A Lucky Girl

 Julie and Sadie came to visit this afternoon. She will be 6 months old in another couple weeks and is really growing. She is very alert to everything that goes on around her and has gained strength in her neck, arms and legs. Her legs are so"chubby" that they have deep wrinkles above the knees. We  only got to see Julie a couple times before she was nearly 7 months old, so have really enjoyed Sadie as a baby. The expression on Julie's face shows the joy that she has in caring for Sadie. It is so fortunate that Julie can be a "stay at home Mom". While I know that most Day Care Centers do a good job in caring for youngsters, there is no substitute for "Mother Love and Care". And, a loving Dad & Grandparents add to her blessings.

Stan Musial

The news stories on Stan Musial's death today brought back memories of following his career. Brother Don, Ed Pollak and I drove to Chicago in the fall of 1948 and saw the Yankees play the White Sox and the next day watched the Cardinals beat the Cubs in Wrigley Field. Harry "The Cat" Brecheen was the winning pitcher.  I remember Musial's "corkscrew" stance at the plate and his hitting line drives over the 2nd baseman. Other Cardinals in the lineup were Enos Slaughter, Joe Medwick, Red Schoendiest, Marty Marion and Joe Garagiola. I was in St. Louis for a Civic Service Training session  in the spring of 1962 when the Cardinals came home from spring training. There was a "Welcome Home" event at an auditorium which I attended as well as going out to old Sportsman Park and seeing them beat the New York Mets. It was the 2nd game that the Mets played during that 1st year of their existence. According to my diary, Musial got 3 hits in that 11-6 victory. Musial retired in 1963 and I recall having eaten at his Restaurant on more than one occasion. We saw several games at the old Busch Stadium during its existence and in late May 2006, Elaine and I drove down and saw the Cardinals beat the Astros. The Statue of "Stan the Man" stands just outside the New Busch Stadium. He was a real "Credit" to the game of Baseball. 

Time Marches On

This is a 4" pile of my old college Math papers that are "sacked up" and ready to go to the Recycle Center next week. They include some Advanced Algebra, Trig., and Calculus papers  and represent some 20 or so hours of College Credit. Looking at them now, I wonder how I ever got through it. I've gone through some of my other papers and put them back on the shelf for another day. They are all much more interesting than the math. I'm sending Jon my 1969 Final Exam on "Management Information Systems-Their Development and Application."; Along with  President Lyndon B. Johnson's June 28, 1966 memorandum to Heads of Departments and Agencies, on the "Use and Management of Computer Technology".  I also did more sorting this afternoon of Board minutes and have another large sack ready to be shredded. My interest in getting things "cleared out" may be prompted by hearing of Willard's stroke (the old friend I wrote about a few days ago), seeing another old friend today with a leg amputated, and going to Harry Hoffman's 90th birthday party tonight at the VFW club. On top of that, I hear from Jon that Earl Weaver died recently, and Tim tells me that Stan (The Man) Musial died today at age 92. Time Marches On. 

Seward HS Girls Basketball'

Here were the "Old Guys" at the Seward HS Girls basketball game last night. It was a good game with Seward beating Central Catholic of Kearney. They are a Class C-1 team with a 15-0 record coming in to Class B Seward. They are a good team with a lot of athletic height. Several of us were back tonight to see Seward Girls beat Aurora convincingly. The game wasn't nearly as competitive as last night. It did give the Coach an opportunity to use some new plays and defensive systems. We have relied heavily on 3-point shots which several of our Girls are very good at and tonight we got some layups and more rebounds. We are going to need a lot of layups as well as 3s to beat Beatrice this year.

Abraham Lincoln

"Lincoln is a 2012 American historical drama film directed and produced by Steven Spielberg, starring Daniel Day-Lewis as United States President Abraham Lincoln and Sally Field as Mary Todd Lincoln."

We went to the Movie at the Rivoli Theater here in Seward and were somewhat disappointed. Not because of the acting or the story but by the perception it provides  viewers of President Abraham Lincoln. After further thought, it made us wonder about our own  perception of him. Mine was developed back in District 13 Country school where his large framed picture hung on the wall along with George Washington's. Our teachers read stories about his learning to read and write by candle light and his walking miles to return a book he had borrowed. As we got older, we learned how he became a lawyer by "reading the law"; his debates with Douglas, and how he "saved the nation" with his Civil War leadership. One cannot help but have this image strengthened by visiting his boyhood home in Kentucky, his museum in Springfield, IL, the Ford Theater in D.C. and the house across the street where he died. We have visited all of these including the Lincoln Memorial many times and have marveled at the perfection of his Gettysburg Address. For as long as I can remember, he has always been a "hero". The movie didn't change my impression of him but what bothers me is how shallow a viewer's perception would be without more knowledge. What's even more disturbing is that maybe mine is far "overblown" and the movie's portrayal is more realistic with Doris Kerns Goodwin having helped write the script. He's still one of my heroes. 

Eating Well Today

After a potato, gravy, green bean and meatloaf lunch, we went down to Pac n Sav to get our weekly supply of groceries on Senior Citizen Discount  Day. Anticipating that I would be late for supper following a  Board meeting, we picked up a frozen pizza. Elaine had taken it out of the oven just before I got home about 6:30. The house smelled good and I was ready to eat. It was one of the first and best pizza's we've had for some time. We cleaned up the whole 12" pizza and had a small dish of Kemp's Rabbit Track Ice Cream for dessert. It too was good with chocolate syrup interlaced in the Vanilla ice cream. I don't know why it was named as it is. I expected it to include little chocolate pellets. Oh!, I almost forgot, before I went to the meeting, Elaine served freshly baked apple pie. I might have gained a pound today. 

Seward Senior Center

Here was Willard, Audrey and I, down at the Seward Senior Center today for the noontime luncheon and entertainment by four people playing button accordions and a drummer. Many of the pieces they played were those that Dad played on his accordion. Willard had his 93rd birthday in December and still has excellent recall. They have kept up quite well with the old neighbors out north of Garland as additional generations have come along. I always have questions and Willard has answers to most of them when we get together. Today was most enjoyable because we were together for 2 hours and the Polka music even stimulated memories and additional questions. It was a good day.