Happy Saturday morning to everyone, the time is here. First let me pour myself a mug of thick Rogue American Invader Coffee (a pound of which I brought back from Austin). The time has come for us to embark on a fresh season at our little castaway joint we call Northern Comfort.

Climate change did its magic, so this year the ice was off the lake 10-days later than in years past (yes, it’s that accurate year after year). People say that the sight and noise when it breaks is something to see and hear; and then the whole business happens in little over a day.

Yesterday morning b-i-l Donn sent me this photo taken Friday morning – compare this to the one taken 3 weeks ago [shown on the Picture of the Week].

Now that it’s safe for me to wade into the lake to place our water line, we’re off!

”Time to face a hard and demanding truth. I like the idea of a Big Mac more than I actually like Big Macs…” ~ tomorrow begins another trip where hour after hour it’s nothing but highway exits cluttered with one Fast Food joint after another

Fear – Have you ever feared your spouse? Nothing physical mind you, a simple ‘evil’ eye suffices when you approach with another ‘must-have’ something?

Marcia thinks that I have some ‘sicko’ obsession about boats and that since our kayak and canoe collection has grown exponentially that enough is enough.

So, you can see how mightily I have been struggling even just sharing my latest ‘find’. Recently on a walk through the neighboring village of Norwood I came across these beauties – and immediately thought that just one of them would do. I did do the math and finally concluded that the 8-person shell I was eyeing, at 62’ in length, might be stretching my limit.

Flying Pig – in pictures – It’s the 40-second embedded YouTube that is especially interesting. Here I was standing in a crowd on a corner while 37,000 runners (and a few walkers) passed on by. About the 21-second mark listen carefully to the audio and watch someone waving – it was one of my neighbors who ran by and spotted me – now what are the odds?

The photo of just the two runners shows the leaders passing by at the 7 or so mile marker, one of these two actually did win the race. By the way, since I got there early I shared a coffee with a pair of drummers. They told me that there were over 20 live music groups scattered along the marathon’s route. Last Sunday certainly was a fun morning.

Thought impossible but then, well, not quite – I really wanted to see our Art Museum’s exhibition of a large collection of objects from the “Terracotta Army: Legacy of the First Emperor of China”. Leaving town and getting ready meant that I ran out of time.

Now I find out that the exhibition will be here through August 12th. And, since we’ll be back in town the week of July 9, guess what?

I saw the display of the emperor’s horse drawn carriage placed as a means to entice and that solidified my plan to see the items when I am back in town. Seeing these magnificent works, many life sized from a period spanning from 770 BC to 206 BC is something very special.

Brand new: Nearby Walnut Hills High School has been rated as the number 1 High School in the state of Ohio for the fourth year strait. Jason, Cathy, and Adrianne are products of this proud institution, and currently Marin one of its 2775 students; you go Marin!

Actually, Cincinnati area schools captured first, second, and third place  (U.S. News & World Report’s list). Walnut Hills boasts a 100 percent graduation rate and 86 percent of its students take advanced placement classes.

Finis – Over the winter Tevita became a US citizen. Last Tuesday he took a momentous step, he VOTED. All of us could not be more proud.

Here’s wishing all the moms a very Happy Mother’s Day. Our Cincinnati gang will gather for Brunch in a little while. The ladies selected a breakfast/lunch place called Sleepy Bee cafe in nearby Oakley (I hear good things).

Marcia and I plan to head north in the morning. We have reservations in St. Ignace, MI at a little motel where they’ll only take reservations by phone; none of that new-fangled webby stuff. A ‘confirmation’ number – what’s that? More importantly, their restaurant serves a variety of freshly caught Whitefish dishes, each to die for. The strategy is to begin taking down the winter snow shutters at Northern Comfort shortly after noon on Monday.

Make it a great week everybody, and again, a well-deserved and Happy  Mother’s  Day to all you moms.

Cheers.
Dirk