Little Red School

*

It seemed as if I jet-setted all weekend, what with going to Pella on Saturday and then on Sunday afternoon driving west to I-35 to pick up my son who spent the night with his sister and her husband in Ankeny. What a gorgeous time to be driving around in Iowa, though! The soybean fields are still golden, the corn still green, and roadside ditches are full of various colors. I felt as if in Seventh Heaven........with the windows down, my favorite driving music playing, and lots of time to think, think, think!!

*

*

This is a post that's been patiently waiting to be published, so I'd better squeeze it in before any more time slips away:

*

One sunny morning a couple weeks ago, I needed to run an errand in Cedar Falls, and decided to make a quick stop for photos at the Little Red Schoolhouse on 1st Street (Hwy. 57).

**

**

In the background, to the right of the schoolhouse, is the old railroad bridge over the Cedar River. The Old Broom Factory, which was torn down last year, sat right by the bridge.

**
This emblem on the door says "IOWA STANDARD SCHOOL".

**

A closer view of the details of the bellfry:

**

**
This school building was moved from its original location a dozen or so miles northeast of Cedar Falls, in Bennington Township, rural Black Hawk County. It originally was painted white. When I was a kid, there was another old white schoolhouse not far from where I live now.......a farmer used it for corn storage. Several years ago, the owner donated it to the National Cattle Congress grounds in Waterloo, where it has been restored. Many rural schoolhouses were converted into residences.......IN FACT, my grandma's house (where I sewed my prom dress) was a converted country schoolhouse which had been moved into town.

**

**
Near the red schoolhouse is this restored gas station, now in use as a tourist information building. Way in the background, maybe you can see the brick building........that is the Ice House Museum, which sits next to the Cedar River, and I hope to blog about that fascinating place sometime soon! It hosted high floodwaters this spring, and some of the museum artifacts were lost, but many survived.
**

**
Well, what do you know.........on my way home I ended up following a Dunkerton schoolbus! At one point, when we were moving very slow, I snapped this photo. Do you see the boy's head through the window? The sight of it warms my heart; he sends a message of earnest and eager hopefulness as he watches the road ahead! I wish to possess that quality even as I grow older.......to be alert, aware, awake and watching! Not slumped pouty-like in the back seat......which I recall some kids doing back when I was a daily bus passenger. This simple scene prompts many memories of my long-ago years of schoolbus-riding!

**

**

Not far from my church sits this forlorn, old brick schoolhouse which is FOR SALE......of all things!! It comes complete with a wooden outhouse in the back! Most likely, a neighboring farmer will buy this property and raze it.

Many of the old rural school buildings in Bremer County were made of brick, and there are several in the area which have been converted into residences. Sadly, this one somehow missed out on that transformation. (P.S. - And, guess what......this old school building was intentionally burned down by the local fire department on Sept. 18! Good thing I stopped and sneaked a photo when I did.)

*
*

My years of attending public school (K-12) provided me with a lifetime's worth of wonderful friendships and memories. There's a group of us who have known each other since kindergarten; we still get together and laugh ourselves young again recalling goofy old memories! And, its interesting.......no one has really changed much after all these years! I think much of our personality and traits are set in place already by the time we're 5 years old!

**
**

After-Church Goodies

Well, I don't know what in the world is going on with the layout of this post........I clicked CENTER and medium size for uploading, like I normally do. What caused the photos to show up this way beyond my understanding.

**********************
On the way home from church I detoured over to the dirt road, figuring it would be dry and "passable".......which it was.









*******
There are red-colored wild rose hips near the bottom of the vertical photo. Click the photo to enlarge it and see them better.

*

(Uh......no, there is not a pastry shop on the dirt road!)

Well, this afternoon I would invite you over for coffee and Dutch pastries IF you were in the vicinity! Yes, the Jaarsma Bakery was one of my required stops in Pella yesterday. Yum, yum!

***********

Today in church we had a special speaker, and boy-oh-boy, could he ever speak........almost sounded like I imagine God Himself might sound.......authoritative and booming! And---wow---did he ever give emphasize to the Sacrament of Communion!

*

Yesterday, I toured the house of the founder of Pella, Dominie Henry Scholte, a Dutch Reformed Church pastor. On the mantel in the sitting room was a statue of Martin Luther and Luther's famous quote, "Here I stand, I cannot do otherwise; so, truly God help me." Evidently, Henry Scholte admired Martin Luther very much.

*

I mentioned this fact in Bible Class this morning. A visitor----someone connected with the visit of the special speaker-----then commented that the major separation point between the Lutheran Church and the Reformed Church in Europe after the Reformation was the matter of the meaning of the Sacrament of Communion. The two sides were never able to agree about it. Martin Luther clung to the belief of the Real Presence in the bread and wine, while the Reformed held more of a symbolic view of the elements. Interesting.......and, too bad, in my opinion, that this issue remains a dividing point amongst the churches of the Reformation.

*

Very interesting, too, that Henry Scholte admired Martin Luther enough to have a statue of the reformer in his house.

*

Well.......I must get back to my coffee and Dutch letters, which are very delicious, by the way. How such an odd shape for a pastry came to be, I do not know, but will try and find out for a future Pella blogpost. When my daughter spent a college semester in The Netherlands, she would comment to me that most of the Dutch people were tall and slim.......and ate pastries everyday! What's the deal with that, I say!? Is such a thing fair?

*

*

P.S. - Reader Nancy of SewManyDays blog looked up the Jaarsma Bakery website and found the origin of the Dutch letter pastry's "S" shape........it stands for "Sinterklaas"........(the Dutch Santa Claus). Thanks!

*

*

*

Jesus & Two Disciples

On the traditional Church calendar, today is the day to remember St. Matthew, Apostle & Evangelist, thus I'm posting this richly-colored window scene of Jesus and two disciples.......presumably that's what the scene depicts, anyhow. If anyone thinks differently, let me know.

*

*

*

*
*

Once again, this is a stained-glass window from St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Waverly, Iowa.

*

*

Pella People

*

Here's a few of the people I encountered in Pella today. They kind of remind me of you bloggy friends........a bit on the QUIET side!

*

*
*

Here's a Central College student.......on her way to class (On Saturday? And, during the Homecoming game? That seemed a bit odd.):

And, another one.......thoroughly engrossed in his book! He didn't even notice the burning bush over his shoulder!

*
The popular shoe style here may give you a hint of who founded Pella:

*

More about this charming town coming up soon!

*

Automated Saturday

I'm away from the blogging chair today, so the automated blogposting service will fill in. Sorry, it, of course, cannot post replies to comments!

*

*

Just a few random photos:

*

*

*

Thursday morning, the Uni-chopper was caught still in dozing mode before its big day of chewing up rows of corn for silage.

*

Each autumn, I have a habit of throwing old pumpkins into weedy patches around the farmstead, hoping volunteer vines will grow the following spring. It works pretty well, actually........it is my kind of gardening!! Here's one that took root in the weeds near the calf pens; the poor thing has scars from being pecked by the chickens!

*
*

Balloon in Pasture

Hey, the dogs and I were just out in the pasture rounding up the heifers and guess what we found..........this deflated SpongeBob SquarePants helium balloon!! It must have wafted in from who-knows-where on the night breezes!

*

*

Due to the fact that the presidential campaign was on my mind when I spotted the balloon, I'm quite sure flat, beat-up SpongeBob here symbolizes one of the election contenders. Unfortunately, I'm not intuitive enough to know which one it is.......sorry. (Although, the face does sort of resemble _____! You can fill in the blank with your choice!)

*

A few minutes later, Froggy here remarked that if only one of the political parties had a frog as a mascot, then he might be able to enlighten me as to how the election will turn out. Donkeys and elephants are beyond his comprehension........so he said, anyway. Who knows if he's croaking the truth, though!

**
**

Tiling Season

The tiling machine and crew have been working here the last few days:

*
*

*

I love big, noisy, earth-moving machines.......maybe I was a heavy machine operator in a former life! (Just kidding!)
*

This tiling project is going on in one of our fields right now. Drainage tile is what I'm referring to........perforated plastic tile which gets buried a few feet under the surface of the ground to catch rainwater which soaks into the soil. The water drains through this buried tile into the "crick", helping the soil to dry out faster and improve crop-growing conditions.

*
*

Here's some straight connecting pieces:

These looked cool against the blue sky!

The tiling machine is a noisy beast! The sound of it is just fascinating to me, for some reason; its similar to a bulldozer Cat at work. I love it! It takes me back to when I was a kid and the old-fashioned clay tiling machine would come to the our farm. The complicated conglomeration of a machine would roar and growl as it inched its way across the field like a snail, cutting the trench and laying the lines of clay tile. Nowadays, the tile is plastic tubing, but the process of cutting the trench and threading the tile into the ground is similar.

*

Watch and listen if you wish!! The video is not of great quality, but the sound is cool!! (At least, I think so!)

Skies Courtesy of Ike

**

**

Last Saturday evening, while Hurricane Ike was battering parts of the Gulf Coast of the U.S., we here in Iowa were treated to a spectacular cloud show around the time of sunset!

**

**

**
**

This post, of course, is a SkyWatch Friday post! You can click here to go to the Skyley website which contains a list of links to sky scenes from around the world!! SkyWatch Friday is brought to you by Tom, Sandy, IMAC, and Klaus.........I don't know them personally, but they do fantastic work with the Skyley website and with commenting!

**

**
**

I do hope there is good weather happening in your part of the world!! No one needs a hurricane, or tornado, or a typhoon.

**

**
Take care and THANK YOU for stopping by!

*

Keep watching the sky!

**
**

Why Trees Turn Color

**
**

*

Over lunch yesterday, I happened to read the following informative article in the "Third Section" of the September 13, 2008, edition of the Dairy Star newspaper, published in Sauk Center, Minnesota (no author's name is given):

****

Why Trees Turn Color in Autumn

*

The areas famous for fall coloration because of deciduous tree are well-known. New England, the mountains of New York, Pennsylvania, and the Rockies all have their claim to fame for sometimes breathtaking colors. As overwhelming as they may appear when one is taking in these majestic colors, only 14 percent of the world's forests are temperate deciduous forests with a habit of giving us brilliant fall colorations.

*

In regions where sugar maples abound, such as New England, the red leaf displays dominate, but are intermingled with the bright yellows of aspen, beech, and birch trees. In spite of the striking beauty that we enjoy, Mother Nature doesn't do it for our benefit because these hues of red, yellow, gold and brown represent more than just a pleasing experience for humans.

*

"Shortly after peaking in color intensity, the leaves abscise, or fall, to the earth, " says Ron Smith, North Dakota State University Extension Service horticulturist. "The move is designed to help conserve the energy balance in the trees. This reduces and balances the respiration rate of the tree to approximate the lowered rate of photosynthesis that takes place during our winter months."

*

What is it that triggers this coloring to take place in certain tree species? Many think it may be initiated by a touch from Jack Frost, but in reality, the colors we enjoy can be witnessed only on living, senescing trees. If Jack Frost arrives too early in the fall, there will be no fall colors, just dull browns because of the "killing frost".

*

"What triggers these events is a specific combination of shorter days and cooler temperatures in autumn in a specific locale that is sensed by plant receptors, which results in hormone production", Smith says. "This, in turn, initiates leaf senescence. This specificity to a narrow climatic zone is important for us to understand because it is generally effective within 130 miles north or south of the origin. For example, this is why a red maple that looks great in Ames, Iowa, is mediocre in Fargo. Or, at worst, has the leaves nipped by a hard frost before it has a chance to senesce sufficiently."

*

Typically, we see reds, yellows, and oranges in our region of the country. Carotenoid pigments are unmasked during leaf senescence (leaf aging). This gives the viewer the yellow colors we see in the common Ohio buckeye, birch, and ash trees.

*

"The favorite color for most observers is the red that comes from anthocyanin pigments", Smith says. "Red and sugar maples, along with sumac shrubs, are the sources in our region for this color. Unlike other pigments, anthocyanins are not commonly present in leaves until autumn coloration begins. There are exceptions we all know about, such as the red-leafed chokecherry and the crimson King Norway maple. Trees lacking the genes for red color from anthocyanins instead will develop yellow and brown shades in autumn."

*

Fall weather favoring bright red autumn leaf colors are warm, sunny days followed by cool, but not freezing, nights. Rainy or cloudy days, with reduced sunlight near the time of peak coloration, decrease the intensity of the reddish autumn colors by limiting photosynthesis and the sugars available for anthocyanin production.

************************

************************

I learned new info from this article........that red-colored leaves indicate the presence of a particular pigment, which is produced under certain weather conditions-----warm, sunny days and cool, but not freezing nights. And, truly, that is the type of weather we've been having lately.......hence, all the red leaves in Iowa!! Its nifty to know this explanation, I think! And, it mentioned that plants have hormones whose production is regulated by the weather, too. Just so very interesting.......all this stuff going on in plants around us and we don't even realize it!

**

Ok, that's your horticulture or botany lesson for the day. Be sure to study for the test coming up tomorrow.......you will definitely need to know how to spell anthocyanin.......NOT!!

**

(The sumac photo was taken last Sunday, near Clermont, Iowa.)

**
**

Views of Sarah Palin

**
**

I'm trying to become familiarized with Sarah Palin........trying to find out the true story about her, since being a vice-presidential candidate is a serious matter. Its difficult to uncover unbiased truth about anyone involved in politics, however.

***********

1. Here's an opinion From another mother in Wasilla, Alaska, who has a special needs child. This Seattle Times article articulates my own initial reaction to Sarah Palin.

*

*

2. Here's the first post on a blog which is very supportive of Gov. Palin. This blogpost is entitled "Draft Sarah Palin for Vice-President". The post is dated March 4, 2007.....that's right, 2007.

*

*

3. A CNN article about Gov. Palin's church background.

*

*

4. Here's a video of Gov. Palin speaking at her former Assembly of God Church in Wasilla.

*

*

5. LA Times article with a link to a blogpost by a young person who grew up in Wasilla.

*
*
*

Morning Fog Over Cornfield

This morning I sleepily walked into the kitchen to make the coffee and happened to glance out the window:

**

**

In my flannel nightgown, I ran outdoors to take a picture! A person just can't hesitate in such matters........go for it!!

**
**

I Was 'Vetted Long Ago

Where I've been my whole life, I'm not sure, but I had never heard of or noticed the word "vetted" until recently in newspaper articles and editorials about the presidential candidates. In the dictionary, one of the definitions of "vet" is to subject to careful examination; scrutinize; check; test. John McCain, Barack Obama, Joe Biden, and Sarah Palin have been undergoing "vetting" by journalists, other media folks, and anyone else possessing an investigative mindset.

**
**

One time, long ago.........I was 'Vetted. Read on and you will find out when, where, and why that occurred.

*

From grades seven through twelve, I participated in band at my school, which being a small school, allowed the junior high kids to be part of the high school marching band. In sixth grade, I was sucked into band because they needed a person to play the glockenspiel........and, they were looking for someone who had taken piano lessons and could read music. That landed me in the percussion section for the next seven years, playing snare drum, tenor drum, bass drum, tympani, cymbals, cowbell, wood blocks, maracas, triangle........and glockenspiel. Here's our photo from the 1976 yearbook:

*

*

There are old Saturday Night Live spots showcasing "band cheerleaders"..........did you know a band can also have a queen? Sounds pretty silly, doesn't it. Yes, I kind of thought so, too. Back in my high school days, our school didn't participate in state marching band contest (or perhaps there wasn't such a thing, then), but we took part in the Eastern Iowa Bandmasters Festival in Cedar Rapids each year........I'm thinking it was in the spring, but I could be wrong. A host of high school bands (all better than our little ragtag band) would compete by marching and playing tunes through the streets of downtown Cedar Rapids, each band led by its "queen", who was in competition for a crown to be given away later in the afternoon.

*

Ok.......I had been Prom Princess in my junior year and Homecoming Queen in the fall of my senior year.......that was enough royalness. The experiences were enjoyable, but not something I'd particularly wished for........not consciously, anyway. I didn't want to be our band's queen for the Cedar Rapids festival, either, but had a feeling it would be so. As the time for the band to vote came near, I decided to speak privately with my band instructor about this issue. I recall the day very well, even what I was wearing, because the whole thing made me very nervous. During a study hall, I went to the band room to talk to him. I asked him to please let one of the other senior girl band members be the queen, even if I was the top vote-getter. Well........he practically got mad at me........saying, "No, absolutely not, I will not do such a thing!" Stupid me.......evidently, I was blind to the fact that I was asking him to lie and commit fraud.

*

Subsequently, yes, I was voted the "band queen" and experienced the one and only 'Vetting of my life! I was conveyed in a CorVETTe!! And, a nice blue one, too.......my favorite color, and my chauffeur was a handsome stranger! We're probably on First Avenue in this photo........last spring, the floodwaters would have been up to the top of the first floor windows of this Cedar Rapids building!

*

*
Following the parade, the band members were free to wander around downtown Cedar Rapids until mid-afternoon when the queen crowning ceremony would take place in a park. For five years, I had enjoyed exploring Cedar Rapids with my friends on the afternoon of the Festival day. This time, I wouldn't get to, for I had to dress up in a formal and spend the afternoon with my band instructor........at a banquet and the queen competition. As we were walking to the restaurant where the banquet was to be held, he said, "They sure picked a seedy place for the meal." I recall this so clearly because it was the first time in my life I'd ever heard someone use the word "seedy", and I wasn't sure exactly what it meant!

*
Maybe I should tell you a little bit about our band instructor. He had been a last-minute hire right before my freshman year of high school. Our former, long-time band teacher had died suddenly of a heart attack right before school was to start. This new guy was hired, fresh out of the Coast Guard Band. I still recall our first marching band rehearsal with him out on the football field.......he acted so military-like, and we were all just rolling our eyes the whole time. He didn't get off to a good start.......he didn't establish authority, and he would get flustered and turn red, and then kids would laugh. Not good. He was gifted musically, but didn't really have much of a clue about dealing with students.

*
At any rate, somehow he lasted through our four years of high school. He always dressed quite formal, in black pants and a white shirt, but one day in my senior year I walked into the band room and nearly fainted when I saw him in a plaid shirt! At band lessons----which I didn't care for at all----he acted so very ill at ease that it made me feel ill at ease and nervous during my drum and tympani lessons. He always acted overly self-conscious and unsure of himself. He had come from the East Coast.......Boston, possibly; one time his mother came to visit and attended one of our concerts. One look at her was very enlightening. Her appearance and demeanor was totally intimidating.......giving me a much clearer understanding of her son after that, and I could see possibly why he had come all the way out here to teach in a remote little school in Iowa........to get further away from her!! Every one of us.......that means you, too, and me.......is molded by our parents' or guardians' effect on us in our childhood years.

*
Below is the group of band queen candidates, with the former year's winner sitting down in the front. I do not recall who won.........I do recall that it was not me, which was absolutely fine and no surprise at all!


*
I think the band director stayed at our school one more year after my Class of '76 graduated. He moved on to another school in Iowa, but I never heard where. Sometimes, I think of him and truly hope that he found some happiness, because I don't think he was happy when he was with us. He was single, and I think, rather friendless and lonely. We were so mean to him when he was our study hall monitor........we girls would plan ahead of time to do something all together, like clean out our purses, or some other odd thing that wasn't really against the rules, but would annoy him. One time, we were having study hall in the library and we could hear him yelling at one of our classmates out in the hall.........she came back and sat down across the table from me. I simply whispered to her, behind my hand, "What happened?", and Mr. Band Director immediately roared at ME to go sit in the corner!! Like I was a little grade-schooler! Well, OK, fine.......I did; sat there in the corner of the fiction bookshelves, the guys at the closest table glancing over and snickering for the rest of the hour. It still makes me laugh to think that the only time I was ordered to "sit in the corner" was when I was a senior in high school!!

*
Anyhow, as I said........I hope the band director eventually found happiness in life. I enjoyed band very much and have many fond and goofy memories of the goings-on in the percussion "zoo" section! We were in our own world back there behind the rest of the band, and could do pretty much as we pleased......(get creative, you know)....... as long as we kept the proper rhythm and beat!!

**
**

P.S. - One last thing........at the end of the parade, my driver turned around and asked me to stay in the Corvette so we could drive off into the sunset together and get married! That I said "No" may have been the biggest mistake of my life!! (And.......surely you're sharp enough to know that this is a B.S.P.S.!)

**

B.S.P.S.#2 (heehee): The real reason I'm posting photos and info of myself as queen-of-something-long-ago is that I'm hoping someone will ask me to run for office!

**

**

Sarah Palin was "Miss Wasilla", in Alaska, years ago! That fact may be a factor, tiny perhaps, but a factor nonetheless, in propelling her to where she is now. Did you know Sarah Palin was also a stand-out high school basketball player, leading her Wasilla team to the state championship? She was known as "Sarah Barracuda", due to her aggressive ball-playing (from Ten Facts About Sarah Palin). An interesting thing I noticed as a mother of two girls who played basketball was: in the initial years of playing----in grade school and junior high-----girls must be constantly exhorted to "be aggressive"! Even I, the nonagressive mom, would sit there in the bleachers and get caught up in yelling at my daughters and their teammates, "C'mon......BE MORE AGGRESSIVE!" (I don't recall hollering those words at my sons' teams.) Competing aggressively doesn't seem to come instinctively to most girls. Liberals and conservatives alike should look at Sarah Palin and see how risky it is to urge girls to be strong and aggressively competitive (wink, wink!)! I wasn't urged that way.......and, see how I turned out.......a career-less, duddy homebody who is so rebellious after 30 years of nonstop farmwiffery and cooking and taking care of husband/kids/house/yard, that I've turned in desperation to amateur photography and blogging. Mothers, be careful how you direct your daughters!!

*

[I chose to blog some random facts about Sarah Palin.......which doesn't necessarily mean I'm supportive of her as a vice-presidential candidate. I don't know enough about her, yet. Hm-m........I wonder if Bristol Palin ever played basketball, or if her mother exhorted her to be aggressive? Or, if Governor Sarah Palin would have even had the time to pay much attention to her daughter's activities or the boyfriend! Perhaps Bristol's dad, Todd Palin, "The First Dude" of Alaska, oversees those family issues. (By the way, Todd Palin is 1/8 Yupik Eskimo........making him "of Yupik descent", but not enough to call him an Eskimo.)

*

Yours Truly is one mother who definitely discouraged her own daughters from getting involved in serious romances in high school, even to the point of telling a boy to "SCRAM.....GET LOST" once. I was more concerned about my daughter than about what that boy thought of me. Afterwards, my husband stared at me in disbelief and said, "I don't know how you were able to do that, but I'm sure glad you did!" For their own good, more than for religious reasons, I absolutely did not want my daughters ending up with a teen pregnancy or having sex as teenagers, for that matter. Call me old-fashioned if you want.......to me its just good common sense that high-schoolers should not be getting involved in sexual relationships, and I, as a parent, knew that I was responsible for doing all I could to get that message across to the teenagers living under my roof. Also, selfishly, I harbor NO desire to take care of babies and young children everyday, again.........I DID MY TIME WITH THAT ALREADY! Although, I do realize there are extraordinary circumstances that can arise in any family, and I would certainly do my part to help out with children if need be.]

**
**

Apple Moon

**
**

**
**
This photo shows last night's full moon........around 8 p.m. or so., in the eastern sky........smack in the middle of September! Its not a "Harvest Moon" or a "Hunter's Moon", but I'm calling it an "Apple Moon" this time!

**
**

Soybean Glow

As a road sign stands as a marker for travelers, the suddenly golden soybean fields are signaling a ripening process in swift progress.

**
**

**

I love the way the fences, vines, and weed stalks stand out against the backdrop of a glowing golden soybean field!

**

The milkweed leaves are joining the golden brigade right now, too!

I took these photos while enjoying a walk along our road on Saturday afternoon; the day was overcast and coolish, but VERY humid........which was our miniscule share of Hurricane Ike, most likely, which was battering the Gulf Coast as I typed this Saturday evening. We were treated to fascinating clouds and sky colors at sunset on Saturday, too.......providing photo scenes for a future SkyWatch post!

**

**
**

Husband anticipates starting to chop corn for silage in another week or so. He's been working on the self-propelled New Idea Uni-chopper; it needed a new battery and other maintenance done like greasing moving parts and sharpening the knives that cut the cornstalks. Each individual part needs to be in good working order for the whole machine to do its job right.

**
**

We don't own a combine anymore, so we hire our neighbor to harvest our soybeans, which will take place in a few more weeks.......early October, I would guess. Every year is a little different, depending on how early crops were planted in the spring, and with last spring's lingering cold and rain, crops got a late start around here.

**
**
Have a good day........I hope the weather is fine where you are!

**
**

Heron Sighting

**

These pictures aren't anything to write home about, but they're my first catch of the elusive heron which frequents our "crick" area. (Be sure to click the photos to see them full-screen.)

**

**
**
**
Kelli at Sugar Creek Farm blog, has a nice photo of a heron on her post of September 9.

**

**

I will dream on of ever getting that close to my skittish heron friend!

**
**

Audio Clip of Song

Ok, folks, I know this is a bit irregular.........

**

But, if you have time, listen to the music playing on this video clip. (The video part is irrelevant.) This song was playing over and over on my computer this morning. I don't recognize it and have no idea where it came from. I had to turn my computer off to get rid of it!!

Music Playing

I just checked my blog to look at today's post.........there is a portion of an instrumental song playing over and over. I have no idea what it is or where it came from. Can anyone else hear it? If anyone knows the name of the song, please let me know!

Stop for Sumac!

**

Whoa.....STOP! This post is budging in ahead of the golden-soybean-field post which was scheduled for today.

**

This brilliant patch of sumac is competing with the STOP sign for RED attention at this rural crossroads!

**

During Sunday dinner yesterday, I suddenly got the notion to take an afternoon drive to hunt for red sumac and vines to indulge in gazing at.........AND, photographing!! I told Husband he could go along if he promised not to have a cow everytime I wanted to stop and take a picture! Random stopping by the side of the road for the sake of his shutter-bug wife is just not his thing! It makes him nervous, I guess........someone might see us and wonder what we're doing........oh, no! That's the reason I'd rather make photo forays ALONE most of the time!

**

He did decide to go along, agreeing to my terms, of course! At one point, he identified this bush below as a "Cinnamon Sumac". I had never heard that name before. On Wikipedia it appears to be Staghorn Sumac.

**

**
**

In case you live in Iowa and would like to know a scenic route for autumn colors that takes only a couple hours to complete.......here's one: Go east of Oelwein on Hwy. 3; turn north on Hwy. 187 at Starmont school; go to Arlington, then take W51 to Wadena, and on to Elgin, and then to Clermont; take the Great River Road along the Turkey River to Eldorado; then turn south on Hwy. 150 and go up the hill to the Goeken Park overlook; then continue south on 150 to West Union and back to Oelwein, completing your scenic circle! For the next few weeks I can guarantee you'll find much lovely fall color there! The trees themselves have not changed color, yet, but there's plenty of other autumn-glow-providers in the fields and roadsides.

**

**

These golden soybean patches were on the hilltops above Elgin (and, there is ONE orange-red treetop in the distance):

**

I just love these blazing red vines entangled in the trees! They put on their autumn finery several weeks before the trees do. I believe the official name of this type of vine is "Virginia Creeper".

**

**

Believe it or not, this part of northeast Iowa is known as "Little Switzerland", due to a landscape of wooded hills and deep valleys. When I was a kid, every fall we'd take a Sunday drive up here, exploring the winding country roads and feasting our eyes on the bright-colored leaves. Its a good area in which to SLOW DOWN and just enjoy the surrounding beauty!

**
**

I hope there are lovely autumn colors decorating your neck of the woods, too!!

**
**