(tip: my facebook and college friend Angela)

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My husband and I may have really blown it.

Before we were married, Jim lived in a house with 2 of his buddies, and this house was most definitely only fit for a bachlor pad.  The house was sound in terms of construction, but it was looking pretty rough, inside and out.  We called it "The Homely House."  The kitchen was a nightmare.  The siding on the outside looked like sandpaper.  The carpet was that old, used-to-be-beige color.  There were some interesting features to the house, but overall it was kind of nast.

Well, we got married and then just a couple of months later another of the roomies got married, and the third roomie chose to find housing elsewhere.  The landlord, rather than look for another tenant, decided it was time to sell the property.  The house is in a nice, safe, but low-middle income area with older houses, with very quick access to both major highways and some of the nicer parts of town (Maplewood, Clayton, U-City, Forest Park).  Depite its advantages, he decided to sell it for a song - it went for $65,000.  That was just a few months ago.

About a week ago, one of the ex-roomies sent Jim an email with a link to a new listing for the house - not looking nearly so homely.  The interior had been completely redone - wood floors, gorgous kitchen, they even made the ugly and poorly insulated "sun" room into an extra bedroom/office/family room.  The siding was changed to a slate Gray with darker gray window shutters - still pretty ugly, but an improvement on the sandpaper.  And what were they asking for this greatly improved 2-3 bedroom rehabbed residence?  $116,900.

Jim called the realtor immediately.  Already under contract.  We were gutted.  Because you know what the real kicker is?  That house is in walking distance from my office.  Less than a mile away.  Sonofa.

Soooooo, disappointment has spurred us on to look at other real estate possibilities.  Last night we spent a couple of hours browsing online.  And we have actually found what seem to be some freaking incredible deals.  My ideal location is the Tower Grove South area, though I would take just about anywhere in South City given the right combo of floorplan and price.  We have found over a dozen cute rehabs in prime locations for under $130,000.  I really think this is the time to pounce, because I have a feeling that these apparent bargains are being sold by investors who bought these properties to flip them and are getting desperate in the poor housing market.  So we may benefit from the misfortune of others!  Whee!  (That was ironic, I am not quite that selfish.)

So, we may not have blown it afterall.  We may find something better within walking distance of Tower Grove that doesn't have ugly gray siding!  I'll just bike to work instead of walking.

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From Music & Lyrics.

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Thought I would share couple of things that were recently said to me that have been ringing in my ears ever since I heard them.

1.  My brother-in-law Steve recently said something along these lines:  "In America we used to say 'Give me liberty or give me death!' Now we say 'Give me safety at any cost!'"  I've got it as a facebook quote right now because I cannot get it out of my head. As I have shared with many people recently, I have a split personality when it comes to my political leanings.  There is a part of me that wants to go the way of Europe and provide increasing benefits and care to all members of society.  That is the compassionate side of me that longs for safety for all of us!  That side of me voted for Obama in the primary. (First time I ever voted Democratic in my life!)  But then there is the side of me that believes in the Constitution and the ideas that this country was originally founded on, and that side of me realizes that we need to stop in our tracks and begin to turn America around. This is the side of me that wishes I would have stuck to my guns and voted for Ron Paul. JFK nailed it when he said that we shouldn't ask what our country can do for us.  I'm afraid that on the whole we have become a people whose political opinions are dominated by a sense of entitlement and bitterness.  Our need for comfort and safety have taken precedence over the preciousness of our liberty. This attitude is poisoning us and poisoning the rest of the world thanks to our empire-building overseas, as Ron Paul so puts it. I am not so entirely confident to think that a more libertarian style government would be the answer to all our problems. Perhaps someone like Obama would take us in the right direction. Or perhaps there is no right or wrong direction, only good or bad policies within whichever framework of our choosing.  But I know that ideas like those of Ron Paul are more in keeping with the Constitution, and I am not comfortable with claiming our country to be founded on that document while continuing to violate it and stray from it further and further.

2.  A former professor told me that I should be writing and seeking to get something, anything published because I "write like an angel."  I don't bring this up to brag or show myself to have been a teacher's pet.  I know, with no false modesty, that this compliment came from a man who is very prone to nostalgia and sentiment and so is an exaggeration of the truth.  Nevertheless, ever since he said it I can't stop wondering what would happen if I could somehow uncork my creativity.  What would happen if for once in my life I could really apply myself with both discipline and self-abandon, two traits I completely lack.

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I have met few people in my life with such varied knowledge and talents as one of my favorite college professors, Dr. Wickersham, known affectionately as Wick.  This true renaissance man taught me most of my philosophy classes; he also taught me poetry, three semesters of Latin, and I took a class with him on wilderness and natural history which consisted of a challenging eight-day backpacking trip in the Colorado Rockies.  So besides being a philosopher, a veritable encyclopedia of poetry (the man must have hundreds of poems memorized) as well as an accomplished poet himself, a Latin scholar AND a rugged mountaineer, oh and he also restores old Jeeps - besides all of this, Wick is also a tremendously gifted photographer. I wish I had some of his work to show, but a Google search did not turn any of his pictures up. In his lifetime, Wick has completed two major photographic studies, each one taking him several years, both having been on display at many major universities and prominent art museums.  One was a study of the Missouri River, including pictures of all sorts all along the length of the longest river in North America. The other was a study of the numerous German Churches scattered throughout the state of Missouri.  This latter study is the basis of a summer class which Wick teaches, and which a couple of weeks ago I tagged along so I could see some of the historic Kirchen. The beauty and grandeur of these churches is amazing when you consider they were built by small communities of German immigrant farmers and craftsmen.  Below are some of the pictures I took which, please be forgiving, were taken on a mediocre camera.

St. Francis Xavier Parish located in Taos, Missouri, built in 1883.

An example of the stained glass windows

The Sanctuary and High Altar

Portraits of two of the Evangelists in the Apse

Relics displayed in one of the side altars

The processional crucifix

St. Joseph Parish located in Westphalia, Missouri, founded in 1835

The doors are exquisite, and apparently very characteristically German

Even more stunning stained glass windows

A closeup of the top of one of the windows from the choir loft

The interior of St. Jospeh's

Closeup of the bottom panel of the windows

St. Martin Parish located in Starkenburg, Missouri, built in 1873

One of the side aisles - notice the Easter Egg colored light coming in from the windows!

The stained glass window in above the High Altar

Closeup of the top of one of the windows, kind of blurry but I love the stencil-work!

Our Lady of Sorrows Shrine, located on the same property at St. Martin's, completed in 1906.  You can read a history of this shrine here - in summary, this became a chapel that people still to this day visit when they are in need of an answer to prayers. 

Charming side door

The whole side of the church was lined with Lily of the Valley

More pretty stained glass

Evidence of answered prayers?

The side walls of the church are lined with engraved plaques thanking Mary for her intercession, mostly in German, dating back to the early 1900s up to the present time.

On a personal note, it was a bizarre sensation to be visiting Roman Catholic Churches in an academic setting now that I am no longer Catholic.  It was all familiar as the back of my hand, and yet there is also a weirdness to it all that comes from objective distance.  I think I have a little bit of insight into just how strange Catholicism must be to most American Protestants.

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My husband and I finally both had a saturday free, so despite the gloomy weather we decided the day had come to plant some flowers in the planter in our front yard.  I knew I wanted to plant flowers that are native to Missouri (my reasons are below the pictures), so I checked out the Grow Native! website to find a nursery that sells native plants.  We decided to go to Bowood Farms, right in the Central West End.  I am so glad we went there because for one thing the building was just flipping incredible and because a very helpful lady eagerly helped us pick out the perfect plants!  We ended up planting:

Goat's Beard
Marsh Milkweed
Purple Poppy Mallow
Yellow Coneflower
Crested Iris
Rough Blazing Star
Prairie Blazing Star
Sedum
Stiff Goldenrod
Missouri Primrose

We tilled the soil and added two bags of chicken manure compost.  After a couple of hours work, our garden is all planted! I was only able to get two pictures before the batteries in my camera ran out.

So why plant flowers, trees and flowers native to your state?  Well, there are are at least three reasons, maybe more:

1.  Native plants are adapted to the climate and soil of where you are, so they are more likely to thrive with less work than plants that don't belong.

2.  You can contribute to healthy mini-ecosystems by cultivating plants that are the natural habitats and foods for native bugs, birds, butterflies and other critters.

3.  You will have a unique garden that will provide variety from the typical gardens which are filled with the same popular flowers and plants that you can get at any nursery or big-box home improvement store.

Here is what the Grow Native! website says:

Why should I plant natives?
Native plants conserve soil and water, provide the backbone for non-polluting landscapes because they don't need fertilizers or pesticides, support a diversity of wildlife through improved habitat, reduce long-term maintenance after plantings are established, contribute to fewer losses because natives are winter hardy and drought tolerant and are less prone to destructive insects and diseases.

So, if you haven't planted your garden yet, or you are thinking of adding some more plants - consider growing native!!!

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First, a couple of things:

1.  The LOST season finale did not disappoint.  So many questions, so long to wait for answers!!!

2.  Listening to the friday news roundup on the Diane Rehm Show - I can't stand Eleanor Clift.  She may be the most biased and irrational news commentator I have ever heard.

Ok, now on to the really important business at hand:

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