A Visit to Kansas

I will be taking off in the morning for a 10 day visit with you, my favorite daughter, my favorite son-in-law and your two girls, Susie and Clarice. It will undoubtedly be my last time to visit you all in Wichita in your lovely home there. For you and your family to be moving to No. Carolina with new surroundings, new work relationships, and a new home are all major changes, not only for you, but also for those of us who love you !! Most assuredly, we will all adjust !! I have to stop and count how many times your Dad and I moved during our 40 years together !! We always managed to bloom wherever we were planted !! This is one of my favorite photos taken when I visited last summer.

Life is "Just a Bowl of Cherries"

I purchased these beautiful, tasty cherries at the grocery market a couple of days ago. The little crystal bowl they are in is one of a set of five that go along with a large crystal berry bowl. I purchased this set over 20 years ago at a farm auction in Iowa. It is vintage replica, but another few years, it will be antique !! I have often wondered why these berry bowl sets always have just five small serving dishes !! Eating these cherries brought up some fun memories of your Dad. Of course, he loved these fresh cherries and when we had them, he didn't like to share. He wanted them all to himself !! He was one of few people I have ever known that could tie a cherry stem into a knot with his tongue. That contest started in some bar somewhere years and years ago with maraschino cherries with stems that arrived in certain mixed drinks. He liked showing off this little trick of his whenever there were stemmed cherries around.

Home

As I was going through photos, I found this one dated 1980. I'm not sure what year your G'ma and G'pa Schultz bought this 120 acre farm, but, this was the house as it was when they first moved into it. They later put yellow aluminum siding on and changed the front porch somewhat. The new owners of the farm have now removed that siding, added a large room on the west side, and are planning to build a huge summer porch all the way around from what I have been told. This house had that beautiful front entry with the large open staircase that I loved. And then there was that lovely leaded glass window !! Although I did not grow up in this home, it has some wonderful memories of Mom and Dad attached to it !!!

Cousins

This faded photo taken in Ohio, is dated November, 1945. That is me on the right and my sister is on the pony that belonged to cousin Ivan, on the right. Ivan was a long awaited child and always seemed to have everything any child could want. The other cousin is David, whose father had just died. Erwin was my mother's brother and had just been to visit us in Iowa a month before, on his way to South Dakota to go pheasant hunting with family and friends. Of course, this was my first funeral and the image of my Mom lifting me to view my uncle's body in the casket, is as clear to me today as it was that day. If it were not for this photo, that would be the only thing about that trip to Ohio that I would ever have remembered. Odd, the remembrances of childhood experiences that stay with you all of your life !!

Spools

A couple more items displayed atop my kitchen cabinets are these two containers filled with spools of thread. Most all the spools are wooden and most all the colors were purchased through the years of creating clothing for the three of us. I would venture to say most of the spools are at least 30 years old and some are close to 50, at least. I haven't sewn a garment "from scratch" in 15 years, at least. Every so often, I get onto the ladder and pull down one of the containers because I need a certain color for a bit of mending or a bit of color for an artful creation. Another bit of "wondering why I keep certain things, but, glad I did" thing !!

Playing Dress-up

The date on the back of this photo is 1948 -- that's me on the right, sister Shirley in the middle and cousin Davy on the right. I don't recall this particular moment, but, I know as kids, we were always taking on roles of someone we idolized or read or heard about, by "playing dress-up" !! I have no idea who any of us were impersonating on this particular day !! Luella, this one friend of Mom's, had a couple of trunks full of beautiful old clothes, hats, jewelery and shoes. We loved visiting her home because she would turn us loose to play with all those wonderful things in those trunks. Luella and Mom would be visiting in the kitchen and Dad and Elmer, her husband, in the living room or outdoors. They all oohed and aahed as we and their daughter, Claudene, paraded our outfits for them. Remember the day we were looking at the old prom and formal dresses your G'ma Schultz had in that closet upstairs ?? I must hunt for the photos of that "dress-up" day !!!

House of Seven Gables

This is a photo taken in the late 70's of the house in South Dakota where my Dad grew up. Stories I remember hearing was the house was built for my grand-parents, Emma Moege and Emil Schultz, before they were married in 1911. Emma came from a quite wealthy family and wanted a house with "seven gables". I should have taken a photo of the back of the house, too. As a kid, through the years, there were several trips from Iowa to see my Dad's family in South Dakota. All those uncles still at home, thought us three kids were the "cat's meow" and kept us quite well entertained !! Although Mom's parents and siblings had moved on to Ohio, she still had aunts, uncles and cousins we would visit while we were there, so there were a few younger second cousins to have some fun with. A trip to South Dakota was always a great "adventure" !!

Glamour Shots ??

I doubt that I could have gotten your Dad to make a special trip to a photographer's studio for professional portraits. Owning my own beauty salon did have its advantages !! A photographer came in and set up for a couple of days -- all the clients were looking their best with a fresh hair style and a little professional help with their make-up if they wanted it. It was time for your Dad to get a hair cut and perm -- here we were in the mid-70's with those curly hairstyles being the "in" thing -- We posed for our photos and I always loved the way they turned out. My only regret is that we did not have one done of the two of us together -- I think we were quite a handsome couple !!!

"Pet" Sheep

I'm not sure if I remember this sheep because of this picture or if I really remember the sheep !! I do remember how her wool felt when I put my hand through it, so I guess I remember her !! Or, was it him ? The sheep didn't have a name that my sister or I could recall. We had a fence around the yard of the house and the sheep was good at keeping the grass mowed down a bit. When I was four, we moved to another farm and the sheep was sold. Questions I never asked and now have no one to ask are, why did we have just one sheep ? Did we get it when it was a baby ? Why did we never have any more ? Did she have a name ? I guess we don't always know what questions we might be interested in knowing the answers to.

Horses for Sale

This old photo of "horses behinds" has always fascinated me. The horses were being readied for a farm sale during the depression when my G'ma and G'pa Hanle were giving up farming in South Dakota and moving to Canton, Ohio. There were jobs there and hope !! Draft horses were used to pull plows, planters and other farm implements. My Dad had four of these type horses before he purchased his first tractor in the early 40's. We kids always wanted a riding pony, but, Dad would never give in to that idea. He had enough of dealing with these animals and had been kicked one too many times !! Consequently, he was short on love for any kind of horse !!

Rod Stewart

Last Saturday night, Rod Stewart was performing at the MGM Grand events arena.. I purchased my ticket the first day they went on sale a couple months ago. The set-up in the arena for this type of show seats around 10,000 people and I saw very few empty seats. Rod is 64 years old and I was in awe of the energy he had -- he had the crowd on their feet, singing and dancing right along with him. It was an amazing evening !! There are several "big name" entertainers that appear in concerts here once in awhile. When I was working, I couldn't make it to the concerts that I would like to have seen, but, now that I am retired, guess what ?? I am going to go to any and all that I have a desire to see !! Some, I may even go when they come back to town the next time !!

Living in Las Vegas

I take so much for granted living in this city that never sleeps !! Grocery stores, pharmacies, Walmart's, bowling alleys, gymnasiums, casinos -- you name it, 24 hours a day, any time of the day or night, any day of the week, you can shop, play, go for a work-out at the gym, do most anything your little heart desires. There is always a big name entertainer to go see or a lesser known entertainer where the price is much less, but, the show will be just as entertaining !! I have loved living in this city from the very first day, although it was one of the hottest days of the year 24 years ago this month. The scene in this photo looks much different today than it did 20 years ago. The "downtown Las Vegas strip" is now covered with a canopy featuring an overhead light show every night and the three block long area has the feeling of a "casino mall". I miss the fabulous casino signs with the glittering neon lights. Progress is wonderful, but, some days I long for some things to be as they used to be !!