Beauty Disrobed to Naked

We had beautiful fall weather last week when Tim and Laura were here. We certainly enjoyed their visit and the weather while they were here. I got back out to the golf course this afternoon for the first time in 4 days. The temperature hit 70 with a strong SE wind making playing difficult.  We didn't have Kiwanis today with it being Columbus Day. It is a Holiday that I believe could be dropped. I understand that it was made a Federal Holiday by President Roosevelt back in 1937 when he was looking for the Italian vote. While we were working it was nice to have the day to do our fall "chores" but now it just mixes up our normal routine.

These pictures were taken just a few days apart. It got down to 21 degrees early yesterday morning and had been below freezing the night before. That along with the wind really brought down the leaves from the Ash trees. They were particularly vibrant this year if only for a few days. Some of the Maples have already lost their leaves while others haven't shown much color. I don't know what the Pin Oaks will do. Many of the trees have shown the effects of the drought. I am concerned about many of them if we don't get some late fall moisture. There were very few lawns reseeded this fall and it's apparent that the grass in many of them is permanently dormant. 

Happy Sadie

This was a quiet day at our house. We were spoiled last week with Tim and Laura here. Not only did we enjoy their presence but our Seward "family" also spent more time here. We all got better acquainted with Sadie and she with us. Yesterday was her 2 months birthday and she changes every day. We went to Church this morning and participated in World Wide Communion. Our preacher was out of town so we had a fellow from India "fill-in" who was difficult to understand. We watched the Nationals beat the Cardinals 3-2 in St. Louis. This was the first post season win for a Washington baseball team since 1933. Now we are waiting for the rain delay to allow the Yankee vs Oriole game to begin. After Nebraska getting beat 63-38 by Ohio State last night, I wasn't up to watching very much football today. 

Sadie & Sports

Tim & Laura left on their way back to Indiana this afternoon following a few days visit with us here in Seward. They and Sadie got well acquainted while they were here and enjoyed each others company. One day was spent in Lincoln where Carolyn and Laura visited the "Quilt Museum" and Tim the "Tastee-Inn-and-Out" among other places. Tim and I saw part of the Seward HS girls volleyball trifecta with Schuyler and Fairbury. Then last night we went to the Concordia-Briar Cliff girls volleyball game at the new Gym on Campus. Tim announces athletic events at North HS in Columbus, IN and was interested in hearing other announcers as well as seeing the games and facilities. Concordia won the 5th set last night 20-18 after Briar Cliff had 3 chances at match-point. It was an exciting finish. We watched the Atlanta Braves-St. Louis Cardinals  baseball game up until the time we needed to go up to Concordia. We, like many of the Cardinal fans were shocked at the "infield fly" call by the left field umpire. Tim had some of his baseball books along and read the definition there as well as further research on the Internet. We agreed that it was a bad call that didn't meet the intent of the rule which is to prevent intentionally dropping a fly ball and getting a double play as a result. I believe  the incident will lead to some changes in the definition or the things which are subject to umpire review. This is the first year that the team with the 2nd best record was able to compete for the wild-card slot in post season play. Atlanta finished the regular season with a .580 record and St. Louis only .543. It's unfortunate that the excitement of an extra "play in" game was clouded by a disputed call as well as Chipper Jones making a critical error in his final game.  

Stained Glass Church Windows

These stained glass windows have found a home inside the newly "constructed" Evangelical Free Church in Seward. The building was a former WalMart  store and has been "worked over" into a great facility for the Church. The windows came from the local Saint Johns Lutheran Church building that was demolished some 35 years ago. They were purchased at that time by a local antique dealer and put in storage for all these years. When it was determined that they were available, the Concordia University Art Department completely re leaded the windows and stored them until the building was ready for their installation. They are on an inside wall that divides a Library room from the Sanctuary Vestibule. It is an ideal location and lights from the Library illuminate them. (My picture doesn't do them justice). These windows are just one example of how this congregation has converted the old building into a beautiful church facility with a lot of creativity and "sweat equity". They are fortunate in having within their membership many well trained professional people with the varied skills necessary to make this conversion possible. In addition, they all had the passion to make it a success. I think Sam Walton would be proud of them. 

The "Guys"

The "guys" decided they would walk downtown this afternoon as the temperature approached 80 degrees. Sadie enjoyed the trip in her "baby buggy". Julie wanted Roxie at the Cosmic Cow to see Sadie. Julie enjoyed working there part time during the past year or so before Sadie was born. They also visited the Chapters Bookstore which is a very valuable part of our downtown shopping district. Then took another look at the 5th and Seward St. intersection which was discussed at the City Council meeting last night. The Indiana opinion is that a traffic light would be  the ideal solution, recognizing that it may need to be coordinated with the light at the corner of 6th and Seward St. The next suggested alternative would be to eliminate at least one parking space at the SE corner of the intersection and perhaps limit the size of vehicle that could be parked in the second space. A roundabout may even be an alternative at the large 5th street intersection. A topic of this nature where everyone has an opinion, makes for interesting Council meetings. I'm going to miss it after    my term expires in a few weeks. 

A Conversation

Dad: Tim, this is a picture of you in the fall of '62 in your Halloween Outfit. What ever possessed you to make it? Tim: We had just moved from Lincoln and it was before the days of Herbie Husker. The Cornhuskers had a mascot dressed in a similar outfit. Tim: How on earth did you make it?? Tim: I had a lot of help from my parents. As I recall it was cut from cardboard and paper mache. I had been in Fairlington Elementary for only 2 months and I was made "fun of" for my outfit. I was very homesick. Dad: What happened to it?? Tim: It got vandalized and destroyed. Dad: What did you learn from all of that??. Tim: I learned that sometimes you have to go ahead and do things that you feel strongly about regardless of what other people may think. Dad: What did you do to get in the good graces of those Fairlington kids who made fun of you?? Tim: I didn't worry about it and by the time I broke my ankle, they were all my friends. Everybody signed my cast. Dad: How did you break your ankle?? Tim: I was playing baseball with Topps and broke it sliding into 3rd base. Dad: How long did it take you  to get back on the field??. Tim: I broke it in an early spring practice game and didn't get back playing until late in the summer. But the incident really brought out the friendship from my fellow students. Mr. Bouchard kept me on the team so I had the full year to play as a 12 year old. It was a great experience. 

Guess who was the center of attention at our house today. Tim and Laura got in about 9:00pm last evening. Carolyn, Julie and Sadie came down this  morning while I was at coffee. Sadie really enjoys laying on the floor, waving her arms and kicking her legs.

Later this afternoon, Elaine and I had the pleasure for the first time of taking care of Sadie. Tim and Laura had gone downtown for a walk and Carolyn and Julie had run out to check on the house. Elaine was very comfortable giving Sadie her bottle. I just watched to make sure every thing was going O.K. We were able to spend enough time with her today to really get to know her. With the Major League baseball season in its final 3 days of the regular schedule, we watched the Royals vs Detroit and followed the Yankees, Baltimore, Nationals and Cincinnati on the computer. A highlight of the evening was Tim demonstrating to Elaine what constitutes a balk for both a right and left handed pitcher. In addition to Tim's depth of knowledge on the subject, he has a book that he was able to reference. He also has an acquaintance up in Indianapolis who is a security guard but also a baseball umpire with whom he has discussed the subject. It involves many fine points of which I was never aware.