Astounding Rainbow

June 18th we had an ominous storm pass over, and luckily we were spared any severe weather. The storm, though, momentarily made the most astounding rainbow that I've seen.


I was driving along the Lake Michigan lakeshore when I saw it. It brilliantly glowed, and where the illusion suggested it met the water, the water seemed illuminated. I tried to capture it with my digital camera. The pictures do not begin to show the glory that it let us glimpse for the fleeting moments it arched across the sky.

Feeling Crummy Summer

I've not been the greatest at keeping up with my blog this summer because I have felt crummy ever since going on my trip to Colorado. I mentioned that while I was there in early June, I did develop bronchitis. I lost my voice, developed a cough, and by the time I got back to Wisconsin, I had a sore throat and plugged up ears. I've had several doctor visits, and the initial ones did address the bronchitis. However, I have never quite gotten over the plugged ears, my throat still flares up, and about every couple days, I'm back feeling fatigued and generally not great. So..it certainly has slowed down my summer.

I've tried to think of the good things that this has given me...not feeling great for 6+ weeks causes a person to ponder many things that are not so positive. But, on the positive side, this has certainly caused me to slow down! I mean, left to my own devices, I tend to be busy..busy...busy. Feeling crummy has made me take naps and rest and do nothing. So...hopefully by the time college begins in September, I sure hope to be back to my zippy self.

Yearly Fireworks

4th of July was quiet...relatively...for us as we had no plans for parties, or company, or anything really out of the normal routine. Instead it was a day of working in the yard on projects that we've had in mind. The main project of the day was beginning work on a cement block patio area below our deck. After finishing 1/2 of the project, we took some time to leisurely bask in the joy of our work....setting up our chairs and enjoying the cool of the evening. When dusk fell, off we went to watch the local fireworks, choosing a spot along the breakwater of Lake Michigan where I usually go fishing here in Two Rivers.

HOPE YOU HAD A GREAT HOLIDAY!

Garden 2006

Its time for me to post some photos of this year's garden!

Here's my garden (left) area after initial prep in early May. The leaf covered bed in the fore ground is one of my potato beds. Here I had finished planting it. The path is covered with old carpet pieces, excellent for keeping weeds down.

Here is the same view, (right) as of July 3, 2006. The potato patch is in the fore ground. Next are two tomato beds, and then some corn and misc. Raspberries and a grapevine are along the far edge of my garden.




Here's the early May view of my garden again (left), this time taken looking straight on towards it, including my green house frame.



Here's how it looks on July 3, 2006 (right)! What I love about Wisconsin is how lush everything grows.






Here's a photo of last year's potato bed area (left) , again in early May. I had a compost heap by it, which I used and then relocated at the back of the big garden for this year.

And here (to the right) is the same bed, which this year has peas, lettuce, and onions, on July 3, 2006.

Of course the thing that I have been so keen on all year long has been tomatoes. Although I do have some tomato beds in the large garden, I have once again planted tomatoes along the fence. This year I am actually fighting tomato "weeds", as the seeds from last year's dropped tomatoes are sprouting. This might be due to having planted heirloom plants that do produce viable seeds. So, here again are some before and after pictures:
(left) Here's part of the tomato area before I prepared it by tilling, digging, and working over the soil. Again, this photo was taken in early May.



(right) Taken July 3, this same area includes a "medicine wheel" flower bed (fore ground), and then tomato plants beyond. Yes, that is a sunflower. I have random sunflowers coming up due to the gardening efforts of the local bird population.

Here are a few more tomato photos taken July 3. The plants are just starting to bloom and set fruit.


This year's garden is so exciting for me. I have salad greens galore...I just take my scissors and snip off a patch of lettuce. The peas are now coming ready. It has potential to feed us for several months after harvest! If all goes well, we should have: tomatoes, potatoes, turnips, squash, cabbage, broccoli, sweet peppers, corn, peas, carrots, radishes, lettuce, onions, beans, cucumbers, Swiss chard, spinach, pumpkins, tomatillos....to add to the fruits from our yard, which include strawberries, cherries, apples, pears, grapes, raspberries, rhubarb, and plums. We already enjoyed the asparagus. Happy Summer!