http://www.grannysnotes.com Weekly columns by Sue Gerard http://www.grannysnotes.com/Mom%27s_kids_were_happy_campers_%28by_Nancy_Russell%29 This will be the final "Granny's Notes." Boone County's Granny passed away on July 18, having lived an amazing 96 years. She shared her life through her writing, but I want to share a side of her that... Mon, 26 Jul 2010 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Double_set_of_piglets_a_learning_experience The following first appeared June 1, 1999, in the Tribune:Chub started the pickup to drive to work, none too soon as usual."Would you take eight or 10 ears of corn down to Christmas Tree?" he asked an... Mon, 12 Jul 2010 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Dig_unearths_glimpse_in_Boone_County%27s_past The following originally appeared May 16, 2000, in the Tribune: 1956: Today I picked up rocks, square nails, an 1866 nickel and a rusty grubbing hoe as I dug through ashes remaining after we... Mon, 28 Jun 2010 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/This_storyteller_is_no_longer_nervous The following first appeared Oct. 3, 1995, in the Tribune: A solo violinist who plays regularly for thousands of strangers might get shaky knees in a similar recital facing old friends and n... Mon, 24 May 2010 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/No_better_show_than_a_beehive This column was first published Sept. 16, 1997. Once, when our children were getting ready for Sunday school, I called, "Hey, kids, come see what's going on in the glass beehive." Nancy and ... Mon, 10 May 2010 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Never_a_dull_moment_for_farm_kids The following first appeared in the Tribune on Aug. 20, 2007: In spring, there were baby kittens and their mothers in Estes' barn loft. In summer, there was soft-stacked hay there. It was gr... Mon, 26 Apr 2010 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Farm_comes_back_to_life The following first appeared Nov. 4, 1995, in the Tribune. Repairing water gaps and building fences got to be too much as Chub and I grew older. Reluctantly, we decided to sell the cattle an... Mon, 19 Apr 2010 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Blowing_bubbles_was_good%2C_clean_fun The following first appeared in the Aug. 13, 1996, Tribune. Two things I remember from early childhood are that soap suds in our eyes made my brother and me cry and that blowing soap bubbles... Mon, 05 Apr 2010 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Bee_stings_create_close_call This column first appeared in the Tribune on Nov. 12, 2007. When we bought a farm 12 miles east of Columbia, it was on a mud road where the only repair was some big rocks in the worst mud ho... Mon, 22 Mar 2010 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Washington%27s_words_still_true_today This column first appeared in the Tribune on Feb. 26, 2001. Schoolchildren used to pattern their lives after the heroes of their day; President George Washington was one of my favorites. He... Mon, 08 Mar 2010 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Dad%27s_milk_in_high_demand This column was first published in the Tribune on Sept. 26, 2005. When I was a girl, we lived four miles east of Columbia's intersection of South Ninth Street and Broadway. We were in the S... Mon, 22 Feb 2010 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/New_swim_instructor_dives_in_head_first The following first appeared in Tribune on Oct. 6, 2003. There was very little ritual about graduating from University High School in the early 1930s; many of us continued at the University ... Mon, 08 Feb 2010 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Advisees_brighten_holidays This column was first published in the Tribune on Nov. 27, 2006. Today I scrounge through my memories, hunting things that once amused me -- and share some in this week's "Granny's Notes."C... Mon, 25 Jan 2010 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Be_careful_skating_on_Missouri_ice The following first appeared in the Tribune on Jan. 15, 2001. Let's face it -- people drown in winter. Several years ago, six Missouri children died when they went through the ice in three s... Mon, 11 Jan 2010 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Sometimes_it%27s_best_not_to_wait The following first appeared in the Tribune on Dec. 26, 1995. We were living in a tiny two-room apartment at the time of our second World War II Christmas. I was on a year's leave from Chri... Mon, 28 Dec 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/There%27s_no_substitute_for_real_trees This originally appeared in the Tribune on Dec. 6, 2004. In 1921, Mrs. Venable asked my dad, her milk man, "Mr. Meyers, would your little girl go to the woods and cut a nice fresh cedar tree... Mon, 14 Dec 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Columbia_learned_a_lot_from_Paxton_Keeley%2C_Wrench This originally appeared in the Tribune on Nov. 19, 2001. If we could ask 1,000 oldsters, natives of Columbia, to name the two most memorable, respected, well-loved people they recall, the n... Mon, 30 Nov 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Many_memories_created_during_4-H_years The Gerard family has been involved with 4-H for many years. Our club was called the Harg Hustlers, and a young Bob Black and five or six other members enrolled in a new project we called "Native Craf... Mon, 16 Nov 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Losing_cash_belt_throws_traveler_for_loop At the end of World War II, there was an Army surplus store in downtown Columbia. I bought some canvas bags, a canteen and an olive drab-colored money belt. The belt had soft leather on the next-to-t... Mon, 02 Nov 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/College_kids_demanded_fresh_milk We lived four miles east of Columbia's intersection of South Ninth Street and Broadway. We were in the Special Road District, which was financed by the city or a merchants organization to encourage pe... Mon, 19 Oct 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Windmills_pumped_farms%27_water_into_%2740s This column first appeared in the Tribune on Sept. 24, 2001. In 1937, only a few farms at or near Columbia's city limits had access to electrical lines. They depended on coal oil lamps and l... Mon, 05 Oct 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Salt_licks_important_to_Missouri_pioneers In the 18th century, Nathan Boone and his brother, Daniel Morgan Boone, learned how to make salt by boiling water from a certain salt spring in Kentucky. According to Johnson's "Cyclopaedia of Useful ... Mon, 21 Sep 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Salt_crucial_to_Boone_settlers Early in grade school, we memorized the date of the Louisiana Purchase -- 1803, remember? Daniel Boone and others moved their families, livestock and possessions before 1803 from Kentucky to upper Lou... Mon, 24 Aug 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Black_walnuts_are_worth_the_wait I'd just tasted the best black walnut kernels that I'd tasted in my whole life. I'd stomped and hulled walnuts since I was big enough to mash off that outer green hull. Smell it? There's nothing like ... Mon, 10 Aug 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Beating_the_heat_was_quite_the_feat How did people beat the heat in the old days? That's the question older people are answering these days, for themselves as well as for youngsters who ask it. Survival in summer was no miracle. We expe... Mon, 03 Aug 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Lifeguard_lessons_work_even_indoors During the Great Depression, Allie Crews was the only employee of the Boone County chapter of the American Red Cross. It surprised me when she called to say, "The board chose you to represent our coun... Mon, 27 Jul 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Pioneers_left_their_marks_on_Central_Missouri The pond bank is almost the highest point on our farm. I used to walk there at daybreak or in evenings when the first stars appeared.Our land touches the creek that pioneers called "Cedar River." Boon... Mon, 13 Jul 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Benjamin_Franklin%2C_song_float_Granny%27s_boat All I really needed to know about swimming, I learned from two sources: Benjamin Franklin and a popular song. Franklin flew kites, invented stoves and bifocal glasses; he taught himself to read in sev... Mon, 29 Jun 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Ship_exhibit_a_treasured_memory When Henry VIII stared with field glasses from his castle in Portsmouth, England, the British and French were shooting cannonballs and arrows at each other. We can imagine that the fat king ripped off... Mon, 15 Jun 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Essay_a_winner_after_a_lot_of_fiddling If "Granny's Notes" is full of grammatical errors, it might be because Virginia Simms took four of us University High School senior girls to a different classroom, gave us notebooks and said, "Write! ... Mon, 01 Jun 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/May_one_of_the_most_beautiful_times_of_year Except for the danger of floods for people who live near big creeks and the Big Muddy, we're in that wonderful time of the year, after frozen pipes and before tall weeds. The signs of both spring and ... Mon, 18 May 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Nests_hold_interest_even_after_birds_are_gone My grandchildren used to come to the farm for what I called "Granny's Day Camp." They are now "grand-grownups." So today I'm writing to other people's grandchildren so they can learn about the birds t... Mon, 04 May 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Trip_proves_unforgettable My husband, Chub, spent a winter in Newfoundland. He was a motor machinist's mate, first class, in the U.S. Coast Guard and helped build a Loran station there. In April, the job was done, but a bulldo... Mon, 06 Apr 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Family_cowboys_were_roped_into_task Nancy was about 11 when she wanted a hive of honeybees of her own.Chub was teaching her how to install a new queen. She put dry leaves in the smoker, lit them and squeezed the bellows a few times to g... Mon, 23 Mar 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Nothing_boring_about_switchboard I was surprised to find reference to string telephones in Johnson's 1876 "Universal Cyclopedia: A Treasury of Useful Knowledge." The writer said, "The string telephone was mentioned as early as 1667 b... Mon, 09 Mar 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Wooden_spools_wind_up_being_lots_of_fun At an auction I once bought three gallon jars full of wooden spools to get three spools. They were the large size, many of them green, and had been saved by our friend and neighbor, the late Velma Ben... Mon, 23 Feb 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Bath_time_didn%27t_require_rubber_duckies A bright first-grader once gave me a long, rolled-up scroll he'd made in school about water. He explained that there's a certain amount of water in the world and that the Earth, rocks, sun, wind, etc.... Mon, 09 Feb 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Wide_Broadway_provided_path_to_Columbia%E2%80%99s_success “Ownership of American land was vested in the original occupants prior to the discovery by whites.” Switzler's 1882 History of Boone County explains it this way: “Indians, being savages, posse... Mon, 02 Feb 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Helping_with_dairy_created_solid_work_ethic Some older person did the first wash in hot lye water, two bottles at a time. He would hold a bottle in each hand and push them onto two rotating bottle brushes. A third rotating brush washed the outs... Mon, 26 Jan 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Childhood_bicycle_ride_set_tone_for_future_treks During the early part of that summer, I rode my brand-spanking-new, $39.95 Sears and Roebuck girl's bike to and from vacation Bible school at First Baptist Church in Columbia. I was almost 10. The &... Mon, 19 Jan 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Bees_stay_busy_to_beat_the_cold Bees don't hibernate like bears, frogs and earthworms - which go into a sort of stupor. If we could see inside a hive in winter, there would be a "ball of bees" - a cluster - around the fram... Mon, 12 Jan 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Donated_liquor_leads_to_Christmas_grudge Chub was an inspector of construction at the University of Missouri. He would check blueprints and contracts and report to MU's director of construction about the progress made on new buildings. He ... Mon, 05 Jan 2009 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Seven_years_of_courtship_proved_long_enough That was during the horrible Depression. We began our friendship by eating sack lunches together in his truck. Soon he took me to the Presbyterian Student Center, where fellows took turns cooking 15-c... Mon, 29 Dec 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Christmas_job%2C_family_helped_finance_a_very_special_present The University Lab School had long vacations and exams in January at the end of the semester. Not only did I need that Underwood for school, I was the Columbia Herald Statesman's columnist, writing ... Mon, 22 Dec 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Boone_County_Christmases_call_for_wild_cedars The abandoned nest made a nice holder for important Christmas gifts - coins, rings and wrapped candies. Some years I sprayed the bird's nest with silver, gold or white paint. Local cedar makes a ba... Mon, 15 Dec 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Before_Columbia%2C_other_towns_had_rocky_starts Historian Edwin Stephens included the following in his "History of Boone County," which was printed in the county's first atlas. Emigration to Howard was immense for its first five years. &#... Mon, 08 Dec 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Discovery_of_grindstone_uncovers_home%E2%80%99s_history Slaves here? Yes. The abstract includes this: Item 3D: "I will and bequeath to my daughter Palina, owing to her being a cripple, a Negro girl Minta about age 8 years as a special legacy to be unde... Mon, 01 Dec 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Leisure_used_to_not_call_for_electronic_entertainment People of all ages found satisfaction, relaxation and reward in their nonworking hours. Pleas Robnett, the first owner of our farm east of Columbia, is presumed to be the builder of a very old, dilapi... Mon, 24 Nov 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Bike_Pacemeter_takes_high-flying_ride It was l967, about the time Walt entered the 11th grade at University High School. Walt was soon selling bicycles and supplies. He rented a vacant barber shop - complete with big "pump-up" cha... Mon, 17 Nov 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/County_hospital_prospered%2C_even_during_Great_Depression I remember the big, white, two-story Tandy home that was used to house the hospital's nurses in the early years. Those men employed Eleanor Keely to help equip and furnish the hospital. Then, recogn... Mon, 10 Nov 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/These_days%2C_soap%E2%80%99s_image_far_different_from_old_times Mom tricked my brother and me into washing our dirty hands by teaching us to make bubbles. We had a washpan outdoors on a bench near the cistern. She taught us to make an oval soap film between our in... Mon, 03 Nov 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/School_%E2%80%98ghost_sightings%E2%80%99_were_an_ingenious_prank In those days, Christian College, now Columbia College, was a two-year girls' school with about 350 students. That was in the 1930s, when I was teaching five classes each week while still a student ... Mon, 27 Oct 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Halloween_costumes_pulled_from_the_rag_bag Dad's idea about old stuff was, "Throw it away where you can find it." He and Mom were short and heavyset, so their discarded clothes were about the right length. They could be stuffed with ... Mon, 20 Oct 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Grindstones%2C_memories%3A_treasures_from_the_past Slaves here? Yes. Our abstract includes this: "Item 3d: I will and bequeath to my daughter Palina, owing to her being a cripple, a Negro girl Minta about age 8 years as a special legacy to be unde... Mon, 13 Oct 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Regulating_supply_tough_for_small_dairy In the 1940s, the customers wanted creamy milk that was 3.5 to 4 percent fat. Dairymen competed for "a good cream line." Milk was sold in glass bottles, and the yellowish cream rose to the top... Mon, 06 Oct 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Preparing_corn_harvest_was_not_a_grind_to_children A harder job paid 75 cents a day for punching wires at the hay baler. It was clover, alfalfa, timothy or "pasture" hay, which was a mixture of grasses. Dad cut it with a sickle mower and left ... Mon, 29 Sep 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/The_season_of_autumn_brings_change%2C_beauty_and_splendor ... Mon, 22 Sep 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Visit_teaches_a_lesson_in_making_an_honest_living Dude was O.D. Meyers, my dad. Coot was my uncle Jess, whom I knew by hearsay and by one photograph. The studio picture in front of a backdrop showed eight or nine young fellows, a group of "rounde... Mon, 15 Sep 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Great_teachers_can_put_permanent_stamp_on_lives In old age, we are reminded of so many people who actually have shaped our lives. For example, when I put on my socks this morning, I remembered Miss Mae Kelly, a professor of physical education at th... Mon, 08 Sep 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Mom%E2%80%99s_water_phobia_leads_to_scare_at_swimming_hole We swam several times a week at a deep hole at Sublett's place on the north fork of Grindstone. That was the site of my first encounter with swimming and with what seemed like personal tragedy at my... Mon, 25 Aug 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Dairy_farm_know-how_proved_handy_in_Europe We turned back and knocked on the farmer's door. Not much communication with the woman who greeted us until her daughter arrived. The young woman had been an exchange student in Florida for a year ... Mon, 18 Aug 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/No_more_carbide_gas%2C__no_more_dead_canaries Coal oil lamps and lanterns were a lot of trouble for a little bit of light.A few rural families owned Delco light plants, which were private generators powered by gasoline engines. However, they were... Mon, 11 Aug 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Family_treasure_found_at_Fayette_antique_show The woman flipped it shut so I could see its gleaming white oilcloth cover with big black letters. It had a sunburst on the front, with a picture of the White House in Washington, D.C. I knew that I h... Mon, 04 Aug 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Spare_tire_can_be_a_lifesaving_device We studied the prevention of water accidents, the rescue of those who couldn't get back to safety and the use of various types of equipment, including boats, ring buoys, bamboo poles and inner tubes... Mon, 28 Jul 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Ben_Franklin_a_great_man_in_terms_of_swimming_lessons When milk was sold in glass bottles, I used to ask my students, "Which is heavier, cream or milk?" The usual answer was, "cream." Then I'd ask, "Which is at the top of the bottle... Mon, 21 Jul 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Potters_enjoy_the_search_for_buried_ceramic_treasure When Dad and a helper dug the basement for our new home, they encountered some extremely tough clay. They put a concrete floor over the rest of the basement but left this clay part to be floored later... Mon, 14 Jul 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Hay-making_had_some_high_points A harder job paid 75 cents a day for punching wires at the hay baler. It was clover, alfalfa, timothy or "pasture" hay, which was a mix of grasses. Dad cut it with a sickle mower and left it f... Mon, 07 Jul 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Sometimes_workin%E2%80%99_ain%E2%80%99t_sufferin%E2%80%99 I was a bit like that mother when I chose to study journalism at the University of Missouri in 1932. It never occurred to me that I could be paid for teaching fun things like tennis, archery, swimming... Mon, 30 Jun 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Children%E2%80%99s_Day_was_a_time_for_youngsters_to_show_off It was a Sunday for parents to show off their children and for the children to perform on the pulpit "stage" for family, friends and strangers by speaking a piece, singing, playing a musical i... Mon, 16 Jun 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Biking_is_more_than_just_staying_on If last year's jeans and tennis shoes don't fit, your bike might also be the wrong size. That doesn't mean that you have to run to the shop for a new one; it means it's time to learn the many ... Mon, 09 Jun 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Summer_in_England_a_wonderful_adventure When I was a senior at University High School, I had outgrown my bicycle, and my interest was mostly in a fellow who was studying electrical engineering. W.F. "Chub" Gerard took me to Presbyte... Mon, 02 Jun 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Granny%E2%80%99s_Deep-Water_Test_a_good_tool_for_swimmers Fionn's mom, Brie, started her out on a lifetime of water fun - and obedience. There was no fussing when Sam wrapped Fionn in a towel and took her off to bed. These young parents and their "swi... Mon, 19 May 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Williams_painted_picture_of_17th-century_America Williams must have planned that moment well in advance. As a Baptist preacher, he intended to "save the soules" of these men. He probably said, "Hello, my name is Williams, what's yours?... Mon, 12 May 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Evenings_on_dock_take_angler_back_in_time Billie fished with homemade tackle. Her line was a twine string; her sinker, a metal washer. I was that tomboy. I'm also the old woman who doesn't care whether the fish are striking. Billie was bo... Mon, 05 May 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Earlier_generations_knew_how_to_make_own_fun Pleas Robnett, the first owner of the land, is presumed to be the builder of a very old, dilapidated cabin that was in the yard in 1951 when we bought the farm. Did that family have TV? Internet? Movi... Mon, 28 Apr 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Criteria_strict_for_a_proper_teapot Through the years I've made a lot of teapots, and they all pour - even the trick ones that have a lid but the lid won't come off. The Columbia Art League displayed one of my "fake lid" pot... Mon, 21 Apr 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Bikes_were_indispensable_in_China The All China Youth Federation had arranged interesting visits to factories, craftsmen at work, a visit to a cave and more. Male and female interpreters were fun people from Hong Kong, and they were w... Mon, 14 Apr 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Encounter_with_rat_added__excitement_to_stay_in_China We were the first open-to-the-public group of bicycle tourists after the organizers' tour. It had taken two years for American Youth Hostels Inc. and All China Youth Federation to arrange this 11-da... Mon, 07 Apr 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Colleagues%E2%80%99_cajoling_inspires_adventure "We couldn't possibly afford it," I said. But a colleague at Christian College (now Columbia College), Geneva Youngs, looked serious as she said, "Sue, go anyway!" My friend, Petie D... Mon, 31 Mar 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/World_of_honeybees__never_ceases_to_amaze A week before, I had watched the bluebirds flying briefly and going in and out of their box for exercise and for "potty." They were all back inside the next time I looked out. I wondered about... Mon, 24 Mar 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Horse_ownership_is_quite_the_ride_for_youngsters I don't remember it, but they said that happened often. Mom wrote to her parents - April 11, l917 - that they plowed the garden and left Steamboat standing. Soon, "Sue was shaking the lines and ... Mon, 17 Mar 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Find_safe_shelter_in_storm_cellar I preferred to call ours a cave; it suggested a cool, natural place to go for safety from storms. Chub called it a storm cellar. It was well-made, partly in the ground, with sodded earth mounded up ov... Mon, 10 Mar 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Treasures__found_in_strange_places How did Abe Lincoln describe himself in 1858 when he was asked to write a sketch of his life for the Dictionary of Congress? He put it all in a nutshell: "Born Feb.12, l809, in Hardin County, Kent... Mon, 03 Mar 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Women_force_behind_Harg%E2%80%99s_first_newsletter Hattie was a well-known figure on the University of Missouri campus because she was "an old woman" - 38! She sold Harg news items to The Columbia Herald Statesman for 10 cents a printed inch t... Mon, 25 Feb 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Today%E2%80%99s_children_missing_out_on_a_world_of_tastes ● Fried "farm" chicken: a chicken that was born free and raised in the back yard on potato peelings and table scraps fried in lard, served with cream gravy, garden-fresh green beans and ... Mon, 18 Feb 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Five_dollars_a_bargain_for_winters_of_fun_on_the_ice "How much for the skates?" the auctioneer asked. No answer. "How much for choice pair? Take as many as you want." Still no response. "One with the privilege, how much?" Silence... Mon, 11 Feb 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Service_in_Newfoundland_turns_into_a_family_affair About 20 or so years later, we were four Gerards looking at the world globe and planning a summer trip to visit the new St. Lawrence Seaway. Nancy remembered seeing a photo of cars driving on a highwa... Mon, 04 Feb 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Don%E2%80%99t_bet_on_ground_squirrels_for_accurate_weather_forecast In school we knew the animal as a woodchuck. We enjoyed this tongue-twister: "How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?" The word "chuck" means "to twe... Mon, 28 Jan 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Snow_sculptures_teach_lesson_in_leading_a_team Keep rolling. Friends will soon want in on your project. When your snowball is almost too heavy to turn over again, look around. If you see mostly green grass where you collected all that snow into th... Mon, 21 Jan 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Playing_on_ice_dangerous_because_of_drowning_risk That boy was lucky. This winter, we face a drowning threat that comes when near-zero weather suddenly is followed by unusual spring-like temperatures. Hunters, fishermen, cattle and children are in sp... Mon, 14 Jan 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Niagara_Falls_trip_best_the_second_time_around The officer who was to assign him to the next stage asked what he would like to study. Chub replied, "Anything mechanical." The officer blurted out, "What would a dairyman know about anyth... Mon, 07 Jan 2008 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Snowfall_blankets_countryside_in_peace I could tell Chub doubted my wisdom when he said, "Good thing I got the snow tires on this week." A few times I considered turning back, but I was scheduled to read something to my writers' ... Mon, 31 Dec 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Fire_can%E2%80%99t_take_memories_of_favorite_doll Everything about this simple act of tree-cutting took me back to my childhood. Uncle John Henry made good money as the county recorder, so my cousins Kathryn and Jennie Melle had expensive dolls. One ... Mon, 24 Dec 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Lone_Rooster_had_much_to_crow_about Weput him in a gunnysack, and I took him home, more as a favor to Helen than from any desire to have a rooster. We didn't have chickens or a fenced place to keep him. In a short time, he was eating ... Mon, 17 Dec 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Telephone_worked_well%2C_even_if_you_had_a_tin_ear I was surprised to find reference to string telephones in Johnson's 1876 "Universal Cyclopedia: A Treasury of Useful Knowledge," The writer said, "The string telephone was mentioned as e... Mon, 10 Dec 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Resurrected_Mary_Rose_a_sight_to_behold When I planned the itinerary for one of my Christian College (now Columbia College) bicycle tours in Europe, I included a visit to Portsmouth harbor so the students could walk the decks and view the i... Mon, 03 Dec 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Safety_first_in_skating_on_natural_ice Want to try it? You'll need to dress warmly - all over. Make a bonfire and roast some wieners and marshmallows, and you'll want a jug of hot chocolate. It's handy to have a stool to sit on when ... Mon, 26 Nov 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Beautiful_morning_is_to_be_held_dearly "Why should I say more about the green of the meadows, or the rows of trees, or the beauty of the vineyards and the olive groves? … For where can old age find more genial warmth of sunshine or f... Mon, 19 Nov 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Bee_stings_left_Chub%E2%80%99s_life_hanging_in_the_balance The country mud road would be improved and the telephone line extended to our place if we cleared small trees from the north side of the road. My father, O.D. Meyers, advised, loaned money and worked ... Mon, 12 Nov 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Buying_gun_at_an_auction_can_be_a_bang_of_a_time No one I knew needed this pretty gun. It was beautifully crafted with intricate carvings in the steel barrel. Why wasn't the auctioneer getting any bids? Someone timidly said, "Twenty-five cents... Mon, 05 Nov 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Comics_character_should_stay_in_the_newspaper My favorite comic strip was "Pogo," featuring an opossum and his lady friend, a flapper-type called Miss Hepsibeth. Miss Hepsibeth was a dainty character, had a shiny black coat with a bright-... Mon, 29 Oct 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Dairy_business_gives_new_family_good_start I've never heard where Dad learned the tricks of the dairy trade: milking cows, straining, cooling and storing milk overnight in a cool cistern and delivering the milk to town customers in time for ... Mon, 22 Oct 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Tinkering_leads_to_family_innovations People had great respect for Henry Ford's "tin lizzie." It was said that it put America on wheels. Ford's formal education ended before his 16th birthday, but he liked to tinker with mech... Mon, 15 Oct 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Country_recalls_Boone_pioneers Because I could see or hear nothing man-made, I felt a special closeness to those men, women and children in covered wagons coming from Kentucky or Tennessee who passed this way, headed elsewhere. Man... Mon, 08 Oct 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Da_Vinci_sketch_got_bikes_rolling Evidence of this concept is in one panel of a stained-glass window that dates back to 1590. It was moved from a church ruins in Italy to be incorporated in a window of a very old church in the village... Mon, 01 Oct 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Grandchildren_help_make_the_summers_special Oliver was 4, Peter was 6, and Cole and Sam were 7. Sam was in summer school, but he came as often as he could. We also invited some neighbor children occasionally, and our friend Beth Peeler helped w... Mon, 24 Sep 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Worms_enrich_the_soil%3B_learning_enriches_mind Ann applied to land grant colleges, including the University of Missouri-Columbia, offering to work for room and board "and perhaps a bit of spending money, if I'm worth it." Marian Beebe, ... Mon, 17 Sep 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Main_roads_once_were_private_tollways My early memory of East Broadway, known then as Fulton Gravel, is of a chain across the road at the bottom of a steep hill. That chain marked the beginning of a privately owned gravel road that we had... Mon, 10 Sep 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Here%E2%80%99s_the_rub%3A_Dog_walks_again "Fuey," usually spelled "phooey," was a slang word that meant something like, "I don't agree with you" or the stronger, "You're full of baloney!" Fuey chose to be a... Mon, 27 Aug 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/How_did_the_chicken_get_in_the_loft%3F_Carefully In spring, there were baby kittens and their mothers in Estes's barn loft. In summer, there was soft-stacked hay there. It was great for jumping and rolling in. And it was a good place to hide from ... Mon, 20 Aug 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Life_before_advent_of_air_conditioning_was_no_sweat Our neighbors, Bess and John Estes, had a one-room home with a smaller, older summer kitchen about 15 strides away. The kitchen was stocked with a wood stove, pots and pans, drying racks for laundry a... Mon, 13 Aug 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Froggy_comes_a_courtin%E2%80%99_a_mouthful_of_trouble Frog and I had been communicating, silently, for some time. I tossed my plastic worm at him, just to see him jump. He blinked but didn't stir. He was sunning himself in that muddy strip between the ... Mon, 06 Aug 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Christmas_Tree_delivers_her_bounty_in_the_spring Chub called back, as he started to work, "Would you take eight or 10 ears of corn down to Christmas Tree?" I'm still a farm girl at heart, and I like being needed around our place. Today I... Mon, 30 Jul 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Teach_your_toddler__to_wait_for_a_lifeguard In other words, I was a normal toddler. I liked water. Slopping around in chicken troughs wasn't life-threatening. But what if your toddler has access to water in a swimming pool, play pool, low bi... Mon, 23 Jul 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Fourth_of_July_means_ticktacks_and_cattails When the cattails were dry, we soaked them in kerosene and dried them again, ready for the big day. Then we made ticktacks. Each person needed one ticktack. We'd start by using a pocket knife to cut... Mon, 16 Jul 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Missouri%E2%80%99s_black_walnuts_are_a_taste_worth_waiting_for I don't know the man's name, but everybody who knew him or bought seeds, seedlings or started seeds called him Johnny Walnut Seed. He and his wife were affiliated with American Youth Hostels Inc. ... Mon, 09 Jul 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Swim_class_turns_out_to_be_lifesaving_lesson The city Parks and Recreation Department employed me to go to each of its four swimming pools to help kids learn to swim. It was a new thing in Flint to teach swimming to the masses. If a person could... Mon, 25 Jun 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Feeding_you%2C_that%E2%80%99s_what_our_farmers_do Not so! But I agree that today's methods are a far cry from the way my dad produced corn in the 1920s. Dad saved a basket full of the best ears of corn from each year's crop to have seed for the ... Mon, 18 Jun 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/A_simple_spare_tire_can_save_your_life A girl in my life saving class brought in a clipping from her local Florida newspaper showing a man in raging floodwaters, dressed in suit coat, shirt and tie. He was holding on to a spare wheel from ... Mon, 11 Jun 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Duley%E2%80%99s_Mill_a_center_of_social_interaction In 1819, Thomas Duley bought 320 acres of land in southern Boone County on Cedar Creek. I've been unable to pinpoint the date that Duley's Mill was built, but I know that George Washington Duley, ... Mon, 04 Jun 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Celiac_sprue_disease_takes_its_toll_on_sufferers%E2%80%99_diets Our professor had written those two words on the blackboard for an evening class before we assembled. It was at least 65 years ago, and we had no idea what the words meant. We were a group of about ... Mon, 21 May 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Summer_busiest_season_for_bees Having had a mating flight soon after emerging from the queen cell, she has the capability of laying a fertile egg (to produce a worker bee) or an unfertilized egg, which produces the male bee called ... Mon, 14 May 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Some_postwar_stories_less_happy_than_others We stayed the first week in a small hotel within walking distance of old Boston and then rented a room with a shared kitchen and bath. Several other Coast Guard couples rented space there; an Army wif... Mon, 07 May 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Johnny_Walnut_Seed_spreads_word_about_long-lasting_trees I once glanced down while waiting for my turn in a diving class; I was never more embarrassed than when I discovered my stained feet! Walnut stain had gone through my new white tennis shoes and had st... Mon, 30 Apr 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Helping_bale_hay_harvests_sense_of_accomplishment If that doesn't make sense to you, just forgive me. I have never before tried to describe how several pitch-forks full of cow feed could be pressed into neat, square-cornered bales weighing almost 9... Mon, 23 Apr 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Swarm_of_bees_in_May_is_worth_a_load_of_hay The little native black bees people sometimes found in a hollow tree were often vicious. By cutting the old tree, they could rob the bee colony of their winter's supply of honey. Once a tree is down... Mon, 16 Apr 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/First_bicycle_opens_world__on_Fulton_Gravel_Road First I'd ride on our half-mile of private driveway - in fact, why couldn't I just mount my bike, take one pedal stroke and coast? That worked so well that I did this stroke-and-coast thing on our... Mon, 09 Apr 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Catalog_bike_leads_way_to_many_years_of_cycling My 1886 encyclopedia has a paragraph on the bicycle that says the pedals are attached to the axle of the front wheel, "which is much larger than the rear wheel." Another source says the bicycl... Mon, 02 Apr 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Rogers%E2%80%99_work_admired__by_Abe_Lincoln%E2%80%99s_family John Rogers had a keen sense of humor, which was fanned by fair-goers' excitement at seeing an artist at work and customers buying the artist's finished pieces. No package or wrapping was used on... Mon, 26 Mar 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Raw_Missouri_clay_forms_Little_People%2C_big_memories Mom's friend Ella Frances Dobbs liked the woods, came to fish and liked using raw clay from our creek to make little whimsies in her hands. She'd grab a handful of clay along our creek bank. One d... Mon, 19 Mar 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Now_I_know_why__I_had_chores_to_do Later I earned 25 cents a week; that seemed like a lot. I was "wealthy." I earned a bit more when I was a teen. When the corn was just out of the ground in the spring, I'd go through the fi... Mon, 05 Mar 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Bicyclists_made_early_call_for_paved_roads Cattle, sheep and hogs were often driven on foot to the nearest shipping point. Mail-order catalogs were in every home. The post office employed men to drive a horse and a light-weight, open two-wheel... Mon, 26 Feb 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Harg_families_held_summer_camp "Two of ours have part-time jobs hauling hay, and they need the money." "My Sallie has never yet been away from home." "We're planning a family trip that conflicts." Then th... Mon, 19 Feb 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Few_get_opportunity_to_see_China_as_bicyclists_see_it I wiped up mud and blood, aligned the bike's saddle and handlebars, checked the wheels and limped to protect a painful right ankle, then pedaled on. I realized that I was a horrible sight. The Chine... Mon, 12 Feb 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/With_majestic_effort%2C_Dad_rescued_stove Friends shared utensils and supplies from their own kitchens, and Mrs. Pace and other neighbors gave Mom a kitchen shower. Dad built a small wooden box cabinet outdoors that wild animals couldn't op... Mon, 05 Feb 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Catalog_home_replaced_one_demolished_by_fire Below this annex, wooden steps led down to the area where canned fruit and vegetables, jams, jellies and fresh garden vegetables were in open bins to be used as needed. This was an unheated cellar to ... Mon, 29 Jan 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Incubator%E2%80%99s_flame_burned_house It was May, and Dad was planting corn. Looking back from a far corner of the field, he saw black smoke rolling from the back of our home and heard shotgun shells exploding, a few at a time. Dad jumped... Mon, 22 Jan 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Neighbors_came_to_the_rescue_when_fire_destroyed_our_home Dad planted corn with the mules, and none of the hired men was a smoker. No one else had been on any part of the farm. Jim and I had been at school from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m., and Mom drove her Ford T... Mon, 15 Jan 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Fire%2C_friends_shape_the_lives_of_families Their street-level sales room was one of the three levels of the huge store. A crude elevator gave access to basement and attic. I was asked to set up a workshop on that elevator, slightly elevated, t... Mon, 08 Jan 2007 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Meet_at_Hays_Hardware%2C_but_be_home_before_dark Many Saturdays and a few other days, families went to town but had to be back at their farms before sundown. Delay in getting home would set our dairy cows to bawling. Milk cows had to be fed and milk... Mon, 18 Dec 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Christmas_tree_customers_also_wanted_wild_berries However, the next year, Mom and Dad advised me to buy an advertisement, to sell larger trees, to pay them a little for delivery and to cut a few extras on weekends. This put larger trees in homes, ple... Mon, 11 Dec 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/It_didn%E2%80%99t_feel_like_Christmas__until_home_smelled_like_cedar I was thrilled! "How big a tree does she want?" I asked. When Dad asked what size, Mrs. Venable just tapped her shoulder. I could easily manage to saw a small tree, as tall as Mrs. Venable wan... Mon, 04 Dec 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Hunting_old_memories_really_helps_time_fly Men are lost in sports and finding out where fish are striking what lures; they scan the sky hoping to attract those chevrons of birds on their return in spring. I'm no longer a part of things like... Mon, 27 Nov 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Life%E2%80%99s_come_a_long_way_since_work_first_began_on_%E2%80%98The_Slab%E2%80%99 My steady boyfriend was an engineering student at Missouri University. "Chub" and I kept putting away a few dollars every week "for a trip to California." We knew that marriage was fo... Mon, 20 Nov 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Living_on_a_dairy_farm_was_so_very_exciting In addition to several dairy farms like Dad's, there was Sides' Dairy, with the work done by a family who moved to Columbia from a tobacco farm in Kentucky. Boone County soil and climate were not ... Mon, 13 Nov 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Milking_a_cow_no_easy_job_for_independent_dairyman Milk for our coffee and breakfast cereal comes from a female cow's udder - or "bag" - which has four nipples, and if she is frightened, she has another bucket full of milk her underneath sk... Mon, 06 Nov 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Starting_up_a_dairy_takes__hard_work%2C_connections They had Dad's horse and his single-seated "courting buggy," but the dairy delivery required a large, four-wheel cart, with roof, for daily milk delivery around to various Columbia homes. Th... Mon, 30 Oct 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Col._Switzler%E2%80%99s_history__held_some_surprises Of course I knew nothing about the War Between the States, as I was not born until July 1914. I bought William Switzler's 1,100-page "History of Boone County" years before I realized that Gr... Mon, 23 Oct 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Columbia_site_chosen_for__access_to_%E2%80%98living%E2%80%99_water However, families in covered wagons came in a steady stream. A group of more than 35 land speculators planned a complete town nearby, called Columbia, where water was available. Their town site was no... Mon, 16 Oct 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Passing_on_Grandpa%E2%80%99s_stories_keeps_generations_connected Who would have looked to see if this lackluster soldier's ancestors were included? I looked and found interesting details that surprised us. When William Switzler's "History of Boone County&#3... Mon, 09 Oct 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Square_dances_let_fiddler_scratch_out_Depression_pay Three dances at the Smiths' vacant house: $1.50 each. Brown's, in Columbia, $2.65; McMickles', $1.10 and $l.50; Daly's, twice at $1.50; Barn dance in Dad's new barn: no charge, but people dr... Mon, 02 Oct 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/During_the_Depression%2C_I_was_fiddling_around There I was, crowded into one corner of a 9-by-12 room with dozens of others crowded into that same 9-by-12, and all but the eight square dancers were looking at me. Even they cast admiring glances in... Mon, 25 Sep 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Europeans_found_natural_bounty_in_the_New_World Pelts from skunks, raccoons, opossums and beaver were commodities for trading. Wild turkeys, quail and white tail deer - along with nuts, berries and wild plants - were foods for their tables. The are... Mon, 18 Sep 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Despite_car_accident%2C__Mom_played_at_pageant Our mother was welcomed with open arms in church and community because she "had an education" - which, in the teens and '20s, meant she graduated from high school and had private music lesso... Mon, 11 Sep 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Whatever_happened__to_%E2%80%98Children%E2%80%99s_Day%E2%80%99%3F My brother and I were born before stores sold clothing just for children. Large families shared garments by cutting the long legs off of a sibling's overalls or by sliding metal fittings up or down ... Mon, 28 Aug 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Childhood_opportunity_lost_to_hear_history My brother Jim was year ahead of me in school, and our farm was four miles from downtown Columbia. Mom saw advantages to the University Elementary School with its smaller classes and higher pupil/teac... Mon, 21 Aug 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Move_from_horse_to_Ford_power_brought_problems_to_home_dairy Dad and Mom decided two things: He'd buy the first light delivery truck that arrived, and he'd learn to operate it and repair it when needed. He had to go to Kansas City to Sweeney's Automobile ... Mon, 14 Aug 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Dad_and_Mom_bought__a_farm_east_of_Columbia O.D. Meyers rode a mule all day from Bellflower to Columbia to save shipping expense when he and Nancy moved. I've never heard where O.D. learned the tricks of the dairy trade: milking cows, straini... Mon, 07 Aug 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Trip_went_awry_with_theft_in_Germany Near time for us to start back through the Berlin Corridor, we ate lunch and returned to our rented van. One of the fellows yelled, "OK, who was supposed to lock this door?" One of the van's... Mon, 31 Jul 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Summer_tour_ends_with_an_unexpected_surprise We reserved space at a German youth hostel where a most accommodating young house parent gave us tips about German hosteling. The young German hostel warden suggested that we stay in Pensions (with br... Mon, 24 Jul 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Through_Checkpoint_Charlie__and_into_another_world Al Bloom, a former German exchange student in Missouri and a close friend of the Cronan family, accompanied us in Germany to translate and to keep us Missourians out of trouble. Al also showed us arou... Mon, 17 Jul 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/You_think_you_can%E2%80%99t_afford__foreign_travel%3F_Go_anyway%21 When friends at Christian College discussed this great award for Petie, Christian's French instructor, and her suggestion about our coming over, several said, "Sue, travel's an important part ... Mon, 10 Jul 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Before_there_was_Columbia%2C_there_were_stumps_and_a_tavern It was a poor location because it lacked one essential item - water! They dug deep wells, three of them, and gave up because groundwater wouldn't flow uphill! That unsuccessful location, named Smith... Mon, 03 Jul 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Parents%2C_be_ready_to_save_a_life_when_needed_most "You're calling long distance. Do you know that I live 12 miles east of Columbia, and you'd lose a half-day each time you drove Margaret from Boonville to our farm for a swimming class?" &... Mon, 19 Jun 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Some_people_choose_farm__homes_for_entire_lifetimes Dad selected a level spot for the baler and secured it in place. Helpers made final wind rows with the sulky, which was seldom used except on hay-baling days; it usually sat on a rocky place, and gras... Mon, 05 Jun 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Playground_games_fun__for_kids_to_play_in_water Floating on tubes, toys, air mattresses, water wings or those long, colorful plastic "telephone poles" appeal to nonswimmers. Accidents can happen on inflated toys, floating kickboards, improv... Mon, 22 May 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Tea_parties_a_great_way__to_teach_kids_swimming As a swimming teacher and mother of two, I made up a group game and often started a class or a kids' swimming party with a pretend tea party. We'd jump up and down to keep warm and to attract atte... Mon, 15 May 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Major_changes_came_to_our_lives_with_advent_of_%E2%80%98the_pill%E2%80%99 Nancy and O.D. married in 1912 and moved to Columbia. The next year they borrowed money and bought a small retail dairy. Orlando Denver and Nancy Meyers, our parents, named their first child James Den... Mon, 08 May 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/After_Christian_College_became_co-ed%2C_the_school_bought_16_bikes I hadn't anticipated the "together," but I snapped right back, "Bicycling!" He countered with, "There's nothing to learn about riding a bicycle except staying up." I argue... Mon, 01 May 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/For_a_taste_sensation%2C_use_Missouri%E2%80%99s_black_walnuts The weather turned dry, and rains didn't come at the right time. We had no way to water those young trees; we lost almost all the started trees and finally turned the cattle in on that ground. We al... Mon, 24 Apr 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Not_all_Boone_County_men_were_soldiers_during_war For other readers, I'll relate an event that occurred during the Civil War at a farm home near Cedar Creek. The family had no telephone or other communication except a big old farm dinner bell. I ha... Mon, 17 Apr 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/People_used_to_say__%E2%80%98curiosity_killed_the_cat%E2%80%99 "What's the difference between hard and soft water?" I asked my mom. She used either one or both. Hard water was for drinking, and soft water was for dishes, faces or shampoo. My adult cousi... Mon, 10 Apr 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Rural_family_worked_hard%2C__rolled_with_the_punches That was in May 1937. My brother, Jim, and I canceled everything and went to sit at Boone with Mom and Dad. Our dear mother, Nancy Meyers, died three days later! We were crushed. Dad wanted to sell th... Mon, 03 Apr 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Working_two_jobs_was_almost_like_child%E2%80%99s_play Driving in, I reviewed my experiences: I had participated in most sports at MU and many electives - Musketeers (rifle club), Mermaids, two summers at Red Cross National Aquatic Schools, a special 10-d... Mon, 27 Mar 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/%E2%80%98Celiac_disease_..._can_cause_death%E2%80%99 Readers' questions have stirred columnist Dr. Donohue's interest in celiac disease, and one of his recent daily columns used this headline: "Celiac disease is quite common, can cause death in ... Mon, 20 Mar 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Farm_had_two_pools_and__four_swimming_teachers Chub was busy planting corn, and I chose the one nearly level spot in the backyard and made one trip with tractor and scraper to mark off a place more than 10 feet wide and 15 feet long. My Dad watche... Mon, 13 Mar 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Canton_streets_provide__sights_many_visitors_miss I smiled as five clerks on break stared at me and offered me a long chunk of their sugar cane. A fellow showed me what to do, and we all roared with laughter. Wandering chickens raced to gobble the fi... Mon, 06 Mar 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/An_American_woman__alone_in_Canton%2C_China "I'm 63 years old and wear a hearing aid, but I peddled 63 miles on my birthday. Would I qualify for the China bike trip?" The young trip leader laughed and said, "Yes, I've just signe... Mon, 27 Feb 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Sixteen_toured_in_China_on_European_bicycles One of our young men from California approached a frail-looking Chinese woman who had big baskets of leeks she had brought from a field. With pantomime, he asked, "May I lift your baskets of leeks... Mon, 20 Feb 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Bryan_took_a_wagonload__of_trinkets_to_old_Mexico Men and older boys walked, driving the livestock from Boonesborough, Ky., over land. Animals swam across water barriers when necessary. Most women and children and a few essential home items came in l... Mon, 13 Feb 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Boone_native%E2%80%99s_memories_prove_to_be_long-lasting Our dairy farm was a half-mile south of the Fulton road - four miles from the intersection of Ninth Street and Broadway. Ninth Street and Broadway are still in the same place, but when I was a kid, th... Mon, 06 Feb 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Celiac_sprue_is_a_disease_that_many_doctors_miss Before World War II, our graduate courses in physical education included concern for people who were not well. We were trained to recognize and report health problems to the school nurse or family. We... Mon, 30 Jan 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Christian_College_strove__to_be_%E2%80%98serious_in_purpose%E2%80%99 Although President Eugene Briggs was new to this area, he never allowed his faculty to forget that "small, select and serious" motto or the fact that Christian College was the first women's ... Mon, 23 Jan 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Any_job_was_a_good_job__if_money_changed_hands In 1935, I was a senior in journalism, earning pin money by fiddling for square dances about twice a week. One summer morning a woman called from Christian College (now Columbia College) and asked whe... Mon, 16 Jan 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Be_ready_for_bicycling_before_spring_days_arrive Don't try to ride the bike you rode as a child. It won't fit you any better than the jeans you wore when you were a teenager. Choose a reputable dealer and ask for help. A good dealer wants you as... Mon, 09 Jan 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Boone_County_white_clay__tells_the_Christmas_story It's not difficult to imagine the situation that Joseph and Mary encountered when they reached Bethlehem on important tax business. It would have been a long trip for pregnant Mary and Joseph, who h... Mon, 02 Jan 2006 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Santa_came_after_supper__to_our_home_on_the_farm Tillman needed a home and a job on his 16th birthday. He had never known the meaning of "family," so Mom and Dad provided that. Joe, walking across the entire United States, needed work, food... Mon, 26 Dec 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/As_youngsters_mature%2C_we__oldsters_claim_the_credit Bob Black and five or six other members enrolled in the first group, for which I was leader. It was a new project called "Native Crafts," and we pledged our heads, hearts, hands and health to ... Mon, 19 Dec 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Thirsty_cows_needed_water_on_frigid_day It was 8 degrees below zero, and I had to chop holes in the pond ice for 35 thirsty shorthorn cows about noon. It would take a while to get into my warmest gear, so I planned to bundle up and go out a... Mon, 12 Dec 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Moist_clay_from_Onondaga_Cave__suggested_a_new_lifetime_project I remembered that Ella Victoria Dobbs, university art instructor and author of books on arts and crafts, found beautiful white clay on our farm. She tested it and found its "firing time." I lo... Mon, 05 Dec 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Ask_for_%E2%80%98pegs%E2%80%99_or_%E2%80%98hooks%E2%80%99%3B__both_are_difficult_to_find I accept Ol' Clark's challenge: Shucking, or "husking," hooks might still be available at big, old hardware stores here in America's Corn Belt. Blacksmith shops serving Amish communitie... Mon, 28 Nov 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Unique_day_and_banquet__ended_%E2%80%9981_China_bike_tour Having led college students through Spain, France and other foreign countries, I had no fear. Here are a few experiences of that day: ● A half-dozen workers sitting on the ground near a contain... Mon, 21 Nov 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Bicycles_substituted_for_trucks_in_1981_China The idea of traveling in China with a leader and 15 other American cyclists was ideal for me in 1981. The advance planners had done well; we biked less than 200 miles. My friend Jim, from New Orleans,... Mon, 14 Nov 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Sixteen_bicycle_tourists_visited_mainland_China "Twenty ‘planners' are on the first tour now, but we can put your name on the student group of 16." I explained that I was 63 years old, healthy and had pedaled 61 miles one day recently.... Mon, 31 Oct 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Some_postwar_memories_aren%E2%80%99t_as_good_as_others Chub had completed several months of duty in Flint, Mich., and was home on leave before he received a new assignment. "Come with me to Boston, and we can wait together," he said. We stayed the... Mon, 24 Oct 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Eccentric_surveyor_Ira_Nash_was_first_%E2%80%98white_man%E2%80%99_in_Boone_County Because of television, we know both fiction and fact about people who moved everything - all of their livestock, their home furnishings, etc. - 800 miles, crossing into Missouri in 1800. They cut tree... Mon, 17 Oct 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Christmas_trees_brought_money_and_happiness Dad chose the right saw for me and showed me how to cut straight across the tree stem, and I headed to the woods. I knew that woods well, and one hill was covered with nicely shaped cedar trees of all... Mon, 03 Oct 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Joy_of_accomplishment__follows_some_to_old_age We lived four miles east of Columbia's intersection of South Ninth Street and Broadway. We were in the Special Road District, which was financed by the city or a merchants organization to encourage ... Mon, 26 Sep 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Little_children_sometimes_learn_how_to_swim_before_they_know_it "Honey you are swimming, just like Brenda and the others." "I am?" she asked. "I didn't know it!" "You like to play the tea party game?" "Yes," she answered.... Mon, 19 Sep 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/General_Motors_taught_mechanics_from_Coast_Guard_how_to_teach The Depression, education and family responsibilities interfered with our seven years of platonic friendship. Suddenly, in 1937, Walter Frand "Chub" Gerard and I set a date for our simple wedd... Mon, 12 Sep 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/People_said_my_husband__helped_win_two_wars Chub and I met at Little Bonne Femme Church during the Christmas holiday in December 1930. The young people were practicing their performance of Luke's version of the birth of Christ - the stabl... Mon, 29 Aug 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/%26lsquo%3BWhen_you_do_finally_get_here%2C_it%26rsquo%3Bs_not_so_bad%21%26rsquo%3B Our farm, about 12 miles east of Columbia was taking shape quite well in 1952, and we rented our little rock house near Columbia to a young couple for the summer. The man was to add native stone ven... Mon, 22 Aug 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/University_High_and_Mizzou__formed_a_family_in_the_%26rsquo%3B30s Pretend that you're at a University of Missouri-Columbia football game and it's halftime; you grab a microphone and get the crowd's attention by saying, "Stand up if you have kno... Mon, 15 Aug 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Early_life_was_difficult__on_%26lsquo%3BWhip-Poor-Will_Hill%26rsquo%3B The abstract for the farm we wanted said, "John Robnett and his wife petitioned the land from the United States government." Later owners were the Pleasant Robnetts, Crews and Baumgarters. We ... Mon, 08 Aug 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/No%2C_we_are_not_relatives__of_famous_Daniel_Boone Why do I take this sweltering 103-degree day, July 24, to drag skeletons out of closets and put braggarts in their rightful places in our history? I'm one of the three elderly relatives of Danie... Mon, 01 Aug 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Retired_couple_welcomed__Harg_4-H_campers_in_1950 Midsummer was the time for the annual 4-H camp held at the Lake of the Ozarks, but only a few of our Harg Hustlers signed up to attend. There were conflicts galore: music lessons, ongoing dental work,... Mon, 25 Jul 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Is_it_true_that_this_family_farm_will_become_a_golf_course%3F That beautiful home, visible from Route WW - but out of earshot - will always be The Stice Place to those of us who lived here most of our lives. The first owners we knew were the Evanses - Lolly an... Mon, 18 Jul 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/High_school_junior_biked__into_the_world_of_business We were saving for a second bike tour in Britain and were buying bikes by mail and long-distance telephone calls to and from a bicycle shop in Glasgow, Scotland. In March, we ordered handmade Carlton ... Mon, 11 Jul 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/%26lsquo%3BTwo_wheels%2C_one_behind__the_other%2C_would_fall_over%26rsquo%3B The earliest sketch of a two-wheel vehicle, with a human-like figure astride, was made by the Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci, probably early in the 16th century. For some unknown reason, a 9-inch, a... Mon, 27 Jun 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Leonardo_sketched_bicycles_before_people_could_ride_them Our son Walt wanted a bicycle, and we let him spend his own money for a black single-speed. Later he wanted a three-speed, and he had money enough to buy it. My husband and I knew little about bikes, ... Mon, 20 Jun 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Will_you_be_ready_to_help_if_a_drowning_person_needs_you%3F What will you do if a child screams, "Help! This kid's drowned!" and you're the only adult who hears that call? In my lifetime of being in and around water - creeks, ponds, rivers,... Mon, 13 Jun 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/They_didn%26rsquo%3Bt_think_Indians_would_strike_a_spot_twice Acquiring land was of utmost importance to the Boones, Bryans, Davises, McKinneys, Ramseys and many other pioneers who arrived in Missouri in 1799-1800. Grandma's Bible said that a young woman... Mon, 06 Jun 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Life_as_a_frontiersman_could_be_a_real_bear Several years ago, I met a stranger I liked from the first. Later, discussing Mid-Missouri history, Sandy mentioned that a man in her ancestry, James Davis, had been a frequent hunting companion with ... Mon, 23 May 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Flying_was_not_an_option__for_these_1941_travelers Chub and I met early in 1931 when he was at the University of Missouri-Columbia and I was in high school. A year later we were putting little bits of extra money in a joint postal savings account, pre... Mon, 16 May 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Some_memories_can_make_one_skip_a_good_sermon In the 1800s, a group of farmers worshipped under sugar maple trees in summer and in a one-room schoolhouse in winter. One cold January day in 1874, the farmers met at the Carlisle School and formed a... Mon, 09 May 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Remember_to_turn_and_flee_when_you_see_leaves_three Don't say you weren't warned. It's May, and poison ivy is rarin' to get you - or so it seems for those of us who have learned the hard way. This beautiful vine has an unbelieva... Mon, 02 May 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Are_you_considering_installing_a_swimming_pool_of_your_own%3F Are you considering installing a swimming pool at your home? Don't tell the neighbors or your kids that you're thinking of having your own swimming pool until, as property owner, you can a... Mon, 25 Apr 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/The_farm%26rsquo%3Bs_wading_pool_grew_as_the_kids_grew When our Nancy and Walt were preschoolers, I shopped for one of those popular plastic pools and discovered how tiny and flimsy it was. I thought of the wonderful space in our 160 acres and wished for ... Mon, 18 Apr 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Pioneers_moved_to_the_state__from_turn_of_century_to_1800 Daniel Morgan Boone, son of Daniel and Rebecca, liked the hunting and the markets for pelts that he had in Missouri - then called Upper Louisiana. After a few years, he went back to Kentucky to urge ... Mon, 11 Apr 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Ugh_-_very_salty_water__oozed_from_that_spring Dad taught me how to bid at auctions. Our neighbor Paul Riggs had passed away, and his personal things were being sold. I wandered around, found a book I had to own and stood idly near it as the crowd... Mon, 04 Apr 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Worker%2C_drone_and_queen_have_strange_lives_in_hive Honeybees are not at all like people. The queen doesn't reign; she lays eggs - maybe thousands of them on a busy day. She puts one egg in each hexagonal wax cell and has the unique choice of lay... Mon, 28 Mar 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Farmers_now_realize_the_importance_of_bees My husband, Chub, was reared in a small town in Illinois where many families had beehives in the side or front yard. A sunny autumn day was a good time to harvest enough honey for the family table all... Mon, 14 Mar 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Ancient_revival_methods_can%26rsquo%3Bt_match_the_Heimlich When a swimmer suddenly goes limp, unconscious, with his or her body turning a faded bluish color, bystanders yell, in any language, "Hey! This guy's drowned, somebody do something!" All... Mon, 07 Mar 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Fiddling_came_in_handy_at_J-school_and_dances If "Granny's Notes" is full of grammatical errors, it might be because Virginia Simms took four of us University High senior girls to a different classroom, gave us notebooks and said, &... Mon, 28 Feb 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Hattie_Parsons_Page_had__fascinating_stories_to_tell Once a week when I was about 8, I carried water to the wooden tub under our cherry tree; "Brown Pony" would spend most of his day there. My friend and her mother would soon be coming down our ... Mon, 21 Feb 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Grandpa_recalls_meeting_in_Vicksburg_battle_lull I was just a little first-grader when Grandpa was a gentle, sweet-smelling old man who wore his black derby hat in the house to keep his head warm. Grandpa Jim took turns living with his three daugh... Mon, 07 Feb 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Butchering_day_was_busy_time_in_great-grandparents%26rsquo%3B_winter Butchering day. That's the euphemistic way to say it, but our gentle grandparents called it what it was: hog-killin' day. It was the busiest day of the year, and by the time the sun crept ... Mon, 31 Jan 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Zenobia_always_wanted_to_sit__down_in_the_earthquake_chair Our football guests from Springfield arrived on Friday afternoon; supper and the evening were full of chatter. Guy Bass and my husband, Chub, were noncommissioned officers in the U.S. Coast Guard assi... Mon, 24 Jan 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Harg_is_extended_family__with_integrity_at_the_helm A family is "relatives by blood, marriage or adoption, often including a nucleus family; living in close proximately ... especially if three generations are involved." Harg in Boone County was... Mon, 17 Jan 2005 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Family_of_tourists_said%2C__%26lsquo%3BBe_sure_to_stop_at_Harg%26rsquo%3B Harg was a town in rural Boone County before 1913. It was on the Rand McNally map of the United States that my father found on a country road. O.D. and Nancy Meyers bought a farm east of Columbia, a... Mon, 27 Dec 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_Dad_hollered_%26lsquo%3Bmilk%2C%26rsquo%3B_his__customers_brought_kitchen_pans In 1913, Mom and Dad operated a small dairy farm a short distance from Ninth Street and Broadway in downtown Columbia. My brother and I were born there, at home. World War I was in progress, but Dad h... Mon, 20 Dec 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Missouri_clay_has_provided_inspiration_for_generations In retirement I began shaping "little people" out of Missouri clay that I dug on our farm. When the Fulton Gravel road was improved, the state's machinery exposed lots of beautiful, whit... Mon, 13 Dec 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Boone_County_trees_give_homes_a_Christmas_smell In 1921 Mrs. Venable asked her milk man, "Mr. Meyers, would your little girl go to the woods and cut a nice fresh cedar tree for me? I'll pay her 25 cents for it, the same I'd pay at J... Mon, 06 Dec 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Ulcer_might_have_been_better_fate_than_celiac_sprue_diagnosis Celiac sprue is an illness I first heard about in a 1940 seminar at the University of Missouri-Columbia. I scribbled this warning on my notes: "Celiac Sprue. DON'T GET THAT!" Thirty yea... Mon, 29 Nov 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Difference_between_%26lsquo%3BM%26rsquo%3B_men_and_%26lsquo%3BM%26rsquo%3B_women_in_%26rsquo%3B30s_was_900_points The "M" Men's Club at the University of Missouri had it all: complimentary tickets to intercollegiate events and reserved seats for family members on the outdoor bleachers or in the men&... Mon, 22 Nov 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Local_college_girls_were__%26lsquo%3Bknittin%26rsquo%3B_mittens_for_Britain%26rsquo%3B Memoirs of those who fought in World War I are endless. My husband, Walter Frank "Chub" Gerard, claimed to have helped win the first World War because, at age 5, he was dressed in a little sai... Mon, 15 Nov 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/The_artist_lacked_patience__required_to_work_in_clay Summary: Jann Higgins of Mexico, Mo., wanted a life-size cowboy made of clay, so she joined my clay class. She had sold many framed drawings of Western cowboys, so I hoped to learn by teaching this ta... Mon, 08 Nov 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Untrained_student_tackled_a_specialist%26rsquo%3Bs_challenge Nine women enrolled in my beginners' clay class. I told of the extra one who arrived blaring out, "What's terra cotta?" I told the group that those two Latin words meant "ea... Mon, 01 Nov 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Instructor_knew_Missouri_clay_but_did_not_know_terra_cotta To us farm kids, Columbia's "District" was the "dime store," or Woolworth's, Hays Hardware, The New York Store and "Kress's." Any Saturday afternoon, you coul... Mon, 25 Oct 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/A_fourth_of_world%26rsquo%3Bs_people_were_isolated_for_30_years We were 16 Americans on lightweight bicycles in the strange world where heavy single-speed, black, diamond-frame bicycles for men filled the streets - no private cars were permitted. A family could sa... Mon, 18 Oct 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Auctioneer_knew_his_bidders Aucioneer Reuben Jacobs was our neighbor and friend who said, "You'd better take a look at the old books," remembering what I bid on previously. Boys were carrying load after load of big... Mon, 11 Oct 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Hadrian%26rsquo%3Bs_Wall_was_built__to_last%2C_and_it_certainly_did The year of our first bicycle tour in Europe, our Walt was 12. Nancy celebrated her 14th birthday in England. Jean Cronan and her sons, Patrick and Mike, were our traveling companions. Instead of ta... Mon, 04 Oct 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Bikes_were_important__to_the_Gerard_children As a kid I often pretended that the mule I liked to ride was a bicycle! That was fun until the day a bolt of lightning scared Jack and he went lickity-split into a low shed that wasn't tall enou... Mon, 27 Sep 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/By_using_lights%2C_Dolphins_were_like_lightning_bugs Celebrating 10 years of writing "Granny's Notes," I continue to relate highlights of my 90 years in Boone County. In 1935, the new president of Christian College needed a swimming teach... Mon, 20 Sep 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Column_enters_10th_year_as_Granny_celebrates_90 Let's celebrate! I'll tell you how a love of water contributed to this long, happy life: On our dairy farm, four miles east of Columbia, I did regular chores for which I was paid 25 cents... Mon, 13 Sep 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Teacher_made_mermaids_out_of_little_mud-crawlers When I was young, kids did what we called "mud crawl" at Flat Rock swimming hole in Grindstone Creek. We'd squat down in the water, put our hands on the creek's firm mud bottom and... Mon, 30 Aug 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Recreation_is_as_easy_as_putting_a_ship_in_a_bottle In 1935, part of my assignment at Christian College was to teach one class, "Plays and Games," for prospective recreation professionals. Our textbook was "Philosophy of Recreation" by... Mon, 23 Aug 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Special_trees%2C_like_diaries%2C__can_contain_our_life_stories Mom said I liked to climb a big maple tree in our yard and often took a kitten up there to play with me. That was before our four-room frame home burned to the ground and our family lost everything we... Mon, 16 Aug 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In_1889%2C_Hattie_Parsons_%26lsquo%3Bstaked_her_claim%26rsquo%3B_along_Oklahoma_river Neighbor men said, "John Page is so slow that when his horses get the corn planter to the end of a row, the first seeds have already sprouted." However, Hattie Parsons Page was a "go-gette... Mon, 09 Aug 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/The_village_was_named__Harg_for_its_immigrants After midsummer in l966, my Nancy and Walt, a neighbor girl - Barbara Smith - and I toured Northern Ireland and Britain by bicycle. In Northern Ireland, I hoped to find some trace of the McHarg family... Mon, 26 Jul 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Boil_320_gallons_of_water_until_only_slush_remains In the 18th century, Nathan Boone and his brother, Daniel Morgan Boone, learned how to make salt by boiling water from a certain salt spring in Kentucky. According to Johnson's "Cyclopaedia ... Mon, 19 Jul 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In_1806%2C_salt_was_made_by_boiling_spring_water Early in grade school, we memorized the date of the Louisiana Purchase - 1803, remember? The Daniel Boones and others moved their families, livestock and possessions before 1803 from Kentucky to upper... Mon, 12 Jul 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Kentucky_families_started_over_in_Central_Missouri This was a world of horses, wagons and muddy roads in the early 1800s, but Kentucky settlers stopped in Central Missouri for several reasons. Their old friends and relatives had bought land here, and ... Mon, 28 Jun 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Not_all_young_%26lsquo%3Bswimmers%26rsquo%3B__are_safe_in_deep_water Sam is my grandson and his Fionn Nan is almost 2 years old. Sam yelled, "Granny, come see our swimmer." It was a happy, 10-minute performance of Fionn's splashing, kicking water, ducki... Mon, 21 Jun 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Father_sold_%26lsquo%3Bclean_milk%2C_fresh_from_my_own_cows%26rsquo%3B Imagine our quiet countryside when farmers for miles around heard the weather forecast from the shoe factory's signals on the 10 o'clock morning whistle! One long and two shorts - "fai... Mon, 14 Jun 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Not_all_farmers_wanted_electric_lights_in_the_%26rsquo%3B30s Roll call for the women's club was, "What do you want to do when you get to heaven?" I don't recall the answers to that, but when it was, "What will be your punishment if you l... Mon, 07 Jun 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Rebuilding_British_church_in_Fulton_was_labor_of_love A firebomb, courtesy of Adolf Hitler, burned the entire church - except those ancient Portland limestone building blocks. British workmen etched a number into each stone as they dismantled the ruins... Mon, 24 May 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Blacksmith_was_asked_to_solve_%26lsquo%3Bthe_greatest_jigsaw_puzzle_known%26rsquo%3B As a boy, Eris Lytle learned the skills of blacksmithing from his father. When he wanted a car, he got permission to scrounge in private junk piles in and near Griggsville, Ill. Eris was born in 1904... Mon, 17 May 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Uncle_Archie_was_right_about_the_hazard_posed_by_honeybees When we bought a farm 12 miles east of Columbia, it was on a mud road where the only repair was some big rocks in the worst mud holes. That was more than 50 years ago; Nancy was almost 3 years old, an... Mon, 10 May 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Buy_millions_of_honeybees%2C_but_you%26rsquo%3Bll_never_%26lsquo%3Bown%26rsquo%3B_one On summer evenings, Chub and I sometimes sat close to his beehives and watched hundreds of adolescent female worker bees glide in on the landing boards, their leg baskets heavy with pollen. More bees ... Mon, 03 May 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Teachers_love_helping__willing_students_learn When remembering great teachers, I think first of Miss Eleanor Taylor, who welcomed all ages to see her elaborate display of plants in the kindergarten room. I arrived early almost every morning and v... Mon, 26 Apr 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/The_Depression_taught_us__new_ways_to_have_money First, let me make this clear: The Depression was not all bad! Ten dollars a month for a part-time job was better than no job at all! Eight or 10 hours of labor for $1.50 "and your keep" was a... Mon, 19 Apr 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Missouri_has_contributed_much_to_the_horse_enthusiasts%26rsquo%3B_world One of Dad's milk customers asked Dad if he'd like to pasture their pony for the summer; they would bring their children out to ride at our farm, and my brother and I could ride any time w... Mon, 12 Apr 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/If_pioneer_men_had_itchy_feet%2C_the_women_packed_to_move Imagine that you are heading into an unknown wilderness with half a dozen oxen pulling your covered wagon; you're hauling everything you own, and you'll walk a lot because the road is just... Mon, 05 Apr 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Coopers_led_pioneers_far_west_into_hostile_territory In February 1804, Ira Nash, eccentric genius and U.S. government surveyor, Stephen Hancock and Stephen Jackson were "the first men to put their feet upon this sacred soil," which we now call B... Mon, 29 Mar 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/World_finally_listens_to_Henry_Heimlich For longer than there has been written history, people have tried to make drowned people breathe again. I know of 36 obsolete techniques people have used in their attempts to resuscitate - restore bre... Mon, 22 Mar 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Selling_freelance_articles_is_like_catching_perch A short time before I graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Journalism, I wrote an essay about my experiences as a square-dance fiddler. It won second place in an Atlantic Month... Mon, 15 Mar 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/February_was_a_taste_of_spring%2C__but_you_shouldn%26rsquo%3Bt_trust_March Farmers lived by the weather; some read the almanac and lived according to the phases of the moon. Some planted seeds or set hens or dehorned calves by the moon, but we Meyerses didn't even have... Mon, 08 Mar 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Gordon_Manor_guarded_Columbia%26rsquo%3Bs_eastern_portal In 1818, David Gordon and one of his sons, James, came from Kentucky to our area to determine whether the soil was fertile, whether there was suitable clay for making bricks and whether the price was ... Mon, 01 Mar 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/We_enjoyed_Canada%26rsquo%3Bs_Maritime_Provinces We four women tourists all arrived at the ferry crossing to Prince Edward Island, in 5 o'clock traffic. Priscilla and I had pedaled 50 miles that day. Daughter Nancy and Vi helped secure our bik... Mon, 23 Feb 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/There_was_always_enough__bath_water_to_go_around A bright first-grader once gave me a long, rolled-up scroll he'd made in school - about water. He explained that there's a certain amount of water in the world and that the Earth, rocks, s... Mon, 16 Feb 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/The_world_was_waiting__to_be_explored_by_bike Our Sears, Roebuck and Co. catalog was worn threadbare by the time Mom and Dad said I should have a bicycle. Mom made the order and paid $35.50 for it. A week later, my bike arrived at about supper ... Mon, 09 Feb 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Horse_and_buggy_or_Model_T_Ford_-_the_going_was_great Transportation has changed a lot in my lifetime. An old photo shows our family with a horse hitched to a buggy for only two passengers. I was too young to remember that. O.D. and Nancy Meyers, my ... Mon, 02 Feb 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Town_of_Harg_is_still_alive__for_some_who_remember Route WW is becoming a household word; it's the eastern extension of Columbia's Broadway and the route east to two rural churches, to a cemetery, to Harg, to Millersburg and to Fulton. N... Mon, 26 Jan 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Bicyclists_learn_about_food__production_from_rural_trip_leader Two of the girls on my 1970 bike tour in Europe were sitting at the side of the road in Germany when I pedaled up and joined them. Doty said, "Mrs. G, I never saw anything like this before. Wha... Mon, 19 Jan 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/It_was_difficult_to_find_information_for_celiacs Long ago I read about "celiac sprue" in my "Preventive Medicine" textbook and immediately said to myself, "Don't get that!" But I did get that when I was about 75 years o... Mon, 12 Jan 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Even_celiacs_should_eat_five_servings_of_grain_daily Mom and Dad were born in 1887 and had good health for their entire lifetimes. I never knew anyone who suffered from "stomach distress," ulcers or problems with digestion. We ate what we produc... Mon, 05 Jan 2004 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/1943_trip_to_New_York___was_36_hours_each_way My husband was like a little kid about Christmas. He was the only Gerard boy, and he had five sisters! His mother and the girls spoiled their "Buddy Boy," especially before, during and after D... Mon, 29 Dec 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Visit_sparked_love_affair_with_Canadian_province Chub had completed more than three years of study in electrical engineering at the University of Missouri-Columbia, so the U.S. Coast Guard sent him to Hemphill School in New York City. He was assigne... Mon, 22 Dec 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Three_mothers_and_five_children__shared_a_European_experience Hortense Davison - fondly called "Petie" - and her son, Jimmy, were packing to go to England for her Fulbright Scholarship to teach French when she said, "Sue, if you and the kids could co... Mon, 15 Dec 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Part_of_Route_WW_should_be_elevated_over_dangerous_spot Recently Route WW has been in the news a lot. We hear of a possible addition of several hundred homes and of the possibility of a golf course. This busy, narrow, curving road has known more than its... Mon, 08 Dec 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Early_country_roads_were_unfit_for_bike_adventures Hattie Page and my dear mom helped me plan my first bicycle adventure; I'd ride to the Pages' and go with them to the pie supper at Turner School. Then I'd spend the night with my fr... Mon, 01 Dec 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Pies_sold_high%2C_but_everybody__loved_county_school_pie_suppers "If you've never been to a pie supper at a one-room rural school, there's a treat in store for you." I wrote that sentence in 1935 in a journalism class called "The Special Ar... Mon, 24 Nov 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/One_day_each_year_they_fed_22_hungry_farmhands Anything unusual was exciting for us country kids; one day a year neighbors came to help Mom prepare and serve a noon meal for about 22 hungry, sweaty men. It was silo-filling day, and some of the wom... Mon, 17 Nov 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Boone_County_clay_works_interpret_area%26rsquo%3Bs_history The Bible and Christmas hymns tell little about the shelter where Baby Jesus was born. We sing about the donkey, manger, stable, cattle and inn. I asked my friend Amal, a Christian from Kuwait, "W... Mon, 10 Nov 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Depression_preceded__marriage_and_family Walter Frank "Chub" Gerard and I met in 1931, in the depth of the Depression. He drove an old Pontiac truck and created a money-job by loading and hauling large cans of fresh milk from 10 diff... Mon, 03 Nov 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/The_Depression_didn%26rsquo%3Bt_stop_the_flow_of_milk We oldsters are frequently asked to tell about the Depression. Dad, Mom and we kids all had jobs in the O.D. Meyers Dairy. There were about 20 cows to be milked, bottles, strainers and many vessels ... Mon, 27 Oct 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Halloween_festivities_triggered_Christian_College_water_shows Grace Mitchell, instructor of physical education at Christian College, was helping students decorate the gymnasium for the Halloween party. "Sue," she said, "come go through the spooky tun... Mon, 13 Oct 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Christian_College%26rsquo%3Bs_offer_came_as_a_big_surprise There was very little ritual about graduating from University High School; many of us continued at the University of Missouri. Two of my teachers had suggested that I consider journalism. Three year... Mon, 06 Oct 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Tourists_play_pantomime__in_%26lsquo%3Bthe_People%26rsquo%3Bs_Republic%26rsquo%3B I was 61 years old and the only cyclist from Missouri when 16 of us pedaled for 11 days within mainland China's borders. Four young adults from California, 84-year-old Jim from Louisiana, an att... Mon, 29 Sep 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Bicycle_group_saw_China%26rsquo%3Bs_%26lsquo%3Bback_door%26rsquo%3B When a young woman in our tour group crashed her bike into my bike's rear wheel, we both went down on the muddy bike path. She cussed, straightened her handlebars and cycled on in the heavy dr... Mon, 22 Sep 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Unique_tour_gave_cyclists_glimpse_behind_Iron_Curtain American Youth Hostels Inc. and a similar group, The All-China Youth Federation, planned for two years and finally made it possible for bicyclists to visit mainland China. When I learned that a trip... Mon, 15 Sep 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/With_knees_knocking_together%2C__she_offered_decades_of_stories Jim Robertson knew why I stood at his desk, knees knocking together. After a few courtesy words, he said, "Sue, what do you have there?" I held some true stories I'd typed for four lit... Mon, 08 Sep 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/It_was_fun_playing_in_the__neighbors%26rsquo%3B_old_barn_loft In spring there were baby kittens and their mothers in the Estes' barn loft. In summer there was soft-stacked hay there. It was great for jumping and rolling in. And it was a good place to hide ... Mon, 18 Aug 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Early_rural_residents_got_water%2C_refrigeration_from_cold_springs For some reason Bess and John Estes sometimes walked the five miles to Columbia. I can see them now: Bess in front, carefully groomed, carrying her purse and a basket of eggs. She wore a stylish dress... Mon, 11 Aug 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Visiting_neighbors_was_a_treat_early_in_the_century Everybody stopped working even Dad and the farmhands to listen to the sirens, the bells and the big shoe-factory whistle all at once or in rapid succession. People made all kinds of joyful noises, c... Mon, 04 Aug 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Friendship_remembered_through_ice_cream_and_a_cherished_truck My husband, Chub, and R.J. "Joe" Martin were personal friends who worked together in the local Rural Electric office and felt the need to combine physical labor with fresh air and sunshine. On... Mon, 28 Jul 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Early_pottery_reveals__lifestyles_of_ancestors A snuff jar in a great-grandmother's personal belongings need not upset you. Mom showed me how some older women stretched one thumb and held it a certain way to create a tiny "snuff box"... Mon, 21 Jul 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Remembering_the_slow_days_of_life_in_Columbia Before there was Columbia, this part of Upper Louisiana was ignored. Covered wagons followed the tracks of two Boone boys - toward Franklin. Finally there were five cabin homes and Gentry's ta... Mon, 07 Jul 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Beekeepers_know_there%26rsquo%3Bs_more_to_the_trade_than_eating_honey Some beekeepers work only one or two hives to get enough honey for the family; others manage hundreds. One thing is universal: Beekeeping is a complicated undertaking and should not be attempted unles... Mon, 30 Jun 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Baling_hay_was_a_filthy_job_but_paid_real_money Grinding corn was fun because all I had to do was to sit on our big, wide horse and tell him to "Whoa" or "Giddup." He walked around in a circle while hitched to the corn grinder by ... Mon, 23 Jun 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Columbia%26rsquo%3Bs_%26lsquo%3BU-High%26rsquo%3B_family_set_to_share_school_memories A small display ad in the Tribune recently showed a tiny photo with a caption that asked, "Do you recognize this building?" The picture was dim, and I didn't recognize it. I did recogn... Mon, 16 Jun 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Event_allowed_young_folk_to_dress_in_their_very_best My brother and I were happy kids, born before there were toy stores or special stores for clothes for kids. But in summer - June I think - rural churches staged a special event called Children's... Mon, 09 Jun 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Pre-Columbia_area_was_merely_a_stop_for_travelers_going_west Don't be surprised when I say that this busy, mushrooming city was once in a large wilderness called Upper Louisiana. It was purchased from France in 1803, and later a large area north of the Mi... Mon, 02 Jun 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In_spring%2C_bikes_need__%26lsquo%3BTLC%26rsquo%3B_for_fun_and_safety A bright, shiny bicycle and helmet - in the carport or on the front porch - is a great invitation to healthy, happy and safe fun this summer. Now is a good time time for cleaning, adjusting and tighte... Mon, 19 May 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Heimlich_himself_spreads_news_on_famous_maneuver Sue Gerard is recovering from a fall. This is an updated version of a piece that originally appeared in the Tribune in 1994. When the Missouri State Games were just beginning to roll, I ran a few err... Mon, 12 May 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Choosing_a_proper_pot_is_important_for_good_tea Because I like to drink hot tea, I was disgusted to read about a competition for potters who intentionally make nonworkable teapots: Teapots That Won't Pour. Through the years I&rsqu... Mon, 05 May 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Fulton_church_a_puzzle_with_7%2C000_stone_pieces A fellow was building a new blacksmith shop for Ivan Lytle, in Griggsville, Ill., laying it up with solid concrete blocks. He disappeared with the job only half done. One of Lytle's sons tried t... Mon, 21 Apr 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/%26lsquo%3BBlue_Hole%26rsquo%3B_in_Big_Cedar_was_tinted_with_blood Our small farm has a steep limestone bluff on its north border. I like standing there about sunrise, pondering Big Cedar Creek, its bluff and its history. I hear the thud of a wild turkey coming off h... Mon, 14 Apr 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Paracelsus_was_wrong%2C_but_people_liked_his_idea Even before there was written history, human beings attempted to "raise the dead." Flailing a lifeless body with a fist full of thorny briars seems ridiculous, but it made the relatives feel t... Mon, 07 Apr 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Memories_of_years_past_are_still_fun_short_stories "GO! BOY! GO!" Our neighbor, Lloyd, and his brother-in-law, Chesley, elderly coon hunters, were watching a football game one night when the player with the ball broke loose and headed toward ... Mon, 31 Mar 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Putting_a_ship_in_a_bottle_requires_problem-solving My students who were preparing to be recreational leaders studied various techniques for teaching games and directing people of different abilities in facilities such as public school playgrounds, gym... Mon, 24 Mar 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Heimlich%26rsquo%3Bs_advice_helped_save_many_schoolboys The highest drowning rate is among schoolboys, upper grades, swimming in unguarded ponds, rivers and lakes on late Sunday afternoons. That's bad news, but there's good news about artificia... Mon, 17 Mar 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Clay_a_miracle_found_from_Mesopotamia_to_Missouri We hate clay when it sticks to our boots and shoes, we depend on it to hold water in ponds, and we pay high prices for it when we buy paint or lipstick. Clay is used to make floor tile, slick paper ... Mon, 10 Mar 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Local_stoneware_clay__is_a_link_with_the_past Mom, her friend - Ella Victoria Dobbs - and I were off to the woods one spring day, and Miss Dobbs stopped when she saw some white earth in the bank of a small stream. She clawed out some of the moist... Mon, 03 Mar 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Book_on_Boone_County__reveals_bizarre_history Boone County was organized and named before Missouri was admitted as a state! Some old English customs and laws held over for years; one of those was the "imprisonment for debt" law. As late ... Mon, 17 Feb 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Furry_forecasters_have_history_of_precise_weather_prediction One day each year, for a couple of hours at least, Phil of Punxsutawney, Pa., creates headlines all over this nation. Under the ground, a certain lowly, hibernating creature - a large football-shaped ... Mon, 10 Feb 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Visit_to_Chinese_hospital_experience_to_remember The hospital looked like an old courthouse. A nurse in a long off-white coat, almost to the ground, received us, and we walked down an unlighted hallway to a large dirty room with many desks, with a d... Mon, 03 Feb 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Spill_off_bike_temporarily_interrupted_tour_in_China My 11-day look at mainland China had only two days left: One was shopping day, and the other was a banquet and award ceremony closing the tour. Day Nine was a warm, drizzly one. Some of the bicyclis... Mon, 27 Jan 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Pity_today%26rsquo%3Bs_children_who_won%26rsquo%3Bt_know_tastes_of_old Grandchildren might never know the unforgettable tastes of: ● Fried "farm" chicken - a chicken that was born free and raised in the back yard on potato peelings and table scraps fried i... Mon, 20 Jan 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Great_width_brought_fame%2C_activity_to_early_Broadway "Ownership of American land was vested in the original occupants prior to the discovery by whites." Switzler's 1882 History of Boone County explains it this way: "Indians, being sav... Mon, 13 Jan 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Columbia%26rsquo%3Bs_first_%26lsquo%3Brec_center%26rsquo%3B__was_four_summer_playgrounds Correct me if I'm wrong. I believe that seven others and I received the first money ever spent by the city of Columbia for "that foolishness - recreation." One elected official said blu... Mon, 06 Jan 2003 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Traveling_light_can_help_save_time_and_headaches Forty years ago, five of us were crossing from Holland to Canada on Holland American's ship Ryndam. We were headed home after touring Britain and several other countries by car. After the excite... Mon, 30 Dec 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Missourians_know_value_of_a_real_Christmas_cedar Now I'm not opposed to others having an artificial Christmas tree, but for this old gal it's a cedar - a Boone County, wild, bushy, flat on one side, prickly, smelly cedar tree! It&rsquo... Mon, 23 Dec 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Christmas_at_Cooper%26rsquo%3Bs_Fort_spent_celebrating_safety Edwin Stephens wrote in his "History of Boone County" of three Cooper brothers - Benjamin, Braxton and Sarshall - who came to this vicinity in 1808 from Loutre Island, near present-day Hermann... Mon, 16 Dec 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/%26lsquo%3BBicycle_embryo%26rsquo%3B_must_be_product_of_a_great_mind A few weeks ago I wrote about taking a short train trip out of London to locate a tiny stained-glass window. Little is known about the 9-inch square, colorful pane except that it was moved to Stoke Po... Mon, 09 Dec 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Milk_has_to_be_cleaned_between_%26lsquo%3Bmoo%26rsquo%3B_and_you Let's face it. Milk comes from cows. Cows eat grass. Green grass makes white milk, which makes pink on the cheeks. But cows also get dirty. This might surprise those who pour milk from a carton!... Mon, 02 Dec 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Holsteins_and_Jerseys__put_kids_through_college Because my brother was only 16 months older than I, our parents knew they'd have to scrounge for money to pay for both of us to attend the University of Missouri at the same time, during the Dep... Mon, 25 Nov 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Don%26rsquo%3Bt_be_afraid_to_discover_pleasures_of_traveling_solo While I waited for my luggage to be unloaded in Honolulu, I went to "Travel Assistance" and asked about accommodations within 10 miles of the beach and the business district - for only one per... Mon, 18 Nov 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/What_a_difference_50_years_makes_in_telephone_service They almost didn't convince me that people who walk around talking to themselves might actually be talking with someone who is all of the way across the country. I still want to believe that tel... Mon, 11 Nov 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/%26lsquo%3BCentury%26rsquo%3B_rides_well_worth_preparation%2C_training_time If it makes you weary just to think about pedaling a bicycle all day, put your feet up and read about thousands of people who do that for fun! Spring and autumn in Central Missouri challenge many cyc... Mon, 04 Nov 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/%26lsquo%3BGranny%26rsquo%3Bs_Day_Camp%26rsquo%3B_reunion_brings_back_summer_memories Beginning in the '80s, Chub and I invited our four grandsons to visit us on alternate weeks during the summer. Oliver was 4, Peter was 6 and Cole and Sam were 7; Sam was in summer school, but he... Mon, 28 Oct 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Wild_persimmons_ahead_of_schedule_in_Columbia Believe it or not, wild persimmons were edible on Sept. 15! I picked up and ate four or five of them the day of the Heritage Festival. There had been no scientific tampering with that persimmon tree o... Mon, 21 Oct 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Clever_highway_signs_helped_pass_the_miles We were planning to have a restaurant meal while pedaling our bikes across beautiful Newfoundland, but a highway marker warned, "No services for the next 63 miles!" It was August 1974, and my ... Mon, 07 Oct 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_boredom_strikes%2C_kids_make_their_own_fun When Chub and I bicycled the 500 miles across Newfoundland, we traveled the eastern part of Highway 1 through thinly populated forest land. Sharing the road with us were huge lumber trucks - and Canad... Mon, 30 Sep 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Lifesaving_techniques__studied_during_sabbatical In the mid-'60s Christian College announced that one full-time faculty member might be granted sabbatical leave if he or she needed extra time to pursue original ideas. One day in the faculty lo... Mon, 23 Sep 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Yearly_festival_gives_peek__at_olden_days_of_Missouri This is the week we celebrate our heritage. At the 25th annual Heritage Festival on Saturday and Sunday, we will explore how people lived in the olden days. We'll step into a tepee of American I... Mon, 16 Sep 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Nifong_family_played_large_role_in_hospital%26rsquo%3Bs_growth In the '20s and '30s, Boone County Hospital cared formany county residents who could not pay. Nurses worked for a low wage plus food, lodging and laundry. An older white frame home was on ... Mon, 09 Sep 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Boone_County_Hospital_had_efficient_first_leader Because I was born just before World War I, it taxes my memory to recall the Armistice. Adults stood motionless in the front yard listening to the sirens and bells from downtown Columbia; they hugged ... Mon, 26 Aug 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Early_homesteads_needed_protection_of_storm_cellars Call it a cave, a storm cellar, a root cellar or just a cellar, almost every homestead had a special place for winter food storage and for personal safety from windstorms and tornadoes. I preferred ... Mon, 19 Aug 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Empire_State_Building_struck_during_1945_visit Imagine my surprise recently when I was reading those banners that appear on the TV screen while other topics are being discussed above. Suddenly I caught the words, "On this date in 1945 ... peop... Mon, 12 Aug 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Building_mail-order_house_was_an_exciting_adventure My parents ordered a house from a catalog; fire had destroyed clothing, household goods, family treasures and everything in our old house. It was wash day, and before Mom left to get my brother and me... Mon, 05 Aug 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/House_fire_led_to_parents%26rsquo%3B_mail-order_home_purchase Mother had driven the Model T Ford to town, and Dad was planting corn. It was May 18, 1922. As we were going down Crouch's Hill, Mom screamed, "Oh, God! No! That's my house!" Bla... Mon, 29 Jul 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Many_things_are_important__enough_to_leave_the_dishes My second book is now in several local stores. When I read Tony Messenger's great article about the Rocheport Cave, I knew it was time to tell my readers more about my visit to that cave long ag... Mon, 15 Jul 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Sweltering_days_of_July_take_toll_on_corn%2C_animals As I write this, the corn crop is beautiful; an occasional tassel peeps up out of the top of a bouquet of unfolding dark green leaves. These are hot, sultry days in a Mid-Missouri July when corn needs... Mon, 08 Jul 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Rural_newsletters_bring_neighborhoods_together Historically, our community and church news was spread when people greeted each other at McHarg's General Store, at the toll house where they had to pay for using the newly graveled road and at ... Mon, 01 Jul 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Column_marks_milestone_alongside_the_Tribune These first days of summer 2002 are exciting ones for the publishers of the Columbia Daily Tribune, Tribune Publishing Co. and me! The weather was pleasant Saturday, the people were happy, children pl... Mon, 24 Jun 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Hard-to-please_dad_made_Father%26rsquo%3Bs_Day_challenging Dad's mother died when he was 4 years old. He and his infant brother were left to the care of four doting half sisters. Susie, Mamie, Edie and Rosie were substitute mothers to the boys; they too... Mon, 17 Jun 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Strong-willed_asparagus_survives__being_covered_with_thick_red_clay In spite of the fact that my late husband, Chub Gerard, wasn't excited about gardening, after we bought this farm, he ordered a dozen three-year-old asparagus plants. They would need the first y... Mon, 10 Jun 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Portraits_and_engravings_give__a_glimpse_into_Boone%26rsquo%3Bs_lifestyle Daniel Boone grumbled about having to sit while artist Chester Harding made his portrait; he was 85 years old, and the artist painted in oils just four months before Boone died on Sept. 26, 1820. The ... Mon, 03 Jun 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Genealogy_includes_branch__of_Daniel_Boone%26rsquo%3Bs_family_tree One August I was in England at election time and voted by absentee ballot. I located a "solicitor" to verify my vote. He glanced at the ballot and said excitedly, "Boone County! You live i... Mon, 20 May 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Sing_Granny%26rsquo%3Bs_Safety_Game_to_little_ones_who_love_water A young mother said, "Our baby just loves his B-A-T-H. Should we give her swimming lessons?" I blurted out, "Of course! But not yet. Wait about three more years." Her baby was 13 mont... Mon, 13 May 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Special_Sundays_helped__make_%26rsquo%3B20s_childhood_fun On those preaching days, there was usually a basket dinner and someone brought water in a barrel in his wagon. We had a few water fights with the boys and sometimes dabbled in the mud where the barrel... Mon, 06 May 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Dairyman_helped_shape_World_War_II_mechanics My husband, the late Walter Frank "Chub" Gerard, enlisted in the Coast Guard in October 1943, during World War II. It had become increasingly difficult to get supplies for the dairy. Repairs... Mon, 29 Apr 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Children_treasure_moments_of_quality_time_with_parents Our Nancy and Walt were the right age when family "togetherness" was a popular thing. At first people said that television brought parents and children together for great companionship. We mot... Mon, 22 Apr 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Near-tragic_event_brings_change_of_bees%26rsquo%3B_keeper Unlike cows, sheep, hogs and horses, honeybees are free to stay - or leave. If you have three or more colonies - about 50,000 worker bees in each - you're classified as a farmer. You can't... Mon, 15 Apr 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/For_determined_honeybees%2C_there%26rsquo%3Bs_no_place_like_home Some beekeepers keep stacks of active beehives on long flatbed trailers and move them from one farm's honey flow to the next. They rent the bees to farmers to pollinate orchards, gardens and oth... Mon, 08 Apr 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In-room_wildlife_makes_for_an_exciting_morning We were 16 American men and women having breakfast on the boat while waiting to disembark. We were ages 22 to 84; I was the only person from Missouri and the oldest woman, age 67. We were the first op... Mon, 01 Apr 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Smelly_skunks_look_cuter_in_funnies_than_in_real_life I call them "the funnies" because I read the panels that make me laugh. Who, having had teenagers in the family, could recycle a Tribune without first reading "Zits?" The "For Bett... Mon, 25 Mar 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Old_grindstone_raises_questions_about_pastThis_column_originally_appeared_May_16%2C_2000. 1956: Today I picked up rocks, square nails, a 1866 nickel and a rusty grubbing hoe as I dug through ashes remaining after we burned the old log cabin that stood in our yard. It was built facing an un... Mon, 18 Mar 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Mild_winter_doesn%26rsquo%3Bt_mean_March_won%26rsquo%3Bt_bring_snow The Romans warned of "The Ides of March." Caesar was murdered by enemies and former friends in the "ides" - March 15 plus a day or two before and after. Other dire things were expected... Mon, 11 Mar 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Trust_in_others%2C_self_makes_top_of_list_of_life%26rsquo%3Bs_wonderful_gifts We were a group of oldsters with a lively young speaker, Janice "Cookie" Hagan. "What is the greatest gift you ever received?" she asked. It wasn't a game. We began to jot down... Mon, 04 Mar 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Before_there_was_radar%2C_there_were_groundhogs Our good friends Helen and Floyd Vemer lived on Vemer's Ford Road before a flood washed out the place where people would "ford" Cedar Creek to visit relatives in Callaway County. Ford,... Mon, 25 Feb 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Gnarled_fingers_produce_beautiful_artistic_works There once was a day when the fingers of Grace Bruton Crews raced over the piano keys to the strains of "Tiger Rag," seemingly without effort. They could also manage a delicate embroidery need... Mon, 18 Feb 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Lincoln%26rsquo%3Bs_stories_always_rose_to_fit_the_occasion When I was a child 80 years ago, I looked forward to February at school. We celebrated Abraham Lincoln with construction paper silhouettes on windows and stories of his honesty and integrity. We made ... Mon, 11 Feb 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/To_hear_better%2C_just_stop%2C_look%2C_listen_%C3%B3_and_forgive It's frustrating to hear only part of what a public speaker is saying. Others laugh at his jokes, and some just fake a smile. I was in the latter category 30 years ago. It really helped to put... Mon, 04 Feb 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Newfoundland_adventure__required_winter_research A snowy day in February is a good time to look at travel literature, order maps and check transportation schedules for an adventure in August. Consider details of planning a bicycle trip similar to ou... Mon, 28 Jan 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Christian_College_pool_was_model_for_its_time Recently a reader called and asked, "Why don't you write about that unusual Columbia College swimming pool?" I am happy to do just that. Christian College was the first women's co... Mon, 21 Jan 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Sand_provides_hours_of_fun%2C_lifetime_of_fond_memories Our children and grandsons literally wore out their favorite plaything many times. It was inexpensive, not sold in stores, not shiny or colorful. It required no assembly, no batteries or electricity, ... Mon, 14 Jan 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Law_learned_in_past_days_needs_to_be_applied_now Driving a car on a warm day with the left arm resting across the auto's window frame doesn't apply much pressure on the spine, and it usually doesn't go on for hours or happen every ... Mon, 07 Jan 2002 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Ice_storm_created_winter__wonderland_for_children Mom taught me: "Beware when it's 31 degrees!" Through the years I've observed that, weather-wise, just about anything bad can happen when the temperature is 31 degrees. I wasn&rsqu... Mon, 31 Dec 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Swimmers%26rsquo%3B_effort_helped___drive_for_physical_fitness It's hard to believe that some very positive things happened because our country was suddenly forced into war after the terror in Hawaii on Dec. 7, 1941. The attack on Pearl Harbor demonstrated... Mon, 24 Dec 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Christmas_tree_money_helped__buy_an_%26lsquo%3BUpright_Underwood%26rsquo%3B I was enrolled in typing at University High School in my sophomore year and wanted an Underwood typewriter like the ones the class used. The Sears, Roebuck and Co. catalog offered "Upright Underwo... Mon, 17 Dec 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Christmas_trees_evoke_money-making_memories The Christmas tree is uppermost in our minds this week. We select it, buy it, transport, mount, decorate and admire it. In three weeks we'll recycle it and make our New Year's resolutions.... Mon, 10 Dec 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Elderhostel_stays_result_in_friendship%2C_learning "Could you and Chub meet me in Nebraska for a week?" It was Betty Bretz calling from El Cajon, Calif. "It's called Elderhostel," she said. Bretz was an adventuresome woman of fe... Mon, 03 Dec 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/No_one_wants_misfortune_of_developing_celiac_sprue Long ago I read about celiac sprue in my Preventive Medicine textbook and immediately said to myself, "Don't get THAT!" But I did get it after I was 75 or 80 years old. I have avoided wr... Mon, 26 Nov 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Greatly_admired_Columbia_teachers_displayed_lifelong_love_of_learning If we could ask 1,000 oldsters, natives of Columbia, to name the two most memorable, respected, well-loved people they recall, the names of one man and one woman would pop up frequently. That'... Mon, 19 Nov 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Homespun_entertainment_was_early_leisure_activity "Come over and sit till bedtime," was a familiar invitation when I was a girl and probably a frequent entertainment when the old log cabin housed the Robnetts on this farm. Without radio or an... Mon, 12 Nov 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Early_Boone_County_cabin_life_followed_uncomplicated_path Enough trees have shed their leaves that I can see the neighbors' house south of our farm, and I walked up the pond bank where I could see two more. I picked up a black-and-orange woolly worm, a... Mon, 05 Nov 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Human-powered_airplane_flew_with_local_invention In 1959, British industrialist Henry Kremer offered a huge prize to the inventor of the first flying machine to stay up five minutes or longer using only human power; it had to negotiate a course set ... Mon, 29 Oct 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Entrepreneurs_got_started_at_local_dining_room_table The coach called our son Walt a "scrappy little guard" on the basketball team in ninth grade, but he was not tall enough to hold his own with the varsity players. "I've been thinkin... Mon, 22 Oct 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Boone_County_soldier_wore_lifelong_Confederate_pride Eighty-one years ago, the Daughters of the Confederacy contacted all of the Boone County soldiers who fought in gray and asked for their war memories. They were old, ailing men in 1920, and I knew one... Mon, 15 Oct 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Boston_airport%26rsquo%3Bs_foundation_made_from_Atlantic_sludge Each mention of Boston's Logan International Airport reminds me of when Chub and I were living, temporarily, in a crowded rooming house during World War II. Chub was marking time with the Coast ... Mon, 08 Oct 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/%26nbsp%3BTrip_with_foreign_airline_taught_surprising_lessons Here are some travel incidents in no way related to the terrorism events of Sept. 11. I chose Israel's El Al for our bicycle tour in 1971 because Hortense Davison, Christian College French teac... Mon, 01 Oct 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/%26nbsp%3BWindmills_were_used_to_pump_water_on_local_farms_into_the_%26rsquo%3B40s In 1937 only a few farms at or near Columbia's city limits had access to electrical lines. They depended on coal oil lamps and lanterns for lighting their homes and barns. In dark winter months,... Mon, 24 Sep 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Depression_weddings_simple_but_long-lasting Beginning the eighth year of writing Granny's Notes, I have few secrets left untold. In more than 400 columns, however, I have avoided politics, religion and personal health. Each time I begin a... Mon, 17 Sep 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Granny%26rsquo%3Bs_deep-water_test_helps_ensure_pool_safety On Sunday afternoon, my son Walt was swimming and life-guarding two of my adult students. We were watching Melone, 2?, who was playing alone in the yard, in sight of both groups. Suddenly the toddl... Mon, 10 Sep 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Historic_Columbia_pool_goes_down_the_drain The history of Columbia's swimming pools is both sad and happy; some of us have survived both. The University of Missouri-Columbia had no place for men to swim long after the women's pool ... Mon, 27 Aug 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Hopefully%2C_living_conditions_have_improved_for_Chinese As a child, I imagined that if I dug all through the Earth, I'd find China. I got that idea from the globe in the first-grade room at Lab School. At age 67, I was one of the first to tour there... Mon, 20 Aug 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Columbia%26rsquo%3Bs_black_athletes__excelled_before_integration Columbia had three high schools in 1928 - Columbia High School, Douglass High School and the University Laboratory High School known as U-High. My brother and I attended U-High, which was next to Un... Mon, 13 Aug 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In_years_past%2C_beating_the_heat_no_easy_task How did people beat the heat in the old days? That's the question older people are answering these days, for themselves as well as for youngsters who ask it. Survival in summer was no miracle. W... Mon, 06 Aug 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Coyotes_spell_trouble__for_county_pets%2C_farmers Coyotes are useful to farmers when they feed on gophers, rats, mice and other rodent pests - or so the encyclopedia says. During the winter, they are not as useful when wild food can not be found. Dur... Mon, 30 Jul 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Ben_Franklin%2C_song_teach__good_lesson_in_swimming All I really needed to know about swimming, I learned from two sources: Benjamin Franklin and a popular song. Franklin flew kites, invented stoves and bifocal glasses; he taught himself to read in sev... Mon, 23 Jul 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Glass-bottled_milk_put_people_through_college Most milk customers bought a quart of whole milk each day because it was delivered to their homes, fresh and chilled, in time for breakfast. The milk in the glass bottle that sat in the shade of the f... Mon, 16 Jul 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Many_city_folk_don%26rsquo%3Bt_understand_old-time_milk_production%2C_delivery About 30 years ago in Belgium, my bicycle tour group visited a farm. Our guide opened a stall door and said, "This is where we keep the bull." A student asked, "Mrs. G. The bull, what does... Mon, 09 Jul 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Spare_tire_can_be_lifesaver_when_someone%26rsquo%3Bs_drowning There's a lifesaving device in the trunk of every vehicle, and there's almost always a vehicle near when someone yells, "Help! That person is drowning!" He's trying to keep h... Mon, 02 Jul 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Learning_extra_skills_gave_farmers_home_advantage My father, O.D.Meyers, had his own forge, anvil, drill, ball-peen hammers, tongs and other tools for blacksmithing. In the early 1920s, farmers did their own machinery repair and other metal work to s... Mon, 25 Jun 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Tower_commemorates__prominent_local_family A year ago, many of us were spending time, energy and money to prevent a huge water tower from being built smack dab in front of Olivet Church's front door. Obviously we lost the battle! This ob... Mon, 18 Jun 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Take_safety_precautions_for_more_enjoyable_ride Safe cyclists are happy cyclists - be one! Drive your bike as you would drive a car, and be personally concerned for your own safety. How can you do that? Here are some tips for happy cycling: 1. Ha... Mon, 11 Jun 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/College_girls%2C_country_folk__gather_at_weekend_retreat Hiking was a favorite activity at Christian College in the 1940s. They earned a "point per mile" toward a letter award for each hike of five miles or more. The college's coveted big gold... Mon, 04 Jun 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Account_of_summer_farm_life_reveals_not-so-simple_duties A city fellow once said, "Sue, you farmers have it easy: You plant in spring, the crops grow all summer and you harvest in the fall." He taught psychology, and I should have had him with me on... Mon, 21 May 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Chains_stretched_across_Columbia_streets_in_1919 My parents lived east of downtown Columbia when I was born, and we have traveled East Broadway for employment, shopping, schools, entertainment and more during all of my 86 years. My early memory of E... Mon, 14 May 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Spring_brings_poison_ivy%2C_fresh_vegetables%2C_chores Except for the danger of floods for people who live near big creeks and the Big Muddy, we're in that wonderful time of the year, after frozen pipes and before tall weeds. The signs of both sprin... Mon, 07 May 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Lesson_in_patience_helps_recreation_work_succeed Seventy years ago, I started teaching at Christian College - now Columbia College - as a part-time swimming teacher. Soon I taught full time, including a class for prospective recreation professional... Mon, 30 Apr 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Toddlers_are_too_young_for_swimming_lessons It happened again last week. An anxious young mother said, "She just loves her B-A-T-H. We have to spell it because she loves it so. Do you think I should give Tracy swimming lessons?" &#34... Mon, 23 Apr 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Long-lost_brothers_met__midstream_at_Vicksburg My grandpa, James Lawrence Henry Jr., was born at Easton, N.Y., in 1839. He married Frances Lampton in March l861 and that same year, at age 22, answered Gov. Claiborne Fox Jackson's urgent call... Mon, 16 Apr 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/%26nbsp%3BUpper_Louisiana_towns__were_clusters_of_cabins Before 1815, prowling bands of American Indians harassed European intruders here in what was then Upper Louisiana. It would later be called Boone County, Mo. In 1815, the Indians released claims to la... Mon, 09 Apr 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Granny_Sue%26rsquo%3Bs_%26lsquo%3BDay_Camp%26rsquo%3B_encourages_outdoor_fun Today, in my eighties, I miss those grandkids. For several years, I had the pleasure of dropping everything else and playing with four or more boys for five days every other week. They grew like weeds... Mon, 02 Apr 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Jane_Froman_diving_story_probably_just_an_old_myth Even newcomers to Columbia might be familiar with the name Jane Froman; she sang for countless service men in many parts of the world during World War II. She gave them a bit of happiness, a few mome... Mon, 26 Mar 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Step-grandson_embarks_on_culinary_career_despite_storm The first time we met, Tim Graham was about 12 years old. We were the Grahams' guests for an evening meal. When I complimented the salad, Mary said, "This is Tim's salad." "Hi... Mon, 19 Mar 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Too-long_uniforms_hamper_athletes%26rsquo%3B_ability_to_perform The first thing people say to us oldsters is, "You must have seen a lot of changes in your lifetime." When it comes to athletics and physical education, I have plenty to say about the old gym ... Mon, 12 Mar 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Heimlich%26rsquo%3Bs_effectiveness_took_awhile_to_catch_on I retired in 1972, having enjoyed many years of teaching aquatics at Columbia College, and hurried to do things I'd put aside until I retired. One weekend my now-late husband, Chub Gerard, and I... Mon, 05 Mar 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/George_Washington%26rsquo%3Bs_rules_on_manners_still_applicable School children used to pattern their lives after the heroes of their day; President George Washington was one of my favorites. He was honest. He worked hard. He became president of the United States ... Mon, 26 Feb 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/New_friend_shares_love_of_bicycles_and_clay As Chub and I entered the youth hostel, I rolled my bike to the registration desk, and Chub followed with our luggage. A young woman came with an outstretched hand, saying, "You're Sue, and ... Mon, 19 Feb 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Abraham_Lincoln_was_mix_of_sharp_wit%2C_compassion I have bought some of my most treasured books as bargains at auction sales. I didn't even know that "Lincoln's Stories" was in the bunch when I paid $9 for "all of the rest of ... Mon, 12 Feb 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Springtime_chores_keep_queen%2C_worker_bees_busy When you're speeding along on the highway and see a stack of white boxes near a farmstead, you might say, "Gee, all of those boxes are full of honey! Not so. The lower two boxes house abou... Mon, 05 Feb 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Bees_keep_busy_in_winter_heating_hive_for_survival Not long ago, I stared at a white landscape watching fine snow blow from west to east building drifts I could not control. I thought about those five or six bluebirds cuddled up together in their wood... Mon, 29 Jan 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Christian%2FColumbia_College_has_many_years_of_memories Christian College was left in the lurch a few weeks before the opening of the fall semester during the Depression. The former teacher, a graduate student at MU, suddenly transferred out of state. Sh... Mon, 22 Jan 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In_January%2C_be_prepared_when_skating_on_thin_ice Let's face it - people drown in winter. A few years ago, six Missouri children died when they went through the ice in three separate accidents. Two drowned while trying to rescue other children,... Mon, 15 Jan 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Making_snow_sculptures__is_fabulous_group_activity You'll know the snow is right for rolling into big balls for snow sculpture if the temperature is near the freezing mark: 31 degrees to 33, for example. Pick up a handful of snow and squeeze it... Mon, 08 Jan 2001 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/%26lsquo%3BLighting_the_Way%26rsquo%3B_shares_the_story__of_bringing_electricity_to_local_farms When Mom and Dad bought a farm in 1915, it was four miles from Ninth and Broadway in Columbia. That was too far from the city for electric lines to reach them. Dad and his helpers did farm chores i... Mon, 18 Dec 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/New_city_park_should_use_names_Stephens%2C_Gordon Miss Caroline Hartwig and Mrs. Fannie Bardlemeier would be surprised and pleased that I'm dipping into history in these weekly stories. I was no whiz at history. Most of us who have lived here m... Mon, 11 Dec 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Remember_to_tell_children_all_about_those_olden_days Five grandparents were invited to answer fifth-graders' questions on Grandparents' Day. One question was, "What did you like best in your hot lunch program?" My "hot" lunch... Mon, 04 Dec 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Cooper_brothers_decided_to_stay_and_fight_for_home Last Monday I misspelled Sarshall, the first name of Benjamin Cooper's brother, but if you read Sarshall's message to the territorial governor, it's obvious that spelling in the 1800... Mon, 27 Nov 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Benjamin_Cooper_built__fort_to_fend_off_warring_Indians Daniel Boone's company of immigrants moved 800 miles from central Kentucky to Missouri in 1800 and settled along the north side of the Missouri River. They built log cabins between Marthasville ... Mon, 20 Nov 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Many_found_wholesome_fun_at_Columbia%26rsquo%3Bs_new_property My past involvement with Columbia's recreation programs and a belief that wholesome outdoor recreation is every person's birthright prompt me to review some early local experiences. Some o... Mon, 13 Nov 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Election_Day_calls_to_mind_history_of_our_hometown This first full week in November 2000 is one of the most significant weeks in Columbia's history. I've lived more than 86 years in Boone County, east of Columbia's city limits. Tom... Mon, 06 Nov 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/New_Zealand_gourd_feast_recalls_family_%26lsquo%3Bheritage_pumpkin%26rsquo%3B_tradition When I toured by bicycle, alone, in New Zealand, the young people in the Christchurch Youth Hostel treated me like a special person. I was 30 years older than those in the youth hostel club were, bu... Mon, 30 Oct 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Strolling_in_style_for_frosty_October_mornings Beautiful, unpredictable October 2000 began with my "last day to swim" on the third. Three days later, there were slivers of ice on buckets left outdoors. The pastures were white with frost, a... Mon, 16 Oct 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Planned_recreation_requires_skilled%2C_patient_leadership In 1935 I started at Christian College, now Columbia College, as a part-time teacher of swimming, diving and lifesaving. The second year I was a full-time faculty member, marching in the academic proc... Tue, 03 Oct 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Students_at_high_school_enjoyed_university_perks It was unheard of in the early l920s for first-grade pupils to stretch out on floor mats and listen to classical music. It was "foolish" to serve graham crackers and milk in midmorning. Many p... Tue, 26 Sep 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/University_lab_schools_gone_but_not_forgotten Grade school pupils almost all sat at desks in the 1920s, but in the Missouri University's Laboratory Schools, I never sat at a desk or carried a heavy book bag. MU students in the School of Edu... Tue, 19 Sep 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Carefully_built_nest__is_a_lesson_in_ingenuity Today I'm celebrating the beginning of my seventh year of writing "Granny's Notes." Six years ago, I had four grandchildren, and they came to the farm a lot for what we called &#... Tue, 12 Sep 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Heimlich_touts_method_for_drowning_victims A stranger once stopped by the table where I was working with clay and asked, "What are you making?" I said, "I'm making a fellow doing artificial respiration on a person who is appa... Tue, 05 Sep 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Bicyclists%26rsquo%3B_bone-shaking_rides_led_to_paved_roads Farmers used teams and wagons, or sleighs and wagon sleds in snow, to haul products to market. Cattle, sheep and hogs were often driven on foot to the nearest shipping point. Mail-order catalogs w... Tue, 22 Aug 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Despite_some_grousing%2C_electricity_changed_lives We used coal oil lamps and farm lanterns for several years after our fire and the construction of our new home. The cost of connecting with city electric lines was beyond the reach of Dad and Mom and ... Tue, 15 Aug 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Granny%26rsquo%3Bs_notesHooked_on_memories%2C_fish_don%26rsquo%3Bt_need_to_bite There's an old woman who sits in a lawn chair on my dock at sundown, fishing and reminiscing and not caring if the fish are striking. She dreams of the little kid in bib overalls who was nicknam... Tue, 08 Aug 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Head_of_Sony_crosses_paths_with_bike_tour When I was the "designated bike watcher" at Canterbury Cathedral in southern England, three Japanese tourists stopped and one asked, excitedly, "Take picture? Take picture?" I smiled, ... Tue, 01 Aug 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Things_are_different__way_out_in_the_country When Chub and I bought our farm, relatives were the first to ask, "Aren't you lonely way out there in the country?" We've heard "way out there" - or "here" - "... Tue, 25 Jul 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Duley%26rsquo%3Bs_Mill_gave_area_its_first_one-stop_shop The first Fourth of July celebration in this area was held in 1820 under sugar maple trees at a spring near Smithton. Several families were distressed because their infant village of Smithton was doom... Tue, 18 Jul 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Memories_of_these_tastes_won%26rsquo%3Bt_soon_be_forgotten The taste of Ö ... fried chicken - a chicken that was born free and raised to run free on the farm. Dozens of them used to run up to the back door when Mom went out with potato and apple peelings -... Tue, 27 Jun 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/McHarg_family%26rsquo%3Bs_service_to_community About 1860, the McHarg family came from Maghera, Northern Ireland, because their relatives had painted such a glowing picture of life in this new country. William was a 2-year-old toddler when h... Tue, 20 Jun 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/%26lsquo%3BKettle%26rsquo%3B_engineers_teach_how_America_was_made It's a skilled engineer who can make a smooth-purring "kettle" out a of an old steam engine that's been idle for 50 tractor-crazy years. There seems to have been no wearing out of ... Tue, 13 Jun 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Bike_excursion_through_China_reveals_anisolated_society Mr. Wu, our interpreter from Hong Kong, said, "Who wants to go to town after we eat?" I seized the opportunity. Sixteen of us had bicycled several days on mainland China's streets an... Tue, 06 Jun 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Pretend%0D%0Awe%26rsquo%3Bre_pushing_the_frontier_westward Come along. We're planning to leave our home near St. Louis -- it's the early 1800s -- pushing the frontier westward. It's called Upper Louisiana, honoring Louis XIV, and ... Tue, 30 May 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Parents%0D%0Ashouldn%26rsquo%3Bt_teach_tots_to_swim_too_early It happened again last week: An eager mother said, "She just loves her B-A-T-H. We have to spell it because she loves it so. Do you think I should give Stacey swimming lessons?" "... Tue, 23 May 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Old%0D%0Agrindstone_raises_questions_about_past 1956: Today I picked up rocks, square nails, a 1866 nickel and a rusty grubbing hoe as I dug through ashes remaining after we burned the old log cabin that stood in our yard. It was built facing an... Tue, 16 May 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Unplanned%0D%0Afarming_career_moves_family_to_the_country Chub returned from the service after World War II and worked several years for the Boone County Rural Electric Association. Nancy was 3 years old, and Walt was not yet 2 when Chub reported for work... Tue, 09 May 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Small_details%0D%0Abig_part_of_full_family_history It's likely that many of us have a sense of guilt for not knowing more about the lives of people in our past. I know that Dad's father was born two days after his parents landed in New ... Tue, 02 May 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Some_sunburn%0D%0Alessons_learned_the_hard_way The worst sunburn I ever had came one Sunday during an outing on Perche Creek. I rowed a heavy, homemade boat downstream alone and turned back to discover that the current had helped me go down, bu... Tue, 25 Apr 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Ignored%0D%0Areservation_causes_a_lodging_problem_in_Spain In 1936, the idea of inexpensive lodging for young travelers appealed to me. Youth hostels were new in this country, but in 1937, I proposed a summer hostel tour for a few Christian College stud... Tue, 18 Apr 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Ohio_bike_tour%0D%0Asparked_idea_for_Hermann_Hassle April is the time when bicycle enthusiasts all over the nation and in several foreign countries are getting in shape to ride in a famous event in Ohio. The Tour of the Sciota River Valley begins in... Tue, 11 Apr 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Solitary_tour_of%0D%0ACanton_anything_but_lonely During our 11 days in 1981 in mainland China, people stared at our bicycles and welcomed us warmly at hotels, and our hosts, the All China Youth Federation, gave us the red-carpet treatment. Howeve... Tue, 04 Apr 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Festivities_offer%0D%0Achance_to_gain_horse_sense Dad and Mom had a team of horses soon after they bought their farm in 1916. I was too young to remember Steamboat and Jake. I always wanted to be a part of everything, so when Dad left the horses g... Tue, 28 Mar 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Skin_cancer_can%0D%0Aresult_from_poor_protection Dear Grandkids, Allow me to correct some misinformation I've given you most of your lives. Your well-meaning Granny unintentionally steered you wrong about the hazards of being in the sun. ... Tue, 21 Mar 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Black_walnuts%0D%0Abring_back_fond_Missouri_memories I've just tasted the best black walnut kernels that I've ever put in my mouth. I've stomped and hulled walnuts since I was big enough to mash off that outer green hull. I can smel... Tue, 29 Feb 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Careful%0D%0Amassage_saves_courageous_Pekingese During the late '30s, I had a lovely Pekingese pup named Fuey Yon Yu. "Fuey" was a slang word that meant "I don't agree with you" or the stronger "You're ... Tue, 22 Feb 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Skunks_have%0D%0Ano_appeal_as_cute_household_pets "The skunk is an attractive little animal that makes a delightful pet ... " Don't believe that! I read it in the encyclopedia, but I've encountered a few and never gave "... Tue, 15 Feb 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Water_and_lack%0D%0Athereof_lead_to_demise_of_towns Wagons are going west over the animal-path trail through what will later be Boone County. All of Mid-Missouri is known as Boonslick -- or Boone's Lick -- Country, and the trace is cal... Tue, 08 Feb 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Hard%2C_honest%0D%0Awork_opened_new_world_to_Abe_Lincoln To drive home a point, Abe Lincoln often said, "That reminds me of a story" and proceeded to explain his remarks with what one admirer called his "pointed, pungent, pithy and practic... Tue, 01 Feb 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/New_Zealand%0D%0Acreative_in_packaging_dry_milk The year was l975, and Chub and I were planning to stop in New Zealand on our way home from Australia, so a mutual friend introduced us to a visiting professor and his family. He had completed his ... Tue, 25 Jan 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Trip_through%0D%0Aislands_illustrates_life_in_Samoa Oops! A correction: Last week I wrote about a Samoan girl who offered to sell me an octopus for "a quawter." The size of the octopus was 20 inches -- not 20 feet! My camera was read... Tue, 18 Jan 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Long_bicycle%0D%0Atrip_yields_strong_memories%2C_friends All of us on the plane from Honolulu to Auckland, New Zealand, earned certificates for crossing the international date line. Suddenly Saturday became Sunday. I was on sabbatical leave, with pay, to... Tue, 11 Jan 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Icy%0D%0Aenticement_hides_danger_of_drowning On Christmas Day, a TV station announced, "Missouri boy breaks through ice and survives." That boy was lucky. The 1999 winter drowning threat came suddenly when near zero weather suddenly... Tue, 04 Jan 2000 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Memory_of%0D%0Abest_holiday_present_lingers_to_this_day Last Sunday evening I went to the pasture, saw in hand, got down on my knees on the wet ground and cut a small Christmas tree from the fencerow in front of my picture window. Everything about this ... Tue, 21 Dec 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Nova_Scotia%0D%0Aexcursion_marred_by_bike_accident Nancy and I were bicycling with full saddlebags in Canada's Maritime Provinces soon after her graduation from Christian College. We planned to meet two friends from Kansas City in Wolfville, ... Tue, 14 Dec 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Potters_and%0D%0Afriends_work_through_the_chilly_night We never had better weather to fire the wood-burning kiln. Rain would have canceled the event because wet wood doesn't burn well. Wind could have delayed it. Nov. 27, 1999, was just right. On... Tue, 07 Dec 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Cold_rain%0D%0Acan%26rsquo%3Bt_keep_swimmers_from_earning_coveted_badge During the Depression, Allie Crews was the only employee of the Boone County chapter of American Red Cross. It surprised me when she called to say, "The board chose you to represent our county... Tue, 30 Nov 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Wood-fired_kilns%2C%0D%0Asalt_glazing_give_potters_unique_experience Why would a crew of potters, families and friends work into the night throwing wood into a kiln for 10 to 13 hours? These potters own conventional kilns, which use gas, electricity or oil and have ... Tue, 23 Nov 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Bike_class_lures%0D%0Amen_to_Christian_College In 1851 Christian College became the first woman's college chartered west of the Mississippi River. It remained a two-year junior college for women for more than a century. President Edgar... Tue, 16 Nov 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Christian%0D%0ACollege_prank_haunts_St._Clair_Hall One autumn day when I was waiting at my desk for the nine o'clock swim class to arrive, the students came up the steps chattering about a spooky thing that had happened on campus the night be... Tue, 09 Nov 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/During_war%2C%0D%0Arec_center_gave_teens_a_refuge During World War II, Columbia's streets had mostly older people and young women and girls. There wasn't much to do with the men and boys away in training camps or in various parts of th... Tue, 02 Nov 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Brickton_Road%0D%0Awork_will_reveal_clay_beds It may surprise more than a few readers to learn that Megamarket, Sam's Club, Lowes, Wal-Mart and several other stores are built in the bottom of one of Columbia's old clay pits, which ... Tue, 26 Oct 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Digging_and%0D%0Arefining_clay_expensive_but_rewarding Dad used to say with disgust, "I can't get that blasted clay off my boots!" He also referred to some small part of his dairy farm as worthless, saying, "That clay spot won&rsqu... Tue, 19 Oct 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Honest_couple%0D%0Asaves_Appalachian_vacation Twice recently I've been reminded of Mother's advice: "Don't cry over spilled milk." Spilled milk is gone forever, and all you can do about it is to clean it up, forget ... Tue, 12 Oct 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Trip_to%0D%0AKentucky_yields_miles_of_family_history Grandma Henry was Huldah Pratt, a young woman, when she married "Mr. Henry," a Civil War veteran and widower with three growing children. She was a petite, gentle woman who loved kids, an... Tue, 05 Oct 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Building_a%0D%0Aship_in_a_bottle_teaches_important_lessons When I was teaching a class called "Recreational Leadership" at Christian College, the semester project in handicrafts was to put a ship in a bottle. The students knew this early in the s... Tue, 28 Sep 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Missouri_stone%0D%0Amason_assembled_unique_puzzle He graduated from Griggsville, Illinois, High School, as the class salutatorian. As the son of an inventive blacksmith, Eris Lytle had picked up a lot of pointers about working with wood and metal,... Tue, 21 Sep 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Remembering%0D%0Aour_ancestors_is_an_important_part_of_life Boone Monument Farm is north of the Missouri River, just north of Highway 94 near the small towns of Defiance and Marthasville. Even hikers and bikers on the cross-state Katy trail can see a large,... Tue, 14 Sep 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Once_again%2C%0D%0Ait%26rsquo%3Bs_the_time_for_another_introduction In 1994, Jim Robertson gave the nod and placed my short musings into the Tuesday paper each week. "Introduce yourself to our readers," he said. I reintroduce myself once a year for new re... Tue, 07 Sep 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Cyclists_did%0D%0Asomething_seemingly_impossible This week thousands of Tribune readers are asking themselves, "Why in the world would any woman want to get on a bicycle in California and pedal it in wind, rain and record heat, over mountain... Tue, 24 Aug 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Bicycle_tour%0D%0Aoffered_different_view_of_China Our bicycles had gears, water bottles and tire pumps; they were bright and lightweight, and our warning bells made a different sound. Everywhere we went, Chinese people stared at us because of ligh... Tue, 17 Aug 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Sidewalk%0D%0Acapitalists_abound_in_China We were 16 American youth hostelers cycling in Communist China, only the second group of foreigners permitted to bicycle there after the bloody revolution of 1949. A bike mishap required that I be ... Tue, 10 Aug 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Kids_are_swimming%0D%0Abefore_they_know_it Soon after I arrived in Flint, Mich., during World War II, the Department of Recreation employed me to teach at four of their pools. There were many surprises. Almost all of the children who crowde... Tue, 27 Jul 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/How_to_teach_a_fish_out_of%0D%0Awater_to_swim The first person who asked me to teach her to swim was a well-groomed, wealthy woman in her 30s. We went to Cedar Creek for these lessons. I had no training for this job because I was only 15 years... Tue, 20 Jul 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Pottery%0D%0Astudio_visit_starts_retirement_hobby When our daughter, Nancy, was in Sue Mitchell's 4-H project on home furnishings, she learned how to remove old paint and varnish from picture frames and other small items. One day I stoppe... Tue, 13 Jul 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Personal%0D%0Ahistory_filled_with_life_of_swimming People occasionally ask, "Why did you use that picture of a ganglin' 10 year old in a bathing suit on the dust cover of your book?" I explain, "That's me as a kid.&quo... Tue, 06 Jul 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Watching_the%0D%0Asky_for_rain_was_a_yearly_occupation The calves, kicking their hind legs up high, were cavorting over the pasture. A sign of rain -- puffy clouds -- floated in from the west, but no rain fell. The wind shifted, tree leaves sho... Tue, 29 Jun 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Olivet%0D%0AChristian%26rsquo%3Bs_dinner_has_tradition_of_fellowship June is the season for area country churches to take turns holding public ham suppers, barbecues and other money-making events. There'll be one almost every Saturday evening; This week, it wi... Tue, 15 Jun 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/GRANNY%26rsquo%3BS_NOTES%0D%0ANewborn%0D%0Apiglets_thrill_everyone_in_the_family Chub started the pickup to drive to work, none too soon as usual. "Would you take eight or 10 ears of corn down to Christmas Tree?" he asked and hurried off. As a farm girl, I like... Tue, 01 Jun 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/33_%26%23145%3BHarg%0D%0AHustlers%26rsquo%3B_camped_on_local_farm One August morning in 1950, 33 clean and happy youngsters arrived at the Maurice Stice farm on Route WW, happy and ready for the next event of our local camp. They were shiny-clean and combed becau... Tue, 25 May 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Couple%26rsquo%3Bs%0D%0Aideas_spark_community_excitement Two St. Louis fur merchants built luxurious homes near Harg in the late 1930s. Four days a week, the two men drove to their offices and back and on long weekends enjoyed the quiet beauty of their &... Tue, 18 May 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Bike_trip_yields%0D%0Aclock_that_survives_the_ages My children Nancy and Walt, and our friend Barbara Smith, were my bicycle companions in 1966. We leaned our loaded bikes against an old stone wall and entered an antique store in Llangollen, Wal... Tue, 04 May 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Untitled Life on our frontier was rugged. People saved their shoes for Sundays and worked barefooted at other times or made footwear from animal skins. Unfortunately, they had not learned to dig cisterns fo... Tue, 27 Apr 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Olivet%0D%0Achurch%26rsquo%3Bs_history_rewritten_after_fire To Mrs. J.A. "Hattie" Page goes credit for preserving the earliest history of Olivet Christian Church five miles east of Columbia. When she was a special student in the School of Journali... Tue, 20 Apr 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Mother_Nature%0D%0Aissues_telltale_signs_of_spring When I was a child spring was when people dug the roots of sassafras trees, scrubbed them and made a delicious pink tea that was supposed to thin our blood. We didn't know blood needed thinni... Tue, 13 Apr 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Carefree%0D%0Alifestyle_hid_darker_side_of_gypsies About the time people began to ask, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" I imagined it would be great to be a farmer like Dad and wear bib overalls all of the time. Now in my 80s, I... Tue, 06 Apr 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/%26%23145%3BKentucky%26rsquo%3Bs%0D%0Abest%26rsquo%3B_started_settlement_of_Columbia In my last three columns I've attempted to describe the transition of our wilderness into a planned community by concerned, ambitious citizens working together on the frontier. A time line of... Tue, 30 Mar 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Water_problem%0D%0Adoomed_Smithton_from_the_start The first settlement here was a cluster of about five hastily built log cabins and Richard Gentry's home, store and "house of entertainment." Before Missouri was a state, President ... Tue, 23 Mar 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Boones%26rsquo%3B%0D%0Asalt_enterprise_hard_work%2C_profitable Native Americans succeeded in driving the three Cooper brothers back home to Loutre Island in 1809. The Coopers returned with about 150 others the next year, 1810. Even before that, Nathan and Dani... Tue, 16 Mar 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Settlers_pull%0D%0Athrough_war_with_American_Indians I often wonder what it was that attracted settlers to this untamed wilderness soon after the Boones arrived in "Upper Louisiana." Before there was a permanent settlement in what is now Bo... Tue, 09 Mar 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Mishaps_cause%0D%0Aanxiety_on_English_bike_tour In August, 27 years ago, my husband and I were making our first long bike tour carrying everything in saddlebags. We wandered around Britain without an itinerary and made train hops through industr... Tue, 02 Mar 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/European%0D%0Abicycle_tour_perfect_retirement_trip Twelve Columbia College students and I had pedaled more than 900 miles in Europe and were at the Glasgow, Scotland, airport. That was August 1972, the last event of my 33 years of teaching. My assi... Tue, 23 Feb 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Old_pool_was%0D%0Aimportant_part_of_community_life The question I'm answering most often these days is, "What ever happened to that huge swimming pool that was in Proctorville out on Old 40?" Proctorville refers to a large white hou... Tue, 16 Feb 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Book%26rsquo%3Bs%0D%0Asuccess_owed_to_family%2C_friends What a joy! I met many of you readers Jan. 30 at the Tribune's reception and book-signing event! You were childhood friends, bicycle buddies, swimming students and parents of swimmers. Many s... Tue, 09 Feb 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Rebecca_Boone_was%0D%0Aresilient_during_her_husband%26rsquo%3Bs_absences Deep snowdrifts blocked my long driveway in two or three places a couple of weeks ago. Freezing mix and more snow followed, making the drifts impassable. My good neighbor, Therion Hinshaw, brought ... Tue, 02 Feb 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Youthful_Abe_Lincoln_learns%0D%0Avaluable_lesson In January and February we honor three great Americans: Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr. and George Washington. Here are some little-known facts about Lincoln that don't make the headl... Tue, 26 Jan 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Beautiful_relics_of_past%0D%0Arecovered_from_wreck When Henry VIII stared with field glasses from his castle in Portsmouth, England, the British and French were shooting cannonballs and arrows at each other. We can imagine that the fat king ripped ... Tue, 19 Jan 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/City_kids_get%0D%0Abonus_at_swimming_lesson A little girl was directing her grandmother to our farm, where she was enrolled in a swimming class. "Now, this is where you turn down Wild Kingdom Road," she said. Another time, as so... Tue, 12 Jan 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Big_snow_brings_back_New%0D%0AYear%26rsquo%3Bs_memories Nancy and I dug into some early "Granny's Notes" and decided that today we'd share a favorite memory of another big snow -- a snowy New Year's Eve party in 1958. ... Tue, 05 Jan 1999 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Pantomime%0D%0Aovercomes_foreign-language_barrier It's no wonder that my friends from England insist that I speak American -- not English. And I often have to ask them to repeat when we talk. One semester of college French and five years... Tue, 29 Dec 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Swimming_pools%2C%0D%0Awater_are_a_danger_year-round During the first hot days in May I have a sudden urge to warn parents that small children might venture into their favorite swimming hole without supervision. In winter I get that same urge! Water ... Tue, 22 Dec 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Innocent_side_trip%0D%0Aprovides_tour_lesson The first thing we learned about touring by bicycle was that each person should have a written itinerary in his pocket at all times. We were two mothers and our four youngsters, fitted with ren... Tue, 15 Dec 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Memorable_stories_are_a%0D%0Awonderful_gift As an over-anxious, first-time author I've made the mistake of assuming that the "scheduled shipping date" as cast in stone! Not so. My book, "My First 84 Years, Granny&rsqu... Tue, 08 Dec 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Burned_Gordon%0D%0AManor_still_guards_Columbia A treaty with American Indians caused most of them to move south of the Missouri River about 1815 but some danger remained here, in this part of Upper Louisiana. People throughout the nation were h... Tue, 01 Dec 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Gordon_Manor_shines%2C_even_as%0D%0Aa_charred_ruin On Nov. 14, the "sentinel which stood as a guard at the east portals of Columbia" for 175 years was gutted by fire. The beautiful color photo by Denise McGill prompts me to ask, "Can... Tue, 24 Nov 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Girls_learn%0D%0Aabout_milk_the_old-fashioned_way We were eight gals touring in Belgium on bicycles, carrying loaded saddlebags. The cyclists up front pulled off the road when one said, "I think that sign said 'farmer's cheese.&rsq... Tue, 17 Nov 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Family_dairies_in%0D%0A1930s_adapt_to_market_needs It was difficult for dairy farmers to regulate the supply and demand for milk. In a town like Columbia, the autumn influx of students, teachers and workmen at two women's colleges and the uni... Tue, 10 Nov 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Life_on_the_farm_was_hard%2C%0D%0Adirty%2C_yet_happy Grinding corn was fun because all I did was to sit on the big wide horse and tell him to "Whoa" or "Giddup." When he walked around in a circle while hitched to the grinder&rsquo... Tue, 03 Nov 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Old-fashioned_fun_still_alive%0D%0Aand_well At the stroke of 7, 20 women came stampeding out of the dressing rooms. Singing and yelling and waving, they marched right off the stage into the audience. These ladies were artists, real estate ag... Tue, 20 Oct 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_fish_won%26rsquo%3Bt_bite%2C_bullfrogs%0D%0Aspring_to_fore My brother's wife and I are country gals from "way back when," and have lived in the same community all of our lives. Ella Mae and I were not quite the same ages but we saw each oth... Tue, 13 Oct 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Family_works_together_in_emergency%0D%0Asituation A few years ago we were enjoying a University High School reunion. A middle-aged man went to Walt, my son, and said, "Give this snapshot to your mother and say I thought she'd like to ha... Tue, 06 Oct 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Setting_up_windows_for_faraway_families%0D%0A%0D%0ABy_SUE_GERARD ... Tue, 29 Sep 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/A_smiling_perfectionist_with_a_Southern%0D%0Adrawl The first time Eris Lytle saw the stones from St. Mary's Church in London, England, they were a scrambled mess. In addition, they were an ugly black! Missouri's winter weather took care... Tue, 22 Sep 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Granny%26rsquo%3Bs_fifth_year_turns_into%0D%0Abook_effort In September, 1994, I faced Jim Robertson and cautiously asked something like, "You wouldn't be interested in a column about the old days, would you?" He answered by asking to see w... Tue, 15 Sep 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Old_Army_money_belt_teaches_valuable%0D%0Alesson At the end of World War II there was an Army surplus store in downtown Columbia. I bought some canvas bags, a canteen and an olive drab colored money belt. The belt had soft leather on the next-t... Tue, 08 Sep 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Burned-down_house_starts_family%0D%0Aadventure On the evening of May, 18, 1922, my parents, exhausted and deeply hurt, were trying to think of what might have caused the fire that destroyed our house and everything in it. Suddenly Mom shouted, ... Tue, 01 Sep 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Letters_to_the_editor_let_readers%2C%0D%0Astaff_interact Wayne Russell who lives near Harrisburg recently sent me the July, 1956, issue of "Farm Journal and Country Gentleman" because he found my letter to the editor there. The drought was seve... Tue, 25 Aug 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/A_community_benefits_all%2C_even_in_bad%0D%0Atimes Tall, cylindrical towers called silos once dotted the countryside, and when you saw a silo you could bet that dairy cows were grazing nearby. Producing and selling milk was hard work but a way for ... Tue, 04 Aug 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Scary_memories%0D%0Aremain_from_Berlin_corridor_trip We were five American adults and five teens in a VW bus, which we rented in Rotterdam. The 10th passenger was Al Blume, our German friend who was fluent in English and had previously been through t... Tue, 07 Apr 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Treasure_hunt_in%0D%0Awoods_lures_kids%2C_ants During the Depression, the federal government employed persons who desperately needed work and assigned them to projects in their hometowns. This Work Progress Administration plan provided workers ... Tue, 31 Mar 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Washday_has%0D%0Acome_far_since_the_washboard An old camp song is called "Today Is Monday, Monday's Wash Day." And so it was. Women proved their worth by being the first to have the entire washing hanging on the line each Monda... Tue, 24 Mar 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/GRANNY%26rsquo%3BS_NOTES%0D%0AUnderwater%0D%0Alights_put_sparkle_in_water_carnival In 1941, the Columbia Daily Tribune stated, "The sixth annual water carnival will be presented tonight in the Christian College swimming pool under the direction of Mrs. Sue Gerard. The theme,... Tue, 17 Mar 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Homemade_fun%0D%0Ahelped_shape_our_lives Farm kids' lives were not all work, of course. Today, I'm recalling events that happened mostly before I started to school. My brother was 16 months older, and we didn't have many... Tue, 10 Mar 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Olivet_Church_stands_as_a_reminder_of_past Harg was a buzzing little farming community about five miles east of Columbia. It had "Star Route" postal service and was marked on Missouri's official road maps. Gone is the wonder... Tue, 03 Mar 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Slow_down_and%0D%0Asavor_Route_WW%26rsquo%3Bs_history One workday morning about 7:15, I drove to the east edge of Columbia to pick up my grandson Cole so he could visit Chub and me for the day. I met a stream of cars; people were hurrying toward Ful-t... Tue, 24 Feb 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/The_late_Peggy_Phillips_was_well_known_as_... The late Peggy Phillips was well known as director of public relations at Stephens College in the 1960s. She told me this true story about her great-grandmother more than 30 years ago. Her daughter,... Tue, 17 Feb 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/We%26rsquo%3Bd_been_at_Olivet_Church_all_afternoon_... We'd been at Olivet Church all afternoon practicing for the Christmas program. Then we drove to the home of Ethel and Alec Scheurer for our annual get-together a week before Christmas. Hersche... Tue, 10 Feb 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_my_friend_Mary_Grace_heard_that_we%26rsquo%3Bd... When my friend Mary Grace heard that we'd bought the Chris Baumgartner place she said, "Oh, you own that wonderful spring!" She lived a mile south, as the crow flies, and she said ... Tue, 03 Feb 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Because_we_lived_on_a_farm%2C_ice_skating_on... Because we lived on a farm, ice skating on ponds was one of our favorite sports. Each year our feet were too big for the skates we wore the year before. They all clamped on to our regular shoes. Boy... Tue, 27 Jan 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Elizabeth%26rsquo%3Bs_father_rescued_an_old_damaged... Elizabeth's father rescued an old damaged bicycle from the trash pile at Stephens College and got it into usable condition. We rode it on their farm's trails. It was a direct drive style... Tue, 20 Jan 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/One_winter_day_in_the_%26rsquo%3B70s%2C_Floyd_Kaiser_... One winter day in the '70s, Floyd Kaiser and Willis Smith came over to cut wood with Chub. We were eating lunch when I asked, "Has anybody seen Rosie? She didn't go to the woods wi... Tue, 13 Jan 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Recently%2C_I_was_making_my_way_through_crow... Recently, I was making my way through crowded aisles at Wal-Mart as I went to the pharmacy for a refill. I laughed to myself as I recalled a story Mom related often. Before I started school, Art... Tue, 06 Jan 1998 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Thinking_back%2C_there_were_several_reasons_... Thinking back, there were several reasons Walter Frank "Chub" Gerard, 27, should not have married Sue Emelyn Meyers, 23. He was an electrical engineering student at MU, and I was a junio... Tue, 30 Dec 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Stepping_into_one_of_the_local_college_boo... Stepping into one of the local college book stores I was shocked by a huge banner, "SAVE THE WOLVES." Earlier that week coyotes had killed a valuable newborn calf on a neighbor's f... Tue, 23 Dec 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Ours_is_a_family_interested_in_old_cars%2C_s... Ours is a family interested in old cars, so I'm writing some of the highlights of a speech my husband, Chub Gerard, presented to the Columbia "Corral" of Westerners International 1... Tue, 16 Dec 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Chub%26rsquo%3Bs_Uncle_Archie_used_to_tell_about_th... Chub's Uncle Archie used to tell about the country girl who was propositioned on the streets of New York. "Oh, no!" she said, "Only for family and a few close friends but nev... Tue, 09 Dec 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In_my_day%2C_most_kids_I_knew_used_two_tin_c... In my day, most kids I knew used two tin cans and a long cord to make a telephone that actually worked. We punched a small hole in the center of the can bottoms and poked one end of the cord into ea... Tue, 02 Dec 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_I_was_a_little_girl%2C_our_phone_rang_a... When I was a little girl, our phone rang a lot but not all calls were for us. Children didn't use telephones. On a line with six or eight customers, every phone rang and the line was busy when... Tue, 25 Nov 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Columbia%26rsquo%3Bs_1935_experiment_in_supervised_... Columbia's 1935 experiment in supervised playgrounds was so well received that money was available for more supplies and a full summer's program. Local young people, experienced in craft... Tue, 18 Nov 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Imagine_living_without_cell_phones%2C_comput... Imagine living without cell phones, computers -- even TV, air conditioning and radio! Horrors! What did we do with all that extra time? I don't recall that we had any! When I was a kid my brot... Tue, 04 Nov 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/A_city_fellow_once_said%2C_%26ldquo%3BSue%2C_farmers_su... A city fellow once said, "Sue, farmers sure have it easy; they just plant and sit in a bar swapping stories 'til it's time to harvest." He'd seen a farmer in the air co... Tue, 28 Oct 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_I_began_teaching_swimming_classes_at_... When I began teaching swimming classes at Christian College, my supervisor, Grace Mitchell, said, "Be sure and come to the all-school Halloween Party in the gym tomorrow night." The main... Tue, 21 Oct 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In_the_%26rsquo%3B70s_when_I_was_taking_Columbia_Co... In the '70s when I was taking Columbia College students on European bicycle tours, we had a few mishaps, but never a serious accident. The three tours averaged 10 students each and we rode app... Tue, 14 Oct 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/It_comes_as_a_surprise_to_many_people_that... It comes as a surprise to many people that a catastrophe in Missouri's southeast corner had a direct bearing on the early development of Boone County. In 1811 and 1812 the earth shook, rattled... Tue, 07 Oct 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/The_pond_bank_is_almost_the_highest_point_... The pond bank is almost the highest point on our farm, and I sometimes walk there at daybreak or in evenings when the first stars appear. Our land touches the creek that pioneers called "Ce... Tue, 30 Sep 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/A_long-ago_cartoon_showed_a_boy_pushing_a_... A long-ago cartoon showed a boy pushing a rotary lawn mower on a hot sunny day. He had attached a long garden hose to his body and wired the nozzle over his head so it sprayed cool water on him as h... Tue, 23 Sep 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Once%2C_when_our_children_were_getting_ready... Once, when our children were getting ready for Sunday school, I called, "Hey, kids, come see what's going on in the glass beehive." Nancy and Walt stood on stools to see two &ldquo... Tue, 16 Sep 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/It_was_a_surprise_when_Chub_announced_that... It was a surprise when Chub announced that he'd like to have a couple of bee hives. That was great: He'd have an active hobby, and we'd have all the honey we could eat. It would be... Tue, 09 Sep 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Jim_Robertson_thumbed_through_one_volume_o... Jim Robertson thumbed through one volume of stuff I'd written for our four grandchildren and three step-grandchildren. Then, looking at the scribbled title on the front cover, he said, "... Tue, 02 Sep 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In_1935%2C_I_was_Boone_County%26rsquo%3Bs_representat... In 1935, I was Boone County's representative at the American Red Cross Aquatic School in Lake Lucerne, near Eureak Springs, Ark. We studied prevention of water accidents, the rescue of people ... Tue, 26 Aug 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/The_retail_dairy_business_has_changed_a_lo... The retail dairy business has changed a lot, since Dad began milking cows by hand, and delivering the milk to customers homes in a one-horse, box-type covered wagon. Mom was the bookkeeper. That was... Tue, 12 Aug 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/As_a_preschooler%2C_my_world_was_about_six_m... As a preschooler, my world was about six miles long and a mile wide. We lived about three miles from Columbia's Happy Hollow and three from Olivet Christian Church at a country crossroads call... Tue, 05 Aug 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_we_bought_this_160_acres%2C_the_only_po... When we bought this 160 acres, the only pond on the place was little more than a puddle. Early on we constructed a large pond and stocked it with fingerling bass and blue gills. During supper severa... Tue, 29 Jul 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/A_friend_and_I_were_returning_from_a_late_... A friend and I were returning from a late summer weekend in the Ozarks and we stopped to let our grade school children eat, run and wade in a creek. Julie saw some bright red leaves -- the first tou... Tue, 22 Jul 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/We_were_16_bicyclists%2C_a_leader_and_two_in... We were 16 bicyclists, a leader and two interpreters -- waiting for a ferry boat in southeast China. A dozen big trucks and more than a hundred other people also waited. It was 1981 and we were on a... Tue, 15 Jul 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/This_week_I%26rsquo%3Bm_wearing_my_16-year-old_T-sh... This week I'm wearing my 16-year-old T-shirt that was issued to the those of us who bicycled in southern China in 1981. It has a big red star and the symbol of a bicyclist on the front. The ba... Tue, 08 Jul 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In_1972%2C_my_husband_joined_us_a_few_hours_... In 1972, my husband joined us a few hours before my Christian College students flew back to New York, ending their bicycle tour. Chub and I then began wandering around Britain. After watching the st... Tue, 01 Jul 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_I_was_a_toddler%2C_Mom_wrote_to_her_sis... When I was a toddler, Mom wrote to her sister, "I can't keep Sue from slopping around in the chicken trough with her shoes on." In other words, I was a normal toddler who liked wat... Tue, 24 Jun 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/The_week_after_I_earned_my_senior_lifesavi... The week after I earned my senior lifesaving badge I was helping with recreational swimming at a 4-H camp. Before I came out of the dressing room, the other life guard had made a rescue. A boy dived... Tue, 17 Jun 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Nancy%2C_Walt%2C_our_friend_Barbara_Smith_and_... Nancy, Walt, our friend Barbara Smith and I pedaled up 13 miles of unending hills to reach a sheep and cattle farm in Radnorshire, Wales. This was our week to rest near the midpoint of our 900 mile ... Tue, 10 Jun 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/KFRU%26rsquo%3Bs_announcer_said%2C_%26ldquo%3BBroadway_is_bloc... KFRU's announcer said, "Broadway is blocked, Eighth and Ninth streets are also closed to local traffic and all available fire equipment is on hand. Help is coming from towns around&rdquo... Tue, 03 Jun 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/A_few_months_before_our_first_grandchild_w... A few months before our first grandchild was to be born, we bought an antique farm wagon with a stake body. I'd longed for a wagon like this one which I found in our Sears and Roebuck Co. cata... Tue, 27 May 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/She_joined_the_local_bicycle_club_in_the_1... She joined the local bicycle club in the 1970s because her teenage son wanted to go on our 100 mile ride. She got a membership card for Johnny and asked, "Is there a club for people our age?&r... Tue, 20 May 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Our_Hong_Kong_interpreter_said_%26ldquo%3BWho_wants... Our Hong Kong interpreter said "Who wants to go to town to buy a bike bell" "Carpe Diem!" I seized this great opportunity. We had bicycled several days on China's stree... Tue, 13 May 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/My_brother_and_I_rode_to_town_with_Dad_in_... My brother and I rode to town with Dad in his milk truck and attended the University of Missouri Elementary Laboratory Schools. Mom came after us at 4 p.m., and we'd hurry home to help in the ... Tue, 06 May 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Our_farm_family_had_three_substantial_meal... Our farm family had three substantial meals a day, and my "fast food" was an after-school snack. I'd peek under the table cover to see what was left from lunch. Cold biscuits and s... Tue, 29 Apr 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Dad_and_some_neighbors_used_mule_teams%2C_pu... Dad and some neighbors used mule teams, pulling hand operated scrapers, to dig a basement for the Aladdin Ready Cut home that was being shipped on the Wabash to our farm near Columbia. That was in 1... Tue, 22 Apr 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/About_15_years_ago%2C_our_daughter%2C_Nancy_Ru... About 15 years ago, our daughter, Nancy Russell, and I had a booth at a one-day antique show in the Fayette High School gym. We took turns at the booth and visited around to buy and trade with other... Tue, 15 Apr 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Dr._Sumers%26rsquo%3B_nurse_called_Mom_the_day_befo... Dr. Sumers' nurse called Mom the day before my scheduled tonsillectomy and asked, "How will you be coming down to Jefferson City tomorrow?" Mom told her she'd drive me over i... Tue, 08 Apr 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Pottery_is_one_of_the_oldest_arts_of_manki... Pottery is one of the oldest arts of mankind. Sun-dried bricks were used in Egypt about as early as human beings are known to have been there~. China and the European countries were discovering ways... Tue, 25 Mar 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Orl%7Eando_Denver_and_Jesse_Hugo_were_Meyers... Orl~ando Denver and Jesse Hugo were Meyers brothers, born in the late 1800's. They were fondly nicknamed "Dude" and "Coot" by the four half sisters who raised them. Dud... Tue, 18 Mar 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/She%26rsquo%3Bs_a_wiry_little_woman%2C_clipping_along... She's a wiry little woman, clipping along as if she's late. Sometimes we meet in a store or on the street, both grinning, our hands reaching out to shake. I hold on to that tiny hand for... Tue, 11 Mar 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Tall_cylinders_called_silos_once_dotted_th... Tall cylinders called silos once dotted the countryside. When you saw a silo you probably saw dairy cows grazing nearby. Producing and selling milk was a good way for farmers to make a living and si... Tue, 04 Mar 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/%26ldquo%3BAunt_Sue%2C_I%26rsquo%3Bve_got_to_learn_to_swim_wel... "Aunt Sue, I've got to learn to swim well by Friday. You see, I have this date ... he's really neat ... there's this party at the lake and...." I said, "But Maria... Tue, 25 Feb 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Daniel_Boone_was_known_as_a_mighty_hunter%2C... Daniel Boone was known as a mighty hunter, a skilled woodsman and as a leader of groups of settlers who pushed the frontier westward into "Upper Louisiana" -- now called Missouri. His yo... Tue, 18 Feb 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Young_Nathan_was_delighted_with_the_prospe... Young Nathan was delighted with the prospect of his parents moving to Missouri. His older brother had bought land and built a cabin just west of St. Louis, and he urged his dad to do the same. &ldqu... Tue, 11 Feb 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/We_lived_in_Michigan_one_winter_during_Wor... We lived in Michigan one winter during World War II, and I watched as the parks department flooded some outdoor areas to make ice skating rinks. With temperatures in the teens and colder, the ice fr... Tue, 04 Feb 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/A_minor_bike_mishap_on_a_rainy_day_sent_my... A minor bike mishap on a rainy day sent my bike and me sprawling on a muddy blacktop road. The trip leader required a doctor's report of the accident. I was one of 16 bicyclists, pedaling almo... Tue, 28 Jan 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/My_niece%2C_Marian_Lytle%2C_drove_as_we_return... My niece, Marian Lytle, drove as we returned from Kansas recently. We were cruising at 70 mph after dark on dry pavement west of Boonville and we saw no snow till the Stadium Boulevard exit! The car... Tue, 21 Jan 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/A_visit_to_China_never_entered_my_head_unt... A visit to China never entered my head until the American Youth Hostel Association, working with "All China Youth Federation," scheduled the first ever bic~ycle tour in that Communist co... Tue, 14 Jan 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Our_farm_is_fenced_for_cattle._The_corral_... Our farm is fenced for cattle. The corral was not hog-tight, but when neighbors gave our children a bred gilt we added temporary barricades, a roof shelter and straw for bedding. "Porky Pig Ve... Tue, 07 Jan 1997 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Many_of_the_students_in_my_recreational_le... Many of the students in my recreational leadership class at Christian College were from Kentucky, Texas and Oklahoma. They'd never skated on ice, slid on a snowy hill or made a snowman. On... Tue, 31 Dec 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Seventy-some_years_ago_I_thought_I_was_sor... Seventy-some years ago I thought I was sort of an authority on the perfect Christmas tree. It was 3 to 4 feet tall, was cut off Boone County's rocky hillsides -- which were not much good for a... Tue, 24 Dec 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/On_a_sultry_July_afternoon%2C_my_husband%2C_Ch... On a sultry July afternoon, my husband, Chub, woke me from a nap saying, "Helen's on the phone." She screamed "Walter Ray's gone down in the lake. Come help me!" ... Tue, 17 Dec 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/My_good_friend_Helen_Vemer_told_me_about_t... My good friend Helen Vemer told me about the rooster that someone gave her, and I was surprised when she said, "Sue, I want to give you this beautiful white rooster." I asked, &ldquo... Tue, 10 Dec 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/If_Granny%26rsquo%3Bs_Notes_is_full_of_grammatical_... If Granny's Notes is full of grammatical errors, it's probably because Mrs. Virginia Simms took four of us out of our University High School English class and had us write journals. She ... Tue, 26 Nov 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_the_poet_Thomas_Grey_wrote_%26ldquo%3BElegy_Wr... When the poet Thomas Grey wrote "Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard," he must have been within spittin' distance of a tiny stained glass window that is of interest to bicyclists... Tue, 19 Nov 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/One_of_my_favorite_things_to_do_on_Saturda... One of my favorite things to do on Saturday morning was to play on the hay fork in a friend's barn. Dad's barn was for dairy cows and was constructed on a hill. The cows came in the lowe... Tue, 12 Nov 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/During_World_War_II%2C_my_husband%2C_Chub%2C_was... During World War II, my husband, Chub, was waiting for reassignment with the Coast Guard, and we lived in an apartment at Winthrop Beach, Mass., which overlooked the Atlantic Ocean. During a storm, ... Tue, 05 Nov 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Best_Halloween_costumes%0D%0A_%0D%0AAbout_this_... Best Halloween costumes About this time of year, we began to whisper to our grade-school friends, "Whatcha going to be this year?" Most of us "shopped" for Halloween cost... Tue, 29 Oct 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/We_had_climbed_the_steep_hill_to_the_youth... We had climbed the steep hill to the youth hostel in Bath, England, after some evening event that slipped from my memory. What I did remember, however, was that the house parent, Mrs. Evans, came bo... Tue, 22 Oct 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Nancy_was_about_11_when_she_wanted_a_hive_... Nancy was about 11 when she wanted a hive of honey bees of her own. Chub was teaching her how to install a new queen. She put dry leaves in the smoker, lit them and squeezed the bellows a few tim... Tue, 15 Oct 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/It%26rsquo%3Bs_exactly_45_steps_from_the_carport_to... It's exactly 45 steps from the carport to my pottery workshop. I needed to know that on Oct. 20, 1989, at "straight up" 6 a.m. It was pitch dark and I tip-toed past the dog hous... Tue, 08 Oct 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_I_gave_a_day-long_demonstration_of_po... When I gave a day-long demonstration of pottery making in Hermann, I set the wet pots on a bench behind me as each one was finished. I was out in front of John Wilding's antique shop and his 5... Tue, 01 Oct 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/A_stonemason_was_building_a_new_blacksmith... A stonemason was building a new blacksmith shop for I.J. Lytle, in Girggsville, Ill., but he left town with the job unfinished. One of Lytle's sons tried to finish the building but he couldn&r... Tue, 24 Sep 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/The_March_1959_issue_of_Ebony_magazine_gav... The March 1959 issue of Ebony magazine gave front cover billing to my article, "I'm Glad My Daughter's Teacher is a Negro." When Ebony's editor John Johnson, spoke at t... Tue, 17 Sep 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_we_bought_a_worn_out_farm_for_less_th... When we bought a worn out farm for less than $30 per acre, the county road was not always passable, the one room dwelling had no dependable water supply and the "bath" was at the end of ... Tue, 10 Sep 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In_the_early_1950s_we_considered_buying_a_... In the early 1950s we considered buying a 160 acre farm that was known to the neighbors as the Chris Baumgartner place. In the four years since the place was used, heavy rains had washed gullies ... Tue, 03 Sep 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Our_Walter_Eugene_spent_his_own_money_for_... Our Walter Eugene spent his own money for a new, black, single speed bike from Montgomery Ward. Later he bought a used three-speed Schwinn. In 1963 after our bike tour in southern England Walt saw t... Tue, 27 Aug 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In_the_days_when_downtown_Columbia_was_all... In the days when downtown Columbia was all of Columbia, Woolworth's dime store and Hays Hardware were on the south side of Broadway, with a small shop in between. There was another dime store,... Tue, 20 Aug 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Two_things_I_remember_from_early_childhood... Two things I remember from early childhood are that soap suds in our eyes made my brother and me cry and that blowing soap bubbles made us happy. The colorful bubbles were beautiful and they grew la... Tue, 13 Aug 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In_1914%2C_farmers_were_restless_because_the... In 1914, farmers were restless because they had no control over prices they received for their products and no control over prices they paid for the feed, machinery and supplies they bought. A young... Tue, 06 Aug 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In_1886%2C_Johnson%26rsquo%3Bs_Universal_Cyclopedia_s... In 1886, Johnson's Universal Cyclopedia said, "There is no better method of teaching swimming than that suggested by Dr. Franklin." Yes, the kite-flying Benjamin Franklin also m... Tue, 30 Jul 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Two_unanswered_questions_stirred_my_intere... Two unanswered questions stirred my interest in digging for buried treasure. Twenty years ago, Chub and I visited the spot where a Scandinavian spinning "whorl" -- a weight used in spinn... Tue, 23 Jul 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Thirty_years_ago_this_week_Nancy%2C_Walt%2C_Ba... Thirty years ago this week Nancy, Walt, Barbara Smith and I flew to Scotland and went to Rattray's bicycle shop for our beautiful Carlton bikes. I'd bought them after several letters and... Tue, 16 Jul 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/It%26rsquo%3Bs_a_cool_summer_evening%2C_and_I%26rsquo%3Bm_shif... It's a cool summer evening, and I'm shifting gears. I cover the fresh clay pots with plastic to keep them from drying too fast and turn the ceiling fan to medium so yesterday's pot... Tue, 09 Jul 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Dad_and_a_teenage_boy_were_hoeing_corn_in_... Dad and a teenage boy were hoeing corn in the 1920s when they heard an airplane approaching. Planes seldom crossed in the sky over our farm in those early days. Hearing the engine, they leaned on th... Tue, 02 Jul 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Uncle_Dave_Valentine_used_to_fend_off_ques... Uncle Dave Valentine used to fend off questions about his age. "When I was born, I was too young to remember," he'd say. Then his eyes would twinkle and he'd add, "ever... Tue, 25 Jun 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/There_wasn%26rsquo%3Bt_much_national_or_world_news_... There wasn't much national or world news in the Tribune when I was in college so local news of little importance made the front pages. That's how Miss Allie Crews, secretary of the Boone... Tue, 18 Jun 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/A_college_student%2C_trying_to_explain_recre... A college student, trying to explain recreation, said, "It's the way I feel when I ride my bike for an hour or two, alone, on a quiet, hilly road." My friend, Jan, says, "Bik... Tue, 11 Jun 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/An_early_atlas_of_Boone_County_shows_the_l... An early atlas of Boone County shows the location of a combination gristmill and sawmill a few miles north of Columbia on Rocky Fork Creek near Brown's Station. This mill was owned and operate... Tue, 04 Jun 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Our_son%2C_Walt%2C_insisted_that_Chub_and_I_sh... Our son, Walt, insisted that Chub and I should buy expens~ive rainwear for our bicycle trip across Newfoundland. Even at his wholesale cost, pants and jackets cost about $75 per set. Walt remembered... Tue, 28 May 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/At_about_age_24_I_discovered_that_mushroom... At about age 24 I discovered that mushrooms are not all thick white umbrellas with pink gills underneath. We gathered and ate those from the pastures in late September and early October after a rain... Tue, 21 May 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In_the_17th_century%2C_when_people_courageou... In the 17th century, when people courageously planned to move across the Atlantic to a land where "wildemen" and "wildewomen" roamed around in their bare skin, a major decisi... Tue, 14 May 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/During_World_War_%7EII_the_U.S._Coast_Guard_... During World War ~II the U.S. Coast Guard sent my husband to Hemphill Diesel School in New York City, right after boot camp. The students were quartered in a small hotel downtown and went to evening... Tue, 07 May 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Uncle_Archie_Gerard_came_for_a_week%26rsquo%3Bs_vis... Uncle Archie Gerard came for a week's visit, and he stayed four years. He was a great storyteller, he loved a midmorning cigar and he almost never missed going to a Kentucky Derby. He often qu... Tue, 30 Apr 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/%7ETwenty-five_cents_worth_of_fishing_equipm... ~Twenty-five cents worth of fishing equipment was tucked away in my luggage, although it wasn't right for catching fish off the coast of Newfoundland. When our freighter made short stops to un... Tue, 23 Apr 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/%7EAllowance_was_not_in_our_vocabulary_when_... ~Allowance was not in our vocabulary when I was a kid. If we worked, we were paid -- not much, of course, but something. It was taken for granted that I would help around the house because I was par... Tue, 16 Apr 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Photographers_seeking_to_make_that_one_sho... Photographers seeking to make that one shot -- that calendar picture -- will do well to head for Symonds Yat in England's south midlands. Escaping London, they'll be out of film, as we w... Tue, 09 Apr 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/A_favorite_way_to_spend_Sunday_afternoon_i... A favorite way to spend Sunday afternoon in the late 1920s was to drive over to see the progress the highway department was making in pouring "the slab." That slab was to be named Highwa... Tue, 02 Apr 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In_the_1930s%2C_there_were_three_high_school... In the 1930s, there were three high schools in Columbia. My brother and I attended University High, which was laid to rest several years ago. Douglass High School on Providence Road enrolled only bl... Tue, 26 Mar 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/%26ldquo%3BSowing_in_the_morning%2C_sowing_seeds_of_k... "Sowing in the morning, sowing seeds of kindness ..." Thus begins a song we sang in Sunday school, and it's ringing in my ears at this time of year. We've put some seeds into... Tue, 19 Mar 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/My_favorite_bumper_sticker_is_the_one%2C_see... My favorite bumper sticker is the one, seen on lots of pickup trucks, that proclaims, "FEEDING YOU IS WHAT FARMING IS." So you must tolerate the farmer's preoccupation with weather... Tue, 12 Mar 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_we_wanted_to_help_our_two_grade-schoo... When we wanted to help our two grade-school children put personal history into perspective, we took them to the State Historical Society. They first read the Tribune announcement of their births and... Tue, 05 Mar 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Two_instructors_at_Christian_College_get_t... Two instructors at Christian College get the credit for our having unusual vacations that have enriched our lives. Petie Davison, Christian's French teacher, was headed for England to teach fo... Tue, 27 Feb 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Paula_was_one_of_the_seven_Christian_Colle... Paula was one of the seven Christian College girls who went with me on a bicycle tour in Europe in 1970. She and the others taught me a lot about how consumers view farmers. I learned that students ... Tue, 20 Feb 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/The_first_settlement_in_this_area_was_a_cl... The first settlement in this area was a cluster of about five hastily built log cabins and Richard Gentry's store and tavern. A U.S. Government Land office opened at Franklin in 1818, west of ... Tue, 13 Feb 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In_my_youth%2C_butchering_had_to_be_done_dur... In my youth, butchering had to be done during a cold spell because there was no way for farmers to handle so much fresh meat in warm weather. The cold weather had to last for several days to allow t... Tue, 06 Feb 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_I_taught_a_class_called_Recreational_... When I taught a class called Recreational Leadership at Christian College, I scheduled a skating trip to Jacobs' lake. One student from Hawaii and several Southerners had never been on natural... Tue, 30 Jan 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/The_youngsters_got_off_the_school_bus_and_... The youngsters got off the school bus and were usually home about an hour before I got home. After teaching until five o'clock, I'd change from my bathing suit into street clothes, make ... Tue, 23 Jan 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/One_Sunday%2C_several_of_us_bicycled_to_a_sp... One Sunday, several of us bicycled to a spot in southeastern China where we could go into a cave. I chose to stay near the bikes. It was not that I thought Chinese people might steal or harm our bik... Tue, 16 Jan 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Our_rural_telephone_%26ldquo%3Bring%26rdquo%3B_was_one_lon... Our rural telephone "ring" was one long and two shorts when I was young. All party-line phones rang our signal when we received a call. Neighbors sometimes "listened in," and... Tue, 09 Jan 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/%26ldquo%3BTeachers_change_our_lives._If_they_don%26rsquo%3B... "Teachers change our lives. If they don't, they have actually failed to teach." This is something I often said when I was teaching Christian College students to teach lifesaving, w... Tue, 02 Jan 1996 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/We_were_living_in_a_tiny_two-room_apartmen... We were living in a tiny two-room apartment at the time of our second World War II Christmas. I was on a year's leave from Christian College, and Chub was a Coast Guardsman assigned to teach a... Tue, 26 Dec 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Dad_and_the_hired_men_milked_15_or_20_cows... Dad and the hired men milked 15 or 20 cows, by hand, each morning by the light of coal oil lanterns. Dad said cows were like people, and he treated them well. Some were cranky, some nervous, some ha... Tue, 19 Dec 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Chub_and_I_have_had_our_share_of_ups_and_d... Chub and I have had our share of ups and downs, disagreements, differences of opinion, etc. But there's one argument -- only one -- that followed us for many years. It has to do with Christmas... Tue, 12 Dec 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Eight_of_us_were_at_Canterbury_Cathedral%2C_... Eight of us were at Canterbury Cathedral, and it was my turn to stay with our bicycles. We didn't use locks on that 1970 trip -- and seldom on any of the three European tours I led for Christi... Tue, 05 Dec 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/It_was_early_winter_in_1943%2C_and_Chub_had_... It was early winter in 1943, and Chub had completed boot camp in the Coast Guard. The officer who was to assign him to the next stage asked what he would like to study. Chub replied, "Anything... Tue, 28 Nov 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Four_of_us_were_working_on_an_itinerary_fo... Four of us were working on an itinerary for a 45-day bicycle tour in Europe in the summer of 1966. My husband's brother-in-law wanted an ornate, antique wall clock, and he brought us a magazin... Tue, 21 Nov 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/The_extension_of_East_Broadway%2C_which_is_n... The extension of East Broadway, which is now named Route WW was first called Boone's Lick Trail, then Cedar Creek Road and, in 1928, it was called Fulton Gravel Road. Natives like myself knew ... Tue, 14 Nov 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/My_husband%2C_Chub%2C_spent_a_bleak%2C_windy_win... My husband, Chub, spent a bleak, windy winter in Canada's easternmost province, Newfoundland. He was a motor machinist's mate, first class, in the U.S. Coast Guard and helped build a Lor... Tue, 07 Nov 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/%26ldquo%3BThank_you%2C_Miss_Eva_Johnston%26rdquo%3B_--_my_L... "Thank you, Miss Eva Johnston" -- my Latin teacher -- "for introducing me to the old Roman philosopher, Cicero." His wonderful message on old age prepared me for a morning li... Tue, 31 Oct 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/There_seems_to_be_no_written_record_of_how... There seems to be no written record of how potters discovered that salt would make their jars and jugs more attractive and somewhat more durable. Salt glazing was important to the United States&rsqu... Tue, 24 Oct 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_I_was_teaching_a_class_called_%26ldquo%3BRecre... When I was teaching a class called "Recreational Leadership" at Christian College, the semester project in handicrafts was to put a ship in a bottle. The students knew this early in the ... Tue, 17 Oct 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/This_is_one_of_those_October_mornings._The... This is one of those October mornings. The welcome rain is over, the sun lights the east sky behind the few disappearing clouds and pea-size dew drops seem to reach up to moisten my canvas shoes as ... Tue, 10 Oct 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/A_solo_violinist_who_plays_regularly_for_t... A solo violinist who plays regularly for thousands of strangers might get shaky knees in a similar recital facing old friends and neighbors. It was like that a year ago when I gathered some things t... Tue, 03 Oct 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/The_first_meeting_of_American_natives_and_... The first meeting of American natives and European intruders was a sort of extraterrestrial encounter. The Europeans called the natives "savages," "wild-men," "pagans,&... Tue, 26 Sep 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/At_a_Chicago_meeting_in_1963%2C_I_was_talkin... At a Chicago meeting in 1963, I was talking with a 4-H leader from Georgia who worked with a large outdoor youth center. "Tell me all about it because Boone County has a chance to receive the ... Tue, 19 Sep 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/From_early_school_days%2C_three_pictures_sta... From early school days, three pictures stand out in my memory: the village smithy, the gleaners and Roger Williams' meeting with the naked Indians who gathered on the shore to see those funny ... Tue, 12 Sep 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Uncle_Manuel_bought_ice_skates_out_of_seas... Uncle Manuel bought ice skates out of season and resold them in winter by putting a sign in his lawn announcing, "Ice skates for sale or trade." After his death, his skates were sold at ... Tue, 29 Aug 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/A_little_Columbia_girl_stood_by_her_father... A little Columbia girl stood by her father as he talked to a park official who said, "I told the fellow it was a dangerous pool and he went right in, anyway." It was too late for rescue;... Tue, 22 Aug 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/I_used_to_think_that_if_I_dug_in_the_dirt_... I used to think that if I dug in the dirt deep enough, I'd come out in China! Miss Anne Fleming, a missionary from the Disciples of Christ churches, told fascinating stories about jade and ivo... Tue, 15 Aug 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_we_bought_%26ldquo%3BWhip-Poor-Will_Hill%26rdquo%3B_f... When we bought "Whip-Poor-Will Hill" farm in 1952 we had no intention of ever living here. The 160 acres included a fairly new, one-room dwelling, an outdoor "john" and a fal... Tue, 08 Aug 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In_1944%2C_Chub_was_in_the_Coast_Guard%2C_teac... In 1944, Chub was in the Coast Guard, teaching at General Motors Institute of Technology. I joined him in June, and we lived in a hot, stuffy upstairs apartment in Flint, Mich. I convinced the P... Tue, 01 Aug 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Before_Columbia_was_Columbia%2C_it_was_Smith... Before Columbia was Columbia, it was Smithton. Five or six frontier homes were built here not long after American Indians relinquished claim to lands north of the Missouri River. This cluster of dir... Tue, 25 Jul 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Dad_gave_me_a_whole_half_dollar_when_we_we... Dad gave me a whole half dollar when we went to the the annual Fourth of July picnic at a huge pasture east of town. "You don't have to spend it " he'd say. Mom would add, "You could sav... Tue, 18 Jul 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/For_41_years_we%26rsquo%3Bve_enjoyed_our_inexpensiv... For 41 years we've enjoyed our inexpensive, backyard swimming pool and have enlarged it twice. It has a filtration system, narrow decks, a 4-foot fence with locking gates and a telephone. It h... Tue, 11 Jul 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/On_this_warm_June_day%2C_I%26rsquo%3Bm_looking_throug... On this warm June day, I'm looking through notes written in winter, a long time ago. My classes at Christian College met on either Mondays and Wednesdays or Tuesdays and Thursdays, so I was at... Tue, 27 Jun 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In_1966%2C_the_British_tourist_bureau_in_New... In 1966, the British tourist bureau in New York sent us a wonderful booklet called ~"Farms and Caravan Sites in Britain" to help us plan a long bicycle trip in Europe. Our Nancy and Walt... Tue, 20 Jun 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/My_college_student_was_trying_to_define_%26ldquo%3B... My college student was trying to define "joy, fun, recreation, etc." "It's the way I feel when I come back from an early morning bike ride on a hilly country road where I&... Tue, 13 Jun 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Peggy_was_a_farm_girl_who_liked_to_square_... Peggy was a farm girl who liked to square dance, hike and swim. And she was a star guard on her high-school basketball team. She was also in love. One July morning Peggy woke up not feeling very wel... Tue, 06 Jun 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Last_Tuesday%2C_I_told_about_some_experience... Last Tuesday, I told about some experiences of my bicycle ride in American Samoa. The local travel agent told me that many natives there spoke English, that they used American money and that I would... Tue, 30 May 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/In_1968_I_was_granted_a_semester%26rsquo%3Bs_sabbat... In 1968 I was granted a semester's sabbatical leave from Columbia College. The meaning of this "sabbatical" was "a rest, with pay." After completing a study of artifici... Tue, 23 May 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/The_mother_of_one_of_my_girlfriend_chums_w... The mother of one of my girlfriend chums was Hattie Parsons Page. Hattie was a non-conformist who homesteaded in Oklahoma as a young single woman. By coincidence, the adjoining homestead was owned b... Tue, 16 May 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/My_grandfather%2C_James_Henry%2C_and_his_famil... My grandfather, James Henry, and his family lived near Hinton after he returned from the Civil War. He and James Dysart operated a large mill that was located in the Hinton area north of Columbia. T... Tue, 09 May 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_my_mother_passed_away_in_1937%2C_Dad_lo... When my mother passed away in 1937, Dad lost the motivation that kept him producing and selling "Clean Milk, Fresh From My Own Cows." He was about to sell out but, instead, he took Chub,... Tue, 02 May 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/We_miss_a_lot_of_fun_in_these_days_of_comp... We miss a lot of fun in these days of computers, soap operas and food freezers. This is the time of year when we compete with Mother Nature and with our neighbors to see who can be first. For exampl... Tue, 25 Apr 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/A_few_years_ago_there_was_a_legal_battle_t... A few years ago there was a legal battle to determine if there could be a 200-mile hiking and biking trail across Missouri. During that time, we heard scare stories about hoodlums, vandals and thiev... Tue, 18 Apr 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Repairing_water_gaps_and_building_fences_g... Repairing water gaps and building fences got to be too much as Chub and I grew older. Reluctantly, we decided to sell the cattle and rent the pastures. We were lucky to find a fellow who bought our ... Tue, 11 Apr 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Think_back_to_the_early_1920s._If_you_can... Think back to the early 1920s. If you can't do that, just imagine that you are a little child living four miles from downtown Columbia in that time period. Your world included little more than... Tue, 04 Apr 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_Nancy_was_13_and_Walt_was_11%2C_several... When Nancy was 13 and Walt was 11, several people encouraged us to make a European trip. "We couldn't possibly afford it," I said. But a colleague at Christian College, Miss Ge... Tue, 28 Mar 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/It%26rsquo%3Bs_hard_to_imagine_not_having_switches_... It's hard to imagine not having switches to turn on lights, cool the refrigerator, pump water for cattle, grind feed, light the way for guests to find their cars at night or even to power a si... Tue, 21 Mar 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Ann_Clarke_came_to_America_to_learn%3B_she_w... Ann Clarke came to America to learn; she was also a great teacher. She completed a two-year college agricultural program in England and wanted to learn about American farm chemicals and farm machine... Tue, 14 Mar 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_the_editor_of_Ebony_magazine_spoke_at... When the editor of Ebony magazine spoke at MU's Journalism Week in the 1950s, I was favorably impressed with his philosophies and the mission of his magazine. I said, "Mr. Johnson, may I... Tue, 07 Mar 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_our_family_of_four_camped_in_Newfound... When our family of four camped in Newfoundland in 1960 we spent a day at Bowater's Beach. Near the water's edge there was bright red board on a saw horse; it looked like a double-wide te... Tue, 28 Feb 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_segregation_and_integration_were_ever... When segregation and integration were everyday words, Chub served on the school board of Boone County's reorganized district called R-2. We accepted Eva Coleman's invitation to attend he... Tue, 21 Feb 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Joe_Garity_was_walking_through_Missouri_to... Joe Garity was walking through Missouri to no place in particular during the time when Fulton Gravel Road was the shortest route between New York City and Los Angeles. He waited until Dad's wo... Tue, 14 Feb 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/My_brother_and_I_were_toddlers_when_dad_an... My brother and I were toddlers when dad and mom plunged into debt to buy an 80-acre farmhouse east of Columbia. Henry and Annie Williams were the neighboring farmers on the west, and their children,... Tue, 07 Feb 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/The_recent_record-breaking_snow_storm_that... The recent record-breaking snow storm that paralyzed school buses, snow plows and closed I-70 for about 50 miles has now all been piled up into huge snow mountains. By last Monday almost everybody c... Tue, 31 Jan 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Skating_on_natural_ice_under_a_diamond-stu... Skating on natural ice under a diamond-studded sky is skating at its best. Want to try it? You'll need to dress warmly -- all over. You'll want to make a bonfire and roast some wiene... Tue, 24 Jan 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Let_your_imagination_wander_as_we_pretend_... Let your imagination wander as we pretend to visit the little white church about six miles east of Columbia on Route WW, the extension of East Broadway. Olivet Christian Church was built 121 years a... Tue, 17 Jan 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Late_summer%2C_1960%0D%0A_%0D%0AWalt_and_Nancy_ar... Late summer, 1960 Walt and Nancy arrived home by school bus about an hour before Chub and I returned from work. We usually have relaxing time before piano practice, homework and supper. Last nig... Tue, 10 Jan 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Huge_flakes_of_snow_tumbled_slowly_in_fron... Huge flakes of snow tumbled slowly in front of the headlights as I drove to a meeting in town. The snow was sticking on trees, brush and grass, but the ground was warm enough that the road was not c... Tue, 03 Jan 1995 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Chub_was_a_student_in_electrical_engineeri... Chub was a student in electrical engineering at the University of Missouri when we met in 1930. He wore the Reserve Officer's Training Corps uniform with a marksmanship medal on the left breas... Tue, 27 Dec 1994 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_the_Missouri_State_Games_were_just_be... When the Missouri State Games were just beginning to roll, I ran a few errands for Walt, the bicycling commissioner. Things were quiet at the park after the racers set off, so I spread out a newspap... Tue, 20 Dec 1994 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Mrs._Venable_held_a_large_kettle_while_her... Mrs. Venable held a large kettle while her milkman poured from his big gallon measuring cup. The milk was still warm from the cow that gave it. It was Columbia, and the year was 1922. "Mr.... Tue, 13 Dec 1994 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Rail-Trail_Elbow_Room%0D%0A_%0D%0AWe_watched_ou... Rail-Trail Elbow Room We watched out the front window as our son and some friends on off-road motorcycles climbed rock ledges, bounced down into creeks, across and up on the other side. The fell... Tue, 06 Dec 1994 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/At_an_auction_recently_I_bought_three_gall... At an auction recently I bought three gallon jars full of wooden spools in order to get only three spools. They were the large size, many of them green, and had been saved by our friend, the late Ve... Tue, 29 Nov 1994 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Fact%3F_Folklore%3F_Symbolic%3F_A_message_that_g... Fact? Folklore? Symbolic? A message that good triumphs over evil? Any way you read it, the story of Noah and the ark is one of the world's most widely known and best loved stories. And it&rsqu... Tue, 22 Nov 1994 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Mother_and_her_friend_from_town_were_walki... Mother and her friend from town were walking in our woods one autumn day and Ella Victoria Dobbs picked up a stick and dug out some white clay from the side of a ditch. "Why, this looks like p... Tue, 15 Nov 1994 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/It_was_the_day_before_Mother%26rsquo%3Bs_Day_in_197... It was the day before Mother's Day in 1972 and I was bicycling in Ohio, along with a few thousand other people. The first half of this 104-mile grind from Columbus to Portsmouth was essentiall... Tue, 08 Nov 1994 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/It%26rsquo%3Bs_a_part_of_our_conversation._We_wear_... It's a part of our conversation. We wear it on our T-shirts and sing about it. It's the motto on Cookie Hagan's bumper, too: carpe diem. It's an admonition to "Do it no... Tue, 01 Nov 1994 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/When_the_weather_forecaster_predicts%2C_%26ldquo%3BTh... When the weather forecaster predicts, "There'll be a hard freeze tonight," we usually shift our priorities and rush to pick the remaining garden vegetables. Boone County's fi... Tue, 25 Oct 1994 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Our_farm_home_was_destroyed_by_fire_May_18... Our farm home was destroyed by fire May 18, 1922. Surveying what was left from the house, Mom and Dad found the following: one Morris chair with cushions in the ashes, one green Turkish towel on ... Tue, 18 Oct 1994 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Dad_was_planting_corn_at_the_far_corner_of... Dad was planting corn at the far corner of the west 40 acres. He glanced up after turning the corner and yelled out loud, "Oh, no! Smoke! The house! Oh God, no!" Dropping his driving... Tue, 11 Oct 1994 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/As_far_as_the_tackle_box_is_concerned%2C_I%26rsquo%3B... As far as the tackle box is concerned, I'm a pack rat. It's hard to throw anything away! I hurriedly paw through the clutter, especially when the sun is fading into dusk. That's wh... Tue, 04 Oct 1994 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Get_ready%2C_here_comes_October._That%26rsquo%3Bs_whe... Get ready, here comes October. That's when things are on the move. We see it moving outside our windows, in our pastures, on our country roads, in our woods and in our jet-laced skies. ... Tue, 27 Sep 1994 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/An_old_camp_song_is_called%2C_%26ldquo%3BToday_Is_Mon... An old camp song is called, "Today Is Monday, Monday's Wash Day." And so it was. Women proved their worth by being the first to have the entire washing hanging on the line each Mon... Tue, 20 Sep 1994 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/One_day%2C_when_I_was_a_preschooler%2C_my_mom_... One day, when I was a preschooler, my mom rushed me to the doctor because I'd swallowed a penny. She probably knew that Dr. Shafer wasn't the only doctor in the world, but I didn't... Tue, 13 Sep 1994 08:00:00 CST http://www.grannysnotes.com/Elizabeth_and_I_walked_up_from_the_creek_c... Elizabeth and I walked up from the creek carrying five or six perch we had caught. We wanted to build a fire and cook them right then. I don't actually recall whether we did or not, but I do r... Tue, 06 Sep 1994 08:00:00 CST