A fountain and a tax plan

A couple of quick things before I head out to the garden.

Joann wanted to see inside the book of the Columbian Exposition. Ask and ye shall receive, my dear!

This is a picture of the MacMonnies Fountain. From the Paul V. Galvin Library at Illinois Institute of Technology:

THE COLUMBIAN FOUNTAIN - Frederick MacMonnies [a sculptor from Brooklyn] was entrusted with the design and construction of the central fountain at the Fair, and $50,000 were placed at his disposal for the purpose. Of this amount, it is said that the ardent lover of sculpture actually expended fully $48,000 in bringing his great conception to successful completion. The fountain shows Columbia sitting aloft of the Barge of State, heralded by Fame at the prow, oared by the Arts and Industries, guided by Time at the helm, and drawn by the sea-horses of Commerce. The prow of the barge is ornamented with an eagle's beak; its sides are bordered with dolphins in relief; and horns of plenty pour their abundance over the gunwales. The pedestal on which Columbia sits, bears a national shield in front, and the throne is supported by four kneeling children, who also bear heavy garlands. A torch at rest is in Columbia's hand. The rowers on the right are Music, Architecture, Sculpture and Painting; on the left, Agriculture, Science, Industry and Commerce. Time has improvised a helm by using his scythe. This barge stands in the center of a circular basin, one hundred and fifty feet in diameter, which at its eastern periphery flows in circular cascade in many falls to the surface of the Grand Basin of the Exposition, twelve feet below. In the basin of the fountain, four pair of sea-horses, mounted by riders who represent modern intelligence, draw the barge. Near the semi-circular balustrade which guards the rear of the fountain, dolphins send streams upward, and mermaids and tritons at various places add to the fleecy display of high-thrown water. The general effect of the MacMonnies fountain was marvelously beautiful, and thousands of visitors gained their chief enjoyment in sitting near by and enjoying the principal scene. It was said to be the largest fountain in the world.

Myra commented that I've written before that my sister Diana is kind of strange. Ha ha! I'm pretty sure Di would take that as a compliment, as would I! I can assure you that Di is one of the kindest people you could ever meet, and one of the funnest as well. Di has a good time pretty much wherever she is or whatever she is doing, and has a joy for life that you rarely see in people. Yeah, she's a bit of a nut...but I think she might have figured out that the key to happiness is a slight dose of nuttiness!

Finally (for now), I found this chart in Parade magazine, the one that comes with the Sunday newspaper. I thought it was fairly interesting. I don't know about you guys, but we're not close to those upper levels. It makes sense to me that millionaires should pay a little more in taxes, rather than less. Sorry it's kind of tiny--get out your magnifying glass, Sherlock!

How YOU doin'?!

We had a fun day yesterday! My intention was to put a slideshow up, but due to some unforeseen difficulties, I was unable to do so. I'll work on it tomorrow and try and get it up here.

(Frankly, I'm being very polite and calm. I am so incredibly irritated right now that it is taking everything I've got to keep from letting loose with a stream of profanity that would make a sailor blush. I am stepping away from the slideshow project and I am calmly writing about our day. I will include a few pictures, and I will regain my equilibrium.)

The dedication of the Habitat house was incredible. Ken wrote about it over at his place, and you can read the details there. The woman who got the house said that no one in her family owns a home--she's the first person to become a homeowner. How cool is that? It sure made me realized how fortunate we are. I thought it was neat that this wasn't just a lone Habitat house--they're building a small community, and the lady who got the house has been helping her neighbors with their houses as well as working on her own. It was a great thing to see, and I'm glad we went!

Later, it was on to my sister's house. Right after we got to Diana's, we made a trip to her museum. (Well, it's not HER museum, but she's the assistant director of the Elkhart County Historical Museum). She opened it up for us and we got to see their quilt exhibit, as well as several other cool things. This is Amish country, so quilting is big around here. I think the oldest one they have is from 1859, and there were some beautiful quilts on display. I asked Diana if they still had the Ambrose Bierce stuff, so she opened up that room for me. She got out the map that was on display at the Field Museum in Chicago during their map display exhibit. This small map is worth about $35,000! They also have his field desk from the Civil War, and a few of his map-making tools, and she said she has no idea of what those things are worth.

While walking around and looking at things, I came across a picture book that was out. It was an original from the Chicago Columbian Exposition of 1893, the World's Fair! A few years ago, Ken got me the book The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson. I loved the book, and it made me fascinated by that World's Fair, so I got several books about it. Only two large buildings survive: the one that the Museum of Science and Industry now occupies, and the one that is the home of the Art Institute. I was thrilled to find a book that was of that time period! I'm thinking I might be spending some time over there, just looking through things like that.

Back at Diana's house, she asked me, "So you're going to Vegas and you're going to see 'Love'! Ohhh, it was GREAT!" What did I tell you? Then she brought out her program (Again, what did I tell you?), and as we looked through it, she told me how great it was. When I told her we had front row seats, she said, "Ohhhhh!" Ha ha! She talked about it more a little later, and said that while she was there, she even wondered if maybe this isn't what Heaven is like. One more time...what did I tell you?! She also recommended the Liberace Museum, but I said we were hoping that the Neon Museum, AKA The Boneyard, will be open and we can tour that. She said she'd never heard of that one, but I'm not sure how much she's into signage.

I had taken my reading glasses with me, and as I put them on and held my pony tail up on my head, I told Diana that I brought them along so I could "do my new impression, doncha know!" She cracked up, and asked if I could do the wink. I obliged. I'll have to continue working on it, but I made her laugh with just that, so I'll consider that a success. The only real political discussion that came up was about the economy, which shows where everyone's main concern is at.

Diana made Pasta Fagioli, and we were all stuffed by the time we were done. She made a pineapple cake using a recipe from our Aunt June, and after that, we were even more stuffed! Mom liked all of her cards and presents, and I think she had a really nice time. Thanks to everyone who sent birthday wishes for Mom--she really got a kick out of it!

Also, it turns out that Diana has some really weird friends. This guy just sat around and never said a word. How rude!

Di is planning on putting him in the passenger seat of her Camaro and putting some sunglasses on him when she drives to work. I'd love to see some of the reactions to that!

Today has turned out to be a good one, too. Beautiful weather--very warm for mid-October--and we agreed that we should grill. I was looking for a sirloin steak in the freezer, and when I moved a roast, I uncovered TWO packages of Porterhouse steaks! Oh yeah, babe! We're talking Porterhouse steaks, a baked potato, and a lettuce wedge with blue cheese dressing. Works for me! Hope you all had a superb weekend!