this old friend. I only hope it falls to miss the house which sits precariously close by.

My other friend is likewise massive, but is a few years younger. Like my elm friend, this one also reaches toward the clouds with multi-arms. And like my elm, it too offers a great shady spot under which it influences both plants and animals around it. This one is a Silver Maple that I planted as best as I can remember between 1957-1960. At the time, I planted several rogue maples that appeared growing one summer and were destined to either be moved or uprooted during brush clearing. During its youth, sibling trees of this one were given to friends and lined the streetside of several homes nearby. Sadly, this is the only on that remains.

With wood that is tighter than the elm, the size of this trees trunk is not nearly as large as the elm, but still ranges in the 10-12 foot circumference and probably a 4-5 foot diameter. This tree lives in a side lot well away from the house and has it roots deep into the river's flood plain where it has a perfect supply of water regardless of the weather.

Offspring from this tree are planted elsewhere on the property also providing respite from the summer's heat and sun. Because it is so close to the river's edge, the air is always cool and refreshing around this old friend. In its shadow from where the picture was taken, I bench sits inviting one to stop and spend some time with the cool breezes and rustle of its leaves.

I have plans for the ground under this old friend for the coming months as I hope to plant in among its feet a new shade garden of perennials to keep my old friend company during the rest of its long life.

Not many trees get to live out their natural lives year after year, providing shade, comfort, and counsel for so long. Few friends remain throughout one's entire life providing a trusty, loyal, and unquestionable friendship. Long live friendships and long live my old friends, the maple and elm.

Making Due with Summer Time

2006-07-10T00:29:00.000-04:00

One of the things that I've noticed during Summertime is the unevenness of it, and I've never figured out where it comes from. Some days its hot, and sunny, but with a breeze the humidity only seems slightly uncomfortable. Other hot days it pains to just move through the air walking along the flower beds. Then there are are the repreive days with the heat and humidity are both lower and it is almost refreshing to walk. The effect of these variations is that some days drag along seemingly moving slower and slower and others will spend along at firefly speed coming and going before one can sit an enjoy them.

And the speed of the day has nothing to do with the amount of work to do or the amount that gets done. Some "fast days" contain long lists and great satisfaction at the end and so do some "slow days", although I have noticed that it is more noticable at the end of day if it was a fast one and it is during the day that the slow ones stick out.

The affective of all of this is an unevenness to what is completed any specific day. Consequently the work sees to move in a herky-jerky fashion - some days much is completed and other days it seems like nothing is done.

Take, for example, the work on my soon to be hopefully finished riverside Studio. In the beginning, with the mixing and pouring of cement foundations and setting the floor joists, work seemed to stretch over many days, ever so slowing progressing from week to week. Once the floor planks were laid, the walls seemed to jump up from the piles of 2x4s and were constructed in one weekend. But this past weekend, the work involved the placement and construction of roof rafters and the snail's pace of Summer returned. Working early morning to well into the night, only half as much work was completed as had been hoped. Even with the extra light of day-light savings and the hot weather of early July, the work snailed along - a slow day to be sure. And at the end of the day, it seemed little movement forward was had.

In order to finish the Studio and to be able to enjoy the fruits of this labor, the remaing weeks will need to be those satisfying, fast days when shingles and trim boards will jump from the piles of supplies and every workday will show a jump in progress as the Studio birth is completed.

Remembering when

2006-07-05T10:23:00.000-04:00

There are always certain acts as a child that seem to get lost in the whole of being an adult. Occassionally, as an adult, when you encounter these acts, you stop and smile remembering when times were simplier and there were no worries. This happened to me recently and the feeling lasted for a couple of weeks.

While out for a hike through my favorite nature park, I can upon a stand of Common Milk Weed plants. In fact a stand is what it was with many plants, each with stalks as thick as your thumb and leaves the size of hands. Something caught my eye under one of the leaves facing trail side.

There worked a large Monarch caterpillar munching away at the Milk Weed leaves. Immediately I was transported back in time to when, as a boy, Monarchs were as common as robins and every summer they'd be collected into mason jars with holes nailed into the jar tops. Every day, Milk Weed would be collected as the ravenous caterpillars ate their way through leaf after leaf. With their striped suits of black, yellow, and white, they grew larger right before eyes - each time going into a kind of stupor only to emerge slightly larger each time.

And in a matter of just a few days the growing would stop and the caterpillar would seek its refuge to make its final change. Seeking a protection location under a leaf or on a bent stalk, the caterpillar would spin a small web to attach its tail, hanging upside down in a "J" shaped hook. With gyrations and wiggles it would hang until its skin split one last time and emerging was not another simply larger caterpillar, but instead the creature that emerged looked nothing like its ancestor. In place of the black, yellow, and white striped creature now hung a different creature:

An eerie green almost waxy structure hung motionless where the caterpillar once was. The edges of its top outlined in black with jewels of gold that also speckled parts of the orb. The caterpillar had become a chrysalis: That somewhat "teenager" stage that butterflies and moths go through. Unlike human teenagers, these remain motionless and still on the outside. But like our teenagers, the insides become a swirling mass of ooze and a soup of life that will slow and gradual disolve away the body of the caterpillar and reconstitute into the body of an adult butterfly. The mysteries of what happens inside this protective shell are unknown and remain one of nature's true enigma. For two weeks or so the orb hangs in its protected location, not being affected by heat, cool, wind, or rain.

It waits until that day when all of the changing is done and the adult is ready to emerge. In the days that proceed, the opaque, jade colored orb begins to clear and slowly, over the next few days it continues to become clearer and clearer until the day of the hatch. That morning, in the early light of sunrise, the once clouded orb is now a clear drop revealing the adult hidden away inside. As the drop warms, the adult begins to stir and with a sudden burst of energy the once jade cell splits from bottom to top revealling the adult that somehow was transformed from the caterpillar of days gone by.

When first released, the adult butterfly wings are crumpled and folded upon themselves, but with each beat of its primitive heart, the wings expand:

After an hour or two of resting and inflating their wings, the adults will rest one last time for the remainder of their life will be dedicated to gather just enough nectar to reproduce and begin again the circle of life that all began with a caterpillar found both today and many years ago in my youth.

Downshifting is in the time

2006-07-02T15:52:00.000-04:00

One of the most difficult aspects of retirement and of downshift is the economy of time. While one is still in the world of work for pay, it seems as if there is never enough time to get to the efforts that one wishes to do - that's being time poor. There are two ways to overcome poverty of any kind - either learn to get by on less or devise ways to create more. In this case, however, either of these solutions may not be all they seem.

While time itself is a quantity, the way in which time gets used is its quality. When in the world of work, one can economize and create blocks of time to pursue other endeavors, but often this may suffer from qualily issues rather than quantity issues.

Once you start to either downshift or reach some type of retirement, you often do not realize that it is just as important to improve the quality of time spent as well as to utilize the newly found quantity of time available for other pursuits. Often when the quality of time suffers, the value one finds in doing a task is lessened and eventually, it becomes a waste of time to spend on that task all together. Here, the issue is a lack of quality that cheapens the value, not a lack of effort or quantity of time spent.

So as one moves toward downshifting and retirement, keep in mind that it is essential to adjust our expectations of quality as well as the quanityt of time we face.

Dirt on one's hands

2006-06-28T20:10:00.000-04:00

One of the more interesting ideas that has been on the radio recently involves purchasing cars that are made here in Michigan. The idea is if the car is assembled here in Michigan and we buy these cars, it will help keep Michiganders work and provide support for local tax bases. More interestingly, not all of the cars that have been mentioned in these ads are from the "Big Three" - many are from the "foreign car manufacturers". At the same time, auto plants are closing statewide, benefits are being cut, buyouts are being waved in front of workers and the state's economy sinks further and further behind the rest of the country.

While it would be hard to buy only Michigan made products, it amazes me how much of our consumer dollar is sent out of the state via the mega-stores - especially those that offer staples such as food, clothing, and the like. While there aren't a lot of clothing manufacturers in Michigan, agriculture is one of the bigger industries in the state and the "little farmer" probably pushes it further toward the top of the list. Yet, most people do not shop locally or support local growers right in their home town. We have no concept where the meats, fruits, and vegetables have been before they reach our hands. Likewise do we know much about what they've been treated with to prolong their shelf life (necessary for long shipments), nor how they were raised, or by whom.

Probably the closest knowledge about one's food would be gained by growing your own - one of the basic principles and goals of self sufficiency and downshifting. And if one has the brownest of brown thumbs or lives on the top floor of a condo high rise, one can still support the local economy by shoping for what you can from local growers and suppliers. Everyone could go to U-pick family operations and get the freshest fruits and vegetables IF we would just tale the time.

For me, I have been as guilty as the next. And with the realization of that guilty will come my downshifting target and goal to raise more of my own food, to offer my spare products to others and to buy locally that which I can not provide for myself.

So its going to mean that I'll need to prepare some growing space for fruits and vegetables; maybe a few hens or ducks for fresh eggs; a nice herb garden; and making the effort to know the folks down at the Farmer's market. Most folks buy a new car once every five or ten years, but we eat everyday. Now we need to eat locally to support our economy everyday and not just every few years.

Talkin' bout food

2006-06-14T21:41:00.000-04:00

One of the fundamental precepts for downshifting involves raising at least part of one's foods. To that end, I've been planning what needs to get done in preparation for the next year. Basically I have identified a few basic categories that require some planning and work: vegetable gardens; mini orchards for fruit trees; and berry patches. Within each of these I've gone on to identify specific plant/tree needs and evaluated what is current lacking.

Current I have no vegetable gardens and so this category will require the most work. I'm planning on between four and eight raised and groundlevel beds for vegetables and herbs. Part of the work will also involved creating a few new beds for my iris, daylilies, and hosta that I can grow to sell.

When it comes to fruit trees and the like, I do have a few apple trees (Dwarf varities) and two standard pears as well as several apricots. Most of these are in need of some appropriate care as well some new trees to suppliment these few. I'd like to add several rootstock M27 dwarf apples; semidwarf apples, semidwarf pears, peaches, apricots, cherries, and plums along with a couple of citrius once the greenhouse is done.

The berries are also in need to lots of work. I have a few raspberry and blackberries but thats about it. They both need some good training in order to really be productive. I'd also like to add back in strawberry, blueberry, grapes, elderberry, and the like.

I'm hoping by adding these types of plants in and effort that they'll take, I can keep busy and reduce the food bill by replacing the store bought fruits and vegetables with some decent home grown, and better crops of my own.

Downshifting moving toward a new lifestyle

2006-05-21T21:13:00.000-04:00

It would seem that many of the movements surrounding the concept of downshifting center around several common themes. Regardless of the theme each involves a change in attitude or mindset that moves one from their current status to one that will increase a person's independence and self sufficiency. These most often include; food, energy, resources, finances, health, time or leisure, aesthetics, and education.

Food - Its much more about knowing where your food has been as much as it is knowing what to eat. It most often is concerned with becoming self sufficient by organically growing an increasing amount of one's own fruits, vegetables, and herbs; hunting and gathering of fresh natural foods; support locally grown and produced foods; and preparing one's foods from "scratch" with less dependency on commericially prepared packed foods.

Energy - One of the keys to a future world is one mitigated by reduced carbon emissions and the reduction of other green house gases. Our current levels of consumption of fossil fuels produces untold damage on the environment. The two keys to downshift one's energy consumption lies in alternative sources of renewable energy and the reduction of consumption.

Resources - The concern for natural resources spawned the oldest of the modern conservation movement. The concepts of reuse, recycle, restore, and reduce have become synonomous with natural resources since World War Two. Resources are finite. Without improved management of resources they will simple run out. The real danger is not with the "if" but with the "when".

Finances - The key to downshifted finances is quite simply a "zero sum game" when the entire set of expenses are offset completely by income. Excessive income is budgeted as savings or investment. Excessive expesnses are reduced. The downshifting of income must be offset by reductions in expenses.

Health - Modern life is wrapped in modern unhealthiness. Our lives are too sedintary. Our daily lives lack adequate exercise: intake calories easily surprise calorie expenditures: our stress related health issues impact our lives.

Time - Time (and finances) are the two critical components of downshifting. In modern life, the cheif complaint is that there is never enough time! There are three types of time: Mandatory time, healthy time, and leisure time. Mandatory time is time that you must spend doing essential tasks. Most "nondownshifted" individuals spend much of their day in mandatory time. Healthy Time is time spent maintaining or restoring individual health. This may be time eating healthier, exercising, or spending time in activities that produce pleasure, self worth, or reduced stress. Lastly, is leisure time. This is time spent pursuing activities that not only please but also educate and support an increase in self sufficiency and independence.

Aesthetics - Aesthetics are the skills and crafts that produce objects and efforts of beauty or pleasure to the senses. Most of these are the activities that people call crafts or arts. Devfeloping these in order to complete one's self is as essential to downshifting as other themes.

Education - In a downshifted life, life long learning is key. It provides the knowledge necessary to implement the goals of downshifting, simplifying life, and making wise choices in the future. It provides the mechanism that allows the continuing evolution of the downshifted lifestyle. Evolving a downshifted lifesytle is a journey that can last a lifetime.

Where has all the time gone? - The Beginning Pt 1

2006-05-14T14:27:00.000-04:00

Where has all the time gone? I can recall nearly every day as if they were just yesterday. It doesn't seem like 20 years ago that I moved here and began working for who would be my last employer. It seems unbelievable that I'm now 55 and headed toward retirement.

Well, actually, I'm not exactly retiring, but more like what is called "downshifting" in Europe and elsewhere. Here in the States the concept goes by a variety of names: self-sufficiency, hobby farming, semi-retirement, slow-down, living with a smaller foot-print, the good life, natural living, frugal living, "5 acres and Independence", and lots of others.

The point of these all being reducing one's life by reducing one's dependencies on others for basic needs. It's about time and money. Time that never seems to be available in the modern, urban lifestyle - and money that never seems enough trying to maintain an urban lifestyle in a rural environment. Its about doing for one's self that has become the basis of dependent living rather than independent living. Its about knowing your food and where it came from. Its about developing a skill set essential to be independent in a modern world.

Its not about being poor - but a lower income is a part. Its not about living in a tent, isolated from the rest of the world - but it is a rural mindset. Its not about the "edges" - but it is about "centering". Its not about never having what you want - but it is about wanting what you have. Its not about dirt - but good land is needed. Its not about dawn to dusk laboring just to make ends meet - but it is about laboring to bring the ends in closer. Its not about stress and worry - but it is about freedom and happiness.

And now, its about me and my journey from one end point - as an urban city dweller, maintaining a professional lifestyle on a 6 figure income, long days of work, stresses to get the job done now, and not having time to smell the proverbial roses. - to the other - as a gentleman farm living in a rural environment and providing for my needs directly through my labors. still working long days, but not noticing, and having the time to not only smell the roses, but to grow them as well.