Minnesota – Page 32 – Valerie's Voice

An Old Oak Tree

The first stone church built in 1862. One of two historic churches at Valley Grove.

On the National Weather Service website it states there were 10 tornado tracks in SE Minnesota last week…apparently they use the term track before a tornado touchdown is confirmed. The havoc from these storms is all around us and we continue to hear stories of damage, and miracles of how the fallen trees and debris have not taken any lives. For that we are thankful.

The majestic oak tree in Valley Grove Cemetery. I took this photo just a few weeks ago.

But I did lose something dear…an old, oak tree at Valley Grove. I think this oak tree was beloved by many people.

The old, oak tree that once stood tall, behind the two historic churches at Valley Grove.

Although the tree was not in my path daily I became very fond of the huge tree from many visits to the Valley Grove churches and cemetery. The towering, magnificent oak was a stable presence and protection over the cemetery where we plan to be buried someday.

The tree is at least 100 years old but the actual age is unknown. The Valley Grove community was started in 1860.

We knew the 100 year old (plus) tree would not last forever but the thought of it being there was comforting. Now it’s gone. Taken down by the storm…in minutes…toppling over tombstones and laid to rest.

The tree toppled onto tombstones, breaking a few.

The oak tree on its side…you can see the chain that helped stabilize the massive tree.

We recently took a hike through the prairie lands behind the cemetery and took a few photos of the massive oak tree, held together in some parts by chains. We’ve had picnics at Valley Grove and attend the Christmas Eve service in the historic church every year.

The fallen tree in the background where it once stood tall.

This is a special place, and will continue to be, although it will never be the same. The majestic oak tree will be missed by many.

Walking through the vibrant prairie at Valley Grove.

A second church was built in 1894 across from the first church because they outgrew the first one.

It Doesn’t Get Easier

Our son, Tim, who lives in Mozambique, managed to arrange a visit to Minnesota after a business meeting he attended in Washington DC. It was a great surprise to learn about this visit. We hadn’t seen him since October of last year.

We had three wonderful days together and nice family time along with our older son, Michael, and his family. We did miss having Tim’s family with us though.

It’s difficult to see your children once a year – and then not all of his family – our daughter-in-love and two grandchildren. Technology helps some these days…we hope our grandchildren recognize us after seeing us on Skype when we see them in person some day…but it’s hard.

So when we took Tim to the airport once again I was sad to say good-bye. After many years you’d think it might get easier, but it does not.

I do cherish the times we have together and hopefully we will get to see the whole family very soon.

Here is a photo our adorable grandchildren who live in Mozambique.

Zoey, soon to be 4 years old and Ezra is 2 years old.

The Defeat of Jesse James Days

The Defeat of Jesse James Days (DJJD) is Northfield’s community celebration, and is always the weekend after Labor Day. This year the weather was ideal; bright sunny skies, low humidity with temperatures in the 70’s. Perfect.

Over the weekend there are several re-enactments of the bank raid that happened in 1876. This failed attempt at robbing the First National Bank in Northfield is credited for the demise of the James-Younger Gang. Three of their gang members were killed (and two Northfield citizens) that day in the shoot-out, while the other gang members separated which put an end to their criminal careers.

A “de-feet” of Jesse James donut, made each year at Northfield’s downtown bakery. I chose this over the mini-donuts I usually buy.

DJJD offers carnival rides, a lot of food trucks, craft fairs, organized runs, walks and bicycle rides, a community parade, and a rodeo comes to town. This year I decided to go to the rodeo. It had been several years since I attended the rodeo and it was fun.

Very interesting watching the riders on the bucking bulls.

The emcee, with a southern drawl, was engaging (and opened the rodeo with a prayer). He bantered with the clown who was so much more than a clown. This “clown” danced to several (25?) different, consecutive music clips. I was exhausted just watching him move. He had the footwork down and he could dance! He was amazing to watch.

In addition there was bull riding, calf roping, steer wrestling, calf tying, barrel racing, and mutton busting – where children sit on the back of a sheep and hang on as long as they can, which is usually a second or maybe two. One sheep, with a child on it’s back, came out of the gate, plopped down on the ground and wouldn’t get up. It was funny and we laughed. Poor kiddo.

Sheep used for Mutton Busting. Notice the field used for the boot race…kids running in their socks.

Another event involved kids, ages eight and under, who were wearing cowboy boots. They were invited out to the middle of the arena and asked to take off one boot, put it in a pile then walk to the other end of the field. When all the kids were all down at one end a signal went off, they raced to the pile of boots, found their own boot, put it on, and ran back. It was comical.

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Click on the above link for a 4-second video clip of a cowboy riding the bull.

It was a lovely evening to sit outside and be entertained at the rodeo. There was action, variety and lots of laughter. It’s always good to laugh.

Vienna Opera House and Urness Hall

One evening in Vienna, Austria we bought tickets to the famous Vienna State Opera…a Wiener Staatsoper (Wien is Vienna in Austria). We didn’t see an opera but went to an orchestra concert, Vienna Mozart Orchestra. It was delightful. We had wonderful center seats facing the stage and members of the Vienna orchestra entertained us with Mozart and Haydn for a couple of hours.

The Vienna Opera House, officially called the Vienna State Opera.

Inside the opera house was elegant. We were excited as we walked into the elaborate setting with the gold gilt trim, paintings on the ceiling, and statues on the grand staircases. It was fun to dress up a little and participate in something we don’t do very often.

My friend and I were entertained by looking all around.

Looking towards the ceiling in the opera house.

Many statues and paintings adorn the interior of the Vienna State Opera.

The curved wall of seats overlooking the stage.

Recently, back in Minnesota, my husband and I attended a different kind of concert with four fabulous musicians playing gypsy jazz. Gypsy jazz is a style that began in France in the 30’s. A guitarist name “Django” Reinhardt made it popular. It is also called gypsy swing, a kind of classy jazz. This quartet had one guitar, a standing bass (they called it that), one violin and one drummer. No brass instruments; no saxophones, no trumpets.

Their venue was Urness Hall on the St. Olaf College campus. It may not be on the grandeur scale of the famous Vienna State Opera but it is acoustically sound and a wonderful space to attend musical events.

As I sat there I looked around at the simple yet seasoned space with a wall of windows to the outside. The sky was getting darker as the concert continued on, and the lights of the hall were reflecting in the windows which looked stunning. It’s an intimate space that I have come to really enjoy. (Unfortunately I left my phone at home to be electronic free, forgetting that I am then, camera free!)

The concerts were as different as the venues, but both were easy listening and in special spaces, and wonderful experiences. I’m grateful for talented musicians using their gifts to make beautiful music all over the world.

A Play Cupboard

I’ve mentioned before my father was a carpenter by trade. In addition to his work projects he built a lot of miscellaneous items including (but not limited to): a wooden camping trailer, a corner cupboard for my mom for their 25^th wedding anniversary, a cedar chest, a cradle for my dolls, a canopy frame for my twin bed…(I sure wish I had a picture of that canopy bed. He made it out of wood and it had flair to it.)

He also made a small cupboard for me in the 1950’s, which I played with when I was a little girl, and then acquired it again after many years and basically used it for garden tools and supplies.

The play cupboard from the 1950’s, before the remodel.

Recently I decided it would be fun to clean it up and let my grandchildren play with it. There were two linoleum surfaces with spills, stains and ground-in dirt so I wanted to have the linoleum removed and replaced with vinyl or something fresh and clean. I asked a friend, who is a wonderful woodworker and has a wonderful woodworking shop, if he would fix it.

He said yes. He took off the old linoleum and replaced both surfaces with plywood and applied three coats of polyurethane to them… it looks beautiful!

Next, my husband and I sanded the doors and sides and added a coat of polyurethane so the whole cupboard looks bright and shiny and ready for playtime…

I know my dad would be thrilled knowing his great-grandchildren will play with the cupboard he made for his daughter so many years ago.

Aprons and Typewriters

Writing prompts help with memories, thoughts and ideas. Recently one such prompt made me think of two classes I took in junior high, which were grades 7-9 at Northeast Junior High School in Minneapolis.

One class was Home Economics – they no longer call it that – now it is called FACS: Family and Consumer Science.

I learned to sew in my 8th grade home ec class. I can’t remember the teacher’s name but I can picture her, and the classroom. Our first sewing project was a waist apron made from gingham check material. The color yellow comes to mind, and we had to sew on a pocket and embroider the pocket too.

This is not my old Singer sewing machine but it had similar iron work…I have a glass top on this iron frame and use it as a shelf to hold my colored glass pieces.

After that sewing class I was able to use those skills to sew a lot of my own clothes, mostly through high school. I would sew downstairs in our semi-finished basement on an old Singer sewing machine, using a knee pedal to control it.

I enjoyed walking up to Minnesota Fabrics in Apache Plaza and sitting on a stool at the high slanted counter, paging through the large pattern books to find the right design. Once decided, the patterns were in drawers underneath the counter. It was fun to look at all the fashions in the pattern books; Vogue, McCall’s, Simplicity to name a few I remember. After I picked a pattern I’d peruse all the fabric and select just the right material for my project.

It was fun and economical to sew back then, but I stopped sewing clothes and now use my table-top sewing machine for mending and occasional miscellaneous items: valances, pajamas and shorts for my two boys when they were young, and recently, an apron from some fun fabric I acquired in Africa. I am grateful for that home ec class in junior high. Sewing is a skill that has served me well over the years.

The other class brought to mind was my typing class. I was in 7^th grade. I can picture the classroom set up but not the teacher. I remember pounding out fff, jjj, etc., but I don’t remember if it was an electric typewriter. I don’t think so. Typing has been another skill that has served me well over the years. I continue to use it everyday.

My friend sent me this photo of her mother’s typewriter.

A fun typewriter story: we attended a wedding where an antique, non-electric typewriter was used to “sign” the scrolled paper as the guest book. We were standing behind some young folks who were confused…they didn’t know how to move it to the next line so we showed them how to use the carriage return.

Back to the 50’s

I’ve had a few flashbacks recently, that took me back to the 50’s and 60’s.

First I was in an antique store in northern Minnesota and immediately inside the door was a furniture set like my aunt had in her basement when I was a little girl.

And it’s still in the family, in my aunt’s house. It is a Naugahyde three piece set…a sofa that folded out into a bed, a rocking chair and a stationary chair with a coffee table and two end tables. It has a western theme with a saddle embroidered on the sofa and horse heads on the chairs. The end tables have wagon wheels for the legs. It’s unique, and I’ve never seen it any other place other than my aunt’s basement where we had wonderful family gatherings over the years. My aunt’s set is in pristine condition and it seemed the set in the furniture store was also. Seeing the furniture brought me back to the 50’s.

McKinley Street: our mail dropped into the front closet, my room was the one between the front door and garage door, you can’t see the brick chimney on the left side of the house.

Next, as we were biking around the city lakes in Minneapolis with our son, daughter-in-love, and granddaughter, we rode through neighborhoods with interesting and unique homes. We passed by one house and the facade was like that of the house my dad built in 1953, the house I grew up in. It had a tuck under garage, the front door leading into the living room with a big picture window, and a brick chimney on the side for the “real” fireplace. The house, like the furniture set, was also a unique design that I haven’t seen often. It was fun to notice it. That glimpse brought me back to my happy, childhood days.

Also on that same ride I noticed a city bus that was flashing the street names for its route. Silver Lake and Johnson Street caught my attention and then I noticed the bus number 4B. I remember waiting for the 4B many, many times. The bus traveled on Johnson Street and Silver Lake Road to service northeast Minneapolis where I grew up. It was interesting that I noticed the bus and how it brought back good memories.

I recently attended a session on prompting memories so I wonder if I’m more in tune to noticing things from days gone by?

Fair Time

Even though I’m not much of a fair-goer (because of the crowds) we heard about the Steele County Free Fair in Owatonna so we decided to check it out. When our sons were young we would go to the Dakota County fair – it was a nice size. And we did go to the Minnesota State Fair a couple of times for the experience of a big state fair.

Gold Star Amusements at the Steele County Free Fair.

The Steele County Free Fair was a nice size too. We watched youngsters enjoying the rides in the amusement park. We meandered through the indoor arenas where exhibitors set up booths. We ate some “fair food” from the many food concessions stands. We walked through 4-H and fine arts buildings, animal barns, produce exhibits and flower displays.

Red Kanagaroos. There are 50 species of Kangaroos.

As we walked around looking at the animals I kept thinking it’s a very good idea for folks, especially town folks (like me), to see the animals and be reminded of how creative God is…There are so many different types of animals, each one unique and amazing in its own way.

That applies to flowers too. I love flowers. Flowers can be so intricate and delicate and there are so many varieties.

And vegetables…so many different vegetables.

We didn’t get to see everything at the Steele County Free Fair but we saw enough to want to go back next year…and maybe we’ll go to a zoo in-between time to see the long necks on the giraffe, the pouches on a kangaroo, a llama’s big bulging eyes with long eye lashes, a pig’s snout, a bird’s feathers, fishes scales…o my.

Then God looked over all he had made, and he saw that it was very good! Genesis 1:31 (NLT)

Luna Moth and Other Creatures

‘Tis the year for unusual sightings.

I saw a Luna Moth at a friend’s house the other afternoon. We noticed lively fluttering and followed it until it landed on the house and snapped a photo.

I looked up information on the Luna Moth and found that it’s not too common to see them during their brief, (one week) adult lives. I learned the adults do not eat or have mouths. They emerge as adults solely to mate and are more commonly seen at night. Interesting. They are lime-green and have a wing span of about 4-5 inches long and are very beautiful.

Last week we drove through two swarms of mayflies on one stretch of highway and they hit the vehicle like a slap in the face. We haven’t experienced mayflies for a few years now.

And then this…I can’t identify it but it is unusual and hanging under our deck and I’ve never seen it before.

Unidentified winged creature feeding on something under our deck.

Honeysuckle flower to give size perspective…

It’s also been an unusual year as we haven’t had too many mosquitoes bothering us. I’m not sure why, but I like it. We been able to be outside, sit on our deck in the evening, or garden, and not be bothered by them. I suppose there still is a chance they’ll present themselves this summer but we’re enjoying the respite.

Which reminds me…in Europe there are no bugs… that come inside anyways..I don’t get that either. There are no screens on the windows or doors. You leave the window (or door) open for air all day – and all night – and no bugs come into the house.

It’s fascinating, really.

Sure-Jell

‘Tis the season to make strawberry jam so off to the store I went to buy Sure-Jell only to find two stores were sold out.

This year’s batch of strawberry freezer jam.

But what I found interesting is I had to ask three store clerks where in the store the Sure-Jell was shelved. They were young and not one of them knew what Sure-Jell was. I had tell them it’s for making jam, and then had to confirm the spelling of it so they could look it up on their electronic devices. If they only knew how easy it is to make freezer jam.

Also, ‘tis the season for blueberries. We were able to pick some berries to freeze at Little Hill Berry Farm here in Northfield, before they were picked out by 9 a.m. on their first day of picking. It has become a popular place.