Here from the North Woods where this past week morning fogs are a daily fact of life, wishing you a great Saturday. This week I received a note from Sirius/XM stating:

As a valued SiriusXM listener, we wanted to make sure you knew about this great sweepstakes. Enter for your chance to win a trip to New York City and the opportunity to attend Mass with Pope Francis at Madison Square Garden on September 25, 2015!” ~ Sirius/XM

Just thinking mind you, but I wonder whether the Sadducees of old offered the Israelites a winning cruise with Jesus on the Sea of Galilee.

Now back to my morning coffee.

Chaotic nights – can occur without even trying. Really they can; let me explain.

Thursday night began normal enough as shortly after ten I crashed. It was 2:09 AM when I woke up. Marcia had moved to the couch (something about me ‘poofing’ in her ear), the window was open, I heard car doors.

Earlier in the day neighbors had said their goodbyes as they were closing their place for the season and heading off for their winter home in the South West. “Wow” I thought, “that’s some early start”. Seconds later I heard the motor to their pontoon kick in and the boat pulling away from the dock (he takes it to the other end of the lake where it’s stored at a camp).

Now awake I heard a new sound, the wind knocking the tree-tops around and the lake water slapping the shore. By 3:00 AM I had heard enough and also remembered that I had left the kayak on the water. Not wanting it to slam against the rocks I quietly slipped outside to pull it on dry land.

While a brisk wind buffeted me I worked at my task, and then noticed lights being turned on inside of Northern Comfort. Marcia woke up, thought I was sleep-walking, and with a bit of anxiety had gotten up (she watched the Steven & Chris TV show and learned that this summer a fall while sleep-walking killed Chris).

We chatted and she said; “coffee?” By 4:00 AM we were enjoying some coffee (which had spilled all over the coffee maker since the filter doubled over – ever have that happen?).

Soon it was the morning news folk chattering away as they opened the day on our little XM radio.

The wind had subsided and thick fogs had come in; I needed a nap.

The Humus 80 – became our major purchase of the week. Background; regular readers must have taken note that with the work going on at Northern Comfort our toilet service has taken a hit – we have none. Not only that. It can’t really be fixed until the place is lifted and reset later this month. For us, it’s the neighbor’s old outhouse.

Ever since Marcia and I attended the Cottage Show in Toronto a few years ago Marcia has been talking about getting a compost toilet. In principle, spending a couple of grand on a toilet used seasonally seemed a bit out of whack.

Donn came to the rescue. He spotted a small ad in the weekly regional newspaper. A never used compost toilet (show model) made by a company since ‘absorbed’ (pun) by a larger company was offered.

For about two weeks the people who had the thing and I talked. So, this week it was delivered to our place by its previous owner.

What does this mean for us? It’ll mean that beginning next season our septic flush system should work without problem. Plus, when we have people visiting we’ll have a secondary system.

How efficient are these composting systems? It’s interesting to note that in the Nordic countries people have two options; be connected to a municipal system or use a composting toilet – no septic systems and no outhouses; these units are incredibly efficient— clean and odorless.

With a built in heater and small fan all liquid is evaporated as waste and paper are reduced by 95%. A tray collects the resultant dry humus and this should only have to be emptied once a year under the conditions we’ll use it. Then what? Take the humus contents and use it in the woods or around ornamental plants.

Animal Planet – This was the week of the fogs. Nearly every morning the lake surface saw massive fogs rolling around, for us it meant no sunrise and no views of anything a 100 or so feet away. Several days these did not clear till almost lunchtime.

Then, a couple of evenings ago the cove was active with large fish jumping out of the water. Locals tell me that about this time of the year the waters in the lake ‘reverse’ – surface waters ‘sink’ with the colder waters coming up. Possibly what we saw was a reaction by confused fish as their environment shifted.

It seems that every year we see animal life seldom seen a different year. Two years ago I spotted 3 Moose, this year none. This year we’ve seen more Black Bear than other years. Marcia and I spotted an adult bear on the main road while heading into town. Then a hunter/trapper brought in his catch which was prepared for the freezer in about two hours. I think this end of the lake is getting a reputation.

Mid-week it turned nice and I spent a couple of hours slowly floating in the kayak around the perimeter of our cove. Two Beaver lodges are visible from our place and I took a close-up look at these. Even just letting the breeze move the little boat through the Lilly Pads reveals an amazing assortment of color, shapes, insects, and animals. These are days to be cherished.

Fini –Our dump site has a ’boutique'(actually  the back-end of the recycling trailer) where people load usable and near usable stuff.  Marcia came across this little guitar with a loose neck and took it. Some wood glue and 24 hours in a clamp and it’s as good as new. Great for the kids for years to come.

Happy birthday wishes to bro George. When I called him I had just stored our new compost toilet. I asked him where he was. “Just walking into Lowe’s – doing some toilet work”, he stated. It was 70 degrees here where he was jumping from an air-conditioned car into an air-conditioned store it was 100.

This afternoon we’re planning on a Quad 4-wheeler run

Make it a great week and stay safe.

Cheers.

Dirk