The Little Car

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When I was young my hometown had three small grocery stores. These stores were all good for immediate needs, sandwiches at lunch time, sodas and candy. They were not, however, even mid-sized chain stores like Kroger or Safeway. As a result, my family usually made a weekly trip to a larger city about twenty miles away to do most of our grocery shopping.

Even then, we did not always shop at the chain stores and instead shopped at a larger, independent grocery. This store, much like the chains, often had promotions. These were sometimes focused on things used in the kitchen or things associated with holidays. They might be discounts or even give aways for some items. But one special promotion holds a special place in my mind.

I cannot remember the exact year but I must have been around eight or nine years old. The store was giving away a large item, a miniature 1910 Model T car. It would hold two young passengers and was powered by a two-horsepower gas engine. Children visiting the store with their parents were allowed to submit one entry for each visit.

The promotion went on for several weeks and each trip to the store typically included groups of children standing by the display of the small car, staring at it in wonder and hoping that it might someday be theirs. I was one of those children and made sure I submitted my entry each time we were in the store to buy groceries.

Finally, the night arrived when the winner would be chosen. My uncle took my cousin and I to the drawing so that we could see who would win. When we arrived, a small group was gathered in front of the car awaiting the drawing. The store manager came out of his office with a large container holding all of the entries. After thanking all of the parents for shopping in his store, it was time to draw the winning ticket. He asked me if I would like to draw the ticket. I thanked him but declined telling him I was going to be the winner instead. Everyone had a good laugh about that.

He then asked my cousin if he would like to draw the winning ticket and my cousin agreed. My cousin then dipped his hand into the container, stirred the tickets once again, and made the draw. He handed the ticket to the store manager who, to my great amazement, announced my name as the winner. I couldn’t believe it. After having my picture taken with the car and probably doing a few other things, the question became, “How do I get it home?” While my father had a pickup, neither he nor my mother were in attendance. So my uncle took us back to my grandmother’s house where we told everyone of my good luck.

We then went back to the store to pick up my prize and take it home. At first, I was only allowed to drive the little car in our yard. As my skills improved, I was allowed to drive it on our block and later to other places in my hometown. I learned a lot with that little car like sharing and safety. But my biggest memory was learning not to touch the spark plug on a running engine – funny now but not so funny then.

The photo above shows me riding in the passenger seat while allowing the girl next door to drive the “little car.” I’m not sure how old we were but with both seemed to be enjoying the ride. Apologies for the blurriness but this is a scan of a photo that is probably somewhere between sixty and sixty-five years old and taken with an Instamatic or similar camera.

I kept the little car and used it until I was old enough to purchase a small motorcycle. Then I sold the car to another child who used it for many years afterwards. I’m not sure where the little car spent its final years, the red, wooden spoked wheels were not very strong and the fiberglass fenders already had cracks when I sold it but I hope it served many well.

I’ve seen photos of many similar little cars since that time but mine will always be special to me.

Quilting

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I saw a post on another social media site this morning titled “Murphy’s Laws of Quilting.” This post reminded me of my late grandmother and how things were in her home.

My grandmother passed away in 1970, just a few weeks after I started college. Unfortunately I was unable to attend her funeral services because I could not make the trip home. But I remember much about her. One of the earliest pictures that I have of me as a child is one standing in her yard with her. She lived in a small, four room home on a cotton farm a few miles outside the nearest town until just a few months before her death. The home did not have running water and was heated by a wood stove. She had an electric stove for cooking her last few years there but I can remember when she also had a wood stove for cooking. On most days she lived alone although she was visited almost every evening by one or more of her children and most of the family visited on one, or both, days each weekend.

While she had an old pedal driven Singer sewing machine, most of her sewing was on quilts and done by hand. The majority of her living room space was covered by a quilting frame below the single light hanging on an electric wire providing light for the entire room. The frame was suspended from the ceiling by ropes at each corner. She would start her quilting on one side of the quilt and as she proceeded across the quilt the frame could be adjusted so that she worked close to her chair. The final step was for her to sew hems on each side of the quilt. When visitors came, the frame could be raised to make more space in the living room and to protect the quilt from damage.

As far as I know, she did not make the tops of the quilts. Other members of the family made these and took them to her to be quilted which could be a lengthy process depending on how many were waiting to be completed.

I still have one or two of the quilts made on this frame today although age is beginning to take its toll. These quilts were used, not put away for posterity. I think back on spending nights with my grandmother, sometimes alone and other times with cousins. We knew not to disturb the quilts while they were being completed.

I always remember visiting my grandmother as an enjoyable time although I’m sure there were at least some visits that may have been less so. The biggest challenges I remember were pumping water by hand and having to use the “outhouse”, especially in the winter.

I hope you have similar memories of times with your grandparents.

Go Sit in the Corner and Shut Up!

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Perhaps I shouldn’t write this. After all, it criticizes the media, celebrities, and a minority of American voters in the last presidential election. Not only that, I am also immoral, ignorant, stupid, garbage, uneducated, sexist, racist, and a misogynistic (I had to look that one up to make sure it was true). I am elite, a part of the “ruling class”, misinformed, psycho, and don’t care about democracy. I am a hatemonger and not smart enough to know how to react when a bear is trying to eat me (how I ended up somewhere that a bear would try to eat me is unknown). 

Each of these things have been said about me, and a majority of voters, in the last few weeks and been covered repeatedly in the media. Even today, over a week since the election they are still being given front page coverage often being treated as news rather than opinion.

Perhaps the best solution is to do as the title of this post says, “Go Sit in the Corner and Shut Up!” I know this is true for my office where the only acceptable viewpoint is an ultra-liberal, progressive one. Conservatism in any form is not only discouraged but even scorned. If we accept what the liberal press, celebrities, and others tell us then we are accepted but if we dare disagree, we are shut out. So, the best answer is to simply not say anything.

I refuse to be shouted down by those who I do not respect – the media which has had an extended liberal bias, celebrities who, while entitled to their views, are no more qualified than me to make an informed decision, and others who consider views other than their own irrelevant. I hope I don’t lose friends because of this post but if I do, I must ask, “Were they really friends?” I will continue to talk to family members who have opposing views although some may not talk to me.

I will not, however, go sit in a corner and shut up.  That may work with small children but it is not a solution for adults.

The Headline Read, “Whoopi Goldberg Cannot Afford To Leave “The View” – ‘Having a hard time like many Americans’”

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I always find news articles related to our so-called celebrities interesting. I saw the headline above on an article in News Break this morning. When reading the article, I found that the headline wasn’t completely accurate although it could be implied from what was quoted in a cited article (https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/whoopi-goldberg-admits-shed-leave-170857679.html ).

There, the A-List celebrity was quoted as saying. “If I had all the money in the world, I would not be here, okay?” I decided to do a bit more research and found that, depending on the source you select, her net worth is somewhere between $20 million and $85 million. Her annual salary on “The View” is estimated to be around $10 million.

If even one of these estimates are correct, I find it hard to accept another statement attribute to Goldberg – “I appreciate that people are having a hard time, me, too — I work for a living!” she said. “If I had all the money in the world, I would not be here, OK? So, I’m a working person, you know?” I am insulted by this statement. With Americans struggling to make ends meet, to afford a home, and to feed their families for a person with an annual income in the millions to say they are a working person is laughable. The vast majority of Americans are never going to come close to this level of net worth or annual salary. The mere thought of having ‘all the money in the world” is at best a fantasy.

 Another article suggested that the co-host said on Tuesday’s live show, November 12, 2024, that if she were the richest person alive, she wouldn’t show up to moderate the long-running ABC talk show anymore. Again, not a totally accurate quote, but one which shows the disconnect between Hollywood celebrities and the average American.

The same could be said of other celebrities like Dick Van Dyke and others who have openly criticized the American voter. They seem quite happy to take our money for providing some level of “entertainment” while at the same time saying they are superior to us. Meanwhile, the media seems to have fallen into line by publicizing and promoting these views again and again.

With many of these celebrities now criticizing voters still today and suggesting that they might move from our country my feelings are, “Goodbye, Good Riddance, and Don’t Come Back! You have made too much money from those voters who are too uninformed to make a choice without your help.”

“A Walk in the Park” By Kevin Fedarko (A Book Review)

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Previously published on Facebook.

The third of three books my wife bought for me on Father’s Day 2024, Kevin Fedarko’s “A Walk in the Park” is by far the longest and the most complex. Kevin’s friend, Pete McBride, suggests that the pair hike the Grand Canyon. Not the rim-to-rim hike that many find challenging, but instead a hike from one end of the Canyon, Lee’s Ferry, to the other, Grand Wash Cliffs, beginning in 2015. Although the distance between these two places is about 277 miles, the walk is closer to 750 miles because of the need to trek through side canyons and grounds with no trails.  If the hike is taken in sections, the method used by Fedarko and McBride, the distance is closer to 800 miles because of added distance to take-out and drop-in points.

While this hike has been completed by others, they were typically seasoned back country hikers. On the other hand, Kevin was an award winning writer and Pete an award winning photographer. While both had some outdoor experiences, neither was in any way prepared for the challenges and experiences awaiting them. Looking at some of their past experiences – getting caught in an avalanche near Mount Everest, a trip to take photos of the world’s largest caribou herds and seeing no caribou, and others – you have to wonder what would make them believe this trip would go well.

It is difficult to categorize this book. It could be considered an adventure or maybe a history book looking at the Grand Canyon’s past. It could be thought of as a hiking book or a nature book. It also includes portions that reflect love – love of the outdoors, of family, and of geography – or a book on conservation. There are probably many other ways that one can view the book based on personal experiences.

Both Fedarko and McBride have published books based on their experience.  “A Walk in the Park” is Fedarko’s while McBride published a photo book from the trek. They have worked together on a video of the trip. All of these are done from the standpoint of participants, not onlookers. Little is hidden away because it makes the reader or viewer uncomfortable. Instead they want to make others part of the journey. They do not preach to the reader or viewer. Instead they offer thoughts, ideas, and experiences designed to make us all think.

Many thought that the trek was poorly planned – probably so – by unqualified individuals and was followed up with poor execution. One comment I saw was that it was harebrained – also probably true. Had it not been for other, more qualified, hikers and individuals with far more experience who helped them we might have read of two more hikers losing their lives in the Grand Canyon.

It took far longer to read this book than I originally expected. It is so well written that it makes you feel that you were along with Fedarko, McBride, and their friends. You can learn from their experiences and from those they met along the way. And also from those who attempted the same trek without success sometimes leading to their death. In addition to the portion of the book dedicated to the hike, you also learn something about the boat and raft trips down the Colorado River from Lees Ferry and the difficulties involved from those who guide these trips based on Fedarko’s attempts to work in that realm. You also learn about his family from the mining areas of Pennsylvania and his father’s battle with cancer. All of these things bring you into his life.

I highly recommend this book to anyone with interest in the outdoors, our national parks, the Grand Canyon, and the indigenous people who inhabited the land prior to the park’s existence. It also offers a view of the mistakes we have made in our attempt to preserve the land for some, allow others to profit from our mistakes, and often our inability to make things right again.

Again, read the book. I’m sure almost everyone will find things of interest to them and will enjoy those things around them.

“Adults,” Grow Up!

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As we grow older, we often forget the lessons we learned as children. Or, possibly, the things we learned as children have changed, either purposely or unintentionally.

As children, we played with others, either at school or in our neighborhood. Most of the time this play was peaceful even though we had disagreements. But sometimes, our disagreements turned into a crisis for us. The result was that they became shouting matches, sometimes minor fights, and we picked up our toys and went home. Once there, we told our parents, usually our mothers, that we “hated” the other person and never wanted to play with them again, or, in the worst case, never wanted to see them again. The response was often, “Go to your room and calm down. Grow up!”

Of course, the result of these life events was usually that we were playing with that same person the next day with neither of us remembering what cause the problem and having no concerns about it. So, we learned and, over time, we “grew up.” We really didn’t need our parents to get involved in most situations, only the most extreme.

Today, I look at the recent election and think that someone needs to say to many adults, grow up! It has been one week since the election. There are already fundraising efforts underway to demand recounts, there are claims of election fraud, and there is finger-pointing even within parties regarding who is to blame for losses and who should get credit for wins.  There are also predictions of gloom and doom, promises of retaliation or retribution, and even demands to change laws that have been in place throughout our history.

There are reports of celebrities claiming that they will leave the country because of the election results. Something I find highly unlikely given recent history and, if true, I believe we should wave to them as they go. Similarly, there is at least one state governor who has said that anything happening to his state will have to go through him. Perhaps he should look at the history of governors in his state who seem to follow their term in office with a term in Federal prison.

And, heaven forbid, the press seems to be unable to accept that the election is finished, and the American public has spoken. The press was simply out of touch during the entire election process. No matter how many pundits criticize the election results, or criticize voters, the results will not change. Perhaps there are more important things to focus on today and move forward. Stop talking about what you perceive as wrong and start looking at how we can make things better in the future (and respect the views of the average Joe, not the elite with whom you always agree).

Throughout our country’s history, we have had winners and losers in elections. Yet our country has survived. It will survive this time as well, no matter whether your side won or lost. Move forward, don’t dwell on the negative, and don’t hate those with whom you disagree. You are wasting your time and that of those around you. “Go to your room and GROW UP!”

Veteran’s Day 2024

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On this Veteran’s Day 2024, I thought I should write a short post honoring those who have served. Many, like me served during peacetime or were lucky enough to not be deployed to a battle zone. I say lucky because anyone who is a veteran made a commitment to serve our country. They agreed to possibly make the ultimate sacrifice to ensure the freedoms and rights of all Americans – even those who refused to serve our country and those who refused to honor the service of those serving.

I’m not sure how many veteran’s there are, or were, in my extended family. I know that my father (pictured below) served, I served, and my son served. I also had uncles who served along with cousins. I don’t believe that either of my grandfathers served, not out of a lack of patriotism but instead because they were to young for some times of crisis or too old for others. Even so, they made sacrifices because their children served.

My father before his deployment in World War II. He served in the Army Air Corps, later known as the U.S. Air Force. He served in the Pacific Theater on the islands north of Australia and south of Japan.

I also have many friends who are veterans. Many served at the same time I did. Others served either before or after I served. We expected nothing special for our service nor do we expect nothing today. I suspect this is true for those serving today.

Veterans share common bonds, no matter when they served, where they served, or their branch of service. When they gather, they may talk about their service, places they shared, and the trials and tribulations they may have faced – separation from loved ones, injuries they or others may have experienced, and things they learned. Seldom do they share feelings or thoughts about those who refused to serve – at least not publicly.

So while I did not get this posted by the exact time, let us all honor those who have served or are serving today, especially at this the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, the official end of World War I – what was then known as Armistice Day and is now known as Veteran’s Day.

“You Are Here” by David Nicholls (A Book Review)

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Previously posted on Facebook.

My beautiful and loving wife gave me three books for Father’s Day this year. Those of you who have seen my previous posts may remember that I have loved reading since my early days and I suspect I have read hundreds, if not thousands, of books since then. Any time I receive books as a gift it is wonderful.

In a recent post, I wrote a short review of the first of these books, Nick Offerman’s “Where the Deer and the Antelope Play …” I’m going to try to do the same for another here, David Nicholls’ “You Are Here.” Nicholls, much like Offerman, has had a varied career as an actor (for which he said he had no talent), a writer, and a screenwriter.

“You Are Here” has been described in many ways by others – an outdoor story, a journey, a love story, by Nicholls himself as funny, and more. I could agree with any of these. The book presented a bit of challenge at the beginning because of differences between the typical American novels I read and the British style of Nicholls. But this disappeared after only a few pages.

While trying to not spoil your enjoyment of the book, it centers on a hiking trip primarily involving a man, Michael, and a woman, Marnie, with seemingly little in common.  He was a geography teacher; she a book editor. Both were coming out of unsuccessful relationships. Both were somewhat isolated, by choice, as a result. They did have one friend in common, one who kept pushing them to get out of their isolation. The friend was finally successful by organizing three day hiking trip with several other people.

“You Are Here” follows the trek and the decision by Marnie to extend her hike to accompany Michael for several additional days of his planned, longer trip. Up and down hills, through the countryside, the trip continues until an evening when Michael meets with his former wife. Unfortunately, Michael had not told Marnie about this meeting until the day it was to occur Obviously Marnie’s feelings were hurt. While the meeting occurred, many surprises and unexpected results ensued.

What would happen next? Would Michel and Marnie reconcile and live happily ever after? Would they never meet again? What really happened when Michael met his ex-wife?

A few months later, when the man, the woman, and the friend who started the whole adventure met again, the meeting will be a surprise to all who read the book.

This book was a Barnes & Noble Book Club Selection and it is easy to see why. It can be enjoyed by anyone who reads it no matter how they categorize it. While my initial reason for reading it was as an outdoor book, the other views came through as well.  I would strongly recommend it to all.

Good reading.

The Fourth Estate

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It has now been two days since the 2024 election yet rather than accept the election results and moving forward, the mainstream press seems affixed on continually creating discord. They seem to continually publish or air statements regarding how things were unfair, biased, etc., and supporting many of those who were not elected by a majority of American voters.

According to Merriam-Webster’s web site, “The term fourth estate has been around for centuries. In Europe, going back to medieval times, the people who participated in the political life of a country were generally divided into three classes or estates. In England they were the three groups with representation in Parliament, namely, the nobility, the clergy, and the common people. Some other group, like the mob or the public press, that had an unofficial but often great influence on public affairs, was called the fourth estate. In the 19th century, fourth estate came to refer exclusively to the press, and now it’s applied to all branches of the news media.”

In other sources, there was also an emphasis that the press had a responsibility to do this in an unbiased manner, without interference by either the government or personal views. The term press has been popularly expanded to include other forms of the media, including social media. What I could not find anywhere was the inclusion of celebrities such as television and movie stars, professional athletes and coaches, or even former government officials, elected or appointed, were part of the fourth estate.

Unfortunately, when viewing the press (or media) today, it seems that these celebrities are represented as smarter or more qualified than the average American to make election decisions. This seems to be supported by the media when publishing headlines stressing the views of these celebrities. Is this actually a lack of bias?

I respect the decision of the press to provide an opportunity for opinions and editorials which offer opposing views. I do question whether any of these should be headlined by the press without being identified as opinions.

I believe the role of the press is to report the news for public consumption without telling the public how to think. I also believe that many people have come to distrust the mainline media. And, that as a result, people have put themselves in harm’s way because of this distrust. I’m not sure that we will ever return to the level of trust that existed in the era shortly after World War II where the news was reported, not interpreted.

Election Day 2024 – The Day After

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With the exception of cleaning up some leftovers, it appears that the 2024 election is now over. We, the American people, have taken the opportunity once again to make our voices heard. The results have been tallied and in the vast majority of cases, the results are in. Concessions have been made and victories celebrated. As in every election that I can remember, there were candidates who won and candidates who did not. And for each winner, there were supporters who were happy just as there were supporters who were sad because their candidate did not win. Similarly, in many locations, the voting process allowed people to express their opinion about issues other than the candidates themselves. There were winners and losers there as well. These things have happened throughout the history of our country.

One can only hope that the divisiveness and hatred that have invaded our country for the last ten years or so can now be put aside and we can move on to a more positive environment. One where we can simply agree to disagree, to put our differences aside in daily life, and to end the conflicts that have arisen between friends and family members. We can also hope for a return to the days when politically driven retribution is the exception rather than the rule. We have done this before and we can do it again.

Of course, the “celebrities” who seem to consider themselves more important than the rest of America are already lining up to create promote and encourage both antagonism and hatred among us simply to make a bigger name for themselves. I often wonder what have these “stars” in the media, acting, and sports done to qualify them to tell me how to vote or do anything outside of their field of expertise. But I suppose as long as today’s news media continues to promote them they will continue to think that the rest of the country know less than they do.

Instead of allowing ourselves to contribute to the antagonism, divisiveness, and hatred I encourage everyone to take a step back and try to calm down. If you didn’t like the election results, at whatever level, don’t worry. You will have another opportunity to share your views in a few months or years. Who know if you will then be a winner or a loser. But for now, maybe take a friend to lunch or have a drink with them at a bar and forget about any political differences you may have. Try to consider what is important for our children today – having them all agree with you or teaching them how to work through differences and move forward. And, sit down and ask yourself, “Is it better to live in a country where you are given the opportunity to express your views or would it be better to live under the thumb of a dictator who came into power through corruption, war, and military might?”