The Old Farmer’s Almanac

[Clipper]

Was the monastery on the NW side of St Louis? When I was transportation officer for the 485EIG at Griffiss one of my duties was to be a technical advisor for transportation related issues to 7 Air National Guard units. The unit farthest West was at Jefferson Barracks on the South side of St Louis.

The Senior Master Sergeant I in charge invited me out to his house for a weekend cookout once when I was TDY there to do an inspection of their motor pool, their maintenance records and their vehicles and equipment. He lived near St Charles. We passed a monastery on our way to his house.

I liked the St Louis area. When my son was at the medical center at George Washinton University for his bone marrow procedure when he had cancer I spent some time seeing the area. I loved the St Louis Zoo, went to a couple of Cardinals games, toured the Budweiser Brewery, and ate in some of St Louis's great restaurants. I just had to be careful driving around there. I made a mistake and ended up in East St Louis Illinois one night. Not a good place for a white man to be driving around after dark.

[Atticus Pizzaballa]

We were further up state. Eureka was about 40 miles southwest of St Louis. Yup all the places you mentioned going to are great. The Cardinals baseball games were dearly loved by many of the residents of our Infirmary and the Cardinals send a season pass for any resident who wanted to attend a home game. I went to many along with a packed bus during the season.

I thing that Monastery you passed was a Benedictine Monastery possible Assumption Abbey.


The barracks was close to the Mississippi River we were 45 miles away south 

[Atticus Pizzaballa]

The advancement and diffusion of knowledge is the only guardian of true liberty.

–James Madison (1751–1836)

September 17 is Constitution Day.

[Atticus Pizzaballa]

Where winds come sweet from the wild-rose briers

And the smoke of the far-off prairies fires;

Yellow her hair as the golden rod,

And brown her cheeks as the prairie sod.

–Emily Pauline Johnson, Canadian Indian poet, (1861–1913)

[Clipper]

Back to the original title of the thread, I somehow neglected to buy a Farmer's Almanac for 2023, but I DID buy the 2024 edition yesterday at Lowes for $8.29. It reminded me that many years ago I used to always buy the latest WORLD almanac also. I wonder how many people still use the World Almanac now that we have computers.

[Atticus Pizzaballa]

Oct 9, 2023 13:05:08 GMT -5 Clipper said:

Back to the original title of the thread, I somehow neglected to buy a Farmer's Almanac for 2023, but I DID buy the 2024 edition yesterday at Lowes for $8.29. It reminded me that many years ago I used to always buy the latest WORLD almanac also. I wonder how many people still use the World Almanac now that we have computers.

LOL I did the same thing. I forgot 2023 so I bought the 2024 book.

[kit]

[BHU]

Sept 9, 2023 19:42:44 GMT -5 Clipper said:

I planted jet stars until I could no longer find them at our local greenhouse. Better boys seem to do better anyway. I guess that is why they call them BETTER boy, haha.

I don't use insecticides that would harm the pollinators either. The only thing I did was put down some expensive granular insecticide around the base of the bushes that is supposed to kill small green worms that only come out at night, eat the leaves and go back in the ground during the day. I just got rid of them and the Japanese beetles invaded in force. It was a bad year for bugs. Early in the summer I was losing the lawn to grubs. I treated that with Grubex or something similar from Lowes and it seems that I solved that problem for this year.

Our green house sold me the granular insecticide that killed the worms that were eating the leaves at night. I would give that a try if you don't know what it is that is eating the leaves.

I still have decent size tomatoes waiting to ripen and there are quite a few of them so I don't want to pull the plants yet.

I had my fried green tomatoes for supper tonight. It is a Southern thing. They are pretty good. Just dredge them up and fry them in oil like you would zucchini slices. Fry them crispy, sprinkle them with a little salt and enjoy.

I'm still picking longhots & freezing them. There's a few left that I'll pick Wednesday & uproot the plants because apparently there's a frost coming later this week. 

Ditto on the grubs, we've had them on & off for years & I had to treat for them last year because they were doing a job on our lawn out back. Which brings me to my next complaint. Usually, when theres grubs there's moles which can destroy a lawn in no time.  There's a product called Tomcat Mole Killer that works to kill them. It looks like a worm & of course the geniuses in Albany banned it. So I use to beat them at there own game & buy it off Fleabay, who have now prohibited it being shipped here. I have one box of 12 left & when that's gone I'm SOL. 

Thanks Albany!

[Atticus Pizzaballa]

Who said November’s face was grim?

Who said her voice was harsh and sad?

I heard her sing in wood paths dim,

I met her on the shore, so glad,

So smiling, I could kiss her feet!

There never was a month so sweet.

–Lucy Larcom (1824-93)

[clarencebunsen]

I found some green burlap bags for the roses. No more or less protection than regular burlap so why not a bit of color?

[Clipper]

Nov 10, 2023 19:22:58 GMT -5 clarencebunsen said:

I found some green burlap bags for the roses. No more or less protection than regular burlap so why not a bit of color?

My grandfather used to get used feed bags and cut them on the seams to use to wrap his rose bushes. I don't think feed mills even use burlap bags any more.

Thankfully we don't get enough snow or ice to fall from the eaves and freeze onto or damage any shrubbery.

[Atticus Pizzaballa]

As November 21st, so is the winter.

–Weather folklore