Three years ago, we took our first family vacation to Lake Michigan. It was the fateful trip that launched my 1,000 Days of Haiku project. We missed last year due to the arrival of Veronica. This year, though, we were all back together.

We shared the week in the same house as last time. There’s something special about returning to the same vacation spot. I knew going into the week the layout, features, and what I wanted to enjoy.

We slept with the windows open almost every night. I went to bed looking at Lake Michigan in the evening twilight. I usually woke up to the first light of the day and the sound of waves crashing on the shore.

The weather was excellent, cool, and breezy. We had some passing rain showers, but just enough to encourage us to enjoy some local indoor spots. I had breakfast with Benedict, coffee with Felicity at a bookshop, and took Lucy on a shopping run. The best destination of the week was a new bakery in town.

We started the week with just the grandparents, followed soon thereafter by the aunts and uncles. Everyone made it together, even if it was only for a day. The kids spent hours floating on the lake with Grandpa and uncles, riding along on the kayaks and paddle boards.

A new find this year was a small creek just a couple of hundred yards from our beachfront. Benedict really enjoyed molding the sand to redirect the water.

Time passed at just the right speed, a relaxing pace. I was able to work extensively on my latest project. I blogged and recorded the entire week on my website. It’ll be a wonderful, enduring memory for me to come back to again and again.

My big fun for the week came in the form of my Small Unmanned Aerial System. I captured incredible footage of rolling waves, kayaks moving, kids walking on the beach, and kites flying. My most daring flights took me just inches above the lake’s surface, but I managed to recover the drone after every flight. All of this fun made for some great home movies. I’m ready to upgrade my drone, and to tie in drone footage with the incredible video that my iPhone can capture.

Our end of week activity was a sunset fire on the beach with s’mores. I managed to get the fire going, my first in at least five years. Some skills just don’t fade. It was a great capstone for us.

The vacation is over, but like last time, we’re counting down the days until we do it again.

Wet welcome.

⛈

Satan Confirms Hell Only Serves Pepsi Products - The Babylon Bee

As one new entrant to Hell arrived, he exclaimed in horror, “AGH, IT’S SO HOT AND MY TONGUE IS ON FIRE, COULD I PLEASE GET A COKE!?” “Sorry,” said a demon on the wait staff, “we only serve Pepsi.” The lost soul sighed and said, “Never mind, I’ll just burn.”

Ready to get home.

🏡

Time to start the long journey home.

🛣

Until next time.

🏖

Winding down.

Saturday at the Lake.

Cities Try to Phase Out Gas Stoves—but Cooks Are Pushing Back - WSJ

“But to say that an electric stove is as good as a gas one is misunderstanding the art of cooking.”

Yes.

Fire on the beach.

Quiet morning.

Vacation makes for interesting blogging.

Perhaps I’ll work a bit more on making my day-to-day blogging more interesting, too.

Goodnight, folks!

Child Tax Credit Payments Totaling $15 Billion Arrive for Millions of Americans - WSJ

“We are trusting these families. We provide the dollars,” said Sen. Sherrod Brown (D., Ohio).

“Just so we’re clear, Senator, we provide the dollars.” - Every Taxpayer

But loading benefits into the tax code typically means distributing them through the annual tax refund. Many households use those refunds to make major purchases or pay off debt, and families often plan their budgets around them.

And boy will that suprise smaller refund, or in many cases a tax bill, take the shine off of these fake gifts.

“The hope would be that there would be less need to have so much debt over the course of the year.”

Hope is nice. The more likely scenario is that these dollars will go to an increase in consumption.

The weather this week is fantastic! A few passing showers here and there, but nothing close to the washout that the forecast called. Last night, heavy rains moved through the region and stirred up the lake.

We kept the windows open while all the weather and wind moved around us. I woke up in the middle of the night to the sound of heavy rains falling on the house, roof, and deck. This morning, I awoke to the rough waves and melodic sound of them crashing on the shore.

I was going to get out of bed early to drink coffee and read the paper before the children woke up. Instead, with the incredible view out the window along with the soothing sounds, I just laid there and enjoyed it.

Flying kites.

🪁

Finally getting around to developing a Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.

So boring!

Storm brewing.

⛈

I bought my first drone last summer. I was last in the cockpit of an airplane more than two years ago, and this seemed like the perfect hobby for me. Not only that, but I use my technical skills to proficiently operate the Small Unmanned Aerial System (sUAS). Although I’m not up in the air, I get all the joy of maneuvering an aircraft.

I thought that I’d fly more often, but I haven’t. I went up to take pictures after the big snowfalls and even just goofing around in the backyard with the kids. There is a bit of effort required to get the right weather and the equipment pulled out, preflighted, and launched.

Flying for sport is fun, but the real magic happens when recording video and taking photos. There’s something about the shift in perspective that comes from a picture taken even at just 50’ above the surface.

I was sure to pack the drone on our trip to Lake Michigan this week. It was my first time flying out over the water, but my flight experience gave me confidence. On the first night at the beach, I stood on the deck of the beach house and flew the drone down the bluff and out over the lake to capture the sunset. That was cool.

The next day, we had the kayaks out. I went down to the beach, took precautions to avoid incursions with sand, and launched from the shore. I flew 12-18 inches above the surface, close enough to see the prop wash making ripples on the surface. I even managed to avoid controlled flight into terrain while getting some great action shots on the water.

Drone technology is really cool, enabling pilots of all proficiencies to capture dramatic footage worthy of a motion picture. I’m glad that I made the investment. My summer film reels are spectacular!

The only problem is now I’m ready for a bigger drone with a better camera.

Afternoon work station.

👨🏻‍💻

Colorful close.