More Photos Below!Gallery
We’ve had a good dozen coincidences so far during our month abroad, up north living in our trailer.
We’ve also moved about 6 times now.
(A lovely wooden daysailor just drove past me as I type at a sidewalk cafe — the Silvertree Deli, home of free wifi — in Sutton’s Bay.)
Yesterday I biked twice, swam twice, went sailing once, and put in a fast kayak outing of about 6 miles at sunset.
Martha and the kids spent the day at the Port Oneida beach.
Today we’re moving camp up to Northport to meet up with my side of the family for a few days of cousins mayhem.
We had a dandy sale at the Traverse City art fair on the college campus then met up with friends for dinner and a movie at the hot new Film Fest, courtesy of Michael Moore. We got to see a free outdoor showing of “Raising Arizona” on the big screen at the beach.
In other news, guess who is in town? Chachaweena! Well, that’s what our kids called him back in the day. Bart from Denmark! Speaking of coincidences, he’s the king of serendipity (or at least interesting numbers. “Oh no, it’s 12:34!”). But to the point, he emailed a month ago saying he was in Michigan visiting family and would like to visit but he didn’t have a car and was a bit pressed for time…but that he’d be in the Sleeping Bear Dunes area. Doh! Of all things, obviously, that’s right where we are! So we’re fetching him to our campground tonight. (He and Martha will probably drive by me as I type!)
What I’d really like to do is explore the place where the green water changes to dark blue. The drop off. I see it as we drive or sail around the shore. I kayak over it. But I haven’t swum it yet, with goggles on. That’s tomorrow, I think.
We’ve been camping behind Bill’s art studio (pole barn) on the industrial side of SB. Fine by me! I enjoy a little industry.
We bought some prints by a painter named Bill Hyslop who is from the Old Mission peninsula and who has had booths at a few of the shows we’ve been to. Now his work is all over in our trailer!
One coincidence was when we went tubing on the Platte we gave a lift to a lady…who is from Williamston and whose garage sale Martha went to just before we came up north.
Another one was when we went into an art shop for the first time and admiringly said it reminded us of Vicky’s in Ann Arbor. The shop lady said, Oh yeah, Vicky comes here all the time. Then a customer standing next to us said “Well, I’m Vicky’s sister-in-law!”
The day before we visited friends up near the Bridge we were down in Frankfort visiting the lonely lighthouse. Martha thought she recognized the name-badge on the volunteer guide lady and found out she was the sister of the guy we were going to visit!
We turned into an alley in TC while getting lost looking for the bus station and as we were backing out a car went past and beeped and it was our friend we’d been staying with 30 miles away, who we hadn’t seen in days and who we had no idea would be in town, much less on that 10 feet of side street.
It goes on and on…
Bill Hyslop painting. Check out his website, at hyslop.cabrackett.com/
Dinner outside Bill’s shop.
Painter Bill at his booth. If you like the Group of Seven… Charles Burchfield… Thomas Hart Benton… …Which we do! Then buy his stuff. $20 per print! $300 per big original.
Bill Perkins in his twig shop.
Camped outside Bill’s shop.
