RiverThoughts

It is interesting what prompts a post to this blog. I’m fairly certain that it is hardly read, other than search engine spiders, a few friends, some relatives, past and present…although none of them ever say “hey, this is great!” or “why did you SAY that!”….

tonight I was watching a marginally good movie, “Lake House”….

The plot is an exchange of letters by two inhabitants of a lake house who, evidently, were living two years out of sync…

A sub plot of the movie involved the relationship between the male character and his father…

That’s where it got interesting for me… the two of them had been estranged for a number of years.

Having never known my father (he died when I was 6 months old), the concept of reconnecting with him has been on the fringe of my imagination for a long time..

It also interfaces with the loss of my relationship with my son Sean, who died when he was 20, and my desire to continue to connect with my son Wes.

That leads, of course to the fact that I now have four step sons, all of whom are good and interesting individuals…

life is convoluted……

Huron River Net Discussion Board • View topic - Huron River Cleanup on Sat., Sept. 6…fun and prizes!
HURON RIVER CLEANUP SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 6
Sponsored by the Huron River Fly Fishing Club and the Huron-Clinton Metropolitan Authority

Please set aside this day to help the river you love to fish, and get to meet and network with fellow fisherpersons, fellow stewards of our watershed, and others who enjoy the Huron as we gather to collect trash, share some food, meet fellow fishermen, trade fishing stories and information, award prizes, and generally enjoy a late summer day together.

HERE’S HOW IT WORKS…

Pick a section of the river you want to work on. Start whenever you like, work in a team or alone, with a canoe/boat or on foot (waders generally preferred, but the river is still warm enough to wade in shorts if it’s a warm day).

Meet at the Dexter Huron Metropark at the middle Pavilion at 3:00 to deposit your trash…we’ve arranged for its disposal. Tell the gate receptionist that you are participating in Huron River Cleanup Day and you will be admitted to the park free of charge. Look for the HRFFC sign. DO NOT bring the trash any earlier than 2:00 PM; there may not be anyone from the club there yet to log your collection.

Receive a raffle ticket…all participants have an equal chance to win a fly tying lesson and flies tied by members of the Huron River Fly Fishing Club.

Food and beverages (water and soda) will be provided; bring beer if you want, and/or a dish to share. There is no charge for the food, but donations to the Huron River Fly Fishing Club to support future projects (such as the posting of the catch-and-release section of the river) will be gratefully accepted.

HELPFUL HINTS

Cleanup volunteers need to provide their own gear to collect the river trash. Some helpful items to bring along are:

Waders, canoe, kayak or rowboat.
Gloves you don’t mind getting wet/dirty.
Net with a long handle to retrieve items from the bottom.
Long handle or stick with a hook on it or a nail for spearing trash or retrieving it from the bottom.
Multi-ply trash bags (stronger than the average household use bags).
Polaroid sunglasses for spotting trash on the bottom.

HURON RIVER WATERSHED COUNCIL TO HOST

2008 STATE OF THE HURON CONFERENCE

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2008

Ann Arbor, MI, August 12, 2008 – The 2008 State of the Huron Conference, is an event that offers something for everybody – watershed residents, government officials, policy-makers, activists, planners, environmental consultants, scientists, educators, and anyone else who just wants to learn more about their watershed and get involved.

State of the Huron Conference – September 24, 2008, 8:30am to 4:00pm

Washtenaw Community College, Morris Lawrence Building,

4800 E Huron River Dr, Ann Arbor, Michigan

Learn about current conditions in your part of the watershed
Hear what is being done to protect the Huron River
Share your ideas to protect water in our communities

Keynote Speaker Herbert Dreiseitl will share his innovative thinking about water in the urban environment. Mr. Dreiseitl trained as an artist and formed his company Atelier Dreiseitl in 1980 with a goal to promote sustainable projects with a high aesthetic and social value. Internationally recognized, the group uses waterscapes and landscapes to feature stormwater as public art.

Morning and afternoon concurrent “breakout” sessions will address a variety of topics such as, vital statistics of the watershed, the Great Lakes Compact, climate change, new policy tools, stream restoration efforts, phosphorous reduction efforts, and land use land preservation tools.

Conference fees are: $35 for HRWC members; $50 for non-members; or $60 for conference and membership. Register by September 17 at www.hrwc.org.

I’m guessing that you didn’t grow up in the 60’s, and this movie might not have a lot of meaning to you…

But, for some of us, movies like “Hair”, “Easy Rider”, “M.A.S.H.” and a few others, described and defined who we were…

I give you “Hair”….enjoy…

YouTube - The River Just Knows

here’s a bit more information on this project

Daisy May Erlwine and Seth Bernard performed at the Ark on August 9th. After hearing them perform a few songs at the Jeff Daniels concert at the Michigan Theater last year, this was a must see for me.

These two young Michigan musicians perform an amazing concert that ranges from jazz to folk to blues. An added feature was the guest appearance of Peter “Mad Cat” Ruth.

I’ve written about Daisy May in the past as regards her song “Downstream”
which protests the sulfide mining proposed for the Yellow Dog Plain in the U.P. of Michigan.

The song that made me smile last night was “Big Mama Brown”, a song about fishes..

Take a listen, then go buy the C.D. “Mother Moon”

Here’s and interesting way to waste some time on a rainy day!

Sightseeing with Google Satellite Maps

An online clip about Watchmen.

Another reason to protect our wetlands!

t r u t h o u t | Wetlands Could Unleash “Carbon Bomb”
Washington - The world’s wetlands, threatened by development, dehydration and climate change, could release a planet-warming “carbon bomb” if they are destroyed, ecological scientists said on Sunday.

Wetlands contain 771 billion tons of greenhouse gases, one-fifth of all the carbon on Earth and about the same amount of carbon as is now in the atmosphere, the scientists said before an international conference linking wetlands and global warming.

If all the wetlands on the planet released the carbon they hold, it would contribute powerfully to the climate-warming greenhouse effect, said Paulo Teixeira, coordinator of the Pantanal Regional Environment Program in Brazil.

The Firetruck museum in Ypsilanti…a study in primary colors.