The Saturday Morning Post- 50 States in 52 Weeks Indiana

 

My first visits to Indiana were on the trips to Arizona when I was 5 or 6 years old, my father had a cousin who lived in Michigan City Indiana, along the southern shore of Lake Michigan. Then there was a long break before I started going back.  

When we lived in Lexington, I went to Indianapolis a couple of times in May, for qualifying weekend for the Indianapolis 500 race.  It is amazing to watch cars go by at 200+ miles per hour.  On qualifying weekend, you can get right down along the along pit lane fence.  

My sister and my oldest nephew live in Ft Wayne Indiana, in the north east of the state.  I have been there to visit a few times, and need to go back.  We have close friends living around South Bend in the northwest of the state, we have been there several times to see Kel, Bob, Jen, and Jay. 

The photo above is from the Auburn Cord Duesenberg car museum in Auburn Indiana. A great collection in the original Auburn design center and factory showroom.  

I need to get back to see my sister sometime this year. 

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I can't resist this one, Thank You Debra at She Who Seeks

Fantasy Friday: What if I won the Big One?

Am I the only one who thinks this tree looks like the head of a snake?

I almost never buy lottery tickets, or put more than a quarter in a slot machine, so the odds of me winning an unexpected fortune are slim and none.  But still what would I do, if? What fantasy could I fulfill? 

The program I directed is largely funded by outside funding, grants, contracts, consulting agreements, and donations. The program has an endowment, but it does not generate enough income to support one full time employee. I could fund their budget, give them financial independence. This would allow them to pursue the most important work, rather than the most funded work.  And free the director from the constant search for the next dollar.  

I am a strong believer in the transformative power of education. I know how hard it can be for someone from a modest background to pay for an education (I did it.) I could fund scholarships to help change people's lives.  That would be a good thing. (Much of whatever is left when the two of us are gone, goes to higher education.) 

Over the years I have thought about the amazing homes that could be bought with sudden wealth, and then I think about the work of maintaining them. Owning more than a couple of homes, becomes a full time job.  You can hire people, but then you have staff management issues.  I have been the boss. Been there, done that, and wouldn't really want to do it again.  Maybe bring in a housekeeping service, and have a second apartment in someplace like Florence or Rome where I could spend a couple of months now and then. 

Cars, I enjoy cars, I have owned a couple of head turners over the years.  But I don't think a Ferrari would be in my garage.  One fantasy car, a late 1970s Rolls Royce Corniche Convertible. And probably a nice reliable Toyota or Honda as a daily driver. 

At least once a week I look at an around the world cruise. It would take me places I have never been and probably will never go.  

I have always wanted to have a boat. Ten years ago when I was headed into surgery, the anesthesiologist asked me what I was thinking as he was inserting his lines. I said "how big of a boat I should buy if I survive this." He joked about it being better to rent than own if it floats, flies or f_ _ _s." Then he told me about his airplane.  All I would want is something slow and easy to handle to putter around the local waterways.  (Ultimately I bought the convertible instead of a boat, I reasoned that I would get more use out of the car than I would a boat.)  With unexpected wealth, I could have both. 

If I am slow in falling asleep, I let my mind drift into the fantasy world of what would I buy, if I won the big jackpot.  Building castles in the sky usually puts me to sleep. 

There is an old joke:

Neurotics build castles in their mind, 

Psychotics move in, 

and 

Psychiatrists collect the rent. 

 

The Thursday Ramble: Ideas for Something Positive

We can control what we see, hear, read, feel, We can control what we do, what we say, what we focus our minds on.  And yes these are times when sometimes we need to. 

What can I do for positive input: 

• Take a walk. Get up, get out, move.  Take a slow roll around the neighborhood. 
• Go to the gym, take a swim. You never know who you might see at the pool. 
• Read something reaffirming.  Not a depressing novel, or a book about end of life (I read a book recently about physician aid in dying in Canada) but something about finding goodness in life. 
• Be selective in YouTube. There is a channel that has a lot of content about finding happiness and self acceptance, Reflections of Life, it is produced in South Africa. Not all of the videos are positive, but most are. The Ted Talks are always educational and often positive. Many of the narrowboating channels that helped us through 2020-2022 have faded away.  There are a couple of ongoing renovation channels that I follow. A spin-off from one of those is Brian's Life In France, an Irish guy, living in rural France and working on Dan's renovation every couple of weeks. Sure beats watching Law and Order. 
• Set your sound track. Talk news is probably not a healthy thing to listen to right now.  Dig out your CDs or stream music in a place that allows you to set the mood by your selection of music.  
• Find something funny.  Ask Siri or Alexa or Google for the joke of the day, or to tell you a funny story. Do a quick search for jokes. If you can't remember the last time you laughed, it has been too long. 
• Practice any art.  You don't have to be good at it, for doing it to be good for you.  Escape and have fun in the focus. 

My World of Wonders, aka The Wednesday Ws April 2nd 2025

Where have I been this week?  Out to lunch in Old Town Alexandria, Aldi, the gym, the pool, a hanging in the community center, opening of the art exhibit that I helped hang, the farmers market - first time since December, the local bookstore, local cookware shop, into DC for a five mile walk around the cherry blossoms.  

What have I been up to in the kitchen this week?  Roast Sirloin of Pork with cipollini onions, mushrooms and roast potatoes, cheeseburgers and potato salad, chicken curry and rice, beef stir-fry with rice. 

Who have I traded messages with this week? My dear sister, Spo, Sean, Linda from the arts group - I traded emails with Paula. Mitchell and Sassy. I traded messages with a reader in Greenwich. I talked to Jason, who was one of my shuttle bus buddies - he is still working at DoD - at least today, 

When will things be normal again? A few years, be patient, we survived Reagan, Thatcher, Johnson, and two Bushes. 

What have I bought this week? Wine, chips, veggies and shrimp at Aldi,  broccoli, onions, rolls and pastries at the farmers market,  

Why am I happy? It is spring, and I am leaving on vacation soon. 

Travel Tuesday: 24 hours in Iceland August 2015

On our way home from Germany in 2015, we did a 24 hour stopover in Iceland. We rented a car, stayed in small hotel on the outskirts of Reykjavik. It broke up the trip home, into two 4 or 5 hour flights, and it was a great first taste of Iceland.  We wanted more, we have been back twice since. And probably will go again.  Icelandair has great off season and shoulder season travel packages, and they just entered a partnership with Southwest to expand the airports you can fly from.