Daily News for November 2006

Thursday, November 30, 2006

This just in:

NO SCHOOL IN EMPORIA TODAY, USD #253

***

See the Emporia Christmas Parade through Dave's eyes:

Light and Motion.

***

Heavy Snow Warning?

Yesterday, The Weather Channel said a couple of inches. Now, the prediction is like 7-10 inches. On top of icy streets.

Oh joy, oh elation. (If you don't know me, that's sarcasm.)

Wednesday, November 29, 2006

Tuesday's Flyover People column: The Beacon A visit to the Kansas Capitol   These are the brass pillars inside the Senate Chamber of the Statehouse.

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HAVE AN ICE DAY

There's always that moment (usually an extended moment) when you wonder whether your anti-lock brakes will hold.

Yes, we had a bit of freezing rain this morning which promptly turned to sleet. The streets of Emporia are now covered with cold, white,

slippery pellets.

Winter has arrived in Flyover Country.

***

Emporia's Annual Christmas Parade

I didn't go, but Dave took pictures of Tuesday night's Christmas parade. No winter coats were needed. Temperatures stayed in the 60s. Of course, the warmth all falls apart on Wednesday. Just watch and see.

A gingerbread house.

Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Our last best day. The view from my driveway - 9:20 a.m.   Today: the predicted high is 70 Tomorrow: f-r-e-e-z-i-n-g  r-a-i-n

***

An old garage and gas station- Lebo

***

Winner? Maybe, maybe not. OK, I did write 50,000 extra words this month. Fifty thousand new words (as opposed to used words.) But, as I stated in the beginning, I wasn't writing fiction - so I broke the main rule of the game. Instead, I wrote bunches of essays - some a couple hundred words long, some a thousand words.

Yep, I rode on the energy of the thousands of true novel-writing participants. And I used the Nov. 30 deadline that NaNoWriMo set because I'm not so good at self-imposed deadlines. I need to get better at that.

However, this did work out well and so I'm contemplating a new

(and different) writing project for December.

NaNoWriMo

Next November, I think I actually will write a novel.

Monday, November 27, 2006

Cheryl's Link of the Day:

Sketch Swap

Draw something for a stranger on the Internet. Then click on SUBMIT DRAWING and you receive a drawing from someone else.

***

Oh, the things a person comes up with while doing research.

I was checking up on Ed Ames, aka Mingo from the "Daniel Boone" show, and found this tomahawk-throwing scene from Johnny Carson.

 ***

Late November. Color has been banished from the earth. (All the good colors anyway.)

Sunday, November 26, 2006

From a distance - another view of Cedar Crest - the Governor's mansion. MacLellan Park, 244 acres worth, surrounds the residence. A plaque near the front gate says that the house was built in 1928 by Frank MacLellan, owner of the Topeka State Journal, and his wife Madge Overstreet MacLellan. The home is French Norman-style and overlooks the Kansas River Valley. The residence was named for the number of cedar trees on the property. It is on the National Register of Historic Places and was restored in 1999. Walkers, joggers, and bicyclists were on the trails around the mansion on the sunny and warm November day that we were there.

"Towering" over the city - Topeka's water tower lurks near the south gate of the Kansas Turnpike.

Saturday, November 25, 2006

Eastside Park Update   The playground is growing bit by bit. There are tunnels to crawl and places to sit, steps to climb up and slides to slip down. Kids will soon play at this new park in town.   Eastside Memorial Park is at Ninth and East Streets in Emporia.

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The sun just popped up over the horizon, bringing a fresh dose of daylight to all the good little boys and girls. And to the bad little boys and girls as well. (OK, there aren't really any bad little boys and girls, just troubled ones.)

It's a holiday weekend and the streets of Emporia are quiet.

In the days when I did a lot of morning, I really enjoyed the holiday mornings - because you could walk later and still enjoy solitude. On holidays, even at about 8 a.m., you could lay your body down in the middle of Twelfth Ave. and rest there for three or four minutes without a car coming by. Not that you would, of course, but you could.

Friday, November 24, 2006

Cedar Crest Kansas Governor's Mansion Note the sunflowers on the gate.

If you watch the morning news programs on TV, they'll give you all kinds of suggestions on what to do with turkey leftovers. Why do you have to make turkey tetrazzini? What's wrong with plain old turkey sandwiches? Bread, turkey, mayo. I could eat that for lunch for a week without complaint. And I probably will.

Thursday, November 23, 2006  - Thanksgiving Day

Dave caught the bird on "film" before he caught it with the electric knife. It was a beautiful 10-pound turkey. Our friend Roger joined us for dinner today and served as food stylist for the above photograph. We had the traditional mashed potatoes, dressing, gravy, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, Dave's favorite...oyster corn, and, of course, pumpkin pie.

***

Happy Thanksgiving! There's a dead bird in my oven!

This has no relevance to today at all...just a sunset as seen from the Kansas Turnpike.

Wednesday, November 22, 2006

Yesterday's Flyover People column is "Brown v. Board" about our recent visit to the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site in Topeka.

The former Monroe Elementary, once an all-black school in Topeka.

It is now the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site. Open daily 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. (except Thanksgiving, Christmas Day and New Year's Day.)

Another good website on the place and the case

is brownvboard.org.

This historic site tells the story of school segregation and integration and, well, the whole story of the struggle for equal rights for African Americans and other minorities.

Touchscreens offer learning through interaction.

Visitors can listen to music of the times - which were a changing.

At the Brown v. Board museum, inside the women's restroom (and perhaps inside the men's - I didn't look) are black stalls with white dots painted on. This reminded me of a story about Emporia's Mary White, William Allen White's daughter. Mary died in 1921 at the young age of 16. She had been a champion of minorities and the underpriviledged. At the time of her death she had been concerned about the quality of the restrooms for her African American classmates. After Mary's death, her parents apparently carried through with her desires for better facitilities for the girls. At a local garage sale several years ago, Janet Fish, of Madison, found an old booklet dated March 28, 1922, that was made for an "Open House at the Emporia High School by the Faculty Club." The booklet includes the following statement in a section which mentioned "outstanding features of our high school:" "A Mary White Rest Room for colored girls of the school. This room was furnished by Mr. and Mrs. W.A. White in memory of their daughter, Mary." *** More can be learned about Mary White at the William Allen White Home State Historical Site in Emporia.

***

But wait, there's more...

See Dave's photos

of the Brown v. Board museum on his photo blog:

Postcards from Kansas.

***

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

The Governor's Office

I peeked through the glass door of the Governor's Office and saw this clean desk. "Guess she's caught up on her work," was my first thought. Then I realized that this is her ceremonial desk - the one you always see in photos with a group of 4-Hers or war veterans standing behind her. It was a Saturday and so the Governor and her staff were not at work.

Just outside her door is a photo of our recently reelected Governor, Kathleen Sebelius.

November 20, 2006  Monday

A TV show that makes me laugh: "King of the Hill."

A young girl stands at one of the balconies on the 5th floor. I love all the natural light in the Statehouse. Apparently, in the beginning there were skylights also and I think they will be putting some of those back during the renovation process.

Flyover People Weather: Sunny, cool, no wind. It's a blue sky day.

Did ya know that Kansas is one of the top 10 sunniest states?

The inner dome looks like an eye. It is made of glass panels and light shines through it from the windows on the 8th floor (the space between the inner and outer domes.)

November 19, 2006  Sunday

More photos from last week's visit to our statehouse:

This staircase takes you above the inner dome...

These canvas paintings replaced paintings of partially-naked women. The half-clad women had been part of the decorating scheme of the Populists. A few years later the Republicans painted over the women and added these canvases.

Eighth floor - Kansas Capitol This was as high as I went last week - above the inner glass dome, but not all the way to the tippy-top. Windows around the circle offered a nice view of the city below.

The dome being built. 1888.

November 18, 2006  Saturday

4:16 p.m. I'm listening to Genesis and "In Too Deep" on the Musicovery website (see below entry). I'm stuck in the '80s and have been listening to darkish songs all day.

And the KU-K-State game is playing on the TV set. KU is ahead right now 20-10. Go Hawks!

It's a lovely day in Middle America. Sunny. Not too cool. No wind. But, of course, I'm inside, typing away. Finally caught up with my word count today on NaNoWriMo. Now I just have to come up with a newspaper column. And fold the clothes, clean the bathroom, fix supper.

Late afternoon sky.   Looking east.

***

Cheryl's Link of the Day:

This is the coolest music site I've found on the Internet. Pick a decade, choose your style of music, indicate your mood: dark and calm, positive and energetic and it gives you music selections.

Musicovery

(If you set this for LoFi, it's free. HiFi sends you to a subscription link. Anyway, play with it and you can hear some good tunes.)

Right now I'm listening to Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here."

OK, right now I'm listening to "Horse With No Name" by America.

 ***

Jellyfest

The Lutherans did it again. Jams, jelly, pickles, salsa, cocoa mix, zucchini pineapple. Zucchini pineapple? Yes. (But why?) The Messiah Lutheran Church is having their fall festival at the Anderson Building on the Lyon County Fairgrounds. Their biscuits and gravy breakfast was very good.

If I call this event the Jellyfest, then should I call the Elk Falls Outhouse Tour the Pottyfest?

November 17, 2006  Friday

Dave has posted several new wallpapers on the

Flyover People Wallpapers page!

***

D-DAY

Tomorrow is D-Day -- the day in Kansas when you're most likely to hit a deer.

November 18.

From today's Emporia Gazette, written by Bobbi Mylnar:

"According to statistics from the Kansas Department of Transportation's Bureau of Traffic Safety, a total of 700 deer-vehicle accidents have occurred on Nov. 18 in the past 10 years."

The deer are in season. Mating season. And they go beserk.

KDOT reports 8,819 deer-related accidents state-wide during 2005 (not all of them on Nov. 18, however).

Remember:

* Deer are social animals. If you see one, she probably has company.

* It is recommended that you slow down to avoid hitting a deer, but try not to swerve if possible. Swerving usually ends up in a more serious crash. Rolling your car is usually worse (for you) than hitting a deer.

* Dawn and dusk are the times the deer are most likely to be moving about.

***

A woman, a babe, a boy, a gun and a dog. I thought the dog lying at her feet was a nice touch. I'm sure many pioneer women were often left on their own for days at a time. They were toughened by the danger, by the wind, by Kansas blizzards. This monument is on the grounds of the Kansas Capitol.

***

ELK FALLS OUTHOUSE TOUR

Today and tomorrow. Friday and Saturday. The 17th and 18th. Visit lovely Elk Falls in Southeast Kansas and peek into their privies! Here's the vital information on the tours.

Spoiler: Or see and read about our Outhouse adventure there two years ago.

***

JELLY JAMBOREE

It's this Saturday, tomorrow, at the Lyon County Fairgrounds - the Anderson Building: the annual Jellyfest.

8 a.m.

OK, it's more than jelly, they have PIE too. And furniture.

It's an auction, coffee shop, lunch counter, probably some crafts. All kinds of stuff.

The members of this church are canners. They can all sorts of jams, jellies, salsas, pickles and more.

This is where I stock up on a year's supply of jelly. Sand hill plum is the best. Last year a fellow customer said the gooseberry was great, so I tried it. I'll stick with sand hill plum.

***

A really old birdbath on the Capitol grounds.

November 16, 2006  Thursday

Hey, Mrs. R. (aka Lacey - fan of Sara Robinson),

this is for you:

From KansasHistoryOnline.Org:

November 16, 1911

One thing that I especially love about Kansas History Online is their clever headlines. They are snappy writers. It's fun stuff.

***

Yesterday, an old friend (he's 91) was reading the NY Times and he showed me the Op-Ed page. In the bottom, left-hand corner was a little piece called "What's Right With Kansas." (You may not be able to access the page unless you sign up with the newspaper - it's free.)

The piece begins, "It would be remiss to finish the election post-mortems without noting a major shift in the nation's heartland."

William Allen White, as you all know, wrote the editorial "What's the Matter With Kansas?" A few years ago, Thomas Frank came out with a book of the same title.

November 15, 2006  Wednesday

Since this is Ad Astra's behind, here are some stories behind Ad Astra. Although he's as green as the dome, our friend Ad Astra has only been atop the Capitol since 2002. But the process of getting him up there took years of raising private funds and waiting. The dome had to be reinforced to handle his 4,420 pounds. And then it took two tries to get him perched up there. Richard Bergen of Salina is the artist. Ad Astra represents a Kansa warrior, aiming his bow and arrow at the North Star. Kansans know well their motto, "Ad Astra per Aspera," which means "To the Stars Through Difficulties." The phrase was offered by John J. Ingalls and adopted on May 22, 1861. By the way, that tiny railing and balcony is the end of the Dome Tour. (I wonder how many people a year get blown off that balcony by the Kansas wind?)

November 14, 2006  Tuesday

On this date in 1897, John Steuart Curry was born near Dunavant in northeast Kansas. Curry painted murals in the Kansas Capitol, including this one of John Brown. For more Kansas History, check out KansasHistoryOnline.org.

***

Flyover People Weather: We started out with a bit of fog this morning. A cold front is headed in from the Rockies and tonight/tomorrow morning we can expect some gusty winds, rain and possibly snow.

This morning, we're sitting under cloud cover. It's in the mid-30s.

***

Jigsaw puzzle fans: Dave's Puzzle of the Week is a photo taken in the newly refurbished Senate Chamber in the statehouse.

In my defense - this is why I didn't go all the way to the top of the Capitol dome. Take a look at these last 122 steps. This staircase takes you (if you are so brave) (which I am not) to a tiny balcony outdoors. Below this corkscrew staircase - 122 steps below - is the inner dome, the glass dome that you see from the lower levels of the building. I'm not afraid of heights... merely afraid of falling.

Columns and shadows. This is the front entrance to the Capitol. It faces the south. And since the sun hangs out in the southern sky these days, these columns cast shadows. I suppose I should've done the Rocky thing and run up these steps, but I had already climbed eight flights of stairs inside the building.

November 13, 2006  Monday

Note the blue, blue, blue sky on these photos. I don't mess with the color at all. It's all natural. We have the best sky.

Our capitol building is magnificent - inside and out. I hadn't been inside the building for years and years. While in Topeka on Saturday, Dave and I stopped so I could take a photo of the Abe Lincoln statue. Then we found out the building was open - on a Saturday afternoon! So, of course, we went in, looked around, and took the Dome Tour. I climbed as high as the 8th floor (to that top row of rectangular windows in the stone part of the building.) Dave went up in the green copper dome section, up past those round windows to the tiny balcony. This was Dave's second trip to the top. View his Dome Tour slide show (complete with music.) Musical Background: Prairie Waltz Performed by Steve Webb & Jack Nicol from their album "Ghost Town."

***

Abe, the Babe, is seated in front of the Kansas Capitol building.

November 12, 2006  Sunday

A few cold gusts of wind and all the leaves are gone! A few hanger-oners stick to the Bradford Pear trees in town, but out in the country, the timber is nothing but dry sticks.

Another Mystery Courthouse (Notice how the name of the county is so cleverly obscured by evergreens?) Where in the state is this?   E-mail Cheryl with the answer! Roger knows. Karen knows. So does Leon. Do you know? (answer below)

Yes, it is the Shawnee County Courthouse - in Topeka.

November 11, 2006  Saturday

Happy Veteran's Day to those who have served so long and so well.

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POSTCARDS WANTED - A CHALLENGE

When I was in grade school, we learned how to write business letters and personal letters.

As part of our personal-letter writing experience, we wrote letters to other students. Using a road atlas, we each selected a town about the size of Pawnee Rock (about 500 people at the time) and wrote a letter to the 5th grade class at that town's school. We told about ourselves, our school, our town and asked for letters in response.

I chose a town in Arizona - don't remember the name now, but I wrote and several weeks later a large manilla envelope arrived, full of letters. Each student in their class responded. I read each letter with great interest and I connected with a girl named Brenda. We corresponded for several years, sending photos and letters. Every day I'd check the mail at the post office (Box 7) and was thrilled when there was a letter for me.

Yesterday's Emporia Gazette had the following letter to the editor:

First of all, I think it's neat that they're asking for participation. They could easily find all of this stuff on the Internet, but they want information the old way - personal involvement and personal communication.

How about it, gang? Shall we?

Yeah! Let's bombard those Wisconsin kids with postcards from Kansas!

Stop in at your local drug store, truck stop or convenience store and purchase a postcard showing something in your area of Kansas. Write a short note on the back, address it and attach a 24-cent stamp. Then send it on its merry way to those eager kids in Peshtigo.

I have a few postcards I've picked up from around the state and will send those.

Maybe they'll get more postcards from Kansas than from any other state! Let's show 'em that Kansas cares.

I'll be happy to keep track of how many go out. Feel free to e-mail me after you send your postcard.

November 10, 2006  Friday

Flyover People Weather: cold, cloudy.

The Nova Stockton, Kansas

November 9, 2006  Thursday

Flyover People Weather: Incredible! Warm! Sunny! A predicted record-breaking high of 78 degrees.

As they say (sing) in Oklahoma, "Oh, what a beautiful morning, oh what a beautiful day..."

And yesterday's high temperature was something like 88 degrees.

***

They play that 1950s sound clip all the time, "The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant!"

When I heard the news first thing this morning, I thought, "The Democrats win the Senate! The Democrats win the Senate! The Democrats win the Senate!"

***

Glen Elder, Kansas Population 422 Mitchell County Now I've seen a lot of old gas stations, but this one is a castle. To quote the Commodores, "It's a brick...house" (well, a brick house made of limestone). Built in 1926.

But wait, there's more - a garage to the side.

November 8, 2006  Wednesday

I woke up - the morning after an election - and did not feel depressed.

Now that's a nice change!

***

Three Big Races in Kansas

Gov. Kathleen Sebelius won reelection and will stay on in Cedar Crest. Paul Morrison beat Phill Kline and will be the new Attorney General. Nancy Boyda pulled off a surprise win, defeating incumbent Jim Ryun for U.S. Congress in the 2nd District (Topeka area).

Moderates now control the Kansas School Board. Evolution does happen.

In Emporia, voters chose not to add two more members to the County Commission and also decided against hiring a County Administrator.

Don Hill returns as Emporia's Representative to the Kansas House.

***

Cigar store Indian - Clay Center

Clay Center

***

This week's Flyover People column: "Home on the Range"

November 7, 2006  Tuesday

Flyover People Weather at Noon: Sunny. 69 degrees.

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St. John the Baptist Catholic Church - Beloit Built in 1901. We sat inside this huge church for a few minutes. Catholics know how to "do" a church with statues and ornamentation, gold leaf and columns, stained glass and Stations of the Cross. These old Catholic Churches are quite a bit different from the simple and plain Mennonite church that I attended in my youth. I was 18 the first time I ever stepped inside a Catholic Church (St. Rose in Great Bend.) I attended an evening mass with a boyfriend and the dozen or so statues freaked me out. There were faces everywhere - staring at me, passing judgment, I could only assume. Maybe it was the incense that launched me into a coughing spell that left me with tears in my eyes and little breath. Anyway, I was grateful to escape into the fresh winter air that night.

drama in the architecture - flying buttresses

***

Happy Birthday to Dave! And to elebrown! (And, to musicians Johnny Rivers, Joni Mitchell, John Mellencamp.)

VOTE TODAY!

(or ... regret it forever!)

November 6, 2006  Monday

Mystery Courthouses unveiled:

No. 1 - Clay County Courthouse - Clay Center

No. 2 - Mitchell County Courthouse - Beloit

Roger Heineken was the first person to come up with Beloit. Marc Jasperson got both correct and was the first to name Clay Center.

My admiration and respect (as promised) goes to these gentlemen. Thanks to everyone who played (((Mystery Courthouses))).

***

Don't forget to VOTE tomorrow.

Off U.S. 56 near Silica (It's either in Barton or Rice County - I'll have to get back with you on that.) Update: My brother found a map before I did. He said the near-non-existent Silica is about a mile into Rice County.

November 5, 2006  Sunday

Mystery Courthouse No. 1 Can you name the county / county seat? No prizes, no ponies... all you win is my admiration and respect if you know the answer. E-mail Cheryl ANSWER: CLAY COUNTY COURTHOUSE - CLAY CENTER.

Mystery Courthouse No. 2 ANSWER: MITCHELL COUNTY COURTHOUSE - BELOIT. Many of the courthouses we've seen in Kansas were built around 1900. Lyon County built one then also. And they tore it down to build one in the 1950s. And they abandoned that one and built one in 2000. Lyon County has disposable courthouses. Or maybe we just didn't build 'em big enough to keep up with our growth. I've always been disappointed that Lyon County doesn't have a courthouse square. No square, no grass, just a big building growing out of the sidewalk.

For those of you who don't hang out in Emporia, here's the Lyon County Courthouse at the corner of 5th and Commercial. Attached to its tail-end, that dwarfed building, is the 1950s courthouse.

November 4, 2006  Saturday

The coolest thing about Cawker City was the paintings hanging in the storefront windows. They were painted by local artists and a ball of twine has been incorporated into each painting. Here's someone's version of "American Gothic."

A "Mary Cassatt."

Buildings across the street reflect in this window holding "Starry Starry Night," one of my favorite paintings, which, of course, reminds me of one of my favorite songs - "Vincent" by Don McLean. This painting is in the window of the Cawker City Ledger - the local newspaper. Speaking of Kansas newspapers, I would be remiss if I didn't mention that Cawker City is where Kathrine Klinkenberg White (William Lindsey White's wife) was born on July 9, 1903. (That White family factoid is courtesy of Roger Heineken, our local William Allen White expert.)

November 3, 2006  Friday

Bored? Too much free time? Cheryl's Link of the Day will cure that. "Stumble Upon" is a link that you can add to your browser. When you sign up, you indicate topics that interest you: writing, photography, music, humor, etc.

Then when you click on the Stumble Upon link, you'll get a random website related to one of your interests. Keep on clicking and you'll find some really great stuff.

I stumbled upon the Stumble Upon site the other day because one of my online essays "On Being a Kansan" made it into their line-up and someone liked it enough to forward it on to their friends. I noticed on my website stat sheet that more than 100 people had looked at that page in one day and they all had been directed to Flyover People via Stumble Upon.

So, try it, you'll like it. Take a tip from me.

(Sorry, that was an old junior high school cheer... "Try it, you'll like it. Take a tip from me. We tried it, we liked it, a Warrior victory! Yay!!!)

Cheryl's Link of the Day:

Stumble Upon

***

Wisconsin Street - downtown Cawker City

November 2, 2006  Thursday

The Great Ball of Twine - Cawker City, Kansas. This was my first trip to see the Ball of Twine. In the 1996 film "Michael," (loved that movie) John Travolta, William Hurt and Andie McDowell take a road trip and visit the World's Largest Ball of Twine. Since I was aware that Kansas had the Largest Ball of Twine, I was confused when they got stopped at the Largest Ball of Twine, because they weren't in Kansas. You mean there are two big balls of twine? Yes.   Dave and I visited with Lottie Herod at her Ball of Twine Souvenir and Gift Shop. Lottie told us that the twine ball in Darwin, Minnesota (visited by John Travolta, et. al.) was The World's Largest Ball of Twine made by one man. And that when Francis Johnson died, that was it for the Minnesota ball. It was his ball of twine and nothing has been added to it. The twine ball in Cawker City is a community effort and they keep adding to it.

November 1, 2006  Wednesday

It's November. National Novel Writing Month. NaNoWriMo. I'm not writing a novel, but I'm committed to writing 50,000 new words this month. The best ideas come to me in the shower, but I can't type in the shower, so we'll see how this goes.

I received my first e-mail pep talk from the NaNoWriMo boss and he suggested starting out strong: 2,500 new words a day.

This is in addition to my regular writing. I write every day. But a lot of my writing time is spent on rewriting - nothing comes out great in the first draft. So, this will be a little different. And it's always good to have a deadline imposed by someone else.

The NaNoWriMo website has a countdown clock to the end of the month - only 29 days, 17 hours, 25 minutes and 8 seconds left to write my 50,000 words. Gotta go...

***

From Tuesday's Emporia Gazette:

My Flyover People column: "Blessed Assurance."

I know last week's column was a cliffhanger (well, sorta), but I decided to interrupt the northwest Kansas tour with this piece about my late Great Aunt Ella.

***

Welcome to Cawker City in Mitchell County. Population 504.