Back Again, With Caber Tossing Pics!

Where has the summer gone!  It may seem like I fell off the planet for a minute, but I promise, I’ve just been crazy busy!  Lots of changes have been going on at work.  The kiddo has his school stuff starting.  My characters have had a mind of their own, but I like the direction they’re taking me in.  I’ve been doing a TON of reading and even a little beta reading.  I’ve been spending more time with my wonderful family, and extended family.  Blah, blah, blah, life’s been very good!

 Needless to say, I haven’t blogged in a bit.  I have some fun stuff to share from my last stay-cation.  Yeah, yeah, I know that was a few weeks ago, but there’s pictures to go with and exploitation of my heritage, always a winning combination!

 Like most Americans, genetically, I’m a mutt.  My family originates from England, Ireland, Scotland, and I’m part Cherokee.  My facial features and fair skin pigment reflect my European roots, but my actual roots, as in my original hair color, took after my Native American ancestry.  When I was a child, I didn’t really appreciate my inherited traits.  A kid can only hear so many Snow White jokes, before they become redundant!  Now that I’ve matured, I’ve embraced my family’s lineage.  I’ve been trying to trace our family tree and learn what I can about the people who came before me, who helped make me who and what I am. 

 In my exploration of my heritage, I’ve discovered some fun and surprising things about myself.  I blame some of it on DNA.  Who knows what’s hiding on those strands?  For example, I hold my chromosomes entirely responsible for my love of bagpipe music.  Logically, I know bagpipes and tortured felines can sound very much alike, but for as long as I a can remember, I’ve enjoyed the sound of bagpipe music.  It may seem silly, but it makes my soul happy.

 My hubby has some Scottish blood in him as well, and has been an enabler.  It was his idea to attend The 162^nd Highland Games in Livonia, MI, sponsored by the St. Andrew’s Society of Detroit.  AMAZING!!!  I felt an unexpected kinship from the moment I stepped onto the grounds.  It’s not often I get to see so many people with a similar nose as myself, all gathered in one place!  😉  Odds are, there were at least a few bodies there that were distantly related to me, in a “six degrees to Kevin Bacon” sort of way.

 One of my favorite attractions of the Highland Games, besides watching “manly-men” in kilts, is witnessing the caber toss.  Imagine seeing incredibly strong men, sporting the plaid of their clan, throwing a log that looks a bit like a telephone pole, end over end.  I have no explanation as to why anyone would attempt to do such a thing.  I’ve tried to research this sport, but I tend to believe that there must have once been someone foolish enough to say, “It can’t be done,” and someone stubborn enough to prove them wrong!  I know I’ve done some pretty crazy things using this same mindset, especially when I’m moving around large pieces of furniture, so this sport probably makes more sense to me than it would for some.  (Putting the Guinness tent next to the game field, also made caber tossing seem rational, but that’s another story.) 

Here are some of my pictures of the 162^nd Highland Games.  Enjoy!

 

 

Have a great day!

JH