Summer Solstice 2011

Years ago, going back to the early 1980's, folksinger Skip Jones and his artist wife Judy Gosz used to have a yearly summer solstice celebration at their home near Bowler.  Over a hundred of their friends, mostly musicians, came to pitch their tents in the woods.  Time went on and the yearly event came to an end.  We all went on to other pursuits.

This weekend, Skip decided to hold Solstice 2011, a resurrection for old friends. Originally, I planned on camping with them tonight, but I still have much to do to prepare for my tour, so Gary and I decided to spend the day instead.

Early this morning, I went on a baking marathon so we would have something to take to the potluck dinner. We brought two loaves of fudge frosted brownies, two loaves of cranberry orange bread, banana and blueberry scones.

Skip had e-mailed his phone number and instructions but I left the printout on my desk.  No problem because Gary had his trusted global positioning unit with him and he was sure it would take us exactly where we wanted to go.  It didn't.  Later we were told that in the Stockbridge-Munsee or Memonomie reservations, GPS was of no use. We wandered around for almost an hour trying to decipher what it was telling us.  So much had changed since we were last there.  Forests had grown, roads had been paved, everything looked different.

Finally, we stopped at a general store and I did what only a female can do.  I went in and asked directions.  The clerk didn't know where Skip lived but Lynette, a customer, did.  That wonderful Sakakawea of the Stockbridge-Munsee Tribe instructed us to follow her red SUV.  She said she hadn't talked to Skip and Judy in years and would love to see them again.  Through a couple of wrong turns we followed her all the way and finally found our friends.

Skip and Judy live on the banks of a sylvanl river crossed by a wooden bridge

Tents were already being set up around their house behind the fire pit.  Children and dogs scampered all over.

We walked over to Judy's studio to admire her work and came away with watercolors of Chequamagon Bay, a canoe reminiscent of Wolf River trips, and forest scenes.  Each reminded us of a pleasant memory and another story. Her studio with its skylights and big windows, flat storage, paints and paper is the perfect getaway for any artist. She has earned this great reward through her work with aspiring artists from the very young to the very old.  

From time to time, everyone made a point of stopping by the potluck buffet because each new arrival brought something interesting to eat.  

Above all there was the music. Guitars, mandolins, dulcimers, and harmonicas were scattered around the living room. Ron Miles from Minnesota, sang my request, "The Bramble and the Rose" which we all sang years ago under a tarp on a rainy day. Gary was impressed because Ron, who has worked as a forest guide, actually met environmentalist Sigurd Olsen, a hero of Gary's.  Skip sang John McCutcheon's "Gone Gonna Rise Again" about planting trees, another favorite of mine, Chuck joining in with his harmonica. Each song brought with it a happy memory.   We talked about people who we wished were with us, Anna Lee, now in Virginia Beach, "Jeanne from Racine", a hammer dulcimer player with a strong tenor voice, Larry Penn, that old Wobbly who has stood up for workers rights all his life.   They were there in our hearts.  

Along with the music we compared notes on what we had been doing over the years.  One interesting thing of note:  most of us had been protesting in Madison back in March, yet the size of the crowds had been such that we never ran into each other.  We agree that Wisconsin would have to be returned to its great progressive tradition.  It would take time, but we would all continue the struggle. 

Time came to go home. Gary and I said our goodbyes and tore ourselves away.  We got back to the road in time for the next little adventure.  A medium sized snapping turtle was on the road.  It is a native American tradition to always stop to help a turtle cross and Gary did so but snappers are not appreciative and can stretch their necks much farther than the unwary might expect. If the turtle catches hold of the hand of the herder, only cutting its head off would cause it to let go.  Gary did his herding with a couple of sticks and soon sent it on its way.   

And so ended a happy day with more memories to store away.   Happy Solstice!   

Go to Bed

Once again, I'm playing “Let's Fool Grandma” with Evan. We are going through the usual tricks from two weeks ago, but tonight there is no loose tooth to give him an excuse to get up.He had his evening snack, he changed into his jammies, he brushed his teeth. He told me he was out of toothpaste, but Grandmas know how to squeeze the last little drop out of any tube.

We read the usual three books. At six, he is reading himself now so it won't be long before he doesn't need anyone to read to him, except for a grandmother's joy in it.

He tried to tell me the water beside his bed wasn't exactly right, but that's an old trick. The nightlight was on and we recited the old phrase that I said to his daddy when he was little: “Love you, love you, love you, see you tomorrow, see you tomorrow, night, night, night, night, night.” Though of course I won't see him tomorrow. It will be August before we meet again. I gave him a hug and a high five.

So off to bed he went. For the moment. He looked out his window and saw a rabbit and a bird, which information he came out to share with me. I suppose I should be happy he's observing nature, but their yard is full of rabbits that yearly destroy his mommy's garden so that was not much of an announcement.

“Back to bed,” I ordered.

A few minutes later he was up to demand that when his mommy and daddy come home they should wake him up to give him a hug.

“I'll mention it to them,” I said. “Now get back to bed.”

He popped up again to ask if they were back. I told him that they were at a movie that would take longer that an hour to watch. “The Green Lantern? I love that movie!” Of course, he hasn't seen it yet so that was a fib.

“My tummy hurts.” We decided it was hunger so he got a granola bar his mother said he could have. He washed that down with milk and back to bed he went.

Then some of Chris and Tisha' friends stopped by to show them their motorcycles. They said they would come back the next day but that was enough to have the curious jack-in-the-box up to see what was going on.

So now I sit waiting for the next pop up Evan event and thinking about the new book read by Samuel L. Jackson about the frustrations of putting a child to bed. The video went viral on the internet until it was pulled by the publisher.

Hilarious, until one is in exactly the same situation.

Eating on the Road

Gary and I have different ideas about camping.  He's a pack rat and I'm a minimalist.  He wanted me to bring his two burner camp stove, but all I need is a one burner stove that attaches to a propane tank.  I can cook all I need with that.   I don't need the cooler he offered either.  Ice costs $2.00 a bag in most places and a cooler is messy, especially when it leaks in the car.

This is how I eat when I am on the road:

When I wake up I boil water, usually on the little stove, but sometimes, in really bad weather, in the little pot that plugs into the cigarette lighter in my car.  With the hot water, I make tea and oatmeal or cream of wheat cooked from a packet. An alternative, when the weather is cool enough, is a slice of whole grain bread and peanut butter. In hot and humid weather, however, the bread quickly goes moldy.

I break camp and head out.  Mid-morning, I stop at a grocery store for some fresh fruit.  If there's a deli, I'll buy a salad to take along and eat it at a wayside for lunch.  If there's no deli, I might stop for fast food.  I like sub sandwiches and tacos. Wendy's has a good Caesar salad.  In the afternoon, I might get an ice cream.

For supper, it's another deli takeout or packets of dried food that only require water and my cook stove. I strive to eat balanced meals.

Every scrap that is left is taken to the dumpster or burned in a fire pit. I don't want any food at my campsite that might attract bears or other critters.  The packets of dried food are stored in a tight container in the car.

If I were staying in one spot for a week or so, I might cook more complicated meals with coolers and double burners.  But I'm not.  Simplicity is what I want.

Little Setbacks

Gary informed me tonight that the North Dakota campground I was planning on staying at a week from Thursday has been closed due to the danger of floods.  Ft. Abraham Lincoln State Park sits on the banks of the Missouri River which has been flooding.  However, that is today, and I don't plan on getting there until June 23.  There's no way of knowing what the Missouri River will be doing by then.

I don't see this as a problem, since the campgrounds I listed on my itinerary are merely markers.  I often change my mind as I travel.  There is another state park to the south that I could go to in a pinch though even that park could be crammed full of evacuees in RVs.

Years ago, on my way through North Dakota, I had to drive a couple of hours west to Glen Ullin because there was a baseball tournament of some kind in Bismarck and there was no room in campgrounds or motels for miles around.  I ended up in an old motel in a room that reeked of cats.  Late at night, beggers can't be choosers.

I had to turn around and drive back to Bismarck the next day to do the scheduled performance. I scrubbed the cat smell off in the library restroom and hit the stage on time.  

These little setbacks make for good stories.  Who knows?  I could wind up on a sandbag crew.  Stranger things have happened!

 

Nine Bean Rows

"I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,
And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made:
Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey-bee;
And live alone in the bee-loud glade."

I thought about William Butler Yeats poem, "The Lake Isle of Innisfree" as I planted beans 

today.  I wasn't on an island, haven't built a cabin, and my house has siding, not clay 

and wattles (whatever they are), but I was working in a bee-loud glade. The bumble bees 

were carrying on in the comfrey flowers in the bed north of me.  

Timing is everything this gardening season.  I am going to be gone over five weeks, so I 

delayed planting the garden until just before I leave.  Those beans should be close to 

harvesting when I get back.  

The pole beans will climb up the old ornamental windmill whose blades fell off long ago.

If you looked closely you would notice that the string the vines will climb up are staked 

down with tent stakes.  I don't like the stakes that come with camping gear. They don't 

stay put and are difficult to get into hard ground.  Long ago, I started using barn spikes, 

long nails that are easy to get into the ground, easy to take out, but stay put in high winds.   

I thought daydreamed about the tour as I planted, about mountains with frosty tops, about 

desserts and canyons, about waves lapping on Pacific shores. 

Then I thought about the rabbits who will take advantage of me being gone but that took 

me to Henry David Thoreau who merely put more beans in the spots where the bunnies 

feasted.  I won't begrudge mine a few tender sprouts. 

My thoughts went back to Yeats:  "And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes 

dropping slow" which describes how I feel when I am gardening. 

Just me and the bees, and a neighbor's purring cat beside me.  Peace.  

Maps

Today, I had to get more printer ink so I could finish printing the maps that give me the instructions to get  to the libraries where I'll be performing in the next few weeks.

Today at our critique session, Nikki, another cross country traveler, reminded me that Mapquest is not very accurate when it comes to estimating time.  When I am traveling along curving mountain road, I'll have to give myself much more time. (She figured out I would be passing through Redding, California, where she used to work.)

In fact, my plan is to camp in the vicinity of the next library each night, so I should have no problem getting to venues on time.  If the day's trip takes five hours according to Mapquest, I figure in another two hours. If it doesn't take that long, that's more time in the campground to relax.  The trip is set up so I should be on the road no more than seven hours each day.

I plan on checking the internet for upcoming road conditions as I go along.

There will be problems, but that is what makes traveling interesting. Asking directions of locals, getting lost, finding scenic treasures on lonely country roads, these are things that make the story of a trip fun.

One week to go!

Organizing the Gear

This morning, Gary set up my tent and went at it with sealers to make sure it's watertight.  He wanted to give me a second back up tent, but my backup is the station wagon.  If the tent starts to leak, I'll simply buy another tent on the road, as I have in the past. My current tent has served me well for five years.  I bought it for $29.95.  

I am taking two sleeping bags, however: one lightweight, and one good in below freezing temperatures.  I will be camping in high altitudes and that can get mighty cold.  A few years ago, I camped at the 4th of July pass west of Boulder in the last week of June. The temperature dropped so low the water in my water bottle was frozen solid.  I was prepared with my two sleeping bags and stayed for two nights with no discomfort.

Gary and I are having many discussions about packing.  He keeps trying to add things saying "It doesn't take up much room."   Say that too often, and all that stuff takes up plenty of room.

I want something to hold my papers, maps, computer, books, and so on, in the front of the car where I can easily get at them.  I need a place for my performance clothes and autoharp.  Then I need the camping gear and both cold and warm weather hiking clothes.  I want to leave half of the back of the car clear so I can sleep back there in a pinch.  Everything has to have an absolute use or it stays at home.

Today, Gary gave me his camera to use on the trip.  It's smaller than mine so I can stick in in my pocket when I want to go for a hike.  The first photo I took was of the two tents.  The one I'll take is on the right.  

I'll spend the next three days working on the garden.  On Thursday, I do the laundry.  On Friday, I'll bake some things for the weekend, and finish up the maps I'm printing out.  On Saturday and Sunday, there's a weekend outing for the Summer Solstice.  I return home Sunday night and do the final packing on Monday morning.  I intend to leave at noon on Monday.  

Follow my travels at this blog.  I intend to post daily.