A last look at tulips in Tower Grove Park before getting back in the air tomorrow. The route is St. Louis - Chicago - Madrid. We have lots of activities booked and the weather there sounds simply gorgeous.               ..read more

  During our walk around Washington University, my sister wanted to stop by Graham Chapel. The university has Methodist and Episcopal roots, but the chapel has been without affiliation for a long time. Mary Beth recalled that there were no classes at 11 AM on Wednesday and that there was always an interesting speaker here at that time. She recalled hearing Jane Fonda addressing the students during the Vietnam War.            ..read more

I left NY/NJ and came to St. Louis University in 1967 (I know - OMG). I was the oldest of four so when I ended up about a thousand miles away my mother thought her children hated her. Two years later, my sister, Mary Beth Crowe, Ph.D., enrolled at Washington University across town. Then mom was sure her children hated her, but the younger two stayed in the northeast. Wash U, as we call it, is much more prestigious than my place and is generally considered one of the top 10 or 20 universities in this country. She was always a more serious student than me. When the family was here last weekend ..read more

As mentioned, we had family and friends come from all over for our daughter Emily's memorial service last Saturday. Of course, our son, Andy, and his family came down from Michigan. So these are all three of our grandchildren: upper left, Ellie, the local, 10; cousin Audrey, 8; and wild guy grandson Atlas, 5, in an unusual moment of repose, at the bottom.  These cousins are tight friends, particularly the girls. Sometimes Atlas tries to bust up their activities. I have no Idea how Audrey learned to go bug-eyed on one side and cross the other eye to the middle. Who knows how many likes co ..read more

What do you do after a half century, when the joints are getting creaky? We went to brunch at our favorite French restaurant. The staff got wind of the occasion and gave us the most exquisite chocolate mousse at the end of our meal. So now, briefly, back in the routine. I might as well mention it at this point: our daughter, Ellie's mother, died just before the end of the year after, as they say, a long illness. We waited to have the memorial service until winter weather and Easter had passed. It took place on Saturday and was quite beautiful. Family and friends came from coast to coast. Now ..read more

A long time ago - everything is a long time ago now -  I was in my middle year of law school. It was St. Patrick's Day and I had only change in my pocket. My roommate and I decided we could not sit at home despite our lack of funds. There was a bar near the university that had cheap beer and pinball machines. It was crushingly crowded and I was literally pushed into the other person in this picture. I grew up in an apartment in New York. She grew up on a farm in Kansas. We were married 50 years ago today. It worked. It really did. And the adventures we have had. Some people want to sit o ..read more

The sky was getting dark early Monday afternoon (I have not edited the color of the sky in this photo). Granddaughter Ellie, clutching her beloved cloth lambie, stared at the sky with rapture. When totality arrived she let out a whoop. She may remember the day for the rest of her life. I need to take a break from the blog for a few days to attend to some family matters.                  ..read more

The truck stop where we pulled in for eclipse viewing. One after another, drivers of big tractor-trailers pulled in to watch the show. Several more arrived after I took the top picture. As soon as totality passed they were back on the road. The western view had the necessary emblems - McDonald's, the American flag and British Petroleum.                ..read more

We scouted traffic online before heading out yesterday morning. Traffic on the Interstate running south from St. Louis appeared to be in gridlock. We decided to head east into Illinois, stopping at a large truck stop parking lot about 55 miles / 88 km away. Plenty of room. I set up the tripod and got lots of ordinary photos of the moon gradually covering the sun. Just after I took this shot the plate that connects the camera to tripod's ball head decided to come lose. It was the critical moment. I couldn't get it tightened fast enough to get the eclipse filter off the lens for totality. No im ..read more

Nothing wrong with phone cameras these days. Under the right circumstances you can get some very good images. Most of us have heard the saying that the best camera is the one you have with you. Nevertheless, I'd rather have my Fujifilm at my side. Getting everything ready for the eclipse run tomorrow. The weather looks great. St. Louis will get 98-99% totality but not good enough. We will drive about an hour and a half southeast, where totality will last four minutes. Got my -20 stop solar lens filter. Hope we can find a space.             ..read more