blondie and twinkletoes cross the straits

Mackinac Island Summer Conference. One for the books: luxury and fanciness, nature and recapturing childhood, networking like mad, and a breather on the marathon race to the end of the summer with HPSS. In short, lots of fun, and lots of fudge!


[on the ferry]

Lindsey, being a horrible Michigander, had never been to Mackinac Island before, and was very thrilled to be going up with Dr. Rode (Paula), Ryan, and Rachel (a prodigy of Dr. Rode's, an anatomy partner to the valiant HPSS duo, and a roommate to Lindsey) to such a fabled idyllic place. After a short night of little sleep post-calving in the Thumb, the caravan left bright and early, and arrived on the Mackinac City shore just in time to catch the last ferry to get to the MVMA Executive Board meeting on time. Pulling a quick Superman-esque change in the rental condo, we as a trio headed to the Grand Hotel to present about the summer's successes and the future of the project to the MVMA Executive Board.

Lindsey and Ryan gave a enthusiastic and well-received presentation to representatives from regions across Michigan, the Dean of the MSU CVM, AVMA representatives, MVMA Preseidents past and future, and many other important movers and shakers in the world of organized veterinary medicine. After many questions and congratulations, the meeting continued through the afternoon. Desperately in need of a nap and/or some food, we pushed on and made it to the President's Reception later that evening, where we all were able to talk about the HPSS (among other things) at length with folks from the afternoon's meeting. All in all, a great day for helping to secure the HPSS as an MVMA exhibit in upcoming fair seasons!

Day two consisted of educational neurology lectures, a little shopping 'downtown' and a very formal reception on the porch of the Grand Hotel. Everyone was dressed to the nines as we took in the view from the historic hotel and were assisted in networking by the fabulous Dr. Lloyd, a favorite professor of ours from MSU. At dinner, we made some connections and hatched plans for a possible spay-neuter trip around the Virgin Islands post-graduation... now that would be a treat! Even as early in the stay as this, Dr. Rode's aunt Marcia had established (and frequently used) her own nicknames for the two of us- Blondie (Lindsey) and Twinkletoes (Ryan). If only we had a nickel for every time we heard these through the trip... we could pay off our vet school loans!

On the third day, we were able to recapture our childhood and break away from the conference. The three of us students rented bikes and took a leisurely ride around the Island, stopping along the way, of course, to take in the sights such as Arch Rock, the bridge, and banks of wildflowers growing along the shore. We also, Rachel in particular, spied and were fascinated by the towers of rocks built along the water's edge in so many places. At a stop near the end of our ride, the urge to contribute to the trend was just too great and we took time to build our own mineral masterpieces (some more complex and time-consuming than others...)

Another urge struck after we had purchased fudge and met back up with Paula that afternoon, where both she and Ryan broke down and bought kites to fly in the breeze in a local park.

It was straight out of a postcard as the new high flyers took off into the wind... except for the rain that rolled in and later ended our kite-flying spree, but only marked the perfect time for us to head back for our final dinner on the Island. And a delicious one at that! Best sweet potato french fries EVER! (not that we've had a lot in our lives...) Our last stop was the animal-themed party back at the Grand Hotel. LOTS of zebra stripes, feathers, and fur flying to the jungle beat of tunes mixed by the lovely Karlene!

After a long and relaxing weekend on the gem of a destinantion that is Mackinac, we headed back to get right back on the tour. Time to stay close to home at Ingham County Fair - look out, Mason!