Oh say, can you see?  I am still waving at you - raised to represent the freedom for which you live. I boast of your unity as I fly proudly over your Capitol, your courthouses, schools and homes. I bring hope to the captive. I cover your fallen.

My red stripes are the streams of blood, shed by your brave who now lie under me. My stars are the twinkle in your children’s eyes. My white stripes are the bandages you’ve wrapped ‘round your wounded and my patch of navy is the sky where One beyond the stars is holding you accountable for the freedom for which I stand. Read the rest of this entry »

Dressing room conversations lend themselves nicely to eavesdropping. Although if the conversation can be clearly heard without effort, it’s probably not eavesdropping. The anonymity provided by closed doors and partitions gives shoppers a false sense of privacy. They feel it’s okay to discuss situations and conditions unsuitable for strangers’ ears. Fellow shoppers may be busy trying on clothes and planning purchases, but within those friendly confines, they can hear everything. Curtains or partitions provide privacy, but not soundproofing.

Department stores in this area often give seniors added discounts on Wednesdays. “Senior” is defined differently by various stores, but regardless, Wednesday shopping means dodging more than a usual number of walkers, wheel chairs and people not in a hurry. I like seeing seniors out and about and admire them for leaving the comforts of home, particularly those for whom mobility is a real challenge. More power to them.

In some stores, I’m considered a senior and I have no qualms cashing in on my discount. But as a bit of a newcomer to the 20 to 25% off day, I sometimes forget that the majority of shoppers that day will likely be much older than me. I enjoy their company. They are a poignant reminder of how much I miss being with my Mom.

Now about the dressing room chitchat I’ve heard lately. It’s certainly not confined only to seniors, but it definitely takes on different qualities depending on the age of the one speaking and listening.

One day, and keep in mind, I never see these folks, just hear their conversations, it was a mother and daughter, and it’s likely they both received the senior discount. They were in the foundations department, that term alone qualifies me for senior status, and the mom was doing the trying on, and the daughter was making subtle and not-so-subtle suggestions. It was so sweet listening to their interactions.  This mom once helped her daughter with the necessities of life and now the roles had reversed. And I was an uninvited guest hearing the patience, love, and respect in their voices. Shopping that day provided me with many memories.

The next time I was trying on clothes, same store, different department, it was a three-generation family shopping together. A child, and I couldn’t tell by the voice if it was a boy or girl, had some very definite opinions about mom’s sense of fashion.  Apparently her fashion sense was less than stellar and the child wasn’t bashful about telling her that. At one point, the child instructed the mom on the specifics for apparel if she wanted to look like a rock star. I don’t think that was the look she had in mind. Grandma was also shopping although the child was less critical of her choices. Kids usually cut grandma more slack than Mom.

I’m looking forward to shopping with my granddaughters. Whether I let them in the dressing room or not is yet to be decided. I’d prefer to skip their scrutiny of my figure flaws and age conditions. But if they are with me while I’m trying on clothes, I’ll tell them to whisper. You never know who might be next door listening!

The community of West Peoria, Troop & Pack 11 and the West Peoria Lions Club extend an invitation to join the annual 4th of July Parade and Flag Raising celebration. This special day brings with it a feeling of community togetherness and heartfelt patriotism that truly touches the spirit. These organizations proudly coordinate the longest-running 4th of July parade in Central Illinois and invite you and/or your organization to join them.

The 38th annual parade steps off at 10:00 a.m. on the morning of the 4th. Line-up begins at 9:00 a.m. at the corner of Waverly and Moss Avenues. Parade information center will be at the corner of Rohmann and Waverly. The parade travels Waverly to Moss, to Sterling, to Rohmann to Cedar and concludes at the intersection of Cedar and Kellogg for the community flag raising ceremony there. Trophies will be awarded for: Most Patriotic, Best of Show, Best Juvenile, Grand Marshal and Service Organizations. All entries need to be decorated in a patriotic theme. Read the rest of this entry »

It seems that Mother Nature is not able to do things in moderation. Maybe we, particularly me, could take a lesson from her. We need rain, but get so much that it almost drowns us. Then it gets so hot that we, particularly me, can not stand to go out in the sun. I know that I tend to work in spurts and starts, but that has been about the only way I could do it in the last month. As I said last month I had taken out my front lawn and hoped to plant trees, shrubs and flowers, but it has been quite difficult with this changing weather. When I said I hoped to get the planting finished by this summer, I didn’t know how true that might be. It has to be cooler to plant, but I also can’t plant in mud. This may be one of my many lessons in learning patience.

I started out this morning to walk Kaja, my dog, but we had to come back in because it was pouring so hard. I hope I can get out between showers. She is such a good dog and seems to be able to wait forever to get out to do her business. I hope the rain does let up soon. Well, we finally made it out between rain showers or rather little thunderstorms, because it was raining so hard at times. It is so overcast this morning, the 23rd, that it looks like evening. I’m sure that will change once the sun comes out.

I love having Kaja as a companion. She is so accepting, provides me with unconditional love, is so glad to see me when I come home and only expects me to feed her. What more could you ask of a friend? I think dogs and cats are such great house mates, and I love having Kaja, and Tawny, my cat. And when I get a little irritated with the hair when I need to vacuum so much, I think of that my friend Cindy says, “You trade the hair for the love.” I think I get the better deal.

I worked very briefly at the Moss Avenue sale last weekend for Global Village which I usually enjoy, but this year it was just too hot. I actually sat back in the shade and folded brochures most of the time I was there. There were enough people working that didn’t seem to mind the heat so much, and I appreciated them. That is still one of the volunteer jobs I do that I feel very good about. I hope by offering fair trade items and being a not-for-profit store, we can slowly begin to make a difference in the world. If you haven’t been to our store, check us out at 1308 Sieberling in Peoria Heights right around the corner from the big stop sign on Prospect.

I actually am embarrassed to admit that I totally forgot to work at Gobal Village on the 7th which was one of my scheduled times, and I guess in getting ready to go to a conference, I totally lost track of time and didn’t get there. I’ve been volunteering at Global Village for over five years, and that is the first time I missed. I really regret that, but it taught me to focus a little better and not get distracted.

The Conference I went to was called Unitarian Universalist Women’s Connection, and it was sponsored by the District group of which Peoria is a part. It used to be called Universalist Unitarian Women’s Federation, and I was active for many years. It has reformed in this district and taken on a new name. I love the time spent with old friends, walking, listening, attending workshops, reading and generally relaxing for the weekend. The Conference was held at Pilgrim Park which is a church Camp and quite nice. For many years we attended this early summer conference at Allerton, which is a Conference Center at Monticello owned by the University of Illinois. It is a wonderful, elegant former estate and  is a beautiful grounds facility, and we are going back next April for our fiftieth reunion. I have attended many of the last twenty five years and come to love it and look forward to being with women for that weekend.

One of the things we do is bring our books and sell them at a minimum amount. I picked up a wonderful book called Hanna’s Daughter by Marianne Fredriksson, which had been owned by a good friend, Betty from Oak Park. I think we all chose books because of who had owned them before, for we know the people and know the books will be great. It turned out to be a really interesting book about Norway and Sweden, and I am going to look for some more books by her. I did not know this author before, and it’s always good to be introduced to a new, interesting and exciting author.

I’ve read several other books this month including a new one by Alexander McCall Smith, who I’ve mentioned before. This one was entitled The Good Husband of Zebra Drive and was actually advertised in Newsweek with a full page ad. It is one of the Botswana stories that Smith is so good at writing. He was born there, and is now in Scotland where he also writes several series: The Isabel Dalhousie; The Portuguese Irregular Verbs; and the 44 Scotland Street. All are entertaining and light hearted, and I love relaxing with one of them. I also picked up a light novel by Anne Rivers Siddons called Sweetwater Creek. I have read many of her books before and they are great summer reads. I read much lighter novels in the summer and very seldom read non fiction. Hot weather seems to go with lighter reading. I actually do read heavier stuff, but love to go to bed at night in the summer with a light read

The other author I’m reading is Ray Bradbury. I am on the Peoria Reads Committee and his Farenheight 451 was on a list with several other classics for us to consider for Peoria Reads. I chose to reread that one over some others I had read, and got excited about reading him again. I finished Dandelion Wine and have Farewell Summer by my bed for my next read. They are so powerful, have such great descriptions and the power of his words is enormous. I need to go back and reread many classics long forgotten, because this is almost as good as finding a good new author. One of the others I read from the list that was new on the list was Bless Me Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya another very good read. He is described as “One of the Nations’ foremost Chicano literary artists.”

I’ve also discovered again that a movie theater is a great place to go on a hot afternoon, and my friend Carlette and I have gone to see “Away From Her,” “Waitress,” and “Knocked Up” in the past three weeks. They are in the order of quality, the first being very well done and intense, although hard to watch. Julie Christie stars as an Alzheimer’s patient, who goes from her home to a ‘facility.’ The second one was cute, had a different slant on the plot and Kerri Russell was refreshing and delightful as the Waitress.

Third was a shock! We chose to go just to check it out because of the rating of four stars. I hate being considered an old fuddy duddy, but it was TOO MUCH! I have walked out of a couple movies before and I almost did with this one. ‘It had a different plot slant also, but every other word was the f word. I like to think I’m pretty tolerant, but I’m with Jerry Klein on this one. What has happened to the English language that young people think this describes everything. My ears were tired of hearing this trite phrase that younger people seem to think is the only way to describe anything is to say f—.  I’m going to suggest they put the age of the reviewer on the reviews because only a very young, naive, unimaginative person would rate this a four-star movie. He or she needs to go back to English class!

I mention Jerry Klein because he sometimes gets irate over the changes in our society that are inevitable, but his language and writing are top notch, and I respect him for this. He probably would not go see this movie, and I’m not sure who else should. No one in my opinion! Go see “Mighty Heart.” That is our next choice.

The Great Depression was not to my liking, neither was moving to that small farm on the outskirts of town. This decision had caused trials and tribulations long before it became a fact. The very thought of leaving my friends in town was just unbearable. I realized it was affecting my schoolwork when I started bringing home report cards containing letters found way down in the middle of the alphabet. In spite of my thoughts on the matter, the move went on as scheduled.

Even though I was allergic to work, I was sometimes called upon to do the weekly churning. If the regular churn was out of commission at that time, the cream mixture was put in a half gallon jar and I would sit in a chair and shake the jar unmerciful until butter appeared. Kids worked back then—even those in the city worked. Read the rest of this entry »

The Peoria Chapter of IDEA links potential markets with potential producers. This program has grown tremendously since its first inception, through the Peoria County Office, in 2005. On Monday, July 30 University of Illinois Extension is sponsoring a tour of Living Earth Farm, from 9 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. This tour will also include lunch featuring local and organic food.

“Living Earth Farm is committed to a system of agriculture which strives for a balance with nature, using methods and materials which are low impact to the environment,” said owner Anne Patterson. “We never use genetically engineered seed, or synthetic pesticides and herbicides. We use crop rotations, cover crops, companion plants and follow a soil building plan.” Read the rest of this entry »