No Palm Trees

In Indiana, we got no palm trees. We got no alligators. We got no "no see'ums." We got no osprey. We got no hibiscus. Well, then, what do we got?

Mustard or Catsup?

We got the "wienermobile." The famous vehicle travels around the country advertising the Oscar Mayer wiener, which is part of a line of meats that originated in Chicago more than 100 years ago. The yellow and orange wienermobile was in Indianapolis for festivities before and during the 500-mile race, which was last Sunday. In fact, the wienermobile's driver was staying in the same extended-stay motel we are.

What else do we got? We got this bunny, which has been living in the daylily patch just outside a nearby door. As it rained all day today - a bummer - the cotton tail hid herself away to stay dry. But at dinner time, she came out of hiding for a photo op.

Visiting friends in the area where Ed and I were born and grew up makes up for all the rain we've been having. Sienna, our rescue dog, is having a wonderful time, too. She especially loves the green grass and the chance to watch Canada Geese flying over and honking at each other.

Indiana is different from our home in Florida, that's for sure. But we have fun either place.

  

From There to Here

I haven't posted here for quite a while because we've been on the road. Let me explain: Every May we pack up our car with necessities, to include the dog crate, a stapler, scissors, file folders, laptop computers and, oh yes, some clothes, and drive 1,200 miles from our home in Florida to our temporary home in Indiana. That's where we were born, and that's where many of our friends still live.

We spend two months in Indiana, mostly visiting some of those friends. On many days, we meet somebody for lunch and somebody else for dinner. In addition, my husband plays clarinet in an "Old Geezers" band and takes private clarinet lessons. He's trying to unlearn some of the bad habits he learned back when he was in college!

As for me, I am editing a memoir I've written about our four-year experience living on a Caribbean island. The last year we spent the winter there, we watched as a volcano worked up to an eruption, or, I should say, a series of eruptions, which continue even today. In 1997, our house was incinerated by a pyroclastic flow of hot rocks and gases, and that was the end of that.

In Indianapolis, we stay in a little suite in an extended-stay motel. This is our fourth year here, and members of the staff call us by name when we walk in the door. The staff, including the women who clean and replenish the towels, the desk clerks and the maintenance engineers, have almost all stayed the same, attesting to the caliber of management.

Just like home 

The bromeliad in this picture - so reminiscent of our home in Florida - was given to us by the staff as a welcome gift.