Historically speaking, Mr. is way better at remembering history than I am. He is also one to be quick with ideas while he prepares the dinner I wait to be presented with (yes, I’m spoiled!).
Friday night dinner prep conversations go something like this (give or take an embellishment or two).
Me: So, I’m pondering how I’ll combine the prompts for my blog post for Sunday.
Mr: Well, what are they?
Me: Rock, Historical, Last on the SD Card, and Inspiration Found in the Kitchen
Mr: (Rattling off a bunch of ideas…) There are the rocks I moved this week, the painted rocks in the front yard, and the Yellowstone Trail rocks…
Me: Those are GREAT historical rock ideas. I’ll use you as the “Inspiration Found in the Kitchen.” As I took a picture of the resting steaks ready for the grill, I said, “How long have you had that fork?”
Mr: My whole life. It’s a historical kitchen item that’s been in the family for as long as I can remember.
Me: How long before the steaks are ready? Do I have time to grab a photo of the painted rocks? They’re historical. They remind me of the years the kids were little and loved painting rocks. They’d spend hours out in the front yard playing. Ah to be a kid with so much free time!
Mr: Yep, I’m putting the steaks on the grill now.
The steaks turned out great, by the way!
Mr. who had worked extra hard on the wall ate all of his! Stay tuned for a future post where you get to see how much work has been completed on the wall!
Since it was June 30, this is the last photo on my SD card for the month of June.
After finishing dinner, I asked Mr. if he’d drive me past the rocks and signs for the Yellowstone trail in our area in the morning after we take our daily 2-mile walk. You know, since it was his idea, I wanted to give him plenty of time to consider the request. 🤣
After our walk, I grabbed my camera and we jumped in his car. Thankfully, for us, it was a beautiful and quiet morning. Not a lot of traffic on Hwy X.
Lake Wissota (yeah, the ice-fishing lake from the Titanic movie 😂) is very calm in the early morning.
It was peaceful to walk around the Veterans Memorial area that had been installed in the last few years.
They have seating and a little free book library.
No overnight parking or camping unless you are Wisconsin’s state bird the ROBIN.
It’s a nice addition to the spot where one of the Yellowstone Trail Rocks had been placed.
Mr. drove around to let me catch two more photos of the rocks on Hwy X before we headed back home. For those followers that remember, this is the parking lot across the street from one of our rental properties.
And this rock is at the entrance to the boat landing for the small Lake Wissota. It might be time for a refresh on the yellow paint! 🤔
We must admit, sadly neither one of us knew the history of the Yellowstone Trail. Glad they had a stake with a sign on it so now we know!
I circled the area on the map below where Mr. and I have traveled often during our growing-up years and with our kids when they were young.
As I walked around the Veterans Memorial area, I thought about how thankful I am for the freedoms we have and those who fought/fight for them.
On the 4th of July weekend, we celebrate those freedoms. Not everyone is free, especially the millions of children imprisoned in human trafficking. This year, Mr. and I are doing something different. We are going to the matinee of The Sound of Freedom movie. A historical movie. If you haven’t heard about it, look it up here.
Post Inspiration: Linda G. Hill’s Stream of Consciousness Saturday: Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “rock’.” Use it any way you’d like. Have fun! Terri Webster Schrandt’s Sunday Stills July 2 Historical; Brian at Bushboyblog’s Last on the Card June 2023 and Lens-Artists Guest Host Ritva Sillanmaki asked us to explore INSPIRATION FOUND IN THE KITCHEN.
PS – Happy July! For my USA followers – Mr. and I wish you a safe and Happy 4th of July! Have you seen or heard of the Sound of Freedom movie? Did you know that over 2 million children are trafficked EACH year? Did you know about the Yellowstone Trail or that Lake Wissota was mentioned in the Titanic movie?
Woohoo, what a quadruple-dip into the various prompts this week, Shelley! I giggled as I read your conversation with Mr. about dinner and how you compiled info for this post. I had never heard of the Yellowstone trail but how interesting our roads were named on that way to help motorists figure out where to go. You have some great historical venues in your area. My hubby would love Mr’s historical fork. I should look at ours and see if it’s historical (he got it at a thrift-store), LOL! Enjoy your holiday weekend.
Thanks, Terri! I was thankful for Mr.’s ideas this week. I admit that he helps me figure out ideas more times than I share 😉😂
I agree on the trail/roadways. Made me think of your post and how your family traveled for vacations. We used paper maps and my in-laws still prefer to use those. I can’t imagine just using names to figure out where to go!
If you hubby’s fork is from a thrift store, it might just be historical too!
Thank you – I hope you have a great weekend and week!
Hans and I have had a few arguments through the years over Google maps. It’s not perfect and being offline at a critical fork in the road is a bad thing. Have a great week!
LOL – same here! 😂 Ditto to you!
Good job managing the various prompts. I think my brother still has that same fork, passed down from our parents. The trail looks like a nice place to hike and picnic. I hope you guys have a nice easy 4th.
Thanks, Dan – I enjoyed how you rocked the prompt too and your pictures are full of all things summer!
The trail is nice – I need to drive by later in the day to see how many people actually visit it.
Thanks for the holiday wishes – same to you!
Our kids painted rocks too (clouds, flowers, sailing boats… ). They are still at the seaside home. Yellowstone trail seems a great idea.
Hi Anne – aw, that’s great that you have fun painted rocks too. I’m surprised that the paint has stuck on ours for at least 25 years.
The Yellowstone trail markers seem to be connecting the state and our travelers in a fun historical way.
Pencil, chalk even paint have been remaining through ages, for sure. Outdoor (not cave) primitive art painting it could be named (just joking kidding). Now, it’s up to the grandchildren to continue the family tradition.
My professor-aunt collected stones, among other things, as geological curiosities. Died in 1991, it’s now up to me to empty her attic…
Perhaps stones, peddles could inspire Frank for a new “Beach Walk Reflections” article.
Stones Version 2
https://beachwalkreflections.wordpress.com/2021/03/25/55-stones/
Frank rocked to stone prompt well, thank you for sharing the link!!
Aw, that’s so special. I hope the grandchildren do keep the tradition going.
Maybe you can move the geological curiosities to the beach spot too?
Yes, maybe Frank could use that idea! 😍
I live along the first federal transcontinental highway, officially named US20.
You can ride US 20 from one ocean to the other, along the northern edge of the lower 48. It’s not as glamorous as Route 66, (the other, smaller Route 20), and never had a television series named for it. It does not traverse the captivating desert southwest, nor terminate in “the land of milk and honey”, our country’s own bid for paradise, sunny California.
Route 20 starts near Boston, just as The United States did. It traverses the industrial northeast; the mills of Massachusetts; Rochester, NY, birthplace of Kodak and Xerox. It runs parallel to “Clinton’s Ditch”, one of the earliest “infrastructure projects” of our nation, beginning early in the 1800’s. It’s route along the famous Mohawk River is now known as The Erie Barge Canal. It skirts the mighty Niagara Falls, containing one of humankind’s greatest achievements in the battle to tame and control nature, where the falls once flowed at three times the rate we see today.
It passes through the mill-laden central states, where the automobile and the assembly line were invented, just north of the iron mills of Pennsylvania which helped build this land and the fortunes of men like Carnegie. It crosses the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland, Ohio, where in 1968, the New York Times printed a frightening and sobering story called “The River of Fire”, covering the latest conflagration that miraculously burned atop a million gallons of water, owing to toxic industrial contaminants. It, along with Rachel Carson’s book, “Silent Spring”, would lead to the first Environmental Protection laws.
US 20 continues westward through the breadbasket of our country, where farming and ranching built and fed our nation, and continues to do so. Up over the Rocky Mountains, which we traverse in modern comfort bearing the memory of the Donner Party.
Past the orchards of the world’s greatest apples, past the totems of ancient peoples that lived here for millennia before modernity finally breached the shores.
It terminates quite unceremoniously at the western end, amid the foggy coves and sounds of the Pacific Northwest, embarkation point for the Yukon Gold Rush.
Near home, older parts of the winding trail that began as a “corduroy road” for horse and ox-drawn wagons has been signed “Historic Route 20: Scenic Byway”.
At first I wasn’t sure if I liked it being called a “scenic byway”. It’s a highway, after all, and one of the most significant roads in the country prior to Eisenhower’s Interstate Highway System. Perhaps it is something that should not be relegated to “byway”, but honored for its historic significance. In time, as I observed the current state of modern highways, the traffic, the drivers on them and some of the places they lead, I’ve decided I’m definitely okay with living along the byway.
In fact, in a way, it describes my peaceful country life.
Be well,
Paz
Hi Paz – thank you so much for adding to the history lesson. I appreciate the time you took to share the US20 route history. It reflects how much we have changed over the years, and how we still use roads to get from place to place and state to state. If you’re ever looking for fun stories about the rust belt – check out Rebecca’s blog at rustbeltgirl.com.
I like the byway name for the same reason. We get enough traffic on Hwy X but not as much as Hwy 29. Our rural road when we first built our home was way more of a byway, now it seems like a loud highway even though we’re still considered in a rural setting.
Like you, I hope to keep enjoying the peace found in country life 😍🥰😁
Thanks again for stopping by to share!
I enjoyed wandering with you. By the way, will you go to a fireworks display on the 4th? My wife and I caught a pre-4th display last night at Philadelphia’s waterfront. It was fabulous.
Hi! Thanks for joining in on the walk.
Funny you should ask…the neighbors who live two doors down had an hour long display of fireworks on Saturday night that filled any desire for seeing/hearing any other fireworks. When we walked by their yard in the morning the display of remnants was massive. No wonder I couldn’t sleep through it. I did go outside and enjoy the view from our yard. 🤣 I heard more sounds in the distance last night. Our town hosted their downtown riverfront display last night at 10 pm. I’m guessing we’ll be hearing fireworks throughout this week.
That’s wonderful that you found a fabulous display to enjoy. How were the bugs?
No bugs at all!
Yay for a bug-free event!!!
I can see how much a fountain of good ideas Mr is as well as a “willing” worker. We had a set of cutlery with those same handles and the knives were steak knives when I was a kid. A hunk of steak for a Last Photo is a first Shelley. Thanks for joining in 🙂
Yes, Mr. was happy to join in. More times than not he provides me with ideas to run with!
I think we had those in our kitchen too – I think my dad still has ours or maybe my brother does.
I didn’t plan on the steak being the last photo – guess I was so full after eating the steak I didn’t pick up my camera again! LOL!
I love how the prompts took on an adventure. lol. A great wander. and I would love that Yellowstone trail if we ever get to that part of the country.
Thanks, Donna – I enjoyed your colorful response to the prompt! So festive. I hope the kiddos enjoyed all the treats you made for them.
Yes, you’d love the trail – it seems to have plenty of historical stops along the way.
Happy 4th to you and your family as you make more happy memories!
Thank you.
Wow – you and Mr. work both on the wall and the prompts together. Togetherness. 🙂 I have not heard of the Yellowstone Trail and I am probably the only person in the world who never saw the movie “Titanic”. I did see “A Night to Remember” years ago though. I like your painted rocks … the big painted rocks too, but yours are more special as the kids made them. My 4th of July has not been exciting – we had ran and storms all day and will soon have another one … at least being housebound kept me productive in the house.
Yes, Mr. helps me more than I tell!
When we started seeing the yellow stones painted years ago I forgot to look into the history of it. It was nice to finally take the time to learn about it.
I’ve been thinking about you and wondering how the sounds of fireworks are going? Maybe you can’t hear them over the thunderstorms?
That’s great you’re being productive, I’ve been lazy due to the heat – but, I’m getting books read! 🤣
Happy 4th dear blogging buddy!
Now to sort out the days first … I’ll just get them sorted out and it will be the weekend. 🙂 Okay, so Sunday an all-day rain and storms and into last night, so no fireworks, yay! Right now they are shooting them off and have been since it was light. Not supposed to shoot them off before the 3rd, but they have – I have earplugs in right now. I finished my book last night because it was storming and I was not on here as long as storms started up again. Just between storms. The night before I was sitting on the same wooden kitchen chair like I have for umpteen decades and the chair just fell apart and I fell on the floor. So I stood up to finish my comment, then off to check the damages (on me, not the chair … it was toast and went in today’s trash – minus two legs). Happily nothing broken or fractured as far as I can tell, but scraped up my leg where the wood splintered and caused an abrasion.
Good for both of us getting reading done – it feels good and if I had not committed to Goodreads to read I’d probably just read on long weekends which is what I have been doing for many years now. Oh now, they are across the street from me – sigh. At least we’ve had plenty of rain so the grass is not so dry. They are allowed to shoot off fireworks until 11:45, tomorrow same time which is late for people who get up early on Wednesday morning. Happy 4th to you and Mr. dear blogging buddy!
Oh, my, Linda – I’m glad you’re okay. The chair just falling apart was such a surprise! I hope the abrasion is small and heals fast.
The fireworks last night were delayed due to rain, but as soon as the storm passed, someone near us carried on with fireworks that woke us up again before the next round of storms. I was thankful that Copper wasn’t here to hear it all – it would’ve been even less sleep. I’m toying with the idea of wearing ear plugs too!
Happy 4th of July to you too dear blogging buddy – let’s hope after tonight people are done with their fireworks and we get to enjoy July in peace!
I feel kind of silly ending up like that and it was quick – that crack noise, then down I went. 🙂 I can smile as I don’t think there was any damage to me, but still.
Fireworks are going off here right now at 9:22 p.m. At the Park this morning, there was a ton of firecracker cardboard tubes and black residue all over the parking lot – every year they use it, despite the edict to not set off fireworks on private property.
That chair just finally said, enough, is enough! Now are you going to buy yourself a nice office chair so you’re comfy while blogging?
Our firework folks got rained out so our night was loud only due to the thunder and rain. I heard some idiot shoot off a couple fireworks at 2 am. Oy…
So I polished up an identical chair from the dinette set … I heard some noises today. Like the chair was making noises as I moved. The other chair was always “my chair” – I sat many hours in that chair for decades. The dinette set is Maple and old, but in good shape with no marks or scratches and the table has always has a pad and tablecloth on it. So after I heard a creak today, I Googled and learned that temperature changes, heat, humidity, age, shifting around on the chair all cause the glue to dry out causing dowels and rungs to become loose in wooden chairs. As for an office chair, when I started working at home, Robb offered to bring me my office chair from work. He had bought the chair and it was ergonomic and orthopedic benefits in the back part, but I really didn’t like it because it had armrests. We tried to take the armrests off but they would have torn my clothes, so I declined. I also knew my working from home (supposedly part-time) would come to an end when business picked up (something that never happened). I sit in the kitchen at the kitchen table since it is the biggest room, next to the phone for the landline port and it is the best light … I could not go into another room as it would be claustrophobic after a while. Also, I have linoleum which is supposed to look like bricks and I would have to get a chair mat … it would jut out and I’d trip over it … lots of reasons really including I have an braided rug under the table … I could not put the chair under it. When I eventually retire, I have to come up with a plan to go into another room … I sort my pictures and store them at my old laptop in my room. It has to be plugged in at one place and that is right over the register – when the A/C is on, it blows right on me even with the deflector turned. Not sure where I’ll go or how I’ll set up eventually when not working. Really I hope not to be online so many hours in a day but with blogging, writing posts, sorting pics … that ain’t gonna happen. 🙂
We had fireworks into the wee hours, not as late as yours were though. In a nearby city, teenagers were taking fireworks and throwing them at cars passing by … SMH. A woman was killed on the weekend by an firework that misfired.
You’ve thought the chair situation well. Now you just need to retire and get on with less time online and more time out on adventures seeing new things! 🤩😎
That’s so sad that people do things to ruin the good intentions of the day or get hurt in the process. 😭
About an hour ago I think I figured out why the chair broke on the left side. When it got really hot last week, I moved the table over a little … it really needs two people to move it off the rug so I can’t reposition the entire table (it’s loaded with work stuff … dictaphone which I rarely use, two land line speakerphones, a table radio and two laptops – don’t ask … not enough plugs in the house either). So today I was shifting around and felt a bump and the chair leg was next to the table leg – no doubt that is what happened and it knocked the legs on that side and they caved in. Sat in this chair since I was a kid. I really don’t know what I want to do – a standing situation like you have would be good, but plugs, lighting, space all play a part in how I can configure my seating arrangement. My desktop downstairs is on a rolling hutch, but I would not bring it upstairs – too cumbersome. My desktop is a Vista platform and I’ve not turned it on since I got the first laptop in 2009.
That was just crazy with those kids … a lot of crazy stuff going on these days. In the neighborhood forum, some woman at the Park where I walk every day, went into the bathroom and shot herself in the leg, then called police that she was suicidal. The police did not find her at that Park, though she said she was there. Last week someone spraypainted the bathrooms and the perimeter path with raunchy expressions … all over. I don’t go into the bathrooms there, but heard about it. People, people, people – SMH.
Your chair lasted a very long time, especially with daily use! They don’t build them like that anymore. I do like my standing desk set-up, and I have a not so comfortable stool that I use there when I don’t want to be standing. Neither are optimal, but functional for the time I spend there. I definitely want a break when it comes to the weekend!
Yikes…I was just saying to Mr. that something weird is happening – too many people are going wonky in their thinking and behaviors! UGH.
I forgot to say that another factor where I sit in the kitchen is the fridge and the cold air that comes from the bottom. It is not an optimal set-up at all. I have thought of a stool and to sit at the butcher block but the light is poor and no, a stool is not comfy in the least.
I learned more about that shooting at the Park this morning. One of the walkers came over to me and asked if I heard about the shooting in the bathroom and I said only a post in the Facebook neighborhood forum which was a screenshot of a police scanner report and a few comments. It gets a little stranger though … it was not a woman, but a 300-pound man dressed like a woman (don’t know if it was a trans, or just a man gaining accessing to the women’s bathroom which would not be good) and they did commit suicide in that bathroom. Wonky indeed!
You do have lots of factors to consider. With all your cleverness you’ll find a great solution!
YIKES – That’s scary – and sad is so many ways.
I hope so Shelley … after decluttering some more yesterday (and Lysoling wiping everything down as I had a fly “at large” in the house for a day and a half) I told myself, I need to buckle down and find a good solution. Found an ant today … on the table … alive. I hope it is not pregnant as I thought I had it and knocked it on the floor. Floor is dark (color of red bricks) … not a chance of killing it. Ants I can live with … flies, spiders and centipedes in the house I cannot.
Your decluttering is inspiring me to think about doing the same.
Bugs are so annoying – I can’t think of any that I can tolerate having roaming around the house. I’m quick to help them see their EOL. Wonder how did that fly got in your house? 🤔
I wonder if it came in on my hair maybe? (Eww) But I am careful opening/shutting the screen door and not happy as I have canned items and other items downstairs which will all need to be wiped down now. Plus I had gone shopping and had stuff to be put away upstairs also … he was having a good time buzzing around – no body downstairs so have to keep the door closed a while longer.
Eww is right.
This was a great response for the LAPC Challenge and all the others!!
Thank you, Anne – I enjoyed your Mickey photos too!!
See …. weaving the prompts together into one post happened. Sometimes we struggle because we make it more difficult than it is. Hope you had a good 4th …. and those steaks look wonderful!
Hi Frank, yes, it’s fun when the prompts come together 🥰
We had a nice 4th, hope you did too.
As always, the steaks were wonderfully delicious! 😋
Great post and choices for the theme.
Thank you, Kirstin. I enjoyed your take on the prompt too. Your collection of historical photos is impressive!
Shelley, I really have to get up to NW Wisconsin and explore with bike and on foot. I know there are some nice trails and views in your neck of the woods. It’s always nice to learn a bit of history where we live and you’ve just pointed out I need to do more of it. Hope you are having a wonderful July!
Yes, you’d enjoy the trails around here! Plus there’s the Leinies Lodge for beer tasting!
I hope you’re having a great July too!!! Stay cool and happy bike trail riding to you!