Now here's a U.P. oddity - - Ever been to the Mystery Spot over by St. Ignace? Well, looks like another gravity attack has hit near Sidnaw. Dan Urbanski assures us that his camera is not off level, but in fact, this structure is. Wonder what it's like to live in there? Sure would make it hard to play Chinese Checkers.

Driving through Quebec, listening to the radio, makes me wonder about crossing over the St. Lawrence Seaway. Mad Cow disease out in B.C., SARS down in Toronto - - gives a guy a lot to think about. Thank goodness for a moment of sanity from back home. Just don't wear your roller skates in the house.
Good night from Quebec and good morning from da U.P. trip notes

Hey Toivo,
Stay north of the St. Lawrence. Go to Ottawa and then follow north to North Bay and Sudbury and the Soo. Then go to Wawa, Marathon and Thunder Bay and the next thing you know you will be in Winnipeg Manitoba. Easy as pie. Have a GREAT Trip!! If you decide to take the Southern Route through TO then you will go through Brantford and can stop and see my good friend Granny-Newf. She and her grandson Brendan will make you the best rhubarb pie you ever had, but the trip will take you a lot longer.

Mad Cow Disease isn't an issue if you don't eat cows.

Mad Cow is still an issue for the cows, or so I'd think.

Has anyone heard from Alex T. in GA and Fran in FL lately...haven't seen any posts from them recently. Hope all is well.

Alex T. at your service! (It's Pegg who is in Florida... Fran is in Georgia). Fran hasn't been feeling well lately, which is probably why there haven't been many posts from her.

All is well... and thanks for asking... I feel missed! :)

Alex, that's "Misty"

Got worried about you guys and all those tornadoes (sp?) this spring when we didnt hear anything for a while. Glad everyone is ok and hope Fran is better soon.

Thank you so much for the thoughts. It's nice to know people care like that! That really did my heart well... when people you don't even know think about you like that... Uhm... I guess this is "Misty". (Smirk).

Fran and I were checking in with each other though, because her area also was close to ground zero! We really aren't THAT far from one another. In fact, we're planning to meet when she feels better!

Can't wait until Toivo gets to the left edge of Canada to see whether he's going to take the Finnmobile across the water to Hawaii or he's going to use something as mundane as a boat! Only one being that I know of ever has shunned the use of assistnce of contrivances when crossing water and he hasn't been around for about 2000+ years. It'll be interesting.

To MRN, MS:
You wrote (yesterday): "We hope to move to the UP from Mississippi this summer to get away from ticks and other things that bite, sting and are generally poisonous." I'm from Houghton and moved to Houston, TX 3 years ago. The ticks may be a drawback in the UP, but I'm still amazed at how much wildlife in the South is lethal! No scorpions, venomous snakes, or massive fire ant mounds in the UP...all of which I've already encountered in TX! Good luck with your move!

Alex: you're talking about tornados. What about the earthquake we had here? Did you feel that?

To Harrison in CO,
Touche'.
Barney

"We hope to move to the UP from Mississippi this summer to get away from ticks and other things that bite, sting and are generally poisonous."

Please. This Yooper was hostess to ticks (lyme disease) just last week. Also mosquitoes (west nile virus). Looking forward (not) to black flies, no-see-ums, deer flies, ankle biters, etc., etc., etc. Swarmed & stung by bees last summer. Hornets and other wasps in abundance.

The UP is He--.

Correction: Hell is in the L.P.

Great shot. It reminds me of the house we rented in Oswego, NY back in the 80's. I would set the kids at the kitchen table with their crayons and construction paper, and the crayons would roll right off the table!!! And our dresser drawers never stayed shut.

Rattlesnakes, Black Widow spiders, scorpions in the wine country of Cal. where I grew up--but I never saw them. No mosquitos or other biting bugs and only a few ticks.

Why did I move again?

desert rat, thanks for wondering about me! That was nice of you. My son and I had some sort of wierd "bug" and felt just rotten for 2wks.Finally we are feeling better. Can't wait to get to meet Alex and his family! Sometime I am going to get them up here and put them to work cutting veggies for pasties! You hear that Alex!!! :)

yooper traveling man.

hope you enjoy northwest territories and yukon territory in your trip thru canada also. my favorite town is golden, b.c. at the base of several mountains and a beautiful river running along side entire length of town. (hello pat)

Talk about bugs and snakes, Florida has them all.
All varieties of venimous snakes in North America reside in Fla. My neighbor killed a Coral Snake a month or so ago, pretty little guys, but nasty.
I get some of the weirdest bugs I have ever seen in and around the house. Had one a week ago that looked like an oversized deer fly, but it's body and legs were bright red, with a black head and antennea and black lacy wings. Have seen black things with bright blue dots too. Also have Lubber grasshoppers. They are very colorful and about the size of a mouse and one can defoliate an azalea bush in a day. No, I'm not on drugs. I think they are mutants because of all the phosphate in the area.

speaking of bugs, there are lots of bugs here in thailand, reminds me of being home in Elo a bit. my favorite is the giant rhinoceros beetles that the Thai's pluck off the legs off and give to babies for "toys" becasue they make a neat sound and can't get away. i guess it is a type of baby rattle. cheap entertainment and fun for the whole family, plus whent the baby is done playng with the beetle you can just eat the beetle.

and yes you would be surpised what you can eat. i've eaten stuff people on "Survivor" haven't eaten, some isn't too bad, but nothing like a good old UP Pasty.....mmmmmmmm

I had a grandparent die from Mad Cow Disease. The disease robs you of your physical ability and then takes your mind. It is really sad..hope they can find where the contaminated product went. Until then, eat chicken.

ALEX HEARS AND CAN'T WAIT! As for the Earthquake... My neighbors claim to have felt it, but we sure didn't!

Hay, that's my Grandparents barn. The House burned down in the 1970's. I spent many wonderful years working on the farm as a kid. We lived down state and would go to the UP every summer and any break we had from school. It was the greatest place on earth. Thanks for the memories.

That is also my Grandparents barn...and Dale is my brother. We had many great summers in the UP!

Mornin EH! Ive seen this barn every time I'm lucky enough to go to camp on markey lake!Every year we wonder if the snow knocked her down or not.Being 1/2 upper, my mom,s family is from lake linden "Probsfield" I sure enjoy the time sent along the back roads of the UP!

Thank you Dale Naber for passing this on to all.

This is on the right side of the road as you head South out of Sidnaw to Norway Lake,Camp Nesbit, Perch Lake, Lake Ste. Katherine, Iron River and a lot of other great destinations in the Sidnaw area.
The Barn was the property of Warren and Otillia Naber and their offspring, Warren, my father in law, Clare, and Calvin, my good friend and Dee Naber Beck's Uncle; It was part of their family farm and holds a lot of memories for me. I remember riding a manure dray out of that barn with Dee's Grandpa Warren Naber Sr. at the reins on a very cold winter's day. The "manure" literally flew.This is also where Dee spent her summers and back where I fell in love.
The House sat to the left of the barn as you look at it from this angle and I spent a lot of time there with Dee and her family. I cherish these memories. Sadly, the house burned to the ground a few days after Dee's Dad, Warren Naber Jr. left it after his annual summering up there in God's Land to return his home in Millington.

Jim Beck