58°F and clear skies this morning, going up to 86° today. Some pop-up storms yesterday evening didn't produce any rain for us, but did blow in some cooler air with the accompanying winds.
We went across the road for dinner with our neighbors yesterday evening. They grilled some burgers and brats, and had a wide assortment of cut up fresh fruit. All was delicious. Around 9pm, we all piled into the back of his old Ford F-100, and rode down to "the front acre" as he calls it down by the road, and he and his son launched about $300 worth of assorted fireworks. Some of them were quite impressive. He does this every year, and we usually just watch from our front porch. His show seems to be growing every year. Even other neighbors drove to the ends of their driveways to sit and watch. A good time was had by all.
I've also never heard the term "drop zone" in reference to an entryway. Interesting. Ours is our utility room between the sunroom and the kitchen. We use that door into the sunroom from the driveway, and almost never use the front door. We have a small table, a shoe covey built into a bench, and coat hooks on two walls. It's not technically a mudroom, but it serves the same purpose.
Be careful on your statuary quest, RNG. We did the same thing a few months ago, and found a terrible place with all sorts of dastardly ways to take our money. We were looking for a bench, and ended up also buying a new bird bath top, a border collie statue, and two stone lanterns for the zen garden.
Mostly, I have friends who love playing at Emerald Greens. Never played it myself, but it's on the list. I need to hurry, though, as the STL Zoo recently bought that land and is planning to close the course and re-purpose the land.
Going to hit our local golf course tomorrow morning with The Wife, Bent Oak GC in Breese, IL. It's close and relatively inexpensive; $20 for 9 holes with a cart, or $25 for 18. Haven't seen any deer on that course yet.
