43 things I like about the place I live

The street I live on has a “parkway” in the street. On Christmas Eve and New Years Eve, the neighbors line the parkway with luminaries. Lighting the luminaries is a wonderful tradition, a time when we wish our neighbors the best of the season. The luminaries burn until they burn out in the early morning. It always makes me happy.

I live in the city. The houses are very close to each other. People are friendly, but I have never found them intrusive. Maybe it is an unstated agreement, “We live close together, so we are sensitive to each other’s privacy.”

This annual event is held the third weekend of Sept. The culmination of the event is a “hare and hounds” chase with the Energizer Bunny in the lead. Each balloonist is given a bag of birdseed to drop as close to the bunny’s landing place, determining the winner.

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The Missouri Botanical Garden celebrates The Japanese Festival every Labor Day weekend. The Taiko Drums are my favorite event. I can hardly wait!

spent his 100th day at a high school 10 miles south of St. Louis!

My singing neighbor.

I live in the city. There are many 4 family and 6 family flats behind my house. One of the residents of the flat catercorner from my house keeps his door open in warm weather. He sings in the morning. His voice is bluesy, and although I can’t distinguish the words, I love to hear his voice when I garden or have an open window day. In my mind, it is one of the blessings of living in the city.

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The Central West End. Brimming full of life! It is always changing and developing. Adjacent to the Barnes-Jewish Hospital, one of the largest hospitals in the St. Louis area. This neighborhood is centered between St. Louis University and Washington University. Upscale shopping, beautiful housing, some lower scale housing, and diverse dining opportunities are found here.

My daughter goes to high school in the CWE. I become thrilled with the activity of the neighborhood whenever I go to her school.

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There is a little taste of Italy found in this St. Louis neighborhood. The Hill is a place with great restaraunts, Italian groceries, and Italian bakeries. Of course, central to the area is the Romanesque Catholic church and elementary school. People still take pride in sweeping their sidewalks. Shops close at 5:00. Life appears to be savored here.

Assorted entertainment in a renovated Shriner’s Temple. It features a luxury movie theatre, with leather loveseats and couches, and first run movies. There is a bar available for refreshments. Also, the Moolah offers bowling and snack area. My favorite parts of the Moolah are the leather loveseats and the Moorish architecture!

Snow days are days when kids get to stay home from school because school administrators decide that it is too dangerous on the roads to open school. The kids sleep in, go sledding, bake cookies, try to get together, catch up on homework…you get the idea. I have always found snow days to be a fortuitous reprieve, even though I still have to work. Who wouldn’t welcome an unexpected day off?