31 days of may challenge: The Day ActiveRain Stars Shine On Me
- 06/01/11 12:29 PM
The Day ActiveRain Stars Shine On Me As anyone on ActiveRain who's mildly paying attention knows, the 31 Days of May Blogging Challenge ended last night at the stroke of midnight. Most probably, the only ones paying attention were the 462 subscribers of the challenge. What a month it was... it seemed to go on forever. If you have never tried the blogging everyday challenge, I urge you to... so you can at least commiserate with some of the miserable contestants whining about what topic to blog about minutes away from the day's deadline. I certainly was miserable on
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31 days of may challenge: Goodbye To The Blogging Challenge
- 05/31/11 12:16 PM
Goodbye To The Blogging Challenge WOW. Is one of the words that I can say out loud about this blogging challenge. I dared myself to do it, since writing was not my favorite subject back in the college days, or any day for that matter. It's an exercise that I probably won't impose on myself again any time soon... unless there's 3,000 points (or more) involved. LOL Well, how does it feel? Relieved and apprehensive at the same time. Relieved that I won't have to meet a daily writing deadline. Apprehensive that I'll fall back into not blogging consistently
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31 days of may challenge: Realtor® Safety Real Alert Application - How Does It Work?
- 05/30/11 04:10 PM
Realtor® Safety Real Alert Application - How Does It Work? After reading Gene Wunderlich's blog about the latest safety app called *Real Alert, I downloaded it on my iPhone 4. If you have a smart phone I highly recommend purchasing this app. Even if you never use it, it's good to have for an emergency. You can purchase it directly via your iPhone, or you can go to the App Store online. The download was very quick and simple. I'd like to share the results of my short test run. After the download, it shows up as an icon much like
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31 days of may challenge: Memorial Day Sunday Dinner
- 05/29/11 03:45 PM
Memorial Day Sunday Dinner It was 89 degrees outside, but the sun has gone down. We just had our Memorial Day Sunday dinner here at home, with my daughter and her husband... barbecued steak, baked potatoes, corn on the cob, and fruit salad. Not a feast, but it was close to it. It's the only time when hubby will fix something resembling cooking... and it has to be on either Memorial Day weekend, or Veterans Day, or July 4th holiday. But before you get the wrong idea, he barbecued the steak only, he didn't fix anything else! I have a very
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31 days of may challenge: Three More Days and Two More Nights
- 05/28/11 09:18 AM
Three More Days And Two More Nights Could it be that the month of May is almost over? Could it be that this 31 days blogging challenge is coming to an end? Could it be that only three more posts remain to torture those who dared to take this challenge? Could it mean that three posts hence I can sleep without being awakened by the thought that I forgot to post that day? Could it be that the days of racking my brain what to write next are coming to an end? Will I make it three more days without
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31 days of may challenge: Memorial Day 2011 Events in Southwestern Illinois
- 05/27/11 01:38 PM
Perhaps because we're in the Midwest, but this Memorial Day weekend is full of programs, services, and celebrations to memorialize and honor our veterans who sacrificed greatly for our nation. I'm honoring them in a very small way to help us remember that if not for them, we wouldn't have all the freedoms that other countries do not. These are specifically events that honor and remember our veterans and service members, for those who would like to attend and participate: May 28, 2011 10:00 AM Commemorative Service at Glenwood Cemetery in Collinsville, Illinois. 10:00 AM Memorial Day Service at The
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31 days of may challenge: Memorial Day Ceremonies In O'Fallon, Illinois
- 05/26/11 01:13 PM
Memorial Day Ceremonies In O'Fallon, Illinois On May 30, 2011, Monday, at 9:00 AM, Memorial Day Ceremonies in O'Fallon, Illinois start at the O'Fallon Cemetery on North Oak Street. This event is sponsored by the Veterans of Foreign War Post 805, (618) 624-2561. A Ceremony at the O'Fallon Veterans Memorial follows at 11:30 AM on 737 East Wesley Drive. It will include dedication of new names to be added to the plaques. If it rains, the ceremony will be moved to the Public Safety Center, 285 North Seven Hills Road. This Monument is dedicated to those honorably separated veterans who have lived
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31 days of may challenge: Watching The Weather
- 05/25/11 10:49 AM
Watching The Weather Late this afternoon could be a wild Wednesday for us here around Scott Air Force Base, Illinois. My husband called me from work as I got home this afternoon, and told me there's an inclement weather warning within 25 miles of Scott AFB until 7:00 PM tonight. He told me to go down the basement when I hear the sirens. He normally doesn't call me about the weather, but we've had bad weather here and at least two tornadoes touch down 40 minutes from us this spring. We live about six hours from Joplin, Missouri and just
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31 days of may challenge: Reflection On Memorial Day
- 05/24/11 03:59 PM
Reflection On Memorial Day I'd be remiss if I didn't post at least once about Memorial Day. It's more to me than just a three day weekend, because my husband was a career officer in the Air Force, his brother served for four years when he was fresh from high school many years ago, my other ex-brother-in-law was a career NCO, and my recently deceased father-in-law was a fighter pilot in World War II. With a family like mine, one can't help but be proud that these men served in the military, along with countless others, to make this country
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31 days of may challenge: Get Your Swimsuits Ready in Southwestern Illinois
- 05/23/11 03:38 PM
Get Your Swimsuits Ready in Southwestern Illinois Regardless of the thunderstorms and tornadoes we're having in Southwestern Illinois, spring is well entrenched here and summer is sure to follow. Our summers are hot and humid, and being landlocked we look forward to the opening of community pools and water parks now almost ready for the hot days ahead. Saturday, May 28 is a big day in towns and cities in Southwestern Illinois not only because of the Memorial Day 2011 weekend, but it's the day for pool and water park openings; finally ready for the wet and wild summer:
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31 days of may challenge: A Toad, A Pair of Pelicans, B2B, And Brunch With Randy Travis
- 05/22/11 12:47 PM
A Toad, A Pair of Pelicans, B2B, And Brunch With Randy Travis Well, all true except they're not real. We had brunch at the local Cracker Barrel in Shiloh, Illinois, a good twelve minute drive from where we live in O'Fallon, Illinois. As is always the case, we had to wait (today 15 minutes, somedays more) to get seated. Anybody who's been to this chain knows that there's a gift shop to wander through - smart feature of their business model - so I did. (Hubby always stands in the corner with his book, sometimes takes naps while standing. lol) So
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31 days of may challenge: Illinois Real Estate License Transition Period Ends in April 2012 - Have You Taken the Exam?
- 05/21/11 04:40 PM
Illinois Real Estate License Transition Period Ends in April 2012 - Have You Taken The Exam? As most agents and brokers in Illinois know, the license law requires us to transition to the new licensing requirements: from salesperson to broker, from broker to managing broker. The transition period ends in April 2012. We even have a transition clock which is kinda neat, like the national debt clock, only not as scary. Essentially, we're all going to be brokering real estate come May 2012 (this is focused on selling and buying real estate, not appraisals or others). No salesperson licenses have been
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31 days of may challenge: What is the Military Officers Association of America?
- 05/20/11 04:33 PM
What is the Military Officers Association of America? It's an association of (mostly retired) and active military officers of the armed forces who meet every month for camaraderie, to raise funds for college scholarships for children of active and retired service members, and to help lobby Congress for the benefits of active and retired service members. Meeting programs include speakers who provide information about some aspect of the military, local business owners, and the occasional politician. This month the speaker will be the Co-chair of the Southwestern Illinois College Speakers Bureau, who will present, "Changing the Face of Medicine: Women in
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31 days of may challenge: Southwestern Illinois Weekender
- 05/19/11 04:20 PM
Southwestern Illinois Weekender TGIF is almost here! How fast the time flies. What are your plans for this weekend? If you're in Southwestern Illinois, have I some weekend activities for you! May 20, 2011 - Peanut Butter & Jam Festival on the downtown Square in Highland, Illinois.Bring the kids! (618-654-3721) 907 Main Street, Highland, IL 62249 May 20-May 22, 2011 - If Japanese gardening is your hobby, attend the Bonsai Society of Greater Saint Louis at the Gateway Center in Collinsville, Illinois. (800-289-2388) 1 Gateway Drive, Collinsville, IL 62234 May 21-May 22, 2011 - Belleville Flea Market at the Belle Clair Fairgrounds Expo/Centerin Belleville, Illinois. More
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31 days of may challenge: Tanks For The Memories
- 05/18/11 03:52 PM
Tanks For The Memories I read Rose King's blog this morning, and it gave me this idea of what to blog today for the 31 Days of May Challenge and for the Wild Wednesday Group. When we moved to O'Fallon, Illinois 19 years ago from Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, Japan we were greeted by this water tank on State Street, the old main artery to the city. I liked the logo, it was quaint and highlighted the many mature trees we have. Unfortunately, the logo has been painted over to reflect the many changes in the city. Two onion towers
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31 days of may challenge: Fourteen More Days To Go
- 05/17/11 04:12 PM
Fourteen More Days To Go It's the 17th day of the 31 Days of May Challenge and my mind is exhausted. Will I make it to the end? I don't know! All I want is to post this tonight so I can breathe a little. But then the process starts again tomorrow. Will I have something lined up for tomorrow? I don't know! It's more than halfway done, with 14 more blogging days to go! But just when you're feeling overwhelmed, look out the window and see the beautiful things around you--just like this field of yellow wildflowers in Belleville,
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31 days of may challenge: What a Difference a Day Makes
- 05/16/11 04:01 PM
What a Difference a Day Makes Yesterday my post was about the last day of the Art on the Square Show in Belleville, Illinois. It was a gloomy, rainy, windy, and cold three days. This event is typically very well attended, but crowds stay away when the weather is not pleasant. Today is a very sunny, clear, dry, beautiful day, perfect for an art show. To make up for the gloomy picture yesterday, I went back to the Square at about the same time to paint a much sunnier picture of the Square in Belleville, the venue for the three-day event
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31 days of may challenge: Art on the Square in Belleville, Illinois
- 05/15/11 04:26 PM
Art on the Square in Belleville, Illinois It's the last day of the Art on the Square this afternoon capping the show's 10th year anniversary. It's the culmination of a much anticipated event that brings talented local and out-of-state artists, and commerce, for three days to the city of Belleville, Illinois. This juried exhibit and sale of fine art was ranked first in three of the last four years among other major art fairs based on sales figures. Hundreds of thousands have attended this event since its opening, and from 850 - 1,000 exhibitors apply, but only 100 participants are
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31 days of may challenge: The Scott Air Force Base Thrift Shop Moves to New Location
- 05/14/11 10:02 AM
The Scott Air Force Base Thrift Shop Moves to New Location The Scott AFB Thrift Shop, currently located in the former Main Exchange at Scott AFB, Illinois will move to Building 700 on Perimeter Road early in July 2011. (Store opening date to be announced later.) The store is jointly run by private organizations: the Scott AFB Officers' Spouses' and Enlisted Spouses' Clubs volunteers. Proceeds from the store operation go to several charitable concerns like The Air Force Village, Airman's Attic, USO Lambert Airport, O'Fallon Illinois Food Pantry, and others, to help the military and civilian communities. In preparation for the
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31 days of may challenge: That Jorgen Guy is Alright!
- 05/13/11 12:56 PM
That Jorgen Guy Is Alright! If you've been on ActiveRain for four years like I have, you have read or know about some controversy that pops up around here. Sometimes it's fascinating to watch, sometimes embarrassing, and sometimes painful. The latest are here and here, if you've been asleep for the last few days, and Jon's latest entry yesterday. These are painful to watch for me and I'm sure for many of us. I won't opine on the manner the parties concerned left, but I would like to wish everyone, those who left and those who remained, the very best. It's a fact of life that
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