Ouch!

Come outside and help me, dad said.

This batch of bees are really nice, he said,

I promise, you won't get stung.

My son, wasn't so sure.

I'll help, he said. IF, 

you pay me $10.00 for each sting.

Dad, confident that all would be well,

agreed: $10.00 per sting.

All was well, until it wasn't...

 Of  the 20 stingers found in my son's gloves,

12 found their way through.

And even when you aren't allergic

to bee stings,

12 stings is a lot.

So when my son's throat started

to feel "weird,"

it was time to go to the Medical Center.

A large dose of Benadryl,

an IV,

three hours,

and

$120.00

later,

and the kid is just fine.

He's actually pretty blasé about the whole thing and has already offered to help his dad whenever he needs it. Though I'm quite sure his dad will be purchasing a second pair of beekeeping gloves.

It's That Time of Year

This view might not look very special to you - but I love it. At first glance it just looks like a random forest, but if you look a little closer you will see something special - blueberries! 

Sometimes, when the crop is good, you can actually see patches of blue from the car. The picking wasn't that good this year, but I still got to spend the day in my happy place. If you know where (and when) to look, you can find lots of wild blueberries in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. There are "You Pick" farms, but we prefer to pick wild berries on state forest land. It's a perfect day - we're outdoors, spending time as a family, and the berries are free.

The picking wasn't as good as it was back in 2019, but the four of us working together managed to pick six pounds (2.7 kg) on this trip. Not great, but it's still enough for a batch of jam,

and one of these:

Blueberry pie! After I make the jam, I hope I have just enough left for a batch of these. I made them with dried cherries and they were amazing. 

Perfect

Another perfect Mackinac summer day is in the books. No matter how many times I see that view, I have to stop for a moment (or two) to admire it. I literally can't imagine not being able to see it every day.

Can You Feel the Love?

This is officially my new favorite picture of my brother. He and his wife were able to come up from Columbus, Ohio, for my father's Celebration of Life, and while it was a sad reason to get together, it was a delight to see him. I think hope he was as happy about being together as I was. 

A big shout out to my Uncle Andrew for catching this moment!

All Too Common

Bikes regularly get "borrowed" on Mackinac Island (translate that to stolen.) Usually the bike gets left behind once the thief is done with it, so people often get them back. I noticed this bike on my walk down the hill this morning, and I'm assuming it was dumped last night.

I snapped this picture intending to post it on the Mackinac Island Residents and Summer Workers Facebook pages, but when I headed up the hill it was gone. I'm hoping it found its way back to its owner. Losing your bike is a hard way to learn an important Mackinac lesson: always lock your bike.

Mackinac People are the Best

Today was Election Day in Michigan. I arrived to vote right after lunch and just in time to see Joann's Fudge deliver some snacks to help Mackinac's Election Workers get through their day. They were also treated to donuts for breakfast courtesy of the Murray Hotel.  I love that my community supports our election workers!