North Myrtle Beach Part 3

The last part of our North Myrtle Beach vacation was just the two of us. We played quite a bit of pickleball, finding the people and level of play to be quite good at Central Park. The four courts are located on an old ice skating rink, which was interesting. It brought back memories of early days in Webster Groves when our outdoor courts were also on the old ice/roller hockey rink. It was a little tight, but doable.

One day we took a drive to Conway, SC as I had read there was a pretty walk along the Waccamaw River there. The drive wasn't too bad until we got near Conway, and then the traffic crawled along. We never did see what the issue was. We did have a nice hike there, and the boardwalk was lovely.

Conway, SC

Probably our favorite part of the whole trip was going to see Brookgreen Gardens. The sculpture park, preserve and low country zoo are located on 9,100 acres. It took us about 45 minutes to get there, and we arrived just as the gates opened at 9:30. The day was pretty hot, which was unfortunate, but we so enjoyed exploring the gardens, seeing all the phenomenal sculptures, and visiting the zoo (which was comprised of animals native to the area who are being rehabilitated). We miss the Missouri Botanical Gardens so much, and these gardens brought a little bit of home back to us.

Brookgreen Gardens

We wrapped up the rest of time in North Myrtle Beach by visiting another preserve, going to the Cherry Grove Pier and taking in one last concert the night before we were heading back to Charlotte. Overall the trip was great, but I would avoid going back there during the summer due to the crowds and the heat.

North Myrtle Beach scenes 

 

Carpe Diem

When you are given 70 degree, sunny days in December, you seize the moment. We went to a newish seltzer bar to sample their wares as they have outdoor seating, and then took a walk on a downtown greenway. It was great to see some semblance of normalcy with the Christmas decorations.

Little Sugar Creek Greenway

The next day we took our kayaks out on Mountain Island Lake. The water was calm, and the blue herons were extremely cooperative in having their pictures taken. As an added bonus, a large herd of deer ambled through the woods while we were watching the blue heron. 

Mountain Island Lake

That evening we went to the Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden to see their Christmas light display. It was an outdoor walking tour, and while it was a little more crowded than we would have liked, everyone wore their masks and it was easy to step off the path to let a group pass. I've said before that we are so blessed to have relocated to an area where we can enjoy the great outdoors, particularly in light of Covid.

Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden

Sailing Away - 7

sunrise in Curacao

Friday, February 22nd found us cruising into our last port of call, Willemstad, Curacao. I had never heard of this island until one of the HGTV international house hunting shows aired. Pronounced cure-a-sow, it is the "C" of the ABC islands. This independent country has a population of 160,000 and is 38 miles long and 9 miles wide. It, too, is a fairly flat island.

We had heard much about the town of Willemstad, and how its Dutch heritage as illustrated in its architecture has been infused with the colors of the Caribbean. The four of us decided to do our own walking tour of the area so we could drink it all in. We had arrived in port at 7:00 a.m., so the day was still pretty young when we got off the ship.

The boardwalk along the sea is very nicely done, and it is for sure a walkable community. We enjoyed all the little bridges, and the fact that they had taken the old fort and retrofitted it for commercial and residential use instead of just letting it fall into disrepair.

Rif Fort

The vegetable and fruit market was interesting in that boats bring the produce to market as opposed to trucks. The boats are tied up behind the tents.

produce market

The colors did not disappoint, and we very much enjoyed our day in Willemstad. It was great to be able to spend the day walking around, as we knew the next two would be spent at sea as we made our way back north. We left Curacao at 4:30 p.m.

leaving Curacao 

Fall Leaf Walk

Wednesday I went on the Fall Leaf Walk at Bellefontaine Cemetery with a couple of my friends. It was a freezing cold day with a light dusting of snow on the ground, so not ideal for looking at trees and leaves. At any rate, the tour guide was amazing and I learned a lot about not only the unique trees that exist at this Level II Accredited Arboretum, but also about the icons used on stones. The most interesting thing to me as a genealogist involves the use of a period. If a period follows the surname on a stone, that indicates the end of the family name, meaning there are no male descendants to carry on the name. Who knew?

period on headstone

It was a wonderful tour, despite the cold, and I would love to do it again and bring Jim with me. Just not when it is winter!

Bellefontaine Cemetery

Kim Wolterman

Today I had the privilege of being on Radio63119, the local radio station for my community. The topic was house research, so a woman from the Webster Groves Historical Society joined the conversation as well. The show host is so professional and easy going that it was like we were all just sitting around my coffee table. I had a blast! I would be happy to be on her show again any time she wants me. An added bonus is that she put in numerous plugs for my book on researching house history in St. Louis County. Once she has a taped transcript of the show ready, I will be able to share that on my social media outlets.

Downtown Melbourne

Thursday morning we enjoyed breakfast with our hosts before taking a short tram ride to the central business district of Melbourne. The city has quite an interesting array of architectural styles, yet somehow they all manage to work together. We enjoyed learning more about the city from one of our hosts before he left for another commitment. We toured beautiful St. Paul's Cathedral, and then found a quirky little restaurant for lunch. We were told we needed to try an Aussie Pie for a meal, so we did. They were tasty, and we even liked our salads despite the fact that they had no dressing on them.

We spent the afternoon wandering through the town, and then took a walk along the Yarra River. Despite being a little overcast, it was a nice day to be out and about. We managed to catch the correct tram back to our neighborhood, and even made it to the house without getting lost!

Today we say goodbye to Australia. It has been a wonderful adventure, but we are eager to see what New Zealand holds in store for us.

Hoo, Hoo, Hoo's There?

Blackburn Park

My community, like many others, has a Facebook page. It is wonderful for keeping me up to date on who is angry about dogs pooping on their lawn, which kid ran a stop sign, lost dogs, finding out who has a sewer backup, and all kinds of other fascinating information. I don't know how I survived here all those years before Facebook came along! All kidding aside, while the listed items have indeed appeared on the page, it is truly a great resource if you are looking for a handy man or woman of any kind, and for keeping up on neighborhood events. It was on this page that I learned about the baby owls in Blackburn Park.

Several people had been posting photos of the momma Great Horned Owl and her owlets. The pictures were adorable, so of course I had to go see for myself. Last Saturday we took Kirby for a walk at the park, which also contains a wild bird sanctuary with trails so that you can enjoy the area. As it was a pretty if windy day, the park was teeming with activity. I was not surprised to see a half a dozen people stopped on the trail in the bird sanctuary to admire the babies. There are three of them hiding in the hollowed out segment of a tree. One was pretty bashful, so we only got a peek at it, but the other two seemed just as curious about us. They were particularly interested in Kirby. The one made some clicking noises, which I interpreted as his or her call to momma that dinner was within view.

Great Horned Owls

It was nice to see so many people taking an interest in the little family. After I posted my photos on Facebook, several of my friends also put up pictures that they had taken the same day. Word of the owlets has spread throughout the area. It is so refreshing to read about positive news instead of what we are normally subjected to these days. And how wonderful to live in a place where nature is close enough to enjoy on a sunny spring day. Sometimes you just need to take a walk in the park.

spring in bloom

Just a Walk in the Park

Laumeier Mansion

We had an unseasonably warm weekend here in St. Louis, so Jim and I took advantage of the weather on Sunday and took Kirby to Laumeier Sculpture Park, a 105-acre open-air museum and park. Located on property that contains a 1917 Tudor mansion once owned by Henry and Matilda Laumeier, the park is most noted for all the interesting and unique sculptures placed throughout the property. But we really enjoy walking the trails that are nestled back in the woods. The gentle hills and valleys are just challenging enough to get your heart rate up without worrying that you'll need CPR when you arrive at the top.

We thought that the park would be very crowded considering the mildness of the day, but perhaps everyone went to the zoo instead. We had the place pretty much to ourselves for most of the visit. That was perfect for us, and Kirby enjoyed all the new smells he gets to check out when we're in the woods. We are blessed to have so many great parks in the area so we can try out different walks.

Triangular Bridge Over Water

Bornibus

Walking Roots

Face of the Earth #3

Spring Forward

We may have finally turned the weather corner in St. Louis. Last week we were wearing snow boots, and today I saw a man in shorts and flip-flops. That is St. Louis for you. My husband and I try to go the the Orchid Show at the Missouri Botanical Garden each year. It is held the month of March, and it always seems to make you feel as though spring cannot be too far off. The show is always fabulous, but this year it seemed even more so. We went this morning, and there were no crowds, which was great. It is hard to believe in looking at the flowers that they all come from the same species. Maybe they are more like humans than I ever realized. We possess some of the same basic make-up, yet no two of us are exactly alike. (Identical twins, etc. being the exception.)

After we went through the exhibit we took a nice walk through the garden. There is not too much budding yet, but you could feel the promise of spring in the air. We are so blessed in St. Louis to have the Missouri Botanical Garden at our doorstep. I can't think of a better way to spend a lovely morning than walking in the garden with the man who has spent so many springs with me.

Slip, Sliding Away

Lorraine & Jerry

We decided to drive up to Iowa to visit my in-laws over President's weekend. We didn't see them over the holidays and this would give us a chance to not only spend Valentine's Day with them, but also celebrate their 62nd wedding anniversary. At the time we made the decision there was no bad weather in the forecast. When we left St. Louis Friday morning there was a little bit of freezing rain. The further north we traveled, the worse the weather got. The windshield wiper fluid would not come out of the designated holes, and between the slush from the road and the sleet, we could barely see out of the windshield. We stopped at a gas station in Bowling Green to clean off the window and fill up the tank - just in case. When I went in to use the restroom I asked the women in there if any of them had come from the north. Another woman said they were traveling from St. Louis to Des Moines, but she thought they were going to turn around. The women at the cash registers said that Hannibal was a mess and Palmyra got 4 inches of snow. I told Jim I thought we should head back home. He called his dad, who said it was sunny and dry in Charles City. Jim wanted to try going a little further.

I should admit here that I am not a good traveler under normal conditions. I prefer to drive rather than be the passenger. But I do not like to drive when the roads are icy. Jim took over the wheel, and I tried to keep my mouth shut. Everywhere I looked there were cars in the ditch. As we got close to Hannibal, it was as if they didn't own any snow plows in that area. It was horrible! To top it off, we stopped again to fill up and grab some food and when I walked the dog, I fell on the ice. Knee, hip, wrist and shoulder took the brunt of it. At least I didn't break anything! Once we got into Iowa, the road conditions improved. They were still snow packed, but at least the slow lane was halfway decent to travel on. A drive which normally takes us 6 hours was 7 and a half instead.

Charles City already had over a foot of snow on the ground, but they got several more inches on Saturday. Luckily we had nowhere we needed to go. Sunday was cold but sunny. Then we saw the forecast for Monday, which is when we planned to come home. More snow was predicted so we decided to see what the morning brought. I was reading reports of freezing rain from St. Louis up through southern Iowa, and Charles City was expected to get another 4 inches of snow. This time we decided to stay put since it looked like Tuesday would be clear with a warming trend. We took advantage of the extra time to visit with relatives and play card games.

Sure enough, the roads were excellent on Tuesday. We left 26 degree weather and pulled into a balmy 64 degrees St. Louis. Unbelievable. Now I remember why I say I won't travel this time of year.

Who Let the Dog Out?

Kirby

My husband took one of his week-long motorcycle trips with a couple of buddies last week. When he returned on Friday we hurriedly ate dinner and did the dishes because we were going to see "Evita" at the Fox Theatre that night. He took the dog out for a short walk before we left, and when he came back I noticed that he was pulling oddly on the dog's leash by the back steps. When I took a closer look I couldn't believe my eyes. Dangling from Kirby's collar was a dead squirrel. Oops! I forgot to warn Jim that there was a squirrel carcass in the driveway of our neighbor. It had been there over a week and they had not bothered to pick it up. I knew to cross the street before getting to that point because of course the dog immediately goes to anything that smells disgusting. But in the dark Jim did not see trouble up ahead. How in the world the thing got tangled in the dog's collar is a mystery. I imagine he rolled around on it.

So, how to get the squirrel off the collar without getting the dog worked up about it? I grabbed a broom (my good one, unfortunately) and swatted the squirrel with it. That worked, and gave me a whole new meaning to the term "flying squirrel". We then pulled the dog into the house, and oh my! The smell! It was all over the dog's face and neck, his collar, his leash, and my broom. We did a quick job of washing Kirby's face and leash, and I threw his collar in a cup with some detergent. The broom is still outside. It may not be salvageable. The dog's bath had to wait until after the play, so one can only imagine what else he rubbed himself on in the house while we were gone. Yuck! It is a good thing he is so cute, that is all I am going to say.

Fall Colors

The Missouri Botanical Garden fountain

Jim and I took a nice long walk at the Missouri Botanical Garden this morning, cameras in hand. This is my favorite time of year as the trees explode in shades of yellow, red and orange. Surprisingly the garden was not too crowded, even when we left for home around noon. Everyone must have been over at the zoo or something. Too bad for them, as we had the garden mostly to ourselves.

I love that the garden has their main fountain dyed red in support of the St. Louis Cardinals. The fountain definitely rivaled the trees in terms of bright red! We were entertained by a bird having a quick bath in one of the fountains. I imagined him laughing at the other birds as they took a drink from the same place he had been bathing!

Bird bath

Splish splash I was takin' a bath

Japanese Garden

Just Weight a Minute!

my home gym

A neighbor of mine works out at the same facility as me, and he is very proud of the fact that he has lost 66 pounds over the course of a year. He said that he modified his diet some, but mostly it is due to the fact that he walks on the treadmill 30 minutes a day. I am happy for him that he has lost the weight, but here is the thing. Every time I see him he asks me if I have been to the gym that day, and proceeds to tell me that I need to be going 7 days a week. Now, I did not ask for his opinion, nor do I want it. Who is he to imply that I am so heavy that I need to work out 7 days per week?

Yesterday I was walking the dog and he was driving by in his car. He rolled down his window and true to form, inquired as to whether or not I had worked out that day. Indeed I had my butt kicked by my small group trainer that morning, so I answered in the affirmative. In fact, I told him, I have been going to the gym 4 days a week in addition to walking the dog every day. Was that enough for him? Oh, no..."You need to be on the treadmill seven days a week Kim!"

Where does this guy get off? And how can I politely tell him to shove off?

Love thy neighbor as thyself, but choose your neighborhood.
-- Louise Beal

Stalker Dog

Our dog has finally figured out the the mailman comes bearing more than the mail. He also (usually) has dog treats. Now whenever I take Kirby out for our after lunch walk, he scouts around for the mailman. He knows that our particular mailman parks his truck around the corner from our house. So the first thing we have to do is check it out to see if the mailman is still in the truck. Sometimes we can catch him there eating his lunch. Other times he is taking a break, perhaps listening to a little of the Cardinals game. So Kirby gets up in his hind legs and bounces along like a dancing dog to see if he can spy the mailman. If that doesn't pan out, he carefully looks up and down the street, searching for the blue uniform carrying a bag. If Kirby sees him, he pulls me down the street like a sled dog until we catch up. The gagging noise coming from his throat alerts the mailman that stalker dog is hot on his tail. It is a game we play every day. The mailman seems to get a kick out of him, maybe since Kirby never barks at him or tries to bite him, and he always takes the dog treat very politely.

Yesterday after he scored a biscuit from the mailman, we continued on our walk. As we worked our way back to the house, Kirby spotted a second mail truck. Oh how I wish I could have taken a picture to capture the look of disbelief on his face! Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy! I got my speed walking in for a second time that day. This time he was rewarded with a beef flavored treat and he certainly savored it.

Later in the evening he found an even bigger treat in the backyard. Somehow he captured a smaller bunny, which he proudly brought up to the back door to show me. He seems somewhat like a cat that way. No amount of cajoling would convince him to drop the rabbit, which was dead fortunately. I imagine that the neighbor's cat or one of the local owls killed it because Kirby is not fast enough to catch a bunny. We had to practice our distract and ignore maneuvers until he finally let it go long enough for Jim to bag it and throw it away. You know, we are always chasing the rabbits out of our yard so that they don't destroy our gardens. Kirby probably thought he was helping us out. Yuck!

Walk for Those Who No Longer Can

Today was the eighth annual Jim Schoemehl 5k run/walk for ALS in Webster Groves. A run of this length is a fairly common occurrence, but what makes this one so special is that it is put together entirely by the senior marketing students at the high school. The students set up a website for information and registration, gathered sponsors, came up with the route, and took care of all the advertising and marketing, including design and printing of the t-shirts. Arriving at the school at 6:00 a.m. this morning, they readied the registration tables, marked the route and set up water stations at each mile marker. What an unbelievable way for the kids to take classroom learning and put it to a practical and beneficial use.

Half of the money raised goes to a local organization which provides assistance to those fighting ALS, and the other half goes to a local resident who has been diagnosed with ALS. This year's recipient is Barry Kurre, a Kirkwood Vietnam Veteran. Once the students met Barry, this run went way beyond being an assignment for a grade. As they saw the debilitating toll ALS has taken on Barry's life, they began to see the race as a challenge to make more money than any other year so that they could help make the lives of ALS patients a little easier.

Barry was brought to the high school parking lot by ambulance. At first I thought a runner had been injured, as I didn't know he was coming or even what his condition was at this point. The runners and walkers and student volunteers all gathered around for the presentation of the check to his family. If you needed a visual to understand what this disease does to a person, it was abundantly clear today. I didn't hear a final total on monies raised, but I watched as they presented Barry and his family with a check for over $18,000. And I thanked God for a school that has found a creative and fun way to think outside the box and take learning to the streets.

Just a Walk in the Park

It is a beautiful fall day here in St. Louis. After we finished some mundane weekend chores, Jim and I decided to take Kirby to Forest Park for a walk. Upon arrival I commented to Jim that I don't think we have ever just walked in that park. We have biked, roller bladed, golfed, attended picnics and the Muny Theater, paddled a boat on the lake and eaten at the boathouse, but we have never in our 30 years here just walked in the park. Strange... There were a lot of other people who also recognized the beautiful day, and kites were flying, boats were boating, dogs and babies were being walked, bikers and roller bladers abounded, kids played frisbee and other assorted games, and couples enjoyed each others' company on the sunny slopes of Art Hill, surrounded by the blaze of the red maples. This definitely was a day the Lord had made, and people were rejoicing. I'm going to tuck this memory away to pull out on a bleak, cold day this winter.