Good Bye to a Dear Friend

An extraordinary woman and my dear high school friend, Nina (Tipps) Binkley passed away on March 21, 2012, at the age of 62. We celebrated her life and said good-bye to her on Sunday, March 25. Throngs of caring people came to pay their respects, some having to wait in line two and one-half hours. That just emphasizes how much Nina was loved and revered by all who knew her. Nina was loving, caring and sharing with all. She was a Master Gardener (as evidenced by her yard of beautiful, bountiful, blooms), an excellent cook, a huge animal lover, a wonderful mother and wife. My deepest sympathy and prayers go out to Lee, Matt and Erika as well as Nina's extended family.

Birthday Celebration

Wow! Time really does fly when you are having fun. It seems like a lifetime ago that I last posted to this blog. My life has taken a dramatic turn towards true happiness and complete fulfillment - and his name is Corey. We have been busy getting to know and love each other for the past 2 months. Thus, no blogs.

We celebrated Corey's birthday the other night at the Fireside theater. After a stroll through the gift shops (Yes, Corey actually shopped with me!), we enjoyed an extremely delicious buffet. The Fireside has the best sweet potatoes I have ever had (and I am not a big fan of sweet potatoes). My favorite main dish was the seafood and pasta. The sauce was so tasty that it made you feel like you were dining at a 5 star restaurant. My taste buds were dancing! The waitress was kind enough to put a birthday candle in Corey's dessert. The lady at the next table asked when the actual birthday was, and he said, "Today." She was also celebrating her birthday that day, so a conversation developed. She was actually one year older than Corey.

After making our bellies happy, we went into the theater for the Patsy Cline show. Our seats were in the center of the third row - great seats! With a well chosen cast of only 7 people, the life and songs of Patsy Cline unfolded before our eyes, interspersed with a variety of very funny slap-stick type jokes: "I slept like a log last night. In the morning, I found myself in the fireplace half lit!"

We both had an awesome time and hope to attend many more plays at the Fireside (right, Corey?). The 2012 season looks very promising!

Have you ever been to a Pipe Organ Crawl?

Friday, April 29, was a perfect day for a pipe organ crawl. On this sunny and comfortable day, organists and other members of the Wisconsin Chapter of the Organ Historical Society gathered at the unusual, saucer-shaped Mount Pleasant Lutheran Church in Racine to socialize and share their common interest in pipe organs.

So what do you actually do at an organ crawl? An organ crawl moves from one church to another. At each church, a presentation is made to introduce the instrument (the pipe organ) followed by a featured organist "putting the organ through its paces" by playing marvelous melodic music.  Beyond that, other organists may "experience" the organ if they so choose (and often do). Sometimes the chamber (I hope that is the proper term) which houses the pipes and other necessary equipment needed to create the glorious sound, is opened for inspection. Three churches in the morning, a break for lunch, three churches in the afternoon, a break for dinner, and a pipe organ concert presented by a Carthage senior, Mark Paisar, completed the astonishing day.

The world of pipe organs (as you would suspect) has its own jargon. Ranks, great, swell, solo, pedal, manual mechanical action instrument, electropneumatic action instrument, diapason, trumpets, etc. were among the terms bantered about amongst the experts attending the event. Due to the patience and willingness of my friend, Corey (a gifted organist in his own right), I was able to absorb some of this new information. Not only was I in awe of the talent surrounding me, but the beauty of the organs and churches took my breath away. Thank you, Corey, for a truly perfect day.

Here are a few pictures of the day:

Buzard organ Opus 34 at the Mount Pleasant Lutheran Chuch

Hutchings-Votey op 1518 organ at the Olympia Brown Unitarian-Universalist Church

 

Olympia Brown

Unitarian-Universalist Church

Stained glass window in this church

Organ console at the First Presbyterian Church

Despair

A glimmer of hope felt on a gentle breeze touched the thick, rotting Oak.
Alas, by sunset, the breeze moved on, leaving the Oak to die.

Blizzard Aftermath

Believe it or not, Rick was able to plow me out with his pickup truck! I thought for sure that I would have to find a front-end loader somewhere - that's how deep the snow had drifted across my driveway. But, the sweet man that he is, spent over two and a half hours (in the dark) picking away at the drifts and opened it up so I can get out. Here are some pictures of his handy-work. THANKS RICK! Your operating skills continue to AMAZE me.

Snow measurements taken

February, 2011 blizzard

It may take a week for me to get plowed out! Or, I may not see you until May!

More pics from this afternoon.

View some pictures from this morning.

White Pines Inn

Friday, Dec. 17, was a beautiful, sunny, crisp winter day - a great day for an excursion. So, the four "ScoutAbouts" (Chuck, Linda, Carmen and I) headed to the White Pines Inn in Mt. Morris, Illinois. Our objective - to scout out the Dinner Theatre for a possible Learning In Retirement trip. Carmen had set up a free reservation for all of us to enjoy the buffet lunch and the show - a comedic rendition of the Christmas classic, A Christmas Carol! (Thanks, Carmen!)

The two hour ride to the White Pines Inn passed quickly. Much of the route followed the incredible Rock River - filled with wind-blown chunks of ice and areas of rapidly flowing open water. Along the way, we spotted billowing smoke from the gigantic stacks of a near-by nuclear power plant, and an enormous statue of  Black Hawk, the Eternal Indian, situated high atop a bluff overlooking the Rock River. (Check out more information about this statue.)

I've got to admit...once we arrived at our destination, this ScoutAbout was a little worried. We were in the middle of a State Forest looking at a log-cabin style building surrounded by smaller log cabins. Very few cars were in the parking lot, and it looked somewhat deserted. As we approached the "lodge," we saw a sign above the door - Family Restaurant and Dinner Theatre. Phew! All my worries were abated, and we entered. Since we were a little early the hostess sent us to the gift shop (and restrooms) across the way.

Around 11:45, the hostess began seating people. I am not quite sure where all of these people (and their cars) were hiding, but there they were - in line waiting for a table. We were seated at a table right inside the entry door, closest to the buffet. Speaking of the buffet...all I can say is, "Yummmmmmmmy." There were probably eight different salads, three main entrees, and three kinds of bread to choose from. You wanted to savor each mouthful, yet at the same time, couldn't wait to sample the next item on your plate. And for dessert, a choice of all chocolate or chocolate and white cake with VERY creamy frosting!

After lunch, the show began - a comedic version of "A Christmas Carol" with only two actors. I wasn't sure how that would work, until they explained that members of the audience would participate as the other characters! Well, they warmed us up with the song, The Twelve Days of Christmas. Previously, the audience has been divided into 12 groups and each group was responsible for their part. Luckily, the ScoutAbouts (along with a few tables around us) were assigned day 12, so we only had to shout out our group part once. The song did get the audience laughing and warmed us up for the comedy to come. Without going into too much detail, this was one of the most innovative ways to do a play that I have ever seen. The audience members chosen (at random) to play parts in the play, really put all they had into it. The rest of us were nearly rolling in the isles with laughter. And guess what! Carmen was chosen to play the Ghost of Christmas Future. She did an excellent job! Carmen, I think you have a budding career in Theater.

We were so impressed with the friendliness of the employees and the high quality of the food and entertainment, that Carmen made reservations for an LIR Special Events trip to the White Pines Inn next October to see a different play (with audience participation). I can't wait! It should be outstanding - and the Fall colors along the way should be awesome.

Enjoy a few pictures from our ScoutAbout adventure!