Almost July

It's hard to believe July is right around the corner. We are expecting a high today in the 50's! There is a little hope for the weekend but not much. The 4th is predicted to reach the low 70's.

We've had plenty of rain, lots of wind, now a little sunshine would get those gardens going. Only the cold weather plants are doing well.

The topsy turvy tomato plant contest winner is going to go to the person who brings their tomato inside under a sun lamp.

CertainTeed/Celotex

The CertainTeed plant in L'Anse is expanding. Those of you who grew up in the area will still call the plant Celotex. It hasn't been Celotex in many years but old habits persist.

The State of Michigan has given the CertainTeed company a 3.1 million dollar tax credit over 12 years to invest in the L'Anse plant. This is great news for Baraga County with a 26% unemployment rate. The official new job number is uncertain but the company has said the project will retain 271 Michigan jobs.

The company hopes to make improvements to the current facility and to bring in new product lines, and as the commercial construction market comes back, create new jobs for the state and Village of L'Anse.

The expansion of the L'Anse plant comes at a high cost to a plant in Meridian, Mississippi. That plant will close on August 15, 2009.

Sunrise

The sky was beautiful on the morning I took these photos. There was a thunderstorm to the north over the Copper Country.

40th Baraga County Lumberjack Days

You might want to add Baraga to your list of things to do on the 4th of July!


Thursday, July 2nd 7:00pm
Baraga High School Baraga County "Hometown Heroes" Softball Game

Friday, July 3rd
5:30pm
Community Hill Wood Carving by Bruce Belanger, Great Lakes Timber Show
8:00pm-1:00am In front of Sidetrack Street Dance - Music By: Old No. 7


Saturday, July 4th
8:00am-Noon Baraga High School- Lion's Pancake Breakfast
10:30am Community Hill Wood Carving
Noon - Children's Parade Children's Games
1:30pm Baraga Legion Side Entrance Scavenger hunt items to be turned in
2:00pm Community Hill Great Lakes Timber Show
3:30pm Superior Avenue Main Parade -- "The Baraga County Oscars"
Special appearance by: MacGregor Highlanders
5:30pm-8:30pm American Legion Karaoke by: Planet Karaoke
6:00pm Community Hill Great Lakes Timber Show
9:15pm Nite Shirt Parade
Dusk Over Keweenaw Bay Fireworks

And of course, there is always more. Food, Beverages and such.

Champion Horse Pull

A Horse Pull is not just a horse pull. Stop in Champion on June 27 and 28.

Saturday, June 27:
Mud Drag 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Demolition Derby 5:30 to 8:00 PM
Dance with Nudge 8:00 PM

Sunday, June 28:
Pony Pull 9:30 AM to 12:00
Over Weight Hours Pull 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Heavy Weight Pony Pull 3:00 PM

And there's more.. BBQ Chicken, Children's Coin Scramble, Food and Beverages.

Bring your camera and send me a picture. I can't be everywhere!

Roadside

Upper Peninsula roadsides can be beautiful in the summer. These wild daisies look like they were planted. The State and County used to mow the sides of the road but wouldn't it be a shame to mow down these flowers.

The lupines are beautiful this time of year. They grow wild all across Baraga County. Do they grow wild in your area?

Heat

It's 87 degrees, imagine that. It must be the warmest day so far this year. I wish this funny looking tree was in my yard. It would be a great place to relax in the shade.

Yesterday was about the same until that cool breeze blew in across the bay. As you drive farther from Lake Superior the temperature rises.. a lot.

Moose update..

Did you read my posting (May 21) on the moose we saw? This may have been the moose that caused a serious auto accident about 10:30 PM Sunday.

The Michigan State Police report that the crash happened at around 10:30 p.m. on US-41, south of Alberta in Baraga County.

Jason Kutchie and Wayne Oien were on their way to work when they hit the immature bull moose. The men were taken to Baraga County Memorial for treatment.

The moose was killed and removed by the Department of Natural Resources.

A sad story all around. We all hope for a moose sighting but we want to see one near the road not in the middle of the road.

A immature bull moose is larger by far than a full sized deer. I'd guess 3 or 4 times the size.

Purple things?

Does anyone know what these purple things are? I've seen them in several places. Someone (we assume the Department of Natural Resources)must be doing a study?

I'm going on-line to see if I can find the answer.

Wood Carvings

Yoopers have a unique way of carving wood. These were probably done with a chain saw.

Michigamme

Traffic is slow in the Michigamme area. The DOT is changing the corner near Mt. Shasta.

Make it in Michigan

It's not the UP but it's Michigan.

Click the title/link above to sign the petition.

Part 2: Plan for the 4th of July

Here's a start, I'll add more as I find the events or.. you add some.

July 2ndVietnam Moving Memorial Wall
Location:Marinette, WI (Menominee, MI)
Start:12:00 AM

July 3rd
Eagle River Holiday Antique Show and Sale
Location:Northland Pines High School
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Street Dance
Location:Gwinn
8:00 PM 12:00 AM

80s Rock Benefit for 581 Fire Victims
Location:Pasquali's
9:30 PM -1:30 AM

July 4thFirecracker 5K Fun race and 1 Mile Walk
Location:Al Quaal Recreation Area
7:45 AM -12:00 AM

4TH OF JULY IN MICHIGAMME
Location:MICHIGAMME, MI
11:00 AM - 12:00 AM

4th of July Celebration
Location:Gwinn
11:00 AM - 12:00 AM

Plan for the 4th

What's going on in your area for the 4th of July?

Escanaba:
The Big Band and Wind Orchestra of Angelschule of Osnabrueck, Germany will be in concert July 4 from 7 to 8 p.m. at the Escanaba Bandshell in Ludington Park.

The 49-member performing group will present 30 minutes each of Big Band and Orchestra repertoire. The concert will precede the Escanaba City Band.

The group is also making stops at Eaton Rapids, Port Huron and Boyne City, Mich. and Niagara Falls, N.Y.

The band includes seven clarinets, three flutes, 10 trumpets, nine saxophones, three French horns, seven trombones, one tuba, two E-bass guitar, a guitar, keyboard and four drums.

During the 2009 U.S. Tour, the orchestra includes 35 wind orchestra players and 13 members of the big band.

Two part Michigan

Yooper's always complain that the Upper Peninsula is often left off maps of Michigan. Some maps will include the UP as part of Wisconsin.

Mike Lahti, D-Hancock, said he recently received messages from former Yoopers living in other states after they saw a television ad from the Michigan Economic Development Corpor-ation urging businesses to locate in Michigan. The ad featured actor Jeff Daniels, a Michigan native, and showed an image of the Lower Peninsula, but left out the U.P.

Lahti submitted a bill that requires all government-produced documentation showing the state to depict both peninsulas. Many people from the L.P. consider the U.P. to be mostly uninhabited wilderness.

I guess that could apply to yoopers too, to some extent. No more logos that only show the UP. We yoopers, more often than not, exclude the LP. To the best of my knowledge, no troll has ever complained that we left the LP off our logo.

Chinook helicopter

I borrowed the photo from TV6 news but they've used my photos so I thought it would be ok.

The news said this helicopter was in the Marquette area but it was also over Baraga County. It flew down the bay so low it was lower than our house. We were wondering what was going on but figured it had something to do with the National Guard Armory.

The helicopter was transporting Michigan National Guard Brigadier General Jim Anderson. He was traveling to the Marquette Armory for a presentation about the road to reintegration for returning soldiers. The crew performed training missions on Monday.

This 1988 Chinook served in Iraq, helped after Hurricane Katrina, and aided in extinguishing the Newberry Fire.

The helicopter is a cargo helicopter usually used for heavy lifting. The gross weight of the helicopter goes up to 50,000 pounds. It can lift between 18 to 20 thousand pounds.

Wildlife

Who needs to live in the country, in the UP every place is country. Mom always say she doesn't want to move to town because she likes to watch the wildlife especially her deer.

Dave said he saw 6 rabbits while he was walking (within the village limits) this morning. Bob saw a large wolf on the road between our houses. Don often has a black bear in his back yard. I saw a skunk on my way to work and, yes, one skunk. One is enough. Again this year I've been seeing coyotes near work. One watched me drive by at 3:00 in the afternoon.

It's a common sight to see deer all around town, day or night. They often cut through our yard to get to the lake.

How much wildlife do you want. That's plenty for me.

Beautiful Day

It's a beautiful day to be a yooper. We enjoyed seeing all the boats in the bay for the fishing tournament. The sky was blue and the water was royal blue with the boats leave frothy white wakes as they headed to shore.

Rumor has it that 90 boats entered the fishing tournament. Downtown L'Anse appears to be very, very busy. Too late now but a picture or two for this blog would have been nice.

Most of my day was spent outdoors weeding my gardens but it was an enjoyable task. The early flowers are gone but it won't be long until the lilies are in bloom. Those of you in to vegetables, the green onions are pickable. It will be a while until we have ripe tomatoes though.

Stock Market Tip for you!

Buy stock in any company that manufactures bug repellent! There is a record crop of mosquitoes this year. We've already gone through a years supply of spray and it's only been warm enough to sit outside for a week.

We've got mosquito beater in the grass, flying insect spray for the air, and heavy duty lotion/repellent for anything that dares venture closer.

If that is bad enough, let's not forget the woodticks. You don't need to be in the long grass to pick up a tick. They are everywhere.

Baraga County Lake Trout Festival

This is an event you won't want to miss! Here's the line-up.

Friday, June 12:
Sacred Heart School Rummage Sale
Fish Fry - American Legion
Pre Fishing Tournament Meeting
Wolfgang in Concert at the Bandshell

Saturday, June 13:

Keweenaw Bay Classic Fishing Tournament begins at 5:00 AM
Pancake Breakfast - L'Anse American Legion
1/2 Marathon, Pequaming Run or Family Walk
Beach Volleyball
Kids Carnival
Arts and Craft Fair
Basketball Free Throw
Minnow Races
Baraga State part Kids Fishing Pond
Kids Games
David Cladas in concert
Junk Art Sculpture
Teen Games
Cribbage Tournament
Pie Eating contest
Lake Trout Cook Off
Lions Ducky River Race
Courtney Clisch in Concert
Keweenaw Bay Classic Fishing Tournament Awards and Prize Drawing
Cook Off Awards
Street Dance -Recess Bullies - Live Band

Sunday, June 14th
Bells on the Bay - Sacred Heart Church 2:00 Pm

Hospital

It's happening. Site work has begun for the new Baraga County Memorial Hospital. The first step is to clear trees and prepare footings and foundation. This process should take six weeks to complete.

The Hospital board is still waiting for final approval and funding from HUD. This approval is expect in July but with our short construction season the board decided to start now.

The new Hospital will be located on US41 just south of L'Anse. This will eliminate the need to go through downtown L'Anse and will be a big advantage in an emergency.

Happy Saturday

What a beautiful day. The temperature must be 70. Don't laugh, it's been very cool. It's one of the few beautiful days we've had. Dave heard on the weather channel that we aren't going to have summer. Really, and he should know, he lives by the weather channel.

I was wondering if I could bring all the flower back to the store. Frost in June!! So much for global warming. I guess a day without snow is a good day.

Prisons to close

We've known for months that the State planned to close several prisons. Rumor were rampant with every prison in the State mentioned to close in one rumor or another.

The actual closings have been announced. Some employees can breathe a sigh of relief while others are in shock. Many employees who don't even work at a facility that is closing will be effected due to bumping by employees who have been with the State longer.

In the Upper Peninsula Camp Ottawa in Iron River Township, Camp Kitwen in Painesdale, and Camp Cusino in Shingleton will all close. Hiawatha Correction Facility in Kincheloe will also close.

Among the factors taken into consideration in identifying the facilities to be closed were the age of the facility, operational costs, needed improvements, number of inmates housed, proximity to other correctional facilities, and the need for space in specific security classifications.

The Michigan's prison population is at its lowest level in seven years due to the Michigan Prisoner ReEntry Initiative, more parole and probation officers, and the use of electronic and GPS monitoring devices.

The closings will result in layoffs, though it was unclear how many. The Department of Corrections will try to move as many of the 1,072 affected employees as possible into open jobs at other facilities.

The closures are part of a reorganization that will reduce prison spending by $120 million, which will then go toward reducing the state's $1.4 billion general fund deficit.

Rum Rebellion?

How have I missed this? It's rather a catchy name. Plans are being made for Iron River's Rum Rebellion Days, which will be held July 15 through July 19. Mark your calenders.

This year, the festival's theme has shifted from historic events of the 1920 Rum Rebellion Days to a "Salute to Education" theme.

On Wednesday, July 15, the Iron County Heritage Trail Committee will offer a bus tour of historic sites. The tour will begin at the Baumgartner School on the Iron County Museum grounds and a lunch will be included with the registration fee.
Best of all will be a wine tasting on Wednesday, beginning at 5:30 p.m. at the Iron County Museum.

The Rum Rebellion Days Revue will be held on Thursday at the Windsor Auditorium in the West Iron County Middle School. The performance will highlight three different time periods in the history of the Iron River and Stambaugh Public Schools, from their beginnings in the late 1800s to their consolidation in 1967.

Friday, July 17, will be Market Days on Genesee Street in downtown Iron River. The Rum Rebellion Days parade will take place at 10 on Saturday morning, July 18.
Rum Rebellion Days will conclude with a costume ball at the Iron County Museum.

If you go... let us know.. you could send a picture too.

MTU - SDC

Next hockey season, Michigan Technological University's John MacInnes Student Ice Arena will have 10 new suites that can host eight to 14 people each and three skyboxes for larger groups. The suites are made possible by a $1 million gift from Ruanne and John Opie and will be rented out to either by the season or on a game-by-game basis.

The arena's summer ice will be made one week later than normal for summer ice rental but the project should be complete by the end of September.

Plans call for the existing skyboxes in the corners of the construction area, the MacInnes Skybox and Husky Skybox, to be taken down and replaced with two skyboxes on the north side and one larger one on the south side. Underneath both the skyboxes, at the main and student entrances to the arena, glass doors will be placed and the second set of doorways will be removed.

Sounds interesting.. Anyone want to go together and rent a suite or skybox for the hockey season?

A change of pace for this blog. Some of these you've heard but it's always nice to be reminded. Thanks for sending it Jane.

Tell us your favorite. I've live by #5 but I need to remember #43 and I'd like to shake some people until they lived by #3. My favorite would be #33 but then all of them are great.

Written by Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The Plain Dealer in Cleveland , Ohio .
"To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me. It is the most-requested column I've ever written. My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone...
4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first pay cheque.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry..
13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets and wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion, today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words 'In five years, will this matter?
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time.
31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did/didn't do.
35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood.
38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.
41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
42. The best is yet to come.
43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
44. Yield.
45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift."

It's estimated that 93% of people who receive this email won't forward it. If you are one of the 7% who will, forward this with the title '7%'. I'm in the 7%. Remember, friends are the family we choose for ourselves