Three Tennis Courts

It was a very nice day in Minnesota. There wasn't much wind either, so the tennis was easier, but my rhythm is still a little off. It seems to get worse as the number of sets piles up, so tomorrow is going to be a day off. As it happens the weather creatures are predicting a lot of water falling from the sky, so it's an easy decision to be idle. Below are the courts where I played mixed doubles tonight. 6-3, 6-0, 4-4 - then I went home to iChat with the Prairie Princess, who is practicing her craft in Glyndon. She seems to be doing well and learning quite a bit about prairies and scientific sampling techniques. The internet capabilities where she is residing, however, leave a lot to be desired. The iChatting was curtailed prematurely due to technical difficulties.

Last nights doubles was interesting, because we played on a court at Marie Park that was strewn with maple seeds - those flat seeds that helicopter as they fall from the tree. There seems to be a scourge of these seeds in the area. When a maple tree produces this many seeds it supposedly means that the tree is under stress and is doing its best to reproduce before it goes to its final reward. We tried to sweep the courts to get the seeds off, but the wind kept blowing them back. We ended up playing and ignoring the seeds, but it provided some interesting bounces. Before we play at Marie Park again, I'm planning to bring my big barn broom and getting the surface clean.

Herb biked to work again today. There seems to be quite a few more bikers out in the morning with backpacks containing extra clothes, on their way to work and trying to preserve some capital. Gas is going for $4.099 in many stations.

I see that some tomatoes in the stores are afflicted with salmonella. Minnesota grown tomatoes and cherry tomatoes are safe. The FDA doesn't even think that the afflicted tomatoes can be salvaged by cooking them into sauce. I find that odd. I always thought that heat would kill nearly any microbe. My backyard tomatoes are still about two months from bearing edible fruit. I'm pretty sure that they will be safe.

Name Games

It was a beautiful day in the Capital City. It was warm without much wind and after a cool start the sun came out and most of the chill vanished. There will be a native grass planting party in Crosby Park on Saturday so KS and I decided to scout out the area. We got the bikes out and started towards the river. KS had a minor collision with a parked car on the way, but the only difficulty was a slightly bent front brake and a displaced rear mirror. The brakes may require professional help, but the bike was ridable, and we rode down Benhill, Victoria, Otto and Shepherd Road to Crosby Farm. The ride through the woods got us to the big open area where the native flowers will be planted. We found growing milkweeds, which are a magnet for flutterbys, and which KS is hoping to plant in the backyard. We walked around, took a photo, and then biked home, finishing with my first climb of Benhill for the year. I finished several seconds behind the younger rider. She suggested that her name on this blog be changed to something more appropriate. KS doesn't make it anymore since her return from Japan. Since she rides a Bianchi, we have suggested Bianchi Cutie, or BC - in the spirit of the blogs emanating from other related sites. BC has the spotty jersey. I added a little over 10 miles to my paltry total for May.



In other news, I played three sets of tennis at Marie Park this evening with the current set of geezers. I played better than my recent outings, but, after winning the first two sets, was on the short end of the third set. Not bad, and to be expected some days. It was a super fine night to be crushing forehands in the great out of doors.

Spring-ish Activity

The morning was superb for tennis. There was some wind, but the sun was shining. We had eight older gentlemen show up at Marie Park for Saturday morning doubles. Three sets in two hours went on the record for me. I should probably keep a log of sets played this summer, but it seems like a tedious exercise.

I caught Unky Herb lying around on the grass in the back yard. I mowed it yesterday and it was inviting enough that he had to stretch out and contemplate the sky, or perhaps his next trip to London. It was probably the first opportunity of the year for such activity, since the year refuses to get very warm. He made it look like an inviting activity.



Some storms and rain passed to the north this afternoon, and the wind blew pretty hard, but the native plant expert was out pulling weeds and rescuing her plants from the invasive species that have moved in on them while she was away. I caught her hugging a clump of North American grass, species unknown to me. I think that she'll get the garden into pretty good shape in short order.

The rain never arrived in our part of the city.

The Ides of May

Finally. My biking season restarted. It was a nice day and the wind was very timid, plus KS was interested in looking over the native plants at Minnehaha Park. Biking was called for.

The creek is full of water and the falls are roaring. It's not Niagara Falls, but it's pretty nice.


The statue of Hiawatha and Minnehaha are on an island in the creek and easily seen through the scant "early" spring foliage.


We found the native grasses in old Longfellow Park across Hiawatha Avenue from Minnehaha Falls. The plants are beginning to grow and thrive, but there is still a lot of last year's brown in view. There may be pictures later in the season.

On the way back home we had to stop and see if Guv T. Paw was at the mansion on Summit. There was no sign of the guy, but the legislature is in session, so he may be at work balancing the budget. There is word in some quarters that John McCain may tap him for the VP slot on the Republican presidential ticket. That could leave Minnesota with its first woman Governor: Carol Malnou. Stranger things could and have happened in the North Star state.


I have attained my first biking goals of May: double figures, and beating last month's total mileage. Woowee!

Waiting for the Flower

The crocuses are still blooming on a fine spring day in Minnesota, while I wait for the arrival of the traveler.



She just called from Chi-town. She's on a flight - UA463 - arriving tonight at about midnight. The flight had been delayed 45 minutes, long enough for her to get in, through customs, and get a ticket change. I'm off to the airport with Unky Herb. Yay!!!

Maple Leaf Buds

The sugar maple in my backyard is sprouting these bud like structures that will soon become leaves. A horde of insects were milling about, too, but they didn't stray into the frame. These beauties are a sure sign of spring.



It was a busy day today. I actually raked some leaves and toted them off to the leaf recycling center on Pleasant Avenue. The temperature rose to 77, I think the first day in the 70's for the year. I was able to actually raise a sweat while rearranging the leaves. A first for the great outdoors this year. And tonight there is the sound of thunder in the air - our first thunderstorm of the spring.

I played tennis at Wooddale again tonight at 6:30. It was a good group and all were sufficiently motivated to make for some memorable points. We finished two sets, 6-4, 7-6, and no blood was spilled. We were visited by the hardcore Jerry, who usually plays on Monday, but took a breather tonight. He'll back in action on Thursday, he assures me.

There are only 36 hours until the anticipated return stateside of the former English teacher and part time traveler. We are hoping for good weather and smooth flying for the soon to be jet lagged KS.

Bone Chillin'

It just won't warm up here on the tundra. It was about ten below this morning, which was about 50 degrees colder than some places in the Yukon. Spring is coming, but is tardy. I took my camera to Minnehaha Falls and walked around looking for other adventurers. There were actually quite a few. I took a photo of the Hiawatha and Minnehaha statue from a vantage point that is not available in the summer - standing on the ice over Minnehaha Creek. The sky was very blue and very cold.



This photo is also from the park. It's of some of the dead flower stalks that are sticking up through the snow. They are part of the flower garden near where the benches are inscribed with the words to Longfellow's "Song of Hiawatha." They looked coldly brave. I was less brave, spending about fifteen minutes touring the park before retreating to the warmth of my auto.



There was some chatting via internet with the young English teacher in Japan, Kagami Sensei, this morning. She is winding down her teaching responsibilities. Her last day on the job is March 24th, then she's off to an adventure in India before her long awaited return to the USA. She seems pretty organized, at least from this distance. She has had her shots and ordered up some of her tickets.

Tennis goes on as before. There was Monday night tennis ball smacking, and there will be more on Thursday.

New Year in Waiting

It's a new year and a theme day. I picked out a couple of shots that I like, but I am unable to say that they are the best of the lot. The first is a still life and the second a photo with people peopling the image. The tiger lily shot continues the tiger theme from the last few days, but in addition, the flower is locally grown and shows good texture.


The photo below is a shot of some familiar faces having a good time on a downtown street. Exuberance is good for everyone.


Kagami Sensei was on the internet when I got to the iBook this morning. We talked for a while about her New Year's activities, and ours. Her blog today contains much of the interesting bits. It was very nice to have a conversation with her on this first holiday of 2008.

It was a cold, cold day. Herb and I decided to get some sun and exercise. We dressed warmly and drove to the Falls. A bank thermometer on Snelling Avenue announced a temperature of 2. I see by Carl P's blog that he was there today, too. I guess we missed him. I have a couple of photos that are nearly identical to ones newly posted on his blog. The icy falls are quite dramatic. The stairs to the lower levels were ice covered and closed, but we skied down on our boots for a better and different look at the creek. We took some pictures there, then Herb and I took a walk to the nexus of the creek and the big river. The creek was iced over in spots, but the flowing water kept the stream from disappearing completely. In fact, a duck was swimming around in a pool of open water, feeding off God knows what. It was an interesting walk, cold and slippery, but not without company. There were other walkers and some cross country skiers. At the river we tarried a bit to watch some guys in kayaks paddling up the river towards the Ford Bridge. I consider them foolhardy to be on the river at that temperature, but also very hardcore. We walked back along the creek, but bypassed the treacherous stairs for a stroll up the meadow and the smaller hill up to Minnehaha Avenue. In all we were outside about an hour and suffered no frostbite. It is unnecessary to declare it the coldest day of the year.

We rewarded ourselves with lunch and a movie at Rosedale, "The Golden Compass." It was a good start to a leap year.

Wednesday Curling

It is still Wednesday. This morning Herb and I chatted over the internet with Kagami Sensei who is still in Ogaki, Japan. This picture was taken in Hokkaido about a year and a half ago, but it's still representative and it's nice to have her picture on the blog. KS is expected to return to the USA in April and May. Then we'll have some fresh photos of her.


There was curling tonight. The geezer rink - the really old guys - lost in the seventh end after being tied at the end of six. It was a game we should have won, but they scored a miracle shot in the fourth end that got them back into the game. Then we lost our edge and lost the lead and the game. The nine o'clock game - the Miller Rink - managed a six end victory. It was a good game, even if the score doesn't show it. We won 9-3. W00t! W00t!

Cold, Clear, Thin Ice

Yesterday was cold and calm. Today was not so cold, but windy. It felt just as cold as yesterday. Since there has been only flurries thus far this season, the ice has frozen clear, without a layer of snow for insulation. My mid day trek was a search for ice. In Minnesota this time of year it is a quest that is easily fulfilled. Thus the photo with the requisite "Thin Ice" sign for those foolhardy enough to venture onto the hardened HOH.

It was cold enough outside that I sought refuge in the Como Conservatory, and thought that I could get some photos in the flower garden. Two problems cropped up. The camera was so cold that it gathered condensation on the lens and was unusable for quite a while. And the flowers were being traded out from the fall flower show to the poinsettia show which starts December 1, this next Saturday. It was nice and warm in the Fern Room.


It is curling night. The Miller Rink will be at full strength tonight, I think. Wireless has returned from Paris and is expected back on the indoor ice at SPCC. We have a losing streak in progress that needs some inspirational curling to curtail.

It is Wednesday and Herb (UH) and I spent about an hour using iChat technology to talk with Kagami Sensei. She is studying hard for her Japanese language test which is scheduled on December 5. She's learning grammar and other idiosyncrasies, but not getting enough social interaction. She had Thanksgiving with Roberto and other assorted Americans. Miki and Roberto rounded up a turkey and roasted it in the tiny Japanese style oven, plus Roberto made some gravy. KS said that the turkey smelled wonderful, just like home cooked bird.

Only 24 more days until the solstice.

Out of the Red Friday

The day after Thanksgiving is the biggest shopping day of the year and the day that brings most businesses to profit for the year, or so the legend goes. I didn't manage to get to a store, but managed to spend some money on a new iBook battery for this computer. It has been losing its ability to hold a charge for quite a while, so the time to help rectify that situation and to jump start the economy coincided today. The Apple Store was happy to oblige my need to spend.

Herb and I talked to Kagami Sensei on the internet this morning. She's having Thanksgiving dinner with Roberto's family tomorrow, and was trying to think of something traditional to bring to the festivities, but the country of Japan is devoid of cranberries and the search for sweet potatoes and marshmallows for a casserole seems to be too daunting. I'm sure that they'll have good food and I'm thankful that she has good friends to spend this holiday with. She's a long way from home. Then she' planning to get back to studying for her Japanese competency test due for December 2.

Back here in River City, with the temp in the 20's and early 30's, Herb and I walked a couple of miles through the neighborhood, and then took in a movie, "Michael Clayton." It's a movie that I like but Herb thought that it was needlessly stress inducing. George Clooney was good as a lawyer-fixer.

Other Continents

Since it was a cold and dark Sunday, and because the people pictured below are on different continents tonight (and not North America), I'm posting this ten year old picture when they were just in a different state. Greetings to both of you, if you're reading this.


A very old quote to show that tennis has been around for a long time. To be sure, it was a different game in 1623, but it was nearer its beginning.

"We are merely the stars' tennis-balls, struck and bandied
Which way please them"
-John Webster (1580-1625) "The Duchess of Malfi" (1623)

John Webster was an English playwright and contemporary of Will Shakespeare.

A little Tennis History: " It was in France that the game as we know it today really came into being. During the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries it became the highly fashionable sport of kings and noblemen and was called ' Jeu de paumme' - the game of the palm. Early French players would begin a game by shouting 'tenez' i.e. 'Play!' and the game soon became known as Royal, or Real Tennis. Real tennis was actually very different to the game that we know today. It was played indoors, in large galleries with jutting roofs and points were won according to how the ball was played off of the gallery walls."

An update from the USTA 7.0 mixed doubles nationals. Jerry and the hardcore Becky won again and finished the season undefeated, 4-0 at the nationals. The rest of the team wasn't as successful, but they all had a nice trip to Nevada. I am looking forward to the next mixed doubles meeting with Jerry and Becky, a week after Thanksgiving, and a opportunity to hear some tales of the tournament. And a little competition.

Refrigerator

There's a web site on the internet that asks people to post photos of the contents of their refrigerators. Since it's a slowish news day and very gray outside, I'm posting here my fridge.


In my Wednesday discussion with the English teacher now employed in the Japanese School System (ETNEITJSS), she recounted a dispute that she was having with the Japanese teacher she sometimes assists and who fancies himself an expert on English, an assertion that is disputed by ETNEITJSS. They were disagreeing about the way to shorten the word "refrigerator" to make it easier to remember and to fit into the lyrics of a song he was making up. He wanted to use "ref" and in fact had put it in the song and used it in the rhyme scheme. ETNEITJSS was firm in her stand that he should use "fridge" as the shorthand term and that he should fix up the song to work with her word. The head teacher, the hardheaded old fart, was the winner, because he is the head teacher. Such is the way of the world. The losers are the kids who are trying to learn American English. How do you like the picture of my "ref?"

There was geezer tennis on Saturday at Woodbury. 4-6, 6-4. The ages of the gang of geezers today: 67, 65, 63, 59. Number of artificial hips: at least 2, unless Jerry had both of his replaced, then 3. I think I'll ask him. There will be another one sometime this winter when Tennis Dennis goes under the knife.

The Herbster is off to Chicago for the weekend, driving Mr Green, his trusty Corolla.

Flurries

My email provider contained a brief message from the Kagami Sensei this morning. She sent it using her cell phone, a common practice in the Land of the Rising Sun. I knew it was from her cell phone because of the subject line, "don't reply to this address!". This is a necessary warning because her cell phone input queue will only receive about 30 characters of text before it overflows and causes great consternation. (I have, in the past, negligently replied to a cell phone message and caused consternation and a possibly higher cell phone bill for KS.) The short message, "i have another request: picture of me skating if u have one. ASAP!", also was evidence that she was on her cell and didn't want a photo file arriving on her underpowered phone. I was able to round up six photos from the 7 or so years that she figure skated and participated in the Roseville Ice Show, "Everything is Coming Up Roses". I scanned them in and mailed them off to her yahoo email site and then decided to include one of them on this blog. This is from April of 1998 and shows her doing a spin while weearing her costume for that year. You may notice in the background, her "baby cousin" doing a similar manuver.


There were snow flurries today as I ventured out to the Parc de Comeau to get some walking around time. The wind was fierce and the omens seem to point to an old fashioned Minnesota winter.

There was geezer tennis tonight at Wooddale. We had a sub for one of the regulars and it made for an interesting and strategic match. I had Tennis Dennis as my partner for both sets and we won both by very skimpy margins, 7-6, 6-4. We had to rescue two set points against us in the first set and the tiebreaker was nip and tuck. (I think we were nip!) There was much good natured taunting and guffawing, and at the end of the evening the turkey trophy for lowest score went home with someone else - Bill, I think.

Central Standard Time Arrives

The first day of CST - Central Standard Time. I awoke early to chat with Kagami Sensei from Ogaki City in Japan. The normal 8 am time here moved back to 7 am, so I pretended that the clock hadn't changed until after the chatting concluded. She's been having some trouble with one of the Japanese teachers she's trying to help. He makes up lessons for the English classes and tends to use wrong English expressions without checking for authenticity with KS. He made up a song in English and used the word "clothes", but pronounced it like it had two syllables "clothe - es", and then taught it to several classes. KS objected, but he wouldn't change it because it changed the rhythm of the song. Americans are not the only nationality with obstinate old men.

In any case KS is still doing well.

The photo is a lovely oak tree on Summit Avenue that still owns its leaves.


I took an afternoon walk in the late fall sun with Herb. The evidence of the just passed Halloween holiday is still around. There are lots of sunken cheeked jack o'lanterns, many that have been gnawed by the herds of squirrels who are getting ready for winter.

I'll be playing tennis tomorrow and voting on Tuesday.

Dark Themish Day Plus One

I'm a day late with the theme day photo, and a dollar short. My archives offered up this photo of Takehara, Japan, the original place of employment of Kagami Sensei when she went to teach English there. I took this photo when Herb and I visited in May, 2006. The cemeteries in Takehara are on the sides of the cliffs - not really hills, not really mountains. Two theories. The flat land is too valuable to use for cemeteries, and, for the same reason, they plant the ancesters real close together. The other theory is that the ancesters should reside as close to the sky as possible, so they are buried high in the "hills."

The photo was taken from above, from a higher ledge where there were other graves packed close together. The view of the city shows how close together the houses are built, and, to some extent, the beauty of the countryside. This is the town where KS spent more than a year of her life. It's about a half an hour by train from Hiroshima.


It rained all day in River City. Not much happened on bikes or tennis courts.

The last segment of Ken Burns' "the War" was on PBS tonight. This segment had footage dealing with the Atomic Bomb at Hiroshima, the battle on Okinawa, and the Holocaust. There were enough bad images to wish for the end of all war. An idea worth considering.

Lightning and Thunder on the Tundra

It was a nice day, most of the day, to play outside a little bit. The geezer tennis session was scheduled for 5 pm and the weather was mostly sunny. The courts at Marie Park have accumulated some leaves so we swept and raked them off before starting. We played two sets and a 10 point tiebreaker before the darkness began to impinge. There was a large dark area in the sky as we played and it began to light up with lightning and thunder as we quit. I was able to get home without getting wet, but the heavy rains came soon after. I had a good tennis day and had enough "lucky shots" that I stopped and treated myself to three powerball tickets. I'll let you know if I won anything sometime later this week.

The photo below is from 1985. Herb and I chatted on the internet with Kagami Sensei this morning from her apartment in Japan. She's was doing pretty well, but having some moments when she wished to be home. She wanted some photos for her Japanese language blog (one that I'm not able to read). She especially asked for this and another photo that have been on my refrigerator for some time. It's of her and her goony bro playing in the backyard with a hose and having a whale of a good time. Happy days. I sent the photo via email, but it is also "grab"able, I told her. She has another entry today in her xanga English language blog, part of which she wrote for therapy. Have a look, it's a good read.


This is a cartoon with some editorial content that I did a couple of days ago. Unky Herb liked it well enough that he said I should put it on the blog. Since I'm not much of an artist, I should apologize for the art content. Shoulda woulda.

This and That

I mentioned Amelia Earhart in a previous entry, and the fact that she lived on my street back in 1913. I decided to see what the house looked like it. It was a house so large and expensive to heat that her dad nearly went broke that winter buying coal for the furnace. This is her residence which is about two blocks east of my own homestead. It's quite an attractive abode, is it not? An architectural gem?


I also have a photo from 1990 that I like, and since my tennis photos lack any excitement, I include this one. It's the cousins acting waif-like and cute in scarves. They were about seven years old. Who knew that they would turn into world travelers and go traveling in opposite directions? Who knew? And why didn't someone tell me?


My tennis story for the day is short. The day was nice, but the afternoon brought a blast of warm air to River City, and by the time the geezers met to compete it was 81 and humid. We played a couple of sets and by the time we finished the sun was nearly down and the light inadequate. We talked some about seeing Fred at the tournament this weekend. Everyone seems to have a Fred story. One. His marriage only seems to work when they live separately, but Fred is getting worried that his wife is thinking about moving back in with him. He's noticed that his closets are filling up with her clothes and considers this some sort of omen. As I said before, he's a funny guy.

Check on the Kagami Sensei xanga site. She has more interesting chat from Ogaki City.

October in September

It was primary election day in St Paul. I felt my civic duty and went to the polls. There was a single race on the ballot - the race for City Council for Ward 2. While I was signing in, the election judge noticed the street that I live on. He wasn't busy. I was the only prospective voter in the room. He said that he thought that Amelia Earhart (1897-1937) had lived near me in St Paulwhen she was a teen-ager. That sounded interesting, so when I got home, I used my favorite search engine and found a biography of the famous aviatrix(?), "East of the Dawn." According to the book, she lived just down my street about a block, but only lived here in 1913, the year she was 16, and the year my mother was born. They lived in a house that they couldn't afford to heat. I'll get a picture of the house soon, and launch it into cyberspace. She moved to Chicago the next year and graduated from high school there. She became world famous as a dare devil flyer. In 1937 she and her airplane were lost in the Pacific and her body was never found.

It was cold enough today that it reminded me of Christmas. I have an old photo of Kagami Sensei and her baby cousin, Wireless, from, Christmas, 1989. It's cute enough to be reproduced here. KS looks like she's about to break into a dance.


As unbelievable as it seems, a hard freeze is expected tonight in the northern half of the state. Less than a week ago it was over 90 and I had to stop playing tennis because I only had one bottle of water and its contents had been swallowed. My tomatoes are safe tonight here, the weather creatures predict 38 degrees.

More and better bridges

It's the first Sunday in September. I'm leading with the bridge again. This is more of a context shot that I took last week on Friday from the Cedar Avenue Bridge. The 35W bridge still fills the river. Barge traffic upriver is stopped here. The workmen have built a road out into the Mississippi to haul off the pieces of bridge as they are separated from the pile of debris. Up river you can see the locks normally used for barge traffic, the dam that holds back the river and allows the water level to be lowered for the work, and the stone arch bridge that is a bike and pedestrian crossing of the Mississippi. The Metrodome, home of the Vikings and Twins can be seen off to the left in the distance. The IDS tower can be seen, too. The water downstream from the bridge is muddy and murky, while upstream it is fresher and cleaner.


On the east side of 10th Street, which is the northeast extension of Cedar Avenue, stands this large old apartment building. This is in the heart of the University of Minnesota campus and someone hung out this sign on a sheet. It speaks for itself.


Two other things to report. Herb and I chatted with KS this morning via the internet. She is back from the Miyazaki organic farm and from a week visiting her old friends in Takehara. She can report on her activities herself, and probably will, but I am gratified to know that she is back in Ogaki and in contact with her tousan. She had a good time and likely will share some photos on xanga. She starts teaching English again on Tuesday. She looked marvelous.

The recent tennis activity continued. It was a hot day for tennis, but Jerry scheduled the mixed doubles team to practice in the middle of the day, two p.m. I played two sets before I ran out of water in my water bottle. Using my geezer status and my good sense, I quit. "When I'm out of water, I'm out of here." We had 12 people and used four courts at Highland High School for at least the 90 minutes I was there. I played with Marsha and we split sets with two separate teams, 6-4, 2-6. We are scheduled for 10 a.m. tomorrow, a more civilized hour of the day.