Live, from the Springfield Public Library...

It's Nutwood Junction!

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a fun Thanksgiving. Sorry I haven't had a chance to update, but this is the first chance we've had to get online. This library is fabulous, by the way (she said, as she sipped her fruit smoothie in the library cafe).

We had an uneventful trip here, although we did notice that it seemed to be the annual driving outing of Teh Stoopid Institute, and all of them were on the same roads we were taking! What is with people? Our favorite was when someone would be riding our ass, so we'd slow down in order to get in the right lane and let them pass. Then they'd slow down, and we'd be boxed in. There were a couple of times when I thought Ken was going to spontaneously combust, but thankfully, disaster was averted.

I've mentioned before that I lived in Indianapolis for 7 years. It's been several years since I've been back, and that was the route we took--down to Indy, over to St. Louis, and on down to Springfield. I was stunned to see all the growth around Indy. I barely recognized the northwest side, where I lived when I first moved there, and the northern part of the city has sprouted tall office buildings like weeds. I guess it's an up-and-coming city, but I told Ken that I think I moved away at the right time, and I'm glad I did. I loved the city, but I enjoy the rural life a lot more.

We stopped in Terre Haute for lunch at a place called Cheeseburger in Paradise. I think this is a chain of restaurants, but we'd never eaten at one before. It was very good, and our choices were met with approval by Melissa, our "Islander," and holder of the title of World's Most Talkative Server. I'm not kidding, I have never had anyone talk us up as much as she did. The kitchen staff brought our plates, and there was Melissa: "Is everything okay? Can I get you anything else?" We said no, everything looked fine. I took 3 bites of my broccoli, and there was Melissa: "How is everything?" I had a mouthful of broccoli, so I just nodded and made the "okay" hand signage. She was very sweet and very attentive, but at that point, I wanted to say, "Melissa, I've had 3 bites of broccoli, which is indeed delicious. However, I haven't had time to smell my quesadilla, let alone taste it. Perhaps you'd like to let me take a couple of bites before I pronounce judgement on my meal." It was a little too much, know what I mean?

It gets darker much earlier now, so the last hour and a half or so, we drove in darkness. We were happy to get to Ken's mom's place and relax, believe me. (Apparently Teh Stoopid Institute outing was a 24 hour affair.) We had a nice time catching up, and then had a late dinner. Thanksgiving was a low-key day, and Ken's mom made a small turkey for the four of us, with all the usual sides. After a few errands today, Ken and I ended up here at the library, then it will be back home for turkey sammitches!

Guess where one of our errands was? Walmart! Ken's mom had to get a prescription filled, and we picked up a couple of things for weekend dinners. I didn't think I'd get anywhere near a store today, but I actually set foot inside of one! It really didn't seem all that busy, but the parking lot seemed pretty full there and at all the other shopping places around, so Ken and I speculate that Black Friday might not be outstanding this year, but most places will probably end up doing okay.

No pictures for you yet, but I'll get some. One thing I want to get a picture of us the lovely Munger Moss Motel sign. The Munger Moss is in Lebanon, Missouri, and is a Route 66 fixture. It's still operating, and is apparently a pretty decent place to stay. I could see the sign on the way down, and it was dark enough that the neon was lit--what a beautiful sign! So I'll get a little bit of a googie fix on the way back!

I've bonded with Scamper the Rotund, Ken's mom's cat. Scamper is a round mound already, but he also has incredibly long fur, so he looks incredibly fat! He's a good kitty, and he came right over to me when we first got there, so I think he remembered us! I miss Sheeba a lot, but I know his Uncle Shane is taking good care of him! Oh, and Ken's mom cracked me up this morning. She was reading the paper, and there was a picture of Rahm Emanuel in there. She said, "You know, I think that Rahm Emanuel is kind of nice-looking. In a sort of debonair way." So of course, I had to tell her about my Rahm Emanuel poll!

Ken is off at one of the library computers, so I'll finish up here and try to catch up on reading a few of your entries until he finishes up and comes back to collect me. I hope you're all having a lovely, long weekend! If I don't get back here before we leave, we'll be returning Monday evening, so I'll see you all then for sure. I may not get to very many of your blogs, so be patient with me, and I'll be back in normal operating mode before too long.