Julie A. Wallace

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An August Weekend In Bay City, Michigan

I met up with friends for a weekend in Bay City, Michigan at the very end of August. Last year in August I was at my first every Bay City Rollers fan gathering to celebrate the 45th anniversary of the band visiting Bay City. This year, there was a casual get together with a handful of people.

We stayed at the DoubleTree by Hilton Bay City Riverfront – right downtown and right by the water. I paid a little extra for a river view and would do it again without hesitation.

Friday Night

Friday evening we met up and went to The Wanigan Eatery for dinner. We had two-fisted sandwiches, sat on the outside porch, listened to acoustic music, and caught up on life and old times.

On the way back to the hotel, we stopped at a We Love Bay City mural. Thank you, Paula, for telling us about this mural and snapping a bunch of pix.

If you’re in Bay City, the mural is at the cross streets of Lafayette Avenue and Broadway Streets in the parking lot of Bud Brothers Cannibis Co.

We had to get a few photos of ourselves in, too

My friend Jan thinks this one looks like a 1960s album cover.

Saturday we walked to the Historical Museum of Bay County to visit the Bay City Rollers display with photos, Derek Longmuir’s key to the city, and the legendary handprints.

The museum is the home of the Michigan Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. We watched a twenty-minute excerpt from a documentary still being produced called, “We’re Going To Rock! The Birth of Michigan Rock & Roll.”

Some of the group went off to ride the Bay Boat Lines guided cruise. I stuck around to look at the other exhibits and to watch “Smelly Little Town” another twenty-minute film that details Bay City’s complicated relationship with pop-star Madonna who was born in the city. And then I went shopping!

My Secret Garden

The weekend in Bay City wouldn’t be complete without stopping at two of my favorite stores.

I love My Secret Garden because it’s so eclectic that it’s hard to describe. And if you’re not in the area, they have a website, an app, and Facebook live sales.

In late August there were already Halloween decorations. I loved the Addams Family display.

Here are some more quick shots from inside the store.

This coaster made me laugh out loud.

To be fair, once I got to the clearance clothing rack, I stopped taking pictures and started digging. I left with a nice haul and some *very* tasty chocolate.

I didn’t take pictures of my next stop because again, there was too much looking to be bothered.

Another store I stop at is Uptown Girl. The women’s clothing store has beautiful clothes and quite a nice clearance rack. You’d better believe I left with some things from there, too.

Saturday Night

Saturday night we caught an early dinner at Retro Rocks. The restaurant has a “retro” theme with black and white photos of rock musicians on the walls and music videos playing. After dinner some of the group went to Wenonah Park to see Tommy Tutone, Paul Young, and Rick Springfield. I was exhausted and hung out in the hotel room.

The hotel was tremendously busy all weekend with two or three weddings going on during the weekend and one quinceanera. This is what I saw outside of the room: both a wedding and a quinceanera photoshoot happening simultaneously.

Additionally, the concert was happening just to the right of that parking lot. So even in the hotel, I got to listen to the music. Thank goodness I was a big music fan in the 80s because I knew most of the songs.

I relaxed, listened to the music, read a book, and watched the sun go down on another wonderful weekend in Bay City.

If you’re in the area, we’re planning to meet up again – same weekend, same hotel.

Mission 2023 September

A woman stares at a paper map. She is sitting on a suitcase. The suitcase is in the middle of a deserted country road. The woman is contemplating where she will go next.

Last year I set forth on a quest, a journey, a mission: that for which I am destined. I conquered a few things last year, like the back yard. In 2023, I’m on a different quest.

It’s been tricky to narrow down what missions I want to make public. So in 2023 there are a few public goals, a few more secret goals, and some other odds and ends like a word for the year.

On to the 2023 missions!

Move More Sit Less

It’s September and I’m stunned…how did it get to be September already? Where did August go?

July was like a hurricane for me: I felt great and was moving and shaking and stuff. August was off to a good start but then WHAM! All of that stopped for a couple of weeks as I wasn’t feeling good. My energy is back to normal now so here we go.

I finished virtually walking around London in July and started walking around New York City with the Conqueror Virtual Challenges. Still, because I didn’t feel good, August was very slow with only 20 miles.

  • Yearly Goal: 320 miles (nearly double the original goal of 175 miles.) I’ve got to revamp this goal because I’m already at 310 miles for the year!
  • For the virtual New York City walk, I’m at 23.53 miles with 47.49 to go.
  • Trees plants for the year: 8

All Things Writing

Last year I finished the first draft of a novel. This year I want to finish the second draft. I also enjoyed posting twice a month here, so let’s see if I can meet or exceed that one in 2023.

  • Sad: There was minimal writing on personal projects and no blog posts at all.
  • Glad: I managed to eek out a newsletter.
  • Glad: My job shifted slightly so I now am writing more during work hours… work stuff, but still, it’s writing.

At least I got to go see Steel Magnolias with a friend…but that was in late July.

Finish All The Projects

If you’ve owned a home, you know that the list of projects never ends. And to be honest, I don’t think I’ll finish ALL of the projects. But this year, I’d like to knock a few of those things that I’ve been thinking about for a long time right off the list.

This part of the mission is more about consistently making an effort to do the things…all the things…even the little things like take that pile of things to the thrift store or break down the boxes and put them in the car and haul them off to the recycling center.

  • Projects? What projects? It’s time to buy all the things do all the things I haven’t done yet in the garden!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  • I put some wood down around the garden beds and threw a few hostas into the ground – including one called Captain Kirk. And as a Star Trek fan, I’m happy to have the Captain aboard. Does anyone know of other plants named after Star Trek things?

Secret Things

I don’t know what the next secret thing will be but boy, it’s already been an awesome year, right?

  • In April I was in New York City and marched in the New York City Tartan Week parade with a huge group of Bay City Roller fans.
  • In May I was a guest DJ on Dedication: Fans Remember The Bay City Rollers.
  • In August I was back in Bay City, Michigan for the weekend to meet up with friends. More on that in a post later this month.
  • In late September there’s another little getaway weekend planned.
  • Oh! Oh my! There’s already a super secret thing scheduled for next year. (And if you already KNOW what it is, please don’t give it away in the comments.)

Year In Books

This year I’m a Bookshop affiliate. Bookshop actively supports local, independent bookstores and has even given more than 80% of their profit margin to independent bookstores. I even have my own store on Bookshop! (Thank you to those who’ve bought something from Bookshop through my affiliate link!)

I’m making an effort to buy some books from Bookshop, and others from Sleepy Dog Books, my local independent bookstore.

(Disclosure: All of the links to books are Bookshop.org affiliate links. If you click through the link and finalize a purchase, I earn a commission.)

Here’s what I’ve read in the last six weeks or so…note that when I don’t feel good, I read a lot and boy, I’ve been busy reading!

Word of the Year

Action is the word of the year. I want to accomplish, do, go, make things happen.

Guiding Thought

As I went through the process of thinking about my mission for the year, the one thing that I kept returning to was: what was life like before the internet? Do more of that!

Forget about it. I use the internet every single day.

Quote of the Month

Did you know there is a collection of thought-provoking quotes up at the top of the blog? Once that page displays and you’ve absorbed the words, click “Next Quote” to see another and another and another.

A thousand secrets are hidden in simply sitting still.

Karlfried Graf Durkheim

Your Turn

Tell me how your “missions” are going this year. Read any good books lately?

Summer Hodgepodge

A “hodgepodge” is a confused mixture or jumble, and today I’ve got a hodgepodge of summer things for you. There’s a little about life, something about writing, and plenty about the garden.

Life Hodgepodge

In a lot of ways June and early July was a time of endings and beginnings.

  • I let go of a car load of houseplants at a local plant swap. It was pretty amazing to pull up to the plant swap, drop off a ton of plants, and see them leaving with different people – even before I’d finished unloading the car. And if you can believe it, I didn’t walk away with any new plants: that’s a first!
  • I let go of stuff by taking a couple of car loads of things to the thrift store.
  • I even let go of some people because they moved on to new adventures.
  • I let go of HelloFresh for the summer because the community supported agriculture (CSA) has started up again. You pay up front for 18 weeks of local, organic veggies; this year the cost was just over $300.

I get a half share, which is almost more than this one person can eat every week. Here is some basil, beets, spring mix, bok choy, zucchini, green onions, and the sweetest carrots I’ve ever tasted in my life.

The weekly share is enough to stuff a typical grocery bag full to the brim. Here is a different week with cherry tomatoes, cabbage, green onions, potatoes, zucchini, carrots, and – not in the picture – more basil.

I’ve never priced out how much it would be to buy these at the store on a weekly basis. I know the cost averages out around $20/week. It’s still a deal to me.

The first week was bok choy, green onions, enoki mushrooms, spring mix, cucumbers, and more carrots.

Writing Hodgepodge

On the writing side of life, my book is finally moving forward. It took a long, puzzling time to understand how to go about telling the story I wanted to tell.

I thought that the first draft I wrote last year was the direction. correct thing. But the characters had something else in mind and, turns out, that first draft was back story for one of the characters. Sigh. So my second draft is kind of like writing a first draft. Fingers crossed it’s done by the end of September.

I also attended a virtual writing retreat and did my first ever “pitch” to agents. The retreat was through Writing Away Refuge and was worth every penny: there was solid writing advice given throughout and the attendees were very experienced. Even though I’ve been writing my whole life, I was one of the attendees who had the least experience in fiction.

“Pitching” to agents is a fast five minute time alone with the agent to sell them on your story. I literally wrote my pitch, gave a practice pitch, adjusted, and then was pitching to actual agents during the weekend.

Of the three agents I pitched to, two are interested in seeing more work. Which is totally amazing…and means I need to get going!

Garden Hodgepodge

I can’t believe I haven’t shared any garden pictures. We did have a slow, dry start to the season, and those rain barrels I had installed last year probably paid for themselves. I was able to get water from them for some time before needing to water by hand. And now, the weather has turned and the rain barrels are all full again.

I’ve been snapping pictures all along, so here are some of my favorites.

This photo is from spring: sometime in late April or May, I’d guess. The tulips are up. You can just make out white blossoms on the Nanking cherry bushes in the background; I can see the fading daffodil flowers, too.

Meet the neighbor/ cat, Princess Leah. She’s decided I’m OK to hang out with and visits to supervise my puttering in the garden.

She slinks around the yard… and makes sure she gets the amount of rubbies and scritches she deserves.

Her brother cat Casey also visits. He usually throws himself at my feet (or into my lap) and insists on rubbies and scritches, too. Naturally, I comply every time.

More from spring with chives, iris, and alliums.

The climbing rose was brilliant this year – and climbed as high as the eaves of the house. It’s pretty, but vicious with evil thorns.

I picked a bunch of Nanking cherries. They’re tiny, tart, and excellent for eating out of hand. I’ve heard you can make jams or liqueurs, but I haven’t gotten there yet.

The phlox are always outstanding.

As you can see, Princess supervises. In this case, she is supervising me sitting in a chair enjoying the back yard as the sun slowly sinks.

I even added four little metallic cats this year. I’ll use them as grave markers when I bury the cremated remains of my four cats.

Summer. It’s always too far away in the middle of winter. And now it’s almost gone again – only a few months remaining. What are your plans?

Mission 2023 July

A woman stares at a paper map. She is sitting on a suitcase. The suitcase is in the middle of a deserted country road. The woman is contemplating where she will go next.

Last year I set forth on a quest, a journey, a mission: that for which I am destined. I conquered a few things last year, like the back yard. In 2023, I’m on a different quest.

It’s been tricky to narrow down what missions I want to make public. So in 2023 there are a few public goals, a few more secret goals, and some other odds and ends like a word for the year.

On to the 2023 missions!

Move More Sit Less

Is it almost the middle of July already? Where did June go? I know I’ve been outside futzing around with plants and dirt and somehow managed to walk 37 miles.

I’m still virtually walking around London with the Conqueror Virtual Challenges.

  • Yearly Goal: 320 miles (nearly double the original goal of 175 miles.)
  • Total walked this year: 253 miles.
  • Trees planted through Conqueror this year: 6.

All Things Writing

Last year I finished the first draft of a novel. This year I want to finish the second draft. I also enjoyed posting twice a month here, so let’s see if I can meet or exceed that one in 2023.

  • In June there was only one post on this blog – the Mission update.
  • I published another newsletter in June – yeah me!
  • And in June the second draft of the novel was churning…meaning, I was thinking about the plot and characters. By the first week of July, I started writing.

Finish All The Projects

If you’ve owned a home, you know that the list of projects never ends. And to be honest, I don’t think I’ll finish ALL of the projects. But this year, I’d like to knock a few of those things that I’ve been thinking about for a long time right off the list.

This part of the mission is more about consistently making an effort to do the things…all the things…even the little things like take that pile of things to the thrift store or break down the boxes and put them in the car and haul them off to the recycling center.

  • Projects? What projects? It’s time to buy all the things for gardening!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  • I did let go of a lot of house plants in June through a local plant swap.
  • And I took a load of things to the thrift store…or was that in July?

Secret Things

I don’t know what the next secret thing will be but boy, it’s already been an awesome year, right?

  • In April I was in New York City and marched in the New York City Tartan Week parade with a huge group of Bay City Roller fans.
  • In May I was a guest DJ on Dedication: Fans Remember The Bay City Rollers.
  • Oh! Oh my! There’s already a super secret thing scheduled for next year. (And if you already KNOW what it is, please don’t give it away in the comments.)

Year In Books

This year I’m a Bookshop affiliate. Bookshop actively supports local, independent bookstores and has even given more than 80% of their profit margin to independent bookstores. I even have my own store on Bookshop!

I’m making an effort to buy some books from Bookshop, and others from Sleepy Dog Books, my local independent bookstore.

(Disclosure: All of the links to books are Bookshop.org affiliate links. If you click through the link and finalize a purchase, I earn a commission.)

Here’s what I read last month:

Word of the Year

Action is the word of the year. I want to accomplish, do, go, make things happen.

Guiding Thought

As I went through the process of thinking about my mission for the year, the one thing that I kept returning to was: what was life like before the internet? Do more of that!

Forget about it. I use the internet every single day.

Quote of the Month

Did you know there is a collection of thought-provoking quotes up at the top of the blog? Once that page displays and you’ve absorbed the words, click “Next Quote” to see another and another and another.

I’m always surprised when friends apologize for being in a bad mood, or for sharing their life challenges when I bump into them, as though there is something wrong with sharing our difficulties with each other. This is yet another example of the bullshit positivity world we have created in western life, where we are only acceptable to each other if we share good news. I wonder if we have communicated the message that someone else’s bad news is unacceptable because we are trying to bypass our own difficulties. Whatever it is, it has to stop. We aren’t going to co-create a genuinely positive world until we can hold the space for each other’s shadow. Better an authentic frown than an inauthentic smile any day. A smile that is built on a pretentious foundation isn’t a smile at all.

Jeff Brown

Your Turn

Tell me how your “missions” are going this year. Read any good books lately?

Unboxing Times Two: Bookshop and Thrifters Anonymous

I recently received two packages in the mail and so let’s unbox them together. First we’ll look at a recent Bookshop purchase, and then we’ll look at Thrifters Anonymous.

Bookshop

This year I am a Bookshop affiliate and am making an effort to buy books from Bookshop or from my local, independent bookstore: Sleepy Dog Books. Let me walk you through the process from purchase to package.

If you’re not familiar, Bookshop actively supports local, independent bookstores and has even given more than 80% of their profit margin to independent bookstores. I even have my own store on Bookshop!

Checkout was smooth and easy. Here’s the thank you for shopping page:

To compare pricing, I looked at what the same paperback books would cost on Amazon.

  • Behind Closed Doors $18.95
  • Tea Set and Match $14.99
  • Royal Tea Service $16.99
  • Our Lady of Mysterious Ailments $16.78
  • That’s $67.71 – only $5.28 more than on Amazon.

So yes, paperbacks do cost a little more on Bookshop – but not by much. And I love that Bookshop tells you how much you’ve raised for local bookstores.

A little further down the order acknowledgement, they listed nearby bookstores. I didn’t know about Ballyhoo or Leopard Print so may need to go check those out one of these days.

I like the tracking page, too – it’s colorful and invites you to shop for more books.

The package arrived safely. Nice box!

Definitely seems like more care was taken with the packaging of these books compared to Amazon. And yep, I’ve already read one of those books.

I will be ordering more from Bookshop!! Have you tried them yet?

Thrifters Anonymous

Thrifters Anonymous is the seemingly unstoppable duo of Shana and Edwina from Las Vegas. They’ve been filming their thrifting antics and adventures on YouTube for years, and I’ve been following them a long time.

I even “stalked” them in Las Vegas years ago. Or rather, I stalked their favorite thrifting places. Not them personally – that’s creepy.

Still, as I was wandering around the Goodwill boutique, I couldn’t help but think that they would be in the dressing room or walking in the store any minute. Then I remembered that it was the middle of the work week and that they both have job jobs.

Anyway, I was delighted to see them launch not only an online store, but also their own clothing line. And you’d better believe I snapped up two things ASAP.

Opening the package was as delightful as watching their weekly thrifting adventures, but you’d never guess that from the simple package.

Still not very exciting, but there seems to be a stack here. And I only ordered two things…

A handwritten note! Wow!

And a free tote? Cool beans.

The tote is for the brand name of their original designed clothing Mes Deux Amis. That means the two friends. That’s perfect for long-time friends Shana and Edwina. And perfect, too, for the relationships they’ve created through their YouTube channel.

The packaging was eco-friendly and high class all the way. And there’s another card with hand writing!

I love the ‘official, members only’ Thrifters Anonymous t-shirt. The lettering is puffy and fun to touch. The shirt is also oversized, which I really like.

And, just like I saw Shana and Edwina do in videos years ago, if I decide to cut the t-shirt, I’m good to go. I mean, I did that with my BCR t-shirts and sweatshirt, so… Anyway, this is a good quality t-shirt, so it may take awhile for me to cut into it.

I also bought the “Tie Me Up” sweatshirt. It’s black and hard to photograph, so no picture from or on me.

It is also oversized and, because it was chilly the day the package arrived, I put it on immediately. I loved the ties at the wrists and waist. And I was warm all day.

The package also had sparkles, a couple of stickers, and another hand-written note. Talk about feeling pampered and appreciated!!

Overall a great experience from both online shops. I love buying from small, independent shops in person or online. There’s just nothing like that personal, pampered touch.