by jphilo | Jan 18, 2013 | Current Events
State Highway 20 west of Camp Crook, three miles from the Montana border.
Long time readers of this blog have been subjected to posts about Camp Crook, SD where the man of steel and I lived from 1978 after we graduated from college to 1985. This post subjects you to another story about Camp Crook. It boasts a population of about 62 and is not far from the McFarthest Spot in the contiguous United States. It is very remote town in one of the most sparsely populated counties in South Dakota. It’s a town full of cowboys and cowgirls, college and professional rodeo stand-outs, and people with gigantic hearts.
How gigantic?
I’m glad you asked. A recent article in the county newspaper, The Nation’s Center News, gives an idea. The article, Julia Davis Benefit Is An Incredible Event, describes a fundraiser held on Friday, December 28, 2012. Julia and her husband ranch about 10 miles south of Camp Crook. She’s also the secretary in Harding County’s State’s Attorney office. Julia has had surgeries throughout her life for a congenital hip defect. In 2012, surgeons in Denver replaced her hip joint with an artificial one. But Julia developed a stubborn bone infection, and the only course of treatment left was amputation of her leg at the hip.
So her friends organized the Julia Davis Benefit to encourage and support her.
The night of the benefit, the streets of tiny Camp Crook were double-lined with 250–350 vehicles. Over 500 people from South and North Dakota, Montana and Wyoming crowded into the Community Center for the pot luck supper and auction. Over 200 items were donated for the silent auction. During the live auction, ten spotters helped the auctioneers keep up with the bidding. The benefit was a tremendous success.
How successful was it?
I’m glad you asked. The people in this tiny town with a gigantic heart–where many of the same people raised $1500 to defray our son’s medical costs, a substantial sum in 1982–outdid themselves in 2012. The big-hearted people in the town we’re proud to have called home for 7 years raised over $73,000 for Julia and her family.
You read that right. $73,000.
I read the article in the paper and told the man of steel about it when he got home from work. His eyes grew large. He thought for a moment and then said, “There’s power in that place.” I nodded in agreement. Neither of us could keep the silly grins off our face during supper. And every time I think about the benefit, the silly grin comes back. But when I think of Julia, who’s leg was amputated on January 14, the grin fades and I begin to pray.
Oh Lord, wrap your arms around Julia and her family as she recovers and learns to walk and cope. May the gigantic hearts in that tiny town lift her up in the months and years to come. May your presence be the power in the place. Amen.
by jphilo | Jan 14, 2013 | Current Events
This is the traditional Easy-Bake Oven, the modern day version of the Easy-Bake I coveted during my childhood. But my childhood was so deprived, I never received the gift of my dreams. Probably because Mom made us walk to school every day.
In the snow.
Uphill.
Both ways.
My desire was finally realized during our 2007 family White Elephant gift exchange. That was the year I made darn tootin’ sure to win back the Easy-Bake oven that was my contribution to the event.
I found it at Good Will.
In the box.
Never opened.
With all the food mixes intact.
Apparently, my childhood Easy-Bake obsession or my adult one–or perhaps both–made an impression on my sister. Because as the media buzz about McKenna Pope, the teenage girl in New Jersey who petitioned Hasbro to make a bro-friendly oven for boys, Sis sent me the link about the story.
The new design has not yet been unveiled.
But rumor has it that the stove will be grey and black.
Or decorated in camo.
Very manly.
I feel ambivalent about Hasbro’s new Easy-Bake for boys bros. Not because I have anything against boys learning to cook. All boys need to learn the basics of cooking, and baking teeny-tiny cakes under a light bulb is as a good a place as any. It’s just that deep down, I’m jealous worried. McKenna’s little brother, Gavyn will have the first every Easy-Bake Oven for boys before he’s five years old. I was over fifty before I cooked with one.
It took all morning to bake one teeny-tiny cake.
Which I couldn’t eat because the cake mixes were expired.
Plus, I didn’t read the directions carefully enough.
So the plastic spatula sort of melted.
After about six hours slaving over a hot light bulb, I threw the whole mess in the garbage. The whole experience was rather traumatic. Hopefully, Gavyn will have more success with his Easy-Bake.
So he doesn’t become bitter.
Turn his back on cooking.
Develop an aversion to light bulbs.
Become a habitual plastic spatula melter.
Easy-Bake Ovens can be life-changing. I just hope Gavin’s Easy-Bake bromance is a long and loving one.
by jphilo | Dec 25, 2012 | Current Events
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by jphilo | Dec 20, 2012 | Current Events
- God of all comfort, please comfort the children, comfort the parents, comfort the teachers and staff at Sandy Hook School in the hard days, months, and years to come as only you can.
- Wrap your arms around the family of Adam Lanza and comfort them, too.
- May your love for humankind demonstrated in the gift of your son, the baby in the manger, be the source of comfort and hope to those who mourn.
Image credit: www.christiansunite.com
by jphilo | Dec 7, 2012 | Current Events
The November 25th issue of the Des Moines Register ran a story about how many aging authors are continuing to write and publish well into their eighties and nineties. Several authors who follow this trend were listed, pictured, and/or quoted in the story:
- Elmore Leonard won the National Book Award this year at age 87, and it inspired him to keep writing.
- Tom Wolfe, 81, released Back to Blood this year and says being an octogenarian is a hobby of his.
- Herman Wouk, most famous for his WWII book, Winds of War, released a new work this year. He’s 97.
- In March 88-year-old William Gass will release his first book since 1995.
The article listed several more authors still writing and publishing in their 80s and 90s. Only Philip Roth, the youngster in the group at age 79, bucked the trend. He says he’s done enough writing and his novel released in 2010 will be his last.
One of the aging authors, A.E. Hotchner, 92, attributed the trend to clean living. William Gass adds, “During the 1950s, the academic world was full of people who drank too much. The parties were cocktail parties and pretty potent. Now, there are dinners with nice wines.” Hermon Wouk’s editor says the author has taken care of himself since his first book came out 60 years ago. “His lifestyle has remained steady–work, family, religious faith, studying the Torah daily.”
Though that explains why these authors are living and writing longer. But it doesn’t explain why every author mentioned is a ma, with the exception of Toni Morrison, 81, who’s a Nobel laureate and thus hard to ignore. Women’s life expectancy has been greater than men’s for years, so there must be a few more women writers still wielding pens and tapping keyboards far into their golden years.
Since the press doesn’t seem to notice aging women writers (unless they won a Nobel prize) it’s time for clean-living female authors to toot their own horns and remind people they’re not dead yet. They need to let the world know they’re still pounding away, cranking out new books so libraries stay in business.
In that vein, I’m jumping on the aging writers bandwagon. Not that I put myself in the same category as the well-known writers listed above. And it’ll be several decades before being an octogenarian becomes my new hobby. But what compels them to keep writing is what compels me. The need to capture thoughts into words and put them on paper in a way that’s engaging, informative, and thought-provoking.
That said, if my mind goes before my body, I still want to keep writing. So whoever’s still around can put a keyboard in front of me. No doubt, I’ll type a whole lot of gibberish, and I’ll be happy as a clam while doing it.
That’s how much I want to be an aging writer when I grow up.
photo credit: www.freedigitalphotos.net
by jphilo | Nov 6, 2012 | Current Events
Election Day 2012 is here much to my relief delight. As a citizen of one of this year’s swing states, it didn’t take too much thinking to come up with a list of the top ten positives associated with the long-awaited end to election season.
10. No more robo-calls for Hiram and me from candidates, their spouses, immediate family, extended family, political cohorts, good friends, acquaintances, and pets.
9. No more surveys for Hiram and me of the automated or real-person-on-the-other-end-of-the-line variety.
8. No more robo-calls or surveys for our son who hasn’t lived in this state since 2001.
7. No more robo-calls or surveys for our daughter who hasn’t lived at our house since 2010.
6. No more robo-calls for Jayme, whoever she is, who never lived at our house though the Democratic Party is sure she did.
5. We can watch television again without hearing the same political ads over and over again.
4. No more watching television and feeling like a teacher trying to break up fights between two popular kids who keep calling each other names.
3. In a few more days, news reporters will talk about something other than the election or Frankenstorms powerful enough to push the candidates off the front page for a few days.
2. The sense of equality that comes from standing in the voting line with fellow citizens in our voting precinct. One person, one vote, regardless of gender, color, creed, class, or earning power.
1. When we vote, whoever wins, we’ve participated in the making of history.
What positives get you excited this election day? Leave a comment.
