Category Archives: Fun

Christmas Card 2011

Each year I make a Christmas card for my parents. They let us kids make the family card when we were growing up, and I continue to do this largely because I have fun making these cards. (Also, they keep using my cards. I’d probably still make the cards even if they didn’t use them, but it’s an extra bit of motivation.) If you’re not familiar with my previous cards, here’s the lineup:

A Nutritious Christmas (2007)
A Prescription for Christmas (2008)
Searching for Christmas (2009)
Garage Sale Christmas (2010)

If you’re fascinated by what clearly are the greatest Christmas cards ever created, you can purchase them here.

Now, with further adon’t…here’s the 2011 Stronghold Christmas card.

Front:

Inside:

Albuquerqation: Snakes, rocks and curies

Before we get into the attractions listed in the title, I have a couple trip notes.

First: this is what we did nearly every evening.

That’s a custom version of the game Settlers of Catan that a friend of mine made for another friend of mine. (He was generous enough to let me take it on the trip.) We played it nearly every night…and I didn’t win a single game. I came close once, but I was thwarted by a lethal combination of the longest road card, the largest army card, and a victory point card.

Second: this was the weather while we were there.

It was nice. I think I’d get tired of it after a while, but I enjoyed it for a week.

On to the next section of the trip!

One day we headed to Albuquerque’s Old Town to enjoy the historic ambience. We also happened to make a visit to the rattlesnake museum. If you don’t believe me, ask this guy.

Once we finished our deeply intellectual conversations with the snakes, we headed out to the Petroglyph National Monument. There, we were warned to keep an eye out for more snakes.

Apparently some snakes must have escaped from the museum or something.

Having been properly warned, we headed up the hill.

As we ascended, we began to find views of the sprawling city of Albuquerque. I think there are maybe three buildings over two stories. Maybe. (I suspect at least one of those buildings is just an optical illusion.) As a result, the city just keeps going and going.

Also interesting: as you can see in that photo, a newer housing development runs right up next to the Petroglyph National Monument. For the people who live in the houses, that’s an impressive back yard. For the monument itself…well, I don’t know. That doesn’t really seem like the greatest idea. Maybe it’s time to get crazy and build some three-story buildings or something, Albuquerque.

Here’s another look at the city. This gives a better idea of just how close those houses come to the park land.

The mountains beyond the city will show up in a future post. Yes, you should be excited about that. Mountains are awesome. And I mean awesome in the classic sense of the word. Mountains have some awe!

The trail on this particular hill proved to be more rugged than I expected, and since I don’t have a strap on my camera, my brother offered to carry it so I could have my hands free to keep myself from tumbling down the hill. Given means, motive and opportunity, my brother took a few photos. (Since my brother is a lawyer, I figured I had to break out all that fancy lingo I learned from shows like Matlock, Quincy M.E., and Psych. Objection! Overruled, counselor. APPROACH THE BENCH.)

Look at me, all mountain climbing and stuff. I know technically there was a “trail” to make my ascent “easier” and the “hill” was relatively “small” and the “trail” didn’t actually go all the way to the “top,” but let’s not quibble over minor details. I totally conquered that thing.

At one point on the trail my nephew needed to take a break, so my brother stopped with him. Since he still had my camera, he took another photo.

Our adventures that day ended at a delicious Mexican restaurant called Garduno’s.

—

Hey, did you know there’s a National Musem of Nuclear Science & History? (BEST SLOGAN EVER: “Reactions welcome.”) And did you know it’s in Albuquerque? I didn’t before, but now I do! I know this because we visited the museum.

Some of you might be wondering just how interesting that museum could be. Let me tell you: it’s fascinating. If you’re ever in the ABQ area, go visit the museum.

If my plug wasn’t enough to convince you, let me show you the floor just inside the front doors:

I have absolutely no idea how The Greatest Floor In The History Of The World couldn’t be enough to entice you to visit the museum. But if it’s not, here’s what they have behind the museum:

Also, there are a few airplanes and other pieces of military machinery to ogle.

I’m a sucker for ridiculous souvenirs that weren’t originally intended to be souvenirs, and the museum’s gift shop offered perhaps the ultimate such repurposed object:

Yes, I bought that from the museum gift shop. It’s sitting next to me right now. And if I put batteries in it, I bet it would start clicking like a tribesman in The Gods Must Be Crazy if I put it next to Jim Tressel’s resume right now. (What’s that? You’ve never seen The Gods Must Be Crazy? GO WATCH IT. WATCH IT NOW.)

That’s it for this post. Tune in next time for a fuzzy judge and a mountain.

Albuquerqation: Been a long drive, been a long drive

Recently I visited my brother in Albuquerque, a city whose name I wasn’t really sure how to spell until…just recently. I did take some photos with my serious camera, but I didn’t take too many because I was, you know, on vacation and all. But I did make good use of my iPhone.

Rather than endure airports and airplanes and all that nonsense, we decided to enjoy more of this grand nation by driving from the Mitten to the…uh…Big Square With A Growth. This would involve two days of driving rather than a few hours of flying, but it would also involve 100% fewer security checkpoints and significantly more personal space during the trip.

However, there was one significant drawback:

That’s when we started driving. That means I had to be out of bed when the time started with a 5 and ended with an a.m. That’s disgusting. I might dislike early mornings more than I dislike weddings. If you know me at all, you know that’s really saying something. If you’re not sleeping in the early morning hours, you’re doing it all wrong. I was doing it all wrong that morning.

The morning was uneventful, largely because I managed to spend several hours sleeping. When it was time for lunch, we happened upon some of the most refreshing refreshment known to man:

If you haven’t had A&W root beer in a frosty mug, you haven’t lived.

Some time later, we saw America’s largest magnet, on loan from Chuck Norris.

I don’t know what it’s stuck to, but it’s stuck there until Chuck Norris decides he wants it back.

Midway through Missouri, we stopped for gas at a truck stop in Cuba, MO. What does the truck stop in Cuba, MO sell?

That’s right: the truck stop in Cuba, MO sells cigars. They’re Cuban, but they’re not Cuban.

The truck stop also sold something very familiar to many of us from southeastern Michigan:

Those are Uncle Ray’s potato chips, straight from Detroit. I didn’t buy one to see if it came with free marijuana inside — seriously, click that link — but it was nice to see a Michigan product on the shelves.

We stopped for the night in Joplin. When we got on the road again (FAR TOO EARLY) the next morning, the world around us had vanished.

The world reappeared shortly after we crossed into Texas. That must mean something.

The rest of that day was uneventful until, at a gas station in Texas, I saw one of the wordiest warning signs ever created.

If you’re on a mobile device or something and the sign is too small to read, here’s the full text:

UNAUTHORIZED VEHICLES PARKED IN DESIGNATED ACCESSIBLE SPACES NOT DISPLAYING DISTINGUISHING PLACARDS OR SPECIAL LICENSE PLATES ISSUED FOR PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES WILL BE FINED MINIMUM $250

Many Blue Wheelchair Man signs don’t even have warning signs anymore, probably because nearly everybody knows what they mean. Even if they do have warning signs, they’re typically small signs that list the minimum fine associated with the offense. But this sign? Oh, this sign left nothing to chance, which is why the warning sign is larger than the Blue Wheelchair Man sign it’s accompanying!

In an effort to encourage efficient communication, I have a suggestion for a superior warning sign. Instead of using so many words, how about this brief but informative message:

NO PERMIT, NO PARKING
YOU PARK WITHOUT PERMIT, YOU PAY [amount]

If that’s still too long, here’s an even more succinct message:

NOT A CRIPPLE? PARK ELSEWHERE OR PAY UP

Anyway. That was the last photo-worthy sight I saw before we made it to Albuquerque that evening. The next post will feature pictures of snakes and rocks and other charming Southwestern things.

Photo of the Irish Hills Scenery Now: 12 October 2011

In an effort to catch a little bit of fall color, my parents and I visited Hidden Lake Gardens, a botanical gardens and arboretum in the Irish Hills. It was still warm, so the colors were a bit sparse. Still, the scenery was beautiful.

We decided to explore one of the trails. While on that trail, we found the most obvious sign in the whole county.

I was hoping to find another sign in the middle of a field somewhere saying “NOT A ROAD”.

The colors may have been a bit sparse, but there were plenty of leaves.

Some of them were even colorful!

The birch trees were still plenty white, though.

Elsewhere in the gardens is one of my favorite trees.

Sure, it may not look like much from the outside. But wait until you get inside!

There’s only one problem with this tree: people seem to think it’s a good idea to carve their names or initials in the bark.

I don’t understand what’s so appealing about carving things into trees, but since so many people do it, I’m assuming there must be something fulfilling about it.

From there we went to the conservatory. The arid dome has a collection of fascinating plants.

Outside the conservatory is a bonsai collection.

We found more color back in the conservatory’s temperate house.

We also found a plant that could become violent at any moment.

I’m happy to report that it didn’t attack while I was there. (Yes, I know the military term is spelled with an e. Don’t rain on my fun.)

Back outside not far from the conservatory, there was a cluster of maple trees full of color — mostly yellow. Many of the leaves had already fallen, providing a thick, brightly-colored carpet.

There still were plenty of leaves on the tree, though, and some of them were still holding onto a bit of green.

If you’ve never been to Hidden Lake Gardens, I’d recommend a visit — it’s gorgeous. It’s relatively drab right now since it’s November, but there’s beauty in a Michigan landscape no matter the season. And if a winter landscape isn’t your thing, don’t worry: it’ll be spring soon enough.

Photo of the Chelsea Fair Kids Parade Now: 23 August 2011

The long-running much-beloved hyphenatedly-described Chelsea Community Fair is the officially unofficially official end of summer in Chelsea. It always opens during the day on Tuesday, but it doesn’t truly open until early evening, when the kids parade arrives at the fairgrounds after winding its way through the side streets of Chelsea.

The parade is led by the previous year’s fair queen.

Trailing the previous year’s queen and this year’s candidates is the middle school band.

After the band came the flood of kids. Seriously, it was a flood of kids. There were a lot of kids in the parade.

I can’t tell if he was happy to see me and waving to the camera or if he was saying “Oh, go fly a kite” and waving me away. I’m pretty sure it was the former, but…well, kids these days, right? Get off my lawn and all. (For the record: he was happily waving.)

They should make an adult version of that bike. We old folks like fun things, too!

The stream of kids seemed practically endless. That was partly because there were a lot of kids in the parade and mostly because there were even more mosquitoes out for dinner than there were kids in the parade.

I’ve long felt Barbie made it difficult for the average child to relate to her, what with her Cadillac SUV and her big dream house and whatnot. Shouldn’t there be a Studio Apartment Barbie who lives in an okay-but-not-luxurious apartment building and drives a 1998 Ford Escort with 190,000 miles on it? The whole world isn’t pink and rich, Barbie.

That child’s identity has been hidden to protect the innocent. Wait, what? You’re not buying that? Okay, fine. I didn’t notice until later that I’d timed the shot all wrong and obscured his face. But I’m including this photo to remind you that Cloudy With A Chance For Meatballs is one of the greatest kids books ever written, and that you should never ever mention the atrocity that was that awful movie by the same title. I prefer to believe the movie never existed. The book is fantastic, people. Stick with the book. Do it for the children. (Because, you know, it’s a kids book.)

When the parade arrived at the fairgrounds, there were more activities for the kids. One such activity was the trike pull.

This was just a fun not-for-competitive-profit activity, but the fair does have a competitive trike pull. I didn’t photograph it this year, so you’ll just have to show up to next year’s fair to watch it.

Stay tuned for more fair photos!

Photo of the Now: 28 January 2011

Chelsea’s two elementary schools competed in the Fruit & Veggie Challenge, each trying to eat more servings of fruits and vegetables than the other.  The conclusion of the challenge was the Wacky Winter Olympics, which brought both schools together to watch the teachers compete in a variety of odd events.

(Oh, and just FYI: hundreds of elementary school-aged kids in one small gym is hard on the ears.)


This sign isn’t referencing me.  There are other Mr. Strongs in Chelsea, you know.


What?  This is how principals dress these days.


See?


The Jiffy Redemption

During a recent viewing of the movie The Shawshank Redemption, my eagle-eyed sister made a surprising discovery.

In a scene near the end of the movie, Morgan Freeman is bagging groceries; as the camera pans, a shelf full of products is visible just beyond Freeman.  Here’s a screenshot from the scene:

See those boxes on the shelf?  If you’re from Chelsea, you may have already recognized Chelsea’s well-known export, the famous blue and white box:

It’s impossible to tell which Jiffy Mix is in the boxes, but it certainly looks like the famous blue and white boxes from Chelsea Milling Company are sharing the screen with Morgan Freeman!

A garage is just a stable for cars

Christmas is approaching, and among other far less important things, that means one sort of marginally important thing: it’s time for the 2010 Christmas card!  Without further ado — or, from another perspective, with immediate adon’t — here it is.

Front:

Inside:

Back:

If you haven’t seen the last three cards, here’s a review:
2009: Seek and ye shall find
2008: He cures what ails you
2007: We wish you a nutritious Christmas

If you’d like to send any one of those three cards to your family and friends, I have good news: you can order those cards here!  (This year’s card will be available for purchase after this Christmas.)

With apologies to Mr. Armstrong

My brother has long held the goal of completing an Ironman triathlon, and in only a few hours (at 7 a.m. on Sunday) he’ll begin the final leg of that goal when he starts the 2010 Ironman Lake Placid.

(For those of you unaware of the Ironman, it consists of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike ride and a 26.2-mile run; it began in Hawaii in 1978 after an argument about which athletes were the most fit, and it continues today as a highly reliable method of determining insanity.)

His Ironman journey began in earnest last July, when we traveled to Lake Placid to watch the 2009 race and to register him for the 2010 race.  (Ironman Lake Placid is so popular that if you don’t sign up in person, you don’t make it.)  While we were watching the race, we noticed many families and friends printed special shirts to show their support for their racers.  We all liked that idea, so we began thinking about ideas for his shirt; by the end of the day, I had an idea.

If you’ve seen my Christmas cards, you know I enjoy taking something widely-recognized and re-appropriating it for a different purpose.  When it comes to widely-recognized, few shirts can top the eye-catching LIVESTRONG shirts offered by the Lance Armstrong Foundation:

It just so happens that not only does my brother’s first name begin with an L, but his last name also begins with an S and ends with a trong, making that shirt perfect for this particular re-appropriation.  Before long, I had the shirt design ready to go:

While at Ironman Lake Placid 2009, we also noticed some families chose to add Bible verses to the back of their shirts.  The LIVESTRONG shirt has no design on the back, but it was important to both my brother and me that we include a verse as a display of our faith.  Most families used one of the same two verses: Isaiah 40:31 or Hebrews 12:1-2.  Those are both superb verses that express important Biblical truth and fit the situation, but they’re also the popular choices.  I didn’t want popular, so I mulled it over a bit and decided to use a verse that expressed important Biblical truth and fit the situation, but in a different way.  The verse I chose was Proverbs 27:17, and the back design makes it clear how it fits the situation: