LEAH AND I WENT TO NORTH DAKOTA THIS PAST WEEKEND...I DROVE TO DULUTH AND LEAH HOPPED ON...SHE DROVE MOST OF THE WAY IN DAKOTA....THESE PICS SHOW WHAT THE SCENERY WAS....HARDLY ANY TREES, MILES OF FARMLAND, AND IN A WAY HAS IT'S OWN KIND OF BEAUTY.  WE IN MICH. HAVE LOTS OF TREES AND CAN SEE ONLY A MILE OR TWO IN THE DISTANCE BECAUSE OF THE TREES.  HERE YOU COULD SEE MAYBE TEN MILES OR MORE.  THERE WERE SOME HILL HERE AND THERE, AND WITH THE CLOUDS AND CHANGING LIGHT, WAS BEAUTIFUL.

IF YOU SAW A CLOUD OF DUST IN THE DISTANCE, IT WAS A FARMER PLOWING OR FERTILIZING.  WE WONDERED HOW LONG IT TOOK TO DO ONE FIELD, HOW MANY TIMES AROUND IT TOOK, HOW MANY MILES AROUND AND AROUND.....'VAST' WAS THE WORD WE USED A LOT IN COMMENTING.

MANY TIMES, IT WAS A COMBINATION OF FARMING AND OIL RIGS

ONE OF THE HUNDREDS OF "GRASSHOPPERS" WORKING

ONE OF THE HUNDREDS OF MANCAMPS....MANY ARE EMPTY, EVEN THO' THE OIL BUSINESS IS PICKING UP AGAIN.  APARTMENTS IN THE TOWNS HAVE SPRUNG UP, AND SOME CAMPS WERE ORDERED TO CLOSE SO THE WORKERS HAD TO MOVE TO APARTMENTS.  THE TOWN OF WILLISTON IS REALLY A LOT LARGER THAN I THOUGHT AND VERY SPREAD OUT...LOTS OF STORES AND RESTAURANTS, CLEAN AND SAFE.  (walt said  that it was a rough town a few years ago}

AND MANY OF THESE TANKS

AN OIL RIG UP CLOSE....THERE IS AN OFFICE ON THE RIG WHICH IS MANNED 24/7

AND THIS IS THE ROAD....IT GOES ON AND ON AND ON AND ON....
MOSTLY STRAIGHT, SPEED LIMIT 70.....IF ONE TRAVELED ALONE,  I WOULD IMAGINE IT WOULD BE EASY TO FALL ASLEEP?  

HAPPY TO SEE THIS SIGN!!!!!

AND THIS IS WHY WE WENT!!  WALLY AND LYNN'S SON CADE WAS VALEDICTORIAN OF HIS CLASS OF 9....I WAS SO PROUD OF HIM.  THIS IS CADE  GIVING HIS SPEECH.
LOTS MORE PICS NEXT POSTING...AT THE GRADUATION, PARTY, CHURCH....

grandson GLEN AND GR/GRAND DENA HYRKAS

WEDDING IN CALUMET 5/2017
TARA KIILLUNEN AND REED AHO

BEFORE THE WEDDING

PARENTS OF REED:  SARAH (LARSON) AND DAN AHO

NICE VISIT WITH THE HAAPALA SISTERS...YVONNE AND DIANE

I TOLD THEM THAT THIS IS FOR THE ALASKA FAMILIES..
CALEB AND STEPHANIE ROIKO

COKATO PEOPLES..ANDY AND JOANNE BEKKALA

PARENTS OF THE BRIDE, JANINE AND ERIC KIILUNEN

ARIZONA WINTER GIRLS FROM THE FAR NORTH:
TOP: KRISTINA HILL, JESSALYN NIKULA, ALISA STORM, KAREN PIETILA, ANNA ANDERSON, TANYA LASANEN, MARTHA ANDERSON, MARIKA ABBOTT, MEGAN LEHTO
MIDDLE:  ABBEY HALONEN, JENNA TORMANEN, KRISTIE LASANEN, ANGIE JOHNSON
BOTTOM:  STEPHANIE DUNSTAN, BRIANNA DAAVETTILA, AINA PETERSON, KATHRYN HUOTARI, AND LEAH ASIALA
(thanks for the great pic..from marika abbott)(click to enlarge)

MY SWEET GR/GRAND DAUGHTER ALI HYRKAS

THERE WAS A "JAM" ONCE A WEEK HERE AT THE RESORT....I WENT TO THIS ONE, BEING WE WERE LEAVING SOON..HADDO GO AND CHECK IT OUT.  WAS AMAZED AT ALL THE INSTRUMENTS...KEYBOARD, DRUMS, GUITARS, MANDOLIN, UKE, BANJO, MOUTHORGAN, ACCORDION...GOOD OLD SONGS WITH A BUNCH OF GOOD OLD BOYS.

A MAN WHO WAS ABOUT 95 SANG, CARRIED A FINE TUNE, BUT WITH A "RUSTY SOUNDING VOICE", LADY IN WHITE SANG "U NEEDED ME", DID SOME OFF KEY NOTES, BUT SURE KNOWS HOW TO HARMONIZE...ANOTHER REALLY DID A GOOD JOB ON THE MOUTH ORGAN....

HAD TO GET THE PIC OF THE ONLY VIOLIN PLAYER THERE....SURE MISS PLAYING MINE....STILL LOVE VIOLIN MUSIC

US TWO SISTERS....SURE WAS FUN IN THE SUN AND ENJOYED SISTER TIME.

ANOTHER PIC OF US ON SANIBEL ISLAND WITH THE TULKKI SISTERS...HAVING YUMMY ICE CREAM AT PINOCHIOS

ANOTHER PIC I FOUND HIDING IN CYPERSPACE
ESKOLA'S....NICE HAPPY PIC!

                                THE FIRE DEPT. WAS PRACTISING SCUBA MANEUVERS IN THE POOL.  WHEN THEY WERE DONE, THEY HUNTED FOR A DIAMOND OUT OF A LADY"S RING....DIDN'T FIND IT.

SIGN ON SANIBEL ISLAND

ENTRANCE TO OUR PARK....WE SURE ENJOYED OURSELVES THERE, HAVE NEXT MARCH ALREADY TO GO.

TIMES SQUARE, FT. MEYERS BEACH.....JUST A SHORT DISTANCE AWAY FROM US.

BEAUTIFUL SUNSET AFTER A BEAUTIFUL DAY.

I WOULD LIKE IT IF YOU HAVE A NICE PIC TO PUT ON MY BLOG, SEND IT TO ME, VIA EMAIL.   torolaea@gmail.com  thanks.
(i have used some pics off facebook, with the owners permission)

I DISCOVERED THIS PHOTO IN "CYBERSPACE", I JUST COULDN'T FIND WHERE IT WENT. WAS MONKEYING AROUND W MY IPAD, AND THERE IT WAS.  THIS BEAUTIFUL PHOTO IS OF THE JIM AND MARGIE MARKHAM FAMILY AFTER MARGIE'S FUNERAL.  I EVEN LOST THE NAMES, BUT MOST OF YOU KNOW WHO THEY ARE.  2016

HERE'S ANOTHER PHOTO THAT WAS IN "CYBERSPACE" AND FOUND THIS WEEK.
IT'S IN MENAHGA AND SOMEONE'S FARM, WHERE  THEY HAD A THANKSGIVING DINNER IN THE BARN...MANY FAMILIES AND A HAYRIDE FOR THE KIDS.  IT'S A GREAT PIC; SORRY I LOST ALL THE NAMES TOO.  SENT BY DAVIN T. (appreciate it when peo send me pics...i have over a million hits on this blog, so it seems to be well read)

BACK TO FLORIDA, MARCH 2017
COOKIE HARJU FLOATING AND RELAXING IN THE POOL

ENTRANCE TO OUR PARK

"HEAVY TRAFFIC" ON OUR STREETS...MANY WERE HAVING YARD SALES THRU THE PARK, AND TRAFFIC CONSISTED MOSTLY OF BIKES, GOLF CARTS AND FEW VEHICLES.

                                        

EATING A "SMALL" SUNDAE AT THE LOVE BOAT ICE CREAM PLACE WITH THE KAIPIO'S....20 PEOPLE IN LINE AHEAD OF US, AND 20 BEHIND...POPULAR PLACE.  THE WORKERS SEEMED TO ENJOY HOLLERING, MORE? WHIP CREAM?  CHERRY?  AND THEY PILED IT ON!!  YUM!!

HAVING A MEAL AT "JAKE'S" WITH JACQI AND RAY KAIPIO FROM DOWNSTATE.   HE WAS BORN IN CALUMET, LIVED IN HIGHWAY LOCATION....THEY BROUGHT US TO WALMART A COUPLE TIMES TO GET GROCERIES (we had no car)  FRIENDLY PEOPLE ALL AROUND AT THE RESORT.