| February 1st |
There is nothing in the world more beautiful than the forest clothed to its very hollows in snow. It is the still ecstasy of nature, wherein every spray, every blade of grass, every spire of reed, every intricacy of twig, is clad with radiance. -- William Sharp (Circa 1890) Click HERE for this morning's temp. | ||
| Candlemas | Sarge (at the south end of the lake) saw a wolf by his wood pile yesterday morning. Neato!!!!! You better get the trail camera back out there Sarge. Don't you think? | ||
| February 3rd | I went skiing at the Blackwater Conservation Area yesterday afternoon and the conditions were perfect!!!!! As I keep saying, there are tons and tons of nice trails around here, so if you have a yen to go skiing, I have a cabin for you. Send me an e-mail (or call me) and come on up. | ||
| February 4th | This is from three days ago, (click HERE). It isn't quite that cold this morning.......I just like that picture. But as I type, it's a tad colder than 30 below zero and we have enough snow to ski, so this winter hasn't been all that wimpy after all. | ||
| February 5th | Tomorrow Queen Elizabeth II will begin the 62nd year of her reign as Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain, Northern Ireland and other realms and territories, as well as Head of the Commonwealth with its 54 member nations, and Head of State for 16 of them. 2 years and 218 days from now she will surpass Queen Victoria as Britain's longest reigning monarch. In honor of the occasion, click HERE, (but the picture is from August of 2007). Long live the Queen! | ||
| February 6th | The Spartans were victorious over the Gophers this evening by a score of 61 to 50. Being an MSU alumnus living in Minnesota, I have lots of friends who are Gopher fans.......in fact, I am one myself when they're not playing the Spartans. So let us raise an untroubled glass to the fans of both schools, knowing that nothing has changed in their respective relationships due to tonight's game, except perhaps that they have become closer as a result of the friendly competition. Here's to the Spartans, the Gophers, and their respective fans.......clink!!!! | ||
| February 7th | This is from several days ago, but I like the picture. Click HERE. | ||
| February 8th | Until about mid-January, this winter was very wimpy indeed. It was more like a Tennessee winter than a Minnesota winter (no offense intended to my Tennessee friends Mary, Connie, and Gary). But since then it has turned around nicely. Some of the temps have been cold but not ridiculously cold (3 or 4 nights were in the -30s), and recently we've gotten some decent snow (though we could certainly use another foot or two). Here's hoping that it continues for another month or six weeks. | ||
| February 9th | If a new family spends a week at LBLR, what has to happen for them to want to come back again? Well most importantly, the Mom has to like the place. It has been my experience that 85% of the battle is to make sure that the Mom is happy here. The kids have a say in it too; 15% of the battle is to make sure that the kids have a good time. Whether or not the Dad likes it here is generally irrelevent. That's not the case with every family, but based on my experiences over the past 21 summers, I think it's fairly accurate. | ||
| February 10th | Those darned Gophers; they lost again. Sigh....... | ||
| February 11th | It wasn't exactly a snowmageddon, but as a result of the storm over the last 18 hours there's an additional foot of snow on the ground this morning. That's good, right? It's not even 7:30 yet and already I'm starting to think seriously about going outside and blowing snow. Well.......maybe I'll pour another cup of coffee and throw another log on the fire first. | ||
| Shrove_Tuesday | (#8) Michigan State 75, (#4) University of Michigan 52. YESSSSS! To the casual observer it was a dull game, but to us Spartan fans, it was great!!!!! | ||
| Ash Wednesday | The critter living under my back deck is just a rabbit. Click HERE. | ||
| Valentine's Day |
Wine comes in at the mouth And love comes in at the eye; That's all we shall know for truth Before we grow old and die. I lift my glass to my mouth! I look at you, and I sigh. -- William Butler Yeats (circa 1925) That wee bit of poetry from the pen of Mr. Yeats is very appropriate today, is it not? Sister Marie Harold (my high school English teacher) led us through a small portion of the works of Mr. Yeats back in the early 1960s, but to the best of my recollection , these lines were not among them. Perhaps she intentionally steered us "hot-blooded" teenagers away from such moving words as these. | ||
| February 15th | Bob Norman and his friend Jerry arrived today for a weekend of ice fishing. | ||
| February 16th | Angie & Mike and Jodie & Brian arrived today for a weekend of ice fishing (and possibly skiing). This is purely a coincidence, but Angie & Jody, and Bob (see above) are first cousins. | ||
| February 17th, 18th, and 19th | It's winter, it's quiet, and nothing is happening. Ergo, I have nothing to say. | ||
| February 20th | We're down to the last five days of fishing (except for pan fish, of course) because the season will end on Sunday. But relax.......the 2013 season will open in just a tad over eleven weeks. | ||
| February 21st | The Northward Equinox, as it is sometimes called, is now less than a month away. Hang in there. Spring will arrive soon! | ||
| February 22nd | George Washington was born on February 11, 1731, but when was 21 years old he changed his birthday to February 22, 1732. That's really true and if you're interested in a relatively easy-to-understand explanation, click HERE. | ||
| February 23rd | Deb and I had a very enjoyable ski outing on the Joyce Estate Trail this afternoon. It was a fun six mile round trip with a pause at the halfway point for a rather chilly snack of wine, cheese, crackers, and an MRE. To see a picture of Deb posing in front of our lunch, click HERE. To see a slide show of the Joyce Estate (unfortunately it's mostly lake views but there are a few pictures of the buildings), click HERE. To read about MREs (ours was chicken and noodles, by the way), click HERE. | ||
| February 24th | I know that there have been a fair number of these recently and I'm sorry, but at times I can't help it. Click HERE. | ||
| February 25th | Congratulations to my Dear Daughter Teri. A few hours ago in Edinburgh, Scotland, she passed her "Defense of Thesis" (known in the U.S. as "Oral Exams") and became the first and only Dr. Angst that I know of. Her "Hooding Ceremony" will be at the University of Edingburgh (est. 1583) in late June. | ||
| February 26th |
| ||
| February 27th | If you like old, back-in-the-sticks, Iron Range bars, you'll love the Calumet Saloon! | ||
| February 28th | So long Pope Benedict!!!!! |
