Betty's Blog

October 2017 Las Vegas Tragedy I am proud to be a lifetime NRA member. And it blows my mind that there are those who think that we need more laws to prevent what happened in Las Vegas a couple of days ago. I'd like them to tell me specifically what law they would enact that would have prevented Paddock from doing what he did. And they can't! Because there is no way it could have been prevented. Laws don't stop people like him! I hope they do a complete and thorough autopsy on him to see if he was dying or suffering from some condition. It will be interesting to find out what we are told was his reason! Anyhoo... I have a Concealed Carry permit and am proud to say that I can defend myself! I firmly believe that there should be gun safety classes taught in schools so that children become aware that a gun is not inherently bad in and of itself. I also think that teachers and custodians and other school workers should all be allowed to carry guns.

I happen to have my christening dress. It's white satin and there is also a little lacy bonnet with pink ribbons, and a matching pair of tiny white satin shoes. I also have a white knitted blanket. I suppose I could look for a doll that size to put it on... My mom and my sisters always put dresses on me. I can remember wanting them to tie the ties in back as tight as they could. The one I wore for my 1st grade picture was navy blue rayon with white lace trim. I had dressed myself and I "borrowed" my sister's elaborate rhinestone necklace. It was proof that yes, a first-grader can be "overdressed"! In elementary school, all the girls were required to wear dresses, even in the wintertime. But we were allowed to bring along a pair of slacks that we could put on under our dresses to keep our legs warm during recess. Once, a boy in my class needed to borrow someone's slacks either because he got his pants too wet to wear at recess, or he had a little ...

September 2017 Tomorrow it will be 6 weeks since I had my left knee replaced with one made of Carbon Chrome! I've discovered the following things: Physical Therapy hurts like hell... but it makes you feel better in the long run. Opioids like oxycodone and tramadol mess with your head!!! (I'm off them now, thank goodness). Getting to sleep the whole night through is a stellar achievement! Sympathy from others does help. Who knew so many people have had knees done!

July 2017 I love cemeteries. Our cemetery that is located a mile north of our town is so beautiful! It has winding paths and the grave plots are arranged in the shape of wagon wheels. My husband's grandfather designed that cemetery. He also was a town founder. He was one who mowed where the streets of our town would be in 1892. When I was maybe ten years old, I often rode my blue bike with the fat tires out to the cemetery. I would take my lunch and a book. Later, when I became engaged, I wanted to be married there at the cemetery, but my mother said no. My parents and grandparents and great-grandparents and my husband's parents and grandparents and great-grandparents plus a whole host of uncles, aunts, and cousins are all buried out there. I have always been the family historian since I was small. Old people were my best friends. I loved to hear them talk about the good old days. My grandmother told me a lot. And my great-aunt, who was the family historian for her genera...

June 2017 We're almost ready for the Quasquicentennial. The programs have been printed. The electricians have added 220 outlets to both parks for the food trucks. The lights for the mural are on the way. Everyone has purple & white flowers planted. The town is filling potholes on the parade route. The new banners are up. Schedules are made out. The entertainment has been booked, and the fireworks are ready to go. And we'll be taking all the souvenirs including t-shirts and crockery over to the Quasqui Headquarters soon... (the library). It would have been a lot harder for us to do without cellphones, texting, and the internet! I haven't a clue how they did it 25 years ago for the Centennial... and that was a huge success! My husband was our mayor and life was good. I'm sure you all have heard of a Sesquicentennial which is a 150th anniversary, and a lot of us remember the nation's Bicentennial which was 200 years, but do you have any idea what a 175th ann...

February 2017 Wouldn't it be cool if each of us were born with our own theme song? A song that was uniquely yours? A song that would play whenever you entered a room or walked down the street! And you would be known by your theme song because everyone's would be unique and different. Your song would be muted when you go to school or enter a crowd. But as soon as you are alone again, your song would follow you. When two people get married, their theme songs would mesh and blend into a new song, but they still would keep their own. When children arrive, they would bring their own songs to the family symphony in blended harmony, and pets would also have their own songs, as playful or somber as they are. And when a person dies, his song would echo and become fainter as time wears on until only his loved ones can recall it.

October 2016 I've had house guests for a day... my sister and one of our cousins. (There were 54 of us cousins originally.) We spent an afternoon reminiscing about family and catching up with family news when something occurred to us that we had never considered before. We have had a quadruple murder most assuredly ordered by The Mob; we have had possible incest; we have had a member of the family who doesn't look at all like her siblings, but looks a lot like the hired man; we have cousins who disappeared but were found again 50 years later; we have cousins who were given up for adoption but have popped back up on the family tree; we have a haunted house; we have had paranormal events; and we have dearly departed members who have made appearances to the living! The something that occurred to us was that we may have enough material to write a mini-series with many, many episodes... in essence, a Family Saga of sorts! But would it sell?