New York at Midnight

Due to flight cancellations on the way to Philly, ended up landing at JFK.  So took advantage of the opportunity to detour through Manhattan via the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel

First, a quick stop at Ground Zero to see the new Freedom Tower.  The memorial is off limits due to construction but took a photo of an artist rendering that shows what it will look like.

Next it was time for a late night bite in Little Italy.  Da Gennaro is famous for it's pasta and infamous for being where mob boss Joey Gallo met his end.  Zuchini Frites and Ravioli for dinner.

Dessert was at Ferrara's for excellent finger size canoli.

Then it was time for some quick sight seeing at the most popular tourist locations.  Recognize anybody?

Twinkie Racing From Living to Family Room

Found this old clip of Twinkie running back and forth.   He's fast when he wants to be.

Front Yard Makeover

Well, the rabbits win.  They successfully killed off about 100 square feet of yard with their urine.

Since no grass was growing after 5 weeks of trying with fertilizer and nutrients, it was time to take action.  Spent two hours on Saturday, 9/24, digging up grass from the section close to the front patio and transplanting it to the parts where dead grass was.  In order to hide the resulting bare area, a barrier was added and filled with compost to extend the plant zone.  Here's how it looked afterwards.

There was still too much dirt so another two hours on Sunday were spent transplanting plants from the backyard to the frontyard.   Here's the finished product.  Let's see how long before the rabbits come back.

Twinkie Meets New Friends on His Sunday Walk

Before we could get to the part, Twinkie was already speaking his mind.

Once we got there it was his lucky day. Lots of miniature and toy size dogs were at the lake.

Here's Twinkie and new pal Zoe.

Then at the part where owners let their dogs run, Twinkie ran into a new pal, Roxy, a papillon.

And then a whole group of bichon frise and poodle mix dogs showed up.  First thing Twinkie does is make friends with their owner.

Corn On the Cob Coming Soon

This year's first crop ever of corn almost didn't happen.  A major wind burst during a brief rainstorm last week flattened the corn stalks.

But fortunately none of the stalks broke.   After adding bamboo supports, the stalks are taller than ever.

The tassles on the top of the stalks have begun creating pollen. It looks like dust when the wind hits it.  Here's a freeze frame of it.

When the wind blows, pollen collects on the leaves and flows down to where the silks will grow at the point where the leaf connects with the stalk.

Today, the first silks were noticed.  And, when the silks get pollinated, ears start to form. 

After closer inspection, the very first ear of corn was spotted.  It's about the size of a thumb right now.

Selena Walk About in Chicago

The good thing about Friday is that Selena has no classes this semester on that day.

So, why not take in the local culture.  Here is what she did on 9/23.

Emi Featured in Game 4 Photos vs J Serra

Tough loss for the football team (46 to 15).  But even until the end, the cheer squad did their job.  They even kept up the tradition of handing out post game snacks to the players as they came off the field.  So even in defeat, the Mustang pride was still there.