Gather 'round…
Welcome! Tucked happily into the gorgeous hills and woods of Wisconsin, I write about life, faith, and the humor that both require. I spend most of my time homeschooling my kiddos, reading and writing in the space between. Pull up a cup of cocoa and stay a while!
Boundary Waters 2020 Put-In is less than 3 weeks away. It'll be a small party this year, the hubs and I and the youngest two goombahs, Will and Sarah. We'll mostly be covering territory we've traveled before. Nothing overly exciting. I won't even try to express how much I'm looking forward to it. What with... Continue Reading →
The catbird seat has been ejected. The might Yukon and the big heave After the looting, there was little to prevent us from ripping that baby out, and this morning, the man hooked up the chains and gave her a few good snaps. Easy peasy. The million pound root ball is still mid-yard, angsting him,... Continue Reading →
Dropped my phone in the toilet this morning. I’d have taken a picture, but this seemed a grossly ineffective use of my time. Also, a logistical conundrum considering the camera itself was in the toilet. This pretty much ties up my week. An appropriately shaded ribbon on the package of the past handful of days.... Continue Reading →
We'll call it an incident. I suppose we could call it aging. Or stupidity. But we're going to go with an incident. It started with that damned cardboard. I've always known my fingers were bulls-eyes for arthritis. My childhood is pocked with memories of my mom's engorged knuckles and all the digital calisthenics employed to... Continue Reading →
I like to think that Einstein sometimes had trouble estimating his bill at the grocery store. That Carl Sagan counted out the Seven Sisters and occasionally came up with eight. That Feynman, every once in a while, misplaced a decimal and ordered up a thirty-egg omelet. I, for one, brilliant astrophysicist that I am, pride... Continue Reading →
Let’s start with the biggest question on everyone’s minds. The moles are still tunneling. I don’t want to talk about it. Sunrise On Heave, circa 2020 On a more positive springtime note, the birds are going wild out there. The Robin is busy setting up camp high in the maple outside my bedroom window. An... Continue Reading →
The rains are here this morning. Somehow this is perfect. There is a certain urgency I have in spring when the sun emerges and the weather is warm enough to just sit in that sun and read a book. There is something inside that scolds me if I’m not taking advantage of as much of... Continue Reading →
In an effort to keep y'all apprised of the mole and mower sitchee-ation... A Brief State of the Homestead Address: In the days following the discovery of the mole invasion whilst atop the crippled lawn mower, progress has been made on many fronts. The girls did some raking early on in the week, and took... Continue Reading →
The moles are working overtime these days. It is spring, the temporal realm of the mole, and they have--apparently--declared this the year to finally decimate the Ottinger Homestead once and for all. Sound Familiar? Well, sure it does... I went out yesterday, to stomp down the run that I shaved off the day before when... Continue Reading →
Snow shadows from the Hoffman Hills Tower yesterday March 24Even in the DarkTo be broken is no reasonto see all things as brokenSeldom seen, growing along the ocean floor, the white plumed anemone is a watery blossom. It is white lace opening under tons of black, opening as if bathed in the sun, while so... Continue Reading →
The robins are singing again. I can't be sure that it's Julio I'm hearing out there, but whoever it is, they're greeting me through closed windows each morning, and I've missed them. As I've explored before--you know, a few times--I am slightly more dependent than the average bear on the changing seasons for my well-being.... Continue Reading →
I spent an undisclosed amount of time in front of the mirror the other morning, blowing on my finger. Like a fool. You see, in the days prior, I was pushed to the edge in a minor candle fiasco, and--I have to believe--the involuntary training session in the mirror that morning was a direct result... Continue Reading →
![[Way Back Wednesday] A confession...](https://kjottinger.files.wordpress.com/2019/12/a-confession....jpg?resize=40%2C40){kind=small}
