Auntie B's Wax

It’s November now, but the Halloween spirit is still with me.  Maybe not the “Halloween” spirit, per se (trick or treat), but the lingering sense of the spirits, the other-worldly…they linger, and remind me of what I saw on my last visit to Door County, WI.

Husby and I took a jaunt to Door County again, which is, of course, something we love to do at least once a year.  The countryside is lovely, the sea air (sans salt) is invigorating, the local food and wines are delectable no matter what the season.  However, I was a little bit creeped out when we arrived at our usual motel.  It was a scene from some Hitchcock movie.

Turkey Vultures.  At least that’s what Husby and I determined them to be.  The photo shows just a smattering of them.  Seriously, I was afraid to go out and take a picture from many yards away.  They ruled the pier and shore.  There was no way we could go out and sit on those benches to take in Lake Michigan as we normally do.  I warned Husby, “if we go out there they’ll peck our eyes out!”

At some point during our stay the vultures weren’t inhabiting the pier, so we walked out.  I, the one who points out all things creepy, noticed something we’d never noticed before.  Lots and lots of bones.  This one was laying there, right on the pier.  A miniature femur bone?  Like from a leprechaun or fairy?  Obviously it was picked clean.  And creepy.

With further investigation, as the vultures were fewer but still circling, we found more evidence of evil.

Bones everywhere!  Picked clean.  Creatures washed ashore, left to die, only to be culinary fodder for some other species.

Ah, it’s the circle of life, right?  Within two days of our stay the vultures had vanished, having gotten their fill, and Husby and I could venture out to the pier without the risk of getting our eyes pecked out.

It was creepy to me, and that’s the word I used when describing the scene to Husby.  He laughed.  He knows I have a love/hate relationship with creepy stuff.

I’m not sure what caused the fish to wash ashore in the first place.  Perhaps it was a natural thing, cyclical?  Perhaps it was a result of human interference?  The vultures got their fill of delicious Lake Michigan fish, and I got my fill of creepy.  I hope the lake is clean, and no matter how much big fish scare me, I want them to thrive in their natural habitat.

And if the fish don’t wash onto the shore I hope the vultures don’t peck my eyes out for lack of food.

Photo credit – ack, I don’t know, it was taken from the Alfred Hitchcock movie, The Birds.

Happy belated Halloween.  And always remember, natural phenomenon can be deadly.  And human interference with natural phenomenon can be catastrophic.

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Welcome to autumn.  Sure, the peak colors might be gone by now, but we’re still in between autumn and winter.  This time of year invigorates me.

As I looked out my window to the back yard I saw some wonderful colors.  By this time of year the golds and reds and oranges of the trees are fading fast, but these colors were at ground level.  Lily of the Valley remnants shown brightly in the otherwise overcast day.

Last weekend I spent time at the family cottage, closing the place down for winter.  There’s raking and cleaning and gathering to be done to tuck our little property in for the cold months ahead.  It was October 20th when we woke up to this…

In between.  Winter is coming and snow has begun to fall in some areas.  Autumn is still here with the falling leaves and crisp but not quite cold air.  In the Midwest of the United States we’re in a transition of seasons.  The change of seasons is one of the reasons I love living where I do.

The wildlife in my backyard is also getting ready for the coming winter.  A squirrel nabbed a fallen apple from the neighbor’s tree and “hid” it in the big spruce tree in our yard, ready to carry it to its nest.

I love this in between time of year.

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Thank you, Charlotte, for reminding me that three years ago today I fell in love with Cologne.

Tourists, of course.  Adolf Hitler presented one of his speeches from the balcony of this hotel.  No one seems to take notice.  Seemed eerie to me.

The city was quaint, huge, filled with history, and overall very friendly.  The countries and cities as a whole during our Rhine River adventure were so very much different from my experiences in the United States.  Cologne, however, made a very big impression on me.

The Compatible.  A Russian ensemble made up of accordions, a tuba and a violin.  Ah, the sounds heard across the square!  Charlotte and I stood in awe, even brought to tears for the glory of it.  I bought the CD they were offering.  Who could resist?

Cologne?  Does that word ring a bell to those enamored by fragrances?  Of course we visited the shop that sells the original Eau de Cologne, a fragrance originally mixed in Cologne, Germany in 1709.  Of course I had to buy some, and when the bottle is used up I’ll return to Cologne, Germany to get some more.  BTW, it’s a glorious scent.

I ration it, although I know I shouldn’t.  Who wouldn’t like smelling like this every day of their lives?!

Of course, who could ignore the Cologne Cathedral?  Imagination doesn’t even begin to tell the story of this magnificent structure and the things contained within it.

“Construction of Cologne Cathedral commenced in 1248 and was halted in 1473, leaving it unfinished. Work restarted in the 19th century and was completed, to the original plan, in 1880.^[6] The cathedral is the largest Gothic church in Northern Europe and has the second-tallest spires. The towers for its two huge spires give the cathedral the largest façade of any church in the world. The choir has the largest height to width ratio, 3.6:1, of any medieval church.^[7]”  ~ Wikipedia

So, it’s ancient, and filled with treasures and the remains of important people acting in the Roman Catholic faith.  Tombs and jewels and relics ~ oh my!  It was so utterly awesome, like take-your-breath-away awesome, and I’ll never forget it.  The art within the cathedral’s walls was stunning.

Of course, Cologne, Germany is not only about perfume and music and architecture.  OK, so it mostly is, but I will never forget partaking in the best cherry cheesecake I’ve ever had.  Charlotte and I sat at a café/bakery on the square and savored that cheesecake more than any cheesecake we’d had before.  We hadn’t had any like it, and we never will, unless we return to Cologne.

If you’re ever in the neighborhood of Germany, be sure to stop at Cologne.  There are so many memories (and photos) I have but couldn’t contain them all in one blog post.  So much history, food, music, architecture, and really nice people.  The “Old Country” made so many new experiences for me, and I treasure them so.

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