Back Where I come From September 7, 2917

I have been in the city for the last few days. I am going to get all caught  up today. This may be a long post. I can be wordy.

Did you ever participate in creating graffiti or any type of artwork that would have been confrontational?

When I was in high school we were still in Viet Nam. STILL. I participated in several anti-war demonstrations. I don't think our picket signs were graffiti but they were controversial and very confrontational.

How old were you when you took your first drink of alcohol, if you ever have? What were the circumstances surrounding that moment?

In my family at Christmas celebrations the adults would have a glass of sweet Mogan David Concord grape wine. Us kids had the same only ours was maybe 90% lemon lime soda and just enough wine to give it color. But we felt oh so grown up. My uncle and grandmother used to "share" their beer with me. I got about an 1/8  of an inch in my glass and I remember I felt so special.

Do you plan to move back to your hometown area in your older years? Why or why not?

How do you feel about the place that you came from?

I just drove through my hometown the other day. I felt nostalgic. That day it was mid-afternoon. The town was bustling. People driving, people walking, people stopping to talk to neighbors. I wanted to be part of it. I don't know if I will ever actually live in Robbinsdale again, but I will eventually move back into the city. Robbinsdale does have everything within walking distance for shopping and it does have several 55 and older apartment complexes so maybe Robbinsdsale will be my choice. 

Were there a lot of churches in your hometown? What about where you live now?

I know we had at least one church for each recognized denomination.  Where I live now there are many, many churches. A surprisingly large number. Even almost as far out from town as I am there are a couple of churches.  Nice.

On the opposite side of the fence, did you know of anyone engaged in an illegal activity? (In the song, they mention moonshine.)

Illegal activity? As in against the law? Remember in high school going into a rest room that had a funny smell? I was the cause of the funny happy smell. And in other places also. In cars  I don't know how we managed to see out of because of the smoke. I remember doing the  Chinese fire drill while at a stop light. I remember streaking. I remember shop.lifting. Once. I got caught and was so scared I never tried it again. I never did anything really bad at least by today's standards. My mother was eternally grateful.

What color were the eyes of your first date?

I believe they were blue. You know tall, blonde, blue eyed and dreamy?

That's it. I am caught up. This is great fun. A good trip down memory lane.

Hodgepodge Fun 9/13/2017

1. Is a picture worth a thousand words? Elaborate.

I think that sometimes the picture is a thousand words. For example  - Home Alone - Machaulay Culkin - Hands to face , open mouth, a scream trying to come out.  A baby's first anything. Sunset/rise. Sometimes words just can't do the job to describe something God has created.

2. Have you ever driven any part of the Pacific Coast Highway? If so, what was your favorite stop? If not is this sort of trip on your bucket list?

I have not driven anywhere in California. I don't think the PCH was the highway we were on going North from San Francisco airport. I think I would love to take that drive someday. 

3. How do the changing seasons affect you? As the seasons change do you find yourself looking more forward or backward? Which season-season transition bothers you most? Why do you suppose that is? 

I really and truly like the change from winter into spring. Ppring is when everything is brand new. Spring has warmer temperatures, but not hot like our summers. I like the change from summer into fall, because of the cooler temps and beautiful colors. I DO NOT like the change from fall to winter. I don't like to be hot, but I really don't like the weather dictating to me if I can go somewhere. Living 22 miles from town  weather is always a consideration in the winter. I have to make sure I can get where I am going but also make sure any weather coming holds off until I get home. I don't like winter. It stays dark too long. Feels like it is dark until after 8 AM and dark again by 4 PM. I keep the vitamin D3 people happy.

4. It's your birthday and you get to pick the dinner menu. What are we having? Do you ever lie about your age?

Hmmm. I would have: deep fried green beans served with a mayo/sriracha sauce for dipping, a smooth  chicken consumme', a crisp salad made with bid lettuce, thinly sliced cucumber, finely chopped egg,  strawberry quarters, crumbled feta cheese and Balsamic dressing. Lobster with drawn butter for the main course. With seconds and thirds available of the lobster.  Dessert hands down would be Chocolate Cheesecake. Or lemon. I only lied about my age when I was younger than 18 or younger than 21. I am proud to have reached my age.
5. What's a life lesson you've learned recently?

I think I probably knew this, but it kind of snuck up and hit me upside the head the other day. Children are the most precious gift. I am "Grandma Trudy" to my BF grandchildren. Sometimes I even am called "Great Grandma Trudy".  The 2 children are ages 5 and 7 are a joy to be around. Everything to them is a delight, fun, wonderful, magical, beautiful. They run out to greet me when they see my car pull up. They give the BEST hugs ever.  They are having a difficult time right now, but it has not dampened their love for everyone and everything. And it is a love we must never ever take for granted.

6.  Insert your own random thought here.

I was in Minneapolis the last 7 days and came home yesterday. I am very thankful for the time away. My BF allowed me to just rest and shop, and eat, and enjoy. She calls it my respite time. Her dad was visiting from Arizona. We had a party on Saturday for all of the summer birthdays of which there were 8. Her dad is a special person in my life. He was there through my most difficult time. I am thankful for all of them being in my life. Even though they sent me home with a cold.

And because this wouldn't be a post from me if it didn't include a photo:

My favorite spot in California.

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Back Where I come From September 6, 2017

Did your town have a river running through or near it? What was its name?

There is a river running close by my hometown. The Great Mississippi. It meanders between Minneapolis and St. Paul on it's way down South. 

This isn't my photo. I got it from the Mississippi Headwaters web site. I like to say that I walked across the Mississippi

This is the web site link for Itasca State Park where the head waters are located..

 http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/state_parks/itasca/index.html

If I knew how to get rid of the bullet points I would do that. However, I don't know how so we're stuck with them.

September Challenge September 5, 2017

 

I am still on track for this September challenge with Suzanne at P.S. Annie

Where did all the kids “hang” in your hometown?

Well, let's see. It all depends on the ages of the kids. I think this calls for a list. I love lists.

My house for kickball. We had the largest yard on the block

There was a local park only 3 blocks from my house. It had all of the regular park things. In the summer there was also a wading pool. I didn't have a fear of water back then, and spent many hours there.

After a certain age the park and my yard just didn't do it for us anymore. There was a fast food place called The Red Barn where we would hang out.  I don't know why we were never kicked out of there. We could get very loud and very boisterous. Normal teenage things.

In the summer we would walk to the lake. It wasn't much of a swimming lake, but us girls could work on our tans.

We had a bowling alley. I almost forgot about it!  Not that any of us bowled, but we hung out there. If they made us leave the inside we hung around outside. Especially once some of us starting driving.

When it was winter we would go skating. The park I mentioned above turned the ball field into an ice rink. The park building became a warming house.

Back Where I Come From - Day 4

1. What were your hobbies as you were growing up?

It depends on what age we are talking about.  As a girl aged 6 - 10, I played with dolls. I had baby dolls, a doll that came with her own beauty chair and hair dryer. My all time favorite doll was called Thumbalina. She was made by Ideal Toys. She had a knob on her back that when turned she would move her legs and head. I also had all the Barbie dolls. Barbie, Ken, Midge, Skipper. At the time I was the only girl niece and granddaughter.

The house of my childhood was on one lot and we owned the lot right next to it. We had a huge yard. It became the place to play kick ball. I know we had teams, but I don't remember us ever keeping score. I think we played until  most of the kids were called home for something. 

Once the alley was paved (cemented) we would play 4-square. On the sidewalk in front of my house there was always a hopscotch diagram written in chalk. 

On days when we couldn't be outside and in the evening I read. Everything. If I didn't have a book in front of me my mom knew something was wrong. I read the yellow covered Nancy Drew books. My mom made me read most of the American classics,too.

When I got a bit older I would draw a woman's face on paper. I would color in her make-up and her hair style. I could spend hours doing that. Sometimes she was quite glamorous, other times she looked experimental. I remember I wished there was a job doing make-up. Little did I know that there was! 

Up to this point is was a fairly uneventful childhood.

Speaking of Thumbalina...I am looking to buy one. She is no longer made. The few I have have seen for sale are on Ebay, and prohibitively expensive. If any one come across one for a reasonable price please let me know.

Were you raised in a town/city or in a rural area? Do you live in the same type of place now?

Robbinsdale is a suburb of Minneapolis. It actually borders the great city. It is definitely city living. However, when I was growing up and to some extent even now Robbinsdale has the feel of a small town. I think probably because of the main street for businesses. With parking on the street, and sidewalks to be safe on.

It was always my dream to live in the country. Preferably on a farm. I thought I would like to be a farmer's wife. When I realized how difficult the farming  life was I changed it to living in the country.

In 1991 my dream came true. My husband, my son, and myself moved from the city to the country. We live in the woods. Right smack dab in the middle of 10 acres of woods.

 We are 22 miles from the nearest Minnesota town. We are 6 miles from the closest Wisconsin town.  We live half way between Minneapolis and Duluth. 

It might be a bit more rural than I envisioned, but I wouldn't trade it for anything. Most of the time.

I am still looking for photos. I will promise to find them by the end of the month.

 2. Were either of your parents raised in your hometown? If not, how did they end up there?

As I mentioned yesterday my mom grew up in the same house I did. 

This was a small house. One bedroom on the main floor, and 2 up top. One of those rooms was fairly small. Nine children finished growing up in the house. I don't know how they did it.

When the house was first put together there wasn't a basement.  The brothers had to dig the basement, and somehow got cement into it. At some point water was brought into the house also.

My mom graduated from Robbinsdale High School. Hers was the first graduating class ever. Back then it was very rare for a girl to finish high school, but my mom defied the norm. 

I looked through many boxes of photos today looking for some of the house.  I know I have some. I know for certain because I took them! I did find some, but you couldn't really see the house. I will look again tomorrow. It was a bittersweet travel back in time looking through the photos.