Getting a Flu Shot; Visiting Soldiers Memorial and St. Louis Public Library

On my day off from work today, I went to CVS in Mehlville to get my annual flu shot at its MinuteClinic. I first thought I would have to wait until mid-afternoon to get the shot; however, they were able to get me in that morning. After the usual questions from the nurse practitioner, I got the shot and should be safe for another year.

Late this morning, I drove to downtown St. Louis to visit two exhibits. First stop was Soldiers Memorial Military Museum, which I had last visited about six years ago. In addition to the regular items on display, the museum is hosting a special exhibit, "Vietnam: At War & At Home." It told the story of the Vietnam War both on the battlefield (highlighting St. Louis connections) and at home. The latter section particularly interested me as it included two F-4 Phantom II models loaned by my IPMS/Gateway colleague and friend Jim Triola. They were included in a section on the Phantom II's manufacturer, McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing). The exhibit runs until 24 May 2024.

After spending time at Soldiers Memorial, I went just two blocks north to the Central Library of the St. Louis Public Library. The great hall there was hosting "PROM: Where Did You Go to High School?" It told of the local high school experience told through the pages of PROM, a monthly local high school magazine published from 1947 to 1973. The exhibit tells of the St. Louis area high school experience, how PROM covered these events through student reporters at the schools and had photos and ads that ran in the publication. Additionally, there were typical prom fashions and lists of the top selling songs from the 1950s through the 1990s. A list of St. Louis area high schools, past and present, were placed next to maps showing the locations of these schools from the 1950s through the 1990s. The St. Louis Public Library has a database of nearly all issues of PROM that can be accessed through the library's website. Visitors could write their high school memories on sticky notes and post them on a wall. (I did just that.) Although I was too young to remember PROM when it was around, I had read about it and found this exhibit a fascinating time capsule. The exhibit runs through 7 January 2024.

Later.

Websites of Entities Mentioned in This Post:

CVS: CVS - Online Drugstore, Pharmacy, Prescriptions & Health Information

Soldiers Memorial Military Museum: Soldiers Memorial Military Museum | Missouri Historical Society (mohistory.org)

St. Louis Public Library: St. Louis Public Library (slpl.org)

Two Meetings, Two Dinners, and an Exhibit

Late in the afternoon one week ago Saturday (11 February), I drove to the Schlafly Tap Room (http://schlafly.com/tap-room/) in downtown St. Louis for the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the St. Louligans (http://stlouligans.com/). The supporter group for Saint Louis FC (http://saintlouisfc.com/landing/index) met to discuss their plans for the upcoming season and to hear from the team. Saint Louis FC officials--including my Saint Louis University classmate, team CEO Jim Kavanaugh--spoke about how they are most optimistic about the upcoming season, and about the latest on the effort to get a Major League Soccer (MLS) expansion team in St. Louis. I and the approximately 350 people there had a real fine time.

Right after this meeting, I headed to Sanctuaria Wild Tapas (http://sanctuariastl.com/) in the Grove for dinner with the Ethnic Restaurant Fans Meetup group (https://www.meetup.com/Ethnic-Restaurant-Fans/). Five others from the group joined me for dinner at the Latin American restaurant, which features small plates for sharing. I ordered some Papas Croquetta for the group, and sampled from other plates our group ordered. A cocktail washed down the good food. We had a real fine time at Sanctuaria, and can highly recommend the restaurant.

The next day, I drove to Taqueria el Bronco (http://www.taqueriaelbronco.com/) in south St. Louis for lunch with six others from the Ethnic Restaurant Fans Meetup group. We enjoyed authentic Mexican cuisine in a no-frills setting, with most reasonable prices. I ordered two tacos--one with carnitas, the other with chorizo--with beans and rice. Another very fine place I can recommend. After lunch, I walked with three others from our party down Cherokee Street to Diana's Bakery (https://www.yelp.com/biz/dianas-bakery-saint-louis) to buy some freshly baked pastries. This is another wonderful place to go.

Back at work on Monday (13 February), we had a rather busy week for the most part. Plenty of work, and plenty of customers for our vehicles. I did my best to stay on top of things, and to help our branch exceed customer expectations.

I flexed out of work Tuesday afternoon, as I would work the following Saturday morning (18 February). Off on Thursday, I headed to the St. Louis Public Library's Central Branch (https://www.slpl.org/locations/CENTRAL/). I was there to tour their exhibit, "50 Years of Blood, Sweat and Cheers--A Tribute to the St. Louis Blues and their Fans." The Grand Hall included a manekin of Blues goaltender Glen Hall making a save in front of goal, with the goal judge box behind it. Dash boards from the Arena were also displayed there, along with an all-time Blues roster, a list of Blues award-winners, and portraits of Blues greats. An exhibit hall on the third floor featured 50 years of Blues memorabilia: Player sweaters, sticks, programs, tickets, posters, photos, pucks, and souvenirs. There was a timeline of Blues history along the wall, and a speaker played a loop of Blues radio play-by-play calls. I also got to take a selfie in front of a green screen there, with the image added to one of three backgrounds celebrating Blues history. The exhibit runs to 4 March, and I highly recommend it to any Blues fan.

I came home to sit for a webinar on job search strategies aimed at the older job seeker. Some information I had heard before and others were new to me. I left the webinar after I learned that the presenter's fee for her fully helping out job seekers was in the four figures--too rich for me.

That night, at Creve Coeur Airport (http://www.crevecoeurairport.com/), I attended the Missouri Aviation Historical Society (https://moavhist.org/) meeting. It was an aviation open mike night, with attendees invited to tell their aviation-related stories. I led off with tales of my first airplane flight as a 12-year-old Boy Scout and a flight to Europe some years later.

Well into Friday afternoon at work, my assistant manager Cayla asked me to take keys for some vehicles on our lot to the traffic center in Berkley, east of St. Louis-Lambert International Airport. I needed to get the keys delivered by 5 pm, so the traffic people could come the next day to take the vehicles off our lot. I did, and then went home; Cayla told me there was no point in returning to the branch for just a few minutes at day's end.

After work yesterday morning at the branch and lunch, I came home to work on a couple of model kits I'm looking to finish in time for this Tuesday's IPMS/Gateway (http://www.ipms-gateway.com/) meeting. It will be a push on one kit, but the other is virtually done. I also worked on the models today.

Last night, mom took me out to dinner at TGI Friday's (https://www.tgifridays.com/) in Concord Village. We had a coupon I received for my birthday that was used there. I ordered the Jack Daniels grilled chicken and shrimp, which was most tasty.

Later.