Iowa trip

I wanted to mention a bit about our recent trip to Iowa. After our “short but fun” visit to Minnesota (mentioned here and here), Patricia and I drove down to my parents’ house in St. Joe on Sunday afternoon (August 27). We hadn’t been to the house for about two years, and were reminded that it is a really nice property. We like the furniture, the decorating, etc. And the view up to the Ernest J. Gales farm is sweet, take a look at the accompanying photo.

Dolores came over from Storm Lake with her three ever-taller sons late afternoon Sunday. That was fun. We caught up on stuff for awhile, then Dolores, Joe and I took a short jog west up past the hill farm, talking about RAGBRAI, choir, orchestra and other assorted things. Patricia meanwhile had her hands full in a euchre game with Tom, Kieran and their grandfather (who was providing advice that may have veered into table talk?) Nice dinner, including some impressive eating prowess by my nephews. In the evening we saw some of my dad’s new and somewhat new stuff, including a spiffy surround sound system (demo’d by Patricia’s cousin Danny O’Donnell), a computer desk that replaced the one that Ray Gales and I dumped on the road that I still call 408 a few years ago, etc. Also learned from my dad a new way to squeeze efficiency out of one’s computer experience: position your desktop icons so that – if you hit the icon in the exact right spot – your cursor is sitting right where it needs to be to launch the associated application. Who could debate that this is a good idea? It then being about 1 a.m., my dad and I called Carol & Jim in Nome. They reported on a fine hike (and there are some good photos on the hunky site to back up the story).

We went up to Algona on Monday. Stopped at the Capesius seed corn shed. Saw pretty much the entire crew plus guys like Alan Kohlhaas and Jim McEnroe. And I wouldn’t have recognized McEnroe (GHS ’76) on a bet. We very much enjoyed talking with this crew. But who wouldn’t? We also looked over or shopped in some of the Algona stores, including some really nice retail space on the revamped main street. Those places look good, and I hope there are enough customers for all. Too late our intended lunch destination so ended up with a fine Subway sandwich instead. Steve & Julia came over from Mason City and we had a nice visit through the dinner hour. Julia demo’d her clarinet. I like how that thing sounds.

On Tuesday, we spent a lot of time going through photos and various other books and materials in the archives. Looked over some of the correspondence, photos, diary, etc. from Irvin Bormann’s WWII service (discussed a bit here). It is quite an impressive collection and really gives some insight into what that must have been like; probably especially instructive for those of us too young to have lived through a war like that. We talked a bit about the St. Joe history book, this being the 30th year of its publication. Clarence & Caroline Bormann and their kids (some more than others) had put together a memoir-style book that was really nicely done. We also pulled out a bunch of picture boards from various events over the years – class reunions, geneaology projects etc. Took some photos of these which I still need to work on a bit. Then went and visited Clarence & Caroline after supper. They are doing great. Enjoyed catching up. Enjoyed having a traditional whiskey + mixer with Clarence. Then we played 500. Clarence and I won one more game than Caroline and Patricia (if I remember correctly). This was very fun.

Wednesday was our last day. Had a chance to visit the gravesites on the St. Joe cemetery, and also looked over the recently-redecorated St. Joe church. I think they did a great job, it looks very nice. My mom made an excellent rhubarb pie (discussed here).

As with the entire trip, the best part is just hanging around the house talking, enjoying the good cooking and the baking (cinnamon rolls in the morning, etc.), soaking up the overall hospitality. Patrick and Paul Jr. were not so happy about missing out on this trip (we being unable to pull it together until they were back on campus), and I’m not so happy they missed it either. It was nice that all of my in-area siblings took the time (including some significant driving) so that we could see them during this short trip. And we got a cookie stash for the road! These are fine, fine visits.

1532 15th St. N.W. -- New Look

Our ex-home on Cohansey Street wasn't the only place in MN with a new look (see here). Check out the spiffy new deck in the back yard of the House house. Photos (one with House house residents, one with select blue guys) were taken on the morning of August 26 after we had coffee and multiple pastries on a gorgeous morning.

We flew into MSP airport on August 25 and had a nice afternoon of it at the House house. Barb & Dan came over from Eau Claire with Emily, Allison and a grand dessert; Therese came over all the way from St. Paul; and Nick came over from somewhere in the St. Thomas environs. It was very nice chatting out on the deck on a gorgeous day. And we waited a respectable time before breaking out Summitt Pale Ale (which I like quite a bit) etc. Watched the Twins beat the White Sox at night.

Just another fine visit to Minnesota. We drove down to St. Joe next.

Home Opener!

Today we went to the home opener for the Arizona Cardinals. Which meant Patricia and I had our first visit to the brand-new, and very nicely put together, Cardinals Stadium. All of this resulted from Chris’s notion several months ago to buy season tickets, which at the time were available for a very reasonable price (this being the Cardinals, who historically have never sold out home games here in Arizona). Anyway, after we bought the tickets the demand curve spiked after the team picked up Edgerrin James and Matt Leinart. Plus the new stadium is an even bigger demand driver. The season is now sold out, and no doubt they’ll jack up prices next year. But we’re in for now.

Jon Blaha and his parents (Dennis and Pam) are in on the gag also. Photo shows the six of us enjoying, or at least presiding over, the remnants of our tailgater. The food/drink was like a pre-season effort – solid and workmanlike, but uninspired. We can and will do better.

The stadium deserves the hype. You can see photos and read about it here. It’s supposed to look like a barrel cactus – you can make your own judgment, just look at the cactus photo. I personally think the stadium looks like a spaceship. Here's an article discussing the architecture (which has won awards).

This did require a 25-mile trip out to Glendale, Arizona. Our seats were very nice. The only problem was that a fat guy sat beside me and invaded my personal space. Kind of like on an airplane. But he was nice. And take a look at the video of our heroes being introduced.

And oh yes, the Cardinals won. Mostly due to the effort of former Iowa Barnstormer and grocerybagger, Kurt Warner. Fun all around.

2498 Cohansey -- New Look

When we were in Minnesota at end of August, Patricia and I stopped by to check out our old home at 2498 Cohansey Street, Roseville. The fabulous yellow siding was gone (or at least colored over)! Check out the bland replacement. And the 1980s siding (2004 photos below), which you’ll agree was superior. And, they messed with the landscaping. Oh well, maybe they wanted to see out the front window or something. Basketball hoop down, which is a shame with the good-sized driveway.

Note the pooch in the top photo. The dog never approached us, which seemed odd until we saw the sign stating that the dog was hemmed in by an electronic fence. I would have been interested to see that product in action.

Finally, we felt that the “Whee Hill” in the backyard (to left of second photo) just doesn’t look as daunting as it did in 1985. N&C&K apparently were quite impressed at the time; they certainly screamed "Whee" quite vigorously during their 0.5 second sled rides down.

Something I had for breakfast

Take a look at this rhubarb pie. And the chef (with dish washing helper). My mom made this on the last day of our visit (Aug 30). We had a healthy slice for dinner (or lunch, whichever you prefer), and then packed a couple pieces for the road.

She used a recipe from her mother, Philomena Bormann. I don't know where my grandmother got the recipe, maybe she worked it up? There is a neat passage in Willa Cather's Death Comes for the Archbishop in which Bishop LaTour is complimenting Father Vaillant on the soup that he made as part of their Christmas dinner. These are two French priests out in what then was the wilderness of Santa Fe, New Mexico enjoying a rare opportunity to apply Vaillant's cooking expertise (developed in France prior to his coming to America). LaTour remarked that a sophisticated soup like this represented the culmination of centuries of history and fine-tuning by many cooks. OK, maybe a bit melodramatic, but I thought of that with this piece of pie. This kind of food doesn't just happen. It takes several generations to refine, and even then the baker needs the right skills, and must execute the dish. All that came together here

(By the way, Vaillant sounded a little like my mom would have -- taking LaTour's compliment but demurring that the soup wasn't as good as it could have been (in his case because he had to use onions, leeks not being available in New Mexico).)

We're back in Arizona after a very nice visit to Minnesota and Iowa. It was a fine trip. More to come about that, but I really should pay some attention to my business for awhile.