November, a time to be grateful

In November we often think about the many gifts we have been given and are thankful for.  It also is a time of year when many of us think about doing something for those less fortunate.  This year my friends, Sissy and Lorraine, and I attended Project Funway, which is a fashion show to raise money for women who need a fresh start.

Sissy, Lorraine, Di

This is not your average fashion show.  Local designers and UNL students are invited to participate in a design competition to transform cast-off clothing into new, original creations.

The outfits were extremely creative and fun to see.

This black and white one was one of my favorites.

With my newfound awareness of this organization, I elected to become a Secret Santa for one of the Fresh Start clients. It's fun to shop for a person who is trying hard to improve her life.


We've had just a few nice days in November, so I took advantage of it and rode with friends to the Ding-a-Ling Bar, 12 miles from Lincoln, where we had lunch.

The Ding in Raymond.

The UNL Theater department puts on several plays each season.  We went with two other couples to The Glass Menagerie, a play written by Tennessee Williams.  The play is set in 1937 in St. Louis and the title refers to glass figurines collected by the very shy Laura.  Laura's mother convinces Tom (Laura's brother) to arrange for a male co-worker to come for dinner in hopes that he might be interested in Laura. Laura, her brother, and their mother each have difficult lives, resulting in a rather depressing story.

The UNL student who played Laura was quoted in an interview saying she had no idea what "a gentleman caller" meant.

Afterwards we went to the new Brian Boitano Bar (Brian was an Olympic Champion figure skater) and shared some unique cocktails with friends.

Clayton, Di, Susan, Annette, Pete, Rusty

UNL also puts on an opera each semester and this year it was The Gambler's Son.  This opera is based on Mari Sandoz' book, Son of a Gambling Man.  It tells the story of Cozad, NE and how it came into existence with settlers moving west, taking advantage of free land, and fighting the plagues of grasshoppers.  I read the entire book before seeing the opera and found it puzzling why Mari Sandoz is such an acclaimed writer.

Intermission at the opera.

The"son" of the gambler changed his name to Robert Henri.  He studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, from 1884 to 1888, and at both the Academie Julian and the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris.  Upon returning to the United States in 1892, he became an instructor at the School of Design for Women in Philadelphia.  He later settled in New York and taught at the New York School of Art.   Our own Sheldon Art Gallery has a few of his paintings, including the one of his father that is featured in the opera.


Our dear friend and financial advisor, Larry Frederick retired this month.  He was instrumental in helping Rusty and me figure out how to be financially secure in our retirement.

Rusty, Larry, Di

We went to the season opener for the Nebraska Jazz Orchestra and heard trumpet legend, Bobby Shew.  The program had many delightful pieces such as Freckle Face, Opus One, Tea for Two and Body and Soul.  Despite being in his 80's and having some health issues, Bobby Shew can really blow that horn!

Bobby Shew has received many jazz awards and has co-designed trumpet and flugelhorn models for Yamaha.

Our biggest event of the month (or year) (or five years) was launching the cedar strip canoe that we have been building since 2014.  Here are some completed pictures.

I've included the picture of the seat drops as an example of the detail that went into this canoe.  The seats hang by bolts running down from the sides of the canoe (inwales).  The bolts themselves are a brass color and made of silicone bronze.  We had to special order them.  I think they are pretty enough to be used as is.  Rusty cut long, 1.5" square strips from a walnut board.  These were then cut into shorter pieces to be shaped by hand tools to become dowels.  I used a spoke shave as well as 3 successive grades of sandpaper to get them as round and smooth as possible.   Then Rusty used the drill press to put a lengthwise hole in each dowel.  Then I applied 3 coats of varnish, with sanding in between.  Then I applied a coat of wax, followed by smoothing with steel wool and eventually buffing.  In my mind it was a lot of work for something most people won't notice, but it is a good example of the planning, detail, and specificity that has gone into this boat.

Our good friend, Lorvey Stark, came to Holmes Lake and photographed the maiden voyage.

In Kentucky, where Rusty is from, there are many folks who use two names, such as Linda Sue, Booby Lee, Heidi Lee.  We christened our canoe Fine Lee!




We have friends who, like us, don't often have family coming home for the holidays.  So this Thanksgiving we invited our friends to join us and had a lovely celebration.

waiting for our guests to arrive

good conversation and a little wine before dinner

Turkey Man!

Clayton and Susan

Jeffre and Marni

I don't need a holiday or a feast to feel grateful for my children, the sun, the moon, the roof over my head, music, and laughter, but I like to take this time to take the path of thanks less traveled.     Paula Poundstone