Fact and Fiction

Do you know where your hydrant is?? Public Safety Announcement

2011-02-12T09:21:00.000-06:00

Recently the local water company issued a warning to the residents of the city of Lincoln regarding their fire hydrants. While that warning was specific to that town, it applies to anyone who is currently suffering through the huge piles of snow that are the aftermath of the BEAST.

The water company warned that when streets were plowed, large accumulations of snow where thrown to the curbs, and in some cases covered up or at least obstructed access to fire hydrants.

They recommended that residents go out and locate their fire hydrant and shovel the snow away from it so that it is easily accessible if needed.

This week there was a house fire in Lincoln, the home was a total loss. In talking to the fire chief, a new dilemma was discovered. Firefighters had to deal with sheets of ice as they sprayed water on the fire. The spray runoff that hit the ground; between temperatures being in the single digits, a one foot accumulation of snow, and THE INABILITY TO LOCATE THE STORM DRAINS formed an icy surface around the home. The work of the firefighters was greatly hindered, and became even more dangerous for them.

So, regardless of where you live, if you are currently burdened with snow, take a look around, find your hydrant, make sure it is accessible, and if you know where your storm drains are, see if you can do something to clear those out as well.

The Christmas Clown

2011-01-29T12:35:00.000-06:00

At the beginning of 2010 I was truly blessed to be offered the opportunity to work a few hours a day in the offices at Lincoln Daily News.

Since 2008 I have been with the paper as a “Stringer” or freelance reporter.

The job started out with a conversation with the Editor Mike Fak who told me at best I would get one or two assignments a month, but in the end it ended up being so much more.

At that first meeting he told me that he too had started out as a stringer for the paper, and that the most any stringer had every made was $3,000 in a year and that was him.

However, in 2009, Nila became the new record holder when my income from writing along came in over 4 times that amount! Happy me!

Then when the offer came in 2010 to join the office staff for a few hours a day, I knew that the Smith household which has suffered severely since I left Community Action was well on its way to recovery.

My income is not even a fraction of what it was back then, but with my pay and Rich’s combined it is enough, and isn’t that the best we can all ask for to have “just enough”? I think so.

The real blessing though has been the camaraderie of the people that I spend my mornings with 5 days a week and then some.

I can say with no uncertainty that the group I am now happily a part of is the sweetest, most caring, most dedicated to their work and their co-workers group I have ever had the privilege of knowing.

So it will surely come as no surprise that we all enjoy an occasional work-day get together. We started these little lunch time fellowships last fall, and they have come to be a very important part of who we are.

The get together involve a potluck lunch where we set up big tables in the front end of the CCA side of the building, and all the staff from CCA and LDN sit down to an hour to hour and a half of good food and fellowship.

At Christmas time this year, we scheduled one of our potlucks, and with everyone on staff being on tight budgets in this horrid economy, it was decided that we would have a “White Elephant Gift Exchange”.

I have never partaken in one of these, so I had to do my research asking my co-worker and often partner in crime Karen to explain the whole thing to me.

The jest of it is, don’t buy anything. Look around your house for something that you don’t necessarily want or need, wrap it up and put it under the tree.

There are also twists involved, in that the gift doesn’t necessarily have to be something you think someone else will want. In fact it is actually more fun if you can come up with something that you don’t think anyone will want.

I knew that I had tons of stuff left over from my desperate days of selling junk on eBay, so I had no concerns about coming up with the perfect package for this fun little game.

I’ll remember that day always because before we sat down to an unbelievable buffet, my boss Jim offered up a prayer. I nearly teared up (just as I am at this moment) when he spoke to God saying that the day was not about the food or the fun, but about the love we all feel for one another, and the joy we find in being together.

After devouring a huge lunch, it finally came time to pick our gifts from under the tree.

Everything was nicely wrapped but no one had tagged their items as to who had brought them. We drew numbers to decide the order of picking a present. Karen was number one. She had no choice but to take a present from under the tree. However, from then on out, when ones number came up he or she had the option of choosing something from under the tree or taking a gift from someone who had already opened one.

To make it fair then for the first picker, Karen at the end had the opportunity to go around and take any gift she wanted and give her gift to the person from whom she stole one.

I won’t pretend to remember the order of everyone. I know Karen was first, Tim was 3rd I was 4th, Mike was 8th, and beyond that I’m kind of lost.

When Karen got her gift it was a gingerbread house shaped candle, Tim drew a bag with a cocoa mug and cocoa and coffee in it, and I got an onion.

I was not all that unhappy about getting an onion. It was a nice big sweet Vidalia and I knew that Rich and I would enjoy it on a burger, so I was fine with that, something Jim found very humorous, as throughout the even I kept my onion hid, hoping no one would remember I had it and want to take it away from me.

Other gifts that I remember, Mary got a Superman Coloring book, Jan got a bag with a box of crayons and a journal in it, and Brian got one of those glass subway blocks stuffed with lights.

Jim got a long hand knitted contraption that looked like a scarf with pockets on the ends; those I have seen before and kind of think they are neat.

However, when he put this one around his neck the pockets were way too far down there. Finally the person who brought the gift had to explain that it was a book holder. The scarf part goes between the box springs and mattress of a bed and the pockets hang out the sides and hold books, TV remotes or whatever else someone might choose to put in there.

When it came Mikes turn to choose a gift, he took Tim’s coffee and cocoa, Tim then took my onion! I was severely disappointed!

Anyway, I then had to choose a gift, so I took a Snowman shaped fondue set away from Lisa, which Lisa had already taken from someone else (the rule is taken twice, it’s out of circulation) so I knew I was set, no one could take it from me HAHAHA!!!

Throughout the exchange, we were all having great fun. Brian wasn’t really pleased with his glass cube and kept trying to give it away, but he had no takers, Mary was looking forward to coloring Superman, but wanted Jan’s Crayons. The Fondue pot, some thought was strange and others coveted it and resented that it was out of circulation.

And poor Lisa, every time she’d latch on to something, someone would take it from her, so in the end there was one gift left under the tree and only Lisa to open it.

It had been such a fun day, and we were all looking forward to seeing what the poor girl had gotten saddled with, but the look on her face when she peered into that bag was almost enough to make me cry.

He gift, the one she was stuck with was a cast iron clown mechanical bank. The clown has crazy eyes, a big mouth and a mechanism that makes him swallow coins.

As se pulled it out of the bag the hoots of laughter were absolutely deafening. Everyone hated the clown, but Lisa was more than concerned about what she was going to do with it.

Of course it was ugly, a gift no one could love, but in addition to that it was creeping her out, and she said that her 22 year old son would lose his mind if she took the thing home.

I felt bad for her, she was trapped, so as the fun and games came to an end, I did what I thought any friend should do. I took her the Fondue pot and said that I would take the clown.

She protested only mildly before taking the pot back. As we all sat around laughing at the fun we had had, I had a thought, the best way to end the day….maybe.

I carefully put the clown back in its gift bag along with the tissue paper and decoration it had come with, and then, I held the bag way up over my head and yelled “Look Guys!! I’m ready for next year!!!”

With the echoes of all the hoots and hollers of “take a picture of that bag” Don’t forget what that one looks like” and much more, I drove home that day happy and content with my decision and my clown.

A few weeks later, Rich and I had the good fortune to have two of our granddaughters for the News Year’s Eve weekend.

Chelsie who is only 5 has always loved playing with a big bottle of pennies I have, and she never forgets I have them or where they are. So, when she got the bottle out, I went out on a limb and asked her if she was afraid of clowns. “NO!” she yelled. So I went to a cabinet and pulled out the mechanical bank. She played with it for hours, carefully feeding the clown his supper of pennies.

The next day after the party though, when I got to the office Karen had to ask, “What did Richard think of the clown, what did he say?”

Well, I really couldn’t tell her what he said because had I done so, my biggest secret would have been out of the bag because when I brought the clown home he looked in the bag and then asked me about the clown.

I told him the whole story, and he said “Well, I think he’s kind of cute”. Of course that is the exact same thing he said the day before when I was wrapping it up and carefully placing it in a gift bag to place under the tree for my first ever White Elephant gift exchange!

And, now you all know the rest of the story. In my mind, I choose to believe that I was the biggest winner of all in that little game. I made a difference for a friend, and I had the only TRUE WHITE ELEPHANT in the whole bunch!

Just Because I like it

2010-10-25T12:37:00.001-05:00

I got called out this morning to cover a Haz Mat situation on Lincoln Parkway. No real biggie, a semi tank of flammable liquid went off the road, and was sinking in the mud that has resulted from heavy rains the last couple days.

No fuel was spilled, no one was hurt in the one vehcile mishap. I went out, did my usual observations of the situation, got it in my mind what facts I could presnt, and snapped a few pictures that acutally applied to the situation at hand.

Then, I lingered. Always and forever I look for that one perfect shot, the one that is exceptional, and today I got it!!! These are two members of the Lincoln City Fire Department.

I am cheating just a bit, because I also sent this pic to my editor telling him I was sending it "just because I like it". He emailed me back and said "I don't like it..........I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Look for it to be one of our top pics in tomorrows paper! But now YOU get a sneak peak!

Have a great day!
N

A Special day for Memorial -- Heaven's Tiniest Angel

2010-05-29T11:08:00.000-05:00

Memorial lay on her tummy peering of the edge of a fluffy white cloud.

In her hand she held a small pouch of gold dust swept up from Heaven's floor.

As she dipped her tiny fingers into the pouch and released the dust in the morning breeze, she giggled in delight as it landed on the dew kissed petals of the rose below.

She lay on her tummy, kicking her feet about her back, watching as the little girl in the garden below ran from flower to flower. Memorial clapped her hands in delight when the gold dusted rose caught the eye of the child.

As the little girls skipped toward the rose, she exclaimed "Grandma, we need this one! It's the prettiest rose in the garden?"

"Memorial;" the voice of Gabriel spoke behind her; "what are you doing here?"

As she stuffed the pouch of gold under tummy she looked back on the senior angel and with wide innocent eyes, she replied; "I'm just watching".

"And what are you watching?"

The little girl below is helping her grandma pick roses from their garden. I'm helping her. Oops, I mean I'm watching her."

"What are you hiding Memorial? I saw you tuck a pouch under your tummy, what is in it."

"Just some old dust I picked up off the ground."

"Just some old dust; you mean just some old gold dust don't you?'

Memorial ducked her head, and her tiny halo went tumbling forward, and landed on the soft pillows of a nearby cloud. "Yes sir", she whispered.

"Uh hum, well, you know, you've been warned about this. Now fetch your halo and come with me."

Memorial rolled over the edge of her perch, and landed in a soft plop' on the cloud that now held her halo. With tiny fingers, she picked up the halo and did her best to right it into its proper place.

Gabriel stood near by, patiently tapping a toe on a cloud as he watch the little angel piddle and stall.

Finally she was beside him, and he reached to take her tiny hand.

Together they went through the gates of Heaven, and walked to the great throne where sat God, in all his glory.

He looked down on Memorial, and spoke in a low quiet voice. "Have you been misbehaving again Memorial?"

The tiny angel shuffled her feet and closed her eyes against the look of disappointment she knew she would see on God's face "yes sir, I have."

"And what were you doing?"

"Helping the little girl pick flowers."

God smiled only briefly at the innocence of the reply, then pressed further even though he knew the answer, "And how were you helping?"

In barely a whisper Memorial said "I was sprinkling gold dust on the prettiest one."

"If it was the prettiest one, why did it need gold dust?"

"I don't know, just because."

"Because why?"

"Because;" Memorial stomped her little foot, and sent her halo ajar. "If I didn't help her, she might not see it, and she needs the prettiest flower in the garden because she's picking it for her mommy, and if she missed it then saw it later she would be sad because she didn't see it in the first place. I didn't want the little girl to be sad, you don't want her to be sad either do you God?"

God chuckled; Heavens tiniest angel was feisty, sometimes naughty, but always well intentioned. "Well, no Memorial, I would not want the little girl to be sad, especially not today."

Memorial cocked her head to the side, and again the little halo went askew. "Why not especially today? Is it her birthday? It's not Christmas, no roses at Christmas, Mother's day was just a moment ago, so why especially not today?"

"Today is a special day, a day when everyone on earth remembers all their loved ones who have gone to Heaven. And, for today I have a special chore for you."

Memorial gasped in delight as she clasped her tiny hands together. No one had ever given her a chore, not the minor angels, not Gabriel, and especially not God.

She bounced up and down, clapping her hands; "I have a chore! Oh my! What is my chore? Is it really special? Will I like doing it? Is it important to you? Can I tell the other angels you gave me a chore? Oh!"

She looked into the eyes of God and saw that he was trying to be quite serious. She clamped her hand over her mouth, and waited for him to speak.

His eyes twinkled, but he kept a straight face at her little outburst. "Today you are going to visit with humans as they visit a special place. You chore is to help them remember the people they love who now live in Heaven."

"As far as liking your chore goes, you know that I would not give you a bad chore, but it won't always be easy. If you think it is getting hard, remember me and know that you are indeed doing something that is very important."

Memorial whispered; "yes sir, I will remember you."

At that Gabriel took her tiny hand and led her to that special place that God wanted her to go.

Memorial was a little puzzled by what she saw there. It was like a large garden, but instead of growing roses, it appeared that the garden grew stones.

The stones were a variety of shapes and sizes, and Memorial saw that each stone had writing on it. She asked Gabriel what the writing was, and why this place was special to God.

Gabriel explained that when people die, their souls go to Heaven to be with God, but their bodies are put in a special place called a cemetery.

The stones with writing on them are markers so that when loved ones want to visit the grave of their loved on, they can find it.

Memorial cocked her tiny head to one side, a puzzled look on her face, "But why? Why do they come here, when the souls are in Heaven?"

"Because, they can't come to Heaven, not yet at least. So this place is where they come to feel close to the one who has died, and to remember them in special ways. That is your job today Memorial, to help them remember."

So memorial planted herself at the gate of the strange garden and waited for someone to come who needed help.

By and by a couple came to the gate, their steps were heavy and their faces looked very sad. They carried a wreath of rose and carnation, decorated with a ribbon of red, white, and blue.

Memorial watched the pair, and knew that it was her chore to make them smile. She skipped along behind them until they knelt at a stone. No larger then a fleck of dust, she perched near the ear of the lady. She whispered gently, and the lady smiled. "Do you remember the day he enlisted?"

"I do", the man replied. "He was so happy to be going to serve his country. He felt it was his duty, his responsibility."

"He got that from you". She smiled "Always do what's right, always stand up for what you believe in. You told him that all of his life. He felt complete when he wore that uniform."

The man smiled; "Yes he did, but he got part of that from you too. Always look out for those who are weaker than you. Always show compassion to those who are not as blessed as you."

Again she smiled; "he was a fine man, a son to be proud of."

"Yes indeed" the man said.

When the couple left the special garden their steps were a bit lighter, their faces wore faint smiles of gentle remembrance. They had lost a son in battle. But his memory was renewed that day, and they felt a great sense of love and pride.

Memorial smiled wistfully, she had done a good job on her chore she knew, and wondered if the next one would come along soon.

Soon came along an old man, carrying a bouquet of snow white daisies. He walked slowly, using a cane to support himself. His eyes were bright with unshed tears, and Memorial knew she had a chore to do.

Too stiff to bend, he could do nothing but drop the flowers in front of the stone. Memorial drew a deep breath and blew on the flowers until they fanned out beautifully showing each little petal and each golden center.

The old man laughed, "Imagine that! They landed just the way you used to spread them out! I remember you always took such care to make everything perfect. I didn't know it mattered until now, but it did."

He chuckled out loud; "remember the time you fell down and spilled the flowers? You looked so funny sprawled out on the ground with peonies and iris and roses scattered from here to yon. You hollered when I laughed, but I couldn't help myself, even now, it is as funny as the day it happened. And in time, you laughed over it too. Not that day, but in time you did laugh."

As the old man turned to go, for just a moment, he caught a glimpse of his lovely wife, laughing and poking fun at herself, and Memorial knew she had completed her chore.

Throughout the day folks came and went. Memorial planted memories and happy thoughts like a country gardener planting flowers.

As evening grew near, she knew that her chore was going to end soon, and she hoped that God would be pleased with her work.

As she sat there wondering what he would say, she spied a child coming through the gate with a bouquet of roses clasped tightly in her hand.

Memorial gasped when she saw the rose, the very one that she had sprinkled with gold.

She wondered why the little girl was there. She had picked the roses for her mommy, and her mommy couldn't be here.

Following behind the child was a woman, the little girl called out to her "I know the way gramma"! Memorial hesitated and wondered, the little girl didn't look sad. But there had to be a reason that the same little child she'd helped chose roses was here at this place.

She followed behind the lady and girl, and stopped just short of them when they came to a stone.

The little girl laid the flowers on the ground, and said "here you are mommy, I picked them myself! Oh look at this one; it is the prettiest of all!"

Now angels are never sad, they have no sorrow in Heaven at all, and Memorial wasn't sure what the feeling inside her meant, but her tiny blue eyes grew misty, and her heart began to ache. What did God want her to do? She couldn't give the little girls mommy back to her, so why was she here? For surely nothing else could make the child happy.

The lady put her arm around her grand daughter. "Do you remember your mommy" she asked.

The little girl dropped her head and shuffled her feet, and immediately Memorial knew that this was the most important chore of all.

With invisible wings she flew to the child and whispered great things in her ear.

The little girl looked up at her grandma, "Yes I remember mommy! She used to hold me and sing songs to me.

"We used to play house together under the kitchen table, and when I would fall down and skin my knees she healed them with kisses.

"And she told me that no matter how big I got or how far away from each other we were, I would always be her little girl, and she would always love me very, very much!"

When the little girl left the special stone, Memorial lingered, making memories of her own. She was there yet when Gabriel returned and took her by the hand.

As she stood in front of God, he asked her how her day was, and she told him it was the loveliest day she had ever spent.

He smiled a great smile that made his face glow, and he told her that this was the day for which she had been made.

He told her that she had helped them all in a very special way, for this day was her namesake, Memorial Day.

So when you go to visit a stone, just know that you are not there alone. Memorial is there right at your side, helping you remember all the good things you should, and wiping away your tears with gentle memories of a life lived, not a life lost

Walking Through Fog

2010-04-07T18:16:00.000-05:00

In the spring of the year when the air is warm, the humidity rising, and yet the earth remains in its more frigid state, a fog will rise.

The fog begins low to the earth and rises up from the valleys to ascend the hills.

I walk into the fog at its first rising. I feel like a tall tree or perhaps even a mountain as I turn my face to the heavens and behold the twinkling of the stars, and the soft glow of the moon, just as they are peeking through a crimson and golden sunset.

As I cast my face back toward the earth, I see below me a mist, which clouds my vision and makes my footing unsure.

Yet, as I look up again, there is wonderful clarity.

Walking through the fog can be a marvelous thing.

As the twilight deepens and the skies lose their crimson glow, the fog comes to meet my face.

The cool dampness of it caresses my skin and cools my body from the warmth of the day.

My sights are limited to the spaces before me, and those I see as though in a room lit dimly.

My mind leaves that place of worry and wondering about what lies in the far distant future, and concentrates solely on what is in the immediate.

Walking through fog can be illuminating.

In the depths of darkness, the moon and stars are hidden from my view by the mire of the fog that surrounds me, suffocating me, making me invisible.

I am lost in its density, struggling to find my way on a path I’ve traveled for all of my life.

My heart sinks in despair, then raises into my throat as fear envelopes me and robs me of all good judgment.

Walking through fog is terrifying.

I pray for strength, I pray for insight, the pebbles beneath my feet feel like boulders as I struggle to stay on the path.

I reach out my hands, grasping for some something solid, someone solid to give me a sense of security, only to find a vast wall of nothingness.

Tears are blurring my vision, flowing down my cheeks in waterfalls of despair; I am lost and alone, with no hope.

Walking through fog is humbling.

My struggle seems to last my lifetime, the journey is endless in a world that is no longer familiar to me.

I push forward in fear. I fear what lies ahead, yet I am afraid to turn back, afraid to face what is behind me.

As I struggle forward, I stumble, I fall, I cry out in fear.

On my hands and knees I crawl forward, and suddenly the fog lifts, I see my surroundings and laugh aloud.

You are standing there, your smiling eyes peering into my soul, you hand reaching out to bring me upright again.

The moon shines brightly illuminating your face, your smile reassures me that I am once again in a safe, secure place.

As the fog dissipates, and the sky lightens with brilliant splashes of blues, purples and gold, a new day begins.

The fog is once again at my feet, and I am a mountain or perhaps a tall tree, turning myself to embrace the warmth of the rising sun, and the promise of a new day.

Walking through fog is a marvelous thing.

Spring has sprung

2010-03-31T20:39:00.000-05:00

How do you know...

When spring....

Has sprung?

When you can see....

That the burning.....

Has begun!!!!

It's that time of year in Logan County when the skies turn a hazey gray with occasional pillows of black smoke wafting through the air.

It's burn off time for the native grasses!

Yea, soon they will be green again, the skies will be blue the temperatures warm and all will be well with the world!

OF Earworms and Fond Memories

2010-02-07T20:10:00.000-06:00

Well it has been eight days since I attended my nephew’s performance in the IEMA concert at Peoria.

It has been eight days that I have had an earworm.

No matter how hard I try I can’t shake it, UNLESS that is I revert back to the earworm that I had right prior to that.

I’ll define an earworm for you, as I only learned this recently and think there could be others who don’t recognize the terminology.

An earworm is that song that is stuck in your head that keeps playing over and over again. Anytime you’re not thinking of something specific, as in those moments when you could be blank, in comes the worm, wiggling through your brain and haunting you with its song.

Earworms can be quite annoying. Sometimes I will myself to think of other things in order to push the earworm out.

That in itself can be a bad thing, or a good thing depending on what comes in to replace it.

For me this week it has ended up being a walk down memory lane.

The concert we attended was really wonderful. The kids who were participating were truly talented musicians, and I enjoyed very much the blend of instruments, the blend of voices, the drama of the conductors, it was all just perfect in my opinion.

The music was lovely, but I shared with my sister and nephew somewhat to their disappointment that it wasn’t genuinely the kind of music that I like.

I wasn’t saying anything negative about the performances; I was just saying that the music was much more sophisticated than I was.

When I was in high school, we attended an entirely different type of event each year. It was a gathering of school choral departments, and we all got to go.

It lasted one day only, starting early on a Saturday morning, and ending with a Saturday night concert that our parents attended.

We had special music, and special conductors, who were generally very charismatic, and most of the teenage girls in the group imagined themselves in love with the conductor and saw a future as the wife of the maestro.

I remember distinctly one such gentleman who at the beginning of the morning, taught us all to sing; “I’m alive, awake, alert, enthusiastic, I’m alive, awake, alert enthusiastic, I’m awake alert alive, alive awake alert, I’m alive awake alert enthusiastic!”

Then we’d sing it again, faster, then again, faster, then again, faster until finally we were all singing so fast that the girls would succumb to giggling, the boys would roll their eyes and laugh, but in the end, we had started the day on a very good note literally.

This was but one really good memory from my high schools years. Attending Robert’s concert also brought to mind other years.

I recalled attending this special gathering in Paris Illinois one year. It was a grand day filled with hard work, but we did get a break before the concert.

I recall a small group of girls who decided to walk uptown and go “shopping”. Well, I went along, and as I traversed through the shops I found an excellent gift for my mom. Now I don’t remember the occasion I was buying for, but I remember the gift. It was a carnival glass bell, and it cost me 15 bucks!

I think back now, and I’m not so sure but what that may have been the first time ever I chose a gift for my mom without being accompanied by my dad or my grandma.

Back to memories of school, I remember the fall I had to start school with both of my feet in snow white bandages and wearing old grandma style sandals.

Bruce Balding made fun of me, saying that for the Chorus picture for yearbook we were all going to prop our feet up on the chair in front of us. I was mortified!!

I also remember Rose Sunderland our choir director and her strange and quirky ways.

I remembered the skirt she wore to one of our concerts that was made entirely of men’s ties.

I remember the only lines I ever had in a musical; Gideon’s Rainbow, and my lines were “Gideon!’ she calls” again a bit louder, “Gideon!” Finally, very loudly, she cries out to the wonderer, “Gideon!”

HA! Definitely not a defining moment in my acting career! But I took it seriously, and bragged a bit that my words would be the ones that launched the play!

Then there was the yawning experiment. It was Rose Kocher and Judy Dallmier who started it. They sat in the alto section, in the back row on the end. The two had a bird’s eye view of the entire group, and watched and laughed as first Rose, then Judy offered up a large yawn, and one by one, everyone in the room followed suit!

When we noticed their giggling, they were obliged to explain what they had done, all in good fun. I denied yawning, I was certain that I had not. But they swore we all did it unconsciously! What a hoot, that was my first role as a guinea pig in a “scientific” experiment.

Another memory was my first Madrigal Dinner. Yet another earworm, “With boars head in hand bear I bedecked with Bay and Rose-mar-i!”

My mom made me the most beautiful shiny blue umpire waste dress with shimmering sequins. I loved it. As a matter of fact, I still have it!

Some of my best memories of high school came from being in Chorus. Now of course not all of them were good, there were bad moments and things that embarrassed me, but alas those memories are no longer worth remembering.

So what has brought on this full eight days of walking down memory lane?

It was a poem written by Robert Frost entitled The Garden Girl, and set to music.

A Neighbor of mine in the village

Likes to tell how one spring

When she was a girl on the farm, she did

A childlike thing.

One day she asked her father

To give her a garden plot

To plant and tend and reap herself,

And he said, "Why not?"

In casting about for a corner

He thought of an idle bit

Of walled-off ground where a shop had stood,

And he said, "Just it."

And he said, "That ought to make you

An ideal one-girl farm,

And give you a chance to put some strength

On your slim-jim arm."

It was not enough of a garden,

Her father said, to plough;

So she had to work it all by hand,

But she don't mind now.

She wheeled the dung in the wheelbarrow

Along a stretch of road;

But she always ran away and left

Her not-nice load.

And hid from anyone passing.

And then she begged the seed.

She says she thinks she planted one

Of all things but weed.

A hill each of potatoes,

Radishes, lettuce, peas,

Tomatoes, beets, beans, pumpkins, corn,

And even fruit trees.

And yes, she has long mistrusted

That a cider apple tree

In bearing there to-day is hers,

Or at least may be.

Her crop was a miscellany

When all was said and done,

A little bit of everything,

A great deal of none.

Now when she sees in the village

How village things go,

Just when it seems to come in right,

She says, "I know!

It's as when I was a farmer--"

Oh, never by way of advice!

And she never sins by telling the tale

To the same person twice.

There were many words to this song, and while the tune was not difficult it was quite lively.

As we raced through the piece it was vital that everyone be succinct.

Enunciation was vitally important. With the fast pace had we not be precise in our work, it would very well have sounded like a bunch of teenagers high on sugar and caffeine speaking in tongues!

Of course the old saying if you start together and end together no one will notice what happened in the middle never applied when Rose Sunderland was directing It was right all the way through or it was a disaster!

Singing in the chorus required watching the director, listening to your neighbor, reading your music and hearing the accompaniment all at the same time, and believe me we all did it religiously for no one wanted to be the person who would blurt out the first word a half beat too soon, or hold the last note a tenth of a second to long!

We practiced that song, and practiced that song.

Then it was at the spring pops concert that we actually performed it.

I remember it. I remember it so very well. As we sang along, it perfect tone, not a note missed, not a word out of place, the farther we went, the happier I was.

The song filled me heart with laughter because it was such a silly song, such a silly girl.

And I remember that after the concert, it was my folks who said they had noticed how very happy I seemed when I sang that song.

And, what can I say even today singing still makes me happy.

Though I’m older, and a bit raspiers, with those beautiful high soprano notes no longer attainable, I still enjoy singing along with the radio, TV or a CD.

But frankly, in spite of the wonderful week of memories, I’m really getting kind of tired of this earworm.

I know that a small handful of my old classmates read this blog, and I’m giving you a gift tonight, MY EARWORM!

If you were in chorus in high school, and sang this song, surely you too have memories of what fun we used to have singing in the chorus.

So, here it is, it’s yours now, and I’ll go back to the one I had before last Saturday.

I get off on a 57 Chevy.

I get off on screamin guitar.

Like the way it gets me,

Every time it hits me.

I’ve got a rock and roll,

I’ve got a rock and roll heart.

Words -- Decatur Illinois

2010-01-16T11:59:00.000-06:00

This is one of my favorite blogs for photos. This fellow is a storm chaser, and produces some wonderful cloud bank pictures and so on.

Right now his last three or four posts are focusing on the recent snows and bone chilling temperatures. He has a macro lense that is remarkable, and has managed to capture some of the most amazing close up pictures of ice formation, you just MUST take a look!!

http://pawleewurx.blogspot.com/

Mount Pulaski Illinois -- How high can they pile it??

2010-01-12T12:31:00.000-06:00

I took these pictures in Mount Pulaski Illinois Monday afternoon. This large pile of snow is the end result of the town cleaning up their streets.

They are doing a really terrific job of making the downtown area available to visitors without forcing them to wade through the white stuff, or park in piles of it!

As you can see the pile is quite high, and I am estimating that the square footage of the lot they are filling is about the same as my entire house!

And, the large area begs the questions....how high can they pile it? And, how long will it last??

All God's Creatures

2010-01-07T05:55:00.000-06:00

With extremely cold temperatures and now a new cover of snow, don't forget to look out for all of God's creatures.

Birds and squirrels are stuggling to find food and will eat nearly everything you toss out to them.

Also don't forget your outdoor pets. Be sure to keep them safe and as warm as possible, even if it means bringing them in the house with you.

Whatever on New Years Day you do, that you'll do the whole year through

2010-01-01T18:36:00.000-06:00

Have you heard it said; whatever on New Year's Day you do that you'll do the whole year through? It's an old saying, I have no clue who first spoke those words, but I do recall that my mom and my grandma both considered it very seriously when the new year rolled around.

The jest of it was, on New Years day you wanted your house clean, dishes done, laundry washed, dried, folded, AND put away, and in general everything in your home in perfect order.

The idea behind it was that if you started the new year with your home in good condition, you'd be able to maintain it all year through.

Well, I've tried it. It doesn't work.

But this year, I had a thought. Maybe I'm living in Seinfeld's "Bazzaro World" and in order for me to have a smooth year, I need to do everything just the opposite of what I should.

Regardless, I'll tell you about my day one 2010.

This morning I woke a little before 6. The hubs was in the bathroom finishing up getting ready for work. I rolled over on my back and stared at the ceiling, snuggled deep in my blankies and just relaxed for a few minutes.

I then had my first thought of the new year. I thought how thankful I am for a roof over my head, a warm house, a comfy bed, and a husband who is busy in the bathroom getting ready to go to a job that may not be perfect, but then again whose is.

And I thought to myself, this I will do all year through. I will have a home, a safe place. I will have a husband whom I love deeply and whom I know loves me.

What a great way to start the new year!

As I saw Rich off to work, I was thankful for two vehicles that run, and are both paid for, and the garage they sit in so there is no snow or ice for us to have to deal with first thing of a morning, and I thought to myself that for the next year, I will have these things to be thankful for.

Later as I sipped coffee I was thankful for a coffee pot that works and the coffee that is nearly the price of gold right now, yet we had the money to buy it.

Later I was thankful for the washer and dryer in the laundry room that both work, and the clothes that I put in them.

For I now know that for the next year, I will have the ability to cover myself, and to keep those coverings clean.

As I ran hot water into the sink to wash dishes I was grateful that the water bill is paid. I was also grateful for the real dishes, glasses, cups and silverware that I store in my cabinets everyday.

Earlier in the week I had sat down and paid all the necessary subscriptions we have such as gas, electric, water, sewer, and yes TV and internet. When I was done, I realized that there was still enough money in the bank to go buy groceries.

So, as I headed out this afternoon to buy a few food items, I was once again thankful that even though we have notably struggled this year, GOD has given us what we need.

I hate the cold, I don't like snow, and I despise ice, all three of which I had to contend with in my little excursion to Kroger. But even there I found something to be grateful for. I thought of an acquaintance I have in Alaska where the winter temperatures get to 40 below zero, and I was grateful that I live in Illinois, where as I thought this all through I realized that warm weather is only about 90 days away!!

And, finally this evening as I put our traditional New Years dinner of pork, potatoes, carrots, and cabbage in the oven, I thought once again about all the things I have, and how thankful I am for all of them.

Rich and I will never be wealthy, but we will always be rich. First we have each other, next we have family that we dearly love, we have jobs that we don't hate, we have friends that we care about and care about us, and we have all the necessities of life; a home, food, clothing, vehicles.

I don't believe in New Year's resolutions. My definition of resolution in this case is promise. Many people make resolutions (or promises) they can't keep. And, if whatever on New Years Day you do, that you'll do the whole year through, is true, why would anyone want to spend their year making promises they can't keep?

So, rather then end this with a promise, I'm going to share with you my GOALS.

My GOAL for the new year is to TRY and be a good person, a good wife, a good daughter, sister, step-mom, gramma, and friend.

Another GOAL for this new year is I am going to TRY and always remember what GOD has given me in my salvation, and to spend more days like today, noticing what I have instead of what I don't have, and being grateful for all of it.

To all those who read this, I challenge you to be grateful as well. Count your blessings, and find the good in your life. If you do, you will surely find that most times the good out-weighs the bad.

God Bless
and
Happy New Year

Got my second wind, so let's move on to the LOGAN COUNTY FAIR

2009-09-08T14:13:00.000-05:00

This is my second post in one day! Imagine that with no time to post during the month of August, I have a lot of catching up to do. I may not get to anything else today, but hope to in the next day or so add a couple more.

This was my first year of working the fair, and I really had a good time with it.

All of the work I did there was photography and in all the Lincoln Daily News posted 252 pictures, 161 of those were mine.

I actaully started on Saturday before the fair with the 4-H dog show, then was out there on Sunday and talked with John Fulton, Logan County Extension Advisor in charge of the 4-H portion of the fair, and also Mike Maske who is on the fair board.

We did one POW story on fair volunteers and this year offered more coverage on fair events than we ever have before.

I also covered the demolition derby on the last night of the fair, and later I'll post some pics from that as well.

For now though, I'm just going to share some of my favorites from the animals and their kids!

Normally this is the kind of pic (above) one would delete, but it struck me funny that at the CAT SHOW, the GREEN EYED MONSTER had this little furball in its grip!

I'm going to comment on this one and the one below because this is what I learned at the fair. When showing rabbits, the bunny has to be inverted to lay on his back. Before the show began, the judge actaully went around to the various kids and made sure they knew how to put the bunny on its back successfully, and then what to look for once they did, as this is a sex check, and apparently that is not terribly easy to determine on a bunny.

Anyway, this little boy is just as sweet as any can be, and he had no clue how to roll the bunny over safely.

And.........the bunny had NO DESIRE to stay there once the little boy got him in the right position. The picture below shows a contorted bunny as he escapes the boys hold and makes a mad dash for parts unknonw in the barn. The good thing though was that the kid was quick, and he had the bunny under control again before he ever made it off the show stand!

And, you can't have a fair without rain right Mindy????

Logan County's fair is no exception. The pictures below are from the first official day of the fair when the horrid storm moved through. The wind was terrible, the rain was a real downpour, and when the tornado sirens went off, John Fulton had us all stand against the only brick wall in the pole shed structure.

Running to Catch up! Let's start with the MILL

2009-09-08T12:34:00.000-05:00

Okay, to say that the month of August flew by in my world would be totally the understatment of the year!!!

There has been so much going on around here even since the end of July that I have not had one moment to even post of some of the interesting things I've been doing.

I've had several decent pieces in the Lincoln Daily News, and need to work on upgrading my sidebar, and the photography has gotten to be a really big deal for me as well.

I guess to be thorough, I need to go back to July and post a few notes on the 80th Anniversary Celebration of the Mill.

The Mill is an interesting old Route 66 icon here in Lincoln. A few years ago it made the local news almost weekly because it was such an eyesore, with the building in horrible condition and weeds and trash growing and strewn about, and the potetnial for vermin inside the building.

The push was on to have it demolished when Geoff Ladd came into Lincoln as the new director of the tourism bureau for Lincoln and Logan County, and he was approached firt off by Ernie Edwards who was the long time owner operator of the Pig Hip in Broadwell, another route 66 icon.

Ernie virtually pleaded with Geoff to save the Mill, and Geoff decided to take it on.

Now, I know Geoff, and he would certainly not want anyone to think he is the sole reason the Mill has survived and is now under restoration, but I also know that he has been the force behind the movement, and he deserves to be patted on the back for saving a piece of route 66 history.

The Mill first opened in July of 1929, but perhaps is more famous for the era of gangsters, gambling, and dance hall girls during the 40's. The Mill was a known stop over for Al Capone, and they dabbled in bootleggin even after prohibition because at that time Logan county was "dry", and all alcohol was illiegal.

The Mill has ties with Coonhound Johnny who was an interesting character all to himself, and also owned a roadhouse in the Lincoln area.

This past July, the Save the Mill Organization, which you can read more about through Savethemill.org held an 80th year anniversary celebration at the Mill.

For the first time in quite some time, the public was allowed to venture inside the building and look around, there were special events inside and outside throughout the afternoon and into the night, and there was a special recognition for folks who have contributed to the restoration project in general, including the Weiss's of the Route 66 Association of Illinois, and Mr. Larry VanBibber who made a generous monetary donation to the project out of his own pocket.

Now here's where I'm going to editorialize for just a bit.....For years, people howled over the run down state of the Mill, and it made the news as I said earlier almost constantly, but do you have any idea how many folks from Lincoln showed up for the celebration??? At one point in time I could have counted them all on my two hands!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It bothers me to no end that folks want to see something fixed, they want to have tourism dollars in the community, and they want to have bragging rights to such national icons as Route 66, but when push comes to shove, they don't bother showing up in support of the very thing they've been belly-aching over!!!!!

All I can say is shame on them, they are no better than the folks who complain about the president but didn't bother to go vote!!

Anyway, on my side bar are some of the things that we published on the Mill, and you can visit savethemill.org and also Leigh Hensons website which I have linked also on my sidebar has a section referring to old watering holes of Logan County where there is discussion about the Mill and pictures of it plus Coonhound Johnny.

I'm going to throw a few pictures on here and move on to the next topic.

Thanks for reading!
Nila

The backroom bar and restaurant area inside the Mill

The front room which as I understand it may also have been eating and dacing area in the 1940's and beyond.

This Mill as it looks today. Far from finished, but way beyond what it looked like a few years ago!

Local historial Paul Gleanson in the foreground with Larry VanBibber looking on.

Ernie Edwards, owner operator of the old Pig Hip. The Pig hip had shut down as a food joint and bee revamped as a museum. Sad to say it burned to the ground a couple years back and while there is still a marker, I don't think there is anything left of the old place.

Senator Larry Bomke took the time to come up and say a few words at the celebration. Bomke is very pro-active Lincoln, and the city and Logan County does appreciate the interest he shows in us.

In the afternoon the "Sprits of..." Tours from Bloomington did a short presentation on Blossom Huffman the proprietor of the Mill, and her relationship with Coonhound Johnny, who are being protrayed in this photo.

I'm additng this photo just because I like it. The gal playing Blossom really didn't look much like the real thing as far as facial features and all, but I think she nailed the personalily. Now mind you I don't know that for sure, but my instincts tell me she did.

Remembering Napoleon Bonaparte

2009-08-02T13:07:00.002-05:00

A very dear friend of mine has left this world.

Napoleon Bonaparte passed away July 31st, 2009.

Now don’t think I’m crazy, that was indeed his real name. He was a man of color and a very colorful man.

I became acquainted with “Nappy” when I worked for Community Action. Even then he seemed old, as until his obituary is actually posted I can’t tell you for sure how old he was.

He was a veteran who served overseas. He had a huge collection of documents from his time in service, including pictures and newspaper clippings and you name it.

He had lived in Lincoln the majority of his life and knew a lot about the town and it’s history.

He told me once about a little restaurant downtown that when the civil rights movement was in full blown glory, and it became a law that the business had to serve blacks and whites equally, the owner would do so, but when a black person finished eating, the owner would smash the plate on the floor and throw it in the trash. The message being that once a black person had used the plate it was unfit for any white person to eat off of. Consequently the safest way to keep this from happening was to smash the plate.

Nappy said that there were a few who made a custom of going in, sitting down getting their glass of water, placing a toothpick from their mouth into the water then getting up and leaving. The end result, the glass got smashed on the floor, and the owner saw no revenue whatsoever from it.

Nappy liked to talk about how things have changed over the years. He enjoyed remembering when and where businesses were opened that are now long since gone. He liked telling stories about people he had known over his life.

He was also an ordained minister, but kind of an absent minded one.

I remember first had the day he was supposed to perform a marriage, and forgot to go to the wedding!!! I remember it because I was the one who went driving all over town trying to locate his huge Lincoln Continental so that I could drag him to the wedding.

I never found him, and he showed up about 30 minutes after the whole thing was over.

Someone made a phone call and found a minister who would perform the services sight unseen. It wasn’t the plan but I guess in the end it did all work out.

But the wedding was for Jane Poertner’s grandson, and needless to say, Nappy was in the doghouse with Jane for a while.

Nappy served on the building and grounds committee at Community Action. I being the CFO was also on that committee along with Paul Gleason and Docia Barrick.

Docia was another staff member, and Paul was a lot like Nappy in many ways. I loved to listen to Paul, Nappy and Docia tell stories about the town and how it had changed, but with other members on that committee and a purpose for our meetings, I often times had to work really hard to steer the three of them back to the here and now.

When Nappy’s mother passed away, I attended the funeral. It was unlike anything I had ever been to before.

The funeral was a true celebration of life, with laughter, story telling, old Negro gospel hymns, speeches, it lasted if I remember correctly almost two hours.

Nappy was the only son living in Lincoln, and he took care of his mother. She was a very independent woman, and didn’t really like being taken care of, but he did the best he could.

He used to come to Krogers, and he’d see Rich and tell him “mamma sent me to the store for an apple’. And he would buy one apple to take to his mother.

Generally by the time he got it home to her, she had changed her mind and wanted something different.

After she died, he came to my office one day, and we spent a long time just talking about her. He loved her and missed her. He told me about having to go through her things and how hard it was. He told me she had dresser drawers full of jewelry some of it really old, and how that he had tried to get kids and grandkids to take it, and they had taken some, but not near all of it.

He told me that someday he’d go through it and bring me a few pieces, but that never happened, and I wish now that it had.

Nappy lived just a few blocks from Rich and I, on the corner of Palmer and 19th maybe, I can’t right now remember for sure, but anyway, I drove by his house quite often.

I always got a kick out of the gold toned set of armour standing in his back yard. It made no sense for it to be there. It wasn’t in a decorative place or anything, it just seemed to be there, along with a lot of other stuff. Now don’t get me wrong, the place was not trashy, it was just full of Stuff!

When things were going downhill at Community Action, Nappy came to my office one day and he told me that it was out of control, and the reason was that the people who were running the show didn’t know what the agency had been through to get where it was, and they were not willing to listen and learn.

He said they had no concern for the past, they just wanted a different future. He wondered how anyone could mold the future without knowing the past.

When a lot of us bailed on CIEDC myself included, Nappy hung in there. He stayed on the board, and I know through conversations with Paul, that he did try to be heard, but he was an old man and the newbies dubbed him as being “set in the past, and not willing to change”, and therefore his voice didn’t matter much to any of them.

When I left CIEDC, I let on like it was a good thing, but those who were close to me know that I truly went through hell for quite some time after that.

I couldn’t move on, and it was horrible. But eventually I made it through, but in the end, I did so by separating myself from everyone I had ever known at the agency.

People who meant a lot to me while I was there became strangers, because I couldn’t think about them or be around them without the old hurt coming back.

Eventually I made it through that period of darkness, and figured out how to move on.

Recently I’ve re-connected with a few of them from the Agency, like Paul who is no longer on their board. He told me that Nappy was still hanging in there and that he talked to him on occasion about what was going on at the new CAPCIL.

I wish that I had found a way to spend just a little while with Nappy before he passed. But I didn’t. He would have made an interesting story for the LDN, it would have been good to renew that friendship, but I missed the chance.

I’m sorry dear friend if I let you down and I hope you are now enjoying a lovely reunion with your “mamma”.

Shoot to Kill -- Vigilante Mentality at work

2009-07-24T06:21:00.006-05:00

If you check out the Tuesday (07/21/09) morning edition of the Lincoln Daily News, you'll see that even in the considerably small town of Lincoln, wild things happen on occasion.

The top pick on that day is a photo of a police investigation going on at Scully Park in the downtown area.

Go on to read the story and you'll see that it begins early in the evening, while I personally was in the downtown area at city hall attending the council meeting, and in came to an end shortly after I left there and arrived home around 8.

It appears by all accounts that this fellow, known as TATTOO went off the deep end, attempted an armed robbery at a residence in the area of Scully Park, but when his attempt failed, he walked a few doors down, knocked on a door, and the resident inside offered to drive him back to his home.

As this was taking place, the police arrived, and when they stopped the vehicle, the driver escaped, TATTOO baled out of the vehicle brandishing a gun, and the police shot him.

For a while it was uncertain whether or not it was a fatal shooting, but in the end, TATTOO is alive and is currently being cared for at a hospital in Springfield.

He underwent surgery for his wounds, but is expected to recover.

This is all very disturbing to me.

The Courier, which is a Gatehouse Publication, the local hard copy newspaper, and one that I am respecting less and less each day, reported on this on paper and on their gatehouse web site.

Gatehouse owns many, many of the small town papers in Illinois and across the country. Their website is generic in that it carries the same format for all their publications, and that format includes an opportunity for readers to log on and "blog" comments about the story they have just read.

I read their story, then I read the comments, which were many.

In the comments, the majority of the writers expressed remorse that the police had not killed his man.

They hate him, they want him dead, the resent the fact that the county will now have to pay his medical bills, go to the expense of a trial, and that his person will take up space in a prison.

The readers who wrote on the subject claimed that the police were not doing their job, that they were poor shots, and that their objective should have been shoot to kill. One reader/blogger said that the police were supposed to be trained to shoot to kill, and that our police department was obviously lacking in skill because this villain survived.

Others blogged accusations toward him of crimes he has committed with no evidence whatsoever. Obviously no evidence or he would have already been arrested and none of this would ever have happened.

What bothers me most about this vigilante mentality is the statement that the cops are trained to shoot to kill.

In response to that, yes they are trained to shoot to kill, they do know how to do that, BUT they are TAUGHT to spare life whenever possible. They learn that it is far better to wound and therefore temporarily disable a suspect rather than to instantly become judge, jury and deliverer of the death penalty.

What the police did was exactly as it should have been.

Those who are blogging that this man should have been murdered at the hand of the cops should stop and think about this. This man, 31 years of age is someones son, and I know for a fact he is someones father.

You see, I know this fellow. I met him a few years ago when I worked at Wal-Mart. He has actually been to my home when I had a garage sale in 2007.

He's one of the weirdest looking people you'll ever meet. He is tattooed literally head to toe, has piercing on his face including a bone like object in his nose, and he has a gold grill. He walks with a cane, wears long trench coats whenever possible, and has a passion for snakes.

He is a tattoo artist, and earns a portion of his living that way, and let me tell you folks, I'm not big on tattoos, but the man has remarkable talent.

But what is probably the most shocking thing about him is his demeanor when he's clean and sober, which is the only way I personally have ever seen him.

He is well versed, polite, respectful, soft spoken, and well mannered.

At Wally world, I was truly the only one there who had the nerve to wait on him. I one time spent nearly two hours with the man, helping him go through the photos of his work, and he was nothing but kind and decent when I helped him.

The other photo lab people would very nearly run when they saw him coming, because he looked like such a creep.

When he and his girlfriend came to our garage sale, Rich was home of course, and when they came in, we spoke, I told introduced him to Rich and he shook his hand and they stood a visited while his girlfriend checked out the stuff at the sale.

There was nothing about this man that screamed "I deserve to be shot and killed".

Now, I'll admit, I don't know what happened to this man that caused him to do what he did Monday night.

Rumor has it that he was doped up or drunk or both, and I would suppose there is a fair chance that is correct.

But that doesn't mean he should have died. It means that he needs help. He is a lost soul, someone who for whatever reason took a wrong turn and ended up in a very bad place.

In the end, he has suffered injury, he will go to prison, and perhaps a long dry spell will help him to turn things around, or it may make him worse, I just don't know.

But here is what I do know, he is a human being, as I said earlier someones son and someones father. He's not perfect, he's made some mistakes, but then again so have I, and so have you reading this, and especially so have the blogger's who wish him dead.

I hope and pray that those who wrote such cruel hateful words never have to deal with their own son, daughter, mother or father being in a similar incident, but you can bet that if they do, they'll have a very different attitude.

Pic from family get together

2009-07-21T06:55:00.004-05:00

Here are some pictures from our "Multi-family Get Together" last Saturday.

Things that make me crazy, I got home, and was going through the nearly 100 pics that I had taken and came to realize that in the whole bunch I had not one good picture of Mindy or Becky!!!!

That just makes me nuts because I try so hard to get everyone, then I mess it up!!!

Oh well, here are some of what I did get.

Left to right Nicholas, Chelsie, Rylee and MacKenzie (hope I spelled Nicholas and MacKenzie correctly). Nicholas and MacKenzie are extended family, children of Becky's sister Nycol.

Nephew Robert, and the hubs, Richard.

Chad's dad David and his friend Pat

Grandaughter Rachel, my mom Kay, Grandaughter Caitlyn. The blonde with her head down is Chasity, and with her back to us is MacKenzie. They are all looking at the albums I made for the two oldest grand girls, pictures and stories from their week with granpa and gramma.

Rachel in the pink jacket, Caitlyn facing me, and MacKenzie to the right.

Left to right, Chelsie, Chad, Chasity, Nycol, and Rick. That little dark blurp behind Ricks head is the closest thing to a picture of Becky that I have! I did get a shot of her, but it was blurry as she was moving, carrying and comforting Rylee from a fall she had taken.

Chasity, Nycol, and Rick

Nathan, Nycol's middle child, and oldest son.

Our grand girls Rachel and Rylee.

Our youngest grand girl Chelsie

MacKenzie

And, our grand girl Caitlyn

Lincoln Logan County Illinois Upcoming Events

2009-07-20T11:01:00.002-05:00

We are going to be having some very special events in the Lincoln and Logan County area over the next month or so. Look for coverage in the Lincoln Daily News as we plan to do all that we can to post everything going on.

This coming Friday night there will be a walking tour of the city of Lincoln with President Lincoln and his wife Mary Todd Lincoln leading the way.

It is my understanding that the tour will begin at the Christening site near the train depot and proceed from there to points of interest in the downtown area. These points of interest will revolve around the Lincoln's involvement in our communtiy prior to the presidential election which made Mr. Lincoln our 16th president.

On Satuday afternoon, there will be a large celebration at the MILL. For those of you who are interested in gangstas there will be a special presentation from a group out of Bloomington Illinois called "Spirits of...Tours". The program includes an appearance from Coonhound Johnny who was a known associate of the infamous Al Capone!

Also if your into ghosts and spirits, there will be a paranormal investigation taking place at the MILL at 8 p.m. that same night. The investigation will take place inside the MILL for the most part, but according to Geoff Ladd of the Abraham Lincoln Tourism and Save the Mill organizations, there could possibly be some sightings outside the building as well. The paranormal event does require a ticket purchase, but other events starting at noon that day are free of charge and will include live music and a car and motorcycle show.

August 4 will kick off the Logan County Fair, and LDN is planning complete coverage of the 4-H livestock shows.

August 27th will be a re-enactment of the Lincoln Christening scene at 1 p.m. and again at 2.

August 28th kicks off the Annual Art and Balloon Festival. At the moment I don't have many details on what will be going on those days, but you can be certain that there will be early morning fly-ins, evening glows, art in the park at Latham Park, a flea Market in Scully park, and the public library always has their annual book sale.

LDN will be covering all of these events, and in regard to the balloon festival, there will be a link to the balloon festival website in the LDN calendar of events.

Summertime is a great time for this area, lots to do, plenty to see, and none of it terribly expensive. These little events make for great one-day get-aways for anyone who would like to see the sites on a limited budget.

But if you can't make it to town, be sure to mark the Lincoln Daily News in your "favorites" and visit our publication to see just what all you missed!

To Market We Go!!

2009-07-16T06:11:00.002-05:00

Rich would probably yell at me for using this picture, because his maters are dirty! But I think it is cool!

We had enough last night to make it worth the trip to go to Farmers Market.

With not quite 90 poounds of maters and a arm load of cucumbers, we arrived at 4 and sold out and were back home by 5:30!

Market rules have changed a little bit I guess.

By the time Rich got home at a quarter to 2 and we got everything wiped down (maters get buffed a bit so they are nice and shiney) loaded up the table, the maters, and ourselves, then had to run to the bank and get change for the cash box, it was about a quarter to four when we got there.

Most of the others were already there except the market boss.

We pulled in and started unloading, and it seemed almost instantly we had people standing there waiting for us to get ready.

The market boss pulled in beside us and started unloading.

We finished setting up, and people started grabbing bags and filling them. The boss sets the prices, so I asked him what we were allowed to charge, he told me, then added "but you can't sell yet, it isn't 4".

So, we had to stand there with our hands in our pockets for about five minutes.

Our customers kept looking up the way and saying really loud so the boss could hear them...look those people up there are selling!

But we waited and waited, and finally the boss yelled "Market's Open", and I swear we were the only ones not taking money before that. But anyway, we wiped out about 70 pounds of tomatoes and all the cukes in the first 20 minutes.

Rich added yellow tomatoes to his crop this year. We only had maybe 20 or so of those, and they sold out so quick it made our heads swim. No doubt they'll be on the growing list from now on!

We got down to about 12 maters left and I was thinking we were doomed, because usually that last little handful is like pulling teeth to get them sold. It's a matter of people like choice and when you get down to that few they don't have much of a choice. But then out of the blue this gal walked up and she said "I want everything you've got left here"!

So, we sold out, packed up, and came home Wooowhooooo!!

We love farmers market. It is a great opportunity to see people and visit and make some pretty good bucks all at the same time!!

Special effects with Picnik free online photo editor

2009-07-05T12:22:00.007-05:00

I've found a website that offers a free photo editing package that is working out pretty well for me. It is called Picnik.com and it offers several editing tools free, but also has a more advanced system for about 25 bucks a year.

Right now, I don't think I'm ready to move into the advanced stuff, and even though it is a reasonable rate I think, I'm just not willing to put out the dough!

The free program offers some really fun stuff though.

For example, I can take the picture above and turn it into the piece of photo art below.

The next set was a little more complicated than the ones above. I did some editing with my HP software, then went to Picnik, then came back to HP and editied some more. The photo above I took through two processes in Picnik while the photo below went through two processes on HP, three on picnik, then back to one final adjustment on HP.

But this is how it all turned out. Now I want you to know, I wasn't looking for beautiful. I was looking for age and character not only in the subject but in the medium.

Some of you already know that I invested in a new camera. My little Kodak had served me well since about 2001, taking about 15,000 pictures in its lifetime, and to tell the truth, it is still plenty good enough for my two oldest grand-girls to use when they visit.

The new camera is a Fugi which I never thought I would buy anything but a Kodak, and I didn't expect to like it, but it was somewhat affordable compared to others with similar specs, and I cannot tell a lie, I really like it.

I'm still learning the settings, and rely a lot on the auto and the SP auto, but....check out hopefully Monday's edition of the Lincoln Daily News for the pictures of the Water Fights at the Park District.

I took all those pictures, working my own settings instead of letting "auto" do the job for me, and I was very pleased.

I love trying to capture water, and I think I got the job done pretty well (oops, excuse me while I rush to emergency, I just broke my arm patting myself on the back!!!).

Anyway, hope you enjoy, and if you like to play with photo editing, be sure to check out Picnik!!

BTW, how many pics have I taken on my new camera thus far?? WEll, I've had it since the middle of June and have taken 1100 pictures thus far!!!

A few favorites

2009-06-29T08:29:00.004-05:00

In no particular order, but all from my mom's or my uncle's homes.

Well, we had to take them home!

2009-06-27T10:43:00.008-05:00

Well, vacation is nearly over for Rich. He goes back to work Monday.

We had to take the girls back to their folks on Thursday evening, and we're still getting adjusted to the quiet house.

I think that the hardest part of having them here is when it is time to let them go. We enjoy the chaos, the energy, their laughter, and the weird silly things they do to entertain themselves!

The picture above is only one of about 400 or so that I took while Rich was on vacation.

We spent our first day with my mom, a favorite uncle of mine, then my sis and her family, and I think there were about 150 pics taken then.

The rest of them were of the kids!!

Anyway, left to right Chad, Chasity, Rich, (sitting on the train) Rylee, Chelsie, Rachel, Caitlyn, then standing on the ground again are Becky and Rick. (I think you can click to enlarge this shot)

I was so happy that I remembered to get a pic of Rich and all the kids. Many times, I am so busy taking shots of what they are doing, that I don't actually think to get a good family pic!

And here are the girls helping papaw plant flowers!

Posing and playing in the interactive center at Dixon Mounds;

Getting wet in the Illinois River

How to entertain 9 year olds

2009-06-23T09:31:00.005-05:00

Our oldest two grand girls are visiting us this week, and we are having a blast with them! We've taken them a few places and we've played in the sprinklers and played games in the house, and badminton outside, and it has just so far been a wonderful time for all of us.

But I think if you asked them, they might say that the best fun they have had is cutting cardboard!

It all began Sunday night when they decided to make houses for their hot wheels. The did that using scissors and scotch tape, but then they had left over cardboard, and that is when the hot wheels went to the wayside, and their obsession has been with the cutting of the cardboard!

The first picture is the little pile they had accumulated by Monday morning, the next few pictures are what they had accomplished by Tuesday morning.

They've pretty well cut up everything we can find for them. I don't know what we're going to do, but we may have to send grandpa to the grocery store to get them some more boxes!!!

And here is a picture of them and grandpa standing and sitting on the Lincoln statue at the Lincoln Heritage Museum here in town. It is a very small museum, but I know both the curators there, and Mr. Keller spent a lot of time telling the girls about the things in the museum all about Abraham Lincoln. He even let them touch and hold things so that was really special!

And, here is just one of several shots I took of them playing in the water on the patio. They went out twice yesterday once before lunch then again after and they really got a kick out of the mud they made, Rachel especially enjoyed squishing the mud between her toes.

I have city council tonight, so they are going on a very special date with Grandpa. He's going to take them out to supper at McDonald's, then let them play in the playland area (if it's air conditioned).

I won't be there to take pictures, but I'm going to load up my little camera that the girls have used in the past and let them take it with them.

Grandpa thinks this will be a great thing, just him and his girls, and they are looking forward to it too!

Highlights of the Logan County Route 66 Celebration

2009-06-13T21:52:00.008-05:00

This past Friday and Saturday were the Route 66 "37 Miles of Smiles Garage Sales" in Logan County.

But in addition to the garage sales and flea markets there were a lot of other things going on as well.

For example, Friday afternoon we had the HOG's (Harley Owners Group) of Illinois come though town and make a stop at The Mill restaurant. The Mill just a few short years ago was destined for demolition, but there was a revival of sorts, and now it is being refurbished, and hopes are that by this time next year, it will be opened as a routte 66 heritage museum.

Thus far it has gotten new windows, a new sale, and some fresh paint on the front portion of the outside. Inside walls and floors are in the process of being refurbished.

The HOGS stopped in and listed to an explanation of the Mill and the roll it played in route 66 history, including being at least once a hideout of sorts for the one and only Al Capone.

Saturday afternoon, the Route 66 Motor Tour Association of Illinois made a passport stop in Lincoln on the square. The group was headed to Springfield, where they will have a big dinner and during that time, The Mill will be induced into their route 66 Hall of Fame.

The first picture is of "Baby" the green iguana, who attended the car show.

The others are just some of my favorites, out of the total of 315 pictures I took in the last two days!

This picture I took Friday morning around 6. I was out to get pictures of the folks setting up their flea market booths. I just think it is a neat pic.

And, I also had to hit Broadwell and Elkhart as they too were having sales.

This pic is the south side of Elkhart hill, the John Gillett Farm.

How does the garden grow

2009-06-12T20:10:00.004-05:00

Well, I realize it has been a while since we updated the tomato business. So, I thought maybe you all would be in the mood for some green tomatoes!

We have had so much rain, that just walking outside is like walking on a sponge, and up here that is rare. Soil ususally drains well, so well, that generally be now Rich is having to do a little watering, just to make sure everything grows.

The plants are doing well, and as you can see he has maters on every bush.

He decided not to hang them this year as he has in the past. Last year we had some trouble with the plants being so heavy they pulled the metal cross wires down, and then he had to work to keep everything from getting tangled.

This year he's going with horizontal tying, where that he runs baler twine the length of the row, then clips the tomato plants to the twine.

We ran out of clips, and believe it or not, it lead to another landmark event for the hubs.

Rich hates to computer, but he will stand behind me and look at the screen while I navigate. So, out of clips, what to do? EBAY!!

Believe it or not we found clips at auction on eBay, and he after much debate decided we should bid on them.

So, long story short, the last 10 minutes, I sneak in and place a winning bid. Then we wait. Well we won, which to me is no big deal because I do a lot of SELLING on ebay, and I'm just like oh well whatever. But he was quite pleased. In the end, he even figured out that he had saved money, so that made him really happy.

So does this mean eBay has a new victim? Hardly! As soon as the auction was ended he backed away slowly from the pooter, and I don't really expect him to return to it any time soon!!!

Contact me

2009-06-11T16:39:00.002-05:00

I have added a contact button on my side bar.

If you want to talk to me directly about a subject I've posted, click on the "contact Nila Smith" and you will be directed to an encrypted email account I have through Searchwarp.

Adding this allows you to contact me without going through the "post comment" where your question becomes a permanent part of the blog.

I can also reply to your emails again without going public.

Regional Office of Education ROE 38 articles posted

2009-06-04T10:31:00.001-05:00

I’ve added the four part series that I did for the Lincoln Daily News regarding the Regional Office of Education for Logan, Mason, and Menard Counties as a separate section on my sidebar.

This series was the result of a nearly three hour interview with Regional Superintendent Jean Anderson.

Those of you, who know me, know that I inherited my children after they were adults.

Therefore, I didn’t have any first hand experience with kids in school, except to draw from my memory of what it was like for me and my sister.

So, the first thing I have to say, is that even though Anderson is heads and shoulders above me in Education, experience, and sophistication, she was very approachable.

She didn’t get the least bit frustrated over what may have been elementary questions on my part. She never once made me feel like I was inferior in any way. And, I can assure anyone who might want to speak to her, that she will treat them with the utmost respect.

The series of articles covers quite a bit of information, and I could have written at least four more, but in the world of news, we have to cut, edit, cut, edit, and cut again.

So, there is a lot of good stuff in the series, but there is also some stuff that got left out.

One of the items that touched me most, was personal observations from Anderson regarding the life of a teacher.

Teachers have become not only educators, but also guardians on the whole of their students during the class day.

As such, they have to know each child, understand their behavioral issues, and deal with any emotional problems they may be having, plus be a nurse, a disciplinarian, and sometimes a substitute mommy.

And, their support system is very faint. Most teachers don’t get the chance to interact with other educators daily or even weekly. They can’t always talk about what they hear and see going on in the classroom with people outside of the school, so they end up isolated.

For example, if little Janie has developed a knack for hurting peoples feelings with her harsh words, that is an internal problem that the teacher has to deal with alone for the most part.

He or she can’t go home and talk about what a terrible little child Janie is. And while a talk with the parents may be warranted, and may actually happen, there is no release for the teacher in doing so. As a matter of fact, that may increase the stress level of the teacher, as now little Janie’s parents think the teacher is “out to get” their darling daughter.

Of course, there are exceptions. If they suspect a child is being neglected or abused, they are mandated reporters, and have to talk to their supervisors about those situations.

Once a teacher becomes a teacher, the education process for them is really just beginning.

They are required to do ongoing studies, which means many of them attend classes during their summer break, they take online courses during the school year, or perhaps even attend night-classes.

Parents who believe that teacher’s works from 8 to 3 are simply put; dead wrong. There are many teachers who between their work day, their classroom homework they have to do, and their course studies for ongoing education work 80 or more hours a week.

Plus high school teachers are often class sponsors, club sponsors, and chaperones for extracurricular activities.

Since public schools began, there have been ongoing complaints about children having too much homework. Kids and parents think that the teachers make enormous assignments just out of spite sometimes. But, what parents and kids alike need to know, is that when a teacher gives homework, they are also getting it themselves! Consequently, if they didn’t feel it was necessary, they wouldn’t do it.

Another thing that Anderson and I talked about that didn’t make it to the article was the new testing programs that are a part of the “No child left behind” act.

“Response to Intervention” is a classroom assessment program that uses a series of benchmarks to chart a child’s progress throughout the year.

The assessments are designed to identify how much the child has learned and retained during his or her class time.

Children who show a lack of progress are given additional assistance. This assistance may be extra one-on-one time with the teacher, a tutor, or whatever else is deemed necessary to get the student up to speed.

Anderson spoke highly of the program, even though it is not something that the Regional offices are involved with (which is why it didn’t make the articles).

The RTI is successfully identifying the needs of the students, without stereotypically sticking them into special ed classes. This has got to be a good thing!

If a little extra effort on the part of the teacher, parents, and child, can prevent the student from being dubbed as a special education case, is that not what we all want?

The program is identifying problems that in the past have been overlooked.

Anderson explained this and offered an example of how the testing is benefiting not only the students but the teachers; “this is a state wide initiative that I think is going to be tremendous as its already showing some significant positive change particularly in our elementary schools.

“I was on a school visit recently and the principal was talking about their kindergarten students and how they have made such gains in their achievement level since the first of the year.

“The school has used simple testing procedures with the children to determine their level of maturity. In every class there is a possibility of age gaps that affect a child’s ability to comprehend. These age gaps are most noticeable in the younger children.

“Conducting these tests enabled the teacher to identify which children were more advanced in the knowledge and maturity, and which were in need of more individual and personalized attention.

“The end result was that after a period of time, all the children were performing on the same level.

Anderson concluded saying; “I think that RTI is going to make a huge difference in education in Illinois.”

As I said there was much discussed, and even now I am only touching of a few points.

We talked a great deal about how home life affects child behavior.

This was a topic I would like to have put in the articles, but really couldn’t work it in as well as I wanted to.

With the loss of employers in this area, the increased cost of getting to work due to gasoline prices, and such, there are middle class families, who in the past have not needed assistance, and now they do.

Even though this sounds a bit stereotypical, it is founded in fact. People who have lived their life in poverty have a network that they can rely on. They know where to go to get rent paid, food, medical assistance, child care, and other essentials to survival.

The new breed of financially stifled families doesn’t have that experience. They are less informed about what they can get help with and what they can’t.

In addition, they are more hesitant to ask for help, because to them it is a stigma.

The end result, parents are taking on new burdens and with no support group so to speak to assist them.

Anderson said that this is translating to additional emotional and behavioral problems in the classroom.

For the most part, good parents think it is their job to protect their children from the trials of life, so they are talking in private, whispering their concerns, and doing all that they can to spare their children from the bad things that are going on.

The problem is, in their effort to protect, they are leaving it to the child’s imagination to figure out what is wrong.

Younger children especially, will let their minds carry them away, and may be envisioning a situation that is much worse than reality.

Anderson said that parents need to include their children in the discussion.

The financial situation at home may mean that there will be no family vacation this year, or that fun activities have to be cut out of the budget, and nothing more.

However, the child putting two and two together on their own may be thinking that the family can’t buy food.

The bad situation may lead to giving up a home and moving back in with a parent or sibling, while the child may consider the end result of loosing a home means they will be living in the park and sleeping in a car.

When creditors call, and parents try to be vague in their conversation, they are leaving children to imagine what kind of threats are being made toward their parents.

These are real situations, and parents need to be aware that they are causing worry and stress in the child’s life by omitting them from the conversation.

The end result of all this, is that their worries at home are going to the classroom, and it is causing lack of concentration, moodiness, and even conflict with other students or their teacher.

Now I’m not suggesting that you sit down with your seven year old, and show them your bank statement and all the bills you have to pay, but don’t try to hide from them that your struggling.

Tell them that mom, dad, or both have lost their jobs, but that doesn’t mean they are going to go hungry, that the family is okay, but that some of the fun things they like to do may have to be put on hold for a while.

If it comes to making a move, let the kids know that leaving this house doesn’t mean they won’t have a home, only that they are going to have a different home for a while.

If a parent has to leave town in search of work, don’t leave it to the child’s imagination as to why they are going, because they may wonder whether or not mom or dad is ever going to come back.

And finally, parents; know that you are not alone in this. Hundreds of thousands of families all across the nation are suffering from a bad economy. It is nothing to be ashamed of, and you and your children need to realize that.

If by the grace of God, you are not a family suffering, there are a few things you can do to help those that are.

First pray for your friends and if you are led to offer help, do so in a sincere, non-patronizing way.

Perhaps the most important thing you can do is don’t speak about those you know who are suffering in a derogatory way, and teach your children not to do that either.

Well, I guess that is all I have to say for now. I hope you will read the articles on the ROE, and know that while they were written with this area in mind, much of the information there will translate to anywhere in the state of Illinois.

Happy Anniversary to Us!!!

2009-05-26T17:16:00.000-05:00

Well, it is hard to believe, but today around noon, Rich and I marked 16 years of married life.

It’s hard to believe because in spite of the struggles, the moves, his near death illness, and everything else under the sun, it seems like only yesterday that we made the trip to Wycliffe Kentucky to visit a justice of the peace.

I remember it so well. It was a warm bright day. We dressed in the best we owned. I wore a pale purple dress with a white jacket; Rich wore his black dress pants and shirt.

We drove down to the small town, just over the border at Cairo.

We got our license but were told that we’d have to wait a bit because the judge slash justice was busy.

I remember the building was old, old, old with wooden floors and my heels clacked loudly when I walked. We went out into the center of the building, and sat down on a wooden bench.

We all know that in a small town, news travels fast, so I can only imagine that the recorders office was a buzz telling everyone there was someone here to get married, because we saw a constant parade of people. They were all passing by, staring and giving us silly Cheshire cat grins, like they knew why we were there.

Then again, maybe everyone in Wycliffe smiles like Cheshire Cats at everyone they see, who can say for sure.

We finally got in to see the judge, who was also a Gideon, and after he preformed the ceremony, he gave us a little Bible with our marriage documented in it, and we got back in our truck and headed home.

On the way home, I kept trying to examine myself and see if ‘being married” made me feel any different, but in truth it really didn’t.

The reason it didn’t was because getting married was really just the final step for us. I had committed myself to Rich and him to me nearly two years earlier, and we never looked back.

There were no bridal showers, or receptions, we simply got married and came home.

My mom gave us a gift the next time she saw us of Pillow cases that said “Mr.” and “Mrs.” on them and we were very pleased. My grandmother Ruby sent us a small glass dish as a gift, and Rich’s mom sent us a card. That was it, no other gifts, no other acknowledgments, but that was okay.

In 16 years of marriage, we’ve only had two arguments. Pretty remarkable I think. The first one was a childish, silly event not too long after we actually said our “I do’s” and it was soon forgotten.

The second one was a little rougher, a little harder to get past, but we did. In our defense though, I know that the anger we were both feeling at that time was at the circumstance we were in, and not at each other.

It was during the time that Rich’s sister was dying with cancer. Rich and I were doing all that we could to watch after Hazel, and we were tired, end of story.

I think with nerves on edge the only people we could yell at and know we would be forgiven were each other, so that’s what we did.

At the time, we had no clue that dealing with Sherry’s illness and eventual death was going to be just the tip of the iceberg for us.

After Sherry passed, Rich’s mom just couldn’t take it. She had for a long time suffered health issues of her own, especially pertaining to her heart, and diabetes.

Within two weeks after Sherry was buried, Hazel was in the hospital, and Rich and I were the ones who needed to take care of her once again.

I have not one regret that we did what we did for Hazel, and neither does Rich.

In the long run, it made both of us stronger individuals, and stronger as a couple.

And, the spat we had while Sherry was ill was all but forgotten except to say that it taught us that we needed to be very patient with each other sometimes, and to remember that if we were going to go through this kind of trial, we knew of no other person we’d want holding us up and giving us strength than each other.

My mom once told me that the things that Rich and I have gone through would tear most marriages apart, but that it has only served to makes ours stronger.

I find comfort in those words, and remember them every time something happens in our life that seems to push us to the edge. Somehow or other we always manage to talk each other down off the ledge, and we move on.

And, we’ve had some remarkably good times together. We neither one require much in the way or worldly goods, or costly entertainment.

Time spent with family is precious to us, and doesn’t come along often enough.

We can entertain ourselves in the simplest of ways.

We sometimes turn out all the lights in the house and stand in the windows watching our crazy neighbors doing something weird and theorize on what they are up to. Which by the way, we’re convinced that the ones across the street are on some major medications and have somehow gotten them mixed up because they are loopy most of the time.

We used to love to fish and mushroom hunt together, but up here it isn’t something we get to do much of anymore.

But here we have the balloons! We both love the balloons, and do all that we can to make every lift off and fly in of the weekend.

Rich really introduced me to the stock car racing, and it is something that we can share in. I have become a big fan of NASCAR, and almost know more about the teams and drivers than he does, almost.

We are not however fans of the same ones. I have several that I am a fan of, and he tolerates that and doesn’t say bad things about them in front of me at least, and once in a while when one of my drivers is in the lead, he’ll even root for them a bit.

And while farmers market does make us money, it is also something that we enjoy doing together.

When Rich was doing the greenhouse in Mason City, he would always tell me what he was doing, how he did it, and if he had learned anything new.

When we started going to the farmers market, I ended up being the “talker” most of the time (imagine that!) and would give folks complete details of how he did things at the greenhouse.

On day I overheard him say that I knew every detail about the business, and that he was really surprised that I’d paid that much attention.

And maybe that has been the key to 18 good years total, 16 today as husband and wife. We have always paid attention to each other.

We discuss all our decisions, even down to what’s for supper.

He still opens doors for me when we go places, and people who know us well, know that we never part company with out a good-bye kiss.

Right, wrong or indifferent, he is my greatest defender, protector, cheerleader and best friend, and I am his.

We never really do much to celebrate our anniversary. It always seems that there is something else that needs our attention, or our money (house payments, car payments, the electric bill, groceries, you know what I mean) so it usually ends up with us saying “Happy Anniversary to us” and that’s the end of it.

Last week Rich came home, and he said, “I’ve got a little problem here. I broke my wedding band.”

He and I are rough on stuff no doubt. I’d broken my wedding bands years earlier and was wearing an inexpensive gold band that matched his as closely as possible.

His was broken clean through. He told me he thought he could super glue it back together if he could just get it off without bending it too badly. Rich is the king of super glue, so if anyone could glue a wedding band back together he could. The problem was he couldn’t get it off over his knuckle! By the time he got it pried off it was a total wreck, I mean a real mess; so, so much for the super glue.

With our wedding anniversary only a week away, I got to wondering if we could find a set of bands that would match for not too much money, and lo and behold, Wal-Mart to the rescue!

When I was doing my regular shopping, I stopped by the jewelry department and saw that they had titanium rings that looked respectable for $38 each, which on our tight budget, was just what I needed to see. Gold bands were much higher, so I decided that it would just have to be titanium.

So today, we made the trek to Wally World and picked out new bands.

Mine feels a lot different, and will take getting used to because it is wider than the old one. With my big ole hands, I didn’t want a dainty ring, as I felt like it would look silly, and besides, when you buy inexpensive you have to choose what you like around the sizes available, and of course the price tag.

And, I think we about drove the sales girl nuts, because at one time we had a total of 9 rings lying on the glass counter. She would on occasion ask us if there were any she could put back, and of course we had to say no not just yet. Rich finally told her “we’re not trying to waste your time here; we are going to buy something before we leave this counter”. I think the main problem for her was she was worried about keeping track of everything that we had lying out.

So anyway, we finally made a decision that we could both be happy with, and as we say every year; “Happy Anniversary to us”!!

Are you Homeless? -- a must read for parents

2009-05-22T08:25:00.003-05:00

Not too long ago I attended a meeting between Community Action and Habitat for Humanity. The two groups are joining together to do a rehab project where that they will purchase homes that have been foreclosed on, refurbish them, and offer them up for sale again.

In the course of the meeting, it was revealed that Logan County has one of the highest foreclosure rates in the state of Illinois.

For the month of June this year, Habitat identified 15 homes that would go through foreclosure and be candidates for this new program.

I have mixed emotions about the program because I believe that instead of making the homes new again, and selling them, Habitat and Community Action should be trying to figure out how to keep the original owners in the homes, but that is not the true purpose of this article, so I'll get to it.

America on the whole is facing a rough economy. Young families pursuing the great American dream of home ownership, entered into agreements that now they find themselves hard pressed to fulfill.

I sympathize with these families, who are trying so hard to make a good life for their children, and have found themselves in some really bad situations.

As foreclosures rise, families are left homeless. They may have some alternatives that include low income housing through HUD, or they may be able to afford rent on a home that is perhaps not the one they would really like to raise their family in, but none-the-less it is a roof over their heads.

Some may find that they have to take temporary residence in a motel while they re-organize their lives and try to figure out how to get back on their feet.

And, there are some who are going to find themselves in a position of calling on family for help, specifically, merging their house hold with that of a parent, or sibling.

According to the McKinney-Vento Act which was first established in 1987, and reauthorized as part of the No Child Left Behind act of 2002, children who live in motels and those who are in merged families qualify as homeless.

However, especially in the case of moving in with grand parents, if is often overlooked as a homeless situation, simply because the family is more stable than they were previously.

However, as these struggling families work to get back on their feet, they need to be aware that there is assistance available to them through the public school districts under the McKinney-Vento Act.

Today I have an article in the Lincoln Daily news, part two of a 4 part series, based on a very in depth interview with the Logan-Mason-Menard Regional Superintendent of Schools. Part one ran yesterday and parts three and four are schedule to run tomorrow.

While the stories focus on this tri-county district, there is information included that applies to all school districts throughout the State of Illinois, and I would encourage every parent to read the articles so that they might better understand the processes of education.

I am emphasizing the article that is running today, because I feel strongly that when a family is trying to rebuild their lives, they should be exposed to every form of help that is available to them.

The section in today's article explains the liaison, and talks about what is available to assist families.

Additionally, when a family is in this kind of transition, it is important that teachers are aware of it. Children are going to be feeling some anxiety during this transition, which may cause them to shut down, or act out. Teachers need to know that there is an underlying cause, so that they can act accordingly.

Hopefully, you'll read the articles, and pass them along to anyone whom you think might need a better understanding of homelessness, and other issues affecting our schools, and our children.

Today's article: http://www.lincolndailynews.com/News/today052209_roe38b.shtml

Thursday's article:http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2009/May/21/News/today052109_roe38.shtml

A Special Day for Memorial - Heavens Tiniest Angel

2009-05-20T07:58:00.003-05:00

Good Morning!

Just wanted to stop by and say I've added some new items to Searchwarp.

Because I publish my stuff there exclusive to them, I can't copy it on my blog.

However...I can give you the links.

"A Special Day for Memorial -- Heavens tiniest Angel is a cute read, so I wanted to share it with you. http://searchwarp.com/swa481021-A-Special-Day-For-Memorial-Heavens-Tiniest-Angel.htm

And did a little tongue in cheek piece about the Logan County connection to Memorial Day, called Memorial Day, Abraham Lincoln and the Logan County Connection. It is also on Searchwarp at http://searchwarp.com/swa478583-Memorial-Day-Abraham-Lincoln-And-The-Logan-County-Connection.htm

To counter balance that piece, I've done a more reverent piece on the same topic for the Lincoln Daily News. It is published yet, but hopfully by the weekend.

Thanks for reading, I love sharing and hope you don't think I'm being too boastful in this post.

N

Cool Pix

2009-05-18T09:37:00.003-05:00

Jan has been up in the air again!

Check out this really nice pic of the horizon near Lincoln.

Also, in the LDN today is a pictorial of the floods from the air, and I have a pictorial in there as well on the Spring Family Bike Ride.

http://www.lincolndailynews.com/index.shtml

Railsplitter Wind Farm

2009-05-14T05:36:00.004-05:00

Note added 07/24/2009: Many searches are being done on Railsplitter wind farm, and I know that when you click you see only this post, so I wanted to let you know that I have another post that has ground pictures, some in fairly close range. To move on to that post after this one, follow this link. If it doesn't "link" you can also copy and paste it into your browser:

http://nilasmith.blogspot.com/2009/03/wind-turbines.html

I am in awe of these wind turbines!

No, I'm not the one who took these pictures, but my publisher Jan did, and they were in yesterday's LDN.

LDN does not copyright their photos, so they are free for the taking for anyone who wants to copy them.

If you could like to see larger versions, follow this link; http://www.lincolndailynews.com/Features/picturepage051309_rwf.htm then click on the phot for a larger version.

Well there are finally some tomatoes in the ground!

2009-05-08T19:40:00.006-05:00

Rich had Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday afternoons with no rain, and he planted all the goliaths, about half of the total crop but they were the ones that were the largest and so now he has a little bit of time before he has to get the old heirlooms in the ground.

We have angels watching over the tomatoes all the time, well actually our entire home, and we are thankful for that.

For example, when the tornado came through in 2003, two houses to the south of us it was a total and complete mess with trees torn apart, sheds and garages destroyed, roofs off of houses you name it, and the only think we could find at our house that even suggested a little wind, was one of our downspouts had come apart at the joint, and was laying in the yard.

Anyway, I digress.

Last night, Rich came in about 4:30 said he was quitting before the storms hit, and he turned on the TV and there was the warning.

A terrible, horrible storm was headed right for us. It was predicting winds of 60 mph or more, quarter size hail, dangerous lightening, and heavy, heavy rain.

As I watched the weather with him, I asked him if he wanted to run out and dig the plants all back up (I was joking of course), but he just said, nope, whatever happens will happen (his life philosophy by the way, nothing ever gets to him, he just tells me things happen the way they are supposed to, and I do my best to have as much faith as he does).

So we sat there and waited. The clouds made the sky dark and ominous, the thunder rolled, and the rain came down in sheets for about 15 minutes, then it stopped, and it was over. No wind, no hail, just a heavy drenching of rain that the maters enjoyed immensely, and they grew about 6 inches over night!!

Anyway, the tomatoes are safe; no hail on them this time, and no wind to blow them over.

We talked to Rick, Becky, Rachel and Rylee Wednesday night, and I told Bec that he had 92 plants in the ground, and she was like “wow, do you have any yard left?’

Well yes, because he has those plants in a spot about 30 foot long and maybe 15 to 20 feet wide.

As I told her, you just can’t image how meticulous Rich is about his plants. When I went out the other evening to take my weekly pictures, he was on the ground with a yard stick, measuring his plant placement. There is an 18 inch gap between each and every plant and I would challenge anyone, to find one plant that was not in that 18 inch mark!

So that is the update for this time I guess.

With a bunch of rain yesterday evening, then rain most of this morning, I am guessing he will have to wait a few days before he can do anymore, but as I said, earlier, the biggest ones are in the ground, so that’s okay.

Talk to ya all later, Happy Mothers Day to all!

Weather woes for the tomato farmer

2009-05-04T12:02:00.009-05:00

Whether it is a thousand acres of corn to be planted, or a back yard truck farm, the weather can really get a farmer down!!

The hub’s is no exception as he has fussed and worried over the cold and the rain for the last couple of weeks now.

He told me the other evening that last year he had all the plants in the ground on the 24th of April last year. Glad he remembers that because I can’t remember for sure what I was doing a week ago, not to mention a month or even a year!!

And of course, those of you who know Rich well know that he is not the kind of person who can just “chill out”, he just doesn’t have it in him. So, when the plants outgrew the greenhouse, and the ground was nothing but mud, and it was approaching the first of May, he just had to do something!

So, this past week, he started building temporary hanging spots for the tomato plants. He has one, on top of the ground spot behind the house, and today is getting ready to put up another one on the patio.

The good news is that the plants are thriving, even in the pots. The Goliaths are I would guess 3 ½ to 4 foot tall, and some of them even have blooms on them!

The old fashioned heirlooms are not quite so tall, and for the moment at least that is a good thing, as they are not worrying him too much.

Another good thing, we have had a couple of good days, and he’s been able to at least break the soil with the garden tiller.

He wasn’t digging deep, but needed to get the grass cover torn out, and open the soil so the air could dry it.

The bad thing is that we’re expecting more rain tomorrow, so the odds that he’ll get anything actually in the ground before the end of the week is slim.

He says if the sun would come out for a day it would help a lot, but it just never seems to happen. We had temps above 70 yesterday, but it was a gray day, and it is a gray day today as well.

Oh well.

BTW, the peppers are in pots and waiting to go in the ground, and the onions are in the ground already.

Those we will sell, and then just for our own use, he’s got some radishes and lettuce planted. Only thing missing now are the cucumbers.

Hey, Hey, It's Moving Day!! ... For the Tomatoes that is

2009-04-16T15:55:00.007-05:00

Yesterday afternoon I had a meeting at Community Action. When I got home this is what I found on the patio.

This year the make shift greenhouse is about three times bigger than it was last year, the reason, we have twice as many plants, and those plants are about twice as tall as they should be.

In spite of the size of it, I think it is going to be a tight fit to get 217 plants under that shelter, but for Rich where there is a will there is a way.

He builds the greenhouse using a porch swing frame, clear plastic, and concrete slabs and blocks.

150 years ago the land our house sits on was an orchard, and the house to the south of ours was the original farm house.

When they bulldozed in the apple trees, the owners of the property used fill from excavation sites to level the ground.

Since moving here in 2002, I think Rich has dug up enough concrete to line a nice sized driveway!!

Last year our neighbors to the north of us took a bunch of it off our hands to use as stepping stones between their house and garage, and there was still enough for Rich to use to weigh down the edges of the plastic.

So, anyway, today is moving day. I hope he's not being too optimistic about the weather. It would be bad to have those plants get too cold. However, he says that we can roll one of the electric heaters inside there and warm it up if we need to. Let's hope we don't need to.

Moving the plants of course means that we'll be able to get the bedrooms back in order. Right now the futon is unfolded and in the middle of the bed room with the mattress pulled off and stored away. If you look at the background of the pictures you can see that this bedroom is the one we call the "racing room". It has all of our racing stuff in there. We have primarily Dale Senior and Dale Junior, but I have managed to sneak some Tony Stewart and Mikey Waltrip in there too!

So, out they go through the garage and onto the patio, then into their new house!!

Hopefully, they will settle in nicely and start their "hardening" process.

Bad Tomatoes, Bad Bad Tomatoes!!!

2009-04-09T17:48:00.009-05:00

When are tomatoes bad??? When they grow too fast!!!

Apparently Rich's Green thumb has gotten an extra boost over the winter, because these tomato plants are going crazy this year!!!

Let's review:

Posted March 2, 2009

Posted March 24, 2009

Taken Monday, April 6, 2009

The plants are growing fast and healthy. They are nice a bushy, and I'm sure that they are anxious to get outside in the sunshine, but it is just still too cold for that.

Generally they don't grow this fast, and Rich is not all that happy with them for getting big enough that he had to re-pot them again.

Oh well, I guess you either have a green thumb or you don't, and he certainly does!

Mindy post 8

2009-04-09T14:42:00.002-05:00

I talked to mom just a few minutes ago and Mindy is getting the epidural right now, then will be released to go home.

Dr. Imburgia told Mindy earlier today that the MRI showed a bulging disc, and that he expected that the pain specialist would give her some very speicific excercies to do to put things back in order in the back.

So, she should get home this evening, and I'm sure she'll post again as soon as she feels like it.

If the epidural works as quickly as folks seem to think it will, she'll be feeling pretty good in no time at all.

N

Mindy post 7

2009-04-09T10:12:00.002-05:00

Well I talked to Mindy a little past nine this morning.

She thinks she is doing better, and is looking forward to meeting this pain specialist sometime today.

She's still hoping to come home later this evening, and has all intentions of being at the cantata tomorrow night! If she says she will, I'm sure she will!!

Mom stayed at home today and is doing other things, but plans on meeting Mindy and Andrew at their house when Min gets released.

Mindy says that she is confident that the colonoscopy will come later down the road, although she really believes that she has irritated her inerds taking the Aleve.

That's about it for now.

I'll post again if I get any news.

Mindy post 6

2009-04-09T06:04:00.002-05:00

Good Morning to all!

Just in case you've been checking my blog instead of Mindy's, she added a couple of posts last night.

I think she's got everything figured out, and it sounds like she's satisfied with the direction things are going for the moment.

I really hadn't given much thought to the Aleve and the Ibuprofen, which by the way as I understand it can be hard on the kidneys as well, but it makes sense to me.

When you read it, take note, she has all intentions of being home and at the canata Friday night.

When I hear from her again, I'll be sure to post.

N

mindy post 5 -- some tense moments

2009-04-08T14:06:00.002-05:00

Well I have to tell you, I have spent the last half hour experiencing more anger and frustration than I have in a very long while.

Mom called at about 1:30 and said that they were releasing Mindy!!!!!!!

Dr Ambrosia had been in and said they couldn't really find anything wrong with her, so they were going to give her an epidural and send her home.

Well, mom and Andrew both were very concerned and agrivated by the situation, and finally I guess Ambrosia said that if Mindy wanted an MRI it was up to her. WELL, YES!! we want an MRI duh!!!!!!!!!!

There is something wrong, Mindy doesn't play sick, she doesn't miss work, she doesn't spend days in the hospital just for the freakin fun of it!!!

Mom said she honestly thought Ambrosia was joking when he asked Min if she was ready to go home.

Anyway, the nurse came in after Ambrosia left, and Mindy told her she was supposed to go home. Well, the nurse was shocked, and tore out of there to see what the doctor had written on Min's chart.

That pretty well ended that conversation with mom, and I was sitting at the kitchen table in shock over this latest turn of events, when 10 minutes later mom called back and said that Mindy is not going home, at least not today.

The nurse, and I don't know what real part she played in this, but I suspect she did something, had been back in, and said that Mindy HAD to have an MRI before she could have the epidural, and that is going to happen yet today. Next, probably tomorrow, she will meet with a Pain Managment Specialist, and THEN it will be determined if an epidural is the proper course of action.

Mom says that the epidural will solve the pain in the back, but that it is unknown how long it will last. They can keep a patient pain free for a few hours, days, or even months.

So, it has been a very tense little while that we've gone through here, and I am still mad beyond belief. I think Dr. Ambrosia must be nuts or just plain stupid, but whatever!!

If Dr. Boy-aaa-jen were to come in and say that Mindy was okay, I guess I would believe him, but to tell the truth, he is the one who saw the problem in the back to start with, and I suspect he knows more about it than Ambrosia does!

And, I asked mom what room Mindy is in and can't for the life of me remember for sure what she said, (memory is a victim to anger I believe), I'm thinking it may have been room 310, but I'm no longer sure.

Anyway, that is all we know for now. I am hoping that the pain specialist is more concerned about Mindy's condition than her doctor, and I feel bad for Becky because Becky KNOWS Mindy very well, and she KNOWS something is wrong.

Please keep praying that whatever this is will be recognized and fixed.

Later
N

Mindy post 4

2009-04-08T09:55:00.002-05:00

Well, I just got off the phone with Mindy. It was good to hear her voice, and she does sound a little better than the last time I talked to her.

She says that the pain meds are helping some, but that she is having electric spasms in her back. She said that those started after her visit from Dr. Boy-aaa-jen yesterday when he made her pull her knee up to her chest as far as she could.

Becky stopped in to check on her, and Mindy thinks that what Becky would like to see them do is give her an epidural and proceed with the colonoscopy.

However, Mindy said she was thinking that perhaps they would start therapy on the back problem today, but no one has said so for certain yet.

So, I guess to sum it up, things are still kind of up in the air. Mindy says there is no way they can do the colonoscopy today because she hasn't had the laxative prep, so if they do go Becky's way it will still be at least tomorrow.

Min also said that they are doing a 24 hour urine, to see what is going on in the kidneys, if anything.

Personally, I think that is a precaution, and a darn good one at that. With 18 years of experience with kidney problems on Rich, I know that everything effects the kidneys, and they can get in bad shape quickly, so Kudos to the doctors for staying on top of it.

For the time being, I'm not going to go down there. Rich and I were planning a trip down over the Easter weekend anyway, and we will still do that, so unless one of the doctors decides that Mindy needs surgery of some kind, we'll hold off on going until the weekend.

And, just for giggles and grins....how do you know when Mindy is feeling better??? She talks about work!!!

Yes, that's right, she and I have always been able to share about the Community Action saga's. Even though I am no longer with an agency, I follow them closely, and she can tell me what is going on, and know that I understand it all.

So, she spent about half of her time on the phone with me, talking about work.

For me personally, that was very reassuring!!!!!!

Mindy post # 3

2009-04-07T18:09:00.003-05:00

Mom called me about 5:30.

The catscan was done around three.

Twenty five years ago my mom had a surgeon who literally saved her life, he is the one that is looking out for Min now.

The only info I have at the moment, is that dcotor says that while there is something wrong in the bowel or intestine, the far worse problem is in her back.

They are bringing in an orthopedic back surgeon to look at the situation and see what needs to be done. Mom didn't know for sure how bad it is, whether it is something that can be resolved with therapy or if it might require surgery.

The doctor who saw her today, I could not even begin to spell his name but it sounds like boy-aaa-jen. He's very good at what he does, and I'm confident he'll look out for Min's best interest.

Mom is hoping that Min will get something to help her sleep tonight. As it stands now, she and Andrew are both going home tonight, and will go back to the hospital first thing in the morning.

I'll post again, as soon as I hear anything.

About Mindy

2009-04-07T17:09:00.002-05:00

I heard from mom around 12:30. Mindy was in a room and had received one pain killer shot, but mom said it didn't do that much to help her.

They were waiting for a cat scan, and said that they would know more then.

Mom thought the catscan would be any minute, but had no idea how long it would be before they heard anything.

If I hear anymore tonight, I'll be sure to get it posted.

Mindy, Mindy, Mindy

2009-04-07T09:12:00.002-05:00

Okay, so here's the deal. There are times when being 125 mile away from family is just almost more than I can bear.

Today is one of those days.

My little sis is sick, and I'm not there.

For those of you who follow Mindy's blog, if you see this and read it, I want you to know that she is on her way to the hospital even as I write this.

There will hopefully be a colonoscopy scheduled for tomorrow, and in the meantime, she will get some much needed pain medication.

For the moment, I am not going down there, but will be in touch with my mom to see how things are going.

There is a fair possibility that the problem can be resolved during the colonoscopy tomorrow, but if not, and she should require surgery of some kind, I will go then.

So in the meantime, mom will keep me posted as to what is going on, and I will do my best to add info as it becomes available.

We are all very concerned, and somewhat frightened. So please, pray for Mindy, and pray for my mom, Andrew and Robert, as they all need God's calm assurance right now.

Out like a lion??

2009-03-29T09:23:00.006-05:00

What a week this has been for weather. This past Tuesday it was 70 degrees here in Lincoln. I had the windows open and if just felt nice.

Then, yesterday was the Lake Fork Auction, and I swear those people are bound for bad weather. I've never seen that auction arrive on a day where that it was fit for man or beast.

Yesterday the temp at noon was bouncing between 38 and 40 degrees and it was pouring down rain.

Not that bad weather stops auction goers though, in the little town with a population of only about 100, there was nearly 2000 yes, two thousand people at this auction. They come from not only all over the state, but all over the United States, every year just to bid and buy.

Here's is an example of what the day was like;

Now then, it may be hard to believe, but that was the best of the day. When I turned in at 11 last night it was pouring down rain still, but when Rich got up at 2 and left for work at 4, there was almost a half a foot of snow on the ground!!

See what I mean:

Our neighbor Bob, apparently anxious for summer and days on the lake brought his boat out of storage this week. Bet he wishes now he'd left it there a bit longer.

However, the odds of March going out like a lion are still questionable. Forecast for Tuesday is back into the 70's. Of course I guess we could get a tornado. That would just about wrap it up for a most bizarre week of weather!!

A new use for the turkey baster -- feeding tomatoes

2009-03-24T12:56:00.009-05:00

The first picture I'm showing you today serves as a reminder of what the tomato plants looked like on the 14th of March. I took this picture then, and blogged it the following day.

And the picture below, I took today.

Once the tomatoes are transplanted into the larger containers, their little roots spread out and start to grow beneath the soil. At the same time, their tops begin to grow and spread out as well.

In only 10 days they have tripled in size.

At this stage, they are getting cooler temps, lots of light and good food. In a modified version of feeding the baby with an eyedropper, these little tots get their feedings from a turkey baster!

Rich uses a granulated fertilizer mixed in warm tap water to feed each plant. The turkey baster works perfectly as he doesn't over water them, and with them being so close to the light right now, it is easier to use as well.

Now you may have noticed that the ones he is feeding don't look quite as big as the second picture. If you did, you are quite right. The second picture was of plants in blue cups, the Goliath variety that he loves so well.

The plants in the red cups are a mix of heirloom varieties.

The heirloom varieties, are smaller still, and less robust. It is one reason Rich doesn't care for these old fashioned tomatoes. The plants require much more care to keep them going, and they do not mature as quickly as the newer generations of plants.

Eventually they will catch up, but for right now, they are the runts in the bunch, inspite of the fact they are getting the very same care and conditions as the blue cup bunch.

wind turbines

2009-03-15T09:35:00.005-05:00

This is the first wind farm to come to Logan County. The farm is located north of Lincoln about 10 mile and spreads across Logan and Tazwell counties.

I had to run up to San Jose Friday for an interview, and got to see these monsters first hand for the first time.

They are located on the north and south sides of Illinois Route 136, and to the east of 155.

I was about 8 mile from their actual location when they became visible as I drove north on route 121, which runs along side 155.

After I got done in San Jose, I came back to the farm and drove among these towers, taking pictures, these are just a few of my favorites.

These towers stand about 350 foot tall. The box like structure at the top, to put it in persentvie is about the size of two modular homes stacked on top of one another. I got to see one of those first hand the other day as it passed through Lincoln, it was gigantic.

The blades are so large that they are transported to the construction site in huge sections, as are the towers.

There is a second wind farm going to locate in Logan county, to the west of Lincoln. The towers there will be 500 foot tall, and will generate twice the electricity of the ones shown here.

I can't wait to get and and get some pictures of those!

Tomato Update

2009-03-15T07:53:00.009-05:00

As I posted earlier the tomato seeds were planted on the 21st of February. Within three days they started sprouting, but Rich didn't want pictures taken until they were all up, so the last update I included pictures from the 28th of February.

Once the plants are all sprouted, the growing process needs to slow down, otherwise we'll have tall spindle plants. To accomplish this, the warm environment goes away, He keeps the temp in the growing room about 65 degrees, and the lights run 15 hours a day.

So, at the end of week two, there wasn't a whole lot of difference in the plants, except for the leaf development.

Once the plants are sprouted and hardy they need to be transplanted into growing pots.

He started on that yesterday. His original intention was to save the best 200 plants, but he ended up wanting to keep 227, and ran out of pots and mix to do them all, so he'll probably finish those up today.

We run this little operation on a shoestring, so what other people see as furniture, we see as growing opportunities.

The plants, once they are transplanted into growing containers are moved into the second spare bedroom. In this room, that is also the racing room where all our NASCAR stuff is, we have a futon with an overhead bunk bed that I traded my sister for a regular full size bed frame for Robert.

We have laid the futon down, removed the cushion, and stood half of an old ping-pong table over it.

The four foot shop lights are then attached to the underside of the overhead bunk bed.

Back in the Pink bedroom, the tiny plants are being moved into solo cups. Rich uses an old soldering iron that we got in a box of junk at an auction, and pokes holes in the bottom of the cuts for drainage.

The cups are then filled with potting mix, and he burrows a whole down the middle. He will pull the seedling plant out of the grow tray, soil included and set it into the cup. After adding a little more soil, and some water, they will go into the racing room.

This year he is color coding to a certain degree. The blue cups shown here are all Goliath tomatoes. Goliath is his favorite variety. They grow extra large fruits, are disease resistant. These tomatoes are just to put it plainly, pretty. The have consistent shape and color, and develop very few blemishes.

Once transplanted, the plants will grow very quickly. Again they will get several hours a day of artificial light, but the temperatures in the room will be maintained at about 65 degrees.

The plants showing in the pictures above are 100 total, Goliath tomato plants.

The other one hundred plus will be a variety of Heirloom tomatoes. I can't remember all the names as I believe there are six varieties he's using. One is Brandywine, very well known, another is Mortgage Buster, and of course we have the plants from the seeds our friend gave us, that we have no clue what variety they are.

Heirloom tomatoes are harder to grow, they are not disease resistant, so require more care in the garden, and they are not a pretty fruit. While they can produce nice large tomatoes that weigh a pound or more each, they are often mishapen, and will have blemishes.

However, they are what the public wants. We had a gal come to the stand last year, and she wanted UGLY tomatoes. She was talking about the old heirloom varieties that she remembered in her youth that were, well, honestly UGLY.

So, you have to sometimes alter your own taste to meet that of the public. As the summer progresses, I'll show you the differences in the fruits, as it is quite noticeable.

A Lesson Learned the Hard Way

2009-03-03T07:40:00.002-06:00

Being a “rookie” reporter, and a freelancer at that there are a couple of things I’ve learned already.

First of all being a writer in a small community such as this one, is not going to make me rich!

As a freelancer, I get paid per article, and as the “City Stringer” I get paid a little extra.

My point though is not that I’m poor, but that one needs to realize if this is a path they intend to follow, they must be doing it for the love of the job, and not the bank account.

I do love the job, and I particularly enjoy the “one on one” interviews I do with folks.

The stories on Wally Kautz, Bill Martin, and Paul Gleason were published as part of the papers weekly series called “Personality of the Week”.

The premise behind the series is that we locate folks in the community who are exceptional for what they have done to serve the public.

Wally Kautz was my first POW, and I fell in love with this sweet little old man in just a matter of seconds. I think that a portion of that came from a reminder of my favorite uncle. Wally is a life long bachelor, like my uncle, he lived on the family farm, like my uncle, and he took care of his ill and aging mother until her passing, like my uncle.

Now actually that is where the similarity stops, but it was enough for me.

I spent 2 hours with Wally, and we talked about everything that had ever happened in his life.

He’s above 70 years old, has seen a lot of things, done a lot of things, and I couldn’t put even half of it in the story.

And even though I did leave out a lot of details about the man, the piece ended up being 1800 words, and resulted in a “friendly” battle of wills between my editor and I.

My editor is a good man, an excellent writer, and has an understanding of what a story should be in order to it make a “good read”.

I knew that I had written the piece with my heart, and after a few emails between my editor and myself, I also knew that what I had written was not what he had expected from me.

Begrudgingly I took the electronic scissors to the piece, and effectively cut the heart out of it, and submitted it back to the editor. I more or less told him I wasn’t happy to do it, but if that was what he wanted, that was what I would give him.

He emailed me back and said that my cuts had taken away from the story, and that he was going to let the publisher decide. He sent her I believe three versions of the piece; the original 1800 words, then 1500 words, and the last one of about a thousand.

In the end, the largest piece was the one that got printed, and when he emailed me about it, he said that while we had broken most of the rules of a good reporter, he was not unhappy that it happened that way.

But I learned a lesson; beware of getting emotionally involved with your subjects. Writing with Heart, and writing with your heart are really two different things.

And, even after having said that, with a tweak of a smile on my face, I sit here and write to you, that I am not sorry the Wally story went the direction it did. He’s a sweet little man, and I feel like he deserved to have his life and memories memorialized.

For the Love of Tomatoes!

2009-03-02T10:02:00.014-06:00

Okay, I said that I was going to include in this blog a blow per blow on the tomatoe crop, so here goes segment number one.

While I was busy on the 21st, working on getting this blog started, the hubs was working on a project of his own.

The first step is getting the seed trays ready. He fills the trays with potting mix, then he has to get it all dampened down.

The next step is poking little holes in each seed compartment so that he can place the seeds.

And, yes, he plants those tiny little seeds one at a time. Each tray holds somewhere around 150 seeds, and this year he is doing two trays. One tray is entirely Goliath tomatoes, and the other tray is a mix of varieties he wants to experiment with.

Last fall, a friend of ours from the farmers market brought him a newspaper page with a bunch of seeds in it. He said that he didn't really know what they were, but that they were a variety that his family in Kentucky has grown for years and saved the seeds from, and he is hoping that the Hubs will be able to get him a few plants for his own garden.

Once the seeds are planted, then the hubs goes about the business of setting up a safe, warm place for them to grow. This involves the sacrificing on one guest bedroom in our house.

In what we call the "pink bedroom" he sets up a table that he has custom designed using the legs off of an old end table we discarded a couple years ago. The legs make for a place for him to hang the lights over the seed trays.

The hubs does not use grow lights, like some would tell you to do. He says they really aren't necessary, as all the little seeds need is plenty of light, about 15 hours a day, moisture, and warmth.

For the first few days of the germination process, they will rest in their beds with an electric heater in the room, and the lights shining on them brightly.

And the end result will hopefully be nearly 300 little tomato plants!

So, we'll now fast forward to one week later. I took the pictures below on the 28th of February. The first of the little seedlings started sprouting after only three days, but the hubs wouldn't let me take a picture then because they were not all up, and he prides himself in 100% germination.

And what about those seeds the friend gave us? Well the hubs said he was concerned about whether or not they would germinate, so he planted three to a seed pod, and guess what, they too had complete germination! So, He'll end up pulling out two from each little cubby on those.

A Bit More About Me

2009-02-21T15:09:00.001-06:00

In 2008 I celebrated my 50th year on this earth and can say without reservation or complaint that there have been very few years in my life that passed by without trials and tribulations. I can also say that in spite of those days, weeks, and months that were more down than up, I have been happy most of the time.

I met the love of my life when I was in my thirties. My first (and only) marriage was his third. And, I got a ready made family out of the deal! I have a step-son, now married so add a daughter-in-law, and not one but two grand-daughters. I also have a step-daughter, also now married, and also with two little girls.

I count myself very fortunate that these children care about me. I know that is not always the case in step-families, but I’ve been blessed.

One of the most touching moments in my life was when at Christmas one year, they presented me with a “mother” necklace. I cried and cried, just at the thought of it.

My four little baby girls call me grandma or nana, and the two oldest ones think it is a real hoot to spend the weekend at grandma and grandpa’s house. By the way, they also have this silly little belief that the best place in the house to sleep at night is grandma’s closet!!

In my fifty years, I’ve had oh, probably 20 jobs, some of them I even called “careers”. I have worked as a mother’s helper, an insurance agent, a store manager, have loaded fertilizer and anhydrous at a farm supply business, worked as a maid in a motel, worked for Wal-Mart in their photo department, served as the Chief Financial Officer for a Not-for-Profit organization, and most recently I’ve become a seller on eBay, and a freelance writer, working primarily for the Lincoln Daily News In Lincoln Illinois (by the way, I am available for hire if you need a writer).

Writing was a first love, that didn’t develop into a career until just recently.

When I was in high school, I loved writing and journalism; I worked on the school paper, wrote a bi-weekly article for the local community paper, and even managed to win a writing contest for a fiction piece I wrote.

When I graduated high school, I wanted to go into newspaper reporting, but needed more than just a high school education, so I went another direction, taking a job at a department store. Later I became a typist in an office, and then moved to working in a soil lab, and then, after several years out of high school, I decided to go to college. Instead of studying journalism though, I chose to major in Agriculture.

I could have and probably should have gone with journalism, but then again, had I done that I would not have been working in a feed store where I met my hubs. So, as he always says, “things happen the way they are supposed to”, and I can’t find fault with that in this particular case, because I cannot imagine life without him, those two kids, and four little grand-girls.

Once my hubs and I were visiting with my favorite uncle, and I don’t remember the exact conversation, except that at one time, my uncle told the hubs that I was a “very complicated woman”. I guess that is true. My interests are wide and varied, and my opinions on matters are often very strong.

As a writer for a newspaper, I can’t say in my articles how I feel about things as they are happening, so I may end up using this blog as my “vent”, but I also intend to share with you articles I’ve written, stories that mix fact with fiction, and peeks at the produce business that hubs is in during the summer months.

I hope you enjoy, and come back often.