Thinking of Summer 2018 Already

While I certainly don't mind cool (or cold) weather,  I LOVE autumn, by the way, I love the first snowfall (or any light, fluffy snow), and the beauty surrounding the holidays. . . I have to admit I've been planning our Summer 2018 activities already.

By the way, here's my view as I look out my bedroom window (currently 30°F with a 25°F wind chill):

See, my daughter attends Culver Summer Schools and Camps - more specifically, she attends Culver Woodcraft Camp. She has attended for the past few summers, and LOVES it. She has a couple more summers before graduating and becoming an alumna of Culver Academies.

The application for the following summer usually happens mid-autumn (usually around October) of the current year.

So technically, we've been planning for summer since October. Even though there's no doubt in our minds that she will be accepted (and already has been at this point), we still have to fill out the application (the sooner the better), so the camp's administrative staff can process it and hold a spot for her in her unit. I say "the sooner the better" because as fall turns into winter and then spring, there ends up being a significant waiting list for kids trying to get a spot in camp (they only have so many cabins and beds).

The "Culver Academies" also function as a high school during the school year (of which I'm an alumna), so they are busy year-round. And it's on a beautiful campus, so I find myself daydreaming about being back. The campus is mostly pedestrian, with various parking areas around the edge of the campus, so it's nice being able to walk around (which helps me get my steps in every day, and also it's just good to get out and walk).

A few pics of the beautiful campus:

 The view from the front porch of my daughter's cabin. 

View of Cardinal Creek. 

 Interior view of the Culver Memorial Chapel, from the balcony. 

Exterior view of the Culver Memorial Chapel, from the northeast corner. 

Lake Maxinkuckee and the Culver Ledbetter

So. . . in looking for a few pics to share I got carried away browsing through all the photos on my phone, remembering good times from this past summer. 

My prompt for sitting down and writing this post, though, was an actual detail my husband and I are working on in planning for next summer. We are looking for a dog-friendly rental for us to stay in while we spend some of our time out in Indiana, in Summer 2018. A little earlier this morning, I had gotten an exciting text from our realtor friend who has a fantastic house available for us. We stayed at it before - for the last week of camp in 2016, and we all liked it. Plus, it was in a convenient location in town.  

Unfortunately, it was not available for us at all in 2017. Rentals go FAST in this town in the summer (it's close enough to both Chicago and Indianapolis, and on a beautiful lake, so people go there to spend their summers in a beautiful lake town), so you have to plan well in advance to secure a reasonably priced place. Also, people like getting rentals for the school year (approximately Sept - end of May), if they have children attending the boarding school. 

We are getting a head start, and lining up a rental NOW (or rather, soon after the holidays), so we have a place to spend with our daughter and Therapy Dog Jock. 

The realtor's text got me all excited about heading back next summer! I think I'm as excited as my daughter. She gets fun in the sun with her friends, and I get to go back and walk a beautiful campus, and seeing my daughter have a blast, and catching up with my own friends who are back with their children and/or nieces and nephews, and some who are there in an administrative capacity at the Academies. Plus, there are some good restaurants in the area. 

Anyway, now I have to try to be patient for the summer! 

Anyone have plans of their own for next summer?

My Year in Books (for 2016)

Hi everyone! Happy New Year! 

I know my posts have been few (VERY few) and (VERY) far between during 2016. But once again, I’m back with my annual “books for the previous year” post. Lisa from the Two BearsFarm blog originally got me started on this meme a number of years ago. I can’t seem to find the blog that had originally hosted this meme, so I’m posting this as a stand-alone. But please! Feel free to visit Two Bears Farm because she has a lovely blog covering everything from rural living, kids’ adventures, exercise, horses, and more. . . .

I usually like to post my "My Year in Books" on December 31st, so my list is reflecting "the current year's reading," but Andrew was on the computer a lot these past few days. And we had been at my parents' for Christmas. Since I don't have a laptop, I wasn't able to work on this post until now. But here it is, finally - my "My Year in Books" for the year that just ended. . . .

Here’s the deal with this post: using only titles of books that you read during the year that just ended (2016), complete the prompts below. Try not to repeat any book titles.
 
Describe yourself: 
The Horse Whisperer, Nicholas Evans

(Note: This is a re-read for 2016. I’d originally read it when it had first come out in 1995. So, a 21 year period between the first and second readings! I love the movie, which I re-watch once in a blue moon, and wanted to revisit the book. There are always extra (sometimes minute) details in the book that I sometimes forget about.

How do you feel: 
The Secret Life of Bees, Sue Monk Kidd

(This is another 2016 re-read. Well, I actually listened to it, to be exact. I was going back and forth between eastern Iowa and Northwestern Indiana a few times during the summer, and had already had the audiobook. I’d first read the book in, oh, probably 2007, after it was already in paperback, and I loved it! And then I’d seen the movie with Dakota Fanning and Queen Latifah, and loved the movie, too. I felt that it was true to the book’s essence and not just “based on” the book. I’d listened to the audiobook in 2015, but listened to it again in 2016. It’s obviously a favorite.)

Describe where you currently live:
The Professor’s House, Willa Cather 

If you could go anywhere, where would you go:
Off the Grid, CJ Box

Your favorite form of transportation:
The United States Pony Club (USPC) Manual of Horsemanship, Susan E. Harris

Your best friend is:
The Highwayman, Craig Johnson

You and your friends are:
A Monstrous Regiment of Women, Laurie R. King

What's the weather like: 
Havana Storm, Clive Cussler

(Again, a re-read via audiobook. I did a lot of driving during the summer of 2016, so my library’s audiobooks were MUCH appreciated. When driving alone, I especially like listening to stories I’d thoroughly enjoyed having read in the past. Occasionally, I wasn’t able to really pay attention to the audiobook, like during heavy traffic in the Chicago area. So having read the book already (even if it had been a few years ago), I felt like I didn’t miss anything by not having paid attention for a certain section of the audiobook. When driving with my husband, I try to get books that we will both enjoy, but also I like getting books that I maybe haven’t had the chance to read, yet. When I’m the passenger, it’s easier to dedicate my full attention to the audiobook, because when I’m driving, I’m mostly focused on the driving part.)

Favorite time of day:
Night Fall, Nelson DeMille

(Yep. Another re-read via audiobook, checked out of our local library. My husband and I listened to this on our way from Northwest Indiana during our trip there July 22-31, 2016. I’d originally read this when it had first come out in 2004 and knew it would be a book he’d enjoy listening to, during our 8-hour one-way drive.)

What is life to you:  
An Obvious Fact, Craig Johnson

Your fear:  
The Emperor’s Revenge, Clive Cussler

What is the best advice you have to give:
Age is Just a Number: Achieve Your Dreams at Any Stage in Your Life, Dara Torres

Thought for the day:
Christmas in Absaroka County, Craig Johnson

How I would like to die:
Cross Justice, James Patterson

My soul's present condition:
The Beekeeper’s Apprentice, Laurie R. King

So there it is. 

And now for a couple resolutions: keeping this blog from drifting away from me, like it has in the past few years! And continuing to read more than I did last year!  

The Start of Summer Fun (2015)

Here are three of my favorite pics from the beginning of our summer in Culver, IN (for Culver Summer Schools and Camps).

They were taken about a week before camp started, when I was in some orientation/in-processing, and had a bit of time to take Liv on a walk to stretch her legs.
 

On my first day of orientation, Liv had been so cooperative, either drawing on her sketch pad, reading, or quietly using her iPad, while I sat in the first of many day-long briefings. At one point, we had a 10-15 minute break, so I let her run down the sidewalk and back to burn a bit of energy. This was on campus near the building where we were having our orientation meetings that day.

One evening, we had some time to go into the town of Culver for a treat (the local coffee shop, the Culver Coffee Company, had ice cream). After getting our treats, she'd wanted to take a walk by Lake Max.

 

This was late one afternoon, when we were to meet the rest of my senior counselor teammates for dinner at one of the buildings near the lake. Since the campus is mostly pedestrian - we were to park our cars at the other end of campus- Liv and I walked. She had run ahead a bit, to look at something that had caught her attention.

While some staff members had golf carts (and a golf cart would've been convenient for those times I had to cross the campus quickly), I liked the health benefits of having to walk as much as I did during those seven weeks Liv and I were on campus.

Culver Discovery Flight 2015

During my summer at Culver Summer Schools and Camps in 2015 as a staff member, I was able to do something spectacular.

They have an aviation program for students who want to learn how to fly a plane (they'd had one in the past, but it was put on hold for a few years, but a revamped program is now up and running).

Well, for those new or returning students (and staff members) who are curious about what it's like and want to get a taste of flying a plane, Culver offers what's known as a one-hour "discovery flight." Three students (or three staff members) can sign up with the Culver aviation department to get a discovery flight scheduled.(Oftentimes, the older kids in Woodcraft - the 9-14 year olds - will take a Discovery Flight and then are interested in signing up for aviation classes when they return to Upper Camp; I believe they need to be at least 14 years old to take actual aviation classes.)

Then, after the trio's discovery flight is scheduled, Culver will transport the students via shuttle bus (while staff members drive themselves) to the Starke County Airport for their flight. The three students and an instructor pilot head off in a 4-seat Cessna, one student in the front along with the instructor pilot, and the other two students in the back. After a safety check around the aircraft by the instructor pilot, and after ensuring everyone is buckled up, the instructor pilot will give the student in the front seat a brief explanation of various instruments in the cockpit.

Then off they go, with the instructor pilot in control. After they're in the air, the instructor pilot will decide when it's a good time to hand the controls off to the student in the front. At that point, the student in front will actually be flying the plane, able to move the controls this way and that, and able to get a feel for how the aircraft responds to the controls (the instructor always there to give guidance or take over if safety dictates).

At this point, the student in front gets to fly the plane for 20 minutes!

After 20 minutes, the instructor takes over and they land at the airport. The three students play "musical chairs" and the other two students get to take turns sitting in front and flying the plane for 20 minutes each (the instructor pilot taking off and landing for all three).

Needless to say, I was able to take a discovery flight!

At the beginning of the summer, when all of the staff members were there the week prior to the start of camp, we were getting various in-processing briefings, one of which was by the Director of Aviation. At some point in her briefing, she was telling us about the discovery flight opportunity for anyone curious about Aviation. And . . . she said that the opportunity wasn't limited to just students! If any of us staff members wanted to take a discovery flight, we would just need to get two friends and get a discovery flight scheduled!

Well, at some point that week, I was talking to a new friend/fellow senior counselor, and I'd said, "You know what? That discovery flight opportunity sounded like a lot of fun. I'd love to do one!" And she said, "So would I!" And that's when the lightbulb went on over our heads.

She found a third person who was interested in going with us. The only problem now was trying to schedule it in - we were so busy as senior counselors that we kept saying, "Maybe next week . . . "

Finally, we ended up saying, "We've got to do it now, or we'll miss our chance."

So, July 27,2015, it was!

We were SO excited! And the exciting part was that they had three instructors available and three aircraft available, so we each went up at the same time (taking off one right after the other), so we didn't have to wait our turn - we were up in the sky at the controls at the same time.

And it was SO MUCH FUN!

We were able to fly over the campus, and Lake Maxinkuckee, and I was able to take two laps over the Riding Hall. It was awesome seeing the campus from a plane.

The only downside for me was that I was flying and couldn't take pics. So I only took two pics at the beginning, when the instructor pilot was taking off - just before he handed over the controls. (And I hadn't thought to give him my phone so he could take pics - of the riding hall AND of my being at the controls - until later on that day, when it was too late.)

Here we are, taking off:

Here we are, leveling off and the instructor is just about to have me take the controls:

Ahh, Indiana in the summertime . . .

Panoramic Views of Our Summer Home

Last summer, Liv and I had the opportunity to spend our summer at Culver Academies' Summer Schools and Camps.

Back when I was a teen, I'd spent two summers at Upper Camp (for kids 14-17 years old) and had a BLAST! And then I ended up having the opportunity to go to high school at Culver Girls Academy.

In May 2014, Andrew, Liv, and I went back to Culver to celebrate my 25th reunion with my classmates (and I'd been to each of my previous 5-year reunions at the 5, 10, 15, and 20 year points). During our time there in 2014, Liv was old enough (at 8 years old) to experience a "Mini Woodcraft Camp" which is an abbreviated version of their summer Woodcraft Camp (for kids 9-14). This is a fantastic experience for kids, where they learn leadership skills and responsibility, and can experience a whole host of activities, from equestrian sports to sailing, ice skating, astronomy, soccer, archery, and even Quiddich (from Harry Potter fame), among many other things.

Anyway, during our weekend at Culver in 2014, since Liv LOVED her experience at Mini Woodcraft, Andrew and I looked into what we needed to do to get her there for Woodcraft 2015.

To make a long story short, Liv ended up attending Woodcraft  2015, and I ended up employed there as a Senior Counselor for a new Upper Camp (14-17 year olds) unit - the girls' mounted unit! So we were both able to spend the summer on a beautiful campus on Lake Maxinkuckee (aka Lake Max).

Since I've been away from blog-writing for a while, I thought I'd ease back into it by sharing a couple panoramic photos of the Culver campus I'd taken with my smart phone.

This first one was taken during the last week of camp, the last week of July 2015. (Click the pic and it should give you a larger view.)

The building off to the left is Eppley Auditorium, where theater, dance, and musical performances (both student and guest performances), movies, meetings, acting/theater/dance classes, and awards ceremonies take place. 

The buildings on the right side of the first picture are academic buildings.

I took this second pic on August 1, after camp was over, and we were ready to head home, after dropping off some final out-processing paperwork related to my employment. I had wanted to take a quick walk around campus one last time, kind of mentally saying goodbye to a place that I cherish.

You'll see the Culver Memorial Chapel just to the left of center, with its steeple pointing skyward. The castle-like building to the right of the clump of trees (in the middle) is the Riding Hall. This is the home of the famous Culver Black Horse Troop and Culver Equestriennes.

(That red line on the ground in the second pic was part of the boundaries of a huge relay race that took part over the summer.) 

Okay, so I was originally planning on just posting the two panoramic pics, but I got carried away explaining. So, there you go. A couple pics with a lot of background information. I will be back soon to post more pics.

Those Famous Black Horses . . .

Thought I'd reminisce a little more, but this time, I'm heading back to Culver, Indiana (and not New Mexico). Here's a view of some of the mounts (from the late '80s) of Culver's famous Black Horse Troop . . . the same horses used for Culver Lancers and Equestriennes performances:

Circa June 1988 (click the photo to see a bigger view)

I took this photo the afternoon after graduation in 1988. This was obviously after the horses had been turned out to pasture for a summer "break."

Memory Lane Friday - 7th Grade

*Note: Here I am with today's Memory Lane Friday post. Due to some computer/internet issues, I wasn't able to post earlier. But here it is, finally!*

This week, our Memory Lane Friday theme is "7th Grade." I don't remember any specific thing about 7th grade, other than really enjoying and doing well in my English class, sorta-kinda enjoying math and science, and taking piano and riding lessons after school.

What I do remember in detail, though, is the summer after 7th grade. This was my second summer at Culver's Upper Camp. This is where I ended up going to high school, but they have various camps during the summer, and they kept us kids super busy all the time. For those of us in Upper Camps (ages 13-17), it was 6-weeks, where we had 4 class periods in the morning and a couple in the afternoon. Then we had various activities in the afternoon and evening.

My second summer there (between 7th and 8th grades) was a blast! I ended up having my horsemanship classes in the morning - 2 back-to-back (each horsemanship class being 2 class periods each). Then in the afternoon, I had a photography class (also a 2-period class).

Looking back on it, this was an awesome set-up, and not just because I got to do two of my favorite hobbies. I'd ride in the morning, all morning, basically, and wrap up just as it was getting super hot. Then I'd head back to my dorm, shower, then head to lunch with my "deck" mates (we girls were set up in "decks" - each deck occupying a particular dorm - and had a whole leadership system, similar to the boys' military system). Then I'd spend the afternoon learning a bit about photography (back in the days of actual film), then heading out taking photos. The best part of taking my photography class in the afternoon? I'd spend the hottest part of the day in the cool, dark darkroom developing film and creating prints.

Anyway, I remember that my instructor for my second block of riding was CSM John "Sarge" Hudson (who was also there during the regular school year). He was an Army vet, and great horseman. While he was hard on the troopers (the boys in the troop, which is the cavalry unit), he was pretty lenient with me.

As soon as we all assembled in the office, Sarge would give us our horse assignments. If he sensed I didn't particularly agree with my horse assignment, he'd ask me who I wanted to ride (usually a horse named Black Lightning), and typically agreed to let me ride that horse instead of my original assignment.

Sometimes we'd ride in the ring. Other times, we'd head out to the pasture where there were cross-country jumps and we'd ride around. Usually, if we were out in the pasture, he'd let me go off and jump whatever I wanted to jump, while he taught the troopers basic horsemanship. (He'd keep an eye on me, though, and sometimes call me over to demonstrate one thing or another to the less experienced riders in the class.) And once in a while, he'd take us on a trail ride - sometimes through the woods, but occasionally ending up at the Dairy Queen in town. Half of us would dismount while the other half would stay mounted and hold horses. The dismounted half of the class would head into the DQ and get ice cream for all of us, then we'd all stand around on the grass, enjoying our ice cream.

I remember a specific day when it started pouring as we were putting our horses away after class. I didn't have an umbrella, rain jacket, poncho, or anything that would keep me dry as I walked across campus to my dorm. Sarge came up to me as I stood in the doorway looking out at the sheets of rain pouring down. He told me to follow him to the office, which I did. He got a big, black, plastic trash bag out of the utility closet (one that hadn't been used, obviously). He cut a head-sized hole in the bottom, a hole in each side, and slipped it over my head. Voila! A poncho! And just like that, he sent me on my way.

And for photography later that afternoon? Since it was still raining on and off throughout the day, my instructor sent me to the gym so I could take some indoor "action" photos of an intramural basketball game. I spent most of the time taking photos, and then about 45 minutes in the darkroom.By the way, I had an old Nikon camera that my dad had given me, something similar to this.

The Riding Hall at Culver, circa May 2009. I took this during my last "Alumni Weekend," which was my 20-year reunion.

Detail of the Riding Hall, circa 1988-89 school year. Note the crest, which is the BHT (or Black Horse Troop) crest.

This is Black Lightning, one of my favorite Culver horses, circa 1988-89 school year. Sarge said he was an Appaloosa. He had a spot on his belly, and one near the base of his tail, plus the face markings.

So there you have it. Not specifically from 7th grade, but during the summer immediately following 7th grade. I think that's close enough.

Memory Lane Friday is hosted by Lisa at Two Bears Farm. Please click on the button below to read her entry, as well as other contributors' posts:

Memory Lane Friday

This week, Memory Lane Friday is "No Theme" so we are all going to write about . . . well, very different things. At first, I was all excited because there are so many things I could write about, but then I felt overwhelmed because there are so many things to write about.

So I'm going to narrow it down to a very memorable experience I had while on horseback. Of course, I had to go the equestrian route, again. I guess I've been missing riding lately, so maybe if I write about it here, it'll help alleviate the "I miss it" feeling . . . if only just a little bit, and for just a few minutes.

Okay, this experience was BIG. When I was a student at Culver Girls Academy, I was part of the Culver Equestriennes, the mounted team that performs musical drills.

Well, every 4 years, the Presidential Inaugural rolls around. Typically, Culver Academies gets an invitation for the Black Horse Troop (a.k.a. BHT - the boys enrolled in Culver's Troop) to participate in the Inaugural Parade. For the longest time, it was just the BHT.

But then, for the January 1985 Parade (occurring months before I attended Culver as a freshman), the Equestriennes were extended an invitation, along with the BHT.

So that meant that when I became part of the Equestriennes, I'd be a part of the Culver- Inaugural tradition by the time I graduated.

And it happened, of course. My senior year, the Culver Academies were to send both the BHT and the Equestriennes for the 1989 Presidential Inaugural Parade. I almost couldn't stand the excitement.

Well, in the months leading up to the Parade, we had lots of practice - all these riders practicing staying in formation, practicing Pass in Review (what we'd do exactly when passing the President's reviewing box), practicing riding in formation with loud sounds going off all around us like cannons, emergency vehicles with sirens blaring and lights flashing, flags whipping around, having to maneuver around tires and odds and ends all around us, (to prepare the horses for anything), and just practicing, practicing, practicing. And it was COLD in NW Indiana in late fall, early winter.

I foggily remember leaving for Christmas break. Then, again in a fog, heading back to campus and having 1st semester finals, barely being able to concentrate on the exams in front of me.

I remember that our travel plans depended on our finals schedule. We had a couple "waves" of students traveling to D.C., our departure all depending on finals. I was in the first wave to leave. I remember getting my plane ticket, a booklet with the "who, what, when, where, how" - which included:

• a Code of Conduct, explaining how the Academies' trip to Washington, D.C. would an "official academy function . . . " 
• a uniform packing list for both girls and cadets, 
• horse assignments for Troop A, Troop B, and Equestriennes,
• student/faculty/staff manifest for both the earlier and later travelers,
• hotel room assignments, with "room commanders'" names in bold (yes, I was a "room commander")
• schedule of events

 It was exciting. I remember that a few days before we were to leave, we had to get our equipment ready. Since we'd had our horse assignments soon after getting the invitation, we already knew which horse we each had (because we had to practice with that horse), and the corresponding stall number. My horse was a black gelding named McClellan, #52. Each horse had a corresponding saddle, bridle, and brushes, each item with the appropriate horse's number engraved somewhere visible.

Each of us was given a big white canvas bag, with a number stenciled on it, corresponding to horse number. So, of course, in my #52 bag, I needed to put McClellan's brushes, hoof pick, saddle, a white leather double-bridle, saddle pad, white saddle pad cover (with Culver logos on it), and I think our boots and helmets.

Then the horses were loaded on to these huge horse trailers (each horse having a designated trailer number), to be driven out to D.C.

A few days later, the rest of us left.

Traveling with my pals was just too much fun. I remember that my good friend, Debra, was traveling with me on my same schedule. She was also going to be in my hotel room with me, along with two other girls. Debra and I were on the polo team together, on the Equestriennes together, and we hung out a lot. We still keep in touch.

Traveling, checking in, getting meals, and being briefed on upcoming events was just a whirlwind of excitement, and I almost couldn't wait for the big event.

Finally, it was January 20th. We had to get up early, before dawn. I remember eating attempting to eat breakfast. It felt too early to be hungry. Plus, I had butterflies due to excitement. I remember getting into the bus, Debra in the seat next to me, heading from our hotel (a Holiday Inn) in Manassas, VA to D.C.

We had a designated spot where we'd meet the horse trailers. Then we'd lead the horses to a different area to groom them and get them tacked up and then we'd mount.

I don't know how long a bus ride we had, but I dozed off. At some point I awoke with a start. Debra asked, "Did you dream you were falling?" Huh? Oh . . . I groggily explained I was just startled awake by a bump in the road.

As I blinked and looked around, I remember seeing the Capitol ahead of us in the pink/purple/raspberry/peach dawn light. It was an awesome sight. I couldn't say anything; there was nothing to say. I could only look.

We finally got to our destination. We got off the buses, each of us Equestriennes in our white shirt, stock tie, white breeches, boots, and wearing navy blue Culver sweats on top, partly to keep clean, and partly to keep warm.

We waited for the horse trailers to get there. And then they were there. We were on some D.C. street, which had been blocked off for the event. We had to stand around waiting for a bit. I certainly can't tell you how long, because the excitement blurred my sense of time.

I then saw McClellen's trailer number, and I went, along with my fellow equestrians with mounts in the same trailer. And we all began unloading horses.

It was wild. Here we were, leading our horses down a street (sometimes down a sidewalk) in our nation's capitol.

In another whirlwind, we groomed and tacked up our horses, got ourselves ready, mounted up, and spent a lot of time walking to get our horses loosened up. There were some port-a-potties in sight, but for some reason, I decided I could hold it.

But as time went on, and we were getting closer to finally getting the show on the road, I finally couldn't wait anymore. Plus, I didn't want to remember this ride by how badly I had to go to the bathroom. So I dismounted, had a friend hold my horse's reins, and I took off for a port-a-potty. Of course, there was a line. Ugh.

Finally, I was mounted again, and after what seemed like forever (apparently Pres. G.H.W. Bush and Mrs. Bush had decided to get out of their vehicle and walk), we were off. It was mid- to late-afternoon by the time we headed out.

I was in the second row of Equestriennes on the very right - on the TV camera side. The Senior Prefect (who was also an equestrian) and the Equestriennes captain were on the left - the Pass in Review side. But Su and I, the 2 four-year Equestriennes, were on the TV side.

We proceeded along the parade route. I remember that the streets were packed with people trying to watch the Parade, and the streets were lined with military from all branches, but for some reason, I only remember seeing the Marines. I vaguely remember seeing a woman specifically cheering for the Equestriennes as we rode by, wondering if she was an alumna, or a parent. Then I noticed that she waved an "ERA NOW" sign, and the lightbulb went on over my head.

I remember that the crowds were LOUD. The excitement was electric. I couldn't stop smiling. Of course, when we perform, we Equestriennes always smile, but this smiling was easy!

As we got close to the Pass in Review stand, I remember seeing a sign indicating we were entering the TV filming area. It was late in the day, with long shadows, and golden afternoon light.

And then the command for "Eyes Left" (usually "Eyes Right" but the President would be on the left on the Parade route). As we marched past the Reviewing stand doing "Eyes Left," the first person I noticed was Mrs. Quayle because she had on a periwinkle-like bluish outfit and hat. The color stood out on that winter afternoon.Then I caught a glimpse of Dan Quayle, standing, because he was from Indiana, and so was our school. I remember seeing Mrs. Bush, briefly, and just barely getting the quickest of glimpses of Pres. Bush.

And the next thing I knew, we were heading off onto some side street, and McClellan got spooked from some yellow police tape. He sidestepped so quickly, we were at the other end of the row before I could blink.

I barely remember much at this point. I don't remember dismounting or taking care of McClellan, or even the bus ride back to the hotel.

I just replayed all the snapshots in my mind - from the view of the Capitol that morning to the fluttering police tape.

So there you have it. I wish I had the video coverage that we all got, covering everything from practices, to the actual Parade footage, but alas, it's on VHS, and I have yet to get it transferred to DVD. One of these days I will.

In the meantime, I've posted Culver's official photo of the event.

There's a little float ahead of us, with flags and banners and such. It indicated "Indiana" and each state had one ahead of all the units participating from that state. We were first in line for Indiana, which is why we're directly behind the Indiana float. Yes, there are "pooper scoopers" behind us with shovels and trash cans. A marching band was next, and then a float with an eagle and a globe.

If you look at our mounted  unit, the BHT cadets are carrying state flags. You'll see a light blue flag fluttering on the left in the photo. My face is right next to it to the right. The Equestriennes don't carry flags, but with photo angle and the way the flag is fluttering, it looks like I'm immediately to the right of the flag.

Culver Academies in the 1989 Presidential Inaugural Parade, Washington D.C.

Memory Lane Friday is hosted by Two Bears Farm and the Three Cubs . . . so please click on the button to check out Tow Bears' and the rest of this week's Memory Lane Friday posts. 

Come back next week when the topic is "A Restaurant". . .yummo - I already have one restaurant in mind.

Memory Lane Friday - A Time You Were Sick

This week's Memory Lane Friday topic is "A Time You Were Sick."

There was this one particular time I was sick in high school, and it's this one time that I want to talk about. It's one of those Teens Don't Necessarily Have the Most Common Sense type of stories. And yes, it will have a horse-related theme incorporated into the story. 

It was my sophomore year at Culver Girls Academy. I was in a quad (4-person room) with Candi, Kristi, and Wendy, in the dorm called Tower. Candi and Kristi were seniors, and Wendy was a junior and the only non-equestrian among us (but she usually came out to watch us in Equestriennes performances, or Culver-sponsored horse shows - the home ones, obviously and not the away ones).

Well, anyway . . . back in the day when I was a student there, if you wanted to be a part of the Varsity Jumping team (the team that went to horse shows, competing in hunters/jumpers/hunter points, etc), you had to be enrolled in the Equitation/Horsemanship department (taking Equitation - Horsemanship - classes during the week), and try out/make the JV Jumping team.You had to participate on the JV team for at least one semester before being allowed to try out for the Varsity team.

So my first semester my freshman year, I made the JV team, as did a bunch of other students, including Gavin, a fellow freshman. He and I had also been involved in Pony Club in our respective home towns before attending Culver.

When the second semester of my freshman year started, I'd found out when Varsity Jumping try-outs were (I was also eligible to try out for the Equestriennes at this time, too) and I was there!

Needless to say, I'd made the team as a freshman, as did Gavin. The two of us were the only freshmen on the team.

So . . . fast forward to sophomore year. I can't remember if it was late in the first semester, or early in the second. But it was wintertime and COLD in NW Indiana. Maybe February?

A few of us Varsity Jumpers were getting ready to head to a one-day horse show in Michigan City, IN on a Saturday. By mid-week, I was starting to feel run down, like something was not quite right. I wasn't sure if it was just from classes, studying, and all the other stuff I was involved with - but I just wasn't feeling 100%.

By Friday, though, I knew something was wrong. We'd been at the Riding Hall after we'd ridden that afternoon, just making sure we'd had everything we needed for the show the next day. Since it was just a one-day show, we'd leave early on Saturday to get there, we'd show, and then come back late Saturday evening, so we only needed to organize stuff for one day. We typically stopped at a steak place on our way back to campus so we could eat something tasty for dinner.

This Friday night after wrapping up at the Riding Hall, we'd dispersed our own separate ways, each of us going to our respective dorms/barracks. Candi and Kristi were on the Varsity Jumping team with me, and the three of us headed back to our dorm to shower, change into cozy pjs, and then hang out in our room . . . eventually going to bed at lights-out.

Well, I just felt HORRIBLE by this point. But I didn't want to say anything. I really wanted to go to this horse show. This was my first full year as a Varsity Jumper. And while I wouldn't have been bumped down to JV because I was sick and had to miss a show or anything like that . . . it's just one of those weird thought-processes of a teen's brain. I didn't want to miss the show. And I was NOT going to the infirmary! (Nothing wrong with the infirmary . . . I just wasn't going.)

Anyway, I showered and changed into my pjs and headed straight to my bed. Luckily, my bed was right next to the window.

Now, I think I must've just had some viral bug that was going around (no gastrointestinal, um, "issues" to deal with - just a fever and fatigue) so it's not like I could've done anything to get rid of it (other than to rest, drink fluids, and probably spend a night or two in the infirmary so as not to spread the bug).

But back to the story . . . on this particular cold, winter evening, I was hot. I was burning up. Tired Fall-down exhausted. Had a headache. I went to my bed. I felt like I was going to burn a hole through my sheets. So I opened the window.

In the wintertime in NW Indiana.

It felt WONDERFUL. Ahhh, relief. Nice, cool air flowing over me. I was in a haze. Was I awake? Or asleep? I vaguely remember hearing voices. My roommates? Friends from across the hall? They were familiar voices, nonetheless. Wendy? Rosann? Kristi? I'm not sure.

I remember that the bedroom lights were on.

I then remember that Wendy came over and closed the window. Somebody had gone to our dorm mother's apartment down the hall and had gotten a thermometer. In my mouth it went. Obviously, I had a fever. I was burning up. I wanted the window open. Somebody got me a glass of water; another got me a glass of orange juice.

I think I'd said I didn't want to go to the infirmary. That I was going to go to the horse show. I have a little bottle of Tylenol in the lock box in my desk. Please get a couple for me.

Our dorm mother came in to check. No, please don't make a fuss. I'm going to bed; I'm okay.

I slept fitfully. I had to keep getting up to go to the bathroom, after all the liquids everyone had pushed on me. My three roommates must've really bundled up that night, because I remember begging and pleading to keep the window open a crack. But I'm assuming one of them closed it after I'd fallen asleep.

And then the alarm clock (mine? Candi's?) went off way too early. Horse show mornings always start off really early. Especially early if you've been sick the night before.

We'd made it to the Riding Hall that morning, got the horses loaded into the trailer, made sure all the equipment and necessities were loaded in the "tack room" portion of the trailer, and we were ready to load ourselves up. Typically, those teammates with the most seniority would get to ride in the dually's cab, enjoying either heat or a/c, depending on the season. Everyone else would have to ride in the "tack room" portion of the trailer. Shhh, that probably wouldn't fly very well these days.

Well, since I would've had to ride in the trailer as a sophomore, with a bunch of juniors and seniors taking up the dually (our coach would've been driving), I was kinda milling about, waiting til the last moment before getting in.

But then Candi came to me and stated, "You're riding in the truck." She had a you're not arguing with me tone of voice.

Okay. I wasn't going to argue with her. Not only was she giving me an order, I wasn't feeling like arguing. I just wanted to curl up and go to sleep. But I desperately wanted to show at the same time. I was sick. I was a teen. Don't try and find the logic.

As I was getting ready to get into the truck, I heard somebody - another teammate (Drew, maybe?) - arguing with Candi. All I could hear was Candi's voice quietly, but forcefully saying, "She's SICK! She WILL ride in the truck. Do you understand?"

And that was it. I was definitely riding in the truck. I think everyone knew I wasn't feeling well, but it was something that nobody talked about, other than that brief exchange I'd overheard.

Fortunately, I didn't get anybody else sick, though I vaguely remember trying not to breathe near anyone else. And I brought home some ribbons, too. Nothing stellar, but in the ribbons, nevertheless.

And that is how I remember the event. Now, keep in mind I was sick and in need of sleep, so I may not have remembered it exactly as it happened, but this is the way my brain stored my memories of this event.

Oh, and that Saturday night's sleep? It was the smartest thing I'd done that week.

Riding Hall circa May 2009, Culver Academies, Culver, IN

Please click on the button to read the rest of this week's Memory Lane Friday posts, hosted, as always, by "Two Bears and the Three Cubs":

Next week's Memory Lane Friday is "No Theme" so it'll be a nice surprise to see different topics.

Farmers' Market fun easily leads to fresh baked yumminess!

Over the 4th of July long weekend, we were at Abuelita & Nonno's house, visiting Abuelita and Oma.

Since we were there Friday - Tuesday, we were able to go to the Downtown Des Moines Farmers' Market in downtown Des Moines, held every Saturday from May through October.

Here is the Polk County Courthouse. 

 It's at the intersecting point of a T intersection - Court Avenue begins here and runs perpendicular to the courthouse. Court Avenue is the "main drag" that the Farmers' Market occupies each Saturday. On the smaller side streets, there are also plenty of vendors set up. You could easily walk a couple miles simply ensuring you try not to miss any vendor.

Going to the Downtown Des Moines Farmers' Market is always an experience we look forward to - the fresh produce (especially since it's now blueberry season), artisanal cheeses, pupusas made from scratch and hot off the grill, breakfast burritos, fresh cut flowers in brilliant colors, flavored popcorns, fresh lemonade, artisanal breads, the bands and their various types of music, the people-watching, the dog-watching, handmade gifts, homemade pies, BBQ . . . it's like this every Saturday 7:00 AM - Noon. It's a blast!

 Here's the opposite end of Court Avenue, facing the Polk County Courthouse.

 You can see how packed with vendors and market-goers it is on this particular Saturday, July 3rd.

So we had an exciting moment while we were there . . . we actually ran into one of  Iowa's US Senators - Senator Chuck Grassley. It was a great moment meeting him in person. He was happy to talk to us, and it was nice to see him mingling at a fabulous recurring event like the ever popular Farmers' Market.

At 4-years-old and too young for politics, Livie was much less impressed by what it means to meet a senator. However, since she's always happy to talk to a friendly person, she was polite and eager to have a quick conversation with Sen. Grassley.

Anyway, after our brief visit with the senator, we continued on with our browsing around at the market. We had to get pupusas, lemonade, popcorn for Liv.

We also stopped at a flower booth to get a flower for Liv.

 I got her a rose.

This is the same kind of rose I had when I graduated from Culver. Check Memory Lane Friday - A Ceremony for that story, and a picture of me with my bouquet of roses.

All festive, for the July 4th holiday:

And since it's blueberry season, we just had to get blueberries.

First, Liv LOVES blueberries in her cereal in the mornings. Second, she and I both love snacking on the little nutrient-rich berries.

Well, as soon as I saw the booth with the blueberries, I knew we had to get some right then and there. So Andrew bought a pint.

It was like we'd bought gold. Liv was so excited. I was excited, too. Mmmmm . . . I was thinking blueberry pancakes.

But when we got home, I was suddenly worried that I wouldn't be able to use all the blueberries before they went bad. But . . .one of my good friends, Sara, whom I've known since our Culver days, mentioned on Facebook that she'd recently made blueberry buckle. And she'd made it with fresh blueberries she'd gotten from an Indiana farm down the road from her house.

That gave me an idea. I wanted to make blueberry buckle, too. Plus, since Livie is taking cooking classes and thoroughly enjoys helping me in the kitchen, I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to bake something together.

So I asked Sara to send me her blueberry buckle recipe. I made sure I had all the ingredients. Livie and I washed our hands. And then we got to work.

And this is what we made:

Here's the famous, tasty blueberry buckle that quickly disappeared. It's especially good served warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

It was seriously good! Wow! And because a few of us posted comments about it on Facebook, a bunch of Culver friends are now passing along the recipe and raving about it, as well. So thanks to Sara, CGA Class of 1988, for starting the hype!

And thanks to my little cook's helper, Olivia! It was fun baking with her and I look forward to doing it again. Definitely blueberry buckle, but probably other things as well.

Of course, now I have to make sure Santa gets Livie that cute little kids'-sized pink apron with her name embroidered on it for Christmas.

That time of day . . .

This post has been hard for me to write. I started it in the autumn of 2009 and have just finished it (though I may come back and proofread it for minor changes in the coming days).

There's something about late afternoon with the changing light leaving long shadows across the earth as the sun is starting to set. It reminds me of so many things. In this transitional period before we're left in darkness, I both dread and enjoy the memories and accompanying feelings sunset usually evokes.

When I was still a student at Culver (that would be Culver Girls Academy, in Culver, IN during the following years: 1985-1989), my mom would come out to visit every few months, whether it was just for a regular weekend or an official Parents' Weekend. She'd come out for a weekend and take me out "on leave" 'til Sunday evening.

I specifically remember one late afternoon, early evening, when it was still sorta warm out and mellifluous light was washing over us. We were in her car (a rental car, I think?) one late afternoon. Maybe we were heading to the hotel in South Bend or Ft. Wayne or to dinner after she picked me up on campus. I can't seem to recall any exact details other than the facts that we were in the car and the light was golden and starting to fade. I remember her telling me that she loved this time of day. I think I asked her why, but I didn't really get why.

This time of day during my four years at Culver always made me feel . . . well, "depressed" isn't actually the right word. Maybe "blue" or homesick or wishing the day weren't over yet. When I think back to that afternoon, I think that I felt like that because I knew her visit would be wrapping up soon. It would be over after dinner, and that night's sleep. Or possibly I was feeling the beginning of homesickness or missing her, because, perhaps because it was already Sunday evening, and she was taking me back to campus, and things would be back to normal, off to the races the next day.

To this day, I can still recall how vividly I felt like I already missed her; I'd just wanted to rewind time so that I'd have an extra day or a few more hours with her before it was time to head back to campus.

My missing her during late afternoon's dwindling light kinda morphed into something else as time went on. For instance, I experienced a completely different feeling while I was at OTS (the US Air Force's Officer Training School) at Maxwell Air Force Base, in Montgomery, AL.

I'd gotten to Montgomery in mid-August, just about a month before autumn started, when the hot, sticky humid days of summer began getting shorter and held the distant hope of cooler temperatures. My recruiter out of West Des Moines, IA had told me not to get there and report in too early in the day (she'd said exactly: "Don't get there first thing in the morning, or too early in the day. From what I hear, they may be 'mean' to you."), so I timed it per the recruiter's instructions and got there just after lunch. That particular day ended up being overcast and kinda drizzly all day, with a harder falling rain happening every often. The gray, wet day, the nervous tension of not knowing what to expect for the next 12.5 weeks, and the rushing around doing various in-processing tasks prevented late afternoon from having any sort of "homesickness" to it . . . though I'd eventually "grown out" of being homesick by this point in my life.

However, once my fellow squadron-mates and I were settled into a daily routine, I started noticing that when the sun began its journey towards the horizon, and the light had that certain familiar Midas quality about it, I felt  . . . like I should expect something. Like I would be given just a moment to breathe a sigh of relief. There would be a magic moment when all the 50-million tasks we had to complete, all the stress, the "I need to give 110% every moment of the day" necessities would pause for just that moment.

After eating our evening meal, as we were marching back to our dorm, I always felt like, "we're almost there." Like I would be okay . . .  as soon as we got back to our dorm, there was the promise of a moment's respite. Sure, there'd be one thing or another (polishing boots, ironing uniforms, an upperclassman yelling at one or all of us). But I knew that there'd be just a little while when I'd get a "time out" and have 2 or 3 hours of peace . . . of sleep . . . before the cycle started again.

However, what really makes me love sunset is the saudade I feel when I think about the long shadows Midas' sun creates in the evening as the sun paints the Southwest a coppery-brown, turning the mountains a liquid gold.

I spent a lot of time in Tucson, AZ, El Paso, TX, and Alamogordo, NM while I was on Active Duty in the Air Force. It was in these places, Tucson and Alamogordo, especially, that I began to really appreciate the way the setting sun painted the earth with a golden glow.

It was like I was home, and there was nothing to worry about, even though there was plenty to worry about, if I really put my mind to it. Let me see if I can explain . . .

I had, for a time, an Appendix Quarter Horse named Wild Stride, but who we called Cotton. He came to me for a few brief months, arriving in Tucson on Cinco de Mayo, 2001, a Saturday. He was my friend Brenda's horse; she sent him to me as "therapy" for me for something that happened earlier that year. This is a story for another time, however. I'm not getting into it now.

Anyway, he and I had a wonderful time together during his brief stay with me, his reason for leaving was 9/11; Brenda came to get him in October, because I was on 12-hour shifts at work, and it cut into my time with him, and I felt bad, feeling like I was neglecting him; it hurt me when he had to leave, but I wanted to do what was best for him.

He gave me something great, though. One of my favorite memories is our last trail ride together. It was a day after work, when I was able to leave a little early. I headed to the barn for a ride. I groomed him, put a bridle on him, got up on him bareback, and we headed out on a trail. It was magic. The sun was starting to set, and everything was aglow, the mountains, the wash, the ground, Cotton, everything, was dressed by Midas, golden. Cotton was very mellow, and it was like he was there solely so we could enjoy each other's company. Ahhh. All was right with the world on that trail ride.

Then, I remember a time when I'd first met Andrew on a TDY (Temporary Duty) the week after 9/11/01 in Montgomery, Alabama - yes, the same place I went to OTS, Maxwell Air Force Base. We were there for two weeks for a logistics class. When I got back home to Tucson, I had a feeling of saudade: I was home, but I felt a longing for something else, something I wasn't sure I'd ever be able to have. See, I didn't know if or when I'd see Andrew again, and I missed him; I missed his company. I remember that a song called "7 Days" by Craig David was big, and I heard it all the time after getting back. It sorta reminded me of how we met. It made me feel saudade for him. I'd hear this song on a Saturday when I was at the car wash, and I'd think of him. I'd hear it on the way to the stables to visit Cotton before he left, and I'd think of Andrew. You get the idea . . .

Well, of course Andrew ended up coming out to Tucson to visit once - to be my "date" for the Air Force Birthday Ball originally scheduled for September, but postponed 'til November due to the 9/11 attacks on the US. Of course, this was also at the same time I was promoted to 1st Lieutenant, and was also the week after my birthday.

I remember showing him around Tucson since he'd never been there. I remember taking him to a Mexican restaurant the day he flew in; the restaurant was La Parilla Suiza. He got there at this time of day - the time that the sun, the ground, the atmosphere in general, gets a golden glow about it. I remember his giving me a birthday present, a necklace with a pendant - a topaz pendant - my birthstone which just so happens to be the same color as Tucson's setting sun, the color of the shadows and light that used to make me melancholy, but that I started loving during my time in the Southwest.

I also remember taking him to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, hiking to 7 Falls . . . lots of places there in the arid landscape that I really love, miss, and yes, feel saudade for, this desert beauty. I remember hearing Jewel's "Standing Still," "Fallin'" by Alicia Keys, or Shakira's "Whenever, Wherever" and, well, you know how you sometimes hear a song at a point in your life, and hearing it later will automatically take you back to that time? These songs do it for me, taking me back to Tucson, and bringing saudade with them.

Fast forward to mid-2006 - Andrew was deployed, and Olivia and I had to move by ourselves to Alamogordo, NM for a new assignment. As Charles Dickens wrote, "it was the best of times, it was the worst of times," and this certainly applied to me. I was leaving an assignment I would never want to repeat, going back to my beloved Southwest. The story of Holloman Air Force Base is best left for another time. But the fact that I was in New Mexico, well, it seemed to make things okay.

They call New Mexico "The Land of Enchantment," and I think it really enchanted me, and Andrew, too, for that matter. We loved New Mexico, and being so close to El Paso. We loved going to Mesilla, near Las Cruces, Santa Fe, up north (I promise to tell you about our short few hours in Santa Fe), and being surrounded by the high desert's arid beauty.

All of this beauty, returning to New Mexico, to El Paso, seems unlikely as I sit in my dining room here in east-central Iowa, with snow on the ground, the afternoon sun pale in comparison to its golden splendor it displays in the Southwest. Maybe it's just saudade enveloping me, making me want to cry, and run to my grandparents' house in old El Paso, to the smells of tacos and beans cooking in my grandmother's kitchen . . . the chorizo, eggs, and tortillas in the morning, to my grandfather's spearmint gum, to the warmth of their home; I want to go back. But it seems like that will never happen now, and the longing, and inability to go back to what once was . . . that is just what saudade is - the best of times AND the worst, the bittersweet heaviness of my heart, remembering certain wonderful memories, and trying to reach back to them, and they're just out of my grasp.