Mailbox Monday: Friendly Folks

My Kind of Guy

While shopping recently, I noticed this mannequin that had been posed leaning. They had him leaning to the right. I actually lean to the left--something I am attempting to correct by thinking about it during the day and trying to straighten myself.  It is a complicated hip-spine thing.

Please understand my leaning cannot accurately describe my politics.

Emu on the Loose

One morning in December, I was driving my usual country roads to school when I spotted an emu walking down the side of the road. This is a picture of terrible quality. A little video is somewhat better, but I don't post videos here. We travelled along together for further than I expected and then cars came up behind me and I had to be on my way.

Once at school, I shared this picture and the video with the folks in the office. One of the workers said she had heard that there was an emu on the loose and efforts to catch it had resulted in a broken arm! She notified the sheriff's office and they were able to catch it that morning.

Tea Line

B and I recently had lunch in the tiny town of Monticello, Florida, located east of Tallahassee. First, it is not Jefferson's Monticello. The c is  pronounced as an s, as in cellophane. On this Saturday, the lunch cafe was crowded, popular and more than adequate on a cool day.

I was amused by the line on the plastic glass:

It'll Get Cha Goin'

A Quiet Place to Think

We visited one of the main libraries on the Missou campus. It was a place our son had used when he really needed to focus without distractions. 

This part of the library was where you could expect complete silence. 

In the lobby, was a unique vending machine that offered all kinds of study supplies.

I have never seen anything similar. 

Shakespearean Grocery

I came across this sign in a grocery in Columbia, Missouri. As a lover of cheese, it spoke to me.

Harold's Doughnuts

Our last morning in Columbia, Missouri, our son took us to Harold's, a local doughnut bakery. What a treat! The fresh doughnuts were wonderful.

One long wall inside was a chalkboard. I encourage you to click on the picture below and examine the donut flow chart. It is a hoot.

The bakery was having a fundraiser for some charity and had invited local businesses to create gingerbread houses that were being voted on for the best. Here are some:

Chances are rather slim that I will ever return to Columbia now that our son has his PhD and has moved to Colorado  to live and work. But if I do, you can be sure I will look for Harold's.

Mailbox Monday: Box For an Off-Road Track

Charming Rocheport, Missouri Has Lots of History

When we were in Columbia before Christmas, we enjoyed a drive around the countryside. Some of the areas we visited have recently flooded. This little statuary was barely within sight of the river that day.

   

When I did a search of flooding in this little village of Rocheport, I did not find recent information, so perhaps it was spared this time. It was a charming place that has made its latest dollar on tourism generated by the Katy Trail, a walking-bike trail that runs the old MKT (Missouri-Kansas-Texas) rail line across the state of Missouri. The Katy Trail is the longest rail trail in the country at 240 miles.

This bridge and tunnel are part of the trail.
 

The sign shown above tells of Indian pictographs that Lewis and Clark observed and recorded here. When the railroad created the  tunnel, they blasted the pictographs and all that are left are the records.

The pole in the rock above the tunnel appeared to be a telegraph pole.

Further along the river bank, was the site of the old train station. It has been rebuilt to provide rest rooms and signage.



There was information about steamboats on the Missouri. Check out the Western Engineer!

I read that the design was specifically made to strike fear in the hearts of the natives, known to attack the boats. Major Stephen H. Long was commissioned by the Secretary of War in March of 1819 to explore the country between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains. One report said that they were the first expedition of scientists and artists into the area and that they brought back east samples and at least 270 drawings of indigenous alpine flora, new species of wolf and coyote, fossils, insects and geographical information. Long named Long's Peak for himself in Colorado.

Mailbox Monday: Polka-Dots

I wonder if it is glow-in-the -dark paint.

Gray Missouri Day

In Missouri, there was ice on the ground in low, shady spots. Native Floridians get excited over such sights.

On our country drive, we noticed this large bottle tree in a yard. It provided a lovely hue in an otherwise colorless setting.

I also admired this little metal sculpture in the same yard.

The Big Bur Oak

Three years ago, we made a summer trip to Columbia, Missouri to see where our son was in graduate school. At that time, he took us on a little driving tour of the area and out to see the big champion oak.

On this last trip out for graduation, we were able to take a similar drive to show his brother the area. This time, it was December and the tree was bare and each limb was defined on this gray day.

This is the only good way I know to get a sense of the proportion of the tree.

The tree is reported to be over 300 years old. That means the settlers in the covered wagons headed west may have also seen this same tree. They probably were not the ones who sprayed it with graffiti.

Grazing Cardinal

We have had so much rain and dampness recently that the wet birdseed sprouted in the tray. 

Wasn't it quite the festive look with the cardinal? 

Missouri Robins

Missouri was full of robins and starlings! They were heading south, but it seemed they were in no hurry to get there. The robin above was enjoying the late afternoon sun in the top of a sycamore.

Doc, Doc, Deuce!

Our second son has earned his PhD! We travelled to Columbia, MO in late December to see him hooded, the ceremony at graduation. Both of our sons are Eagle Scouts and now both are Docs. We could not be more proud of them for the fine young men they have become.

Mailbox Monday: Red Roadster

Giant Rocking Horse

We came upon this giant rocking horse in Thomasville, Georgia while doing some Christmas shopping. The little girl and her mother seemed to be having a good time.

Frosty Sells Christmas Trees

I am not altogether sure of how this giant snowman face was constructed, but it is an attention-getter, for sure.

The Magic Tree

On our recent visit to Columbia, Missouri, we were encouraged to see the Magic Tree. It is a large cherry tree in a shopping square that has had every branch carefully wrapped in tiny colored lights.  It was amazing! The man responsible for it has been practicing for fifteen years.