From the days before the coneflowers started dying a month earlier than normal because of no rain and relentless heat.
I get depressed every time I go outside.
Anyway, I’m tired today after a week of coaching, so I’m going to take it easy. Except for the usual: watering plants outside, watering plants inside, cleaning, laundry.
And working on the puzzle.
Maybe dressing a doll or two.
And finishing my book which should have been finished long ago. My attention is a bit scattered lately and it shows in the slow pace of my reading.
Next Saturday, I have to drive to Rochester – clear across the state of New York – for a run-through of Jane Eyre. And the following week, I’ll do it again. I don’t know if I’ll have much, if any time to explore Rochester, but it looks lovely. At the very least, I’ll drive to Lake Ontario to take a walk by the lake. I’m a Great Lakes girl, having grown up in Michigan. I’ve spent a lot of time by and on all of the Great Lakes and I miss them.
I miss lakes in general, having also grown up going to the cottage owned by my dad’s family. Eventually, the siblings sold their portions of the cottage and my beautiful Aunt Lettie (and Uncle Charlie) became the sole owner. I’ve got photos somewhere of my grandfather and his sons building the cottage, which, at the time, was either the only cottage on the lake or one of only a few cottages on the lake. Now the lake is overrun by increasingly bigger houses. I think I was last there about 20 years ago? Maybe longer. Summers at the lake are part of my DNA, I guess. At this time of year, especially, I yearn to sit on the dock listening to the water lap against the shore. If I have one regret, it’s that we somehow never managed to have the money to buy a small little cottage on a lake.
My cousin Eileen and me at the lake.
Me and our dog Friskie at the lake.
Don is, of course, an ocean guy. He grew up in San Diego. And I love the ocean, too. The few times he has taken a dip in a lake, he has been amazed at the ‘smoothness’ of the water compared to the saltiness of the ocean.
I know a feeling of peace is ephemeral. But I always feel that I’d be a bit more at peace if I was at a lake on a daily basis. I miss it terribly, more so the older I get.
Ah well.
Stay safe.
Happy Saturday.
We have a lake we can walk to, and the ocean is two miles away. The best of both worlds.
For us we need to be by the ocean.when we lived in Southern Ca we lived by the ocean.
Thank Good my husband’s profession allowed us to live by the water.
You’re lucky, Linda.
Stay safe.
great photos and happy memories! glad you have them.
and that you can enjoy a nice drive to rochester, work and time at lake ontario. will don go with you?
in the meantime, hope you have an easy day and spend more of it on the puzzle and book rather than chores.
i have that same pull to water. always have. when it rained yesterday, i did what i do when possible during a rainfall or storm … go outside, enjoy some moving water (not much of it here in the middle of iowa), breathe in all those helpful negative ions and feel a connection that i don’t have with deserts, mountains, forests …. in every part of nature i find its own kind of beauty, but i feel more peace and happiness by/in water.
hope you all have peace and happiness today. stay safe!
kathy
Kathy, the first time I saw Iowa…on the way from where we lived in Ohio…to Yellowstone and beyond…flat…but lovely…I love reading your replies on this dear woman’s blog…she has the best ever…
thanks, brenda … same to you. :)
if you don’t mind sharing, where did you live in ohio? my twin sister and i were born there and lived with our parents and brother in northeast ohio… wadsworth, medina, akron. many years later i moved from minneapolis to go to school in cincinnati.
iowa is lovely and a wonderful place to live. and it is pretty flat, but there is a gravel road in northeast iowa called “roller coaster road” for having several fun hills in a row, and there are some roads outside of des moines that have sweeping curves and hills and beautiful countryside that we seek for rides.
how are you? hopefully well and safe, having a good day.
xo,
kathy
I miss the water. If we want to go to the ocean, it would take at least 4 hours. We have some lakes nearby but they’re part of state parks and you have to pay a fee. It’s not the same as a lake with a cottage.
Stay safe, Kathy.
Having seen the ocean first in 1973, it became my healing place…I lived near the ocean in SC 1994 to 1999…and now it is down the street and behind me…I have lived in the mountains with snow…I take the ocean any time…I have to have central air as my strokes started in my 20’s, and I would be sick…I walk six times a day…slowly but surely…I did have a fall recently…I am now living with side effects from second booster…lasted a month after first booster… but will vaccinate…as to lakes, we had a boat on the lake for ten years or so in the mountains…I don’t like going in lake water…but my kids loved skiing…I absolutely love your flower photos and your delightful cottage…how far do you live from Niagara…one of my favorites…and NYC…my fav city…keep blogging…and Jane Eyre…what can I say…one of my top five books ever.stay safe…and mask…lol
Yes, we had a boat on the lake and my dad eventually had a sailboat that we sailed on Lake Erie. I waterskied, as well. I’ve been to Niagara Falls is way on the other side of the state – and New York is a huge state.
Stay safe, Brenda.
I have been to NYC many many times…spent time at Mirror Lake…driven all the way from South Carolina…to NY..across the state…liked Albany…Niagara love…stayed in Berkshires at Shakespeare and Company a month in Mass…so drove down into NY…Conn…etc…have enjoyed most all of the state…you have a lovely place to live…
New York is pretty magnificent. It really has everything.
Thanks, Brenda.
Stay safe.
Dear Lord, though; will I ever get there? I hope so! You prompted me to look up Rochester; what a fascinating, big city; it has unique neighborhoods, and a lilac festival in May; cold-snowy winters but beautiful fall-foliage and the summers aren’t too bad, cooler than many Northeast communities. I do hope you get to see something of it, Claudia; give us a phone-photo or two! I forget all where I googled, starting with Wiki, but came across this whose source now I can’t remember: “U.S. News and World Report recently ranked New York’s best places to live in 2021-2022. Rochester made the top five. The list was composed to help readers make the most informed decision about finding a place to settle down. Ranking fourth, Rochester is described as a unique blend of history and innovation.” And I made another note that I picked up from somewhere else, maybe Wiki: “The Rochester metro is ranked highly in terms of livability and quality of life and is often considered to be one of the best places in America for families.”
Come to find, Rochester is just 100 miles from where my maternal ancestors (Mom’s grandparents and father) settled in New York as immigrants from the Netherlands in the 19th century. I’m putting it on the list; in the travel bucket! I’m glad you mentioned it.
Is Don going with you on the trip, Claudia? No pets at home; no garden to tend due to time of year now; no blizzard-y weather yet. You’ve got the nice, newer Honda Pilot now; road-worthy and comfy to drive. Can you take a wee road trip together? Just being nosy. I can’t do it right now myself; but it doesn’t mean I don’t wish a mini-vacay for somebody else! (Of course I know you’re working; but if you could just combine business with pleasure … seems like a nice locale in which to do it!)
I’m not sure. We won’t have much time there and I’ll be watching a run-through after driving 5 hours to get there. Then I have to turn around the next day and get back home. I don’t think it will happen on my first visit. Maybe on the second. We’ll see.
Stay safe, Vicki.
What a fascinating post, Claudia; I don’t recall you talking too much about lakes although you’ve spoken about Michigan. Like Don, I’m a 100 percent ocean person, having always lived quite near the sea, like within 15 minutes at most (except for three years on the Gulf Coast when we we were 50 miles away from Galveston [in fact, when I lived in Santa Barbara, the street I lived on ended at the shoreline, so it was just a five-minute walk]). Hence, I know nothing of lakes whatsoever. I do have three or four lakes somewhat in my vicinity, but we rarely go there and, of course in Southern Calif, our lakes are very low because of drought and no rain. Anyway, I know nothing of a lake environment.
Over the years, and I do have relatives in Michigan who I know have lake cabins, I’ve always heard of families ‘going to the lake’ in summers, just like in my neck ‘o the woods where they used to be able to afford to rent a beach cottage at our Pacific Ocean for all or part of a summer (too expensive in these days unless you’ve had one in the family since at least the 1950s). My former elderly neighbor, in her 90s now, spoke to me of carefree summers in her family’s lakeside house (belonged to her grandma) in the wilds of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Just sounds like such a special life for a kid (how to build memories!) and how you’d associate it with being out of school in the long summers we all used to enjoy.
Loved hearing about this today; also the photos. I’m sorry you miss it. Glad you have happy remembrances.
I’ve spoken about the lake before, but not a lot. And my dad had a sailboat; we sailed on Lake Erie. My parents retired to a town on Lake Huron. I’ve spent time on Lake Michigan and Lake Superior – and Lake Ontario, as well. Michigan has, besides being surrounded by the Great Lakes, tons of inland lakes. It’s a really beautiful place to grow up.
Stay safe, Vicki.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a sailboat on a lake (surely I must have and just can’t remember, as I have spent a little time at Lake Tahoe in Northern Calif; Shasta Lake up that way as well [and Clear Lake, north of the Napa Valley where so many grapes are grown]) although I’ve seen the small motorized fishing boats or even fancier ‘ski’ boats on any very-small lakes situated somewhat in my area. Must be so pretty to see.
I certainly enjoy seeing the sailboats bob at their anchorage in our Pacific Ocean marinas in Southern Calif; and, in Santa Barbara, there’s a tradition called Wet Wednesday where many colorful sailboats gather just off the waterfront for several months of the year (a little bit of racing [a yacht-club thing]; a lot of mixing and mingling on the water, very social [the ‘locals’ would tell me, “it’s all the wealthy doctors in town, out there on their Wednesday-afternoon day off from the clinic”]); was a lovely sight from the cliffside streets above town when I lived there TOO many years ago now.
I really should read up more on all the great lakes because my husband is still obsessed with moving to Wisconsin or Michigan (always leaning more toward Wisconsin and its lake areas; so, we tentatively plan to somehow take the LONG road trip there from the West Coast [since we now have a dog we can’t leave behind as boarding would be traumatic for him; I don’t think he can ever be put in a pen again since he came from five months at a rescue facility; but can’t wait forever to travel now, though {although flying would be easier!}; due to our age, I’m figuring if we’re going anywhere, we need to do it in the next five years; just out of time due to health issues, etc.; gotta be practical about it, but also figure out how to save up the money, as travel is never cheap, domestically or globally]).
An old friend I haven’t seen in 30 years lives in Traverse City and paints the Leelanau Peninsula which apparently is situated between an inland bay and Lake Michigan. It looks really beautiful. I want to go there. You were lucky to get to be able to grow up in Michigan!
A sailboat on a Great Lake is an entirely different thing. The Great Lakes might as well be oceans. They’re that vast.
Stay safe, Vicki.
If you need a place to stay while in Rochester, let me know. I live in Webster, right near Irondequoit Bay.
Thanks, Laura, that’s kind of you. They put me up in a hotel.
Stay safe!
I look forward to anything you blog about your stay.
Thanks, Laura!
Oh, Lake Deprivation! Count me in.
I love those old snapshots with the deckle edges—quite a few of those in my “Baby Book”.
I have scads of them!
Stay safe, Shanna.
My dream would be to live by a lake or the ocean or even a river/stream! I mean it’s so peaceful. Rest up as you have some busy days ahead!
Thanks, Linda.
Stay safe.
We drove over a river today which was once so rushing and high and wide that it took down a hulking concrete overpass, something I remember very well. Now, in drought? Not even a rivulet of water; bone-dry riverbed. I know there’s drought all over the U.S., but it’s so particularly bad/’exceptionally severe’ in Southern California where I live. The hills and local mountains are scarily dry and barren and I just pray we can get thru unscathed in what used to be known as wildfire season with the Santa Ana winds from September to December (it’s now basically fire season all year long although the Malibu canyons/Santa Monica Mountains are currently deeming fire risk as moderate, not high; this will surely change); praying always for rain here. (South and east of L.A. in mountain communities, such as Riverside County/San Bernardino County, they’re getting summer thunderstorms, but nothing reaches our coastal towns.)
This is happening everywhere. I just saw a picture of a section of the Loire in France – virtually a dry river bed.
Just being near any form of water is calming. I love the ocean….as a kid I lived on Midway Island and now live about 30 minutes from the ocean…..but I have a nostalgic pull to lakes! Very relaxing!
Was your dad stationed there, Barrie?
Stay safe.
Yes, he was stationed there from 1966-1969…a very interesting time!
xo
Oh Claudia, I could have written that post! My dream was to live on a lake. Growing up in Illinois, going to the lake was such a big part of our life. And Michigan! Every summer we went up to my Grandmas house on Byram Lake in Linden, MI. That picture of you could have been me. I would get up in the morning before anyone else and run down to the dock, get in the rowboat and row out to the middle of the lake which was like glass, and sit in the boat and just take in the quiet. I was just a kid! I long for those days. We now wish somebody in our family had bought the cottage. So many good memories. Whenever somebody tells me to go somewhere peaceful in my mind, I go right back to that lake. I agree about the ocean. Too rough for me. The only water I go to now is Oak Creek up in Sedona. We get the cabin right on the creek and just take in the sounds. I just have an affinity for water.
I have a photo of my Grandmas lake right above my desk. I am hoping someday soon we can go back there. Take care!
I was thinking the other day that I wish I’d had enough money to buy my aunt’s cottage! But I didn’t. And we were living in California at the time, so it would have been too far away, I suppose. Sigh.
Stay safe, Deb.
I also regret never being able to buy a cabin on a lake up north. We did have a boat when our kids were younger, which afforded us the luxury of taking mini vacations for hours at a time. Just cruising or water skiing. As I look back on that now, that was our sanity. With Madison’s lakes so near and accessible, it seems a shame we no longer have a boat. But, I think that might be a bit much for the two of us to handle now, not to mention the cost. Guess somethings are best left in the past.
Sounds like you can take a little rest this weekend…except for the constant watering. Ugh….you have my sympathies. Enjoy your day! ;)
It’s truly been the worst summer I can ever remember. Our grass is brown, the flowers are dying.
I do what I can, but I’m not a miracle worker!
Stay safe, Donnamae.
We had that situation last year. I know how disheartening this all is to you. I couldn’t wait til the falling leaves would cover the brown grass. Everything here, sprung back though…so hopefully greener grass is in your future. I sincerely hope so. ;)
It’s extremely disheartening. Both Don and I are ready to move on to autumn. We were just agreeing earlier this afternoon that it’s been a dreadful summer.
xo
Donnamae, can I ask you this: For a tourist (me), what is the best time of year to visit Madison when there’s no snow yet but not also the heat/humidity of summer; like, would it be Fall, shortly after Labor Day, or??? Or Spring before Memorial Day, which month after winter, for safe driving and hopefully spring bloom? Thanks!
Vicki….Madison is lovely in the fall. Late September early October is a great time for a visit, in my opinion. The leaves are starting to turn…you only need a sweater to keep the chill away, temps are comfortable….although that’s becoming hard to predict from year to year. Hope you visit….I think you would love it here! ;)
Thanks for replying, Donnamae. I’ll share your answer with my Wisconsin-obsessed husband! There’s almost not a day that goes by now when he doesn’t show me a real estate listing online about the next house he wants to buy somewhere in Wisconsin. I don’t know how you could fall so in love with a place you’ve never seen … well, that’s not true; we all have a wish list! … but he thinks Wisconsin is the cat’s meow.
Lol! Well…there are hidden treasures all over the state. Wisconsin is pretty wonderful as far as I’m concerned. And we have fantastic cheese! ;)
I lived in Ohio when I was young. We rented a cottage on Lake Erie every summer for a few weeks. My Grandmother lived in Erie. I was under 10 but still have memories of going to the lake. I remember the cottages only had outdoor plumbing. We lived on a farm in Ohio so it wasn’t any different for me. Enjoyed your pictures from your childhood.
The cottage had an outhouse when I was young. I remember it being a big deal when there was finally a bathroom!
Stay safe, Olivia.
Fellow Great Lakes girl here! I have been blessed to have grown up and lived near Lake Michigan all my life. When I die my ashes will be scattered there. It is my happy place as well as my “church.” It is where I go when I am troubled to find some solace and peace.
I live about 10 minutes from a state park where I often go to walk on the wooded trails and there is also beach access. The bonus is the road that passes right along Lake Michigan with the state park on the other side of the road. You can park along one side of the road and the beach is right there…no state park fee. We always get a yearly pass though because we love the hiking trails too. I drive that road often, with music playing, good classic rock. It is a winding scenic road and only a couple miles out of my way home. I drive by just to see MY lake.
I remember the first time I saw the Atlantic Ocean I wasn’t impressed. It didn’t look much different than Lake Michigan and honestly, we have better sandy beaches.
No matter how busy you are, make the time to visit Lake Ontario, and just breathe.
Have a restful weekend.
All true, but the Atlantic has plenty of great sandy beaches. And the Pacific beats the Great Lakes for great beaches.
Nevertheless, I love the Great Lakes.
Stay safe, Marilyn.
Ah, indeed the Pacific ocean beaches, at least ‘mine’ in Southern California. Have spent the past couple of days at them … L.A. County, Ventura County, Santa Barbara County (where there are many, many, MANY beaches of all sizes; county beaches, state beaches). Escaping the heat; escaping boredom; escaping problems! To the sea we go …
We have nice conversations with beachgoers; everybody’s happy, having fun in the sun but also the cool, blue Pacific which is refreshing, invigorating and gorgeous blue (although Malibu weather was downright sultry this morning; warm; felt like it was in the 80s by noon). I would say today, fairly accurately, that my husband and I saw tens of thousands of people at the state and county beaches up and down the Pacific Coast Highway/Highway 1. (We took an all-day drive.) A jillion parked cars along these coastal highways, folks walking down the beach stairways to the sand. We discussed that we can’t recall when we have seen SO many people at all the beaches large and small; absolutely PACKED with people.
It’s ’cause it’s hot inland and of course it’s the last two getaway weeks of summer, even though school is back in session already; of course it’s a lot of out-of-the area tourists, too (a couple of days ago, we had a lovely but quick hello to a young family of three who said they’d come a long way to tour the Southern Calif coast, saying “we’re from Europe” … spoke impeccable English; having lunch out of the cooler in the back of their rented SUV [I was exasperated that my husband didn’t ask, “WHERE in Europe?”]).
And while I lament the throngs, I also acknowledge how nice it is to see so many people (and their dogs!) out of the house, enjoying themselves at water’s edge, de-stressing, spending quality time together, having family reunions/picnics, appreciating the natural environment. There’s one unofficial, really-small beach right smack in a long line of private beach homes which attracts surfers with limited public access, and I stopped counting at 75 surfers on the water; this is when they’re awfully close to one another and you hope when they wipe out that their board isn’t hitting another surfer on the head in the crashing waves, sort of how when you downhill ski in winter on crowded slopes, you sometimes feel you need a traffic cop so that you don’t get slammed into by another snow-skier.
But, you know, how healthy for mind and body as we come to a close in August … to be out swimming, surfing, jogging, strolling, biking on a beautiful summer day at the seashore. Lots of good exercise!
I used to love early morning walks on the beach. That was my favorite time, before the crowds got to be too much.
Then there was that time a few years back when Don and I were driving up the coast and stopped in Santa Monica as the sun was beginning to start its descent. We stopped there, put on our swimsuits, and swam in the ocean. It was magical. An amazing time to take a dip. Then we drove on and had dinner in Malibu. Heaven.
xo
A year or so ago, we watched a couple who were obviously very much in love, frolicking in the sparkling ocean as the sun set and reflected them in silhouette, like black stick figures against a red-orange sky and water that looked almost white or palest blue from the fading sun; my husband actually caught it on camera (stunning photo) and it’s one of my favorites (always makes me smile; their joy was so infectious), so now I’ll always think it’s you and Don in Santa Monica!
Thanks for sharing such a special memory, Claudia! I do remember when you two were out here in the Escape to Margaritaville days. You had quite a trip.
You remember my first Valentines Day with Don? He gave me a copy of the photo of us taken by the photographer for the San Diego Union-Tribune. On the beach!
Stay safe, VIcki.
Maybe you could go to an airbnb in the fall.
The rates may drop when the kids go back to schoo
I know here by the ocean the rates will drop.l
I’m working through the beginning of November, so I don’t think it will happen, Linda.
Stay safe.
Sounds like you and Don need a long weekend getaway at a place on a lake.
It would be nice, but I’m working now, so it isn’t happening!
Stay safe, Ellen.
Rochester has some very cool things to visit – the Museum of Play, which is interesting to adults (or at least this adult); plus it has an attached butterfly exhibit that I could have stayed in for hours. Wonderful barbecue, (trying to recall the name, has to do with dinosaurs?) and a great doughnut place. A waterfall that would be a headliner if it wasn’t so close to that other famous waterfall between the US and Canada is right in the middle of town. I know, you will be working not playing!
Ceci
Yes, I don’t think I’ll have a chance to sight see. I’m working – it takes over 5 hours to get there and I need to get back home on Sunday, as I’m coaching another show at the same time as this one. But I do plan to sneak in an early morning trip to Lake Ontario.
Stay safe, Ceci.
Weren’t we so lucky to have such great memories of days at the lake. Now the “cottages” are beyond the reach of most people. I can still smell the lake sometimes. My cousin was fortunate to inherit my Uncle Gene’s cottage so I may get a visit again someday.
The cottages are McMansions! A small wooden cottage like my Aunt’s was perfect.
Stay safe, Kay.
Didn’t get a chance to comment yesterday so hope you see this today. Loved your post about the cottage. What a wonderful childhood it gave so many people. Very few cottages remain on the lake as most houses are year round places with prices that make it out of reach of most. It was great to be reminded of that wonderful simple time.
If you could get away some time, we have Lake Michigan in our front yard and Arcadia Lake in our back yard. Our two empty bedrooms and a loft are calling your name.
Eileen
I love the look of the wooden cottages. Simple, useful, nothing fancy. Do you think that’s Uncle Glenn on the neighbor’s dock? I can’t tell.
We have talked about trying to take a trip to Michigan next year. Fingers crossed. I would love to see you and Woody again and to see your beautiful home on Lake Michigan. xoxo
Stay safe, Eileen.
Those cottages in the photos look like cottages SHOULD look on a lake — not McMansions (my pet peeve). If you want all that, stay HOME! The lake is where you kick back, don’t worry about the carpeting and tracking in water and sand (though yes, you do rinse off the feet!). Eating is simple, summer foods — fresh tomatoes, corn, grilling, salads. It’s playing all day until — well, dinner time! I loved the photos you shared and the memories. Your lake look a lot like ours in the photos — where were you? We’re over near Gaylord on Otsego Lake. Perfect summer escape.
Have you been to the Corning glass museum in Rochester? If you have time, I’ve heard it’s lovely but never been myself either! I hope you have a little time to enjoy the city.
Oh, jeanie; I loved hearing of lake life from you; I’ve read so many of your comments when you’ve spoken of escaping to a lake and now you’ve described the joy of it; thanks.
Hi Vicki,
What a lovely comment to read — you made my day! This summer I’ve been posting my yearly “Postcards from the Lake” on my blog, The Marmelade Gypsy. Feel free to come by if you have the time or inclination! themarmeladegypsy.blogspot.com And thanks for that!
I remember Otsego Lake! It’s a pretty large lake right?
We were on Silver Lake, just outside of Brighton. Nearer to the Detroit area.
We camped in the Pigeon River State Forest when I was a kid, near Vanderbilt, which is down the road from Gaylord. Gaylord was pretty small in those days!
Haven’t been to the museum but would love to go there sometime. No time to really enjoy the city, I’m afraid.
Stay safe Jeanie.