Wednesday, May 25, 2011

May Long - Monday

I awoke to what in the Yost house is considered a glorious sight: Strong winds & large waves.  Alas, without a partner to join me and the knowledge of the East Beach currents & sandbars I wasn't feeling entirely comfortable with a swim (regardless of the fact that somehow the lake water is about -20C, but somehow liquid).  The temperatures had dropped off and we had to turn on the heat.  This was an indoors type of day...

More of Frances 'reading'.  So darned cute.

Chutes & Ladders seemed like a good way to pass the time.

Teresa cheated...  I mean, she won.  No, I am not a sore loser.

Next is Go Fish.  Teresa is getting better at not announcing her cards to everyone, but flashes them pretty ferociously and doesn't pay attention or remember what others have asked for.  Yes, I know she will get better.

During nap time, Rowdy and I finally went for a walk.  The waves were much too large to let him swim in the rocks out front.  Please note the devastation on the cliffs and the fallen trees.  Grand Marais Blvd really got bashed by the storm.  Apparently that first cottage had 80 feet of backyard not 5 years ago.  They continue to build on that side of the street though...

This is over that hill, and around the corner where the dyke / road must have almost been washed away.  They brought in a ton of fill to rebuild the road.  Looking up from here, the cottage on water's edge has their deck dangling with caution tape all over it.

This is about where the old fisherman's shack was.  There is no dirt left, save a foot wide strip.  You can also see all the new fill along the road way back there...  They also had to fill by the trestle.  In a related note to all this devastation, the government regulates lake levels.  They are at historic highs on both Winnipeg & Manitoba.  This is good for Hydro...  As for the lake?

This was the peninsula leading towards Pelican Island.  It essentially no longer exists, although without waves it would likely be a few feet wide.  People used to come here with their pets and enjoy a bit of sand and no COs...  Rowdy enjoyed chasing the ball regardless.

We had seen pelicans, ducks, geese, cormorants, loons....  As I finished my walk, I had to suddenly pull out the phone to take a couple pictures of the osprey.  Both were flying overhead.  This is a pretty clear picture of one of them, and with the tree & sun looks particularly artistic :)

2 comments:

Pearl said...

I always thought it was Snakes and Ladders... Times have changed, I guess.

Anonymous said...

Snakes are scary and might eat you or hug you to death and we can't have that any more. Apparently they don't make kids like they used to.

Likewise, play pens are no longer allowed to be called play pens. That sounds too much like putting the kid in a cage, which is not nice. Now they're called "play yards" so your kid can now go and play in the "yard" because God knows that letting them play in a real yard might be dangerous! Really. Yards could have things like dirt, bugs, broken glass, used needles, escaped psych patients and stuff that could hurt the little darlings.

Never mind that you're essentially still putting the kid in a cage so that you can keep them contained while you do some other important grown up thing - like drink martinis.