City living?

Yesterday morning I went out early to get a picture of the
moon. That turned out to be a good decision as I did get a
few pictures and was in a great mood all day.

So this morning it made sense to try again but my luck had
run out. The clouds were too thick to even see the planes
going into the airport let alone the moon. We’ll see what
tomorrow brings.

While waiting for that to happen I will be multi-tasking as
I try to solve a mystery and take care of business as usual.
As I went outside to take a few pictures last night I heard
a rustling on our roof so I went back into the house, grabbed
my flashlight, turned it on and aimed it at the roof to find,
a raccoon.

I know they are crafty critters, but how did it get on the
roof with no trees close and no lighted stairway with
raccoon signage? I really hope we don’t have flying raccoons
on the east coast of Iowa.

That little beady eyed critter has got to vacate our roof.
So I’ll do some research on how to remove nocturnal critters
from roofs to see if any simple ideas are available. We could
be busy for the short term so enjoy your Thursday.
Comments are always welcome.

Interesting house

Ever been by an old house and never give a thought to the
old adage ‘if those walls could talk?’. A car club we used to
be members of met in the carriage house of the Deere-Wiman
house. The carriage house is neat, the view from atop the
bluff is amazing, and the Deere-Wiman house is a local
treasure.

The following 11 minute video may not change your vacation
plans, but it could open your mind to what a mansion looked
like in 1872. Or it could bore you, but we hope not. This
house is located in Moline, Illinois.

If you think this a place you’d like to visit, or just want
more information go here.

The link above is for the Butterworth Center and the Deere-
Wiman house. Standing a block apart they are both worthy of
visit if you like old houses, history, or something you don’t
see every day. The pipe organs in these houses alone are
works of art.

So enjoy the virtual tour and enjoy our Wednesday. Besides
being the only one we get this week it also signifies we have
one less day until the weekend.
Comments are always welcome.

Totally random thoughts

High above the flood zone here on the east coast of Iowa we
have had a strange day. This started after the wife went to
do some training or something for work and continued
throughout the day.

After having a gallon or so of coffee I decided to have a
few of my favorite crackers “Chicken in a Biskit”. In all the
years I have been ingesting this product I have never read
the list of ingredients.

After reading said list it is now known they are made in a
chemistry lab and not by a group of elitist culinary gnomes in
a secret location. I was crushed. Then after the wife got
home I was asked the question most married men fear the most,
‘do you want to go clothes shopping with me?’

I don’t do well in a place where the clerks dress better
than I do and feel the need to continually ask if they can
help me. Makes me want to say ‘yes, where are your saddles?’
But we got through it without injuries then went to our
favorite Mexican cantina for dinner.

The wife ordered a combo plate and I had my shredded beef
burritos. Nothing different there except I didn’t order them
with extra cheese. The coffee was hot, the hot sauce was hot,
and the burritos were great.

And we got my prescription filled to boot. That was when we
found out that when a doctor writes a prescription it’s only
good for a year. Who figured? I readily admit I procrastinate
on such things but we did get it to the pharmacy with 9 days
left on it.

Finally, our thoughts go out to all those affected by the
flood. It is never over when the water goes away because the
smell seems to linger for months. And now I go in search of
a project to keep me busy until such time as I get hungry
enough to burn a pizza. Enjoy your Tuesday.
Comments are always welcome

Not watching

Unless you have just awakened from a coma, you know the
first presidential debate of this go round is tonight. If you
have visited here long enough you also know we will not be
among the viewers.

Once again our country is at a crossroad and the direction
the majority decides to go will affect our future for
decades.

We believe there are three types of people in the race to
elect the next president. There are patriots, non-patriots,
and mushrooms. Others exist but we believe they are sub-sets
of the above mentioned groups. Bear with us and we’ll explain.

The patriot groups includes, but is not limited to those who
believe the oath they took never expires, anyone willing to
fight to keep our country free, and those who care enough to
seek the truth and not accept the rumors.

The non-patriot group includes, but is not limited to the
rioters, those who want something for nothing, and those who
do not respect our flag.

The last group is easier to define. We call them mushrooms
because they thrive when kept in the dark and fed a bunch of
crap.

Said groups have been around since before our country was a
country. That being said, we now believe patriots are in danger
of losing the top spot to one, or both, of the others. We are
getting tired of the talk. Talk is cheap, and we need a lot
less talk and a lot more action.

Watch the debate if you must, just don’t update us on that
dog and pony show. I think I hear some leftover pizza calling
for first aid and I want to be first on the scene. Enjoy your
Monday.
Comments are always welcome.

Remember

Sunday snicker

The 98 year old Mother Superior from Ireland was dying. The
nuns gathered around her bed trying to make her last journey
comfortable. They gave her some warm milk to drink but she
refused. Then one of the nuns took the glass back to the
kitchen.

Remembering a bottle of Irish whiskey received as a gift the
previous Christmas, she opened and poured a generous amount
into the warm milk. Back at Mother Superior’s bed, she held
the glass to her lips. Mother drank a little, then a little
more and before they knew it, she had drunk the whole glass
down to the last drop.

“Mother,” the nuns asked with earnest, “please give us some
wisdom before you die.”

She raised herself up in bed and with a pious look on her
face said, “Don’t sell that cow.

We’re wet

I awoke around 4 am knowing something was wrong. After
clearing my head of the cobwebs I realized we had lost power.
And it was storming. It was raining when we ran our errands,
it was raining when we got back home, and it rained a good
part of the morning. But we are blessed.

I say that because parts of Iowa are flooded and roads are
closed due to said flooding. We don’t personally have that
problem as we are about 300 foot higher than the river and
we know water doesn’t normally run uphill. We do feel sorry
for those who are having problems.

For those who are thinking of going to flood prone areas to
help and those who make a living driving the concrete byways
of our state, we will some road closures we know about. They
include:

Hwy 57 between US 218 and County Road T55 just west of Cedar
Falls.

Hwy 188 between Hwy 3 and County Road T64 near Clarksville.

Hwy 3 between County Road T55 near Clarksville and US 218 in
Shell Rock.

Hwy 3 between County Road V49 and County Road V56 near Readlyn.

Hwy 13 between County Road D22 and County Road D13 near
Manchester.

Hwy 18 between IA 14 and County Road T66 at Charles City.

IA 187 between County Road C64 and County Road D22 (1 mile
north of the Masonville area). Southbound shoulder closed
because of flooding.

US 63 southbound lanes from County Road D35 to 155th St. are
currently closed due to water over the roadway

The National Weather Service has a page up with information
about flooding and you can check it out here.

So instead of “protesting” if you need something to do, get
your butt up here and lend a hand.
Comments are always welcome.