Celebrating THE artist of Fabius Township

She is an artist in so many ways, in glass, in watercolor, pastel, and oil, in fabric, in her teaching and as a friend.  Happy 80th birthday, Joan!  Originally from California, she has made Fabius her home for over forty years.  Her work graces many homes as well as public buildings and churches.  Here are just a couple examples, starting with a small mandala in pastels:

in slab glass:

in watercolor:

Rosy Morning

 

You did not need rose-colored glasses to start your day.  The sky obliged with this rosy glow.  You just have to be early enough! 

For skies from around the world, please visit Skywatch Friday.

Paean to a Pasty

As you can see we could not wait to eat before allowing this pasty to have its portrait taken.  It is sitting with us at a picnic table at  Bay Furnace National Forest Campground just west of Munising, Michigan, where we bought it at Muldoon's Pasties (their Facebook page).  It is a complete meal in a crust,  perfect for lunch at a roadside picnic table as you travel the UP.   Pasties for lunch and whitefish for supper and we are the happiest UP travelers!

Pasties, originally brought here by Cornish miners, are "the" food of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.  We have tried the pasties from one end of the UP to the other and Muldoon's stand up with the best.  Originally we would always get pasties at Dobber's in Escanaba and then it became Gramma T's in Negaunee, but two summers ago when at the Porkies we discovered The Pasty Corner in Iron River.  It is now our #1 for flaky crust and delicious filling, however it is the farthest away from us.   Perhaps the bottom line here is that we never pass up a pasty shop; we have tasted pasties from Suzy's in St. Ignace,  Lehtos, Wildwood, and the AuTrain Cafe along the way, and Toni's in Laurium on the Keweenaw Peninsula. Visit Pasty Central for more not only on pasties but on the UP in general.

Here are the traditional ingredients of a UP pasty: diced potatoes, rutabagas, carrots, onions & ground or diced beef. But these days you can also buy a vegetarian or chicken pasty.  If you would like to learn more about the origin and history of this Cornish cuisine, visit Wikipedia's article, Pasty.  I am now so hungry I must complete this blog and search for a proper substitute for a pasty.  Wish me luck!

For less edible but still fascinating words beginning with P, visit ABC Wednesday.

Oh no, snow in the forecast

Yes, this morning the local weather forecast mentioned the word some dread, some cheer, snow.  In honor of this first mention I bring you the ultimate winter cap, the Stormy Kromer.  A UP (the Upper Peninsula of Michigan) classic, this sign is on the side of the Mackinaw Straits Fish Co. in St. Ignace, our first stop after crossing the bridge.  Here we purchase supper, fresh whitefish fillets.  

Explore the history of the Stormy Kromer cap and learn more about George "Stormy" Kromer who asked his wife Ida to modify a baseball cap for colder weather, the Stormy Kromer cap.
And for a more traditional place to buy your cap, you cannot beat the best department store in the Upper Peninsula, an old fashioned, traditional department store, Getzs in Marquette.

more signs of fall

Yes, election day approaches and by tomorrow evening these signs of autumn will have disappeared.  But autumn will stick with us and so will the pundits proclaiming what the vote "really" means!