$$parm1$$ NOTE--To see an on-line version of this newsletter, copy this link and paste it into your web browser: http://www.reminisce.com/rd.asp?id=458&firstname=$$firstname$$&emailaddress=$$email$$&refurl=$$refurl-link$$ If you would like to change or edit your email preferences, please visit your Personal Preferences page. http://www.reminisce.com/RD.asp?ID=459&pmcode=$$refurl-link$$ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ REMINISCE Newsletter - October 2008 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Dear $$firstname$$, We folks at Reminisce magazine thought it was a good idea to let you know specifically who’s been creating the bonus newsletter for you via E-mail, so here I am. Hope you’ve been enjoying the magazine and these monthly extras. View my photo: http://www.reminisce.com/RD.asp?ID=471&pmcode=$$refurl-link$$ Fans of genealogy should like the first story in this month’s lineup, a tale of rediscovering the past through some well-worn chairs. And what October newsletter would be complete without a story about some Halloween pranksters? It brings back memories of a certain editor who, in his youth, took delight in posing as a front-porch scarecrow to scare trick-or-treaters. Something new this month is an opportunity to travel with Reminisce through the beauty of Colorado on vintage trains. Check it out by clicking on the World Wide Country Tours promotion below. Also, if you’d like to share our little bit of electronically delivered nostalgia, consider forwarding this newsletter to a friend or family member. If this newsletter was forwarded to you and you’d like a monthly copy of your own, just use this link to sign up yourself. For now, leave present-day chores behind and live in the past for just a spell. —John Burlingham at Reminisce Sign Up: http://www.reminisce.com/RD.asp?ID=460&pmcode=$$refurl-link$$ $$parm2$$ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ **************************************** NEW! Take a trip sponsored by Reminisce! Colorado’s Vintage Railways » http://www.countrytours.com/rd.asp?id=2759&pmcode=$$refurl-link$$ The 2009 Reminisce Retiree Calendar is here! Get your copy today » http://www2.countrystorecatalog.com/rd.asp?id=3512&refurl=$$refurl-link$$ Did You Miss It? The Attic Treasures Puzzle from Reminisce is still available » http://www2.countrystorecatalog.com/rd.asp?id=3511&refurl=$$refurl-link$$ Check Out Reminisce's 1940s DVD Set » http://www2.countrystorecatalog.com/rd.asp?id=3513&refurl=$$refurl-link$$ Featured Product from Country Store: Fleece Recliner Cover » http://www2.countrystorecatalog.com/rd.asp?id=3514&refurl=$$refurl-link$$ **************************************** ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In this issue: --> Long Live Grandpa’s Chairs --> Fall at the Fair --> Showtime at Halloween was a Spotlighted ‘Corpse’ --> Wallpapering is Fun...If You Live Through It! --> Share Your Thoughts and Enter to Win a Prize --> Poem: The Golden Years --> Over the Back Fence --> Time Capsule Trivia --> A Thought to Remember ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Long Live Grandpa’s Chairs ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ By Roy F. Wilson Sequim, Washington My grandfather, John Wilson, married Wilhelmina (Minnie) Abrahamson, in 1878. He was handy with tools, and around 1880, he crafted an oak dining room set for her. Family tradition says it was made of timber cut from their homestead in southern Minnesota. John and Minnie moved to Minneapolis, where in 1903, John built a house they lived in for the rest of their lives. John died in December of 1925, and Minnie passed away 6 months later. I was born in 1929, so I never knew them. The house was sold to strangers, but we kept some cane-bottom chairs from Grandma’s dining room set. By the time of my earliest memory, they had seen half a century’s hard use, and wooden patches covered the tattered cane bottoms. As a boy, in the 1930s, I used one of the chairs for a workbench. My saw cuts are still there. After my father retired, in 1955, my parents moved to Oregon. The chairs, now 75 years old, worn and derelict, were too full of memories to throw away, so three went with them and were stored in the rafters of their garage. In 1970, my parents relinquished their home, and my older sister took the chairs, now 90 years old. She planned to refinish them, but for 20 years, they gathered dust in her garage. In 1990, she asked if I would like to have the chairs, now 110 years old. By 1998, I was long retired, and we decided to downsize. For the chairs, now gathering dust in my garage, it was now or never. So, about 120 years after my grandfather crafted them, I cleaned them up, tightened the joints, smoothed down the rough spots, installed new cane on the seats and coated them with a clear satin finish. Neglected and out of service for more than half a century, three different families hung on to those chairs. Now they again fulfill their purpose. In 2002, I visited Minneapolis. Grandpa’s house is still there, and I took a picture of it. When I got home, I addressed a letter to the occupants, telling them my grandfather built their house. I sent them the photo I took and an older one as well. The people who live there were eager to know its history, so I wrote again, telling them what I knew, sending old photos of the people who lived there and a photo of the refinished chairs. The lady kept our correspondence secret, and on their first anniversary, she presented her husband with a framed copy of the early photo, along with a scrapbook of the other photos and our correspondence. In 2003, I visited them and went inside my grandpa’s house for the first time. The trim, the stairs, the balusters, the rails, and the built-in cabinetry he crafted are still there, so I was able to see and touch more of his handiwork. The owner researched the history of the house and had a copy of the original building permit my grandpa signed 100 years ago. It shows the original cost. The current value is more than 100 times what it cost to build it then. John and Minnie Wilson and their daughter Mayme, circa 1909. View image: http://www.reminisce.com/rd.asp?id=464&pmcode=$$refurl-link$$ Grandpa’s Chairs, in 2004. View image: http://www.reminisce.com/rd.asp?id=465&pmcode=$$refurl-link$$ The Wilson house, around 1909. View image: http://www.reminisce.com/rd.asp?id=466&pmcode=$$refurl-link$$ The Wilson house, in 2002. View image: http://www.reminisce.com/rd.asp?id=467&pmcode=$$refurl-link$$ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Fall at the Fair ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Joan Caldwell of Lansdale, Pennsylvania shares these slides taken in October of 1964, when she and her husband, Thomas, were attending the New York World’s Fair in Flushing Meadow, New York. View image 1: http://www.reminisce.com/rd.asp?id=468&pmcode=$$refurl-link$$ View image 2: http://www.reminisce.com/rd.asp?id=469&pmcode=$$refurl-link$$ View image 3: http://www.reminisce.com/rd.asp?id=470&pmcode=$$refurl-link$$ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Showtime at Halloween was a Spotlighted ‘Corpse’ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ By Malcolm Beebe Kingsport, Tennessee A group of us boys stood under a streetlight in my hometown of Kenmore, New York, discussing what pranks we were going to pull on this night before Halloween, in 1951. At 10, I was the youngest. My brother, Bruce, was almost 14 and the oldest of us. There was much talk about soaping windows, piling leaves inside storm doors and putting garbage cans on garage roofs. Finally, Bruce suggested we put a dummy in the street under the lamppost across from our house. We jumped with glee at this brilliant idea. We stood admiring our creation when Ed said, “We need a knife in his chest.” My brother returned with Mother’s good bread knife, which he carefully stuck into the “corpse” so that the handle extended a good 10 inches above the shirt. When a pair of headlights turned onto our street, we all took off to hide among the trees and bushes. The car slowed down, veered a bit and crept past our corpse. I could hear the driver laughing as he pointed it out to his passengers. As we patiently awaited the next car, I had to back up a little because the needles of a large pine tree were tickling my face. I was unaware that I had now made myself visible. With the next several cars came the same reaction from the occupants, and I could hear us all chuckling over what was becoming the best night before Halloween I had ever had. Soon, the neighbor who lived right next to the lamppost came home. When he saw the corpse in the road, he almost rammed his car over the curb and into the big maple tree growing on our front lawn. He jumped out of his car, and when he realized it was a dummy, he started looking around. Unfortunately, he saw me and headed in my direction. I was frozen in my tracks. He grabbed my arm and forced me to give him the names of the other boys, writing them down. Glaring at me once more, he went to pick up the dummy and tossed it in the back of his car. When our father answered the front doorbell later, he was confronted by a uniformed police officer and heard the story, as reported by our neighbor. Dad asked us what happened, and we told him. He then told us to remain in our bedroom as he went to the police station to retrieve our precious dummy. I feared I would be grounded for weeks, thus being denied the chance to go trick-or-treating the next night. We finally heard Dad’s footsteps on the carpeted stairs as he came up to our room. Dad walked in and just glared at us, our death sentence being a probable option. Then, a smile slowly crept across his stern, tough face as a chuckle worked its way up from his lungs. Our mother, standing next to him, said of our prank, “I’m not surprised, after all the stories you’ve told them.” You see...Dad had pulled many a trick like ours when he was a boy, 40 years prior to that Halloween of 1951. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Wallpapering is Fun...If You Live Through It! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ By Elisabeth Witmer Myerstown, Pennsylvania Back in 1950, I was young, energetic and full of confidence. When it came to repapering our living room, I knew it would be a cinch. I read some how-to articles and was eager to start. But how was I, a “shortie,” going to reach the ceiling? We had an old extension table that had endured the abuse of two generations of large families, so I thought my using it wouldn’t make it suffer much more than it already had. I moved it to the living room and added enough boards so that it extended from wall to wall. With the first strip of paper pasted and partially folded, my 9-year-old foster son and I got up onto the table. He held the folded end while I fitted my end into the first corner of the ceiling. I just started smoothing it out when my husband walked in. “Here, I’ll help you.” As soon as his weight was on the table we heard, “Crack!” And down we went. Thankfully, no one was hurt. We got up and surveyed the wreck. All my husband could muster was, “Uh-oh.” Now we had a broken table and the paper sticking to the ceiling with a torn end hanging down. I looked at my two willing helpers. Their faces reflected utter dismay. I just burst out laughing at this most ridiculous sight. Then my son went into spasms of laughter. Even my husband managed a grin. When we finally calmed down, we propped up the corner of the table and started over. My husband remained off the table and we somehow got the job done. By the way, we still have the table…but it got a new leg. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Share Your Thoughts and Enter to Win a Prize ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Join the Reminisce Powerhouse Panel, and you’ll get free, members-only access to special offers, discounts, and rewards, plus the chance to share your thoughts on new products, hot topics and more. Sign up today! You can enter to win a high-tech digital camera and other great prizes. No purchase is necessary to win. The sweepstakes, open to U.S. residents ages 18 and over, begins on October 14, 2008 and ends on December 31, 2008; void where prohibited. Entry details and official rules will be available on-line, starting October 14, at reminiscepowerhouse.com/rules. Join the Reminisce Powerhouse Panel: http://www.reminisce.com/rd.asp?id=472&pmcode=$$refurl-link$$ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Poem: The Golden Years ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Peggy Larsen of Mountain View, Wyoming shares this poem, written in 1986 by her father, Raymond E. Barnard. “He has since passed on,” says Peggy, “but I enjoy reading it time and again.” If you’ve been around about 60 years Then there isn’t any doubt, You’ve heard of things called golden years But don’t know if you’re in or out. When you get up in the morning And your knees hurt when they bend, This is the first warning That you’re getting in the trend. If the aches and pains would go away, It really would be nice. But if you want a pinch of gold today You’ll have to pay the price. Take a walk down to the center, First rub in the old Ben-Gay. Don’t worry about the scent; All old folks smell that way. The old dog upon the corner Will be waiting there for you, For a kind word and some friendly pets ’Cause he’s old and lonesome, too. Whenever people talk to you, They seem so far away. It’s hard for you to understand Just what they have to say. Or maybe you’ll find out that Your eyes have lost their sparkle. The thick glasses that you wear Only help a little particle, But maybe they will help enough So you can read this article? Out to the mailbox you go each day; Someone promised you they’d write. But there isn’t any mail today, So you figure everything must be all right. Be sure to take all the pills That the doctor gave to you. They’re supposed to cure all your ills, But they never do. Get out the old car and go for a spin, A couple miles or so. Young folks will glare, some will swear, Because you drive so slow. But don’t get mad, just stay glad. Those young folks just don’t know You’re having fun on a “golden” run As around the block you go. Now the sun is setting in the west, Nature paints her picture in the sky. Could this one be the very best Of the thousands you’ve seen go by? These things are just a few; There are many, many more. Maybe there is enough for you To figure up your score. Now put away all your fears, Sit down, relax, hum your favorite song. Enjoy all these Golden Years That you’ve waited for so long. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Over the Back Fence ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Editor’s Note: Going through some dusty files, I found this little item hiding in a humor folder. It had no name attached to it, but I thought readers would enjoy it: As students entered the lunch line at Asbury Theological Seminary, in Wilmore, Kentucky, they were greeted by a sign over a bowl of apples: “Take only one apple. God is watching you.” At the other end of the line was a large pan of cookies. Near it was this hastily written sign: “Take as many cookies as you want. God is back watching the apples.” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Time Capsule Trivia ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ From the decades spanning the 1920s to the 1960s, try to guess what year these historic events took place. The answer is given below, but no peeking! 1. In June, astronaut Edward White is the first American to make a “space walk,” drifting outside his Gemini IV space capsule for a record 22 minutes. It is one of five Gemini missions this year as America’s space program captivates the nation. 2. On November 9, an unexpected power surge strikes the Northeast power grid a little after 5 p.m., and East Coast power plants fall like dominoes. More than 30 million people in New York, Maine, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont and New Hampshire endure the massive blackout for several hours. 3. In boxing, Cassius Clay knocks out Sonny Liston in a rematch to retain his heavyweight title. The champ then announces he is a Black Muslim to be known as Muhammad Ali. 4. The TV show Get Smart debuts, with Don Adams as bumbling secret agent Maxwell Smart (Agent 86) and Barbara Feldon as his beautiful and brilliant partner (Agent 99). The show is a spoof of another outlandish TV spy show, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., and both feed on the popularity of movie super spy James Bond. 5. Julie Andrews, as a free-spirited governess, wins the hearts of the seven Von Trapp children and their father, along with movie audiences everywhere, in the box-office smash The Sound of Music. Other popular films this year include Cat Ballou and Doctor Zhivago. For the answer to Time Capsule Trivia, click below. http://www.reminisce.com/RD.asp?ID=463&pmcode=$$refurl-link$$ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A Thought to Remember ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Some days, I can hardly endure all my blessings. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This email was sent to: $$email$$ HAVE A FRIEND who enjoys the good old days? Feel free to forward this newsletter! If this newsletter was forwarded to you, please use this link to sign up for yourself. http://www.reminisce.com/RD.asp?ID=460&pmcode=$$refurl-link$$ If you do not want to receive further editions of this Newsletter, please use this link to unsubscribe. http://www.reminisce.com/RD.asp?ID=461&email=$$email$$&pmcode=$$refurl-link$$&OptID=63 To learn more about Reiman Media Group's use of personal information, please read our Privacy Policy. http://www.reminisce.com/RD.asp?ID=462&pmcode=$$refurl-link$$ Copyright 2008 Reiman Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved. 5400 S. 60th St., P.O. Box 991, Greendale WI 53129-0991 1-800/344-6913