Rainy August!

71º in Clarinda, Iowa - high humidity - been slight rain off and on last couple days.  Local radio station in Shenandoah, IA reports nearly 10" of rain for month of August.  Don't remember ever having to mow yard every 4 or 5 days in August -- usually is brown lawn now; not this year.

Mowed our yard and neighbor Bob Brown's yard today.  He and wife, Carol, are spending a week or so at their Florida home.  They had bought a park model in the park where they had been staying in their motor home in the wintertime, but just before coming home in the spring bought a sticks-and-bricks house near the park.  They hadn't been able to move anything in or fix it up so spending a little time now.

Just got this book lately (Found a used one on Amazon much less than the $20 they wanted at the John Wayne Museum)

Full life story - just started.

This is the Autobiography of Sam Walton.  Though the book was nearly finished when he died in 1992 he did not get to see the finished book.  I am about 2/3 way through it.

This book was started before Sam worked on his own book and is basically an unauthorized biography.  I am also about 2/3 through it.  Gives similar, but different slant on many things of Sam's life.

We plan on visiting the Walmart Museum in Bentonville, Arkansas on the way to our winter home in Texas this year.

When we were at Cam & Patty's in Marengo last week I borrowed this book from her.  Couldn't put it down - read it in about 4 days.
The story is that of Louie Zamperini - a track and field star of the 1930's, who participated in the Berlin olympics, was part of the US air force in WWII, was shot down over the ocean, was adrift in the Pacific for over a month, was held as a POW by the Japanese forces and finally made it back to his life and has had the courage to live it to its fullest.

It is a worth-while read.

This book of
Baxter Black's compilation of the readings he did over the years for Public Radio is very interesting.  Have it on loan from Leland and Bonnie Brown.  Because they are all two-page items, it makes a good "bathroom book" and as so is taking a bit to get finished.  About 3/4th way through it.

Have read similar to this before -- is still interesting account our stage in life right now.

Think these are called Black-Eyed Susan's - in the back yard.

Getting several tomatoes off my tomato plants every day now.  With all the moisture we have had they are wanting to split bad, so pick them just a bit prematurely and it is working.  Probably getting 5 or so a day.

Was able to get some radish seed this weekend, so have planted couple of planters - think they will get mature before we head south.



Will write more often if anything interesting happens.  Lynn