Back at the Dunes

Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore runs for 25 miles along Lake Michigan in northwest Indiana. Leave the Chicago area, pass by Gary, and drive to the park at Ogden Dunes, north of Portage. There are miles of beaches, sand dunes, wetlands and forests to explore. There is even a 1830's French homestead and a working 1900s farm (I haven't seen these) to check out.

There is a large pavilion beach house that was impressive, and it was completely deserted this warm fall day. No one was swimming this time of year, of course, but the sun was out and the day was fabulous for a walk on the beach. It wasn't windy, and the Succession Trail led back into the dunes, and up the scenic dune, boardwalk and forested trail.

Photographers had tripods out trying to snap impressionist beach and dune photos. The wooden boardwalks were so comfortable, so solid; it kept one from struggling through the white sand all the time. The dunes grew to only a medium height here, but there are parts of the lake shore where the hills of sand climb to a whopping 180 feet. It seems like the ocean without the salt air, in a way. Oceans I love as well, but Lake Michigan stretches out as wide as an ocean, so the comparisons are inevitable.

There are lots of other dune plants besides the lovely grasses: there are large green ferns, pines, and deciduous trees further back. Along the beach in this area we saw polished, squarish-shaped green and brown stones - unusual and just beautiful along the beach.

On one place along the dunes, there stands Mt. Tom, a dune a website says rises to 192 feet. Kids run up and down the dunes, and it would be great for summer and bare feet.

It would be wonderful to have more time, but we have to get back on the road, and there's lots of fall foliage to see along the way. Near home in Fort Wayne is this park in Leo - Riverside Gardens. The photo to the right shows the undulating row of burning bushes here in 2011. I love the magenta glow they give off. They last a long time, and have very dimensional color. You have to enjoy it while it lasts.

Take it on the Road

Henry Knueppel retired from the Board of Directors of Regal Beloit recently, after 32 years of service. Before that, he had been CEO and a mastermind of acquisitions of other companies, building the collateral of the company and helping to put it in the solid standing that it is today. From Fort Wayne, Regal Beloit designs and builds smart motors that go into heating and air conditioning systems, among other things. We took a road trip recently from Fort Wayne to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, to celebrate with Henry at a retirement party in his honor and reflect upon what a great career, a great life, he has had, and still has.

A fall road trip is a great way to disconnect, and that's what we did, not taking the kids. Highway 30 was the way to travel across the north end of the state. The divided highway was lined with oaks, maples, and pines, their assembled colors warming the normally monochromatic roadway. Then it's I-94 and 294 around Chicago, the skyscrapers climbing up in front of us like silver and black mountains, ringing the lake with a perfect edge. We jumped off the highway and drove into downtown, and caught a glimpse of a few of the "Occupy Chicago" movement members, who were demonstrating with signs and drums in front of the Chicago Stock Exchange building downtown. We cheered for them, but it was a mess, with street crews 'conveniently' paving the street in front of them, reducing traffic. The crowd wasn't large in number, but was admirable in spirit.

Our road trip beckoned on, and we took a slight detour to bust out on a gorgeous hike in one of the Indiana Dunes state parks between Gary and Michigan City. Boardwalks keep one out of the sand, and trails both lead down to the beach and up into the trees in the dunes, allowing for spectacular views of the lake and beach grass. More to come here - I may have to dedicate a later blog post about that.

In Valparaiso, we passed the fast food joints to check out a "noodles & co.", which is a counter-order restaurant that specializes in anything noodles. They list Asian, Mediterranean, and American varieties. I chose the Pad Thai noodles from the Asian menu, and they were wonderful - spot-on spicy peanut flavor on the perfect edge of hotness. They serve a variety of Italian pastas and salads, and the American category features spaghetti & meatballs, macaroni & cheese, chicken noodle soap - yum. I think the noodles & co. restaurant chain is definitely on to something here.

I plan on loading a photo from my camera on the computer so you the reader can see the view from the dunes. I have other things to catch up on writing about - watching the Cardinals win the World Series, for example - but it will have to wait for another day. Meanwhile, the bright burning bush glows from the dock in Leo. Sometimes when the rest of the fall leaves fade, these bushes continue to glow with color weeks longer. I love how long their bright hues last in autumn. Peace to you all until next time.

It's Falling

The Tuscan Hills Winery doesn't look like it belongs in Effingham, IL. Stucco and brick walls, the tile roof, the Mediterranean fountain in the circle courtyard - they did a job job of using property near the highway frontage road, and it's quiet and secluded. Yes, it's lovely. But the grapes are southern Illinois grapes, so frankly, the wine is generally too sweet for me. I did like the Chambourcin dry red, which had a strong fruit note: cherries and blackberries, as if coming out from the oak barrels.

We sat there, on Saturday, October 22, and enjoyed each other's company. I was with some women friends for a rare get-away. We had to catch the third game of the World Series, so we trekked back to the hotel - a Comfort Suites at exit 159. The manager let us turn on the lights in the breakfast lobby, and told us if we didn't make too much noise, we could turn on the television. We watched as the ball started really flying in the warm Texas air. When the score was 11-6 Cards, a fan got ejected from the game for throwing a cup on to the field. He was trying to distract the Cards' right fielder as he went for a pop-up. The catch was made, however, and the fan was forced to take a long walk.

It seems odd to me to see the major leaguers with the funny-looking twisted cords around their necks. What is that? Bungee cords? Soap on a rope? Turns out, most MLB players are wearing these things now - they are made in Japan, and coated with titanium. It is supposed to help with fatigue, but I think it looks silly around these big, superstitious guys.

Albert Pujois smashed in three home runs in this game, becoming the first player to do so since Reggie Jackson and before him, Babe Ruth. It was a memorial, career cinching game, one for the books. Albert looks like a giant playing among Lilliputians, his quiet power overwhelming the field. Three home runs haven't be done by a player in the Wold Series since 1977. Until this game, he was 0 for homers in the first two.

After this game, it seemed as though the Cardinals were invincible, but what a difference a day makes. With the lovely Laura Bush in the stands behind home plate, the Rangers would go on to dominate game four in a 0 - 4 shutout on October 23. My blog isn't showing the last day I worked on a post, so sorry. It shows the day I begin a draft, and somehow I can't date it for Monday the 24th as I finish it. Always something new to learn. More World Series action to come - stay tuned.

Come on, Colts

A couple of years ago, the Indianapolis Colts were unstoppable as a football team. But their momentum has lost its steam this year, in no small part to the benching of famed quarterback Peyton Manning, who is recovering after neck surgery.

B-list quarterback Curtis Painter did a good job this past Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs, throwing two touchdown passes to Pierre Garcon. The Colts were ahead 17 - 0 in the second quarter. But sometime after Colts' Joseph Addai had to leave the field with an injured hamstring, the Chiefs put the hammer down and came from behind.

The Colts' defense started taking the rap for giving up a total of 436 yards to the Chiefs. An exciting, bobbled touchdown catch by Chiefs' Dwayne Bowe turned the tide late in the third quarter. The Chiefs' win was locked in by wide receiver Steve Breaston, who made two touchdowns, one of which clinched the lead with five minutes to go in the game.

Lucas Oil Stadium was a sea of blue on Sunday. I am amazed how many fans now show up in actual replica jerseys, or at the very least, Colts' colors. It looked like a blue army, nearly 70,000 strong. Oh, the humanity!
But as it is so often in life, it was the things happening right around us that made the biggest impression of the day. There weren't many KC fans visible in the Indiana stadium. I would have thought it might be intimidating for the ones who were there. It made me wonder if the 20- or 30-something-year-old Chiefs' fan, sitting ten rows below me, had a death wish.

People from Indiana, even football fans, are generally nice. Maybe just a level or two less nice than people from Minnesota, or Canada. Don't take these generalizations too seriously, but usually, Hoosiers are quite humane. But this Chiefs' fan in the orangey-red jersey was really pushing it. With just a few likewise seatmates, and otherwise blue all around him, this guy wasn't content to simply clap or cheer for his team.

No, he had to egg it on. He stood, he made lots of drama. He kept turning around, gesturing, making eye contact, instigating the wrath of those directly behind him and on up the stands. He kept spreading his arms wide like an evil angel, pushing his hands down over and over, as if to tell the Indy fans to sit down. Smiling and grinning like a fool, a bad Jim Carey imitation if you will, he was a comedian in the wrong place at the wrong time.

He must have thought he was untouchable, but in the age of cell phones, camera phones, tweeting and instant communication, he made at least one too many Colts' fans mad. Although no punches or objects were thrown, sometime in the fourth quarter a male and a female cop showed up. And asked him to leave. He couldn't believe it, and told them he would calm down. But it was too late for that, I suppose, because they ended up escorting him out.

And THAT made some the Colts' fans in front of me mad! He hadn't really done anything, they tried to interject and argue with the police. "Oh, so do you want to leave with him?", the cops countered. "Well, it was those people over there," as these the fans pointed fingers, at who they thought called to eject him from the game. The folks in front of me got mad - "but he doesn't deserve this, really," they said defending him. Colts fans turning on Colts fans. Everyone has an opinion.

Yes, it seemed like maybe he shouldn't have been pulled. But what I told my kids was, I really think it was done for the guy's own protection. Crowd mentality is a scary thing. People just don't seem to think straight in big groups like this. I have to admit even I had some fantasies of winging a bottle cap at the back of his head; something I would never do, I'm quite anti-violent. I bet this guy was really just inches away from some real altercation with the people behind him, or from someone further away throwing a bottle or pouring a drink on him.

So there doesn't seem to be much tolerance for unsportsmanlike behavior in the stands at Lucas Oil Field in Indiana. My impression now is, with a little of that, you will lose your expensive seat at the game. I felt for the cops. I told my kids never try to second-guess the police, the authority, when it really isn't any of your business, when you really don't know everything that is going on. They have a tough enough job to do; let them try to do it. And after that fifth disappointing loss of the season, it's probably good the guy didn't end up walking out among that outnumbering crowd in blue.