Category Archives: Michigan

From One Addiction to Another

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For those of you who have followed my blog for awhile you know how much my husband and I love to play Scrabble. I have referred to it as an addiction.

Confessions of a Scrabble Addict!

My children say when I die instead of a visitation, they will have a Scrabble tournament. Sounds great to me. Too bad I will not be able to take part in the competition.

However, Scrabble has a rival in our love of games now with a board game we recently discovered.

Ticket to Ride is a board game created by Alan R Moon. The game publisher Days of Wonder first offered this game in 2004. It has grown to be one of the most popular board games in the world selling more than eight million copies all over the world.

The original version shows a map of the USA and southern Canada. Each player has a set of plastic trains and starts out with four cards that show train cars in different colors. When it is your turn you can add more cards to your hand or claim a route on the map. In order to claim a route, you must have enough cards of the same color as the track.

Each time you claim a route you are given points – the longer the route, the more points. This continues until one player has two or less train tokens left. The player with the most points win. To add interest to it, the player with the longest continuous train gets extra points.

The original game was a map of the USA but the game has become so popular that there are multiple versions of the game. You can now play it online, on your iPad or on Xbox. Although the basic concept is the same in each game, there are variations for each game that make it each one unique and keep it interesting.

We currently have:

Original Ticket to Ride (USA and Canada)

Ticket to Ride Rails and Sails (two-sided board with the world on one side and the Great Lakes on the other.) Since we live in Michigan, we love the Great Lakes side.

Our latest addition is Ticket to Ride the Heart of Africa

While this new game does add variety to our game nights and perhaps helps to keep our old age brains working, it is doubtful that it can totally take the place of Scrabble. We have had a long-term love affair with that game. We celebrated reaching 1000 games in 2020 – and while we continue to keep a record of our scores, I doubt we will ever make it to another 1000 games (since I am 74 and my husband is 82.)

Today is His Last Chance

If you are looking for a fun board game for yourself or for a Christmas present, I can recommend one of the many different versions of this interesting game.

Friday’s List of Funny Signs – for Laughter

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On a recent trip to Ludington, Michigan I saw some interesting signs along the way.

  1. from a restaurant: “Our fish come from the best schools.”
  2. from an ice cream parlor: “This is a happy place…if you are crabby, go home.”
  3. from the trail to the Big Sable Lighthouse at the life saving station: “Be prepared to go out, not to come back.”
  4. on a plaque in an antiques store: “4 out of 5 Great Lakes prefer Michigan.”
  5. on the door of an used book store: “Each time you read a book, a tree smiles, knowing there is life after death.”

I Can’t Believe I Did It!

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It has been a month now since I finished my physical therapy. My therapist warned me that I would need to keep doing my exercises at least two to four times a week if I wanted to remain strong and have less pain.

So far, I am exercising every day. Eventually I will probably move to just two to four times a week, but I am so glad to be free of pain that spending a few minutes each day in exercising is a small price to pay for this new life.

One of the things I struggled with beside the pain was just being able to walk any distance. It has been so great to be able to shop for groceries or go to the mall and walk with my husband.

However, we recently attempted a walk that was probably not one I should have tried. We went to Ludington, Michigan to see one of the lighthouses there. Since moving to Michigan four years ago we have made it our mission to see as many of the lighthouses here as we can. This was the beautiful lighthouse, Big Sable, located on the shores of Lake Michigan.

French explorers first called this place Grande Point au Sable. This area, approximately nine miles north of Ludington was a landmark for sailors on Lake Michigan. In 1856 Congress gave $6,000 and the Michigan Legislature donated the land for a lighthouse. However, it was not until the end of the Civil War that Congress again gave money – this time $35,000 – and construction began in 1866. The lighthouse was completed in 1867.

We were all prepared to drive to see this lighthouse. However, on entering the park that surrounds the lighthouse, we discovered we would have to walk to the lighthouse. The walk is 1.8 miles. The rangers assured us it was a level walk with benches along the way. Knowing this would be quite the challenge, we nonetheless decided to do it.

At first it was nice. A beautiful sunshiny day with a cool breeze from the ocean, we enjoyed the beginning of the walk.

My husband climbed the sand dunes to get a closer look at the Lake
Although the path was level, believe me walking in sand is not an easy thing to do.

About halfway up the trail I began to have strong doubts about the wisdom of attempting this. My husband offered to turn back. But I had committed to this, and I was determined to finish it. I stopped at every bench along the way to catch my breath. Just when I thought I could not go on, the lighthouse appeared in the distance.

Finally, we made it! I was proud of what I had done but was scared at the thought of making the walk back. My husband, who is 82, was tired but confident he could make it back. I was not so sure that I could.

This man is amazing! Still full of energy when we reached the lighthouse.

We sat by the lake and enjoyed the view while I gulped a bottle of water and ate a candy bar. After almost 30 minutes it was clear I was afraid I would not be able to make it back the 1.8 miles. My husband asked some of the workers at the museum and gift shop if someone could drive us back. Their response was: “The only way you get a ride out of here is in an ambulance.”

Faced with no other choice we started back down the trail. Although there were benches along the way, there were several places where the benches were very far apart. My legs were holding up fine, but my poor heart was not. About halfway back I began to have difficulty breathing. At one point I leaned on my husband and tried hard to get a breath. Other walkers on the trail asked if they could help me, but unless they were willing to carry me, I did not know what they could do.

Just when I thought I could not go on, we saw the end of the trail. Exhausted I sat on a picnic table for almost 30 minutes before I could go on.

We calculated our distance when we got back to the car. It was 1.8 miles there and back but when you added in the distance from the parking lot to the start of the trail we had walked over four miles.

Looking back I am not sure that was a smart thing for us to do – but I am so proud of the fact that I did it.

Before my physical therapy there is no way I could have done that. I was in pain for a couple of days afterwards – more sore than pain – but I recovered and I DID IT!!!

Santa’s Reindeer

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Driving north from our home in Michigan we took a quick stop at Gaylord to try to get a peek at the elk herd found there.

The City of Gaylord maintains an elk herd and while there are several places to view them, we stopped at the Patrick Mankowskil Park. There on 108 acres the city staff provide the herd with corn, hay and sugar beets. Named after the man who was instrumental in raising funds to create this area to get a chance for a look at the elks, there is a plaque honoring him for his service to the City of Gaylord.

We only saw a few elk here. We were told the best times to view them is in September and October when the bulls are trying to establish mating rights with the females. April and May were also recommended as good times because the elk are active during the daylight hours eating the new green growth.

A short drive from downtown Gaylord is the Pigeon River Country State Forest that contains one of the largest free-ranging elk herds east of the Mississippi. However, we were on our way further north and left this viewing spot for another trip.

I did a little research to see what the difference is between elk and reindeer. I found that both are types of deer with the elk being larger than the reindeer. Both female and male reindeer have antlers, but only the male elk has antlers. Elks are found in North America while reindeer occupy the colder artic regions.

Many enjoy elk meat, and I am told it is very healthy as it is lean, low in fat and cholesterol, and delicious. You can even order elk meat on Amazon.

I am not sure I am quite that adventurous, but have any of my readers eaten elk meat? If so, did you like it?

Cross in the Woods

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Getting off the beaten path on a recent trip north led us to another special attraction. In the unincorporated area known as Indian River we found the Cross in the Woods Shrine.

This wooden cross was made from a 2,000-year-old California Redwood tree. The tree was found in the state of Oregon and the timber from the tree arrived in Roscomon, Michigan in 1953. The cross weighs 14 tons and is 55 feet in height (77 feet above the mound) with the crossbeam 22 feet. The cross was erected August 5, 1954 and the dedication took place August 22 of that year.

Declared a national shrine by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops on September 15, 2006, between 275,000 and 325,000 people visit the shrine each year. There are outdoor and indoor churches and smaller shrines throughout the location.

Saint Frances of Assisi

This statute of Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus was called “the Holy Family.”

Our Lady of the Highway

A few years after the dedication of the cross, the body of Christ was added. The corpus weights 7 tons. It is 28 feet from head to toe and the arm spread is 23 feet. The body of Christ was attached to the cross on August 9, 1959, and dedicated on August 16 of that year.

There is a large church where masses are held everyday year round. The windows inside are large giving the congregation an excellent view of the cross. There is also outside seating where masses are held outdoors just below the cross.

I found it interesting to learn that the man who designed the Corpus, Marshall M Fredericks resided in Michigan (where I now live) but he was born in Rock Island, Illinois (the area where I used to live). There is a Marshall M. Fredericks Sculptor Museum in Saginaw, Michigan featuring his works as well as other sculptors.

Fredericks said he wanted to “give the face an expression of great peace and strength and offer encouragement to everyone who viewed the Cross”. He imagined his sculptor as portraying Christ at the moment when he says, “Father into your hands I commend my spirit.” The Vatican gave him special permission to omit the crown of thorns and the wound on the side of Jesus.

I know I am being opinionated here, but I found leaving the crown of thorns and the wound on his side as somehow minimizing the whole message of the suffering Jesus endured for us.

We did explore the bookstore also and found many beautiful paintings and tapestries. There were a couple I would have loved to have – but with my husband painting more and more – our home is filled with his paintings with no room for anything else.

Discovering this site now leads us to another road trip – to Saginaw to check out the Marshall M. Fredericks Sculptor Museum.

Homes for Elves

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We found the perfect elf house. Actually, several houses perfect for elves.

In Charlevoix, Michigan there are 26 houses built by Earl Young that appear to be perfect for a family of elves.

The neighborhood has a sign asking everyone to respect the privacy of these homes. However, across the street from most of the homes we found cars pulling to the side of the road and taking pictures. I wonder how it would feel to live in a house where tourists are standing across the street taking pictures.

They were so unique. I could not stop taking pictures.

Young created his homes to fit the site using the limestone, fieldstone and boulders he found in Northern Michigan. Each home is different from the other and has cedar-shake roofs with wide, wavy eaves. Over the course of his fifty-year career, Young built twenty-six residential houses and four commercial properties.

Along with the houses was all the beautiful use of the stones for fences.

The house that really caught my attention was the Thatch House. It was very large, and looked like a giant mushroom.

I discovered that this house is actually for rent for vacations or special events. It would be so cool (can I use that word?) to stay there, but since it rents for $1,000 a night during the week and over $1,400 for a weekend night, I will just settle to take pictures from the outside and try to imagine what it looks like on the inside.

But if you know of any elf looking for a home, send him to Charlevoix Michigan.

Potter’s Zoo

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We decided to celebrate the end of summer and beginning of fall by taking our granddaughter to Potter’s Zoo. The Zoo is part of Potter Park in Lansing, Michigan.

It is the oldest public zoo in Michigan. Accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) since 1986, the Zoo has also received the AZA Quarter Century Award recognizing their accreditation for 25 years or more. The Zoo covers over 20 acres and includes over 500 individual animals representing approximately 160 different species.

Every year they publish an annual report. The report for 2020 shows that even in spite of Covid-19 and being closed for 92 days (March 13 – June 15) they had 90,920 visitors.

The land for the Park was donated in 1910 by James W. Potter. He first donated 58 acres and later in 1917 gave an additional 27 acres. Additional donations of land from others increased the park to its present 102 acres.

Our first stop were the North American River Otters.

So many different animals to enjoy but one of my favorites was the peacock. These birds were walking all around the zoo. So beautiful when they open up their wings.

It was a very hot day and the lions and leopards were taking life easy.

We got to see the black rhino Jaali just before the Zoo will be saying goodbye to him.

Jaali was born at the Zoo in 2019. This was a special event for the Zoo as he is one of only a few black rhinos born in zoos. Jaali has been used to draw attention to black rhino conservation. Rhinos are becoming close to being extinct and veterinarians, zookeepers, rhino experts, and multiple AZA institutions have been working to try to breed more rhinos. Recently a breeding match for Jaali has been discovered and he will be soon be leaving to join his mate at another zoo where it is hoped they will find true love and increase the rhino population. The Zoo is actually holding a going-away party for Jaali in October.

Our granddaughter loves wolves so we had to make a stop there.

 It was interesting to see the reasons why wolves howl.

  • To assemble the pack before and after hunts.
  • To alarm one another of danger.
  • To send territorial message from one pack to another.
  • Or, simply because they hear a nearby wolf howing.

The sign also told us that when wolves howl together, they harmonize rather than use the same note. This creates an illusion that there are more wolves in the pack than there actually are.

Another of the species in danger of extinction is the Eastern Bongo. From African, I thought these animals were very pretty.

There were several different kind of birds, but the one I loved the best was the bald eagle.

I did not realize there are different kinds of foxes. To me, a fox was a fox. We saw the Artic Fox, whose habitat is of course, the northern regions near the North Pole. I wonder how they like our hot summers here.

And the bat-eared fox was very interesting with its large ears – like a bat. We were told that these large ears help them locate beetle larvae buried underneath the ground.

By the time we had walked near the back of the zoo, I was so tired. Thankfully we found a nice place to sit and enjoy the farm animals.

By the end of the visit, we were happy but tired. A last visit at the gift shop was, of course, in order.

Just give me a cold drink please!

Is This the Garden of Eden?

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After living almost three years in Michigan and hearing of the beautiful Dow Gardens, my husband and I decided it was time to check it out.

All the hype we had heard was true – it is an unbelievable place of peace and beauty. My husband commented that this was just a glimpse of what the Garden of Eden must have been. We laughed that we might see Adam and Eve and our daughter who was with us wondered if they would have any clothes on. 🙂

This beautiful place was once the home of Herbert and Grace Dow. They built their home here in 1899. Called “The Pines” the couple raised their family here. Herbert Dow conducted experiments in fruit-growing and developed gardens. Today the home is listed as a National Historic Landmark.

Tours are offered to view the insides of the home where it is furnished with many of the Dow items and gives a good look at what life was like for them. We were not able to take a tour of the home but we did sit on the porch and enjoy the beautiful huge yard with its large expanse of green grass and flowers plantings everywhere.

My husband and our daughter taking a break on the big porch.

Herbert Dow was the founder of Dow Chemical Company and by his death had received over 90 patents for chemical processes, compounds and products. I do not understand all the science behind it, but the Dow Chemical Company website says he devised a new way of extracting the bromine that was trapped in underground brine. The company went on to became one of the world’s major producers of magnesium metal, agricultural chemicals, elemental chlorine, phenol and other dye chemicals. The company also was involved in producing plutonium, the element used in hydrogen bombs (a type of atomic bomb).

Herbert H Dow as a young man and then at age 58

The company has been the subject of several lawsuits for environmental concerns. In 2011 Dow agreed to pay a $2.5 million civil penalty over alleged violations of the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) at its chemical manufacturing and research complex in Midland, Mich.

Herbert Dow started the gardens as a hobby. He experimented growing different flowers, shrubs and trees seeing what would grow well in the sandy soil. On his death, his wife created The Herbert H and Grace A Dow Foundation. Its charter goals were to improve the lives of Michigan’s people through educational, religious, economic and cultural means. The Foundation gave the estate to Michigan for the community enjoyment. Today the 110-acre Dow Gardens welcomes over 300,000 visitors each year.

There are multiple gardens with 3 miles of accessible hard-surface walks. In the spring over 22,000 bulbs begin to bloom and in the summer over 35,000 annuals provide much color and beauty.

Walking along the path we heard the beautiful sound of running water. Turning a corner we came to a beautiful stream. It was so peaceful we had to stop and just sit and listen to the melodious sounds of the water as it flowed through the peaceful garden.

While we were there we found they had a exhibit of glass gardens by Lansing Michigan artist Craig Mitchell Smith. Mr. Smith creates beautiful floral forms out of glass. His work has been displayed at the Missouri Botanical Gardens and the Epcot Center of Disney World.

My favorite was this one with blue butterflies

There was much more to see including the Whiting Forest of Dow Gardens. This area is 54 acres of woodlands, ponds, meadows and stream. It contains the nation’s longest canopy walk. It is 1400 feet long and reaches up to 40 feet above the ground. There is also a playground for children, two pedestrian bridges and a Cafe. I would have loved to see the forest although I do not think I would have attempted the canopy walk. But my arthritic knees gave out on me and we had to call it a day.

My husband and I plan to go back at some point and check out the forest. If you are ever in mid-Michigan I would highly recommend you include a visit to the Dow Gardens. It is probably as close to the Garden of Eden that we will get in this life.

Visiting the Thumb

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To celebrate our anniversary this year we took a short trip to the thumb of Michigan. Before moving to Michigan I had never heard this expression in reference to the state. However, when you look at the map of Michigan you can see that the lower peninsula does look like a mitten and – yes- the eastern part does look like a thumb.

We stayed at Port Huron where we could look over and see Canada. Unfortunately the border between our country and Canada is still closed. It was nice to see our flag and the Canadian flag flying together on both sides of the Clinton River which celebrates the two nations.

In 1836 the US established a Port of Entry and commercial ferry service began from Port Huron to Canada. It was not until 1938 that a bridge was built and opened to automobile traffic. Today the bridge is referred to as the Blue Water Bridge and is a twin-span international bridge connecting Interstate 69 and 94 in Michigan to Highway 402 in Ontario. Since moving to Michigan it has been our goal to cross this bridge and explore Canada. However, the Covid 19 has made that impossible for now. Hopefully in the future we can do that. Still, we enjoyed looking across into Canada and the bridge at night with its lights was beautiful.

We had a great lunch at Vintage Tavern. The food was great and the building built in the 1800’s was beautiful. They had the original tin ceiling with hardwood floors and brick walls throughout. There were also leaded stained glass windows and three fireplaces.

Thomas Edison lived here as a young boy and there is a museum commemorating his time in Port Huron.

As a student at Port Huron a schoolmaster called Edison “addled.” Furious, his mother took him out of the school and proceeded to teach him at home. Edison said many years later, “My mother was the making of me. She was so true, so sure of me, and I felt I had some one to live for, some one I must not disappoint.”

In 1859, Edison took a job selling newspapers and candy on the Grand Trunk Railroad to Detroit. In the baggage car, he set up a laboratory for his chemistry experiments and a printing press, where he started the Grand Trunk Herald, the first newspaper published on a train. An accidental fire forced him to stop his experiments on board.

While he was in Detroit Edison would visit the large library there. He said, “I didn’t read a few books, I read the library.”

When he was 19 Edison moved to Kentucky and continued with his experiments. By the time of his death in 1831 he had a record 1,093 patents: 389 for electric light and power, 195 for the phonograph, 150 for the telegraph, 141 for storage batteries and 34 for the telephone.

Another interesting stop in Port Huron was the Great Lakes Maritime Center. Here we found a wealth of information about the history of shipping on the Great Lakes.

We also learned about the underground tunnels that run under the St Clair River allowing trains to make the crossing from Port Huron to Sarnia, Ontario. This tunnel was the first full-size subaqueous tunnel built in North America allowing a railroad to pass beneath a river. Before the tunnels were built trains would come to Port Huron where they would have to be loaded on a barge and carried across the river to tracks in Sarnia.

Along with all the interesting history of shipping on the Great Lakes, the Center was a nice place to just sit and watch the ships on the river as well as again glance across at Canada.

We finished our visit to the Thumb by checking out the Fort Gratiot lighthouse. This fort was built in 1914 during the War of 1812. Occupied by the United States Army until 1879 it stood guard over the juncture of St. Clair River and Lake Huron. In 1823 the lighthouse was built here and it is the first lighthouse in Michigan and the second oldest on the Great Lakes.

We enjoyed sitting here and watching the large ships coming from Lake Huron to the St Clair River.

The keepers house is large and looks beautiful although we were not able to go inside.

You can climb the stairs in the lighthouse and I only imagine what the view would be like. But my arthritic knees prevented me from climbing the 94 stairs to the top.

As always on our trips, there was so much more we wanted to see but time did not permit more exploring. There is much more to discover on the Thumb and hopefully we can return again and explore more.

Happy National Cherry Day

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Today is National Cherry Day.

Cherries are a stone fruit from the genus Prunus, which includes plums, peaches, nectarines, apricots and almonds. Pits from the cherries have been found in Stone Age caves in Europe and were enjoyed by the Greeks and Romans. Immigrants from Europe introduced cherries to the USA in the 1600s and commercial cherry production began in the mid 1800’s in the USA.

All around the world cherries are grown and the top ten countries producing cherries are Iran, the U.S.A., Turkey, Italy, Germany, Spain, Lebanon, Rumania, France and the Russian Federation.

Cherries are a great health food. Rich in vitamin C and B vitamins they are also a good source of fiber. Also rich in anti-oxidants many claim they help control inflammation and help with arthritis.

Michigan is the number one state producing tart cherries and approximately 94% of cherries consumed in the USA are grown in Michigan. The cherry trees began to bloom in May and this spring my husband and I drove to northern Michigan to enjoy the beautiful blossoms.

Cherry harvest time starts in mid-July and lasts through mid-August.

Every July Traverse City hosts a Cherry Festival which draws as much as 500,000 visitors from all around the world. This tradition began in 1925. President Herbert Hoover attended in 1929 and President Gerald Ford served as grand marshal of the parade in 1975.

It’s amazing the products offered by cherry producers.

So get out your cookbooks and made a delicious cherry pie in celebration of this great healthy fruit!