John and I are fortunate. We have three residences and a farm (which we rent out). Our residences are: our Saginaw home on lovely Lake Cecil in Thomas Township; our condo in sunny central Florida in Sun City Center (Kings Point gated community); and a very old trailer with about 185 feet of frontage on Lake Michigan in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.

It wasn’t really our choice to become “property poor” but the economy has locked us into holding on to our “investments” well past the time we’d like to divest ourselves of our rental unit (the farm) and our U.P. property. We’d prefer to only own our home in Saginaw and our Florida condo, and when the real estate values turn around, that’s our aim. We were just unfortunate enough to think that real estate was a good investment.

But for now, our the three residences have something in common: lovely water views.

Residence #1 (above) – our Lake Cecil, Thomas Township, Michigan home view

Residence #2 (above) – view of ponds from our Florida living room

Residence #3 – view from our old trailer – (above) – looking east as the sun rises over Lake Michigan.

The water view is lovely at all three locations, but a month from now in Michigan the water will have frozen over. There is quite a contrast between the moving, reflective surface of blue water with the stark whiteness of ice (covered by snow). When it freezes over, things become totally still. During Spring, Summer and Fall, the landscape constantly moves and changes. The trees cast shadows, there are reflections, fish jump, geese fly in and out. It’s an ever-changing view. Ice makes it still and unmoving.

Recently we’ve noticed a critter swimming in the lake in front of our Lake Cecil home. He seems to have taken up permanent residency. I snapped this picture of him. We called him “Nessy, our Lake Cecil Lockness Monster.”

We don’t know what he is. He’s not a beaver (tail’s wrong), not a muskrat (wrong size and not the right tail), maybe he’s an otter, or possibly a mink…?? He seems to live in the lake. (He has only been seen in the water.)

I wonder what will happen to our “monster” when the lake freezes over. Personally I don’t like “hard water.” Much more interesting when it’s flowing freely like it is now.