Highlights Of Our Summer Vacation!

Our Summer break at "Ketelsen East" in the western 'burbs of Chicago is winding down, but we've covered a lot of ground in just a couple weeks.  Time to review a few of the highlights, each perhaps not enough to fill out a post on their own...

Of course, the primary reason we come back is because we both have family here.  So we've spent time with both of Melinda's sisters, and seen most of my relatives in Iowa as well - a couple times!  Min and sister Maj travelled down to Saint Louis upon her arrival to visit an elderly aunt while I was still off on RAGBRAI and had a good time reliving the past with them.  The day she returned from that trip, I got back from the bike ride and we returned to Iowa the next day for great niece Alivia's 7th birthday party!  She is a ball of fire, and along with her cousin Mya (also a great niece - that we've not seen in what, over a year) made you tired just watching them!  If we could only harness their energy...  We figured the cool temps would keep everyone out of the pool (high about 70F), but the 2 girls alternated between pool and hot tub at brother Jim's house, all while keeping everyone entertained.  A week later, we returned to visit some friends, and join (Dean's sister) Linda and Lauren for their 35th anniversary (Alivia and Mya's grandparents).  We ate at a local pizza joint and got to hang out with the great nieces again (at right).

We did a lot of local activities!  I think we cooked at home only once, and that was while Melinda was out with her girlfriends and I was home alone to grill...  We ate out with friends pretty much every night.  I got in a pair of banjo lessons, and do well enough that Melinda can recognize the tunes.  We're going to try to get it to Arizona so I can continue to practice.  We saw the movie "The Way Way Back", which was very good...  I went to the "Flea Market", a first-weekend-of-the-month garage sale that fills up the Kane County Fairgrounds with what must be the largest garage sale around.  That is where I found the 'ole camera I first got as a teenager last Fall.  This year, while tempted by a collection of science books from the 1890s, I only spent money to enlarge my collection of astronomy-themed 3D stereo view cards that a woman had.  She specialized in vintage postcards, but had a few thousand of the Keystone View Company cards.  Otherwise, if one was in the market, you could find everything from an Indian totem pole, to unknown rusty farm tools to TV Guide magazine from the 1980s - pretty much anything and everything!

And speaking of friends, we met Mary and Dave, organic farmers west of town here...  She was recently given a telescope that her sister was throwing out from their Wyoming ranch.  Mary didn't know if it was functional, but it also had a thick layer of dirt and dust on it.  We retired to their place after dinner and it was a decade-old Meade telescope of fine quality, though only 3.5" in diameter.  I wiped the dirt off as best I could and was able to show them Saturn - this while set up on the hood of our car since it lacks a tripod.  She was certainly impressed by the view and promises to keep it going after I found her the manual on-line.

And speaking of friends, we spent time with Carolyn a few times - she even joined us in Iowa for Alivia's birthday.  I came home from the Flea market to find her and Melinda down at our micro-beach on the Fox River with her grandson Colin.  They wouldn't let him into the water, but he had fun running and jumping on what little sand there is.

In the 3 weeks I've been here, it is interesting to watch the progression of flowers, both native and cultivated, as they come and go.  When I arrived in mid-July, the plot next to the house was all about the tiger lilies, now there is no trace of them, but the phlox are now filling it with white and lavender.  The sunflower at right is from the back yard of Sharon, a friend over in Davenport, Iowa.  It was backlit and striking, so captured it with the macro...

And while I enjoy stalking the various bugs and insects of the region, you already saw the highlights, but have a couple more to show you.  I spotted a common whitetail dragonfly in a prairie walk at our nearby forest preserve.  Easy to spot, but harder to stalk and sneak up on!  And at right is a katydid spotted in the little jungle adjacent to our house...

And of course, RAGBRAI is always a highlight.  While I've made some posts about it already, indulge me for a few more pictures!  First up is from our camp in a backyard in Harlan Iowa.  After a warm trip across the state, and a hot first day's ride, a rainbow over riders Sue Ellen and Terry portend nicer weather for the rest of the week.  This frame is actually a "High Dynamic Range" (HDR) image assembled from 3 exposures with slightly different exposures to maintain detail in shadows as well as highlights.  We actually had just about the coldest weather we've seen on the ride in my 20 years, hitting 50F for a low on Friday night!

As driver, I don't get on the route very often, but while picking up riders in Pella, I spent some time hanging out in the Dutch capital of the state!  They are quite proud of their heritage, and have the largest operating windmill in the country (135 feet tall) that is actually used for grinding grain.  On this breezy day it was putting on quite a show.  This vertical panorama was able to get it all in with all the bikers in the foreground.  The museum and store in the adjoining building was pretty neat too.  You could even buy your own wooden shoes, including some pretty ornate ones for special occasions!  On my way out I ran into a couple local residents dressed up in traditional garb.  The one on the right admitted she was actually of German descent, but for a crowd of this size, all the locals were Dutch!

Well, those were the highlights of our Summer trip.  What was perhaps the most amazing is that after last Summer's drought and hot temperatures, other than my first few warm days in the mid-nineties, it has rarely gotten over 80F the last couple weeks.  It has been great, though a little on the rainy side.  Given the choice, I'll take rain and cool!  Until next time...