What We Do Here

As you may have noticed, the frequency of my posts has decreased a bit over the summer months. I didn't see that coming. But in retrospect, I should have. Summer means sun. Sun means warmer temperatures and outdoor activities. And outdoor activities mean more time on the bike, in the kayak, at the ball park, scrunching down in Adirondacks with one's favorite libation, lounging in hammocks, and sitting on the deck communing with a variety of songbirds and other wildlife (like chipmunks and hummingbird moths). You see my problem. None of these pastimes involves a keyboard.

But time marches on, and now the evenings are cooler. The weather is still very nice on most days, but I have a tad more time to linger at the laptop and think about life. And today I'm thinking about cottage life and all it has meant to me over the years (as I sit in my easy chair at Wiser Times watching old Indiana Jones movies).

Of course, cottage life means different things to different people. For some it means the opportunity for water sports like boating, jetskiing, water skiing, fishing and sailing. For others it means enjoying the woods, hiking, hunting, campfires and stargazing. I like all that stuff, sort of. Okay, I've never been on a jet ski and haven't fired a gun since my army basic training. But I get that all these activities are fun. They're just, well, not me.

For me, cottage life has always meant relaxation. Getting away from the daily grind of work life and home life tasks, and recharging. Shutting down the adult processes of planning, data gathering, analysis and problem solving, and just...vegetating. It is true that cottage life involves its own set of chores. And that beach walks, immersing oneself in the healing waters of Lake Huron, paddling along in a kayak or canoe, and smacking a little white ball around the local links all have their place. But the primary activity of my cottage life has always been - and always will be - sitting around. Now that's what I'm talkin' about.

There is a favorite story in our family about this issue. It took place back in the early 80s at our previous family cottage, Avon Rae, located on Ipperwash Beach in Ontario, Canada. But it could just have easily occurred yesterday at Wiser Times, as the narrow range of my behavior patterns has not changed much since I was a teenager. As the story goes, David Spicer, one of my shirt-tail Canadian relatives (see earlier post Canadians for a profile of this beloved arm of the family), found me on the deck at Avon Rae one afternoon, nestled in a comfy chair, sipping a beer and staring out at the Lake Huron shore. It was David's first visit to Avon Rae since marrying into the family, and as such he was doing his level best to acclimate himself to new surroundings. Accordingly he pulled up a chair, sat down beside me on the deck and said hello. Of course, I had met David several times before during visits to see the Toronto-based side of the family, including attendance at his spectacular wedding to cousin Ann. I felt I knew David pretty well.

As David likes to tell it, my response to his greeting was a mumbled (but inviting, I'm sure) hello or hi or yo, can't remember exactly which, followed by a return to my nearly catatonic state of lake-gazing. Now, it may be helpful to note that David and I shared (and still share) the family status of "out-law", meaning that we were not spawned from within the McKellar bloodline (from which our brides are descendant). It also means that while we have uses, our formal roles in Avon Rae cottage affairs were limited. Out-laws are best suited to (and if prudent fully content with) nodding in agreement with the ideas of the "in-laws", complimenting the excellence of every meal, yard work, and toting luggage. So being of kindred spirit with David, I wanted to share these keys to a happy life at the lake.

Toward this end, after a few more minutes of my afternoon sit-around, I turned to David and with brotherly candor said, "This is what we do here." I then continued with my demonstration. After a couple more minutes I turned and pointed behind me to the magnificent wrap-around screened-in porch that adorned Avon Rae in those days and explained, "Sometimes we do it over there." Slowly shifting in my seat and pointing in the other direction to the gorgeous beach at the bottom of the stairs leading down from the deck, I completed the orientation by adding, "And sometimes we do it down there." Thus, in just a few simple words I gave David all he needed to blend in with at least my view of Avon Rae family traditions. Life can be so simple if you let it. But back to Wiser Times.

For the record, sitting around isn't always as easy as it looks, but with a modicum of preparation it can be. There is the identification of places suited to sitting around, the procurement of sit-around equipment (i.e., a complex array of chairs, other reclining aids and entertainment materials), the carving out of time in which to sit around, and most importantly, the acceptance of the belief that it is okay to just sit around.

This last component can be the most challenging. Indeed, several of my closest and most successful friends have found it difficult, if not impossible, to actually vacate the pursuit of achievement and just...sit around. And while I respect the ambition and talents of others, and their relentless drive to be productive even in leisure, I have to admit that I just don't get it. It seems to me that the value of what I call downtime, of just sitting idly and becoming one with your surroundings, of letting your mind and body have time off, would be self-evident. But I know that view is not universally shared. Bummer.

For my part, I have never had a problem unplugging and being non-productive. In fact, I would say it's one of my best things. My earlier post The Art of the Dawdle provided the nuts and bolts of a most enjoyable form of unplugging. But just sitting around is slightly different. Those of you who have actually spent time at our Greenbush cottage, Wiser Times, know that this inviting retreat has been fashioned and furnished for just this purpose. For those that have not yet made your way here, let me clarify.

When stepping out of one's vehicle of choice in the Wiser Times parking area, this is one of the first things you see.

Of course I'm referring to the grill-area picnic table and not the lovely model helping to bring a homey touch to this presentation. Actually, Nancy is the least likely person to be sitting at this table as, due to a negotiating coup in our family division of labor, she is usually staffing the grill as I and others as may be present sit with cocktails at the table and compliment her on her cooking prowess.

Just to the left of this venue are additional chairs at the ready for guest over-flow or for those rare occasions when the cook may need to rest during an extended or especially arduous grilling session. Both the picnic table and these supplemental facilities have also proven useful during post-dinner S'More sessions.

Upon actual entry into Wiser Times from the rear grilling area, you will encounter these accommodations.

The first is a set of table and chairs dedicated primarily to gaming activity and jigsaw puzzles. Here our model is perusing a recent edition of Golf Magazine, boning up on the difference between a sand wedge and lob wedge. The second shot is of the game room easy chair, the scene of many Sudoku challenges and a fair amount of quiet reading time, comfortably away from the hubbub of TVs blasting old sci-fi movies or sporting events.

To facilitate sitting around in this area, we have the equipment displayed in the following pic.

Passing through the game room and stepping up into the living room we find a cozy nest of sitting places tailored to major media events.

The first shot captures our model in the supine position lounging on the two-piece sectional, deeply engrossed in a combination "unsolved crimes/hoarders" TV marathon, a family favorite. Together with the easy chair shown in the second picture this sectional services the primary TV/movie/sports viewing area. Supporting this activity are the media offerings and electronic devices shown below, which include a 46" flat screen TV. No flies on Wiser Times.

Moving on through the living room and kitchen (the only room without a sitting device of any kind) and stepping down into what we refer to as the sun porch, we find yet another lounging/media area. In earlier years this room doubled as a virtual work office from which, through the magic of telephones and the Internet, I remained an active and productive member of the working world (well, at least as active and productive as I ever was in person). This first picture is of the primary sitting device in this room, a well-padded futon.

This second shot is of the media center which supports sitting around on the sun porch. It includes, of course, another place to sit, the house desk-top computer, a monitor that also doubles as a hi-def TV, a printer/fax/copier, and the customary VCR, DVD and Blu-Ray players that are found in most off-site work places :-) Like the game room, the sun porch can be closed off with a door and is a nice spot for an individual or small group to get away from the surrounding uproar for a private sit around.

Stepping back through the kitchen and the living room to the family room, we find the area that probably sees the most indoor sitting around time of all. First is the dining table shown here with three of its five leaves in use.

This table, originally from Nancy's parents' house on Roslyn in Grosse Pointe Woods, spent nearly 10 years in storage before finding its way to a new life at Wiser Times. It now sees duty as our primary dining facility and as a large and convenient work surface. Nancy and I will often spread out with computers, planners and other materials during our private visits to the cottage. But this table's finest moments are definitely the evening meals during party weekends when at times as many as 14 people have been known to sit around at the same time. Here is such a moment from our 2012 Labor Day weekend get-together (this was a modest group of 11).

Just past the long table is the area we call the Avon Rae corner as three of the four chairs, the three-legged lamp table, the white hassock and the long brown coffee table are all from the old cottage.

Sitting around here in the morning with a few friends and a cup of coffee is one of our favorite things at Wiser Times. This bright and airy spot, complete with an electric organ and neon palm tree, is also a preferred area for the nightly happy hours typical of cottage life. I should also mention that these comfortable chairs, three of which are rockers, can easily be relocated to the living room big-screen TV area for large group viewing of movies or special events.

Supplementing the chairs in Avon Rae corner is this new sofa that doubles as a sleeper during our occasional five-family weekends. Note the stylish pelican lamps in the background, a waterfowl that we otherwise see little of on the Great Lakes.

I must add that this corner is my favorite indoor sitting around spot for another reason - it's home to a VCR, a TV, and my 214 Star Trek VHS tapes - three complete series covering 431 episodes (OS, TNG and DS9, for you trekkers). Sit long and prosper.

You might think that all this sitting around capacity would be sufficient, even maybe a little over the top. But....no. As northern Michigan weather is suitable for sitting around outdoors for roughly half of the year, there are several outdoor facilities. First there is the deck. We have a nice spot just outside the sun porch door - sunny in the morning, shady in the afternoon, very popular for morning coffee and lunches on warm days.

The covered items behind our model are additional chairs for the deck table (brown cover), a half-dozen lounging chairs for the beach (gray cover), and a decades old (but refurbished) three-person glider brought over from Avon Rae (green cover).

Here is a shot of the glider in action, with it's new cushions and a fancy paint job.

The glider is one of Nancy's most valued possessions as it was her mother Marjorie's favorite spot to...sit around...at Avon Rae and enjoy a Wiser's Manhattan. Nancy and I enjoy continuing the tradition.

At the other end of the deck is the historical gem shown below - a table Nancy's father Rae made from an old door shutter over a generation ago. This table is a favorite spot for outdoor breakfasts, especially with large crowds, but it's also seen its share of lunches, dinners and even happy hours.

The shutter table served for years as the outdoor dining area in the screened-in porch at Avon Rae, together with the old soldier shown below - the kid bench.

Here is a familiar shot from the Burk family archives of our girls, Christy and Cathy, and the Dyle kids, Taryn and Scott, enjoying lunch at Avon Rae in the early 90s, sitting at the old shutter table while perched appropriately on the kid bench. The pose is what we used to call "gimme a good face". I'm sure you recognize the table, and the bench though not seen, is there, quietly contributing to the memories of another generation.

At present the bench is out of service pending a little reinforcement needed to overcome a bit too much happy hour during our recently completed 2013 Labor Day Listening Room. But it should be in fine form by the time the next crowd descends on Wiser Times.

Moving out into the yard we have another picnic table. The relocation of this Michigan pine original to Wiser Times was chronicled earlier this year in my post Hell Month.

This good looking addition to the front yard at the lake has found a new niche as a center for outdoor projects, like the sorting of Nancy's beach rock collection above. The table is also a favorite spot for drying out life jackets, water shoes, floaties and other beach toys after a hard day in service. And oddly, it turns out to be a pretty good spot for, well, sitting around with a picnic lunch. Go figure.

Our grandest outdoor sitting around spot is certainly the gazebo. It has an up close view of the lake, an octagonal party table, wired-in music and lighting, and - most significantly - floor to ceiling screens that allow us to still enjoy the outdoors in light rains or when even the most annoying of biting insects pay us a visit. Here are an interior and exterior view of this delightful location.

The gazebo has seen use as a computer work zone, a dining area, a venue for gaming and happy hours, and about every other sitting around activity you can think of. It has also been the scene of some late-night card games and bull sessions, one of which gave rise to the only standing gazebo rule - no Manhattan jug in the gazebo. If you want another Wiser's special, you have to earn it by demonstrating that you can walk to the kitchen, prepare the drink, and return to the gazebo - without mishap.

Last among the land-based sitting areas are the Adirondacks, first among which is the brown beauty shown above in front of the gazebo. This chair, rickety and weather-worn, was actually pulled from a curb on trash day years ago by our good friends Dave and Taryn Dyle (yes, Taryn from the kid bench), who saw its potential. Since that close call with fate, the chair (which we lovingly named Taryn in keeping with a little known Scottish/Canadian custom of naming important furniture) was donated to Wiser Times, refurbished (about a pint of wood glue, 20 or so three-inch wood screws and a quart of stain) and awarded a permanent home in our front yard. On a personal note, it's my favorite spot to sit and shave, but that's a story for another time.

Supplementing "Taryn" are a half dozen other Adirondacks that serve as primary beach seating. They spend much time at the water's edge and around beach fires and are shown below in their normal storage position waiting for the next sandy sit-around.

And lastly, there is the "fleet" shown below.

This may look like a variety of water craft - canoe, kayaks, single and double river tubes - but upon closer examination you can see that they are really just additional sitting around devices, designed for use in the water. That is indeed how I see them. This is especially true of the tubes which most often lie at anchor with a twenty-something aboard, caked in sun screen, enjoying the pleasures of...sitting around in the lake. And even the kayaks, despite the paddling effort that is required, are fun for me mostly because I can sit out on the lake and look for fish or interesting rock formations. And yes, it has occurred to me that I might not be using all this equipment to its fullest potential, but eh...I can live with that.

Well, there you have it. I rest my case that Wiser Times is one of the finest sitting around establishments that can be found. Yes, we do other things, as noted earlier. There are bikes in the shed along with a variety of lawn care and gardening implements. There are golf clubs, baseball gloves and balls, badminton rackets and birdies, volleyballs, soccer balls, Frisbies, darts and boards, horse shoes and stakes, whiffle balls and bats, Nerf vortexes, balsa wood airplanes, and more. And in a measure of time, all of these items will and do see the light of day. But to the last, for me they will always be distractions, temporary departures from the main activity, to be employed, enjoyed and then abandoned in favor of a more critical purpose - relaxing and recharging, through sitting around.

For as I imparted to dear David Spicer so many years ago, "This is what we do here."  

Until next time, may your sit-arounds be extended and non-productive - Grosse Pointe Charles