Body and Soul

Melvin, Watson and I ended our Friday at Victory Field, home of the Indianapolis Indians.  The division leaders won the game, their 50th win of the season and 30th at home, extending their lead over the third place Mud Hens to 18.5 games.

Two errors let the home team score three unearned runs in the (very) first inning.  The Indians added a run in the fifth.  Two Toledo triples in the eighth kept the visitors from being shut out.
Box Score

Before the game we took care of body and soul.

Soul first.  The first stop of our trip was the grottos and grounds of the Discalced Carmelite Fathers in Munster, Indiana.  Reliefs and statuary are set in a coarse masonry adorned with crystals.  The religious depictions are generally with straight-forward, with the notable exception of the Fluorescent Chapel.

Melvin and I ascended on our knees up the Holy Stairs to a representation of the crucifixion.  This was, to be honest, not an expression of reverence.  Rather, it was an exploration of how painful an experience it might be (noticeable discomfort) and a statement of our gratitude to the priests who made certain accommodations for us.

Later we visited the Indiana Medical History Museum, located in what was the pathology building of a now largely demolished insane asylum (to use the nomenclature of the time).

Thousands of patients were cut up but it is only in the 21st century that genetic testing of stored samples might lead to a cure for some forms of mental illness.  One hundred years ago, the hospital mostly practiced well-intentioned quackery.