By Joann M. Ringelstetter
World Water Day is a global awareness day that takes place every year on March 22. It was established in 1993 by the United Nations General Assembly to urge people around the globe to take action to solve the world water crisis. According to the United Nations, “today, there are over 663 million people living without a safe water supply close to home, spending countless hours queuing or trekking to distant sources, and coping with the health impacts of using contaminated water.”
Each year, a theme is designated, such as “Caring for our Water Resources is Everybody's Business,” “Everyone Lives Downstream,” “Coping With Water Scarcity,” and “Clean Water for a Healthy World.” This year’s theme is “Why Wastewater?”. The focus is on reducing and reusing wastewater. The United Nations website suggests that at home, “we can reuse greywater on our gardens and plots. In our cities, we can treat and reuse wastewater for green spaces. In industry and agriculture, we can treat and recycle discharge for things like cooling systems and irrigation.”
Water is essential for sustaining life, quenching our thirst, and protecting our health. It provides us with beauty, serenity, and so many ways of enjoying it. From lakes and rivers for boating and fishing to waterfalls and bubbling brooks for peace, serenity, and natural beauty, to artesian wells for clean, healthy drinking water, please don’t take water for granted. Do what you can to protect and preserve it, for water is life!
Happy World Water Day and Happy Shunpiking!
Joann
Shunpiking To Heaven Backroads Blog
Showing posts with label water. Show all posts
Showing posts with label water. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 21, 2017
Wednesday, April 20, 2016
Morning in Muscoda
By Joann M. Ringelstetter
In early October 2010, Ruth and I left my house around 5:30 a.m. and drove an hour west to begin our day in the small town of Muscoda, in Grant County, Wisconsin. As we crossed the Wisconsin River a little after dawn, we realized that we should have gotten there earlier.
The tree-covered banks and a small island were silhouetted against a beautiful dawn sky and mist was floating above the water. The bridge over the river is quite long and, of course, you can’t park on the bridge, so we drove to the other side of the river and found a small parking lot. I knew I had only a few minutes to capture this beautiful scene before the sun came up, so I grabbed my camera and tripod and ran to the center of the bridge.
The sky changed rapidly from peach to purple to orange within a matter of minutes and I worked quickly, moving to different locations on the bridge to change the viewpoint a bit.
As the time for sunrise approached, a large dark blue cloud moved in just above the horizon and I was surprised to see the amount of mist increasing. The mist added to the mystery of the river and I was grateful, as always, to capture the glorious light of dawn.
We had planned to use those precious pre-sunrise minutes to photograph some architecture in Muscoda, but I couldn’t pass up the beautiful river scene, so we hurried in to town as soon as I got back to the car. I’m always on the lookout for a good fall color scene, so the first thing I captured in town was a church steeple with a beautiful maple tree in the foreground.
Next we headed to the old Muscoda Theatre. As it is with many old theaters, especially in small towns, this theatre hadn’t shown a movie in quite some time.
On the other side of town, as we turned west to head for the backroads, we passed an old tin-clad building. It was fairly nondescript, so we….Wait a minute! There was something on the back side of it. Could it be a ghost sign? We had to turn around and find out.
Well, our eyes hadn’t deceived us because, sure enough, there was a faded sign on the building. Unfortunately, it was only part of the sign because at some point a long addition had been added to the back of the building, covering up the left side of the sign.
It’s rare that we see a ghost sign on a tin-clad building. In fact, usually, tin was installed on top of the wood to keep it from deteriorating. So, signs that had been painted on the wood ended up hidden by the tin siding.
At the top of the rusted tin siding were the letters “NS CO.” We’re assuming this was the last part of the name of the company that owned the building at one time. And below that were the familiar slogans, “Why Not Now?” and “Easy To Bake.” Although we couldn’t see the familiar oval of typical Gold Medal Flour signs, we recognized the slogans.
If you’d like to learn more about Gold Medal Flour and other ghost signs, read Ruth’s blog post of March 30, 2016 entitled “March is National Flour Month.”
Happy Shunpiking!
Joann
In early October 2010, Ruth and I left my house around 5:30 a.m. and drove an hour west to begin our day in the small town of Muscoda, in Grant County, Wisconsin. As we crossed the Wisconsin River a little after dawn, we realized that we should have gotten there earlier.
The tree-covered banks and a small island were silhouetted against a beautiful dawn sky and mist was floating above the water. The bridge over the river is quite long and, of course, you can’t park on the bridge, so we drove to the other side of the river and found a small parking lot. I knew I had only a few minutes to capture this beautiful scene before the sun came up, so I grabbed my camera and tripod and ran to the center of the bridge.
The sky changed rapidly from peach to purple to orange within a matter of minutes and I worked quickly, moving to different locations on the bridge to change the viewpoint a bit.
As the time for sunrise approached, a large dark blue cloud moved in just above the horizon and I was surprised to see the amount of mist increasing. The mist added to the mystery of the river and I was grateful, as always, to capture the glorious light of dawn.
We had planned to use those precious pre-sunrise minutes to photograph some architecture in Muscoda, but I couldn’t pass up the beautiful river scene, so we hurried in to town as soon as I got back to the car. I’m always on the lookout for a good fall color scene, so the first thing I captured in town was a church steeple with a beautiful maple tree in the foreground.
Next we headed to the old Muscoda Theatre. As it is with many old theaters, especially in small towns, this theatre hadn’t shown a movie in quite some time.
On the other side of town, as we turned west to head for the backroads, we passed an old tin-clad building. It was fairly nondescript, so we….Wait a minute! There was something on the back side of it. Could it be a ghost sign? We had to turn around and find out.
Well, our eyes hadn’t deceived us because, sure enough, there was a faded sign on the building. Unfortunately, it was only part of the sign because at some point a long addition had been added to the back of the building, covering up the left side of the sign.
It’s rare that we see a ghost sign on a tin-clad building. In fact, usually, tin was installed on top of the wood to keep it from deteriorating. So, signs that had been painted on the wood ended up hidden by the tin siding.
At the top of the rusted tin siding were the letters “NS CO.” We’re assuming this was the last part of the name of the company that owned the building at one time. And below that were the familiar slogans, “Why Not Now?” and “Easy To Bake.” Although we couldn’t see the familiar oval of typical Gold Medal Flour signs, we recognized the slogans.
If you’d like to learn more about Gold Medal Flour and other ghost signs, read Ruth’s blog post of March 30, 2016 entitled “March is National Flour Month.”
Happy Shunpiking!
Joann
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Possessed
By Irwin, G.P.S. (Grand Poobah of Sightseeing)
It’s been a few years now since my humble beginnings as Joann's and Ruth’s “Go-To Guy” for backroads and big city navigation. At first, it didn’t look like I was going to get the job. They bought the equipment, plugged it in, and just gave the job to Jill, the “default” voice from the factory. I mean, I understand equal opportunity for women and all that, but she really wasn’t very good…or friendly.
At first they had a bit of fun with her. She would say, “In .5 miles, turn right on Pleasant Ridge Road, then turn left.” And Ruth would respond, “Anywhere?” But soon they got tired of her and even started calling her names because they thought she was too bossy. So they opened it up for auditions and they asked me to try out.
After several auditions and a trial period, they decided they liked my Australian accent best and I was given the job. I couldn’t have been happier. Jill, on the other hand, was NOT happy to relinquish her duties and take a back seat. But it wasn’t up to her. Or was it?
For months, she quietly rode along as I learned the ropes and became quite proficient in my duties. Sometimes, though, Ruth and Joann get a bit frustrated with me and I see Jill back there making plans to regain her former duties. I make mistakes here and there but, overall, I do a pretty good job of getting them where they want to go. So, other than calling me “butthead” once in a while, they haven’t threatened to replace me. Meanwhile, Jill has apparently been planning a coup d’etat (that’s French for overthrowing those in power…..which would be ME!).
She made her first attempt to overtake the throne back in May, shortly after we returned from a 10-day trip to Ohio. On the last day of the trip, Ruth told Joann that she had a surprise for her, so Joann started guessing about what it might be. She thought it was something good to photograph on the way home, but Ruth said that it wasn’t.
Ruth finally gave enough hints that Joann guessed that it had something to do with me, but Joann wasn’t quite sure what that meant. After spending WAY too much of their last day on the eastern edge of Indiana, we needed to cover some serious ground to make it home, so they both forgot about the surprise. A few days later, Joann asked me to direct her somewhere. But before I could speak my first words, Jill snuck up from behind, put a gag in my mouth, and took over. Boy, was Joann surprised when Jill started barking out directions!
Later, Joann accused Ruth of pulling a mean joke by temporarily giving Jill her job back as soon as we had gotten home from Ohio. Ruth swore the surprise had nothing to do with Jill. Luckily, Joann told Jill to shut up and came and found me and asked me to come back. I knew it wasn’t Joann’s fault, so I agreed to return to my job. But we hadn’t heard the last of Jill, not by a long shot. In early September, Joann spent the day with her brother Paul, cruising up and down the Wisconsin River. She got some great photos of the rock formations.
At the end of the day, they decided to get something to eat and Joann asked me to take her to the restaurant they had chosen. And this time, Jill stuck her foot out and tripped me before I could give the first instruction. When she started bossing Joann around about how to get to the restaurant, Joann couldn’t believe her ears. When she was about to leave the restaurant, Joann came looking for me and asked me what happened. I was too embarrassed to tell her that I had gotten beaten up by a girl….again.
A couple weeks later, as Joann was leaving to attend a Cousins Party with many of her first cousins, she typed in the address of the party and then backed the car out of the garage. And that’s when Jill locked me in the closet. And before Joann even got out of the driveway, Jill told her to go .2 miles and make a U-turn. How stupid was that? I told you she was incompetent! So Joann parked the car at the end of the driveway and pleaded with me to come back and help her get to the party so she could spend some time with her cousins.
I knew the drive to the party would be enjoyable and I didn’t want to miss seeing that cool barn mural for Schuster’s Sweet Switchers, so I jumped at the chance to come back once again.
I sure like hitting the backroads with Joann and Ruth, but something has to be done about Jill. She’s become a real nuisance and I don’t know how much longer I can live in the same unit with her. Anyone have any ideas?
Happy Halloween and Happy Shunpiking!
Irwin
It’s been a few years now since my humble beginnings as Joann's and Ruth’s “Go-To Guy” for backroads and big city navigation. At first, it didn’t look like I was going to get the job. They bought the equipment, plugged it in, and just gave the job to Jill, the “default” voice from the factory. I mean, I understand equal opportunity for women and all that, but she really wasn’t very good…or friendly.
At first they had a bit of fun with her. She would say, “In .5 miles, turn right on Pleasant Ridge Road, then turn left.” And Ruth would respond, “Anywhere?” But soon they got tired of her and even started calling her names because they thought she was too bossy. So they opened it up for auditions and they asked me to try out.
After several auditions and a trial period, they decided they liked my Australian accent best and I was given the job. I couldn’t have been happier. Jill, on the other hand, was NOT happy to relinquish her duties and take a back seat. But it wasn’t up to her. Or was it?
For months, she quietly rode along as I learned the ropes and became quite proficient in my duties. Sometimes, though, Ruth and Joann get a bit frustrated with me and I see Jill back there making plans to regain her former duties. I make mistakes here and there but, overall, I do a pretty good job of getting them where they want to go. So, other than calling me “butthead” once in a while, they haven’t threatened to replace me. Meanwhile, Jill has apparently been planning a coup d’etat (that’s French for overthrowing those in power…..which would be ME!).
She made her first attempt to overtake the throne back in May, shortly after we returned from a 10-day trip to Ohio. On the last day of the trip, Ruth told Joann that she had a surprise for her, so Joann started guessing about what it might be. She thought it was something good to photograph on the way home, but Ruth said that it wasn’t.
Ruth finally gave enough hints that Joann guessed that it had something to do with me, but Joann wasn’t quite sure what that meant. After spending WAY too much of their last day on the eastern edge of Indiana, we needed to cover some serious ground to make it home, so they both forgot about the surprise. A few days later, Joann asked me to direct her somewhere. But before I could speak my first words, Jill snuck up from behind, put a gag in my mouth, and took over. Boy, was Joann surprised when Jill started barking out directions!
Later, Joann accused Ruth of pulling a mean joke by temporarily giving Jill her job back as soon as we had gotten home from Ohio. Ruth swore the surprise had nothing to do with Jill. Luckily, Joann told Jill to shut up and came and found me and asked me to come back. I knew it wasn’t Joann’s fault, so I agreed to return to my job. But we hadn’t heard the last of Jill, not by a long shot. In early September, Joann spent the day with her brother Paul, cruising up and down the Wisconsin River. She got some great photos of the rock formations.
At the end of the day, they decided to get something to eat and Joann asked me to take her to the restaurant they had chosen. And this time, Jill stuck her foot out and tripped me before I could give the first instruction. When she started bossing Joann around about how to get to the restaurant, Joann couldn’t believe her ears. When she was about to leave the restaurant, Joann came looking for me and asked me what happened. I was too embarrassed to tell her that I had gotten beaten up by a girl….again.
A couple weeks later, as Joann was leaving to attend a Cousins Party with many of her first cousins, she typed in the address of the party and then backed the car out of the garage. And that’s when Jill locked me in the closet. And before Joann even got out of the driveway, Jill told her to go .2 miles and make a U-turn. How stupid was that? I told you she was incompetent! So Joann parked the car at the end of the driveway and pleaded with me to come back and help her get to the party so she could spend some time with her cousins.
I knew the drive to the party would be enjoyable and I didn’t want to miss seeing that cool barn mural for Schuster’s Sweet Switchers, so I jumped at the chance to come back once again.
I sure like hitting the backroads with Joann and Ruth, but something has to be done about Jill. She’s become a real nuisance and I don’t know how much longer I can live in the same unit with her. Anyone have any ideas?
Happy Halloween and Happy Shunpiking!
Irwin
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Pass the Cranberries, Please
By Joann M. Ringelstetter
This coming Thursday, we celebrate Thanksgiving – a day of gratitude and thanks for the many blessings in our lives. And at most Thanksgiving tables, there will be cranberry sauce or a cranberry salad to enjoy.
In early October of this year, Ruth and I decided to head to Wisconsin cranberry country near Warrens to photograph the cranberry bogs. We figured the cranberry harvest would be in full swing and we’d be able to capture the bright red cranberries floating in the deep blue water.
But it was a very cold morning and we were disappointed to discover that the irrigation sprinklers were running in all the bogs we passed and the bogs were totally iced over. We didn’t understand this process, but took a few photos and then decided to go into Warrens to visit the Cranberry Discovery Center.
On the way into town, a splash of red color caught my eye and I turned the car around to investigate. Hallelujah! There they were, millions of bright red cranberries corralled in the corner of the bog. I set up my tripod and began to photograph the colorful scene. As I snapped the shutter, I saw a bright red truck (cranberry-colored, of course) way off in the distance and heading towards me.
A couple minutes later, the truck pulled up beside me. As soon as the man stepped out of the truck, I said, “I need a cranberry lesson.” He kindly replied, “Okay, what would you like to know?” He answered several of my questions, including the reason the bogs were iced over. He said that the water gives off heat as it freezes and as long as the water continues to run, the cranberry plants will be protected from the cold temperatures.
“So why didn’t YOUR cranberries freeze last night?” I asked. “Because I had flooded my bogs earlier,” he said. I then explained to him why I was photographing his bogs, and I told him that we have always found cranberry folks to be some of the nicest people. I gave him my card and he introduced himself as Jack Potter, fifth-generation cranberry grower. “My granddad bought this marsh in 1912. I own about 50 acres of bogs here and another 30 over in that direction (and that’s just the vines, not the dikes in between).”
He told me that Wisconsin is the largest cranberry producer in the country, supplying about 60% of the nation's cranberries.
I told him we were going to the Cranberry Discovery Center next. He said, “My wife used to be the director of the center. Before that she was an editor for The Country Today." This is a newspaper that Ruth and I read regularly. As I was leaving, he gave me permission to drive down his bog dike road where there was water on both sides of the road and beautiful fall color in the trees. See what I mean about cranberry folks?
When I returned to the car and started filling Ruth in on the conversation I had with Mr. Potter, she said, excitedly, “Did you ask him if he just got married?” “Why would I ask him that?” I said, looking puzzled. “Remember, I told you about a woman who used to work at The Country Today and then at the Discovery Center and then she married a cranberry grower?” she said, wondering how I could have forgotten that so soon.
The drive down the dike road was breathtaking and we even saw two swans floating on the water and enjoying the beautiful fall day. We drove for what seemed like a mile or so and then turned around and headed to the Cranberry Discovery Center. When we returned home, Ruth dug up the article she had read and, sure enough, it was Jack Potter and Lorry Erickson-Potter. Their wedding took place on August 28, and featured a cranberry theme.
I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Jack Potter for his knowledge-sharing and hospitality. I’d also like to thank all of you who faithfully read our blog and visit our photo galleries. Wishing you many blessing this Thanksgiving season.
And, as always, Happy Shunpiking!
Joann
This coming Thursday, we celebrate Thanksgiving – a day of gratitude and thanks for the many blessings in our lives. And at most Thanksgiving tables, there will be cranberry sauce or a cranberry salad to enjoy.
In early October of this year, Ruth and I decided to head to Wisconsin cranberry country near Warrens to photograph the cranberry bogs. We figured the cranberry harvest would be in full swing and we’d be able to capture the bright red cranberries floating in the deep blue water.
But it was a very cold morning and we were disappointed to discover that the irrigation sprinklers were running in all the bogs we passed and the bogs were totally iced over. We didn’t understand this process, but took a few photos and then decided to go into Warrens to visit the Cranberry Discovery Center.
On the way into town, a splash of red color caught my eye and I turned the car around to investigate. Hallelujah! There they were, millions of bright red cranberries corralled in the corner of the bog. I set up my tripod and began to photograph the colorful scene. As I snapped the shutter, I saw a bright red truck (cranberry-colored, of course) way off in the distance and heading towards me.
A couple minutes later, the truck pulled up beside me. As soon as the man stepped out of the truck, I said, “I need a cranberry lesson.” He kindly replied, “Okay, what would you like to know?” He answered several of my questions, including the reason the bogs were iced over. He said that the water gives off heat as it freezes and as long as the water continues to run, the cranberry plants will be protected from the cold temperatures.
“So why didn’t YOUR cranberries freeze last night?” I asked. “Because I had flooded my bogs earlier,” he said. I then explained to him why I was photographing his bogs, and I told him that we have always found cranberry folks to be some of the nicest people. I gave him my card and he introduced himself as Jack Potter, fifth-generation cranberry grower. “My granddad bought this marsh in 1912. I own about 50 acres of bogs here and another 30 over in that direction (and that’s just the vines, not the dikes in between).”
He told me that Wisconsin is the largest cranberry producer in the country, supplying about 60% of the nation's cranberries.
I told him we were going to the Cranberry Discovery Center next. He said, “My wife used to be the director of the center. Before that she was an editor for The Country Today." This is a newspaper that Ruth and I read regularly. As I was leaving, he gave me permission to drive down his bog dike road where there was water on both sides of the road and beautiful fall color in the trees. See what I mean about cranberry folks?
When I returned to the car and started filling Ruth in on the conversation I had with Mr. Potter, she said, excitedly, “Did you ask him if he just got married?” “Why would I ask him that?” I said, looking puzzled. “Remember, I told you about a woman who used to work at The Country Today and then at the Discovery Center and then she married a cranberry grower?” she said, wondering how I could have forgotten that so soon.
The drive down the dike road was breathtaking and we even saw two swans floating on the water and enjoying the beautiful fall day. We drove for what seemed like a mile or so and then turned around and headed to the Cranberry Discovery Center. When we returned home, Ruth dug up the article she had read and, sure enough, it was Jack Potter and Lorry Erickson-Potter. Their wedding took place on August 28, and featured a cranberry theme.
I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Jack Potter for his knowledge-sharing and hospitality. I’d also like to thank all of you who faithfully read our blog and visit our photo galleries. Wishing you many blessing this Thanksgiving season.
And, as always, Happy Shunpiking!
Joann
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