Fun For Me ... Music For You

Sorry, but I saw this and just laughed my head off!
I couldn't help but put it on here!

Here are the pictures from two weeks ago when I went to Paris, Mo to see this bridge.
What a marvelous day it was.
One of the best days I've ever had.
It's beautiful there.
The sound of the water fills your ears.
The wild flowers add a palette of color to the surroundings.
The air was fresh.
You can hear the wind rustling through the trees.
There were butterflies ... blue and yellow ...
There was shade to sit under, feel the grass underneath you and just soak it all in.
Just to close your eyes and enjoy each little individual sound, feeling, emotion and smile and just enjoy being there.

Here's the entrance to the bridge.

It isn't open to vehicles anymore ...
Only foot traffic and a few kids on bicycles.

Isn't it just beautiful?
I love the green of this picture.
It's so inviting to me.

In the two of these pictures I was trying to capture how the siding curves and waves along the side of the bridge.
I thought it was interesting.

I love these inside shots!
Look at the boards on the ceiling.
They're all peeling and it's just really neat looking up there.

If you look up to where these posts and boards are put together you'll notice the wooden joiners that were used.
I haven't seen that in a long time.

Here's a view of the arched trusses that were used.
And yes, you can see how marked up it is on the inside.
Even though the grafitti is unsightly,
hopefully you're able to look past it and just see the beauty of the bridge.

Here's a picture of the other side.

Here are some pictures of the bridge.
I like how the above picture is like looking through a tunnel and seeing the light on the other side.
What a beautiful place this was.

In this shot you can see the trusses and beams that make up the inside of the bridge.
I thought it was very interesting how everything was put together.

In these two shots you can see where part of the siding is missing on the outside.
While I'm sure it needs to be repaired in order to keep the bridge in sound shape, I also think that it adds character to the bridge.

Here are some pictures of the low water bridge going across the Salt River.
I can remember going camping with my family. I don't really remember where it was that we went, but I can remember there was a low water bridge like this that you drove across to get to the camping and swimming area.

I tried to capture some of the cascading water.
I love the sound of the water.
It fills my whole being with peace.

Can you hear it?
I can hear it.

Now, when I'm taking photographs I make it a rule to center what it is that I'm trying to capture in the picture. I do that on purpose because sometimes by the time you get home and edit your pictures you can't really remember what it was that caught your eye.

I tell you this in order to explain the two pictures below.
The first one is the original and the second one I edited to focus in on the rock.
According to what is centered in the original picture I was focusing on the texture contrast of the water swirling around the rock.

However,
Have you already noticed what's special about this rock?
I don't remember noticing it before until I was editing the picture.
The rock has a face.
It has a nose, a mouth, an eye, a forehead, cheek bone ... the whole rock is a head.

I think I will have to go back to this place just to find that rock again.
I can see in my mind right where I was standing when I took this picture.

Here are some pictures of the Salt River out at Union Covered Bridge.
I thought it was really pretty.

You can see the low water bridge that spans across for traffic to use.
Some people drove across slowly just causing ripples
and some people went across quickly making a pretty big splash.

There were some kids who came and were riding their bikes back and forth across the bridge.
It sounded like thunder!
It was very loud.

The kids also had a couple of nets they were using to catch minnows.
I didn't see any minnows when I was over there, but there must have been because they were catching something down there.

I'm a little late getting this posted, but I wanted to share with you a wonderful gift that I received from my blogging friend, North. She lives in Canada and here is what she sent me.

First, look at this cute package!!!!!
I loved it!

What was inside?
Let's look ....

There were two cards which she designed herself.
Aren't they goergeous??
One had the sweetest note inside of it addressed to me.

Here is a little heart that she made.
This will probably end up on my Christmas tree.

And knowing that I collect salt and pepper shakers ...
Check these out!!!!

These were from her own collection.

What cute cats!
I love the look on the black one's face!!!
He looks like he got caught doing somehting naughty!

And look at these little chefs!
How fabulous!

North,
These will always hold a special place in my heart because they are from a friend.
Thank you so much!!!!

One of my students just made my day!
Their mom came in after their lesson and brought me a potted yellow mum.
It has about 100 blooms on it and is just beautiful!

Thank you!

Just wanted to let you all know not to worry about me if I'm not posting as regularly as I have been in the past.

There's a lot going on here that I'm not discussing on the blog at the moment.

Just going to be very busy!

Keep coming back ... I'll be popping in.

My love to you all.

I played Benny the Banjo this afternoon out on the porch swing.
What a happy little instrument he is!

Tomorrow is music night in Hannibal and I'm looking forward to it.

Here's what I learned about hair today.

I have almost waist length straight hair.
My blazer has a sun roof that I just love and have open most of the time.
Today was such a nice day, it sprinkled earlier this morning and cooled things off.
As I was driving around town, I had the sun roof open and the windows down.
I had CCR in the cd player and was singing along.
My hair was blowing everywhere ... looked like I was caught in a whirlwind.
I had my sunglasses on though, so my hair wasn't whipping me in the eyes or anything.
And yes ... I could see to drive.
Anyway, I'm coasting along and singing when suddenly there was a gust of wind from the passenger side that blew my hair across my face and into my mouth.
Suddenly I found myself with a mouthful of hair and actually choked a little bit.
Dang!
That's never happened before.

So ...
The lesson learned ...
When you're going to be driving with the sun roof open and the windows down, tie your hair back so you don't choke on it.
Wow!

No, I'm not hurt ... I'm referencing the song by my beloved Johnny Cash.

I used to perform this song but haven't lately because I play the piano when I sing this one and I don't usually find myself where there is a piano available.

You talk about raw emotion. What a powerful song.

My Dad taught me that if you're going to sing or play a song, make it your own and do it with heart. I love this song. I loved it the first time I heard it. It made me cry. I was sitting in my living room watching the debut of the video on CMT.
---

I hurt myself today to see if I still feel.
I focus on the pain the only thing that's real.
The needle tears a hole the old familiar sting.
Try to kill it all away but I remember everything.

What have I become, my sweetest friend?
Everyone I know goes away in the end.
And you could have it all, my empire of dirt.
I will let you down, I will make you hurt.

I wear this crown of thorns upon my liar's chair.
Full of broken thoughts I can not repair.
Beneath the stain of time the feeling disappears.
You are someone else, I am still right here.

What have I become, my sweetest friend?
Everyone I know goes away in the end.
And you could have it all, my empire of dirt.
I will let you down, I will make you hurt.

If I could start again a million miles away.
I would keep myself, I would find a way.
I would find a way.

---

There are some who find this a depressing song.
Not me.
I find it to be a real song.

Who hasn't done things they would like to erase?
Who doesn't look back at something that could have been done differently?
Life tends to turn us into robots of ritual and habit.
Haven't we all wondered if we still feel?
Haven't we all changed over time?
Aren't we all afraid of being hurt by someone else?
Don't we all have broken thoughts buried somewhere?
Haven't you ever wished that you could start again?
Don't we all have barriers up to protect us?

I think we all do to some extent.
This song speaks to me.

Well, I had a pop tart and five fiber pills for breakfast.
I ate a spinach salad and I'm on my second cup of Postum.
So far, haven't gotten sick. There may be something to this ...

Well, I haven't got out a pencil and sketch pad in years. Really ... it's been about four or five years ago. Ran to Walgreens last night and bought a new sketch pad and some pencils and set to work on a couple of things. Want to see?

Here's my new sketch pad.

This was the first sketch that I started. It's just done VERY lightly in pencil. I had to edit the photo and darken it to get it to show up. As a general rule, I don't do people very well and it takes me forever to finish one. This one was headed in the right direction and I was pleased with the progress so far, so I stopped before I messed it up and started on another sketch.

I don't think I've posted the photos of the trip yet, but last week took photos of the Union Covered Bridge in Paris Missouri. This is a sketch of the bridge. I think I will be pleased with it when it is finished. Hopefully.

I prefer to sketch in black and white. I can have a black and white that I love and it just seems to ruin it when I add color to it. I've tried water color, water color pencils, colored pencils ... I just prefer the black and white.

Since my posts from yesterday about Elvis songs,
I've discovered that several of you are Elvis fans also.

You know, as a little girl I had several dreams for my life.
One was to own a zebra or two.
I've always been in love with zebras.
Life's not over yet ... maybe I'll get one before I die.

The other was that I would either marry Elvis or Clint Eastwood when I grew up.
I just knew they were waiting for me.
Elvis sang so wonderfully.
And Clint Eastwood was just down right cool.
If I'd had to pick between the two, I'm pretty sure it would have been Clint Eastwood.
He was a much better shot with a gun and wore that cool poncho.
And he had an evil eye like I do.
He's always been my hero.

What is a smore?
It is a sinnfully delicious chocolate treat to die for!!!!
That's what a smore is!!!!!

Supplies needed:
Graham Crackers
Marshmallows
Chocolate Bar
Toasting Stick or Fork

Directions:
Toast your marshmallow
Place chocolate and toasted marshmallow between two graham crackers.
Smash it together.
Your toasted marshamallow should melt your chocolate.

Warning:
They are very messy and very gooey.
But delicious!
If you are a chocolate lover ...
you will love smores!!!

I just sang "Burnin Love", by Elvis.

How fun!

Yes, I just found a bunch of Elvis lyrics on line.

Look out!!!

No, I don't "have" a fever ...

I've been "singing" Fever.

You know, the song.

My favorite version was by Elvis who is my favorite singer of all time.

Great song!

Well, I've been on this diet for a while, just eating small single portions. I've reached my goal and I'm trying to stop now, but my little body is rejecting food.

I decided this morning that if it doesn't get better in a few days, that I'm going to go to the doctor. There was a time in my younger part of life when I was anerexic. (Don't know if I have that spelling right) Anyway, don't want to end up there again.

A friend told me to take some fiber pills, so I gave that a try today with lunch and it seems to be working. I'll experiment with this for a few days before I decided if I'm going to the doctor or not.

Wish me luck!!

I just ate lunch. I had half a turkey sandwich, half an avocado and some fresh raw spinach.

Mmmm!

If you ever want to say that you love me, just hand me an avocado!

If you already read the post below this one and it was before 11:04 ...
read it again because I kept editing it and adding to it.

I'm done now.

:)

You know, I'm sitting here singing some of these old, old country songs and so many things are going through my mind as I do so.

Like ...
running moonshine.
You know ... from the still hidden somewhere safe.

I just have to chuckle because although it's never been verified verbally ...
I'm pretty sure some of my relatives on my Dad's side down in Beamin' Holler, Missouri participated in such activities. I will have to question my Dad about this.
I can remember my grandpa having one of those big ... and I mean big ... ceramic jugs with a handle and cork that he kept out in his black smithing shop. He'd crook that finger through the little loop of a handle, swing that jug up onto his shoulder and take a "swig" he called it. I wonder if that jug survived and where it is today?

Beamin' Holler is located close to the border of Missouri and Arkansas. Out in the middle of nowhere. Hills, hills, hills and more hills. Both of my grandparents on the Williams side are buried out there. I sure do miss them.

To this day the smell of a forge being fired up is such a comforting smell to me. I love it. It reminds me of good times. When we played for The Battle of Athens a few weeks ago there was a black smith there and I really enjoy that.

My grandfather used to let me melt metal, I banged on all sorts of stuff with that hammer of his and I always watched him working. I also got to crank the handle that flamed the fire. It was fun!! The shaping of metal was interesting to me. Still is.

Hmmm ...
Maybe I should try it sometime and see what I can make?
Might be interesting.

I think a man standing at an anvil in an apron with a hammer in his hand is very sexy. Would that hold true for me? A girl? A girl at an anvil in an apron with a hammer in her hand? I guess it would just depend on how much I was sweating and if my makeup stayed on.

That does it! I want a workshop!!!!

I'm spending all of my free time today with my guitar and singing. I've needed to work up some new songs for Ely and I have several in my book that I haven't written out the chords for yet.

So far I've worked up my own version of I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry. Watch out ... it's a tear jerker!!!!

And I got the rest of the lyrics for Down to the River to Pray and wrote out the chords for it. I'm getting ready right now to sing it and make sure I got it right.

Oh, and I need to tab out Squirrel Heads and Gravy for Doug. I'd better do that right now before I forget.

Look at these pictures!
Aren't they just marvelous??

A friend of mine who knows that I am a bird watcher showed me something that I've never seen before. A dove sitting on a nest.

It's so beautiful. Look at that face.
I was so excited to get to see this and have pictures on top of that!

I was surprised at the lack of nesting material that was used. How do the babies keep from falling out? Hmmm ...
What do baby doves look like?
I've never seen them before.

I espeically like that piece of rope hanging down from the nest.

One of my students was at piano lesson on Monday and was telling me about some of his science experiments that he's been doing. He also has a friend who comes over and they do these together just for fun. My student is 7 or 8 years old.

He was telling me about mixing baking soda and vinegar. His favorite thing to do it blowing up plastic soda bottles. His most used technique is mixing the baking soda and vinegar ... shaking it up ... and then throwing it. It was quite interesting hearing him tell it and seeing how excited he was about it.

He said that if you use a wine bottle, the cork will shoot off just like a rocket. He told me the best technique for the wine bottle is to dig a hole in the ground to sit the bottle in so that the cork goes straight up.

Now here's one for you ...
Mentos Candy.

The recipe:

A two liter bottle of soda and an entire roll of Mentos Candy.
Open the bottom of the roll and let all of the candy drop in at once.
Run.
He said that it just takes a few seconds for it to react by shooting up like a fountain.
Sounds very cool to me. I'm going to have to try it!

I found this and it cheered me up!!!!!

Sing along!

Born on a mountain top in Tennessee,
Greenest state in the land of the free.
Raised in the woods so's he knew every tree,
Killed him a bear when he was only three.

Davy, Davy Crockett King of the Wild Frontier.

Fought single handed through the Injun war,
Till the Creeks was whipped and peace was restored.
And while he was handling this risky chore,
Made himself a legend, forevermore.

Davy, Davy Crockett the man who don't know fear.

He went of to Congress and served a spell
Fixin' up the government and laws as well.
Took over Washington, I heard tell,
And patched up the crack in the Liberty Bell.

Davy, Davy Crockett, seein' his duty clear.

When he come home, his politickin' was done,
While the western march had just begun.
So he packed his gear, and his trusty gun
And let out a grinnin' to follow the sun.

Davy, Davy Crockett, Leadin the Pioneer.

Well, I deleted this post once in hopes I'd have something else to say before the day was over, but it doesn't look like that is going to happen. So I'm rewriting this one.

I'm having a blue day today.
Just have a lot of things on my mind.

Even took a walk to try to clear my head, but that didn't work.

Did some writing to clear my head ... that didn't work either.

Tried to think of something else ... that didn't work.

Tried to ignore it ... that didn't work.

So here I am, sad. With nothing I can do about it.

Woke up at 3:30 this morning and couldn't go back to sleep.
Got up at 4:30 and watched Gunsmoke.
Went back to bed and laid there awake until I got up.
Cleaned out the frig ... that didn't work.

Did dishes ... that didn't work.

Taught lessons ... that didn't work.

Played with my dog ... that didn't work either.

Called my mom ... that didn't work.

Talked to my son Tom ... that didn't work.

Talked to my son Chris ... that worked a little. We both "vented" about life at the moment and understood where the other one was coming from. He actually cheered me up for a little bit but it didn't last long after we hung up. He gave me some advice ... I gave him some advice. Then we'll both do what we want. That's how it works, isn't it?

I do have lip gloss on though. My lips are very pretty at the moment. Just depressed and frowning.

I miss my music friends.

There's nothing on tv.

I teach until 8:00pm and then I'll probably just go to bed.
Might as well lay there in the dark and be depressed, right?

Oh, I'll feel better tomorrow.

Anyone have any good "cheer em up" powers??

I've been practicing my piano jazz chords and I can now move them up and down the keyboard chromatically. It takes a lot of concentration and visualization to do it, but hey!

But now I have to go clean out the frig and do the dishes. Play time is over.

I just sat at the piano and heard my first 17359 chord.
Oh my gosh!
I can't quite move it up the keyboard yet, but I'll get it there.
What a great sound!

Thank you, Bill!!!

My friend George, from Monday night jam session is wanting us all to post our potato cake recipes so we can all try it different ways.
So ...
I'm enlisting everyone's help. Please post your recipe and let's see what we come up with.
I'll post mine in the comments section as well in just a little bit.

Thanks!

And now, it's 11:00pm on Monday night and I need to go to bed.
But first, must dance.

Good night to you, and I hope that you dance in your dreams.

Hello there everyone! I hope that you all are doing well. I just got home from the Hannibal session. We were a bit of a thin group this evening, but we still made some good music.

Let's see who was there ... Larry on fiddle and guitar ... Chris on tenor banjo ... Ian on guitar ... Lisa on fiddle ... Don on bass ... Jeanie just listened tonight ... Andrew on banjo and mandolin ... Sondra on banjo and mandolin ... me fiddle and tenor banjo ... Joann on whistle ... Dwain on guitar ... Dave on guitar ... Sarah on bass and whistle ... Dale on guitar ... Robert on fiddle ... Tony on flute, whistle and fiddle ... Kevin on percussion ... Rob on percussion ... John on guitar ... Wade on percussion ... the two drummer girls ... and I think that's it for musicians.

Tonight was Andrew's birthday. Happy birthday!!!!!

I was glad to see Dwain, we missed him last week. We hadn't seen Robert in what seems like a long time either. I was glad to see Kevin there ... missed him last week.

Kevin noticed that I've lost weight. That was nice! I've been working hard at it, but I've lost all I care to loose. I hope to just stay where I'm at right now.

I missed Doug, Beverly, Clayton, Elizabeth (where are you?), Bill, Ned, Fred, Paul, Evelyn H, Charlie, Harry and Ellen, Sarah on tambourine and anyone else who was missing.

Evelyn and Bob had family with them tonight and I got to meet their son, daughter and grandson. Noel and Mary Jo were there and Suzie. Lydia and Maddie and Wade's son. LA stopped in for a few minutes. Melanie stopped in for Andrew's birthday surprise and then went back to sewing club. She had four ladies there this evening. Dale and Adam were there and Michelle. I think that covers everyone in the audience that I knew.

Adam took me for a ride in his new mustang convertible. Wow! I was surprised at what a smooth ride it was. The 90's version of mustang rode terribly. Way too bumpy. I figured these new ones had the looks without the handling. Wrong. What a smooth ride! It was also very roomy inside. For those who don't know who Adam is, I've told you about him before. He's 15 and one of the best guitar players that I know. I told him tonight that, as a teacher, I consider him gifted and don't ever want him to quit playing. I sang with him for a while and we could get some good blues going.

My dream car is a 72 metallic emerald green mustang convertible. Oh baby!! Maybe I'll have one some day.

There was a construction crew there this evening and one of them is learning the five string banjo. I invited them to go out to Ely on Thursday and meet some of the banjo players out there, but I don't know if they are or not. He said that he's just learning.

George was there and wants me to post my potato cakes recipe. I will, but I'm also going to get Merle's as well. It would be interesting to see if we all do it differently. Mmmm ... potato cakes!

I talked to Thelma for just a little bit. She is so sweet. I'm just thrilled to have her and John coming to session.

Don and Jeanie invited me to come and eat some bread sticks with them, but I got side tracked by a piano player. Sorry guys.

We met a man while playing street music on Sunday who is a jazz pianist and organist. Oh my, would I ever love to listen to him play. He came to session tonight and gave me a jazz piano lesson that I'm going to work on tomorrow morning. He invited me to come and sit in on a set with the band, but there's no way I can do that just yet. I told him what they taught me when I studied jazz piano in college and a few seminars. He told me to forget all of that and he showed me what to do. So here we are, the two of us sitting at a table, pretending to play the piano so I can see how to place my fingers the right way. Our hands moving up and down the keyboard in half steps, pretending to reach up for the black keys and back down again for the white keys ... making our shoulder movements ... moving up and down the table just like we would the piano keys. We got a few "looks", but who cares!!! It was fun!! He taught me the "17359" method and he says that's all I need to know to get going. Bill Morrison is his name and I sure hope that he comes back and teaches me some more!!!! I'll let you know how my practicing goes.

Well, I'm tired and headed to bed. It was a long weekend. Street music on Friday, Saturday and Sunday and played with Ely Sunday afternoon and evening. I let myself get dehydrated and I'm trying to recoup. I'm still not up to par, but getting there.

Hope you all had a great Monday and those who were missing know that you were missed and hope you're back next week.

Until then ...

Always remember to forget
The things that made you sad.
But never forget to remember
The things that made you glad.

Love you all!

I was just over at Merle's blog and she was talking about potato cakes.
Oh my gosh!
I love those things!
I haven't had any in forever.
Well ... more like twelve years!
Mmmmm!
They sure sound good.

Anyone else like potato cakes?

Okay ...
I did a no no.

I'm writing this post two days after the fact, which means there is most likely something or someone that I will forget. Please accept my apologies now. You know I love you all!!

Let's see ...

Where to start ...

(imagine the wavy vision they have on tv when looking back in time)

wavy ... wavy ... wavy ... wavy ...

----
----
----

Well, I left the Quincy session early at 8:00 and got to Ely early. I don't know if anyone noticed that or not but I was eager to get there!

I just love this group of people. They are so sweet, genuine, fun, inspiring, funny, comical, mouthy ( I fit right in) and I find myself just looking forward to seeing them and playing music
all week. Here it is only Saturday night and I'm sitting here missing them all.

Anyway ...

First thing when I got there here came Little Jessie with his fiddle. Now Jessie ... in case you're reading this ... I know you're not little. This is just how I'm telling the difference between you and the other Jessie. Less confusion ...

Anyway, here he came! He played everything for me that I gave him to work on last week and did it so well!!!! I was so proud of him! I asked him if he would like to learn to read notes as well as play by ear and he said yes, so I loaned him one of my books to study from. We went over the first few pages together and assigned him some to work on. Before he left that night, he already had part of it memorized!! I think he's motivated!! That's awesome!

Then I saw Kyle. Kyle has his driver's permit and he let me look at it. We always just got a sheet of paper with a form on it that we had to carry in our wallets and purses to show that we were legal to practice driving. Now they actually get a regular ID, just like a driver's license. It was awesome! Of course, he covered up his weight so I'm not quite sure how much he weighs, but he had a great picture! I told him that if he was going to cover up his weight, he probably ought to cover up his age too. That's what I would do if I were showing him mine!!!
He did!
He is so funny!!!

Kyle,
are you listening?
You and I have a date to sing next time. I have a ton of gospel in my book and I love singing with you.

Let's see, then I offered to give Dorothy a fiddle lesson, but she didn't need one.

I met Ellis for the first time.
I sure hope that I spelled that right!
I've seen him there before but we hadn't officially introduced ourselves to eachother. What a sweetheart! He also has his driver's permit and showed me his. He had a great picture too. I found out that he used to play the saxophone. We have that in common. I haven't played mine in so long I've probably forgotten how to even blow in it. I'm serious! It was a year ago that I picked up my Irish Whistle for the first time and now all I play are the whistle, fiddle, mandolin, tenor banjo and my guitar. Well, of course the piano and organ ...
Anyway, we talked about saxophones for a little bit and then I went to play my fiddle.

So, who was there? Let's see ... Ashely ... Bill ... Dorothy ... Doug ... Jessie ... Patty ... Del ... Deann ... Jim ... William ... Little Jessie ... Me ... Danny ... Peggy ... Wes ... Lorri ... Dick ... Allan ... Greg ... Don ... Jeanie ... Wes Jr ... Anita ... Bert ... I think Dan was there ... John ... Kyle ... Bert's husband ... Ellis ... and I'm sure there were others whom I have left off and there were some there that I didn't know.

Everyone mentioned to me how quick Doug is learning the tenor banjo. I really enjoy playing with Doug. He's learning the fiddle and the banjo so fast that he inspires me. He's doing very well. I gave him some new music that he can work on if he wants. I didn't give it to anyone else so I'll probably end up in trouble. Yikes!

William had been working on his van and had just gotten it fixed that day. I forget where he was headed, but I think they had a show to go to this weekend.

Little Jessie listened to us playing. It won't be long until he is right in there with us. I told him that I'd have some new music for him to work on next time.

Danny let me play one of his guitars while I was singing. That man has NICE guitars. Wow!

Lorri and I sang Walkin After Midnight together.

Dick told me quite a little story about John and Wes!!!!
You'll never know!

Allan has just about mastered Soldier's Joy on his mandolin. I was watching him when he didn't know it and he was doing great!

You know, I just thought of another reason I like it so much out here. No one tries to out do anyone ... we just all play together and have fun. I really enjoy that.

Don had his little uke banjo with him. It was SO cute!!!! SO little!!!!

Anita played The Chicken Reel with me on her harmonica. Awesome, girl!!!! I would probably only last about three seconds on the harmonica before I was out breath and turning red. She just goes and goes and goes. She plays wonderfully.

Bert showed me the lyrics to I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry and now I've been singing that all weekend. It has a wonderful chord progression that is just so sad! But beautiful!!!
Maybe we can sing it together?

And then there was John. When you get John, Doug and I in there on our fiddles, they sound so good together. John doesn't mind me drifting off into harmony and I love doing that. Sometimes I can make it sound good and sometimes I flop but it's fun anyway.

I saw Kyle playing the banjo that night. He plays the guitar too. Does he play the mandolin? I can't remember. All I know is he told me that he only hangs out with cute girls, so since he was hanging out with me for a little bit, I could assume I'm cute!!!!!
Whew Hoo!!!!!!
I'm cute!

You know, a girl just needs to hear that every once in a while.

Well, I appear to have gone on and on and on and on ...
I know I've left something out.

I was going to take the telescope but it was cloudy all day so I didn't. It ended up being pretty clear and there were lots of stars.
Oh well.

I'll wrap it up.
Love you all!!!!

What a day!

Got up at 8:30.

There are some bushes and vines in front of the house that were totally infested with aphids to the point that it all was dying. Got all of it cut up, pulled out and thrown away. Now I just have to figure out what's going to go there in it's place.

Sondra and I played street music in Hannibal today. It was the Huck Finn Festival and there were quite a few people there. The bad part is we had to stand in the sun for the first hour and nearly baked on that concrete. "Mark Twain" came to give a speech so we took the opportunity to escape and go find some shade. We went to our favorite bench by Java Jive and played for half an hour. The shade felt wonderful!

Charlie, my 99 year old fiddle judging friend came to listen to me play my fiddle today. I was afraid that I would be nervous ... he REALLY looks you over when you're playing, but I wasn't at all. I was glad to see him and just had fun with him. He clapped and whooped ... I danced while I played ...he told me that my playing has improved a lot. That means a lot coming from him. He's a treasure! He asked me today to drive him to a bluegrass festival in Columbia, MO. It just happens to be during Old Threshers in Shelbina and I had to tell him that I couldn't. He drives ... it's just too far for him to go on his own anymore. He and I do have a date for the Hannibal Bluegrass Festival though. If he's still driving, I'm just supposed to look for him when I get there to say hello. If he's no longer driving, I'm supposed to pick him up and take him with me. Would be my pleasure!

I gave him two hugs today. He claims I'm his inspiration and that hug gets him through the whole week! Yes ... I'm sure he gives his best smile and uses that line on ALL of the girls. I bet we all fall for it too!!!!!

Yes, he told a joke and made me blush today. He said loud enough for everyone to hear that I'm beautiful when I blush. That man! Then he found himself in trouble and thought he'd better leave before he got into anymore trouble.

Then Sondra and I went back up to the museum complex and played in the heat for the rest of our time. It was miserable. My fiddle had sweat all over it. Her banjo had sweat all over it. My poor guitar! Her poor mandolin. Nothing would stay in tune today in the heat. We tuned about every three songs or so.

But we made it! We were wilted and lifeless ... but we made it. Boy were we ever glad to get into the blazer and turn that air conditioning on! Whew!

Yes, I stank AGAIN.
But I showered.
I smell better now.
I'm all "girly" again.

That was my day.

I hope that you had a good one too!

I'm smelling much better now!

What a day it has been today.

After my late night at Ely, I slept in until 9:00. Did my Thai Chi, danced a little bit.

Ironed my music clothes and then Sondra and I went to play street music in Hannibal for a few hours today.

When we were finished I went into the Dry Goods store and got my ritual bottle of coke that I get every time. It's my reward when we're finished. It was ice cold and delicious!

I drove over to one of the water front parks across the river from Hannibal and sat for a little bit before I went home. It had a good view of Hannibal and a fabulous view of the light house. I didn't have the camera (it's out of batteries at the moment) but I will return and take some pictures.

It was a nice little park. I just sat there and listened to the waves gently lapping against the shore line. I watched a Kingfisher hunting and catching fish. They are very efficient little hunters!

I must have sat there for half an hour just thinking and listening.

I took a nap when I got home. I needed one. It was short ... just 30 minutes ... but it was just what I needed.

I just got back from playing street music in Hannibal. It was a scorcher today! Very humid! Very hot! And boy ... do I ever need a shower!!!!!

There weren't very many people out and about on the streets today.
Saturday is the Huck Finn Festival, so I hope there will be more people tomorrow.
We're going to play down at the Huck Finn House for at least an hour tomorrow.
Maybe more.

Today there were two couples across the street listening to us play. One of the guys was dancing while he was listening and he motioned for me to dance too.
So I did!
Here I am playing rhythm on my guitar and dancing away!!!
He passed us again later and left $10 for us in the case.
He was very sweet.
Made our day.
Oh yes, and he danced for us some more when he passed by the second time.
He was probably in his late 60's to early 70's or so.

We saw some babies.
It's interesting how the 0-2 year olds react to the music and the instruments.
They're captivated.
Some of them will sit there and listen and watch for a long time.
And they smile at us.
So cute!

Then we have our "regulars" who work in the shops or live above them who come out and thank us for the music.
(So far ... no one has complained and tried to run us off.)

It's very sad ... this is our last weekend of street music.

:(

It's been a lot of work,
It's been hot,
But it has been a lot of fun.
We've met a lot of people.
Played a lot of music.
Gotten pretty good at a few of them.
It's been a great experience for us both.

I am tired today after spending the day at the Union Covered Bridge, then music at La Gondola and then Ely yesterday.

But it's a good tired.
I may take a shower and then a quick nap.
Or not.

Must wash my music outfit before I wear it again.
Whew!!!

I have several posts to get in ...
Before Kyle comes to hunt me down!!!!

I'm getting there!
I'm getting there!

My love to you all!

Here is a post from my friend's blog ... thank you Pasadena!!!
Anyway, I thought it was quite funny and wanted to share it with my friends!!!
Enjoy!!


Story Of Elijah
The Sunday school teacher was carefully explaining the story of Elijah the Prophet and the false prophet of Baal. She explained how Elijah built the altar, put wood upon it, cut the steer in pieces, and laid it upon the altar. And then, Elijah commanded the people of God to fill four barrels of water and pour it over the altar. He had them do this four times.

“Now,” said the teacher, “can anyone in the class tell me why the Lord would have Elijah pour water over the steer on the altar?”

A little girl in the back of the room started waving her hand, “I know! I know!” she said, “To make the gravy!”


Lot’s Wife
The Sunday school teacher was describing how Lot’s wife looked back and turned into a pillar of salt, when little Jason interrupted, “My Mummy looked back once, while she was driving,” he announced triumphantly, “and she turned into a telephone pole!”


Good Samaritan
A Sunday school teacher was telling her class the story of the Good Samaritan, in which a man was beaten, robbed and left for dead. She described the situation in vivid detail so her students would catch the drama. Then, she asked the class, “If you saw a person lying on the roadside, all wounded and bleeding, what would you do?”

A thoughtful little girl broke the hushed silence, “I think I’d throw up.”


Did Noah Fish?
A Sunday school teacher asked, “Johnny, do you think Noah did a lot of fishing when he was on the Ark?”

“No,” replied David. “How could he, with just two worms?”


Higher Power
A Sunday school teacher said to her children, “We have been learning how powerful kings and queens were in Bible times. But there is a higher power. Can anybody tell me what it is?”

One child blurted out, “Aces!”


Moses and The Red Sea
Nine-year-old Joey, was asked by his mother what he had learned in Sunday school. “Well, Mom, our teacher told us how God sent Moses behind enemy lines on a rescue mission to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. When he got to the Red Sea, he had his army build a pontoon bridge and all the people walked across safely. Then, he radioed headquarters for reinforcements. They sent bombers to blow up the bridge and all the Israelites were saved.”

“Now, Joey, is that really what your teacher taught you?” his mother asked.

“Well, no, Mom. But, if I told it the way the teacher did, you’d never believe it!”


The Lord Is My Shepherd
A Sunday school teacher decided to have her young class memorize one of the most quoted passages in the Bible: Psalm 23. She gave the youngsters a month to learn the verse. Little Ricky was excited about the task…but he just couldn’t remember the Psalm. After much practice, he could barely get past the first line.

On the day that the kids were scheduled to recite Psalm 23 in front of the congregation, Ricky was so nervous. When it was his turn, he stepped up to the microphone and said proudly, “The Lord is my Shepherd, and that’s all I need to know.”
**********

Sunday after church, a Mom asked her very young daughter what the lesson was about.

The daughter answered, “Don’t be scared, you’ll get your quilt.”

Needless to say, the Mom was perplexed. Later in the day, the paster stopped by for tea and the Mom asked him what that morning’s Sunday school lesson was about.

He said, “Be not afraid, thy comforter is coming.”
**********

Church Smiles
There was a very gracious lady who was mailing an old family Bible to her brother in another part of the country. “Is there anything breakable in here?” asked the postal clerk.

“Only the Ten Commandments,” answered the lady.
**********

While driving in Pennsylvania, a family caught up to an Amish carriage. The owner of the carriage obviously had a sense of humor, because attached to the back of the carriage was a hand printed sign…

“Energy efficient vehicle: Runs on oats and grass.
Caution: Do not step in exhaust.”
**********

There is the story of a pastor who got up one Sunday and announced to his congregation: “I have good news and bad news. The good news is, we have enough money to pay for our new building program. The bad news is, it’s still out there in your pockets.”
**********
And finally here's a little poem to live by...I know most of my blogfriends already live by this message:

Give me a sense of humor, Lord,
Give me the grace to see a joke,
To get some humor out of life,
And pass it on to other folk.

I just checked on my spearmint stems and leaves that I dried and pressed. I think they are ready to come out, but I'm going to leave them there just a little bit longer before I put them away in my treasure box.

They smell SO good!!!!

Here are some of the exhibits that were at the Cannon House.

I always find exhibits like this interesting

Here's a spinning wheel.

And a four poster bed!
How cool is that!

Here's one of the boards they had set up showing pictures of the village and houses as they used to look. Athens was quite a busy village at one time.

Even though this looks like just a regular piece of furniture being used to exhibit flyers, I recognized it immediately as a piano.
Oh, if I could get my hands on that baby and have it restored!
You can't really tell in this picture, but it's very ornate and just wonderful.

I'm not really sure just what this is, but it's some kind of farming equipment.
Anyone know?

Here's an old upright piano.

Now we're getting into some of the old photographs of the village and things surrounding it.

Here's one of the ferry that crossed the Des Moines River.

Here's a shot of the board.

Here's another ...

Here's a picture of the ruins of the Athens Mill. If you scroll down you'll read all about our adventure there.

More houses ...

Another shot of the ferry ...

A view of the board ...

Here are some flowers that we found on our adventure walk down the the ruins of the mill.

Aren't they pretty?

Here we are on Sunday playing at The Battle of Athens near Kahoka, Mo.

There's Sondra ...

There I am ...

There's Danny ...

There's Doug ...

And there we are all together ...

Sondra and I both woke up that morning thinking of the hot dogs and home made ice cream that would be waiting for us when we got there!!!

Mmm ....

Over the weekend of August 5th and 6th Sondra and I played music for The Battle of Athens out near Kahoka, Mo. Saturday Sondra and I played alone from 10:30 to 4:30 and then on Sunday we were joined by Doug and Danny from Ely from 10:30 to 4:00.

Saturday we played all day right next to the exhibit booths but on Sunday they asked us to also go down and play at The Cannon House where there were some historic exhibits.

When we got down there, we decided to take a break and follow a path. We didn't know where it was going to lead, but it was just too tempting not to go. We thought we could see a pond and I grabbed the camera and off we went.

Here's what we found.

We walked down a pretty steep brushy path and found the Athens Mill Ruins. Very cool and what a surprise!

You can see the foundations walls and that's about all that's left of it now. It was interesting to look at it and try to imagine what it was like when it was a working mill.

Here's a better shot of the wall and the stone work.

Here's a close up.

See that water? At this point we're still thinking it's a pond.

Surprise!
It's the Des Moines River!!!
It was beautiful!
So peaceful.

See the sand bars?
It was so tempting to walk out there and stand in the middle of the river on one of those sand bars. The next time I'm there, I think I'm going to just do that!
I definitely want to go back.

It was such a beautiful day!
I could have just stayed right there and enjoyed this for hours.

I don't know if it was this shallow all the way across at this point or not. I will experiment next time and see what I can find out.

Doesn't the picture below just make you want to jump right in?
It does me!!!

And last but not least ... I thought this was a great shot of the reflection of the trees on the water. I love the beauty of nature. I can actually feel a physical reaction to it. A feeling of peace and calm.

Think along with me.
There are endless trails of thought we can explore -
From memory's little garden paths
Close by our own heart's door.
Off to the highest distant hills
With vistas wide and far -
Beyond today's horizons
To the future's farthest star.
The whole enchanted land of thought
Lies waiting, wide and free!
Let's go exploring - take my hand
And think along with me.

Helen Lowrie Marshall

PS I came back to edit and add the author's name. I left it off the first time and I think you may have mistakenly thought it was one of mine. Not this time!!

Sunday afternoon after playing street music I went to a gas station and changed clothes and headed out to Brush Creek. The Ely group was playing for an icecream social and fund raiser.
Here are some shots of the group. Hopefully Blogger won't mix them all up on me ...

Here's one of the guys. I snuck off during Doug's banjo solo and took a couple of pictures.
We played under a nice shade tree and it was very fun. There was a nice breeze.

There's John and me on fiddles and you can see the back of Dougs' head as he's playing the tenor banjo.

There's John of the fiddle and Jessie on the banjo.

Little Jessie.
He just started playing the fiddle a couple of weeks ago and he was wishing that he was playing along with us. Between John, Doug and myself we'll have him playing along with us in no time at all. You're day will come ... and it will be soon.

There's Doug playing the fiddle.

There's Jessie on the banjo and I think that's Dick with his back to us.

There's Danny on the guitar.
He's also the ever faithful sound system manager!
Thank you Danny!!!!!

Here's the girls.
This is Bert in the white and Lorri in the lavendar.
They're singing away!

There's John and I playing fiddles together.

I'm a little blurry, but there I am!!

There's Allan on the mandolin.

There's Jim on guitar.

There's Doug playing his banjo solo.

There's Wes on the banjo!

Danny and Wes both looking very serious!!

Here's a group shot.
You can't see everyone, sorry about that.
I also didn't get one single shot of Del and his banjo.
Sorry if I missed anyone else!


I absolutely love playing with this group.
They are a great group of guys and gals.
Thanks for letting me play along with you all!

When we were finished Doug, Little Jessie and I got out my new two way radios and gave them a try. Doug headed out into the cememtery and Jessie and I headed out around the pond, which I was told was actually a sewage lagoon, but it didn't smell bad and we didn't jump in or anything. We followed the path that led around it ... Jessie led the way. The radios seemed to work fairly well. A good use of $10!! (And so far no poison ivy!!)

After we all three met up at the church, Jessie took one and headed out to the road. I drove him nuts with things like, "Are you there yet?" "Can you hear me now?" "Are you lost?" "Did you miss your turn?" "Are you there yet?" Yes, I was annoying! The radios worked fine except when he forgot to push the button. When he got back we all headed home.

Brush Creek Catholic Church turned out to be a historical property. It was ran by the first African American Priest. I will have to do some research and interviews and let you know what I find out.

Ya-hoo!!!
What a session!
I would have to characterize tonight's session as fabulous!
I had looked forward to cutting loose all day today.
From the way the others were playing and acting ... I'd say that they were too!
It was fast, but relaxed at the same time.
You talk about a wonderful way to relieve stress ... this is it!!!!
Just play all of your cares away!
Bye bye!
Adios!

Let's see, shall I try to make my way around the circle?
As always ... please don't be hurt if you're left out.
It wasn't on purpose!

Chris on tenor banjo and fiddle ... Andrew on fiddle and mandolin ... Sondra on tenor banjo and mandolin ... Joann on Irish whistle ... Tony on Irish whistle, flute and fiddle ... Ava on fiddle and tenor banjo ... Doug on tenor banjo, mandolin and fiddle ... Larry on fiddle and mandolin ... Lisa on fiddle ... Fred on guitar ... John on guitar ... Dave on guitar ... Charlie observing and giving us pointers ... Wade on percussion ... Clayton on five string banjo ... Rob on percussion ... Don on bass ... Sarah on Irish whistle ... Ian on guitar ... Dale on guitar ... Paul on whistle and that's all I can remember.

Chris was not feeling well. I don't know what we'd do without him there. I hope that he's feeling better very soon.

Tony is really doing well on his fiddle.

Doug played I think it was four songs on the fiddle this evening. I know it was at least three. He did great!

I was happy to see John and Thelma there again. He borrowed some Stones Rag music to work on. That man can play a mean Pig Ankle Rag on his guitar. I wish Chris would let him play it for him sometime. I was very impressed!

We hadn't seen Clayton in a LONG time. I was glad to see him there.

I remember how scary it was to be learning at the session. It's still scary for me at times, but not like it is when you're new to the group and trying to learn everything at once. Power to you all who are working so hard on your music. Keep it up!

When I'm practicing at home, I tend to be quite vocal when I can't keep a tune going. I found myself doing lots of "venting" this evening. I even stomped my feet once in frustration, then looked up and saw Clayton grinning at me. I'll have to remember where I am!!! I used to throw pencils when I was practicing piano. A few years ago when I was studying piano performance in college, I would yell at my music. The kids would ask, "Are you practicing again?". Sometimes it's either vent or cry about it. I'd rather vent although crying does happen periodically.

:)

In the audience were Jeannie, Bill, Sam, Evelyn and Bob, Harry and Ellen, Noel and Mary Jo brought a whole group of family and friends with them. It was their son's birthday so we sang happy birthday to him. Lydia and Maddie were there with some friends. And Thelma.

I missed Beverly, Dwain, Dale and Adam, Kevin, Robert, Ned, Gracie, Evelyn H, George, Sarah's tambourine, her wonderful smile and her drum section.

Here's a bit of "gossip" for you all.
Charlie used to date Thelma's Aunt. How cute is that! They were both in their 90's!!!

I drank too much Dr. Pepper tonight and got a stomach ache. The "rumbly" kind. Great!!!

I met a family who were there from St. Louis. Their ten year old daughter was just beginning fiddle lessons. They asked me to give her some pointers so I spent a little time with her and showing her how to hold the bow and stuff. Her mother said that her family used to get together and play stuff like we play and she loved it. It's always nice to meet new people who appreciate what you're trying to do. It makes it more fun ... and you get to show off a little!!!!
(No, not me!! I'd never do that!)

Lisa was playing her new fiddle.

I got to sit by Larry a little while. That man just inspires me! I could listen to him play all day. He doesn't know it, but I learned a few things just listening to him tonight.

Oh, here's some excitement! I felt something on my arm. I held my arm up and rubbed it and a black spider ran into my sleeve and down my back!!! Dang!!! I'm serious!!!! I caught it right at the top of my pants before it went any further. Of course, I'm freaking out but trying to look cool. I was afraid it was going to bite me since I was holding it like that, but it didn't that I felt. I'm sure I would have felt it if it had. I had to go into the bathroom to get it out of my pants. I don't know where it came from, but I was glad to get rid of it!!!!

Well, I think that's the end of my story. It's 10:30 and I still have to do 15 minutes of Thai Chi and dance just a little before bed.

It was a great ending for the day. I feel better and the music was wonderful. Thanks to everyone who made it a great evening.

Until next week ...

May you live as long as you want,
And never want as long as you live.

An interesting thing happened to me this afternoon. I was walking out to get the mail and noticed three teenaged boys on bikes parked and hanging out across the street. They weren't bothering me at all, but I could tell by the looks that they gave eachother that they thought I was headed out there to talk to them. I said hello and they seemed quite surprised when I stopped at the mailbox and didn't go on over the "yell at them" or whatever it was they thought I was going to do.

Well, my mailbox was so full of stuff that I couldn't get it out. I ended up having all three of them come over and help me get the stuff out. One held the mailbox still, me and another one pulled and one coached us all. It was quite comical!!!

We all let out a little cheer when we got the stuff out and then we all went our way. They were still out there hanging out when I came inside.

It left all four of us smiling!

I'm getting ready to head to Hannibal, MO to play street music this afternoon.
I leave in about 45 minutes or so.
Must go iron my shirt and braid my hair.
I'm really looking forward to it.

Hope you're having a great weekend.

Okay.

I know.
I know.

Stem cell research is a very controversial subject. There are uproars on both sides of the movement. I don't want to get into that discussion.

I just wanted to share this.

I heard on the news today that they are successfully able to grow T- cells and I am so excited about that. T-cells are what boost your immune system and help you fight disease.
For those of us with auto-immune diseases which include lupus, ms, cancer, aids and many others ... this is wonderful news. It means that not only might my chronic pain be relieved and my infections prevented ... but it might even pose a cure for lupus. It would help with my pleurisy, my asthma ... what a joyous day it would be to be able to go back to doing all of the things that I used to enjoy doing and being able to not be in pain all of the time.

hooray!

They said that it will be ten more years before they are able to begin treating humans.
I will be 49.
You know what? I will still have a lot of life to live.

I'm sitting here crying right now because I am so happy. I've always been frustrated because lupus is not a very public disease. There's not a lot of attention given to it. Not a lot of "big" research going on for it like there are for some of the others. I've just always had to remind myself that when they find something to help just one ... it will filter down to all of us who are just waiting. That one will help the other. You know what I mean? Be patient. Stay positive. Just keep believing that someone somewhere is doing something that will lead to answers and relief for all of us who are waiting.

My lupus went from almost killing me to remission and then to a mild activity. My mother's big fear is that all of this music I'm playing is going to cause me to be sick again. I understand hers and others reasons for this concern. However, getting out and doing stuff is what keeps me going. Especially the music.

I love to walk outdoors. I like to go to state parks and explore. The next time I'm out walking there will be a lighter bounce to my step because I know it won't be long until someone is able to help me.

Me.

I am so happy for everyone who is waiting and I am especially happy for me.

It's a day to smile ... as soon as I'm finished crying! (wink wink)

I just finished mowing the lawn.

It thundered very threateningly as I was mowing, but I was determined to get it done!
Just as I was finishing the last stretch it began to rain.
By the time I actually finished and got the mower back into the garage I was a litle wet, but that's okay!

It's done!

First of all, let me just begin with the disclaimer that I am in no way presenting myself as knowing anything about fallow deer. My curiosity was peaked because I have friends who raise these adorable little creatures. I had the opportunity to take some pictures of their deer and decided to find out what I could before I posted the pictures. This was just some information that I gathered for myself and decided why not share it with you all when I post the pictures.

Aren’t they as cute as can be? I read an article that said one of the reasons this breed of deer are so appealing is because they are small and they don’t loose their spots. They are just adorable!

What are fallow deer? Well, they are known as the deer of Europe and Asia. Two of the prominent characteristics of the breed are the broad flattened antlers of the bucks and the spotted coats of both the does and bucks. The tail has a black stripe running along its length and is surrounded by a light colored area bordered by a black fringe.

Fallow is an obsolete Old English word that means reddish-yellow. Deer comes from the German word “Tier” which means animal.

Their coloring varies, but there are four main colors. White, Common (ginger/brown coat with white mottles that are most pronounced in summer with a much darker coat in the winter), Menil (light brown with white spots) and black. The Menil’s coat is similar to that of the Common except that it has a greater number of spots and the area around the tail is bordered by brown. Color does not appear to have any bearing on the size, health or meat quality of a fallow deer.

White fallow deer are not albinos as their eyes are normally pigmented, although their hooves and noses tend to be lighter than usual. They are cream colored at birth, becoming paler as they mature and adults are almost pure white in winter. No spots are visible in their white coat.

I’ve read conflicting articles about the black fallow deer. Some say that they have no spots at any time of the year and do not have the light area surrounding the tail while others say that their spotting is barely visible.

The common fallow deer is rust color with white rump patch and belly, white spots on back and sides merging into a white line along the lower side and near the rump on the haunches; a black line runs down the back and often connects with the black upper surface of the tail; in winter, spots become indistinct.

The menil fallow deer contrasts with common color form in that ground coloration is tan rather than rust and dorsal lines are brown rather than black; white spotting remains distinct in winter coat

If left alone a herd will develop a mixture of all color variation. The predominance of any color variety is usually down to the management practices in that area.

The spotted and graduated coat make it a master of camouflage and gives them the ability to just disappear in woodland. They will often stand quite motionless and are not seen until they are practically stood on or the movement of a flicking ear gives away their presence. In the open however the large number of eyes and ears in a group makes then a difficult animal to approach.

They look most impressive after the molt, which occurs in summer in June, at this time of year the coat is glossy shiny and clean. During the winter the coat is thicker, rougher and has a thicker undercoat.

The fully developed antlers of fallow deer are easily distinguished from the antlers of other deer species as they are flattened in comparison to those of other deer. The palmation (flattening) is usually fringed with a series of mini points and these are called spellers. Going up the antler from the coronet the first point or tine is called the brow, the second is called the trey and then comes the flattened palmation.

Fallow deer go through an annual cycle of antler shedding and regrowth. The bucks grow their antlers over the spring and summer when food is readily available to provide the required nutrients for antler development. Antlers continue to grow until they are fully formed from about the end of July to mid August. At this time the covering of velvet dries off and is shed over the next week or so. They keep these antlers until after the rut and they are shed in late winter.

The first pair of antlers grown consists of simple spikes which can vary from 1-20 cm in length. The antler has a club shape, being thicker at the base where it forms an irregular, pearled coronet. This first set of antlers or head gives rise to the yearling bucks being called ‘prickets’ or “spikers”.

As a buck gets older the antlers become larger and more palmated until the animal reaches its prime. Fallow bucks grow the largest antler for their size in the deer family. Once past its prime the antlers start to deteriorate in size and weight, termed ‘going back’. Any buck which develops a particularly good head is referred to as being in its prime, irrespective of age.

Bucks are also characterized by a prominent Adam’s apple and a long penile sheath, known as a brush. The tail of the Fallow is the longest of all the deer species in the British Isles and is a good recognition feature

The rut starts in late August or early September, reaching a peak in October and is indicated by a change in the behavior of the bucks, the thickening of their necks and the setting up of rutting stands. These stands consist of scrapes in the ground and thrashed bushes and trees.

The buck urinates into the scrapes and may also urinate upon himself or his antlers. During the rut bucks develop a very strong odor which is easily detectable even by humans

The bucks will also thrash and fray bushes and trees, (and Doug adds fences to that list) depositing scent from their sub-orbital scent glands onto the trunks of trees. When on the rutting stand the buck emits a characteristic groaning call which is similar to a deep extended belch

During the rut bucks will fight with each other, the fight consisting mainly of shoving competitions with antlers locked. As the bucks push they twist with their necks to try and force their opponent backwards. When the weaker animal eventually gives in, the winner will often gash the flank of the loser with its brow tines as it turns to flee. Yearlings and other young bucks will generally be tolerated by a buck on a rutting stand, but if an animal of equal size appears then a fight will usually occur.

After the rut, males gradually cease defending their territories and form "bachelor groups," while females and young remain segregated from males and in their own groups.

Does produce usually one but sometimes two fawns per year. It is very important that the does be as heavy as possible at the start of the breeding season, since the fawn at birth will be 10% of the doe's breeding body weight. The gestation period is 234 days … seven and a half months (plus or minus 6 days). Does appear restless one or two days prior to fawning and move away from the herd. Most fawns are born from late May through June.

Cover (tall grass or bush) is necessary in the fawning pasture to protect newborn fawns from heat, wind, and/or predators. Fawns will "hide" in the cover for 10 to 14 days after birth, except when suckling every few hours. Once the fawn becomes strong enough, it will run with its mother. At about two months of age, the fawn starts to rely less on milk and more on its own foraging ability.

At birth fawns can be as varied in color as the adults but all will be spotted to a greater or lesser degree.

The doe leaves the fawn alone most of the day, returning only for nursing; a fawn learns to recognize its mother by her bleat.

The doe is the most vocal of the sexes and she will communicate with her fawn and other members of the doe group with a variety of squeaks and bleats throughout the year. They utter a sound similar to a dog's bark when nervous. The buck only develops the deep groaning belch during the rut when this call is repeated continuously every couple of seconds for a period of time. This calling goes on throughout the period of the rut, however should a doe come into estrus late this is sufficient to start all the bucks in an area groaning again.

Like most deer Fallow seem to acquire their water requirements mostly from what they eat or from dew and are rarely seen drinking.

When alarmed they will sometimes move off in a distinctive manner known as pronking. In this all four feet are brought together and leave the ground simultaneously as the animal bounds away. They run in a distinctive stiff-legged fashion, bouncing along as if on a pogo stick.

They have an "alerting" behavior during which members of a herd assume a rigid, upright stance and stiff walk with neck extended vertically. The tail elevation indicates the degree of disturbance. If truly wild, the Fallow Deer is wary of humans, but unlike most other deer species, it easily becomes semi-domesticated and has been established as a "park deer" in many parts of the world.

The deer farming industry in the United States is in its infancy. The North American Deer Farmers Association (NADeFA) has about 300 members, and herd size varies from less than 10 head to more than 2,000 head.

If you have never had the opportunity to meet a fallow deer in person, I would encourage you to find the opportunity to do so. They are so pretty.

My personal impressions:

They are beautiful.

They smell like horses, which caught me by surprise because I’ve never come across another animal that smells like a horse. It is a smell that I love. They definitely have a pecking order. Doug fed them some corn and we watched them eat. It was obvious who was higher and who was lower on the pecking order just watching them interact with each other.

I loved their spots. I was amazed at the white outline that goes along their sides and flanks. Their markings reminded me of the Indian petroglyphs and pictographs. It also reminded me of the way the Indians paint their faces and their horses with their fingertips.

And, wow … their eyes. They had these large black pupils surrounded by lots of color. They had beautiful brown eyes.

Their fur looked so smooth and soft.

The first two deer that I got to look at were two males who were penned together. Their antlers are in the velvet stage and I got to touch one of them!!! They were just as soft as they looked. Their antlers were so large and just magnificent.

I really enjoyed my visit with them and I’m very thankful for the opportunity to take their picture.

For more information, google “fallow deer”.

Here are a few shots of Worlds of Fun that I snapped while driving past on my way to the sleep over in Kansas City a few weeks ago.

One reason that I'll never forget Worlds of Fun
is on one of those trips I was with a little blonde haired, blue eyed boy
who gave me my first kiss.
Paul Bartlett was his name.

Hello everyone!

I hope that you're all having a great day and the sun is either shining or there is a gentle rain ... which ever you prefer!

I've been busy working on some research for an upcoming post of deer. I have some friends who raise Fallow Deer. Now, I think this is the correct spelling. I found other spellings, but this was the most prominent in the histories.

I collected seventeen pages of notes!
I've compiled it down to eight pages of notes now.
Now it's time to get it all put together.

Talk to you later!

I think I've got my new cell phone figured out.
It's a tracfone ... it's blue and gray.

It's so cute!!!!

Anyway, I've finally figured out how to set up my voice mail box.
Okay, I'll confess ... I had to call the service center and have them help me do it. But it's done!!! I DID push all the buttons!!!! Now I can actually give someone my phone number and they can actually leave a message!

I also figured out how to lock the keypad so I can leave it on while it's in my pocket and not accidentally push any of the buttons. Yes, I figured that out all on my own. I actually read the manual!!! Twice!!!! For those of you who know me ... I know it's hard to believe ... but it's true.

I even figured out how to program some of you into my contact list so I don't have to dial your phone number every time. I'm on a roll!!!!!!

Go me!!!!!!

Last Thursday at Ely was great!

There were lots of people there as well as some tourists from Hannibal. There was a family there from Vermont when I got there. There had also been another family earlier, but they had left by the time I got there. That means that our flier in Hannibal is working!!!!!!

The gentleman from Vermont was a fiddler and we played lots of tunes together. He knew a lot of the Irish tunes that I play in Hannibal and Quincy.

Let's see ... who was there ...

Now please keep in mind that I still don't know the names of all of the regulars so please forgive me if you're not on the "list" yet. I'll get there! My memory bank of names takes time to build.

Anyway ... me, Asa (who I've either met there before or he may have come to the Hannibal session before. It sure seems like I've talked with him at the Jam Factory before. Hmmmm ...) Ashely, Anita, Wes, Jessie, Del, Patty, Bill, Dimple, Dorothy, Greg, Guy, Joshua, Doug, William, Kyle, Bert, Danny, Peggy, Jim, Deann, Bud, Carol, John, Dwain, the family from Vermont, the other family that left before I got there. And of course, always there are people who are there that are gone by the time that I get there at 9:30-9:45.

Unfortunatley, I had a pretty bad migraine that night that kept me from getting right into the middle of things. It's gone now ... thank goodness!!!!!!

Until next week ...

I love you all and I'm counting down until next Thursday!

May the roof above us never fall in.
And may the friends gathered below it never fall out.

Let's go back to Thursday last week.

The session at La Gondola was a fun one!

The players were me on fiddle ... Joann on Irish whistle ... Larry on fiddle ... Dave on guitar ... Tony on flute, Irish whistle and fiddle ... Jeff on guitar ... Rae on percussion and Dwain on guitar.

We missed Sondra, Andrew, Lisa and Beverly!!!!

Hey to Brian and Cathy! It's been a while and I hope that all is well and you're still practicing!!!

We worked on Jackson Stomp again. It's a very cool song. Many thanks to Lisa for introducing it to us!!!!!

Until next time ...

May the road rise to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face.
And rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the hollow of His hand.

I was driving home on Friday after playing street music in Hannibal and was captivated by the sky.
Look at that sun!!!!

I found out Sunday night that the friend I'm picking up on Thursday is going to be in St. Louis ... not Columbia.
At first, this freaked me out just a little bit. But it only took a moment to get over it.
When I thought I was going to Columbia, that was no big deal.
Columbia is very easy to navigate and find your way around.
St. Louis on the other hand ...
But you know what?
I can do it.
I've done it before.
I can do it again.
Being in St. Louis rather than Columbia will probably add at least another hour or two to my traveling time.
I'll just have to remember to pack some chewing gum so I don't clench my jaw when I get there and try to figure my way around.
She's having surgery ... well ... had surgery on Monday.
I'm driving up to bring her home.
I'm very glad to do it for her. She's a great gal!

Wish me luck!!!!!!

Well,
I was going to show you some pictures,
but blogger isn't loading at the moment.

I'll share them another time!!!

Today I was up at 7:00.
Did my Thai Chi for 15 minutes.
Belly dancing for 15 minutes
I got up early to mow, but it was raining.
Played the banjo instead.
I took it out on the porch swing and practiced for an hour while listening to the rain.
Did a little bit of blogging.

Taught some lessons.
Went to Hannibal for the jam session.
When I got home, the dog came over for a kiss.
His breath smelled like Halls Cough Drops.
Sure enough, I went to investigate and found and empty package of cough drops.
They were cherry flavored.
I guess he liked them!!
Did some Thai Chi, stretching and dancing.
That was it.
Just a regular day.

This evening was the Hannibal Jam Session at Breadeaux Pizza.
I got there about 6:45 and got set up and tuned up.
I brought both banjos tonight.
I played several that I was able to keep up with Chris on.
Due in large part to my full hour of banjo practice this morning while it was raining.
I thought my arm was going to fall off!!!!!
You talk about "feel the burn" ...
Man!!!!
I need to get better at my flat picking.

A big surprise tonight was John and Thelma came!
We met them at The Battle of Athens over the weekend.
In fact, he sat in with us several times on Saturday and once on Sunday.
They had a weaving booth set up at the park.
I saw them outside when they were headed to the door.
I squealed and ran over to meet them.
I was very glad to see them there.
He sat between Fred and Larry and seemed to have a good time.

The players tonight were Chris on tenor banjo... Ava on tenor banjo and fiddle ... Sondra on mandolin and tenor banjo ... Joann on Irish whistle ... Dwain on guitar ... Betsy on Irish whistle ... Andrew on fiddle ... Larry on fiddle ... Don on bass ... Kevin on percussion ... Rob on percussion ... Tony Irish whistle, flute, fiddle and his brand new horn pipe ... Lisa on fiddle ... Robert on fiddle ... Dave on guitar ... Dale on guitar ... Sarah on Irish whistle and bass ... Ian on guitar ... John on mandolin ... Fred on guitar ... John on guitar ... Wade on percussion ... Paul on whistle... and Sarah and her friends on percussion.

That's 26 on my count.

We played to a full house again tonight.
People in the audience that I knew were Dale, Adam (who was driving his brand new red mustang convertible ... it was awesome), Adam's girlfriend, Evelyn, Bob, George, Harry, Ellen, Noel, Mary Jo, Lydia, Maddie, Lydia's friends, and Thelma who we met over the weekend at The Battle of Athens State Park.

There were several who I missed this evening.
Beverly, Phillip, Elizabeth, Bill, Doug, Ned, Evelyn who is in the hospital, Charlie and Joe.
I sure missed everyone and hope that all is well.

I enjoyed the music very much.
I was worried that I would be too tired after playing all weekend, but once I got there and the music started ... I was game!!!!
I even took my six string banjo so I would have a different instrument than usual to play. I ended up only playing one song on it. I mostly played my fiddle and the tenor banjo.

Until next time ...
May you play sweet music ...
May your dreams be pleasant ...
May your fingers be nimble ...
May your heart be happy!

What a weekend it has been!

It's raining here this morning.
I got up at 7:00 to mow and it was already raining.
No mowing today!

I really enjoy listening to the rain.
I took my banjo out on the porch swing at 8:30 and played for an hour.
It was so peaceful.
Just pickin' and swingin'!!!!!

I'll tell you what,
after spending the entire weekend with Sondra and her banjo,
she's inspired me to practice more on my banjo.
I've been focusing on the fiddle.
She was amazing!
I want to play just like her!!!!
That means practice.
Blah!

Just wanted to let you know I'm back!
I have much to tell!

Yes, yes ...
It happens to all of us at one time or another.
I'm behind in my blogging.
I'm headed out the door in just a few minutes to play at the Battle of Athens Civil War reenactment from 10 to 4pm this afternoon.
Will probably crash on the couch when I get home and watch a movie or something where I can just sit.

Hope you're all having a great weekend.

To my Williams clan over in Missouri ...
I'm thinking of you all while you're at the Reunion.
Please play some great music for me, enjoy your dancing and eat LOTS of good food tomorrow at the dinner.
I love you all!

Off I go!
Oh, I bought some super glue to put on my fingers.
It's supposed to keep your fingers from getting so sore when you play for so long.
Knowing that I'm playing for six hours two days in a row inspired me to test this theory for myself!
Just pray I don't end up glued to my instrument!!

Ha ha!

Here I am at The Jam Factory, picking up Minnie Pearl, my new fiddle.
Chris dates her around 1810.
She plays beautifully ...
just sings!!!!

Here's a closer look.
She feels just a little bit larger than my other fiddle.

She's packed up and ready to go.
I'm giving her a great big hug!!!!

Look at that happy face!!!!

Ahhhhh!!!!!!!
I'm so happy I gave her a kiss!!!!

I'm taking her to La Gondola and the Ely Opry tonight!
Time for some exercise!!!!

Here's Tom ...
at the Jam Factory ...
embarrassed by his mother's behavior and excitement over picking up her fiddle.

"My mother is crazy!!!"

I heard on the news last night that the City of Hannibal was going to be cutting down some trees.
I hate to say, that I really didn't pay any attention. I figured they were in someone's yard or something.
Wrong.
At least a couple of them were along Main Street.

While at the Jam Factory this morning,
Melanie showed me a bird nest that she had placed in the window.
The city cut down the tree right in front of their store.
She brought the little nest in that was in the tree and placed it in the store window with a little sign that says "Evicted 8/3/06.

Here, I'm trying to take a picture through the window so you can see it.
Because of all the reflections, it's hard to see.
Can you see it?

Here's the first shot ... which didn't work.
Those are my legs and white shoes ...
You can see Tom's legs and shoes back behind.
We each moved and I got a better shot the second time.

This morning I was up at 8:00.

Only a "little" headache today!

The migraine is gone! However, my eyes are still sore from the strain from yesterday.

I watched "Beaches" with Bette Middler.

Tom (my son) called and I went over and picked him up. He went to Hannibal with me to pick up my paycheck. Then we went to The Jam Factory to see Chris and Melanie. I paid on my fiddle while I was there.

AND ...

Got to bring her home!!! She's wonderful! Great tone quality! Just rings when I play it! Her name is Minnie Pearl.

Tom and I had lunch at McDonalds ... well ... we bought lunch there and ate it in the car on the way home.

He made fun of my driving.

Drove back across the state line to Quincy,
took Sondra her paycheck and then dropped Tom off.

Called my Mom, Doug, my Dad and a student to tell them about my new fiddle!! My Dad wasn't home but everyone else was.

Practiced my memorized pieces for 45 minutes.
Then ...
Couldn't resist and got it back out and played for 30 more minutes!!!
I spent that time working on some new tunes.
I memorized one of them for Charlie.
He's always wanting me to play "Molly Put the Kettle On".
I'm ready for next time!!!

I teach from 4:00 to 6:00 and then I'm off to La Gondola from 7:00 to 8:30 and then out to Ely for the rest of the evening. Minnie Pearl will get to meet everyone! She's very excited! So am I!!! I've got her all tucked into her case right now and she's taking a nap. She's got a long evening ahead of her!!!

Here are some flowers that I found on my way to Kansas City last weekend.
These are my favorite flower.

This is an old picture of Schifferdecker Park in Joplin, Missouri.
I don't have memories of the park as an amusement park,
but as a beautiful public park where I took my children to play.
There were several play grounds, a swimming pool, plenty of room where you could fly kites,
just run around,
have picnics ...
we always enjoyed ourselves there.
I thought it was quite interesting to come across this picture and find out that there used to be a roller coaster there.
How neat!

Today went by very quickly.
It was very busy.
I made lots of phone calls today!
Practiced my yodels for and hour,
practiced some classical guitar for half an hour,
cleaned a little,
played with the dog a little,
worked, of course,
worked on a new song to sing, "In the Jailhouse Now",
just let in my nightly swarm of bugs when letting the dog in.
He's in the bathroom drinking out of the toilet as we speak.
(his favorite water bowl)
(lap lap lap lap lap lap lap)
I will say this for him ... he doesn't get the seat wet!!!!
I've had a lupus fever for two days in a row. I can feel it in my hands of all places. The heat is just radiating out from them. And my eyes are all dry and itchy. Hopefully my fever will be gone tomorrow.
I have a busy weekend coming up. Thursday is music night, Friday is street music, Saturday Sondra and I are playing at the Civil War thing up in Kahoka, MO, Sunday we're back up there again, and Monday is music night.
We may have some friends join us on Sunday ... that would be great!

Well, it's only 10:20, but due to total exhaustion ...
(hang on to your seat)

I'm going to bed.

:)

To see my Senior Picture,

Go to the archives and find the Janaury 21st post.

It's hillarious!

Let's try this again ... for the second time.
It got lost somehow the first time.

Anyway ...

Here's a picture taken on the town square in Neosho, Missouri where I grew up.
I've had many picnics on that green grass!
Every Christmas parade ...
Thanksgiving parade ...
Fall Festivals ...
Shopping ...

The fourth store front over is where I bought my Letterman's Jacket when I was in high school.
I didn't play in sports, but played the cello in orchestra and won medals and ribbons at contest and lettered that way.

A couple of doors down is where I had my senior pictures taken.
Boy, was that a long time ago!
Doesn't seem possible.

There also was a Variety store on one corner, but I can't remember what it was called at that time. I liked it because it had toys. It had clothes and other items as well.
I remember that it had cheap toys that I could afford to find something to buy.
When all else failed ... bought some gum.

I can remember shopping downtown before Walmart moved in.

This is where I lived all of my life since the age of around three.
My Grandpa Testerman and my Dad built our house.
It holds many fond memories for me.

I stated kindergarten at South School Elementary which was kindergarten through fourth grade.
Then moved to Neosho Intermediate School for fifth through sixth grade.
Then on to Neosho Junior High School for seventh through eighth grade.
Then to Neosho Senior High School for ninth through twelfth grade.

I was in orchestra and in pep club.
Went to most of the football games, baseball games ...
wasn't really into basketball all that much until I had my boys and they both played.
Went to all of the dances.
I love to dance.

I was actually shy then ...
not anymore.
I'm not sure when that changed.
Sometime in my early twenties.

No one who knows me now thinks I'm shy!!!

The best verse hasn't been rhymed yet,
The best house hasn't been planned,
The highest peak hasn't been climbed yet,
The mightiest rivers aren't spanned;
Don't worry and fret, faint-hearted,
The chances have just begun
For the best jobs haven't been started,
The best work hasn't been done.

Berton Braley

Anyone howled at the moon lately?

My voice is all hoarse now because I just practiced yodeling for an hour.

When yodeling you're going from your low register to your high register,
or your "chest voice" to your "head voice".

How high can you go?

I hit a high B flat this morning.

I thought I was going to pass out!

But I did it!!!!!

I can hit three octaves of B flat
and I can begin on a low F below middle C.

I called my mom on her cell phone,
but she was driving down the interstate so I hung up.
I was going to yodel for her so I could practice having someone listening to me.
I haven't done this in front of anyone for fifteen years!

I'm scared!

More practicing later ...
when my voice gets back!

Must go drink some water!

Here are some cloud pictures.
In that top one my windshield is dirty ...
You can see all of the "bug spats" very clearly!

When I was a kid,
we used to lay on the ground and watch the clouds.
It was always fun to see what shapes we were able to see in them.
I grew up without video games ...
actually read books ...
watched clouds ...
looked at stars ...
You know ...
went outside!!!

Here I am in my PJ's playing with Chandler.
Isn't he just darling!!!
I love that boy!

Yes,
you all now know something new about me ...
I wear Care Bear pajamas.
They're fleece ...
very soft and very comfortable!!