Monthly Archives: June 2010

When we lived in Des Moines back in the 1950’s, it was Christmas time, Mom was taking my brother and I to see Santa Clause. My Mom didn’t drive, we took a bus and then we got on a trolley downtown. Then I didn’t know what it was, but I remember looking up and seeing sparks fly as we moved down the track. The trolley was crowded, I remember getting out and walking with my Mom, going to the Woolworths 5 and dime store. Inside there was a line, when I finally had the opportunity to see this Santa Clause I remember breaking down in tears, throwing a screaming fit, there was no way I was going near this person. Mom waited with me off in the distance while my brother sat on Santa’s lap and told him what he would like for Christmas.  This Santa must have been a forgiving soul, because I still got something for Christmas.

While my husband Bob was recuperating from his triple bypass, one of the requirements that had to be met was attending classes on nutrition and to help us develop good eating habits. I found it to be an interesting class. It taught me how to practice good eating habits. Cut down on the red meats, I substitute ground turkey for hamburger as it has the same consistency when cooking and with using same seasonings such as I would with spaghetti sauce or taco seasoning, there is no difference in texture. I use ground turkey for literally everything that would require ground round except for meatloaf, and we have that maybe three times a year. We eat more green vegetables as well as our home grown vegetables as they ripen on the vine.

Whenever my Dad went fishing when we lived in Carter Lake, Iowa he would either leave before it is light out or wait until dusk and head to the bank just outside of Fireman Park. He would be carrying with him his rod and reel, tackle box, fish chain to hook the fish to through their gills so they couldn’t escape once they had been caught, and his fishing knife and two beers, Pabst Blue Ribbon. Some times he  dug up squiggly earthworms to use as bait, sometimes he would use a new fishing lure.

He used sinkers and let the lure lay on the bottom, he usually caught Big Mouth Bass, sometimes he would have cat fish on the line when he came home.  My sister Barbara went fishing with just a twig, string, hook and piece of bread and caught Blue Gill  My Uncles and Brother used a home made dough and cheese ball to fish with. They usually came home with fish also..

There has been a lack of communication about Religion in our house When I was growing up. Going to church meant that Mom and Dad had to fork out a nickel or penny to each one of us kids, so we could have some money to put in the offering basket. It was about us kids getting up and getting dressed, waiting for the bus to get to the house and going to Church and Sunday school. It also meant that Mom and Dad would be able to sleep some more. It was like a glorified Babysitting service. The only time my Dad got involved with the Church was when he found out that us kids were being taken out into neighborhoods selling fuller brush products for one of the Sunday School teachers, earning her money, whether it went to the Church or not I never found out.  We were forbidden to go to Church after that.

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There are many types of art in the world, art by paintbrush, marble carvings such as statues, ice sculpture art and one of my favorites is sand art.  When my babies were small, I believe it was in the late 70’s the Fox Chris Town Mall featured some sand art displays, various castles and other forms of sand art was very great to go see, they minutest details were incredible  and take pictures of, take the kids and wander through, the exhibition was supposed to be there for just 30 days, but was extended for a very long period of time because of all of the traffic it brought into the mall. Another Sand Sculpture I love is the one in Sedona, it was so sad to find out it had been vandalized, each time I come through Arizona, it is still one of the many sights I must see.

My all time favorite pet has got to be my little Mexican Chihuahua, He is a red-cream colored Chihuahua that weighs  eight pounds. He has a perfectly round head, pointy ears and big brown eyes.  He is going to be eleven years old in July on the fifth. He is really relaxed and laid back for a Chihuahua, he doesn’t bark a lot, he does tremble and his hair stands straight up when he catches a scent on the ground or in the air. I make sure his medical needs, grooming needs, all the food, water and love he needs it met every day. I like to dress him, he has nice tee shirts ,santa suit, and a tuxedo winter coat and rain coat, he is easy to travel with and he is a great companion for me. I am so glad I have Charlie in my life.

With my husband Bob having the history of heart problems that he does we had to take a closer look at the foods we had been eating. What we had discovered was a large amount of foods we love, such as great big double stack burgers, large quantities of French fries, scones, Indian fry breads, deep fried chicken with skin on was contributing to his health problems.  Many health problems such as high blood pressure, cancer and diabetes are closely linked to high fat diet as well as foods high in protein. Finding out what wasn’t helping his health was the easy part, making the change towards good nutrition is the hard part. Also it isn’t just what you eat it also involves how you live your life.

From personal experience, when my husband was disabled and I had to stay home and take care of him, we were put in a  very bad spot financially and having three school age children didn’t help. We had to turn to state agencies for assistance, it was demeaning, but it was a “necessary evil”. We needed food stamps, housing assistance, utility assistance and clothing for the kids. That was when I found out about clothing exchanges. It was a Godsend.  Whenever I have the chance, there are Homeless shelters and Battered Women’s Shelters, And Crisis Nurseries where children are put that are in danger of being harmed and are always in need of clothing. It takes a village to raise a child, it also takes one to clothe them. Look up your local shelter, crisis nursery and donate people, DONATE.