Sewer line for Christmas

After babying our decrepit sewer line for years, it finally shot craps. (Aren't I a funny guy?) The project involved digging a 100 foot trench (6 to 9 feet deep) from the house to the alley and burying a new line. No big deal.

 Maybe a yard in the spring. In the meantime .... flush.

TEDx Topeka

TEDx Topeka.

Tonight we attended TEDx Topeka where we were captivated by 8 fascinating and stimulating presentations by Topeka people. It was a total blast.

Topics included:
"The Power of Humility in the Age of the Selfie"

"Growing Solutions to Feed the World"
"Taxation Myths and Realities"

"Neuro Linguistics Programing: The Female Mindset Redefined"

"Transgender in Kansas"

Topeka is cooler than I thought.

International Desserts

Today we hosted AFS foreign exchange high school students for a Holiday Party featuring International Desserts. They each bring a dessert from their home country

and tell of a holiday custom and how their family celebrates it. 

These kids are great. 

Only 9 students this year. But everyone of them is a winner.

Oh yes ... Verena, the Mueldener's exchange student from 2002-2003, was back for a visit. She is very accomplished and super sophisticated.

It is really fun watching these kids grow up. Most of them do it sooooo very well.

Thanksgiving 2015

Thanksgiving continues to evolve as the most eclectic Crow Holiday of the year. This year it included Bev and her family as well as Lynn and two of her sweet daughters. Although it might appear to be a Christmas photo, here is a Thanksgiving Lunch photo of our fun and diverse group.

I like to think that the very first Thanksgiving Dinner ... shared between the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag Indians in 1621 ... was equally fun and diverse.

We also got to visit Oma and give her a Thanksgiving Day hug. Although she is more "fuzzy headed" every day, she is thriving in her home at Aldersgate's Village.

Happy Thanksgiving 2015.

The World of Crow is 10 years old

Today marks the 10th Anniversary of The World of Crow.

Not counting this one, there are 425 posts. The first post can be found here.

Maybe they'll get more interesting someday. Unlikely, but maybe.

Halloween Weekend - 2015

Halloween weekend ... now more than 2 weeks ago ... was a blast and a half. It all started when Mark (and his friend David) drove in from Minneapolis on October 29th to celebrate his 61st birthday at Aldersgate Village with Oma and Carolyn.

A day later,  Samantha, Jake, George and Aria flew in from California. The next day, Philipp and Nica flew in from Boulder. 

Granny and Granddad joined us for Halloween ... where Cookie Monster got treats from his Great-Granny

 and checked his email while talking to Elmo.

He pulled the old folks around the neighborhood 

so he could take in all the sights.

The weekend brought together lots of fun people. Hugs and smiles were shared.

Unfortunately, Helen and I were both haunted by a Halloween late night flu bug. Fortunately, we didn't infect anybody else. Overall, it was a scary fun Halloween Weekend.

Crow Mountain Farm - white lime

An afternoon trip to Crow Mountain Farm with Dad revealed several large piles of agricultural lime.

Agricultural lime is a white caustic alkaline substance consisting of calcium oxide that is obtained by heating (or maybe pulverizing) limestone. It is used to correct high levels of acidity in the soil. Everybody knows that. 

Odd stuff.

Not lime colored at all.

Samantha and kids

Every once in a while, a Dad has got to post pictures of his kid ... and her kids.

So there you have it.

Oma moves to Aldersgate Village

After living in her house for 62 years, today Oma moved to Aldersgate Village Retirement Community. Actually, we moved her to Aldersgate.  A recent home invasion and theft heighten our long-standing concerns about her safety. The move was not without resistance. Helen very wisely enlisted the services of the Topeka Police Department (and staff social worker) to help Oma understand that the move was for her own safety. Even then, the strong-willed Oma let her feelings about it be known.

But, by mid day she was semi-settled, sorta-smiley and super-ready for the 3 PM ice cream social ... that she attended with her friend Carolyn.

While I'm sure the transition will be rocky and full of anxiety, the end of day number one was amazingly tranquil. Congratulations, Oma. You tackled your first move in 62 years with bravery and courage.

Alzheimer's disease sucks

Alzheimer's disease fully, completely and totally sucks.

Period.