Fairy-fiction
Friday, 4 August 2023
Last night we finished binging on “The Night Agent” (got the Bad Guys), and tonight we watched the first episode of “The Green Glove Gang.” Very different. Both hugely fictional.
Musings
Important fact(s)
Tuesday, 1 August 2023
Good to know that our federal legal system is defending our nation and our constitution. Also, pretty sure Jack is no relation.
Rubisco
Thursday, 6 July 2023
There’s no reason you should remember that I received a packet of “wild”flower seeds at the baby shower back in late May. Here’s the first bloom they produced. BTW, the baby has arrived and is about a week old! From the two photos I’ve seen (sleeping in both), she’s a cutie!
I learned the word rubisco from a WashPo article by Michael J. Coren. Somehow I only came across it this week, although the publication date is 27 June. Rubisco is a protein officially named Ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase. It’s the chemical catalyst for photosynthesis and is found in leaves (apparently all leaves). As I’ve mentioned before, my ignorance is vast.
Andor
Friday, 30 June 2023
We’ve been watching what to me is the “new” series in the StarWars franchise, Andor. When I hear it, I hear and/or (like and/not and similar). When I read it, I can see it as Andor. Anyway, mostly a pretty good story…grim world, but decent story/characters/writing.
Aging into…
Tuesday, 27 June 2023
People say age brings wisdom, but for most of us that really isn’t true, when we get old we’ve just accumulated more experiences, good and bad. The result is more likely to be cynicism than wisdom.*
I have to go with Backman on this. We age into cynicism?
*Text is on page 30 of Neil Smith’s translation of Fredrik Backman’s The Winners (2021; hardback version; title in Swedish original: Vinnarna).
Rainy day
Monday, 26 June 2023
We did a wee bit of time travelling this evening and watched “Yellow Submarine.” I’m sure I never saw it before. Great music; I sang along with all the songs!
Finds
Saturday, 24 June 2023
Before the heat came on, that is around 8:15am, I was removing grasses from around the peony and found these rosebuds! Later I found two blooms. These are small roses, less than two inches across and a slightly different pink from the peonies.
In the heat of the afternoon, we took a jaunt to Naubinway to King’s to get smoked whitefish for dinner. After we secured our purchase (and we could have had menominee or lake trout or I forget the other local fish), we meandered down to the dock…and found the Ida S., all buttoned up…for the season?…permanently?
Kinda hard to believe all these little towns along the Lake Michigan shore used to have many active fishing boats, shipping their catch toward Chicago and Detroit. Most of the fishermen were immigrants, Europeans who knew the fishing trade of the Atlantic or Mediterranean. Some Portuguese and Italian surnames still remain, for example.
Just that fast
Tuesday, 20 June 2023
Ya leave for two nights and the critters and varmints and infestations set in. Aphids are sucking the juices out of (a minority, I admit) the lupines. Arrgh; it’s tough to be a human molding the world. [Hello, Anthropocene.]
My latest mystery
Monday, 19 June 2023
In my admittedly sketchy attempt to obtain and retain Upper Great Lakes headlines, I vaguely recollect a story or mention of cruise ships, perhaps looping from Chicago to Mackinaw Island and back, something like that. So I shouldn’t have been surprised to see this towering maritime vessel, but I sure was. It was anchored just off the mouth of the Manistique River, and thus offshore of the celebrated city of Manistique. I’m pretty sure that orange central vessel was transporting cruisers…but what did they come ashore to do? Shop Main Street? Visit the Thompson Fish Hatchery? Wander the aisles of the hardware store (as we occasionally do)? What?
Quite a day
Sunday, 18 June 2023
With our fine cuppsa-joe in hand, we strolled across the Fox River bridge rather early in the morn, meeting these googly-eyed statues of two of the four fox-sons of Papa Charlemagne. The St. Charles (Illinois) Chamber of Commerce website tells the story of Charlemagne’s command to his offspring to take care of the EuroAmerican settlers of the valley. I find it a fanciful and strange tale.
Upriver a short way, we came across this statue, also with rather paternalistic words, although I rather liked the figure’s presence.
We continued up the riverwalk to the older train trestle (green), now with a walking bridge nestled alongside (brown). Our friends said long ago when they were children, the daring among them might cross on the trestle…this was long before the river was cleaned up and the walking trails developed. And condos built and development and resurgence…and gee, it’s great someone spent tax dollars to clean up the river….
In the afternoon, we attended a fine party and BBQ, and still later, we caught the smoke-altered sunset en route to our overnight location in Wisconsin. A great time was had by all.