The World's Largest Catsup Bottle stands proudly next to Route 159, just south of downtown Collinsville, Illinois. This unique, 170-foot-tall water tower was built in 1949 by W.E. Caldwell Company for the G.S. Suppiger catsup bottling plant. In 1995, due largely to the efforts of the Catsup Bottle Preservation Group, this piece of local history was saved from demolition and beautifully restored to its original appearance.
"It is better of course to know useless things than to know nothing." - Lucius Annaeus Seneca
Friday, March 28, 2008
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Shhhhhh
I love this picture. This is my youngest child Ginger - better known as Ginny. My sister took this shot when we were camping recently. You don't get too many shots of Ginny like this, she doesn't sit still for long.
"A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of."- Ogden Nash
"A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of."- Ogden NashGoing home again
I went back home for Easter, as I do every year. And may I say, things have changed a bit... just as they do every year. The drive in is different, the country side is different, even my parents home is different.
I grew up on the West side of San Antonio outside the city. Friends called it the boondocks though some might disagree - it's not like we lived OUT in the country, so you had to drive 20 minutes to get to the grocery store. The 30 it took to get to the mall was a little rough in the teenage years. Oh how things change. Now there is a Wal-mart with in 2 miles. Just across the street is a huge HEB. This weekend I went shopping at Kohls - who shares a parking lot with the grocery store. Back in my day, we were excited about the Sonic and Bill Millers that opened when I was in high school. Now there's a Taco Cabana, Starbucks, Burger King, Double Dave's, Panda Express and a Pei Wei.
When growing up I don't remember appreciating the city or really feeling anything significant towards living there. I'm not sure I even thought much on where I would end up some day, though I did know I wanted to live in Texas. What I do remember is loving the feeling of being home at my parents house. That comforted feeling of being surrounded by the comfort and love and contentment and - oh the list goes on. Even the house has changed though. Where there was carpet now is wood floors. The backyard is unrecognizable with a rock paved patio and hot tub - I would have really like having that during high school :) There is a dog that sleeps in my parents bed - that soooo wouldn't have happened 10 years ago. My room isn't mine anymore with a shiny bedspread and antique furniture.
Now that I've lived away for awhile and experienced the differences from one Texas town to the next, I analyze the qualities of San Antonio. Things I like and things I don't. Though things are a-changing on the West side of SA, the city keeps itself somehow the same. My parent's home is so different from what it was then, yet it still feels like home and comfort. I don't know that I'll ever reside in that city again, but I like that I live close enough to visit often.
"No one can go back and make a brand new start, my friend, but anyone can start from here and make a brand new end." - Anonymous
I grew up on the West side of San Antonio outside the city. Friends called it the boondocks though some might disagree - it's not like we lived OUT in the country, so you had to drive 20 minutes to get to the grocery store. The 30 it took to get to the mall was a little rough in the teenage years. Oh how things change. Now there is a Wal-mart with in 2 miles. Just across the street is a huge HEB. This weekend I went shopping at Kohls - who shares a parking lot with the grocery store. Back in my day, we were excited about the Sonic and Bill Millers that opened when I was in high school. Now there's a Taco Cabana, Starbucks, Burger King, Double Dave's, Panda Express and a Pei Wei.
When growing up I don't remember appreciating the city or really feeling anything significant towards living there. I'm not sure I even thought much on where I would end up some day, though I did know I wanted to live in Texas. What I do remember is loving the feeling of being home at my parents house. That comforted feeling of being surrounded by the comfort and love and contentment and - oh the list goes on. Even the house has changed though. Where there was carpet now is wood floors. The backyard is unrecognizable with a rock paved patio and hot tub - I would have really like having that during high school :) There is a dog that sleeps in my parents bed - that soooo wouldn't have happened 10 years ago. My room isn't mine anymore with a shiny bedspread and antique furniture.
Now that I've lived away for awhile and experienced the differences from one Texas town to the next, I analyze the qualities of San Antonio. Things I like and things I don't. Though things are a-changing on the West side of SA, the city keeps itself somehow the same. My parent's home is so different from what it was then, yet it still feels like home and comfort. I don't know that I'll ever reside in that city again, but I like that I live close enough to visit often.
"No one can go back and make a brand new start, my friend, but anyone can start from here and make a brand new end." - Anonymous
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
The First One
Here it is. The 1st blog. And what's the first blog always about... um, well this one's about the blogger. If you've found this site then you probably already know me, so we'll skip some of the basics.
Other things, hmm...
I love magnolia flowers, spring in the Texas hillcountry, black ink pens, scrapbook paper, singing with the band at my church, my neurotic black cat, books (all of them), pepperoni and pineapple pizza, cold coca-cola in a can, the thesaurus on the computer, old church buildings, when my husband kisses my forehead, and coming home from a fun vacation.
I do not like scrubbing the bathtub, Austin traffic, spelling, macaroni and cheese, when people use the phrases 'the ball's in your court' or 'works like a champ' in a business meeting, and feeling unappreciated.
Things that scare me: scorpions, driving between an 18 wheeler and the cement barrier on the highway, going blind, and the depth of the ocean.
It's almost the end of March: the year is almost a quarter over, quarter end is coming up a work and I will probably be working long hours, I'm only a couple months away from being 28 and from my 10 year high school reunion - yikes
Well, that may or may not tell you a little more about me.
"The greatest lesson in life is to know that even fools are right sometimes." - Sir Winston Churchill
Other things, hmm...
I love magnolia flowers, spring in the Texas hillcountry, black ink pens, scrapbook paper, singing with the band at my church, my neurotic black cat, books (all of them), pepperoni and pineapple pizza, cold coca-cola in a can, the thesaurus on the computer, old church buildings, when my husband kisses my forehead, and coming home from a fun vacation.
I do not like scrubbing the bathtub, Austin traffic, spelling, macaroni and cheese, when people use the phrases 'the ball's in your court' or 'works like a champ' in a business meeting, and feeling unappreciated.
Things that scare me: scorpions, driving between an 18 wheeler and the cement barrier on the highway, going blind, and the depth of the ocean.
It's almost the end of March: the year is almost a quarter over, quarter end is coming up a work and I will probably be working long hours, I'm only a couple months away from being 28 and from my 10 year high school reunion - yikes
Well, that may or may not tell you a little more about me.
"The greatest lesson in life is to know that even fools are right sometimes." - Sir Winston Churchill
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