Honoring Mother

110 years ago today my mother, Vera L. Morrell, was born near Hartman, Colorado.  Mama left her earthly family behind 27 years ago.  We still miss her.

The first Ford Model T came off the line six weeks after Mom's birth.












The telephone of the day.



I think is is safe to say that Mother's parents had neither of these modern conveniences, situated as they were on the High Plains of Eastern Colorado.

 
Mom was married 58 years to the love of her life, my Dad, Delbert W. Lacy

A Tale of Two Men in Egypt

Then Moses called for all the leaders of Israel. He said to them, “Pick out a lamb or a young goat for your families, and kill the Passover animal.  Take the branch of a hyssop plant, dip it in the blood which is in a bowl, and put some of the blood on the top and sides of the door frames of your houses. No one may leave the house until morning,  The Lord will go throughout Egypt to kill the Egyptians. When he sees the blood on the top and sides of the door frame, he will pass over that doorway, and he will not let the destroyer come into your home to kill you. --Exodus 12:21-23 (GW)

On the afternoon of the 14th, neighbors Amos and Hezron each of whom had killed a young goat, were in the front of their houses daubing the animals' blood onto the lintels and doorposts.  Amos looked over and said, "I am so frightened; terrified, even."

"But," Hezron responded, "you are painting the blood on the door frame, even as Moses told us to do.  God promised you will be protected.  Nothing to worry about."

"I know," replied Amos, "but I have only one son, and if I should lose him I simply don't know what I would do!"

The men closed themselves with their families into their homes, ate the Passover meal just as Moses directed.  The Death Angel passed through Egypt as foretold.

Which of the two men lost a son? 

**********

Neither of them.  Both followed the Lord's directive, both were prepared.  Human emotions do not abrogate salvation.

Beauty for Ashes

The little tree that provided such springtime beauty for many years is dead.

Beauty, though, continues on.

And while I may be personally puzzled as to the way the world works, BBBH and I were able to solve this 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle!

Lincolns and More

Last week we took a little spin down to Louisburg, Kansas where we saw a large RV park out in the middle of nowhere.  Near the entry to the park was a little "strip mall' constructed in more or less Old West style, wooden buildings and so on.  A few stores occupying same but on the south end of the complex we espied a garage, front door open and a gleaming '57 Thunderbird facing the world.  We had to stop.

We got out of our car and walked over to the building.  We entered and were greeted by the owner who clearly enjoyed having visitors ogle his workmanship, for he is a quality restorer of classic cars.  The conversation enlightened us considerably.  The T-Bird he had just finished for a customer, having redone a previous restoration and correcting the problems therewith.  He declared it now "better than new" and I don't doubt it.  Here is a rather poor picture of the 'Bird, as it is severely back-lighted.

Next to the 'Bird was a '64 Lincoln Continental 4-door convertible.  I expressed considerable interest in the car as I drove a Continental for six years in the sixties and early seventies.  Mine was not a convertible.  The gentleman advised me to take a look outside at the south end of the building, as there was a completed Continental out there which he had just finished and taken out.

Next to this Lincoln was a '65 Mustang, a marque which I also owned.  I bought mine new in1965.

This is what we saw out under the trees, my old heart-throb!  Isn't she beautiful?

Why?

I am a fan of air conditioning.  Willis Carrier is my hero.  Yet I ask "Why?" is this wonderful convenience so often and so severely abused?  This is primarily in reference to public spaces.  How you use your unit in your own home  or in your automobile is  your business.  Enjoy.  But it is essential, at least in the Midwest where summer temperatures typically hover in the nineties that one carry a jacket or sweat shirt with him if he is planning a foray into a restaurant or public office.

Following a number of wonderful days in Kansas where the temperatures were often in the low nineties we headed homeward.  Typical Midwestern day, we stopped in Springfield, Illinois for an evening repast.  We were seated eight feet, literally eight feet, from the device pictured here.  Observe that  it is set calling for 70^oF and that the thermometer component records 70^oF.  I had to get up, go outside in the ninety degree heat, walk to my vehicle and get a jacket so that I could partake of my meal.  Hands were still cold, but my heart kept beating.

Kansas and Back

We are home following a fantastic week with my sister and my brother-in-law.  Here they are in their natural habitat.

 Food prep: doing too much of a good thing, but don't think we didn't appreciate it.  

Wonderful mealtimes!

I certainly can relate to this, something I do a lot of myself.

The days flew by all too quickly and we had a safe, though sometimes tense, journey home.  (Terrific storms in Central Illinois.)

Sunflower State

It is a beautiful bright and sunny Friday afternoon here in eastern Kansas. Temperature is 84 with a lovely 12 mile an hour  breeze, birds are chirping and all is right with the world.

Where's vanilla?

Somewhere
west of that.

I

Mid America Show 44, Page 2

I arrived at the venue about 10:45 Thursday morning, Thursday advertised to be the opening day of the show.  But I arrived a bit early, for many of the featured items were not yet in place.  In fact, I spotted two semi transporters loaded with the old iron waiting to be unloaded.

 The Ford 9000 hauler was interesting in its own right;

it is more than 25 years old!

 Two trucks full of old tractors.

 Unfamiliar marque.*

 I don't know Empire, either.  *click*

 I do know Avery because I have a friend in Minnesota

who has been searching for a certain model Avery.

 I was not surprised that Porsche made tractors, but I was

surprised that someone imported them.

 Fageol: now that is an artistic wheel. *click*

 Long.  Really?  *click*

 Love Tractor.  Okay, there are those who "love" tractors.
*click*

 Silver King.  There were two of them, one behind the other on the truck.
*click*

 Custom, which begs the question, custom what?  *click*

Another fun summer day in the Midwest!

*A bit of digging on the Internet suggests that Farmaster is a defunct U.S. company who imported Chinese-made Jinma tractors and sold them under the name Farmaster.

Mid America Show 44

It's tractor time!  The Mid America Threshing and Antique show starts today here in Perfect.  I trekked out to the showgrounds on my bicycle and made the rounds.

Last year's featured brand was Allis-Chalmers and the year before that it was Oliver.  This year the feature is "Lesser Known Brands."  I am starting this tour by featuring a nice old Huber manufactured in Marion, Ohio.

Those solid rubber tires are bolted to the rims.

I've a feeling the operator is in for a rough ride.

 Need to saw some logs?  See that power take-ff there just

behind the transmission?  Four cylinders at your service!

Mobile Pix

Sharkey mentioned that it is difficult to post pictures from a mobile device.  I took that as a challenge of course so here's a picture of my four children with four of their cousins Circa 1968.

Really short random conversation

Nice evening for a drive. We drove the 12 miles to one of our favorite holes-in-wall eateries, park the car in the heat, climb the steps only to find three people jammed into the doorway on the inside, one of them leaning against the door. BBBH pulled the door toward her, said, Could you step in so we can enter?  Woman said, It's too crowded for any more people in here. My Beautiful Beloved said, I'm not standing out here in the heat, and I said, We don't have to eat here. We left.

Mobile blogging

This is my first ever attempt to post on Blogger via a mobile device.  If this works properly I will be one happy camper.  Wish me luck.

Revival of Throw-back Thursday-- Way Back

BBBH and I were working in the yard on this sunny and as  it turns out quite hot afternoon.  She was tidying up the secret garden, I was edging and so forth with the string trimmer, or weed whacker, or whatever nomenclature suits your personal preference.  Power trimmer, and my mind leapt back to the summer of 1947.

Other than the mowing oI the school yard for which I got a quarter per week in the spring and summer, financial resources for this youngster were limited.  Since there are always RC colas and Planters Peanuts to be enjoyed, and Mechanix Illustrated to be purchased, an opportunity for a few extra quarters was a welcome boon.  Or so I thought when the elderly lady who lived just there on the corner of Cooper Street offered me twenty-five cents an hour to cut the weeds in her back yard.

I showed up on the job site promptly at eight in the morning, as agreed.  She took me to the tool shed from which she took a scythe and handed it to me.  I, a lad, and the implement built for a full-grown man.  And the weeds were full-grown, too.  Just to make it clear, it was a scythe, not a sickle, and if you don't know the difference you are either much too young or much too urban to truly understand the import of that.

To the best of my recollection, I worked four hours, the lady was satisfied, I was exhausted, but oh! that dollar!  What a treasure!

Also, that was the summer that my baby sister, Ilene, was born on this date.  Happy birthday, Ilene!

(Two years later I went to work for Western Union, sixty-five cents an hour.)

 Image: Wikipedia.  I went to the shed to get my scythe and could not
find it.  How can one misplace something that large?  Poltergeist!

Revival of Ten Word Wednesday

Put Grumpy Tuesday in the past; a better day today!