a new concern

 I have done my research, made my decisions and am ready to vote tomorrrow. But now I have a new concern.  As we were driving through town earlier today I saw a sign that said "52 Days 'til Christmas." Yikes! How can that be?  I double checked and the sign was right.  28 days left in November and 24 days in December equals 52.  Christmas day doesn't count unless you plan to do some last minute shopping at a gas station.  I don't recommend it. 

The days of big fat catalogs from Sears and Montgomery Ward's are long gone (although I have many happy memories) but Christmas catalogs do still arrive in the mail.  They are just much thinner and more specialized. 

One that was in the huge stack of mail waiting for us when we got home from our vacation may actually prove useful.  Most of the people to whom I give Christmas gifts are adults.  The young adults, aka grandchildren, like money. The older adults (our 50 something children) say they don't need anything. 

But there are two people on my list who need fun toys, at least I think so.  They are my spouse's youngest granddaughter, age 9, and my great grandson, age 8 months. Happily, I now have in my posession a "Fat Brain Toys" catalog full of fascinating toys. I haven't made any decisions yet (I really do need to get my wonder spouse's thoughts on this) but I think the Air Toobs system would be great fun for the 9 year old.  I know that my EE spouse would enjoy helping her set it up. For the little one there are several colorful squishy toys.  I'm leaning toward the Klickity or the Inny Bin or both.  We probably should consult with their parents, but I am looking forward to having something fun to wrap. Ho Ho Ho everybody. 

For your information...

 Please consider this a public service announcement.  Did you know that you can go to ballotpedia.org and access ballots and candidates' information for upcoming elections?  I didn't until my wonder spouse made this discovery.

I have just spent almost two hours reading through detailed candidate information for our local election, which will take place two days from now.  I learned a lot about who I do and do not want to vote for, and feel more prepared for this election than I ever have before, and I have voted in many, many elections (almost always a split ballot, in case you're interested).  I will be voting in Allen County, Indiana so, if you don't live near me, this next bit won't apply to you.

So far my very favorite candidate for any office is a gentleman named Phillip Beachy who is running, as an independent, for our representative to the US House of Representatives from Indiana District 3.  In his bio he lists his religion as Mennonite and his profession as "semi-retired carpenter and refrigerator technician."  My wonder spouse's response, when I told him about Mr. Beachy, was "Well, at least he does something real."  I agree on two counts.  My father was a carpenter and we recently had our refrigerator repaired by a refrigerator rechnician for a very reasonable price, saving us the cost of buying a new one. 

So before you vote on Tuesday check out ballotpedia.org. You may not find Mr. Beachy on your ballot, but you'll be glad you did, anyway. 

Boooo!!!

 It's Halloween, that evening when strange creatures of every size and shape show up at your door shouting, or whispering (depending on the age) "Trick or Treat!"  

We had many, many young ones come to our door this evening, dressed in a great variety of costumes, from princesses to dragons to super heroes and one lady bug.  One little girl, dressed in jeans and a sweat shirt with a painted on mustache and beard, told me that she was dressed up as her father.  Since a similarly dressed man was standing out by the curb, I could believe her.  

It was a great night for going door to door, chilly but not cold, no precipitation, just a light breeze. We were comfortable standing out on our porch to hand out candy.

This was my favorite costume of the evening. Very scary! In addition to being Halloween, my west coast brother informed me that today is "National Knock Knock Joke Day" and here's the sample he provided:

Knock, knock.

Who's there?

Owls. 

Owls who?

Yes they do. 

That's it for this evening.  I hope you all got plenty of candy.

Cheers....

 Today the car got washed and we bought groceries, all part of the settling in (it's good to be home) process. Part of our shopping included a stop at our favorite Amish bakery for cinnamon swirl bread, apple bread, and sandwich bread.  We also bought a small cherry pie. At the Amish produce market we bought cider, potatoes, and some other stuff.  The cider was most important, and we were delighted that they had some available.

We did enjoy a few drinks while on our trip, but only after we were safely in a hotel for the night.  A  beer for my spouse and a gin and tonic for me were our typical drinks.  We were even given free gin and tonics at our hotel in Durango. 

All good drinks, but not nearly as good as cider.  This evening we both had a large mug of cider, heated gently and with a cinnamon stick floating in it.  Soooo good!!! and healthy - just the best juice from pressed apples.  No sugar or anything else added. 

Thinking about Durango brought back memories of our ride on the narrow gauge train, pulled by a steam engine, from Durango to Silverton and back.  Lots of fun and the drinks were good, but not as good as this evening's cider.  

Here's a picture of the little engine that could, with my wonder spouse admiring it, and, with his EE brain, figuring out how everything worked. 

Day 16, trying again

 I thought I had just posted a blog for today but for some mysterious reason it has disappeared.  Perhaps my faithful computer is upset with me because I neglected it for so many days.  Anyway, we had a safe trip home today, and my wonder spouse and I are both looking forward to sleeping in our own bed.  Tomorrow we will tackle the small mountain of laundry waiting in the laundry room.  Meanwhile here is a picture I took as we left Knoxville TN this morning.

I liked this view of the Smoky Mountains as we started our drive north.

The autumn colors were glorious.

Because I couldn't post pictures with my earlier blogs on this trip, I'm going to include some with my upcoming blogs.

The first stop on our journey was at the St. Louis Arch. It was huge.

We took the tiny elevator to the top, a fun ride, and looked down on the mighty Mississippi.  A wonderful first adventure on this trip.

Day 16

Day 14 or 15

 I think I missed a blog somewhere along the way, but never fear, tomorrow we will be home and I will blog from my computer and be able to include pictures from this amazing adventure. Today we drove through the Smoky mountains of Tennessee and spent a lovely afternoon and evening with a favorite cousin of my wonder spouse. As she treated us to ham and sweet potatoes and apple pie my spouse recounted the highlights of our trip to her and I realized, as I listened, that this really has been an excellent trip. Tomorrow will be our last driving day, straight north on I 75 for most of the way. We will park the car in our own garage, agree to deal with the laundry on Friday, and thank God for 4000 miles of safe travels. 

Day 13

 Today was a people seeing day. No more sight seeing on this trip. We spent the afternoon and evening with my dear niece and her husband in Smyrna, Tennessee. The temperature was mild and we spent some time sitting around talking outside, then more time at dinner, and more time late into the evening. There's a lot to talk about when you only see family once a year if that. But the thing I enjoyed most was the hugging. I've mentioned before in this blog that I like to hug and be hugged. It must be a family trait because my niece and I hugged and hugged. It's a special kind of closeness. I will remember the fun we had and the things we talked about but I will most especially remember the hugs. 

Day 12

 Some days are made for sight seeing and some days are made for friend seeing. My wonder spouse and I spent most of the day today visiting a friend we have known since college. So I guess you could say an old friend. 60+ years ago she and I roomed together at Ball State University for two summer sessions and lived across the hall from each other for three years. During some of that time I was lavaliered (almost engaged) to the man she eventually married. No hard feelings, I had moved on to the man who became my first husband before she and my ex got together. You can see that we've had an interesting, but always good, relationship. Today made us realize that we really must stay in touch more frequently, even if it's just by text and phone. Really good friends need to be held on to. 

Day 11

 Remember the Alamo! Today we spent some hours exploring the Alamo. The first time I saw the Alamo, in 1968, it was just a semi ruined building, sitting at the edge of a busy street. You could walk through it and see the bullet holes but that was about it.  I am happy to report that a lot has happened since then. Some old city buildings were torn down and the Alamo is now part of a city block outdoor museum full of 3-D displays and posters telling the entire history of the Alamo through all its various uses beginning in the early 1700s. The focus is not just on one sad battle; the Alamo is treated as the church it was, men are told to remove their hats, everyone is asked to whisper while they are inside. The entire experience was much more informative, moving and interesting than I expected. So, the next time you're in San Antonio, by all means visit the Alamo. You will remember it. 

Day 10

 After a long south eastward drive across Texas (it's a big state) we arrived in San Antonio and checked in to an elegant old hotel. Then we proceeded to the River Walk which has changed a lot since I was last here. My spouse had been here more recently so he wasn't so surprised. Loud music everywhere we walked and crowds of people. It is a Friday night and some kind of festival was going on so there were lots of people in strange costumes. Everyone was very friendly and helpful as we walked around. We ate at a pub and I had excellent fish and chips. My spouse had potato soup, also very good and we shared a margarita. All in all a fun day. Tomorrow the Alamo. 

Day 9

 Today was spent mostly underground, exploring Carlsbad caverns. It was an amazing adventure. So different from the starry night experience but equally awe inspiring. We took an elevator 750 feet down into the cave then spent an hour and a half walking the trails and looking in amazement at the variety of stalactites and stalagmites. So much beauty hidden underground. We took lots of pictures but they don't do it justice. Now we are waiting to see the bats swarm out of the cave at sunset. Another natural world experience. We are not allowed to take pictures so no bat photos to share. I know you'll be so disappointed. 

Day 8

 This may be my shortest blog ever. My wonder spouse and I spent most of today driving south east across New Mexico. We left Grant's at about 10 am as planned and arrived at Carlsbad about 4 pm. The scenery was nice, much the same as yesterday and the drive was uneventful which is the way we like it. I did get a delicious frozen coffee drink at one of our stops and we had very good French dip sandwiches at McAlister's Deli. Just a driving day in other words. Tomorrow we will explore Carlsbad caverns which should be much more exciting. Thanks for checking in. 

Day 7

 Today was a good day with a drive to Chaco Canyon to view rocks and ruins, and that was a good experience. But the most amazing part of the day started at 4:00am. 

My wonder spouse had reserved a hogan in a dark place for us to stay in last night, hoping that we would see stars.  Since we live in a city, with lots of ambient light, we seldom see any stars at all.  We arrived after dark and it really was very, very dark. Sadly, it was also overcast and spitting rain. So we went to bed, happy to be staying there but disappointed at the lack of stars.  Then the most amazing thing happened. I woke up at 4:00am, looked out the window, and discovered that the sky had cleared and was ablaze with stars. I woke my wonder spouse and we rushed outside to stand in awe, absorbing the silent splendor of the infinity of stars shining down on us. My spouse even saw a meteor. It was a night we will always remember. 

Day 6

 Today was a long day of train riding, and being tourists in a small town. We boarded the Durango to Silverton narrow gauge train, pulled by a genuine steam engine, at 8:30am for the three and a half hour train ride to the small, historic, tourist friendly town of Silverton, high in the mountains. The train ride was lumpy and bumpy, and our car swayed from side to side,  but the scenery was magnificent, also a bit scary at times because of the steep dropoffs on both sides. Silverton was a bit of a disappointment because it is the end of their season and many shops were already closed. On the positive side this probably saved me some money. We did manage to find a good place for lunch, and some excellent ice cream. We boarded the train again at 2:30pm and made it back to Durango by 6:15. At which time my wonder spouse and I got in our car (so much more comfortable than the train) and headed south. After an hour and a half of driving we came to a hogan where we are spending the night. This is in a very dark isolated place where we hoped to see a sky full of stars. Alas, it's raining. Ah well, the best laid plans and all that. Tomorrow is another day.

Day 5

 Today was an almost but not quite kind of day. Our goal was to go to Mesa Verde which we did. We drove the twisting climbing road into Mesa Verde National Park, which was an adventure all on its own, with glorious views and steep drop offs. We were told that it would take 75 minutes to drive the 20 miles from the park entrance to the overlook and it did. We made it in plenty of time to take the 45 minute guided tour but when we arrived at the overlook which had a fantastic view of the remains, my wonder spouse and I looked at the steep walk down, considered the four ladders needed to climb out again and decided not to make the descent. We spoke to the ranger, who had just arrived, about our decision, and, when she told us that the 45 minute tour didn't include the climb back out, we decided that our decision to just admire from afar was the right one for us. It was still a beautiful day and I will have some great pictures to post when I get back to my computer. 

By the way, a great supper at a little restaurant called Millie's on the way back to our hotel in Durango afded to the fun of the day. 

Day 4

 Today we left Walsenberg and drove to Durango Colorado. We drove the whole distance on highway 160, which was scenic all the way. It was a beautiful sunny day and the golden Aspens shone vibrantly against the dark green pines and gray rock faces. It was a picture perfect drive especially with snow capped peaks showing up on every side. We arrived in Durango about 3:00pm and spent the rest of the day exploring the old city, eating at a local bar and watching an old steam engine puff into view. All in all a lovely relaxing day, topped off with gin and tonics at our hotel bar. A free welcome treat from the establishment. Tomorrow it's back to sight seeing. We must be up early so heading to bed now. 

Day 3

 Today was a study in contrasts. We left Salina Kansas this morning about 10am. During the first three hours of the drive it was very, very windy with trucks and cars struggling to stay in their lanes on the interstate as the wind blew straight across the highway over the flat lands of Kansas. Giant windmills dotted the countryside for miles. After we got off the interstate we decided we needed a break so we stopped at an IHOP for a late brunch, so delicious. Soon after that we got off the interstate and proceeded on regular roads southwest into Colorado. The afternoon drive was so different from the morning drive. We drove, well my wonder spouse drove and I navigated, into Colorado on the quietist roads you can imagine. We drove for hours with hardly anyone else on the road, through occasional small towns with towering grain elevators, and watched in awe as the scenery changed from the flat lands of Kansas to our first views of the mountains. Still lots of giant windmills and about an equal number of oil wells, but flanked by mountains. This evening we are staying in Walsenberg Colorado and celebrated our safe and serene arrival here by going to a local pizza place called Gub Gub. It was delicious pizza, the final contrast of the day. IHOP crepes and Gub Gub classic pizza, so different, yet both so good. 

Day 2

 Today was a travel day from St. Louis, MO to Selina, Kansas, about 6 hours of actual driving time.  No real tourist activities although we did have a delicious lunch at a Steak & Shake along the way.  We tried their new tallow fried potatoes, every bit as good as advertised, and the burgers were great too. At a stop for gas we bought a 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle, an appropriate souvenir for us. In the evening we ate supper at Schlotzky's Deli. That was a new experience for me so I guess it was a kind of touristy day after all. More driving tomorrow, then we will get into the really exciting parts of the trip. Stay tuned. 

Day 1:

 Today my Wonder Spouse and I ventured forth on the first day of our two week south west adventure. We have made it as far west as Chesterfield, MO where we are spending the night. We spent much of the afternoon in St. Louis touring the Gateway Arch. It is really an amazing structure. We did ride one of the tiny  elevators sideways and up (like stairsteps) to the very top where we had time to appreciate the view from all sides. There were some steps to climb and lines to wait in but it was well worth it. Just seeing the arch from a distance is great but I highly recommend that you take the tour the next time you're in St. Louis.  For some reason I can't send pictures this evening, will try again tomorrow. 

brain games..

 Just for a change, I told my west coast brother what special day today, October 13, is.  He and his family were busy celebrating the birthdays of two of their sons so I understand and am happy to take my turn.

Today is "National Train Your Brain Day."  I don't know if this counts as brain training, but every day my spouse and I do at least three of the New York Times puzzles.  We can access these on our phones.  How did we ever play games before cell phones?

I work through 'Wordle' quite successfully.  I can usually get the answer in three or four guesses.  Then I work on 'Connections', which is definitely more difficult.  Occasionally I must take a hint.  And then there is 'Strands.'  This is my favorite because I can almost always solve it with no hints at all.  

My wonder spouse and I are friendly competitors, and sometimes even collaborators.  In addition I like paper games, especially 'Sudoku.'  I can also spend a lot of time playing Free Cell, a lovely old computer 'card' game, which can always be solved, although sometimes it takes several trys.

All of this is to say that I do think it's good to execise my brain, but sometimes I need a break. Today was just such a day.  After spending most of the day finishing packing for our south west trip (we're leaving tomorrow at 9:00am) and making time to train our brains with our puzzles, this evening my wonder spouse and I spent a delightful two hours watching the old James Bond movie "Goldfinger." It was very relaxing, but not at all mentally taxing.  And that's ok for a change.

A timely reminder...

 My west coast brother informed me that today is his youngest son's 31st birthday, and also, quite coincidentally, "International Moment of Frustration Scream Day." I am very happy for my nephew and all the family but I did have a frustration today (nothing to do with my nephew) that made me want to scream, or at least cry. 

I went to a local. very nice, very reputable nursing home today to visit my 90 year old cousin.  I was surprised when I walked in the door to be told that I must wear a mask.  They had them available but this had never been a requirement during previous visits.  I put on a mask and signed in. After that, when I told a nurse who I was here to visit, I was told that I could visit my cousin but would need to put on a gown and gloves, as well as the mask.  While I was still absorbing that, another nurse came up, asked who I wanted to see, and when I responded, told me quite firmly that my cousin has COVID and wouldn't be able to have visitors until Friday.  When I mentioned that I'm leaving on vacation on Wednesday, she took me firmly by the arm and practically pushed me out the door with instructions to go home and use hand sanitizer or, better yet, wash my hands thoroughly with soap and water, which I did as soon as I got home. 

I have written a letter to my cousin (typed - very large print) which I will mail tomorrow. I hope she receives it and will understand why I couldn't visit.  I am feeling frustrated because I naively thought we were done with COVID.  Take care, everyone.  

Going...

 My West Coast brother has told me that today is "You Go Girl Day." That seems like a fine day to me. To celebrate I did GO to church and convinced my spouse and our house guest to GO with me. After church we decided to GO to Wu's for an excellent Chinese lunch. After we came home I convinced the other two that we should probably all GO to our favorite relaxing spots and try to GO to sleep for a brief afternoon nap (an excellent Sunday afternoon tradition). That seems to have worked. It has been very quiet around here for the last couple of hours. I have decided to GO ahead and write this blog on my phone for practice because I will be writing my blogs this way while we are on the GO later this week. Now I must stop this foolishness and GO do some packing. 

Woops.....

 In all my preliminary preparations for our upcoming driving trip, I totally forgot to blog last night.  In my defense, in addition to thinking about necessary chores, like doing laundry, we have been entertaining a house guest who will be with us until the day before we leave on our vacation.

On the positive side, our guest really enjoys old movies, so last evening, after supper, we watched the movie "Nine to Five" starring Jane Fonda, Lily Thomlin, and Dolly Parton.  I had forgotten how hilarious that movie really is.  I went to bed, still laughing, and realized at about 2:00am that I had forgotten to blog.  Too late then. 

Today, following up on our goal of being really ready for this trip (since this is not a Viking Cruise the bulk of the planning has fallen on my wonder spouse) he is doing an excellent job of making sure all our 'ducks' are in a row.  After careful consideration of the discriptions of rough terain on some of our walking tours, we decided that it might be good to have something sturdier than gym shoes to wear.  So today we went shopping at my favorite shoe store, Robert's, which is, sadly, going out of business at the end of October. Where will I get my size 11's then?  Happily, almost everything in the store is marked down. I was able to buy a pair of SAS walking shoes at a really good price. Regular price $209.00, sale price $125.40.  This was only a 40 percent discount but I'm not complaining.

This is what they look like, not particularly cute or stylish, but definitely up to hiking around Mesa Verde.  The color is called 'black moon dust.' I do like that.  So far they are also very comfortable.  Alas, my spouse was not able to find anything similar in the men's department, but never fear, he has ordered hiking boots from Amazon.  They will be here tomorrow.  Which is good since we're leaving on Wednesday.  "Southwest" here we come!!

PS If this blog sounds like an advertisement for Robert's, that was not my intent, but if you like shoes (notice I didn't say 'need' shoes) you should not miss this sale.  It ends October 31. 

Fabulous Flashback

My spouse, our house guest, and I just spent a very entertaining evening watching the 1978 movie "Death on the Nile" based on the 1937 novel by Agatha Christie, and courtesy of Amazon Prime.  The movie starred Peter Ustinov, David Niven, Bette Davis, Maggie Smith, Angela Lansbury, Mia Farrow and Lois Chiles.  If those names are familiar to you, welcome to my generation.

Not only was the story twisted and fun to follow, but my spouse and I found ourselves playing the "I remember that" game as we saw scenes and sites that we had explored while we were in Egypt last year.  The giant sphinx, the avenue of sphinxes, the rows of giant columns, ancient temples and of course, the pyramids.  Happily, there were no giant blocks of stone dislodged and falling at our feet while we were there. Our gracious guide Wasfat would never have permitted that. We were not allowed to climb the great pyramid either, although, to be honest, neither of us was tempted to do that.  

We did travel by riverboat up the Nile and we passed the riverboat, the Steam Ship Sudan, on which Agatha Christie traveled, and that inspired her novel.  It was used to film a 2004 adaptation.  Alas the 1978 film we just watched used a mock-up ship named the Memnon at Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England. So disappointing.

The two scenes above were in the movie.

Here are three of my favorite Egyptian temples.  This evening's movie really did bring back some memories. 

more good eating...

 According to my west coast brother, today, October 7, is "National Chocolate Covered Pretzels Day," "National Frappe Day." "National Pumpkin Seed Day," "Canadian Beer Day," "National Kale Day" and "Random Acts of Poetry Day." How can I resist the challenge?

Chocolate, Frappe, Pumpkin, Beer,

These I like to keep quite near.

You must admit, they sound delicious,

And, possibly, a bit nutritious. 

On the other hand take kale.

Nutrition oozes from each leaf.

Green, curly and available, yet, 

as I stroll the grocery aisles,

sipping a frappe for energy, 

pretzels, pumpkin seeds and beer

might wind up in my grocery cart, 

but kale will never there appear.

Good Eating

 According to my West Coast brother today is National German Heritage Day and also National Noodle Day. I am not at all surprised that these two events should be celebrated together.

My father's grandparents immigrated from Germany to the United States sometime in the early 1800s. While they became citizens and gave up speaking German, they did not, happily, give up their German food traditions.

Every Christmas, Thanksgiving, or other festive celebration feast at my Aunt Dora's house included noodles, always, always served on top of mashed potatoes. I loved watching my aunt make mashed potatoes. After she boiled and drained the potatoes, she would dump them into a large mixing bowl, add lots of butter and a little milk, and whip those potatoes to a froth with her trusty electric hand mixer. I have used her recipe for years. Then she served them with plenty of butter melting on top. 

Everyone would take a heaping helping of mashed potatoes as they were passed around the table. Then came the noodles, boiled in beef or chicken broth with plenty of tasty bits of meat. The noodles went on top of the potatoes, of course. Even though there was plenty of other food being served, meat, vegetables, salad, etc, I was always happy to fill up on noodles and mashed potatoes.  If you've never tried noodles on mashed potatoes you really must. If you have had such a feast, I bet your mouth is watering right now. I know mine is. 

Looking back...

 My spouse's brother-in-law is visiting with us for a week, and, as seems inevitable when three 80+ age family members get together, the conversation today focused mainly on things past.  

We have compared cars we have driven, places around the world where we have been, either to live or visit, friends and family still with us or long since gone to their reward.  Talking about what our children and grandchildren are doing has been a happy topic of discussion.  Our personal ailments, fading eyesight, creaky knees, etc. took up some time as we compared notes.

Because his brother-in-law also grew up in Fort Wayne, my wonder spouse took us on a long drive around the city this evening, past old homes, old schools and other remembered haunts, like favorite restaurants, the dentist's office, and the best slopes for racing bikes.

We went to Clara's Pizza King for supper and the pizza was just as delicious as we all remembered.  The sweet tea was so good.  It was fun using the table telephone to place our order.

After supper my wonder spouse drove us past the huge new soccer stadium so our guest, who now lives in Florida, could see that some things do change in good old Fort Wayne. All in all it has been a delightful visit so far, but now I'm wondering what we will talk about for the next eight days. 

the perfect spice

 My west coast brother has informed me that today is "Cinnamon Roll Day."  Since I wrote about cider yesterday, and since cider and cinnamon so often go together in our household, I thought it would behoove me to write about cinnamon today. (Don't you love that word 'behoove'? I don't get to use it very often.)

Cinnamon is the inner bark of evergreen trees found in Ceylon and other similar places with a hot climate, plently of rain and good drainage.  If you want to grow your own cinnamon you can Google it and get the complete instructions. 

Personally, I am happy to buy it in little tin boxes at the grocery store. It comes in 'ground' and 'stick' form. We always have a supply of each on hand.  I am pretty sure it's one of the basic food groups, right up there with chocolate. for me, and honey for my wonder spouse. 

I will now share with you my two favorite cinnamon based recipes.

1. My favorite breakfast is a thick slice of toasted cinammon swirl bread slathered with butter and coated with cinnamon sugar.  I have a cinnamon sugar mixture handy at all times.

2. One of my favorite drinks is hot cider (the real stuff, as described yesterday) with a cinnamon stick floating in it to add an extra special taste. 

Well, I'm ready to go drink some cider, with a cinnamon stick.  I hope you are too.

Real cider...

 Real apple cider has a taste all its own.  Apple juice, which we get with kid's meals from Culver's (we're not proud, they're very good little suppers) is tasty but it doesn't compare to cider.  

Last fall my spouse and I were astonished to learn that the Amish market where we bought fresh pressed cider, usually on Wednesday afternoons because they pressed it on Wednesday mornings, would no longer be able to sell cider because what they were selling wasn't "pasturized." 

It was bad enough the one Wednesday we drove over only to learn that they were sold out.  A gentleman had come in just before us and bought their last 20 gallons.  They suspected that he was going to sell it by the glass in his restaurant, but maybe he was just going to have a really big party? That really wasn't the seller's concern. 

But not being able to sell it because it's not pasturized surprised us.  You pasturize milk and other dairy products.  It's a mild heat treatment process that kills harmful pathogens and spoilage microbes in foods and beverages to make them safe and extend their shelf life.  

In our household extended shelf life has never been a problem when it comes to cider.  We like it heated with a cinnamon stick added or cold, it's all so good.  I don't know if the owners of our favorite Amish market are now pasturizing their cider, or if that requirement was changed, but my spouse was delighted to find it for sale when he went to the market today, and I'm happy to report that it tastes just as delicious as ever.  Pasturized or not, we will definitely keep buying it until the season is over. Cheers!

In case you're wondering, yes it does taste different and better than the cider that you can buy at Krogers.  Nothing against Krogers, we buy most of our groceries there, but I'm sure their cider is pasturized. 

special days

 Well, here we are in October and the days will pass quickly as we get closer to October's grand finale - Halloween!!  One of our neighbors, obviously ready to skip right to Halloween, has lavishly decorated their yard with skeletons and pumpkins and lots and lots of cobwebs strewn from tree to bush to tree and all across the front of the house.  Not really my decorating style but certainly in keeping with the theme. 

And this is all fine, but I think it's unfortunate to skip over so many other October holidays on the way to Halloween.  

Take today for instance.  October 2 is, among other things, "National Body Language Day," "National Name Your Car Day." and "World Smile Day."  Each of these days is important to me personally.  

I have been accused of using too much body language.  It's true that I tend to wave my arms around when I talk, and everyone knows that I love a good hug.  I can't think of any body language better than that, especially if it includes a kiss. 

As for naming my car, I had some help with that.  My faithful Fiat is blue, so when one of my granddaughters asked me (12 years ago when I bought it) what I was going to name my car, I said that I would just call it Blue.  The same granddaughter then gifted me with a decorative plate for the front of my car.  There was a space since Indiana only requires a license plate on the back of a car. The plate says "Nana's Blue." It's a little faded now but still quite legible.

As far as smiles are concerned, what a great way to brighten someone's day.  I love it when people smile at me, sometimes they smile first, sometime they are responding to my smile, but it always cheers me, and hopefully them too.  There's a reason why 'Smile Day' is a world wide celebration.  Smiling is truly a universal language. And easy to learn.  My seven month old great grandson has a wonderful smile. 

How old is old?

 My ever loving west coast brother, who is ten years younger than me, so obviously not old, has informed me that today is "International Day of Older Persons." 

He also said that their slogan is "The older I get, the older 'old' gets." But, while I certainly agree with this sentiment, I think he might have made that up. 

On December 14, 1990, the United Nations General Assembly voted to establish October 1 as the "International Day of the Elderly." Personally, I prefer the term 'older persons' over 'elderly.'  Evidently so do others of my age, since the name of the day was changed.  

An older person, or an old person if you prefer to be blunt, can be getting along just fine, thank you very much, but the term 'elderly' sounds rickety and in need of lots of assistance.  On a recent newscast, I heard a man involved in something news worthy referred to as 'elderly.'  Later in the same show it was revealed that he was 65.  I'm sorry, 65 does not sound elderly to me.  

The theme for this year's "Day of Older Persons" is "The Age of Longevity - Rethinking Systems for Longer Lives."

I can suggest one thing that will make a life feel longer. Decide, with your spouse, or another relative or friend, to put together a 1000 piece jig saw puzzle.  If and when we finish the one we are working on right now, my wonder spouse and I will gladly pass it on to the next puzzle addicts. We guarantee that all the pieces will be there.  Send me you address and I will mail it to you. Anywhere at all!

about those jails...

 There has been some news over the last few years about the building of our new Allen County Jail.  They were talking about it when I still lived in my downtown apartment a few years ago, and I paid attention because I could see the 'old' jail, built in 1981, from my 10th floor balcony.  I never felt any concerns for my safety, but it was interesting to see police cars pulling in and out at all times of the day and night. 

   I found out, by doing a little research today, that the construction of the new jail at 2911 Meyer Road is actually underway and the targeted completion date is late 2027.  It is a 400,000 square foot project being built on 44 acres of land and will, hopefully, correct the overcrowded conditions in the current facility.  The new jail is being built because a judge ordered it to be built, to alleviated the severe overcrowding in our current facility.  By the way, Fort Wayne is not a 'hot bed' of crime, but prisoners are brought to our jail from all over the northern part of the state. 

In case you're wondering why I'm thinking about jails at all, it's because, while flipping through "Moments In Fort Wayne History" I came upon a page titled "Debtor's Prison."  This was interesting enough that I have forgiven the author for his lack of information about libraries.  Here is Mr. Bashore's entry written about 1960:

Regional correction centers are the modern form of correction and while they stir much discussion there's one thing of which you can be certain - they include no "debtor's prison," as did the first Allen County jail built in 1825.  Although the Grand Jury contended only a year later that it was "unsatisfactory as a place of safety for persons committed thereto," it was still operating 23 years later in 1847.  The newspaper persistently editorialized for a "more respectable" jail and with good reason.  Escapes were frequent.  One "Houdini" in particular mystified his jailors.  Whenever he was incarcerated, which was frequent, he was back on the streets within minutes.  His secret was finally discovered, though.  It was a loose log he could lift out and replace undetected. A new jail was built and it performed more adequately until 1872 when the present jail was built, and like its predecssors, it, too, is a target for criticism and concern.  

That jail, built in 1872, was evidently replaced by the current one built in 1981 which will be replaced in 2027 if all goes as planned. 

Regarding prisoners, at one time in his working career, my wonder spouse ran a factory in a small town near Fort Wayne.  Many of their employees were in a "work release" program.  They came from jail to work, then back to work again.  While they were in the system they were very good reliable workers.  Sadly, once they were released from jail, many of them lost their jobs for frequent lateness and absences.  

I have a good friend, now retired, who worked for years teaching prison inmates in a different part of Indiana to read and write and other basics of education.  I have always admired her for that work.   I thank her, my wonder spouse, and many others like them, for their committment to trying to make things better and give people a second chance. 

A day to celebrate...

 My west coast brother informed me that today is "National Coffee Day."  My wonder spouse and I celebrated by having several refills of coffee while we ate brunch at the Breakfast Clubb, a cheerful little restaurant on St. Joe Center Road.  I had biscuits and gravy, he had French toast.  We both ordered off the seniors' menu, and the meals, including coffee were $8.00 each, quite reasonable we thought. We were just a little disappointed that we were not 'carded.'  Evidently they could tell by looking that we are both over 65.  

As it turned out, that was our last economizing of the day.  While we were savoring our coffee refills, I told my spouse about a Viking cruise that friends of ours are planning to take in May of 2027, starting in Barcelona and ending in Iceland, with several stops along the way.  We both agreed that this sounded like a really good cruise.  So good in fact, that we came home and (with our friends' very positive respose to the idea) signed up for the same cruise and made a deposit.  

Now you may remember, if you are a faithful reader of this blog, that after our cruise from Tokyo to Alaska last spring, I wrote that that would be our last big cruise.  In fact we are planning a driving trip around the US in October, originally intended to replace a cruise.  Which means that, in addition to a bountiful breakfast, I am now eating my words.  A very tasty treat indeed. 

books, books, books...

 I readily admit that a visit to the library is, for me, like being a kid in a candy shop (except without the calories).  We do have a very fine branch library just across the street from our subdivision, and I visit it frequently, but today I treated myself to some time at our wonderful large downtown library.  Our library is know for, among other things, a nationally renowned geanealogy center (one of the top three in the country) which I really must take advantage of one of these days. 

Because I had such a good time at the library today, I decided to check in the little book "Moments In Fort Wayne History" to see what the author had to say about the history of our local library.  Would you believe that in the 50 pages of this little book there is not a single mention of libraries?  What kind of professional author doesn't mention libraries in a little book subtitled "A Unique Look at the Places and People Contributing to Fort Wayne's Growth."  What about libraries and librarians?  

I have decided that I must make up for this grievous omission, so here's the history that Mr. Bashore didn't include in his little book.   The ACPL (Allen County Public Library) was founded in 1895 as the Fort Wayne Public Library.  It started with 3,606 books housed in a single room at City Hall. 

One year later, in 1896, it was designated as a Federal Depository Library.  That is a library that provides free, open access to official government publications, documents and electronic resources.  Now you know why tax forms are available at the library. 

Today we have a vibrant main library and 13 outlying branches containing millions of physical and digital items. (Not to mention free lunches for kids during the summer.) When I was strolling through the library today I was interested to see that the seats in front of the rows and rows of computers were all occupied. 

From time to time I have special requests.  Any librarian I have ever spoken with by phone or in person is unfailingly polite and helpful.  So cheers for our local library.  May it grow and flourish for years to come.  

an ancestor worth mentioning...

 My west coast brother has informed me that today is "Ancestor Appreciation Day."  Of course we all appreciate our ancestors, after all, where would we be without them?

But today I will write about one particular ancestor, because this is a story I have always enjoyed.  My aunt, my mother's older sister, wanted to join the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR).  Sixty years ago, when she was doing the research, it wasn't as easy as it is now, but she persisted and came up with a link to Phillip Von Steinmetz, also listed as Johann Philips Steinmetz.  The family story, as my aunt recorded it, said that Phillip came to America before the Revolutionary War, fought in the war on the American side, survived, married, fathered 9 children and lived to a ripe old age. 

The reason why he came to America wasn't exactly honorable, although there may have been extenuating circumstances.  Maybe he was hungry?  He was caught poaching (he killed the king's deer) and was going to be hung, but managed to escape and get on a ship to the new world.  Since sailors were always in demand, he may have worked his way across the Atlantic.  I'm just guessing at that, but it makes sense to me. 

Gathering information now is easier than sixty years ago and I have been able to add some facts to the family legend.  

Phillip Steinmetz was born in 1730, baptized in 1733, and was living in America before 1776.  At age 37 (1767) he married Maria Magdalena (Schlauch) and they had one son.

He married Catherine Ann (Geiss) in 1780 at age 49, and they had seven children. 

He then married Margeretha (Gertraund) and they had one child.

Life was not easy or necessarily long for wives in those days.  Phillip died at 76 and is buried in Pennsylvania, where my mother's family comes from. 

So there you have it.  The life and legend of an ancestor whom I appreciate. 

Be alert

According to my west coast brother, and confirmed by the calendar, today is "National Situational Awareness Day."  Basically, this is a day to remind all of us to be aware of what's going on around us when we're out in public.  I must admit that I have often walked around a mall or downtown without paying much attention to who was around me or what might be going on.  I'm too busy admiring fountains and flowers. 

In case you're wondering, like I was, just what does it mean to be situationally aware, here are some answers. 

Situational awareness is 

Being Present: Paying close attention to your immediate surroundings rather than being distracted (such as by cell phones).

Early Recognition: Identifying potential hazards, escapes routes, or threats a split second sooner to avoid harm.

Informed Decisions: Knowing how to respond safely if something unexpected occurs.

As I read through this list, I found myself thinking that this really doesn't apply to my wonder spouse and myself much anymore.  Most of our ventures out 'into the world' are fairly close to home and in areas we consider to be very safe.  On the other hand, in October we will be on a long driving trip through the southwest with stops in cities like St. Louis, Dallas and Nashville.  I do not think of these cities as being dangerous but it won't hurt to stay alert and aware of our surroundings, if for no other reason than to keep us from tripping and falling.

I do remember one incident when knowing to call 911 (an informed decision) helped me.  This was about 12 years ago, so I was in my late 60s.  I was driving on a quiet cross street in downtown Fort Wayne, leaving an evening church meeting that had run late, when I saw a man lying half on the street and half on the sidewalk.  I drove on until I was in the next block, then called the police to inform them of the man I had seen and the location.  They asked me if I was waiting at the scene?  I told them no, I had driven on because I didn't know if it was a trap.  The policeman I was talking to agreed that that was a wise decision, and assured me that they would go to the scene.  I gave him my name and address and drove on home.  I never heard any more about the incident.  But I will always be glad that I did have some sense of how to respond.  

Situational Awareness Day isn't exactly a day to celebrate but you might take a few minutes to consider being present, practicing early recognition, and being ready to make informed decisions.  

Testing

 This is a quick blog to be sure I can blog from my phone  before we leave on our trip. After an exhausting evening of eating treats from Zestos, perhaps the last of the season, and starting a new jigsaw puzzle, I'm just too tired to write more. Yawn...

Novelties?

My west coast brother has informed me that today is the "Festival of Latest Novelties." By definition novelties are "useless, frivolous gifts" like yoyos, Rubik's cubes and Mood Rings.  I have a shelf full of such usless novelties, including a snow globe, a string of Marde Gras beads, a pet rock, an Oragami dragon, several small clay pots, and more.  All treasures, all too precious to throw away. 

However, if you expand the definition of novelties to include new fun things that are also useful the list gets much more interesting.  Items that only recently evolved from novelties to 'necessities' include smart watches, smart phones, tablets and laptops. 

I did find a current list of the top ten favorite gadgets (useful novelties?): 

Apple Air Tag, OuraRing 4, Sony Headphones, Fitbit Charger 6, Kindle Scribe, Anker Portable Power Bank, Wolfbox Jump Starter and Air Compressor, GoPro Hero 12 Black, Universal Travel Adapter, and Ember Smart Mug 2.  

What a great list.  It just makes you want to rush out and go shopping, doesnt it? Or you can click on Amazon.com.  Now there's a novelty that became a necessity. 

a glimpse of the future...

The '60's (1960's that is) were a busy time for me.  I graduated from high school, graduated from college, began my teaching career and got married, so it's really no wonder that I don't remember much about the TV cartoon show, The Jetson's.  But I do remember that they had a flying car.  I always thought that was a great idea.  

I'm thinking about this because my west coast brother informed me that on this date, September 23, 1962, ABC launched The Jetsons.  It ran in prime time from this date through March 17, 1963.  Then lived on in reruns of course.  There were even some new episodes produced in 1985-1987.  

I did a little research and discovered that, in addition to their flying car, the Jetsons had flat screen TVs, video calls, drones, anti-gravity belts, Dial-a-Meal, a Micro Encyclopedia, Dream O Matic, Space Boots, a visa-phone, an ejector and so much more.  I also recall a robot maid, a very fine idea indeed.  My Roomba does sweep floors but it's not quite the same.

Many of the things the creators of the Jetsons 'invented' have come true in the last 64 years.  Flat screen TVs, video calls, drones, micro encyclopedias (Google and Wikipedia for example), "Door Dash" and other food delivery services are all very real.  Self driving cars are a reality and rapidly becoming more reliable.  

So where is my flying car?  We have room for it.  We could easily build a second story on to our garage.  I'm not about to trade in my faithful Fiat for anything less. 

Now there are 18.

 Fort Wayne now has 18 active fire stations and an average response time of 3 minutes and 18 seconds from the time equipment is en route to arrival on the scene for emergency fire and medical runs; but it wasn't always that way.

Here's some interesting history that I learned from "Moments in Fort Wayne History" a small book that I have referenced in a previous blog.

Did you ever hear of the Alerts, the Mechanics, the Protections, the Torrents, the Eagles, the Vigilants?  These were the names of Fort Wayne's first fire companies, formed when the fire department was officially organized in 1856.  Earlier, fires were fought by volunteers.  That they were not particularly effective is noted in a petition circulated as eary as 1833, requesting the town council "to consider hooks and ladders, and to compel each owner of a house to procure buckets...and to pray."  The town fathers, though, moved slowly.  It was only after a disasterous fire in 1849 that leveled 15 buildings in the block that now includes The Landing, Main and Calhoun Streets, did they finally organize a fire department composed of companies with such picturesque names. 

While the names of those early fire companies were fun, and I liked the idea that every homeowner should have a bucket handy, what I really found interesting about this article was the reference to the fire that leveled 15 buildings.  I had never heard of such a large fire in Fort Wayne.  But it really happened, beginning at 3:00am on May 20, 1849.  

The first report that I pulled up said it was the worst fire in early Fort Wayne history.  Another report said it was the worst fire in Fort Wayne history ever.  There is lots of information available, including the names of all the businesses distroyed, if you care to dig into this more deeply.  I had no idea there ever was such a fire in Fort Wayne.  A consequence of this fire was that buildings rebuilt in that 'high risk' area could not be wooden structures. Good idea!

the power of doing nothing...

My west coast brother made a comment today in his text that reminded me of an incident that happend to me about 20 years ago.  My brother said that he was taking his grandson to school.  It was a late-start Monday and that's 'just something grandparents do.'  That's for sure.

His comment reminded me of an incident that happened about 20 years ago involving me and all four of my grandchildren.  I was semi-retired at the time and therefore had plenty of time to drive my grandchildren to and from school.  I was still being chauffer when the four of them were in middle school and high school at different times for a variety of reasons.

The incident I'm blogging about today happened when my grands were quite young, two in early elementary school and two in pre-school.  I don't remember the exact circumstance but one afternoon I was driving all four of them home from school to my house where they would have a snack and play until their parents came to pick them up.  At that time I owned a Buick Rendevous with three rows of seats so I could manage this quite nicely.  For some reason, which I don't remember, the four started squabbling and bickering and shouting at each other.  All four of them got involved.  I asked them, in my teacher voice, to quiet down, settle down, please be quiet, but they kept on.  Finally I told them that if they didn't settle down I was going to stop the car.  (This was a little like saying "I'm going to count to three." but I had to try something.)

They didn't settle down so I pulled the car off the side of the road and turned off the engine.  Then I just sat there.  Gradually it dawned on them that I really had stopped the car.  Then total silence.  For some reason my pulling into a parking lot and turning off the motor seemed really terrible to them. The rest of the drive home was very, very quiet indeed.

a little known fact...

 When my spouse and I were cleaning up and clearing out after our recent water disaster we came across a little paperback 50 page book (completely undamaged) called "Moments in Fort Wayne History."  Subtitled "A Unique Look at the Places and People Contributing to Fort Wayne's Growth." It was written by Wesley D. Bashore and 'presented as a public service' by First Federal Savings and Loan Association of Fort Wayne.  At the time of publication First Federal had five branches around town.  They are still in business as First Federal Savings Bank with six branches.  

I tried to find a publication date on this nifty little book but the best I could do is discover that Wesley Bashore was still writing articles for the Journal Gazette in 1952. 

I do not plan to use this book for my next 50 blogs but there are a few articles, on things I didn't know, that I would like to share.  Here is the first one:

Major Cigar Center

Few are aware of it, but Fort Wayne was once a major cigar manufacturing center.  In the late 1800's, the town had 23 different cigar companies.  The best know was the successful Coony Bayer Cigar Company located at Calhoun and Lewis Streets. At the local industry's height, annual production exceeded five and a half million cigars - a lot of smoke in any man's language.  The aromatic output included such best sellers as Lady Wayne Puntamas, Coony's Little Havanas, Fort Wayne Belle, Our Bob and Valettos.  The industry worried in 1905 when the state legislature outlawed cigarettes and prohibited drivers from smoking.  The firm continued to prosper, however, until industry dynamics caused plants to move nearer to tobacco sources.

I found this article interesting for two reasons.  First, I had no idea that cigars had ever been manufactured in Fort Wayne.  I know their was a lot of beer brewed in Fort Wayne, but did not know about cigars.

The second reason is the law prohibiting drivers from smoking.  I think this may have been the first attempt to make distracted driving illegal.  

Ahoy Matey...

 You probably know that today is "International Talk Like a Pirate Day" but did you know that it's also "Meow Like a Pirate Day?" At least that what my west coast brother, who has a very precocious cat, tells me.

On this very special day, which my son has celebrated for years, it would not have surprised me to hear people saying things like "Aaarrrgh," "Ahoy Matey," "Avast," "Aye, aye Cap'n" or "Land ho!" It would have surprised me to hear a cat say "Mearrrgh."  I would have been even more surprised if the cat had a peg leg or walked with a swagger.  

One of my favorite NYT puzzles, called "Strands" even had a piratical theme today with the title "Shiver me Timbers!"

Now I know that "Shiver me timbers." is something pirates are supposed to say but, beyond that, I really don't know what it means unless they are talking about a Quaking Aspen, which is a beautiful tree whose leaves shiver in the slightest breeze.  

So, of course, I did a little research.  It is an expression that was used by pirates and other sailors in olden times to express extreme fear, shock or surprise.  It means "I'm so scared my legs are shaking."   

It really can happen.  This has nothing to do with being a pirate but I have experienced the shaking legs.  When I was a sophomore in high school we were required, in history class, to recite Lincoln's Gettysburg Address.  Now I went to Lutheran elementary school for nine years, if you count kindergarten, so I was no stranger to memorization.  I had been memorizing hymns and Bible passages and taking my turn reciting them in front of the class for years, but for some reason, when I had to speak into a microphone (our teacher was recording us) I absolutely panicked.  I made it through the recitation but my legs really were shaking.  It was so obvious to everyone that a friend reminded me of the incident at a class reunion 15 years later. "You were so scared your legs were shaking." were his exact words, said with a laugh of course.

Maybe you've had a similar experience with shivery timbers.  If so you have my deepest sympathy.  

Shoe therapy...

 Those of you who are of the feminine persuasion will understand when I say that sometimes a woman needs to go shoe shopping.  It is, without a doubt a theraputic experience.

I had decided, a few days ago, that, before we go on our southwest driving adventure in four weeks, I really needed to buy a new pair of good, sturdy walking shoes.  My old gym shoes have served me faithfully through Egypt, Alaska, South America and quite a bit of Europe, but they are wearing out.

I knew it was a sign that the time had come when I heard an ad on the radio this morning announcing the retirement/closing sale of my favorite Fort Wayne shoe store - Robert's.  If you've ever lived in Fort Wayne you've probably bought shoes at Robert's. They will be closing at the end of October and I have no idea where I'll go shoe shopping after they close.  This is no joke.  I wear a women's size 11 narrow which is not an easy size to find (although it is getting easier as young women are growing taller).  

My spouse agreed to come with me to do some shoe shopping.  They were having a good sale and we each bought two pairs of shoes.  His were two pairs of SAS sandals.  I bought one fall colored pair of Easy Spirits, my favorite shoes, and a second pair of Drews. I have never bought that brand before but the box said they have been in business since 1875 so I figured they are probably ok.  The Drews I bought were the walking shoes I was looking for with a fun twist. 

This is a picture of one of the shoes.  I think you will agree it's a fairly typical looking gym shoe.

What really sold me on these shoes was this special feature.  Once you have the shoes tied comfortably you never need to bother tying them again.  There is a zipper on each side of each shoe.  Just unzip, slip them on and zip them up.  Isn't that nifty?  Even on my sleepiest mornings I should be able to manage that.  

Forgive me if this blog seems to much like a commercial, but I really am excited about these shoes, like a kid at Christmas excited, and I just had to share.  

a funny little mystery

 As I've mentioned in a few blogs recently, I have spent a lot of time, off and on, in the last few weeks, putting pictures rescued from our water disaster into simple 'albums' - basically plastic pages in a three ring binder.  I now have saved, in addition to my spouse's and my wedding albums, a lovely fat notebook 'album' full of family pictures ranging from my father's youth to my grandchildren's wedding pictures.

I also have a section devoted to mutual friends that my spouse and I have known since college.  Among a bunch of these pictures that I had in a box (they had never made it into an album) I came across two pictures of my cat Athena.  On the back of each picture was neatly written "Athena's visit, 9/03." Not in my handwriting.  

The cat pictured was indeed my Athena but the house she is visiting is the house my wonder spouse and his first wife (one of my best friends) owned in 2003.  I do not know why Athena was visiting them.  When my first husband and I travelled (in 2003 we may have been going to Arizona or Kansas to visit baby grandchildren) we had a very competent teenage next door neighbor who was happy to take care of our cat while we were gone (for a reasonable fee of course).  

So why the visit from Athena captured in these pictures?  I just don't know.  

But she was obviously having a good time.

Play time!!!

 My west coast brother has informed me that today is "World Playdough Day" and "National Guacamole Day."  We both agreed that preschoolers would probably rather eat the Playdough. 

Playdough, also known as Play-Doh was originally invented as a cleaner to safely remove coal dust from wall paper. That was in the 1930s.  In the 50s it was reworked and introduced to schools as an educational tool.  By 1956 it was available to anyone to purchase in various department stores, in boxed sets of various colors.

That's a quick history.  I never used Play Doh in the classroom when I was teaching art in the 60s but my children and grandchildren have all enjoyed creating with it.  Snakes are a popular item, also small pots and animals.  It's a very satisfying material.  It feels good to work with, it comes in pretty colors, and, when you've created something that you want to keep, it will dry and harden and you have saved your art work.  This is it's advantage over modeling clay.  

Of course this ability to dry out can also be a disadvantage.  Be careful that, when you put your Play Doh away, you put the lid on the containers very tightly.  Of course, if you accidentally end up with a hard lump of Play Doh, you can always try carving it.  Or you could crumble it with a hammer (under adult supervision of course) and use the bits to make a mosaic.  If thinking about this makes you want to rush out and buy some Play Doh, do it!  Have fun and get creative!

more traveling...

 Yesterday I blogged about the trip my spouse and I are planning to take in October and November to historic places in the US southwest.  Today my wonder spouse and I took a different kind of trip - back in time.

I'm happy to report that crops growing in the "Great Black Swamp" area that I blogged about several days ago are flourishing.  The field corn is tall and the stalks are turning yellow, almost ready to harvest.  The soybean plants are drying and about ready to pick. We were able to buy tomatoes and an onion (locally grown) at our favorite produce market and bread, pumpkin bread and apple bread at our favorite bakery. 

What makes this a trip back in time is that all of this is happening in the heart of Amish country northeast of Fort Wayne.  What we see, as we drive from place to place, are horses grazing in pastures, and at one farm, six horses hitched to a wide plow and turning up the good black earth in an already harvested field.  And all of this happens in vast expanses of flat, flat land, the remnants of the footprint of a glacier from thousands of years ago.  

With just a little imagination, it's easy to picture this land as it was 250 years ago - swampy and covered with trees.  Early canals and trains opened this area to settlement by farmers who obviously made the most of the opportunity.  I do not mean to belittle the impact on Native Americans in this area but that's an earlier story for another blog.

Today we simply enjoyed the feeling of driving through history. 

ready to roam...

 Over the last couple of months my friends have been asking me where my wandering wonder spouse and I are planning to go next.  It's a fair question.  During the three years that we have been together we have travelled as far as Michigan, Canada, Alaska, the north western United States, the Caribbean, several countries in South America, Egypt and Japan.  

So, where to next?  We have just begun planning a driving trip through the southwestern United States.  My spouse and I, separately and together have visited most of the southwest, we have even, when my wonder spouse was still piloting his own plane, flown the length of the Grand Canyon, a truly amazing sight from the air.

But now I am ready to revisit places I have marveled at and long to see again.  Places like Mesa Verde, Casa Rinconada, Carlesbad Caverns, the Colorado Rockies, and so much more.  We will not, like some hapless tourists, stand on the edge of the Grand Canyon taking selfies.  Did you know that 12-17 people die in Grand Canyon National Park each year with falling being one of the leading causes of death?

We will of course be taking lots of pictures, we always do.  Cell phones have replaced our cameras for the most part.  Isn't that handy?  I can take pictures and blog through the entire trip.  That isn't always possible when we are overseas.  We will also visit friends and family along the way.  Travel time will be three to four weeks, departure date tentatively set for October 14.  

Here's our first draft trip map.  Our trusty Subaru will carry us through deserts, over mountains and across some really big bridges. Happy trails to us....

9x13 day...

 My west coast brother, wanting to be very helpful, informed me that today is "9x13 Day," "National Grandparents Day," "International Chocolate Day" and "Bald is Beautiful Day."  I appreciate a day for grandparents since I am one, and chocolate is worth celebrating any time, but 9x13 and bald have special significance for me today.  

55 years ago today I gave birth to my first child, a healthy, beautiful baby boy, so obviously the numbers 9 and 13 are very important to me. 55 years later he is bald but still beautiful (or handsome if you prefer).

But a little more checking told me that the 9x13 being celebrated actually refers to those incredibly useful 9"x13" baking pans that we all know and love. I personally use that size pan for my famous sweet potato casserole, brownies and birthday cakes of all flavors.  

When my son was one year old I used a 9x13 pan to bake a chocolate cake for him.  It was his first taste of chocolate and he loved it.  Sadly, not having a cell phone handy back then, and being too busy cleaning up the mess, I did not get a chocolate covered picture of him.  

Here he is, all cleaned up, at one year old.  Happy, happy birthday darling son.  You have been a blessing and a joy to me all these years.  

Do you speak German?

 I always thought it was amusing that, in my very German small home town, the only foreign language offered in our high school was French.  Mrs. Wetter, one of my favorite teachers, only spoke English and French.  My west coast brother, who, by the way, had French toast for breakfast with his grandchildren this morning, informed me that today is "Tag der Deutschen Sprache" which translate to German Language Day in English.  

You would think that, since my paternal grandparents grew up speaking German as well as English I might be able to speak some German but, as it happened I never really heard them speak German.  My German paternal great great grandparents immigrated to the United States sometime in the mid 1800s.  

My father was born in 1916.  World War One had begun in 1914.  Because they wanted there to be no doubt that they were loyal US citizens, my grandfather and grandmother decided to speak only English at home and that's what their three children learned.  

That was all very well except that when my father was sent to first grade at the local Lutheran school the lessons were being taught in German.  That made for a pretty miserable first grade for him.  

I never heard the whole story but somehow, by second grade, enough families brought pressure to bear on the school administration (probably one teacher for all eight grades) to assure that the classes would now be taught in English.  

So now you know why I don't sprachen de Deutsch. 

we remember...

 All of us, at least all of us of a certain age remember 9-11-2001.  The subsequent 25 years have slid by quickly but that day remains firmly fixed in my mind.  Like the day JFK was assasinated, or the days my children were born, some events are never forgotten.  I remember rushing around getting ready to go to work when my then husband called to me "You need to come in and see this. Something big is happening."  I knew he was watching the morning news as usual and didn't think much about it but he kept insisting so I went into the family room to see what was going on.  

I got there just in time to see a plane crash into the second tower.  We watched transfixed as towers fell and sirens wailed.  As the awful news continued to unfold we learned of an attack on the Pentagon and a plane crash in Pennsylvania.  A friend I was talking with earlier today reminded me of the mass confusion as airports were shut down and people were stranded all over the world.

I didn't fear for my own safety on that day but I did have a concern.  My daughter's best friend from third grade through highschool is Indian and Muslim.  She and her family have lived in the US since she was five years old.  They are loyal citizens but in appearance their dark skin and hair could be mistaken for Saudi.  I feared for their safety.  Happily they lived in a neighborhood here in Fort Wayne where they were well known and accepted by their neighbors.  

These days, when we travel by plane or ship, I try to be patient as we pass through security checks and have our carry-on luggage scanned.  "It's ok," I tell myself, "I'd rather be safe." 

I remember those....

My west coast brother was busy today so I had to find out what special day September 10th is, all by myself.  Here's what I found.  Today is "National School Picture Day" and National TV Dinner Day." 

Each of these is a blast from the past.  I've gone through school picture days myself and with my children and grandchildren.  I have been sorting through lots of old family pictures this week and I found many, many school pictures.  If you ever wonder if buying those pictures is worth it let me tell you what I found today.  In a box of pictures that my dear mother-in-law had collected were school pictures for every year for my two children (her only grandchildren).  Some of the pictures had notes from the kids on the back, and every one of them had the year, the age of the child and their grade in school, so lovingly collected.  

In addition I found a school picture of me from my first year of teaching, a picture of my mother from one of her years of teaching, a fine picture of my west coast brother when he was in middle school and, of course, many, many school pictures of my grandchildren.

But enough about pictures.  Do you remember TV dinners?  Swanson introduced them in the 1950s.  They came in little foil trays with three sections for a meat, potatoes, and a vegetable.  My mother was an excellent cook and we always had good home cooked meals but sometimes, just for a treat (and to give her a break I suspect) we would have TV dinners.  What I remember most is the taste and texture of the mashed potatoes. Especially the texture.  Especially the texture....

Cheers to friendship...

 I think it's fascinating how, when you get together with good friends, things just seem to pick up where they left off the last time you were together.  

My spouse and I had that experience today when we traveled to Winchester (the Indiana town, not the cathedral) to visit with friends of ours whom we hadn't seen for over a year.  When I tell you that we have been friends since college you will understand that we are old friends in every sense of the word.  But, if anything, that made this visit even sweeter. 

It's true that our conversation this time around included a lot more references to doctors, hospital stays and therapies that it ever used to. Each of us had something to contribute to that part of the conversation. But we also found plenty of time to compare notes on how all of our family members are doing and share pictures of a grandchild's wedding and a super cute great grandchild. 

We also talked about trips we have taken, they to Thailand, we to Egypt, among other places, and future travel plans.  As we shared lunch at one of their favorite Mexican restaurants we made tentative plans for them to come visit us in Fort Wayne, probably after the holidays.  They would like to go to a play and their favorite Japanese restaurant while they are here.  Sounds good to us.  I love having future plans to look forward to, especially plans shared with good friends. 

The Great Black Swamp

 My westcoast brother happily told me today that they have had, so far in September, more rain than they had during the months of June, July and August combined. It amounted to 0.32" of rain.  I asked him how that compared to other years and he said it's about the same.  Then he said it "comes from living on the edge of a desert."

To which I replied "Whereas we live on the edge of the great black swamp" so we get plenty of rain.  In case you haven't heard of it "The Great Black Swamp" is a real thing.  

"Long ago, a vast swamp stretched across much of northwest Ohio. Known as the Great Black Swamp, it covered more than 1,500 square miles and reached into parts of Indiana. Most of it lay where today’s northwest Ohio communities now thrive. This massive wetland played a major role in shaping how towns and farms in the area developed. Even now, it continues to influence life in this part of the state."

I grew up in Woodburn, Indiana, 18 miles from the Ohio state line, and definitely part of the great Black Swamp area.  My great grandparents were among the intrepid farmers who cleared and drained the swamp land, creating some of the best agricultural soil anywhere.  It was no easy task though.  Like any good swamp, this swamp was heavily forested.  I read once that you could walk across northern Indiana and touch a tree with every step.  It was also filled with malaria carrying mosquitoes.  Families sitting down to eat in their cabins would have smudge pots burning under the table to keep the mosquitoes away.  While some logs were used to build cabins, hundreds of trees were simply cut down and burned to clear the land for farming. Hence the name "Woodburn."  After the trees were cleared, trenches were dug and clay pipes were layed in the fields.  The pipes would absorb the water out of the swampy ground and it would run off into creeks or rivers.  When I was a young child there was still a plant manufacturing clay pipes in Woodburn.  

I marvel at the ingenuity and stubborn resolve of these early German settlers, and am proud to call them my ancestors.