I took a long overdue journey to Kansas last weekend and had a delightful visit. I had wanted to
visit over the summer, but financial considerations negated that idea. Even so, I had promised
some of my Kansas friends that I would see if it might be possible to visit before the year's end.
My hope was to arrive before the weather turned cold, and ideally, I wanted to catch some fall
colors. As it turned out, I was able to take my trip on the same weekend that two Lawrence
friends' bands were having gigs, and I arrived on the day after the colors started to change!
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As I traveled through south-central Kansas, I was afraid that I might be arriving
just a tad early for the viewing of fall's colors. But shortly after bypassing
Topeka, I began to notice that assorted trees had begun to turn red.
Jon Eric Narum
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While I was in Lawrence, I had the delightful good fortune of staying at the household
of Gregor P. Brune. Gregor is a very unique individual who, for his own reasons,
has an obsession with the year 1968. Thanks to the hard work of Mr. Brune,
Lawrence is the home of the world's largest collection of 1968 pennies.
Jon Eric Narum
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COLLECTION OF 1968 PENNIES
Gregor's collection of 1968 pennies can be viewed in downtown Lawrence.
To contribute or to find out more, please visit 1968pennies.com .
Jon Eric Narum
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A surprise discovery for me was The 1968 Room, which Gregor maintains within his home. All of the
items on display in this room are either from -- or have some direct relationship to -- the year 1968.
Verrrry interesting! Click here to see several more photographs taken in The 1968 Room.
Jon Eric Narum
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I saw this brilliant tree on the University of Kansas campus, adjacent to Spooner Hall.
The tree trunk-like structure to the right of this tree is a sculpture by an artist named
Patrick Dougherty. It's composed of 6,000 pounds of maple and dogwood saplings.
Jon Eric Narum
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While I was in Lawrence, I got to visit with my dear friend
Derald. A man of numerous talents, I believe the thing
I love the most about Derald is his artist's soul.
Jon Eric Narum
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I took a drive in the wonderful Old West Lawrence neighborhood and encountered quite
a few trees exhibiting beautiful fall coloring. This was one of the more dazzling trees.
Jon Eric Narum
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Lawrence is much like Austin in that it has its fair share of characters. I'd
stopped in at Wheat Fields bakery for a tasty lunch, when this guy sat
down next to me and struck up a conversation -- so I took his photo.
Jon Eric Narum
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Okay, I need to wrap up for now. Not that many great photos this time
around, but at least I got to share some fall colors with you.
Jon Eric Narum