Weekend Report

Ben has posted pictures from our weekend getaway to Mackinaw (or Mackinac), so I won't post any now. Go take a look--there's some neat stuff there. After signing the lease on the new apartment on Friday and moving a bunch of stuff in, we were pooped out on Saturday night. Ben preached on Sunday morning and then we headed north. Sunday morning I did something to my left knee, and it hurts to bend or twist it -- made walking lots of fun. Anyhow, we headed out and drove north. As we often do, we got off the freeway and hit some back roads. We re-visited some spots from Ben's past and then headed on the Cross in the Woods Shrine. It was actually much nicer than I expected. It was awe inspiring without being overdone, though I still thought it a bit much. Then we headed the rest of the way and found the campground. We got camp set up and headed out for dinner and wandering around Mackinaw City for a while. Then it was back to camp for a really good night's sleep in preparation for the big walk. We got to Mackinaw City about 7 and finally got off the shuttle bus at the north end of the bridge in St. Ignace about 9. After standing in the potty line for a while and taking care of business (no place to pee for the next five miles) we struck out along the bridge. It was beautiful and it was kind of awesome to see that large number of people paricipating. By the time we finished, I had two blisters and my knee was screaming. BUT I did have a really good time and I would love to do it again (maybe next year). Then we had lunch, headed back to the U.P. to visit the Mystery Spot (a real tourist trap I thought). Then it was time to head south -- with LOTS of other travelers. Once again, we got off the freeways and headed down backroads. I don't know if it was faster or not, but it was far less stressful. Ben was wonderful (always with a sense of adventure and always showing concern for my wimpy ailments). I just gotta tell you all -- I got very lucky when he came into my life! I wouldn't trade him for anything!

Some folks think that it was silly of us to take the time away from moving over the weekend, but I say it was exciting, fun, and therapeutic -- well worth any sacrifice of time and money. Today it was back to work -- ten hours -- much work to make up from being away yesterday. Our European clients don't celebrate Labor Day so the work went on. That's the way it is today -- enjoy one another and give someone a hug.

The Big Day

Well, here we are on the big day -- we just got back from signing the lease for the new apartment and moving a few things in. I thought I would never get there -- as it was I was 15 minutes later than the latest time I gave them earlier in the day. Traffic was == well, just say it was a lot of it. The lease was a normal legal document that went on and on. The scary parts were the info on late payments and early move outs. If the rent is late, it will cost us well over 200 bucks extra (the full market rent plus fees). If we vacate early, it costs 1200 bucks plus all remaining rent due plus reimbursement of all previously received discounts. If something happens that we need to move, it would be cheaper to leave the place empty and pay the rent. All in all, the event went without a hitch and the move has begun. There was one hitch when a dining room chair jumped out of the truck on the freeway -- other than cosmetic damage, it is fine. Ben pulled over and collected the chair and went on his way. Thankfully there wasn't a lot of traffic when it happened. He must have found the route without traffic. I guess I forget that it was Friday afternoon of a holiday weekend -- YUCK. I was frazzled when I got to the apartment. After moving the first load, we got some dinner and headed home. Tomorrow will be at least one more load and then Sunday will have us on the way to the bridge. Hope you all have great holiday plans.

A Week of Fun and Business

Well, here we are on Tuesday of what promises to lead to a very busy weekend and begin a series of very busy days over the next several weeks. On Friday, we sign the lease on the new apartment and begin moving. Now most people would take advantage of the three day holiday weekend to make the move, but not us! We will do some moving and packing on Friday and Saturday, but on Sunday after church we will head north to the Mackinaw area where we will camp Sunday night in preparation for the 50th anniversary Mackinac Bridge Walk. We will head to St. Ignace on the north end of the bridge, and with thousands of others, we will walk the five miles south across the bridge to Mackinaw City. Once we do that and do a little touristy stuff, we will head home and begin packing and moving in earnest. We are looking at doing a yard sale the next weekend and doing the big move on the 15th (Want to come and help?). By the 22nd, we should be completely out of the house and beginning to settle in in our new digs. Perhaps by the time October comes, we will be ble to stop and breathe. Keep us in your thoughts as we make this transition. We are hoping and claiming that, even though we are losing our first home together, this will be a good move and a new beginning for us all. Take a moment and hug someone.

The Next Step

We often make fun of signs like the one to the left, but this one is becoming a reality for us. Yes, we found a place to move to when we vacate the house next month. Subject to approval and such, we will take possession of a 1000 sq ft. 2 bedroom 2 bath third floor apartment. It's balcony is in the upper left corner of the building in the accompanying picture. We were kind of driving by and saw the place so we stopped to look. Actually we went to the Melon Festival (yes, there is such a thing) and wandered around some booths and watched about thirty seconds of the parade first. Then we went back and looked at the apartment. They are running super specials right now which will make our move much more possible. They are waiving the pet deposit and additional pet rent, giving a free months' rent, discounting the rent by almost 25 percent for the first year, and waiving some or all of the standard security deposit. So now it is time to really dig into sorting, packing, throwing, selling, giving, etc. all our crap and getting ready for the big move. We should be doing the big move the weekend after Labor Day. We are now a step closer to know what's going on in the world for our future. HOORAY.