I spent most of my life not noticing — despite the fact that I’ve been a bird lover since third grade, when I had a teacher who got me interested in them. Last week we all kept the ‘wildlife’ count going; I saw a lot of different species of birds — eagles, loons, nuthatches, heron, blue jays, bittern, ducks, swan, and woodpeckers.  I saw two batches of sandhill cranes on the way home just north of Aitkin.

Tommy, Elle and I kept trying to get a shot of the hummingbirds feeding outside the window. This was the first time I brought a feeder and hung it up for the week. It was BUSY all week.

Tommy won the photo contest with this shot.

These are really strange creatures. Amazing.
If You ever needed a practical and real-life example of everyday amazing things that are going on all around You — this might be it.

Hummingbirds.

I remember the very first time I was up here; might have been in the mid-1960’s.

Here was a resort with an outdoor screened in snack bar, huge stone grill, playground; all the extras. The resort we had stayed at during the summers before we stayed at Deer Trail was called  Pine Haven — it didn’t have all the extra stuff, so, staying somewhere there were the real extras seemed like a big deal.

Deer Trail also had a gas pump, right down by the water next to the fish cleaning house. It was an old-fashioned pump. A bell rang every time you pumped a gallon of gas.

Boats used to come from all over the lake to fill up their red five gallon tanks with gasoline to which was then added oil. Depending on how I was doing, the boats were either exciting to watch or intruders in our one-week world up north.

Today the screened in snack bar is old and falling down and most of the extras are gone.

The gas pump just sits there, like an old postcard of the days when the beach at Deer Trail was bustling and busy.

I’m glad I’m here.

This weekend on Saturday a big storm front blew through. A few hours later we were out fishing and afterwards Tom took the camera and went outside and took some photos of the sun going down.

This was one of them.

Once, a couple years ago, I saw this amazing sky and told Tommy I was bummed out.  No camera!! His response? “Well Dad, i guess we’ll just have to enjoy it.”  It was an uncomplicated comment on my frequently manic compulsion to catch the moments as they occur above us. There isn’t anyone more the moment than a kid — especially this kid.

Nice shot Dude.
I’ll just enjoy it.

From a color standpoint, they are outrageous.

Chartreuse.

Imagine a guy — a Dude — asking for chartreuse; much less either being able to spell it or go through what You have to to spell check it or look it up. Chartreuse.

Fact is; day in, day out; time in, time out; no matter what the weather, time of day or water conditions, if You had to bet the ranch on any one fishing lure OVER THE LAST THIRTY YEARS that will catch fish; not necessarily the biggest fish or any specific fish — just fish; if You had bet on a chartreuse spinner bait, You probably came out ahead.

Catching bigger fish? Different story.

But if You have a kid in the boat and need action; or don’t have much time to fish and want to make the most of an hour or so; don’t want to mess with live bait, want to keep your mind moving with casting and want to fish in the weeds, off lily pads or above celery — it’s the chartreuse spinner. Big bang for about two bucks.

Looking forward to tossing some around this weekend.

Chartreuse. Whodatunkit.

They were FABULOUS!

We got our money’sworth and our colorsworth.

Fabulous.

Nope. Pelicans!
Thirty or forty of them.

I never seen a pelican north of the Florida Keys; but they do live up here. They travel in what’s called a pod.

I’m glad I was present enough to notice.

After over two weeks we are hooking up for ice cream; we’ll be able to plan our week. Friday, we are heading up to the cabin for July 4th. Staying five days. Saturday is a fish fry in honor of Taylor’s graduation.

One of the last things I did before we left the lake this weekend was gas up pontoon; now it’sw ready to take Elle, Tom and Taylor out swimming in the middle of the lake.

Tough duty for me. Gassed to go!

I took them out for coffee, to buy journals and get them some street maps yesterday before they left. They took a picture of themselves for the wallpaper on my phone for while they are gone.

Once I dropped them off I had a lot of sadness to ‘embrace’.  I wasn’t going to se them for over two weeks.
Then I realize this happens with all five kids when I’m not going to see them for a while.

Your kids never stop being your kids.

I loved vacationing up north and spent each summer anticipating the trip up north and sat in the back seat of the station wagon crying each time our week up north was over and we were driving back home through the woods in Cass County.

I always wanted a green Minneapolis Start Tribune box for my mailbox, an outside thermometer with cardinals on it, and, one of those loon license plates.

Last week I got my third wish.

Despite the fact I will never give up Nebraska citizenship, after about twenty years, I’m starting to feel a little more Minnesotan.

For the second year in a row I’ve made a real dumb move.  I misread my airline reservation, thinking it was a morning (AM) flight, when instead it was an evening (PM) flight. Last year it was on the day I was supposed to fly down, that meant I missed an entire day of hanging out and playing golf. This year it was the flight home, so I have another nine hours to kill before a 7:00 PM flight that I thought was at 7:00 AM.

Wow. The whole AM/PM thing is killing me today.

I’m getting a lot done online and reading and getting ready for work and reading and cleaning up iTunes and blogging and reading and going to gift shops and reading and just doing all the stuff You do if You have a long lay over.

Good thing I had my meditations books with me this morning when I figured this out.

In the meantime I am a bit jealous of people who can sleep in the waiting areas