Thursday, March 27, 2014

Retirement

I dream of retirement.  Technically, it's slated for July of 2016, but with the way our economy is, and the high cost of health insurance (I thought ObamaCare was going to fix that), I'm not sure I can pull the plug quite that early.  Since I work for the State of Minnesota, I'm pretty sure I can cut down to working only three days a week and still get my health insurance paid for.  Then I could draw my full retirement without any penalty for earnings (not sure about that, better check it out). 

Retirement will not be sitting on the couch watching Netflix movies.  I'll continue my three passions:  Grandkids, performing my original songs, and genealogy research.  I should also be able to shed some pounds as I'll be more active riding bike and walking. 

My dad tried to retire from his employer, Midland Co-op, but they kept leaning on him to take assignments.  He was an Operational Consultant who covered five states trying to improve the profitability for local co-operatives who had contractual agreements with his company.  In simple terms, he was an auditor.  Eventually dad retired, and I don't think he missed the job, though I'm sure he missed the camaraderie.

The two bits of advice I can give to young folks is to SAVE AS MUCH MONEY AS YOU CAN and INCUR AS LITTLE DEBT AS YOU CAN.  It may not seem a big deal now, but if you can afford to retire at 55 or 60 instead of 66 or 70, it will be worth the sacrifices you made in your younger years.  Then you may enjoy a much longer retirement.

Thanks for hearing me out!

Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Ancestry.com

I spoke to a guy a while back who said that family history meant absolutely nothing to him.  I was amazed, not because he's not entitled to his opinion, but I have a such a burning desire for the subject.  Perhaps it's due to my not having known any of my grandparents (the last one died when I was five months old). 

So, I have an Ancestry.com account and continue to build my family tree and share it with those who are interested.  In case you didn't know, Ancestry.com is owned by the LDS Church.  They take genealogy very seriously as they believe in the "baptism of the dead" whereby the souls of their ancestors can be "saved" after they die.  (Please correct me if I'm not right about this).

It is my understanding that Ancestry.com are busy cataloging all sorts of records throughout the world, then making them available on their website.  One can pay monthly or annually.  The more-expensive World Explorer membership gives one access to records outside the U.S.A.  But it's a hit-or-miss situation.  I buy a World Explorer membership once or twice a year, then hit it hard.

Of course, when searching, it helps to have the right information.  And, for surnames that are often misspelled, one should check the "Soundex" box that results in similar-sounding names being included in the results list.  And don't forget that even census enumerators misspelled names and made other mistakes--so be ready to do a lot of interpolating.

A neat feature of Ancestry.com is that you can do a search for a person, then (on the left-hand panel) choose "Family Trees."  Here you can review other researchers' family trees, although you won't see info on living people. 

I've found so many people and surnames in my family tree--pleasant little surprises.  No famous people yet, but that will happen.  And the tree grows exponentially with each generation that's added.

In some small way, I think it's nice to know about these folks coz, if we ever meet up, I can say, "Oh, you're my half first cousin, six times removed, who owned a saloon in Chicago and whose wife was run over by a train!"  That would be a good conversation starter.

Friday, March 21, 2014

Customer Service

Whatever happened to customer service?  In a world of values clarification, I wonder if providing good customer service is now up to the individual worker.

Case in point.  Almost every morning, I go to the local Super One store for a maple-frosted, unfilled long john, for my granddaughter, Olivia.  Fairly often, there are ones with white frosting, ones with white frosting & chopped peanuts, ones with white frosting & coconut, and ones with chocolate frosting.  Now, forgive me for being too logical, but it seems to me that, if they always run out of the ones with maple frosting, maybe they should make more of those.  Call me irrational if you will, but the solution is to keep an inventory of what you make and what is left over.  That way, you can adjust what varieties you prepare each morning.

To make matters worse, I've nicely suggested this on many occasions, and NOTHING CHANGES.  I've mentioned it to the bakery workers and to the checkers.  Should I go to the manager about a silly sweet roll?  Time will tell.

While I'm at it, another problem has cropped up in the bakery.  A new worker started there, and all of a sudden the long johns were 2/3 the size they are supposed to be.  After mentioning it a half dozen times, it's gotten better.

So not only is customer service a dying art, but so is quality control.

Another thing that irritates me is when I thank a server, and s/he says "No problem."  No problem?  I certain would hope it's no problem waiting on me.  What ever happened to, "My pleasure" or, better yet, "I live to serve your ever need because, if it weren't for the customer, I wouldn't have a job."  Well, maybe that's a little overboard, but that should be the sentiment with which people wait on customers.

I won't even begin with the epidemic of tattoos and piercings.

Tuesday, March 18, 2014

Boston Red Sox

I'm guessing I became a Red Sox fan around 1960-61 when Carl Yaztrzemski joined the team.  Up to that time, the only other Carl I had ever run across was Carl Schultz who owned a little bar/grocery a couple miles east of us.  It was one of those ma & pa places that sold eggs, milk, and bologna.  So, I looked high and low for another Carl, and voila . . . there he was in the form of a tough-as-nails baseball player.

Up to then, I had been a Milwaukee Braves fan and adored Hank Aaron.  I even remembered the hollow feeling I got after watching Wally Post from the Cincinnati Reds beat Hammerin' Hank on a grainy episode of Home Run Derby beamed to our rural home from Channel 13 in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.  I was later exonerated for jumping ships when the Braves moved to Atlanta.  I still don't like them anymore.

So, I followed Car & the Bosox through one disappointing season after another.  We came close in '67, making it to the Series against Bob Gibson & the dreaded Cardinals (who had beaten us in '46).  I bent my teacher's arm to let me listen on a transistor radio with an earphone and remember letting out a muffled yelp when Yaz hit a home run.  We lost in 7, but at least Yaz won the Triple Crown.    Back then, games were played during the day coz MLB didn't follow the dictates of the networks.

I started college in '68 and remember watching the awesome Tigers whoop up on the Cardinals.  Denny McLain was 31-8 that year (yes, he had 39 decisions), but he only got one of the wins.  Mickey Lolich won three for the Tigers. To this day, I think of the Cardinals as the Yankees of the National League.

In '75, we pushed the Big Red Machine to 7 games, losing again.  Little did I know that it would be another

So, I watched Yaz play through the '83 season, compiling a .285 batting average over 23 years.  Sure wish I could meet him if I ever get to Fenway Park.  I only wish he could've played on a championship team.  But Yaz helped in the shadows as Boston won three World Series titles in '04, '07 and again in '13, the last time destroying the Cardinals in six games.  It's a very good time to be a Red Sox fan.

By the way, as hard as it sounds to believe, I only saw the Bosox for the first time (other than a few of them during the '65 All-Star Game at Met Stadium) the summer of  '13.  Ryan Dempster started, and they creamed the Twins.  In his usual fashion, David Ortiz lit up the stadium.

So, my next big thing is to see Fenway in person.  With any kind of luck, that'll happen in 2014, and I'll be wearing my Red Sox jacket!  I'll keep you posted.

Monday, March 17, 2014

St. Patrick's Day

Most people don't realize that, in Ireland, wearing green means you're Catholic, orange means you're Protestant.  I don't consider myself either in Christian terms, but that's an in-depth discussion for another time.

I am a quarter Irish from my grandmother, Julia Agnes O'Connell.  Her father, James, emigrated to Chicago from Canada and died in September, 1880, when grandma was an infant.  His death certificate says that he fell from the sidewalk into a vacant lot and broke his neck.  There was an inquest, but his death was ruled accidental.

What puzzles me is that, on the very same day, another James O'Connell, also 28 years old, died in Chicago.  Either that's a gross coincidence, or it took someone two tries to kill the intended target.  Alas, we'll never know.

I haven't yet traced Mr. O'Connell's ancestry and probably won't find it since he remains a man of mystery, but his wife was Mary Ellen "Minnie" Maguire, daughter of Patrick and Julia Maguire.  According to Minnie's death certificate, Patrick was born in Ireland around 1843, and Julia Gorman in Buffalo, NY around the same time.  I have found a Julia Gorman on the 1850 census living in Buffalo with her mother, Bridgett.  Is it the right Julia?  Hard telling.

I never met any of my Irish family because my grandmother died in 1919 of tuberculosis.  Her younger brother, James, passed from the same thing.  So sad.

So, I've had to learn Irish traditions vicariously.  I like peasant food, so I naturally like Irish food.  Today, my son Brian is making corned beef without cabbage.  I'll have to crack open a beer (sorry, I'm not crazy about Guinness) and enjoy the meal.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Friday, March 14, 2014

Wistful Songs

Right now, My Cherie Amour is playing on my TuneIn.com station.  This song catapults me back to 1968 when I started college in Superior, Wisconsin.  That's the beauty of music.

People seems to embrace the music of their youth.  I do.  Here is a list, in no particular order, of other songs that, like a time machine, whisk me to a simpler time:

Turn Down Day - Cyrkle
Sunny - Bobby Hebb
How Can I Be Sure - Young Rascals
Morning Girl - Neon Philharmonic
Save Your Heart for Me - Gary Lewis & the Playboys
Traces - Classics IV
Everyday With You Girl - Classics IV
Hazy Shade of Winter - Simon & Garfunkel
Sealed With a Kiss - Brian Hyland
A Summer Song - Chad & Jeremy
Cherish - Association

Never My Love - Association
Lazy Day - Spanky & Our Gang
We Can Work It Out - Beatles
What the World Needs Now Is Love - Jackie DeShannon
Love Is Blue - Paul Mauriat

Love Theme from Romeo & Juliet - Henry Mancini
My Cup Runneth Over - Ed Ames
Georgy Girl - Seekers
98.6 - Keith

You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin - Tighteous Brothers
Downtown - Petula Clark

You Can't Hurry Love - Supremes
I'm Gonna Make You Love Me - Supremes & Temptations
See You in September - Happenings
Walk Away Renee - Left Banke
Bus Stop - Hollies
Elusive Butterfly - Bob Lind
Listen People - Herman's Hermits
Surfer Girl - Beach Boys
Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me - Mel Carter
I Go to Pieces - Peter & Gordon
Tell Her No - Zombies
Time of the Season - Zombies
Don't Throw Your Love Away - Searchers
We'll Sing in the Sunshine - Gale Garnett
(Just Like) Romeo & Juliet - Reflections
Concrete & Clay - Unit 4 + 2
A Very Good Year - Frank Sinatra
There's Got to Be a Word! - Innocence
Daydream Believer - Monkees
Come Saturday Morning - Vogues

You've Made Me So Very Happy - Blood, Sweat and Tears

Call me a romantic if you will, but that's what music means to me.

Tuesday, March 11, 2014

Genealogy

Some folks just don't care about family history.  That amazes me coz I have a burning interest in it.  In some small way, I get to know my ancestors through research and hope that it'll help me identify them when we meet in the wild blue.

And I can forgive those who have no interest; after all, I care nothing about NASCAR, pro football, and quilting, and no one's bothered me yet about it.

Ancestry.com is a WONDERFUL research tool . . . a bit spendy, but most useful.  One can search a name, then click on Family Trees, and glom onto others' research.  A warning--sometimes others' research is faulty, so you must sift through the facts, interpolate, then decide what your truth is.

There are other useful websites depending on what state you live in.  Check them out!

My grandmother, Julia Agnes O'Connell Bosk, died in 1919 after spending a few years in the Municipal Tuberculosis Sanatorium in NW Chicago.  Now it's a nature park, but some of the old buildings are still there.  This summer, I hope to take a tour of North Park Village courtesy of Frances Archer.  Then I'll buzz over to Calvary Cemetery in Evanston to her grave site. 

Maybe it's important to me coz I never knew any of my grandparents, the last two dying when I was five months old.  Time is a cruel adversary.

Monday, March 10, 2014

Snow

I like snow, even if I get a sore back from shoveling it. 

I've heard that Eskimos have a buhzillion words for snow but don't know if that's true.  I have only four: 

  • Fluffy snow
  • Wet snow
  • Dirty snow
  • Melted snow
It's dirty snow season in NW Minnesota.  Nothing pretty about it as the dirt and gravel mixes in to make a unsightly concoction. 

The nicest thing about snow is the comfy and sheltered feeling it gives you when you're looking out the window and feeling safe.  I never feel more safe than when it's snowing heavily at night. 

When my kids were small, we'd build snow forts on the lawn . . .  ones with tunnels and roofs.  I miss those days.

Now that it's dirty snow season, the dog turds absorb the warmth from the sunshine and almost magically pop through.  Keeping ahead of that is quite a chore, but it beats not having a dog.  My pet is Lola, the Scottie Dog.  10+ years old and going strong.  She has a heart as big as northern Minnesota.

I took the snow off my gazebo and garage roofs to prevent it from melting and running into my garage.  Melted snow is not my favorite thing.

A guy I know, named Leroy, once robbed the Rod & Gun Club across the road from his house.  The cops followed the tracks right up to his house.  I'll bet Leroy doesn't like snow.

Friday, March 7, 2014

M & M's

I miss the light brown M & M's.  Remember them?  There still is a dark brown one, but light brown was replaced by blue.  I still haven't gotten used to the blue ones.  Blue food just isn't right.

Peanut M & M's are all right, but the plain ones still are the standard.  I like to hold them in my mouth until they're completely melted, without chewing.

The pretzel M & M's are cool.  Mint isn't my bag. 

Of course, they're loaded with artificial coloring & flavoring, but so are Cheetos, and I LOVE the hard, crunchy variety.

Oh, and they will melt in your hand if you hold them long enough.

Well, it's Friday, I'm eating M & M's, and I need a beer.

Have a fine weekend!

Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Open Mic

I will be hosting a new Open Mic the 3rd Wednesday of each month from 8 - 10 p.m. at Black Cat Sports Bar & Grill on south 32 in Thief River Falls, Minnesota.  We already have a solid commitment from six area musicians, and others say they will come when available. 

This is an Open Mic, not an Open Jam.  And we'd prefer that folks perform to real musical instruments (not boom boxes), although we won't turn away someone who doesn't play an instrument.  Because we want to keep it intimate, we'd like to limit the open mic to one or two-piece groups.  A PA & mics will be provided.  Original and cover tunes welcome.  Note:  Families will be dining in the back room, so we ask that you avoid songs with explicit lyrics.  And all performers will be issued a free drink coupon which must be used the same evening.

Come early to sign up, if you wish (but we don't expect musicians to be lined up around the building).

Open Mics are a wonderful thing.  The provide a venue for newbies as well as seasoned performers.  Songwriters can try out new tunes on the audience to see what reaction they get which spurs them to write more.  It's camaraderie at its best!

Don't get me started on the subject of DJ's!