Lazy, Hazy Days of Summer

Mother Nature uses morning haze on the Strait of Georgia to paint a watercolour picture.

 We had plenty of time to enjoy the view while trolling for salmon on the calm seas.

Summer is such a wonderful time of year. What have you been doing for fun? -- Margy

Painted Rock Ladybug

Many years ago my friend John pulled a large rock up from our Powell Lake natural swimming pool. He left it sitting on a partially submerged stump and there it sat for about a week.

As I looked at the rock it kept saying "turtle" to me, so that's what it became, a large rock painted into a turtle. His name is Kobe. Wayne said he looked more like Kobe Bryant's basketball shoe. What an art critic.

Last year I started looking for a smooth rock along the lake shore that said "ladybug" to me. I found it on Kinsmen Beach next to the Shinglemill Marina where we park our boat. I finally got around to painting it this summer.

Now that our good friends Dave and Marg gave us a new picnic table for the front porch, the old one has become a work bench at the back of the cabin. It was the perfect spot for rock painting.

I used acrylic paints to transform the rock into its new character. Then I used Krylon clear acrylic spray to preserve the colours in the outdoor setting.

Now both Kobe the Turtle and the new ladybug share a spot on the corner of our new float at the front of the cabin.

They have two functions. The first is to add colour and decoration year round. The second function is to weigh down this corner of the float. It was a bit higher than the other side. Now they look symmetrical as your approach by boat.

Now I need to figure out a name for her. Do you have any suggestions? -- Margy

"Dead Lucky" by Lincoln Hall

In recent years, I’ve read several books and watched movies about mountain climbers who have challenged themselves to reach the top of Mount Everest. 

The most recent book was Dead Lucky by Lincoln Hall (Jeremy P. Tarcher/Penguin, 2009). Like many mountaineers, Hall had a long history climbing the highest mountains in the world. As his skills and accomplishments grew, he became one of Australia most renowned mountaineers.

His first attempt to climb Everest was in 1984, but he was forced to turn back when daylight was running out. Then in 2004 an old friend contacted him about serving as a high altitude documentary cameraman for a fourteen year old Australian boy who wanted to climb Everest. The opportunity was too tempting, and Lincoln had what he called “unfinished business.”

After more than a year of fundraising and physical preparation, the team left for Base Camp to join a guided expedition with the 7SUMMITS-CLUB. During acclimatization climbs it became evident that young Christopher could not continue. Despite that setback, Lincoln was still allowed to make his own summit attempt.

They say the hardest part of climbing Mount Everest isn’t going up, it’s coming back down. Even though Lincoln made it to the top, his body started to falter quickly on the descent. It became so bad that he was left for dead at the 28,000-foot level. Dead Lucky sets the stage for Lincoln’s successful climb and tragic yet miraculous descent. His successes include reaching the 29,035-foot summit and surviving the night without oxygen and supplies within the notorious “death zone.”

Dead Lucky is an amazing story about one man’s quest to reach a goal and surviving to return to his family. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys true stories about brave people who do remarkable things. -- Margy