Grandpa's Book, Part 2 You may remember that at the end of "The Forgotten Bandsmen", I said there were interesting stories about quite a few members of the Augustana Band/123rd Field Artillery. Some of the stories are kind of humorous, like the one about draftee Frank Vasco, who refused to be told when to use …
If you've read "I Found a Tree", you'll recognize this picture. It's the bottlebrush tree that has been in my yard since 1992. It's the same tree, you remember, that was overtaken by volunteer bushes, which turned into trees under our very noses. For more info on this, see "A Bush Grows in Fresno". So …
"Grandpa's Book" Part 1 Most people in my family know that our grandfather, Emil Johnson, was a band corporal during World War 1, and that based on his letters, he was a prolific writer. Perhaps as a result of having been a reporter for the Ludington Daily News as a young man, he most often …
And no, I did not find this recipe on Pinterest! One thing most people probably don't know about Mark Tracy is that he was a pretty good cook. He wasn't afraid to try new things, and he used to say that presentation was everything. That should explain the above photo. All kidding aside (wait, is …
Who would have ever thought? I don't mind telling you I have found this whole thing irritating, to say the least. As you can see by this pristine photo of my chin, I have never had kitty acne before. In fact, I had never heard of it until Mom started texting Aunt Gail, searching stuff …
Because drawing always makes you feel better. Now that Foster and Panda have shared their "year of masks" with you, I thought I would share my "year of drawings". Because it hasn't only been about masks. This past year was one of changes, emotions, and new routines. And one of the best ways I have …
"Panda!" I cautioned. "Don't touch the computer!" "It's okay, Bro," Panda replied. "I'm only looking at some old blog posts we helped Mom make." "Okay," I said, against my better judgment. "But don't get us stuck in the Amazon rain forest like you did last time!" "No worries," Panda replied reassuringly. "This time I'm only …
I really wasn't in the mood to go outside. But I'm glad I did anyway. It was sunny after a day or two of rain, and I thought some Vitamin D was in order. I brought my phone out with me in case I saw anything I would want a picture of. Imagine my delight …
"Gaudi-esque" That's a word I made up in response to a comment by Chris Hall from Luna's Online. She mentioned the famous architect and mosaic artist Antoni Gaudi (click here for Google images) in a comment on "Our House, Part 2". I replied that perhaps my house was getting a bit "gaudi-esque" with all the …
Ludington Daily News The postcard on the left shows the Ludington Daily News building in the early 1900s. My grandfather, Emil, (the one typing) worked there for several years starting in 1913. There was also the Record Appeal, a weekly publication that would condense the main stories from the Daily News, and add other news …