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We had an uptick in visits to our humming- bird feeders about three weeks ago, and this week, the battles for air superiority (not to mention perching and sipping rights) have become fierce. The young male rubythroat at left had just a touch of red on his throat. The males don't get the trademark red plumage until their second summer.
Although humming birds often appear on greeting cards in peaceful poses, ours are seemingly into non stop aerial combat. Here, the young male refuels for the next sortie.
Of course, a mature male is the alpha bird, but he has to spend a lot of energy chasing away the young pretenders. Here he raises his beak to ward off the youngster circling over head.
The bird books say that the males migrate to Mexico and central America first, followed by the females. Next month the sight of this red throat will be rare, but the battles will probably continue. The females are territorial, too.
Usually Norm waits until it's almost dark to venture out and refill the feeders with sugar water. We have three: one on the front porch, this one in the dining room window, and one in the back yard hanging from a shepherd's crook. Somehow, these guys keep an eye in all directions and try to defend them. One thing we have noticed is that when the hummers are in full competition, most other birds avoid our yard as well. No sparrows, wrens, goldfinches or even starlings are in evidence, except for a quick dip in the bird bath. We love watching these hummingbird antics at breakfast, lunch and supper. They are a reminder that fall is coming, even if it was 92 degrees today before a thundershower cooled everything off.
It wasn't exactly a contest, but the last couple of days I've been watching the SiteMeter to see if Home Stories would log its 1000th visitor since April 21 this week. Lo and behold, we have a winner, and it's the visitor from Garden City, Kansas! Although I think they might have been aiming for that distinction since they logged on three times today. Either that, or they are in need of something new to read. Congratulations, Don and Kay, and thanks for reading.
Visitor 999 was niece Debbie in Hutchinson, another frequent reader. Debbie, I have a present for you: some of the original fabric from my wedding dress--I saved the scraps. Would they come in handy for some of your altered art projects? Let me know.
I added the counter in April after attending a presentation about them at the Missouri College Media conference. Although Home Stories has been in the blogosphere (thanks for that new word, Doug) for two years, readers seldom leave comments and I was wondering if anyone besides me ever read it. Now I know. There are the people who stumble in via a Google search, from Delaware and Tel Aviv and New Zealand and France, but there are also regular visitors I think I know: Greg and Monique in the Netherlands, Doug in Florida, Maxine in MIneral Wells, Carol in Irving, Debi and Mike in Tulsa, Jan in Colby, Carla in North Platte, Jacque in St. Louis and Sandy in St. Louis; former student Josh from the Post-Dispatch (although he's reading it at work and it registers as coming from Lee Enterprises in Davenport Iowa, go figure), and Carrie in St. Charles (although I think she has moved.) There are some mysteries: Broomfield, Colo., Monument, Kans. and a couple of others. (ISP providers aren't always listed as being in the town the reader is from, and the ISP is all I see, not your e-mail address.) It's great to know that family and friends, those for whom the blog was started, are looking at it and I hope finding something a few times a week to inform or entertain. So--who wants to be visitor # 2000? Can we reach that goal before the end of 2008? I'll try to give you a reason to come back and we'll see.
Well, this week was supposed to be the start of my official complete retirement. Classes at the university started Monday and for once, I wasn't involved in anything. So the Big Question is, what do we do all day now? So far, we are plenty busy. Our late-summer yard is still verdant (above) thanks to Norm's efforts at hauling hose around. Yes, even though we are 12 inches over average for precip for the year, July and August have been dry and we have had to water. But it's worth it.
On August 5, the day after all of our anniversary guests had departed, a cold front came through, putting us back into the 80s. We enjoyed sitting on our front porch (shown in the daytime above, with over- wintering geraniums in full array) that evening, watching some lightning play from cloud to cloud in the far distance, and soaking up the cool air. Suddenly, there was a snap, a flash and a boom, all simultaneously. We dived inside and when our hearts started beating again, wondered where the thunderbolt had struck. It had been frighteningly close.
Because our neighbor was out of town, we went outside about an hour later (no more thunder or lightning in evidence) to look at trees, roof lines, check for smoke escaping from attic vents, etc. There was no sign of a lightning strike. But oddly, we saw these two shingles dislodged from our roof near the chimney. We could swear they were in place the day before, and we had not had any wind to speak of. An insurance estimate was below our deductible. So we called the company that installed the roof in 2002, and the repair was covered under our 10-year workmanship guarantee from them. It pays to look at warranty papers! Two employees of the company stopped by before lunch today and had new shingles nailed in place in about 10 minutes. No charge. End of story. Except I'll always wonder about that thunderbolt.
When we aren't worrying about the conditions of our house, we are keeping track of the neighbors. At one time this summer, four houses across the street from us were for sale. One was taken off the market quickly; we think renters bought it. One has been renovated extensively by a parade of workers and just this week a gaggle of real estate agents toured it, so it should go on the market soon although no sign is up. The two in the photo above got Sold signs within a few days of each other about two weeks ago. The near one has been on the market for over a year and the far one for about 4 months. Both owners had moved out of state. We still don't know who the new neighbors will be, but we will be on the porch on Labor Day weekend, keeping an eye out for moving trucks.
Is this a sign of an improving housing market? We certainly hope so!
Next to gardening and people watching, our favorite activity is eating, and one of our favorite places to shop for food is the Ferguson Farmers Market, which is open on Saturday mornings from May through October. We have found delicious local peaches, melons, sweet corn, tomatoes, new potatoes, squash, cucumbers, and more at the vendor places here. We also have bought bread, eggs, and sweets. A couple of weeks ago we had a cooked to order omelet for breakfast. It seldom rains on Saturdays, and we are glad.
We also are glad to report that Tropical Storm Fay missed Ft. Myers, except for dumping a lot of rain. Doug says they are taking the storm shutters down today, so they can once again get natural light in their condo. Classes begin next Monday for Doug, who teaches at FGCU. Oh, and I said at the top that I'm supposed to be fully retired now, but the student newspaper still doesn't have an adviser. I'm doing some minimal things for them right now just so they can stay in business, so although that cord is really frayed, it's not quite cut. Soon, I hope.
While we are enjoying a long spell of air-conditioner-free weather: low humidity and daytime highs a little above 80, the weather report last night made me aware of trouble brewing in the Caribbean. So for the last 24 hours I've been tracking Tropical Storm Fay on various online sites from NOAA and The Weather Channel. Fay has caused misery and loss of life in the Domincan, Haiti and Cuba and the next stop is projected to be the Florida Keys and then the West Coast of Florida.
Not long after Doug moved to Fort Myers, we became dedicated watchers of the tropical updates. The first year there was a brief skirmish with tropical storm Ernesto but it resembled nothing more than a heavy downpour here in the heartland. But Fay seems to be the most serious potential storm to threaten this area since Hurricane Charley in 2004. Tonight's Weather Service update says that Fay may strengthen to "near hurricane strength" as it approaches the Keys tomorrow and the SW Florida coast on Tuesday. All areas on the east side of the storm, its strongest side, may be at risk of strong winds and tornadoes. If Fay stays over the Gulf and eventually makes landfall farther north, it might be even more destructive. Short of an outright fizzle, there is not a lot of good news here for a lot of people, including our boys and granddog.
Our prayers are for everyone in harm's way: those who have already been slammed by wind and rain in Cuba and Hispaniola; those who are debating whether to evacuate or wait; those who are racing to put up storm shutters or wondering if they really need to; those who have work and school and everyday life to try to carry on this week despite any dire forecasts on TV. I've found useful information on the NBC television station in Ft. Myers at this spot, and also at this blog by the station's meteorologist--who has already widened my storm vocabulary by a nautical mile or two. The National Hurricane Center site is also helpful, and issues updates at 5, 11, 5 and 11 EDT every day. We will stay tuned.
I'm a couple of calendar days late, but have the right day of the week, at least. Home Stories is two years old this week: its first post was first published on Friday, Aug. 11, 2006. Thanks to everyone who has become a regular reader as well as to those who browse the Blogger listings and check me out if only once. New readers Tricia and Granny from Texas also are examples of the serendipity that can happen when communities erupt on the Internet and/or acquaintances find each other again after 50 years or so. Later this weekend I'll be posting some new stories and photos of August in St. Louis, as well as updated links to our anniversary party photos. Please check back when you can!
Our anniversary celebration continued on Sunday with Nancy, John, Judy, Doug and Matt joining us at church. Then Nancy, John, Judy and we had lunch at the Missouri Botanical Garden and late in the afternoon, drove to the Columbia Bottoms Conservation area so our western visitors could see the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi rivers. The line of trees marks the confluence point. Both rivers are above flood stage right now so this is as close as we could get.
Nancy, Norm, Judy and John all enjoyed the view from the platform at Columbia Bottoms. It is a wetland, and we saw many egrets, herons, geese, and other shorebirds on the way in and on the way home. We had to stop for 7 or 8 deer, too.
John took this great photo of geese flying over the Missouri River, near the confluence, at sunset. If you click on the photo, it will enlarge and you can see the details.
We stopped by the Missouri to watch the changing light and marvel at the swiftly rushing water passing at our feet. Imagine what this looked like to Lewis and Clark as they began their journey up the Missouri at this very point in 1803.
Here we are, 40 years after Norm and I joined our lives for better or worse, richer or poorer, for as long as... the rivers run and the sun rises in the East and sets in the West. Maybe longer.
Of course, travelers must eat. We took Nancy, Judy and John to one of our favorite hangouts, the Whistle Stop cafe in Ferguson. It was a mild night so we ate our ice cream treats outside. We waited for a freight train to come by, but it was not the right time.
Everyone was tired, especially Judy, but neither she nor the rest of us could go to sleep until we had gone through our college yearbooks, looking for photos that documented that long ago time in Carnall Hall when we were single and full of plans to change the world. Who knows? Maybe each of us has, in some way, been a small part of the world's changes, and for the better. On Monday morning, our guests left for Kansas and other points west, and Norm and I started a series of naps that have lasted almost a week! At least that's my excuse for taking so long to get this up. Debi posted her account of our weekend on her blog (click here to go to the page) and you will enjoy reading her version and looking at her pictures, as well.
Thank you, all of you, friends and family, for your faith in us. We owe our 40 years together to you and to the grace of God, who brought us together and sustains us every day. Love you!
Doug and Matt took charge of planning the reception on Saturday, Aug. 2, for our 40th anniversary. It took place at the Alumni House, built in 1922, at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. Norm and I weren't allowed to set foot inside during the two hours that they set up, with the help of cousins Mike and Debi, friend Judy and Karen and Gary. So this is the sight that greeted us.
I still have a little pride that I made my own wedding dress back in 1968 so it was part of the display. But stealing the show were the collage frames Doug made of our past and present.
Along with the photos were other items such as the White Album by the Beatles, also released in 1968. We brought CDs of '60s music to be played throughout the afternoon as well.
The dining room was decorated with white table cloths, white hydrangeas, and yellow and white tealight candles in tiny goblets. It was a stunning view and much more elegant than our original wedding reception!
Finger foods were catered by Cuisine D'Art and desserts by Cose Dolci. The sunroom made a perfect spot for the buffet table and beverages.I have lots of photos of people gathered around the tables and eating and visiting, but I'll post all of them on Kodak Gallery as soon as I can write captions and upload them. Look for a link soon.
Doug as MC recounted some of our history and led the assembled guests in wishing us 40 more years!
We then took the floor and briefly introduced everyone there, so that connections could be made based on geography, history, and experience. It worked!
Cousins Mike and Debi look remarkably rested after spending most of the afternoon setting up and cleaning up. Having my family here meant a lot to me. 
Here we are with two very special guys who came all the way from Florida to make our celebration possible. Thank you both!
40 years ago, Nancy and John were the witnesses to our marriage. That they were able to come all the way from Western Kansas made our day, week, maybe even year!
All too soon, the party was over! Judy F, at left, came the farthest distance, from Boulder. We also relived some moments from our college days. The alumni center was perfect for the party, everyone agreed. The taste of the organizers was impeccable, and the experience unforgettable. More photos will appear in other places, on free web sites if you want to view more. Thanks to John, Judy, and Doug for sharing photos with me.
I'm sending a preliminary Thank You to all of our readers in Mineral Wells, Colby, Garden City, Hutchinson, Tulsa and St. Louis who have checked the blog today and yesterday, possibly hoping to catch glimpses of the anniversary celebration. We did have a great time and wish those of you who couldn't be here could have been. It was a heck of a party! Some of our out of town guests left today and the rest of them will leave on Monday. After I get a good, long nap, I'll give a full account and post pictures, and also give you a link to a slideshow on Kodak Gallery and possibly elsewhere. We appreciate your interest and your faithful checking in. More to come, soon. J and N.
Today and tomorrow St. Louis is under a Heat Advisory, which means that the Heat Index is expected to be 105 degrees F or greater. The warning lasts until Monday evening. Our neighbor and her company went to the ball game today. She said they sat in the sun and it was hot! (She's a Cubs fan, though.) The Cardinals beat the Padres in dramatic style and are only one or two games out of first place in the NLC. Will they repeat 2006? Time will tell.
One way to beat the heat if air conditioning is not an option is to visit the deep shade underneath our huge maple tree in the back yard. We of course DO have working air conditioning (for the moment, until the next power outage, anyway) but the maple is still a blessing as we go outside to water the gardens or move between house and garage. We try to brighten the shade with colorful foliage plants such as these coleus and caladiums. The caladiums are in their third year; they overwinter in their pots, sans foliage, on a window sill in the basement and when it gets warm we bring the pots outside, add water, and wait for the miracle of caladium awakening.
Right now all of our travelers are back home, and we are thankful. Don and Kay report a great time in Guatemala, with success in putting a floor in their friends' church and a roof on a school, plus some sightseeing. Mike and Debi say they had a great time in Las Vegas but gave few details so we figure what happened in Vegas is staying there... getting home was a challenge for them when a flight was cancelled and they spent some time in our airport, unbeknown to us, because I had turned my cell phone off. They'll be here in two weeks to visit us and we are looking forward to it.
Update: Debi gives an accounting of the Las Vegas trip on her blog: click here.
And The Boys arrived in Edwardsville tonight after a 2-day drive from SW Florida. They'll be in the area for the next two weeks and we are anticipating some great times visiting with them and especially our grand-dog, Sam.
We continue to work on de-cluttering. Last week we took at least 100 pounds of old magazines and paper to a recycling bin to benefit Mike and Sandy's church. This week we will have more. Sometimes I look at stuff and shake my head as to why I saved it. As some of it is cleared away I find I feel a certain sense of relief that I won't have to shuffle it around any more. This week the carpet cleaners are coming so we will have to get the last of the little stuff out of their way, and wash the throw rugs. Then it will be time to shop for some new linens, lay in some provisions, and in general get ready for The Party on August 2. Anticipation is building.
All around town, Hollyhocks are in bloom, lending an old-fashioned charm to our somewhat old-fashioned city. Our back border this year yielded these dark, dark purple flowers. Last year they were kind of stubby, but being biennials, this is the year for them to shine.
Other signs of summer: the cicadas are in full voice from afternoon until after sunset. And last week, tree frogs started calling in the trees along the back fence line. Fireflies still wink and the moon is at first quarter phase. The weather turned a little cooler and less humid after a stormy frontal passage yesterday, so we are enjoying a quiet evening on the porch.
Today Norm preached at our church as a favor to our vacationing pastor; his sermon title was "Motorcycles are Everywhere" inspired by a sighting on our June trip to Kansas. We also attended a wedding shower for an engaged couple (Norm said it was his "first shower" ) and then we went to a wake, which is what they call funeral visitations in these parts. We were away from home in our Sunday duds for 10 hours, unusual for us. Clearly we could arrange to get out more! The coming week promises to be busy with appointments, errands, exercise and housecleaning! We have to be ready for Stanley Steemer when they come next week. We are enjoying having an in-tune piano, if only for a little while. An 86-year-old Story and Clark upright with a small crack in the sound board does its best, but as Barry the Tuner said on Friday, nothing is guaranteed. Of course, when you live in an 86-year-old house, nothing is guaranteed either. But for tonight, we are grateful and content.
We wish good travels to Don and Kay as they will return from Guatemala this week. And also to Cousins Mike and Debi who are heading to Las Vegas for a little R&R. With stressful jobs in education and medical care, they deserve to beat the house a couple of times.
This month, we have enjoyed a bumper crop of raspberries from the Heritage everbearing variety in our garden. There is a big patch that grew from 4 plants we transplanted 7 years ago! This bowl represents the picking on July 4 and 5. Normally we have a small June crop and a larger fall crop. They are good on cereal, ice cream, alone, and from the freezer later in the year. Being able to have one's own garden patch and enjoy raspberries is part of our larger freedom and liberty that we celebrate on this weekend.
When we moved, we also trans- planted shasta daisies, but after 6 years, they didn't survive. Last year we bought a pot of miniature daisies and they seem to like their spot. Another plant that traditionally blooms in June, these are a couple of weeks later, due to our late spring.
Until a few days ago, this hydrangea in the front border was the only blue flower in the garden. The blooms gradually fade to purple and pink after they are open for a while. But for the time being, they complete our patriotic collection.
This weekend was quiet for us. We spent a lot of time de-cluttering the house and enjoying the cool evenings on our front porch, watching fireflies and listening to the cicadas, which started calling around July 1. We are still waiting for the tree frogs. Today the weather shifted into a more humid, warm pattern so we will have to go back to sleeping with air conditioning. We have had a blessed 10 days or more without needing to run AC, saving a little bit on the electric bill.
Our thoughts and prayers are with Don and Kay, who left the US today for a mission trip to Guatemala. They will be helping to complete a church and a school in a small village there. We know they will have great stories and pictures to share when they return but for now, we pray for their safety during the next 10 days.
One of the persistent holiday dates in my life has been July 3, which is just about a national holiday in our family, because it's cousin Mike's birthday. When we were kids growing up in Tulsa, this event was often celebrated on July 4, as it was in this photo from when I was 11 and Mike turned 7. We were in a patriotic mood that year, as we posed with my dog Rags in our back yard. Today I called and talked to Mike before he went to work, and he had just finished mowing his back yard. True to tradition, he will have family over to his place tomorrow, partially in observance of Independence Day, but we all know The Real Reason for the gathering! Wish we could be there! Happy Birthday, Mike.
This week has been something of a blur. On Sunday we enjoyed helping to staff our church's booth at the annual Pride Fest in Tower Grove park, despite some brief rain showers. That evening we learned that our friend Norma had died during the afternoon. Today the church was nearly full as her far-flung family, many friends, and church people gathered for a memorial service and celebration of her life. More is on my church blog at this link.
Norm and I have started to clean house in anticipation of a gathering here next month to celebrate one of those anniversaries that ends in "0". More details will come in future posts. But for now we are trying to put things back in their places, find homes for things we no longer use or need, and perk the place up a bit. Two stories plus a basement can hide a lot of stuff that just creeps in when you aren't looking. I'm getting some inspiration from a great blog I've found, called The Unclutterer. I recommend it if you are a hoarder like me. (When my mother found out that Norm also was a teacher and we BOTH collected books, magazines and papers, she observed: "you two deserve each other." Here we are 40 years later. Who knew?
I hope to get back to regular posting this weekend. I know a lot of you have been checking in and I appreciate it. Please feel free to leave comments at any time.
***News Flash: Barb has decided that Ava will remain Ava. Thanks anyway to all of you who suggested names. Barb said that Ava responds so well and obeys so well when she hears her name that it would be silly to try to change it now. But we still hear someone out in Barb's yard calling "Sweetie" from time to time!
We had an uptick in visits to our humming- bird feeders about three weeks ago, and this week, the battles for air superiority (not to mention perching and sipping rights) have become fierce. The young male rubythroat at left had just a touch of red on his throat. The males don't get the trademark red plumage until their second summer.
Although humming birds often appear on greeting cards in peaceful poses, ours are seemingly into non stop aerial combat. Here, the young male refuels for the next sortie.
Of course, a mature male is the alpha bird, but he has to spend a lot of energy chasing away the young pretenders. Here he raises his beak to ward off the youngster circling over head.
The bird books say that the males migrate to Mexico and central America first, followed by the females. Next month the sight of this red throat will be rare, but the battles will probably continue. The females are territorial, too.
