The birds are still not abundant, but the red bellied woodpecker appeared this morning and gave me a great picture as he departed.
The horses were happily grazing, and Harry and I headed west to Columbia for lunch and a visit with friends, Sue and Bill.
My brother, Michael, meanwhile, was driving across the United States, from Kirkland, Washington, to Boston, on a somewhat meandering track. He had been to Chicago to visit our brother Mark, then stayed with our brother Peter in St. Louis county, and he was scheduled to stop here next. So, we had to hurry home to see him, though he would be able to make himself at home without us, of course.
The view from Mark’s front door in Chicago
We were driving east, right on schedule when we hit a traffic jam. A standstill. Harry took a look at the GPS, and the traffic was stopped for miles ahead of us. I made a highly illegal maneuver, turning onto an entrance ramp and driving the wrong way up it to get off I-70. I was not the only person who did this, and I was scared half to death, but it looked like we would be stuck for a very long time. We were so lucky that we were near a ramp! Then, Siri guided us homeward, and every time we glimpsed the interstate, people were out of their cars, and there was no movement at all. It turned out to be a crash near Kingdom City that shut down the eastbound lanes for over three hours. As it happened, we were eventually routed back onto the deserted interstate and were home only 15 minutes later than expected.
The horses were still grazing when we returned
Michael was upstairs when we pulled in, and it was great to see him. There was a whirlwind of catching up. I had done my annual cooking yesterday (a chicken and wild rice casserole) so that we could have it for supper.
Michael 
Laughing with my little brother 
Harry and Michael 
Harry and Weedy 
In the studio
Marmalade is getting braver, coming to the porch to see when dinner will be served.
Our two gray creatures, Mistletoe and Roscoe, arrive together at the porch.
Mistletoe is not as spry as Roscoe
End of day, horses are in the barn and it’s time to shut the tackroom window to keep the varmints out.
Stay safe, stay well. Peace.
I-70 is the worst! We see frequent backups approaching Wentzville and feel lucky we mostly take the service roads to town. Then it’s like bumper cars getting across the bridge to grocery stores etc. We used to bike from Pearce to Foristell! No more. I want to buy a used tank for transportation.
Janis, I had no idea you and Bill rode bicycles! I wish we had a bike path to Wentzville – cannot believe you ever rode from Foristell to Pearce! You are very brave.
I love the pic of you and Michael laughing, nice timing on the shutter Harry! Also, I’m glad you were able to escape the traffic jam via your daring act of civil disobedience. I wonder if Catholics are required to confess moves like that (or the carbon emissions from driving a fossil fuel burner all the way to Columbia for lunch 🙂