February 19, 2013

• Where I’ve Been

  I’m back.

  (Did you know I was gone?)

  

  I went on our annual pilgrimage to Barothy Lodge in Wallhalla, Mi., which is between Baldwin and Luddington. A bunch of us who began as a volleyball group (I think–I am not one of the ‘Original’ members) began making yearly trips North to a ski lodge on the Pere Marquette River. This was ‘our’ 32nd trip. I am a virtual newcomer, but sadly I have forgotten what year it is for me. It’s probably close to 20, I would guess. Also Barothy has a variety of lodges available. The one we use now was not even built when the group first began going, so we have stayed in a variety of buildings on the property. This is the view of the river from our current lodge’s front porch.

  The thing most of us have in common is employment at a particular office of the variably named Department of Social Services (also known as DSS, DHS and FIA, to name a few.) This year marks a kind of passage for us: the last of us retired from state service. NO ONE works for our former employer any more.

  “So what did you talk about?” my Beloved asked.

  Knee replacement surgery, dogs, cats, aging parents, life, death, infinity, religion, how busy the life of a retired person really is and the volume of the television. What we’re reading, where we’re going, grand children, the foibles of the modern world. Cranberry flavored beverages. We did not discuss the fat content of what we were eating as much this year. One of us was unable to make it at the last minute because she failed her stress test. One of us is going to update his kitchen. One of us–certainly one of the more fiscally responsible of us–is an expert on every gambling facility in the tri-state area.

  I left Friday afternoon and came home Monday afternoon. I felt like I’d been gone a month: it was really like hitting the ‘reset’ button.

  While I was gone Nancy had a revelation about her mother that may allow her to relax the vigilance of her caretaking. Annie was Annie. Riley is apparently not feeling well and either because he missed me or he doesn’t feel good, has become my constant companion. Today Nancy and Annie went  to work and Riley and I are staying home with Ilah.

  

  On our way to Barothy (and for the geographically-challenged, we went past Barothy and then came back) Bob and I went to Luddington for dinner, where I discovered that Luddington has a light house. (The odds are Luddington has always had a light house, and the odds are even better that I’ve seen it before, since I have, twice in my lifetime, ridden the Milwaukee Clipper from Luddington to Milwaukee and back. This memory, however,has also warped slightly, since I remember the trip being from Luddington to Oshkosh. I’m going to have to do some research to sort out this tangle.) Sitting at the dock in Luddington we found the ferry the Badger (as well as the Spartan.) I have never heard of the Spartan (I have heard of the Badger.) The Milwaukee Clipper was retired several years ago. Nonetheless: there in front of us was a lighthouse. I love lighthouses, as demonstrated by the 347 photographs I’ve taken of the South Haven Lighthouse.

  How did I forget that?

  So now I am home again, Ilah has had her breakfast, Riley is napping on the couch and I can occasionally hear his belly upset. I would give him some Pepto, but I know from past experience he won’t take it.

  The dog door we began negotiating in October may be installed tomorrow, which could remove the cold breeze blowing up my back today. (Probably not retroactively.)

  It is snowing lightly, big, fluffy flakes falling, at least in the back yard, straight down. We have acquired about an inch of it in the time I’ve been awake today (two hours.)

  And so it goes.    

  • 10:06 am
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