A Smile

I have been working on getting all of my photos loaded back into my computer. Finally they are there..where they belong..well not exactly how they were before..but getting there. Some of them make me smile. Today as March goes out like a Lion..a stormy, snowy Lion..I need a smile.

Spring 1994, Prom, my youngest daughter (East Side/Jen) is all dressed up, we are on the lawn at the school taking photographs. We are there just before the Grand March, my sister Julie, and my niece Toots (she has another name..but I have always called her Toots) and my nephew Jacob are there with us.

As I am snapping away with my camera, I feel a tug at my pants leg, a little voice is repeating "Auntie, Auntie" as the tugging continues. Toots who is not yet three years old, wants my attention. I bend lower, as she wrings her hands together like an old woman would, her head is bent down, her eyes looking at the ground, her little hands busy wringing....she has something to say. "Auntie could... Auntie could... could you take my picture with the princess?"

Of course I could..so here it is a memory captured. Toots will be going to her own Senior Prom this year..how time flies...:)

I Heard It On The Radio

Far Guy and I learned in 1997 that connections are what keep you going during a flood. Our connection to the outside world was email, phone and the radio. We listened to KFGO out of Fargo. We have been listening to KFGO online this time also. They have been taking phone calls, from callers. Many people have questions..KFGO is the place to call if you need an answer.


What I have heard over the past few days:

Briarwood needs a porta-john, Larry needs a jackhammer (someone called with one for him to borrow), a dog was lost, a dog was found at one of the dikes, an elderly lady had baked 200 oatmeal cookies and wanted to get them to the sandbaggers, someone with a bread truck full of loaves of bread wondering where he could take them, people have extra sandbags..some are even filled with sand, some people have dry storage space to share, people outside of the area call in and offer to take in strangers with pets that are displaced, two large dogs were found, what roads are open out of Fargo, people call in with pleas for sandbaggers, they are shutting off the water to Oakport, there is a fire at Oakport..an elderly couple lost their home first to the flood and then to fire last Friday, Oak Grove Campus is getting water, hundreds have showed up to help fix a breach near El Zagel, Briarwood got their porta-john (one was on the way within twenty minutes of the plea), an emergency animal shelter is being set up at Jamestown by Kay from Prairie Paws Rescue, West Fargo has an animal shelter set up at the Fairgrounds, Horses could be taken to NDSU..but they needed hay and people with trailers to help transport them, a guy from Bemidji brought down some pumps and hoses and will give them to the first people that show up at the Burger King in Moorhead, Jessica calls often, seventy horses were eventually moved, she needed halters and more lead ropes, today she need a water tanker truck so the volunteers don't have to carry water to the horses, from what I understand many animals are safe at the fairgrounds..donkeys, horses and even a pot bellied pig, people from as far away as New York call to thank them for their 24/7 coverage of the flood, many people call with the question..who do I call for??..and they get answers with phone numbers. Like they say, if someone has a question or a need, if they don't know the answer one of their listeners will, and their listeners are good people and will share their resources.


My brother and his son are still over there, he his helping to build secondary dikes. From what I understand he was at Centennial Soccer Field in a twenty foot hole, bringing up clay from the bottom to the top. He drove back home to sleep. My other nephew spent some time in an area in South Moorhead building a dike with Firefighters and Guardsmen.


Here are a few photographs that my nephew took on Saturday in Moorhead, Minnesota.




They are not out of the woods yet, they are in better shape than many feared..a winter storm is heading their way. They will be in a high state of alert for a number of days yet..maybe weeks:(

Tracks

Sometimes I wonder... am I on the right track? Am I going into the woods or coming out? If I am coming out my feet are wet.

Am I on the edge of the road and going..right then left..and back on track .. then I think..even though the road is snowy soon to be muddy..I am near the frickin road..that's a plus! :)

Culverts

Yesterday I needed to get out, I needed to see something besides snow and trees. I was pinging off the walls and just needed to get out. So I chose to go look at some culverts. Whoopie!! This may seem rather boring to most of you.. I however like to watch water make its way from one side of the road to the other. In the spring in Minnesota..I live to watch the water run. Far Guy was not thrilled and I told him I could go alone, but he said "No, I will drive you (big sigh), but today we are taking my truck." Chance heard this and immediately went to the truck to wait.

Chance and Far Guy have been fixing the fire in a local outdoor stove, they drive there once a day to fill the stove. Yesterday Chance was lost..at least Far Guy thought so..as he hollered and hollered and the dog wouldn't come. Where in the heck was the dog? Waiting in the truck..duh..


Anyway back to my exciting culverts..are you ready?


This was the find of the day...an ice shelf on the west side of a local culvert..I thought it was awesome.
This is a top view, not as fantastic..but still okay.

This is the view from the other side of the culvert. I have to remember to watch where I walk...so I don't end up wet. I used to swim in this area as a kid, and when the water was low we used to crawl into this culvert to play..no swimming today. Far Guy hollers "Be Careful, You are going to end up all wet." Then I fell in..just kidding..just checking to see if you are still reading. I was careful...very careful.

We travel on to the next set of interesting culverts..they turned out to be really interesting. As the road was totally washed out. Far Guy refused to go any further, and I had to hike near the river..by myself..all alone..when the ice began to crack under my feet I stopped and took this photo. I was still on the road..the water was just getting wetter.
So that was my big excitement yesterday..:)

Flooding Memories

What a week! We had all that running water on Monday, then it snowed..not a lot..but we are returned to a wintry frozen like state again. Spring seems like it will never come. Summer seems like some distant dream.

The flood preparations continue in the Red River Valley. My baby brother and two nephews are now over there working on the dikes. They are all heavy equipment operators. When the flood predictions came out, my first thought was..I just have a few cousins and friends that live in the area..but no immediate family to fret over. Now it is personal.

Unless you have lived through a flood..you cannot even begin to imagine the power of the water, it holds you hostage. It scares you, it occupies your every thought until you have no other thoughts except water, water levels and sandbags.

During the flood of 1997, there was just the two of us, until my Father came to help. We slept in shifts. We patrolled the perimeter. Out the patio door onto the deck where the gas powered pump was sucking water out, past the sump pump discharge that was lobbed over the dike, around the corner past the tulips, to the bucket with holes sunk into the ground to run the sump pump that Far Guy installed inside of it, around the corner to the front, you could breathe a sigh of relief because the water was lower there, into the garage and down the stairs to make sure there were no leaks in the basement anywhere. Then back up to the Family Room to get ready for the next round, a few minutes to warm up before you patrolled again, if you sit down and get too warm you might fall asleep. Every forty five minutes the gas pump needed gas, at night whoever was sleeping would be awakened if you were late with the fill and the motor died from lack of fuel. The sound of that gas powered pump was security.

About day 20 or so. Far Guy insisted that I leave. My Father would man the dikes while we boated to the vehicle, and went out to dinner with my Mother. I was away from the water..I had good sea legs..I was so used to seeing moving water in all directions that seeing no movement and no water on the dry land outside of the restaurant made me nauseous. Everyone in the city seemed so normal, traffic was flowing, the sun was shining, there was no water to watch..how could they all laugh and be normal..when I was going to return to a watery world just a few miles away. Didn't they know, and if they did..did they care? Not after the danger had passed for them..they were all past the worst of it..they wanted to put it all behind them..well I did too..desperately. It took a really long time for our water to recede..many, many days..day 42 was a good day, the small lake we lived on was finally back in its banks.

Twelve years later I still have bitter feelings toward the media, who forgot about outlying areas, small groups of houses that were all Islands. Sight seeing people in big honkin boats that sped by and caused the wakes to go over my dikes. The Red Cross that left me a jug of water, a pail and a mop..but never a sandwich.

We sold that house a year later, it was only on the market for a week and it sold, and when we showed them the flood photographs, they wanted the house anyway..they were young. It was a beautiful place to live, near the city, but with a country feel, with many wonderful neighbors. I miss that house sometimes..but never in the spring when it floods:(

Peace Garden Mama in the Flood

My blogging friend, and real life friend Peace Garden Mama lives in Fargo, North Dakota. She will open her blog for comments later today. She has some great water photos and some snow ones too..IF you can't leave her a comment at her blog, leave one here..I will make sure she reads them after things settle down for her:)

My Brother

Fifty-Five years ago today was a monumental day in my life. I was two and a half years old. My brother was born, I had to learn to share my parents attention. He had colic, he made everyone tired. My parents walked the floor with him for many, many months.

I learned many things by having a brother, how to accurately pitch a baseball while he played either catcher or batter. We played "horse" on our improvised basketball court, we practiced game winning free throws for hours. We played badminton in the front yard. We went fishing and swimming together. We learned to hunt and shoot a rifle together. We learned how to ride a motorcycle as young teens. We learned to drive the old farm truck around in the grain fields. We both joined 4 H at the same time. I guess I am a bit of a tomboy..because of my brother.
In the winter we played endless card games like War, and Rummy. Checkers, Chinese Checkers, Sorry, Monopoly and Parcheesi were our favorite board games. We collected Baseball cards together.

When we got older sometimes we were a bit physical with each other, I was bigger and stronger..so I usually won. We would take turns slugging each other in the upper arms..the first one to cry lost. We played a terrible game, where you spit on two of your fingers and then hit the other one on the exposed forearm..welts would line up on his poor arms. We played the horrible pocket knife game (Chicken) with bare feet, both of us escaped any major stab wounds to our feet..either the knife was dull or we were good knife throwers. We had major arm wrestling competitions..sometimes I would let him win those.

My brother loves sports, he lives and breathes football, softball and soccer. In his free time..he coaches, referees and umpires in the rain..because he lives in Oregon..far away from Minnesota. I miss him some days, like today..when I would just like to grab him and give him a big hug. Happy Birthday to my brother! :)

The summer of 1954, our Dad , my brother and me! I was amazed by this photo, I never realized before how much my brother looks like Dad.

Wistful Wednesday :1920

What a wonderful looking bunch of kids in 1920! I love the way the little boys took off their caps for the photo. Far Guys Dad was six years old, this might be the first grade class. The littlest girl probably doesn't belong to the class, as her brothers arm holds her in place. Far Guys Dad is the boy on the right in the striped shirt. The little boy on the far left has a lunch box, and several of them have pussy willows.
*************
Legend of the Pussy Willow
One day in early spring, a mother cat and her kittens where exploring the forest along the river near their home. A beautiful butterfly drifted past them and over the water. The kittens, being young and inexperienced, leaped into the air to try and catch the butterfly, but instead landed in the swiftly moving water.
The mother cat cried helplessly while her young kittens struggled against the current. The kittens were having a hard time, and she was afraid they would soon drown.
Along the banks grew a wise willow, with graceful branches that bent all the way to the water. The willow, seeing all that had happened, bent its branches further into the water to try to rescue the kittens. Each kitten grabbed with its sharp claws, and was pulled gently to the shore by the willow.
To this day, the willow is honored for its heroic deeds by the tiny fur-like buds that sprout each season as the rivers start to run in spring. (Polish legend)
**********************
It is just about time for the pussy willows here in Minnesota, they are native here (Salix discolor) a shrub that has soft grey catkins of the male flowers. Pussy willows can be found in other northern states and in Canada. Pussy willow a Minnesota spring alarm clock! :)

Snow Melt

We have had a major snow melt here, the rain that began on Sunday continues to do battle with the snowbanks. Far Guy and I took some photos of the water in our area yesterday. We live in the Mississippi watershed, so all our water goes east and south. Our friends 90 miles west are preparing for the second five hundred flood in the Red River Valley in 12 years. We lived there through the "Great Flood of 1997." It was no fun at all. They are in for a real tough go this time..with a flood forecast that exceeds the 1997 levels. If you have any extra prayers..wing them toward the Red River Valley. The small amount of water that we have here is insignificant compared to them.

This culvert is open. It had quite a current.

The old, old river that used to exist in this area.

Water was across the road on the highway in seven spots in a three mile stretch.

The pieces of sod that the snowplow throws into the ditches sit on top of the icy snowbanks covered in water.

Our friend Ray, has no driveway and some of his boats have escaped. Ahh..Ray..maybe some of your boats are not lakeworthy.

Almost a few whitecaps.

The water in Osage, Minnesota. I was hanging out the window at this point, another car came barreling through the water and sent an icy wall of water over the top of us. I was drenched...and madder than a wet hen.

Water across our road.

Water in our neck of the woods. Today, most the the culverts have cleared and the frost has gone out, so the water is receding. We are in no danger of flooding here, for that I am thankful:)

What is it? Revealed

When I was a little girl, on Sunday mornings I put my offering for church in a hankie and tied up the ends. All little girls at our church did this if they didn't have a little purse or pockets.

Things I learned:

If you whop your brother with it, he will eventually cry and you will both be in trouble.

If you sling it around during the sermon, make sure it doesn't make any clunking noises against the pews.

Be prepared, when the Pastor says "Amen" you better start untying your hankie, if you did a lot of silent slinging..it might be a tighter knot than you started with.

ALL the coins must go from the hankie into the offering plate..coins held back in the anticipation of a candy bar are punishable by time in a chair at home after church..and a serious lecture.

If your brother, who always has a pocket, puts all his coins in but takes out paper money..he is going to be in big trouble..he was..some life lessons you can learn just by watching. I observed his indiscretion..as he pointed out..he put lots of coins (pennies) in and only took one paper one out. He got time in the chair..without me as his company:)

What is it?

A little fun today. I will give you a hint. I used this a long time ago..when I was a little girl. Leave your guess! Tomorrow I will tell you the story. :)

A Very Old Story: 1818

A story from long ago.. The following is from The Sketches of Thomas White of Ohio by L.P. Allen.

Far Guys Great, Great, Great Grandfather James H H. ( born in 1783) from New Jersey and Grandmother Mary (born in 1787) from Ohio, were married on Jan 01, 1808 in Ohio. They began an adventure in May 1818.. They took a keel boat on the Ohio, then cordeling (twisting) the boat up the Mississippi, via St Louis, landing at the mouth of the Wood River. In June they made their home in the hills of the Piasas ( a area in Madison County, Illinois). In August in the company of others they made a tour of inspection to the fertile lands northward, of which they had heard glowing descriptions. Crossing Apple Creek the first day, they camped on the bank of a small stream that bore his name for a number of years. He laid the first claim north of Apple Creek. In 1819 they reached their wilderness home, although privations* and hardships ended not for many years. Not having cotton or flax they resorted to nettle for their clothing. In August of 1819, James thought that a little wheat flour would go well with turkey, venison and hominy, he took the cart and the oxen to St. Louis, Missouri to obtain some. He was absent about three weeks.

This occurred while he was gone....A former acquaintance was visiting them as usual, accompanied by the backwoodsman's friend, the rifle; himself must take his own true gun, the friend promised to stay with the lone family, the oldest child not eleven years of age. One night as the family lay in the new camp, without a door or shutter, the screams of a huge panther woke them as he came leaping on the branches of the lately fallen trees near the hut. The cautious Mary called " Aaron do you hear that?" "yes" "Well what is it?" "It's a painter, and don't make any noise or it will come into camp and kill us all." "If I get you the gun can't you shoot it?" "No; be still." "Well, if it comes in I will have you killed first." She got up and made a trick of bark and clap-boards and moved it up and down till the shocking blood sucker retired.

A Note of interest: Mary's mothers maiden name was McGhee, whose father and two brothers were in the Revolutionary War, one of them seven years, and composed one of General Washington's body-guard, and rendered important service at the battle of Brandywine.
There is another note: Furniture was homemade, cooking was done in an open fireplace, their first cooking stove was purchased in 1848 cost 60 dollars..the value of four cows.In these writings it is noted that Mary was a woman of strong mind, and was sympathetic to the afflicted. James was noted for his strong love for morality and temperance: he was energetic and had the interest of schools at heart.

* Privations I had to look it up..it means the state of being deprived.

Far Side notes: They were 31 and 35 years old when they began their adventure, and 61 and 65 when they got their first stove. James died the next year in 1849. The wilderness that they settled in was later called Greene, Illinois. Far Guys Great Great Grandfather James White H. was born in 1817 ..so he was just a tiny baby when they began their adventure, he was the sixth child born to them. Marys last child was born in 1828..she was 41 years old then..she had eleven children..and no real stove. I cannot even begin to imagine how very difficult her day to day life was. The story above was taken from The Sketches of Thomas White, I found it on the Internet years ago, I would have linked to it but the site is no longer in existence. :)

My daughter East Side did a blog awhile ago that ties in quite nicely with this one. Graves of a Family Name.

Snow Flurries

March weather can be fickle..one day 50 degrees and the next day snowing and barely 20 degrees. You don't know when to wear your parka, and when to grab a hooded sweatshirt. When in doubt I wear both and peel layers from there. A modified Minnesota striptease, music is optional. Three or four days of spring like weather can make snow seem like a bad memory.

Chance is upset today.. it is snowing. He wants to go out and play..but not by himself. Last Sunday when it was really warm, the last of the snow came sliding off of the roof and scared the heck out of him..I think he was asleep, and the snow came off..and splattered all over him..a rude awakening for sure. He was not injured..he was just sleeping in the wrong place at the wrong time. Now the white stuff is falling out of the sky again.. and he doesn't want to go out all alone. He is now hiding under my feet..napping..hope I don't fall out of the chair or anything..the dogs whole world will fall apart...there will be no safe place to hide.

Ya well buddy, I would just as soon hide from the snow too. Instead we have to buck up and take it like a dog, and an old lady and take some photographs. Then we can have a nap:)

Wild Turkeys and Wild Rumors

I have been in pursuit of this Wild Turkey half the winter..finally success! Far Guy has been so patient..taking me by the Turkey area. I caught them in March..but then I lost those photos (and they were damn good ones too) so we had to venture out again. They are just down the road a few miles..the snow is too deep yet to venture into the ditch. The Wild Turkey season starts here soon, April 15th I think...these guys will be easy to hunt. They are wary of traffic..one day Far Guy lost all his patience with me and Chance, I was hanging out one window trying to get some photos and Chance rolled down his own window AGAIN and began to bark..and a car came down the road. Far Guy hollered "Chance quiet down! Here comes a car..we are all gonna die ..but SOMEONE can take good pictures of the crash with your camera! " I have a ritual..Camera in action mode and ready to shoot.. I open my window..Far Guy zooms into position with the car and I snap photos like mad. Turkeys scatter everywhere..

Far Guy called me a "Turkey" the other day. I was visiting with an individual. I had heard a rumor that he and his lovely wife got a divorce. So I asked him straight up.. " I heard a rumor, that you and the wife got a divorce? " He was stunned, as he has been married a long time..rumors ..they were just rumors..who starts them anyway..well who ever does..I don't repeat them and If I hear one about you, I will ask you the next time I see you..so I can tell the next person that wants to tell me the same juicy gossip that they are NUTS. This was all very embarrassing for Far Guy...poor guy..stuck with a "Turkey" for a wife..who squashes wild rumors:)

Wistful Wednesday: Great Grandmother Hatwig

My Great Grandmother D was born in Germany in 1878. She came to America in 1882 when she was four years old, she had a twin sister named Elsie. How or why she ended up in Minnesota is a mystery. She gave birth to five children, one of which was my Grandfather Albert D. She suffered the losses of two of her children Freddie at the age of nine from Scarlet Fever and Walter in 1935 from injuries in a car accident. She and her husband, Christian, were farmers. When Christian developed crippling Rheumatoid Arthritis she devoted her life to caring for him and their farm.

My Mother has many good memories of her Grandmother, my Mom would stop by her Grandmas house before school for "something good" to put in her lunch pail, usually a cookie.

I remember her, but as a child I was introduced to many old people..and I was not paying very good attention. I do recall some stories of her burying money in jars and coffee cans..and my Grandfather wondering if they would ever find them all.

This photo is impossible to date.. under the B there is a 25 on the license plate..I am not sure if it means anything or not..the classy outfit she sported that day always makes me smile. I wonder what color it was? :)

I am melting!

Just like the wicked witch said "I am melting" as she disappeared into a puddle ..so is our snow. Two 50 plus degree days in a row and you can see the evil snow banks shrink before your eyes. Our "Lake" property is back.

Far Guy and Chance are water movers, it is a perfect job for them both. They cut trenches in the ice...

When that doesn't work..they build something that will move the water for them. A contraption to jet the water over a snowbank and into a lower area out of the drive in the front yard.

I think it is a bilge pump out of a boat, that sits in box that has a screen in the bottom, powered by a battery charger that sits on top of a plastic coffee container. I hope he used an extension cord that had no exposed wires. Ground Fault might be their best friend:)

Happy St. Urho's Day!

What? You have never heard of Saint Urho?

Chance and I found Saint Urho last October and took some photographs, last year I blogged about this legend and shared a recipe, you may enjoy that story here!

October 16, 2008..It was a beautiful day to visit this tiny park in Menahga, Minnesota. Today it is a feast for my wintery eyes:)

Lost in Lego's

Sometimes our daughter just feels like she is lost in Lego-land. She complains about Lego's being all over the house, she vacuums them up..because she is tired of picking them up..I told her I would be tempted to hold them hostage. We dog sat for Miney while they went to the Mall of America, last night they returned, immediately the boys dumped out all of their Lego's on the kitchen table. Adam and Andrew worked together to create a Power Driller, Adam knew that was the new Lego set he wanted because he had seen it on TV. Noah worked very diligently on his creation, reading the instructions and following the directions. These are not the Lego's that I remember from the olden days..with just two colors red and white..then they added blue and yellow. Now there are neon green Lego's with gears and little people with goggles. Jen says "They asked fifty million times to go there, then they spend their wad and immediately want to go home." Well not exactly home..just to grandma and grandpas so they can play Lego's:)

Chance Gets Company

Company is coming, I am so excited! Miney is coming for a sleepover, she belongs to my sister, the tall guy and the two little boys, she is a Sheltie and she is beautiful!

I am waiting patiently..how much longer til she gets here anyway??

She is here! Everyone meet Miney, that is short for Hermione (Harry Potter books), her littlest boy couldn't say her whole name..so she is Miney..I Love Miney

We run and play ball, we share the ball. That's what friends do SHARE..besides that Far Side says "Sharing is a good thing." .. I think it might be one of her rules. I hope she remembers the rule that says Miney is not allowed squeaky toys at night..

We rest..and wait for SOMEONE to throw the ball.

I teach her how to catch snowballs in her mouth. I am a bit of a show off..life is good when you have friends:)

Winning Attitude

People with disabilities are on two television shows this season, Idol has Scott who has been blind since birth. The Amazing Race has Margie (The mom) with normal hearing and Luke (the son) who is deaf. It is wonderful watching these young adults with disabilities compete with everyone else. They both have winning attitudes, and I hope they both win.

Far Guy and I had a friend that had disabling Multiple Sclerosis, she has been in the Nursing Home nearby for years. Her beautiful soul left this earth yesterday. She was 59. I and Far Guy are very sad, but happy at the same time..she is free from the catheters and the wheelchair. When her older sister was killed in a motorcycle accident about ten years ago, she felt that it should have been her..because she felt she had nothing to live for..and her sister had so much to live for. Her winning attitude was shaken by her sisters death, it took her a long time to get her winning attitude back. Yesterday she became an ultimate winner.

We have lots of wheelchair photographs..this one seems more appropriate today:)

Back on the path

Well we survived the snowstorm, we only got six to eight inches of the beautiful white stuff. It blew around so much, it is hard to tell an exact amount. We have now plunged into the deep freeze, it was 18 below last night ( -28 C). Spring seems far away... Minnesota weather in March can do just about anything.

I got my computer back. Nothing was saved from the crash. Far Guy held up my old hard drive and said "All your photos are in here sweetheart." Ya, well extract them then..instead he said he is going to take it apart and look around in there. He did bring me my dinner at the computer, I was online with HP trying to get a software issue resolved..finally success. My secure digital card reader is not working, luckily I have another one on my printer. Far Guy says "Maybe the backwoods guy just forgot to hook it up?" Maybe.. Far Guy says he will have a look see..

My old hard drive was like an old friend, I was familiar with him. I knew the in and outs of his moods. This new young guy hard drive..thought he would be a da Vinci screen saver with Fire Fox...that was not happening..he is now an Ocean with Explorer. Eventually I will get him all sorted out..right now his favorites are pathetic..my old guy had folders for favorites all organized into categories.. weather, news, television, my stuff, blogs, photo blogs, cooking blogs, ranch blogs, funny blogs, games, fun places to visit and animal shelters. He had seven years of favorites. He also had many email addresses, now he has only a few. Hopefully all my contacts will email me something and I can grab their address again. If not I guess they are SOL. Far Guy is of no help, he has a few e mail addresses..not many..I am so happy to be away from his disorganized computer.. SHE is a FireFox with HP (The boring one with the beams of light)..she isn't too bright, she will do in a pinch..but let me tell ya she is no lady..:)

Wistful Wednesday : Early 1900's

This photograph was taken before 1914. I know that for a fact..Grandpa H moved to Minnesota in the spring of 1914. Far Guys Grandpa H was in Iowa with two of his brothers, Grover and Brian. Apparently they were headed someplace with a load of melons.
Sometimes dating old photographs is difficult, I am just guessing that the littlest boy is between 10 and 12 years old, which dates this photo 1906 to 1908. Grandpa H was born in 1889, Grover in 1894, and Brian in 1896. When did little boys stop wearing knickers and graduate to long pants? Was it an age thing? :)

Blizzard

We are in a blizzard warning..it started to snow around noon. Roads to the big cities are closed..schools were smart enough to close before the snow began. We got a phone call from the lobotomized backwoods guy..he found several other things wrong with my computer..the DVD and CD drives..and a sensor..Far Guy says "Well we could have had a power interruption or spike to cause your computer to crash like a woodpile..one part fails and takes out another part."
I am still spring cleaning the kitchen, I am making progress between naps. Contrary to what Far Guy says, I do know where the pots and pans are..I just do not care to use them. I spent a couple of hours just in the junk drawer..sorting..throwing..rewritting recipes. I had a bunch of batteries.. Far Guy takes them out of the package and dumps them in the drawer, IF I were in charge of them I would mark them with a Sharpie with the date. He doesn't think that is necessary..so he is the official battery tester.

Hey Far Guy ..are these batteries any good?

He replies..I don't know test them. He sighs gets up from HIS computer and comes over and tests them on his tongue. He sorts them..no good, no good..yup this one is good, really good. He explains to me yet again that I can test them for myself..it is kinda like cooking..why should I do it when he is perfectly happy to do it for me. Just like he was perfectly happy to clean the oven the other day..he turned it on to clean and then we both scrubbed the oven racks until they looked just like brand new. So what if he got stuck with the worst one..he is the one that cooks all the time and cooks stuff over.
I am trying my best not to move too much stuff around in the cupboards, nothing worse than a confused cook:)

Backwoods Repair

Well..we took my computer to the tiny backwoods repair shop that I found. It is across the lake from us, it is a snowy slippery morning here. They had two cute Labrador pups, one black, one golden and Chance barked up a storm. The backwoods guy thinks it is my hardrive..I hope that parts won't have to come in by dog sled. He gave us all the gory details about how a computer crashes. I listened politely and made all the appropriate responses. OH MY ! REALLY! NO KIDDING! IMAGINE THAT! ... How bloody long will it be? Turns out he is retired Air Force and an Officer to boot. I smiled but only outwardly as I thought to myself..they give all those Officers Lobotomy's during Officers Training. The only thing that kept me from grabbing my computer and high tailing it into town was that the backwoods guy looked pretty geeky..and he could check it all out today and get back to us this afternoon. Turns out he is a New Yorker..from Brooklyn. So we will see. On the way out he tried to get us to take his two pups, he said they belonged to his sons and they moved out..and the pups were just too much trouble for him to keep. This confirmed my suspicion that he was indeed lobotomized. Far Guy keeps mumbling something that sounds like "Calm down sweetheart." :(

Crash!

Crash! Bang..my computer could not handle daylight saving time.. it might be a goner. It will be going in for repair tomorrow..yes I found some back woods guy to fix it. We hope the hard drive is not totally fried.

Luckily I backed up most of my photos..not those I took in February..or March.. but the backwoods guy says he may be able to retrieve those. I took some great photos yesterday too.. oh well.

Far Guy is letting me use his computer..everything is strange..he uses Fire Fox, I use Explorer. His chair leans to one side because he likes to lean back in his chair and put his feet up. If I did that I would end up in a heap on the floor, either that or have to holler every time I needed help straightening up. His keyboard is strange too, it is much better than mine..his monitor is smaller... he also has a messy area and does not use a mouse pad.. my area three feet away is much neater..and forlorn looking..with a black monitor and a mouse that does not glow red..sad.. very, very sad.

Now the adventure starts.. lets see what photos Far Guy has!

A crooked, scanned in photo....taken in February 1987, back when Far Guy managed the Hockey Arena. That would be him driving the Zamboni! Back then, what hair he had was really silvery grey! This could be fun..well maybe not..but it is nice of him to share his computer with me:)

Sparkling Snow

Some mornings the snow sparkles in the sunshine like a thousand wayward diamonds. I look out and say "Isn't it pretty..but cold..a pretty sparkly cold." I know it is all about light and refraction off of the snowflakes..all that technical crap. Simple snowflakes sparkling in my yard..I tried my best to capture them so you could enjoy them too.

Other sparkly things..people that brighten up my day. Chad Carpenter at Tundra Comics..he is a "keeper" I love his humor and he never fails to make me smile. Many of his comics have a northern flair..he heralds from the great state of Alaska.

I have decided that perhaps I have been lax at sharing some of the bloggers I have found that I really enjoy. Some for their humor, some for their beautiful photographs..some just because they are cool sparkly people. All of my sparkly blogging friends can be found on my side bar. You all are great..somday soon I may write about you..so stay tuned!

Today I will tell you a bit about three of them...

Lady Fi at On A Quirky Quest..she is quirky, can't cook..my kind of gal..oh ya she lives in Sweden.

Flydragon at A little bit of this, a little of that... she doesn't post everyday..but when she does..it is a hoot. I have been waiting two months just to see if she will ever get her car rescued from the snowbank! I think she may have a tad bit of cabin fever..she is from Ohio..Ohio..Ohio (think the Drew Carey Show)

Jen at Muddy Boot Dreams... blooming photography at it's finest! She is a Canadian! A!!

Recently I was a winner over at Susan's at City Gal Moves To Oz Land ..wanna see the loot?

The mailman delivered this yesterday! Notecards, Postcards, a Fridge Magnet, Swankie Hankies and Creme Caramel Tea! Thank you Susan..you made my day! :)

Spring Cleaning

I have been doing some spring cleaning. Mindless, boring work. Presently I am working in the kitchen..one of my not so favorite rooms in the house. Yesterday it was nice enough to open the kitchen window and let in some fresh air. It was 43 degrees.. Far Guy swears it was up to 55 degrees..I am not so sure about that..he may have been seeing things. Usually I crank up the tunes on my computer and sing and clean...somehow yesterday just did not seem like a singing kind of day. So I indulged in some quiet cleaning and reflection..

How in the world do these cobwebs just appear out of no where..one day there are none..the next day there are a whole colony of them.

How does the top of the Fridge get so dusty..and why aren't my arms longer so I can reach all the way to the back..this goes along with why couldn't I have been just a couple of inches taller as I am cleaning the light fixtures and stretching on my tippy toes on a chair. Did my knees feel this wobbly going up and down on this chair the last time I needed to be taller? So I want to be taller with really long arms..just so I can clean more efficiently.

I need to sew a new set of kitchen curtains..I have the design in my head.. I purchased a new decorative rod..I have material..I could sew..not today..I need all my fingers to keep cleaning. I hinted to my Mom a while ago..that I had a new rod..and wouldn't a new valence look smashing..she took the measurements and everything. I even told her about the design in my head, with the loops and cute buttons. She has material too..

Why do I have so many decorative things on the shelves that are nothing but dust catchers. What should I pack away..or sell..or recycle..or eat. I have a small box of Harry Potter Bertie Bott's Beans.. the flavors..Grass, Booger, Ear Wax, Soap, Vomit, Sardine, Earthworm, Dirt and Black Pepper are what keep me from taste testing those little treasures.

Then I needed a break..and a nap..no sense in knocking myself out, I could croak overnight and all this cleaning will have been for nothing. The remaining dust will wait, my spring cleaning may take all spring:)