Butterfly Rest Stop First of July and the butterfly garden looks to be in good shape. In full bloom are Gaillardia (yellow), miniature Cone Flower (pink) and Soapwort (white), commonly called "Bouncing Betty". Behind these colorful perennials are Common Milkweed, where Monarch Butterfly lay their eggs. Also, Goldenrod, Nebraska's state flower, and giant Sunflower. I'm … Continue reading Butterfly Garden
Tag: Nebraska
Crazy Address Addresses with "1/2" added to the house number are not uncommon in the old parts of large cities. Why? During the Depression, people decided to rent out half their house to make ends meet, so they divided their house into two "residences" and "1/2" was added to distinguish the two. But, this picture … Continue reading 4147 1/2
Frosted Leaf Just when I thought we had seen the "last gasp" of Ole Man Winter, we get five inches of heavy wet snow. The flower beds had been cleaned of mulch and winter debris, flowers blooming, trees were leafing out, the grass was emerald green and recently mowed, and spring vegetables had been seeded … Continue reading April Snow
Easter Church Service The coronavirus pandemic has wreaked havoc around the world and the Easter holiday was no exception. Our local church in Nebraska has been closed for almost a month, providing services on-line. They even tried drive-by communion one Sunday, but have since resorted to "self-serve" communion at home during the streamed services. We … Continue reading Easter, 2020
Howler Monkey There are always new "finds" at the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha, Nebraska. No matter how often you go, there is always a new adventure. I've been in the Lied Jungle several times, one of the world's largest indoor rain forests, and have seen every species of monkey. But, this time a Howler … Continue reading Howlers
Joslyn Museum It looks like these four have nothing better to do than stare at the wall. Maybe they're just resting their feet after hours of touring the Joslyn Art Museum in Omaha, NE. At best, maybe they're admiring the artwork in front of them. What this picture doesn't show is the animation of this … Continue reading Digital Trees
Scoops Galore The Mormons spent the winter of 1846 in what became Florence, Nebraska, now Omaha. While here, they built a mill to grind their corn, wheat and rye. The mill still stands today. While milling around (pun intended) the current art gallery, I found some relics from the old mill, like the wooden box … Continue reading Scoops
Willa Cather Prairie Heading south from Red Cloud, Nebraska on US 281 there are few natural landmarks to mark your progress. Rolling hills of corn and bean fields and ranch land lies on both sides of the highway as far as the eye can see. Just before entering Kansas, there is a gravel road heading … Continue reading Native Prairie
Moseying across Nebraska near its southern border, a beautiful white church caught my eye. It was a mile north of US 136 in Jefferson County, but shined like a beacon against the cloudless azure sky. As I approached the church from the south, I noticed the cross was leaning to the west. Not much, but … Continue reading Crooked Cross
40 acres of sunflowers On US 136 five miles west of Fairbury, Nebraska, I found a sea of sunflowers in full bloom. Three feet tall, standing shoulder to shoulder, soaking up the bright sun with hardly a cloud in the sky. Pollinators were gorging themselves. It was a great day to be a sunflower! Thought … Continue reading Sunflowers
Round Barn - lower level Starke Round Barn One of the largest round barns in the US is near Red Cloud, Nebraska. It is a truly circular barn, not polygonal, three stories tall and 130' in diameter. Built by the four Starke brothers in 1902, the massive timbers are held in place by tension -- … Continue reading Round Barn
Joslyn Castle Joslyn Castle, located in Omaha, Nebraska, was built in 1903 as the private home for George and Sarah Joslyn. This is the man gate that leads pedestrians up a winding path through manicured lawns and flower beds to the 35-room mansion sitting atop 5.5 acres near downtown Omaha. The castle is a landmark … Continue reading Castle Gate
Cedar Creek Sunset Labor Day weekend. Darkness is falling like a shroud; dying embers from our marshmallow roast are losing their glow as the sun falls below the horizon, and the sliver of a moon is little help. I notice that the moon is falling behind the big tree. Hmmm, I always thought while the … Continue reading Cedar Creek Sunset
Only two more days until the Nebraska Cornhuskers open their 2019 football season against Southern Alabama. The entire Husker nation, which is world-wide, is excited for this season to get underway, hoping to make last year's 4-8 record a distant memory. Husker t-shirts are even being sold by street vendors in Jerusalem. Is this escapism … Continue reading Husker Fan
Missouri River Flooding - 2019 In mid-March, over two months ago, the Missouri River got out of its banks from Sioux City, NE down to Hamburg, IA, flooding towns and cropland. Hundreds of people lost their homes, thousands of acres of prime farmland was destroyed, and I-29 was closed for six weeks. This picture was … Continue reading Iowa Rice Paddy
Graske Crossing, Elkhorn River A month after the Elkhorn River left its banks and unleashed Nature's fury on nearby towns and farmland, I visited Graske Crossing, a popular boat ramp near Elkhorn, NE. A small area with half dozen picnic tables, a couple grills, parking for 15 and a very nice concrete boat ramp was … Continue reading Flood Aftermath
Brady, NE My favorite childhood memories include visiting my cousins that lived on Jeffrey Lake, 5 miles south of Brady, NE. Especially in the summer, when we could swim three times a day (60 minutes after each meal), play baseball and explore the County's junk yard. What made this all possible was my uncle, who … Continue reading Favorite Memory
Propane Tank Rescue Flooding along the Elkhorn and Platte Rivers destroyed many cabins, homes and farms. Everything was swept downstream, including propane tanks, some hissing as they floated by. When the water finally retreated to its channel, the clean up began. This photo was taken near the public boat ramp on the Platte River near … Continue reading Tank Rescue
Platte River Bridge - Louisville, NE. - 2019 The Platte River crosses the entire state of Nebraska, collecting water from several small rivers and streams, and finally dumping into the Missouri River near Plattsmouth, NE. -- about 10 miles downstream of this photo. It has the reputation of being "a mile wide and a foot … Continue reading Raging River
Journey's End After living through 105 cold Nebraska winters, Adela Tikalsky was laid to rest in Niobrara, just a few miles from where she was born. Adela was born in the original farmhouse on the the Holan Homestead (parent's) and lived there for 65 years. The farm and family was her life. She never had … Continue reading Journey’s End
