2017 Week 18: Surprises

This week we were intentional about recovery. For Michael it meant staying away from MadJax and robotics, and for me resting more to get over a cold.

Today I discovered these beauties growing by a side of the house where no one will see them.

We have a spy-bird, or rather a cowbird that spies on us persistently. He sits for hours on the deck chair by our window looking in (or perhaps watching tv with us).

Jude was with us overnight Tuesday and most of Wednesday, the day I came down with a cold.
Among many other fun things, we played Connect Four.

Surprised to win

Michael attended to chores on the homefront when and where possible. Heavy rain and cold weather most of the week hindered some.
However his first honey harvest of the season was surprisingly abundant.

A bigger surprise was when he went out and discovered that some of his bees had swarmed. He was just in time to rescue and relocate them.

Thursday evening was the opening of the graduate exhibition of the Herron School of Art. We went with Stephan and Karen to see our friend Stefan Eicher's MFA thesis work.

"He laughed" (60 x 55")                         "the Opposite of Fear" (60 x 84")                             "The You in I" (60 x 72")

He welcomed us warmly and invited us to break bread together, while cutting into carefully carved grenade-shaped butter.

Three large oil and acrylic canvases covered the wall behind him and lining the floor below a row of bullet-casings become pencils. The deep and layered significance of the exhibit, in his words:

"Violence, whether physical or psychological, is sustained by the act of 'naming'--placing people into categories of 'the other' based on a singular difference in identity. Art, by its very nature, works best when it breaks a viewer's categories of visual certainty and ability to 'name.' My work seeks to break the 'violence of naming,' by breaking the 'naming of violence,' and in the process explores the multi-valency of identity and the human connections between people." 

I especially liked the painting on the right which is based on a historical photograph--in the midst of war, surrounded by grenades laying about, fellow humans share tea.

On the way home we were delightfully surprised by the food at a new restaurant in Hamilton Town Center--Fresh to Order, F2O. 

Before the rain and cold set in, earlier this week, I took a walk to see what surprises awaited in our outdoors.

Here are  photos from two weeks before.

And the pond area two weeks apart.

After the successful swarm-rescue, Mike put out a notice on FB to let him know of any swarm-sightings. Today after church he responded to a swarm-alert Karen texted. So he has successfully populated yet another box he made last year for just such an occasion.

Did your week hold any surprises?

2015-2016 Welcome the New Year!

Our 46th wedding anniversary is coming up at the end of January, in the middle of robot build-season, six intense weeks living in survival mode. So we decided to get away for a couple days after Christmas.
We stayed at the Oakwood Resort on Lake Wawasee Sunday through Tuesday on the third floor.

Our breakfast table

We could see our room from the breakfast nook.

Monday was a cold and blustery day, a mixture of sleet, rain, and high winds. Driving was slow and hazardous. Even so we ventured out to visit our consuegro in Michigan City.

That evening, back in our room, we watched football and put together a 3D puzzle we had purchased the day before. Mike had really wanted to try the 3D challenge. Ha! It turned out to be the easiest puzzle we ever worked on! Each piece is numbered on the back and has an arrow indicating the direction for the next placement.

Notice Arentina in the front!

After checking out on Tuesday we spent some time in downtown Winona Lake, ate at Cerulean's, strolled by the canal, looked in some shops and then went to visit Mother and brother Alan.

Seaweed Teriyaki

The last day of the year was the second annual shopping trip with the older grandsons. Will there be a third?

We welcomed the New Year quietly at home, watching TV.
In the morning a visitor ventured close.

Saturday we had more visitors--our friends the Eichers! They enjoy our woods.

Both father and son tried swinging around the tree!

Ah, but Mom Neeru had a fun pottery lesson after treating us to a delicious Indian meal.

Master potter Mike taught a different group the next day in Sunday School, the first grade class.
Their lesson was from Jeremiah 18 where he was told to go to the potter's house. God had something to teach the prophet. I think the children learned a lot too and had fun making a little pinch pot themselves.

As we face this new year, I wait expectantly to see what the heavenly Potter wants to do in our lives as He molds and makes us into His image.

2015 Week 42: Visitors

Last rose of fall?

We are still enjoying beautiful sunny days, but increasingly cool. In fact, there is a frost advisory out for tonight.

My walking friends

So good to live in Indiana, the Crossroads of America. It seems to be a regular occurrence that friends from a long time ago are able to stop by, even if for a brief visit.

Fred and Karen Perry live in Arizona now, after life overseas in some thirteen countries, but they have family in the Midwest. When they travel between Bloomington and Michigan, it is quite convenient to swing by our place right off I69.

"Friend"ly selfie                                                                    Author Doc Farid and his two books     Posing by our famous tree

Went by Leah's Wednesday to drop off some things AND see Rebecca Rose! She stays with Nanna while Kayla teaches dance.

On the way in to Muncie to teach, I stopped by Minnetrista to see what Team 1720 was up to all day. They were showing off Not Yet, their soon-to-be-retired robot, talking to interested adults, and entertaining numerous little visitors with crafts and activities.

What? Nothing to show for two days? Well,  I must have been too busy to take pictures--Thursday preparing to teach, and Friday, writing about the ArtPrize experience.

Oh, but also Mike and I went out in the afternoon to see Woodlawn the Movie, an amazing true story of reconciliation and revival in racially divided Birmingham, Alabama, in the '70s. If we had been in the USA at the time we might have heard about it.

Today, Stefan and Neeru and their delightful children are here for an overnight visit. We enjoyed a beautiful walk in the woods.

Meanwhile, Mike and Team 1720 spent the day at their very last competition. Not Yet may now retire after a very successful career. I heard that they took second place, but am waiting for Mike to get home and confirm the rumour.

2015 Week 37: Parade, party, people!

Someone has said that my blog is more about people than anything else.
That is probably true. A higher percentage of the photos are of people.

We were so privileged to host friends from India overnight Sunday.
Monday they had a taste of small-town America--the Upland Labor Day parade.

Stefan and Neeru Eicher and their children

Mike and I participated with a group to promote the Upland Area Greenways--Mike on his little Segway-like machine, an InMotion R2, which makes him a foot taller than me!

Photo credits: Jim Slater and Kristie Koch

I dropped off the parade route at Leah's place, which is close to the end anyway, so I could enjoy all the family gathered there.

Actually Leah arrived later. She walked with the Pray for Kelsie group promoting a benefit concert to help a young victim of a motorcycle accident.

We all enjoyed the event and being together. A few more favorite photos:

The little guys fascinated by their favorite CARS' character the Mater (Kristie's photo)

The big guys luv their long hair!

We were so tired that evening that we decided to use a gift certificate for dinner at Payne's. Delicious delightful date!

Tuesday, holiday over, it was time to get back to work--lesson planning. The long weekend threw me off and I almost went to the wrong campus, turned around just in time!
When I left home everything was in readiness for the robotics team social to kick-off the season.
When I returned at 8 PM, the mentors were sitting around the table discussing and planning while the kids were all outdoors playing. They straggled in sweaty, scraped-up, bug-bitten, but happy. Those who lingered played games. One of the cards required them to add "izzle" to every phrase from then on-izzle.

Wednesday, no photos-izzle. Evenings after I teach-izzle, I am worth nothing-izzle. We watched a movie-izzle--The Man Who Captured Eichmann (1996)-izzle.  I had seen it before-izzle. I recognized quite a few of the scenes-izzle, but had forgotten most of the story-izzle. I can't believe-izzle, that I was in Argentina when this happened and was totally unaware-izzle.

Thursday morning-izzle, I walked-jogged alone-izzle, until Rebecca joined me for the stroll around Taylor-izzle. Part of our adventure was to add our name to the beam going into the new construction later that day-izzle.

We've had several birds fly into our windows lately-izzle. Friday, Mike heard a terrible crash-izzle, and got these photos of a young hawk-izzle. 

Saturday Malachi's cross country meet was in the neighboring town-izzle! I think he said he had his best time for the season so far-izzle.

Have a great week-izzle. Game over!