Week 46: #52 Ancestors – Different Language By Eilene Lyon Guten Morgen, meine Freunde. Das ist die Muttersprache meiner Vorfahren. Because of my extensive Germanic ancestry, and my interest in that part of Europe, I’ve been studying the language using the free Duolingo app on my iPhone. I think it’s an effective program, depending on... Continue Reading →
Misperception
Week 45: #52 Ancestors - Bearded By Eilene Lyon I don't recall when I first saw some version of the image above of my grandfather, Everett Halse, but as a child, it stuck in my mind that he was a bearded man. This, despite the fact that every other photo of Grandpa showed him clean-shaven.... Continue Reading →
Absurdities #10
By Eilene Lyon This is actually two absurdities for the price of one! When we bought this year-old trailer in 2002, it came with a motor vehicle title. Um, trailers don’t have motors. After buying our van RV in August, we sold the trailer. We gave the buyers a proper bill of sale, and transferred... Continue Reading →
Death By Diphtheria
Week 44: #52 Ancestors – Scary Stuff By Eilene Lyon Confronting our own mortality is one of the scariest things we ever do. My research into the 19th-century lives of my ancestors and kin has revealed many awful ways to die. I’ve previously discussed milk sickness and tuberculosis. A few recent coincidences led me to... Continue Reading →
The Slide Years: Playing Parts
By Eilene Lyon The Slide Years is a series in which I select an image my dad took from 1957-1982 with Kodachrome slide film, then I write a stream-of-consciousness essay – a sort of mini-memoir. "We must all do theater, to find out who we are, and to discover who we could become." – Augusto... Continue Reading →
The Other Son
Week 43: #52 Ancestors – Quite the Character By Eilene Lyon It can be difficult to find personal anecdotes about people who lived even just three generations back. I’ve found quite a bit about my great-grandfather, Guy Halse, but very little for his one sibling. Hillard LeRoy Halse was also born in Winneshiek County, Iowa,... Continue Reading →
Shining Through
Wordless Wednesday
The Successful Farmer
Week 42: #52 Ancestors – Proud By Eilene Lyon The prompt brought this photo to mind almost immediately, though it seems an odd choice. No one looks particularly happy in this image of the Halse family taken about 1912 in Codington County, South Dakota. Back row: Inez, Everett (my grandfather), Hazel, Howard, LloydFront row: Mabel,... Continue Reading →
How Rude!
By Eilene Lyon I never expected a problem, really. We have wildlife all around our home: deer browsing the shrubs, robins stripping berries from the juniper, chipmunks burying seeds in the flower pots, raccoons in the rafters, mice roaming the dark interior of our walls. Frankly, the dogs never did much to stem the tide,... Continue Reading →