tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-377906642024-03-14T01:17:02.578-06:00Skunk TracksUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger640125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-53932085959391770122024-03-02T15:56:00.001-06:002024-03-02T15:56:56.611-06:00Black Cat Bart - Weather Wizard<br><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/N86r79UGpEs?si=gxZfDelKT3PhRgCV" width="500" height="281" id="y_id_cd2d_2626_d03_4d3" frameborder="0"></iframe> <div><br></div><div>We’re getting sleet here in Olney this morning. It’s supposed to be in the 70’s F again by Sunday. My new theory is that Bart has attained a new level of consciousness, and is now in total control of Olney’s weather. Suddenly the last week makes much more sense to me.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-28988732651011423002024-02-18T01:17:00.001-06:002024-02-18T01:34:00.244-06:00Music at “The Goat” in DallasMemories: It was Friday, February 17th, 2017 - I was visiting with Ami Sue in Dallas, Texas while my truck was in the shop for a couple of days. She and her roommate took me out to “The Goat” where there was a band playing. I don’t know whether this was officially an “open-mic” night or not, but I had a harmonica in my pocket. Somehow - I honestly don’t remember how - I wound up on stage. Ami Sue recorded a couple of the songs that we played. This was the first. Thanks to “The Goat” and to the musicians who were playing that night for showing us a great time in Dallas! <div><br></div><div><br><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/KSkOWfEUgi8?si=uV5PLsvjrYzapTXX" width="500" height="281" id="y_id_176d_ae25_82f1_7324" frameborder="0"></iframe><br></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-41782995417360566632023-11-25T22:34:00.001-06:002023-11-25T22:35:44.747-06:00Sundog - Sun Halo - Solar Halo in Olney, Illinois<div><br></div><div><br></div>Due to our work schedules, we had our Thanksgiving dinner with friends last night (Friday night, November 24th, 2023). I had never seen anything quite like this sundog / halo display that we witnessed just as everyone was arriving at our place. I’ll never forget it. <div><br></div><div><br><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/zZl6dZ3AbPw?si=Z-j227Q3gzrzYxMD" width="500" height="281" id="y_id_cae2_d65_9c40_4a58" frameborder="0"></iframe><br> <div><br></div><div><img id="id_d2b5_c29c_d2d7_4ffd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AK7aPaAwoUYqxe48FHNwvN1D56VOti88sHHzOFhhUBIYBH0evCNXkmwx_kCslVm2W34ZcotmHZeUC0ywxZag1Wg4B4JRu4WA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br><br><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/TNxlAHgQhvY?si=x_e6I3Vf2xS7IG9W" width="500" height="281" id="y_id_99cc_96c4_bca3_d071" frameborder="0"></iframe><br></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-91169329083418712282023-03-22T06:48:00.001-06:002023-03-22T06:48:15.687-06:00Green Anole in North Port Florida<div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: left;">Memories: “This green anole is trying its best today to maintain appropriate social distance.” ~ Sunday, March 22nd, 2020 in North Port, Florida.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ec1b_d6ce_5f3f_a586" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/kjGSMwSWhy7zzx1NdzdHJoeOv-Lo6-gvebCD6VBWZEhXZ9VXiVk6TblpZzJ8gUiJPfE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br>*</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_e9cd_7be2_d7c7_a0fb" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/6UjGGP4ECM3gUjV_DTZlwYboj4ep1UAS0fGVOFcegj72gAWOOaPR3ACaaiE_6_gSXkA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br>*</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><img id="id_a65c_510f_93ef_3edd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/F0rV6gO1AJggJLK9gJ5oBhHsw1YeuT0HqZ6s0jM_Sx6bR_h6t8JqJnqu0_6z_zv3TrY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: center;">*</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_641e_7c82_64ee_2671" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/Gk-MX66frcwdO_KEe0hwDIIngXMWEjedppvgxhuo1Zea-60rPJmO5hVz_cHbVRK3TaU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br><br>***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div> Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-15646117220859096542023-03-09T01:39:00.001-06:002023-03-09T01:39:04.125-06:00Bookcliffs and Mt Garfield From a Distance<div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: left;">Memories: A distant view of Grand Junction, Colorado with the snowy Bookcliffs & Mt. Garfield in the background. ~ Saturday, March 9th, 2013.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_d622_9063_4945_c8a5" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/Cgda28pAOgFRbuDl0GP0MDOFV4e1zYK2XItAa0khiBW-xW-RZISZXs35AHRi6qQRBV0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-58968238011061763342023-03-09T01:13:00.001-06:002023-03-09T01:14:07.769-06:00Japanese Magnolia in Shreveport<div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: left;">Memories: A Japanese magnolia in full bloom in Shreveport, Louisiana. ~ Tuesday, March 9th, 2010.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_9af7_bbb3_5b33_5b10" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/A9iuStgSIHQ4S9Ptiq4d-AXRQKDImZ3Pk5hfpZaesoVMmRPApTf2rukIJjgUqbVC9VM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br><img id="id_f526_fc53_f4ea_ae66" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/nicFZOFoxETRrFib4E9PMpn0cX7Iwl4JmdtPb5yuCtQ-iCULfV0edKNixe-rtuIll-Q" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div> Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-55569067694314772912023-03-02T11:22:00.001-06:002023-03-02T11:24:14.335-06:00 Moonset from Johnson’s Corner<div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: left;">Memories: Moonset from Johnson’s Corner - on I-25 in Johnstown, Colorado - looking over the Rocky Mountains. Pics taken on a cellphone; wish I had my real camera to capture the scene. - Friday, March 2nd, 2018.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_92c9_b7a4_cacf_eec1" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/RsS48pBt5Lo7hLpQ1Qz_unroQAzfC5ZDAJf44ZWpQtwJKxsKmCuvwc-x9pIuNJ-NKBc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br><img id="id_fc64_88de_e94c_e495" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/xh9Pu-1Lwh8J8R_kQzkh5ZJ3yj51avCMgs7HNLepPoQBoC6JcXas-m7CSl_OOpDDNEs" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br><img id="id_da9d_51a2_9b4b_be5e" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/kmuIeWiDqduGSvi0rsDbkBwdrR2b7a3J9zMdfIZk_AvlM2WGbuqmsZIx_1jWF7Q5_Cg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br><br>***</div> Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-20704044371293915872023-02-28T16:43:00.001-06:002023-02-28T16:43:08.373-06:00Crawdad Castles<div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: left;">After hearing the first of frogs this year a couple of days ago, last night 3 owls flew across the road in front of me and today we have new crawdad castles popping up in the yard. The critters say that spring is just around the corner. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_91dd_14b3_d64d_c55b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/aZhzi1lMeFFgoAn36sOhfwYIgqh5IILQVCd1AEHkJ5fGnAsObB0fuxCZsdPQSwRyW9g" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br><img id="id_cf97_7b97_873e_cb49" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/4BPdxDHiOfcNJdkf8YjGqNKkP9Bf34-3_E2G48KUqAaFdWLAaqhv4LHw9saFJ9V8LHE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br><img id="id_f937_50a5_88_14c6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/CCId66uf-Sff5HDP2haKtE5Rw-R87NE5kzXfdStiaAktRKCBkLaZUFAd4A8rdfnNtgk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br>***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div> Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-13331518939983669422023-02-28T02:14:00.001-06:002023-02-28T02:14:31.338-06:00Sunset Feb 27th, 2023We had a nice sunset last night - Monday, February 27th, 2023 - in Olney, Illinois. <div><br></div><div><br><div><br></div><div><img id="id_b0e5_9027_5bb6_65e5" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/ZPblOy1gTZYimYD_c9twS_1YDPDCb_PloFDBZ5oT2pTnhXDBgC_GhX2_stCEXj5wz_U" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-21772454436446883832023-02-04T10:41:00.001-06:002023-02-04T10:44:51.088-06:00 Memories: Opinion on reactions to “American Sniper.”<div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: left;"><p class="p1" style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Memories: February 4th, 2015</span></p><p class="p1" style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="text-align: left; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Some of the topics discussed below are dated now, but the opinions are still the ones I hold about so much of where we as a nation have found ourselves recently on the international stage. </span></p><p class="p1" style="text-align: left; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="text-align: left; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">I don’t often comment on many political things these days; I did more often back in 2015. </span><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">The Iraq War and its repercussions are topics with which I feel I have some level of expertise and experience which qualify me to share my opinions. </span></p><p class="p1" style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">“Several sad observations from a liberally-minded ex-military member... I was amused by the response of some liberals who criticized the movie "American Sniper" for not highlighting the wrong-headed premise for going into Iraq in the first place. </span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; min-height: 24.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">As a military member, your job is to do your best to come out alive and to keep your colleagues in arms alive, to the best of your ability, while trying not to cause undue harm to innocents. By the time forces are sent in to fight, it does not make sense to ask a sniper to question the bigger picture in each moment of life or death struggle. </span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; min-height: 24.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Now we see in Iraq a development that justifies boots on the ground, but due to past choices, we are politically hamstrung, and financially impotent even in Europe, where old-style Russian thinking threatens while leaders have been hiding their heads in the sand. </span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; min-height: 24.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">The lesson of Iraq is one of choosing your battles, and of how choosing the wrong ones can force the hands of politicians and young men and women for generations. We should be fighting ISIS on the ground, but we wouldn't be facing that threat in its current form if we'd just stayed in Afghanistan in 2003. </span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; min-height: 24.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">So much of what we see today in the Middle East could have been circumvented if we would just have had a backbone in our dealings with Israel over their illegal settlements and crimes against humanity aimed unjustly at the Palestinians. We should have supported the protesters in Bahrain. We should have supported the democratic process in Egypt. We should be supporting Ukraine against Russian "separatists." </span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; min-height: 24.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">We should be supporting the US Constitution against domestic enemies, but our military has become irretrievably intertwined with the biggest domestic enemy of the spirit of that sacred document. </span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; min-height: 24.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">A great dichotomy exists in the reality that while we are still a great nation, with amazing potential to do good for ourselves and for humankind, in another disturbingly trivialized sense, the terrorists of 9/11, whether inspired by a misguided view of religion or by covert funding, have won a major victory over the "we" that we once were. If you can't see that, then you aren't paying attention. </span></p><p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; min-height: 24.8px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">End of my soapbox rant for tonight.”</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">~ as written February 4th, 2015.</span></p><p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></span></p><p class="p1" style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">***</p></div> Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-51961934828868072152023-02-03T08:42:00.001-06:002023-02-03T08:42:25.176-06:00Groundhog Day Window Art<div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">Window art at the local Walmart in Olney, Illinois.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_57db_35e2_107d_85db" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/6aU66CJHiCNDfcmY0FADnNsh0kagKLqJoIaB5y-S2naDsgTnic3fpnqnvVnisJTxVzM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div> Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-27787122364371833212023-02-01T08:08:00.001-06:002023-02-01T08:17:15.210-06:00“Dignity” Statue in Chamberlain, SD. <div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div><br></div>Memories: 50ft tall / 50 ton statue "Dignity," created by Black Hills artist Dale Lamphere, overlooking I-90 near Chamberlain, SD. Look for the couple standing near the orange construction barrier for scale. Pics taken December 2nd, 2016 - but showed up in my memories today because I used this as my FB cover pic on February 1st, 2017, <div><br></div><div><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c87a_a38a_6397_e851" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/es_o1fU7pI4U3utih6RsO8C8K522d6m3dVEC0dhl6tjm5FojNz3SEE79QVu_JwHxrO4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_53c5_c202_226c_7fd5" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/xe1x0tTIHB6_4KBE4vCaeMyB5rVVblhXAovLIeNFuejJch4eB8HAb9JdneXG5FXL0EU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">For more info: <a href="https://mymodernmet.com/dignity-sculpture-south-dakota/" id="id_5b76_117c_83e9_c4ee">https://mymodernmet.com/dignity-sculpture-south-dakota/</a></div></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-9799695412999659302023-01-31T09:49:00.001-06:002023-01-31T10:05:46.365-06:00 Colorado Signs<div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Memories: A couple of signs from a customer’s ranch (taken with the customer's permission) from back in the days when I was working with Schwan's in Colorado - and a set of pics of the truck parked on the rural road in front of his place - somewhere in the hinterlands between Silt and Collbran, Colorado. ~ From Thursday, January 31st, 2019. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt="" id="id_88e1_36d9_b5f1_54b5" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/EDIj3H1uAq8kdXkV2-mc9bUnGAQlmHQp09DwxmklX7KTbHAeVj7QgaFbJXcALaE11UM" style="height: auto; width: 353px;" title="" tooltip="" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt="" id="id_4d44_4d74_99c6_49e8" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/5fwndCISvFQy6AEdTMqUWzPuVv2o01qUp7QcrRAKeC2bQAWlcWBolRwalss-a6XyE_8" style="height: auto; width: 353px;" title="" tooltip="" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt="" id="id_1368_4e65_569b_b87e" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/oGfMQJcU4lJo6xRQQHczfBmZtQMui5XbJg6PhyVSuO4R8Ud9UYmbcERK6pzvTRxhx6g" style="height: auto; width: 353px;" title="" tooltip="" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt="" id="id_7067_7698_d038_c119" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/gVGEoWtkzMn7lsPuPxaYDWNx_cmdapBNL32f77hPJ-YBdkb_RgHIdMVBdMbXPfzmz7k" style="height: auto; width: 353px;" title="" tooltip="" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-55823721054784719842023-01-29T07:54:00.001-06:002023-01-31T10:33:27.329-06:00Bowling Alley in Olney, Illinois <div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div><br></div><div>Because it’s off the beaten path, not quite on the main strip, & we never though to ask... we only just discovered this week that #OlneyIL actually has a #BowlingAlley. Not a tiny bowling alley - it’s actually a pretty good sized one - & totally retro. This one’s been here since 1975; the same family has been running one locally since the 1950’s. </div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_de91_d404_2db9_125b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/yIlr24RkP2XXHU9D-UV_ae1ICwVTrdE6fR8tVJiAgkJl_boFLvMLynn8-sKasiWs3Tw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br><img id="id_604b_ec52_90c5_47ea" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/6-cpXmdbA6CNhAMvwH0KhQwHZ8lyDUfjjCxBXwd7MR89YsiyNpwUo2NrGFeX4j0jMl0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br><img id="id_31d_dbb0_ddca_b942" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/pJ9vkq62klI8vpprQImrK-3OeXsrX_H3rozcNRgV5k5UkRNntqSrnn5hV4ckNp49ZRA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br><img id="id_26cc_422b_cf55_1c4b" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/Kbkx8pp7tPXL_F_4BBomimUHaFXl5hVxH5I2NbSNSGqj7jrb8HfAbq5z1rA4FicooTE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br><img id="id_cda9_9229_933b_f732" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/5QpD3Ho8K2ixv5ZBGSOn4BESDUoJu5CoW4sJyWGtRYzJo2fiAiathOFl7qUMYmf_sV4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 353px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-91232475449272227512022-11-20T14:30:00.001-06:002022-11-20T14:32:24.359-06:00Blood Donation and Mad Cow Disease<div>Anyone else out there who hasn’t been allowed to give blood because of your time in the United Kingdom and Europe between 1980 and 2000? Looks like that restriction may actually have been lifted. </div><div><br /></div><div>“…The FDA has been gradually lifting the ban for the past two years and fully lifted it this past spring. The Red Cross started accepting donors again in October. </div><div><br /></div><div>‘The most important thing is for individuals that believe they may now be eligible to call their local blood center,’ Kate Fry, chief executive of America’s Blood Centers, told the AP.</div><div><br /></div><div>The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services offers a website for people wanting to find the nearest blood donation center…”</div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/news/20221120/banned-blood-donors-welcomed-again-as-mad-cow-disease-concerns-fade">https://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/news/20221120/banned-blood-donors-welcomed-again-as-mad-cow-disease-concerns-fade</a></div> Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-79656145401164341962021-04-20T11:57:00.001-06:002021-04-20T11:57:16.098-06:00Olney, Illinois - April 19th, 2018<div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: left;">I never would have guessed, when I went for a walk from the Red Rooster Truck Stop in Olney, Illinois back in April of 2018, that three years later we’d be living here. I’d heard that there were white squirrels here and I wanted to see if I could find one. I did, and the rest is history. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_4c7f_812_9219_73fb" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/eA3LTIDr8wlcdw29S9hxnOIsoxz7kccxg2YXu-ceT0UbMEdADUlJEf_KIJdlE0M_LRc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div> Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-33562522680938659842021-04-16T09:01:00.001-06:002021-04-16T09:01:49.267-06:00Elkmont, Alabama - April 2020<div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_5c01_b8a0_ba99_235c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/92zWdetzplgzgBB4nc6pM8K7tr-4hmRsQ_c6FMVWlzboawX3DIGEF0o8F18y690NnO8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br>Elkmont, Alabama - April 15th, 2020</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: left;">Memories: The prime position for this pic was already taken (see pic two to see where I would’ve rather parked). ~ “This Saturn 1B rocket is on display at the Alabama Welcome Center just south of the Tennessee state line in Elkmont, AL. This was one of three of these rockets built in the city of Huntsville, Alabama. I couldn’t park Inky in the prime post card spot, so I got a pic of the truck that was there for scale. That rocket is pretty big!”</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_9c78_9753_b3b8_2b68" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/bFe0MR4HMrKDUPSRTwGd4U_fmhcxDmDuFwZY-huEwnCwsFDMjhJoNJ23J4I_mXbH-BI" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br>***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div> Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-71318963484965258982021-04-15T13:04:00.001-06:002021-04-15T13:04:46.977-06:00Springville, Utah ~ April 14th, 2019 <div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_e533_252d_93ff_1183" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/GdpBHQ4jqrHHf_HmzorDgRlCittRbd1wK0ykRfHhgj86lMi9LdObeB2EdxqeZeCAwuo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br>Memories: The view from the Love’s parking lot</div><div style="text-align: center;">Springville, Utah ~ April 14th, 2019.<br><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-73355620909894759262021-04-11T13:55:00.001-06:002021-04-11T13:55:12.931-06:00Dogwoods in Olney<div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7543_57db_1ab8_8444" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/oKbgFJLtYADEg3YyObbj36YWd1EM0rPKgnwqCn_nChpEquFm10JZ-DkkXcVReUpctlA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br>The dogwood tree is in full bloom. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div> Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-43612703222573999252021-04-08T00:08:00.001-06:002021-04-08T08:48:52.245-06:00Spring Insects and FrogsInsects appeared en masse on the highways of Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky on April 6th and last evening (the 7th) I saw a frog crossing the road. It’s good to see flowering trees everywhere and to occasionally feel the sunlight’s warmth on your skin. Summer is peeking out from under its covers. Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-20685603818978933382021-04-07T10:22:00.001-06:002021-04-07T10:22:21.739-06:00Memories: Vail Pass Summit - April 7th, 2019<div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_87a8_cfac_364b_5c5a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/uhrU9T67QTWmkjYcrZtuGoTBL6p15RnKYMgcAV1C1QBCMNFhghjO53YlMPUs8EVA2k8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br>Vail Pass Summit</div><div style="text-align: center;">April 7th, 2019</div><div style="text-align: center;">7:45pm</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;">***</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div> Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-62009623251274851602021-04-06T12:33:00.001-06:002021-04-06T12:34:00.180-06:00 Betrayed in a dream by the “daud / dhaad / ض" <div><br></div><div><br></div><div>I had one of my rare but interesting intense, symbolic dreams that feels almost more realistic than real life. </div><div><br></div><div>The world seemed older, maybe not simpler, but more subtle and less technological. In this dream I looked more like a stereotypical male Ivy Leaguer (whatever that is, but definitely thinner and more handsome than I am in real life). I remember buttoning a suit, fixing a tie while looking in the mirror; I had a more narrow, chiseled face, thinner black hair, a dimple, and a smile that was dashing. </div><div><br></div><div>I was either a student in college at some old institution or had just graduated. I remember strolling along under shady, sturdy trees around a sunlit, flower-lined stonewall campus joking casually alongside the no-face man who would soon become my handler. </div><div><br></div><div>We went on a funcation across Europe. We met others of similar educational, socio-economic ilk, enjoyed some fine dining and cultural entertainment opportunities, mostly in dark, ancient, brick and stone cities in Eastern Europe and the Near East. Next thing I knew in my dream, my life was immersed in lightning paced, jet-setting intrigue.</div><div><br></div><div>Somehow we were working to figure out the connections between the terrorists in Southwest Asia / Middle East and Europe. I don’t remember any specifics of what I was doing in my dream when I was off traveling from one country to another, using multiple passports and (apparently) only slightly modified “disguises,” but a couple of things happened that let me in on a bit of what I was up to. </div><div><br></div><div>In a side office of one of the embassies in what might’ve been Belgium, a woman that I thought of as a kindly older (I was in my early 20’s) somewhat frumpy secretary asked me what the government had me up to these days. She asked nicely and with genuine curiosity, but when I said, “oh just trying to wrangle through some minor disagreements and come to terms on totally inconsequential details,” she looked at me hard and skeptically and said, “hmmm...” dismissively. </div><div><br></div><div>Outside her door (we were in some sort of a secure space apparently) one of my colleagues - with a harried look but a glimmer in his eye which suggested he’d also experienced a whirlwind exciting and perhaps treacherous week - stopped me briefly and asked me how many places I’d been to in the last week. I paused and quietly revealed “well, one passport is stamped in Prague, Ankara and Jerusalem, another has me going through Afghanistan, Pakistan and Czechoslovakia, and another has me in London, Paris, and Berlin - so you tell me...” He gave me a knowing look, breathlessly rattled off his list, which included Cairo, Moscow and Baghdad, and then hurried off to some other part of the building. </div><div><br></div><div>At that point, just as I was stepping off towards whatever came next, the secretary from the office shot her arm out of her office doorway, grabbed me by the shoulder, and yanked me backwards until I was standing back in front of her desk with her office door pulled shut. “Minor disagreements and inconsequential details indeed...” We both smiled, me sheepishly, she grimly.</div><div><br></div><div>“Now you listen to me, IF you get in trouble, here is my number. You call and tell me you’re coming. Then come straight into my office, walk into this closet, which will be closed and locked.</div><div><br></div><div>“Here is a key” (which she handed me) “Walk into this closet and walk right down the stairs. I’ll be waiting at the bottom for you and we’ll get you off to someplace safe. Oh, and lock the door behind you. </div><div><br></div><div>I thanked her and walked out the door. As I was leaving what had been the Belgian embassy building, I exited by a narrow stone stairway directly onto a busy street. There was a boy begging at the base of the steps and I stopped to say hello and to give him some change. Somehow I learned that the boy’s native language was Arabic, so we started speaking Arabic together; in the course of our conversation we both used a word that had the letter “ض" in it. </div><div><br></div><div>I must’ve pronounced the letter more like a “daal” “د" because a kindly old grandfatherly type man, hunched over, wearing a suit and using a cane corrected me politely. He tapped me on the shoulder and spoke humbly, “beg your pardon sir, it’s pronounced _____ not _____.” His voice was oddly high pitched, nasally, and frail. I smiled and said, “right you are my man - my mistake, thank you, I always mess up the daud words.” I bid them both a good day and went off on my way. (I’ve tried to remember since waking what the daud word was that we used, but can’t quite find it).</div><div><br></div><div>Cut in the dream directly to Baghdad now. I’m participating in a meeting of officials and apparently I’m using an assumed identity of a person who wouldn’t have any business being anywhere near Belgium. I use the same word in the course of casual Arabic conversation that I had used in Belgium with the child beggar. A man in a fine silk suit, standing straight without a cane, taps me from behind on the shoulder, “Beg your pardon Sir, it’s pronounced _____ not _____.” I smiled and said... nothing. As I turned I could see Saddam Hussein looking directly and sharply into my eyes. I now recognized that he had been the grandfatherly old gentleman in a disguise of his own. I knew in that moment that he also recognized me. His voice was still high pitched, nasally and frail, but this was his house, and I was caught. Betrayed by the ض</div> Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-41205189747646208182021-03-23T06:05:00.001-06:002021-03-23T08:50:56.032-06:00Richland County DriveYesterday Rachael and I went for a drive through Richland County east of Olney in Illinois along HW 50.. We checked out the north side of <a href="https://www.stateparks.com/red_hills_state_park_in_illinois.html" target="_blank">Red Hills State Park</a> and drove through <a href="http://www.sumnerillinois.com/" target="_blank">Sumner</a> and back again. We prefer the north side of the park to the south because it's less crowded and there is more room to walk along the paved roads without worrying about traffic. We’ll probably bring the dogs here for a walk. <div><br /></div><div><img alt="" id="id_675b_e5d3_75f4_f9a" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/DnRPUEN-8l6bMst8u8bIKpPSg61mcW56BPcJ0jOC8ltPvEm8NLbMcGdzyB2qTUX2WXo" style="height: auto; width: 395px;" title="" tooltip="" /><br /><div><br /></div><div>There are a <a href="http://www.mappery.com/map-of/Red-Hills-Illinois-State-Park-Site-Map" target="_blank">few trails winding through the trees</a>, and there are several places along the side of the road to park vehicles and have a barbecue. </div><div><br /></div><div><img alt="" id="id_30db_99bd_3c0f_bf8a" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/2IWc75G_xDjoLvjOwZYQWOCi1fU7pbwZw6e_lF70rqp8fRWMM89h8wiPQgNGTxvO0AA" style="height: auto; width: 392px;" title="" tooltip="" /><br /><br /><br /></div><div>Right near here in some brambles we saw a rabbit and a bird whose coloration was similar to that of a robin, but this bird was thinner and faster, with a black that seemed a deeper black than a robin's, with some white flashes in its underwings when it flew. This one was being coy with us though and we never got a really good look at it. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><img alt="" id="id_7eed_2a96_6953_4f6b" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/lGhAHSlkhAlKVGAs1IeI-QonHKPQ3gprnQWomkpuH1N0BC-DicyKCt58DgfxUF6qkbs" style="height: auto; width: 392px;" title="" tooltip="" /><br /><br />There is a great view looking out to the east from the high ground. Red Hills State Park might be <a href="https://wildlifeinformer.com/owls-in-illinois/" target="_blank">a good place to spot owls</a> in the late evening, as it is open until 10pm. We'll have to come here some evening prepared to stick around after dark.</div><div><br /></div><div><img alt="" id="id_2847_de57_d82_432b" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/BIb4UVIZ5Ps2dGRbfl4bGWkk3VydLqn86ILYDkfshk7CZRhoexK7WoOPMnfDJ26q9_4" style="height: auto; width: 392px;" title="" tooltip="" /><br /><br /><div>Turns out this park is located on the western edge of the <a href="https://blog.history.in.gov/tag/indian-treaties/" target="_blank">Vincennes Tract</a>; <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Vincennes" target="_blank">its history</a> is explained by a <a href="https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=98964" target="_blank">historical marker</a> near one of the playground areas. A sobering reminder of the centuries old, tangled and messy roots of this plot where we now stand.</div><div><br /></div><img alt="" id="id_6c3e_281d_9e16_8a32" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/vVeJElhcNay3jkzq7fwlRnFz2x_37XMX62MQniYJ_VYJl84pnH1xVJjwOo6wsoQx4TI" style="height: auto; width: 392px;" title="" tooltip="" /><br /><br />Sunset at Red Hills State Park<br /><br /><img alt="" id="id_bf48_4621_e630_a470" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/34AsUtDTi6mbXIc0ngbCack8ztsS5tVBDuPxRCSNfgCEyI_AWPfbRgejONZ99BVbE5E" style="height: auto; width: 392px;" title="" tooltip="" /><br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">***</div></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-31076790119822817752021-02-28T11:14:00.001-06:002021-02-28T11:14:06.396-06:00Sleeping Giant<img id="id_57a4_127e_5d83_cb55" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/0nISt62g55D7sZZzFVPXPLMn97G1ezD4HBnZq_b4QsLqzP0cPP8OcCUvsamNO-r0u6s" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br>Boo Boo sleeping. I never thought I’d like a chihuahua.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37790664.post-84620780572844334072021-02-23T01:01:00.001-06:002021-02-23T01:01:40.041-06:00Sunset in Olney, IllinoisTonight’s #sunset in Olney was quite striking. <div><br></div><div><img id="id_9c92_29ef_2ed9_21f" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/9bKwtr-SkfhgVPZG1Kck2eSUDpR3ldJUDX62Nx5E3rTBbxGsMrjdDxD4h5-n_NLtDGg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com