20

Happy 20th birthday, Claire!

New pickup

Here's a pic of my new Toyota Tacoma 4X4 double cab TRD Off Road. Ain't she sweet?

It's Tab time!

Tab Benoit was in town for the second time this year, and under no circumstances would we have missed a note. Tab was at his finest. Long, wailing guitar rifts. Mesmerizing drum solo. Thumpaliscious bass solo. And plenty of delta blues all night long. If you're looking for fun, Tab ain't no tart fresca; he always brings the party.

Cards

Twenty of us Columbia Rotary-Metro folks hopped on luxury coaches with 40 Chamber of Commercers and motored to St. Louis to watch the Cards whoop up on the Phillies. And whoop up they did. Below is the view from the private outdoor seating adjacent to our deliciously catered, open-bar party room. Oh, life is good. Life is good.

hot hot hot

92 degrees F. 

94% humidity. 

A long afternoon hike.
100% exhausted dogs.

The dogs got water. 

We got ice cream. 

Sometimes sapience pays dividends.

Soybean Festival

Yesterday, Pat and I participated in the always surprising and fantastical Jaycees Annual Soybean Festival in Mexico, Missouri. What could be better than eating a potato tornado while listening to the wailings of The Next Mexico Idol contestants? As far as the soybeans, we saw none. Not even someone in a soybean costume. One of the best parts of the day was listening to the Ozark Mountains band Big Smith. From their bluesy "Go Away Maggie" and "Ain't Got Nobody" to the raw country of "Ride That Train," Mark, Jody, Rick and all sing with gumption to entertain.

It is no surprise that Pat set up camp within arm's reach of funnel cakes.

Porch turtle

I don't know about you, but we like to keep a porch turtle to give the porch light toad company. Amphibians get lonely. This lovely lady box turtle is an exchange student from the gulf, seeking a cleaner, quieter environment, and midwestern cultural exposure.