What A Day!

Wow…when it rains it pours!

First the good stuff. It was great seeing my Aunt Peggy again over in Traverse City… and thanks for treating us all to lunch. We really enjoyed meeting up with you all. Dan, I hope you don’t think I’m kidding about the charter fishing trip, I’ve wanted to do that for years so expect a call ; - )

The scenery in Michigan is really extraordinary to say the least. It is truly a beautiful place with all of its rolling hills, forests, lakes, streams, quaint little towns, etc. I wish we had more MI in UT.

Today was the big reunion and I really enjoyed myself. After 25 years my friends are still my friends and the semi-familiar faces are still…well, semi-familiar. There were plenty of hugs and handshakes, and a good feeling among everyone in attendance. I’m really grateful that I was able to attend. I even passed our cell phones around so people could talk with Bobby Ryan, another classmate that didn’t make it. He enjoyed himself from far away and people enjoyed talking with him again.

Jeff Harney…You Rock! Thanks for putting it all together mate! Your efforts brought a lot of people a cherished memory…thanks again!

On the way back from Traverse City I decided to stop by my old stomping grounds near Lake Margarethe. That was special to me, and the kids politely humored me as they listened to my stories of playing ball over there and fishing over there, etc. It was nice to see the area, but it has sure grown. Lots more people live there now, but I can’t blame any of them; it’s a great place to be.

The excitement came when I went to show the kids the campground where we used to camp on occasion. On the way there a hubcap on the passengers side rear wheels (2 wheels) somehow came off and ripped both valve stems out of the tires. This made both tires go flat almost immediately. I have no idea how this happened, but the results weren’t much fun!

After tires started going flat I needed to turn around and get off the road a bit. Well, as soon as I tried getting off the road the lack of air in the tires and bare rims sticking out sort of drug me into the ditch. Not only did we have two flat tires, but now we were stuck in a ditch as well! It was pretty dicey there for awhile, but a tow truck driver “Dave” came by and got us out after a lot of strategizing and a couple of different attempts. It was really touch and go for a bit there! KaChing $190.00 Ouch!

A lot of nice people stopped to try and help; one guy even tried pulling me with a tow strap…it broke in about 10 seconds! I sure appreciated his help and he wouldn’t even let me buy him a new tow strap. That really warmed our hearts, and then several people from the neighborhood stood around watching as we were pulled out. It was a real spectacle I suppose for that area ; - )

After we got both flat tires off and put the spare on we discovered that it barely had enough air to stay up. We borrowed “Dave’s” (A local good Samaritan) air compressor and were able to get underway.

I actually arrived at the reunion about an hour late and a bit grungy from lying on the ground and handling greasy tools but I made it!

All in all it was a pretty good day…even with a few serious rinkles….pictures to follow.

If no one else writes about Mackinac Island and the whole experience I’ll put something together. We went to Mackinac on Friday and really had a ball.

All the Best,

Bill