Thanksgiving Weekend

I went to Hornitos to my sister-in-law's for Thanksgiving dinner this year. She always has a lot of her immediate family around, and that's always nice. We had a wonderful meal with turkey and all that goes with it, including the pumpkin pie.
Black Friday, I woke up at 4:30, which surprised me, so thought I might as well go shopping. Left the house at 5 a.m. for Kohl's at the Mall. I saw a vegetable grater and a sandwich maker (Panini Grill) that I wanted to buy. I walked in and was surprised that there weren't a lot of people milling around. They opened at 4 a.m.
Got the two items I wanted and then asked someone what they were in line for? Well, there were several LONG lines of people waiting to be checked out. Everyone else was there earlier than me and was ready to be checked out. It took at least 30 minutes to reach the cash registers. They had 5 or 6 going where I got checked out and I don't know how many at the other end of the store. I didn't bother to look at clothes either, decided it wasn't worth it. Get my kitchen gadgets and get out of there. I'm expecting some great sandwiches in the next few days. (grin)
The Fuyu Persimmon tree is loaded again this year. A lot of them have been picked already, but I will have to pick the rest of them before Joe comes to prune the fruit trees. Also the birds will get the fruit if I leave them on the tree too long. Too bad. I love just picking the fruit off the tree as I eat them. I couldn't believe how expensive the Persimmons are in the store. 4 for $5.00. I should put a fruit stand in front of my house. ha I think I said that before when I had so many peach trees.
December 7 -- What a difference a week makes. Here is that same Persimmon tree without the leaves. Kind of pretty with all the orange Fuyus on it. I don't know if the frost will hurt the fruit. It was supposed to snow in Merced today. It didn't quite make it, but sure was cold.

It's Just A Number

Last week I was at the Merced Mall and decided I needed a new pair of Gloria Vanderbuilt cotton twill pants. I tried on the usual size and also a size larger.
Well, guess which one fit? The larger one of course. Wasn't too happy about that, but what are you going to do?
A couple of days later, decided I needed a pair of brown shoes to go with the brown pants. Found a pair of Skechers that I liked and guess what?
Again I had to buy a whole size larger than usual.
I do like to be comfortable and that trumps over the embarrassment of having to confess what size I wear.
But, who's going to ask?
I blame the sizes on the fact that nothing is made in the U.S. anymore.
That's a shame. The pants were made in Kenya and the shoes in China.
Come on, we all know they have little feet over there!

Then I got on the scale. I have lost a few pounds!! So, go figure.
The size on the label is just a number.
(Good thing I don't have a full-length mirror.)

Write Your Story

I liked today's "Pickles" comic strip.
A little reminder to also write your story on paper.
And if it's about Winton, send it to me. It may end up in our newsletter.
Wanna see more of Pickles and other comics online? Clink on this link.
Another good website is here.

Stories

I'm always looking for short stories of interest about Winton for the newsletter and maybe for the next Winton book.
The next newsletter will have a story about "What we did in our leisure time, growing up in Winton." I asked a few people to write about cutting peaches in Winton. Can't hardly call that "leisure" time, but it's what a lot of us did during our summer vacation from grammar school.
If you have a memory of summer vacations from school, tell us what you did.
Please include your name. Thanks.
WintonCA@aol.com

Holiday Bazaar

Yesterday was the Holiday Gift Bazaar at Castle Vista. We were there from 8 a.m. (it opened at 9) until almost 3 p.m. The time went pretty fast, surprisingly.
We had planned to get a sub-sandwich to take with us, but they weren't open that early. About lunch time, one of the ladies came around and told us that Pizza Hut had a special going, and they would deliver. It looked like everyone did that, including us.
Several people came just to look us up. Thanks guys!! We saw people that we knew of, but didn't exactly know, so that was interesting.
Did we sell anything? Yes, but not a lot. Still it was an enjoyable day. Several people took information and plan to submit recipes for the Winton Centennial Cookbook. At last count we had 560 recipes, so it's going to be a nice big book.
I made other contacts that I was happy about.
My sister and her friend had a few items on the table to sell, and they did O.K.
So all in all, it was a good day.

Holiday Craft Bazaar

On Saturday, November 14, my sister, Carolyn and I will be at the Castle Vista Holiday Craft Bazaar from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. with the Winton Historical Society coffee mugs with the picture of the old Winton Depot on them.
They sell for $7.00 each.
The "Memories of Winton 1911-1950" book will also be available for $35.00.
For more information on the book, see this post.
Both the coffee mugs and the history book would make nice Christmas gifts.
Come see what all is offered for sale at their annual holiday bazaar.
Castle Vista is located on Juniper Avenue in Atwater. The gates will be open and the public is invited to attend this annual event.

WHS Meeting

Today, being the first Tuesday of the month was the meeting of the Winton Historical Society. I always enjoy it. Fun to see people you've known for years and the ones you recently became friends with. It's like having a relaxing low-key party.
A few more recipes were turned in today. The total count now is 560. Wow. And I was afraid we wouldn't make it to 500. More are promised, so I hope they are still coming in. I would like to try so many of the recipes! Or better yet, have the contributors make the recipe for me. (grin)
Today I received the story for the newsletter that I was waiting for, so now I need to get busy on that. I think the newsletter will be interesting to anyone who remembers the Good Old Days in Winton. I'm grateful for the people who take the time to write their memories of Winton to share with the rest of us.
We had a "mini" meeting of the Old Timers Committee at the end of our historical society meeting. Everyone agreed that 2009 was one of the best reunions ever.
Having most of the food catered worked very well. We had many compliments on the food this year. The day was well organized.

I have been scanning Winton pictures that we borrowed from Bob Anderson's son and daughter. I am embarrassed about how long I've had them. But I am almost done.
Here is a picture I was very happy to scan. It's Aunt Lena Horst, a retired teacher telling a story to her niece's students at Winton School. Aunt Lena loved the children and really enjoyed visiting Jackie's classroom.

I'm Falling Apart!!

The other day I ordered a hearing aid and new glasses.
Today I had a routine dental appointment for a cleaning. Found out that I need two gold crowns replaced. Good Grief. What Next? Did I reach that magic birthday when you start falling apart?
I don't want any more surprises. Unless they're nice ones.
Here is the story of my life:

Yeah, I don't seem to have a place for everything either!!