Holly, Heidi, and Emery

Look who earned her wings and flew up to Alaska to visit Grandma on spring break and Grandpa!!
Some matching hats.
Some special bibs for the girls. Emery is just learning to talk, sounds like she is saying "blah, blah, blah, blah" - typical girl talk...

The Perfect Bowl of Cereal

I figure that we can get some feedback on what makes a perfect bowl of cereal. Just remember that you saw it here first, even before being submitted to COOK'S Illustrated magazine. This is how to make the best bowl of cereal:

1. Add the following berries (frozen in winter or fresh in summer) blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, peaches... Pour in some milk and cream.
2. Smash up the blueberries and raspberries and slice up the strawberries. Next add some bananas and some pecans and cashews.
3. Crush up some frosted shredded wheat and on top of that add Quakers natural granola with raisins. Get it all wet with milk and eat all of it with a large spoon. You may have to add cereal to use up the milk; then you might have to add some milk to use up the cereal; and so on.

1986 or Later? (Part 3: Heidi S)

You know the routine. Mystery Heidi sure looks a lot older than Heidi 86. And the hair cut and style are very different. For some reason I don't have any other photos of Heidi from the early 90's, but I'll bet they'll look more like Mystery Heidi.

Cartoons

Are you all aware Steve's cartoons are back on the Duluth News Tribune web-site? This one from a few weeks ago is wonderful:

1986 or later? (Part 3: Christopher)

Look at Christopher in the mystery year then compare him to Chrisotpher 86.

Christopher 86 is way too young. Besides. . .he hasn't yet perfected the classic "Christopher smirk". Compare, for example, the next sample I have, Christopher 92. Now there's the smirk we all know and love.


The mystery year has to be later than 1986. If there's any doubt look at the picture below from Christmas 1986. Look at the height of Christopher compared to his dad. He's only half his height. Now look again at the Myster Year. He's nearly full grown!

1986 OR LATER? (Part 2: Holly)

Starting with Mark's family. . .it would helpful if Mark could remember when they came down from the late 80's to the early 90's. I have photo proof they were here the summer of '85, Christmas of '86 and summer of '88. If they weren't here the summer of '86 then the mystery year could not be '86. I have a vague recollection that only Mark was able to attend the funeral and that is why the whole family showed up that Christmas.


But on to the kids. Holly is first up. Holly 86 has a different hair style, she's wearing glasses, and I think the shape of her head is more child like, more oval in shape. Did she get contacts at a certain age? If so when?


To my mind Holly 88 looks more like Mystery Holly - no glasses, a more mature head shape. But in '88 her hair style was decidedly "spikey". When was the next time Mark and family came down after '88? I'd like to see a photo of Holly from that trip!

Regarding that spikey- do, would it have looked that way all the time or would it depend upon the day and how much time she spent on it? Maybe she could have flattened it out when she went to Duluth so as not to shock Grandma Ruth.

Not 1986: The Evidence (part 1)

If Mom's note on the back is right then the photos were taken in 1986 when Steve turned 40. Both Jo and Jean are ok with that, but I'm still very skeptical. The kids look too old.

I don't want to sound obsessive about this getting the date right, but I've been looking for evidence to corraborate the 1986 theory and the more I look the more I think they were taken later. . .as many as four or five years later in 1990 or 1991. I have nothing conclusive but I'll present the evidence over a number of posts. (We could use more posts!) But first the facts:

1. These are photos found in Mom's stuff. They are not mine.

2. There are 10 photos that appear to be taken near the same time showing two gatherings in the back yard. On the back of one Mom wrote "Steve is 40!"

3. In June of 1986 John died and in August Steve turned 40.

4. Six photos are of a summer party with Carlson's and Steve (see previous post) and it is a party. Notice the water balloons. Also Mom wrote on the back that it was a party when Steve turned 40. Also notice the Carlson's canoe is parked by the house. I'm guessing they're on their way up to or back from The Boundary Waters.

5. Four photos are of a picnic in the backyard with Mark, Lois Ann and kids. Mom's friend Agnes was there too. It looks to me like Mom is serving salmon Mark and Lois Ann probably brought down with them.











5. Why do I say these ten are a batch? First: They were on facing pages of the album book. Second the photo paper is all the same with the same "AGFA" print on the back. Third: Seven of the ten have the identical serial number on the back "1111 N N N+ 1L-1" including photos of Steve's party and Mark and Lois Ann's picnic.

6. What about the other three photos that had a different number on the back? Two were of Heidi Carlson obviously at the same party for Steve. (wearing the same clothes, tossing the same balloons, with the same canoe in the background standing next to the same dad wearing the same T shirt etc.) One was of Heidi Stynsberg obviously at the same salmon feast. (sitting at the same outdoor table with the same table cloth and the same lemon slices on a plate and the same salmon on a tray etc.)

Another Guess-The-Date

I'm getting close to the end of my scanning of old photos, and I've saved the worst for last - the photos where I'm not at all sure what year they were photographed. Here's a batch I'm hoping someone can help me with.


Judging by the ages of the kids I was guessing these photos were taken the summer of 1989 to 1990


But on the back of one of the photos mom wrote "Steve is 40!" That would mean August of 1986.



Here are photos that I am pretty sure are of Heidi and Ryan in 1986. So I'm thinking the photos can't be from 1986 right?

Alone in the Wilderness

By the way, Mt. Redoubt is only 38 miles from the cabin of Richard Proenneke made famous in the book One Man's Wilderness and the PBS show Alone in the Wilderness.

If you don't know what I'm talking about don't feel bad cuz I didn't know either until this summer. Mark and Lois Ann sent us his book as a thanks for lodging at our house. When I read it and liked it and tried to recommend it to others everybody seemed to have heard of it except me.

I thought Steve would enjoy the book, but he casually says, "Oh yeah that's one of my all time favorites." You can read about it here .

Blues

JaNae's (Roseau's) one act play was awarded first place last Saturday at sections in Stephen MN. This means they go to State - they'll be performing at the College of St Catherine in St Paul this coming Friday morning - more specifically, at the O'Shaughnessy.

The play they'll be performing is called Blues. It's an incredibly relevant play dealing with homelessness and poverty. Yeah, it's pretty depressing, but they do depressing well. If any of you would like to join us on Friday, please call or email and we'll give you all the details.

Bigger, Better

JaNae is hoping to fly to Greece in June with 9 classmates from her English class. It's going to cost a few bucks. I'm trying to help her...

Did you hear about that guy a couple years ago who started with one red paper clip and after 14 trades was a proud owner of a house? We'll I'm trying to do something similar. I started with a book...

Now, after just a couple days, I've been able to trade up to a Johan Santana Bobblehead!

Let's see how far we can go with this. Come on over to Plato's Republic and let's see if we can make a deal.

Mount Redoubt Ready to Blow!

According to AOL Mt.Redoubt is getting ready to blow its top. According to Google Earth Mount Redoubt is 53 miles south west of Mark and Lois Ann's house. According to me, I would suggest to Mark and Lois Ann, "RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!"

Twins

Collecting the various school photos sent to us, I was reminded of a photo of Christoffer that I really enjoyed. He seemed to me to be the spitting image of a famous TV character.

Picasa Collage

For some reason I downloaded Picasa and thought it would be fun to make a collage. When I click the "scramble" button it rearranges them so pictures in back might come to the fore.

O Brother Where Art Thou?

I'm getting a little tired of Kate Rusby. Anybody wants to change to play something you like feel free to do so, or check with me on how to do it. It's not that hard. But in the meantime I'm swithching to something I am surprised to find out. . .that Peter and Jonathan love the movie O Brother Where Art Thou including the music. I am surprised because they are almost certain to hate anything I like. Enjoy.

Christmas Day

I've been holding off publishing these pictures - it only seemed right that Christmas Eve pictures should be published first. I can wait no longer. Here are the pictures from Christmas Day.




Jenna and Rhiannyn.



Kurt and Jose




JaNae was the first president. Steve was the first scum. It's too bad about Steve's hand.



Two scum hard at work.

Paul apparently had a little too much to drink...

Cousins.

Jo eventually became president.

In the end, the tables had turned. Steve was the president - JaNae, the scum.

We stopped in Alexandria on the way home to return Al and Dorothy's car.

The whole family was there.

Somebody Missing Something?

I said before, I'm scanning old photos. In a box of Mom and Dad's old photos I came across what appears to be brother Mark's Social Security Card. So I was wondering if Mark noticed anything missing? According to the card, your current address is 1711 East 5th. The directions on the card say this is to be placed in a safe deposit with all your other valuables. It looks to me like there is the card you're supposed to keep on your person at all times and there is this card that is to be carefully secured. Hmmmmm I wonder where my card is?

Any PREDICTIONS for the New Year???

Here is one from the Wall Street Journal front page. It is for 2010. The following is copied from the beginning of the article, with a link at the end to read the whole news item:

MOSCOW -- For a decade, Russian academic Igor Panarin has been predicting the U.S. will fall apart in 2010. For most of that time, he admits, few took his argument -- that an economic and moral collapse will trigger a civil war and the eventual breakup of the U.S. -- very seriously. Now he's found an eager audience: Russian state media.

Igor Panarin

In recent weeks, he's been interviewed as much as twice a day about his predictions. "It's a record," says Prof. Panarin. "But I think the attention is going to grow even stronger."

Prof. Panarin, 50 years old, is not a fringe figure. A former KGB analyst, he is dean of the Russian Foreign Ministry's academy for future diplomats. He is invited to Kremlin receptions, lectures students, publishes books, and appears in the media as an expert on U.S.-Russia relations.

But it's his bleak forecast for the U.S. that is music to the ears of the Kremlin, which in recent years has blamed Washington for everything from instability in the Middle East to the global financial crisis. Mr. Panarin's views also fit neatly with the Kremlin's narrative that Russia is returning to its rightful place on the world stage after the weakness of the 1990s, when many feared that the country would go economically and politically bankrupt and break into separate territories.

A polite and cheerful man with a buzz cut, Mr. Panarin insists he does not dislike Americans. But he warns that the outlook for them is dire.

"There's a 55-45% chance right now that disintegration will occur," he says.....

To see more of the article click here. Anyway i thought this might inspire some comments.
My own personal prediction that i borrowed is: The next 20 years will be different than the last 20 years.

Christmas Letter 2008

Christmas Eve

You may have your own plans for Christmas Eve and given how certain clans are expanding and getting more complex that would be understandable, but for those who are willing and free consider yourself invited to Christmas Eve at the Lindstrom's. The only requirement is to think of something to bring to eat. More info to come.