No, seriously, he's a doctor!

Matt and I at his graduation in Springfield. He's the wizard. I'm the warlock. Where is Capt. Morgan?

Hangin' with the Lincoln's. Cheer up people! We're not asking you to go to a play!

Yeah, same guy ... if you know Matt, then you will understand that the next day, two more statues of children stood in that grouping. FYI, Abe wasn't the father ...

Yup, a doctor who's interning in the ER ... one must understand where his patients come from ...

Matt graduated from SIU School of Medicine, aka Jamaican Voodoo, this spring. He will be interning in the Peoria ER for the next four years. The biggest benefit to Matt: he gets to eat as much food as he wants to and its free. Mental Note, don't get shot in Peoria. Matt, Rich (see Storm Chasing), and I used to hang out in high school. Matt, unfortunately, couldn't make the storm chasing trip due to some important tests or something ... don't worry he's going to live ;), so we had to celebrate his graduation "small-town style" as you can see above.

Planting at the Home Farm - May 21

My dad checking out the "new" planter as he closed in on finishing up planting beans at his farm.

The weather vane on the old barn.

Sunset on a beautiful spring day!

Finally, the fields were dry enough to finish up planting. New to us, but probably still in the 80's, we used a John Deere planter to sew the crop. Giving credit where credit is due, and so I don't hear anything more about it, my brother and dad did most of the planting. I was only able to help with the changing of planter boxes (from corn to beans) and loading the seed. Although, if you ask me later on, I opened and closed the fields!

Day 3 - Stormchasing Lost Images - Seriously, Colorado is this much cooler than Kansas?!

Rich and I after we conquered the mountainous trek up Pike's Peak ... halfway anyway ... and in the Highlander.

Standing on the dam, looking at Pikes Peak. I swear I felt this thing shake.

Captain Morgan strikes one more time! Pike's Peak -- CONQUERED!

A view of Colorado Springs from one of the many scenic pull-offs going up Pike's Peak.

Storm Chasing ....

Garden of the Gods.


Field in northern Kansas.


Pikes Peak.

Chalk Monument, Kansas (soon to be famous)

Abandoned house, northern Kansas

Starting Thursday, April 24, I started on my mission to storm chase in Kansas or wherever the storms would be for the next few days. I did manage to see one tornado and live, thus I consider that a success. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to photograph that tornado as it was at around 1 a.m. and only viewed by lightning. Location: just outside of Concordia, Kansas. After that date, the storm chasing trip turned into a road trip since blue skies dominated the nation. Colorado Springs, Pikes Peak, Garden of the Gods, and the not-so-famous (yet) Chalk Monument in Kansas were some of the main attractions. All in all, after about 2600 miles in six days, I feel it was a great exploration. Thank you to my friend, Rich, for accompanying me and keeping me grounded! I can't wait until the next storm!

Spring renewal ....

Upper 70's and I am so enjoying the sunshine! I carried the camera with me this weekend as I went for a walk around the farm, lake, and around the countryside. The sunsets are ripening and the smell of rain and freshly disced dirt is in the air. Outside, the birds are chattering louder as each day passes and finally, my lawn is beginning to turn green. Spring is a great time of the year!

Beautiful Day!!!!

Today, it was sunny and 73! This was the best day we've had thus far this year. Sure, it was a little windy, but the skies were blue and the sun was shining. Welcome Spring, don't go away any time, soon!

In case your not one of the natives viewing this blog, this is an image of the Rock River looking south toward the power plant, hospital, and the rest of Dixon. The river is a little high at this time of the year and the forecast calls for more rain in the coming days!

"Boss, the plane the plane ...."

For those of you who don't know what that quote is from, it's from that magical show in the 80's called Fantasy Island. The above images are of the pelicans that graced the Rock River near Dixon for the past few days as they have done for the last couple of years. These birds are likely on their way to the upper Wisconsin area. They only stick around for a few short days, but according to Wikipedia, each pelican consumes around (4) pounds of fish per day. We must have some good fishing in that part of the river! Different from other pelicans, this sub species does not dive for its food, instead it eats while swimming. In fact, these birds swim together as a colony, circling their prey, netting it with one another, and feeding. These fowl are absolutely huge, weighing up to (16) pounds each. But when they fly, they are so graceful and precise, and very, very quiet when they glide in for a landing.

Winds of change ...

Okay, according to many, there is no climate change taking place. Today, the sand from two hills on our farm blew so hard that you couldn't see through them. I walked outside and my shoes were completely dusty; Rochelle had to change her white socks because they turned brown where they weren't covered by her shoes (good thing I wear black socks). Amazingly, this storm finally rolled through right at sunset. It was amazing as the freezing rain just pummeled the ground and a fog instantly formed; even more amazing was this sunset that sheared through all of that percussion. It only lasted a few moments, but it was stunning.