alexandriacardinals

[Sand bagging at Blakes by the Lakes on Lake Carlos, August 2.  Photo by Loren Berg.]

This was going to be a report on Resorters Golf Tournament week.  It will include that – but it has otherwise been overtaken by events.  Memories (and we suspect, records) indicate that lakes in our area have never been this high.  This has not been a one storm, or one season’s phenomenon – it began with the snows of last fall, through the winter, the wet, cold spring, and the raging thunderstorms of summer.  The water tables are maxing out – meaning in many areas where there is standing water, there is no place for it to go.  The climate models are proving correct – the South is becoming hotter and drier, and it is becoming wetter, warmer, and more humid in our neck of the woods.  People don’t usually have to sand bag around lakes – it is happening this summer.  This will be an ongoing article as “stuff” keeps coming in from stringers in the field.

[Following the Resorters yesterday, we arrived at the signature 7th hole – Lake Darling is overtaking the golf course.  You can see the left sandtrap is totally filled with water – a ground rule for the tournament yesterday was a free drop out of all sand traps.]

[Water is coming over the top of the water hazard retaining walls.  Those walls were caving in anyway, and along with the need to upgrade the green the entire hole will be reconstructed as soon as the tournament is over.  It will be playable again next June – water will no longer be in front of the green or the 8th tee box.]

[The drop area had to be moved out of the “water” for the tournament.]

[Beginning of the reconstruction – the weeping willow that “guarded” the right side of the green has been taken down.]

[Lake Darling encroaching on the back of the green.]

[The 8th tee – the cart path out of there has been built up three times in the last week.]

[My driver, Richie Braun.]

[Telephoto shot from the 8th tee across the lake to the point between Big and Little Darling.  The homeowners there had FIVE dump truck loads of sand delivered this week to build berms around their houses.]

[Same shot sans telephoto.]

[And the tournament must go on.  The course drains really well in almost all areas – and is beautiful and in great shape!]

This annual fund-raiser for the Alexandria Area Arts Association took place this past weekend.  As usual, City Park was filled to capacity with vendors in arts, crafts, food, and music.  I go for the music – and, OK, I’m not opposed to the food.  The supervisor is often released sans chaperone in search of the ultimate garden curio – and occasional garments.  But before the weekend began, we had some lovely overviews of beautiful Lake Darling including my first notice of stand-up paddleboards (SUP’s), highlighted later in the week in a Minneapolis StarTribune piece:

[The above photo is, of course, not of beautiful Lake Darling.  It reflects an interesting cloud arrangement over the 2nd hole at the Alexandria Golf Club (AGC).  It was taken by occasional blog photographer, Loren Berg.  This week the AGC hosts its internationally-famous Resorters Golf Tournament.]

The Friday before Art in the Park began, Patchouli began a groupie’s delight at the winery – the 1st of three consecutive local performances.  The weather was surprisingly comfortable in the shade that afternoon.  In this, our summer of malcontent, I feel compelled to always provide a weather report:

[The supervisor checks out Patchouli CD’s, as well as Bruce’s artwork.]

[Videos, and photos of Bruce, were spared until the weekend.  😉 ]

And then Saturday arrived – Day 1 of Art in the Park.  The supervisor went in the morning to shop – I joined her in the afternoon where hourly we went up and down the hill dividing our time between Patchouli, and Sami Steidl and friends.  It was a hot, muggy one – I had to peel my clothes off when I got home (try hard not to form a mental image!):

[Sami, Spencer (lead guitar), Ben (guitar), Dave (bass), and the drummer (apologies)]

[Spencer’s mom doing mom stuff.]

[The supervisor enjoying the music and the white caps on Lake Agnes in the background.  Sami encountered some difficulties in trying to bow her viola through her hair.]

Probably the last performance by the group (at least for a while) as they all head off to college soon.  Here’s a video:

http://www.youtube.com/user/ruthobert#p/u/3/Mk6Q5MfF3Gs

Day 2 of Art in the Park produced an absolutely beautiful Sunday morning – we looked forward to three sets by Patchouli and one by local favorites, Al and Terry:

[The two above:  Before the music, the supervisor dragged me off to a vendor she had discovered the previous day.  She said my high school classmate, Patty Peterson, was working there.  Well, Patty wasn’t there on Sunday; but her brother Bob was – this is an example of his art.]

[Fellow AGC golfer, Dave Ness, with granddaughters on the bales.]

Next up was Emergency Stop, a/k/a, Terry Kennedy and Al Lieffort, and with a video of their signature song (well, in my opinion), Neil Young’s Harvest Moon:

http://www.youtube.com/user/ruthobert#p/a/u/1/UwJn_eATWXY

Julie and Bruce wrapped up the event for us – we videoed The Puzzle and Best in Me for your dining and dancing pleasure.  They will back to Alex three more times this year:

http://www.youtube.com/user/ruthobert#p/a/u/0/7dkvx_XEyfc

http://www.youtube.com/user/ruthobert#p/a/u/2/ZwalfsvrHu0

I believe I mentioned something about the weather earlier? Well, thunderstorms started early this morning – one after another ripped through here.  The house was shaken to its roots.  We are not done yet.  But I was able to dash out during an interlude and get a picture of the dock now under water with the Moby floating loose under the canopy – and discovered another 3 3/4 inches in the rain gauge.  I believe we have received 14 inches of rain since July 1.  The Resorters golf tournament was suppose to start today, but I assume the course is under water.  Even before this last deluge, they had to rebuild the cart path from the 8th tee to the fairway because it was under water.  We have called in the troops requesting that whenever they are available to come and take out a section of dock and move the Moby lift to much shallower water (if possible).  Loren Berg again contributed with the photo of the tennis courts at Blakes by the Lakes.

[This last photo is a late night submittal by Al Grundei.  It’s of the 9th hole at the Alexandria Golf Club at 10:30 this morning.  The 9th hole is not (normally) a water hole!]

Next up – a state championship baseball team?  Coach?

As noted in The 4th (the aftermath), on July 13, 2011, a date that will live in infamy, the Callecod sisters, a/k/a, The Biddies, deserted this reporter for a trip to the wilds of northern Minnesota and Wisconsin.  The sisters, native Hoosiers, are precisely two years and one day apart – one arrived on this planet on New Year’s Eve, the other on New Year’s Day.  Rita, the elder, still lives in Indiana – Nashville, Indiana, to be exact.  She is a regular visitor to us here in Vacationland, USA, often in her mini-RV.  She was a school nurse – once named Indiana school nurse of the year – and in that capacity was well aware that head lice are, indeed, the scourge of mankind.

Anyway, Rita had driven Jami and Tommy here from Indiana, and they had already returned home by separate conveyance.  The supervisor thoughtfully thought she should ride home with her older sister to provide company and driving relief, and then train home from Indy.  Plus, they could take the scenic route via the North Shore and then follow Great Lakes shorelines to Indiana.  The supervisor’s favorite new place is Grand Marais – and this would be her 3rd visit there in the last year – and she was anxious to show off this part of the state to Rita.  So, away they went . . .

Duluth was first – a first for Rita.  They were hoping to see the tall ships – but that was either a tanker or a mastless ship, something to do with the weather allegedly:

[“Fan mail from some flounder?”]

[OK, the last two are of Rita either in California, or around Lake Darling . . . I forget which.]

Grand Marias was next; in the midst of a heatwave, cooled to perfection by the big lake:

Then Grand Portage, High Falls, and the Canadian border:

[. . . and the State of Minnesota was closed!]

The girls head south again – stopping at Cross Creek (the cross, logically enough – there’s a long story to that, something about Father Baragras with a canoe full of people not heeding satellite storm warnings some time in the 180o’s (as I recall)) and Gooseberry Falls State Park (again, closed by the state, but Rita got in for her requisite photos):

The girls then crossed over into the northern land of the dreaded Cheese Heads.  This is virgin territory for me, so I’ll have to make it up as I go.  As I recall, there was some mention of a place called Bayfield and a boat ride to the Apostle Islands:

[“Tom’s Burned Out Cafe” on Madeline Island – the following 4 signs are at “Tom’s”]

Then it was on to the eastern edge of the Cheese Heads, territory of some familiarity to this reporter.  Soon we will be making our annual trek to Elkhart Lake, and to the supervisor’s Indiana University alumni camp.  In that neighborhood is Kohler’s famous Whistling Straits Golf Course, home to many major championships – The Biddies checked it out:

[Above:  Rita at Sheboygan Beach; the supervisor on the Sheboygan boardwalk.  Both are famous in song and story as final answers in the “Where in the World is Ruthie?” ongoing contest.]

The girls hit Indiana Dunes State Park where they were overwhelmed by heat and only enjoyed photo ops at what the supervisor called the crown jewel of the Golden Arches:

Then Rita returned to Nashville, an artists’ community, to her artist friends, David and Cynthia Dale, on the left, and Bill and Judy Zimmerman:

And the supervisor came home to help say sayonara to those to whom we bid adieu:

The Biddies thank you for your indulgence.

[* Borrowed without permission from Monty Python’s Flying Circus, used as a segue’ for something completely the same.]

We got another inch and a half of rain Tuesday night.  Unless I am badly mistaken (what, moi?), that brings the total for the month of July to about 10 inches.  With the heavy snowfall winter and the cool, wet spring, grizzled veterans of the area say they have never seen the water on the lakes this high.  People have been chasing down their floating-away docks all over the chain; boats have floated off their lifts; and in a lot of instances (such as ours) the high water prevents getting boats off the lifts as they can’t get out from under their canopies.  Folks who live on the point between Big and Little Darling have sandbagged their property because wave and wake action has been “watering” their lawns.  Here are photos of the Moby Obie in late June and again in late July – in June the water was considered incredibly high, now you can see the lake is at dock level and the Moby is floating:

And there have been weather things going on beyond the scope of deluge.  We have had dew points – dew points like the state has never seen before.  As you may recall from your weather lessons from your favorite TV meteorologist, if you have dew points in the 50’s, it’s comfortable; dew points in the 60’s means it’s humid; dew points in the 70’s means it’s tropical; dew points in the 80’s mean head to the meat lockers!  Minnesota averages about 2 ½ days a year with dew points in the 70’s.  In this glorious month of July, dew points in the 80’s have been setting records throughout the state.  I have moss growing on my north side!  And since dew points in the 80’s are not normal, abnormal weather, i.e., storms seem to follow.  The neighbors lost a few trees at Mom’s, and we didn’t notice until this week that the tree in front Mom’s was “topped” by that same storm:

And yet during all that, it SNOWED!  Well, it sure looked like it.  The lakeside cottonwoods have been a little late spreading their joy this year – but on the hottest, most miserable day, an on-shore breeze kept blowing globs of SNOW . . . errr, cotton . . . up the hill until it had turned our backyard white:

[The above photo subsequently added from Rog “Travelin’ Man” Tweed actually shows the “snow” in the air.]

We also had a mini old home week in Alex.  Brother Cam came up from Mounds View with his old buddy from Arlington, Virginia, Rog “Travelin’ Man” Tweed – both posed with the supervisor at dusk on the shores of beautiful Lake Le Homme Dieu.  While they were here, we ate, and ate, and ate some more, including a mini reunion at Weston Station of ex-Victoria Heighters – members of the Dyke and Thompson families.  Perry Dyke joined me for a round of golf at the AGC.  Perry played for our Cardinal golf team going to state all four years, 1968-71, and fired a nifty 76 on his old home course where he hadn’t played for 15 years.  He has been a TV sports anchor in Mankato for 30 years, covering the Vikings in training camp, and will be inducted into the Minnesota State University, Mankato, for his years of coverage thereof.  We also discovered Alex has made the move to borderline urbandom – a Thai restaurant his mysteriously appeared in town (in the old Butler’s Pantry building in Willow Creek).  We have yet to dine there though – but we discovered a real deal (?) on pizza!

Meanwhile, back at the Alexandria music scene.  Spencer Christensen, of Funky Gumbo and recent high school graduation fame, turned 19.  He played at SAWA that night with Funky Gumbo, while his mom, Jo, expressed a certain . . . um, curiosity about the follicly challenged.

And Sue Elliot submitted the following Patchouli video from Bryant Square in Minneapolis on July 12 (and the subsequent photos as well).  Patchouli will be playing at Carlos Creek Winery tomorrow and at Art in the Park over the weekend.

 http://www.youtube.com:80/watch?v=_iENU0XBP34&feature=email

From Mary Lou Thunselle:  Our last performance–our “swan song.”  Should be a hoot!!   The Hot Dishes final performance will be Saturday, August 20, 7:30, at the Phoenix Events Center.

Finally, we get back to our roots.  The staff photographer submitted hundreds more soccer photos from the Eden Prairie tournament.  We led off this blog with a Super Fan favorite from the hockey team, Claire Illies, “the world’s toughest 80-pounder” – besides, it’s just a wonderful photograph of athleticism. Then, as if kismet, Claire received Echo Press coverage in the following article:

http://www.echopress.com/event/article/id/86647/group/Life/

From the photographer:

Hi Tom,

The girls did excellent!  They tied for first in points and took second in a tie breaker, but they actually beat the 1^st team 1 to 0.  This weekend I watched 3 games so now I’ve watched a total of 4 ½ games.  I’m a long way from understanding what is going on.

~ Greg

[Lauren Trumm (15) and Joie Warnes (19)]

[We began with Claire (2), it’s fitting we end with her.]

“And, sure, . . . our daughters have turned into daddy’s girls who play guy-style sports . . .”  [“It’s totally a guy thing,” Peter Mandel (Minneapolis StarTribune, July 27, 2011)]

Up next:  The Biddies take a road trip