#john scheider

[johnschneiderblog]

Unusual weather we're having

Guess what came to us under cover of darkness Wednesday night …?

Spring snowfall certainly isn’t unheard of in these these parts, but April 10 is pushing it a little.The average date for measurable snowfall (0.1 inch or more) in the Detroit area is April 7.

Our mantra in times like these is: It won’t last … it won’t last …it won’t last …

And, in fact, it won’t; temperatures in the 40s today will wipe the slate clean by the end of the day.

[famouxben]

John Schneider

[johnschneiderblog]

Just what we needed

Having written obituaries on a good handful of hardware stores I’ve known and loved (victims, mainly, of big-box stores) I’m happy to post this birth announcement:

In recent days Midwest Ace came to the intersection of Jolly and Okemos roads, just a mile and a half from our house. I made my first visit Saturday and found a well-stocked store run by friendly, helpful clerks.

It’s not exactly a mom-and-pop hardware. No warped wooden floors, no dog snoozing behind the cash register, no dusty shelves of arcane merchandise. And they don’t sharpen chainsaw chains.

But after a stroll among the aisles I would say it’s 90-percent there, including that single bolt you need, instead of the six sealed in a plastic blister at Home Depot.

I’ll be back.

[johnschneiderblog]

Rock on

Michigan's Lake Huron coastline has its pudding stones. The Lake Michigan shore is known, lapidary-wise, for the Petoskey stone.

My recent blog about Sharon's pudding stone-heavy collection inspired another collector to help round out her collection.

We returned home from the lake recently to find a package waiting for us. It included the polished Petoskey stones you see above, plus a note. Referring to the photo I posted showing the indoor portion of Sharon's collection, the man wrote, in part:

" ... I immediatly noticed what she didn't have. We have a summer home on the sunset side, on Grand Traverse Bay, where we hunt the State Stone - the Petoskey stone. ... I don't think Sharon's collection would be complete without the addition of a few Petoskey stones."

The man, who requested anonymity, added that he hadn't ever seen a pudding stone. I have a feeling he's about to very soon.

[johnschneiderblog]

Eyes on the prize

A brand new official, professional-grade baseball bought in a store: about 10 bucks.

A used one (grass-stained and scuffed up) snagged at a real baseball game: priceless.

On Saturday six of us went to a game between the Lansing (Michigan) Lugnuts (a Minor League affiliate of the Oakland Athletics) and the Lake County Captains.

The final score ...? Who cares ...? The primary mission of the assembled multitude (everybody under, say, 15, anyway) was to take home a ball, by any means necessary.

Consider, for example, the four boys in this photo, camped out at the visiting team's dugout. They begged, cajoled, flattered and hustled. And by the end of the game, they were four for four.

As for my two grandsons .... they caught on quickly. They figured out where to position themselves. They had their mitts ready. They said "Please." They, too, took home the prize.

And if you wonder what serendipity looks like, watch the face of a kid when the ball lands in his glove. Notice how he examines every scar, then, with the slightest reluctance, passes it around.

[johnschneiderblog]

The wages of impatience

Road work brought the northbound lanes to a standstill. The natives were getting restless.

A pick-up truck broke out of line, rolled down into the soggy median, did a U-turn, then climbed the other side of the ditch and merged into the southbound traffic. Inspired by the example, another truck made the same maneuver, followed by a SUV.

Then, a guy, evidently forgetting that he was driving a low-slung sedan, decided to give it a try. Going downhill, the sedan performed perfectly, but when it tried to climb the opposite bank, it faltered. Its tires spun, throwing mud in every direction. The car slipped back down the embankment and burrowed into the soup.

Nonetheless, the driver kept his foot on the gas long after it became clear that forward progress was out of the question. Pure frustration, I assumed.

Soon smoke - or steam from the car’s radiator - started billowing from beneath the car’s hood. I watched it getting worse and worse from my side-view mirror as traffic cleared and we went on our way.

[johnschneiderblog]

A gross statement of defiance ...?

This is not best photo to illustrate my story, but since the overall mission of this blog is to entertain and inform - not gross out - it will have to do.

I told you earlier about my attempt to oust the groundhogs that insist on burrowing under our front porch, threatening the integrity of the earth upon which the porch depends. 

I’ve trapped two now and - benevolently, I believe - relocated them, even though I would have been in my legal right to send them to kingdom come.

So, we returned from the lake Thursday to find evidence of yet another groundhog excavation - plus something extra:

Groundhog No. 3 left a pile of No. 2 on our porch; and not just on the porch, but on the welcome mat at our front door. Dead center.

I know - it’s not like a rodent has the brain power to make a statement of defiance, but still ...

Sharon suggested that No. 3 was not flipping me the bird, but simply marking his territory. 

But I thought this was my territory.

[johnschneiderblog]

All in

So far, the summer in northern Michigan has been lukewarm, weather-wise, but on Thursday, with 80-degrees, sunshine, and Lake Huron at 65 degrees and at full rest, we couldn’t restrain ourselves any longer.

I waded in, dove under and sloshed around for a good 10 minutes before retreating to dry land. The experience was, as we say up here, bracing.

Meanwhile, Sharon pumped up her paddle board, as well as her courage, and cruised around for much of the afternoon. 

The Life Aquatic is officially underway.