Dear Mom and Dad, 

I hope you had a good 4th weekend.  We had a good time in Storm Lake. 

The parade was fun.  There are a surprising number of ethnic groups in Storm Lake, including lots of Asian and Hispanic people.  A lot of the parade was different groups in native costume.  There were lots of Shriners in go carts, but the local supermarket had a grocery cart drill that was truly hilarious.  The local Kiwanis sauerkraut band was playing Karl King, and I recognized Hosts of Freedom. 

I finally had a chance to really row on the lake.  I went 8 miles in 4 hours, and I touched on the North, East, West, and South shores.  At one point I had 3 foot swells, and the kayak just scooted right over them.  the wind shifted, the lake got calm, and I could really move.  The lake is about 4 miles long and 2 miles wide, so it was quite a challenge to circumnavigate.  At one point a sailboater went by me and asked if I was too far out.  I assured him that I was just fine, and that I had covered the entire lake.  I wanted to mention that one did not need a $30,000 sailboat to get around the lake, or that I could paddle just about as fast as he could tack. 

This AM, for our anniversary, MJS and I went kayaking together on Stormy Lake.  In the rain.  It wasn't raining when we pushed off, just misty and cool, but it was raining lightly by the time we got out by one of the islands.  MJS rowed hard against the wind and waves...she has a very good sense of the boat.  We got around the island and let the wind and waves carry us back to the boat ramp.  She's such a good sport, and she got a well earned hug from her husband. 

So that's the news. Tomorrow we're helping a band member who had some bad storm damage.  Our next big concert is at the state fair in August. 

Love, 

Gigs and Megs