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February 5, 2024 February has come around already, with mild weather. The beginning of the week was beautiful, and warm for this time of year, while the last of the week became foggy mist for three days. Some people are figuring 90 days until rain or snow, that may come about the first part of May. Dick and Erma Albert made a trip to town, so that Erma could have a wisdom tooth removed. It was such a fun time, that she also went on a diet for a few days. On Wednesday, she went to the chiropractor in the morning, and then got...
January 29, 2024 We enjoyed the warmer week at Capitol and on Tie Creek. The snow began melting, and by Sunday, most of the snow was gone. Each day was a little icy, until it warmed up. Even with the warmer air, some days still produced a cold wind. Ross Phelps was at Ronda Cordell’s, several day this week. He finished up all the current projects for her, on Saturday. On Tuesday morning, Ronda left for Spearfish in dense fog. When she got to the Belltower Curve, and looked west from there, she saw clear blue sky. As she l...
I just love those helpful hint columns, books, and posts full of tips on how to remove every stain known to man or cure anything from warts to arthritis with a home remedy. Sometimes though, I have to question the effectiveness and efficiency of the remedies and helpful hints. I have actually had less than miraculous results with many of those tips. A tomato juice bath is supposed to be the cure-all for skunk spray. Do you know how much a tomato juice bath for a small boy costs? Back in 1992, it was $92.00 cheaper and much...
Hello God, it’s me, Mara: You know, Lord, ‘Twas fun checking February Calendar pages, seeing who had birthdays and who got married. We ‘knew’ one child who’d been born on Valentine’s Day! Neither of us knew anyone who claimed the 8th, 15th or 16th. But family and friends, loved ones, near and far were included! Alexia thought February was well-ordered, especially since she knew one guy in his late 90’s. Her daughter peeked in – she’d been eavesdropping, she said; “Mommy, don’t forget, we know a baby who is only one day old to...
January 22, 2024 The deep freeze was broken on Sunday at Capitol and on Tie Creek. We had had nearly three weeks of below zero weather, that never seemed to even approach positive numbers. There was a few inches of snow on the ground that the sun’s warmth hadn’t even softened. The good thing was that the snow was still crystals and not ice. Sunday morning was hazy, but one step outside and it felt like spring, and already things were beginning to melt. Ronda Cordell got most of her taxes organized during the nasty days. She...
Hello God, it’s me, Mara: You know, Lord, ‘Elvina’, a supporting friend, stopped by, sharing some thoughts/actions, she’d been privileged to be part of; she thought she’d share: ‘You know, it snowed the other day so I shouldn’t have been surprised when the snowplow guy showed up – mercy, he was good, he got everything done like I like and in hardly any time at all! He was fast; reminded me of me elder brother – point him to a job, off he went; got it done in no time and did it perfect ‘You know, I’m near the ‘bottom’ of...
I always dread when our kids ask us to babysit the grandpets, because it is more responsibility than I want to tackle at my age. I worry that one of the pets will get injured or worse yet--die on my watch. I am much less worried about keeping the grandchildren safe than the grandpets. In fact, I remember the first time our daughter Brooke asked us to “babysit” for her when she went on a little trip. She didn’t have children yet, but she brought us her boxer and her cat for the longest four days of my life! Boston, her boxer...
January 15, 2024 When it’s springtime at Capitol and Tie Creek, it might just be 30 below. The winter has come to Capitol and Tie Creek. Karen Odell took a look at the forecast, and decided to go in to Wolffy’s at Camp Crook to stock up on some groceries, and to send out her mail. The warning weather prediction was that the temperature would soon drop, drastically. Previously, even up through the New Year, things had been mild, but everyone knew it just couldn’t last, and everyone was right. Early on Saturday morning, the t...
I heard on the radio the other day that children get their intelligence from their mothers. That might explain what has happened to my brain. Perhaps I drained part of it for the first child and the rest for the second. I can almost buy that theory--except for the fact that I have another theory that makes more sense to me: the Full Brain Theory. I believe my brain is like a computer that has no memory left. My brain is full, and my folders cannot be compacted. In fact, my brain is so full that according to the bathroom...
Hello God, it’s me, Mara: You know, Lord, good news or good messages abound. For example, unsettled weather plays havoc with roads so when family or friends have visited and we’ve all had a jolly good time, it’s good news when they let us know that they’ve arrived safely back home. It’s good news when tires only need to be rotated, not replaced or when ‘Marylee’s’ grades go up, or when friend ‘Annemarie’s’ blood tests come back with a good report, plus a dozen other ‘pieces of good news’ that reach us. And for ‘little ones...
This week I am feeling particularly old. In the last two months I have officially become an old person with nothing to talk about but old people maladies. The first thing I came down with was a venous stasis dermatitis ulcer. (Yes Google the images of that and just imagine how fun that has been! When I Googled it, I stopped feeling sorry for myself for having just one on the inside of my ankle bone.) However, my ulcer grew for six weeks, because it was misdiagnosed and treated with antibiotics for six weeks while it got...
January 8, 2024 The storms are still holding off, at Capitol and on Tie Creek. There has been lots of fog and dustings of snow, but the fall has been mild. The cold weather is finally predicted. Guests at Ronda Cordell’s on Christmas Eve included the Zolnoski’s families of Chad, Curt and Clint and Cristen and Jayda Westling. Chad’s family headed home that evening, to go to Denver on Christmas. Cristen and Jayda spent the night with Ronda. On Christmas morning, they went for breakfast at Clint and Denise’s, where Curt’s...
Hello God, it’s me, Mara: You know, Lord, listening to some gals talking about their Christmas, even though most had already taken down their Christmas decorations, was interesting – they chuckled. ‘Jane’ shared that she was so pleased to have gotten some cookies from a neighbor, and hoped she’d said ‘Thank you!’ ‘Anna’ mentioned the lovely bouquet she’d received from friends’, way across the state! What a lovely surprise. She taken a picture to send, to show and thank them for the lovely bouquet; the Flower Shop had done...
December 25, 2023 December has been a wonderfully mild and beautiful month. Karen Odell wishes to thank all those people at Capitol and on Tie Creek, who have shared their lives with you this year. It is a great kindness to share your days, and experiences. It is thrilling to know that people in far distant places like reading about your daily lives. Although our world is in turmoil, it is especially calming to read about common occurrences, and to know that other lives are similar to our own. I especially want to thank so ma...
The last of the Christmas cookies have been eaten, and I find myself thankful that it is coverall season, which is also bulky sweater season. If you cannot follow this line of reasoning, then you aren’t one of those people who gains weight every winter! The best part about winter clothes is that they hide weight--at least psychologically. Coveralls are lifesavers. Everybody looks 20 pounds heavier in them, so no one has to feel self-conscious wearing them. You can wear sweat pants in them and be really comfortable. Then t...
Hello God, it’s me, Mara: You know, Lord, a New Year has dawned and as we flick the calendar to the New Year, we come face to face with the fact that our days on earth are numbered. As we turn to this clean, fresh, new page on the calendar we’re also aware that we have a new day, a new year, in our lives. It is up to us to fill in those pages. Please help us to choose wisely, Lord, as we forget about the past and begin to look forward to what You have in store for us. Your Word is full of promises for us, all-be-it, we are Yo...
According to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, while both male and female reindeer grow antlers in the summer each year, male reindeer drop their antlers at the beginning of winter in late November to mid-December. Female reindeer retain their antlers till after they give birth in the spring. Therefore, according to EVERY historical rendition depicting Santa’s reindeer, EVERY single one of them, from Rudolph to Blitzen, had to be a girl. We should have known... ONLY females would be able to drag a fat man in a red v...
Hello God, it’s me, Mara: You know, Lord, CHRISTMAS is just around the corner! Friend, ‘Linda’, shared that when she was young, she’d been told to hide Your Word in her heart, Lord, mentioning how she loved Hebrews 2:1; “We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.” She added that we’re to be alert and attentive in all areas of our life, especially spiritually. Linda then shared what she remembered about what had happened quite some time ago, how a new mom, ‘Mary,’ ha...
December 18, 2023 It has been a quiet week at Capitol and on Tie Creek. The weather has been very mild, so it doesn’t seem like Christmas weather, but no one is complaining, and everyone is still able to get some outside work done. Erma Albert had a doctor’s appointment in Spearfish, on Wednesday, so Dick went with her, and they did a little shopping. They picked up supper at Subway. On Friday, they went to the Senior Center for the Friday meal. Bobbie was not able to come, so Sherry Blankenbaker did the cooking this week. It...
We got a little snow at Capitol and on Tie Creek. The rain that came before it settled the dust, and we really needed that. Ronda Cordell has been making mustard, peanut and cashew brittle and doing chores. At Thanksgiving, she got to see Oren and Arlie Basler. She met Jake Reynolds and Jason Berg at the Wagon Wheel for lunch, before they left for Sioux City to meet with Luke Basler. It’s always great to see grandkids. Last Sunday, Ronda went to visit Cristen and Jayda Westling in Rapid City. She got delayed trying to l...
Hello God, it’s me, Mara: You know, Lord, the month of December usually puts us in a giving mood, right? For some folks it’s typically cash, but it needn’t be cash; clothes, shoes, socks, also toys could also be donated, as well as art, or like one friend we heard about, he gave an automobile to a gal who had lost her car in a wreck. Now and then, just giving ‘time’ is also a wonderful item to give, when thinking about ‘giving something’. Another friend loved making quilts; each year, she’d pick a family member or a fri...
This is a tough time of year for working mothers. I know this, because I was one for 21 years. Now, both of my babies have long since left the nest, but I still remember the perpetual state of exhaustion that is the normal state of being for working mothers. Now I look into the haggard faces of working mothers, and I wonder how I survived all those years. Working mothers do not get a lot of sleep, because there just isn’t time for it. They have to put in a minimum of eight hours at the job site and still plan menus, shop, c...
November 27, 2023 Last week, Cody, Kellan and Carson Odell visited at Karen’s, so there was no time for her to write the news. She is hoping to catch up on what was missed, this week. Dick and Erma Albert had a quiet week. They didn’t even get to the Hills for shopping. On Friday, they went to the Senior Citizen dinner, and Bobbie served delicious Salisbury steak. Father Brian had brought a friend to the dinner, too. They celebrated Eileen Westers’s birthday, and had wonderful chocolate cake. On Sunday, Dick and Erma went...
Hello God, it’s me, Mara: You know, Lord, it was most interesting to recently read a devotional about never being forgotten. The gal wrote how her kids wanted her to start playing the piano again; she mentioned that she had not played the piano for two decades. She was surprised, when she sat at the piano, that she even remembered, then feeling brave, she played seven different scales that she’d learned by heart, years ago. She mentioned that those years of practicing so long ago, had imprinted the notes and technique so deep...
“It takes a village to raise a child,” is is an Igbo and Yoruba proverb that exists in many different African languages, and we in rural America have borrowed the phrase. This proverb became reality in our village a couple weeks ago when my guest columnist, Gayle Grosfield Callinan, encountered my grandson Jasper on the sidewalk in front of our store. To help her overcome the trauma of that encounter, I encouraged her through my tears of laughter to write it down in the following guest column. As one of my former stu...
