Armed with a stir stick and dressed in my old clothes, Sargie's getting ready to begin painting the bathroom ceiling.

April 24, 2013 – Wednesday

17 degrees/clear/calm/cold

Pentoga Road

I’m feeling a bit spunky this morning. No, darn it, I’m feeling spunky, sassy, AND perky. Oh yes, definitely perky. I finished my final exam to upload for the undergraduate class I teach yesterday. While Sargie was upstairs painting in the bathroom, I buried myself (and my computer) in work and as of 8 o’clock last night, finished.

Most students find final exams stressful. The same applies for this professor. When so much of the semester’s work and final outcome lies with one test, I feel very obligated to make it pertinent, worthwhile, and hopefully able to be used as a learning tool… right up to the very end. The test will be sent to the educational tech person today so it will magically appear online Friday. They’ll have five days to complete it and that will end the semester.

It appears official. Brutus the Bulldog is going to become the newest member of our Pentoga Road family. Yooper Brother Mark agreed to go with me on Saturday morning down to central Wisconsin. The Stevens Point area is about halfway to Rockford, Illinois. Brutus's owner and I texted back and forth last night and I’m to call him this morning to make final arrangements. I know Sargie’s and my lives are about to change by adding 120 lbs of American Bulldog to the mix. One thing I’m fairly certain of; Brutus and I will be walking five miles every day together. We’ll get a lot of his puppy energy burned off in a positive way.

My hiking buddy, Mandy Jo, called yesterday from Alaska and we talked about a pack for Brutus. If he’s going to be a canine hiker companion, he’ll have to carry his own weight. While he’s at it, he can carry some of mine. Mandy’s dogs have always carried packs. After Brutus settles in, I’ll begin working on his pack and work skills. The American Bulldog breed loves to work and be active. The bulldog in Brutus is about to have his dream come true. I wonder how his chain saw and computer skills are?

We took time out from our chores yesterday to take a short ride. Spring has arrived in our neck of the woods and suddenly the snow is sinking and there’s a promise in the air of nice days to come. The robins have magically appeared and are everywhere. I hear flocks of geese honking their way north and the garden area is slowly becoming visible once again. That itch to get out there and begin working is growing stronger. It must indeed be spring.

The hydro electric dam on the Paint River in Crystal Falls

The Bridge Over River Paint... hey, it was worth a try.

While I was performing academic wizardry on Tuesday, Sargie was painting the ceiling of the bathroom. It really looks nice and we’re anxious to apply the yellow to the walls. It’s slowly coming together and hopefully, will be finished in a few days. The flooring and fixtures are on order from Home Depot, but should arrive in short order.

I’m going to take my hike this morning, talk to Brutus’s owner along the way and make final preparations for a doggie exchange on Saturday, then return home to work in the bathroom. Since there’s not much I can mess up, I think I’ll try painting the walls. Other than caulking around the tub, we’ll be at a standstill until the new flooring arrives.

Sargie closes tonight at the Vision Center. It’s going to be a long day for her. I’m sure she’ll tell you that her day will be as busy (or busier) than mine and as we all know, a man’s work is never done.

When the snow disappears, Pentoga Lake, now lying under the remaining snow, will become visible. 

So are the tales from Pentoga Road…

If we want to talk on our cell phones, we have to go out by the road where the signal is stronger.