Carlin Lake, beautiful and clear, is a medium-sized lake in Vilas County, Wisconsin. This blog's purpose is to enhance communication among lake residents and other neighbors and friends of the lake.
The blog is sponsored by William Draves and maintained by Carmen Farwell. Please click at the end of any post to comment, or contact Carmen at [email protected].
We hope you come back and click in here often!
Whether you are here or away, you know that Christmas and New Year's this year are definitely unique. Not a speck of snow on the ground! Lake surfaces looking watery! Businesses of all sorts suffering because of this non-wintery weather!
I took these two photos showing water open along the shorelines. Looks as though it could be March, doesn't it?
On another note, happy new year to all! We know we will have great Carlin Lake days this year, whatever the weather will bring our way!
(Please don't forget your check for 2024 dues: $25 sent to CLA, Box 114, Presque Isle.)
Testimonial: Carlin Lake New Year’s Eve Party
There’s no better testimonial for the Carlin Lake New Year’s Eve Party, a tradition for over 20 years, than this one----- coming from the most awkward, socially inept resident on the lake: ME.
No expectations. No dress code (except the expectation that you will NOT wear a tie or high heels). Huddle in the corner. Or roam the room in search of new people to meet. Stay 3 minutes, 30 minutes or 3 hours, although I bet you can’t stay just 3 minutes.
Be sure to wish everyone, especially the young people there, a prosperous and happy 2024.
Hoping to see many of you at Mary Watkins' party barn on December 31st, from 5:00 to 8:00 pm. Bring drinks of your choice, any house guests you may have, and an appetizer or dessert to share.
(Be assured the photo above from Bill is from an earlier December. As you know, December 2023 is untypically short of snow!)
It still felt like fall as we drove south last week for Thanksgiving gatherings. But, winter has settled in, as we drove back home on Sunday.
A couple of inches of snow covers the ground. So, I need to be reminded to leave home a few minutes early for any appointment, giving some extra time for slippery roads.
At noon today, Tuesday, our car thermometer still reads 10 degrees. That temp feels a little shocking, although it should warm to 30 degrees later in the week.
You can see that ice is forming on the lake. But, the sun sparkling across the water is stil lovely for the next few days at least.
Carlin Lake Celebrates The Barbie Movie
Bill Draves shares this colorful fall sunset, from his visit this last weekend.
Along the way, he passes along some Barbie trivia for us. But----he did not say whether he had seen the movie or not. I wonder if he would have liked it, with the profusion of pink!
First, in nature versus nurture, pink is definitely nurture. Up until the 1940s both boys and girls wore both blue and pink clothes. If anything, pink was more of a boy color. In the 1940s a couple of department stores began recommending pink for girls, for no apparent reason other than to sell clothes with the new look.
The turning point came in 1953, when Mamie Eisenhower wore a pink gown to her husband’s Inaugural Ball. From then on, it was all pink.
Second, dolls, however, are all nature, the scientists say. Infant girls at birth are attracted to dolls, while infant boys at birth are attracted to mobiles overhead. Both inherent traits relate to survival, and preparation for life. So enjoy pink while it’s still a girls’ color!
“Forest Sounds” is a new app I heard about. With stress and anxiety at an all time high, especially for our children and grandchildren, there is ample scientific evidence that woodland sounds and sights have a most positive impact on mental wellness, feeling good emotionally, and a release of positive endorphins (whatever they are).
We on the lake, even visiting, don’t need an app - - we have the real thing. And add in the water sounds, it’s like a free therapist without the awkward couch and missed but billable appointments.
Frogs, birds, insects (yes), water lapping up on the shore or your boat, and the loon. Even here now in November there is the sound of snow falling. Or the best sound of all - - silence.
But here’s the thing: you don’t have to think about it for the therapeutic effect of the woods, water, air and aromas to have a positive effect. It just happens.
Thanks for the positive thoughts, Bill!
Diane and Mark are two of the new people on the lake who work from home. Our lake neighbor Sam B. has installed technology to allow him to work just across the bay from Farwells. I often say Hi to Al Krassel along the road when he works from his Carlin home. Jeff and Amy can put in long work days before they take their paddle-board evening circuits around the lake.
But there are others. Our new young friends on Crab Lake Road work, from home, for giant corporation Cisco. As for some others, it was escaping the pandemic that brought Julie and me up here almost year round. The Vilas County population grew 10% during the pandemic.
Here’s the thing: remote workers create an additional 4 local jobs for people in and around Presque Isle. We don’t hire them, we don’t know who they are. But the U.S. Chamber of Commerce confirms this. My income comes 98% out of Wisconsin, Diane teaches for Purdue University in Indiana, my Cisco friends’ income comes worldwide - - certainly almost 0 locally.
Bottom line: we are good for the local economy. And here’s the amazing fact: Enrico Moretti in his book The New Geography of Jobs showed that high school graduates, known here as “the locals,” earn more and have a higher quality of life the more college educated workers there are in the community. (Photo: Julie’s customized home office with Persian rugs, aquarium, and track lighting.)
P.S. Our financial advisor just moved up to Presque Isle Lake. Don’t bother asking for his name. We’re not sharing 😊
Many thanks to Bill Draves for being my blog back-up for the month of November. I'm betting his additional blog posts will be just as interesting as this one is. Carm
Eleven women from the Carlin Lake Book Club met at Carol Brewer's home for our October meeting and discussed The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray. We had a lively discussion and enjoyed delicious autumn decorations and fall treats made by Carol.
Coming up on November 7th, 10:00 am at Ramona's home, we will be discussing The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle by Jennifer Ryan.
Photo credit: Amy Armstrong. Missing from photo: Pauline Rider and of course, Amy.
Walking in the woods, we find it is easy to look up and see leaves still glowing on the trees. But, I think everyone also likes looking at the ground, and swishing through the layers of leaves that have already fallen.
In one of those walks through the woods, Karen Stocker took these two photos, and asks us to decide: which picture includes a living thing? Those little gray things sure look an awfully lot alike to me!
(Click if you want to enlarge.)