SUNFLOWER DAZE

We are headed from CARO MI to IMLAY CITY, or a town thereabouts today---across some beautiful Michigan farmlands. Many times on this trip we have hit a small town either RIGHT before or RIGHT after the "big event" of their summer. So, we narrowly miss the rodeo, or the trout-o-rama, the train days, the red pajama party or whatever it is that they get together and do in the summer. BUT, not today! Today we hit MAYVILLE dead on the spot of the SUNFLOWER DAYZ celebration. When we rolled into town, I noticed huge fields of blooming sunflowers, and I pulled over in a church parking lot to take a picture of them. Then I noticed that near the sunflower fields, there was a tent set up with concessions and opportunities to go inside the "sunflower maze". The church, which was ST JOSEPH'S CATHOLIC CHURCH, had already caught my eye with this clever quip posted near the road, "GOD ANSWERS KNEEMAIL". We met some really nice and friendly people at the sunflower patch, and had our pictures taken by them too. Kami enjoyed the many hot dogs, and I enjoyed sitting in the shade drinking diet pepsis! There was an alumni football game this afternoon, and tomorrow there's a parade. We missed the bed races, which were last night. A woman named Jeannie invited to come stay at her house, and I wish we could have. We were invited to everything, but had to make tracks to the next town, which is where I am now, North Branch.

Last night, my summer streak of Scrabble victories was broken in the most dramatic fashion. Frankly, I was stunned. On the second play, Kami emptied her tile rack and played a seven letter word for a score of 99 in that play, and a few plays later she hit paydirt with "IMAGING" squeezed into a triple word spot AND using all her letters again. I knew she was staging a breakaway, but I held on til the bitter end. She had 347 points in the end, after eating the "Q". I was in the 270s, and in awe.

Tomorrow we'll either cross into Canada, or sit on the US side for one last gasp before a brief ferry crossing at Marine City/Sombra. I'm looking forward to it---I've only been to Canada once, and that was for about an hour and a half---all of which I spent huddled in a pay phone booth talking to my mom. GO LANCE!!!