Farmer Gary has always been crazy about his dad’s uncle Rob Wigger. Rob was a lovable character. He’d grown up on a farm near where we live today, so his visits were always full of questions for Gary. To me, it felt like a pop quiz. Gary passed with flying colors each time. We’ve been digging around all week looking for a photo or two of Rob, and what we have is a beautiful family portrait, probably taken in 1918….
It’s weird to think that the town where I got my first driver’s license is now the nation’s top implementer of roundabouts. There’s one of those roundabouts under construction about a dozen miles north of us, causing all sorts of delays. Traffic jams all summer long (one driver fell asleep at the wheel waiting to be flagged through). Back when I was ready for my license, we lived in Carmel, Indiana. No roundabouts then; plenty now. Back in 1974, it…
Farmer Gary and I recently attended what is now, I believe, an annual reunion of cousins on his mom’s side. The two of us gave presentations to the group of 40 or so (mostly) retirees. And no, for some reason I didn’t take photos. But there will be a video. Here’s last year’s: The cousins are the offspring of Mike and Rose Mehling’s progeny. The photo below is from 1924, so Gary’s mom isn’t in it. Rita was born in…
Farmer Gary has been buying and cooking sweet corn like mad these last few weeks of the season. He’s also been complaining about the prices – ranging from four ears for a dollar to a dollar a piece! His shucking and cooking of corn on the cob reminded me of childhood summers. And rhubarb. Mom used to stew it and then top a scoop of vanilla ice cream with it. There was something else she’d make with it, but I…
Sue May Whiteside Williams is an impressive name. For 44 years, I’ve wondered who she is … or was. Why do I know the name, but not the person? Well, long ago she wrote it in a book. It was a book we received as a wedding present. I read it aloud to my groom during our first month as husband and wife. The book was a gift from my godmother, Georgeanna Lane, who wasn’t able to make it to…
Every year about this time, the church picnics begin. Every weekend there’s one, and for decades the prime drawing card (and money-maker) was the same: Turtle Soup. Farmer Gary loves Turtle Soup. When I found a family recipe the other day, it got him to telling stories. Not just about the soup. About the man. Johnny Lange. The Turtle Man: Johnny Lange (pronounced “LONG-ee” … Gary would never forgive me if I didn’t add that Johnny had a brother whose…
It’s a good thing I like the Beatles so much, because one song in particular has been rolling around in my brain for seven years or so. ,,, and that’s because of the number of phone calls I get for someone named Michelle. From the beginning of mobile phones’ ubiquity, mine was provided by my workplace. So when retirement was anon, it was time to let someone else carry around that noisy contraption. (When grandson Cameron was a toddler, he…
Years before I married Farmer Gary, the first person I spoke with each morning was Ron. He was the morning deejay at WTCJ radio and I was the morning newsperson. This was back in the day when many small towns had their own radio station. Tell City, Indiana’s family-owned radio station had been around since the late 1940s. It was the summer of 1980, I’d finished college and was starting my first job. Before long I was put on the…
Actually, how about a thousand cheers? Have you ever been greeted by a blizzard of confetti online while performing a simple task? Confetti, plus a message designed to send your heart soaring? So it was with me this morning. The online celebration was for the one-thousandth clipping I’d snagged on the Newspapers.com site. Totally unexpected and sort of embarrassing. (Maybe it’s a generational thing?) There have been many news clippings over the years that have helped with family stories for…
Why would I dream about taking just one bite of a sandwich? And a Reuben sandwich at that! Farmer Gary is not a fan of rhetorical questions. He just shrugged in response. I so rarely remember my dreams that it was hard to let this one go. Until yesterday, neither Gary nor I had ever tasted a Reuben sandwich. He’s a fan of sauerkraut, but served with pork. Ham hocks and sauerkraut were a treat growing up, he tells me….