Harv's Birthday Surprise

Harvey Gardner invited the poetry corner over to his home for a catered luncheon. Little did we know it was his 80th birthday. After a scrumptious lunch and some poetry, Harv had us draw cards with numbers on them. Then he went into the bedroom and brought out large bags filled with presents for us, matched by our number.

We all went home with presents and of course extra cookies. What a surprise. What we have come to expect from Harv.



Harvey at 80.




Harvey and Marjana

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Harv

We all know a man named Harv
Whose mind wonders afar.
With words so sublime,
No need for a rhyme,
His poems keep raising the bar.

A passion for peace to share
'Forgiveness for all', it's so rare
A man with no peer
A poet we hold dear
But what's up with that thing in his hair?

Location:Tucson

El Tour de Tucson

Up at dawn bike on rack,
Drive downtown, join the pack.

Rolling out side by side,
Cyclists start the Tucson ride.

Meeting friends, having fun,
Biking on to station one.

Tucson mountains all in view,
Time to reflect, time to renew.

Saguaro cactus rolling by,
Line the route to the sky.

Coasting down the other side,
Hard to beat the Tucson ride.

Jacome Plaza, the end is here,
Donors rise to give a cheer.

Medallions hanging from our necks,
Needy charities get the checks.

Off the seat, a short siesta,
Join the fun, El Tour fiesta.

Self propelled no use for Exxon,
Our energy? El Tour de Tucson.

Don Piele, Nov. 2010

Cycling

Pedals, chain, thighs, knees
Spinning blur, past trees
Heart throbs, tires sing
Wind roars, gears ping
Climbing up, sweat drips
Heavy legs, aching hips
Breath deep, near top
Crest hill, pedals stop
Great relief, no burn
Gliding down, watch turn
Mind clear, grip tight
Rolling on, wheeled flight


Don Piele, Oct. 28, 2010

Hand In Hand

Suddenly
jolted and surprised
I saw them move together hand in hand.

A mathematician
moving symbols all around
creating a proof that will stand.

A poet
moving words all around
creating a poem I understand.

A mathematician
seeking beauty
in a theorem that's true in any land.

A poet
seeking beauty
in a verse ringing true and never canned.

Searching for answers
of a slightly different kind
both on a journey that is grand.

Walking as one
Thinking as two
a mathematician and a poet hand in hand.

Don Piele, Dec. 2010

Location:SCV Poetry Corner

Book Club on Eagle Springs Lake

On the next to last day of our month-long stay at the John Day home on Eagle Springs Lake, we had the gang out for lunch and a discussion of the book, "The Invisible Wall," by Harry Bernstein. It is the story of his childhood growing up in poverty in England on a street where Jews lived on one side and Christians on the other.

It was the start of his success as an author at the age of 96 and was written to help him overcome his grief at the loss of Ruby, his wife of 67 years. He went on to write two more books, "The Dream" and "The Golden Willow."





Harry is sitting on the lap of his mother. Lilly is on the right and Rose on the left. Saul is left front and Joe on the right.




     Ruby and Harry in the early 40's in New York.





    Harry at 98 enjoying the adulation of a book club gathering.

Our book club on the front porch on Eagle Springs Lake. Still getting together after 38 years.
We said our goodbyes as we leave beautiful Wisconsin for a drive back to Sun City Vistoso in Tucson, AZ after being gone for three months.

Location:Lake Dr,Eagle,United States

Old World Wisconsin

After the Fay's arrived from Baltimore, the fun began. Since our summer home is only 3 miles from Old World Wisconsin, we took a day to explore.

A tornado leveled over 2,500 trees in OWW in June. But they missed all the historic buildings and they were back in business. It is really a marvelous historic experience to visit working farms from over 150 years ago. The grandkids really enjoyed it.

Lots of hands on experiences for kids. Here is Ceci playing with a toy.





The old fashioned wooden tops were fun to learn how to operate.



Owen, Katherine, Laura





I tried this puzzle and worked on it for a long time. Christopher solved it in about 5 minutes. And I thought I was good at this stuff.




Owen showed us how to play checkers.






Using a slate in the school room was fun. It was about the size of an iPad.
A slate marker is used to write on a slate tablet.




Guess what the girls wanted from the gift shop.

It was really fun to have the Miller's and Fay's for five days.




Linda, Christopher, Karen, and Jeannine

Miller Clan Arrives

This last Saturday, the Miller Clan came up for a day at the lake. This was the first time they had come to see us in our new rental home for the month of August. We are very happy in our peaceful lake home with no TV. We often eat out on the screened porch overlooking the lake.










When the Miller's arrived we had lunch ready on the BBQ. For the afternoon we all went swimming in nearby Mukwonago county park.









The water was clean and warm. Ceci and Christopher enjoyed playing with Jeff.









Katherine is growing up and will be in the 3rd grade this year.









Ceci will enter preschool this year.








Christopher is taking after granddad Miller -- he has grown to be a big boy. He is 5' 1" and 95 pounds and will be going into the 6th grade. He will be 12 in October.











But still they are no match for papa Jeff. But they never stop trying. They will be coming back in a week when the Fay's arrive from Baltimore. Then so long to peace and quiet.