Basement pictures

Some of you have asked to see what's transpired in the basement since we bought the house. As many know, there was a two-bedroom rental apartment down there when we took possession almost a year ago. The apartment, built in the early 1970s, was one of the first things to go, with the help of dear friend Bill who came from Atlanta to help. Scroll down and you'll see three shots of the basement taken more-or-less from the same place of the same perspective (use the window as your reference point). The before shot is of what was the kitchen looking into what we can only imagine was described as the living room. The door to the right of the kitchen counter was for the bathroom. How 'bout that fabulous carpet?



Before



During: walls removed; ceiling mostly down; column revealed



After: carpet gone; paneling down; most of the disgusting insulation removed.
Since this picture was taken, most of the wall studs have been removed. Much more work remains.

Big sky :: blue sky (nice ears!)

Going through some pictures from last winter here in SD, I came upon this one of Liane, Fletcher and Audrey. They're sitting on the bench at the nearby overlook on a typical beautiful winter day. Below is Cotton Park, named for the former owners of our house who donated the land to the city. Beyond the park is the Vermillion River. In the distance is the mighty Missouri River. Those are the hills of Nebraska in the distance. What a beautiful, blue sky. And check out those Corgi ears!

Bright idea!

Over the summer I converted a wall outlet, that was located very high up on the wall in the first floor study, to a wall sconce. We've had the antique mission style brass fixture for a long time and I was happy to have an appropriate place to press it into service. What a bright idea!

Now you see it :: Now you don't

Before and after shots of the front yard. Over the summer we cut down the overgrown blue spruce that, undoubtedly, was lovely when it was much younger. Its girth was hiding the house. We miss the shade that it afforded the south west corner, so we promptly replaced it with a young burr oak (not shown in the after shot).

Still Here :: Overdue post

Good grief! Where'veya been? Not since April have I taken a moment to update the 'ole blog and goodness knows I could write chapters about what's gone on since then. Suffice it to say that we're all fine. The house is still standing. Some much-needed landscaping has happened. A new workshop has been organized. And we still cannot use the upstairs bathroom. The good news is that the 36-year old central air conditioning system pulled through over the summer. Now we've got our fingers crossed for heat this coming winter.

Until I can get some new house project pictures organized, here's a snapshot taken yesterday of yours truly and my dear 'ole pal Tim. Tim and I were roomies at SIU in Carbondale back in the day. We both shared our passion for radio as we navigated our radio/TV courses. He paid us an all-too-short visit for part of the weekend. While he was here we had the most delightful time staying up late, drinking wine and sorting through the volumes of old snapshots he has from our time working at WIDB and WTAO. Saturday morning we walked up to Main Street for the annual USD homecoming parade. Before he left to continue his exploration of southeast SD, Liane snapped this picture behind the house. Thanks for coming Tim. It was great seeing you!

The weather outside is frightful

April 25th. Only eight more months 'til Christmas but you'd never guess that here in Vermillion. Why? Because it's snowing something frightful outside right now. We don't have to wait for December. But oh well, since we've no place to go, let it snow, let it snow, let it snow. Fletcher has mixed feelings about this unexpected climate change. Here he is contemplating all that he sees (which isn't much given the low visibility) in the front yard. Audrey is nearby, rolling in the snow and wondering why I haven't gotten the soccer ball out.

One of the native Vermillionites assured me that spring will arrive soon. Probably next Thursday and Friday. Operative word and. Then we'll toggle right into summer. As I said before, glad we didn't move here for the weather.

A true, small town story

Several weeks ago, Liane is walking home from work when she happens upon two Corgis, Bella and Buck, on leash patrol nearby. Elated to discover two more Corgis in our new, small town (this makes seven that we know of) she snaps this photo on her mobile. Bella and Buck belong to a couple of USD students who share a house. The Corgis are about seven months old and live nearby on Pine. Flash forward...

... to today. A sunny afternoon. A small Corgi is seen running lose near Main and Pine. The dog is shooed away from someone it approaches. A bystander, observing this, coaxes the dog into his arms and takes it to the nearby animal hospital.

An employee at the animal hospital just happens to see the small, lost dog being dropped off by the good Samaritan. She believes she knows where the dog lives because she often sees a couple walking their Corgis down her street. She leaves the hospital with the Corgi to deliver it back to the house where she thinks it lives.

Our house. Fletcher and Audrey are snoozing while I'm grading papers. A unexpected knock at the door. Alert! Bark! Someone's here!! Something is about to happen! Alert! Alert! Bark! Standing on the porch is a woman with a small Corgi on a nylon leash. The woman introduces herself as Shawn and she seems somewhat disappointed to see both of our Corgis greeting her. There are now three Corgis on the porch. Fearing she is disturbing us (she isn't) she somewhat apologetically explains her presence.

Seeing that the Corgi is young and small, I immediately recall Liane's encounter with Bella and Buck. After checking the lost Corgi's gender we decide it must be Bella. The Corgi responds to her name. Fletcher and Audrey are delighted with their new friend. Bella jumps right in for some impromptu playtime. Abundant Corgi smiles.

I call Liane on her mobile and ask if she still has the snapshot. She does and sends it to me on my mobile. Sure enough. We have a match. It's Bella. Now stay with me here. We can't claim to know her or specifically where she lives on Pine, but we do happen to know that Bella's person, Amy, has a house mate who knows Spencer. Spencer is Ashley's partner. Living at Main and Yale, Ashley and Spencer have a Corgi named Nigel. Ashley is a grad student in Liane's department at the university. Mobile phones all over town are ringing and the dots are connecting as quickly as falling dominoes.

Within about 15 minutes I am walking Bella, Audrey and Fletcher over to the Jolley Elementary School to meet a search party that includes Bella's buddy, Buck. It's the first time I've ever walked more than two Corgis at the same time. It's a hoot. My only disappointment--one that Fletcher and Audrey share--is that Bella didn't get to stay and play longer. But, while getting acquainted, we agree that a future play date for all the local Corgis is in order. Here's a picture of the three friends as we're walking to the reunion at the school. Audrey (left), Bella (center) and Fletcher (right). We couldn't have scripted a better search and reunion scenario.