Goodbye Tom - Hello Tom and Andrea

In 1987, north across 3rd Street from our house stood the old Munn Addition of the Jane C. Stormont Hospital.  Interestingly, Dad had worked (and lived) there for a short time in High School while Mother received her nurses training there in the 1940s.   It had been abandoned and neglected for years.  Amidst talk of using it as a half-way house or low income apartments, Tom Woltkamp saved the day by buying it, razing it ...

and building his house on the corner.

For the past 25 years, we have enjoyed being neighbors to Tom and his entire family ...

Last week, Tom moved.

Life will not be the same.  Thank you, Tom for being such a great neighbor.  I miss you already.  

In Tom's place, we have a new Tom.  Yep, Tom and Andrea ... and their 3 darling daughters ... moved in last weekend.

This is going to be fun.

65 years ... and counting

My wonderful parents celebrated their 65th wedding Anniversary yesterday.  While we didn't have a 3 day celebration in Kansas City to reenact their first meeting like we did last year, we did have a quiet dinner (and dessert, of course) to mark this momentous occasion. 

Happy 65th Anniversary to the best parents ever!

I am fortunate to be your favorite son. 

(Sorry brother Sam, but they've always liked me more.)

Tribute to Tom Henderson and Jerome Pliickebaum

One of the lawyers in my office is Tom Henderson.

When not serving as an Administrative Law Judge for the State of Kansas, Tom's 35-year private practice has included serving hundreds of disabled US Veterans at the Topeka VA Hospital.  Going beyond his duties as their Court-appointed Conservator, Tom has also served as their big brother, their baby sitter, and in some cases their best -- or only -- friend.  While Tom receives minimal compensation, it is essentially a volunteer job.  As each veteran ages, Tom is there to help.  In many cases, Tom becomes their family.  In some cases, Tom is the only one who attends their military funeral.

5 years ago today, Navy veteran Jerome "Plicky" Pliickebaum died in his sleep.  No, I didn't know him, but Tom provided me with some information about Plicky.
(click below to enlarge)

Tom was Plicky's family and the only one who attended his funeral.  In the 5 years since his death, nobody has claimed the US flag that covered his casket.

 In his honor, and with Tom's blessing, today Dad and I flew Jerome Pliickebaum's flag.

Thank you, Plicky for your service to our country.  Thank you, Tom for your tireless dedication to our US Veterans.
You are an unsung hero.

Oh yes ... on this day, the 5 year anniversary of Plicky's death and my 61st birthday, I was lucky enough to spend it with loving family.  

Not everybody is so lucky.

Anniversary trip to Costa Rica

Tired of seeing Helen wear earmuffs and winter coats during our past anniversary trips to Florida, and further inspired by last year's trip to The Bahamas, this year we ventured even farther south to Costa Rica.  We took along our friend Virginia so she could visit her daughter, Nancy, who lives there.  Interestingly, we soon learned that Nancy and her husband are both alumni of Topeka High School (Nancy is class of 1971 - Helen and I are class of 1970).  Big school - small world.  

We stayed with them in their historically intriguing home, a residence on the former Sanchez Coffee Plantation, in Alejuela which is just outside the capital city of San Jose.

While there, we enjoyed tremendous hospitality, fabulous views of the coffee plantation, the city of San Jose and several active volcanoes.

The next day, we traveled to Tamarindo Beach ... a 5 hour "white knuckle" road trip via Turismo van across hill and dale, washed-out bridges and every kind of "road" known to mankind.  (Please note that the word "road" is in quotes as I use it generously.)  The experience was memorable and will cause me to pause before again criticizing the potholes of Topeka.  Sorry, no pictures.  It took both hands to hold on.

Lucky for us, the destination was worth it.  While Tamarindo Beach is the quintessential tourist destination (think "Souvenirs for Sale"), the Villa Alegre Bed & Breakfast is the essence of tranquil.  

Barry and Suzye provide a peaceful environment that entices one to gently exhale.  Combined with a 5-star breakfast, it is pure bliss. With the Pacific Ocean a mere 9-iron (make that a sand-wedge) away and the infinity pool in our backyard ...

the temptation to nap-test every hammock was irresistible. 

Sure, there were tons of typical resort activities available and the beach-front restaurants were really nice

but we preferred to gaze at the sunsets ...

and eat at the funky locally owned huts downtown.

OK ... so I did brave the Howler Monkeys to experience the Monkey Jungle Canopy Zip Line Tour where one of the guides borrowed my camera and made this video.

Actually, the road trip there was an adventure in itself:

I also ventured to the Hacienda Pinilla Golf Course where I saw beautiful houses off the fairways

and encountered snooty iguanas on the fairways.  

I also saw a breath-taking view of the blue Pacific

and smelled a breath-taking cow pie on the 18th tee.

Otherwise, for several days we mostly did .... nothing.  

It was sad to leave but even that was an adventure.  Not willing to endure the 5 hour drive back to San Jose, we decided to fly.  Unfortunately, the bridge to the local airport was out.  Fortunately, the river was low enough to allow our taxi to drive across the river.  Had the river been up, our taxi ride would have been extended 2 hours resulting in our ultimate arrival via the runway itself.  

The airport itself was amazing.  Open-air lobby

and washrooms

with an adjacent convenience store 

provided us all the necessary amenities without the hassle of any airport security clearance.  I loved it.  The 45 minute flight to San Jose on the single engine Cessna was both scenic and flawless.

Goodbye to Costa Rica and to all of our new friends.  Thank you for providing a friendly and warm destination where earmuffs were not required.  

Happy 36th Anniversary to Helen.

Christmas 2012

Our Christmas Holiday began with Melissa's visit on the 22nd.  It was great to see her.  Unfortunately, Roby and the kids were not able to come.

Like Wow!  Melissa cut off and donated 12 inches of her hair.  I love that kid.

By Christmas Eve, the rest of the gang was here.  

Hope (now 14 months old) is walking and talking ... make that babbling.   She loved wearing her antlers.

Old friends joined us ...

as did new ones.

We had a very (very) casual dinner and a very (very) intense game of Pictionary.  The west team won.

Christmas morning brought Dad in his traditional Christmas pants,

Helen's California Eggs Crackle, Aunt Nancy's pinch bread and a marathon gift exchange.  Fun photos were taken ...

  including the Spy Sunglasses photo.

As it ends up, you really can see behind you with $2.98 spy sunglasses.

After an exhausting day, Christmas night allowed the guys a chance to relax and visit.

It was a blast having everyone together.
Thank you for joining us.

Merry Christmas 2012.

Christmas Decorations - from Classic to Kitsch

Since 2010, we have been the lucky recipients of various exterior Christmas decorations from our neighbors.  Thanks to their generosity, our Christmas decorations have gone from Classic ...

to Kitsch.

Somehow, the wreaths don't seem appropriate anymore.


PS.  The candle power around here is soooo bright ...

that Tommy had to don his shades.

Lucky for him, somebody brought him some presents to put under his Tommy Tree.

Topeka High School Madrigals

Every year the Topeka High School Madrigals continue to impress and amaze.  Under the direction of Steve Eubank, these guys are good.  Last week they attended the THS Alumni Lunch and provided us with a small sample of their upcoming Holiday Concert.

Bravo!

AFS - International Desserts 2012

Today marked the 14th year that we have hosted the AFS International Desserts Holiday Party.  This year there are 6 AFS foreign exchange students attending our local area high schools.

They each told friends and host families of special holidays celebrated in their home countries,

and then... we got to taste their homemade international desserts.

(Thanks to Granddad for the box of chocolates.)

We also discussed the origins of AFS ... a brief blip of which is below:

AFS Intercultural Programs began as the American Field Service (AFS), which had its origins in 1914 shortly after the outbreak of World War I, when young Americans living in Paris volunteered as ambulance drivers at the American Hospital of Paris. AFS participated in every major French battle and carried more than 500,000 wounded during World War I. By the end of the war, 2,500 men had served in the American Field Service with the French Armies.

For more information about the transition of AFS from an ambulance and camion service in World War I to the present-day international student exchange programs, please see the descriptions of our archival collections. 

You can learn more about the history of AFS at

AFS Intercultural Programs

Mega thanks to everybody for sharing their culture, their desserts and their warm smiles with us.  A special thanks to Ebba, who in apparent anticipation of Jake attending, brought a Swedish Princess Cake.

Yummy.