Feeling Like Fall

I really love the feeling that goes along with fall on the island.  The colors are vibrant and beautiful, making the world seem bright for a time...and then everything quiets.  The tourists who scuttle to the island for our very short summer season have all cleared out for the year, their houses empty and buttoned down tight to survive the winter.  Those of us who brave the island year round begin to settle into our regular routines.

As the colors change, so do many small things on the island.  The one grocery store has cut back to winter hours, which means on Sunday it is only open for two hours. The grocery store has also closed-up some of the shelves.  During the winter, a small fraction of the store disappears under plastic wrap and we won't see it again until May. Winter hours also cause new inconveniences in banking because the bank is only open two days a week for a small handful of hours (all while I am working). There are also adjustments to be made by the boat company, and all of the other small businesses around the island. It takes a lot of work to transition into winter in this little remote corner of Michigan.

Fall also means lots of work for islanders.  The summer-only crowd hires like crazy to have locals close their houses for the season, or to fix last minute things that can't wait the winter.  Roadwork is at an all time high because any little, leftover projects have to be finished quickly. The school is buzzing with end of the quarter insanity and the beginning of basketball season.  And, for many of us, the firewood can no longer be put off and we must cut and stack in all of our free time.

Like all good things it must come to an end though.  The trees shed their last leaves and ice has been coating everything the last few mornings.  Snow is in the forecast, which is unavoidable this late in the year.  I am always (secretly) a bit excited for the first big snow though.  I don't think it'll be too far off now.

Your turn...What has fall been like for you this year?
Currently listening to...Summertime Sadness - Lana Del Rey

New Home Mishaps

The last two weeks have been full of accidents...natural disasters...acts of God...whatever you want to call them.  They haven't been good.  That I know for certain.

First, a rather large tree came crashing down on our house.  I happened to be alone in a dark bedroom, reading a spooky story when the tree crashed through the roof above my head.  It didn't make a hole in the bedroom ceiling (thankfully), but it did put two decent holes directly into the roof and it knocked off a piece of the siding. Cody and I rushed outside and saw the tree pieces littering the yard and roof.  Yikes.

We thought that we were in the clear.  That is, until a gigantic grouse (kind of like a small turkey) came crashing through the front picture window of our house.  Glass shards spanned three rooms of the house.  The poor dogs were stuck in it for hours before we noticed it.  Cody came home for lunch that day, but it still could have been up to three hours that they were alone in the house with glass and a gigantic, completely uninjured bird.  The bird was as big as Luna, our puppy.  It spent so much time in our house that it started to make a nest out of my new curtains that had been folded on the counter. The bird was caught in a large box and released.  The window is currently covered in plywood.

These two incidents happened mere days apart and nearly drove me to a heart attack. I'm hoping we've used up our quota of bad luck.  We are in serious need of a break from random acts of insanity. Both issues are being fixed this weekend.  Thank goodness for small miracles.

Your turn...What is the strangest thing that has happened to your house or apartment?
Currently listening to...Killed Myself When I Was Young - AA Bondy

Apple Pizza

Mondays mean cooking class for all of the early elementary students (kindergarten-3rd grade) at my school.  We are very lucky that a wonderful retired teacher comes into our school once a week to cook with students from 2:00-3:15.  My class always looks forward to cooking and eating delicious treats. Some of the older students even beg to join from time to time, which means it must be a blast.

A couple of weeks ago the class tried a recipe sooooo delicious (yes, I stole a bite) that I had to recreate it at home. The recipe was for apple pizza.

Apple Pizza
1 package biscuit dough
5 small or 3 large apples
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 T cinnamon
2 T flour
3 T butter
Directions: Mix dry ingridients together. Roll biscuits flat on a cookie sheet. Cover with chopped apples. Sprinkle dry ingridients on top of apples. Dot with butter. Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees.

Hello, beautiful dessert! I actually added a little Asiago cheese on top of mine for a little added melt-y goodness. When my students made it at school they served it with vanilla ice cream, which was sheer amazing-ness. Both ways (cheese or ice cream) are super tasty!

Your turn...What are some of your favorite treats to cook?
Currently listening to...Mountain Sound - Of Monsters and Men

Little House in the Big Woods

We moved into a new house! It's been very quiet around the blog lately.  The move is the main reason why that's been happening.  Our new rental house was only about 1000ft from our old rental house (it's literally right around the corner), but it still took a ton of work.  We are finally all moved in though!

Our main reason for moving was because our old house was totally furnished, which is nice, except that you are constantly tip-toeing around other people's stuff.  And when I say furnished, I mean furnished down to the last dish, blanket, towel, and even cleaning supplies.  It was a great house, but we've outgrown having other people's stuff around.

One HUGE bonus to our new house is the wood burning stove! We paid roughly $300/month for heat last winter, which we weren't super keen to do again. This year we are lucky to have an (almost) brand-new stove to heat the house.  We've already started using it, which is awesome because we got our first snowfall this weekend.  Yikes!

Things are still in the "unpacking" phase at our house.  As soon as we get things a little more settled I will post pics of the inside.  It's a very cute house and we are excited to be living in it!

Your turn...What is your favorite thing about your house?

Currently listening to...Hold On - Alabama Shakes

Things to Do on Beaver Island: The Big Rock

One of the many, many exciting (and slightly silly) things to do on Beaver Island is visiting the Big Rock.  Seriously, it's on the map.

My dad was the first one to make it to the top.

Only 20% of the rock is actually visible, so it is a really big rock. Locals and tourists alike cruise out to Fox Lake Road and attempt to run up the side of the rock. It's usually accompanied by going on a boodle (aka a drive around the island that occasionally involves adult beverages). Boodle is a commonly used phrase on the island.  It's typically a summer activity, which often involves putting a picnic table in the back of a pick-up truck.

Jenny (step-mom) pretending to move it.

Dad and I on top of the rock.

Big Rock is a favorite cruising destination for islanders.  It's fairly far out and requires driving down some of our more interesting roads, which is saying something since all our roads are sand/gravel.  The roads out in this area are fantastic for cruising because they are narrow and heavily wooded.  Picturesque tree tunnels line the entire roadway. It's a great place to spend a leisurely weekend afternoon.  There's never another soul on the roads and you can set your cruise control at 5mph.  Perfect weekend cruising.

Currently listening to…Honey Won't You Let Me In - Tallest Man on Earth
Your turn…What are some of your favorite cruising spots?

Sunset Sunday

Little Luna

World, meet Luna.  She is the newest member of The Middle(tons) of Nowhere.

Luna is a three month old Australian Cattle Dog mix (the same as Specks) and she came to us from the Little Traverse Bay Humane Society (LTBHS).  Before LTBHS, she was living a pretty rough life that alternated between the streets and death row at an Illinois kill shelter.  I've been wanting to adopt a companion for Specks for quite some time.  We've even gone to meet potential adoptees, but Specks is an extremely passive dog with no tendencies towards aggression, prey drive, or even barking.  Because of this, we've been holding out for the perfect brother or sister for him.

Luna (formerly named Joplin) seemed like a wonderful fit.  She is awfully timid right now, but she is already shyly curling up next to Specks and sneaking kisses to Cody and I.  The three of us are positively smitten with her.  We decided to change her name to Luna in honor of Luna Lovegood (from Harry Potter).  Luna Lovegood has always been one of my favorite book characters and I think our new, baby Luna will live up to all of her silly goodness :)

Your turn…Have you ever adopted a pet? 
Currently listening to…Can't Feel My Face - The Weekend