Fall IS here!

I had hoped to put up some pictures today, as a friend of Diana’s lent us a cable to connect the camera to the computer…but the cable doesn’t fit (Sony cable, Kodak camera), so we’ll have to keep doing this blind.

Fall IS here, finally. I’ve packed up my summer clothes for Luis to take back to Madrid after his visit here in November. Someone said that packing up may have been a bit premature, and Sunday the temperature did get up to 27 or so. But still, not the kind of weather that you need shorts and sleeveless tops, so those are staying packed up. This afternoon/evening it has been raining, raining, raining – kind of dismal, really, but necessary as it has been very dry.

I guess the dry weather during this year means we won’t be in for a spectacular fall in terms of the colors of the trees. I was worried that it was going to be like in Madrid – the leaves just kind of go brown and fall off the trees. Today on campus, however, I did see a few trees brushed with orange, and in the park this morning there was a promise of maybe some color changes coming up. Tower Grove Park really can be spectacular in the morning sunlight. One of the pathways has a bend in it that allows for a view of a grove of large old oak trees, nicely spaced to let the sunlight filter in. That always makes me feel fairly mellow, that is until this morning a hawk swooped down and almost got a squirrel.

I now have a companion on my walks. Mary Sue has a dog, Polly, (of uncertain breed(s)), who loves to go for walks in the park. She pulls me along and gets me trotting, only to stop abruptly to leave her mark after sniffing to see if it’s in the right place. She also went after a couple of squirrels today, but they seem especially energetic at this time of year, I suppose getting ready for the winter. I wonder if she is any protection against a hawk (although she IS on the smallish side...).

Not a lot going on during this past week, as I was busy catching up after the trip to Oregon and the stomach flu. However, last Friday I was tipped off by a grad student that there is an art exhibit on campus, in a building called Boileau Hall, featuring the works of 9 SLU faculty members, plus other artists. Boileau Hall is a small building, located on the edge of campus, and I probably would never have noticed it or known that it housed an art exhibit if the student hadn’t mentioned it. It was quite a treat for a Friday afternoon. I was particularly taken by some paintings by Tony Chimento, of “simple” things like everyday rooms painted in bold and vibrant colors with many sharply defined details strewn about, and these incredible canvases depicting paintings of glassworks by Charles Lotton, also bold in their pinks and yellows, and very swirly and pleasing to the eye. Much more soothing were the photographs by Sharon Pollack, of “little” serene moments, like an elegant wrought-iron stair rail in sepia. As far as I can figure out, she is the only faculty member of the three I just mentioned…so I’m not sure what the connection is with the others, or how their work got to the walls of Boileau Hall.

Unless there is some connection with the Saint Louis University Museum of Art, which I haven’t been in to see yet, nor the St. Louis Art Museum. Well, Shirley arrives tomorrow for a 10-day visit, so museum visits are on the agenda (along with a visit to the Samuel Cupples house – a historic mansion which is located on the campus as well). We have a road trip to Rockford next weekend, so that will also keep us busy. A high school friend of mine, Colleen, will roll into St. Louis with her 10-year-old daughter and their mini-van next Friday to pick me, Shirley and Diana up. Then we head up to Rockford (Diana, for some reason, is rolling her eyes at this road trip!)…one highlight of that trip is another friend, Sue Deery’s, 50th birthday bash. That’s Deery of Rockford Speedway fame, so, yes, the birthday bash is taking place there, complete with race car rides. On the way back from Rockford, Shirley, Diana and I will be dropped off in Springfield, Illinois, where we plan to catch the Lincoln Library. Looking like an interesting time ahead...though I'm half a mind to skip the Library and come straight back to St. Louis...Dylan is playing here on the 22nd, with Elvis Costello and Amos Lee. Sigh...Diana is taking two history courses on Lincoln, so I suppose I'll do the "right" thing. I WON'T miss Neil Young on November 18th, however!