Ann Arbor Lake Living: Blog
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Everything is ducky at the lake
This has been a strange winter/spring and the ducks that fly through seem to be confused like the rest of us.  Multiple types of ducks came as the ice started to melt and they have stayed around for a couple of months now.  The diving ducks are a delight to watch as they pop up and down and move underwater from one spot to another.  It is really hard to know how many there are as they are rarely all on the surface at one time.

Early in the morning each day, I see the flurry and splashing of ducks chasing each other across the water.  It is like they have water wings but in reality, their webbed feet paddle them with the help of their wings.  Striking markings differentiate the merganzers, male and female, from the Buffle heads and the wood ducks.  We actually heard a loon last week which was a real treat.

Each day I have to remind myself to take a few deep breaths and relax to watch the ducks in their water world.  It will be interesting to see how long these delightful creatures hang around.
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Posted by Lu Parsons at 4/26/2012 3:47 PM | View Comments (0) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (0)
I wish I were at the lake


Sunny Saturday Afternoon

I am seated at the front desk of my office waiting for that special phone call that means future business.

If I could forward the phone to my patio by the lake, that would be awesome.  Problems however.  Someone might walk into the office and need my assistance.  Or, my cell reception is so unpredictable that I would lose any call that came to my phone.  I am here looking at the sunshine through the front door.

I drove the convertible to day to enjoy the beautiful weather as much as possible.  It will be a good drive home with the sun and wind wrapping themselves around me.

At home the lake awaits and a ride on a jet ski or the pontoon boat.

Now I am making the best use of my time to blog, check past work and read a business book.
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Posted by Lu Parsons at 6/18/2011 1:21 PM | View Comments (1) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (0)
Lake Living and Spring


Mid-May and the boat will be making a maiden voyage this week end for 2011.

Enduring the drizzle and rain, the dock is slowly coming together, one section at a time.
Rotting wooden slates were replaced with new boards.

The swallows will not be happy that we are getting close to their nesting places but that is the risk they take using the boat cover as their security.

It has been a long, wet, dreary month but slowly getting warmer.

It will be good to be a float again on the waves of the lake.

Welcome to boating season.
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Posted by Lu Parsons at 5/20/2011 2:06 PM | View Comments (0) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (0)
IT'S GONE !!!


In the early evening of Wednesday in the midst of rain, sleet and heavy winds, the ice disappeared all but an ice berg from one of the coves that is sliding its way to the southwest corner.

Soon, I'm sure the early spring water fowl will start making their appearance.  Their presence and the daffodil buds and crocuses surely mean spring is heere even if the  temperatures do not.

Now we need warmth; its always something.  I guess I need to just take a moment and be thankful for the moment I have and the view and the wonder of the change of the seasons.
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Posted by Lu Parsons at 3/23/2011 6:40 PM | View Comments (0) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (0)
Spring Suspense


The entire lake is hanging in suspense.  A ribbon of open water surrounds the grayish green of the ice.
 Each day the color of the lake is darker as the ice melts from underneath and on top in the warmth of the sun which graced us for two or three days.

When will the ice disappear and once again open water grace our shore?

A very full, gigantic moon shone off the ice the past two nights and encouraged the dogs to howl and the critters of nocturnal preference to roam.

Saturday morning two brave or not so smart fishermen appeared on the lake.  When I left for an appointment I wished them well.  I could not help them if they disappeared into the water and my dog is too small to do anything but bark.

When I returned they were gone and the surface was still intact so I guess they thought better of remaining in a potentially dangerous situation.

As I arrived home, the crocuses waved cheerfully  and the daffodils have buds ready to pop with a little more encouragement from the sun. 

Spring is around the corner !!!  I am thankful. 
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Posted by Lu Parsons at 3/20/2011 1:52 PM | View Comments (0) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (0)
Where is spring?
Looking for a ray of sunshine !

The lonely ice fisherman was huddled over his hole with puddles and fog surrounding him.  A grayness to the world waas broken only by the bright orange of his rain coat.

THis is the dreariest time of the year in Michigan.  My only joy is seeing the early arrival or a robin, red wing black bird, Sandhill Crane or Indigo Bunting


Go away snow and bring on the sun and green !!
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Posted by Lu Parsons at 3/10/2011 6:08 PM | View Comments (0) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (0)
Is spring really around the corner?
Are we being fooled by all the rain only to be hit with more snow ?


The lonely ice fisherman with his bright orange rain coat huddled over his hole in the ice this morning while a steady drizzle surrounded him with fog and puddles of melting ice.

This is the dreariest time of the year in Michigan.  Everything is very brown, dirty and dead looking.  My only encouragement is a lonely robin or other spring bird that has made an early arrival.

A little sunshine would be a great thing of beauty. 
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Posted by Lu Parsons at 3/10/2011 6:05 PM | View Comments (0) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (0)
A Touch of Spring
Finally temperatures in the 40's  !!   And some sun to go with it.  Great day.  Ice fishermen and women on the lake were sitting outside their shelters enjoying some sun and soft breezes.  After such cold,, cold temperatures, the ice dams are breaking and huge clumps of ice and icicles hanging from the eaves have been breaking off with loud thuds and a flurry of ice chips in all directions.  I guess this was a touch of a spring thaw though it is only the middle of February.

That thaw did not last and we have had two heavy snow storms since.  However, the night's temperatures are not so cold and the icicles are dripping so spring is coming.  I saw a crocus tip where the snow had melted and the Sandhill cranes flew over along with a few confused robins.   Surely spring is around the corner.
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Posted by Lu Parsons at 2/27/2011 12:35 PM | View Comments (0) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (0)
Preserving our lake is a battle to preserve the national use of recreational lands
The mist or low clouds of the morning have risen off the lake and I can now see clearly to the other side.  Seeing clearly is very important no matter what the situation.  It is difficult to make good decisions when your mind or eyes or heart are cloudy, bleary or confused.

As a neighborhood of lake property owners and adjoining property owners, we have taken on a quest to clear the minds of the National Park Service and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.  I am particularly thankful  for some neighbors who have the gift of research, clear thinking and writing to create a noble response to the State and its efforts to expand a gravel mining operation for up to 19 more years.  Expanding this operation puts the edge of our lake approximately 1200 feet from the mining operation.  The land to be mined should the State plan be approved, was given to the state solely for recreational purposes as recorded in the original deed and transfer of the land to the state. 

If you would like to know more about this situation please contact me at luparsons@gmail.com
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Posted by Lu Parsons at 2/27/2011 12:16 PM | View Comments (0) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (0)
Winter activities
  Just before the Christmas Holidays, they started arriving.  They means the ice fishermen and their portable huts in blue and black.  I realized the first fisherman had arrived when the dog started barking like a strange dog had entered her territory.  Something new was on her lake and she was making sure I was aware of the  change.  How they know the ice is safe enough to walk on and spend hours sitting in one spot is beyond me.  Perhaps there is a special tool for measuring. 

A neighbor's grand kids have shoveled the snow to create an ice rink and the hockey pucks are flying.  An occasional cross-country skier slips along at a gentle pace with her dog jogging along.  

The fisher men come and go and I really doubt that many fish are caught. The other outdoor activities happen infrequently. I am just happy to be inside looking out at the freezing huddles and blowing tents clustered on the lake.
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Posted by Lu Parsons at 1/11/2011 11:39 AM | View Comments (0) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (0)
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