Historical Fake

During the winter, I have the opportunity to research a few things that the Historical Museum has on display.   I was fooled recently.  It is a good fake but a fake non the less.

One of the Board Members wrote a grant for the framing of some old photographs and an old document.  I took the items into a local business to have them done up proper.

They were a sight. Some wanted to roll up and had to be weighed down..they needed frames and hangers. The document was covered by a sheet of glass that was broken and was taped together…someone was going to cut their fingers..possibly me. 

I invited the Board members to see the finished project before I took them back over to the Museum.

Ready for the fake?

This is it.  The Vicksburg Daily Citizen dated July 4 1863.  I always found the document which was the Wallpaper Edition very interesting. They used wallpaper because newsprint was in short supply.  I did not see an evidence of wallpaper..I was curious.

I found out that reprints were made to commemorate the death of General Grant in 1885 and by the G.A.R.  in 1920.  I cannot say for certain which time our “fake” is from. It is most certainly a fake, the original newspaper has a list of many distinctive characteristics that help to differentiate it from its many reprints.

I felt badly for a little while after my discovery.  I felt badly that I had it reframed and wasted 60 dollars. Then I thought..how many school children would have access to an original?   Even as a “fake” it highlights the last days of the siege of Vicksburg. 

General Grant has “caught the rabbit” and dined in Vicksburg.  He gained control of the Mississippi River and it was held for the Union throughout the rest of the Civil War. On a side note Vicksburg Mississippi did not celebrate the 4th of July until eighty years later, the siege and surrender must have really bothered them.

I am working on a living history presentation that will be held on the Courthouse lawn next July..I have found some Civil War re-enactors that will be joining us for a Civil War Sunday.  It will require lots of work and organization..I am keeping my fingers and toes crossed that it will be a success:)

Funeral on a cold day

Jen and Andy and the boys came for the funeral yesterday. Jen used to sit on the school bus with my cousin, so Jen felt a need to come and say goodbye. The grand boys were well behaved..but really bored. They are turning into real gentlemen.

The Funeral Mass was long..with lots of ups and downs that make Far Guys hips protest.  He said he took a direct hit with the Holy Water during the sprinkling and he noticed no improvement in any of his pain.

We had lunch before going to the cemetery..most times if the cemetery is a long way out of town they do it that way..lunch first then burial.   The usual funeral fare was served..hotdishes of all kinds some with unrecognizable ingredients but I am sure some kind of meat and soup was involved, Jell-O and salads, dinner buns and cake. 

It was a cold day to have a funeral.   I guess it all worked out..the burial spot was thawed and dug.

No waiting for spring to be planted anymore.  With the new gravesite thawing equipment you can be planted on a day when it is only four degrees above zero.

Everyone should remember to turn their cell phones off during a funeral..especially the funeral director:)

Restored

Last Sunday we celebrated my Aunt Lila’s 80th Birthday with a whole bunch of wonderful cakes and ice cream at the Nursing Home.  There were so many people there..like I have said before I have lots of cousins..and they all like cake and Aunt Lila!  Even though Aunt Lila has crippling  Rheumatoid Arthritis..she is still sharp as a tack and loved by many!

When we left we heard a tractor.  Far Guys relatives were in the parking lot. We had heard that there would be a reunion of sorts..but we were not sure what time it would unfold.

Alaska Guy and his Dad (Uncle Willard) with the newly restored John Deere tractor.

They had worked on this tractor project together several years ago. The tractor had a few problems that they could not resolve.

Uncle Willard is now in the “Memory Unit”  I am not quite sure why they call it that..he has few memories.  He was having a pretty good day Sunday and remembered his son, the tractor and his wife.

The day before Uncle Willard was going to town with his parents…and working in the fields.  He will be 95 in April. Before his memories left him he would call me up and talk about the olden days,  I took old photographs into town so he could tell me about the people in them.  We had some wonderful visits.  He had quite a sense of humor..that seems to have left him also.

Alaska Guy saw to it that the tractor was completely restored and running, his Dad got to see it go round and round in the parking lot.  He is a little too old to drive it..but you could tell that he wanted to.

Some things can be restored..it works fine for tractors..not so much for people.  My Aunt Lila struggles with arthritis..but she has all her marbles.  Far Guys’ Uncle Willard can’t remember much, but his body is in pretty good shape.  Then there is my Cousin Rosemarie whose funeral is today because her body failed her at age 41.

Two weeks ago my best friend from High School buried her husband.  He had barely turned 60 when Cancer claimed him. I did not know him, but I know her well.  Ever thirty years she is widowed..she has been down the widow road before. I cannot even begin to imagine her heartache.

There seems to be no rhyme or reason to the how and why of things. I cannot make sense of it all. I must remember that God is in charge.

The Plan of the Master Weaver

My life is but a weaving between the Lord and me,
I may not choose the colors,
He knows what they should be
for He can view the pattern upon the upper side,
while I can see it only on this, the under side…

Sometimes He weaveth sorrow, which seemeth strange to me,
but I will trust His judgement, and work on faithfully,
‘tis He who fills the shuttle, and He knows what is best,
so I shall weave in earnest, leaving to Him the rest…

Not till the loom is silent and the shuttles cease to fly
shall God unroll the canvas and explain the reason why –
the dark threads are as needed in the Weaver’s skillful hand
as the threads of gold and silver in the pattern He has planned.

Author Unknown

When I am feeling a bit down and doing much wondering about “the stuff of life”  I find that the poem above helps me get through the rough spots:)

Forgotten Project

I forgot all about the Cousin’s Quilt Square that I need to have done by February 21. Old age I guess..the theme of this years quilt is “birds.” 

I usually do a cross stitch pattern on waste cloth.

The waste cloth is attached to the top of your quilt square.  Waste cloth is a patterned cloth that has threads running through it..so that a cross stitch design can be stitched upon it and then the cloth is soaked and removed.  The threads are pulled..Far Guy likes to do that part. 

Here is my pattern. My eyes are not as good as they used to be..but it is coming along.

I pulled some pinky looking floss..I am not sure that it is quite right for the thistle flower so I need to go to town to get some more floss.

I organize all my floss onto plastic holders, that are marked with the color and then they are put into the containers in numerical order.  It is one of the things I am anal about…I like it perfect and not a mess.  I have been cross stitching for about 30 years and there is nothing as frustrating as having a balled up messy bag of floss to sort through when you want to begin a project.

Years ago I began with cardboard thingys to wind the floss on..then the plastic ones came out. I have a bunch of extras..I am not sure that they even make them anymore.  I am not sure why I have three boxes either..I may have used a box for each of the girls..they both enjoyed cross stitching too.  I used to cross stitch on sweatshirts and give them away as gifts.

Someone asked for my Pork Chop Recipe.  Use one box of Uncle Bens Wild and White Rice and 2 cups of water and a little butter put it all in a roasting pan and submerge three uncooked pork chops into the rice.  Bake at 350 degrees for 90 minutes…whilst you are napping:)

Lollygagging

Lollygagging = to waste as much time as possible without the appearance of obvious laziness.

If there were a medal for lollygagging I might be stiff competition. However yesterday was the first day I lollygagged in my jammies all day long.  Is being in your jammies one entire day a sign of laziness..or is it just being calm and comfy?  Chance does not care what I wear..as long as I throw the ball.  Far Guy never noticed..or if he did he didn’t say a thing. No one came to the door and no one came to visit.

I took my turn cooking yesterday…pork chops and rice..you just throw it all in a roasting pan and toss it in the oven..Wala!..an hour and a half nap later you are ready to serve it.   It makes it seem like you have slaved all afternoon in a hot kitchen..when in fact you waited it out laying on the couch..occasionally waking up because you were snoring loudly.

Did you all catch Gwen from Hebron Ya, You betcha North Dakota on “The Voice” after the Stupor Bowl?   It will be interesting to see how she fares in the competition..since her recent comments were from Nashville..perhaps she is on her way.

No one on Idol is inspiring me so far this year..not a Clay or a Rueben or a Kelly Pickler or a Carrie or a Scotty in the bunch.  Perhaps they have discovered all the Idols.

Survivor starts next week and so will the no answering the phone let the machine handle it policy on Wednesday nights.  I see there are two older than average people..bet they and the Little Person are the first to go.  I wish they would go someplace that is a real challenge to Survive..like Canada in the winter..or maybe even Minnesota. Jeff could wear a blue parka.

What have I been doing in my spare time..besides napping?  Scanning old photos, playing games on my Kindle Fire, reading, working on The Cousins Recipe Book and I began a project that I missed on my January list.

Can you tell what it might be?  :)

Wistful Wednesday:1948

Gone are the days when everyone wore a hat. This photo was most likely taken on a Sunday.

This is Far Guys Dad, his Grandpa, his Grandma, his Great Aunt Charolette and second cousin Roxie.  This photo was taken in Omaha in 1948. Grandma and Grandpa must have went to visit.  Grandpa never traveled very far from home so it must have been a special occasion. 

These women are sisters in law.  Grandma married the oldest son, and Charolette married  the youngest son.  Both were marvelous women whose company I enjoyed. The beautiful child Roxie..lives in Florida and occasionally reads the blog to stay in touch with her Minnesota cousins.

Photographs were often taken outside, the light was better and you did not require a flash.

I have begun to scan some more old photos from Far Guys family, they have been in the trunk upstairs..waiting for me:)

Osage School

The school in nearby Osage was built and finished so that I could attend First Grade in the new school in 1957.  No country school for me..my parents bought a farm close to a country school with thoughts that their children wouldn’t have far to walk to school. I rode the bus.  Ivan Siegford was the bus driver. He and his wife owned the Hardware store in Ponsford. I got on the bus at 7:45 to 7:50 every morning to ride six miles in to school.

The old school has been renovated and it is now apartments.  We were invited there one afternoon last week for coffee.  One of Far Guys shirt tail relatives lives there.

I stood in line to get on the bus in this covered area for four years.

I could hardly believe that the drinking fountain between the first and fourth grade classes was still there.  It looks so short.  I stood in line here too.

I think the door on the left was a furnace room.   The double door further down was the milk room..that is where we went to have our milk break and it was also the room were the girls were segregated from the boys to watch a short film on how our bodies were changing.  The boys were oh so curious what the girls film was all about.  As far as I remember the boys had no film to watch in a darkened room with the School Nurse.

Straight ahead was the entrance to the gymnasium/lunch room.  To the right are two doors one was the in to the lunch counter and one was the out.  The “in” door is not in the photo..and that white door has been added.  I stood in line at the “in” part to get lunch.  I loved school lunch..Spanish Rice was one of my favorites and green beans and cooked carrots and peaches.  We were encouraged to finish our lunch and we had to show our lunch tray to the Principal Mr. Vaadland before we could leave the lunch room. 

It was an interesting afternoon that brought about many memories:)

Monday February 6, 2012

The sun came out for a little while on Saturday..it made for some great frosty photos with blue skies.  I left the house in such a hurry I still had my jammies on..no one in the cemetery cared..and neither did Chance.

I loved the sunshine..but it was short lived.

Heavy clouds were on the horizon.

Soon the sun was gone. As I began the finishing touches on a fundraising project for the museum it receded even further.

I had the project under control.  It was to be mailed out shorty after my staycation and lollygagging around February 15.  I have worked long and hard on this project getting volunteers to represent the museum at township annual meetings in March.  It could be an excellent way to gain financial support at the local level.

THEN…

Two Board Members decided that they wanted to micro manage me and create more work for me. They want the project mailed out ASAP and they want me to include double the paperwork with each request.  After all they are the bosses..I have seven of them you know..and one has a husband that wants to boss me around too…eight bosses.   None of them understand the ins and outs of the project I am working on..I have read the Statutes and contacted the Minnesota Association of Townships to verify that I am headed in the correct direction.  I got a nasty email.. I ignored it and the person who sent it to me. I can understand why no one keeps the directors position for more than a year or two. It is very discouraging.   

Far Guy helped me to make mega copies and all the letters are ready to be mailed this morning. Everyone should be happy..papers and forms that are not needed were mailed with each request..and they were mailed out two weeks before they needed to be.

I am probably in a foul mood because my staycation was interrupted. Ackk!  Perhaps I need to hibernate a few days…unplug the phone and don’t answer the door:)

Cemetery Thoughts

The gates down at the cemetery are always open.  The past few days they have been frosty.

I spend a fair amount of time taking photographs in this cemetery.  It is not far from our house and  it is on the way down to the river.

It is all fenced.

I am not sure if that is to keep people in..or to keep them out.  Perhaps they just define the space. 

Along this fence row is where we buried my cousin several years ago..he was young.  Little did I know when I took this photo..his only sister was losing her battle after a pulmonary embolism and a heart attack.  She died yesterday..she was just 41 years old a few days ago.  She is survived by four brothers. She was never married and she had no children.  One of my other girl cousins became her guardian after both of her parents died. She had special needs..but was able to care for herself..she just needed a little help to make good decisions.  I was nineteen years old when she was born.  She was my Uncle and Aunts only daughter, and they were just thrilled when she was born.  I am sure they were just as thrilled to see her again yesterday.

I saw her in the Clinic a few weeks ago..I just said a quick “Hi, how are you doing?”  I wish I had taken the time to give her a hug..but she wasn’t a touchy feely type of person that enjoyed hugs anyway..she liked her own personal space.

I have a whole bunch of cousins on that side of my family..41 cousins and now 3 are gone..dead.  So I only have 38.  That may seem like a lot to you..but it really isn’t.  I know many of them quite well.   My cousins range in age from 73 to 40.  When the older ones can remember when the younger ones were born..and then the younger ones die..it is difficult.

So we will have a funeral one day this week.  And lunch..with hotdish and rainbow Jell-O and cake..here in Minnesota we always eat well after a funeral.

We drove by the Cemetery last night..a number of people now have solar lights  decorating their graves.  Far Guy finds the lights a bit disturbing, and a lot spooky.  I think they are pretty.  I wondered aloud  “What would happen if someone bought a whole bunch of lights and spelled out something that could be seen from an airplane?”  Far Guy inquired  “What would you write?”  I said “Help Me” and then we both laughed:)

Chance: Visitors

Hey!  Chance the blogging Border Collie here.  Yeah!! My turn..finally.

I had some visitors this week.  Brooke came by to play.  She kicked the ball a few times for me, she wouldn’t pick up my ball.  She didn’t like my ball, it might have been a little slobbery, but that’s okay I still liked her a lot! I like all kids..especially when they play ball.

She petted me real nice..Brooke is 2 1/2 years old.  She came over with her Grandpa.

Then some of the girls came..just to visit and go to Bingo and to play Hockey with me.

Just Jen ( my sister) and Miney came..they left all the boys and Little Elvis at home.  Miney likes to play Hockey too!

I am a real gentleman and let Miney get the ball..sometimes.  Isn’t she beautiful?  She is a Shetland Sheepdog or a Sheltie.  She is my very best friend.

EXCEPT..WHEN…

She takes the ball and goes and lays down in the snow bank because she is tired:)

Frosty Morning

The hoar frost and snow fog was awesome yesterday morning.  I think the roads were slippery in the early morning.

Chance and I went out to capture some frosty views.

He is the best model and companion for early morning outings.

The snow fog blocked out the sun all day long..so there were no Ground Hogs seeing their shadows in my part of Minnesota yesterday.

Lollygagging has officially begun.  I am taking some time to just do whatever strikes my fancy for 15 days.  I am going to nap if I want too..I am going to spend an entire day reading a book if I want too. It will be like a mini vacation right here at home:) 

Treasures in the Trunk: Red Dress

Whilst I was rummaging around in the trunk I found some things that our daughters will have no idea where they came from, or why they were saved..they could guess of course..or they could read the blog.

My Mom marked the photo.  First Day School 1959 Stuart, Iowa. We spent the entire summer and fall in Iowa while my Dad was working on Road Construction in the area.  I started Third Grade there and after two months we went back to the farm.  I loved Stuart Iowa. There was a library, and I had my own library card..for a reader like me it was pure heaven.  There was also a city park and a bandstand.

My Mom sent the dress out to me one day when she was cleaning out some of her old boxes.

I suppose I should have ironed it..but it is old..and ironing it now may damage the fibers..besides that I just put it back in the trunk after the photos anyway.

This dress now has provenance .. yes this is a historical dress..a 53 year old historical dress.  Provenance means “to come from”  usually it is reserved for great works of art.  In my case it works for the red dress.  I know it was a store bought dress, and I wore it many times.  Not my favorite dress..but it was my second favorite dress. I only wore it one season..cause then I got breasts and nothing fit right ever again:)

Wistful Wednesday: The Owl

A very long time ago.  Something happened in a pasture..I do not recall exactly what the circumstance was. I  believe a tree went down in a storm and a nest was disturbed.

Our neighbor Walt showed up with a gunnysack slung over his shoulder.  Inside were two baby owls. The other baby owl went to live with his grandson just down the road.

Carey named our owl George Washington, Danny named his Theodore Roosevelt. Very patriotic names for owls!

We fed them grain and bugs..lots of bugs. Owls grow really fast on a diet of bugs.  We may have fed them some ground up pocket gofers too because we always had a trap line going in the summer.  I believe all this happened in the summer of 1962.  One day towards Fall we released them back into the wild.  

That is my baby brother giving the owl his arm he would have been 7 years old, I am holding my other baby brother who was almost 2 years old and I would have been almost 11 that summer.  I cannot remember where we kept that owl..most likely in a rabbit cage in the barn.  That is the old picture tree behind us and I noticed a set of concrete lawn ornaments in the background..a Hen with four chicks.

We always wore long sleeves when handling the owl. My baby brother took very good care of that owl.  Have you ever been pecked by an owl?  I have:) 

My baby brother adds his version:

The baby owls were on the ground in the pasture, couldn't fly or run. I and Danny B found them. They were Great Horned owls. The Owl Mother didn't like the fact that her babies were removed and would sit on top of the barn and watch. The owl George lived in a case by the side of the chicken coop. Sharp claws. Ate hamburger. Released into Smoky Hills state forest, not sure how he faired.

Museum: Old Maps

I worked on the Historical Museums Newsletter yesterday again..it is finally ready to mail.  I am all done with newsletters until May when I am back in my office.

I am working on several H.U.G.E. projects…it all takes time. If I would stop making suggestions and having ideas I would be less stressed and in charge of less projects.  Ground work and making the road maps for an organization to follow is not an easy job. Attracting new members, raising funds, seeing that things get repaired and keeping one hand on the pulse of an organization is not exactly a walk in the park or a stroll down the road either. The board members assured me that they would send articles for the newsletter..three did and the other four dropped the ball. I filled in the blanks so I could get the newsletter off of my desk.  I did not think I would feel burned out during the winter..but after yesterday and the day before..I sure was.  I have to give them one more day this week..and then I can get all my ducks in a row on the next project. Most everything is in place. I just need to set the wheels in motion.  I hope the map I made is a good one. I do not want to crash and burn after all the effort.  Don’t worry I will tell you all about it sooner or later.

I thought that this was a cool map to share today.  The map is all folded up inside this folder.

 

I wanted to see what 1924-1925 looked like in my neck of the woods.  So I took a photo!

I was thrilled to find that Detroit Lakes was still called Detroit ( Later in 1926 it was changed to Detroit Lakes so that it would not be confused with Detroit, Michigan.)

Highway 34 went right past the farm I grew up on and very near where we live now. The stair step highway which we live near was featured in the opening chapter of Red Earth White Earth..which was written by a local farm kid and eventually became a movie.

Highway 34 was realigned in the 1940’s..and the booming town of Ponsford was no longer on the main route to Detroit. A new road was built, and the old part of Highway 34 that included Ponsford became known as Highway 225.  Old roads were often the life blood of a community..that and railroad tracks..if you were missed by either of them your town was going to struggle before it eventually died.

I wonder did the powers that be ever wonder if their new road map was the way to go? Did they feel guilty..or was it all in the name of progress?

Yesterday I took one of my volunteers out to lunch..and one of these days I will take my other wonderful volunteer (Far Guy) out for breakfast..both of them are ready to hit the ground running in the spring and are looking forward to the Museum opening..me not so much..at least not today..perhaps tomorrow:)

Saving National Geo’s and Time

The other night whilst watching Hockey..I searched for a photo I did not find..but I found lots of other things.

Like these.

I had a whole bunch of 1930’s National Geographics and then these two.  Then I remembered the day that Far Guy and I were at a garage sale that had hundreds of these.  We searched through stack after stack until we found  one for each of the girls from the month and the year they were born..just for fun.  It could be worse..they could have been photos of half dressed natives of some foreign country. Jen is not going to appreciate those Eels or whatever kind of weird looking albino fish those are.

I tried to save some time yesterday..by typing fast and not saving..I was almost done..and then the blankety blank old dying Historical Museum computer hiccupped..and lost everything I had written.  I was working on the February newsletter.  I came downstairs..disgusted.  Went back upstairs after I was done feeling sorry for my stupid self..and every five minutes Far Guy would holler “Save your work!”  I finally got it done, came down to print it out and discovered that I could not access a pub file from either of our computers.  I called Jen to make sure I wasn’t missing something.  I wasn’t other than a  Microsoft Publisher Program on one of our computers.  That program costs about 120 dollars…the Museum may have to spring for that software after their computer crashes. I believe a former Director loaded her personal copy onto the Museum Computer.  So anyways we had to haul my printer upstairs and hook it up so I could print the Newsletter..and then I ran out of ink…twice.  So now I need to go get ink before I can finish…I figured as much..but I held out hope that I had enough ink on hand to finish the project.  It is not quite February yet..I still have time.

We tried one of those thingys from Wally World Electronic Department.  It is a thinga mabobber  that you plug into your USB port and it makes your old computer wireless..it worked as advertised on the Historical Museum’s piece of junk computer.  Eventually I will use it on my old computer upstairs that has lots of games on it for the Grandkids.  For now it limps the Museums Desk Top Computer along for the winter..which saves me the hassle of having yet another computer downstairs..but I am not sure it saves me any time at least not yesterday:( 

Ta Da!

Finally it is accomplished.  I am not sure it was worth all the time and effort I put into it..but the kitchen cupboard and drawers have been cleaned.  Far Guy said “Perhaps I should just clean one cupboard or drawer a week.”   I said “Knock yourself out sweetheart.”

Yes, I probably should be all matchy matchy and have a black fridge ..but the white one still works just fine..keeps stuff cold and makes ice cubes..what more could you want from a fridge?

I have cooked the last three nights in a row..tonight I am making my favorite popcorn.  Usually once I announce that popcorn is what’s for supper Far Guy takes over.

Here is the new mixer with the storage thingy…it holds the cord and the beaters so everything is all in one place..ingenious..a woman must have designed it.  The new mixer works just fine…the mixer mixes as advertised.

I made some meringue for the top of the lemon pudding we had for desert last night.  I always feel guilty if I throw the egg whites in the garbage..so I make meringue.  I sit down right outside the oven to make sure it doesn’t get burned.  I have been known to walk away and forget about stuff under the broiler…and when the smoke alarm goes off I am reminded.  So I have a personal rule..Do not leave the stove unattended whilst using the broiler:)