Cape Girardeau History and Photos

November 26, 2010March 9, 2015

New Steinhoff Tradition

I wrote about a utility pole near Perkins that has become a shoe magnet. Mother mentioned that she’d like to add a shoe to it. In fact, she mentioned it several times, just in case I didn’t get the hint the first time.

The Tulsa Clan consisting of Brother David, Sis-in-Law Diane and Niece Amy came to Cape to meet up with Brother Mark at Mother’s for Turkey Day.

I had to leave town, but Mark said he’d establish the New Steinhoff Family Tradition of adding shoes to the utility pole (dubbed tree, because it sounds better).

They ended up at the Perkins Shoe Tree

You can tell from this photo that there is some measure of confusion. Bro David is thinking, “Perkins? THIS is Perkins? I thought we were going to a pancake house.”

Amy, a veteran Black Friday shopper is looking around for a mall. “This isn’t a Shoe Tree like they have in Dallas next to Neiman-Marcus.”

Mark prepping the shoes

They should have had a clue that something unusual was going to happen when Mark told them to bring old shoes and then started drilling holes in them.

Red Door Antiques added shoe

Mark, an antique hunter, stopped in at Red Door Antiques in Delta along the way. While chatting with owner Ellie Cook, he let slip the Steinhoff Family mission.

Ellie said she had heard of the Perkins Shoe Tree (pole), but had never seen it. She contributed a shoe to the project.

Madeline DeJournett, chronicler of all that passes as news in Advance and its environs, said she was going to show up shoe in hand to meet the group, but begged off at the last minute because of family obligations.

Mark said he would leave an empty screw in the pole waiting for her. Do NOT read this as him saying that Madeline has a screw loose.

Collection of shoes

Note the red washers in six of the seven shoes. Mark thought it would be nice if it would be possible to identify the family shoes and which year they were put up.

Red is 2010.

I’m not sure if that is to reflect the Red State shift in the 2010 elections or if red was the paint that was handy.

The shoe without a red washer is Ellie Cook’s.

Legend identifies shoes

Mark decided that there should be a color-coded legend to go with the red washers. Cape represents Mother; St. Louis is Mark; Tulsa was David, Diane and Amy. Madeline isn’t family, but she’s from Advance, so he was going to make her an honorary Steinhoff for the occasion. (Then she didn’t show. Real family trumps honorary family any day.)

Memorial shoes

Here’s a look at some of the shoes and the legend. We sure hope nobody from Perkins takes offense at us interlopers taking up space on their pole. If it turns out that it’s illegal to tack shoes on utility poles, I want to point out that I was in Florida while all of this was going on.

The culprits

Here are the shoe tackers at the scene: Amy, Mother, Diane and David. Mark, who wanted to avoid being documented at the scene, didn’t take into account his shadow at the bottom of the photo.

Wife Lila is headed back for a visit in December. Mother mentioned that she was going to swing back to check on the shoes on her way to Advance before Christmas, so I bet she could be persuaded to show Lila where to tack a spare shoe.

Thanks to Mark and Amy for the photos

November 25, 2010November 28, 2010

Adam and Carly’s for TGiving

Son Adam and Wife Carly invited us over for a Thanksgiving mini-feast with their friends Eric and Laura.

I never was any good at studio photography. I particularly avoided taking food pictures as much as possible. I didn’t have the patience to arrange everything just so.

So, these photos didn’t have any fancy lighting or placement. What I saw is what I shot.

Steam poured out of turkey

The electric knife was a Christmas present to Lila from her father nearly 40 years ago. It’s a little balky, but it’ll still slice turkey.

The bird was soaked in brine overnight, then put on the grill until the internal temperature reached 170 degrees (based on a wireless probe Adam kept monitoring).

It was unbelievably moist, based on some pieces I snatched up before they fell on the floor.

Green beans

The meal was both tasty AND colorful. Lila tells me this green bean dish by Carly contained shallots, bacon, almonds and balsamic vinegar.

When Adam saw this picture, he was distressed by the odd green bean at the bottom of the frame. It offended his sense of order.

Sweet potatoes and marshmallows

Lila does not eat this, but makes it because it’s a Steinhoff family tradition. I whined last year when she “forgot” to make it. She calls it candy, not food. It contains sweet potatoes, crushed pineapple, brown sugar and a topping of melted, toasted miniature marshmallows.

Yeast rolls and cranberry relish

Lila provided the yeast rolls and cranberry relish. The relish is made of raw cranberries, oranges, cinnamon and sugar.

NY-style cheesecake

This was Carly’s first attempt at New York-style cheesecake. It was served naked (the cheesecake, not the server) with a topping of homemade whipped cream on the side.

If this is really her first cheesecake, she should retire now. I don’t think it’s possible to make one any better.

Recipes are available

If you’re interested in how to make any of this stuff, let me know and I’ll pass your request on to the cooks.

You can be assured that the information won’t come directly from me. My recipe book is the stack of carry-out menus under the kitchen telephone.

November 24, 2010November 25, 2010

Thanksgiving 2010

I figure y’all are too busy thinking about eating, eating, recovering from eating or watching sporting events to bother to stop by, so I’ll just toss up some photos of things I’m thankful for.

I’ve never been able to master that teenage girl trick of holding out my camera to shoot a self-portrait of me and my BFF, so I thought I’d try a mirror shot just before I pulled out of Cape headed for Florida. Looks like I haven’t mastered the old photo in a mirror trick, either. Mother, at least, looks good. She’s responsible for all the festive decorations and for making Cape still feel like home.

Healthy, happy, active family

I wrote earlier about the Steinhoff Family Triathlon in August. Adam asked Matt and his mother if they’d like to do a family Olympic distance relay at the 19th Annual Huntington’s Disease Triathlon in Miami on August 1, 2010. Each did a leg of their specialty: Matt rode his bike 40 kilometers, Lila swam 1.5K and Adam ran 10K.

They let me do my specialty: standing on the sidelines shooting photos.

Lila came home last night to report that she had bested her swimming goal for the year. She was aiming for 100 miles in 2010, but she’s ten miles over that, with another month to go.

A super grandson and his mother

We won the daughter-in-law lottery with Matt’s wife Sarah and Adam’s wife Carly. Matt and Sarah live close enough to Malcolm’s school that he can ride his bike. That’s Sarah shadowing him. There’s no occasion too trivial to wear special headgear when Sarah’s around.

A birthday surprise

Adam arranged to surprise Carly on her birthday by having a new tree planted in their yard while they were at brunch. The couple surprised us earlier in the year by announcing that we’re going to be grandparents again in February. They’re gonna make great parents.

Saving the best for last

Most importantly, there’s Wife Lila, who is the one who is largely responsible for the way our two boys turned out. She’s the one who steered the canoe while I was flailing wildly with the paddle. Yep, I’m a pretty lucky guy with a lot to be thankful for every day, not just on the one turkeys dread.

November 24, 2010

St. Francis Hospital

I happened to be in Cape when the old St. Francis Hospital was reduced to a pile of rubble in September of 2000. Somewhere, filed with my Florida film, are photos I took inside the hospital after it closed, but before it was razed. They’ll surface one of these days.

St. Francis Annexation

I ran across this Missourian ad from Sept. 2, 1967 calling out the vote for the St. Francis annexation. I’m assuming that was to annex the space where the present hospital complex is near William St. and Mt. Auburn Rd.

New Hospital under construction

I shot this aerial of the new St. Francis Hospital under construction some time in the mid-70s, as best as I can guess. I had a hard time figuring out what the building was based on how it looks today.

When I called up a Google Earth shot, I could see this building buried in layer after layer of additions.

St. Francis site today

The Fort Hope Apartments occupy the old hospital’s space today.The low-income housing development was built in 2001. A Missourian story in 2004 said that single tenants at Fort Hope must make less than $23,040 a year. The income for a family of four must be no more than $32,880 a year. Monthly rents range from $240 for a single-bedroom apartment to $355 for a three-bedroom apartment.

Restricted access and no-nonsense management is credited for the complex being reasonably crime-free and well-maintained in an area known for problems.

Old St. Francis neighborhood

This aerial, shot in early November, has Good Hope St. on the left; Sprigg St. running across the top; Morgan Oak at the right; S. Ellis running acrossthe middle, and Pacific at the bottom.

The small, orange-colored building on Good Hope across from the Fort Hope Apartments is the infamous office of Dr. Herbert, the man who gave me a wooden stick phobia. It was painted white in my generation’s day. The family living there now knew nothing about the building’s past.