The last vacation speculation

I have been writing at a clip of three or four blog posts a day, but now I think I am mostly clear through my vacation. Sixteen blog posts are all lined up like little clockworks, ready at their designated time to act on the tension of their springs and circle out of their small doors to make their elaborate fanfare. "Toot, toot, toot" my blog posts will tinnily announce. And you will say "Ohhhh!" and then they will all circle back into their housing until the next day. All this means that when you read this one my vacation will nearly be over, at which point you'll probably start to hear a lot of posts that are actually about my vacation. 

Why do I always tell you about this, about these machinations of time delays and the minutiae of how a daily blog works? 

Because if there is a curtain to pull back I am the guy to do it. Pay attention to the man behind the curtain! Clerkmanifesto is the blog of disillusionment.

I have tried not to give myself too many blog assignments for my vacation. I am currently pledged to report back on whether I see a moose (expect a "no", the DNR estimated 4,350 moose lived within the state of Minnesota, which is less than the number of people who come to my library every two days or so, and I have yet to run into any of them on the shore of Lake Superior), and I am also to report on what I end up reading. This all is good because it is not homework, rather just things in the line of what I'll be doing anyway.

In that spirit I have these questions for my future self. I think they're the sort of questions I wish people would ask me when I return from vacation, but not the ones they actually ask me. So I am asking me, as one who hasn't gone on this vacation to the future me who has. Can I please have the answer to these assorted vacation questions?

1. If not moose, or if yes moose, what other northern wildlife did you see on vacation?

2. Did you take your little inflatable kayak out onto the mighty Lake Superior?

3. Did you live?

4. Did you find any bona fide Lake Superior agates?

5. Any good thunderstorms?

6. How many pieces of wood did you burn?

7. Was the water level noticeably higher than last year?

8. What was the best thing you ate?

9. What was the prettiest thing you saw?

10. How were you different up there?

11. What was most fun.

12. What was most strange.

13. What was most miraculous?

14. What did you miss from home?



As it stands I will be able to answer these to myself in a couple weeks, but for you, reading, it's just a day or two away. And I guess I'll do just that, answer these for you, just in case you wanted to know. too.