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This morning it was partly cloudy so I went out around 11 a.m. to photograph the maple. It was a good idea, because the day became overcast, gloomy and cold after noon. It doesn't look much different from the Nov. 6 photos, but in person, the reds seem a little more vibrant. There are fewer red leaves on the tree, though, because a lot of them are on the ground.
Today Dave B. came to work his magic on some of the faucets, pipes and drains in our house. We are so grateful for his expertise! That's Dave's little red truck in the driveway, above. Tonight we have a new shower head that doesn't spray water all over the bathroom, a drain flipper that flips and a bathtub drain that drains. We also have a brand new faucet at the kitchen sink. We thank you, Dave!
While I was prowling the yard taking pictures, I had to catch these last flowers of summer. There are three perfect buds on Norm's favorite yellow rose. Tomorrow they will be cut and brought in since a freeze is in the offing for Saturday night.
On the advice of our long-time (and now deceased) friend Freda B., we wait until the 4th of July to start zinnias from seed. This is the last of this year's bunch. They will become part of the frost-escape bouquet, too!
The last warm day on Thursday saw more red highlights on the maple, but also more leaves piling up in the yard. Norm spent the morning at the food pantry for Isaiah 58, the outreach ministry housed in our church. This week, there was food to hand out. Last week he came home early because the shelves were empty.
On Thursday I went to water exercise, and then in the afternoon we went to Home Depot to get a new hand held shower wand for our upstairs bath. The previous one had self-destructed. Tomorrow our friend Dave, the Persnickety Crafter, is coming to clear up some little plumbing problems like that. We also stocked up on groceries for a couple of weeks at Shop N Save, where a $10 off coupon was in effect for Thursday only. We came home and celebrated with a Red Baron thin crust pizza straight from our oven. Ah, the high life.
Thursday was also Doug's birthday. Happy Birthday and we hope you get a well deserved rest from meetings and paper grading soon!
Day by day, the maple adds more color. This photo was taken on Wednesday the 5th about 1 p.m. All of these full views are taken from the far end of Barb's back yard. This is pretty much the view our neighbor Jacinta has when she goes out to get into her garage! Sadly, because of the height of the house, little of the maple is visible from the street.
Color has really deepened on the upper branches closest to the house, as this closeup shows. These are in the upper left of the big picture above.
Yet if one stands under the maple and looks up, there is till a lot of green yet to turn. Today has been overcast and a light rain fell before noon. I sat on the porch, drank coffee and read the paper until the mail came. The fine rain hitting the fallen leaves was so soothing! It's feeling a little cooler, so I came inside. Now the front is passing to the east and the sun is out. I'll see what kind of picture the maple takes today!
Meanwhile, in the tropics...I just looked and see there is yet another tropical storm--Paloma--forming off the coast of Nicaragua and Honduras. It's forecast to become a hurricane sometime tomorrow and to cut across the middle of Cuba on the weekend. Those folks have really been hammered this season. Imagine, named storms getting all the way to "P". Paloma means butterfly in Spanish, and it is the name of my neighbor Jacinta's older daughter.
Yesterday afternoon when we got home from voting, I took these pictures of our Maple. A few branches are getting to be quite reddish, although a lot of green is still visible. It has been dry and warm this week, so many trees have turned, peaked, and already lost most of their leaves. A cold front and showers are due through this evening. I'll take another photo this afternoon and we'll see how much is left tomorrow.
Post election thoughts are still percolating in my mind and will show up on Thursday's Child in a day or two. I'll let you know when they are up. Norm is also working on a reflection that includes being present at JFK's historic appearance at the Michigan Union after midnight in October 1960, when the ideal of public service became real to him.
Which is to say, we were amazed when at the turn of the hour at 10 p.m. CST last night, the race was decided. We just turned to C-Span (no commentators) and watched both John McCain's and Barack Obama's speeches. It was hard to go to sleep after all that excitement.
At this moment, Missouri is still undecided, with provisional ballots not yet in the mix. John McCain is leading by about 6000 votes and if that holds up, our state could lose its "bellwether" status (having gone with the winner in all but one election since Who Knows When.) Frankly, it would be nice to lose that popularity after the onslaught of e-mails, calls, flyers, endless TV and radio ads and campaign visits we have had from both candidates. Now we know a little bit of what Iowa residents endure every four years!
In the state wide races, all the candidates I mentioned that I would support actually won. In a split that could only occur in Missouri, we elected a Democrat governor and a Republican lieutenant governor. The positions we took on many ballot measures did not prevail. The 1/2 cent transit tax failed, and that will have serious consequences in our area for bus and light rail use. The English only amendment passed, a sign of these anti-immigration times. And the gambling loss limit was also lifted, so come on over to our state and lose as much money as you want. It's supposed to benefit our schools. Time will tell. One bright spot: the evil bond issue for our troubled Fire District is losing, for the third time. Each vote has cost the taxpayers at least $20,000 for that measure to be on the ballot, or so I hear. Recall! We have signed the petition already.
Today we are taking the day off from exercise. Norm will walk Ava this afternoon since Barb is still recuperating. And I'll post the latest from the Maple Watch after this.
Because this is not a political blog, I haven't posted this photo before, but there actually is a whole line of these on our street, in addition to ours. Norm and I will vote in our Bel Nor Village Hall tomorrow, sometime after we get out of water exercise. We hope to catch a mid morning lull when lines will be shorter. In 2006 the wait was nearly an hour, as new touch-screen voting machines were unfamiliar. This year will be the first presidential election using them. We will ask for the paper op/scan ballots since they leave a record that can be used in a recount, although we have used the computer machines in the primary and other elections.
Our ballot this year has not only the Presidential candidates, but also House of Representatives, three state supreme court justices, a whole passel of St. Louis county judges, and many beaucoup (as my father would say) amendments and propositions. One amendment makes English the official language of the state. Another removes the gambling loss limit at our casinos (it's presently capped at $500 per 2 hours, which The Industry says is making us lose gamblers to Illinois). There is a proposition to increase the sales tax that supports our Metro bus and train system, which it needs for operating expenses and to expand. There is a proposition for a bond issue for our local fire department that has twice been defeated because residents are trying to recall two members of the board. And then there are state offices: Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Treasurer, Secretary of State, Attorney General.
I'll be voting no on the English (unnecessary) and gambling (here we go again on promises to education that won't be delivered) amendments. Likewise the fire house bonds, no sale until the house is cleaned. Yes for Metro because even if it's more taxes, it still is a transportation alternative that we use and wish more people had access to. I'll vote for Democrats Jay Nixon (never thought I'd ever support a politician named Nixon!) for governor and my former student Clint Zweifel for treasurer. The Lt. Governor in Missouri has few duties, except to step in when the governor is out of the state or incapacitated. I am probably going to vote for the Republican incumbent, Peter Kinder. He has performed very well the last 4 years, stepping in to call out emergency help during our fall floods from Gustav and Ike in a manner more efficient than our governor ever could have done. He also is a voice for a large segment of Missourians who would lack representation in the executive branch if there was a Democratic sweep. Incumbent Secretary of State Robin Carnahan is effective and her opposition is not well organized. The Attorney General race is a real mess. Jay Nixon held this post for 16 years and proved to be an advocate for consumers, establishing an effective No Call list for the state that preceded the federal one, and that is still better. Neither of the men who want to replace him is appealing. The Democrat has switched parties in an opportunistic move, and the Republican is still remembered for giving the raspberry to a former governor from the opposite party, when he was delivering the state of the state address. Both men are accomplished lawyers, although only one has trial experience. Both of them have spent enough money on TV ads slinging mud at each other to stock every food pantry in the state for the next four years! Koster or Gibbons? I'm still wrestling with this one.
In the Presidential race, I've followed every attack and counter attack, watched both party conventions, watched all four debates. I've read the blogs and the polls. I say this to emphasize that I'm not influenced by any single incident or issue. I know that each side has distorted the other side's plans for taxes, medical reform, and other issues. The best source, unbiased, for running all of these down is at www.factcheck.org and if you still have questions about a robo call, flyer, or ad you've seen from either the Democrat or Republican side, I recommend it for its thoroughness and lack of partisanship. Each campaign has its debunking sites as well, but they are less neutral.
In the end, this year as four years ago (and four and more years before that, back to 1968, actually) the platform and ideals of the Democratic party have come closer to expressing the values I cherish: individual freedom, responsibility, care for the vulnerable in society, true security, seeking peace with war as a last resort. These are also values for Republicans and I respect the fact that we just go about implementing them differently. All I can say about third parties, for those who are not attracted by either the Democrats or Republicans, is to recall that once I voted for such a candidate. I voted for John Anderson in 1980 and Ronald Reagan was elected. I have always regretted that I chose to "express myself" over looking at the probable consequence of my choice. And I suspect a lot of conservatives who voted for Ross Perot in 1992, with the resulting election of Bill Clinton, might know what I mean.
Nearly four years ago I picked up Barack Obama's book, Dreams From My Father, and after finishing it, thought that I wished someone with his understanding of mutual responsibility and empowerment of the common people could be elected president of the United States. Perhaps, I thought, after he serves a term or two in the Senate and maybe gets elected governor of Illinois--since the CW is that governors, not senators, get elected President. Fast forward two years, and he is running. Fast forward to this summer, and we have two candidates for President, both of them Senators. So much for the CW. Yes, Obama has less experience. He is only 47, not 72. He isn't a socialist or a terrorist. Both of these guys have friends I wouldn't necessarily choose as my own. Obama's "Change" slogan isn't so much the reason for my choice, as is the one on the bumper sticker on my van: Yes.We.Can. From the beginning, this campaign has been about working together, changing the way we think about politics, uniting a fractured country, restoring America's standing among the nations of the world. Whether it succeeds, history will tell. If these sentiments make me a Liberal, I'm not ashamed of the title. I would put an "Unterrified Liberal" bumper sticker on my car in a minute.
No matter what the outcome of this election, I am still first and foremost an American. I will continue to love and support my country and work for its betterment in any way I can, for as long as I can. But most of all I want to recover a sense of pride in the USA. I want to feel once more that tingle under my ribs when the flag goes by, or when I hear the Star-Spangled Banner played when a small town radio station signs off the air at midnight.
If you didn't vote absentee or in early voting, please vote on Tuesday. Vote early, but not often!
Not a lot of change in one day. I snapped this on Sunday afternoon, Nov. 2, about 2 p.m. It was overcast today and I ran out of time to take a picture. Other trees in the neighborhood are changing fast and some leaves are beginning to pile up.
Norm finally got the mower started and mulched leaves this afternoon while I visited my dermatologist. Right now the tree looks a lot better than I do!
Carol L. has written that she may be the Mystery Reader from Flower Mound, TX. I think she is undoubtedly right. So glad to know you and Walt are following the blog again and grateful that Walt feels much better. Enjoy the upcoming weekend in Beaver's Bend. Wish we could join you!
Photos were forbidden, and the one I tried from my cell phone is just a blur. But Sunday night Norm and I got to go to a Neil Diamond concert at the Savvis Center in downtown St. Louis. A member of our church had comp tickets she could not use and passed them on to us. So our only cost was the $4 total roundtrip senior fare on MetroLink from the university parking lot to the station right across the street from the concert hall.
This was a make good on a concert in August that was postponed when Diamond was battling voice problems. We sat next to church friends Marty and Darrell and the four of us rocked out in our seats up in the nosebleed section. (I have to confess that earplugs from Walgreens made the amplification more comfortable.) We were amazed at the number of 30-somethings there who were on their feet and dancing to "Sweet Caroline" and other hits. The last time we saw Neil Diamond in concert was in St. Louis at the old (now demolished) Arena, some 30 years ago. He has slowed down some, and the tempo of some songs (notably Holly Holy) is also slower. But not all. The final encore was "Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show" and it was as energetic as ever!
We enjoyed the whole evening: it was warm, the place was easy to find, we rode the rails with standing-room only crowds of fans from the far suburbs. I couldn't get to sleep until after 2 a.m.! Wow.
Today was a glorious fall day with a high of around 74 degrees and unlimited sunshine. Because I spent a large part of the day at our old church in Florissant, helping friends there serve a funeral dinner, I didn't spend as much time outside as I would have liked. The weather is supposed to hold, so I will try to get some fall pictures tomorrow.
Tonight as Norm and I came home from water exercise, I could hear a TREE FROG in our neighbor's yard. Still calling although summer is long gone. It felt like a spring night, though, and tomorrow we should have literally hundreds (our highest past number was 249) of trick or treaters. We hope we have enough candy.
This morning visitor # 1600 checked in and the prize (if there were one) goes to one of the Linvilles in Colby. I'm never sure, but I suspect it was you, Jan. I got to looking at my sitemeter report and found some interesting things. First, we seem to have a new, in-depth reader on Verizon with an ISP that is located in Flower Mound, Texas. Since that is in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex there are any number of folks it could be, family or not. Anyway, glad to have you. And for some reason today we have had a lot of visitors from overseas: England, Turkey, India and Mauritius, even. They were searching for things that retired people do, or gardening. Sorry if you were disappointed. And finally, I have come to regret ever using the word "orgy" in a headline for a blog post. I think it was about orchids, and the huge show at our local botanical garden last year. Anyway, a couple of times a week, people searching for "orgy stories" turn up this post. I guess most of them are surprised and disappointed. What amazes me is the kinds of phrases people will put into a search engine and look for on the Internet!
I should have some photos soon. Meanwhile, happy Halloween, everyone, whether you are retired or not, whether you have a garden, whether you are looking for a gypsy caravan (a popular search on my Compton church blog) or whether you are planning an orgy. Or not.
Sometimes life brings good surprises. Last night, we went to the home of our friends the Dixons expecting dessert and a visit with their daughter Heather and her fiance, Corey. They are moving to Chicago this coming weekend and we knew they were planning to have a simple, quiet wedding sometime next month. I was hoping to pick up some details about their apartment so I could start the search for a present for them. Before we arrived, at dinner, Heather asked her father (who is a minister) if he would be willing to marry them that evening. They had gotten their license and had it with them. After we arrived, they asked us if we would be their witnesses. So in another of life's Firsts, Norm and I got to be the witnesses as Mike led his daughter and her new husband in their vows. Heather said it was most meaningful to be married in the home where she had grown up. We have known Heather for almost her entire life, and we are delighted that she and Corey have made this commitment to spend the rest of their lives together. We pray God's blessings on them, on their move, and on their job search. After we all caught our breath, we really enjoyed the iced pumpkin bars Sandy had made for dessert. Pretty good wedding cake, actually.
Our garden flag out front announces it's fall, although we have yet to see many colored leaves on either the oak or the maple. This weekend was supposed to be peak color in eastern Missouri, but our trees are playing hard to get. A low close to freezing this coming Sunday night may change all that. These lovely golden mums are volunteers, or survivors, that came back up from some we planted in the front bed last year.
These geraniums are also survivors, and unfortu- nately they don't realize that frost is coming one of these nights. Or fortunately, since we get to continue to enjoy their flowers. These plants are two or three years old and over-wintered upstairs last year. There isn't room for them to come inside, since they have become so leggy. I took cuttings of each color and I hope they will root. The last few days have been busy: where once we had 4 pots of amaryllis, now we have 11 or 12 after I divided them. One mother-in-law tongue became three. As for the spider plants, I despair. I have one of them inside now, on a stand. The others I'll take cuttings from since they root easily. But unless you would like to adopt one... this sounds like those desperate pleas from the humane society to adopt a pet before its time is up.
By today, all of the plants (well, most of them... there are a couple more I have to do tomorrow) are inside. The photo below shows the menagerie in the dining room, gathered round the radiator. I wish the window didn't have the radiator, since the dry heat is hard on the plants, but they need the light, and it's the best we have on the first floor, even if it is a northern exposure. And yes, the three well-lighted windows upstairs, (two south, one north) are full of cuttings and transplants as well.
Finally, today we turned on the heat. It had gotten down to a steady 63 in the house and the rest of the week is forecast for rain, showers, nighttime lows flirting with the 30s. And with Ava gone back home, we lost our extra blanket. Radiators are wonderful. Thank God we have the means to turn the heat on. It's a toasty 68 -70, depending on the room, in here now.
There's nothing like a campfire on a brisk October night, complete with marshmallows to roast and s'mores to make, as well as three guys with guitars and a host of old time protest songs, to make us feel like fall is really here. On Saturday, Norm and I went to book club (the book was Daughter, a novel by Asha Bandele) and then after lunch we showed up at our church for a yard cleanup day. (Photos and accounts of that are on Compton Cares Update). The yard cleanup was followed by a campfire on a condo patio, with the aforementioned sing a long.
We are enjoying a visit from Ava yesterday through Wednesday while Barb goes to market in New York. Several of the plants moved inside yesterday, with more to come today. This afternoon it is supposed to get to 70, then much cooler and rainy mid week. We keep saying "tomorrow" for turning on the boiler for our radiators. We want to avoid that high natural gas bill as long as we can.
St. Louis has been in the political spotlight lately as both presidential candidates are paying visits. Obama had a huge rally at the Gateway Arch grounds on Saturday. Some accounts said 100,000, which I can believe after looking at pictures. One of my neighbors went and she was so excited about it. McCain has a rally today at New Town, a planned community (a lot like Celebration in Florida, if you've ever been there) in nearby St. Charles. They expect about 5,000 (it's a smaller space, and tickets are required). Dick Cheney is also in the metro area, for a private fundraiser for Missouri's Republican governor candidate. And Bill Clinton will speak at Webster University tonight on behalf of the Democrats. They are certainly keeping the airport and the Secret Service busy. But that's life in a swing state, where the urban areas are solidly blue and the outstate areas are mostly red, with a purple spot or two. The last poll showed the presidential race too close to call (49-48) so the robo calls, the incessant ads, and maybe more personal appearances will be in our backyard for the next two weeks.
One of my former journalism students, Clint Zweifel, is running for Missouri State Treasurer after three terms in the Missouri House of Representatives. Clint was Managing Editor of the paper the first year I was an adviser, 1994. He's a hard worker and honest. He's got my vote!
On a recent walk, we saw a huge patch of pokeweed, its ripe purple berries weighing down the branches. These berries attract many birds, but they also ferment and cause erratic behavior. Years ago, we had a whole flock of Very Drunk Blue Jays in our back yard and we finally decided they had been into the pokeweed. But apparently it causes no long term effects in birds.
Seeing pokeweed and other purple flowers like ironweed and asters always tells me fall is coming. But tonight you couldn't tell it. The temperature was perfect, 75 degrees at 8 p.m. while we sat on our front porch and ate popcorn. The night was full of the chirps of crickets, and one lone tree frog still croaking in the distance. A light wind, a slight jingle of the wind chime. No clue that the first snow is blanketing the northern Rockies or that storms are in the plains and tropical storms still prowling the coasts of Mexico. Our weather is supposed to change mid week but tonight was perfect.
A few houses down the street, a bunch of autumn crocus always blooms this time of year. One day nothing and the next day, lovely purple flowers with bright yellow stamens. The autumn crocus is cultivated for saffron, a rare spice. We just admire the neighbor's plant from a distance. Maybe we should start growing some of our own as a hedge against falling stock markets!
Norm is feeling better and his chest congestion cleared up with antibiotics. The coming week is busy with meetings and activities. Gasoline is back down to $2.98 a gallon and still dropping. Hopefully we will get out for some autumn drives once the leaves start turning in earnest. Right now, most of the trees in town are still green, with an occasional bronze on the mountain ash or touch of red on a sugar maple. We are still mowing grass and feeding the compost pile. This endless summer will end but for a few days more, we will relish this incomparable weather.
Another September event I have neglected to blog about was the Southeast Gateway Women's Retreat, held the 19th-20th at Orchard Crest Camp. I've finally edited the photos and put together some reflections on this spiritual and social experience. If you are interested, visit Thursday's Child and check them out.
This morning, Home Stories welcomed Visitor # 1400 and it's our faithful reader from North Platte! Good morning, Carla! Thanks for the CD of the reunion pictures that we received last week. Before Ava went back home last week, Norm decided to give her a good brushing. She seems to enjoy it.
Ava also likes tummy tickles. She spent an extra day with us on Monday when Barb had a quick trip to Kansas City. Norm was coming down with a chest cold and Ava brought out her nursing skills, staying on Norm's lap, recliner footrest or at his feet all day while I ran errands. Norm says he is feeling better now.
Saturday afternoon, Norm and I took a walk on part of the new St. Vincent Greenway trail that runs through parts of the university campus, on both the north and south side. It is a bike trail but also handy for pedestrians like us. One of our sightings was the new baseball field, under construction behind the old Normandy Hospital, which is being slowly dismantled with care, since it was full of asbestos when the university bought the property.
Another changing sign of the times is this corner at 7940 Natural Bridge, the former location of the student newspaper. The newspaper is now in the student center, and this high profile corner is now a rest stop on the bike/hiking trail. An interpretive display, benches and a trash receptacle reside here now.
Our walks should be more frequent, now that the weather is cooler. We go to water aerobics on Tuesdays and Thursdays, low-impact dry land aerobics on Monday (Norm) and Wednesday (both), and I also go to Tai Chi Quigong on Mondays and Fridays. Even with all that, we are often shocked at how easy it is to get "out of shape" if we miss even a week.
Sometimes the pace of life exceeds my ability to check my photos and collect my thoughts. In all of the excitement of TS Ike's visit, as well as keeping a lively puppy for a week, I somehow missed the Event of the Month for September, the September 12 wedding of Shannon and Matt, two talented and exceedingly compassionate young people from our church. Shannon followed a family tradition, as well as her own heart, in choosing an outdoor setting in St. Louis's loveliest park, Tower Grove.
The wedding ceremony itself was held outside, on a patio overlooking the lily ponds. Guests nervously perused the clouds in the sky, precursors of Ike's arrival in some 30 hours, but not a drop fell. Meanwhile, inside the historic Piper Palm house, preparations were underway for a reception that included a buffet and dancing. The Palm House was built by Tower Grove's founder, Henry Shaw, and is the oldest greenhouse structure west of the Mississippi River. It was restored about 10 years ago.
Shannon and Matt exchanged their vows in this tranquil setting, with family and long-time friends as their attendants. Their honeymoon was a Disney cruise, far from the wind and rain of Ike. The couple are now at home in St. Louis. Congratulations, and thanks for inviting us to the party!
Some time back, I noted a mystery reader I couldn't identify based on my knowledge of the usual suspects among family and friends, and the reader fessed up and sent an e-mail. Well, I'm going to ask again, about another, persistent, faithful mystery reader in Broomfield, Colo. (at least that is your ISP's address) who checks in daily and often follows outlinks in my posts. SiteMeter is wonderful for giving frequency and geographic distribution, which is great. But all I know about Broomfield Reader is that you have Sprint for an ISP, are running Windows XP and browsing with IE 6. Tonight, you were visitor #1299. If you recognize yourself, please drop me a line at judi.stories@yahoo.com so I can quit trying to match you up with know friends and family in the region.
Visitor #1300 was no mystery; a familiar and loved frequent reader whose ISP is in Cape Coral, Fla., although I know the reader's domicile is in a nearby city. Of course, you also were visitor #1298! Glad you finally had some time this week to check in. Come back soon; I've added a new post since you looked earlier this evening.
This morning it was partly cloudy so I went out around 11 a.m. to photograph the maple. It was a good idea, because the day became overcast, gloomy and cold after noon. It doesn't look much different from the Nov. 6 photos, but in person, the reds seem a little more vibrant. There are fewer red leaves on the tree, though, because a lot of them are on the ground.
Today Dave B. came to work his magic on some of the faucets, pipes and drains in our house. We are so grateful for his expertise! That's Dave's little red truck in the driveway, above. Tonight we have a new shower head that doesn't spray water all over the bathroom, a drain flipper that flips and a bathtub drain that drains. We also have a brand new faucet at the kitchen sink. We thank you, Dave!
While I was prowling the yard taking pictures, I had to catch these last flowers of summer. There are three perfect buds on Norm's favorite yellow rose. Tomorrow they will be cut and brought in since a freeze is in the offing for Saturday night.
