Project 52 Week 16 Our Own Pandemic Outbreak

Everyone is sick at my house.

And I do mean everyone.

Jack and Cat Curio Makes Me Crazy

Every work day at lunch, I visit my favorite blogs while I eat. I catch up with my family. Then I go and drive myself totally crazy and visit Jack and Cat Curio. Today, I was delighted to see Mr. Jack has added me to his blog roll. So now I must confess how I really feel about this....

See Mr. Jack, you drive me crazy... here I am stranded in the middle of artistic nowhere farmland, with no craft stores within hundreds of miles, no access to that group vibe that happens on "art day" with a group of friends and inspires you all to greater creativity, and worst of all..... my sister is your neighbor (so to speak) and actually gets to go to your classes!

You tweak my artistic nerves and make me restless. You stir up such a sense of longing to make something for the sheer joy of the process, that I can barely stand it. Just the thought of warm pots of beeswax ( or whatever it is you'd melt it in) almost makes me want to weep. And I keep coming back for more.

Thank you for letting me not forget that art is the journey.....no matter how your journey twists and turns, art exists as a state of mind. Art is.

Creepy or Cute: Your Call

I work for an animal supply company. I spend my days writing and thinking about pets and their well being. It's not completely unheard of to be engrosed in my work and suddenly be brought back to life by something furry brushing against my leg or a slobbery face poking at my knee. It's a great way to spend the day.

That was at least, until these guys showed up. 

I don't know if they are going to be window props or actually for sale or just lined up along the entry way to see who'll be the first to actually throw a ball toward them. It could happen.  Actually, they're meant to be topiary forms and are densly packed sphagnum moss and wire. I can kind of envision them covered in ivy or trailing petunias. Almost. Sort of.

 Truthfully, they make me think of the Shining. 

And then there's the rabbit...whom one of my coworkers suspects of steroid abuse.  So, I leave it to you; cute or creepy? 

Digital Hybrid Scrapbook Project - Big Brother

My boss welcomed a new son to her family Friday. She and her husband already have one unbelievably cute little boy, who is about to turn 5. I got the idea as I was picking up a baby card for them, that the new big brother needed something too. Surely,  I thought , Hallmark has thought of new siblings. 

Apparently they haven't. 

So I created my own card.  Searching for a theme, I came across this really cute digital scrapbook kit, Blastoff. If you like it, you'd better hurry and get it, right now until 04/07 its a blog train freebie. 

The inside of the card, has the cutest little space dude and pals. It's a bit hard to see in this picture, but the banner he's holding says "Out of this World." 

I really wasn't thinking space when I started this, but one look at the astronaut  and I was hooked. The new big brother is also a red head. A match made in heaven, right? 

Hear the Train A Comin

There was a little delay in getting home this evening. Seems like the Union Pacific had their own adgenda and it didn't include my plans at all. I cross this piece of track twice a day, rarely am I stopped by the train. A couple of the cars behind me seem to be impatient, edging closer, trying to get a glimpse of the caboose. They didn't have much luck. This was one of the hundred long coal trains that are an every day occurance here. I don't mind at all. Waiting on the train reminds me to remember, to slow down and savor the stories of the past.



All the small towns in this area grew to prosperity and dwindled into shadows of themselves at the dictate of the railroad. Populations grew to provide the workers and services needed by major railroad round houses in Wymore and Fairbury. Even little Odell (above, pop 300 give or take) owes its location to the train. Years ago, Odell use to be located nearby but because of a change in the tracks demanded by the railroad, the entire town just picked up, buildings, kids, dogs, the works and moved to their current location.

When the glamour of railroads began to fade away, so too did the small towns. They didn't totally dissappear but they changed. The older folks have memories of busier days, prosperous downtowns and honky tonk nights. Somehow I doubt my own stories of past days will provide nearly the texture of these small towns. Suburbia, automobiles, fast food, television and life before the world wide web just doesn't seem to have the same texture.

Unpredictable March

Here's how Southeast Nebraska is ending up the weather week. This week we have had sunny days in the upper 6o's, days that haven't gotten out of the 30's, tornadoes, foggy crips mornings and now snow. There are gorgeous,tender little green shoots coming up in the fields and farmers are turing the dark,burnt looking earth. One was actually burning off his fields this week as I was on my way home from work. And this morning, snow. For me, it's just a mental slap in the face. For others who have lived in this region longer than I, this is to be expected. One thing I have learned while living in farmland, farmers must never forget the ultimate power of Mother Nature and they have to be the most optimistic of souls to pin their lives on her whims.

Roadside Giants

Here in Nebraska where I live, yesterday there were tornadoes in my part of the state and blizzards in the other side of the state. Work was nuts and my entire family must have had a bottle of crazy water. It's definitely time for a road trip.

Much of the personality of the US has been absorbed by massive chain stores, restaurants, look alike malls and developements. For some people, I suppose this is comforting and eases the anxiety that a move to a new location may bring. For me, it's not really comforting, it's distressing to know that individualism is dissappearing. Even if it is corporate individulism, it's still a loss.

Happily, there are still interesting things along the way, remarkable icons that haven't been zoned out of existance. Here are a few from my own travels.

This is the largest coffee pot in the US. It's just outside of Omaha, NE on I-80. It's 110 ft tall and use to be a water tower. I've heard that at some times, it actully "perks" and there's a flashing light in the top and steam from the spout. I drive by this one several times a year, maybe one of these days I'll see it perking along!

Next up, a glorious giant peach in Gaffney, South Carolina. It's out in the middle of nowhere and sort of looks like a big golf ball. It's always a lovely color. I think the painters in Gaffney should be complimented on how skillfully they have perfected the blush on this peach.

Proudly proclaiming itself as the peanut capitol of the world is Ashburn, GA. Heading to Florida on I-75, you can't miss it! It's probably a good thing that it doesn't emit a warm peanut aroma, cause in this part of Georgia all you're apt to find are boiled peanuts by the roadside and to someone not born in this part of the world, there's not much less appealing than boiled peanuts. Trust me on this one. I tried them. Once.

Finally, back north in Bemidji, Minnesota we have Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox. How can you not love Paul...strong, dark, tall and handsome. Everything a folk hero should be. And Babe, well she's blue. She's a little crosseyed, but you can count on her.

Hit the road. See what's lurking in your world that refused to be covered in a facade of sand colored brick and stucco.

Princess Luna

Her Royal Highness, Princess Luna

Project 52 Week 11 Photo Tag

So my "evil" sister photo tagged me. I think most people don't care for seeing themselves in photos and I'm no exception. I don't know what deviltry happens inside the camera, but the person I always see in the photo sure doesn't resemble the person I see in the mirror!

But, I am a pretty good sport, so I'll play. Photo tag is all about on the spot photos. So although it's taken me three days to get it posted, here I am as I was "tagged". At work on a Friday afternoon.

Now, who do I tag....hmmm..... maybe my neice who's been missing from her blog for far too long. You know who you are! So whenever you read this, drop what you're doing and take a photo of yourself. Come out from behind that sewing machine and smile for the camera.

Congrats to Confessions of a Pioneer Woman

Congratulations to Ree Drummond of Confessions of a Pioneer Woman blog! She won an astounding 3 awards in this years Best of the Web competition. The web's best blogs have been recognized for the last nine years with "The Bloggies". A geeky Oscar. She won for Best Photography, Best-Designed Weblog and Weblog of the Year.

I'm like thousands, soon to be millions I'm sure, who read this blog daily. I like spying on her life. 99% of her recipes inspire me to get creative. 100% of her photographs inspire me. She's my daily lunchtime companion and doesn't even know it.

Someday,I'll bet she becomes an Oprah guest. Then there will be the cover of People and Time. I hope it doesn't go to her head. Nah, she'll still be writing about dog kisses and cows.

Project 52 Week 10 Unexpected Surprizes

This weekend, cabin fever was setting in again, the wonderfully rich sausage from Frank's in Wilber was gone and both the Viking and I could hear the kolaches we passed over on our last visit calling to us.

Isn't Wilber just the cutest little town?

Remember those inviting little kolaches from a couple of weeks ago? We decided to forego breakfast and have kolaches once we got to Wilber.

First surprize, they weren't really very good. The filling was delicious, but the roll part was just straight, bland white bread. I was expecting a richer roll, like a cinnamon roll. I don't know if this is a typical kolache or just the result of an uninspired baker, but it was a little dissappointing. I decided right then that a nice layer of cream cheese frosting would help redeem the poor little kolaches.

When we got home, I made the frosting and alas, it didn't help tremendously. The roll just wasn't that good. However, a loaf of homemade rye bread we picked up is fantastic. We still like Franks.

Still feeling adventurous, instead of heading straight home, we decided to head north on a road we'd never been. It took us through more of the same farmland that surrounds us, and we were happy with our adventure. Then the second surprize of the day! Driving past a rustic sign for Bluestem State Park, we saw this as we drove by.


We backed up on the road (remember this is the middle of nowhere farmland) turned into a gravel road and within seconds saw this.

A very large lake with a very large, very loud snow geese party happening. The migration is still in progress but we had no idea this lake existed.

It was a wonderful event to see, this stop over on their long flight. We got out of the car and just watched a bit. They're a chatty bunch. It really made me wish I had a better camera and a wide angle lens.

Project 52 Week 9

So, I've gotten a little behind in my weekly image goal thanks to an impressively bad cold that's been trying to consume all my energies. It's managed to span a good part of almost two weeks and finally seems to be on the way out. I still don't sound it, but I am improving day by day.

I missed time from work and probably should have taken a couple more days off, but couldn't. So I did the next best thing, went to work, tried to keep my germs mostly to myself and head straight to bed when I got home. It's hard to be productive and creative when your brain and body seem to be moving through oceans of vaseline.

One unexpected perk of being so sick, gorgeous flowers from my daughter one day!

Project 52 - Wk 7

We took a little field trip this week and ended up in a mini time machine. We'd heard there were still small meat markets nearby, in Wilber, Nebraska. Wilber is a charming little town that happily proclaims itself to be the Czech capital of the U.S.A. They host an annual festival that clogs the highways and swells the population of the area by thousands. Every one leaves with full tummies and lighter hearts full of music and ancestral pride.

Off "season" it's a modest little town with pretty facades and the most fabulously smoke scented air imaginable. Why? Well, Frank's Smokehouse is one reason. Close your eyes and imagine the best ever combination of wood smoke, cooking meat and spices and there you are. My apologies to vegetarians, this is carnivore country!

Although it's all about the meat here, there are some very cool pieces of kitchen equipment and that didn't come from some faux vintage kitchen kitch shop either. Check out that vintage coke machine. I'm guessing it's been in the shop for about 4o years. The old display cases remind me of the tiny general store in my grandma's little town when I was a kid. There's sausages of every description here, jerky, hocks... anything smoked you can imagine, I'll bet you'd find it.

We didn't get jerky this time, but we'll be back... this doesn't look anything like what's hanging near the check-out stand in WalMart. I don't think you'd see these guys in WalMart or Kroger either.

They also had some really good looking homemade bread and kolache. The smell of fresh bread and smoke in the air is almost criminal. I was wishing I hadn't just had breakfast when I spotted the kolaches. Kolaches? You never heard of kolaches? Fresh and still steaming up their bags. Almost made me wish I had a couple of kids at home to help eat up all the baked goods I wanted to buy. Not really, but almost! We did buy some smoked hocks (the Viking thinks it's time for some potato klub. We'll talk about that one later), some polish sausage, breakfast sausage, burgers and some Czech style potato dumpling that looks like a sausage thing to try. The butcher was cutting for fresh, gorgeous rib eye steaks for another customer, and we'll be back for some of those too!

One last thing that makes Frank's a totally unique little meat shop, is this little stash of hardware behind the register. At Franks, not only can you get meat and major sensory overload, you can also restock your ammo and buy a last minute anniversary gift for your man.

Splurging on Cats

We share our lives with four cats. Our oldest is either 16 or 18, we can't quite remember exactly when we got him. His name is Secret and there's a story that goes along with that. You'll meet Secret on another day. Then there's Franny, Shadow and Luna. Luna's the baby at only 4 years old. Since we've slipped from middle class (according to recent gov't figures middle class is a lower end income of $60,000 which we haven't seen since 2003) to lord knows what we are today, aisde from furry neon mice and catnip, the poor dears don't get too many extravagant treats. That changed today when the Viking got turned loose in a Super Target, on his own, for the first time!

Isn't this a fun kitty gym? It came in a small box and goes together like tinker toys. Shadow was sitting on the sidelines watching, silently snickering as only a cat can when watching clumsy humans trying to put something like this together.

Mere seconds after we put it in place, Shadow strolled over and hopped right it. She's usually the last one to get any treats and the first one to get clobbered, so I was happy she got to scent mark it first! She's very small and easily intimidated. The large red column hovers about half an inch off the ground, but she didn't care and settled right in. Secret made is way over and she stayed her ground, making him leave.
Next up was the most timid, Luna. She started at the far edge and sniffed her way around, investigating thoroughly. She discovered Shadow still inside ( see her gray back side in the cubby?) and she also backed off. Score again for Shadow!

Shadow eventually decided to give it up for a couple minutes and Luna thought she might try out the cubby. She tested it's stability with one paw tentatively touching the floor of the cubby. It swayed slight and she took off like a shot! We further embarrased her by laughing quite loudly.

Only Franny hasn't checked it out, she's too busy holding the bed in place. She's the Queen of the family, so who knows what will happen when she decides to use one of the perches as a throne. Today, they're all living like royalty, and thanks to Target, the Viking doesn't have to work 6 more hours to pay for it!

Spring Geese Migration

Spring is on the way! I saw two huge flocks of geese today, both heading north. I drive by a large rural pond on my way to work each day. This morning, the geese were in progress of just taking off as I went by. It was like being in a scene from The Birds. Amazing. Loud.

Then tonight, a second even larger flock was just passing over my home as I was approaching. There must have been thousands of them, hundreds of V formations in the sky. It's a wonderous thing to behold. This isn't my photo, but it could have been. I plan to have my camera out and ready to go on the seat beside me and maybe, if I'm lucky, I'll get my own shot to share. I love a sky full of flying Vs.

Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day! This lovely card is a 1907 Valentine postcard. The early 1900's were the height of holiday postcards with creative designs and original sentiment. I love the delicacy of this one. Although the celebration of a day set aside for love goes all the way back to medieval church celebrations (as it seems, all holidays do) the Valentine greeting card made it's first appearance in England during the 1840's.

By 1847, Valentines as we know them had jumped the pond and were becoming a successful business for Esther Howland of Worcester, Massachusetts. She is credited for being the first commercial producer of embossed paper lace. According to a Wikipedia article on Valentines, Her father operated a large book and stationery store, but Howland took her inspiration from an English valentine she had received.

Victorian era lover's embraced Valentine cards with the same over enthusiasm they did any other form of art and design, if a little decoration is good, lots more is lots better! They produced some truly magnificent, frothy designs with romantic imagery of doves, cupids, roses, the works. They had breathtaking pop-up cards that are often replicated today.

When I was in grade school, in the 1960's, it was a tradition to have Valentine's parties at school. The American idea of fairness demanded that every child get a Valentine, to avoid crushing little 7 year old spirits. I really disliked giving Valentines to pesky boys, but at least it gave me something to do with the Valentine cards I really didn't care for!

We had fun parties thanks to lucky stay at home Moms who volunteered to be Room Mothers. My own Mom was always a Room Mother, and she did make sure we had fun parties at school with pretty treats. One of the best parts in my memory of Valentine's Day was getting to turn an ordinary shoe box into a magnificent, gaudy, flashy Valentine mail box. Some kids, without shoe boxes, used milk cartons. It didn't matter, they were all things of beauty. I wonder if kids still do that, or has modern life run right over that little joy and kids now have pink plastic mailboxes? Or worse yet, no Valentine's day parties at all for some politically correct reason?

The Better Angels of Our Nature

Today marks the 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's birth. In years past, it's been relatively easy to overlook this date, especially since Lincoln's birthday and George Washington's birthdays got jumbled together into one observation, President's day, for the convenience of workers everywhere.

When did we become too busy, too modern, too thoughtless to allow for the recognition of these transcendent men on days of their own? When did the significant, but truly individual guidance of these men cease to have value on their own?

On this historical anniversary, take a moment to consider the life of Abraham Lincoln. He endures, not just for the way he met challenges in his career that had never before been faced. He endures, I believe, because we feel he remained like us; flawed but doing our best to forge ahead into the unknown, because to stop is unthinkable.

Look at this man, how a short four years of agonizing choices is plainly written on his face. The top photo was taken in 1861, thought to be the first photo of Lincoln as president. The second, taken in 1865, is the last known portrait before his death.

Today, spend a little time at the Smithsonian's online exhibit, Abraham Lincoln, An Extraordinary Life. Read some of the articles and commentary at CNN's From Lincoln to Obama pages.

Perhaps one day we'll recognize Obama as one of those better angels, that remains to be seen. It is enough today, to know that better angels of our nature have existed and will continue to exist, for humanity could not survive without them.

A Sign of the Apocalypse

I know the end of the world is actually nearing. I have an undeniable sign. See, I love chocolate desserts. Pies, cookies, cakes, mocha, brownies, if it's chocolate it's my number one pick. It's been since Christmas that I really indulged my sweet tooth in a big way, so when I saw a recipe entitled Baked Fudge on Pioneer Woman, I was revved up and ready to bake. Tonights dinner was going to end in warm, gooey chocolately goodness.
I followed the directions to the letter. I am an experienced baker and frequently go off the recipe, but I could tell this was one that I needed to stick to closely. I made the thick fudgy batter and loved the deep chocolate aroma. I had the ramekins in the waterbath, just as I should. The idea of breaking through a thin shell of a crust, to delve into warm chocolate heaven was almost unbearable.

The kitchen filled with that heady unmistakeable smell of baking chocolate. I whipped real cream into soft clouds, imagining how the cool creaminess would meld with the warm chocolate. I made some decaf, and knew the weekend would end on a high note.

I carefully eased my spoon through the crispy layer of crust, carefully loading my spoon with rich, gooey chocolate. I made sure I had a little whipped cream, to tease the tip of my tongue. It was going to be wonderful.

It wasn't. It was, well, way too much chocolate. I thought I must be wrong, took a sip of coffee and tried again. Ugh. I really didn't like the texture of the fudgy part. And it was still too sweet. This can't be. So I decided maybe I could salvage the night by just eating the super thin layer of crispy crust. Two more bites. It wasn't working.

How could this be? I've made several of PW's recipes and been happy with them all. Sinfully pleased with her chocolate sheet cake. Happily surprised with her weirdo Bacon Wrap Appetisers. Totally in love with Pastor Ryan's Spicy Orange FGarlic Shrimp . But this, this was just not fair. PW... I counted on you.

I finished off the whipped cream, drank the coffee and called it quits. It was unbelievable. The one and only chocolate dessert that I have rejected in 50 years.

I guess it's really not her fault, but that only leaves one other option. The world is coming to an end.

Project 52 #5 Yipes Stripes

Zebras in Nebraska? In Beatrice,Nebraska? Yes indeed! I'm not a local, so I don't know why they're here, but they are here. Along with several bison, llama, elk and donkeys. Which just goes to show, never say anything is impossible.

Little Joys

This is one of the little joys in my life. Notthing spectacular but, it makes me happy. I like rocks. They're all over my house. One of the best presents I received for Christmas this year was a bag of rocks. Pretty fancy rocks, but rocks all the same. Well, actually, crystals to be more exact. This is a large quartz formation from Arkansas. It's about 4 inches across, with lots of personality. There's some points with rainbow inclusions, some so incredibly small they barely qualify as points and then there are chunky fingers that reach out to grab you. The cluster is sitting on one of my honestly antique books that I love. Enough of worldly doom and gloom. Go find something in your home that brings you a little joy; then come back and tell me about it.