This Town is Changing

Written about Jefferson Iowa-I love it! Have a listen...

http://artelliot.bandcamp.com/track/this-town-is-changing

This Town is Changing

about

Please excuse the old cliche.

Every time I come back home
I see that things are changing
from my family to old school friends
I haven't seen since graduation

Please excuse the old cliche
seems like only yesterday I was there
riding my bike around the square

I may come back only once a year
but I feel I never left
it's where my childhood is kept
I've got some things in a box upstairs
but it's all over town
all I've got to do is look around

But Lincolnway feels a mile too short
where the school was stands a food court
and all my old friends have long since moved away
This town is changing but let my memories stay

Graffiti bridge has got a new coat of names
kids I never knew
but scratch away ten years or more
and you might find my name, too

Oh, how years accumulate
just like coats of old spray paint they're still there
memories layer after layer

I may not feel that sticky sweat from the old summer sun
but I remember we had fun
I may not drive just for something to do
on a Sunday afternoon
just going to Ames or to Boone

But Lincolnway feels a mile too short
where the school was stands a food court
and all my old friends have long since moved away
This town is changing but let my memories stay

There will come a day when my childhood home
is someone elses
will I stop or drive on by
I can almost hear their voices

and oh is that what I will say?
or maybe seems like yesterday I was there
dad was joking bout his lack of hair

I can't see the stars at night as clearly as I did
when I was just a kid
I may never hear silences any sweeter than those
and deeper than I'll ever know

This town is changing but let my memories stay

credits
released 27 March 2015
Matt Camgros - Drums
Dan Nosheny - Tuba
Hande Erdem - Violin(s)
Art Elliot - Keyboards, Vocals

A Leo Sandwich

Leo calls Susan 'Nanny' on the left and his mom Amanda is on the right and he sure enjoys it when they make a Leo sandwich.

tropical rain forest?

We seem to be living in a tropical rain forest where vegetation and mosquitos thrive. They  informed us on the news that the conditions have been ideal for poison ivy and it has morphed into a super-toxic strain. Leaves of three- let it be.

The outside work is making progress but is the primary reason for a lack of posts. I still have more to do out there but the rain mentioned above sure puts a Damp-er on things. Ha! My friend Mickey gifted me with some lilies I need to get planted and yesterday I purchased a clematis for a special spot. Years ago a friend who knows about these things told me it was wrong to mud plants in when planting and I have remembered it ever since. So they will have to remain potted until the time and conditions are right...and before they become pot bound. Life is such a delicate balance!

The "pot" these flowers are resting in is actually a piece of water piping we purchased at an auction for a dollar. I wanted it to cover the sewer clean-out pipe that is a smart idea to have above ground, but not particularly pretty. It works well. I like the color.

Cousin Donnie

 We went to Missouri for a fast trip. My cousin Donnie Zimmerle passed away suddenly. Two weeks ago he was diagnosed with cancer and opted out of treatment. His passing was a big surprise. Donnie's Dad, Jack, and my Mom, Fern were brother and sister and the two youngest of the original 7 Zimmerle siblings. Donnie and I were born in the same year. I suppose others called him Don but he will always be Donnie to me. Donnie was a great guy, always a smile on his face. We were born in the era when Sundays meant being at Grandma Zimmerle's for dinner. The cousin's were always there too. Let's see there were 5 in Jack's branch, 4 in Harold's, 5 in Phil's, 2 in Vivian's and 4 in Fern's at the time so that is a bunch (20) of cousin's. Two of the original 7, Ray and Mae, did not have children.  We played a variety of games while the adults sat around the kitchen table talking.  We have been out of touch, other than Facebook, for many years so I did not know many people in attendance. There was one little girl I would guess her to be 8 or 9 and she cried nearly the whole time we were there. She was inconsolable although many were trying. She seemed sincerely grief-stricken. I am guessing she might have been a granddaughter or great-granddaughter. She left an impression on me.