Rites of Autumn . . . FOOTBALL IN A2!!!!

Autumn in Ann Arbor. It can only mean the return of 50,000+ students and faculty, and the roar of the crowd (100,000+) from Michigan Stadium, aka "The Big House." Which, for the record, happens to be located exactly 1.5 miles from my front door.

This morning I picked up my new camera and headed out to snap some pictures. I wanted to catch this moment, before the snow comes. This morning the temps were in the 20's so it really won't be long.

In Ann Arbor, the maple trees seem to change colors first. And of course, they do so spectacularly. The others that follow will be pale by comparison.

The other fall phenomenon is the return of the parking people. With parking prices anywhere from $10 (about a mile from the stadium) to $30 for a spot in the high school parking lot or UM golf course, there is much activity surrounding the rites of parking and tailgating.


Because of the cost of parking and the general congestion surrounding the crowds near the stadium, nearly every Ann Arborite is smart enough to WALK to the games whenever possible.


The stadium is currently under renovation, which is sad in many ways. Although the new skyboxes will be great for fundraising, and are even somewhat beautiful as they take shape, there was something magical about the old hole in the ground. From street level, the original stadium didn't look like much. It was only when you looked inside that you realized how huge it really was. Sigh.

Across the street from the stadium is one of three Ann Arbor high schools, Pioneer High. On football Saturdays, the parking lot at PHS turns into RV City. RVs from all over the country park in the lot, at a cost of $130/night (with NO utilities--it's all generator and self-contained, baby). The spots are filled before the season even begins. The demand for those sites never wanes, even with a losing season like we had last year. That's a fan base!

Across the street from the Pioneer lot is the UM golf course. On which they park cars--lots of cars--on football Saturdays. I can never understand how the course will be completely returned to its pristine state in time for the golfers tomorrow morning. But it does.

In addition to the parking, there are lots of vendor tents as well as tents for Michelob and Miller beer and even ESPN, which hosted a large projection screen on which I was able to watch Michigan's first touchdown this morning. Go Blue!

After kickoff, I headed back up the hill to home, snapping pictures of the late-comers as they walked (quickly) by. The roar of the crowd can be heard from my back porch, 1-1/2 miles away.


I finally made it back home, opting to cut through the park (and visit with a number of my neighbors, who were out for walks). Our house, above, is situated on the park. This is a shot of our backyard, from the park. On the left is the round little crabapple tree we planted for my dad when he died many years ago. Both the upper and lower decks were built by Millard when we first moved into the house--14 years ago?

No matter where I live, or how long I live, I will never be able to associate the first colors of fall with anything except this football Saturday ritual.

An August Update

Well, I apologize for being such a slug when it comes to updating this blog. I promise to do a better job in the future.

Part of the reason I've not had time to update the blog is due to the amount of travel we've done so far this summer. We have now spent three extended weekends in Northern Michigan--truly one of the best kept secrets of the universe.

We have property--5 acres of hardwood forest in the middle of nowhere--on the outskirts of Honor, Michigan, which is the part of Michigan that is referred to as "Sleeping Bear."

"Sleeping Bear" is a short version of Sleeping Bear Dune National Seashore, a system of dunes that outlines the western edge of the state, running it's full length, from the tip of the Leelanau Penninsula to the Michigan-Indiana border. It's an amazing place, the sand dunes. Although our property is not ON the lake, we are within easy driving distance from this incredible resource.


The entire area is quite busy over the summer. Visitors come from all over the place, including foreign countries, to watch their children tumble around on the dunes or swim in the cold but clear fresh water of Lake Michigan.

At any rate, this is where we've been. We take our bikes and ride, because the roads in that area of the state are very well maintained and actually have wide shoulders in most places, making it easy for cars and bikes to cooperate. We also have friends who either live there year-round or spend the summers; it's a wonderful time to connect with them.


One of the things we've done this summer is spend time working on a plan for retirement, and trying to commit to building something on the property at some point in time. On this last trip, we realized that we could put in utilities and a slab, and use it for camping, without having to build for a while. Of course, in order to determine that I had to read through hundreds of pages of township zoning law--not too fun unless you have insomnia. But now I think that's the direction we are going. We will put in some basic supports (sewer, well, electric) and a slab, camp on it when we visit that area, and, if we still love it, build a small place on it in a few years.



I am no longer worried about being bored if we spend our summers in Sleeping Bear. Besides the swimming and biking, Millard and I have always wanted to get kayaks and try that. In addition to the lake, our property is very close to the Platt and Betsie rivers, both great rivers for exploring via kayak.

Anyway, that's where I've been. I'll be around more often.

Mikey's Wedding

On Friday night Millard and I attended the wedding of Mike and Michelle Thompson. "Mikey," as I will always think of him, was one of the terrible threesome that comprised the Kindergarten Posse. Imagine if you will 3 highly creative, energetic, and evil 5 year olds, and you will get the picture. Dom, Dan, and Mikey have been thick as thieves since the first day of school in 1985.

Mike and Michelle have been best friends and lovers for more than 9 years now, so the party that followed the afternoon vows in this beautiful garden was relaxed and hysterical. Many of the faces we haven't seen in years, all those years of parent-teacher conferences, birthday parties, summer soccer camp and school field trips came roaring back. Dom's first grade teacher, Joan Goldsmith, was there, looking beautiful despite her advancing age. Dan's parents, Karen and David, spent the evening catching up with us. It's so hard to understand why we don't see them very often now that the guys have grown up.
It was a night of hugs and reminiscences. It was wonderful to see the guys looking so handsome in their tuxes, and somewhat shocking to see the ever-increasing number of friends with babies in arms, new families taking the place that Millard and I occupied just a few years ago. It was hard to not feel a bit of sadness for the passing of those years. Still, the strength of those friendships, so many of them, have endured through more than two decades now.

We will replay this ritual two more times; once for Dan, once for Dom. But the first member of the Kindergarten Posse has declared his independence from childhood, and has moved on.

Sleeps with Dogs

I was off work during February and March, and one of the things I discovered during this time was the joy of naps. Following surgery I had no choice--I needed the extra sleep for the healing process. But now I just like them. I can nap for 20 minutes and wake up raring to go.

At any rate, the worst nap is the one I take on my yoga mat, on the floor of my office, on days when I'm burned out or haven't slept well the night before. The very best nap is the one taken with dogs in the middle of a day off. Those naps tend to last longer. On the other hand, even a bad nap is better than no nap at all.

I don't know what I'm doing for retirement. We seem to have a number of options, including staying in Ann Arbor until winter, then RVing to somewhere warm; taking another job somewhere warm and relocating there; building up north and leaving Ann Arbor completely, also bailing out in the winters. I don't know which of those I will take. But I do know that a daily nap will fit into any one of those plans.

Summer Time, and the Biking is (Somewhat) Easy

This past weekend we ventured north to Glen Arbor, to visit with our friends David and Donna. Last year David retired and they built a wonderful home in LasCruces, New Mexico--I presume it is wonderful, since all their homes have been, although I haven't been there to see as of yet. But they are spending 4 months of the year in their cottage in Glen Arbor, which gives us a wonderful opportunity not only to see them, but also to do some of the best bike riding ever.






The roads in this northwestern area are typically in very good shape--odd, since the winters there are brutal--and they all have wide, well-marked shoulders that easily accommodate bicycles. It is much easier to ride long distances when the bike is not competing with gasoline-powered vehicles! The roads are also very hilly, thanks to the numerous glaciers that have carved out the terrain and also left several deep and clear lakes in their tracks.


David and Donna may be older than us, but don't let that fool you--they get to ride all winter, and it really showed this past weekend. I worked hard to just keep up with their "easy" pace of 15-16 mph. Millard was very kind in hanging back with me, but I have a long way to go in terms of building up quad strength. It's good to know what the baseline is, even if it's . . . modest?

On Saturday we drove north to Leland, and cycled around the north end of Lake Leelanau. It was a beautiful ride with hills that were not too intimidating. After about 15 miles, we ended up back where we started, and spent the next few hours exploring the stores and galleries of this wonderful little town. After a stop at Stone Bakery, for panini and cinammon rolls, we headed back to Glen Arbor for showers and another treat--a ride in David's 1963 Ford Falcon convertible! This was David's 65th birthday present from his son. I can't tell you how long it's been since we've gone out for a "drive." It was great fun and lots of people wanted to talk about the car. Nostalgia reigned.

On Sunday morning we headed west toward the town of Glen Haven, a former fishing town that now remains as a museum. The day was glorious and the lake was beautiful, calm, and deep blue. This ended up being about 13-1/2 miles, and we returned home in time for two showers and packing. We had to pick up dogs at the kennel by 5 pm, and with the summer traffic it was a tight schedule.

All in all, a good start to what is going to be an awesome summer.

About Exercise

My exercise routine is slowly evolving, but it is coming back. On Tuesday I attended the first of 16 "dance aerobics and pilates" classes for which I have signed up. The class is through Ann Arbor Rec & Ed, and it happens in the Slauson Junior High lower gym--one of those old style UNAIRCONDITIONED places that smell like old socks.

NEVERTHELESS, I managed to keep up with the bouncy young instructor, although I was beet red by the end of it. I think that this class will be very good for helping me regain some cardiovascular stamina and the pilates will complement the other work I am doing to strengthen my core muscles.

I am taking a yoga class at lunch times on Wednesdays. The class is taught by a wonderful woman named Julia, who truly gets the whole spiritual thing that goes with deep meditation and body movement. Although I can't do any of the stretches from on my knees, I have been able to adapt those routines fairly well.

What else? On the weekends I ride my bike. Last weekend I managed to cover about 14 miles in an hour, and we will be biking even more this weekend. We are headed to Glen Arbor to visit with friends who are also cyclists, so if the weather holds I'm hoping to log a few more miles.

The one remaining workout I'm having problems fitting in is the basic gymwork--stationary biking, spinning, and weights. So far, I'm only getting there once a week. My goal is to get there 3 times a week, and to do the weights at least twice a week.

Starting Over

Well, everyone . . . it's time to remake myself, one more time. If you came over here from the Arthoplasty site, you know that I've spent the last two years preparing for, and then undergoing surgery to replace both knees. The entire focus of my life went from being a middle-aged, late-onset athlete to a humbled and hobbled middle-aged woman. This was a role to which I objected, strongly and relentlessly. And since the surgery in January, the old rowdy Violet has been coming back. Now I'm letting her out of the box.

Now that the new knees have been installed and are working properly, I want to use this site to keep in touch with people and to chronicle my return to activity. I apologize in advance for my political and social views, which will certainly pop up from time to time. But then again, it's my blog and you can always not read it.

Welcome.