The St. John's Bible

Have you ever seen an illuminated Bible?  I hadn't until last week.  And what a treat it was!

My Aunt Ruth had told me about the St. John's Bible exhibition at the New Mexico History Museum.  She tried to describe it to me, but until I saw it I didn't understand.

Kathy Dunlavy, Ginny Marti and I visited the museum on Wednesday, and it didn't take long for us to determine that this was a very special exhibit.  A man, Daniel Jackson, had a dream as a boy to create an illuminated Bible, totally hand calligraphed with gorgeous art work that utilized the finest materials available.  The pages were calf skin, some of the inks were from an ink factory that closed down in the 1880's.  Daniel created his own font, then taught it to numerous scribes.  A computer was used to set up the pages, then the work began.  Gold and platinum were used to illuminate it . . . all hand done!

One of my favorite pages was the Valley of the Dry Bones.  Tough subject, but the artist did a spectacular job with it.  In the valley, s/he depicted not only Biblical images but also contemporary ones - the Holocaust, the genocide in Rwanda, oil spills, ecological disaster.  It was breathtaking.

If the exhibition ever comes anywhere near you, go see it.  It will be time well spent.

Fantasy Football

A few weeks ago, our family decided to set up a fantasy football team.  We invited my sister and brother, Joey, Diana, Kenneth, and Morgan.  The names of the teams were all related to silly nicknames  or events, which will mean nothing to most people but a lot to us.

When we held our draft, Katie didn't get to participate, so the computer picked her team.  DianaSaurus Rex decided to use a "complex algorithm" based upon looks and funny names.  When I asked her if she was going to draft Tom Brady, she said no because "He's too old."  Thirty-four and he is too old. Sheesh!  The rest of us were pretty serious about our picks . . . and I got Jordy.

Unfortunately having Aaron Rogers and Jordy Nelson does not appear to be unbeatable.  So far I am 0-2, though hopeful that this week I can beat WillieBago.  I won't know until Monday night, so we will see.

Fantasy Football has made us interested in all of the games.  Fantasy Football has encouraged us to root for teams we would never have considered before.  Kenneth says there must be something that makes 500,000 people participate on a weekly basis.  Now make that 500,008.

Perfection

One of our family's favorite card games is 3 to 13, a simple, fast, fun game that can be played by many. My friend, Kathy, plays the same game, but her deck of cards has five suits (they add a yellow star suit) and it is called Five Crowns.  There is no place better than the cabin to play it, so we did.

I have played many, many games of 3 to 13, but I have never seen a perfect round.  Until last week.  When I had one.  Perfect.  No points in 10 hands.

And here's the score card to prove it.

It may never happen again, so I had to have visual and blog proof that it happened!

Fall Colors

The trees in the Pecos are just beginning to change.  Perhaps they were so beautiful because the yellow stood out against the green of the other trees.  Enjoy some pictures of the aspens.

Traveling with the Girls

Several months ago two friends and I made plans to go to the cabin.  Kathy Dunlavy and Ginny Marti have been my friends for many years, but when Ginny moved back to Wichita last year, we became even better friends.

We left last Monday and returned Friday evening after a wonderful trip.  We all got along very well, and the conversation and camaraderie made the week an excellent one.

The one downside?  We ate and then we ate some more.  We baked cookies, visited the Shed in Santa Fe, tried many other dishes . . . I think I returned ten pounds heavier.

But it was worth every calorie.  There is nothing like girlfriends to make life better!

It's Never Too Late to Say Thanks!

I had an interesting occurrence on Friday, and it proved once again that it is never too late to say thanks.

In a meeting on The Student Experience at Kansas State, a woman in front of me was telling what her experience was like when she was at KSU.  "I had the best teacher in the world," she said, and then went on to tell about a Spanish professor who took this woman under her wing to make certain she had a successful time in college.  She was so grateful, she set up a scholarship.

"Was that Margaret Beeson?" I asked.

"Why yes it was," she answered.

"Are you Mrs. Hollis?" I asked her.

"Why yes I am," she said.

"Well, I received your scholarship," I said.

It was one of those goosebump moments.  I don't know why I knew, but I just knew.  After the meeting, we were able to talk, and I was able to thank her in person for the scholarship.

It doesn't get much better than that!

Get Your Hands Up!

It is amazing some of the situations that happen to people out of the clear blue.  Don had one the other day that was pretty scary, but ended up all right.

As he was driving to work, he noticed a police car sitting by the side of the road clocking traffic.  No big deal.  Happens all the time.  He pulled off US 54 into the Central Business District and turned up the street toward his office.  As he looked behind him, he saw the police car, lights blazing.  Though he had no idea what he had done, he pulled over, and a truck pulled in behind him.

He heard the policeman yelling, and when he looked in his rear mirror, he saw the officer, hiding behind his door, gun drawn.  The gun was pointed right at Don.  "Let me see your hands," the officer yelled, and Don quickly rolled down his window and put his hands out.  So did the man behind him.

That is when Don determined that the stop had nothing to do with him.  Within a few seconds, the other man was handcuffed and being led to the police car.

Whew.  Don was able to drive away, but he said looking into the barrel of that gun was pretty scary.  You just never know what is going to happen to you at 7:00 a.m. on a Friday morning.

Kansas Storms

Several weeks ago, after many days over 100 degrees, a storm suddenly blew in.  It was welcome for many reasons:

1.  It brought cool air with it.
2.  It brought 3" of rain with it.
3.  It brought some beautiful colors with it.

I was able to catch a few pictures of how green the bald cypress tree was, how yellow the sky became. I love these pictures.

Car Trouble at 105 Degrees!

After the football game, we had a wonderful time in Kansas City with Kenneth, Melinda, Don's dad, and several of Don's relatives.  We got to see Uncle Rod again - twice in less than a month!  Micky and her husband, Mike, were there, too.  He is fighting a tough fight against cancer, but we would have never known it on Sunday.

Monday afternoon, we headed for home, and we could tell something wasn't right with the RV.  It wasn't downshifting correctly, the radiator fans were really loud . . . we just couldn't figure it out.

On the way through Emporia, we made our usual stop at Starbucks.  I had to have my chai tea latte, you know!  The trouble started when we restarted the engine.  The sound was awful.  Don turned off the motor, and restarted it without trouble.  Thank goodness the gas station was only a mile away, because by the time we got to it, the engine was boiling over.

After more fiddling, we determined we weren't going anywhere.  It was at least 105 outside, and poor Don was crawling around under the hot engine.  The tow truck came, and luckily, the mechanic figured out what was wrong and how to fix it.  He had us on our way in no time.

We were very fortunate.  We had air conditioning, a toilet, and food.  It could have been a whole lot worse . . . and much more expensive!

Are You Ready for Some Football?

HURRAH!  It is here!  Football season again.

Tailgate time.  My favorite time of the year.  It looks as if the weather is going to be perfect . . . upper 80's, light winds.  The game, that starts at 6:00, should be cool and comfortable.  Even better, it is a sell-out!

Our little group of tailgaters is growing.  Kenneth and his friends are now inviting their friends to join us, so we are getting a youthful feel back.  For a few years, our group's size had diminished, but now we are back to about 30.

Our nephew, CJ, is now attending Benedictine in Atchison, so he will be joining us this week.  Brianna will be home from Boston, so she and her brother and sister-in-law, Jarred and Emily, will be there.  Victoria's mother, Barbara, and Don's dad, Ken, will also add to the festivities!  Babs and Bella will greet everyone (though Babs will probably just sleep through the day), decked in their KSU clothing.

Since the weather is going to be perfect, green chile burgers will be the fare, along with numerous salads and sides . . . and CJ's birthday cake for dessert.  Top it off with a win (I hope), and it will be the perfect day!