Today, we celebrated Justin's 22nd birthday in Whitewater, Wisconsin. We adopted Justin from South Korea--just a few days before his first birthday celebration.
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| Always a messy eater |
First, we opened presents.
Then we had a drink at the bar.
After Justin's caregiver arrived, we all sat down at the hibachi grill. Our chef put on a good show, and the food was delicious.
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| Jesse, Julia and Justin |
From September 2021
After returning from the Upper Peninsula in August, I spent a quiet September close to home. Julia went to San Francisco to visit Allie for a couple of weeks. They traveled down to the central California coast and had a great time. I stayed at home because Justin's caregiving situation at college was falling apart. We anticipated Justin moving back home.
However, Justin showed independence by unexpectedly refusing to come home from college, even when it appeared that he did not have adequate caregiver coverage. Somehow, he made it work and took it a step further by deciding to come home less often. This new development has continued to the present.
The two caregivers that Justin employs are very responsible and have been with him for awhile now. They are both much closer to his age than us and also apparently less judgey and nagging. Justin's college career is on the slow track (one course per semester), but dormitory living offers a chance to live his own adult life in a highly accessible, single dorm room with automated doors, lights and devices. He also has a great internet and cable tv package, which is important to him. Most people live in a dorm room to go to college. Justin goes to college to live in a dorm room.
It took awhile for us to come to terms with this. Financially, this can work as long as Justin gets good enough grades to stay in school. We set money aside for Allie and Justin's college tuition. Justin is going to take a lot longer to go through his. He easily qualifies for full SSI, which pays for his dorm room.
We continue to talk by phone most days, but Justin prefers that our visits be on campus.
In fact, tomorrow is Justin's 22nd birthday. With Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, every birthday at this point is a milestone. Justin requested a Japanese steakhouse dinner, so we will jump to the present tomorrow or the next day with a photo or two from his birthday celebration.
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| Hiking last week with Justin on the campus nature trail |
From August 2021
Back in south-central Wisconsin, temperatures were in the 90's. On the
north shore of Michigan's Upper Peninsula, it was just cool enough to
enjoy a fire in the late afternoon.
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| Ontonagon River |
The skies were rarely sunny, and several storms passed through during my week here.
I will definitely be back. It was the perfect end-of-summer getaway.
From August 2021
The township of Ontonagon, Michigan is about 1500 people. The people are an interesting sort. Winters are long here, and you have to be tough to live here.
While there is some great hiking in the nearby Porcupine Mountain State Park, I've hiked there many times before. I've never stayed in Ontanogon. During my week at the campground, I took daily walks along Lakeshore Drive to the other side of Ontonagon, which totaled 5-8 miles per day.
This town leans heavily red, and some people have misgivings about the new administration.
Summers are brief in this part of the country, making each sunset like this especially sweet.
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August 2021
I had eyes on this specific campground when UP trip was planned. As previous posts have mentioned, it is extremely difficult to find campsites on the the Great Lakes on weekends without reservations made far in advance.
Ontonagon Township is a weird exception. There is a method available here to score a prime site on the lake, but it requires some luck and planning. Technically, the campground is first come, first serve. The web site suggests calling ahead and getting on the list for that day's openings.
I guessed that on Monday, August 23rd, some of the weekenders would be leaving. I tried calling, but the phone kept going to the answering machine. So I took a chance, hitched up the Scamp and threw myself at the mercy of the staff, more or less.
The guy in charge asked if I was on the phone list, and I replied that I wasn't able to get through. He noticed that I was wearing a Packers t-shirt, and he was a fan. He told me that the switchover would be happening later that morning, and he was pretty sure that a site would be available for me if I stuck around.
Switchover happens at 11 a.m. The campground is typically full every night, but if anyone leaves, those sites are available as an upgrade to anyone with a current site looking for improvement. People on the waiting list can then get into the less desirable campsites that were now open from people upgrading. The key is getting into any site. Once you are "in there", you can stay for at least 9 days.
The prize here is a campsite directly on Lake Superior. There are new premium 50 amp sites which are huge, modern concrete slabs that have 16 day limits. There are smaller, more rustic, 30 amp sites on dirt/sand that have 9 day limits and cheaper rates.
At 11 a.m., about a half dozen people on the upgrade list gathered around to scoop up any newly open lakefront sites. Four sites became available, and those campers scurried back to begin changing sites.
Even though I wasn't on the phone list, I was physically there, so the guy in charge let me have my choice of the four sites. It was nothing special. I was on the other side of the road from the lake in a long narrow site with 30 amp electric. But I was in the campground, could stay for the next 9 days and was on the upgrade list.
On the next morning, it was overcast and drizzling. Only a few of us were present wanting to upgrade, and four sites on the lake opened up. I had a choice of a premium site or a rustic site. From my perspective, there was only one choice.
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| Best campsite of the trip |
From August 2021
I was at the L'Anse Township Park because it was the only place that I could get a last minute reservations for the weekend of August 20th. I found many uncrowded places to hang out during the day in the L'Anse area.
Blueberries were in season. These were picked from a lady's backyard that morning and sold from her driveway. The maple syrup had the finest provenance.
My campsite was not one of those uncrowded spaces.
I had a better plan for the next week at a campground that probably has the strangest system for securing a campsite that I've ever encountered. In my case, it worked out rather well and was the highlight of this trip. Sometimes, good things do come to those who wait.
I finished up my labs, tests, and doctor's appointment. The coronary artery calcium test (CAC) came back at 130 (a non-negative result ...
