Around Columbia

Cafe Mozaki: New Coffee Shop at Library

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 03:21:00 +0000

The trend over the past several years has been for public libraries to offer coffee shops and other amenities to consumers. I like that trend. So, I was excited when the Daniel Boone Regional Library here in Columbia opened a coffee shop but sad when it closed. One thing that concerned me was that the last proprieter never seemed to have much business and that it would be difficult to find someone to run the concession. For months the area sat empty in the library and I was afraid that the library would abandon the project. I was delighted when Cafe Mozaki opened.

The Patel family opened up the shop and they also run Daylight Donuts. I had one of their donuts and it was absolutely outstanding.

Hannah loves their Italian Ices (without the cream) and she had a chocolate muffin for the first time that she was very happy with too.

We had to wait in line to get served and while we were in line five other customers queued up. In this case that is a good thing. It means that they appear to be doing a good business and there may be incentive enough for them to stay. It helps that prices are reasonable.

Mordica Homestead

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 00:59:00 +0000

In a previous post, July of this year, I wrote about the Mordecai (anglizied as Mordica) family members buried at the Rocky Fork Primitive Baptist Church. This time around I am showing pictures of the original Mordecai homestead located north of Columbia off of the Old No. 7 road.

These pictures were taken this summer but I have just now gotten around to publishing the story. I visited the old home place with my mother, Virginia Perkins, who was born at home in the old house pictured below. The original homestead sits in a picturesque valley with the home sheltered by hills and ridges overlooking vast rich fields, and with the family cemetery perched overhead overlooking the valley on a high hill. It is overgrown, littered with junk cars and dilapidated out buildings, but still you can tell that at one time this was a handsome place. You can tell that the location was picked with care.

We were not able to gain access to the original house (cabin?) itself but were allowed to visit the cemetery and traveled back and forth from that location just north of where the building was located. The house as been modified and somewhat updated but has been abandoned for years. Yet, underneath the original structure is still there. I just learned that the owner of the property has died so we are going to try again to gain access to the old house, and go inside at least to take pictures. Somebody in the family should buy up this little piece of property which contains so much of the family history.

Here are some pictures of the cemetery as well as the corner markers. There are stones lying all over the place torn down, neglected, and lying in a field where cows graze.

Grave by a tree.

View from the top of the hill, roughly facing south, where the cemetery is located overlooking the fields where the Mordecai family farmed. The old house is to the east.

View facing the opposite direction from the above picture. Facing approximately north with the original house (cabin) to the right - on the east side.

One of the four original boundary, or corner, markers for the cemetery. Probably made of cast iron. This particular marker is in the north -west corner of the cemetery.

Here is another view from much further back at approximately where the south-west boundary marker (which is now missing or covered up) was placed.

Anonymous grave marker. Maybe there was never a name on this marker but time has certainly reduced it. There is a slight chance it is a foot marker but that is highly unlikely.

Typical marker. There are probably many more like this one which are now covered up and hidden from view.

Yet another stone knocked down.

Here is one of the boundary markers on the east side which has been broken off at the base.

This picture is out of sequence since it was taken on the way up to the cemetery walking in a westerly direction up the hill. It is included here since it offers a different view of the old house.

This is the house my mom and most of her brothers and sisters were born in. This was picture was taken coming down off the cemetery hill walking in an easterly direction.

Another view of the house.

Yet another view of the house showing more of the surrounding area. Facing approximately west with the hill where the cemetery is located obscured from the low angle view from where the picture was taken facing east.

The Mordecai family has been in this area for over 150 years. This old homestead and what else remains of the family legacy should be preserved. As of this writing the fate of the old building is unknown and it have already been torn down.

2009 Interfaith Ecumenical Thanksgiving Celebration - Update

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 06:18:00 +0000

Each year the Columbia Interfaith Council has a thanksgiving celebration and I have attended the last three. Here are some pictures from the last one which was held this past Sunday on the Mizzou campus in the Memorial Union. Make sure to check the previous post for the video.

Leaders from the Jewish and Hindu communities.

Imam Abdullah Smith from the Islamic Center of Central Missouri

Reader from the local Newman Center.

Pastor of Bethel Church.

Children performing a traditional dance from the Shanthi Mandir Hindu Temple and Community Center of Mid-Missouri.

Representatives from the Baha'i faith.

UNITY

BREAKING BREAD TOGETHER

This year was probably the biggest and best Thanksgiving interfaith event yet even though there was a holiday parade scheduled downtown at the same exact time. Representatives from the Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Baha'i, and Jewish faith traditions were all present to celebrate together.

Isn't it interesting that when people of faith come together in the same room the differences melt away and the humanity comes forth. All of us share the same hopes and fears. We tend to forget that when our sectarian differences, our own woefully inadequate understanding of the divine, gets in the way.

Interfaith Thanksgiving 2009

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 08:07:00 +0000

I will post more but I wanted to get this video up as soon as possible. Here is the video for the Interfaith Thanksgiving celebration held on 22 November 2009:

Eastgate Plaza at Night

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 05:18:00 +0000

Where else can you get food, liquor, health food with various assorted related sundries, access the services of UPS, and visit heaven? Nowhere that I know of except the "Eastgate Plaza." anchored by Eastgate IGA. Located conveniently less than two miles from my home and nearly all of that downhill.

The view facing east from across the street. Eastgate IGA is hidden by the bank disguised as some kind of art display.

Coming into the parking lot a surprise awaits you, and you would think that this surprise was larger and more populated. Sadly, neither seems to be the case.

Has that sparse "zen" look.

Looking east from Heaven you see the UPS store.

Sometimes you just can't do another WalMart run and that is when Eastgate shines. Eastgate also does a lot of barbecue and has somewhat of a busy lunchtime clientele.

Going in.

Coming Out.

Barbecue and Liquor

This Clovers is smaller than the main store but nonetheless a convenient outpost for clean and organic living.

Rachel Miller - Child Holocaust Survivor

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 21:43:00 +0000

This is an older story which I did not run because I could not find the photographs. I have nearly thirty thousand digital images and sometimes the pictures get lost. At any rate, I apologize for the delay, but it does not diminish the poignancy of the message which was delivered on April 24th of this year.

Rachel Miller came to share her story as a childhood holocaust survivor speaking at a very full house at the local Hillel center. We even ran out of chairs! It was a fascinating, and very different, story than those I have heard before. I took my youngest daughter, another Rachel, and it was amazing the affinity, and even physical resemblance, that those two had.

Rachel Miller and my own Rachel

Rachel Miller addressing the audience.

The presentation in progress.

A view of the crowd in the full building.

Here is an excellent video that KETC, in St. Louis, ran about her story. God bless you Rachel Miller and thanks for sharing your story:

Kosher In Columbia Revisited

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 04:16:00 +0000

Back in August I ran another story on keeping kosher in Columbia. Fortunately it continues to get easier all the time and I have even found several new sources of kosher food such as World Harvest which sells otherwise impossible to find kosher canned beans.

Last weekend we attended a bat mitzvah celebration in St. Louis and on Sunday we went to Kohn's Kosher Market to replenish our meat supply. Meat is the only thing you really cannot get here. The last post on this topic showed a shipment we had just received by Federal Express, and we had pretty much gone through most of it. This time we were in St. Louis anyway and saved a lot of money by picking it up at the store in person. While there we had a great lunch and I was particularly pleased with the buffet which I had never had before. So, here are some pictures from that trip.

Now here is a question though. When are we going to get a Chabad House?

Ron Taylor Project: The Last Assignment

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 02:36:00 +0000

NOTE: This project has been moved to it's own web site: http://thelastassignment.blogspot.com/
In my other blog I talk about having only had about six real teachers in over 20 years of formal education. I am talking about people who's primary responsibility was to impart some kind of wisdom or knowledge into me. Of course other people took a crack at it but not as professionals.

Ron Taylor was one of those teachers. This fall reminded me of something he said to me years ago. After class Ron would hang around campus and sort of get wistful about things and I loved to talk with him then. Like me he loved the campus, the idea and beauty of it, during the slow times when everyone else had pretty much gone home. It is an awesome experience to have a whole campus to yourself! It was a fall afternoon, around this time of year, when he had me come out to the front of St. Clair at Columbia College. He told me that somebody should come to that spot at the same time every week and take a picture of the trees. He thought it was worthwhile to capture the seasonal changes. Well, that was years ago but last week I remembered. At around 3 p.m. on a Wednesday I went out and took a picture. It is my last assignment from Ron.

Every week for a year I am going to go to the same spot at 3 p.m. on Wednesday and take a picture of the general area Dr. Taylor indicated. If I cannot be there at that exact time I will do it the day before or the day after, or perhaps have someone else do it for me. I hope to use the same camera as well (my Lumix with Leica lens - a great pocket camera).

Here are the first two pictures. I will add pictures to this project every week or so until next year at this time.

Week One: Taken on 14 October 2009 at 3 p.m.

Week Two: Taken on 20 October 2009 at 2 p.m.

FFA Community Service Challenge: Adopt A Spot for Missorui Cancer Associates

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 21:01:00 +0000

On Saturday (17 October 2009), high school students in FFA (Future Farmers of America) from North Shelby and Chillicothe high schools volunteered their time here in Columbia. The location for their community service project was a traffic island they landscaped at the intersection of Broadway and Old 63.

This specific project was a community service challenge for Missouri Cancer Associates and was supervised by master gardener Carolyn Oates:

Carolyn explained the requirements for a master gardener. Locally master gardeners must take a class from the University of Missouri Master Gardener Extension program, and then volunteer 30 hours the first year and 20 hours for subsequent years. Master gardeners must also continue with six hours of ongoing education per year. The University of Missouri has an outstanding Master Gardener Extension program with a very informative web site where you can go to get more information.

This statement about the Master Gardener program is from the American Horticultural Society web page:

The Master Gardener program, conducted throughout the United States and Canada, is a two-part educational effort, in which avid gardeners are provided many hours of intense home horticulture training, and in return they "pay back" local university extension agents through volunteerism. Master Gardeners assist with garden lectures, exhibits, demonstrations, school and community gardening, phone diagnostic service, research, and many other projects.

In the future I plan on doing a related story on community gardens.

There is increasing concern with our food supply and an increasing interest in urban gardening. There are highly productive, and efficient, methods for growing produce in urban settings and I predict that will continue to be a growing trend. Newer methods of cultivation, like the square foot system are boosting productivity while cutting down on the need for harmful chemicals. I would like to see more young people involved with the FFA which not just about traditional farming but also about agriculture education in general. How about FFA groups for urban high schools with a focus on urban gardening?

I drove by a couple of days later and took a picture of the completed project. Looks pretty good:

Flash Flood & the Green Valley Drive Bridge

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 03:50:00 +0000

Last Thursday and Friday the heavens opened up and we got a lot of rain in a short amount of time. I was driving to work and the alert came on the radio warning of flash floods. Later that afternoon , after I finished my last class around 3 p.m., I decided to take some pictures, and the pictures are a little more dramatic than what I had expected. Although the rain had stopped the runoff was still considerable, kind of hilly around here, and the water was still rising.

These pictures are of the area just east of Eastgate IGA of an old one lane bridge open only to local traffic on Green Valley Drive. Here are the before pictures taken while the water was still up:

On the bridge facing south:

On the north side of the bridge facing north and East Broadway.

On the north side of the bridge facing south:

Here is what it looked like now that the water is down a week later:

A short movie. The water is still swift and strong a week later:

Here are some pictures I took last winter of the same bridge:

סוכות (Sukkot) in Columbia

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 04:12:00 +0000

Sukkot , in Hebrew סוכות, also known as the Feast of Tabernacles, is one of the three pilgrim festivals (when ancient Jews would visit the temple in Jerusalem) and lasts for seven days. It occurs between late September and late October in the secular calendar. In the Jewish calendar it occurs on the 15th of Tishrei after the High Holy Days (Rosh Hasannah and then Yom Kippur). Some scholars believe that Sukkot was the model for the Pilgrim celebration of Thanksgiving. It is my favorite holiday.

A sukkah, is a booth or hut which observant Jews "dwell" in during the holiday and it is considered a great mitzvah to have guest.This year we had over twelve guests who came to eat, rest, study, or just mediate at various times in our sukkah, and we came periously close to running out of room. I am even thinking of buying a bigger sukkah for next year. Our sukkah is made from a kit and we set it up on our driveway, but many people build their own and it is not expensive to do so.

Many of our neighbors asked about our "tent" and I was happy to explain to them what it really was and the significance of the holiday.

Next year, God willing, I am hoping to have over twenty guest! Columbia is not the Jewish wasteland that it once was.

St. Luke's Greek Food Festival

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 03:35:00 +0000

This event is something to look forward to every year.

For the past seven years St. Luke's Greek Orthodox church, located at 1510 Audubon, has sponsored a Greek food festival.

This event always seems to draws a big crowd and this year it seemed even larger than usual. Parking was at a premium so my wife and I took advantage of a beautiful fall day to walk the two blocks from our house next to Shepherd Elementary School to St. Luke's to eat and enjoy the festivities. I am glad we did.

The food was delicious and the help was friendly.

Different booths offered various items emblomatic of Greek life and culture.

I tried Ouzo for the first time. I liked it.

Fresh pastries.

Then there was the dancing,...!

Before leaving I took a few moments to talk to Fr. Michael Monos, the parish priest, who has been at the church since February 1st of this year. Fr. Monos struck me as energetic and outgoing, and I think the parish is in good hands. I am glad that we have this faith community here in Columbia to add to our diversity and contribute to our cultural life.

Father Michael Monos.

Eheu Fugaces Labuntur Anni

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 02:56:00 +0000

This collection of old Volkswagen Beetles near Cosmo Park fascinates me. The Beetle was the longest-running and most-produced car of a single design.

This juxtaposition of industry and nature in the photographs is a post-industrial metaphor at least for us here in the West. We view manufacturing as in decline with finance and service sectors becoming more of the economic engine. Industry declines and nature takes over. I call it "The Detroit Look."

There is an interesting backdrop to this story. These vehicles are located at a once thriving Volkswagon repair shop that was operated by the father of NASCAR car driver Carl Edwards. Edwards grew up around the shop and weekend racing.

The title for this post is from the Latin: "Alas, the fleeting years slip by. (Horace)."

Westboro, The Media, and Kids in the Middle

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 04:34:00 +0000

What do you expect from a church that has a web site www.godhatesfags.com?

All photos were taken near the Hillel student center at the edge of the Mizzou campus. Yes this is the same group that goes to the funerals of slain military personnel:

On the 2ed of October the Westboro Baptist Church brought their show to town for the second time. They had a parade permit, duly granted by the City of Columbia, to protest at four locations. They started their evening off with a protest right outside of Hickman High just as it was dismissing, moved to the Hillel Jewish student center on the Mizzou campus where these pictures were taken, moved from there to Stephens College that was putting on a play about the late Matthew Shepard (the young man killed in Wyoming for being homosexual), and from there to congregation Beth Shalom where they were just in time to be seen by the families gathering for Friday night Shabbos services on the first night of Sukkot.

Is this exploitation of children, in these kinds of conditions, in violation to Missouri Child Protection Laws?

They are professional provocateurs who come with a selection of glossy signs complete with a carrying case. The signs would change depending on the situation. At the high school, knowing that many of the students were African American, they had signs proclaiming that God hates Obama. At the two Jewish locations the emphasis was on God's hate for the Jews, Israel, and signs saying that the Jews killed Jesus. Of course they had plenty of signs declaring God's hate for "fags" which is their specialty.

Journalism students flocked to the demonstration site to take advantage of a news story that was at least interesting.

Counter protesters outnumbered the Westboro members by at least three to one although numbers fluctuated.

When I went to cover this to me the real story was the swarm of journalism students that descended on this event as part of their classroom studies, and the Westboro children. I wondered if the Westboro adults knew what a huge favor they were doing for those journalism students who otherwise would be covering a zoning debate at the local city council meeting. Did they know that the "stories" they were diligently relaying to convey their toxic views would just end up in the grading stack of some MU prof? Instead of manipulating and using the media this trip the tables were turned. But, what about the children?

Children were repeatedly interviewed, scrutinized, and questioned. Is this abusive?

What happens when you expose children to this kind of vitriol day after day? How much school do these children miss to act as human shields for their parents who otherwise would be much more likely to be overwhelmed by disapproving crowds? When I watched their faces and how they were reacting to the event it was clear that this was not a happy childhood event to be remembered fondly but something very different. How damaging is it to expose children to this? For one thing there is the constant talk of hate. Then there is the issue of children being used to create a public spectacle. When it was time to leave I watched he children as they almost ran back to the van leading their elders where they were quick to disappear out of the public eye into the privacy of the van. What is it like to be put on display like this as a child?

Here the group heads for their van with the press following still interviewing and snapping pictures on the fly. The young man in front had obviously had enough exposure for one day. Had this kids been pulled out of school to participate in this travesty?

This young couple demonstrates that there are other things to do in the midst of hate and hurt. A lesson for us all.

Capen Park Mulch Site

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 05:29:00 +0000

Capen Park (located at Capen Park Drive off of Rock Quarry Road, South of Stadium) is known for it's trails and bluffs overlooking a creek. But, right next to it is one of two mulch sites which is in and of itself an interesting place to visit and located centrally to several other places worth exploring. I am working on a story regarding Capen park itself to include at least one video and one or more audio files with lots of pictures. That story will probably be in at least two parts. But, I thought i would go ahead and do this separate, but related, story regarding the mulch site. This particular area, located less than a quarter of a mile from the football stadium, has several interesting features and the mulch site is located right in the middle of them.

This is the monster grinder used to make the mulch.

The Capen Park Mulch Site is a location where you can drop off yard waste and get free mulch. Compost is available Wednesdays from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m and on some Saturdays at $12.00 plus tax per cubic yard with a loader on site to assist.

Unfortunately some people abuse the system and dump waste and trash. Tires can be particularly problematic to get rid of and here you can somebody took advantage of the situation. One problem with tires is that the city trash service will not pick them up unless they are cut into four pieces which is a little bit of a trick to do. I have a lone tire sitting in my basement, one I inherited from my son when he moved out over two years ago, to attest to that fact. So, people look for alternative means to get rid of their old tires.

I highly recommend the composting workshops which are scheduled periodically. Here is the information from the Compost-Mulch Operations web site:

Fall and Spring compost workshops are held at the Capen Park Demonstration Site located off Rock Quarry Road. For additional details about the compost workshops, call Columbia Public Works at 874-6271, or send your name, address, telephone number and E-mail address to pw-volunteer@GoColumbiaMo.com, and we'll send you the composting schedule and information you requested.

There is also a lot of pretty scenery in the area including the walking trail that runs right on the north side of the site. As you head west along the trail you pass the compost class site and eventually come to an old bridge which is just used now for bicycle and foot traffic.

The picture above and below are views from the bridge.

Chili

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 03:01:00 +0000

Steven Chilson, Chili to his friends, is back in the Columbia area after many years at the Lake of the Ozarks where he played with various bands. I have always been fascinated with street musicians having watched them in Stuttgart, Memphis, New York, everyplace in between, and of course here in Columbia. I had the pleasure of listening and watching him play in front of Cool Stuff (why doesn't my friend Arnie Fagan have a web site for his wonderful store?!) on an absolutely beautiful day.

So, I decided to do a short article in appreciation of this talented musician.

Writers write, photographers take pictures, and musicians play and everyone else just talks it. Chili has been doing it for over two decades.

Mugs Up Drive-In: Three Generations Family Owned

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 03:33:00 +0000

A couple of weeks ago my mother had cravings for a chili dog from Mugs Up. Eventually my father had to drive in from Harrisburg and buy her a meal and it remains one of her favorite places to eat out. I should also mention that my father worked on the metal structure of this building at Riback Industries (a new defunct metal fabrication business) as one of that businesses first commissions. I started remembering my own trips there through the years and especially my fondness for my own personal favorite - their famous Zip Burger (a "crumbly hamburger" of a style that has unfortunately lost popularity). I decided it was time to do a story about this Columbia institution.

I expected to do a story about an establishment that was fighting to keep going within a dodgy economy, struggling to keep reliable employees, and one that had gone through several owners. I was wrong on all counts. What I did find out surprised me.
During the entire time I was there business was good enough to keep six people busy with a steady stream of customers coming and going. The pace was steady and the mood of the staff cooperative rather than the frenzied, and tense, atmosphere you find at a lot of other fast food establishments. The first person I talked to was employee Kelli Bias who was gracious enough to give me some of her time after her shift ended to talk about her experience at Mugs Up.

Kelli explained she has been working at Mugs Up for eleven years. She said, "I love the job. The bosses are great and we are like a family." She explained that she has two daughters who work at the restaurant and a sister who has worked at Mugs Up for thirty years on and off who currently still comes in on part time basis.

Kelli also told me that the restaurant had been open since 1955 when it was established by Ray Kewley. The first location was right on the business loop where it operated until 1969 when the original building was moved back to the present location. Since then the business has passed onto Larry and Kay Kewley who are now the owners and are still active in running and working at the establishment. Their son Brandon is the current manager and was on duty when I was there.

My Dad actually worked on the steel structure for this building as an ornamental iron worker for Riback Industries a now defunct steel fabrication business in Columbia. It was one of Riback's first jobs after that business opened. You can see the round orange steel supports in this picture as well as in some of the other images.
The Menu! Reasonable prices and great tasting food.
I remember these trays from when I was growing up. They still use a damp washcloth on the bottom of the tray!
I was intrigued by the trays. These mesh plastic covered trays are the original ones that have been in use since Mugs Up opened. The "Serv-a-car product was manufactured by the SAC corporation in Parsons, Kansas which is still in operation but is now known as the Advanced Plastic Coatings Services, Inc.
An order about ready to go to the car.
The finished order ready to go with drinks and fries added:
The order delivered to Jenifer and her family who are longtime regulars at Mugs Up. Evidently the restaurant not only has loyal employees but loyal customers, like Jennifer and her family along with my own mom, who keep coming back.
Brandon Kewley and one of his employees. Brandon is the son of the current owners, is the current manager, and has been working at Mugs Up since he was 12 years old.

The food, the old-fashioned drive-in atmosphere, the longevity of the business as well as the loyalty of the employees all combine to make this a fascinating story. The restaurant business can be brutal but the Kewley family have found a recipe for success which has lasted through three generations. There is a lot to admire there. I am still investigating but Mugs Up may be the longest continuously running restourant in Columbia depending on how you categorize Booches which has been open since 1884. If there is one that has been open longer I would like to hear about it.

Mugs Up closes during the harder winter months and manager Brandon Kewley said they expect to stay open this year sometime into November. If you have not visited Mugs Up I highly recommend it.

Located just off Business Loop 70 on 603 Orange Street, the establishment is just far enough back that you may miss it when you drive by. So, I decided to include a map to help you find it:

View Larger Map

Churck Berry at the Blue Note

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 21:05:00 +0000

Outside of the Blue Note in the venue minutes before the concert starts.

The man himself - Chuck Berry!

On 26 August 2009 legendary rocker Chuck Berry appeared for a night concert on 9th Street sponsored by the Blue Note. This is a tribute to Chuck Berry, who is now 82 years of age, and a thanks to the Blue Note for continuing to bring top notch entertainment to Columbia.

Under the lights of a hot humid night and at 82 years of age Chuck Berry was outstanding.
A classy articulate guy: Charles Berry, Jr., Chuck Berry's son.

Member of the band.

Here is an audio excerpt not so much of the concert but of the event ambiance with sound from the beginning, middle, and end of the concert. It gets a little better as it goes along so give it some time:

The venue was packed and VERY crowded with many participants drinking their beer but was surprisingly free of incident and trouble. Everyone was in a reasonably good mood considering it was hot and humid as well as the amount of drinking going on. Inside and outside the Blue Note it was an eerie feeling because the faces, the noise, the mood, and the atmosphere of anticipation was just like the French Quarter in New Orleans.

Berry played for about 50 minutes and it was a remarkable show considering his age. I think few people left disappointed. I had considered taking my younger kids but I am glad I did not. Short people were at a disadvantage on Wednesday night and what few kids I did see seemed to be leaving early with their parents because they simply could not see anything. Also, there were some people in wheelchairs who were similarly disadvantaged. Some of the concert goers, mostly older ones it seemed, came very early with their lawn chairs. It did not appear to help because sitting in a lawn chair makes you short too and it means you just came early to sit out in the hot to be surrounded by a jostling crowd towering above you blocking your view one the venue started to fill. So it goes.

Here are some video excerpts from the concert:

Notice that the video has an announcer mentioning the Roots 'N Blues 'N BBQ Festival which is scheduled soon for September 25th - 26.

View of the venue after the concert facing North on 9th Street.

Walking North out of the concert area on 9th Street.

Overall? It was a great event, and a great concert, and I am glad I went. This is another reminder for me that when an opportunity becomes available you take it. Turn off the TV, better yet get rid of it, and experience life.

When Time magazine compiled a list of the top ten electric guitar players guess who made that short list?

1. Jimi Hendrix
2. Slash
3. B.B. King
4. Keith Richards
5. Eric Clapton
6. Jimmy Page
7. Chuck Berry
8. Les Paul
9. Yngwie Malmsteen
10. Prince

Kosher In Columbia? YES it is possible!

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 00:19:00 +0000

What is this big box of meat doing outside our front door?

When we decided to keep Kosher we did so with a lot of planning and a lot of preparation. We received a lot of help from a Chabad rabbi in St. Louis who runs The Source Unlimited located at 11044 Olive Blvd (available by phone at 314.567-1925) who was always willing to give us advice and more importantly optimistic encouragement. At The Source I purchased a book entitled Going Kosher in 30 Days by another Chabad rabbi by the name of Zalman Goldstein that was helpful. I also found another very detailed series of lectures online in mp3 format by yet another Chabad Rabbi by the name of Dovid Bendory that was simply outstanding with suffienct detail to help guide us through a very detail oriented process. Rabbi Bendory is a very gifted teacher and his attention to detail is a great asset when converting a kitchen to kosher. The one thing about the Chabad people is that they were always encouraging and optimisitc and viewed the process as something that was very doable for us. And, it was.

We got rid of a lot of stuff, bought some new stuff, and made our kitchen kosher. I estimate that at least 70 - 80 percent of the food in a normal grocery store is kosher and probably even more than that. For example there is an OU certified bacon bit salad dressing which is kosher although it contains no pork but rather a marvel of modern chemistry that supposedly mimics the taste of pork - but we do not use it at our house. You can even buy kosher bread (mostly from Schnucks), a few kosher chesses (one from Sams and a few from Clovers while cream cheese is pretty much kosher no matter where you buy it) , and kosher fish here in Columbia but meat is a problem. By the way, Schnucks used to carry some kosher chicken items but at least for the time being has stopped that practice. The Conley street WalMart even had a Kosher section, NONE of the other WalMart stores here in Columbia did, although it was very limited and certainly did not heave meat (but they did have kosher chicken broth from time to time). Unfortunately I do not know what the Conley store will have after the remodeling is finished. What to do?

We planned our kitchen conversion carefully and on our way back from a family vacation to Florida last winter stopped at Kohn's (combination grocer, deli, and most importantly kosher butcher shop) to stock up. Before leaving for the trip we had completed all the preparation and work on our kitchen so it was ready to go. During that stop we purchased about six hundred dollars worth of meat, the staff helped us pack it in ice lined boxes, we covered it with blankets, and we drove home in the crowded van. Since then we have learned a lot and have ordered items from other meat suppliers in Chicago and New York but we continue to buy nearly all our meat from Kohn's. Most of the time though we order it on the internet and then have it shipped by Federal Express to our front door. The quality of the meat from Kohn's is very good and the chicken has the taste and texture of what chicken used to be like before producers started relying on growth hormones and other questionable production practices. Here is a pictorial essay of our last delivery:

The doorball rang and the dogs go crazy. We placed an order the day before yesterday so we have a good idea what is going on. It is the first order we have received while the kids are home so it is good to have them see how the process works for us.

To guard against thieves, kosher meat is expensive, we use specially trained and bred guard dogs procurred through the local Humane Society.
Here is our order. We tried a couple of new things this time around and it worked out great. We are slowly learning what to order and what to avoid to suit our taste. This is a photo with the box opened and the top removed from the Styrofoam container that helps keep the stuff frozen. That along with the dry ice is a pretty efficient system:
Here we are packing the stuff away into the freezer. My parents bought us the freezer which helps to make this all possible. If your going to keep kosher in a community that does not have a local butcher buty a freezer. This smaller one does very well.

A lot of people thought that keeping kosher here in Columbia was impossible or would be difficult. That is not true at all. With the internet and the efficiency of services like federal express along with the proliferation of material on keeping kosher available through the internet and in regular print sources it is actually not hard to do at all. It can be more expensive but we have adjusted and eat more parve or dairy meals and we are doing just fine. It has been a wonderful experience.

Fishing Mid-Missouri Style

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 22:11:00 +0000

Fishing on light tackle in Missouri is always fun but you do not have to go to the better known, and often crowded, streams and rivers to fish. I have always liked fishing the small streams, creeks, lakes, and ponds of Missouri. There are plenty of these locations in mid-Missouri in the Columbia area and some are even in the city limits. These particular pictures were taken at my Dad's pond where after supper I went outside on the dock and fished for an hour or so until it became dark enough so that I had to stop.

This is one of my bamboo fly rods. There is NO better way to fish. Gentleman fly fish and country gentleman fly fish with bamboo rods.

When conditions are right these poppers are deadly for bass. In my Dad's pond the bass like to patrol the edges of the pond when they feed and then make a running strike at whatever they see they fancy eating. If you walk out to the pond quietly you can see them there waiting fully visible in shallow water just inches from the bank.

These small poppers work great on a fly rod. They also work well for blue gill, I caught three, but then again blue gill will strike on just about anything. When I was a kid I caught one when I did not even intend to with a piece of red ribbon on a hook when I was just messing around.
Not the prettiest cast since I am not a graduate of one of the Orvis fly fishing schools. But, I catch fish. The fly, or whatever your fishing, should hit the water first, and you should have accuracy. After that your impressing people, at least those that know what to look for in a proper cast, more than anything else.
First one. I caught this one with a very small artificial worm designed for a fly rod.
Second one caught on a small fly.
Third one. Notice it is getting dark and this is a flash photo.
I usually fish catch and release and often cut the barb off the hook. All these fish were thrown back into the water. The small hook and absence of a treble hook avoid excessive trauma to the fish.

Shelter Insurance Fountain

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 19:55:00 +0000

Shelter Insurance is famous for its five acre garden and many weddings, picnics, and ordinary day outings have utilized that beautiful space. Also, the park is the setting for the annual garden concert series which celebrated 33 consecutive years this summer. Less well know is the fountain.

I have been taking my kids to that fountain for nearly twenty five years. That time period spanned my life as a young father in college to a working professional teaching at Columbia College lucky enough to have two kids left at home. Usually we will get ice cream and go sit and watch the fountain and we are almost never alone. When I took these pictures I was there for about an hour and during that time at least twenty people had come and gone before I left. It is also a nice place to talk and the sound of the water, besides being relaxing, conveniently makes eavesdropping nearly impossible.

Although many people just drive by I urge you to stop in and park and enjoy the fountain while perhaps starting a new family tradition.

One thing about the harsh economic times is that it provides us an opportunity to rethink how we live, spend our money, and utilize the time we have on this earth. Sometimes you don't have to travel far to find sights to see and things to do.

During my lifetime a lot of things have changed in Columbia. I am thankful that the Shelter Garden and fountain are not among the things I love that have disappeared. Thanks to Shelter Insurance not only for providing jobs but also a wonderful aesthetically pleasing addition to our community. All corporate entities should be such good neighbors.

If you are driving by on West Broadway some evening, during the season when the fountain is on, do yourself a favor and stop for awhile.

Graham Cave State Park

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 05:26:00 +0000

Located about 40 miles from Columbia, just off of I-70, at the East 170 Exit heading toward St. Louis, is Graham Cave State Park.

View Larger Map

Graham Cave may be one of the best kept secrets as far as campgrounds go if you are looking to get away from the crowds, like hiking, and are looking perhaps for something a little bit quieter. If your looking for a the RV kind of atmosphere but would like to be next to the park there are two private campgrounds located on both sides of the interstate along the access roads each less than two miles from the highway. We checked both of them out and they were both clean and well equipped with nice swimming pools. At least one of them had wifi access. As near as I can tell most private campgrounds now have wifi access which is an interesting sign of the times.

We visited Graham Cave in a scouting expidition in anticipation of a family campout. My impression is that the campground is spacious, well maintained, and under-utilized. We are going to spend two nights there in the near future. Here is a visual tour of the campground and the pictures are in the order that I took them:

The actual entrance:

Jenifer and Hannah outside the park office:

They were looking at this map which shows up well in the picture below:

Parts of the park roadway are wide and spacious:

Other roadways are narrow. The speed limit is 10 mph and there IS law enforcement with radar to enforce it.

Shower house and bathroom located in the camping area. There is also an on site host nearby:

One of several trails located in the park:

The next five pictures are from the western boundary of the park which is bounded by the Loutre Creek which latter turns into the Loutre River.

Why the boot ramp is out of commission I have no idea but the banks of the creek/river showed signs of recent flooding. We have had a lot of rain here in Missouri lately.

There in the middle of the picture is I - 70 At this point in the park you are perhaps about 100 yards from the interstate.

This area is at the end of a huge parking lot. There is also a small playground, one of at least two located in the park, not shown in the picture. The cave is located up this trail but we did not visit it since we are saving that for when we actually do camp:

If I had to characterize this park in one word it would be "lonely." It seems more isolated than it is with the interstate running on the southern side of the park. Overall a nice park and one that is located rather conveniently to Columbia.

Missouri Department of Natural Resources web site for this park:http://www.mostateparks.com/grahamcave.htm

New Princible at Lang Middle School

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 19:21:00 +0000

Today is the last day for Shelli Adams as principal for Lange Middle School. Shelli is leaving to finish her dissertation for her doctorate and she is being replaced by Dr. C. Bernard Solomon. Dr. Solomon is moving over from his position as assistant principal at Oakland Junior High

Photo of C. Bernard Solomon and Shelli Adams taken on 29 June 2009 in the administrative office of the John B. Lane Middle School, Columbia, MO
I would like to wish Dr. Solomon the best of luck at his new school and the soon to be Dr. Adams the best of luck as she completes her doctorate. As principal Adams was accessible, efficient, and ran a large organization with grace and good humor. You need all of those qualities in a middle school.

When our daughter transitioned from Shephard Elementary to Lange we were concerned about the move to a much larger school. Fortunately we have been pleasantly surprised at how wonderful the faculty are and how good of a princible Shelli Adams was.

Rocky Fork Primitive Baptist Church and the Mordecai (Mordica) Family

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 19:14:00 +0000

Located North of Columbia is the historic Rocky Fork Primitive Baptist Church. I have many relatives, from the Mordica side of the family, buried there. These relatives are descendants of Moses Mordecai, before the name became anglicized, and before most of the family had unfortunately become assimilated.

The Mordecai family has been in Missouri for over 150 years and is mentioned in the book Missouri Pioneers Volume I, by Audrey Woodruff and Nadine Hodges, the History of Boone County, Missouri published by the Boone County Historical Society and which is currently out of print but available online, at least in parts, from Google Books. Also, the Daniel Boone Regional Library has two copies in Columbia and one in Ashland.

This is an excerpt about Moses Mordecai from the Jewish Encyclopedia online:

American trader; founder of the Mordecai family in America; born in Bonn, Germany, in 1707; died in Philadelphia May 28, 1781. He went to America about 1750 and settled in Philadelphia, where he engaged in the brokerage business. On Oct. 25, 1765, Mordecai signed the celebrated Non-Importation Agreement, by which the merchants refused to import goods until the repeal of the Stamp Act. In 1777, after the outbreak of the Revolution, he signed an agreement to take the colonial paper currency sanctioned by the king, instead of gold and silver.

The family is also mentioned in Ways of Wisdom: Moral Education in the Early National Period by Ruth H. Block; Journal of Southern History, Vol 69, 2003 and the book Ways of Wisdom: Moral Education in the Early National Period by Jean E. Friedman published in 2001 by the University of Georgia Press (ISBN-13: 9780820322520) and here is a synopsis of that book from the Barnes & Noble web site:

In Ways of Wisdom, Jean Friedman traces how Jacob Mordecai and his family, German American Orthodox Jews*, adopted the Anglo-Irish enlightened pedagogical system developed by Richard Lovell Edgeworth and his daughter Maria. In 1808 Mordecai founded the Warrenton Female Academy on the enlightened principles described in the Edgeworths' guide, Practical Education, and he enlisted family members to teach and manage the school. Rachel Mordecai, inspired by her father's progressive methods, initiated an Edgeworthian experiment in home education on her young stepsister, Eliza. Rachel's diary, reproduced in full in Ways of Wisdom, chronicles the moral instruction of Eliza. While retaining the traditional didacticism of wisdom literature, the diary also describes Eliza's resistance to enlightened discipline and method.

Our family history is indeed the age old history of assimilation of the Jewish people witnessed by the fact that my relatives are buried in church cemeteries rather than a Jewish burial ground.

Some Mordecai/Mordica graves:

This is at the very back of the cometary on the western border:

Located at the back of the cometary are many stones, or markers, which have been removed but not discarded. My father tells me that these are foot markers that were put at the foot of the grave in addition to the more familiar headstone.

More footmarkers with initials?
Standing at the western end of the cemetary looking east.

Our disrespect for the dead manifests itself in many ways. The most recent event was when St. Mary's Church in Wimbledon, the one in England of tennis fame, sold parking on grave sites for 20 pounds in the annual money grab that occurs during the famous Wimbledon tennis match. When pictures of cars parked in a cemetary on graves were released along with the story (I first heard of it on the BBC) this statement was released which is basically an after-the-fact-we-got- caught "apology:"

Reverend Mary Bide said that although the cars look ‘odd’, they were only parked in the oldest part of the graveyard and funds raised would make a ‘valuable contribution to the Church and the Diocese’.

But the church has since apologised for the car parking arrangement and has stopped the use of the churchyard.

‘Over many years, during the Wimbledon Championships, the parish of St Mary Wimbledon has offered this service to the public,’ a church spokesman said.

In other words this was not a money making scheme but rather a public service and it was okay since it was an old part of the cometary.

I was also appalled years ago when a cometary was moved, including the digging up of thirty graves and the remains for re internment, to accommodate the expansion and development along Smiley Lane in the North part of Columbia which continues unabated:

The next two pictures are of those graves that were moved:

The rest are just some miscelanous photographs:

-----------------------------
*
The reference to Orthodox Jews in the book is an odd one since the division into formal branches I think is a slightly more modern distinction which, although emerging at the time period under discussion, was not yet formally a term in common usage. There were just Jews at various levels of observance. This is my understanding from that fascinating historic period when Judaism in America succumbed to the schism aliment so common in American Christian denominations. My understanding is that the term orthodox was used disparagingly by progressive elements in Judaism (which the author correctly identifies as coming largely from Germany) but that it was latter adapted by the traditional "Orthodox" movement as a convenient shorthand.

See:
http://www.myjewishlearning.com/history/Modern_History/1700-1914/Denominationalism/Orthodox.shtml

http://www.religionlink.com/tip_070827.php

http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/orthostate.html

Evidently the church web site is no longer maintained. However, Google's cache still had a copy of the history of the church and I was able to get it so the history would not be lost. It is located on scribd at this URL: http://www.scribd.com/doc/17427294/RF-History-1971-Mae-Wayland in pdf format.

Pinnacles Youth Park in Northern Boone County

noreply@blogger.com (mike) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 05:16:00 +0000

Heading north on Highway 63 about eleven miles outside of Columbia, located about a mile east on a well marked access road, is the 27 acre Pinnacles Youth Park. The Missouri Department of Conservation has a compact but extremely informative page on this natural area which is highly recommended.

It was the site of a recent family outing. After realizing I had been neglectful by not taking my two youngest children to this very attractive area I decided to do so last Sunday afternoon. When we were making plans my oldest daughter informed me she did not remember having ever visited either so she came along with us. It may be well over twenty years since I visited it myself. I also decided to do a photographic survey of the grounds as well as the more scenic vistas.

The Bluffs

These are the bluffs which have been the scene of much mischief (foolishly alcohol related) as well as injuries and if the rumors are true even two deaths. Missouri rock is not good for climbing. I know my own brother broke his ankle here and when I worked at a group home one of the residents badly hurt her ankle at an outing climbing the bluffs pictured below.

Not all of the area is bounded with the scenic bluffs.

There are several well maintained lanes for hiking along the bank on the west side of the creek with various paths leading down to the water. Bring bug spray. The bluffs are all on the other side and you have to cross the creek to get to them.

This is what is known as switch cane (Arundinaria gigantea tecta see: http://mdc.mo.gov/conmag/2002/10/30.htm)

The Overhang

I do not know what else to call it. This is the most interesting feature. It is an overhang created by the water during heavy rains when the area becomes flooded. This is about a quarter mile, maybe less, from the main area and I do not recall having visited this part of the nature area before. I think many people overlook it but it is well worth the walk. There were no bats, at least none that I saw, under the overhang but there were plenty of swallows.

Amenities

There is a bathroom and a large main shelter at the entryway where the parking lot is located.

There are also several smaller shelters.

Links

http://mdc.mo.gov/areas/natareas/p29-1.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia,_Missouri

http://www.visitcolumbiamo.com/web/things_to_do/gardens.php