On Facebook yesterday one of my friends posted the link to this joyful video.
One of the commenters on the YouTube site said about the video, “Bravo. This was a kindness. Many of us out in real world are having our asses handed to us by life right now. This was a much needed smile!” : )
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(Click here to go to Louise Gunderson Shimon’s blog’s home page.)
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Between September 27th when Mouser (my dad’s cat*) came to live with Bill and me, and October 14th, Mouser’s only outdoor experiences were when he was on a harness/leash. I was afraid to let him loose outside for fear that we’d never see him again.
On October 14th Peggy, my next-older sister, and her husband, Jeff, came to Perry to visit Mouser. (That’s right. Not to visit me. To visit Mouser.) Since on that day there were three of us to corral Mouser if needed, we let him outside for about 45 minutes. Unleashed and free.
All of these photos were taken by Jeff. The first two are of Peggy and Mouser in the garage. Clicking on the photos will magnify all of them.
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* Click on the following hyperlinks to read the previous “Mouser Transition” posts. Part I — Part II — Part III
I plan to sometime early in the new year get back to writing more about Rolfe-related topics. Until then I plan to bask mostly in the wonders of Christmas and also in sweet memories of my dad, being this will be the first Christmas in my entire life without him.
(Click here to go to Louise Gunderson Shimon’s blog’s home page.)
Here is what I “saw” yesterday during my trip to Rolfe. #1 and #3 are the only ones that took place at Garfield Street (a.k.a. Main Street) locations in Rolfe, Iowa. But, with so much going on, I felt like Marco in Dr. Seuss’ Mulberry Street story!*
On November 17th the Rolfe Public Library board approved the contract with Heritage Microfilm for the “Rolfe Newspapers Online” project. Yesterday the first check toward the project was mailed to Heritage. THE BALL IS ROLLING!
Are donations toward the project still needed? The answer is, “It depends.”
The comlete project will cost about $4,000. From private donations $740 has been collected specifically for the newspaper project. The balance of funds has been raised via prints of Mother’s watercolors. The library board plans to put a chunk of those funds toward the newspaper project; it is also hoping to retain a portion of the prints funds for other library-related projects. For that to happen, yes, donations toward the project are still needed.
Project and how-to-donate information is at this link.
While in Rolfe I visited the cemetery. When Jackson and I were at the cemetery last summer, he affectionately put this heart sticker (pictured) on Mother’s (Marion Abbott Gunderson) side of the grave marker, and a smile sticker on Daddy’s side of the marker. Both stickers are still there.
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I stopped at Wild Faces Gallery to approve another proof of one of Mother’s watercolors. We’ve named the prints of this whimsical watercolor Eyelashes Under Hat. (Below is just a portion of the image.)
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On my way to Rolfe I saw something at the Casey’s in Jefferson that I had never seen or heard of. Mac ‘n’ Cheese Pizza. Ok, so this wasn’t even in Rolfe, but it was part of my meandering “Mulberry Street” day.
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* Do you know what the setting was for Dr. Seuss as he wrote And to Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street? And, do you know what Dr. Seuss’ real name was?
(Click here to go to Louise Gunderson Shimon’s blog’s home page.)
Our Concolor Fir Tree (Click on photo to enlarge.)
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Today Bill, Katie and I made our annual the-morning-after-Thanksgiving trip to choose and cut down the tree for Bill’s and my home. Because our traditional tree farm no longer sells cut-your-own trees, today our tree farm of choice was Hill’s Tree Farm located 1/2 mile south of the west edge of Minburn. The ad says that Hill’s Tree Farm is “open”: “Fri. 10-5 * Sat. 10-5 * Sun. 1-5 or by appointment.” Contact information given in the ad is 515-677-2389 or hchill@netins.net.
At Hill’s Tree Farm patrons have the choice of cutting their own trees or choosing from fresh pre-cut trees. As for tree variety, we compromised by choosing a Concolor Fir tree since Bill likes shorter needle trees and I like longer needle trees.
I’ve never really paid attention to the names of different varieties of Christmas trees; I appreciated that Hill’s Tree Farm had a little plot that included one of each variety of their trees.
Plot of six varieties of trees. (Click on photo to enlarge.)
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Close-ups of six varieties of trees. Clockwise from upper left: Concolor Fir, Douglas Fir, Scotch Pine, Canaan Fir, Fraser Fir and White Pine. (Click on photo to see the differences.)
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(Click here to go to Louise Gunderson Shimon’s home page.)
These Grant Wood-like announcements were given to guests at Bill's and my wedding reception on November 15, 1975. The building in the background is what I remember as the hog house at Gunderland. It is the middle building in "The Farm" (below) watercolor by Mother, painted the same year Bill and I were married. (Click on photo to enlarge.)
Thirty-five years ago today Bill and I were married. November 15, 1975, in Rolfe, Iowa, with — get this — temperatures hovering around 75 degrees. As I’m beginning this post, “The Glory of Love” by the Platters is playing throughout the house. Perfect.
In the spring (anyway, that’s when my memory says it was) of 1975 the Gunderson side of the family was sitting around the living room at Gunderland. The topic of discussion was Iowa State’s upcoming 1975 football schedule, including the Nebraska/ISU game on November 15th. To which Bill and I surprised everyone by saying that was the date we had chosen for our wedding day. Football schedule — out. Wedding planning — in!
There’s only one time in my life I remember my mother telling a fib. It was when, in the spring of 1975, she and I were visiting sister Marti in Boston. We decided to take in bridal gown shopping at Priscilla’s where “the Nixon girls bought their dresses.” Good golly, Miss Molly!!!!! My mother and I were sitting up on something that seemed like a pedestal atop five or six tiered carpeted stairs while different (I think?) women took turns sashaying in to present dresses to us. Mother and I expected that the dresses might cost just a little more than at Lillian’s in Fort Dodge. We just had no idea that wedding dresses could be SO EXPENSIVE. I tried on a few dresses but, between ladies bringing out dresses, Mother and I quickly whispered to each other that we were out of our league.
Having been brought up that it isn’t kosher to even tell a white lie, I was like “You go girl!” when Mother, cool, calm and collected, told the clerk that the reason we weren’t making our minds up that day about a dress was because we just didn’t know if we had seen anything we liked. She continued with saying that if we went back to Iowa and later decided on a dress from Priscilla’s, we’d be back. We walked out of the store knowing we’d never return, but also feeling like the cat that swallowed the canary.
Back to the actual wedding day … the sequence of the day was 1. ceremony 2. church reception 3. dinner at the Legion Hall and 4. barn dance at Gunderland. (Hmmm. None of those buildings — church, Legion Hall, or barn — are standing any longer.)
In preparation for the barn dance, Bill and Daddy nailed sheets of plywood to cover blemishes of the haymow floor so we had a smooth floor to dance on. Two bands played: Ralph Zarnow’s big-band-sound from Des Moines and the rock band named the Country Knights from Palmer. Just now Bill said, “It was a helluva good time!”
"The Farm" by Mother (Marion Gunderson), 1975. The middle building was behind Bill and me when the above photo was taken. Sizes/Pricing: Small ~7.5" H x 10" W, $15. Medium limited edition 10" H x ~13.5" W, $25. (Click on image to enlarge.)
Does anyone know who won? Nebraska? Iowa State?
(Click here to go to Louise Gunderson Shimon’s blog’s home page.)
As I was lounging having my breakfast this morning thinking about the upcoming day of the open house, I remembered… I can do things such as this because of our veterans and current military who have and still do put their lives on the line (or work in offices, or whatever their military jobs) to preserve my/our freedoms. I cannot imagine for one second what life in the trenches of war must be like, and I cannot imagine what it is like for a veteran who has been permanently disabled as a result of service, or what it is like for families who lost a loved husband/wife/father/brother/etc. as a result of service. Or whose loved one is away from home for a year at a time. I take my freedoms for granted, but surely wouldn’t if one day I found that I no longer had those freedoms.
Last year when I was pumping gas on some random day, a man in military fatigues was at the adjacent gas pump. I thanked him for serving our country. (Yes, most or all of us serve our country in some way or another. But, my way is certainly a cushioned do-mostly-what-I-want-when-I-want way.) He so respectfully thanked me, and said that he had never had anyone say that to him before. If you express thanks to a veteran or current military personnel today or anytime throughout the year, I hope that you are not the first for that person. Whether you are the first or one of many, your expression of thanks will be priceless.
I’m speaking to the choir, right? But, in case I’m not, I’ll click on “publish.”
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Mouser during his first few days after leaving Gunderland to live with Bill and me ... and Sammy and Miss Kitty.
Mouser was my dad’s (Deane Gunderson) cat/companion for the last two or three years before my dad passed away on July 1st.
On September 27th, Mother’s (Marion Gunderson) birthday, Mouser left my dad’s farm in northwest Iowa to travel to Perry in central Iowa to live with Bill and me … and Sammy and Miss Kitty.
Following our veterinarian’s advice, I purchased a kennel in which Mouser lived for his first almost-week in our garage. The kennel was Mouser’s home until, as our vet put it, the cats stopped hissing at each other. Actually, Sammy still utters a hiss every once in awhile. Mouser never hissed. Miss Kitty still growls a little.
Update: In the above paragraph I should have also said that each day during that first week when our other two cats were outside (i.e., couldn’t hiss at Mouser), Mouser came out of the kennel for several hours. During those times he had free reign of the garage, and also, attended by me, went for a few explorations outside.
Also, in the second photo, you can see one of my dad’s undershirts in the kennel with Mouser … to help Mouser (or maybe it was more to help me?) with his transition.
Mouser used to live on a flat-terrain farm on a gravel road and had free reign. He occasionally was invited by my dad into the house. Jumping on the kitchen counter was frowned upon by my dad, but…oh, Mouser was so loved that he never really got in trouble for it. Instead, his redirecting “punishment” might have been an invitation into the living room.
Now Mouser lives in a rural setting once again, but in a hilly subdivision on a rural but busy (compared to a gravel road) highway. An invitation into the house likely won’t happen (shhhh…unless Bill is away and somehow Mouser gets invited in!).
Not big news…unless you are at our house being entertained with the dynamics of Mouser trying to win the acceptance of two established-territory cats. The verdict is still out as to whether or not that complete acceptance will take place. I’ll keep you posted.
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Tomorrow or Friday I’ll post information about the second annual November open house showcasing prints of Mother’s watercolors. It will be the same basic information as the “November Open House” at this blog’s home page. Profits from sales of watercolor prints will go to the Rolfe Public Library Trust. Those profits will help support the digitization/online availability of 101 years of Rolfe newspapers. If you’d like to contribute to this project, but aren’t really interested in the prints, you may do so. Information on how to do so is at this link. We are trying to have funds raised by the end of November.
(Click here to go to Louise Gunderson Shimon’s blog’s home page.)
Who or what do you see in this creepy photo?
(Click here to go to Louise Shimon’s blog’s home page.)
Game time was 6:00 PM CST. I imagine game time temps were in the 70s and 60s. With such comfortable weather and a looking-like filled stadium, and Utah being ranked #10, you can imagine the ISU fans’ excitement as ISU scored the first touchdown of the game. That was before Utah’s beautiful weaving/running started.
The following film is of that first touchdown and extra-point kick. The footage is lousy in that it is herky-jerky. My video camera is unreliable, I misjudged my speed of panning, and I didn’t want to hold the camera so as to block people’s views. However, if you’ve not been to a game at Iowa State’s Jack Trice Stadium for a long time (or ever), or even if you have, at least the clip gives you a little sense of being there last night when ISU was ahead.
We were sitting on the west side of the stadium; the large score board/video board is at the south end of the stadium.
(Click here to go to Louise Shimon’s blog’s home page.)
Sammy in the paint tray, tonight. (Click on photo for a close-up.)
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Pardon my interrupting “The Mouser Transition” posts, but, Sammy in the paint tray is what I found when I got home tonight. Since Sammy is part of Mouser’s transition to our home, and since I’ve been writing about our painting our house, this photo fits right in…right?!
(Click here to go to Louise Shimon’s blog’s home page.)
Marion Gunderson Art (and the Farmer's Daughter) 
