Happy Birthday, Rocket Scientist, nudist

Kathleen's brother-in-law, David Brewer, celebrates his birthday today, along with President Obama. David lives in Durango, Co. with his wife, Mary Lou, and near his married daughter, Heidi. He is the son of a famous portrait painter and grandson of a famous artist (you can google Ed Brewer) and has lived a long and interesting life. Among other things, he was a rocket scientist. He really was. He also had a membership in a nudist colony when that was supposed to be a pretty radical thing. Really. He did.

Happy Birthday, Laurie

Stan's co-worker and lifetime friend, Laurie Hartmann, is celebrating a birthday today. She's just returned from a vacation in Germany and we haven't heard anything yet. Above, she's served strawberry shortcake by her pal, Kathleen, at a previous birthday event.

You call this shopping, Grandpa?

You've got a lot to learn!
Lowe's and Home Depot may not be a favorite destination, but it's not bad, Emily learned today. Especially when you can pick out your own colors in the paint department. Grandma and Grandpa were reasonably pleased with overall deportment during today's expedition, but the stop at the Ford store to look at the new Explorers did push the boundaries a bit. She got a B for behavior and a C+ for attention span. We're back home now, watermelon and a nap, then Grandma and Grandpa get to go out and play. . . at the Twins ball park tonight.
Rain, rain go away.

Lookit, Daddy's got LARGE feet. Hee hee

It was a perfect summer afternoon and Ford and his 18-month-old daughter came to call. Our schoolteacher Daddy is caring for Kaia all summer while Mommy works her new job until early afternoons. This August, Ford (Stan's nephew) will begin teaching at the new Shakopee high school, almost across the street from their new home. He's also the varsity tennis coach. . . and day care is a couple miles away. . . so there is a synergy going on here that would make Ford's efficient Daddy proud.

Kaia is bright as button, Kathleen offered her one of Emily's popup toys and she had it mastered in a twinkle. Birdie is a tad aggressive for the youngster and so bided her time in the kennel, while Kaia tried the buttons on the remotes, thinking she was calling somebody on the phone like her parents do.
Stan took a bunch of photos. Saw a lot of Steve in Kaia. You can see all the pix by going to the web album. Click here.

Provisions

Did we mention that neighbors Joe and Mina went fishing? Well they did. Here is the evidence: beautiful fillets of pink, wild salmon. They fished Lake Michigan (you know, the big one that Steve and Nancy are crossing in the big coal-fired ferryboat) and brought back a nice catch to share. The fish fry will happen August 3. If you want to see all their fishing trip pictures, click here.

Becky Lynn's make-a-wish

A nasty concussion has taken Twins First Baseman Justin Morneau out of action while he gets some quiet time to recover. He was spotted recently relaxing on this dock. No, wait a minute. This is Stan's nephew Aaron in a look-a-like photo submitted by his mother, Becky Lynn, -- who would never want her son or anyone injured, but says she wouldn't mind him having that big league pay.

Mission Accomplished? . . again?

In an email post today, Stan's sister Sosie lamented the many projects she hasn't been able to get to since her recent retirement.
We commiserate.

Readers may recall that in April of 2009, with much fanfare, we expanded our master closet into the bedroom. Photos were taken, comments made and "Mission Accomplished" declared for all to see.
Problem was, there was still this detail left: the fussy moulding that was to crown the top, a fancy wedding-cake finish to set off the new angles in the closet expansion, wasn't done yet. Energy was down. The trim had been started, some dentil pieces cut and glued and a first course was in place. But there the project had stalled, stuck in neutral, mired somewhere deep in the List of Things To Do.
You'd think, Sosie, with Stan retired and with all that free time on his hands, this shouldn't happen, right?
Fast-forward 14 months or so to this fine morning. Today would be the big day to get the wedding cake moulding finally screwed, glued, attached and painted. Not sure what triggered it, but so it was. With Kathleen proudly recording this long-postponed event, here is the result. What do you think? Elegant Victorian Boudoir -- or Whorehouse Moderne?
Frankly, Stan doesn't care anymore. It is finished.

To get to the other side

Stan's brother, Steve, and his wife, Nancy, will cross Lake Michigan this week in the S.S. Badger, a historic car ferry listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Here's some info on this charming boat:

She is the largest car ferry ever to sail Lake Michigan, and has provided a safe, fun, and reliable shortcut across the huge inland sea for more than fifty years. The S.S. Badger is a national treasure, offering a cruise experience that links us to an earlier time when a sea voyage was the ultimate travel and vacation adventure.

As the only coal-fired steamship in operation in North America, the S.S. Badger operates on domestic fuel, and the company has an extraordinary commitment to maintaining a unique propulsion system that has been designated as a national mechanical engineering landmark. The S.S. Badger offers an authentic steamship experience unmatched anywhere else.

The 410' S.S. Badger entered service in 1953, designed specifically to handle the rough conditions that it would likely encounter during year 'round sailing on Lake Michigan. Built primarily to transport railroad freight cars, but with superior passenger accommodations, the Badger reigned as Queen of the Lakes during the car ferries' Golden Era in the late Fifties, with Manitowoc, Milwaukee, and Kewaunee as her Wisconsin ports of call. By the Seventies, changing railroad economics were condemning other car ferries to mothballs or the scrap yard. With little railroad freight business left, and without ever tapping into the opportunity to serve the needs of the vacation traveler, the Badger sailed from Wisconsin to Ludington and tied up for the last time in November 1990 - signaling the end of the century-old tradition of car ferry service on Lake Michigan.

It's back in service now. Read more about it on the internet if you like. Anyway, here's a video of the beast coming in to Ludington. Two minutes. Turn down the sound. The horn is really loud.

Bon Voyage, Nancy and Steve!

The director

Linda's three-year-old grandchild announced at the backyard table in Blaine that there would be a program after dinner. It would include a frog. Sure enough, Anja (above, instructing Grandma Marilyn how to develop her character) chose three princesses and the frog. That's Grandpa Paul practicing for his pivotal role. Linda is Stan's sister and was in the audience along with Grandpa Ron and some others. She said the whole thing "was a hoot!"