Winton Families & More

Fruit Trees are Pruned

2012-01-25T20:52:00.001-08:00

I had an honest-to-goodness orchard man prune my young fruit trees today. I was concerned that they get a good start and I got an expert to prune them for me.
When I told a couple of my friends that John Esau was going to prune my little fruit trees, their reaction was REALLY?? and REALLY!!
It was hard for them to believe that he would take the time to come prune my trees.
Well, here's a picture to prove it. John is standing by the "Fantasia" Nectarine tree. He said it was the best shaped tree that I have. Good! I love nectarines.
I took a couple of pictures of each tree before John got here. Tomorrow I'm going to take the "after" pictures.
Oh, and he said I could fertilize the fruit trees now, no need to wait. So, all you homeowners with a few fruit trees growing in your yard, you don't have to wait until spring to fertilize them.

Lunch at Carrows

2012-01-20T09:34:00.000-08:00

Last Monday, on the 16th, the local "Golden Girls" went to lunch at Carrows in Merced. We had our usual 3 hour lunch that we've been doing once a month for the last 13 years. We started at the beginning of 1999, after we retired. Bev was still working part-time, but Claudia and I were enjoying full retirement.
January 16 used to be my birthday, but when I found out it's actually the 12th, I changed to that date. I have received many wonderful birthday cards this year. They are displayed on the piano. Nice to have such good friends and wonderful sisters.
It rained last night finally, so it is definitely a "stay-at-home" day. I think I will make the fruitcake that I was going to make before Christmas, but then didn't feel like it with the cold and crud. I bought the candied fruit just before I got sick. I've never made this before. My husband always made this fruit cake. The recipe came from his grandmother and he said it was a family secret recipe. Well, one day I found the same exact recipe with an advertisement for molasses. Some secret. I submitted the recipe to our first little recipe book (with John's reluctant permission) and so the secret has been out for a while. The Winton Historical Society's "Hometown Recipes" has been sold out for quite some time, but we do have some of our second (and last) recipe book, "Winton Centennial" available.

Thursday morning I went to Bible Study at the Atwater Methodist Church. They are about half-way through a small book titled "Matthew, Being Discipled by Jesus" written by Stephen and Jacalyn Eyre. There are questions in the book to be answered along with reading the Bible passages. It's a small friendly group of people. Two or 3 people had a study Bible, so although I have a new, large print Bible, I decided to order a NIV (New International Version) study Bible from Cokesbury. It's published by Zondervan. The one I ordered is here. It's large print, so of course it had to be a hardback. I'm sure it will be a large book. I hope not too big and heavy to carry to Bible Study. lol
Study Bibles are not cheap, but there is so much more added information before each book of the Bible, maps, and other references.
Cokesbury carries the supplies that the Methodist churches use.
I can't wait to get it and see what all it offers.
It was shipped today, from San Diego, I think. So it should be here soon.

Lunch at Hibachi Grill

2012-01-13T21:44:00.000-08:00

Today my sisters took me out to lunch at the Hibachi Grill Buffet in Merced. They loaded up their plates from the buffet tables and I did too with the first go-around, but after I ate all that, I ventured over to the grill and had this young man quickly cook up some beef with Teriyaki sauce.
I tried several times to take a picture through the glass, but that didn't work at all, so had to bend down low and take the picture under the glass. That's why it's at that angle.
Some of the food I took from the buffet tables was quite spicy. You couldn't tell by looking which ones were spicy hot and not everything had a name tag. It was all good though. I was glad for the garlic bread to kind of tone it down a bit. The Teriyaki of course was not spicy.
For dessert I had this young man make a strawberry crepe for me with whipped cream inside. I shared it with my sisters who got their desserts from the buffet tables. They weren't very adventuresome!
I think next month we'll go to Turlock for lunch and then browse the huge used book store and some antique shops. How much browsing we do will depend on our energy level.
Elsie took us there quite some time ago. We enjoyed the antique shops and want to go again.
We had a good time today. I always enjoy lunch with my sisters.

The Garden Gnome

2012-01-12T16:16:00.000-08:00

I got this garden gnome from my daughter Sandy today. It arrived by UPS on my birthday. What timing!!
This cute little gnome has a watering can and is watering flowers.
I was searching online for gnomes some time ago and now I remember talking to Sandy about it. I was going to order one just like this, but for some reason I didn't. And here it is today! What a surprise! I completely forgot we talked about them.
Thank you Sandy and Dol.

A few years ago Sandy sent her dad a gnome, he's the one on the right with the green hat. Is he panning for gold? That was John's hobby at one time. Or maybe he's just watering the yard.
I love gnomes, they are so whimsical and cute.
My birthday gnome is in the middle. He has a couple of friends to keep him company.

Dinner at Nagame's

2012-01-10T19:21:00.001-08:00

Clark and Rosalie took me out to dinner at Nagame's tonight to celebrate my birthday later this week. This has always been a favorite restaurant for my family. John and I went there all the time for birthdays, anniversaries and just because. Mandy was just a little tyke when we first went there and she is now 30 years old. My, how the years go by.
I always order the same thing; Chicken Teriyaki and Shrimp Tempura. I don't like shrimp, but someone is always willing to eat the shrimp and leave me the vegetable tempura. So delicious. Of course it wouldn't be complete without a little hot Sake.
Here's a picture of Clark and Rosalie. You can see Clark has a fork on his plate. Oh, for shame. Where are your chopsticks?
Nagame is located at 2650 16th Street in Merced where the Cookery used to be. One lady on facebook said she didn't know the restaurant was still open!!! It's been open continuously for 25-30 years. An excellent place to go for delicious Japanese food. They are open for lunch Monday through Friday (maybe Saturday) and for dinner Tuesday night through Saturday. Closed on Sunday. Call Mary and make a reservation for dinner 384-1677.Clark told Rosalie to take a picture of me eating with my sticks. lol I wish I could take better pictures!!!!!! oh well, what can you do?
I enjoyed my night out. Thank you very much.

Here's a better picture of me, taken at the mobile home park Christmas dinner. Yes, most of us were wearing red. A very festive looking group it was.
I really don't like that other picture of me, but it does have me showing off that yes, I can eat with chopsticks! LOL
Sandy, Dol, Mandy and John always use chopsticks too. I don't remember if Jill does or not, but I think so. We enjoy our meals all the more when using chopsticks.

Sunday, January 8, 2012

2012-01-08T15:38:00.001-08:00

Isn't this a beautiful cake? It was served today at the Atwater United Methodist Church in honor of four of us who joined the church today.
Three of us were baptized for the first time. The other two was a young couple; I may have been the oldest one the pastor has ever baptized!! I will be 75 years old this month, so I guess it was about time.
One other lady was renewing her membership with the church.
The pastor had a very good message today (and every Sunday). The talk was on "Who Needs it?" Why was Jesus baptized? For more information on the Atwater United Methodist Church, click here.
Below is a picture of four of the many volunteers at the Methodist Church. Both pictures were taken in the Fireside Room where we meet after church for coffee and cake and other goodies.
From the left is Kathy, Marilyn, Carole and Caryl.

January already

2012-01-04T16:27:00.000-08:00

Here it is the first part of January. The Camellias are full of buds with two flowers in full bloom. I'm glad the former owners planted them. There's about 6 plants, so I can enjoy them with little effort on my part.
I did finally get out and water the yard. I was especially worried about the new fruit trees. The sandy soil dries out pretty fast. So, I gave them all a drink today. I would have done this sooner, but have been down with a cold and sore throat since the 22nd of December. Finally getting over that. So many people came down with the same thing.
Yesterday we had our Winton Historical Society meeting. Rosalie gave me a 1987 newspaper article that she got from the Dusins that I am including in the newsletter. I think I have enough to fill the pages now, so just have to work on putting it together.

I didn't make any New Year's resolutions this year. I usually think about at least making a list of possibilities, but this year is different.
This Sunday, I'm going to become a member of the Atwater Methodist Church and that will be my influence for good.
For a couple of years when having lunch at the Jantz Cafe, I would look across the street at the Methodist Church and think that someday that is the church I will attend.
What finally gave me the push was I purchased a two-piece dress and then thought where am I going to wear this? I said, "I am forcing myself into going to church."
So, just to be sure of which one I really wanted to attend, I started visiting a couple of churches, the Methodist being one of them. Then I found out an old friend was also searching for a church home, so together we visited several others.
I thought she was going to prefer a different one, but I think we surprised each other to discover that we both liked the Atwater Methodist Church the best. So, there we are.
Every Sunday, we get to hear/sing the old hymns played on the organ and piano. No drums or guitars there. Just the way I like it. And the pastor is a history buff, so he gives a broad background to the Bible stories and lessons. Makes it more interesting that way. And gives us something to think about.
So, if you're looking for a church home, check out the Atwater Methodist Church on Linden Street. Like the commercials on TV say, "You'll be glad you did."

Christmas Sox

2011-12-26T13:28:00.000-08:00

My daughter Sandy knitted these beautiful socks for me for Christmas. They are very warm and are keeping my feet toasty warm as I type this. Thanks Sandy.
I used to give my daughters warm socks for Christmas every year. Of course they were store-bought, not special hand-knitted ones.
I really love these made especially for me.
I came down with a sore throat last Thursday night. So, unfortunately I had to cancel the plans I had for the 24th and Christmas Day. I didn't think it would hang on this long. I am still staying inside, trying to keep warm, watching TV, popping Tylenol pills every 8 hours. When the medicine runs out my bones and muscles ache.
I hope this goes away soon.
But, it is a good excuse to lay about and be lazy!!
I hope everyone is enjoying the holiday season.

Merced County Retirees Luncheon

2011-12-13T23:47:00.001-08:00

Today was the Merced County Retirees quarterly luncheon. The December meeting is always well attended. Someone said there were 170 people there. In December our lunch is free, so that's probably why so many attend. Usually we pay about 6 dollars and the retirees association pays the balance.
Above is a picture of John and Ken, two men retired from the county assessor's office. We usually try to sit at a table with former co-workers. This is the only time we get to see them and catch up on what is happening in their lives.
Bev is a good friend from the assessor's office. She and Claudia and I have lunch at Carrows once a month. We've been doing this ever since we retired 13 years ago. Bev's husband calls us "the Golden Girls." Claudia wasn't able to attend the retirees luncheon today, she was still visiting her son's family. She missed the luncheon by one day.
Several of us at our table bought raffle tickets, Bev and I each had 15 tickets, but the numbers called were nowhere near our numbers. Guess it was our turn to donate.
I wasn't complaining because one year I won a nice prize, which I sold to a man at our table for $100. This year they had 4 envelopes with a $50.00 bill inside, other prizes were not so impressive.
Oh, they had my favorite lasagna today, vegetarian with white sauce. Yum! I took a big helping.
This last picture is Rozanne, my next-door neighbor. She rode with me to Merced. After the luncheon we went to the Mall for a short time. Rozanne wanted to go to Michaels. I suggested Hobby Lobby, neither one of us had been there before. It's a really big store with all kinds of materials, pictures, etc., etc. Rozanne was looking for some brushes and paint to use at her ceramic class. Didn't find exactly what she wanted. I think she would rather have gone to Michaels.
Next time. I was really tired when I got home. The recliner was calling me.

Saturday December 10, 2011

2011-12-11T22:10:00.000-08:00

Saturday was a busy day. It began early for Carol, who cooked breakfast, including biscuits and gravy for the Winton Chamber of Commerce and the Women's Grange Association. Wilene, seen looking up a phone number was there to help oversee the vendors selling their wares at the tables set up for the event.
Marilyn and I were there at the Winton Historical Society's table, selling the Winton Centennial recipe books and the Winton Depot mugs.
Behind Marilyn, you can see the large wood flutes. They had small ones also and even one that was kind of round on a string that you wore around your neck. The seller called it an ocarina. They made beautiful music with them.
Avanell had a table set up with holiday items she had for sale.
Other interesting vendors were there. Across from the WHS table was a couple who made jewelry. I bought a red necklace and earring set from them. They had a LOT of boxes of sets. One vendor was selling candles. As usual, we needed more foot traffic.

CHRISTMAS DINNER AT RANCHO GRANDE MOBILE HOME PARK.
After a delicious meal of turkey, dressing, ham, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans and desserts; the managers had a drawing.
If the number on your ticket was called, you had your choice of items from the tray. Each gift bag or Christmas decoration had folding money inside, some had $5.00, some $10.00 and 2 had a $20.00 bill.
Bob was one of the first winners. He chose a gift bag that had a $20.00 bill inside.
The managers arranged for a resident to play the piano so we could all sing Christmas carols. BUT, when some people got up to leave, others followed them out the door, so we didn't get to sing-along to the piano music. Shoot!
I was disappointed that they all left.
It was a nice party though.
More pictures at flickr.

Winton Bazaar Dec. 10

2011-12-08T23:02:00.000-08:00

This Saturday, December 10 is the Winton holiday bazaar at the Winton Community Hall. It is sponsored by the Women's Grange Association and the Winton Chamber of Commerce.
The Winton Historical Society will be there with the souvenir Winton Depot mugs available at a new discount price; $4.00 each or 4 for $15.00. A perfect gift for your child's school teacher or others on your gift list.
The Winton Centennial recipe books are still available for $15.00 each. The books have been very popular. If you don't have your copy yet, better get one before they are gone. We will not be reordering.
In the above picture is Marilyn, Rosalie, Andrea and Willlie. It was taken at our monthly Winton Historical Society meeting in the CLEO office. We had a Christmas party an hour before the meeting with members bringing in finger foods.
I did take more pictures and will post them later when I get my "real" computer out of the shop. I am limping along with my new laptop, complete with Windows 7 and it is driving me CRAZY.
I have now posted other pictures at flickr.

Winton Historical Society's Newsletter

2011-11-29T20:27:00.000-08:00

This picture of the Winton Community Hall was taken August 18, 1957 by someone from the Merced Sun-Star. This picture and the article from the Merced Sun-Star and memories from my sisters are in the November / December "Winton Hometown News;" the newsletter of the Winton Historical Society. On the cover of our newsletter is a picture of the Old Winton Community Hall as it looked a couple of years before it burned down.
Many fond memories remain about the old hall, as it was used for so many functions for the local people. Even my Dirks family had a reunion there in the 1950s. Some relatives came from Kansas. A quartet consisting of Kermit Dirks, Herb Heppner, Melvin Yost and probably Paul Koehn sang some hymns for our enjoyment.
The hall was used a lot by the Winton School for the Christmas Pageant, graduations and many other occasions.
Five members from the historical society met at the C.L.E.O. office this morning to get the newsletters ready to mail. Some members who have not paid their dues for 2011-12 were not sent a newsletter. Membership to the Winton Historical Society is due on October 1 of each year. We set it up on that date to make it convenient for out-of-town members to pay at the Winton Old Timers reunion the last Sunday in September.
Other historical articles are included in this newsletter. The newsletter, printed every other month, consists of 5 pages, double sided, includes a few pictures, memories of Winton, articles and stories. Dues are $10.00 per year for the 6 issues of the newsletter. Local people are encouraged to attend our meetings on the first Tuesday of each month in the C.L.E.O. office in Winton.
If you are interested in joining the Winton Historical Society, send a check payable to WHS, PO Box 554, Winton, CA 95388. New members will be sent the newsletters they have missed, beginning with the September / October 2011 issue.
If you have any questions, email WintonCA@aol.com Thank you.

Mariposa November 28

2011-11-28T18:31:00.000-08:00

Jack drove his brother and Carole and I to Mariposa today. It's been kind of foggy here so we didn't leave until 11 a.m. Jack had a load of almond firewood for Jerry, so we decided to have a picnic lunch and talk about the "good old days" growing up on Fruitland Avenue. In the first picture is Jerry in the backyard. The yellow grape leaves were very pretty.
In the next picture is Jack and Donna. Donna is Jim Hawksworth's widow. Alice Hawksworth (Jerry's mother) died last month; she was 96 years old. So now Jerry lives by himself. Donna lives about 10 miles away.
In the above picture is Donna and Carole. The mountain scenery is beautiful. Carole told Jerry that he had a nice place. Jerry said, "oh, I don't know; I'm just a dog in the pasture."

This last picture shows Jerry and Bob, Jack's brother.
Jerry and Carole were in the same class in grammar school. He has a great memory. He reminded Carole of the nickname she had in school that she completely forgot about.
It wasn't foggy in Mariposa; that is smoke you see from the fire pit. It was a nice day. It started to get a little chilly about the time we left for home, about 3:30.
It was fun. Carole and I enjoyed it.

Thanksgiving 2011

2011-11-25T00:14:00.000-08:00

My sister and I were invited to her granddaughter's for Thanksgiving dinner. Pictured is her granddaughter Stephanie, Richy and husband, J.R. The food was delicious.
They had 5 or 6 turkeys!! Good grief, that was a lot. The turkeys had different flavors. I chose the one with the Jalapenos. Little Richy said the prayer before we ate. He's a good little kid. Very polite.
Some of the turkeys were cooked in the garage in the deep fryer. Other family and friends were there. How many? 15 to 20 is a good guess. Everyone enjoyed the good food and had a good time.
Thanks Steph and J.R. It was a very good day.
I have so much to be thankful for. I think about this every day and know I am lucky to be living where I am with people my age around me. A yard big enough to enjoy, but not over-whelming. A devoted cat who loves me. lol.
Of course I am thankful for my family. I'm thankful that I'm able to talk once a week to my daughter who lives so far away. I'm thankful for the Atwater Methodist Church that I enjoy attending. The people are nice and friendly; the minister has wonderful messages for us each Sunday morning.
I'm thankful for the Afghan Claudia crocheted for me about 15 years ago that I still use every day. Nice for napping in the recliner.
In a few minutes I'll be thankful for my nice warm bed.
Goodnight all.

November Mandarins

2011-11-23T12:32:00.000-08:00

My little Satsuma Mandarin tree has 13 mandarins on it. I ate one the other day, but it wasn't quite sweet enough yet. They are really sweet when fully ripe.
The dwarf Washington Navel has a few oranges on it again this year, but they won't be ripe for quite a long time. I'm just happy to have fruit so soon. They were just planted last year. I'm glad I had the orange trees removed that were not varieties that I like and replaced them. It's worth the short wait for something you like.
You can see in the picture that I seriously need to work in the front yard.
The other day I was very surprised to find a petite "Black Knight" Butterfly Bush at Lowe's. I didn't know the Black Knight was available in a smaller shrub. Six feet by 6 feet is supposed to be the maximum size. I'm going to plant it between the two Mandarins. The Pixie Mandarin that I just planted recently doesn't have any fruit on it this year.
I had some volunteer Zinnias come up by the duplicate Iris plants this summer. I hope they come up again in the spring. I like the bright colors. The other Zinnias were through and had to be pulled up. I enjoy my yard. I've made just a little too much work for myself and there is lots of work to be done. But that's o.k. Gives me something to think about.
Now if I could just get people to send in their memories of Winton for the historical society's newsletter, everything would be great!!

11-11-11

2011-11-11T23:50:00.000-08:00

I have an Iris blooming now. "Autumn Circus." True to its name, it blooms in the fall as well as in April and May. It was just divided in July and replanted so I didn't expect it to bloom so soon.
Today is a special day. 11-11-11. My sister was expecting a new grandbaby today, but I don't think it happened yet. Too bad. Today is 100 years since the baby's great-grandfather was born. The first baby born in Winton on 11-11-1911.
Today I had an appointment with my eye doctor. Last year he wanted to remove the cataract in my eye. But I was scheduled for knee replacement surgery later that month, so he said to call him when I was ready to have it done. I never got around to making the appointment even though it's been getting hard to read the newspaper. I keep the magnifying glass handy. So, today I was prepared to make the appointment to have the cataract removed.
To my surprise -- my eye has improved. The cataract is better than last year. The doctor said last year my right eye was at 20/70 and today it's 20/50. I asked what would make it improve? He said something about the lens changes or something like that. Anyway I got to thinking -- it must be because of reflexology. Because of Miguel Gallegos working on my feet and sometimes my ears and finger tips, I went from horrible double vision (a plus 5 prism in each lens) to no double vision. So, if reflexology can do that, why not improve the cataract in the eye?
It's no wonder I keep going to Turlock once a month for reflexology treatments. There are other reasons of course. Pain or soreness in my back, hips, legs, stiff neck. You name it. I always feel better after a treatment.
I am so happy that I don't need to have a cataract removed, but just ordered new glasses instead. This was indeed a lucky day.

Garbarge Can Bouquet

2011-10-18T18:31:00.001-07:00

Where Have All the Flowers Gone? I feel bad pulling them up when there are a few flowers left still trying to look cheerful. But, the lower parts of the plants were really looking bad. So, now to plant something else in their place.

My sister had her knee replacement surgery on October 5. She is doing very well, lots of physical therapy at Anberry. She will have the staples out this Thursday. Then see what the doctor says about her left knee. Might have to go through it all over again for the other knee.

Yesterday, I finally got the Winton Historical Society's newsletter printed and with the help of 3 other people at CLEO, we got them folded, taped; slapped on the labels and stamps and in the mail they went. I hope no one gave up on them. They were so very late. The next newsletter, the November/December issue will probably not go out until just before Thanksgiving. After that, I'll try to get back on schedule.
Sure would like to get more stories written by other people about their memories of living in Winton in the "good old days." Their memories of Thanksgiving or Christmas in Winton would be a timely topic. You can email them to me at WintonCA@aol.com Thanks.

Last Sunday's Old Timers

2011-09-27T12:12:00.001-07:00

Above is the sign that Randy Heller put up in the park by the firehouse. Very nice sign to alert people to the Winton Old Timers reunion that was happening the following Sunday.
People brought their antiques to show. They were on display on the stage. The white butter churn with the long handle, the spinning wheel, the chair and high button shoes belong to Don Morgado. The quilts belong to Carolyn Wiens.
In the next picture, the old school desk belongs to the Winton School District and is usually in the district office where they hold their school board meetings. The dishes came from Ivaleine Cooper and also the doll, which belonged to her mother. I believe the clock belongs to Ivaleine also. The bonnet displayed above the doll case belongs to Carolyn Wiens.
John Esau brought in his big wheel bike. He says he can still ride it, but we didn't insist on a demonstration.
People enjoyed looking at the antiques and the large pictures of downtown Winton, taken in the 1950s.
Some of our regular Old Timers weren't able to make it this year to the reunion. We hope to see them next year. We did have quite a few new people, so we still had a good crowd.
The doll sitting in the rocking chair is Ivaleine Cooper's. The burlap bag looking thing is something a beekeeper uses and it either came from the Cooper family or the Varner family. The binder filled with old dress patterns is Carolyn Wien's. Most of the patterns came from Aunt Bertha Dirks.
There was a lot to see.
Last of all, was the birthday cake with "Happy Birthday Winton" on it. I don't think many people got to see it. The picture in the middle is the monument that the Clampers made for the community of Winton and which was dedicated in March of this year, commemorating Winton's Centennial. The monument is located next to the fire station in the Burbank park in Winton.
Everything on the cake was edible, including the picture.

Winton Old Timers, Sunday Sept. 25, 2011

2011-09-22T11:24:00.000-07:00

Picture taken last year by Norm Giesbrecht.
This Sunday (Sept. 25) is the annual Winton Old Timers reunion.
This year is special because it is also Winton's Centennial year. Several people are bringing large antiques to display on the stage. Rosalie had nineteen 12x18" pictures printed of Winton, taken in the 1950s, these will also be displayed. The pictures are not in the "Memories of Winton 1911-1950" book so they will be new to a lot of people.
Reminder postcards were mailed out to people who attended in recent years, but you don't need to receive a card to attend. Are you a Winton Old Timer? Or do you know Old Timers from Winton? Then join us this Sunday at Winton Middle School on Cypress Avenue, between Almond and Gertrude Avenues.
Registration starts at 10:00 a.m. Lunch is served at 1:00 p.m. Tickets for adults are $8.00 which includes Rizzonelli's chicken breast, KFC coleslaw, Agnes' Baked Beans, dinner roll, coffee, iced tea or lemonade. This year we are having birthday cake for Winton's 100th birthday. People 90 years old and older will be honored.
Norm Giesbrecht will be there again to take pictures for us. Pictures from prior years will be shown on the overhead screen.

Members from the Winton Historical Society will be there to collect the dues for membership. The annual dues are for October 1, 2011 through September 30, 2012. For $10.00 per year, members are mailed a newsletter every other month with stories from the "good old days" about people of Winton or people who used to live in Winton.
We will be selling back issues from the last 3 years for $1.00 each. All 32 newsletters are available on CD in the PDF format for $5.00. What's neat about having the newsletters on CD is that you can do a search with the free Adobe Acrobat reader (a free download)and find the article you're looking for or just search for specific names, etc.
Hardcopies of the newsletters that are from 2008 or older are free. If you can't make it to the Winton Old Timers, but want to join the Winton Historical Society, send a check for $10.00 payable to WHS and mail to PO Box 554, Winton, CA 95388.
We encourage people who are interested in Winton history to attend our meetings on the first Tuesday of each month in the C.L.E.O. office on Winton Way at 1:30 p.m.

The Winton Historical Society will also be selling the "Winton Centennial" recipe books with 650 delicious recipes in a binder format with a picture of Winton's first Thanksgiving on the cover. Other vintage pictures of Winton are inside on each divider. Books sell for $15.00 each or $20.00 if mailed within the U.S.
The Souvenir coffee mugs with a picture of the Winton Depot are now only $5.00 each. Available at the Winton Old Timers, but not available for mailing.

Winton's first history book, "Memories of Winton, 1911-1950" will be there this Sunday. Available for $35.00. This hardback 530 page book with 750 pictures can be mailed within the U.S. for a total of $40.00. Checks payable to Lorraine Richards, mail to 59 La Playa Way, Atwater, CA 95301.

Fall Flowers

2011-09-14T22:28:00.000-07:00

When I look at this picture and compare it to the one I took in the spring, all I can think is, "my how you have grown."
I love to look at before and after pictures. My neighbors probably wonder why I am always taking pictures of my yard, but I like to see what it looked like in the past and what I liked or didn't like and then decide what I want to change. It's never finished. I used to dig up my plants every year and move them around. No one ever said my yard is neat, but to me it's never boring.
I'm still looking for a red Penstemon. So far I only found them online. The plants are so small when you get them in the mail, but I may have to resort to that.
Yesterday I was surprised to find a couple of the more unusual Coreopsis at Lowe's in Merced. Usually you only find the yellow flower, either single or double, but look at the picture below.
The flowers on the left are Sienna Sunset Coreopsis; the two flowers on the right are from Route 66 Coreopsis. No, I didn't plant them that close together. They're just posing for the picture. I was so excited to find the red flower, the picture on the tag had a flower like the yellow with the red center and I thought, lucky me, I found a red one.
So, the next morning a new flower opened up and it looked like the picture. I really like the red better. I read online that the flowers turn red in the fall. The plants are "mounding perennials."
I've been able to find some Perennial Asters recently. The darker purple on the left is from the nursery at the end of Applegate Road in Atwater, the one on the right is "Weed's Purple Aster" from Lowe's. Neither one will get very tall, about 15 inches. I was looking for the 4 foot tall blue flowers, but no luck so far.
The hunt goes on. I keep looking for something a little out of the ordinary.

Removing the Lemon Tree

2011-09-10T15:17:00.001-07:00

Pictured is my front yard with the big lemon tree. No one seemed to like the lemons, the rinds were thick and bumpy. The tree was too big with roots above the ground.
Joe and Keith came at 7 o'clock this morning to remove the tree.
Not much of a tree left. I was surprised at how fast it went. Two hours and they were gone.
Joe wanted me to see how big the roots were. That tree was probably 30 years old.
Hooray, the big lemon tree is gone. Now to find another dwarf Mandarin tree to plant in its place. I'll look for the "Honey" Mandarin unless someone can recommend something better. I have the Satsuma and I want one that will ripen at a different time. The Honey will, but it does have a lot of seeds. I can deal with that, so that's probably what I'll get. Maybe I can find one in Merced.
Keith even put my flag up. Just in time for tomorrow's 9-11 memorial day.

Old Timers 2011

2011-08-23T22:01:00.000-07:00

Today some of us met at the CLEO office in Winton to get the reminder cards ready to mail for the Winton Old Timers Reunion. Back row is Agnes and Rosalie; front row: Ivaleine, Avanell, Wilene, Wanda, Marilyn and Carolyn.
The tradition of Winton's annual reunion was started 51 years ago. It's held on the last Sunday in September, which this year is September 25.

The location is the Winton Middle School on Cypress Avenue, between Almond and Gertrude Avenues, across from the cemetery.
Registration starts at 10:00 a.m. This gives people more time to visit with old friends and new acquaintances.
Lunch is served at 1:00 p.m., which allows people to attend church first if they wish.
When you register, purchase a lunch ticket for $8.00.
Lunch will be chicken breast from Rizzonellis, KFC coleslaw, Winton Old Timers' baked beans, dinner roll, and dessert. This year dessert will be birthday cake to celebrate Winton's 100 years. Beverages include coffee, iced tea and lemonade.

This year the Winton Historical Society will have their "Winton Centennial" recipe book for sale for $15.00 and the coffee mugs with a picture of the Winton Depot for $5.00.
Some back issues of the "Hometown News" will be available for $1.00. All the back issues can be purchased on CD in the PDF format for $5.00. This year there are 32 newsletters on the CD.
Members of the Winton Historical Society will also be collecting the annual dues at this meeting. Dues are $10.00 per year, which includes 6 newsletters with stories about Winton people from the 'good old days' mailed out every other month.
Still available is Winton's first history book, "Memories of Winton 1911-1950" written by Rosalie Heppner and Lorraine Richards. This hardback book with 530 pages and 750 pictures is $35.00.
After mailing the postcards, six of us met at Josie's Mexican American Grill in Atwater for lunch.
We hope to see a lot of Winton Old Timers this year. Come out and help us celebrate Winton's 100th year.
You don't need to receive a postcard to attend the Old Timers. The postcards are just reminders sent to people who attended in the past. Put it on your calendar and come out and mingle with old friends.

Summer Family BBQ

2011-08-20T16:55:00.001-07:00

Today was the Heppner / Dirks / Wiebe family barbecue. Cousin Marvin belongs to the Lake Yosemite Sailing Association, so he arranged for us to meet at their clubhouse. It was a nice day for a picnic.
Everyone brought a side dish to share to go along with the hamburgers and hotdogs. The food table was overloaded with a delicious array of salads, beans and other potluck dishes.
Behind the table of food is the small older house that used to be the caretakers house, but now it belongs to the sailing association and they use it as their clubhouse. It is a very nice place for a family gathering. Very private, with a bathroom inside the house. No need for the public toilets. lol
Here is a picture of one of the tables set up for eating. Very pretty setting, with the red tablecloths and the large sunflowers. About 8 tables were set up like this to seat the 50 or so extended family members who showed up.
Last is a group picture that was a little too dark, so had to lighten it up. They are near the lake with the sailboats behind them. Can you recognize any of them? Click on the picture to enlarge it.
It was an enjoyable day. Thanks to Marvin and his cousin Monette.

The Honkers

2011-08-18T07:58:00.001-07:00

Every morning and every evening these Canadian geese fly low right overhead. Seems like they take off somewhere around Atwater's golf course in the morning and fly southwest towards Los Banos. Or so it seems. Then around 7:30 in the evening, they return, flying low like they are getting ready to land. Sometimes there is a huge flock of them and then they are really noisy. I enjoy watching them and hearing them honk. One neighbor down the street said she didn't like them because of all the bird droppings, but I haven't noticed any of that.
I finally replanted all my Irises. Nine of them are planted among the flowers between the cherry trees.
You can see one planted between the 'pinks' and the red and white Penstemon. The fern looking plant is a volunteer Cosmo. Much bigger than the parent plant that the seed came from.
Twenty-eight Irises were planted between the two parking spots near the road. I have 37 different Iris plants. I have 4 that I don't know the names of. They were given to me without the names. The rest of them I purchased from local Iris growers and have kept track of their names. I guess some people think that's silly, but to me it makes it more interesting. Also if you happen to lose a favorite, you can try to get the same one again. I lost Lorilee years ago and the grower I bought it from didn't have it anymore either. Oh well.

On the left are the Irises planted by the road. Have to keep the ground moist so the roots will start growing right away.
On the right are the duplicates planted where they were before, next to my neighbor. The Fuyu Persimmon tree has been planted in the middle of that plot.
I also took the Plumbago from the large pot and put it in the ground. I always liked the blue flowers on it.
I will give most of the duplicates away next year. The plan is to just keep one row of my neighbor's favorite Irises next to her walkway.

Lunch at Josie's

2011-08-10T15:01:00.000-07:00

Carole D. and I had lunch today at Josie's Mexican American Bar & Grill in Atwater's shopping center where Super Target is located. Josie's at 1301 Commerce near Applegate Road. They just opened Monday, August 8. They are open from early to late every day. I think Josie said from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Long hours, but Josie said she is going back to Mi Casa, their Merced restaurant on Childs Avenue next week. Her son, Hugo will be in charge in Atwater.
The food today was great. I've never had a bad meal at Mi Casa and I'm sure it will be good every time at their new restaurant in Atwater as well.
Here is a picture I took of Josie and her son Hugo.
Stop by and welcome them to Atwater. It's a really cute place, everything is new, bright and clean. There is even a bar with tall tables and chairs. Check it out.

Thursday Night Party

2011-08-06T08:40:00.001-07:00

Last Thursday night (August 4)Roxanne and Marty threw a big surprise birthday party for Marty's right-hand man, Mike. The party was held at the Winton VFW, the theme was Hawaiian. In the above picture is Roxanne and Marty. In the background you can see people sitting at the bar.
Marty and friends, Kory, Jay and Danny cooked the dinner. A live band played and people got up and danced. Marty danced with his Mom, Virginia and she looked like she was having a grand time.
Marty's sister, Caroline baked a very impressive cake, shaped like a beer bottle. It was hard to believe that white bottle with a label was really a cake. I cloned out the word that was in between 'Best' and 'Cabinet' I didn't want to use the "f" word on my blog. Sorry to mess up the picture. lol.
Below is a picture of Caroline cutting the cake she baked. She turned the cake around to show the backside of it, which she said is her favorite side.
It's very pretty; the palm trees carry out the Hawaiian theme.

And where is the picture of the Birthday Boy? I think the only ones I got of Mike, he is holding up the special tee shirt they had made for him. The tee shirt covered his face, so no picture of him. I guess Mike was surprised, they had to convince him to come to the VFW, he wanted to just stay home. The place was packed with his friends and family. People were sitting around the bar all night and others at the tables listening to the live music or dancing.
My sister Carolyn and I went home kind of early, about 8:30, but some stayed until around eleven.
Pictured below is my sister Carolyn in the middle, her granddaughter, Stephanie on the left and Carolyn's daughter Roxanne on the right. Stephanie is Roxanne's daughter so it's a 3 generation picture.

Last Weekend

2011-08-05T07:06:00.001-07:00

Saturday I had a nice visit with Mandy and John. They drove down from Chico to attend Mandy's other Grandma's birthday party in Modesto.
When they got to my place around four, we went for a dip in the pool. This was my first time in the pool since moving here. It wasn't quite as relaxing as I expected. My feet cramped up and my leg muscle tightened. Maybe the water wasn't warm enough.
After that we went to Nagame's for dinner. The picture of them was taken there. I love Mandy's new top. Very cute.
Sunday morning we had a late breakfast at Granny's Kitchen in Atwater. It was our first time there. Nice homey place to eat. A little noisy (voices) but hey, sounds like family. I'm sure I'll go back again.

Tuesday was the Winton Historical Society meeting. I took the last of the Iris plants with me and begged people to take them home.
They did!!! Thank you everyone.
I gave them a link to my Iris flowers at flickr.
What really surprised me, was the next day (August 3) people discovered my old Merced post cards at flickr. It had the most hits I have ever seen. Photos were clicked on 858 times; 8 photo streams and 63 sets.
All that in one day. Wow!! That sure was a record for my photos at flickr. Most of the hits were the Merced post cards. You can find the link to my pictures there on the left, if interested in seeing them, or click here to see the set of vintage Merced post cards.
I'm having Joe the gardener do some extra work for me Saturday, so I'm hoping to get my Iris flowers replanted next week.

Winton Rec

2011-07-23T23:58:00.001-07:00

Carolyn and I were at the Winton Park today (Saturday) for the Winton Recreational celebration. The little kids played T-Ball and some were able to hit the ball thrown to them. They were cute and fun to watch.
We were glad to have a breeze and be in the shade of the big tree. We were there representing the Winton Historical Society with the Winton Centennial recipe books and the souvenir mugs. Also had the Memories of Winton book available.
Other booths were there, one was clown face painting.
Two little girls were so happy with their big red lips. They were going around showing everybody. So I asked them if I could take their picture with their pretty lips. I don't know who they are, so I hope their parents don't mind.
Anyway, they were very cute and they looked like they were having a lot of fun.

Iris Project

2011-07-23T23:34:00.001-07:00

Thursday morning I started my project of digging up 40 clumps of Iris plants. I was glad I had name tags to put on each pile of plants. Easy to keep track of their names. Now is the process of cutting the leaves, separating the clumps of new plants and stapling name tags on them.
It's a bigger project than expected. It's so hot in the afternoons that I don't do it all day. I'm happy to have a list of people who want the extra plants. Not everyone wants Iris plants because their bloom season is not very long.

I was surprised to see how long the roots are. My neighbor says it's because Atwater has such good soil, but I think it was the Miracle Grow they got 3 times last year.
I hope to have the Iris plants all tagged and ready to give away Monday or Tuesday. The large box in the first picture is where my plants are. Some people wanted one of each, but I'm the only one who will get every one. A few clumps were not that big and so only a few new plants there. Only a few of the 40 clumps are visible in the picture. About 10 of them are duplicates, so I think there are about 30 different names.
I'm anxious to get the ground ready to replant the Iris and also plant the Fuyu Persimmon tree and take the Plumbago out of the flower pot and into the ground.
Like another neighbor told me, "no rest for the wicked."

Winton Recreational Celebration

2011-07-15T10:54:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, July 23, the Winton Recreational will sponsor a Winton Centennial Celebration at the Winton Park from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
There will be booths, games, ballgames including T-Ball All Stars.
The little guys will play T-Ball at 9:00 a.m. Other games will be played at 11 and 12 o'clock.
The booths will be informational or will have merchandise to sell.
There will be a raffle sponsored by Winton Recreational.
Closing ceremonies will be at 1:00 p.m.
The Winton Historical Society will have a booth there with the Winton Centennial recipe books ($15.00); the souvenir mugs with a picture of the Winton Depot on them for $5.00 each and also the "Memories of Winton, 1911-1950" history book for $35.00.
The history book, written by Rosalie Heppner and Lorraine Richards, is a hardback, 530 page book with 750 pictures. Lots of Winton School class pictures and historical pictures of Winton.
My sister, Carolyn and I will man the Winton Historical Society booth.
Please try to be there. There will be other booths with merchandise for sale. Probably homemade wooden signs and other crafts, etc.
The above picture of Carolyn and I was taken on the 4th of July at the Rancho Grande MH park party.

Milestones

2011-07-12T09:57:00.000-07:00

This morning, something felt a little different. My mind seems a little more clear and ready to make a few more decisions. Just small ones.
I looked on the calendar, and sure enough, today is exactly one year since I moved into my mobile home in Rancho Grande. It was a good move for a widow who is a senior citizen. I feel completely safe here. Sure, I do lock my doors, but more out of habit than anything else.
Today I feel less stressful, a little more relaxed about what I need to do and decisions that need to be made.
The fact that Carolyn and I had our reflexology treatments at Miguel's yesterday in Turlock helps the relaxed feeling also. My right hip and knee feel so much better than it has in a long time. It's been 8 months since I had knee replacement and my muscles were so tense in my right leg. It's more relaxed today.
I've been thinking about what I want to do in the yard next year. Or maybe even this year. I could get a start on it. I want to get a half barrel or container that size or bigger and plant a Black Mission Fig tree in it. I read you can keep them pretty small. Also another large container for a thornless Blackberry vine. The containers would be on the south side of the mobile and would get plenty of sun.
Having them in containers would make it easier to spray the weeds on the ground with Roundup or something similar.
My Iris plants look like they are going dormant and so it is about time to dig them up and plant the Fuyu Persimmon tree. I should have waited to buy the tree. It doesn't look too happy in the 5 gallon container. Maybe didn't get watered often enough. Pictured above are the pink Coreopsis that I ordered from Wayside months ago. Couldn't find any locally, so had to order the very small plants. Planning what to do in the yard is exciting. What is not so exciting, but I'm finally willing to tackle are the boxes in the spare bedroom. Time to turn loose of some of that stuff.
Amen.

July 4, 2011

2011-07-04T21:47:00.001-07:00

This morning, Carolyn and I went to the Atwater 4th of July events. We thought we left early enough to find a good parking space.
Wrong.
We got there about 8:40 and the park vendors would be set up by 9:00 a.m. We were lucky to find a parking place a long block away from the library. The McWatters family had a large spot saved by the library with chairs. They invited us to sit and rest up before going to the park.
Walking back, the McWatters assured us that they had extra chairs and so we sat there and watched the parade. Kelly was taking pictures for the Winton Times newspaper.
Oh, yeah, I bought that metal rooster with the red comb. Couldn't resist him. He is now guarding my porch.
At 3 o'clock, the Rancho Grande MH park had a party for residents and guests. On the left is Gary, employee and John, manager.
We had fried chicken, baked beans, chili beans, several different salads and desserts. More people came than what is usually there for the monthly potlucks.
It was a nice day.
I took a few more pictures, but decided not to post them here. Not sure if the people would like that.

Fruit Already

2011-07-03T15:15:00.000-07:00

I was surprised to find 2 peaches growing on the Sun Crest peach tree that was just planted in February of this year. Also have a nectarine on the Fantasia tree. Wonder how many there'll be next year? So far all the trees are doing good. I give them deep waterings to encourage root growth. It is supposed to be over 100 degrees again today so made sure everything is watered good this morning. Tomorrow if the air is still I may spray Round-Up on some of the Crab Grass. There is SO much of it. I've been afraid of getting Round-Up on the flower plants. Need to try it though and get a handle on these weeds.
I had a very nice visit yesterday with my daughter Jill, grandkids, Tom and Laura and Tom's girlfriend. We had a late lunch at the Jantz Cafe and I enjoyed hearing about Tom's Sober Grad Night; things they did, etc.
And talking with Laura, going every weekend to Festas in neighboring towns and being in the parade as a Side Maid. Then to top it off, the night before one of the Festas, Laura was in the Dairy Princess contest in Red Bluff. She said she was very nervous, but Jill said she didn't show it. Laura was First Alternate, which means she will automatically be the Dairy Princess a year from now. Laura was the youngest of the 5 girls trying out for it. The others graduated this year or a little older. I know Laura will be a terrific Dairy Princess, she knows so much about the dairy. She has milked the cows by herself when her Dad is out of town. She loves animals of all kinds and wants to be an Ag teacher some day.
Way to go Laura. We're all proud of you.

A Short Visit

2011-06-29T21:23:00.000-07:00

John and Mandy drove in last night from Chico on their way to Pasadena and other Southern California cities. We had a short but nice visit.
They will be back in about a month and will be able to stay a little longer. I always enjoy seeing my granddaughter and her husband.
I think they brought the rain with them from Chico, it rained all day there, but not until evening in Atwater.
I have been lucky to find a couple of very pretty flowers the last couple of days. At Home Depot I found a "Rouletta" look-alike Ivy Geranium. This one is darker and is really prettier than Rouletta. Then yesterday I stopped at Lowes, looking for the Perennial Aster, which I didn't find, but was surprised to see Portulaca (Moss Rose) in the 6-packs. I looked for this flower earlier and couldn't even find the seeds. So, I was very happy to find them. I'm sure they will re-seed themselves in this sandy soil.

Last Saturday

2011-06-21T21:34:00.000-07:00

The Winton Church of God in Christ Mennonite celebrated their centennial this past weekend. It started Friday night with a supper for the out-of-town (and state) visitors and the locals. They rented a large tent, shown in the picture above, round tables and lots of chairs. The tent was set up on the Mennonite School grounds on Central Avenue in Winton.
Saturday was an all day affair beginning at 9:00 a.m. with registration and the program beginning at 9:30. Rosalie, Carolyn and I were there with the "Memories of Winton 1911-1950" books, the Winton Historical Society's Winton Centennial recipe books and the souvenir mugs. We stayed until 8:00 p.m., so it was a long day, but a very good one. Carolyn and I got to see some relatives from out-of-town and met some other people for the first time.
Three people were given prizes for having traveled the fartherest, one was from Canada and the other two from Southern States and South Carolina. People also came from Kansas and Wisconsin. Probably other states as well. I don't remember what the other prizes were for. The prizes were: A Winton Centennial recipe book; 3 mugs and a membership to the Winton Historical Society.
On the back wall were pictures, stories and articles depicting the past 100 years in Winton with the focus on the Mennonite Church. Several committees were set up with a 20-year span to report on. I understand they are going to make up a booklet with all the information that was posted on the wall and maybe more.
In one corner was the "museum" with old kitchen utensils and other tools, also hanging up were wedding dresses from the past usually sewn by the bride or relative.
In the opposite corner a long table was set up for Rosalie, Carolyn and I. When there was a break in the program, people would come up to our table and buy books and mugs. It was a very good day for the Winton Historical Society.
The program consisted of the main speaker, songs by various groups, which was very good; the committee members for each 20 year span got up to tell about their time period. Many people talked about their memories of Winton.
It was a very interesting day and I'm glad we were invited to be there.

Former Neighbors

2011-06-02T20:25:00.001-07:00

Today I caught a ride up to Mariposa to see former neighbors who used to live on Fruitland Avenue. I wouldn't have recognized them because I haven't seen them for 60 years. It was a nice day; warm when the sun was out and a little chilly when it went behind a cloud. I kept taking my windbreaker on and off.
Building the fire is Jerry Hawksworth. He is actually wearing a pair of sandals, but usually he is barefoot. When he goes into town (Mariposa), he is recognized as the "man who is always barefoot."
Jack wanted Jerry to guess who I was. Even with lots of hints, it took several guesses to get it right. I was probably the last person he expected to see.
Sitting beside Jerry's car is his mother, Alice Hawksworth. She is 96 years old and stills drives her car to Mariposa twice a week to buy groceries. She had her drivers license renewed last year with no problem.
Alice married Bill Hawksworth in 1932. Bill was working in the shipyards at Mare Island. They first lived in Vallejo and then in 1940 they moved to Mariposa. There they nearly starved to death, so in 1945 they purchased 30 acres on Fruitland Avenue and moved to the Atwater/Winton area. They were in the Atwater School District, but their mailing address was Winton.
On Fruitland Avenue they had a herd of goats with a Grade A dairy setup and also raised 20 to 30 pigs. Bill built the milk barn for the goats out of rocks that he hauled over from Snelling. The building was quite large and it took many, many trips to Snelling and back before it was finally done.
They later sold the animals and grew sweet potatoes and watermelons. It was about 1950 when they purchased an additional 20 acres to the east of their farm from John Giesbrecht. Then around 1980 they moved back to Mariposa.

Cooking the hotdogs over the open fire is Jack Boesch. He brought up a pickup and trailer load of almond wood for the Hawksworths. It's been a cold wet winter this year and they used more wood than usual. Jack hauls wood up to them several times a year, which Mrs. Hawksworth appreciates very much.
Bill and Alice had three sons, Jim, Tom and Jerry.
Bill died in February in 2002 and Jim a few years later. Alice continues to enjoy living in the mountains of Mariposa. She cooks for herself and does yard work. Jerry lives on the yard, close to his mother's house. This last picture shows Jerry doing a "wedge" kicking up dust in his Ford car.

Memorial Day

2011-05-30T22:10:00.000-07:00

Winton students from Mrs. Beltz's class sang several patriotic songs.
The VFW Color Guard presented the flags.
There was a 21-gun salute by the Merced County Honor Guard.
Bill Andersen and cousin Jackie Nugent played Taps.
The Winton District Cemetery always looks nice, thanks to Mel Loewen and other employees.

Sandy's Socks

2011-05-23T15:47:00.000-07:00

My daughter, Sandy (aka Alexandra) designed and knitted these socks. A lady from Vogue Knitting magazine saw them when she attended a big knitting event in Europe. Sandy was introduced to her by a mutual friend.
The lady from Vogue loved the socks and so they are in the next Vogue Knitting magazine, Early Fall, 2011 on sale June 7th. Instructions for knitting the socks, along with this photo, taken by Paul Amato and this information:
Designer: Alexandra Richards
Yarn Information: Madeline Tosh Sock. Amounts: 2 hanks in alabaster, will be included.
Here is a link to the Vogue Knitting Magazine online, click on the socks.
Sandy was born and grew up in Merced, graduating from Merced High School in 1976. In the fall, she left for Humboldt State and graduated 4 years later.
I can't remember how many years Sandy has lived in Europe, it must be about 20 years, first in Switzerland and then in the Netherlands. Sandy has accomplished so much. I am very proud of her.
Here is the cover picture of Vogue Knitting's Early Fall issue. Sandy's socks will be in here.
She is now working on a design for another article of clothing. When does she have the time? I don't know. She works full-time in Amsterdam and runs on the weekends to keep in shape for the races she enters on a regular basis.
My daughter, who does it all. More about her knitting on her blog.

Gifts from Abroad

2011-05-22T17:58:00.000-07:00

Today my neighbor brought over some mail that they signed for me when I wasn't home. It was my Mother's Day present from my daughter in the Netherlands. I was so excited to see the book, "Travels With Greeley" by Andy in Amsterdam. I've been reading his blog for the last 3 years, ever since a couple of friends and I visited my daughter in Haarlem, NL. We didn't meet Andy, but he is a good friend of my daughter and her husband.
Sandy even had Andy autograph it for me.
Thanks Andy!!
I can't wait to read it.
Sandy also sent me a "Gardening Journal" with a fat little green pen. Wow, guess I'll have to get serious about gardening. I love flowers of all kinds.
Thanks Sandy, those are wonderful gifts.
I was out pulling some weeds this afternoon, but I wonder when I will get caught up on that, if ever. The weather was really nice today, not too hot. I actually enjoy pulling weeds, but I don't enjoy it long enough to make a big dent in it. Maybe tomorrow.
I've been to church the last 3 Sundays. Each time a different church, you might say I've been shopping around. I feel the most comfortable at the Atwater Methodist Church on Linden Street. They play the old hymns on an organ and piano. No guitars or drums there and that's a plus for an old lady like me. Their regular minister is on vacation so I'll have to go back when he is there. The visiting minister had a good lesson (sermon/talk) whatever they call it nowadays.

Yesterday's Event

2011-05-01T11:53:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Carolyn and I set up a table to sell the Winton Historical Society's new recipe book and souvenir mugs. It was at the VFW Hall in Winton.
Instead of paying for the table space, each vendor was required to bring a snack for the sellers and buyers to munch on through out the day. We had chips and dips, fresh veggies and all kinds of sweet treats, including chocolate Easter eggs.
Another requirement was that each vendor had to donate a raffle prize. The Winton Historical Society donated a Winton Centennial recipe book.
Rosalie came by and sat with us for a while. Later our friend Leona came and sat and visited. We enjoyed talking with the people who came by our table, a few made purchases, but because there was so much going on yesterday, the traffic was very light at the VFW Hall. Sharon told us we should have been at the car show in Winton. Lots of people there.
Well, who knew?
The next events coming up is Saturday, May 7. The Winton Water and Sewer District is sponsoring a Block Party in downtown Winton,from 1 to 6 p.m. Ida Mae and Marilyn will set up a table to sell the Winton Centennial recipe books. ($15.00 each)
That same day, Carolyn and I will be at the Castle Vista Craft Bazaar from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. with the recipe books and the souvenir mugs. I will also have the "Memories of Winton, 1911-1950" book available for $35.00. Castle Vista, a gated community will have their gates open that day. They are located off of Juniper Avenue between Shaffer and Buhach. The bazaar will be held in their club house at 2300 Cascade Drive. If you don't already have your recipe book and souvenir mug, come by and see us. They make wonderful gifts. May 8 is Mother's Day.

Event at Winton VFW

2011-04-28T09:27:00.000-07:00

This Saturday, April 30, there is a Spring Time Jamboree at the VFW Hall in Winton, 7093 Walnut Avenue. (corner of Walnut Avenue and Center Street) It starts at 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. A shopping event open to everyone. Mother's Day will soon be here.
Vendors include: Winton Historical Society with their Winton Centennial Recipe Book ($15.00)and their souvenir mugs ($6.00) or both for $20.00.
Also Tupperware; Pampered Chef; Silpada jewelry; Chic Clips; Mary Kay; Beauty Control Gold Canyon Candies; Dove Chocolate and many others. A manicurist will be there doing hand and foot massage.
There will be munchies for our shoppers to munch on while they shop. There will be a raffle. One of the prizes will be a Winton Centennial Recipe Book.
Come out and see what all is offered.
Pictured below is Sudden Impact, another one of my beautiful Iris flowers.

Cherry Trees

2011-04-25T23:52:00.000-07:00

The cherry trees are looking good. All the fruit trees are leafing out nicely. The new citrus trees have a lot of blooms and so I am expecting oranges and mandarins this winter. The Fuyu Persimmon is still in the 5-gallon can, but it looks like it may have a little crop this winter also. I hope planting it in the middle of summer won't set it back.
I measured out the space between the cherry trees and I think I will be able to transplant 10 Iris plants in July. The Iris plants will be in the middle between the other flower plants now growing there. I hope they won't be too crowded. The Fuyu will be planted in the center of where the Iris garden is now.
There is a small area between the public parking and my visitor parking that now has grass that has to be mowed. Joe mentioned that he could dig up the grass and make a flower bed there for the Iris plants.

I think that's a good idea. I have 6 rows of Irises with 6 to 8 plants per row, planted one foot apart. That's a little too close, especially if you give them a little Miracle Grow. ha,ha. I don't want to be digging them up and separating them every year. They get fertilized 3 times a year, the middle of September, at Halloween and Valentine's Day. Some of the plants got really big and made it difficult to walk between the rows to remove the spent flowers.
See the pictures of the Iris flowers at flickr. Click on the picture to enlarge it.

Irises in Bloom

2011-04-16T18:33:00.001-07:00

Here are some of the Iris plants blooming in my back yard. The yellow and white is "Abby And Me" the black one is "Ozark Rebounder." Purple Pepper is in the back between the yellows.
I noticed in the Sun-Star this morning that the Iris garden in Merced is now open on the weekends. His Iris Garden on Perch off of Yosemite Avenue, past Raley's. Open Saturdays 10 - 5 p.m. and Sunday noon to 5 p.m.

On the left is Apricot Frosty and the one below is Raspberry Rita. I never can get multiple pictures to go where I want them. Oh well.

Marilyn and I were at the Safety Fair today with a bowling game. It was too breezy for the light-weight plastic bowling pins. They kept falling over. The turn-out was lighter than I expected and we saw it was not the place to be selling recipe books. Only sold 4 in 4 hours. But thank you to the people who did buy a Winton Centennial recipe book. We appreciate the sales.

The next event is the Block Party in downtown Winton on Saturday, May 7. A couple of volunteers from the Winton Historical Society will be there to sell the books and mugs. That same day Castle Vista is having their spring Craft Bazaar. My sister and I will be at Castle Vista. It will be a fun day. The Castle Vista event starts at 8 a.m. and ends at 2 p.m.

This last picture is "Afternoon Delight" the grower at "His Iris Garden" won first place one year in Atwater's Iris show. It is very pretty. Some of my favorites haven't bloomed yet, like Hello Darkness, Gypsy Woman, Royal Crusader, Twist of Fate, etc. These were all purchased in Merced from His Iris Garden. I saw a couple of red ones on his website that I would sure like to have. But I don't dare go visit his Iris garden because I don't have room for any more and it would be hard to decide which ones to eliminate from my Iris garden.

Winton Spring Parade 2011

2011-04-15T20:16:00.001-07:00

Clark is driving his classic Lincoln Continental in Winton's Centennial Parade.

In the car are the three Grand Marshals.

Irvin is in the front seat with Clark; Leona in the back, wearing a blue suit and Ernestine by the window.
The parade ended by the Winton Park at the corner of Winton Way and Olive Avenue. This is where the entertainment was set up. A carnival for the kids, big and little, live pony rides, hot dog stands and hamburgers and hot dogs cooked on the barbecue.
This is where Carolyn and I set up to sell the Winton Centennial recipe books and the souvenir mugs. It was a bit chilly, but we enjoyed the day at the park.
Tomorrow, Saturday April 16, Marilyn and I will be at the Frank Sparks School on Almond Avenue in Winton from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. for the Safety Fair. We will be selling the recipe books and the coffee mugs with a picture of Winton's Depot on them. Recipe books are $15.00 each, 1 book and 1 mug $20.00. Come out and see us even if you don't have any kids in the Safety Fair.

Winton Spring Parade

2011-03-29T09:01:00.000-07:00

This picture was taken in April 2009 at the Winton Spring Festival parade. Don Morgado is driving his 1927 Model A; Lucille Sanders is inside and my sister, Carolyn Wiens and I are in the rumble seat.

This year the Winton Spring parade will be held Saturday, April 9, 2011. The parade starts at 11:00 a.m. at the Winton Fire House park and will end at the Winton Park on the corner of Winton Way and Olive Avenue. Carnival rides will be there again for the kids enjoyment. Food will be available in the park, hot dogs, hamburgers, etc. and soda pop. Plan to attend and have a great time.

CORRECTION: This year, my sister and I will set up a small table in the park where the people will be cooking the food. We will be selling the Winton Centennial recipe books ($15.00) and the souvenir mugs ($6.00) for the Winton Historical Society.
Come by and see us. Tell your friends. Several people have asked me where they can buy the recipe books, so here is one opportunity.
Just found out that my husband's Aunt Ernestine will be one of the Grand Marshals in the parade. How exciting.

On Saturday, May 7, Castle Vista will hold a Craft Bazaar in their club house at 2300 Cascade Drive. The gates will be open to the public that day. Castle Vista is off of Juniper Avenue between Shaffer Road and Buhach in Atwater. We will be selling the recipe books and souvenir mugs there also.
Or you can phone us, we're in the phone book: Richards, L.G. or Wiens, C. and make arrangements to pick one up.

Tomato Plants

2011-03-26T15:08:00.000-07:00

I planted a few tomato plants the other day in front of the duplicate Irises at the back of my mobile home. These tomato plants seem to be doing good, considering all the rain and wind we've been having. I planted 2 "Early Girl" and 4 "Celebrity."
The Iris plants in the back, against the mobile home are the ones that will be given away in July or August when they are dormant.
I also planted a "Sweet 100 Cherry Tomato" plant and put the wire cage over it. The plant has completely disappeared!! No sign of any green tomato plant at all. The ground has not been disturbed. It's really weird.
A few people suggested it was a gopher who pulled it in the ground. I guess the rain could have made it look like nothing was planted there in the first place!
About a month ago, I saw a gopher pushing up dirt over by the cherry trees. I had a "Solar Rodent Repeller" put in the ground and so far I haven't seen any sign of that gopher in the side yard next to the road. The repeller covers a large area, but it won't go through buildings, so it doesn't cover the backyard. The solar repellers vibrate the ground and the gophers don't like that and leave.
I got another repeller from my sister last Thursday. This one still needs to have the wires connected before I can put it in the ground. I hope they both work.
I sure don't want the gophers eating the roots of the fruit trees!!!
I also bought a couple of gopher traps, but I wasn't able to set them.

Winton Monument Dedication

2011-03-19T14:04:00.001-07:00

Today was the dedication of the monument that the Clampers made for Winton to celebrate Winton's Centennial.
The ceremony was held inside the firehouse because of the rainy weather. Pictured above is Rosalie Heppner, president of the Winton Historical Society and the MC for today, with Merced County Supervisor, Deidre Kelsey.
In the next picture are four of the Clampers standing behind the monument that their group made for Winton.
On the far left is the Noble Grand Humbug; on the far right is the future Noble Grand Humbug. He is the one who has his name on the plaque. The Clampers provide historical monuments once a year. Because of Winton's Centennial celebration this year, they are making two. So that is why the current Noble Grand Humbug doesn't have his name on the monument. That honor goes to the man on the far right. They bent the rules a bit to accommodate Winton this year.
They are also making a monument for the community of Hilmar at this time. To learn more about the Clampers go to this article at wikipedia.
This last picture shows Marilyn Colburn and Marlys Flores selling the Winton Centennial recipe books and the souvenir mugs.

Bingo Night - St Patrick's Day

2011-03-17T20:45:00.001-07:00

Today was St. Patrick's Day. Not everyone wore green, but this couple went all-out for Bingo tonight. Very cute hats. The lady's hat had flashing lights on the top, which I didn't capture in the picture.
Thursday night Bingo is a fun outing for us at Rancho Grande. Nobody gets rich or goes broke, just a fun time.
I hope the weather is good tomorrow. I still have the tomato plants to plant, besides the flowers I bought today. Need to broadcast the "weed 'n feed" also on the grass. I may not have much green left after that because it looks like I have a lot of weeds.
Don't forget this Saturday, March 19 is the dedication of the monument in Winton by the fire station. Starts at 10:30 a.m. Some of the "Clampers" will be there, they are the ones who made the monument for the community of Winton. At no cost to the community. Our county supervisor will be one of the speakers, also Sarah from the Merced Museum. If you have connections to Winton, be there to help celebrate Winton's first 100 years.
The Winton Historical Society will be selling their new recipe book, "Winton Centennial, 1911-2011." Also the souvenir coffee mugs with a picture of the Winton Depot on it. The recipe book is $15.00 or both for $20.00.

Flowers for 59 La Playa

2011-03-15T11:30:00.001-07:00

This is one of the flower plants I bought at The Greenery yesterday in Turlock. It has a fancy name for Bachelors Buttons. (Centaurea cyanus "Blue Diadem") I found the grower's online website and read that it resows. Can't beat that. (I borrowed the pictures from their website). www.anniesannuals.com
It pays to pay a little more and get something special.
The color in the picture is so intense; it's described as "bright richest blue." The flowers are big, 2.5 inches, the plant grows to 3 feet tall.
This next one is commonly known as "Cupid's Dart" (Catananche caerulea). The Ancient Greeks and Romans used the flowers as the main ingredient in love potions and that's how it got its common name. This is an easy to grow perennial. The lavender blue flowers are 2 inches across; the plant grows up to 2 feet tall and 1 foot wide.
I bought a couple of Orential Poppies, one double purple flower that looks like a peony. The other one is a single red flower. Really beautiful. Will they look that pretty in my yard? Can't wait to find out.

More Yard Work

2011-03-13T09:48:00.000-07:00

It seems like the yard work is an ongoing affair. One thing leads to another. It started with the fruit trees. Then you need something to define their space. So it was plastic bender board. Joe and Keith have been installing a lot of that stuff !! So far I bought nine 25 foot rolls at $25.00 a roll. And still need 2 more rolls. Wow! Of course it's being put in everywhere. Around the trees; between the roses and the grass, etc. It's supposed to last 25 years. That is if nobody steps on it.

In the picture, Keith is putting bender board around the Flavor Crest peach tree.
Joe is expanding the flower bed behind the mobile. I'm going to plant some tomatoes there very soon. The Iris plants next to the wall are duplicates and will be given away this summer when they are dormant. They all have buds on them, so should be blooming soon. They are ahead of the plants in the Iris garden.

Monday, my sister and I have appointments with Miguel, our reflexologist in Turlock. We're going to The Greenery Nursery afterwards to see what new plants they have in stock. We can always find plants there that we can't find in Merced. I hope to find something to plant by the cherry trees and in the rose garden. Looking for a couple of Scabiosa (pincushion flower) to plant by the rose bushes. And of course the red Penstemon and other Perennials and Annuals to plant by the cherry trees. I may plant some Zinnias this year. They are so colorful. I am so excited about spring !!

Aunt Ernestine's birthday

2011-03-11T21:01:00.000-08:00

March 4, 2011 was Aunt Ernestine's 95th birthday. Her great-niece Sharon invited her out to dinner. Helen and I were invited to help celebrate Aunt 'Teen's birthday.
We met at Ernestine's house and still had to decide where to go. I asked if everyone liked Japanese food. They were not familiar with it, so we decided to go to Brooks Ranch in Atwater.
I was surprised to see a few people there that I know.
Ernestine is going to move the end of April into another duplex within the same gated community where she now lives. She will be closer to her cousin, Helen and that will be handy. Here is a picture of Helen and Sharon. Sharon took a picture of Aunt Ernestine and me. I wasn't going to post it, but I want Sandy to know I was wearing the beautiful shawl she knitted for me. Several people have asked me if it is crocheted. I guess it looks too difficult to knit. It's a very intricate lace knit and I just love it.
Looks like I was in a hurry when I put it on.
Today I finally signed up at Anberry for my one free month of exercises in the heated pool. The weather has been so cold that I didn't feel like doing it sooner. Several other people were in the pool. Four of them came in wheelchairs. It was interesting to watch how their family member or friend got them out of the pool. First the wheelchair was thrown in the pool and then the friend helped them over to the wheelchair, got them in it and wheeled them up the long ramp and out of the water.
I was there for an hour, mostly doing the exercises that I used to do at the bars in the machine room. I enjoyed being in the water. Dog-paddled a little and swam on my back. I'm not much of a swimmer, but can stay above water. ha,ha.

Winton Centennial Events

2011-03-02T12:18:00.000-08:00

On Saturday, March 19, there will be a dedication of the monument that the "Clampers" have made for the community of Winton. Rosalie, the president of the Winton Historical Society has been working closely with the Clampers, with all the details including the wording on the monument. It is located in the park next to the Fire Station. The dedication ceremony starts at 10:30 a.m. Our Supervisor from Merced County will be one of the speakers.
The Winton Historical Society will have a small table set up somewhere (probably to one side) to sell the Winton Centennial recipe book and the Souvenir coffee mugs with a picture of the Winton Depot on it.
The recipe books are $15.00 each. The mugs, $6.00 each. Or both for $20.00.
Or 2 mugs for $10.00.
Come for the dedication and take a look at our beautiful new recipe books and the coffee mugs.

March 26, Saturday, the Frank Sparks School on Almond Avenue is having a Safety Fair and they invited us to set up a table and sell our recipe books and mugs. It will be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. If you miss the monument dedication on the 19th, come by and see us on the 26th.

April 9th is the parade for the Winton Spring Festival. The Winton Historical Society thought about entering a float, but we have just a small group of retired ladies (occasionally a man or two will show up)so we decided that was too big a project for us. We will sponsor the Grand Marshall, which will be one or more of our 90-plus seniors. We don't plan to have a booth, but catch one of our members if you are looking for a recipe book or coffee mug.

The downtown merchants will have a Block Party on May 7th. We will have a table set up to sell the recipe books and coffee mugs.

The Church of God in Christ Mennonite will have their 100th year celebration in June at their school on Central Avenue.

September 25, the last Sunday is September is the Winton Old Timers' reunion. We will be selling books and mugs there also.

October will have a Halloween Carnival.

And in December they are hoping to have the Christmas party like they used to have downtown by the firehouse.

Other events are still in the planning stage.

On-Going Yard Work

2011-02-27T09:27:00.001-08:00

Joe and his brother were here yesterday and the first thing they did was to dig out the orange tree in the front yard and plant the little semi-dwarf Satsuma Mandarin in its place. The oranges were not sweet and the Satsumas are, without a doubt, always sweet. I don't know if it will have fruit next year or not.
The pink flowers behind the tree are Camellias. The original owners of this MH planted Camellias all along the North side (front) of the mobile. They sure have a lot of buds and have been blooming nicely. I did give them some "Miracle Grow" earlier, not sure just when I did that. I need to read up on when to fertilize Camellias.

The next thing Joe and Keith did was dig out the orange tree in the back. I did give an orange from that tree another taste yesterday and it wasn't all that bad. But, not that good either! I'm sure I will be happy with the dwarf Washington Navel orange that is planted in its place. When I bought the citrus, the small Washington Navel tree had 3 oranges on it. They were sweet and GOOD. I was surprised that little tree had 3 oranges on it already, so I'm thinking the Satsuma will have fruit on it next year also.
I hope they both grow fast. I'll have to keep the one in the front pruned down because a semi-dwarf can get as high as 15 feet. So, I'll be out there with my pruning shears.
I was surprised that it didn't take Joe and Keith all that long to dig out the 2 orange trees and plant the new ones.
What did take a long time, and it was a LOT of work, was putting the plastic bender board around the cherry trees in the side yard. The bender board is 6 inches wide and Joe dug a trench around the whole area to put the plastic board in with only 2 inches showing above ground.
He made the area a little wider (at my request) because later I'm going to transplant a few Iris in the middle with some colorful flowers on both sides of the Iris since they have a short blooming season.
I'll be transplanting some of the Irises from their area because I have yet another fruit tree to plant!! I really wanted a Fuyu Persimmon tree like we had in Merced. The only spot I had left for another tree was smack dab in the middle of the Iris garden. I debated on what to do and the Fuyu won out.
So, SOMEDAY, I will have cherries in late May, Flavor Crest peaches in late June and July; Apricots and Sun Crest peaches in July; Fantasia nectarines in August and the Fuyu Persimmons in November. These are the persimmons that you eat like an apple, they are not the kind you bake with. (These small persimmons sold for one dollar each at the grocery store.)
So, now I just have to stand back and watch them grow!! ha, ha.

The Day the Rains Came

2011-02-25T19:43:00.001-08:00

And that would be today. And Boy, did it rain. We had several downpours. I had planned to go to Merced, but when the heavy rains came; forget it. I spent all day working on the next newsletter for the Winton Historical Society.
I like watching it rain, but I get a little worried when we get so much at one time.
The little strip between me and my next door neighbor gets flooded every time it rains. I don't think the lilac bush I bought likes wet feet. I worry about that plant. It's probably too much water for the rose bush and the Geranium too.
Must be hard pan in that area. I'm thankful though that where the fruit trees are planted, there doesn't seem to be a problem. The rain soaks right in.
There is more rain in the forecast for the next couple of days. Lots of snow in the mountains. Roads are closed in the Sierras and on the Grapevine. I'll take the rain.

Porch: Before & After

2011-02-23T21:40:00.001-08:00

Remember my "Wall of Boxes" back in July when I first moved here? It was overwhelming! What to do with all that stuff?? Somehow it got whittled down, one box at a time. It took forever. Like 6 months!! But here it is today. No boxes in sight.
I'll have to admit there are still some boxes in the spare bedroom that need to be sorted out. lol. Little by little, I guess. But of course not nearly as many boxes as in the top picture.
I'm wondering how heavy a piano can you put inside a mobile home? I went to George's in Atwater today, you know he restores player pianos. He has one for $1500. that I would sure like to have. He says it's 100 years old and weighs about a ton. Wow. Much more than the piano I have now. He has 4 player pianos, plus others. He has one for $600. Maybe the park managers would buy it for our clubhouse. lol. I just hate to get rid of my 200+ player piano rolls. It was so much fun to peddle the piano and sing along. The rolls have the words printed on them.

Winton Centennial Recipe Book

2011-02-07T10:11:00.001-08:00

The Winton Historical society published this recipe book to help celebrate Winton's centennial this year.
We collected 650 delicious recipes from Winton people and former Winton residents. There are 29 Appetizers; 16 Beverages; 27 Soups; 77 Salads (includes 8 salad dressings); 53 Vegetables and Sides; 150 Main Dishes; 49 Bread recipes; 78 Cakes; 39 Pies & Cobblers; 35 Miscellaneous Desserts; 48 Cookies & Brownies; 35 Candy recipes and 14 in the This & That category, which includes pickle recipes.

The picture on the cover is the first Thanksgiving in Winton in November 1911. Eight other pictures from Winton's past are included, one on each divider. Five pictures are from the Merced County Historical Society.

This is a 3-ring binder (approximately 8 X 9 1/2") published by Morris Press. We are selling the recipe books for $15.00 each at the local community functions throughout the year or from a committee member. The books are available now. If you are local, you can email wintonca@aol.com for more details on how to purchase. The books are also available at the Winton Historical Society meeting on the first Tuesday of each month at 1:30 pm in the C.L.E.O. office on Winton Way.

If the recipe book needs to be mailed, the total cost per book is $20.00 if mailed within the U.S. Make check or money order payable to Winton Historical Society and mail to PO Box 554, Winton, CA 95388.

Birthday Party

2011-02-06T07:42:00.001-08:00

Leona lives at Rancho Grande and yesterday her son and daughter-in-law hosted a birthday party for her in the clubhouse. Leona was 100 years old on February 1st. She is the one standing in the picture. Seated is her sister-in-law, Mildred.
It was a very nice party. Relatives from out-of-state were there; local relatives and friends from church, etc. Her son, Dale gave a presentation of family pictures on the overhead projector. Very interesting. I enjoyed seeing the old pictures of their family with Dale telling us who they were and where it was taken.
The lunch consisted of good homemade dishes, including zwieback! I wonder who made those. The meal was delicious. There were two birthday cakes. Here is a picture of one of them.
Leona had to renew her driver's license, so on Friday, someone, probably her son, took her to Merced to the DMV. She only missed one question on the written test. Then she had to take the driving test. They were gone for 30 minutes, driving around Merced; on the freeway and everywhere. Leona passed with flying colors and had her license renewed for another 5 years!
Not bad for someone who just celebrated her 100th Birthday!
Did I mention that Leona has been the oldest woman at the Winton Old Timers for at least the last 6 years? Way to go, Leona.

Fruit Trees are Here ~

2011-01-27T17:26:00.000-08:00

The last 5 fruit trees came in that I special ordered, so after the fog lifted a bit, I drove to Turlock to pick them up. I am so excited to have all my favorite fruit trees here. I thought that was something I would have to give up when I sold my house, but lucky me, they are growing in my yard again.
In the picture is Tilton apricot, Flavor Crest peach, Fantasia nectarine and Sun Crest peach, this is in the backyard, looking towards the road. It may be 3 years before I get any fruit from them. But in 3 years, I'll be glad I planted them.
On the side yard, next to the road is where the 3 dwarf cherry trees will be planted, the Bing, Rainier and Stella. I am expecting Joe to show up tomorrow to dig the holes for the cherry trees. I hope he doesn't find any hard-pan. Cherry trees need good drainage. These trees were all grown by Dave Wilson Nursery.
Also today I bought 2 citrus trees, one dwarf Washington Navel with 3 oranges on it and a semi-dwarf Satsuma Mandarin, both in 5 gallon cans. These won't be planted right away. I have two orange trees now, one in the front and one in the backyard, but the oranges are not very sweet. The trees will be taken out and the ones I bought today will be planted in their place.
All the fruit trees I bought from The Greenery Nursery in Turlock are the same varieties that we had in Merced, so I know they are good.

Celebrating

2011-01-16T12:15:00.000-08:00

I've been doing a little celebrating lately. First my sisters took me to lunch at Nagame's last Thursday, then my granddaughter came to visit this weekend and she took me out to dinner last night at my favorite restaurant!!
You guessed it - Nagame's.
I took a picture of Mandy and Taylor, our server. We've been going to Nagame's since Taylor was a little 4-year old kid. Her mother has been working there all these years.
The big celebration? My 74th birthday. It's time to just ignore them.

I have another little cause for celebration. The Winton Centennial recipe book is finally at the publisher's. I am so glad to be done with that project. We gave everyone a whole year to submit their favorite recipes. Then the committee members typed them online. It took quite a while to type and proof-read 650 recipes. Then we had to pick out 9 pictures of Winton to include in the book. Four of the pictures were also in the "Memories of Winton 1911-1950" history book; 2 have been on the cover of the "Winton Hometown News" newsletter and 3 have not been in either publication.
Deciding what to have on the 4 personal pages took some thought and it seemed like the last minute details dragged on. But, it's finally done and we should get the final product between March 7 and March 14. I can hardly wait to see it. I'll be sure to let everyone know when the Winton Centennial recipe books are available.

Planting Rose Bushes

2010-12-31T16:55:00.001-08:00

Joe planted 8 rose bushes today. One rose bush is in the middle and that will give me room to plant other little plants in and around the roses. It should be colorful this spring.
The local stores still haven't received their Jackson and Perkins rose order yet, Lowe's said they are expecting the next shipment of bare root roses on January 10th.
I won't have room for more than four more bushes. Three roses are new to me: Cherry Parfait, Rainbow Sorbet and Pink Promise. The pictures on the packages of course are beautiful.
I'll probably plant annuals in around the roses.
Can't wait for spring to arrive!

Roses and Things

2010-12-24T21:09:00.000-08:00

Little by little changes are taking place in my yard. All the rose bushes were so old that I had Joe dig them out, all except the two tree roses. The picture shows two rose bushes that were later dug out today. I purchased 10 new bare root roses so far, but the stores have not received their orders from Jackson & Perkins yet. Those are usually the best ones with a good selection of the newer varieties. I hope there will be enough room for the others on my list.
Joe weeded the yard today. That was a job that I thought I would do myself, but that won't happen for quite a while. I'm still taking pain pills for my knee.
It won't be long before the special order fruit trees will arrive at The Greenery.
I'm anxious to have them planted, but also nervous that I may have hard-pan and then what? Will Joe be able to break through that hard dirt? I sure hope the trees do well.
Here's a picture of Joe; he just finished weeding the Iris garden and is now pulling weeds from the narrow flower bed in back of my mobile. The flower bed will be made wider this spring and I will plant tomatoes here. The Irises planted here will probably be given away because they are duplicates.
I still haven't found a place for everything I wanted to keep and I am sure the papers in boxes on the porch are deteriorating. What to do - what to do.

I CAN DRIVE!!!

2010-12-10T18:04:00.000-08:00

Two significant things happened today and I didn't expect either one.
When the physical therapist was here today for the last time, I mentioned that I haven't walked up or down my steps yet, but only used the ramp a few times. He said he would help me, with me using the cane instead of the walker.
It was a piece of cake! I could've done it before, but I was afraid of falling.
The therapist even walked me down the street a ways, using my cane.
I am right-handed, so I always used the cane with my right hand.
That is wrong. The cane is used on the side of the normal,strong leg.
The therapist also said he thought I would be driving before long. So, later this afternoon, I tried it; drove around the MH park. No problem.
So, now I can drive myself to Anberry for physical therapy and to the grocery store.
Not bad. The total knee replacement surgery was only 3 weeks and 2 days ago.

Doin' O.K.

2010-12-07T21:05:00.000-08:00

Today my sister picked me up and we went to the Winton Historical Society's meeting. We sat there for about 2 hours and that was long enough for now. That machine that slowly moves my leg was supposed to be here for 3 weeks, which would be this coming Saturday. Someone is coming to pick it up tomorrow morning.
The physical therapist who has been coming here 3 times a week will be here for the last time this Friday. Next week I will start with physical therapy at Anberry.
SO, I must be doing good!!!
Progress is always good. I'm looking forward to using the equipment at Anberry. I can't drive yet, so I'm sure they will pick me up. I know of one other resident here in the MH park that they pick up for physical therapy.
Sandy and Dol left last Saturday(December 4), so now it's just Maggie and me again.
John and Mandy came down Friday night, we all went out to dinner at Nagame's. We always enjoy that.
The next morning, Dol checked online and saw that their 3 p.m. flight back to Amsterdam was cancelled. There was a storm going over Holland and the airport was closed. So, John and Mandy took them to San Francisco on Saturday morning so they could check in and get vouchers for a hotel room for Saturday night and fly home one day late. I hated to see them go, but that's the way it is.
Now to get my knee back to normal. I'll sure be glad when I can drive again.
Carolyn and I have appointments with Miguel Thursday. I hope it won't hurt too much, but I have this pinched nerve in my hip. Not comfortable.
Sorry I don't have a picture. I wish I had taken one of the four of them when they were here.
Maggie misses them too, she looked in every room and finally gave up and took a nap in her cat tree.

Knee Replacement Part 2

2010-12-02T15:37:00.001-08:00

Here is the machine they put your leg in right after surgery. It very slowly moves your leg back and forth and up and down. It was on a 45 degree angle from the very beginning. Every day the degree of the angle is raised until you reach 90. I am on 87 degrees now. The machine came home with me and someone will pick it up when my 3 weeks is up. I'm supposed to be on it for 6 hours a day, 2 hours at a time. I'm always glad to get on the machine because it loosens the muscles somewhat. Usually I'm ready to get off before the two hours are up. After getting off, you ice the knee to keep the swelling down, 20 minutes on top of the knee and 20 minutes under.
I learned the weakest muscles in the body are behind the knee. Those have been the most sore and most painful. Part of the time anyway. Other muscles, tendons, around the knee are painful and sore when moving the knee. I never once though said I wish I hadn't done this.
Two weeks and I have made such good progress! Being able to walk around the MH park one day still seems like a dream come true. I hope it happens sooner, rather than later.
Oh, I had the staples removed this morning. My doctor is very happy about how my knee is coming along. It probably won't be long until the physical therapist will stop coming to my house and I will start going to Anberry in Atwater for therapy. I think it will be a while before I can drive though.
Here is Sandy's blog and what she wrote about my knee surgery.

Knee Replacement Part 1

2010-12-01T21:45:00.001-08:00

Today is exactly 2 weeks since I had total knee replacement on my right knee. I was fortunate to get a very good doctor. He was recommended to me by a couple of ladies from Winton who had their knees replaced. I decided to trust their judgement and made an appointment with Dr. Temnyk in Turlock. Since then, I learned that everyone has high praise for this doctor. Everyone from the hospital staff in Admittance to nurses, physical therapists and everyone else. One person said that after you are in the operating room, the doctor has all the windows and doors sealed so no germs can get in. A nurse said she has known the doctor for 20+ years and has never know a patient to get an infection.
My operation was at 7:30, Wednesday, the 17th of November. I woke up as they were wheeling me to my room in the surgery section. I saw my sisters peeking around the corner, all with smiles on their faces. Everything went well.
Later that evening, I was surprised to see Sandy and Dol stopped in to see me on the way to Merced. They had just flown in to San Francisco; an 11 hour plane ride from Amsterdam. They rented a car for the drive from SF. My sister Carolyn then picked them up at the car rental place in Merced.
The next day, the physical therapists get you out of bed and help you stand up. The scary part was when they helped to lower my right leg to the floor. The muscles are unbelievably tight and sore. And painful. I was hoping for a catheter, knowing that I can't seem to be able to use bed pans. But a catheter would be risky for an infection, so a couple of nurses helped me on the porta-potty next to my bed.
I wanted to sleep on my side, but that is not allowed. It sounded like it would feel better, but in the long run, it would not be in my best interests. They did roll up a pillow and placed it between the bed rail and my back. That helped a lot.
Saturday I was allowed to go home, after walking 100 feet with a walker and someone beside me. I was very happy to get home, but the pain doesn't stop when you leave the hospital. I was allowed 1-2 pain pills every 4 hours. Later they wanted me to stretch it out to 6 hours. I usually only took one pain pill, so if I didn't make the full time, I thought I was still doing O.K.
At home, I couldn't get out of bed by myself for the first couple of days. Sandy took care of me around the clock. The first night I hollered for her 3 times. It was either for a pain pill or to go to the bathroom.
I'm sure we were both glad when I could get out of the bed by myself.
Tomorrow I have my first post-op appointment with the doctor. The plan is to have these staples removed.
More details to be posted tomorrow.

The Big Day

2010-11-15T19:07:00.001-08:00

My Big Day is Wednesday, the 17th. I am scheduled to have a complete knee replacement surgery on my right knee. The date sure came up fast. Am I ready for it? Not really, but I have been putting it off long enough.
Sandy and DB will be here the same day, flying in from Amsterdam. I'm fortunate to have someone to wait on me for a couple of weeks. Mandy and John will be coming here for the Thanksgiving weekend. Can't wait to see them all.
I'm looking forward to a delicious Thanksgiving dinner. John will cook the turkey and Sandy and Mandy will do the side dishes. Sounds great to me. I just hope I will be able to get around o.k. Of course I have to walk 100 feet in the hospital before they will let me come home. Otherwise I will have to go to a rehab. You know I will try very hard to be able to come home.
Mandy came down this past weekend and helped me get the spare bedroom a little more organized. She's good at that. I'm not. It was great seeing her. On Saturday we went to the Jantz Cafe for lunch and Nagame's for dinner. It was a very nice visit and I really appreciate her help.
What I am really looking forward to after the surgery, is being able to walk around the MH park like so many others do. That would be just wonderful.

The above picture shows my silhouettes that my niece hung up for me above my desk. My favorite is the colorful orange one, although I really like the ones with the dried California flowers in them. On the back of the orange one is written, "She can have it when I'm gone." Evidently someone else treasured it before me. I was lucky enough to find it at the Modesto Mall years ago when they had antique dealers there on special occasions.
The silhouettes are from the 1920s and 1930s. They were sold in the dime store. Now you find them in the antique shops, like so many other cheap things you remember from the past, but are no longer cheap.

My Maggie

2010-10-23T07:17:00.001-07:00

Last Monday I finally took Maggie to the vet to get up-to-date with her shots. I got her 3 years ago from the Animal Shelter and she hasn't had any shots since.
I put the cat carrier on the floor and since she had never been in it, she was curious and crawled right in. But when I wanted to zip it back up, she got out. I had to push her head down with one hand and zip it up with the other.
Poor Maggie she was scared in the car and meowed all the way to the vet. They gave her 3 shots and poked her all over. I put the cat carrier on the steel table and Maggie crawled right in and laid down. She wanted to go home!!
Maggie has been doing a lot of visiting around the neighborhood. She likes to go to my sister's house about a block away. She goes to the back door where the bird feeder is hanging. Maggie likes to be invited inside. The first time she was inside she inspected every room and didn't want to leave. One day I asked Carolyn to keep her in because I wanted to come pick her up. She knows the sound of my car and when I drove up, Maggie went and hid in the closet.
All the animals like Ruth, my neighbor across the street. One day when Ruth was sitting on her porch, her phone rang, when she went in to answer it, Maggie squeezed in the door and went from room to room. She went in the closet and wouldn't let Ruth catch her. The next day, Maggie was there at the door with her nose pressed to the screen. She wanted in.
I sure hope all my neighbors like cats.

Before & After

2010-10-21T16:00:00.001-07:00

I've had a lot of changes made here since moving to the MH park. One of the last things on the list was the drapes that were hanging in the living room. The old owners were supposed to leave the window coverings when they moved. They definitely took the sheers and I guess that made the big difference in how it looked. I still think they changed the drapes as well because after they moved they somehow got really ugly. Some of the drapery rods were hung crooked. Didn't I notice anything when we came to look at this place?
Today, my niece, Roxanne was here and took down the old drapes and hung up the new blinds and the sheers. It made a world of difference! Roxanne has done a wonderful job. She will be back tomorrow to finish hanging the sheers and maybe some pictures.
I wanted this place to look nice before my daughter comes to visit for Thanksgiving. That was her original idea for coming and then she insisted she wanted me to have knee replacement surgery so she can look after me for a couple of weeks. I know I have been putting it off for too long. I have the sugery scheduled for November 17 and she will be here that day. So, more big events coming up.
I need to clear my mind and decide on what to do with all the stuff that I have yet to find a place for. Guess I just have to turn loose of things. I think I'm afraid if I give up the things that trigger memories, I will no longer remember the events surrounding them. I do a lot of looking back. (That goes with old age.)

Merced County Genealogical Society

2010-10-14T16:01:00.000-07:00

Merced County Genealogical Society Program for October 16, 2010

One-Step Webpages:

A Potpourri of Genealogical Search Tools

Stephen Morse

Stephen Morse – of One-Step Webpages – is known nationwide for his internet toolbox. He has given his program to groups all across the country. This program is designed to give us an overview of the most popular tools on his website, tools to save you time searching the internet.

The One-Step website started out as an aid for finding passengers in the Ellis Island database. Shortly afterwards it was expanded to help with searching in the 1930 census. Over the years it has continued to evolve and today includes about 200 web-based tools divided into 16 separate categories ranging from genealogical searches to astronomical calculations to last-minute bidding on e-bay. This presentation will describe the range of tools available and give the highlights of each one.

Come and hear this well-known speaker and learn how to simplify your internet searching.

Saturday ~ October 16 ~ 1:00 p.m.

Merced County Library, Gracey Room

2100 O Street, Merced, CA

Shed Renovation

2010-09-17T16:42:00.001-07:00

Marty and crew were here this morning. They completely revamped the inside of my shed. I should have taken a 'before' picture, but it was such a mess.
They pulled everything out, made shelves in the back and one side. The opposite side has an old work bench.
Now there is room to put everything back with space for more!!
I really like it. They made a special area for all the garden tools. I'll have to get the hoe out right away as you can see in the next picture.
The Irises are doing good. I did give them a little liquid Miracle Grow the other day. Gotta remember I now have the Atwater sand to grow plants in. Sure is different than what I've been used to.
It's easier to work in, but have to remember to feed the plants and water more often.
The sidewalk that leads up to the door belongs to my neighbors. They sure have a cute place. The door goes to their utility room. (aka shed?) Like I said their place is really cute and she is lucky her husband is such a handyman!

Carol's Birthday

2010-09-15T21:27:00.000-07:00

Carol's birthday was September 12. Her daughter and son-in-law had family over for a birthday dinner, complete with a delicious carrot cake. Mr. Opportunity from Honda was there and I took a picture of him and Carol. They look pretty chummy.
Carol's great-grandkids were so cute, playing together.
I've been looking for my favorite Butterfly bushes, but was surprised I couldn't find them, not even in Turlock. They won't be getting any more in until late spring. Now I wish I had taken cuttings from them before I moved. I thought it would be no problem to find Blue Chip and Adonis Blue or even Black Knight. They seemed so easy to find the first time around. Oh well. Maybe later.
I did get the fruit trees ordered. They won't be here until late January.
The Winton Old Timers reunion will be here before you know it. I have pictures I want to scan so I can return them before then. Then, there are more recipes to type for the Winton Centennial Cook Book. Sometimes when there is so much to do, I don't know what to do first.

9/11

2010-09-11T08:22:00.000-07:00

Where were you on 9/11?
I was still in bed. My husband was up. The phone rang. It was our daughter in Switzerland, asking if we were watching TV. She said the U.S. was being attacked.
John turned the TV on and came in to tell me. I was confused about the news. What did he say? What did he mean?
Watching it on TV was so unreal. When it finally sunk in that this was really happening, I called my sister-in-law who was just as shocked as we were.
Watching the planes fly into the tall towers gave me a sick feeling. I'm sure it was the same feeling that a lot of people had.
My husband and I had just flown to Switzerland that spring to visit our daughter. It was my first ride in a large airplane. I would never have gone on that plane if the attack had happened before then.

August Wrap-up

2010-09-10T20:40:00.000-07:00

It's been a long time since I wrote anything on my blog. What did I do? Let's see if I can remember. lol
Mrs. Dibble invited me to go to Nagame's restaurant for lunch. Pictured is Mary, owner of Nagame's (along with her husband) and Mary's mother, Mrs. Dibble. Mrs. Dibble is amazing, she and her husband live here in the park and every morning she is out there walking. She even picks up my newspaper and puts it by my door. So then I don't even have to get dressed, but just take a couple of steps outside to retrieve my newspaper. Mrs. Dibble is definitely spoiling me.
My husband and I used to go to Nagame's for dinner all the time. Every birthday, anniversary or "just because" would find us there to sip the hot Sake and have a delicious dinner.
The next picture is "our" table on Bingo nights. From the left is Joan, Yvonne, Barbara, Carolyn and Betty. The empty chair is where I sit. I'm the "Johnny-come-lately" but they made room for me at their #1 table. lol It's a good group of friendly women. Behind Barbara is an old upright piano. Too bad it's not a player. I still haven't decided what I will do with my 200+ player piano rolls. Maybe the fact that I am so reluctant to sell them means that someday I will still get another player piano. haha.
Today my sisters and I had a late lunch at Sizzler's. Sunday is Carolyn's birthday, so she had her choice of where to go. We decided we will go to lunch once a month. Guess we'll take turns deciding where to go.
Monday Carolyn and I have appointments with Miguel Gallegos in Turlock. During the time I was moving we missed going one month. I sure didn't like missing my reflexology treatment. I was hurting. My knees, hips, you name it. I'm glad to be back on schedule. After our treatment we usually go to The Greenery on Olive Avenue.
It's a very nice nursery in Turlock and you can find plants there that you never see in Merced. It's a straight shot from Miguel's office on Lander Avenue, just head East on Lander and it turns into Olive. How easy is that?
Anyway, I'm really excited about going there this Monday because I am going to special order some dwarf fruit trees. I can get dwarf Stella, Bing and Rainier cherry trees there. They get their fruit trees from Dave Wilson. The fruit trees we had in Merced also came from the Dave Wilson wholesale nursery. I found the same varieties we had before; Flavorcrest and Suncrest peaches; Fantasia nectarine and the Tilton apricot. Those are available in the semi-dwarf. Their usual size is a little bigger than I want, but I found a wonderful article on pruning fruit trees from UC Davis. I am determined to learn how to prune them myself to keep them within the acceptable size. You have to prune them in the summer as well as the winter. The manager is concerned about how tall the trees will get and I am too. I'd like to be able to pick the fruit without getting on a ladder.
The Dave Wilson website has lots of good information on trees. One is especially interesting to me on homegrown fruit trees.

Winton Old Timers committee

2010-08-23T15:32:00.000-07:00

SEPTEMBER 2010 IS THE WINTON OLD TIMERS' 50th ANNIVERSARY!!
The committee met today at the Winton School District office.
The three people in the back row are: Agnes Luker; Rosalie Heppner and Randy Heller, Superintendent of Winton Schools.
Front row: Cathy Hill; Marilyn Colburn; Hank Dacuyan; Carolyn Wiens; Lorraine Richards; Avanell Nelson and Wilene Nelson.
Rosalie has it well organized. The menu will be the same as last year: chicken breasts from Rizzonellis (Atwater); cole slaw from KFC (Atwater); baked beans, prepared by volunteers; apple pie from Jantz Cafe (Atwater); ice cream cups for pie ala mode - yum! and beverages; iced tea, lemonade and coffee.
The date is September 26, 2010 (last Sunday in September) at the Winton Middle School, on Cypress Avenue, between Almond and Gertrude. Registration starts at 10:00 a.m., lunch is served at 1:00. Come early and visit with old friends. Tickets sold at the door: Adults $8.00; children under 12, $4.00.

Black Oak Trip

2010-08-22T17:17:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we went to Black Oak Casino on the bus. A group of the "Relay for Life" from Atwater had a bus trip planned. Part of the money from tickets sold went to charity. Pictured on the bus is my sister Carol and her daughter Roxanne. The bus left Atwater about 4:30 p.m. and we returned around 1:00 a.m.
It was a fun trip. I haven't been to a casino in years and Carol and I had never been to Black Oak. We played the slot machines. I liked the nickel machines the best and I kept playing on them for quite a while with the $15.00 they loaded our cards with. Finally I had to use my own money and it went fast on the quarter machines. I'm not much of a gambler. Lost less than $10.00 when the night was over. One person in our group won $500. on the dollar machine and much more on the nickel machines. Came home with about $1400. I think. Guess it wasn't my turn to win. But it was fun. Better than trying to find something to watch on TV on a Saturday night. lol.

New Kitchen

2010-08-21T10:57:00.001-07:00

My kitchen is finally done. There were so many problems that came up with working on an old (1982) mobile home. Everything from changing the locks on the doors to the tile on the wall behind the stove, etc. not being even. Something was uneven, maybe it was the wall. Any way, lots of problems to be resolved.
Marty did a great job of coming up with solutions that not only worked, but looked wonderful.
To cover up the uneven space between the new back splash and the tile on the wall, he deicded to remove all the tiles and have the copper tin squares installed.
I had never heard of the tin walls before, so I thought it came in one big sheet!
I depended on Marty to come up with good ideas and I trusted his expertise to make it look good. He came up with the idea to put wood around the window, covering the white wall with a crack in it.
His worker, Mike did an expert job of fitting the tin squares together. You have to start at one end and make it over-lap. Having an uneven wall to work on was an extra challenge.
I'm impressed on how it all turned out.
So, now I have the normal height counter tops in the kitchen AND the bathroom.
I couldn't get a good picture in the bathroom; I don't have a wide-angle lens on my camera. But you can see the nice cabinets Marty and crew made for the bathroom. A tall cabinet with shelves for towels and 3 drawers below. It's all lined with vinyl so I don't have to line it with anything.
The black marble top on the vanity is very pretty. I love the new look this has made to the master bathroom.

Thursday Night Bingo

2010-08-13T10:57:00.000-07:00

Last night, Joan was our "money-changer" at Bingo because Lillian wasn't able to be there.
At first I thought my cards were duds, but each time I won, it was better than a straight Bingo, so I came out ahead again.
There are a couple of women who play 15 or 16 cards during Black-out. In the first picture is Jennie, the next one is Robyn.
The pictures were taken during our break; our treat last night was ice cream drumsticks. I haven't had one of those in years. And guess what? The chopped peanuts on top didn't even bother my stomach. Maybe I can tolerate a few peanuts now and then.
This is Jennie with her 16 Bingo cards. She plays 12 cards (I think) during regular games. I can barely keep up with 6 cards. Everyone playing Bingo lives in the mobile home park. Not sure if that's a requirement. It's a good way to get to know the residents. Maybe more will come when summer is over.
Next time I'll take a picture of a table of players.
Everyone seems to enjoy playing Bingo.

New Kitchen Stove

2010-08-11T21:16:00.000-07:00

Last Friday night I got my kitchen sink reinstalled and my New Stove!! Just in time to make Macaroni salad for the potluck on Saturday. I was so thrilled to have a kitchen sink again, even enjoyed washing dishes. Really good to have a stove again; eating fast foods gets old in a very short time.
The next time I post a picture of the kitchen, it will look very different!! Marty has some cool ideas. Things I would never have thought of.
The kitchen and bathroom should be finished the first part of next week. Yipee!!!

Tomorrow I get to start putting dishes in the cupboards. No more rummaging around in the boxes on the porch to find something to cook in.
I know, I could have been more organized, but I'm not an organized person. Anyway it will be great when it's all done.

Progress

2010-08-05T19:47:00.001-07:00

Progress is being made in the kitchen. This picture shows they took the cabinets down to the bare bones.
At first I was only going to have the counter tops lowered to the normal height.
Then when I decided I really wanted a new stove, that caused major changes to cabinets.

This next pictures shows a hole cut out for the new set-in stove. To the right is the hole where the double oven used to be. Doors have been made for the cupboards that will fill in that space.
I'm hoping to get the kitchen sink back tomorrow and the new stove installed. I've been "camping out" for quite a long time, but I guess there is an end to it soon.
I took a picture of my little Iris garden today. I haven't seen any new green yet except for a few weeds. I'm sure they will all survive. I've seen worse ones than this that made it. You can see the white name tags I stapled to them. This is the 'before' picture. I'll post another picture next spring when they are looking pretty.
Other changes in the yard to come this winter. Out with the old; in with the new.

Kitchen Renovation

2010-07-28T18:28:00.000-07:00

The kitchen was tore up today. I really didn't like the high counter tops; they were a good five inches higher than average. So, all that came out today, along with the tall, small island counter. Then I told Marty that I really wanted a new stove. The oven especially looked so old!!! So, I bought a one piece stove at Sears Monday. Marty (my sister's son-in-law) will re-do the cabinets to make it fit; make cabinets to fill the space where the double oven was. He will also build an island type counter for my microwave, etc. I know it will be very nice when it's done.
The vanity in the master bath was removed today also. It was raised to 37 inches; a good 5 inches above normal. Good grief. I will be glad to have average size counters.

A cat door was installed yesterday for Maggie. It didn't take long for her to make use of it. She is settling in now and seems much happier than at first.
I have met several of my neighbors. This was a good move for me.
I do miss picking fresh peaches from the back yard, but I hope to find some fast growing Ultra Dwarf fruit trees this winter.

Bingo Nights

2010-07-23T19:22:00.001-07:00

Thursday is Bingo night here at Rancho Grande MH Park. I went last night for the first time. There were 17 of us, which is the average number of people who come to play. Pictured is Lillian, who collects the money, checks the Bingo winners and pays out the money. Her friend, Hop is the caller. They both do a good job of running the Bingo games.
I haven't played Bingo for years and years. It looked like everyone played with 6 Bingo cards, so I thought I would too. My problem was if I was trying to listen to the conversations around me, I would forget the number that was called. hmmm, I wonder if I will get used to that and be able to talk and check my cards at the same time. I missed out a couple of times; didn't notice I had all four corners one time and also missed a diagonal win. You have to hollar Bingo before the next number is called. Oh well, nobody gets rich or goes broke there. It's only a quarter a card to play. I won a few times and only lost one quarter when the night was over.
Guess I'll be a regular, same as my sister. At least now I have a DVR from Dish Network, so when Survivor starts up again on Thursday nights, I can record it and watch it later.

Before the Move

2010-07-21T21:49:00.001-07:00

A few days before moving day, Joe chopped down the grapefruit tree. It was a huge job, it took 3 pickup loads to haul it all off. Sunday morning I planted some Irises there. They will get all day sun, it should be a good spot for them.
There are some really OLD rose bushes here. I want to replace them, but will wait until December so I can buy bare-root roses. I might have one taken out now if I can find a nice Butterfly bush to take its place.
Also before moving day, I went to Sears and bought a new refrigerator and washer and dryer. Here is a picture of the installers with the fridge. The 33 inch side-by-side just barely fit in that space. My old fridge was too wide by two inches!! My old dryer was gas, so had to buy a new set.
Little by little I'll have some changes made around here. Starting with the kitchen, I hope. The former owners had the kitchen counter rasied up a good 5 inches. I'm shorter than average and it's just too high for me. Same thing in my bathroom. The vanity is 37 inches high, they are usually 31 or 32, something like that. Good grief!!!
I have some big projects in mind.

Moving Day

2010-07-20T20:05:00.001-07:00

Moving Day finally arrived on July 12. It began early, the big truck arrived before 7:30. Mandy got up extra early and took the electronic things and Maggie in a cat cage over to the new place and was back in Merced just as the movers got there. Mandy packed up the last minute things; she rushed around and kept ahead of the movers. The truck was so big, my furniture and the million boxes only took up about 1/3 of the space. The 3 men were fast workers and we took off for Atwater before noon. (It was about 10:30, if I remember right.)
The truck arrived at Rancho Grande and here it had to be unloaded from the side door. Found out later that the neighbors were all watching from their windows.
I'm sure they wondered how I was going to fit everything inside the mobile home. A couple of days before the truck brought the big stuff, there were carloads going inside and one day it was 2 pickup loads and 3 carloads. Must have looked like a parade.
I laid awake at night, worrying about where all those boxes were going to go, so I told the movers that the boxes with 'Books' written on them, they could put those on the porch. Well, they put ALL the boxes on the porch. You can see how many there were in my "wall of boxes!" And most of them are still there!!
I have 6 large boxes of player piano rolls; about that many boxes with sheet music, not to mention pictures and special newspaper articles, obituaries, etc. etc.
I'll have to do something with it all before Sandy and Dol come for a visit.
Poor Maggie was so upset, she was locked in the bathroom with food and water. She cried and cried, I thought she was going to get hoarse. As soon as the movers left, I let her out. She spent nearly all her time on her cat tree. She looked so sad. I know she missed her old home with the cat doors and the big back yard with trees to climb.

Still More Packing

2010-07-07T21:09:00.000-07:00

Mandy and John came down over the long 4th of July weekend. They worked their buns off. It was not a holiday.
They finished packing me up and John even mowed the grass as you can see in the above photo. He even looks like he's enjoying it. Really?
It wears me out.
Here is Mandy, packing up stuff from the shelves in the utility room. John finished packing the kitchen. Mandy cleaned out the hall closet. They both sorted the boxes and stacked them in the garage. They both did a LOT of work. This was Mandy's third weekend down. I don't know what I would have done without them.
My sisters came on two different days to pack my stuff. I'm sure I have too much.
I finally got the key to the mobile. It sure didn't look as nice after they moved out. I had my cleaning lady come out today and she will be there again tomorrow. That sure made a big difference.
My neighbor lady peddles her bike over to the pool every afternoon from one to two. She invited me to join them. I will before too long. I know I will enjoy living there with people around my age. I can't imagine Maggie the cat liking it as well as here, she has so many places to hide in the backyard, but I guess she will get used to it. I hope she'll be able to stay out of the cat traps that people put out on occasion.

I'm Still Here

2010-06-27T14:37:00.000-07:00

I haven't moved yet, but things are moving along. I'll be glad to get this all over with. In the meantime, the apricots and early peaches are ripe. A couple of sisters and a niece came over today to pick some. The peaches should have been thinned, but I guess the new owners will do that next year. The apricots didn't have such a big crop this year, but they are bigger and are very nice. The apricots are Tilton and the peaches are FlavorCrest. I sure would like to find the Flavorcrest in an Ultra Dwarf size.
Here is a picture of my back yard at the MH park. I'm going to have that big Grapefruit tree taken out as soon as possible. I hope there will be enough room for the Ultra Dwarf fruit trees that I want to plant and also some Irises. You can't see all of the back yard in the picture. It's a little wider towards the road. It doesn't go beyond the Grapefruit tree though. We're not allowed to have fences, but we can have hedges if we want to. I think a row of fruit trees would be a good way to define my lot.
I just have to convince the manager that what I want to do is a wonderful idea. lol. I already have permission to have that Grapefruit tree taken out because it grew too large for that location.

Here's a picture of part of the front and the side yard. It's on a corner lot, which means lots of lawn, but that's O.K. There are automatic sprinklers and a man mows it for a very cheap price. It's a short distance to my sister's place and not far from the swimming pool. Summertime, and the livin' is easy. ONCE I GET IN.

The Waiting Continues

2010-06-22T13:19:00.000-07:00

I should've been moved by now. There has been a glitch somewhere. At first I was told the delay is because the selling price of my house had changed. Now I think it's more than that. The not-knowing is driving me crazy. I sure would like to know WHEN escrow will close. I need more than a couple days notice. Now that I've gotten used to the idea of moving, I can't wait to get there. I don't think I'll miss the big back yard after all and after Maggie gets used to the place, I'm sure we'll be fine. I'm thinking of having a cat door put in for her. I know she'll like that.

My granddaughter has 'retired' her blog, "the Dairy Princess Diaries." It was sad to see that but it's understandable. Her life has moved away from the dairy and time to put all that behind her. I'm very proud of Mandy, not only for what she has accomplished but for her personal outlook on life after all the hurt she has been through. Mandy is a smart gal and I know she and her husband will have a wonderful life together.

Lackey Memorial Bench

2010-06-18T06:15:00.000-07:00

When Ira Lackey died, people donated money to the Winton Historical Society in his memory. The Society wanted to do something special for the man who was loved by the whole community. My sister, Carolyn thought an indestructible bench made by Robert Isaac would be a good choice. A plaque was made with the words, "In Memory of Ira & Maggie Lackey." The dedication of the bench was yesterday. A good crowd of people attended, along with the 3 Lackey brothers and their families. Also nieces of Ira and Maggie. Speakers were Randy Heller, Rosalie Heppner and Judge Brown. Jim Lackey spoke on behalf of the Lackey family.
The bench was installed at the Winfield School on the corner of Walnut and Chestnut.
The Winfield School is built on property that was the homeplace of Ira and Maggie Lackey and where their 3 sons grew up.Pictured by the bench are the 3 sons of Ira and Maggie: Tom, Jim and Charley.
More pictures can be seen at flickr.

Big Changes Coming. . . .

2010-06-16T12:52:00.000-07:00

Yes, I am expecting big changes to happen soon. My sister told me of a nice mobile home for sale at Rancho Grande, a 55+ mobile home park in Atwater. So, I decided to see what I could get for my house and consider making the big move.
The real estate lady came up with comps and told me what I could probably get for this place. I thought it was a little low, but knowing that property values are way down, I thought I could accept that.
That same afternoon, my real estate lady came by to put up the for sale sign. Right behind her was a real estate lady from another company with the daughter of a prospective buyer. The daughter was enthused and called the mother right away to drive up from Southern California to see it. Their real estate lady took pictures of the house, yard, everything. Evidently they put in an offer before seeing it in person. Noon the next day, the mother was here and told me she loved the house and hoped I would accept their offer.
It looked like everything was going smoothly. Then the appraisal came in at $4,000. under the agreed upon price. I was shocked. I thought for sure it would be higher than asking price!! We compromised on the price and thought things were back on track. But, oh no, the Underwriters have to start all over again because the price changed and I was told it could take up to 20 additional days. That is absolutely crazy!! What do they do anyway? What could possibly take that long?
The people I feel bad about are the owners of the mobile that I am buying. They found a place they wanted in another town, but now they are concerned about the extra time it will take to close escrow, first on my house and then on their mobile. If they lose out on that place they will have no place to go. This Domino effect is driving us all crazy!!
I really don't understand what could possibly take the Underwriters so long to look everything over.
In the meantime I am enjoying the ripe cherries. My last Hurrah!

Iris Garden

2010-04-24T23:59:00.000-07:00

There was a nice article, including a picture in the Merced Sun-Star today about the Headrick's Iris Garden in Merced. His Iris Garden is on 2/3 of an acre just off of Yosemite Avenue and Seal Court in North Merced.
In the picture is "Select Circle" that I bought from him last year. It's very different from the others that I have and it caught my eye right off. For a while I wondered if I liked it or not. But now I've decided that, yes, I do.
I received a free bonus Iris last year, named "Abby Grace." In the article today I learned that is the name of one of their daughters. It does have a very pretty flower. I missed getting a picture of it with all the rain we've had, but I see a new bud is about to open. Mr. Headrick develops one or more new flowers every year through hybridizing. Their website is: www.hisirisgarden.com
The article is online, so if you don't get the Sun-Star, you can read it here: http://www.mercedsunstar.com/ I don't know how long they keep articles on the Internet.

Distant Cousins

2010-04-21T11:08:00.001-07:00

Yesterday, my sister, Carolyn and I met with 3rd cousins, (once removed) at Brooks Ranch in Atwater for lunch. In the picture are Marv and Ruthann Dirks from Kansas. They were in California to visit his brother in the Bay Area and first cousins, (once removed) Mark Dirks and his sister Eloise from Turlock.
The six of us had a very enjoyable 2 hour visit. Ruthann and I have exchanged Dirks information over the years, but this was the first time we met face to face.
Carolyn and I have known Mark for years, but never met his sister before. Years ago, Mark and I exchanged lots of genealogy, not just our own families, but other Mennonite families as well. That was back when I was trying to connect all the Mennonite families who lived in Winton. I think I almost did it. LOL.
I meant to take a picture of Mark and Eloise, but they were not sitting together and so, unfortunately, I forgot.
Thanks for lunch, Marv, it was a very nice afternoon. The two hours passed too quickly.

Plants 'N Things

2010-04-17T22:18:00.000-07:00

The six little tomato plants made it through the 2 day storm just fine. We did get a lot of rain, about 1.27 inches. I was concerned about the little plants, but it wasn't a hard rain, just steady.
The snails haven't found them yet, but they are all over the Iris plants.
I got my "joint fluid therapy" type of shot in my knee last Wednesday. I was so eager to get it, I'm really tired of this bum knee. Today, Saturday, I can finally tell it is getting better, but the muscles around the knee are sure sore. The full benefit of the shot can take up to 3 weeks, so I am hoping to be pain free and walk without a cane or limping someday soon. As soon as I got the shot, it was painful to walk, I had my cane with me and I slowly hobbled to the car. I had planned to go to the grocery store afterwards, but no way. I just wanted to go home and get in the recliner. This fluid expands in the knee and is supposed to fill up all the "potholes" in the knee and lubricate the joints. I sure hope it works and I won't have to have a knee replacement.
Here's a picture of "Abbey and Me" a pretty yellow and white Iris. I bought it year before last in Cathey's Valley. It was my most expensive one, $9.00, but I had to have it. I see in this year's catalog that it is down to $6.00. Guess you have to be patient and wait a year or two. We saw a beautiful Iris in the field that year, so different from anything we had seen. I forgot the name of it, but it was $50.00. Last year it was down to $25.00. Wish I could think of the name. It had the truest dark red I've ever seen in an Iris, I think part of it was black. It was very striking. But, I don't have room for any more Irises anyway.

My Maggie

2010-04-10T23:12:00.000-07:00

My Maggie is on her favorite perch (the 3rd level) of her cat tree. She is guarding her back yard from the safety of her cat tree inside the house. We get quite a few stray cats in the back yard and Maggie doesn't like it. She's not aggressive though; she's too afraid to fight, and I am happy for that. But, she's not afraid to get aggressive with me and I have the scars to prove it.

Yesterday, I managed to plant 6 tomato plants. Joe, the gardener was here early in the morning and got the ground ready. I'm glad to finally have those in the ground. I planted one Big Beef, two Better Boy and three Celebrity. Earlier I stuck 4 or 5 Early Girl in a very large pot. I plan to only leave one in there. They are so big now, I hope I can still transplant them. I have one Cherry Tomato next to the house. I really bought a lot of tomato plants this year. Guess I am determined to have fresh tomatoes all summer.
I went to my Orthopedic surgeon this week and let him know that the last cortisone shot didn't help my knee this time. He's going to try a different kind of shot. It used to be made out of rooster comb, but now they make it in a synthetic form. They had to order that medicine so it will probably take about 2 weeks to get it. In the meantime, I am trying to get by with my painful knee. I bought a cane today because I don't want the neighbors see me use my walker to walk to the mailbox. Guess I'm not ready to completely wreak my image. Probably in a day or two my knee will feel better and I won't need the cane or walker. Some days are better than others.
If this next shot doesn't help, the next step will be knee replacement surgery. I hear a lot of pros and cons about that.

New Iris Blooms

2010-04-01T14:33:00.001-07:00

This is a new one for me, Ozark Rebounder, it looks blacker than it does in the picture. Just beautiful, looked like black velvet yesterday. This one came from Superstition Iris Garden in Cathey's Valley.
Splashacata is another one from Cathey's Valley and is also new to me. I love the speckled coloring. I've had a lot of problems with snails again this year and besides that, it looked like something was turning some of the leaves brown. "Abby and Me" and "Apricot Frosty" have bloomed, but the flowers are a little deformed. So disappointing, I've been waiting to see those. They didn't bloom last year. I hope to eliminate the problem soon so I can see how beautiful they are. So many Irises are beginning to bloom now and that's pretty exciting.
I lost my original "Gypsy Woman" Iris, so I was very happy to find a replacement at His Iris Garden in Merced. It looks so dainty and beautiful with the yellow Standard and the white with pink edge Falls.
I always hate to lose a flower that I really like. It's like losing an old friend.
I've been thinking for some time that I would like to move to Atwater and be closer to my sisters. But. . . it's also hard to leave my home in Merced and my yard that is too big. I still like having the room for fruit trees and plants that strike my fancy. Nothing is ever finished. But that's the way I like it. It doesn't get boring then. There's always a place to dig. Maggie the cat loves it here too. She comes and goes as she pleases through her cat doors. She still loves her cat tree and is on it several times a day to take a nap or to check out the back yard from her high perch.
Yes, Spring is wonderful. Just wish I had a new knee.

Spring Arrives

2010-03-28T18:02:00.000-07:00

Yes, spring finally arrived. The fruit trees are blooming, the snails are out and the weeds continue to grow.
I bought quite a few tomato plants, but have only planted the Cherry Tomato so far; not counting the four Early Girl I stuck in a large pot. That was a temporary measure until I could get the ground ready. With my bum knee, I haven't been able to do that yet. There are 6 more to plant besides. Why so many tomato plants? I came home from the grocery store and after seeing the prices on them and knowing they are never as good as home grown, I just went overboard. Didn't buy them all at once, but they kind of added up.
Raspberry Rita is the first to bloom in the weed covered Iris Garden. Many others have buds on them. Something is eating the 3 Iris plants that have been blooming for weeks now. Some of the leaves are brown. These are planted in another area. Also my Fantasia Nectarine tree has Curly Leaf. DARN!!! I thought I was getting by without spraying the fruit trees. So far the two peach trees are o.k.

Mennonite History and Genealogy

2010-03-21T22:32:00.001-07:00

Yesterday, Kevin from the Hiebert Library at the Fresno Pacific Bible College was the guest speaker at the Merced County Genealogical Society meeting. His informative program was very interesting. He told us about the different groups of Mennonites who left Europe and settled in the U.S. and Canada. The first ones to settle in the U.S. were from Switzerland, they settled in Pennsylvania in the 1600s. They became known as the Pennsylvania Dutch, which was a misnomer.
The groups from Holland and Germany left their homelands for Poland and later Russia before migrating to the U.S. and Canada in the 1870s. About 2/3 of them stayed in Russia, but by 1920 decided to leave, but by then the U.S. and Canada had quotas for immigrants and so some went to South America. I wish I could remember more details of Kevin's talk. I was really impressed with his vast knowledge. There were questions from the audience and he had an answer for each one.
Then he told us about the "Grandma" file and everyone laughed when he said he was related to himself 6 different ways. So, when I came home, I decided to see how many times I am related to myself. Only five ways, so he has me beat.
I'm my own 4th cousin, once removed; 8th cousin 3 times removed; 9th cousin once removed and also 9th cousin twice removed. I'm sure this is all on the Dirks / Unruh lines.
For more information on the "Grandma" file see http://www.calmenno.org/index.htm.
To see which books are available at the Hiebert Library go to: http://geoweb.fresno.edu

GENEALOGY

2010-02-21T13:21:00.000-08:00

Yesterday the Merced County Genealogical Society presented their beginners' class in genealogy. We had a good turn-out, about half of the people were guests. It was interesting, even for the members who don't consider themselves beginners.
Rosalie did a nice job of explaining the basics and made it interesting, interjecting personal experiences.
Next, Ann did her presentation on "Google Your Family Tree." Ann purchased the book by Daniel M. Lynch, and gave us some tips that she learned from it. With a handout and the overhead projection, she shared many useful insights on how to narrow your search when looking for your ancestors.
The book is huge and is available from Barnes & Noble and Amazon. It's a bit pricey, but I'm sure well worth the money. Ann told us that some group (I think in Fresno)is doing a series of classes, just on this book. If you look it up at Amazon, read what the customers say about it. The information within this book is also helpful for non-genealogical searches.
GENEALOGY ON TV: If you have missed the PBS series of "Faces of America" with Louis Gates, Jr, you can see the missed episodes at video.pbs.org/program/1397337072
This program is aired on Wednesdays at 8 PM. It started February 10.
ALSO: NBC will air a program titled, "Who Do You Think You Are? on Fridays at 8 PM, starting March 5. For more information see: nbc.com/who-do-you-think-you-are

MENNONITE GENEALOGY: On Saturday, March 20, the Merced County Genealogical Society will present Kevin Enns-Rempel from the Hiebert Library at the Fresno Pacific Bible College, who will speak on the Mennonite Origins in Europe, the different kinds of Mennonites and he will give us an overview of the genealogical resources at the Center of Mennonite Brethren Studies in Fresno. He will tell us about the "Grandma" (Genealogical Registry and Database of Mennonite Ancestry) project, which was created by the California Mennonite Historical Society. This database is available on CD for $30.00 and currently has more than one million individuals linked to their families. For more information on this project see http://www.calmenno.org/index.htm
The Merced County Genealogical Society meets in the Merced County Library, 21st & O Street every third Saturday at 1:00 PM downstairs in the Gracey Room. Visitors are always welcome and there is no charge.

Joe is 50

2010-02-14T18:00:00.000-08:00

Joe, "the gardener" had his 50th birthday the other day and his wife, mother, aunt, niece and other family members threw a Birthday Bash for him.
My sister and I were invited. It was a fun party with some of the guys playing "beer pong." A live and LOUD band played while we visited. The food was delicious. Joe's wife made Chili Colorado; the sauce was outstanding. I'd love to have the recipe. It would be an excellent addition to the Winton Centennial Cookbook.
Here is another picture of Joe. He's wearing the "50" Birthday Pin with the flashing red light. Made it easy for his wife and mother to keep tabs on him last night. LOL. Joe's wife made the beautiful cake in the first picture.
In the second picture, Joe is opening his cards and gifts.
The party started at 4 o'clock, so we got home a little after 8. It seemed later than that, I guess because it still gets dark early.

Vintage Post Cards

2010-02-14T17:35:00.000-08:00

This is one of my vintage postcards of Merced. I uploaded it almost 3 years ago to flickr.
As of today, it's been looked at 1,000 times!! Amazing. People like it because of the F.W. Woolworth store in the picture that used to be on 17th (now Main) Street. I think it was between M and L Streets, but not positive.
The photo with the next highest number of hits, is a picture of my brother, Johnny after his accident. It's been looked at 326 times. On February 1, it was two years since Johnny died from complications of his accident.

Beginning Genealogy Class

2010-02-13T12:11:00.001-08:00

Next Saturday, February 20, the Merced County Genealogical Society will offer a beginners' class on researching your family tree.
Conducting the class will be Rosalie, who is a co-founder of the society that began in 1983. Rosalie has a lot of experience in researching her family history and has helped others get started on this fun and fascinating hobby.
The beginning class is free and the public is encouraged to attend. The meeting starts at 1:00 in the Gracey Room (downstairs) in the Merced County Library, 21st and O Streets in Merced.
Handouts will be given. Bring a pencil and names and dates of your parents, grandparents, etc., if known. If not, just bring a pencil and get started on your family tree.
See you there.

First Iris Bloom of the Year

2010-02-09T20:56:00.001-08:00

I took this picture of Captain Hook today, it was in full bloom by February 8. Never had any Iris bloom that early before. It has 4 or 5 more buds on it. Bridal Fashion has quite a few buds on it too. It's a pretty white ruffled Iris. I wonder how long they will bloom? Some others will be in bloom in April and May.

Maggie is still loving her cat tree. When I am sitting at the table having a bite to eat, she gets on the top level and stares at me while I'm eating. How do you teach a cat that it's not polite to stare?
I have a cat toy that we have fun playing with. It's a glove with long fingers with a pom-pom at the end of each finger. Maggie can really
get wild when we play with that on the cat tree. She gets so excited and climbs from level to level and finally wears herself out.
Maggie likes to tear paper and cardboard. I was concerned about that, but read on the Internet that some cats like to do that. I thought she was missing something in her diet, but I guess she is just being playful or ornery. She doesn't eat it, just tears it and spits it out.
I still think she would have fun playing with another cat, but I'm not going to try that again. She won't let the "intruder" come near her and she looks at me like she's really mad. You can tell who's the boss around here.