train trip

Last weekend Dad and I went to Monticello to ride the train. Luckily I spent an extra 1/2 hour before going to bed and learned that for a mere $20 one could ride in the engine cab. So that's what we did, and it was worth it to see a 68 year old man with the look of a 5 year old child. He was beaming. I enjoyed sticking my head out the window and taking in the prarie. I did feel sorry for the Monticellan's who lived right by the track in town with the wheels screeching against the track and the train having to blow the whistle at every intersection.





Today we went to Busey Woods. the Boardwalk was very nice. I love the sound of the wind whistling through the trees. Saw a pair of ducks. Bought another two toy birds with the bird call inside, Mallard Duck and Canadian Goose to add to my flock of red-winged black bird and cardinal.

To Mingle with Dandelions or Not

I had a thought today as we were passing the Tru Green Chem Lawn Building. There are two types of people in the world. Those who think dandelions are possible pretty or at least inocuous and those that will put every chemical known to man on there boring patch of lawn to prevent oh my gosh any interloper that possibly might be construed as something that is not grass. My Grandmother taught me to braid dandelions when I was a kid. I loved plucking them and blowing the seeds when I was a kid. I don't do this anymore but when I drive by a field full of yellow blooms, I smile. We also have some pretty violet flower weed here in IL that I also like.

Official definition from dictionary.com: Dandelion: A Eurasian plant (Taraxacum officinale) of the composite family having many-rayed yellow flower heads and deeply notched basal leaves. Widely naturalized as a weed in North America, it is used in salads and to make wine.

And also very pretty but probably not so nice on your lawn, that's what the prarie is for. Wild mustard.

white squirrel picts

Was it a true albino or not? I don't know. In some of the pictures the eyes look pink. Either way they are just so darn cute. See 5/19 post for the info.

theo vs evo bumper

darfish40
Originally uploaded by ke-weiss.

See "eat these crumbs" link for just the darwin bumper sticker. We saw this in Decatur at the Rock springs park. Apperently the christians are fighting back. My Dad was a little nervous taking the picture because he was afraid we were going to get caught by some angry Christians.

zoo pictures

wolf43
Originally uploaded by ke-weiss.

prariedogb
Originally uploaded by ke-weiss.

cheetah52
Originally uploaded by ke-weiss.

white squirrel, Lincoln Logs, buffalo burger

On Sunday we decided to drive 2 and 1/2 hours to attempt to see the Olney albino squirrels. Though the town claims they are quite commong they aren't abundant in public places. We were very lucky and saw ONE. After taking lots of pictures and feeding peanuts we continued to walk around the park and when we came back it was gone. Boy were we lucky. On the way down we also stopped at Lincoln's parents last residence. It was pretty cool. They had volunteers who acted like the former residents. Felt some freshly sheared wool. It has lanolin so it feels all lotiony. On the way home we stopped in Matoon and my vegetarian father had beef brisket (which he said was one of the best meals ever) and I had a buffalo burger (which was extremely yummy).
Look for pictures in the next post.

lions and tigers and bears oh my ...

Well not really. But wolves, cheetahs, and oh so cute prarie dogs. Dad and I went out to Decatur today. Which I did not know, is full of cool parks. And as long as you are on the west side you can't smell the soybeans from ADM. First we went to Rock Springs Center and went for a 1.5 mile hike through prarie and trees. I got a stuffed red winged black bird with it's bird call. Pretty cool cause now I know what that weird call I always here is. Then we went to the childrens Zoo. Which was cool. They aboved mentioned wolves, cheetahs, prarie dogs, and also eagles, reptiles, petting zoo, annoying macaws, peacocks, camels, shaved llamas, and mini train ride. I'd never petted a llama before, boy are they soft and really friendly, bad breath though. It was a very nice day. Pictures should follow in a few days.

help me decide

I bought an I shuffle ( I can't stand a person at work, hearing her voice wants to make me strangle her). Originally I wanted the $99 dollar one, but my work computer has only 500 MB of memory left so there is no room for all my mp3s. I have roughly 250 mp3s, so I got the 1GB for 50 dollars more I can carry almost my whole collection. And lets face it, I'm not going to put the "Weird Al" onto it. The problem is I have Buyers Remorse and am feeling guilty about spending 50 extra when I don't even have the $100. What do ya think?

Now on another completely different issue. I invited my Dad out for a visit and decided to coincide it with the annual duck race. See rubber ducky picture posted below. However they decided to postpone till September. So sad.

cruel and unusual punishment

Well it was that time of year again, time for my annual physical. I am a person that eats every two hours so asking me to fast for 12 long hours, fills me with dread. Add to that, that I'm sick and I had a very uneasy night. My stomach starting growling at 1 AM. Sometime around three I was able to fall asleep, but I kept dreaming about eating food and ultracentrifuging empty tubes. The food I get, the work issues I don't. The tubes were empty, probably says something. Anyway in my dream I was eating all this yummy food, but I knew I was supposed to be fasting so I kept waking up because I wasn't supposed to be eating. At 7:30 Am I was no longer able to sleep and I had till 11:30 before I could go to the doctor. My dad felt bad, so he was trying to eat his breakfast in secret. The good news is its all over and I've been happily munching all day.

As an aside, I don't care about Britney Spears's marriage, whether Paula slept with a contestant, I'll admit a Kutcher:Demi baby might be a little interesting but not enough to waste time speculating. If you have no idea what I'm talking about good for you.