Sunday, June 24, 2012

Daisy

How many of you remember the old song "Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer true.  I'm half crazy all for the love of you"  Actually that's the chorus to the song 'Bicycle Built For Two.'  I used to sing this to my kids and I taught it to my grand kids when they come along. (I wonder at ages 20 & 21 if they still remember it?)


Well, there was a reason this song was important to me as I grew up.  In June 1952 my folks moved from a 2 bedroom house in the city to a 10 acre 'farm' 3½ miles away. I was 10½ having just completed the 4th grade and my brother was 2 yrs old when this move took place. 


My dad was born in Idaho into a railroad family. They eventually moved into eastern Washington and when my dad was about 9 his parents divorced. He and his younger brother went with their father to southern California and his younger sister stayed with my grandmother and her family. My dad stayed with his father and step mother until he was 16 when he ran away and came back to Washington state to live with his mother.  He even went to Hollywood High School for a couple of years. 


My dad once told me he had always had a desire to 'live on the land' and not in the hustle bustle of southern California. So this 10 acres of land was always in the back of his mind. The property had a raggedy old house on it (heated only by an oil stove in the living room area) and my mom set about to make it a home.  And that she did.  I can remember ice on the inside of my two bedroom windows in the winter but my bedroom walls were painted pale pink with wallpaper border filled with roses. By the time I was a junior in high school a new, roomy house had been built by my dad and mom.....in front of the old one. 


My parents had some friends from church that owned a dairy farm not too far from us. I don't think it was that first summer but by the following year we had the first of many farm animals.  She was black and white with a sweet gentle spirit.....she was our Holstein ~ Daisy. 
Daisy was rather small for a Holstein, so she was in no way intimidating to any of us. We all fell in love with our Daisy. My mother was raised on a large hop farm in eastern Washington, so she was used to farm animals and the work that goes along with living on a farm. So once dad built a fenced in area next to the old chicken coop she filled it with chickens.  And soon a HUGE garden area was plowed and in the Spring of 1953 she planted the first of a yearly very large garden.  That's when I learned to weed. Oh , I hated that. 


My dad worked full time as a train dispatcher for the Milwaukee Railroad and for as long as I can remember he worked swing shift....which was 3:30pm to 11:30pm.  Now most cows are milked in the early morning and then 12 hours later in the early evening.  But because of dad's work schedule Daisy was milked at noon and midnight.  By the time I was 12, dad had taught me the procedure for milking a cow. There were times, especially in the summer when he wanted to take a day and go fishing so it became my job on those days to do the noon milking. I remember being so nervous the first time but when Daisy looked back at me and mooed softly I knew everything was going to be ok. But that's also when I started singing to her as I milked. I sang "Daisy, Daisy give me your answer true."  Having a cow is a huge job....there's the milking, then it has to run thru a separator and then bottled.  Then you have to wash  and dry the separator. Mom would skim the cream off our milk for butter (which she churned).  Back in the 1950's it was ok to sell raw milk to the neighbors. And we did.  I can remember neighbor kids coming down our long drive way pulling their wagon with bottles rattling.  Other's came by in their cars to get their milk all bottled and capped by my mom.   Our dear Daisy produced enough milk for our family and many others.  She was loved by many.   

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Star Spangled Banner lyrics vocals and beautiful photos

FLAG DAY

In 1916 President Woodrow Wilson issued a proclamation that officially established June 14th as Flag Day . 


In my opinion everyday should be Flag Day~how wonderful it would be if all Americans flew the red, white and blue everyday.  And it doesn't even have to be a great big one....a teeny tiny one on your computer desk  or stuck in a plant would be fine.  Just having one near by to remind us of all the freedoms we hold dear. 


In August 1949 'National Flag Day' was established by an Act of Congress.....so it's official.
Fly your flag~yes there are problems in our country but it's still a great place to live...just ask those who leave their birth countries and come here to start a new life. 



Sunday, June 10, 2012

Don't Trust Little Old Ladies!


A young man shopping in a supermarket noticed a little old lady following him around. If he stopped, she stopped. Furthermore she kept staring at him.
She finally overtook him at the checkout, and she turned to him and said,
"I hope I haven't made you feel ill at ease; it's just that you look so much like my late son." He answered, "That's okay.""I know it's silly, but if you'd call out 'Good bye, Mom' as I leave the store, it would make me feel so happy."
She then went through the checkout, and as she was on her way out of the store, the man called out, "Goodbye, Mom." The little old lady waved and smiled back at him. Pleased that he had brought a little sunshine into someone's day, he went to pay for his groceries. "That comes to $121.85," said the clerk. "How come so much? I only bought 5 items."
The clerk replied, "Yeah, but your Mother said you'd be paying for her things, too." Bet you thought this was going to be a tear-jerker!
Don't trust Little Old Ladies!!!

Friday, June 8, 2012

Rhubarb Quick Bread


RHUBARB QUICK BREAD     Yield: Makes 1 loaf
 
    1½ cups brown sugar, packed
    2/3 cup oil
    1 egg
    1 cup buttermilk or sour milk
    1 teaspoon baking soda
    2½ cups flour
    1 teaspoon salt
    1 to 1½ cups chopped raw rhubarb, depending on the juiciness of the variety
    1/2 cup chopped nuts
topping:
    1/2 cup granulated sugar
    1 tablespoon butter or margarine
    1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
    1/4 cup chopped nuts
 
Combine brown sugar, oil, egg, milk, and soda. Sift together flour and salt and add to liquid mixture, Fold in rhubarb and 1/2 cup nuts. Pour into greased and floured 9x5-inch loaf pan. Combine granulated sugar, butter, and cinnamon until crumbly. Add 1/4 cup nuts and sprinkle topping over batter in pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for about 1 hour or until done.

Saturday, June 2, 2012