Of Orchards, Smudge Pots, And Friends

If you lived near fruit groves in California or Florida way back when, you probably remember smudge pots and smudging. I believe the practice fell out of favor in the 1970s, but for any of us who grew up around orchards in the 50s, smudging was a part of our cold weather experience. It was […]

The Christmas Culprit Came Clean

My mother and I were sitting together in her room, talking about Christmases past, and I finally confessed to, and explained our longtime family mystery of misplaced toys. And when I say misplaced, I do not mean lost. I mean a toy that started out in one child’s pile of toys under the Christmas tree, […]

A Shovel And Bucket Guide To Survival

I like to read about events in history that occurred on any given day. Today in 1957, the Gaither Report was issued. President Dwight D. Eisenhower had called a special committee to review our nation’s defense readiness. It concluded we had fallen far behind the Soviet Union in missile capabilities, and the report vigorously recommended […]

Happy Anniversary Boomer Connection!

One year ago today I started writing Boomer Connection. For the longest time my kids pointed out I never spoke about myself, and they really wanted to know what it was like to grow up in the 50’s, and come of age in the 60’s. As I entered this leg of my journey, I realized […]

They Said You’ll Never Be Miss America

It’s been so many years since the Miss America Pageant was broadcast on television for the first time. I was seven years old, it was a Saturday night, and my siblings and I were going to be allowed to stay up to see the whole show. It was Miss America, for goodness sake, and no […]