my week

This has been a busy Memorial Day weekend.  Sunday we got a new record high in Springfield: 95°.  Springfield hit 98° on Monday - not only the hottest Memorial Day ever but the hottest day in nearly 5 years! (104° on July 7, 2013)

Thursday evening I went to Jacksonville Library for a 2 hour movie called “The Republic of Suffering: Death and the Civil War”

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/death/
Afterward I went to Theater in the Park to see 1776 with some lady veteran friends.  It rained so the show was held in the indoor theater. The man on the right is Andy Van De Voort who is also a member of our 114th Illinois Infantry reactivated as a bugler

 

Friday I went back to the library for a set up of the Powerpoint projector preparation along with two others that were presenting.  The library loaned the group their equipment.  However, on the day that I presented, the power cord was not in the case and I had to resort to my own back up projector designed for smaller audiences.

Saturday I gave my presentation for the Jacksonville "Tales of our Fathers"
I think it was bad.   Some of those slides were not in order but it was better than nothing.  Afterward, one asked how long I've been giving this presentation. A sign that it looked like a beginner presentation. Chuck asked what I might change for the next presentation coming up in July.  However, Sunday I went to the afternoon presentations  and received some compliments.  Well I guess I'm my own worst critic.

On my way home, I stopped to follow the signs to Woodlawn Farm to see where it was located.  I did this because there would be a presentation there the following day in this series.

Sunday I went to Roodhouse for a Memorial ceremony at Martin Prairie Cemetery with a group of Civil War Reenactors.

 

My name is on the program but I kept it short because of the heat.  Despite wearing a bonnet veil, the buffalo gnats bit my neck and I itch.

 

Then I caught up with the rest of the program for "Tales of our Fathers" in Jacksonville. Dr. Alonzo Ward, PhD spoke about “Corporal Robert S. Arbuckle, Co. E, 29th U.S. Colored Troops”

 The first thing I noticed was this underground railroad quilt with code.

There is a legend of the symbols. However, this has been debunked. Quilt codes are not mentioned in the 19th century slave narratives or 1930s oral testimonies of former slaves. Additionally, no original quilts remain. You can take it or leave it.  As tight lipped as people had to be about the underground railroad, if the quilt code existed, the evidence is gone.
https://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/02/0205_040205_slavequilts.html

 The house has been turned into a museum with only volunteers.  I understand that when Edwards Place was remodeled, the former carpeting went to Woodlawn for restoration.
Here is their website:  http://jacksonvilleil.org/woodlawn-farm/

 The guide showed us the wood beams made of walnut which termites don't like.

In the evening there was a chicken dinner with music by the University High Fiddle Ensemble from Urbana, IL.

Here's the group's playlist.  I always forget the names of these songs.

Here's a video of Sophie's new little brother, Nick, that I'll be picking up in Fenton, MO on Tuesday.

Monday I was in the color guard for our Memorial Day ceremony.  It was a hot one!

I was a riffle bearer.  Boy am I hard to see on the end. 

Jim Shaner held our AMVETS flag.

In the afternoon I went to Camp Butler for the ceremony.  Unfortunately the elastic in the leggings went out.

Now to have a home inspection to see what my next project will be.