April in MI

I've been busy getting ready to come back to MI from FL and then busy getting things done here. You know, things like doctor to get my labs done and Rx refilled, dentist to get teeth cleaned, dermatologist to get a couple moles taken off my face and tax person to get that done. Lots of other small errands with delays. In the five months I've been gone, the laboratory where I usually get my blood work done has closed and many businesses are on four day weeks to try to save energy. Things are very difficult here with 12 percent unemployment, which is highest in the country. I do notice that the grocery prices are lower here than in FL and both places are lower than in many other parts of the country.

Last week Mother Nature send me a taste of winter. Most of our weather comes from the west but this came directly from the north. The left side of the tree faces north. It only lasted one day but the temperatures have continued to be cold.

Winters here are hard on roads and other things. The cement holding my clothes pole down has heaved. Notice the water in the field now the snow has melted.

Joyce on J's Quilting Blog has a picture of her muddy road. Oh, this brought back memories. My road has been black topped for years now but for many years we were the last house before cars got stuck in the mess. Everyone came to my house to call for help. Those were the days before cell phones. I kept calling the county to get them to close the road - put up a sign to warn people. They hated to do that because then they would have to do something about fixing the road. The school bus couldn't make it either and we had mud emergency routes with places the children had to go to to get on the buses. Winter is very hard on our roads here in MI and the pot holes are terrible. People send pictures to the weather person on TV to see who has the worst pot hole. Recently I was driving on a paved road where they had put up a sign saying "Rough Road Ahead". That meant the top layer of the road was all broken up and there are places with major pot holes so drive about 20 mph and good luck.