Writers' Retreat 2012

The last week of June, I ran away. I left the family behind and hightailed it up to the Keweenaw Peninsula of Michigan - where I grew up. :)

About as far north in Michigan as you can get. :)

We stayed at a cottage just outside of Gay, Michigan right on the gorgeous shore of Lake Superior.

I spend the week with Bronwyn Green, Jennifer Armintrout, Mia Watts, Kris Norris, and our friend Emily. We wrote, talked, drank wine, ate bacon cheesecake (thank you Jen Armintrout for the introduction to that amazing treat!), explored the area, collected rocks...and relaxed. :)

I arrived on Saturday. Because we are down to one car (SOB), the hubs brought me up there (a 7 hour drive from the Twin Cities, bless him!), and I spent time with my mom until the other ladies arrived. Then we headed to Gay - a tiny little town that doesn't have much in it.

Oh wait, there's the Gay Bar. My sister used to tend bar there. :)

 The cottage was perfect, in my opinion. Secluded, right on the lake. Sure, the bathroom was tiny (as in you had to bend funnily to sit on the pot), and we didn't have ANY cell service, let alone internet, but for me, that was okay. One, it was indoor plumbing, so yay. And writing without the distraction of my phone and the internet...that was pretty much perfection in my book.

Our view from right outside the cottage.

We settled in, going into town (Calumet/Laurium or Houghton/Hancock) periodically to check emails or call to check on kids. 

Sunrise at our little slice of heaven.

 On Tuesday, as a reward for hitting our word count goals for the day, we went to Mickey's Bar in Laurium for karaoke. It was a blast. I ran into some ladies I'd graduated high school with, sang, acted like a fool... Like I said, a blast. Though, I have to say my favorite part of the evening was the older gentleman who was playing pool who had a bit of a crush on Kris Norris. When we were in his way and we said sorry, he said as he watch Kris bust a move, "Oh, I can play pool anytime!" Kris was sweet enough to even do a two step with him. :)

On Wednesday, we drove down to Houghton. Both my and Bronwyn's hubbies went to Michigan Tech which is in that town. We went to to one of my favorite restaurants - the Ambassador - for lunch.

No trip up there is complete unless I've had a slice of their tostada pizza.

The spread we ordered. There was lots of yummy moaning sounds around the table as we sampled our food.

 On Thursday, Bronwyn, Mia and I went back to Houghton to have lunch at The Library. Another great place and I didn't take any pics (bad Jess!) We were joined by Bill, a DNR officer for the state of Michigan. Bronwyn ruined his life. LOL For THAT story, go here and have a read.

Jen and Emily headed back downstate on Friday, which of course made the rest of us sad. So we headed up to Copper Harbor to explore. Just the right medicine to cheer one up. :) We had a lovely lunch at Keweenaw Mountain Lodge, visited a bunch of gift shops. 

Keweenaw Mountain Lodge

This sign made me laugh.

Copper Harbor's one-room schoolhouse

US-41 starts in Copper Harbor and ends in Florida. In town, there's a sign that says "FLORIDA 1990 MILES" My pic of that didn't turn out. :(

I'll save my pics from my and Bronwyn's drive back down the coast for another post.

On Saturday, the ladies dropped me off at my mom and dad's and headed back home. I was sad to see them go. I totally miss their faces. LOL

I think this retreat is going to be an annual thing, and I am thrilled about that. I can't wait until the next time!

Hugs
~J