Cape Girardeau History and Photos

May 28, 2015

U.S.N Knife

Since I’ve been living essentially by myself in Cape for several weeks, I am discovering domestic skills I never knew I had (and will promptly forget when I get back home to Florida). I won’t say I’d have stayed single had microwave ovens and good frozen food been around in 1969, but it would have expanded my options.

One of my survival techniques is to use as many plastic and paper kitchen supplies as possible. When I actually have to use real silverware, I use every knife, fork and spoon in the drawer and leave them soaking until there’s nothing left to eat with, then I wash them all at one time. (The house is old enough that it has neither a dishwasher nor a garbage disposal.)

While digging in the back of the drawer, I ran across this knife that was different than anything else around. It had a uniquely government-issue feel to it. On the handle was engraved U.S.N., which I have to assume stood for U.S. Navy. Click on the photos to make them larger.

Origin unknown

I don’t know where the knife came from. So far as I know, no one in our family ever served in the Navy. It might have been picked up at a yard sale or been in a box of stuff we acquired over the years.

Anyone seen anything like it?

P.S. Let’s keep my cooking prowess a secret, OK? It’s better that Wife Lila not learn about this. We definitely won’t tell her about the laundry thing. It’s much better that she believes that I haven’t gotten any more domesticated than this kitchen incident when the kids were little.

May 27, 2015

Jackson’s Silenced Sentinels

Almost every time I head out of Jackson from Wib’s BBQ headed toward Fruitland, I notice some big stumps on the south side of Hwy 61 near the Welcome to Jackson sign. And, every time I’ve muttered to myself, “One of these days I’m going to have to stop and shoot those things.”

The odds are pretty good you won’t see them on the way INTO Jackson like in this photo because they’re down the embankment.

Massive stumps

I finally got around to stopping.

To give you an idea how big these trees were, I put a dollar bill in the photo for scale. A bill is six inches wide, so the top of the stump is three feet or more across. It has to be at least 10 feet around. (Click on the photo to make it larger.)

What have these trees seen?

Wikipedia reports that the first post office in Jackson was established in 1814 when the area was called Birdstown. Old McKendree Chapel, the log cabin that is the oldest Protestant church standing west of the Mississippi River, was built in 1819.

I didn’t even try to count the rings to see how old the trees are (that’s a math thing), but I wonder if they were standing that long ago? Anyone want to guess what kind of tree they were and how old they might be?

May 25, 2015

Freedom Isn’t Free

I was trying to figure out a different way to mark Memorial day when I looked to my left at the intersection of Mt. Auburn Road and North Kingshighway and spotted this Freedom Isn’t Free DAV (Disabled American Veterans) flag sticker.

That’s a nice reminder. (Click on it to make it larger.)

More welcome than this

I was a bit soured on flag decals during the 1960s because they were frequently paired with stickers like this one.

I feel the same way about SUVs sporting yellow ribbon magnetic stickers that say “Support Our Troops.” Slapping on a sticker is a lot easier than actually making sure our returning veterans have the medical and psychological care they need to integrate into society when they come home.

In 2014, three Republican Senators were the lone votes against a bipartisan bill to expand benefits and access to care for former troops. “We need to resist the temptation to create more entitlements and more entitlements,” Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions said.

Well, if we can’t afford to provide care for our returning vets, maybe we shouldn’t be sending them to places where they may require care.

OK, rant over. Let’s use Memorial Day to think about those men and women who gave their lives to make it possible for us to have political disagreements.

Previous stories about Veterans and memorials

May 21, 2015

Taking a Break

After more than a year of posting seven days a week, you may have noticed that I’ve been slacking off.

This has been a rough winter for Mother: she had her heart shocked back into rhythm in February, her pacemaker was replaced and she’s been sucking down supplemental oxygen to help her breathe (her oxygen saturation is higher than mine, so it must be working). In addition to the miserable weather that kept her trapped in the house, her circle of friends is getting smaller and smaller, which has made her a bit gloomy.

Regaining her strength

Different combinations of Mark, David and I have been keeping her company, but we determined that we didn’t have the expertise to get her back up to speed. She’s moved into the Lutheran Home temporarily so she can get physical therapy and gain some weight back. She’s got plenty of muscles from mowing the lawn, blowing leaves and going up and down the basement steps, but she’s working on learning how to use those muscles more effectively when you’re 93, going on 94.

I like the Lutheran Home

I’ve done quite a few stories over the years about healthcare facilities, including some that are no longer in business in Cape County. Most of the stories, sad to say, were about neglect and abuses.

The first thing I noticed about the Lutheran Home was that it didn’t smell. It’s clean and shiny.

The staff is friendly and caring. I’m usually there from late afternoon, through the evening meal and wind down watching a movie with Mother until she falls asleep, so I’ve had plenty of time over the last couple of months to get to know the folks who work there. They are stretched a little thin, but that’s a management issue, not anything the individual nurses, aides and therapists can control. I’m impressed.

Cards and letters

Road Warriorette Jan put the word out to her wide network of friends that she knew someone who would love to get some cards in the mail. Before long, Mother was getting batches of unique and interesting cards from all over the country. It has certainly given her something to look forward to.

If you’d like to send her a note, here’s her address until she gets back home.

Mary Steinhoff

Lutheran Home Room 217

2825 Bloomfield Road

Cape Girardeau, MO 63703

Back to work

I’m way behind on some projects, but I’ll try to post to this blog a little more regularly. Thanks to you folks who sent me email saying you missed seeing the morning posts.

I also need to thank Marty Riley and Rachael Criddle who have been a tremendous help over the past few months. It’s nice to have folks around who can explain medicines and procedures to you in non-doctorspeak.