What if you got this notice after you retired? Great story by Author Jean Butterworth of Alabama. YOU’RE IN THE ARMY, NOW! by Jean Butterworth Recently I received this e-mail that got my attention, “Would you like to be activated for a week’s training with the USPHS?” Years ago, when I was in college I […]
The town of Circleville, Ohio had difficulty housing many of the farmers of foreclosed homes in town. Consequently, shanty towns built by homeless people sprang up on the outskirts of town and were promptly named Hooverville as were many other shantytowns were named throughout the country. The towns were named after President Herbert Hoover who […]
Laboratory from Hell by Christie Seiler Boeke Written 2016 In the 70’s, after we moved from central Florida to a small rental house in the southern part of the state, we realized the cost of living in south Florida was much higher. In order for us to eventually purchase a new home, Bob and I […]
Cut and run is a phrase used in the context of a cowardly defeat but actually the phrase ‘Cut and Run’ is a nautical term. In an emergency rather than haul up an anchor the sailors would cut the anchor cable then run with the wind. In nautical usage however the term does not necessarily […]
Income Tax Day was once on March 15 in 1930 Though there had been income taxes collected for various reasons such as War before in the United States, the first official date for filing a federal income tax was March 1, 1913 and was changed to March 15, 1918. This date remained until 1955 when […]
(Remember the joy of kite flying? This song and story by a contributing author will remind you.) Go Fly A Kite by Inez McCollum To tell a person to “go fly a kite” is a term of exasperation when one is fed up with that person. People have literally been flying kites since […]
The phrase Straight-laced was originally STRAIT laces. The old English word strait meant tight or narrow. In Tudor times buttons were mostly for decoration. Laces were used to hold clothes together. If a woman was STRAIT laced she was prim and proper. VINEGAR OF THE FOUR THIEVES: Recipes & curious tips from the past Check […]
An unconventional way to escape winter blues by Jean Butterworth Nothing about the month of January is exciting. Now, December is filled with holidays including Hanukkah, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Years’ Eve, and one of my grandson’s birthdays. But along comes January with its predicted cold, wet and rainy days. And then there is that […]
King George VI was the King who had the stutter depicted in the movie The King’s Speech and the father of Queen Elizabeth II who recently had her 90th birthday. News from May 12, 1937, King George VI and Elizabeth’s coronation. From The Tuscaloosa News in Alabama of May 12, 1937 Solemn Coronation Rites Followed By Heavy […]
MANY FACETED MARCH BY INEZ MCCOLLUM We are coming up on March already. This is the last month of the first quarter of 2015. The word “March” has held many places in literature and every day conversation through out the ages. I suppose the one that dates back furtherest is “Beware of the Ides of […]
