Hartwick Pines June 2018

Hartwick Pines has become a yearly camping tradition.  This year is different.  We scheduled this camping trip early January since it gets full so fast.  Although we have known that Vyn wanted to be at varsity band now that he is going to be in high school.  We never thought that the weeks we would pick would conflict with band schedules.

But of course out of the three vacations scheduled and booked early in the year, only one is a go without need for modification.

Hartwick Pines did not get so lucky.  Getting a refund is ridiculous since you will get charged 30% of the price paid and other fees.  So we tried to continue with the tradition.  Instead of doing camp for four days as booked the kids and I did a one night camp.  We drove up Sunday afternoon and stayed until Monday around nine in the morning.  The hubby stayed two more days.

We tried to fit in as many of our usual activities as we can while there.  We stopped by the playground and the kids played as long as they feel like.  It was one of the hottest day of this month too in the 90's and by the way, my car's ac was not working at full capacity so the drive was not a comfortable one.

Did some hiking with Bandit.

This year we got home to dry and hot temperature that slowly cools.  Last year, it was coming home to a city that was flooded.

Ludington Lakestride June 2018

This is the first time the kids and I were not able to join and watch the dad during his half marathon race.  I had to work this weekend.

Here is information of the Lakestride June 2018

As usual Ludington attempted to be the  guinness world record, this time as a single line of bicycles.  Here is an article about the attempt.

Here is the hubby's finisher medal.  He finished 6th in his age group.

Congrats on your second Ludington Half Marathon.

Bad Blood

This book is captivating.  Being a medical technologist who works in a hospital laboratory, I can't fathom the things she was able to do.  The depth she would go just to get the funding.   The things she was letting her laboratory personnel do and the deceit were unthinkable especially since her company deals with lives.  How her company lasted as long as it did was unimaginable.  Although, I already know what happened in the end and there were times when she would irritate me, I still can't stop reading the book to the end.

If you want to know about Theranos, a Silicon Valley startup, a company poised to change the medical laboratory world,  how it started, rise and fall.  This is a very good book that will keep you turning the pages.

Elizabeth Holmes was a young Stanford dropout with a great vision.  She is very charismatic and very well connected.  She was able to hire great minds from great schools and recruit people from big companies to come work for her.  Not only that, she was able to raise funds in the hundreds of millions from reputable investors.  She was on her path to become the next Steve Jobs.

People who heard her vision just poured in money after hearing her speeches.   She ran her company in deep secrecy and fear.  Different departments were not allowed to collaborate.  Obviously without teamwork and open communication within the company the goal was not met.  If you work in the healthcare laboratory field, you know the vision is just too good to be true.  But she was a great speaker who made people believe her even without visible reliable proof of anything.  

Big kudos to the writer/journalist John Carreyrou and those who helped him get the truth out.   Carreyrou did not waver and relentlessly pursue his investigation into the company against all the charming tactics, threats and lawyers Elizabeth Holmes sent his way.

Mackinac Island/Great Turtle Race 2017

The Great Turtle Race, the hubby has been running this race for years it has become one of our traditions during this time of year.  This year is also the 50th birthday of the hubby.   So instead of staying at our usual stay at Cabins of Mackinaw, we decided to splurge a little and stayed at The Grand Hotel.

Our view from Shepler's Ferry Miss Margy.

Sooooo excited!  Can't wait to see the inside.

View from our balcony.  The hotel was grand inside and out.  It was elegant, charming, very cozy and with most hospitality employees and interns being Filipinos, it is very comfortable as well.

Saturday on the day of the Turtle Run,  we expected a very windy cold and rainy day.  But fortunately, it turned out dry in the beginning and become cold and rainy when the hubby was in about 8 mile into the half marathon (13.1 Mile).

The kids and I walked  to the arch rock a few minutes ahead of the start time and waited for the runners there.

The hubby said that since the run started with the weather being so good, some of the runners started peeling off their sweaters and gloves as they run.

We climbed up the steps to the Arch.

This is our view from the top on the right.

View on the left.

The top of the steps was also the marker and water station for the last 5.2 mile of the race.

The medal for this year's race.  The hubby as usual was faster than the last turtle race and we missed seeing him finish this year.  He finished top 10 in his age group.  Congratulations to the hubby!!!  

Sunday, we decided to roam some more of the hotel inside and out.

Lyn wanted so much to ride this carriage since we got to the island on Friday but we decided to ride one on the last day.  She got her wish and more when she was allowed to ride right beside the carriage driver.  

Solar Eclipse August 21, 2017

 Thank you to my hubby's aunt Sally for sending us these solar eclipse kit.  We were able to watch the  eclipse and observe the sun, the moon and the sounds around before, during and after the eclipse 2017

When the hubby was a child, they used a home made sun viewing device using the cereal box.  The right side is cut out and replaced with an aluminum foil with a pin whole.  The middle cut out is the viewing area.  Definitely a cool way to watch the phenomenon in different perspective.

Here's a link of the solar eclipse from NASA

 We did not get the complete totality.  I saw a complete total eclipse in the Philippines in March of 1988.  We watched the eclipse using negatives.  Being in the photography business, we had a lot of negatives to pass around those who happened to walk through our store that afternoon.

Mackinaw City/Cheboygan 2017

Cheboygan State Park -  We decided to camp here because this was the closest to Mackinaw City that still have opening when we were looking to a site.

We were here in Mackinaw City for the Rendevouz in Mackinaw City.

Vyn decided to join the Tittabawassee Fife and Drum Corp the school year 2016 to 2017.  He was in 7th grade then.  He was surprised to learn at the very first meeting that there were not very many kids who joined in the corp.  My thought is that kids these days have so many other commitments.

Aside from learning about the 18th century Marine Corp.  They also learned a lot about our different flags and its evolution to the current flag.

Draw bridge in Cheboygan.

We hiked along the beach.

The weekend was just gorgeous weather wise.

We visited Cheboygan Lighthouse.  We also visited the ruins of an old lighthouse.