No Separation of Church and State

Parsons does not have a problem putting Merry Christmas on its Municipal Building.

Go Lancers!

Shawnee Mission East High School (12-0) plays Hutchinson today for the Kansas 6A football title. They had a pep rally last night in the Prairie Village Shopping Center in preparation.

Lighting the Plaza

Once again the lights shine brightly. Appropriate that Alex Gordon and Dayton Moore of the Royals would have the honor of flipping the switch this year.

Two Turkeys

Happy Thanksgiving!! Howard and Cindy have birthdays that dance all around Thanksgiving. Today is Cindy's birthday (Happy Birthday!) and Howard's was the 25th. He was actually born on Thanksgiving. This is 1975, when Thanksgiving also hit Cindy's birthday.

Bowl Bound with the Wildcats

For Howard's birthday, we gave him a trip to whatever bowl game K-State plays in this year (with the three of us, of course). We won't know until Dec. 7 which one it will be so Stacy created these hints for the possible bowls.

Three Cat Pile Up

As the weather has turned cold, our felines have taken to sleeping in a pile for warmth.

Despite Wind and Rain

Hayden and I, and others from our church, helped feed the homeless last night in the wind and rain in Mill Creek Park. At least it was in the 50s and we don't have to live outside. It was a Thanksgiving meal with all the trimmings including pumpkin pie.

The Pilgrims Are Gathering

...in preparation for Thanksgiving.

How Much Is That Doggie in the Window?

These guys and several more (you can see a few sleeping on the sofa) are not for sale but are boarding at Puppy's Playpen near us. They all just hang out on the sofa, play with lots of toys or look out the window. Looks like a nice place for an overnight.

A Small Feast

The preschool at work had a Thanksgiving feast yesterday, which consisted of chicken nuggets, marshmallows (not sure why), banana-strawberry kabobs and corn. Who needs turkey?

Trash Bag Pilgrims

Stacy's kindergarten class had a Thanksgiving feast where they all used trash bags to look like Pilgrims. As a room mother, I had Hayden with me so she wanted to dress up too. Here they are showing Grandma and Grandpa Morgan. 1984

Brown Trees

I'm trying to figure out what this is. I took this a few weeks back and I was going to take a follow up but nothing has changed, except the grass isn't as green. These are dead trees they have staked in the ground with flood lights on them. I shall continue to watch.

Leave Cleanup

Sounds as though we are being asked to leave the cleanup. So many of these signs just can't quite get it right.

Chauffering the Queen

Not sure why you would have this decal of Queen Elizabeth in your car window but it was startling to see when I walked by. No bumper stickers to indicate anything. Maybe they were going to the British Faire over the weekend.

Ready and Waiting

... for the snow that didn't come. They call this Purple Heat. It's magnesium chloride, dyed purple for controlled application. Crews were in their trucks, poised to spread.

Phone In Your Order

This phone to order your food at Fritz's took me back to my high school days when we would go to King's after basketball games and order using phones like this. The transmission wasn't quite as clear here but the food was delivered by a train. What fun.

Bridge to Nowhere

Along Roe Lane in Roeland Park there are several bridges like this that go nowhere. At the end of the bridge is a hill with apartments on the top so not sure how these bridges ever led anywhere. Curious.

The Burkhardt Siblings

My cousin Charles sent this photo of (l to r) Mom, Ethel, Helen and Allan. It is undated but I would guess the '60s.

Thanks for the Water

... and here's my tip. Rory, one of Stacy's cats, likes to leave little plastic dinosaurs in strategic places. This once full water dish was replaced by a dino. A statement of thanks, I say.

Gotta Love the Color

The mums this time of year can be spectacular.

End of An Era

Quick's Bar-B-Q on Merriam Drive has closed after 50 years. Howard and I loved to go here for a quiet, delicious dinner. It apparently did a booming lunch trade. A real hole in the wall that you normally wouldn't stop at. We will miss it. The sign noting the closing was interesting - "Sold Out, Closed. Thank You."

Bull Loose in Union Station

Yikes! I'm about to be gored! The bull isn't really there except on your cell phone. Union Station has a Living History app that lets you use your cell phone to hear and see the past. Very cool! Hayden danced with Walt Disney and Stacy hung out with Harry Truman. You just look for the mark on the floor (see below) and let your phone play. Helps to have a second person so you can take photos of people with the characters. Check it out here.

 

It's Big and It's Pink

This is the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, a new Hindu temple and cultural center in Shawnee. It seems a little peach toned here but looked pink to me. And it's very imposing.

Autumn Blaze

Our Autumn Blaze maple is finally blazing.

Thanksgiving 1971

What a motley collection of folk. I see Jensens (you gotta love Hal's pants), Wert and Helen, Carol of Jamaica and some other unknowns in the back row. One wonders what's happening off to the right as some of us are looking over there. It appears Dad may be taking the picture since he's not in it, which is rather amazing in itself.

Quite the Turnout

At least at our polling place. I always like to vote at the polls when I can but this time it took 45 minutes. We waited to get in the door and then were routed through the sanctuary (see below) and back to get to the voting machines. It appeared they were going to be locking the door with another 30 minutes of voting to complete. They said it had been like that all day. Good to see something finally got the voters attention.

Blessing of the Animals

Pete came to church on Oct. 26 to be blessed. Dewey came with Hayden too but I couldn't get a good photo because of all the kids. Both were very calm. I was impressed.

Purple Beautyberry

This time of year, I'm used to seeing orange berries but this is very pretty.

Autumn Surprise

Our new bush near the garage that we planted this spring has beautiful fall foliage. This is a Mount Airy Fothergilla.

Royals in the Pumpkin Patch

Royalmania even impacted the pumpkin patch this Halloween.