This blog doesn’t attract a lot of comments, but two readers said things in response to a post Thursday that deserve some follow-up. And I needed something to write about anyway.
Jeanne Garvin, who has to be one of the hippest 90-year-olds walking around anywhere, said: Beautiful picture and it does look cold. I think JoAnn must be your mother that I have heard so much about.
Yes, JoAnn is my mom. But before I get to that, let me answer another question: Just how hip is Jeanne? So hip that she reads this blog and does everything else she wants to do on the Internet by using the iPad her children and grandchildren bought for her a year or so ago. I hope I’m that adaptable to new things 40 years from now. Heck, I’ll be happy just to be still breathing air and eating solid food in 40 years. But I digress …
Jeanne asked about my mom in response to the comment she posted: The picture doesn’t go with the words “Brome Hill”, which is a hill that is mostly grass and weeds now. Maybe it is because I know what the real Brome Hill looks like.
Now, I will admit, that thoughts of this guy ran briefly through the smart-aleck corners of my brain after reading Mom’s comment. (Just kidding, Mom! Hopefully Big Bang won’t come to be known as what happened the first time Mom saw me after reading this.)
Her comment, I think, was aimed at the cover photo of eagles soaring above the Mississippi River that I posted in the header of this blog the other day. And she is right: That photo looks nothing like the Brome Hill for which the blog is named.
But I used that photo because eagles are a really big deal in Muscatine this time of year. The photos I’m posting today were taken by my friend, Melinda Moreno. And the eagles are everywhere. There must be thousands of them at Lock and Dam No. 16 and other areas along the Mississippi River near Muscatine.
Paul Brooks of PBrooks Photography in Muscatine has also shot some incredible photos this year of eagles on the Mississippi River and you should be able to see them here.
For 20 years, Muscatine has hosted the Eagles and Ivories Ragtime Weekend as a way to celebrate its connection with the majestic bald eagles — the national bird of the United States. The annual event, which is organized by the Muscatine Arts Council, begins at 11:30 a.m. today and runs through Sunday afternoon. I’m going to miss most of it so that I can attend the RAGBRAI route-announcement party Saturday night in Des Moines.
But if you are anywhere near Muscatine, please make every effort to catch part of this annual event. You won’t regret it. The performances are great. And the eagles are a sight you definitely don’t want to miss.
Brome Hill 