Do you smell it too?

Matthew Freeman, St. Louis poet extraordinaire, was interviewed by Walrus Press.
"I like it all, the hipsters and the hoosiers."
Matthew is a cool dude. I know him personally. I like him and I like his philosophy. In St. Louis, hoosiers is not a geographical reference; it is a colloquialism that refers to white trash. Matthew likes everyone.

He also said St. Louis has its "smells". So true. Every ethnic neighborhood emits its own aroma. This is to be expected in any town in America. But a walk around the block in an inner city melting pot neighborhood is like removing lids from several countries. The aroma of oregano and spaghetti sauce takes one to Italy. Sauerkraut simmering emits a vision of the far away Rhineland. Meat grilling outdoors evokes visions of fourth of July picnics where barbeque sauce slathers burgers, ribs and shirtfronts. Bacon frying is a flashback to home grown tomatoes.

Drive past the brewery in St. Louis and smell the hops; it is a distinguishable odor.
Stop at the traffic signal downtown at Ruth's Chris Steak House and the smell of sizzling meat could make a vegetarian salivate.
How can anyone drive past a White Castle and not inhale onion?
Motor oil from garages out back of bungalows and grease from repair shops permeates the air in blue collar neighborhoods.
Downtown abandoned factories and towering, brick warehouses trip musty memories of yesteryear.
I could go on and on. How about you? Can you add any specific thoughts about your specific neighborhood smells?

First Sunday in October

Today we took a fall hike. I was looking for colorful leaves for a school project tomorrow. I came across this 'lady cigar tree' with leaves bigger than my head. Won't the kids be excited? We saw deer grazing nearby; we watched barge traffic on the Muddy Mississippi River. Oh what a glorious day. In a few minutes I will be serving homemade chicken pot pie (aka chicken bake) as the sun makes its slow crawl down the horizon. I am thankful for my blog friends and for finding my lost book, and being able to spend time outdoors reading Blue Highways, A Journey Into America, by William Least Heat-Moon. I felt like I was traveling the highways and byways, meandering through small town America and meeting the colorful characters. This memoir is chock full of history and interesting facts.

Welcome, Amy! Thanks for following my blog. Matthew will have a blast tomorrow.

Did you do anything fun and interesting this cool, fall weekend?