NOTE: This is a long post, with four (4) captioned photos, all taken by me (Bruce) with Google Pixel 6 Pro.
SATURDAY 13 and SUNDAY 14 July 2024 — hazardous guests and grand-children, oh my
Saturday 13 … Hazardous waste disposal, BdW guests, and SRF at HNC and RRR
Today was one of the Hazardous Waste Collection (drop-off) days for our county and we had a 10 AM appointment time. We had not done anything to get ready before this morning, so we made a quick survey of the garage, under-sink cabinets, and the laundry room. All we had were four (4) T8 fluorescent tubes. The light fixture in our bedroom walk-in closet was flickering, so I removed the white translucent plastic cover and “discovered” four T8 fluorescent tubes in use there. One of them was burned out, one was dim, one was flickering, and one was still okay. I still had 10 tubes left from a contractor’s pack I bought some years ago, so we replaced all four of the closet tubes and added the old ones to the four we already had waiting to be recycled. We taped the 8 tubes in a bundle for safer transport and put them in Linda’s car. BTW: The new tubes were still 32W but they were 4100K, a “whiter” color temperature than the 3000K tubes they replaced. With the whiter color temperature, and all four tubes operating a full strength, the closet was now much brighter that in had been for some time.
We planned to pick grand-daughter Sadie up from her house today around 11 AM and take her to the Howell Nature Center and then to dinner, before spending the night at our house. We had BdW guests (Martha & Dave T.) arriving today, however, so I messaged them to get an ETA. They were planning to arrive between 12:00 and 12:30 (PM), so I remained at home while Linda took the fluorescent tubes to the Hazardous Waste Collection drop-off site. She then went on to Ann Arbor to retrieve Sadie, but brought her back to our house where we moved her stuff into the house.
Our guests arrived around 12:30, having encountered the traffic slowdown on northbound US-23 between Ann Arbor and Brighton. Sadie came out to help me get them settled in their site, and Linda joined us for some initial conversation. Sadie got to go inside their motorhome, and we all go to meet one of their two cats, Noodles. Noodles was similar in appearance to our Cabela, but larger, being male. By this point it was 13:00, so we had a light lunch (PB&J with strawberry jam/preserves that we were gifted by a recent BdW guest). We filled a couple of water bottles, and headed for the Howell Nature Center (HNC).
Sadie posses by The Wishing Tree by the welcome and clinic buildings of the Howell Nature Center.
The HNC is a rescue facility, not a zoo, and primarily cares for animals that are native to Michigan. Most of the residents were injured and cannot be released back into the wild. Occasionally, they have an animal that was someone’s “pet” when it should not have been. The Nature Center has a clinic, and any animals they take in are guaranteed a home for the rest of their lives. It’s possible that they might sometimes transfer animals to other facilities, but always to someplace that can/will care for them.
Sadie and Ama (Linda) with a broader view of The Wishing Tree and surrounding planted beds at the Howell Nature Center.
There is a paved Wildlife Trail that winds through pens and shelters where the animals live. We had not been to the HNC since the start of the CoVID-19 pandemic, and were pleased to see that quite a few new shelters/pens had been built or were currently under construction. At least one was a BSA Eagle Scout project and another was an effort by an entire Boy Scout troop. Local business support for the Center is strong, which is essential and appreciated.
Sadie and Ama go hand-in-hand into the start of the Wildlife Trail at the Howell Nature Center. The Center charges a modest entrance fee, but is primarily funder by sponsorships, gifts, and donations. It’s a wonderful resource for area.
It was a warm summer day, and we were at the Nature Center in the afternoon, so many of the animals were tucked away trying to stay cool, or just resting because then tend to be diurnal (dawn and dusk) or nocturnal (night) creatures. Some of the animals were species we regularly see in our own backyard (Sandhill Crane, Wild Turkey, groundhog/woodchuck, Opossum) or overhead (Turkey Vulture, Red-tailed Hawk) but we saw a few that were more “exotic,” including: a Bald Eagle, other Hawks (several kinds), Owls (Snowy, Barn, Screech), a Beaver, Ferrets, and a Bobcat (it had been someone’s “pet”). The other part of the HNC is a children’s play area, with a giant “tree house” as it’s focal point. Here’s a photo:
The sign for Camp Imagination at the Howell Nature Center. Behind the sign is the massive “tree house.” The central/enclosed area is a library and craft space, surrounded by a large deck. There are several staircases, suspension bridges, and swings underneath, as well as other activities.
We got back to our house around 15:30 where Sadie played while I took a nap. She let Linda know that she did not want to spend the night, so Linda checked with our son to make sure it was okay to bring her back later. It was, of course, and he and Shawna had been able to put on their swim suits and take their inflatable boat to a nearby lake and enjoy some adult-only recreation while Sadie was with us. Sadie gathered up all of her things and we headed to the local Red Robin Restaurant (RRR) in Brighton around 5:30 PM for dinner. Sadie had a grilled cheese sandwich and potato chips, Linda had a lettuce-wrapped quinoa “burger” with broccoli, and I had a lettuce-wrapped “Impossible burger” with French fries. It was an acceptable meal, with no preparation or cleanup required on our part.
From dinner, we headed to Ann Arbor. We had Sadie home sometime before 7 PM, and visited for a short while before leaving. I was obvious that the main reason she did not want to spend the night with us was that she had her mom and dad all to herself while her sister was away at camp. We stopped at the Whole Foods Market near their house before returning home. Even at this hour on a Saturday evening with relatively light traffic, the restriction of US-23 northbound to just one lane from Exit 53 on, caused traffic to slow down and bunch up. We were back home in time to watch Midsummer Murders, one of our regular Saturday evening TV shows on our local PBS (WTVS) station.
Sunday 14 … Wild Turkeys, Sandhill Cranes, laundry, QCAD, travel documents, Masterpiece Mystery (PBS)
I was feeling much better by this morning. Not 100%, but much better. I was awake by 06:00, and got up around 06:20. The Wild Turkeys (2 adults and 8 young) were already foraging around the base of the poles for the bird feeders, and a white-tailed deer was licking up corn nearby. Ten (10) Canada Geese eventually showed up, as did our pair of Sandhill Cranes.
I quietly gathered up the laundry so as not to wake Linda and started a load of darks. I then made my first cup of coffee, finished a multi-Sudoku game I started last night, and watched a few Youtube videos (vlogs). Cabela was in and out frequently. My morning exercise routine is repeatedly sitting down and getting up from the living room sofa to deal with the cat.
We had bagels for breakfast and then got dressed for the day. I folded laundry before heading to my desk for the afternoon to copy and process photos from yesterday, and then work on blog posts. But first I downloaded and installed the latest update (3.30.1) for the QCAD software. Linda went for a walk around noon. Upon her return, she spent some time organizing a travel binder. With us booking cruises and tours up to 18 months in advance, and planning some RV adventures even farther out than that, it’s become essential that we (she) have (has) an organized way to keep track of the details and status information.
After dinner, we settled in to watch our Sunday evening Masterpiece Mystery shows on PBS. The current lineup is: Professor T, Grantchester, and DI Ray. They are all British productions that are well done, and we enjoy them.
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