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One month after the Pasty Cam began, the first picture outside of the Keweenaw Peninsula appeared. The colorful sign at Da'Yoopers Tourist Trap near Negaunee was a natural for April Fool's Day in 1998. Over the years on April 1 the Pasty Cam would be hijacked by Hans the Hacker, translated into German, have its pictures turned upside down, be over-run by killer fish, and watch the Gay smokestack lean in the wind. Today (2006) Toivo continues the tradition of profound sightings with the elusive Copper-Bellied Hummingbird.

If you are new to the Pasty Cam, you'll soon find on our search page that you can jump to any year, any month, any day, to recall what was on the Pasty Cam at that point in time. And you'll probably discover that we have way too much fun here at Pasty Central.

more tomorrow

this is such a beautiful State. this is my first winter here and I just love it ! looking forward to what my friends here refer to the mud season...lol

Morning. Wow, I really thought I would be early. Lot's of people up already.

Nice picture from da trap! For those of you who haven't been there, it's a real treat. I love that place. We've gotten some really cute things there but my husband's prize possession is da yooper dictionary. Only in da UP, eh? :)

Once you get started doing nothing, its hard to quit.
We invented daylight savings time, how about the "three day weekend" for the summer?

Morning.

Hello Dere, Hey da last time dat I fished dat Torch Lake the muskie were jumping into da boat just like dat. Speedy Jenks was wit me and if he was alive he would swear to it. He went because we had a bottle of my dads homemade wine.


APRIL FOOLS

I haven't put anything on here for a while. There's a reason. My
wife and I are sort of being hoisted on our own petard -- as the
saying goes. We have always called the U.P. "Home" tho we have
not lived there year-round since Ike was President. Now I am
retired and my wife willretire soon, and our son has a job in
Esky. "Well," he says, "if this is home, maybe it is time to come
home, don't you think?" This week I took a little jaunt northward
to look at homes. Maybe it is time, but snow in April? And no
green grass or daffodils yet? Can people live in such places?
But then I think of the geese honking their way north up the bay
at this time of year which we could see from one house I looked
at right on the shore, not to mention the ore boats soon to
appear out that same picture window looking north, and then I
think of the splendiferous Northern Lights we could see in the
summer over that same bay scene, and, boy, does that sound
cool or what? And I haven't even mentioned family up there.
What a hard decision, eh? I ran this by my barber this
morning. He said "are you nuts? You think you will be younger
in five years? Besides, I like to fish walleye. That's why I go to
Canada up near Wawa each year. Now I can stay with you and
hit those great waters in Little Bay de Noc." Well we shall see.

I haven't put anything on here for a while. There's a reason. My
wife and I are sort of being hoisted on our own petard -- as the
saying goes. We have always called the U.P. "Home" tho we have
not lived there year-round since Ike was President. Now I am
retired and my wife willretire soon, and our son has a job in
Esky. "Well," he says, "if this is home, maybe it is time to come
home, don't you think?" This week I took a little jaunt northward
to look at homes. Maybe it is time, but snow in April? And no
green grass or daffodils yet? Can people live in such places?
But then I think of the geese honking their way north up the bay
at this time of year which we could see from one house I looked
at right on the shore, not to mention the ore boats soon to
appear out that same picture window looking north, and then I
think of the splendiferous Northern Lights we could see in the
summer over that same bay scene, and, boy, does that sound
cool or what? And I haven't even mentioned family up there.
What a hard decision, eh? I ran this by my barber this
morning. He said "are you nuts? You think you will be younger
in five years? Besides, I like to fish walleye. That's why I go to
Canada up near Wawa each year. Now I can stay with you and
hit those great waters in Little Bay de Noc." Well we shall see.

I just wanted to share this with all of you. :)
ONLY IN THE STATE OF MICHIGAN
Claim: The state of Michigan threatened local beavers with a $10,000 per
day fine for failing to remove their dam.

Example: [Collected on the Internet, 1998]


STATE OF MICHIGAN

Reply to: GRAND RAPIDS DISTRICT OFFICE STATE OFFICE BUILDING 6TH FLOOR
350 OTTAWA NW GRAND RAPIDS MI 49503-2341
JOHN ENGLER, Governor
DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
HOLLISTER BUILDING, PO BOX 30473, LANSING MI 48909-7973
RUSSELL J. HARDING, Director

December 17, 1997

CERTIFIED

Mr. Ryan DeVries 2088 Dagget Pierson, MI 49339

Dear Mr. DeVries:

SUBJECT: DEQ File No. 97-59-0023-1 T11N, R10W, Sec. 20, Montcalm County

It has come to the attention of the Department of Environmental
Quality that there has been recent unauthorized activity on the above
referenced parcel of property. You have been certified as the legal
landowner and/or contractor who did the following unauthorized activity:

Construction and maintenance of two wood debris dams across the outlet
stream of Spring Pond. A permit must be issued prior to the start of this
type of activity. A review of the Department's files show that no permits
have been issued.

Therefore, the Department has determined that this activity is in
violation of Part 301, Inland Lakes and Streams, of the Natural Resource
and Environmental Protection Act, Act 451 of the Public Acts of 1994,
being sections 324.30101 to 324.30113 of the Michigan Compiled Laws
annotated. The Department has been informed that one or both of the dams
partially failed during a recent rain event, causing debris dams and
flooding at downstream locations. We find that dams of this nature are
inherently hazardous and cannot be permitted. The Department therefore
orders you to cease and desist all unauthorized activities at this
location, and to restore the stream to a free-flow condition by removing
all wood and brush forming the dams from the strewn channel. All
restoration work shall be completed no later than January 31, 1998. Please
notify this office when the restoration has been completed so that a
follow-up site inspection may be scheduled by our staff. Failure to comply
with this request, or any further unauthorized activity on the site, may
result in this case being referred for elevated enforcement action. We
anticipate and would appreciate your full cooperation in this matter.

Please feel free to contact me at this office if you have any
questions.

Sincerely,

David L. Price
District Representative Land and Water Management Division

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
REPLY:

Dear Mr. Price:

Re: DEQ File No. 97-59-0023; T11N, R10W, Sec 20; Montcalm County

Your certified letter dated 12/17/97 has been handed to me to respond
to. You sent out a great deal of carbon copies to a lot of people, but you
neglected to include their addresses. You will, therefore, have to send
them a copy of my response.

First of all, Mr. Ryan DeVries is not the legal landowner and/or
contractor at 2088 Dagget, Pierson, Michigan - I am the legal owner and a
couple of beavers are in the (State unauthorized) process of constructing
and maintaining two wood "debris" dams across the outlet stream of my
Spring Pond. While I did not pay for, nor authorize, their dam project, I
think they would be highly offended you call their skillful use of natural
building materials "debris." I would like to challenge you to attempt to
emulate their dam project any dam time and/or any dam place you choose. I
believe I can safely state there is no dam way you could ever match their
dam skills, their dam resourcefulness, their dam ingenuity, their dam
persistence, their dam determination and/or their dam work ethic.

As to your dam request the beavers first must fill out a dam permit
prior to the start of this type of dam activity, my first dam question to
you is: are you trying to discriminate against my Spring Pond Beavers or
do you require all dam beavers throughout this State to conform to said
dam request? If you are not discriminating against these particular
beavers, please send me completed copies of all those other applicable
beaver dam permits. Perhaps we will see if there really is a dam violation
of Part 301, Inland Lakes and Streams, of the Natural Resource and
Environmental Protection Act, Act 451 of the Public Acts of 1994, being
sections 324.30101 to 324.30113 of the Michigan Compiled Laws annotated.

My first concern is - aren't the dam beavers entitled to dam legal
representation? The Spring Pond Beavers are financially destitute and are
unable to pay for said dam representation - so the State will have to
provide them with a dam lawyer. The Department's dam concern that either
one or both of the dams failed during a recent rain event causing dam
flooding is proof we should leave the dam Spring Pond Beavers alone rather
than harassing them and calling them dam names. If you want the dam stream
"restored" to a dam free-flow- contact the dam beavers - but if you are
going to arrest them (they obviously did not pay any dam attention to your
dam letter-being unable to read English) - be sure you read them their dam
Miranda rights first.

As for me, I am not going to cause more dam flooding or dam debris jams by
interfering with these dam builders. If you want to hurt these dam beavers
- be aware I am sending a copy of your dam letter and this response to
PETA. If your dam Department seriously finds all dams of this nature
inherently hazardous and truly will not permit their existence in this dam
State - I seriously hope you are not selectively enforcing this dam policy,
or once again both I and the Spring Pond Beavers will scream prejudice!

In my humble opinion, the Spring Pond Beavers have a right to build their
dam unauthorized dams as long as the sky is blue, the grass is green, and
water flows downstream. They have more dam right than I to live and enjoy
Spring Pond. So, as far as I and the beavers are concerned, this dam case
can be referred for more dam elevated enforcement action now. Why wait
until 1/31/98? The Spring Pond Beavers may be under the dam ice then, and
there will be no dam way for you or your dam staff to contact/harass them
then. In conclusion, I would like to bring to your attention a real
environmental quality (health) problem: bears are actually defecating in
our woods. I definitely believe you should be persecuting the defecating
bears and leave the dam beavers alone. If you are going to investigate the
beaver dam, watch your step! (The bears are not careful where they dump!)
Being unable to comply with your dam request, and being unable to contact
you on your dam answering machine, I am sending this response to your dam
office.

Sincerely,
Stephen L. Tvedten

"hoisted by my own petard". Nothing like a little Bill Shakespeare. I've always thought that a strange saying, Shakespeare aside. I just hunted around and found this from the straight dope website:

"The word "petard," we note with a barely suppressed giggle, comes from the Middle French peter, which is derived in turn from the Latin peditum--the sense of which (heh, heh) is "to break wind." Which must mean either that the French had a serious gas problem in those days, or that the petard was of something less than nuclear impact."

Marc, I was going to correct you about petard until I googled it. All these years I thought a petard was a rigging on a sailing ship. Live and learn.

I understand its also some kind of grenade that was used to pop open castle gates, but the bent stick and rope gadget is what the phrase refers to, I assume.

Marc:
"A Morel Hunters companion" is a good book, among many available. Ken's photo gallery has some nice pics of morels as well. I find mine(blacks) around aspen re-planted from clear-cuts.
I found my first 2 white morels last year around Beech trees, as always be careful out there.
Good Luck!

Fred, thanks for the help, too! I'll try to be careful, but I only know what they look like, cooked:) Too bad something so good can also make you sick if you grab the wrong kind...

I was on a field trip with a botanist 2 summers ago, keying out wetland plants for a plant taxonomy course and he found what he called one of the most deadly mushrooms on the earth. We were just outside of Brimley and it looked like something I had sauted the night before. Kind of made me sick just looking at it, but you should have seen the look on the face of the guy he had just given it to. That guy must have washed his hands five times after that:)

Took a good look at Ken's site. Very informative and entertaining. I hate seeing that he recommends picking with an expert, first. I'm still going to give it a try this spring, carefully.

Beverly, I got a good chuckle out of the •••• letter :)
Marc, Be careful with those mushrooms ;)

Back to the paperwork I go...everyone have a great evening :)

Those Mushrooms scare me.My husband told of a whole family in his hometown that died from eating poisonous mushrooms!

My brother picked them but I would never take a chance and eat any.

Shhh, if my wife hears that she'll NEVER let me pick any mushrooms!!

Marc, I'm with Fran on this one...personally, I will leave mushroom picking up to the little green giant ;)

The little green giant doesn't pick morels, though:(

I think as long as you start out w/ just a little taste and work your way up to giant platefuls, slowly, its pretty safe. I'm not planning to start out until I have book and photos in hand, anyway.

It's 8:30 Yooper time, where is everyone? Have a great day!