Neighbor Mike, Grady, George
Grady's at deer camp with the boys. You can't beat bellying up to the table and enjoying a good ol' round of banana bread.

November 16, 2016 - Wednesday

37 degrees/partly cloudy/calm winds

Pentoga Road

I generally begin the blog with some sort of weather statement, usually for those who live away but have camps, visit, or frequently travel through the area. There's my friend who lives in Appleton, Wisconsin, then another who lives in Marshfield, and yet a third (that I know of) who's over in Escanaba. At any rate, if you are planning on coming to camp this weekend, come prepared.

Thankfully, we don't have to worry about the waves pounding off of Lake Superior, but what follows is anyone's guess.

Tuesday was an active one on Pentoga Road. Grady woke up in a great mood and went from there. He (we) sang, played, watched ABC's on television, carried in wood, went to town, and yes, we even spent some time at Neighbor Mike's deer camp. Grady fit right in with all the grandpas and enjoyed entertaining the hunters. 

It's tough being a bulldog and having a two-year-old in the same room. We find by creating  some sort of visual boundary, the coffee table lying over on its side, Brutus will stay on one side, Grady on the other. When outdoors, the two are inseparable. Inside? We'll just say that little boys and big dogs tend to get in each other's way.

Even at age two, life is full of decisions. Tuesday's first came with breakfast. Juice or milk? At one point, Sargie got my attention so I could observe Hambone trying to drink both at once. 

We went to town later in the afternoon and once back home, Hambone headed to to bed for a nap. 

I took the opportunity to sneak out to the shop and play with the lathe. The wood du jour was a piece of wild cherry that I rescued from Neighbor Mike's wood stove. (Hey, c'mon, did you notice that verbal sophistication in the last sentence? We may live in the boonies, but them thar French don't have nuthin' on us!)

The first piece I turned was looking beautiful until I hit a knot causing the thing to shatter and throw wood all over the place.

Disheartened, but NOT discouraged, I put in another small piece and began turning.

In the end, I made the most beautiful, worthless, piece of kindling for the wood stove I've ever created!

Sargie thinks I should make it into a nutcracker ornament. I could drill it out and add a few small holes to create a salt shaker. Hmm, maybe I'll simply add it to today's fire to help keep the house warm. I know that after I use the lathe for a year or twenty, I'll have a few thousand (if not more) of these beautiful, worthless, pieces of wood. So what does a person do with a truck full of salt shakers or nutcracker ornaments? I'm thinking the wood stove is a pretty good option.

After carrying in firewood last night, we settled into the living room for an evening of controlled chaos. With the television blaring, Sargie did some laundry, I looked at wood turning videos on Youtube, and Grady did Grady stuff, mostly playing with his toys while singing and talking nonstop. He's sure a happy little boy.

Sargie opens the Vision Center today so Hambone and Pawpaw will be holding the fort by themselves. Daddy will be along later this afternoon to eat supper and later, gather Grady and head back to Iron Mountain.

First, after his bath and breakfast, I think we'll head outside and do guy stuff. Sargie suggested I get the stroller from the storage shed so Grady and I can take a multi mile stroll. Good idea, Sargie! There's fetch to play with Brutus, Neighbor Mike's deer camp to visit, and no doubt, we'll migrate to the shop where Grady can watch tv from my recliner while I turn more nutcrackers and salt shakers.

After all, a man's work is never done.

So are the tales from Pentoga Road...