Brian & I on 3 July; A Garden Party on the Fourth

Last Friday night (3 July), right after work, I drove to the campus of Washington University, where I parked my car near Francis Field and walked about two blocks east to Forest Park. From the park's entrance, I made my way to the Fair Saint Louis fairgrounds, on Art Hill between the Saint Louis Art Museum and the Central Lagoon. Finding my way to a concession stand near the mainstage, while Blondie was playing its set, I got my pass and made my way backstage. There, my brother Brian and I chatted briefly before he played drums for Melissa Etheridge. She played an approximately 90 minute set and I greatly enjoyed it from my place on the Art Hill grass. Soon after the show, I got backstage again and chatted briefly with Brian. I then stepped out to enjoy the fireworks display that capped the show. Etheridge's website is: http://www.melissaetheridge.com/.

The next day, Mom and I relaxed at home. Brian came over in the afternoon to spend some time with us before he rejoined Etheridge's band for the next tour stop. That night, I was at the Maplewood home of Kurt and Beth Heidrich for a garden party they threw for friends. It was very nice, although I knew so few of the other guests, and there was much to eat and drink. After dusk, Kurt set off fireworks in the back yard. It was a wonderful night. Beth runs STL Culinary Tours, which takes guests on tours of St. Louis area restaurants. More info on this business here: http://www.stlculinarytours.com/.

I was at home Sunday (5 July) when I watched the FIFA Women's World Cup Final on TV. I was hoping for a USA win over Japan, but did not expect the 5-2 rout by the Americans. I was very happy with the result, though.

Work has been going well. Had quite a few returns on Monday from the holiday weekend, and pretty steady business during the week. Our office received a visit Tuesday morning from two young women doing marketing for Red Bull energy drink. They gave out samples of Red Bull from their backpacks, and chatted with us before going down the street in their car, decorated with a large Red Bull can.

I flexed out early Tuesday afternoon (I'm working this Saturday morning), and went to Mark Twain Hobby Center in St. Charles that night for the IPMS/St. Louis meeting. The four of us present talked about recent modeling projects and news. We had a first-time visitor among those attending, and it looks like he'll be back. The club meets on the first Tuesday of the month. Their website is: http://www.ipms-stlouis.com/; Mark Twain's site is: http://www.hobby1.com/.

On my off day from work today, I went to my doctor's office for a physical exam. Overall, he says I'm in good shape, but he did ask me to get some blood tests done soon. Tonight, I went to Faust Park in Chesterfield for a food truck festival. I got tacos, chips and salsa from a Mexican food truck, and shaved ice from another truck. It was nice, there was a good turnout for this event, and a cover band was playing.

Later.

Looking Ahead to Independence Day 2015

Last Thursday night (25 June), I performed my final volunteer shift for this season of Circus Flora. We had a great crowd under the big top for this performance of "One Summer on Second Street." I helped some customers find their seats, moving one woman with a can find a seat closer to the floor, and helping another customer find his missing cell phone. It was all good and we had another superb performance. Circus Flora's season ended last Sunday night, but I'm already looking forward to volunteering next year. For more on the circus, including making donations to them, visit http://circusflora.org/.

Work has been going very well at the car rental branch in recent days. For me, that included working last Saturday morning (27 July), which went rather smoothly for a Saturday.

That night, I drove to Smugala's Pizza Pub in Sunset Hills, where I caught the Pub2Park shuttle bus to World Wide Technology Soccer Park for Saint Louis FC's match against New York Red Bulls II. There was a sold out crowd that night, but Saint Louis lost 4-1. However, I came away a winner of a cooler. My cell phone number was chosen at random early in the match and at halftime I claimed my prize. It's a very nice cooler, with the Saint Louis FC emblem on it, and I will be proud to bring beer or soda in it to some event. The club's on the road this week, but back home next Saturday; more information here: http://www.saintlouisfc.com.

I switched off with a colleague and am off today and working tomorrow, rather than the usual working Wednesday and off Thursday. After work last night, I took in the weekly staff meeting, then we went to the nearby Buffalo Wild Wings for happy hour. We had chicken wings and beer, with conversation, plus watching sporting events on the TVs there. That included the USA's 2-0 win over Germany in the FIFA Women's World Cup semifinal. The Stars and Stripes advanced to Sunday's final against the winner of tonight's England vs. Japan match. Looking forward to the final.

Before that, I'm looking forward to Independence Day this Saturday and to Fair Saint Louis in Forest Park late this week. My brother Brian will be drumming for Melissa Etheridge when she performs Friday night. I'll go see that show after work, and Brian told me by email today he may get me a VIP pass for Etheridge's show. He'll be in town until late Saturday night, so Mom and I can visit with him for a while before going on to the next tour stop. More on Fair Saint Louis here: http://www.fairsaintlouis.org/. Etheridge's official site is: http://www.melissaetheridge.com/.

Last weekend, I made my hotel reservations in Columbus, Ohio for the IPMS/USA National Convention later this month. So, all I need is to reserve a rental car, and I get an employee discount for that. Looking forward to this trip. More on the convention at: http://ipmsusa2015.com/.

Later.