In the Doghouse

With all the sorting we did last week, I came across another poem by my grandpa, Grant Stephens. Since it didn't get in to the book with the other poems, I thought I'd just put it up here.

In the Doghouse

Just two more old stogies
Sitting all alone
They have left us in the doghouse
Gnawing at a bone.
We are very short of memory,
For we have lost our job.
That leaves us with only honor
For we can't steal or rob.

They think that we are feeble,
But goodness sakes alive
There is many things worth doing
After becoming sixty-five.
They have taken our initiative
Left no way to advance.
So we sponge upon our children
When we have a chance.

Now they have spoiled our fishing
For they have passed such laws.
We don't know when and what to do
For every where a clause.
We have a little security
But that does not suffice
What we need is more 'acentintave' (incentive?)
And not so much advice.

Now many are left walking
For they have lost their car.
That leaves them very lonely
No matter who they are.
But life should be worth something
If given all a chance
To make this old world better
Would help them to advance.

So let's try and think of something
But sitting on a shelf
And try and think we are worthy
Of shifting for our self.
But time has left us stranded
Where we must sink or float
Until we reach the shores eternal
And then give up the boat.

by H. G. Stephens

Name That Ancestor

Just wondering if anyone can successfully name the three people whose large framed pictures are in the blog about cleaning the storeroom. Anyone?

Flag Day Report

I came across a report written by one of my siblings when I was organizing some things. Judging from the handwriting, I'd guess it was done around the age of 7 or 8 on that 'natural' looking paper with bits of wood chips still showing in it. With it was a drawing of a flag from Finland. It was the text of the report that I found so entertaining, as the sentiments it expressed are often how I felt about reports.

"Flag Day"

"Flags come from many countries like England and Germany. the best one we know is our countrys' flag. We see one evry day. There are many more than I could name. but this is only a report."

Cleaning the storeroom

I spent the earlier part of the week at my parents' place helping with some cleaning and sorting that needed to be done. It was a successful project and left the storage room clean and in good order.

We can thank Melissa for this great picture of the grandparents.

Periodically after visiting with them, I bring home boxes of memorabilia that they have collected over the years and sort the things and arrange them in binders. This visit was no different. I brought home several such projects.



Usually I take the pictures and papers and do a rough sort into various packets. Then I take the individual packets and do a final arrangement before putting the stuff into a binder.



We also looked at some old family pictures:







The store room looks so nice now!

Legacy of Two Mothers

A poem I found when sorting some papers....

Legacy of Two Mothers

Once there were two women who never knew each other.
One you do not remember, the other you call "Mother".

Two different lives, shaped to make yours one.
One became your guiding star; the other became your sun.

The first gave you life, and the second taught you to live it
the first gave you a need for love, and the second was there to give it.

One gave you a nationality; the other gave you a name.
One gave you the seed of talent, the other gave you aim.

One gave you emotions; the other calmed your fears.
One saw your first sweet smile; the other dried your tears.

One chose adoption. It was all that she could do.
The other prayed for a child, and God led her straight to you.

And now you ask me through your tears,
The age-old question through the years.

Heredity or environment, which are you the product of?
Neither, my darling, neither. Just two different kinds of love.

~author unknown

Bargains--1951

While cleaning a closet today, I came across a pile of newspapers which had been saved for another purpose, but while looking through them, I found some of the ads. I enjoyed checking out the prices back in the summer of 1951.

Philco Refrigerator $294.50
Philco 12 1/2 ft. freezer $399.95
Philco 12 1/2 inch tv $199.95

Kroger Grocery
Tomatoes- 2 lbs/25¢
Lettuce- 2 heads/29¢
Miracle Whip- 1 qt/59¢
Canteloupe- 2 / 49¢
Watermelon- 28-30lb/ 99¢
Potatoes- 10 lbs/49¢
Corn on the cob- 6 for 35¢
Flour- 25 lbs/$1.59
Gelatin Dessert- 5 pkgs/ 29¢
Sugar- 25 lbs/$2.49
Pork & Beans- 3 cans/ 32¢
Sliced Bacon- 1 lb/45¢

A & P
Seedless Grapes 1 lb/ 19¢
Standing Rib Roast 1 lb/ 79¢
Halibut Steaks 1 lb/ 59¢
Corn 5¢ per ear
Qt size Mason jars- 99¢/dozen
Pork & Beans- 10¢ per can
Bread- 19¢ per loaf


Misc.
Toaster $1.59
Electric Fan $8.98
Iron $2.39
Watermelons 4¢/lb.

Of course most of these prices seem ridiculously low until you consider that wages then were also much lower. The Philco freezer seemed also VERY expensive for that time. As for the rest of the news of the time, locally there was heavy flooding and nationally the concern was the Korean War.

Hoarfrost

In Alaska, sometimes the ice fog would settle around. When it left, everything would be covered with hoarfrost...every branch, every twig, every leftover leaf. When the air cleared and the sun began to shine, the whole landscape sparkled. It was one of my favorite parts of Alaska. I knew it would be something I missed most when we moved away.



Hoarfrost in Wasilla, Alaska



When we moved south I wondered how we'd adjust to the change in weather. It is nice having 4 clear seasons. I was rather surprised, that whenever winter weather showed up, our neighbors would moan about how cold and miserable it was! I was pleased to see that although winter here is not as long, we still get the beautiful winter landscapes...not only snow...but also hoarfrost!



Hoarfrost in Smithfield

Another Birthday

Roma says, "The weather in Kansas 61 years ago was cold and we had had a sleet storm the night before and kids were ice skating on the grass in the park across the street because the sleet was so thick. I could look down on them from the window in our apartment."

She continues, "My friend, Moira, had a car, so as soon as she got her little boy off to school, she came over and took me to the hospital. I had to stay in the hospital 10 days as was customary at that time. Since we lived in an upstairs apartment and we had no car, the ambulance had to take me home so they could carry me up the steps. Stairs were forbidden for 6 weeks after a birth, which meant staying home for 6 weeks. Nancy was one week early. At Christmas we had a little pink rubber duck under the tree for the new baby when it came. About 8 weeks after she was born we found another little apartment---a little house with kitchen, living room and bedroom."

Hardware Ranch

In the valley we have a temperature inversion, leaving the air rather dirty and the temperatures low. It seemed like the perfect day to be somewhere else, so we decided on a trip to Hardware Ranch. When we left home it was 17F in the valley. By the time we reached Hardware Ranch, 1000 ft. higher than the valley, it was 35F with clear skies and bright sunshine.

Hardware Ranch is a place where many elk choose to winter. They are fed there in order to keep them out of the valley where they are prone to eat farmers' haystacks and lose battles with cars.
From mid-December until March, tours of the elk herd are given with wagons or sleighs pulled by horses such as these lovely Percherons.



In the back of this picture, you can see a wagon load of visitors in the middle of the herd.



In the foreground of the above picture is an elk with spike antlers. They are the only ones where the antlers indicate an age. Next year he will have multiple spikes.



Most of the bulls choose not to winter at the ranch, but the ones who do come are pretty obvious by their antlers. We learned that antler size is not an indicator of age. Some members of the herd are tested for various illnesses such as tuberculosis and brucellosis. The elk are free to come and go as they please, so the number of elk there varies from day to day. Usually there are 300-500 there.



This fellow below was probably born last March or April.





It was a fun and interesting activity for the afternoon.

Julia has a birthday

Today we went to Julia's first birthday party. A lot has changed in the last year. She went from this:



to this:



She celebrated her birthday by starting to walk and rocking in her new rocking chair. Since she is affectionately called 'Baby Cat' by some, she had an appropriate birthday cake. It matched her hair and her dress!



It looked so good, she could hardly wait to dig in, ....so she didn't wait!





Extra cake can be stored in the hair for later.




It was a great birthday.

Darryld Wade Olson

We just got back from a 3 day trip for the funeral of a cousin. It was a long trip, and we are thankful the weather held for us to get there and back other than a little rain and fog in an area near Pendleton, OR around a place locally called Cabbage Hill. On our way there, we came to the top of this hill where signs warned of a 6% grade and low visibility. Looking down over the valley from the top was like looking out of an airplane. The air around us was clear and the sun was shining brightly. Below us we could see the tops of clouds. As we descended the hill we went right down through those clouds. The trucks around us were all geared down and moving quite slowly. When we reached the bottom, visibility was good again, but the clouds made it quite dark and gloomy in the valley below. We were surprised at how early it got dark up there, but then realized we were quite a bit further north. That DOES make a difference.

We were also able to visit Uncle Glenn and Aunt Val, fondly remembered in our family for giving the kids a pair of silly glasses which they later paired with a chicken beak thing to startle passing drivers with as we went along the freeway.







YAKIMA - Darryld Wade Olson passed away in his home on December 28th, 2009.

Darryld was born in Yakima on August 19th, 1939 to Marshall Wade and Mary Matilda Olson. He had three siblings; two brothers, Gary Douglas Olson, Marshall Lee Olson and a sister Roxie Ann Lord. Darryld graduated from Eisenhower High school in 1958. In 1959 he married Nancy Heron. Together they had four children. During that time Darryld was a senior member in the Civil Air Patrol and he became a pilot through McAllister's School of Flight in Yakima. To support his family Darryld worked for Sears Roebuck and Co. in the service department for 26 years. After retiring from Sears he worked for Mechanical Services Inc. Darryld's interest in airplanes later gave him the opportunity to become an active member of the McAllister Museum of Aviation where he was the Museum Executive Director. At the time of his death he was working for the Yakima YMCA as the Facilities Director.

Darryld had an enthusiasm for flying, camping, hiking, fishing, hunting, gardening and most anything outdoors. He enjoyed working on his 3 acre fruit farm as well as planting large gardens of vegetables and flowers, known as Olson Fruit and Berries. He was an amazing builder and woodworker. Darryld had an incredible smile and sense of humor. He was a passionate, hard working, and talented man.

Darryld is survived by Nancy Olson, mother of their four children, three sons: Scott (wife Unsil) Olson, Brad (wife Lori) Olson, Andy (wife Lori) Olson, a daughter Heather (husband Mitch) Mauch, brothers Gary (wife Becky) Olson, Marshall Olson and sister Roxie Lord. Darryld had 6 grandchildren and 1 great grandson. He is preceded in death by his parents and an infant sister, Mary Colleen.

A memorial service to celebrate his life will be held on Friday, January 8th at 1:00 pm at the Keith and Keith Terrace Heights Chapel. In lieu of flowers the family is asking for donations to be made in his name to the McAllister Museum of Aviation.

New Years Eve

We celebrated New Years Eve with some of our favorite people. Can it get better than that? Each year it seems we have a particular theme. This year the theme was 'dip'. Everyone brought some sort of dip for our snacks. We had french dip sandwiches, chips with spinach artichoke dip, fresh veggies with dip, and fruits, marshmallows and graham crackers to dip in the chocolate fountain.





After eating, the kids all made gingerbread houses.












An earthquake came to gingerbread town!



Everyone tried very hard to stay awake until midnight.
Some made it....







Some did not...



The next morning we all had a lovely pancake breakfast.



Then we hung out until time to go home.















We are already planning for next year's party!