Down in the Swamp

Hello, everyone! I know you thought I was long gone, never to be heard from again. In a way, that is true. The Bear Swamp will no longer be. Well, it will be here, but we moved, and I'm moving to my other blog, which also has been inactive for quite some time. If you feel the urge to connect with me again, I'd love to see you over at Sweet Life Farm. Hope to see you there.

It's been a long time coming

Where have I been, you ask? Right here, but disengaged from the blogging world for a while. Needing time to come to terms with the circumstances of our lives here in the Swamp and beyond. It's been a very hard year, and I just didn't have the heart to write, but our lives have mostly resumed their hectic everyday struggles and the most welcome joys that lighten our hearts.

I was reading a few of my past posts and remembering the satisfaction that came from knowing that I got it right sometimes, that there is a writer lurking in me that needs nurturing occasionally, and that I miss the interaction of my talented fellow blogger friends. I realize that some of you will have given up on me and will have gone elsewhere, and that's okay, but I thought that some would like to know what has transpired since you last heard from me.

There is a lot of catching up to do.

Starting with Lauren, about whom I'm sure you are most interested, we finally had a smidgen of justice  in the case against Ms. Gough. She was charged with vehicular homicide, vehicular manslaughter, and failure of assured clear distance. She finally, after many months, pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of vehicular manslaughter; the other two charges were dropped. After many more months, she was sentenced to 90 days in jail, 60 suspended; two years probation; two year license suspension; 200 hours of community service in a relevant capacity; $600 court costs; and, $7100 restitution to the family for funeral expenses. The judge read over 100 letters written to him by family, friends, and concerned citizens. Kelly also read a gut-wrenching, heartbreaking victim impact statement in front of the judge and Ms. Gough on the day of sentencing. We, of course, thought the sentence was very lenient, but felt that the judge probably did all that he could, considering what he had to work with. I hope that during her time in jail, Ms. Gough reflected on the damage she did to our family.

That damage is reflected in another direction. Jaye and Kelly separated in February and are now in the process of divorcing. The statistics for divorce in these kinds of tragedies are very high, and they didn't escape. There were underlying factors that had caused fractures in the marriage, and the tragedy of losing Lauren completely broke it. Nonetheless, it is a very sad situation, especially now that a new child is involved.

Matthew welcomed his baby brother Nicholas on June 1. Nicholas Ethan was born with Down Syndrome, although he doesn't seem to have any of the physical health problems that a large percentage of Down's babies have. He has no heart defects and his hearing is good, even though the ear canals are very small, and he will have to be monitored closely for wax buildup to prevent hearing loss. His eyesight seems to be good; he follows movement well. He is smiling a little and his muscle tone is quite good. He pushes himself forward when he is lying on his tummy. He is a darling little boy and such a joy to be around already. I know he will be our special little guy. Kelly is worried that because she is older, she won't be around to take care of him when he is an adult. I told her that's why he has such a loving and attentive big brother...Matthew will take care of him.

Aimee is still in the process of obtaining her divorce. It has been a messy and ugly situation. I won't go into the details here, but I will just say that we have had to call the police on two occasions and her ex (almost) has a no contact order against him. One reason the divorce is taking so long to process is that Aimee became pregnant. No, it isn't her husband's child. She met up with an old crush from high school, and another new grandchild will be born in December. She thought she was protected and that turned out to be not the case. The father will not be in the picture, as Aimee learned that one cannot go back in time and expect good results, at least most of the time. Life happens, whether we are ready for it or not.

Back on our little farm in the woods things are going very well. David's hip surgery in May had him down for about a month. And then he was back on his feet slowly conditioning, rebuilding lost muscle tone, and working on his endurance and stamina by walking a little farther every day. All the pain was gone, and the doctor said his hip was better than new! By the middle of August, he was up to 3 1/2 miles, which prepared him for his annual bowhunting trip to Colorado at the end of August. This time I went with him! We drove to Nebraska to pick up his friend Bob (his hunting buddy for 30 years), and then they dropped me off in Denver to stay with our friends, Judy and Paul, whom we have known since our days in Baton Rouge. I had a wonderful visit with them in their beautiful southwestern style home in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.

The view from the golf club restaurant at our friends' house.

Once we both got back home, and after catching up with stuff that doesn't get done while you're on vacation, we had a wonderful visit from Ruth and Don Mowry. (She, of synchronizing.) We had spent a few days with them in Michigan to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary in July. They got to see our piled-up mess in the dining room; preparations for ripping out the nasty living room carpet and installing bamboo flooring. That project will have been completed at the end of today, and it only took us nine days! Well, that included my prepping and painting the room, so really just seven. Not too bad for old people! David says that he is done with floor laying for a while. I told him it's just like giving birth; you'll forget all the pain when you look at that wonderful finished project. I only have four more rooms for us to do. :)

Next on the agenda is a camping trip to the Hocking Hills with the oldest grandkids. We look forward to this one every year. They are so much fun. They're getting so big now; I'm not sure how long Nathan and Kaitlyn will be able to fit into those bunks.

Then we will have our annual couples weekend with David's cousin and his wife (one of my best friends) in the Hocking Hills, a greatly anticipated getaway for both couples. No kids, no animals...just shopping, walking in the woods and trails, eating (a lot!), and relaxing in the hot tub under the stars. It just doesn't get better than that.

It was a busy summer, and fall is shaping up to be just as jam-packed, with Scout activities, holidays, cutting wood for the woodburning stove, and planning for our new ventures come spring. I hope you are enjoying your autumn cool weather, after the extreme heat and drought of the summer. We certainly are.

See you later.

and life goes on

It's busy at our house these days. Our daughter Aimee and grandchildren Gaige, Nathan, and Kaitlyn are living with us temporarily (since Christmas) while she is going through a divorce. It's been a rough ten+ years for her, and sometimes for the kids. She married very young, one month before Gaige was born. She was headstrong and was drawn to the bad boy persona in young men. Unfortunately, what age and wisdom and actually living with a person day in and day out brings is the knowledge that bad boys don't treat women with respect. They don't hold down jobs. They care more about themselves than they do the people whom they claim to love. They don't accept responsibility for their own actions, always blaming someone else for their mistakes and wrongdoing. They possess, rather than love. They have violent tempers.

I love having my daughter back. She's her old self again...the person she had suppressed for many years...the wickedly funny, extremely intelligent girl she used to be. The woman who for so long was allowed only the friends chosen by her husband, ones he could control. She has reconnected with so many of her childhood and teenage friends, friends whom SHE chose. She's back in school, getting a degree in nuclear medicine technology and doing great...getting all A's. I can have lunch or go shopping with my daughter whenever I want, something that hasn't happened in all those years. She is a part of our family once again. She is finally getting her life together. I have my daughter back!

Christmas was hard. We went through the motions and even enjoyed parts of it, but it was so different. I didn't send Christmas cards for the first time in forty years. A friend to whom I hadn't spoken since before Christmas pinpointed the reason for me yesterday...it was because I couldn't take the annual grandkids family portrait. There were no raucous and crazy portrait sessions as in years past. I know it wasn't fair to the other kids, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. There would have been too big a hole.

That space will be filled just a little come June. Jaye and Kelly are expecting a son! We are all so happy for them. They hurried just a little, because of Kelly's age (she's 42), and because they don't want Matthew to grow up an only child. He is so lonely. He clings to Kaitlyn when she visits. Aimee let her spend the weekend with them last week and she and Matt had a great time. But when it came time for her to come home, it was devastating for Matthew. He cried and cried, begging her not to leave. We're hoping this new baby will bring some solace and comfort to them...to all of us. We will celebrate his birth with joy.

Meanwhile, we're still waiting on justice to prevail. The driver who killed Lauren was charged with vehicular homicide and vehicular manslaughter, but after the arraignment, the prosecutor received the records from her cell phone company and they confirmed that she was texting at the time of the crash. Also, the crime scene investigators finally determined her speed...70 mph on impact. Jaye had started moving his vehicle, but was going only 10 mph. The prosecutor is hoping to use the new evidence to bump the charge up to aggravated vehicular homicide, which is a felony in Ohio, and carries a much more commensurate sentence. We have hope that the judge will actually apply the sentence, instead of giving her a slap on the wrist. There have been two similar cases in Ohio recently where the judges have cracked down on this kind of behavior and given the maximum sentence. I know that no amount of time in jail will bring our Lauren back, but maybe it will prevent someone else from being killed. Maybe our state legislature will pull their heads out of their collective ass and get a bill passed that prohibits texting while driving; indeed, prohibits all cell phone use while driving. It's not that hard to do. I've given it up, and so has my entire family. I was never a texter while I was driving, but I did do a lot of catch-up phoning to family and friends. I don't even miss it. It is actually rather freeing.

Our winter has been fairly mild so far. Kind of a crazy December and January with lots of rain. In fact, Ohio's all-time precipitation record was broken in 2011. I wish we could have sent some of that rain to the drought-stricken states. Of course, we still have two months of winter to look forward to, and our February is usually much worse than January, so I'm sure there will be plenty of opportunities to scrape the driveway and shovel the sidewalks. We had a wood-burning fireplace insert installed in October, and we've been enjoying the wonderful heat, which is sometimes a little too wonderful. Thanksgiving Day I spent cooking in shorts and a t-shirt with the kitchen window wide open, while my  in-laws huddled around the wood-burner with three layers of clothes. And it was 65 degrees outside. Lordy!

David retired in September after 37 years with the same company. They gave him a wonderful send-off. He loves being home, and I love having him at home. The only bad thing is that he started falling apart nearly as soon as the ink dried on his severance papers. He has been having severe pain in his right hip and pain in his back. After trying his primary doctor, and then an osteopath, who weren't able to help him, he finally saw an orthopedic specialist last week. The cartilage in his right hip joint is completely gone. He will be having a total hip replacement this spring. He's also seeing a neurologist/spine specialist tomorrow to rule out any spinal problems. He's very upbeat about the hip surgery. Everyone we've talked to who has had it done or knows someone who has, says it improves their lives about 99%. David has been so used to being active and doing whatever he wants, that this has been a real setback for him, and he is willing to do whatever it takes to get back to his normal self. He has been looking forward to his retirement for several years, and we have a lot of travel plans, and he wants to be able to do all those things and enjoy life. I guess I will get to polish up my nursing skills.  It will make up for the times when I rolled my eyes behind his back after listening to him go on and on about it. No, really. Endlessly. All. Day. Long.  I feel bad about it. Don't tell him.

I feel terrible that I haven't visited my wonderful bloggy friends nearly as much as I wanted. I've popped in on a few of you, and I've read more than I've commented. I'm hoping to return full-force to blogging after the dust settles around here. It's a little hard for the elderly to concentrate with three kids in the house, and then there's the laundry and the cooking and the cleaning, etc. It feels good to write this though, so I know I'm not finished with my story. Not yet.


ADDENDUM:  I found out yesterday that the county prosecutor will NOT be adding an aggravated vehicular homicide charge. Quoting from an email from my daughter-in-law to the texting ban bill advocate with whom I've been working.

"The county prosecutor's office believes that the text being the
same minute as the crash leaves it open for the assailant to say she
made the text after the crash. This would not be believable given her
statement there were no texts made before of after the crash. Also the
1st 911 call was at 1:48 and 37 seconds by a passerby on a bicycle. He
could dispute this as well.

"Also we see that H.B. 99 has opponents claiming that our
current "reckless laws" cover it and there is no need for another law.
Our case reflects that this simply is not the case. I don't think you
could get any closer than a 1:47 text with a 1:47 crash and for county
prosecutors to refuse it as a "recklessness" case based on "evidentiary
issues" is a disgrace."

 

 

There is a ladder up from the abyss

Dear friends,

I know all of you have been very concerned about our family, and especially our son Jaye. I'm here to update you. Since my last post, there has been tremendous improvement. Jaye (and Kelly, too) has been responding to therapy in a positive way. He is laughing a little when he talks about Lauren, remembering good times with her, and is able to think about her in a way that he wasn't before. Of course, the sadness and heartache will never completely go away, but that he is able to talk about her without breaking down is a huge step in his healing. I'm not naive; I know there are times when he is alone that he relapses, but now he is able to pull himself out of it relatively quickly. I also believe that he has become more accepting of the fact that they were just in the wrong place at the wrong time, and he had no control over that.

We felt confident enough in his recovery, that we were able to take our planned camping trip to northern Michigan to see the beautiful fall color, and it has been spectacular. This is our first trip here, but I know it won't be our last. We've fallen in love with the Lake Leelanau region and the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. We made our plans months ago, but we were right on in the timing for peak color.

I want to apologize for my lack of attention to your blogs, especially considering how wonderful you all have been to me. You are good and loyal friends. I will get back to them someday. I hope it won't be long. I will have a lot more time as the cold weather sets in and keeps me indoors. I will leave you with a little of the beauty of northern Michigan in autumn.

Love, Susan

The view from our campsite at Lake Leelanau RV Park.

Young turkeys crossing the road. They joined a huge flock of thirty or more.

One of the many vineyards in the area...Crooked Maple Vineyard.

The birch trees are everywhere, and the bark is outstanding against the fall color.

From atop Sleeping Bear Dunes, looking out to Big Glen Lake.

And, of course, you know this is a milkweed pod. It's hard to believe this sand could support the diverse vegetation.

From atop Sleeping Bear Dunes, looking toward Betsie Point in Lake Michigan. It is a 450-ft. drop to the water.

No explanation needed.

An inlet in Omena, on Grand Traverse Bay.

A funky little airport/park, where the airstrip is grass, and there is no hangar, only tie-downs.

At Grand Traverse Lighthouse...the wind was 50 mph, and the waves were fast and furious.

Nearly big enough for surfing, but kinda scary.

Grand Traverse Lighthouse. The flag was flying half-mast to honor National Fallen Firefighters.

Historic Fishtown in Leland, Michigan

Again, Historic Fishtown

Waves breaking on the seawall in Leland, Michigan

How can I help him heal?

He is a truth seeker. Every day he searches for a way to find blame with himself for the accident. Why didn't they stay five minutes longer at the park? Why didn't they go to the restaurant where Lauren wanted to go?...it would have taken longer. Why didn't he go a different route, instead of the one he usually took? Why did they take the dogs? Why didn't he put her in a five-point harness car seat (even though she was really too tall for one)? Why, why, why, why....'how can I go on living' is the question he asks himself a hundred times a day. I listen to him and try to reassure him that there is only one person to blame, and it is not he. The investigator has spent hours with him doing the same. It is breaking my heart that I've not only lost a precious granddaughter, but now it seems I am losing my son as well...the only son I have left.

The investigators are almost positive that she was texting, or at the very least making a phone call. There seems to be no other explanation for the complete lack of attention to her driving. They have subpoenaed the telephone records from her carrier. They do know that she had a dropped call at 1:47 p.m., and the first 911 call came in at 1:48, and she made a call to her husband at 1:49. The prosecutor was dismayed that the (older, not tech-savvy) officer at the scene didn't confiscate her phone as he should have, but he did note the time of her dropped call. 

I was mistaken about her having just left a funeral. She had attended one that morning, but afterward had lunch with her husband, and was heading back to work, probably in a hurry. She admitted that she saw the deer crossing the road and the car that was also stopped in the opposite lane, that she placed her foot on top of the brake, but she didn't see their vehicle, and she didn't depress the brake pedal. The investigators determined mathematically that she had anywhere from five to eight seconds to react. Five to eight seconds. Count it out. Even if she had seen them at the last second and had braked, it might have saved Lauren's life. She was going 55-60 mile per hour and hit a stopped vehicle, on a straight, flat road, in good weather, in broad daylight. She has hired the most powerful law firm in Dayton. 

The prosecutor says that he will charge her with nothing less than vehicular manslaughter, but he will try to make a case for vehicular homicide, neither of which carries more than a slap on the wrist, because they are misdemeanors. And because they are not felonies, even if convicted, she will not have it on her record permanently. Slight justice for the walking wounded.

But I don't really care about that. I just want my son to be whole again.

Saturday Serenade

The honey-smooth voice of Johnny Hartman and golden tenor sax of John Coltrane.

NIGHTCLUB

You are so beautiful and I am a fool

to be in love with you

is a theme that keeps coming up

in songs and poems.

There seems to be no room for variation.

I have never heard anyone sing

I am so beautiful

and you are a fool to be in love with me,

even though this notion has surely

crossed the minds of women and men alike.

You are so beautiful, too bad you are a fool

is another one you don't hear.

Or, you are a fool to consider me beautiful.

That one you will never hear, guaranteed.

For no particular reason this afternoon

I am listening to Johnny Hartman

whose dark voice can curl around

the concepts of love, beauty, and foolishness

like no one else's can.

It feels like smoke curling up from a cigarette

someone left burning on a baby grand piano

around three o'clock in the morning;

smoke that billows up into the bright lights

while out there in the darkness

some of the beautiful fools have gathered

around little tables to listen,

some with their eyes closed,

others leaning forward into the music

as if it were holding them up,

or twirling the loose ice in a glass,

slipping by degrees into a rhythmic dream.

Yes, there is all this foolish beauty,

borne beyond midnight,

that has no desire to go home,

especially now when everyone in the room

is watching the large man with the tenor sax

that hangs from his neck like a golden fish.

He moves forward to the edge of the stage 

and hands the instrument down to me

and nods that I should play.

So I put the mouthpiece to my lips

and blow into it with all my living breath.

We are all so foolish,

my long bebop solo begins by saying,

so damn foolish

we have become beautiful without even knowing it.

~Billy Collins~

Lauren Elizabeth Drummond

Lauren Elizabeth Drummond

Photo taken by her Poppy on August 14, 2011

Taken from us on August 15

She was so full of life, from the moment she was born. Full of intense curiosity and intelligence, she wanted to be in the middle of every conversation. Her smile was radiant and at times mischievous. She liked to get her own way, and often if she got the better of me, she would say "You're the best, Grammy!" She loved Princesses and pink and animals and dancing and music, and so many things, everything, really, about life.

How is it possible for a child to be laughing and happy after a day with her family and her two dogs, spent at the park where they had a picnic and fed the ducks...how can she be here one minute and the next minute be gone?  Her daddy stopped to let a deer cross the road as did other drivers on the opposite side of the road. This young woman, herself a mother of young children, will forever have to live with the fact that her inattention took my wonderful granddaughter's life away forever.  There were no skid marks...she never even slowed down. She had just left a funeral and was on her way back to work. Even though Lauren and her brother were secured in safety seats, the impact of the crash drove her seat forward as her daddy's seat broke and collapsed backward. The surgeon did everything he could to put her back together, but there was just too much trauma to her brain. Her mommy, who herself is a registered nurse/nurse practitioner, knew at the scene that it was very, very bad, but hoped against hope that she was wrong. 

Lauren will be laid to rest beside her Uncle Joshua, who she never got to know. She will be wearing a beautiful pink dress, a pink hat, in a pink Princess casket, with her dog Molly's ashes tucked in beside her.

My baby girl Lauren is dead from a car accident.

The City of Bridges

Pittsburgh is known as the "City of Bridges", and for good reason; there are 446 of them just within the city limits. That isn't counting the numerous others in Allegheny County. Now, you know how I feel about bridges, and if you don't, THIS will remind you.

This weekend we attended a wedding at the John Heinz History Center in downtown Pittsburgh. What a beautiful venue for a wedding!

The beautiful bride, Lauren

The ceremony would prove to be short and sweet.

Because there were two weddings taking place Saturday evening, we weren't allowed to tour the exhibits, which was a shame. It is a wonderful exploration of the city's past as the center of steel production in this country, as well as its role in sports and arts history.

When we lived in the Pittsburgh area from 1995 to 2000, I had the opportunity to tour the museum when it first opened, and it was fascinating. I also had the opportunity to be scared out of my mind about driving in Pittsburgh. Our son Josh was attending the Art Institute of Pittsburgh, and for some reason missed the last bus to make his connection to the neighboring county where we lived. He called me for a ride home. Having ridden with David several times into the city, I knew what I was up against...the many streets and highways and interstates that converge in a relatively small area make a bowl of spaghetti look like a bunch of straight lines. If you happen to get in the wrong lane, it's hard to tell where you might end up.

So, I plotted my driving strategy with my trusty pre-GPS city map, wrote down my directions, and headed out with only a few heart palpitations. In about 30 minutes, the palpitations turned into thudding heartbeats and sweaty palms. I'm sure you can guess that I chose the wrong lane and ended up crossing one of the dreaded bridges, which led directly to a dreaded tunnel, but I turned before the tunnel and ended up on Mt. Washington.

Though it offers a stunning view of the confluence of the Allegheny River and the Monongahela River to create the Ohio River, it was not a balm to my troubled soul, not in the least. Luckily, it was not the pre-cellphone era, and I called David at his office, which was not downtown. Crying and hiccuping, I explained to him what happened and that I was too scared to even attempt to find my way back across the river, fearing that I would end up in an even worse mess. David talked me down "off the bridge", so to speak, and said he would go pick up poor Josh, who no doubt was wondering what in the world had happened to his mother, and then he would come and lead me down off Mt. Washington.

After that experience, it was a year or more before I would even attempt to drive into the city again, but my friend Lynn finally convinced me I had to conquer my fears and went with me to help. She wasn't much better at it than I was, but at least I didn't feel all alone. We went several times to the Strip District, where we bought wonderful Italian cheeses and breads and other yummy goodies. We also had excursions to the Frick Art & Historical Museum and to the Phipps Conservatory.

Today, David and I took a walkabout downtown and to Point State Park (shown above in the MW view). This is my take on the confounding, but beautiful, bridges of Pittsburgh...a few of them anyway.

The view from our hotel room (right across the street from the History Center) looking out toward the Allegheny River.

The dreaded Fort Pitt Bridge and tunnel on the far end. Mt. Washington is above.

Mt. Washington skyline. In the right third of the picture, you can faintly see the incline.

Visible in this picture are four driving/pedestrian bridges across the Allegheny River, plus a railroad trestle. In the foreground, is the Roberto Clemente Bridge (6th St. Bridge), next is the Andy Warhol (7th St. Bridge) and the Rachel Carson (9th St. Bridge). Allegheny Landing Park has bike and walking paths along both sides of the river.

From the north side of the Allegheny, looking toward downtown.

PNC Park, which replaced the old Three Rivers Stadium, home of the Pittsburgh Pirates.  The building in the river houses River Rescue, made famous in the movie "Striking Distance"

Loved the reflection of other buildings caught in this all-glass building.

I love the way the center of the building is open.

The architecture in Pittsburgh is interesting and diverse. This building resembles one of the many Russian Orthodox and Greek Orthodox churches in the city.

If you have never visited Pittsburgh, put it on your bucket list. There is much to explore and many bridges to cross.

Nel 1492, Colombo salpò l'oceano blu

If you don't speak Italian (and I don't), the above phrase says "In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue." I learned that in grade school and I'm sure most of you did as well.

Columbus, Ohio is the largest city in the United States bearing the name of Christopher Columbus. Growing up in my era, we learned from our history books about Columbus and thought of him as a hero. Now, of course, we know that he and his men weren't very ethical in their treatment of island natives. Nevertheless, cities that chose him as a namesake have not changed their names in protest. Columbus, Ohio even has, docked riverside on the Scioto River in Batelle Riverfront Park, the world's most authentic, museum-quality replica of Columbus' flagship, the Santa Maria. It was built in 1991 by Scarano Boatbuilding Inc. of Albany, New York, to commemorate the 500-year anniversary of Columbus' voyage.

On the same day as the visit to the Deaf School Topiary Park, the grandkids and I paid a visit to the famous replica. This was also a surprise for them...they didn't know it existed. They were so excited and listened intently to every word.

The overall length of the Santa Maria is 98 feet. Its height from the keel to the top of the main mast is 89 feet. The hull planking consists of 44,000 board feet of Port Orford (Oregon) cedar. The deck planking and spars were built with 22,000 board feet of Douglas fir. The frames used 24,000 board feet of Alaskan yellow cedar. There are 2,700 feet of sails. Four thousand linear feet of line make up the rigging. Fifty-five gallons of tar was used to preserve the fixed rigging. It weighs 130 tons, including the ballast.

The main mast is 65-feet tall and is carved from a single Douglas fir. It carries the mainsail and the topsail. After construction, the ship was cut in half through the entire length and carried on two trucks. It was delivered to the opposite side of the Scioto River, where it was reassembled. The farthest it has ever sailed was across the river to its permanent mooring.

Rolled up pallets in steerage

I wasn't listening.

String of pearls

When the men on board needed to take care of any business that required squatting, they climbed over the side of the ship, held onto these ropes, and when they were finished, they....

...pulled up this handy tool, which was kept on a thin rope and was below the water. Its name is "the bitter end". And now you know where that phrase originated. Yeah. There was only one. Salt water is very cleansing and a good disinfectant. I'm glad I live in the 21st century.

All in all, it was a great day with beautiful weather. We all learned and we all had a good time.

La Grande Jatte on a Wednesday Afternoon

Remember this painting?

"A Sunday Afternoon on the Isle de Grande Jatte" Georges Seurat 1884-86

In our fair state capital of Columbus, Ohio, there are numerous gems that draw visitors from other locales, and keep them coming back. One of these gems is the Deaf School Topiary Park. The Deaf School and its park date back to the early 19th century when it was founded by James T. Mason. Mason and his wife Elaine had dreamed about a topiary garden for years, and this painting was their muse. It was begun in 1992 and is a tribute to their dedication to the students they served.

This visit was a surprise outing for Gaige, Nathan and Kaitlyn. We ate a picnic on the outer edges of the park before viewing the topiary scene. They had no idea what lay beyond the rise as we ate our lunch.

The grandkids had a wonderful time in the park and Gaige kept thanking me for showing them one of my favorite places in Columbus.

Saturday Serenade

The spectacular voice of Linda Eder singing "Vole Mon Angel" from "Svengali".  And, because she is so much more, I also offer another:

the voice

image by char

can a voice be lost,

if in passing, the presence

is no longer there?

will I remember

the whispered musings and diffuse images

without the physical shape?

i never saw her face;

she was shy that way,

curtaining herself behind sheer poetry.

ever there, a friend

whose countenance i did not know,

a chasm too large to fill.

charlane killough griffith

a life ended too soon

june 6, 2011