Cool and Refreshing

Great Lakes or, as here, smaller inland lakes: no salt, no sharks, no worries!

Tuesday Morning Scenes, Leland and Leelanau Townships

A Visit with Ducks in Santa Rosa

The minute we opened our car doors at the Blue Hole Fishing Ponds, these two ducks came looking for handouts, quacking gently but insistently.

As soon as snack time was over, they returned to their peaceful waters, apparently contented and happy with each other.

Bright September Sunshine on Lake Leelanau

Some professional painters and photographers are disappointed on bright, sunny days. They prefer the more subtle moodiness of fog or mist, gleaming rain and threatening skies. I like all that but must confess that I found Monday's sunshine more than welcome after a string of moody days. The world was washed clean and bright, and all its edges, those of water and of plants and animals, seemed to tingle and jump for joy -- metaphorically speaking, that is -- in the stillness of a calm September evening, every tiny detail a miracle of beauty.