The ***OFFICIAL*** Weekend Singles' Thread -- (June 23rd to 25th)

FreeRepublic | June 23, 2006 | Victoria Delsoul & Alberta's Child

[Alberta's Child]

As June draws to a close and we enjoy the first weekend of the Summer of 2006, let's go back and remember some of the marvelous places we've been in summers past -- especially those times from yesteryear that still evoke fond memories of sights, sounds, and smells from places all across this great land of ours.

Hope you can all find time to post some wonderful stories, photos, and music here on this weekend's thread! Victoria Delsoul and I will be serving as your hosts this weekend. Check out the descriptions and photos below from a few of my favorite corners of the world -- some beautiful places from the great American outdoors.

And thank God for summertime!

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Adirondack Mountains (upstate New York)

The Adirondack Mountains are part of the Appalachian Mountain chain in the eastern United States, covering a large region in upstate New York bordered by Lake Ontario on the west, Lake Champlain and the Hudson River valley on the east, and the Mohawk River valley to the south. Much of this region is currently incorporated in Adirondack Park, an area covering more than six million acres -- the largest state park in the U.S. outside Alaska, and larger than Yellowstone, Everglades, Glacier, and Grand Canyon National Parks combined. The park is unique in the U.S. in that it was originally created in 1892 through an act of the New York legislature, but was forever etched into the character of the state at the 1894 Constitutional Convention when the protection of the park was written into the new state constitution.

The park is dominated by dense forests, numerous lakes, and rugged mountain terrain -- particularly in its northernmost reaches in Essex County in an area known as the High Peaks region. The High Peaks are home to the tallest mountains in the Adirondacks, including Mount Marcy -- whose peak is the highest elevation in the state of New York at 5,344 feet. Three thousand lakes dot the landscape of the Adirondacks, and 36,000 miles of rivers and streams drain the region encompassed by the park boundaries.

One of the most popular destinations in the Adirondacks is the mountain resort village of Lake Placid, which hosted the 1932 and 1980 Winter Olympics and is currently the site of several U.S. Olympic training facilities. The village still retains much of its Olympic aura from 1980. The arena where the U.S. hockey team won the gold medal in its magical, improbable ten-day run still stands in the center of town, along with the outdoor speedskating oval where Eric Heiden won an unprecedented (and never equaled) five gold medals in a single Winter Olympics. The surrounding mountain terrain is home not only to Mount Marcy, but also the Olympic venues at Whiteface Mountain (alpine skiing) and Mount Van Hoevenberg (Nordic skiing). The pleasant summer climate makes for an ideal summer vacation, and the region’s elevation and location downwind of the Great Lakes provides heavy snowfall that has made it one of the top ski resorts in the eastern U.S.

Whiteface Mountain

Winter in the Adirondacks

Lake Placid Village

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Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (northern Minnesota)

Located within Lake Superior National Forest in northern Minnesota, the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) is a heavily forested region along the Canadian border. The wilderness covers more than one million acres and has 1,200 miles of canoe routes among its hundreds of lakes, rivers and streams. As with most of the designated wilderness areas managed by the U.S. Forest Service, the area can only be entered with a Forest Service permit and is governed by very stringent regulations that prohibit all motorized vehicle access and limit the impact of visitors on the pristine wilderness through restrictions on the type of camping equipment that can be brought into the area (no plastic or glass containers, for example).

The BWCA is one part of a larger region of protected public lands along the Minnesota-Ontario border, including Voyageurs National Park to the west and Quetico Provincial Park in Ontario to the north. This region, which stretches from International Falls in the west to the shore of Lake Superior in the east, covers almost half the length of Minnesota’s northern border and is often referred to in general as the Quetico-Superior region, or simply the Boundary Waters. The area is separated into two parts by the Laurentian Divide, which marks the border between the watersheds of the Atlantic (via the Great Lakes) and Arctic (via Hudson Bay) Oceans and is one of the defining geological features of North America. The famous Iron Range -- which is actually three distinct ridges that run across northern Minnesota in an east-west direction -- is often defined as the southern border of the Boundary Waters region. Summers in this area are usually pleasant, but the winters are often brutally cold. Towns like International Falls, Crane Lake, Tower, Ely, Embarrass, Babbitt and Isabella -- which lie along the southern edge of the Boundary Waters -- are usually among the coldest places in the lower 48 states in the winter months.

A typical foray into the Boundary Waters can be arranged through one of the many outfitters in these small towns along its perimeter, where a visitor can buy or rent just about anything one would need on a trip lasting anywhere from two days to two months. Canoes are the most popular means of travel, though backcountry hiking is also common. The summer months are busiest for these outfitters, but many of them operate throughout the year by outfitting snowshoe treks and even dogsled expeditions in the vast frozen wilderness during the winter. Visitors to this great wilderness can be sure to find plenty of the peaceful stillness that is typical of the North Country. Summer days are usually mild and nights can be cool. The lakes tend to be somewhat rougher in the daytime, but a long day of paddling is almost always rewarded in the evening by some of the most beautiful natural features in North America: calm, mirror-like lakes, the occasional howl of a wolf, and one of the most magnificent sounds of the natural world . . . the eerie, haunting cries and yodels of the common loon in the gathering dusk.

End of the Day

Twilight on the Lake

The Cry of the Loon

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Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness (Idaho/Montana)

The Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness is one of several large protected areas that straddle the Bitterroot Range of the Rocky Mountains along the Idaho-Montana border. At a size of about 1.3 million acres, the Selway-Bitterroot is one of the largest designated wilderness areas in the U.S. It includes parts of the Bitterroot, Clearwater, Nez Perce and Lolo National Forests, and is bordered to the south by the Frank Church/River of No Return Wilderness Area. The total size of the protected regions in this area of the Rocky Mountains exceeds five million acres.

The Bitterroot Range is part of a curious anomaly in American geography and history. The border between Idaho and Montana was originally defined as the length of the Continental Divide (which separates the Atlantic and Pacific watersheds in North America) through this area. However, early surveyors tasked with laying out this border mistakenly believed that the Divide was marked by the ridges and peaks of the Bitterroots. The Divide actually follows the Flathead and Anaconda Ranges further to the east. So the large section of western Montana that lies east of the Bitterroot Range and includes the small cities of Kalispell and Missoula should have been part of Idaho!

Perhaps this mistake by these surveyors is understandable, for the Bitterroots are often described as one of the more inhospitable mountain ranges in the U.S. outside of Alaska. Lewis and Clark made note of the difficulties they had crossing these mountains, and today they are marked by barren rock walls that drop from the jagged peaks to the pine forests in the valleys below. The headwaters of the Clearwater River are located in the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness, where it flows from the confluence of the Selway and Lochsa Rivers westward to the Snake River near Lewiston, Idaho. The Wilderness is home to large herds of elk and plenty of bighorn sheep, and is one of the areas where packs of the grey wolf are being reintroduced to the wilds of the West.

Sunrise in the Bitterroots

Trapper Peak

The Selway River

[Victoria Delsoul]

He's a funny guy.

Night, P!

[pcottraux]

Hey! Where's my birthday kiss????

[pcottraux]

Oh, well. Guess I'll have to wait till tomorrow.

[scott7278]

It's kind of weird we're talking about Weird Al -- early this morning, I made a food run to Taco Bell and someone ordered a Nachos Grande. The song "Taco Grande" came to mind and I was singing it on the way there.

I also love the song "You Don't Love Me Anymore," especially the line about the elevator shaft.

[scott7278]

http://music.yahoo.com/vid-2149223-You-Don't-Love-Me-Anymore

For you.

[Army Air Corps]

G'night and victory on the morrow!

[Alberta's Child]

So long, Victoria. Good luck tomorrow!

[DollyCali]

On this Lord’s Day
May your waters be still
Your sky be blue
And You life have joy.

[The Mayor]

June 25, 2006

Tug-Of-War

READ: Philippians 2:1-4; 4:1-3

Fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. —Philippians 2:2

A college in our area has an interesting annual rite—a tug-of-war. Two teams train and prepare to pull together on their end of the rope to win the competition, hoping to avoid the mud-pit between the teams and gain campus bragging rights for another year. For a fun competition, it can become intense.

As believers in Jesus, we often face the challenge of learning how to pull together. Self-interest, personal agendas, and power struggles get in the way of genuine ministry and hinder the work of Christ.

Such was the case in Paul’s letter to the Philippians, where he had to plead with Euodia and Syntyche to “be of the same mind” (4:2). Their personal friction created a roadblock to their spiritual service, and their “tug-of-war” was harming the life of the church.

Paul’s appeal was for them to pull together and work for the honor of the Master. It is an appeal that serves us well today. When we feel distanced from our fellow believers, we must look for the common ground we have in the Savior.

Church is no place for a tug-of-war. It’s imperative that we work together for the advancement of God’s kingdom. He can use us in wonderful ways when we lay aside our personal differences and pull together on the rope. —Bill Crowder

I pray, O Lord, reveal to me
If I have caused disunity,
For You would have Your children one
In praise and love for Your dear Son.  —Branon

A believer at war with another Christian cannot be at peace with the Father.

Bible in One Year: Bible in One Year:   Job 3-4; Acts 7:44-60

[Nowhere Man]

The interesting thing about Jimmy Buffett is that his songs that are most popular among those "Parrotheads" are his worst songs. I was shocked the first time I heard a few of his more obscure tunes . . . I never would have guessed they were Jimmy Buffett tunes if I didn't recognize his voice.

How did Jimy Buffett fans get to be called "Parrotheads?"

[Nowhere Man]

I figure I'd issue a conditon report on all my cats. Everyone is doing fine, Boo is doing very well and his hair on his front legs is growning back so he is losing the French poodle look. Pansy had to go to the vets last Thursday night because her allergies were acting up and she was getting stuffed in the nose. Because of that, her sense of smell is affect and so would her eating. She did lose 5.5 ounces. She is a tiny cat, but went from 5 lbs, 8 oz to 5 lbs 13.5 oz but she is back to the former. Well since she is on meds to clear her up, it seems like she is starting to eat like a pig so she will be putting on weight again soon. We do have to watch her since she is under control for a thyroid condition as well as her age since sh will be 19 in August. She is still very playful.

[Rca2000]

My, how the tables turn sometimes!!!

Last year, about this time, and a bit after, you all recall me saying how My cousin Brenda and me were not getting along. I spoke about how she made fun of my nerves and coughing, and made comments to me and to my sister, repeatedly, about how no woman would put up with me, and I would not last long on a date and such. She also told me I made her sick, when I was around her.

At the time, she was still in the habit of spending 200-500 on ONE outfit, and leaving 10-20 for tips at restaurants. She made fun of my mother and sister for shopping at Kmarts, and such--she preferred Cachets and Bebe.

That was THEN....... THIS IS NOW!!!!!!

Her and My sister Lisa are leaving tomorrow for their vacation. THIS time it was BRENDA who is having a problem paying for it!! In fact- I LENT HER $250, myself-- so she would have enough money!!

It is ironic, that only 3-5 years ago, she was spending 1-5 THOUSAND on jewelry, having dinners that cost JUST HER over $80, and buying all of those expensive clothes.

Now, she wishes she could go back, and "undo all of that".

So.... You all may ask---"WHY did I lend her that money", when only a few months ago, she was pounding on me the way she was emotionally??

I guess I am just an old softie.........I am good at repaying someones bad deeds toward me..with kindness and compassion.

And I COULD have made fun of her situation-- and I have EVERY RIGHT to do so!! I could had said something like"" well-- look who is having problems with money", or "the little princess has lost her kingdom", or even-"see, if you hadn't wasted all of that money, all of those years--you would have some today"!!

But I just don't do things that way.

I guess I am from the "kill them with kindness" school.and feel that it is NOT the right thing to "kick her when she is down".........All that would probably do is cause her to have a nervous breakdown, and I do NOT want to see that!!

She has been treating me better, lately anyway.. well before I promised to lend her the money....

[Alberta's Child]

Belated Sunday evening ping!

[pcottraux]

Hello.

[rzeznikj at stout]

what's happening?

[pcottraux]

Nothing much, nothing much.

[rzeznikj at stout]

Same here...

[pcottraux]

I slept in this morning. I was supposed to get up and go to church like every Sunday I have off, but I didn't even wake up this morning.

[Alberta's Child]

Howdy!

[rzeznikj at stout]

Went to church, then drove up north with my old man.

Unfortunately, the tranny on the van went kaput in Portage...:|