October Boating in Minnesota

     I love that I can say yes to last minute invitations now.  For example, a month ago I had scheduled a couple of appointments for yesterday.  Two days ago my good friend asked if MM2 and I would like to join her, her SO and another friend for a day of boating on Lake Minnetonka.   We immediately said, "Yes!" and cancelled our previous appointments.  Off we went to this instead:

 And this:

Otis the Wonder Dog came with too and proceeded to dive into the water from the boat.  Luckily he was promptly rescued.  He was left a bit dazed, however:

We were all relieved when he soon regained his boat persona, Otis in Charge:

When the paparazzi showed up, he resorted to his windblown look as it often works well on women:

Unfortunately, shortly thereafter a herd of seagulls started to surround us due to the mysterious appearance of airborne cheese popcorn flying from our boat :

They startled Captain Dan as they began their attack:

  Don't you just love campy photos?

     It was a fabulously memorable day and reminded me of the importance of:

• good friends who are generous beyond imagination
  
• endless laughing with same good friends
  
• spectacularly rare 80 degree October days 
• Lake Minnetonka on a Wednesday during the day when it's unbelievably boat-free
• Lakeside towns where you can dock a boat and walk around window shopping and eating ice cream cones
• leaves that look like fireworks
  
• boats with CD players that provide sixties music
• people my age who still relish this music
• seagulls who like eating popcorn and posing for pictures
  
• patio lunches and dinners of hamburgers, french fries with Bearnaise sauce, squash soup, Guinness, shrimp, crab and scallop salad, chicken wings, pork chops, martinis, pasta and Cabernet
• dogs that fall in the water and bark at birds
• the freedom that retirement offers