Eine Note des Winter-Schnees im Kansas City

As if to punctuate our absence of nearly 20 years, my beautiful Kansas City has managed to welcome us back into her ample bosom with quite frigid air and light dustings of perfectly gorgeous snow off and on since we've arrived - a nice taste of what was our life here in the mid-west.

The layover in Minneapolis' airport was very relaxing. What a wonderful airport: lots of high-end shops, great eateries, interesting wildlife watching . . . We were there for nearly 6 hours waiting for our connecting flight to Kansas City. When we got to Kansas City the temperature was around 60 some degrees F. From the time that we crossed the jetway into the terminal and retrieved our bags and stepped outside to get our rental car, the thermometer had plummeted into the 30's. And, it's been, to this Flahridian, Arctic ever since.

Each year on Thanksgiving evening, Santa comes to town and, along with the mayor, flips a huge switch and the entire Country Club Plaza lights up with wonderful holiday lights festooned over and around all the doors and windows, eaves, turrets, copulas, etc. (See picture above.) It's breathtaking, really. This city is one of the most beautiful in the country sporting more boulevard miles than any other city except Paris, more fountains than any city save Rome (see photo at bottom), cleaner air than Honolulu, and the nation's economy runs through it 3 times a day! The area has the second-most affluent county in the country.

Thanksgiving day went very well. I spent most of it in the kitchen getting dinner together. We ate around 5pm. Had turkey, great dressing, lumpy & dirty golden mashed potatos, gravy, Mama Stamberg's (really Craig Claiborne's) cranberry relish, mixed veggie sautee', baked sweet potatos in butter and brown sugar; and for dessert I made an apple and blueberry crostini, + we had a pumpkin pie and kick-ass pumpkin muffins from Panera. Competitive wines included several chards, a nice Voignier (mid-coast), an old vine Zin which was really chewy and yummy.

This trip has proven to be a whirlwind of appointments for us. We've so many friends to see and catch up with. Tonight we're having a cocktail party here at our host's home for the rest of the gang that we just couldn't possibly get to visit individually. Each day and night for the rest of the trip is booked with dinners and visits. We leave on Tuesday, heading back to Tampa and sun and orchids in bloom.

I must admit that driving around town has been somewhat of a surreal adventure. There are parts of it I remember quite well - others that evade memory. With Tampa and Baltimore between the time we lived here and this visit, one is a bit muddled . . . landmarks that you recall are now either gone or have completely different surroundings so you have to rethink what you see and adopt a new perspective. Not unlike the journey through Life, I suppose.

Sunday, tomorrow, we head up to Parkville, Missouri to see the college and my dear friend, Carolyn. I'm sure that will annoint me with a flood of memories as we trapse up and down the hills of that picturesque little dorf.

The main fountain on the Plaza

Die Einzige Sache, Die Konstant Ist, Ist Änderung.

While this site has been a model of deadly silence for the past month, behind the scenes the author has been busier than a hooker working two bedrooms. My wonderful position as a cataloger for Tampa's library system has come to a close due to managerial re-direction and, at my own request, I have been re-assigned to the library situated but two or three blocks from Das Schloß.

It was a simple deduction, really. The director of the libraries wants to do away with the cataloging department, thinking that any cataloging we may require can be outsourced, and so I saw the writing on the wall. Rather than wait for the other shoe to fall, I felt the need to take control of a bad situation and manage my own patootie's future. So, I put in for a transfer and it went through. This decision broke my heart as I truly felt 'at home' cataloging. But, things change . . . and that's the only constant in life.

The drive to work from my house in New Tampa to South Tampa was around 60 miles round trip. At roughly $30.00/week for gas (when gas was around $2.60/US gal.), that meant that I would, in effect, give myself $1,440.00/yr. raise just in gas savings alone. Heaven forbid what it would be now at $3.10/US gal. F'rinstance: last week I drove on empty the entire week going to and from work. I can bike to work on nice days which draws me a bit closer to being a greener guy.

So, anyway: I've been at New Tampa Regional LIbrary for two weeks now and it's working out very well. The crew is made up of terrific people. It's nice to be working with the public again, especially the little ones. Our library has such a diverse make-up of patrons: Arabs, Hindi, Punjabi, Filipino, Chinese, Vietnamese, Thai, Russian, Bulgarian, German. There are a lot of Americans, too, but they seem to be in the minority here in New Tampa, so it's always interesting tending the circulation desk.

In less than two weeks, Himself and I will be winging our way to Kansas City to visit with friends over Thanksgiving. We'll arrive at Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport at 10:30am, cool our heels for around 6 hours for our connection at 4:10to KCMO arriving at 5:37. T'will be a long day but think of the knitting that I'll get done in Minnesota! I'm hoping that the notorious Midwest weather will be co-operative for our trip. I've seen blizzards in October in that part of the country. We depart Tampadorf on the 20th of November and return on the 27th.

We are now in the "Perfect Season" here in Florida. Zero humidity, temps in the 70's during the day and in the 50's at night. The orchids are singing away out on the lanai - several are in spike and 2 are in full flower - We've actually had to shut up the house the last few nights as it was just too chilly - inside temperature was 62 degrees F. Brrrrrrrrrrrrrr . . . . . .

Tomorrow is Veteran's Day and, since the library is closed, I'm planning on hitting the beach armed with needles and yarn. I've been a bit under the weather since yesterday - it has been exactly two weeks since I started back in the public sector so that's about the right incubation period for all those nasty germs that I'm unaccustomed to that one encounters on library materials and the public in general. But, I'm feeling much better today so, hopefully, it was just a 24 hour 'thing'.


Now, off to our weekend bike ride . . .

In 1982 I was asked to play for a wedding of two guys at the Metropolitan Community Church of Kansas City, Mo. The two participants were head bartender and owner of one of the most popular bars in that city. At that time in history such an occasion was on oddity . . . I had been special organist to the Bishop of the Kansas City/St. Joseph Missouri diocese for years, and had been the organist for, what was then called, Park College in Parkville, Missouri.

Nevertheless, I accepted the invitation and played the service. It was in August of that year. There was NO air-conditioning. The sanctuary was packed. This was a huge social event in Kansas City's gay society. Afterwards, we retired to the basement where the reception was to be held. People brought in lots of food and appetizers, etc. Sadly, no beverages . . . adult or otherwise. There was one lone water fountain, unchilled, that sat in the hall with a stream that paled in comparison to the stream one would expect from a race horse.

As I entered the hall, there, in the center of the room, stood the most handsome man I had ever seen. He was Tom Selleck's twin. Buff, tall, perfect mustache. As I passed him, I said: "My kingdom for a beer". He replied: "Amen."

I moved on to the back of the room where there stood 3 of my roommates. I asked one of them who that person was that I spoke to. He said: "Oh, that's Doug. Why?" I replied: "Well, that's who I am going to spend the rest of my life with." That roommate looked at me and said, " You're nuts."

Several weeks later, our house (there were 4 of us living in a big Victorian house) had a reception for the newly weds. Without my knowledge, Doug was invited AND, in front of the two of us, the roommate told both of us that a room was ready for us upstairs.

Doug fled. I was mortified.

Sometime later, I went into a local pub and there was Himself. Literally, "across a Crowded Room". Home we went and we've been together, Lo, these 25 years.

So, I'm posting this as a personal sentiment to Us. And: to all of you. Love is a wonderful thing. It happens in the most unusual places and between the most unusual participants. It, nevertheless, is Love. Cherish the person you're with, cherish your "Moment" , and for Heaven's sake, cherish the Beauty that has been, and continues to be created between the two of you.

Doug: Thank you for 25 years of wonderfulness; of making me part of your wonderful family; of accepting me for what I am - with all my faults - and for allowing me to share your life with
you these 25 years.

Happy Anniversary! Let's have 25 more.

This, from Land of Smiles, by F. Lehar: (right click new tab to listen and read along)

Dein ist mein ganzes Herz!
Wo du nicht bist, kann ich nicht sein.
So, wie die Blume welkt,
wenn sie nicht küsst der Sonnenschein!
Dein ist mein schönstes Lied,
weil es allein aus der Liebe erblüht.
Sag mir noch einmal, mein einzig Lieb,
oh sag noch einmal mir:
Ich hab dich lieb!

Wohin ich immer gehe,
ich fühle deine Nähe.
Ich möchte deinen Atem trinken
und betend dir zu Füssen sinken,
dir, dir allein! Wie wunderbar
ist dein leuchtendes Haar!
Traumschön und sehnsuchtsbang
ist dein strahlender Blick.
Hör ich der Stimme Klang,
ist es so wie Musik.

(You are my only heart!
I cannot be without you.
Like a flower that wilts
when unkissed by the sun!
My most beautiful song is yours,
for it is created out of love.
Tell me once more, my one and only,
oh tell me once more:
I have your love!

Wherever I am
I feel you are near.
I want to drink your breath
and kneel adoringly at your feet,
yours, yours alone! How wonderful
is your shining hair!
Dreamy and full of longing
is your radiant gaze.
Your voice is
music to my ears.)

Lady Justice

Sometime around 1971, I think it was about the beginning of May of that year, I had a phone conversation with my mother. I was at school in Parkville, Mo. She was living in New Jersey. She was living alone as my sister and I were in college in Colorado and Missouri, respectively. I asked her how she was doing and she replied that she was somewhat "at odds" lately. I asked her why that was and she replied that she had been summoned for the first time in her life to Jury Duty. I thought and said that I was glad that had happened since it would mean a chance for her to get out and get involved in something meaningful.

Well, she was adamant that she had no interest in anything of the kind and would not participate in such an activity. I told her that it was her civic duty to participate whereupon she informed me that she would refuse to sit in judgment of her fellow human being. I insisted that it was her duty and was providential, at the time, for her to get out of the house and participate in the American Experience of Jurisprudence. Being her son's mother, she declared: "Over my dead body will I sit on a jury" . . . .

She died, unexpectedly, on the day she was to report for jury duty.


So, it was with some trepidation that I reported yesterday to the 13th Circuit Court here in Tampa to be a juror. I have been summoned several times before in my life: in Kansas City, in Baltimore and, of course, here in Tampa. But, because I had been a police officer in my distant past, I had always been passed over for duty when the selection interviews had taken place. It was a constant source of aggravation on my part to be summoned for jury duty knowing that I would NEVER be chosen to sit on a jury because of a youthful interest in Police Science. My interest, BTW, was not in a patrolling role, but in a clerical role as a chaplan - I was a theology major at the time in college.

So, my expectation of being selected for this trial was Zilch. I'd been summoned many, many times over the past decades only to be passed over.

Do you need to know my shock to have been selected by the prosecution and defense in this case to sit on the jury panel???? I was stunned. What changed? A fellow jurist suggested that there *might* be an age factor here . . . "It happened so long ago that it just doesn't matter that you were a cop."

Well, how sobering is that???

We left yesterday at around 12:30pm in adjournment and reconvened today at around 8:45am.

I *have* to tell you, dear reader, that I have NEVER been so engaged in such an episode. It was purely operatic, captivating, mind-provoking and fascinating as an element of the Human Experience. There I found myself, empaneled in a jury of 7 people, charged with the duty of discovering whether or not the charges against the defendant were valid. I had no problem at all tuning out my mother's protestations occurring in the back of my head.

Without going into the specifics of the case, I will say that I felt I was in the middle of a movie.

After hearing both sides we were sent to the Jury Room for deliberation. While we felt that the defendant was, indeed, an offending party during the occasion, we had to look at the charge of the state against the defendant. We did that and, category by category, went through each each charge and found that defendant Not Guilty of both charges.

You should know that the defendant was a four-time convicted felon.

The court was a bit electric when the verdict was read. We were dismissed by the judge (who was so incredible I can't even tell you how wonderful he was) and were led out the back door of the court house so we wouldn't be confronted by anyone.

Anyway, I guess the reason that I'm documenting this is that there is a general feeling these days that we're a country that no longer has the rule of law: that American/Common Law Justice is a defunct issue. Well, I'm here to report that all is well in the courts, at least here in Tampa. I was sooooooo Impressed with the professionalism of the Judge, the defense team AND the prosecution team - even though they failed to prove their point.

Serving on a jury is perceived as being a HORRIBLE burden. I suppose it is. Ya gotta to take time off from work from which you may, or may not, get paid. It's a long process, filled with lots of legal mumbo-jumbo that you may/may not understand. You may feel that, as my mom, you are not or should not be in a position to judge your fellow human being. You may even question your ability to adequately be able to look at all the facts and render a fair and balanced judgment.

I have never felt so fulfilled, at least from a temporal experience, as I have from this. Here was a man accused by the state of Florida of crimes that were pretty nasty (pictures were provided) and, identified by the defense, a four-time felon, facing yet another conviction which would have sent him back to prison for the 5th time.

Again, without going into specifics, the state's case was lame, shoddy and fishy. I was so proud that we acquitted this man of the charges and that, I feel, Justice was served.

As a post-script:

I was the last one in line leaving the building and the judge was following me. I turned and asked him:

May I ask you a question:

He said: Sure.

I asked: Did you have a problem with this case? I'll understand if you you don't answer me.

He said: I had MANY problems with this case.

I said: I gotta tell ya, we went round and round in the jury room about how SLOPPY this was handled by the state. I indicated that there were so many holes in the prosecution that they were wide enough to sail the Queen Mary through them.

He said: They did a very bad job of prosecuting this case. There were so many other avenues that should have been taken. The case should never have made it to court. They did not do their work . . .

SO: WOO HOO for our Jury. We hated the evidence, the testimony by the prosecution's witnesses', and the Judge agreed.

And, *that's* how I spent my last two days: engaging in American/English Common Law Jurisprudence. I found it an amazing process and rewarding AND comforting in that, I think that I am safe in assuming that were I to be charged in a crime, someone out there, in the community, would feel compelled to rise to the occasion and sit on such a jury and engage an operation of his/her civic duty. It's the basis of our Laws. If we lose that, we have lost everything.

Semper Fi . . .

~Der Geez

. . . . RESOLUTION

McKay Hall, Park University Parkville, Mo.

As a follow-up on the "Depends on Who You Are" post, I'm posting a note I got from the director of Alumni Relations at Park University and wanted to post it here prominently so that those who read these pages can know how things turned out. As I had mentioned in the comments area of that piece, Park was appalled with this activity and said that Harris was also . . . I had suspected as much were they to know what had transpired.
Here then is Julie's update:

Mike,

I spoke to my contact at Harris Connect and the situation was resolved on
Friday in a manner that I believe will be satisfactory to you.

I am jumping ahead a little by contacting you myself because Harris
management intends to contact you directly to apologize and inform you of
their actions. After reviewing the recording of the conversation, your
caller was terminated.

Again, please accept my apology. In the spirit of fairness, I hope you will
report the outcome of this situation on your blog.


Julie McCollum
Director of Alumni Relations
Park University

Good News from Nearly All Over . . .

This wonderful story appeared today in the Daily Mail:

The macaque nestles his head against his feathered friend

The Abandoned Monkey Who Has Found Love With a Pigeon

They're an odd couple in every sense but a monkey and a pigeon have become inseparable at an animal sanctuary in China. The 12-week-old macaque - who was abandoned by his mother - was close to death when it was rescued on Neilingding Island, in Guangdong Province.

After being taken to an animal hospital his health began to improve but he seemed spiritless - until he developed a friendship with a white pigeon. The blossoming relationship helped to revive the macaque who has developed a new lease of life, say staff at the sanctuary.

Now the unlikely duo are never far from each other's side, but they aren't the only ones to strike up an unusual friendship. Earlier this year a pig adopted a tiger cub and raised him along with her piglets because his mother couldn't feed him.

And in 2005 a baby dear named Mi-Lu befriended lurcher Geoffrey at the Knowsley Animal Park in Merseyside after she was rejected by her mother.

Depends On Who You Are

What an interesting query I had today. My alma mater: Park University in Parkville, MO has retained Harris Publishing (p.o. box 41065, Norfolk, VA 23541-1065; Julie Carr, Harris Connect Directory Office for Park University) to put together the newest alumni directory. I got a card in the mail asking me to call an 800 number to verify my personal information and, of course, get hit on for an order of a copy.

The interview went well: we verified the name, class year, address, phone number, work name and address and phone number, position, etc.

Then, we got to the personal stuff:
What is your Spouse's name?: I said: Douglas Ninow.
Any children?: I said: Well, that would be kind of a miracle, wouldn't it? (laughter from me)
"Well, unfortunately, there are children in such homes . . .", she said.

Then she hit me up for an order and, at 100+ clams for the directory, I declined. I didn't call her on her indiscretion but merely said that I thought it was too much money for the item.

I gotta say: I'm really offended by this and I'm going to write to the company AND to my college to let them know that this offensive religious snobbery is unacceptable.

It's pretty amazing to me that my personal life, to this woman, is the sole identifying aspect of my persona. What a sad comment; what a sad comment on what an institution of higher learning has deemed proper in an interview for a school publication. I'm sure that Park University had no idea that such a comment would happen, but there you are.

The hysterical irony of the situation is that I was one of the last theology majors at that school . . . the very major that the school was founded upon. The department is now defunct. Somehow, in light of this recent affair, it seems fitting. The charity of what Christianity espouses doesn't fit with current social theology - better to be well rid of it then to have to answer hard questions of courtesy and decency.

Doug and I will celebrate our 25th anniversary this October 15th.