A freeze scare...

We've been spending a great deal of time watching the weather reports -- the other day it was 76 and sunny, and I got the front lawn mowed. Sunburn was a real possibility, but the lawn looks great.

Last night, with the peach tree budded out and the strawberries beginning to bud, we were supposed to have a hard freeze. Luckily, temps only got down to 32 -- which is WAY cold for this time of year here. And we actually had SNOW on Monday -- a whole 1/4 inch!

Everything looks OK today, and it is warming up slowly.

Last week, we had a round of severe weather, with an EF1 tornado touching down in Casey County, about 30 miles south of here -- it was only a little one but it did over $1,000,000 in damage, destroyed 2 barns, killed 2 horses, and one woman's heart attack was directly related to the storm. Luckily again, all we got here was lightning (enough so that we didn't need any of the lights on in the house), and a wind-driven, pelting rain, for about 3 hours.

SO many people down here are "sick of winter" -- I wonder how they'd survive in Maine!

This weekend, it's a spring tradition here, the Spring Meet at Keeneland Race Course. We're going up to Lexington for Friday and Saturday's races. On Friday, Maker's Mark, our favorite Kentucky bourbon (Barry and I are both MM Ambassadors) is hosting the Maker's Mile, with a purse of $300,000 (divided among the top 5 finishing horses), and on Saturday, it's the Bluegrass Stakes -- one of the most important preparation races for the Kentucky Derby.

Hopefully, I'll win enough at the races to pay my income tax bill!

Outside Cleanup and Possible New Neighbors?

The ice storm here in early February tore the heart out of many people with all the damage it did to the trees. We were spared most of the damage -- only lost two trees completely, one mostly, and several partially. Barry's been itching to burn the debris ever since. The County is picking up the branches, but one has to live near the road and we don't so burning it is about the only option. Unfortunately, it's been too windy to do much -- until recently. This is the last of the brush to clear up around the house. There's more way out back and down in the Salt River, but that's another day. We've replaced the Bradford Pear with a Cleveland Pear -- sturdier and more able to withstand the wind. We also have an apple tree coming shortly, buying grapes probably this week, then that's it for perennials or trees. At least until next time...

We also had the first prospective tenants looking at both of our "Bluegrass Bluebird Apartments". He'd try the house out for size while she watched. Then she'd fly around looking at the neighborhood and the landscape. I didn't see her poke her head inside to check out the interior decorating, window treatments, or appliances though.

They went back and forth from one apartment to another, chasing off any other potential undesirable tenants like the starlings, but in the end, they apparently decided not to move in today. We'll see if they found better "digs" somewhere else. They certainly won't find NEWER birdhouses anywhere in this neighborhood!

Visiting Cairo, 11 March

Have you ever thought about what racism and bigotry can do -- not just to people, but to a city? Well, take a look around at Cairo, IL (pronounced KAY-row, like the corn syrup).

I had heard about Cairo years ago, and since we were in Paducah this past week, we took the day to go over. This is the river city which was the inspiration for Edna Furber's book, Showboat, on which the musical and movie were based. The Lewis and Clark expedition stopped here on its way west. Grant headquartered here in 1861. It was a major lumber port for 30 years handling lumber from southern Illinois, eastern Missouri, western Kentucky and the entire region. I imagined a nice little city like Paducah, only smaller. After all, it DID have two of the world's largest rivers to the east, south and west of it.

This river city, located at the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi SHOULD have grown into a prosperous river town. And until the 1950s, it was that. A population of 15,000 in 1920 has now dwindled to just under 3,000. Why?

Economics are part of it. The river traffic has moved elsewhere and centralized, causing a downturn in Cairo's economy. Interstate-57 is several miles away from the city. But more to the point, in the late 1960s, racism and discrimination reared their ugly heads.

The business in town were basically all white. The city hall and police/fire departments were all white. The schools were segregated, white and black. Public housing was segregated.

As blacks in Cairo joined the civil rights movement, racism surfaced. Most whites pulled their kids from public schools when they integrated, leaving mostly blacks there. Blacks boycotted businesses which refused to hire blacks -- and that was ALL the businesses. So whites organized a KKK-like organization, marched down the main street with swastika-decorated posters, and the deterioration, which had begun in the 1950s accelerated. Burning crosses, arson, looting, shootings, all were part of Cairo's landscape for several years. White-owned businesses packed up and left, or simply closed. The city isn't even trying to board up the abandoned buildings any more.

Along the riverfront, there's a 6-story apartment or condo building that's fairly new, in good condition, and outside are parked many fairly new cars. But a block north, a dog lay dead in the street, in front of several derelict buildings.

Today, Cairo has probably the lowest per-capita income in Illinois; the highest unemployment; the most poverty per capita; the lowest educational attainment level; in short, Cairo leads Illinois in all those measures that signify failure.

There isn't even a Wal-Mart within 20 miles.

Yet the architecture and history of the city show through the broken windows and burned shells of downtown. There are mansions along Magnolia Street which would beautify any town in the US. And right across the street, there are rotting, decaying Victorian hulks which are probably beyond repair. Many of the properties in the city are selling for under $40,000, some WAY under, like $5,000 or less.

Racism and discrimination can do a number on people. They can also destroy a once beautiful, bustling city.

Cairo, IL. -- R.I.P.

Charitable donations and exploring the countryside

We went down to Liberty, Casey County, today. Seems there are lots of attractions in our former county because we've been there several times in the past month or so.

To start off, the weather was beautiful. Upper 60s and low 70s, sunny after last night's torrential rain, grass greening, trees budding, daffodils out -- they grow wild along the road here. Anyway, I had gone through my books and clothes once more, seeing what books I didn't need any more, or what clothes didn't fit any more (it's all the fault of Barry's cooking).

We dropped the clothes off at the Liberty Trading Post, which is run by the Galilean Children's Home, an iconic charity around here. Gerry and his late wife Sandy Tucker began taking in "unwanted" children many years ago -- you can read about it by clicking the link above -- anyway, it's such a worthwhile charity and does so much good, I'd much rather my too-small clothes go to them. I was amazed and surprised at the quality of the clothing there -- no Goodwill or Salvation Army here -- anyone could put together a very nice look for under $20! I mean, first quality, look like new, button-down oxford shirts (my favorite) for $1.99! I almost came out with more than I brought in!

Then it was off to the Casey County Public Library. Casey is one of the poorest counties in Kentucky, being part of "Appalachia" (pronounced down here as "apple-LATCH-uh". Fewer than half the county's residents have graduated high school, yet the readership statistics at the beautiful and modern county library are among the highest in the Commonwealth. So whenever I have books, that's where they go -- where they will be the most appreciated and will do the most good. This time it was books, videos and cassette tapes I no longer need. The gal at the desk was thrilled. I felt good.

Then of to the settlement of "Phil", the beginning of the Casey County Amish region. We've been down there three times this spring to buy food at Sunny Valley bulk foods, Amish-run, and have stopped at Hillside Nursery twice, also Amish-run. We bought the broccoli, lettuce, and horseradish plants, which Barry may put in the ground tomorrow morning (before we head to Paducah to do more exploring in the western part of the state).

Finally, we drove around some back roads through the knobs, the community of "Teddy", and back home. All in all, it was a beautiful day, saw some good looking country (without leaves to obscure the view), and came home.

Is it Spring, yet?

Girl Scout cookies have arrived. I was good. Only ate half a box in 2 days. Usually I go for the whole thing at one sitting. Two boxes are in the freezer where I will probably forget about them for awhile.

Barry planted the peas and spinach on the 5th. We're not supposed to have any temps below 32 for the next ten days, so they should germinate just fine.

Over the past 10 days, temps have been from 5 to 72 (right now) -- and it seems the wind has never been under 20 mph. So even when it was 64 yesterday, it just felt cold.

The lilac leaves are about 1/2 inch long, and we're seeing different birds from mid-winter, so things are changing.

Request from a soldier...

A former student of mine, James Williford, recently sent me (and several others) this email. I thought I would share it...

=============================================================
hey all, I am deploying yet again.... Well, here's my address. Will be RIP'ing out with 4/101 sometime next month. Won't be at Salerno, but all of our mail will be routed through there. Will be at a COP or JSS somewhere in Khost province. Back to my old stomping grounds.

James R Williford
A Co 425th BSTB
FOB Salerno
APO AE 09314

Hey all, I know i don't really keep in touch with many of you. Some of you might care less I am deploying. But hell, support a soldier. Some of my men don't really have much for family or extended network of friends. Things that are good are non-perishable snacks (crackers and jerky are great, as is easy cheese in a can), Smokes or dip (hey you can hate it and choose not to support it, but if you wanna really perk up soldiers, send tobacco), padded insoles (preferably any size fits all. Foot movements in excess of 15 miles and over 10,000 ft elevation change during movement are not uncommon), and baby wipes (cuz water isn't always a basic thing while deployed). If you don't care, delete this. If you wanna help out, just send stuff. Once, once a month, once a week, whatever. Any helps out and it's nice to get mail. If you want the specific name of a soldier who might not get stuff from family, lemme know, otherwise i will distribute to those not getting anything by who's just not getting shit. Trust me as a veteran of two deployments and a recipient of the purple heart, when you are going out day after day and risking your ass and getting told it's for the US's safety, it's nice to know that it's not all smoke and people, not just churches and schools that do it cuz it's prolly a tax break, actually care that young men and women are downrange enduring often miserable conditions to come home and see people protesting the place they just lost some dear friends.

-Tango Mike
SGT Williford, James R
"Sapper 2"
========================================================

Florida and Citrus Overdose!

Just posted some pictures of our February trip to Florida on "Facebook" but the link to the album is here:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=8778&id=1662484128&l=422b4

That should allow those who are NOT on Facebook to see the album.

We went down just after our ice storm here. We were cold and in the dark for 3 days, and decided to get away for awhile. Well, wouldn't you know, when we checked into the motel, there was no heat. SO many people checked in, and it was SO cold (record), the hotel's electrical system couldn't handle the strain. They did get it fixed the next day but it sure made for an unpleasant evening.

While there we visited Plant City and 9,000 acres of strawberries. MMMMMM.

Then over to Tampa to the Seminole Hard Rock Casino. We had a $20 "free" spin on the machines, and Barry won $28, so his Hard Rock Tampa t-shirt didn't cost anything. I didn't do quite so well, but didn't lose much either.

Back then to Orlando and Hard Rock Orlando, in Universal City, or Studios, whatever. Two Hard Rock Cafes in one day -- that's a record.

We drove around some of the back roads in the Brevard County area, just to get a look at the countryside few tourists see. Drove up the A1A Highway toward Cape Canaveral, and the Patrick Air Force Base beach, Cocoa Beach, Indialantic, and Merritt Island.

We went for oranges. Boy did we bring some back. Plus, there was a place advertising "Pick your own" but no one was home. Well, we went back the following day, and totally to our surprise, it was Mr. Bunkley -- who gave us a tour of his orchard way back in 2004! It was like meeting an old friend. Anyway, we stocked up on his fruit, and visited 3 other orchards, coming home with enough oranges, grapefruit, tangelos, honeybelles, lemons, tangerines, and pomelos to give both of us a case of "the runs" for months. Is it possible to overdose on Vitamin C? We sure plan to try!

Now, we stay home for a few months ... then planning other trips to Maine, and New Orleans, and Virginia Beach, and Chicago, and Gettysburg, and ...

Picking up and packing up

Yesterday, Barry cut what was left of the Bradford pear down. That way, we won't keep saying "we miss it" and can get over it. Most of the flowering plum came down today, but we can probably still save that. Another Bradford pear got a limbing, as did a dogwood. The mimosa is next -- RIP, mimosa.

The whole area looks like a series of tornadoes came through -- except that the damage is much more widespread, and the trees are broken off in all directions. So sad to see people with trees on their roofs, electric service ripped from their houses, people dying of carbon monoxide poisoning because they don't know NOT to place generators OUTSIDE! Schools here in Boyle County have been out since before the ice storm -- they lost ALL week last week, and today and tomorrow as well. We're still under a boil water advisory, and probably will be until at least tomorrow...we'll see.

Putting everything in perspective, no power for 3 days but we were never really cold; lost virtually NO food, only damaged three trees seriously. There are still 250,000 people here without power, and for most of them, freezers full of food are now gone; in western Kentucky, many people aren't yet able to get home, and the National Guard is patrolling the streets.

The overall damage here in Kentucky is much worse than it was in Maine in '98; the big difference is that the pain won't last as long -- in another month, temps will be getting up into the 50s and 60s regularly, and even yesterday it nearly topped 60; with sun and south-facing windows, we got it up to 76 inside yesterday without the heat on.

That said, we're packing for Florida. We're going to drive down, stay in Cocoa 4 days, pick up some oranges, lemons, grapefruit, etc., and just bum around central Florida, maybe even get a side trip to Tampa or Vero Beach. It'll be a brief but welcome vacation.

The Cat is getting used to his "kitty kondo" at the Heartland Vet Clinic's "Crowbar Motel", as Barry calls it.

Ice storm events

Well, since moving here, we've set all sorts of records. First, record heat; then record drought; then University of Kentucky football wins games and basketball loses; then record numbers of tornadoes; then worst snowstorm in 10 years; and now, the worst ice storm in state history.

It began innocently enough on the evening of Monday, the 26th. When we got up on Tuesday morning, there was about 1/4 inch of ice on everything. No big deal, having lived through the great Ice Storm in Maine in 1998. But about 9:30 am, the power went out, and the ice continued to build up. All day it drizzled, and by afternoon, we could hear trees cracking, and finally breaking. It rained all night but the temps hovered around 28 so the ice didn't melt. Then on Wednesday, it just got worse. More ice, and about 2 inches of snow snapped the tops off most trees we could see.

The main generator at the local water works went down, so about 45,000 people were without water, and the cities of Danville, Perryville and Junction City were totally without fire protection, as was the rest of Boyle, Mercer, and Garrard (and probably other) Counties. To top it off, a generator was sent up from Atlanta, GA, but when it got to the TN-KY state line, some overly-eager TN state trooper didn't like the look of the license plate, so he held the generator up in Tennessee for over four hours...

Going out today, after we finally got the power back, there was not a single tree that didn't suffer major damage as far as we could see. It looked like a series of random tornadoes had taken down every single Bradford Pear and Dogwood we could find, and destroyed virtually every other ornamental tree and most of the oaks, maples, and other hardwoods. The main difference, other than the total destruction of some areas, is that in a tornado, the breakage is usually all in the same direction and the path is narrow. This was everywhere.

Our Bradford Pear tree, before and after...



















Over 700,000 statewide were without power, and in western Kentucky it was even worse than here -- Rick said there was a curfew in Paducah, and he and the family headed up to Carbondale, IL to get warm.

Bright side -- it's obvious The Cat knows where he can get warm!

The last three weeks...HECTIC!

Wow, I haven't written for SO long, I almost forgot how to post on this blog. I've barely had time to breathe since before Christmas.

On Saturday, 20 December, Maureen called -- her water broke, and she and Josh were headed for the Maine Medical Center. Barry and I tried to find a flight to Maine that I could afford to be there when Gannon was born, but at over $800 just for the ticket, that wasn't in the cards. Anyway, I got a call from the hospital at about 1:00 a.m. on Sunday morning, 21 December, announcing that Gannon Chandler Patrick had made his entrance at 7 lb 8 oz, and 19 in long. The little critter, at birth, had more hair than I do! After some trials and tribulations (mommy's and baby's blood pressure dropping), all is well.

For Christmas, we went to Paducah to Barry's son's family's home. We've been "adopted" by the Alexander family, and, as with Thanksgiving, we had a great time. Barry's granddaughter, Elizabeth, is growing by leaps and bounds -- I guess babies have a tendency to do that.

I flew up to Maine on 3 January and stayed until 7 January, seeing as much of Gannon as I could possibly squeeze in. By that time, Maureen had taken him out every day shopping or visiting, so he was getting used to the world, at least from his car seat or a shopping cart! I had a chance to hold him, feed him, burp him (he burps better than Maureen does, already!), and basically everything but change his diaper. That's a parent's duty -- one of the luxuries of being a grandfather. Grandparents are for spoiling grandkids, and I certainly tried to do that to the extent of my budget. We looked at baby stuff at Wal-Mart and Target, and, yes, I bought Gannon a few items that were really cute.

On the way home, I also managed to smuggle back in my suitcase, half a dozen doughnuts from Tony's in Portland, two GIGANTIC whoopie pies from Big G's in Winslow, and 12 pounds of Jordan's Red Hot Dogs! I can only imagine what the airport security people in Portland thought when they x-rayed my luggage before takeoff!

On 9 January, Barry and I flew to San Antonio, TX to Barry's daughter-in-law's brother's wedding (Brad, Laura's brother). It was non-eventful driving up to Louisville and leaving there for Memphis, until we left Memphis. The DC-9 lost an engine on take-off -- sounded like a very loud flat tire. We circled the airport, over the Mississippi River several times while air traffic was cleared. The pilot told us the landing would be rough and hard because we only had one engine and we had to land quickly -- but on that score he was wrong (see the dead plane on the taxiway). The landing was better than the landing I had in Lexington on the way back from Maine, when the plane actually skidded in the thin black ice on the runway.

We were in Memphis for several hours while they tried to find another plane and flight crew, and when we finally did take off, the rest of the trip went fine until the 11th. Northwest Airlines gave us a $10 meal voucher (not good on alcohol, which is what we REALLY needed after that landing) and $25 off our next flight before March 9. Needless to say, we, and other passengers, were totally insulted at that paltry compensation for what could have been a very tragic experience. Complaints have been emailed to Northwest, but we've received no replies yet.

When we arrived in San Antonio (temps in the 70s), we picked up the rental car at Enterprise and headed into town. The wedding rehearsal, ceremony, and reception were wonderful. We took photos (Barry Sanborn, Brad Alexander and Rick Sanborn) and video for the family, and ours will be the ONLY video of the entire event. CDs and DVDs are ready to be mailed to family members.

Before the wedding on Saturday, 10 January, we walked all over downtown -- check out the "Riverwalk" on Google. It's a development of the San Antonio river with restaurants and small stores for about 2-3 miles throughout downtown. Wonderful! For much of the Riverwalk, there are no railings, and we wondered if some people who had too much to drink on Friday or Saturday nights fell in the river. While we were walking along, a Japanese girl was being pulled out by her friends. OH, the embarassment of having hundreds of people see you fall into the San Antonio River!


We also wandered around the Alamo complex several times during our visit. It's the most visited historic site in Texas, and home of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas, which now maintains the site, along with the state. The gardens out back showcase examples of native plants, notably the prickly pear cactus, mescal trees, and pecan trees. We found out that "cottonwood" in Spanish is "Alamo" and that's probably where the building got its name. It is actually known as "La mission de San Antonio de Valero" but everyone calls it "The Alamo." The building here is the chapel, as repaired in the 1850s after being nearly destroyed in 1836 during the Mexican bombardment. It stands in the southeast corner of the original mission, which stretched several blocks north and west of the present site.

On Sunday, 11 January, we drove out to Fort Sam Houston, and we found out from the security guard at the main gate that the registration on the rental car had expired. We almost didn't get onto the base, but he did let us through, as it wasn't OUR car or OUR fault. We also visited the Ft. Sam Houston Museum, small, but very nicely done, with a great collection of artifacts going back to about 1845. When we left, we called Enterprise, got nowhere except "hold" so we drove back out to the airport to exchange cars. In the rush to swap vehicles, I left my cell phone in the old car, but didn't discover it until we were back at the hotel. We called, were put on hold; called again, put on hold again; finally called emergency road service and THEY were put on hold. Finally I got out the laptop,and went to Enterprise's national contact website, called the number given there, and somehow got connected to what I thought was the San Antonio airport location. The gal I talked with said she'd email me if she found my phone, and she did -- email me, that is. No phone, and no record that I even had a rental there. I replied to the email, and we figured out that the national office had connected me with the San Jose, California, location. Finally we DID get through to the San Antonio airport location, where they DID find my phone, and gave us 15% off the total rental for all our trouble.

On Monday, 13 January, we walked from our hotel to the site of San Antonio's world's fair in 1968, "Hemisfair." Some of the buildings are still left, notably the Tower of the Americas, which was until 1996 the tallest observation tower / restaurant in the US, and the round United States Pavilion, now the US courthouse.


Several buildings from the historic area of San Antonio were moved here for the fair, and thus preserved. They are shops now, and one is a gardener's delight. It was originally owned by one of the "master gardeners" of San Antonio, and its gardens today are maintained by volunteers. They try to get locals to garden using native plants, which really makes sense, given the water shortages during much of the year down this way.

It's only a short walk from downtown, and yet it seems to be a different world. Here also, we saw our first "yellow rose" in Texas! Barry wandered through the gardens, and we both drooled over the green, thinking that it'll April before central Kentucky looks like this -- June in Maine! So many plants looked familiar -- plants which in Maine are annuals, but here they're perennials with woody stems!



Also on Monday, Brad and Rebecca (Laura's brother and sister-in-law) took us on a tour of the Texas "Hill Country". It was interesting -- notably flat compared to Maine, or even parts of Kentucky, and there wasn't a tree in sight that was taller than, say, 15 feet. We didn't see any armadillos (Texas speed-bumps) either, but maybe they only come out at night. We did see plenty of prickly-pear cactus, which apparently supports local cattle just fine. Think, they get water, nutrients, plus toothpicks all in one bite!



Our first stop was in Blanco for barbecue (GOOD!). Riley's B-B-Q serves delicious cuts of meat by the pound, serves it on trays and paper placemats, so you don't worry if you drop a piece on the cement floor. A place like this isn't created by an interior designer on drugs overnight -- it takes years of careful un-planned growth to achieve this atmosphere. It was a great little place!


When we left Blanco (pop. 1500, 19 restaurants), we were off to Albert, TX where the only building in town is a bar/dance hall. The "town" was originally settled by the Luckenbach family -- read more about them below...


Then to Becker Winery in Stonewall, only a few miles from the LBJ Ranch for those of you who actually REMEMBER the 60s. The wine industry in Texas is quite extensive, and I didn't realize that the climate would support grape growing, but then again, grapes will grow about anywhere. It hit us that, as we were sitting there in short sleeves, it was the middle of January, and we were very comfortable with the temperature.


After tipping a glass to honor the newlywed couple, we were off to a little place with a big reputation, Luckenbach, Texas. Luckenbach's not actually a town, but a post office, bar, dance hall, and major tourist attraction, with thousands going there for a blow-out good time. They have motorcycle conventions, Willie Nelson has done Fourth of July concerts here for years, and it's in general, one of the unpolished gems of the Lone Star State. It seems like they specialize in serving Texas beers -- of which there are VERY many varieties.

There's always some sort of entertainment here, from country music concerts, to local talent being showcased. As far as I can tell, the place never shuts down. And people find their way here, despite the fact that the "Luckenbach" road signs are constantly being stolen. Apparently, if you want to get there, you can get there even without road signs!

I had never heard of the song, "Luckenbach, Texas" by Waylon Jennings, but I know it now!

Back into town, for more walking around the Riverwalk, then on Tuesday, 14 January, we checked out of the hotel, and went to the Market Place, another tourist venue, where we bought some souvenirs before heading back to the airport for the flight home to the Bluegrass.

We actually made it home safely and soundly...

Now to plan our next trip -- to Florida to pick up some oranges, lemons and grapefruit.