500!

Aug27

I am shocked, amazed and elated! I just received notification that I have 500 (and a few more) followers. I know that compared to some blogs I read, this is just a drop in the bucket, but for me it’s a milestone that means lots. All I can say is thank you — thank YOU! My blogging began as a way to fill my time after losing my job and deciding it was time for an early retirement. Never in my wildest dreams did I think anyone would really find what I had to share that interesting. Let alone over 500 people!

So many of you have become such friends here. We have chatted and shared. You are all so wonderful, so friendly. You are what keeps me going with this blogging. At first it was just a way for me to write and record. Then people began liking and following. I’m still amazed!

I just want to say again how much I appreciate all of you. I look forward to your visits and comments. And I love reading and following your blogs. I am in awe at the talent that I see. I have learned so much reading your blogs. I have laughed and cried with your posts. You have all touched my heart and my life in some way. This is a real community!

Riding the Rails During the Great Depression

Jan15

Well, I’ve been waiting for a notification from WordPress that I’ve reached my one year anniversary blogging. Oops! It never arrived. I knew it was January but didn’t remember the date. So, silly me, I went and looked and I missed it! But that’s okay. I thought what I would do is repost my very first ever blog entry. When I first started my blog, I was just going write about my family history. It didn’t take long for me to realize that the information I had was not much at all! So, I decided to branch out and started adding bits of life in general. As many things often do, I find it is branching again as I have now added my new hobby of photography. Enjoy!

LIVING WITH MY ANCESTORS

In 1931, at the age of 20, my Dad and 7 of his friends left their homes in Kentucky and headed West on the rails during the Great Depression. Dad kept a little diary of the trip in a small notebook written in pencil.

Following are a few excerpts from his travel diary (written in blue italics) with some of my own comments inserted in regular text:

The date is Wednesday, April 22, 1931. It’s raining and snowing. I have a one-way ticket to Portland, Ore. We catch train No. 1 bound for Cincinnati and bid Ashland goodbye at 8:55 a.m. There are eight of us. All nice fellows to be sure. Their names are Charles E. Ball, Bennet Tussey, Sam Elsworth and myself of Ashland. Paul A. Vaughan of Ironton, O. Charles R. “Buzz” Waldron of Russell, Ky. Kenneth Ames of Catlettsburg, Ky. And Louis E. Hannon of Maysville…

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My Very First Blog Award!

Apr26

Nominated April 26, 2013 by SwittersB & Fly Fishing

I was completely taken by surprise and honored when I learned that Gary at SwittersB & Fly Fishing nominated my efforts for the Versatile Blogger Award. Thank you, Gary! Please take a moment and visit his fabulous blog. The Rules of the Award are:

1. Obviously, thank the person who nominated you and include a link to their blog

2. Nominate 15 blogs/bloggers for the Versatile Blogger Award, link to their page and leave a comment that they have been nominated

3. Share 7 things about yourself

So, without further ado, I nominate the following 15 blogs in random order for your viewing entertainment and enjoyment. This is in no way a full and complete list of the blogs I enjoy!

The World’s Top 10 of Anything and Everything

Genealogy Lady

RumpyDog

A Hundred Years Ago

Leanne Cole PHOTOGRAPHY

Rosemarie in Europe 2013

sethsnap

Robyn Graham Photography