Roscoe's Quick Notes

When we left Dorothy last Wednesday she was falling asleep in her bed in Ozma's palace in the Emerald City, soon to be transported to her bedroom back at the farmhouse in Kansas while she slept by the magic belt that she had taken from the evil Nome King and had given to Ozma for safe keeping. So ended Book 5, The Road to OZ.

We are now working our way through Book 6, The Emerald City of Oz. Six chapters into the book we find two main story lines developing: In one story line the evil Nome king has become increasingly frustrated that he can no longer work strong magic because he no longer has his magic belt; and he determines to take his army to the Emerald City, destroy it and retake that magic belt. The other story line picks up as Dorothy wakes in her bedroom in the farm house. When she goes downstairs to join Uncle Henry and Aunt Em for breakfast, she learns they are distressed and on the verge of losing their farm.

While Uncle Henry is a good man, he has always been one of modest means. And the expense of having to rebuild the farmhouse after it had been blown away with Dorothy in it (we remember Book 1 in this series of Oz books) caused him to take out a mortgage on the farm. Poor weather had hurt his crops so he was unable to keep up with the mortgage payments. The bank was soon going to evict Uncle Henry and Aunt Em.

Dorothy thought she could help them, but first she needed to return to Oz. So at four o'clock she sent a signal to Ozma. Ozma retrieved her immediately. When Dorothy explained the situation to her, Ozma said she would be glad to set up rooms for them in her palace, and help them find a comfortable living somewhere in Oz if they wanted to stay. Since Dorothy was a princess of Oz, her aunt and uncle were naturally part of the royal family and would be welcomed as such.

Meanwhile, the evil Nome King had devised a plan. He would have his army dig a tunnel underneath the deadly desert and tunnel directly to the Emerald City, surprising Ozma's forces and attack that way. His General Guph was to visit some of the other lands in Oz and recruit allies to join with the Nome King's forces when they attacked the Emerald City.

Meanwhile, Ozma had transported Uncle Henry and Aunt Em to her palace where they amazed to find it as grand as Dorothy had described it. All this time they thought Dorothy had been dreaming, and the stories she'd told them of her adventures were fantasies. They were overjoyed by Ozma's offer of hospitality and, of course, they accepted.

And the adventure continues...

posted by Roscoe

My Thursday night college football game will feature the Miami (OH) Redhawks vs. the Ohio Bobcats in a Mid-American Conference game.

Both teams come into tonight with a (5-3) win-loss record, so I'm expecting a good game.

And the adventure continues...

posted by Roscoe

Unable to roundup a college football game radio broadcast to listen to this evening, but I do have a few college basketball games from which to choose. And my choice is:

The Indiana University / Purdue University at Indianapolis (IUPUI) Jaguars vs the Ohio State Buckeyes.

GO JAGS!

and the adventure continues...

posted by Roscoe

Listening to Gregorian Chant while wrapping up my night prayers.

and the adventure continues ...

posted by Roscoe

Listening to an American Athletic Conference College Football Game tonight, the Memphis Tigers at the Rice Owls. Early in the game, the 25th Ranked Memphis Tigers with a (7-1) record are leading the unranked Rice Owls (4 – 4) by a score of 7 – 0.

And the adventure continues...

posted by Roscoe

Tonight's College Football game finds the Tulane Green Wave in town playing our UTSA Roadrunners at the Alamodome. Score midway through the First Quarter finds our Roadrunners leading, 10 – 6.

Go Roadrunners!

And the adventure continues.

posted by Roscoe

We remember that last Wednesday we left Dorothy sitting on Ozma's throne, welcoming the arriving dignitaries who had come to the Emerald City to celebrate Princess Ozma's birthday. There were far too many arrivals for me to list here; magical and wonderful creatures all. The one arrival who impressed me most, and impressed the other dignitaries, too, was Santa Claus. Santa, the much loved and jolly old elf, played an important role at the end of this particular book.

The final two chapters in this Book 5, The Road to Oz, are: The Grand Banquet, and The Birthday Celebration. As the guests arrived, were welcomed, and left their birthday presents for Ozma at a large table, servants escorted them to rooms in the Palace that had been prepared for them so they could freshen up from their travels and prepare for the Grand Banquet.

The Grand Banquet was truly a wondrous feast. All kinds of exotic foods were enjoyed by all the attendees. Even those who, by their nature didn't eat, (the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman, etc.) were seated at a table of their own, and joined in the general merriment of the evening.

The Birthday Celebration began the next day with a parade, complete with marching bands, leading out from the palace to adjoining green fields where a huge pavilion had been built for the Royalty and honored guests. An elevated stage had been set up in front of the pavilion so that everyone could see the acts performed for their entertainment. And there were many amazing acts performed.

The Wizard of Oz was the last to perform. He had assembled a big soap bubble machine with tanks of soapy water and a big fan underneath the stage, and a pipe that exited on the stage level. He had added a special glue to the soap mixture that would harden when exposed to the air so the big bubbles would rise high into the air and remain intact, rather than “pop” right away as ordinary soap bubbles do.

Santa said he was going to float away in one of those big bubbles to his home, so he could see the beautiful countryside in the daylight, as he usually traveled at night with his reindeer. And Santa offered to use his magic to send any of the guests back to their homes in one of the Wizard's big bubbles if they so desired. Because, of course, Santa knows where everyone lives. Dorothy and Ozma convinced Button-Bright, the little boy who couldn't remember his real name or where he lived, to let Santa fly him home. Santa knew, and he was sure his mother and father would be delighted to have him back home.

Santa even promised Polychrome that he'd see her father, the Rainbow, as he was flying through the sky, and he'd tell him his daughter was waiting for him in the land of Oz. Polychrome had just explained Santa's promise to Dorothy and Ozma when a sudden radiance filled the air, and while the people looked on in wonder the end of a gorgeous rainbow slowly settled down upon the platform.

With a glad cry, the Rainbow's Daughter sprang from her seat and danced along the curve of the bow, mounting gradually upward, while the folds of her gauzy gown whirled and floated around her like a cloud and blended with the colors of the rainbow itself.

“Good-bye Ozma! Good-bye Dorothy!” cried a voice they knew belonged to Polychrome; but now the little maiden's form had melted wholly into the rainbow, and their eyes could no longer see her.

Suddenly, the end of the rainbow lifted and its colors slowly faded like mist before a breeze...

The entertainment being ended, everyone left the pavilion and formed a gay procession back to the Emerald City. Dorothy and Ozma had a nice quiet dinner together and a pleasant visit with the Scarecrow, Tik-tok, and the yellow hen. It was decided that Ozma would use the magic belt and transfer Dorothy and Toto back to her bed in the Kansas farmhouse while they slept.

Quite content to have had so pleasant an adventure, and a little tired by all the day's busy scenes, Dorothy clasped Toto in her arms and lay down upon the pretty white bed in her room in Ozma's royal palace.

Presently she was sound asleep.

And the adventure continues.

posted by Roscoe

That's a phrase I've had different eye doctors use when reviewing my eye exams for a few years now. As in, “You know, Mr. Ellis, I can see a bit of macular degeneration going on there.”

I've just shrugged it off before. I mean I know I'm an old guy and I've got old eyeballs; there's no gettin' around that fact of nature. Today I'm treating that phrase more seriously.

After running lots of tests and taking lots of pictures earlier this afternoon, my eye doc told me that a little blood vessel behind my right retina is leaking. And that's why I can barely see out out of my right eye.

He made an appointment with a retina specialist for me, and told me the retina doc will examine me and will most likely need to inject something into that eye to stop the bleeding. Then we'll see what damage that bleeding has done, scarring, etc. and decide whatever other treatment might be in order.

The earliest the retina doc can see me is Thursday of next week.

And the adventure continues

posted by Roscoe

Listening now to the IU Hoosiers Pregame Show ahead of the IU Men's Basketball Preseason Game this afternoon vs the Baylor Bears.

The adventure does continue.

posted by Roscoe

Finished work on the day's pending correspondence chess games in time to tune in the 1st of my college football games of the day: a Big 10 Conference Game, UCLA Bruins at Indiana Hoosiers.

GO HOOSIERS!

and the adventure continues.

posted by Roscoe