Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Who is Who
In my last blog I talked about wondering where all the time has gone and how much the nieces and nephews have change over time. This inspired me to do a little picture quiz of who is who. See how many you get right. They are not in any particular order.
Monday, April 26, 2010
Brianna's Wedding
You may have just read my post of my trip to Seattle but the reason for the trip was to witness my niece Brianna marry her husband Ken. Ken and Brianna have been dating for a couple of years and they seem to fit each other very well. Even tho the trip was long I was excited for the day to begin.
It started with Jack, Patty, Ashley and Chris stopping by my room to change. Even tho they had just drove for 4 hours they were very upbeat. After they dressed we
met Michelle, Luke and Johonna and went out for breakfast. I was sitting at a table with six young adults and a little girl of the next generationl. It seemed like just yesterday when Michelle, Jack, and Ashley would spend the night at Grans and I would be cooking them breakfast. Where had the time gone.
met Michelle, Luke and Johonna and went out for breakfast. I was sitting at a table with six young adults and a little girl of the next generationl. It seemed like just yesterday when Michelle, Jack, and Ashley would spend the night at Grans and I would be cooking them breakfast. Where had the time gone. After breakfast we made our way to the church. A beautiful brick
Catholic church. We entered and Jessi found us and told us where to sit. It was not long until the service began. As I watched Brianna and Ken come down the asile together they both seemed so confident. The did not seem nervous at all. Again I wondered where all of the years had gone. It seemed like yesterday that I escorted Brianna and Sara to New York to sp
end the summer with their mom. Brianna was so serious on the plane while Sara wanted to run up and down the asiles. It is just one of the differences that these two had at one time. Today Sara and her other sisters stood with Brianna as she entered into her future life as a married women. This was my first nuptial mass. It was beautiful.
end the summer with their mom. Brianna was so serious on the plane while Sara wanted to run up and down the asiles. It is just one of the differences that these two had at one time. Today Sara and her other sisters stood with Brianna as she entered into her future life as a married women. This was my first nuptial mass. It was beautiful. 
After the mass we made our way to the reception on the other side of town. This was my first day light look at Seattle since I had arrvied at night. I was a little confused by all the overpasses but the city was beautiful. The reception place had a wonderful view of the city from
across the bay. It was a very relaxing setting. The food and conservations were wonderful. It was nice to see the neices and nephews and get caught up on their lives. Again my mind wondered to earlier years and the time we spent together. Back then they seemed to need us grown ups but now they are the grown ups. On their own and ready to make their mark on the world. No one knows what the future holds but I hope that Brianna and Ken and my other nieces and nephews will be able to take time for the small things. A trip to the Zoo, or a game of hair dresser will let you take time to laugh and enjoy what god has given you!!
across the bay. It was a very relaxing setting. The food and conservations were wonderful. It was nice to see the neices and nephews and get caught up on their lives. Again my mind wondered to earlier years and the time we spent together. Back then they seemed to need us grown ups but now they are the grown ups. On their own and ready to make their mark on the world. No one knows what the future holds but I hope that Brianna and Ken and my other nieces and nephews will be able to take time for the small things. A trip to the Zoo, or a game of hair dresser will let you take time to laugh and enjoy what god has given you!! My First Trip to Seattle
A couple weekends ago I took my first trip to Seattle to attend my wonderful niece Brianna's wedding. On a good day Seattle is about 10 hours from Jordan Valley. It took me awhile to get things together but I was out of my house before ten. I was excited to get on the road. The sooner I started the trip the sooner I would be there.
About an hour and a half from Jordan Valley I got a flat tire. If you have never been to god's country let me describe it for you. There is nothing out here. An hour and a half form Jordan Valley puts you on highway 78 between Burns Junction and Burns. There are no trees, homes, or people but there are lots of cows. I pulled my car to the side of the road and got out of the car. I took out some things so I could get to the spare tire and jack which is in the back. I have never used the jack on this car so I took time to read the directions. I set the jack and start to jack up the car. Then I start to take off the lug nuts but the tire just spins because I had jacked up the car. So I lower the car and take off the lug nuts. For some people this may have taken a few minutes. I don't move that fast so it took awhile. In the time that I had done this about 8 cars or so had passed by. No one stopped so I figured I am in this alone. Just as I was thinking this a car pulled up and asked if I could use some help. When I heard this my street smarts left my head. They did not look like they would kill me. So I let them help. I was blessed. These two men in no time had my spare on my tire on the car. I thanked them very much and resumed my trip to Seattle. My plan was to stop in Burns buy some new tires and continue on my way.
About five miles out of Burns it happened again. My back tire went flat. I could not beleive my luck. I had no spare and I figured that I was close to Burns so I decided to drive in on what was left of my tire. I know this should not be done but I was bound and determined to make it to Burns. And I did. I pulled in the turning lane to the drive into Les Schwab and I say one of the employees pointing at me. As I pulled in they directed me to lift. No waiting here. The attendent said "you did not want to put on your spare" I replied "NO it is already on." I told him my story and told him to do what ever need to be done. After a few minutes he told me that the rim was fine but I did need four new tires. Since my car is all wheel drive all the tires need to be the same. He told me that he had two sets of tires. The most expensive and the next expensive. I told him to put on the next expensive. After a half hour I was on my way.
I was again excited to resume my trip. About twenty miles out of Burns a car pulled up beside me and held up a sign that said "Low Tire" I stop and found that again one of my brand new tires was flat. How could this be? I turned around and headed back toward Burns. It was my hope that I would be able to make it back to Burns even tho the tire was low. No chance. I made it about a mile when the tire was totaly flat. I pulled over and again went through process of getting out the spare and jack. I got my tire off and was trying to figure how the spare went on when again a car pulled over. This time it was a family and the son and husband were kind enough to put on the spare. Once again I was on the road back to Burns and Les Schwab. The same attendent was there to open my door. I told him that maybe it was the rim what ever it was just fix it. I sat down and about 15 minutes later the attendent joined me. He said that the tire sensor was broken which caused the tire to loose air. He was sure they had the part and suggested that I replace it both of the tires that had gone flat. He also told me that since I drove on the low tire it had destroyed it and they could not use it. Of course Les Schwab guarantees their tires even tho it was my fault. They refunded me for the tires that I had just bought and then sold me the only set the had, the expensive set.
After a short time I was on the road. The rest of the trip was uneventful. After all of flat tires what else could go wrong. I arrived in Seattle about midnight and took a long hot shower and went right to bed. This drive was full of lessons.
They included:
Check tires before a long trip.
Don't have a lot of stuff in the car. The more stuff you have the more that you
need to take out to get to the spare.
Always buy tires at Les Schawb.
Thank Dad for teaching you how to change a tire.
Thank you Mom and Dad for watching over me!
About an hour and a half from Jordan Valley I got a flat tire. If you have never been to god's country let me describe it for you. There is nothing out here. An hour and a half form Jordan Valley puts you on highway 78 between Burns Junction and Burns. There are no trees, homes, or people but there are lots of cows. I pulled my car to the side of the road and got out of the car. I took out some things so I could get to the spare tire and jack which is in the back. I have never used the jack on this car so I took time to read the directions. I set the jack and start to jack up the car. Then I start to take off the lug nuts but the tire just spins because I had jacked up the car. So I lower the car and take off the lug nuts. For some people this may have taken a few minutes. I don't move that fast so it took awhile. In the time that I had done this about 8 cars or so had passed by. No one stopped so I figured I am in this alone. Just as I was thinking this a car pulled up and asked if I could use some help. When I heard this my street smarts left my head. They did not look like they would kill me. So I let them help. I was blessed. These two men in no time had my spare on my tire on the car. I thanked them very much and resumed my trip to Seattle. My plan was to stop in Burns buy some new tires and continue on my way.
About five miles out of Burns it happened again. My back tire went flat. I could not beleive my luck. I had no spare and I figured that I was close to Burns so I decided to drive in on what was left of my tire. I know this should not be done but I was bound and determined to make it to Burns. And I did. I pulled in the turning lane to the drive into Les Schwab and I say one of the employees pointing at me. As I pulled in they directed me to lift. No waiting here. The attendent said "you did not want to put on your spare" I replied "NO it is already on." I told him my story and told him to do what ever need to be done. After a few minutes he told me that the rim was fine but I did need four new tires. Since my car is all wheel drive all the tires need to be the same. He told me that he had two sets of tires. The most expensive and the next expensive. I told him to put on the next expensive. After a half hour I was on my way.
I was again excited to resume my trip. About twenty miles out of Burns a car pulled up beside me and held up a sign that said "Low Tire" I stop and found that again one of my brand new tires was flat. How could this be? I turned around and headed back toward Burns. It was my hope that I would be able to make it back to Burns even tho the tire was low. No chance. I made it about a mile when the tire was totaly flat. I pulled over and again went through process of getting out the spare and jack. I got my tire off and was trying to figure how the spare went on when again a car pulled over. This time it was a family and the son and husband were kind enough to put on the spare. Once again I was on the road back to Burns and Les Schwab. The same attendent was there to open my door. I told him that maybe it was the rim what ever it was just fix it. I sat down and about 15 minutes later the attendent joined me. He said that the tire sensor was broken which caused the tire to loose air. He was sure they had the part and suggested that I replace it both of the tires that had gone flat. He also told me that since I drove on the low tire it had destroyed it and they could not use it. Of course Les Schwab guarantees their tires even tho it was my fault. They refunded me for the tires that I had just bought and then sold me the only set the had, the expensive set.
After a short time I was on the road. The rest of the trip was uneventful. After all of flat tires what else could go wrong. I arrived in Seattle about midnight and took a long hot shower and went right to bed. This drive was full of lessons.
They included:
Check tires before a long trip.
Don't have a lot of stuff in the car. The more stuff you have the more that you
need to take out to get to the spare.
Always buy tires at Les Schawb.
Thank Dad for teaching you how to change a tire.
Thank you Mom and Dad for watching over me!
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
The Strong Slient Type
Today I was going through my father's military record and I was reading some of his performance reports. My father was a career Marine. He spent 22 years of his
life fighting in WWII, Korea and Vietnam. He joined during WWII, like a lot of men, when he was 17. He never really talked much about his experience which is why I think I am interested in it now.
To the right is a picture that was taken early in his career. He looks so very young but he was. He left high school to join the marines and then received his GED when he was in the service. In the early years he was the typical marine on the front lines. As his career progressed he drove and mechaniced trucks, taught classes and worked in radio communications.
life fighting in WWII, Korea and Vietnam. He joined during WWII, like a lot of men, when he was 17. He never really talked much about his experience which is why I think I am interested in it now.To the right is a picture that was taken early in his career. He looks so very young but he was. He left high school to join the marines and then received his GED when he was in the service. In the early years he was the typical marine on the front lines. As his career progressed he drove and mechaniced trucks, taught classes and worked in radio communications.
In reading through his reviews I came across these comments: SSgt Ellis is a quiet, modest marine with mature demenor. He posesses good knowledge of his functional field and accomplishes good results in the discharge of his duties. He is willing to accept any responsibility and is at his best when able to work independently. He is cooperative, intelligent and attentive to duty. His spare time is spent on self improvement. ( Robert Clay, Aug 4, 1964)
The review above is how I remember my father. He could enjoy being by himself all day casting a fishing line and not catching anything. He would escape to the basement to tinker with some wood project. I don't recall a lot of projects that he made other than repairs around the house. My favorie were the Sunday drives to no where. Just a drive to see what there is to see.
Now my mother and her side of the family were the talkers when something needed to be said. She enjoyed talking and spending time with family and friends. Maybe one reason my parents marriage worked so well was because they had this difference. I am sure that the first few years of their marriage was a lot of compermising and learning. I recall my mother talking about a trailer that they lived in when they first got married. The worse part was that there were no doors to slam when they got mad at each other. I guess it made them work things out quietly. The picture at the right is my parents in front of that wonderful trailer. (Love those pin curls, mom! )
Monday, April 5, 2010
Family History
Any of you that knew my wonderful mother knew that it would be safe to call her a "genealogy buff". For as long as i remember she contacted relatives, read books, and tried to make the past come to life. As a small child I think genealogy gave my mom something to do "once the kids" were in bed on those lonely nights when my dad was overseas. Later it gave her a chance to get out of the house and go to the library and loose her mind in the rolls of microfilm.Checking for dead relatives in Roy, Oregon Cemetary
I have always loved the stories but my interest boomed with the advent of computer genealogy programs. My mother and I spent hours entering data into our first DOS ran genealogy program. She would read the information and I would type. Sometimes we did this for 6 or 7 hours at a stretch. Me with my dill pickles and diet soda and mom with her snacks we e
ntered over 14,000 names into the program.
Checking the paper for obits of realtives
Now that she is gone I have been given all of her notebooks, files, books, and such. A gold mine for a beginning genealogist like myself but also a mountain to climb. Over this past spring break I started entering names into an updated program. I get involved and realized that it is almost morning. (I really need to watch this on school nights)
My hope is from time to time to let you know of interesting facts that I have come across. This week's fact is:
The wife our my 7th great uncle was Sarah H Stephens. What if she is related to my brother-in-law Casey. Could it be that my sister married a decedent of our 7th great grand uncle? Sarah was born in South Carolina in 1749 and died in 1844 in Georgia. I have not traced Sarah's line so I am not sure of any other connections. Casey do you have a 7th great aunt named Sarah?
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