House for Sale

This house for sale was posted on Seward Swap this evening. It caught my eye as the first house that Elaine and I owned and where we lived from 1951 till 1956. It was also the first house my parents lived in after living with Dad's parents for a few months. We sold the place to Elaine's parents in 1956 and they owned it as a rental property until 1983.  The large garage has been an addition during the past few years along with other improvements. We made some major improvements during the years we owned the property. We built on a bathroom  and connected up with the sewer in the back alley. I dug it by hand and had to go nearly 13 feet deep. We also took out the old brick chimney and installed a gas floor furnace. We had it wired and a fuse box installed. The cupboards look new but similar to what we had built.

This was  Elaine and our oldest son and the trench I had dug to connect to the sewer. It must have taken at least 10 days to get it dug. I recall Elaine's Dad coming in from the farm to help at least one day. I have shuddered since then when hearing of trenches in Hastings Clay soil caving in and trapping people. That thought never entered my mind while in the process. I remember the plumbers from Rupp Hardware laying the tile in the bottom of the trench complaining that the trench was almost too narrow for them to work in.

Special Days

Jon took the accordion out on the front entryway this morning and played while I worked in the yard. It attracted the attention of passing motorist and others in the neighborhood. One lady even walked over from the far side on the next block to meet Jon and visit. He is planning some "pre-parade" entertainment for those who convene on our lawn, driveway, etc. to watch the Seward 4th of July parade. There will be a couple hundred people within hearing distance at that time. Mary and Anna also keep busy with vacation activities and contacts with things at home. Anna was most concerned about her dog having health problems at the Vet's care facility. Jon spent some time with me on our PC as we went through list of problems. This is the 9th year for the HP PC which makes it pretty antique. I was concerned that Jon may insist that we get a new one but with some of the improvements  he made, will continue to use it. Being able to print from my laptop helps considerably.

Sadie was over this afternoon along with Carolyn as they stopped by to visit. We don't have as many things for a little girl to play with here as at Carolyn's place but one of her favorites is for me to take he down to my workbench. We have a small board of soft wood into which she drives nails, tacks, etc into with a hammer. Today's lesson involved the difference between a Phillips and Regular screwdriver. Her interest and curiosity at the workbench remind me so much of Julie when she was that age. The work bench has become much more cluttered during the interim, but that doesn't limit the learning that takes place sitting on a stool and working with tools.

Good Visit with Family & Doctor

Jon, Mary and Anna got in last night but before going to bed, Jon had to try out our "new" Hohner Accordion. He liked it and enjoyed it's unique sound. I haven't told him but suspect  he realizes that "someday it will all be his".  He went along to coffee this morning and enjoyed participating in the discussion. Jon has had enough wide-ranging experience to be able to contribute to most any conversation. His knowledge of computers has already paid off by teaching me some new "tricks", downloading some new updates, and showing me some "obvious" things. He and Anna both spent a lot of time on their laptops. They all went down to Pac n Sav after our telling them of the Ace Hardware becoming a part of the Grocery store. They had never seen anything like it. I spent some time over at the Hospital Specialty Clinic this afternoon for an appointment with Dr. Dale Hansen. It was a       follow up to the Heart Catheterization he did on me a year ago. He was pleased with what an Echo cardiogram showed today and scheduled another appointment for June of 2017.

Clifford Lowell at Seward Kiwanis

Clifford Lowell presented the program at Kiwanis today. He also gave the invocation and played the piano for our singing of, "God Bless America". We had a great meal of "chipped beef" over mashed potatoes, green beans, rolls and cookies for dessert. As part of the patriotic theme, President Josh asked each table to take a couple minutes and discuss what makes our country great. Under "Good News" Paul announced that he had three stints installed down at Bryan Hospital this past Friday. Marv Taylor has been contacted by Kiwanis International in regard to our Flag Pole Project. We had reports on regular activities as well as the up-coming "Swim Party", the Kitones concert on the 4th of July and the recruitment of several "Early Risers" to help Richard put up flags around the downtown light post at 5:30 am. Clifford recognized that time would not permit his giving the full story on his 4-years in the US Air Force.

He did tell of serving as a Chaplin's assistant and of having spent the last 2-years of his service in England which he enjoyed. He concluded his presentation with a Reading along with the soft accompaniment of patriotic music. It involved the "Voices of our Founding Fathers" and their recognition of God in America. Clifford is a very dedicated Christian who serves as Church Treasurer and is closely involved with the Senior Center. This will be the 5th year that he has made 2 presentations for Seward's 4th of July celebration along with singing with the Kitones for their season ending concert.

Celebrating Change

This was the scene at the Owens house last evening after we had finished the Birthday Dinner and before dessert. My birthday celebration continued today as Elaine announced it among the "joys and concerns" at Church this morning. Recognition began on June 8th when we participated in the "June, Anniversary-Birthday Dinner" at the Senior Center. I announced it last Monday at Kiwanis where I was recognized and we have some Angel Food cake left over to have after Jon, Mary and Anna get here this week. It's been a good birthday and has helped me accept that I am an "old man".

"Change" was the emphasis of Pastor Dale's "farewell sermon" at Church this morning. He is retiring after having served the Seward Methodist Church for the past 3 years. We have certainly appreciated the leadership he provided during his time here and are pleased to know that he and Nancy are planning to continue living in Seward.  I suppose, "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" is an appropriate hymn for a retirement or birthday since in acknowledges the ultimate change we all face. As we sang it this morning, it brought back the memory of a one-act, High School play where I was in "black face" and sang it while sitting in a rocking chair, on the stage with all the lights turned out. My younger sister, Janice was only about 5 years old at the time but after I got through the second verse, she hollered out in that dark assembly room crowd, "That's Buddy singing".  And with that, they turned on the lights and I needed no further introduction.

A Happy Birthday

Elaine and I got up to Heartland this afternoon to visit Charley and Ruth who are now making their home at this very nice independent living facility. Charley and I played golf together for many years. It was appropriate to include them in my birthday celebration since we used to "shoot our age" occasionally as we got into our 80's. Our visit there was just part of a very full day of phone calls, facebook,  mail messages, etc. We were out to John and Julie's for a picnic dinner of hamburgers, roasting ears, salad and cake. We ate out in their screened in back porch with very comfortable temperature. Jack and Sadie are always the center of attraction and rightly so. 

Jack learns new words every day. He just seems to "soak up" everything he hears or sees. Sadie made me a card which reflexes her feeling for my birthday. Some of the designs are difficult to interpret but she knows exactly what they  convey. She told her Daddy that he "got a good do" on the hamburgers. (Which he did).  Jack really enjoys corn on the cob. His number of teeth is limited but he has the important ones for the job at hand. It was a great birthday and it isn't over yet. Alex Gordon got a HR in his first game back with the Royals but they are still down 10-5 to the Astros in the 8th.

My Birthdays

I had a big 5th birthday party with neighbor kids and relatives at our house in Seward. It was only topped by my last one where Carolyn took the lead in making it a special celebration. Plans have been made for getting together with our "Seward Family" tomorrow for this year's event. I've enjoyed all the cards, letters and well wishes from friends at Kiwanis, the Senior Center, Church, etc. It was on my 15th birthday that I started writing in my Daily Diary. After filling the first 5-year book, I didn't start another diary until '48. Since 1948, I have missed only 2 years of recording what happened on June 25th. The first was in 1966 when I was finishing my BA at George Washington University. I was working full-time and carrying 12 credit hours of summer school. 

The second was in 1989 when we were packing to leave Washington, D.C. and move back to Nebraska. "My Birthdays" now cover 14 pages of single space "write-up". I switched from 5-year Diary's to Journals in the '70's which provided for listing more detail. Just reading where we were and what we were doing on this one day, is a pretty good chronology of our lives. We were traveling many years  which included time in Puerto Rico, Canada, etc. After retiring, I often played golf. We probably ate lunch at "The Olive Garden" in Lincoln more often than any other place. Elaine has baked an Angle Food Cake which was a tradition over the years. I'm sure it will be another Happy Birthday.