2 Blue Stars

Kathleen M. Goodrich

SGT U.S. Army Veteran

You all know that I sell on ebay.  A couple months back I grabbed a handful of lapel pins and put them on as a lot.  The one little bar with a red band, white background, and two blue stars was the one that ended up as my display picture. 

I have had the best luck in the world with my customers on eBay.  If I list something and it is not right, someone will call it to my attention.  If I do not know what something is, someone will email me and tell me what it is and where it came from and what it should bring.  And so it was with this little pin.

In this day of the "me" generation it is refreshing to meet some one who still holds to the value and honor that our Armed Services represents.  This young woman was kind enough to start a dialogue with me and teach me just what this little lapel pin represents.  The following is our correspondence:

Dear loumercer3,
The 2 "Blue Star" Pin is typically worn by a Mother who has two Sons or Daughters serving in the Armed Forces Overseas. In the unfortunate event that one or both of her Children are Killed in Action the Blue Star Would be changed to Red. This pin at one time belonged to a very proud Mother. I thought you might like to know what this pin means.
Kathleen M. Goodrich
U.S. Army Veteran
- kathyvfw

Dear kathyvfw,
Thank you for that information! I am going to take that ad down and relist with this information if that is alright with you? I may not relist it. Seems rather derogatory to sell something that important on ebay along with a pile of other worthless stuff.
thanks again.
Lou Mercer
- loumercer3

Dear loumercer3,
On behalf of myself and all Vetereans, Thank You for giving this most precious symbol of a Mother's Love and Pride the Dignaty and Honor that it deserves. If you must sell it please sell it separately. I am a bit doubtful that someone will bid on it as it most assuredly has been worn by By a Mother and is quite sacred for that reason. I am a U.S. Army Veteran but I am also A Mother of a U.S. Army Veteran and I Proudly wore a Blue Star Pin.
You may think you have a pile of wothless stuff but please remember your Heart is priceless.
Thank You
Kathleen M. Goodrich
SGT U.S. Army Veteran

- kathyvfw

Dear kathyvfw,
I will call the local VFW tomorrow and see if they would like to have it. Or the heritage museum.
First I am going to do a short blog on it.
Thanks again,
Lou

-loumercer3

Dear loumercer3,
Thanks again for caring. My apology for spelling Veteran incorrectly I had spelled it Vetereans possibly a tear or two got in the way. The pin belongs where it is known as much more than a peice of metal. Many Thanks for taking it on it's final Journey.
Kathy

-kathyvfw

And there you have it; what the little pin with blue stars represents.  It is no longer in the bag along with the other pins.  It is now in my jewelry box and when Frank and Kay get back from Texas I will give it to them and they will find a nice home for it where people will know what it represents.  At that point in time it will be accorded the honor it deserves after spending several years in a box of junk jewelry that I picked up for $15 at a garage sale.

I do want to thank Kathleen M. Goodrich for finding my listing and for sharing her knowledge with me.  I am sure her mother also wore a pin like this. 

And my words of wisdom for today ring very true....There are some things that even money can not buy.

Do you know what this pin represents? three guesses!

I put this on an auction and a very lovely lady was kind enough to give me the information on this pin .  It is about 1/2 inch long and 1/4 inch high.  It is a lapel pin.  I will give you exactly two days to tell me what it signifies. 

Post your guess either on the comments here or on face book.

***************sponsor links*************************

Been working on the family tree and my mind is boggled!

Well, I decided that I would just bite the bullet and figure out who Reuben Floyd Bartholomew was.  I found me a place called Ancestry.com.  There I typed in Reuben Bartholomew and the approximate year of his birth.  And up he popped!  Also found his mother and her parents.  Apparently her maiden name was Pratton and she had 3 brothers and 3 sisters.  Right now I am a little busy, but I will fill you in as I make discoverys and if anyone might be interested in helping me just feel free to jump right in and go for it. 
As for now, it seems that William G Bartholomew was born  in Grand River, Missouri about 1867.  The lovely  Luella(Louella) was born in 1870-71 in Jefferson, Indiana.  Some how the star crossed lovers met and married and little Reuben appears to be the first child being born on February 3,  1894.
Now you recall that back in the early years, census records, birth certificates and such were all filled out with a pen and ink.  So some things are up for debate.  For instance, on the first census record he is recorded as Ruby.  Louella and Luella and Luela all appear to be the same person. 
the point is, this is some fascinating stuff and I may have to give up my day job!  So hang in there.  I will have updates as I find them relevant.

Many years ago and far, far away.

Way back in the dark recesses of my mind is probably the first memory of my life.  It was before I started school.  Before sister Dorothy was born.  I must have been 4 years old when we lived on the Stroh place outside of Nickerson towards the Arkansas River.  I have many memories of that place, so we must have lived there for a while, or that was when my tiny mind was first starting to grasp things.

See there, how innocent I am?  So anyway, back to this memory.  We had an uncle. Well, we had several, but this one I am not sure how he was connected.  Was not on mom's side  unless it was a way distant one.  So it must have been one of the renegades from my dad's side.  His name was Uncle Ode.   That is all I know.  No last name.  Anyway, one day he came for a visit.  I probably seen him two times in my whole life.  Uncle Ode smoked a pipe, and like all little kids, I was fascinated with that pipe.  So he let me have puff.  I recall I must have done something because all the adults laughed.  He gave me several puff off that pipe and every time the grown ups laughed.  Then I got sick.  Oh, very sick.  And then the grown ups were not laughing any more.  Served them right, I think.

On the Stroh place, mother used to go to "Club".  I do not remember how often or where, but I remember "Club".  Us kids went with her, because there was one lady designated to watch over us and we better be good, and we better be quiet and there better not be any bad reports.  Back then parents ruled the home.   Now there is a tradition that I wish had been kept!

We had a chicken house and several times something had gotten in and got a hen.  So dad set out back and when the weasel showed up, he killed it.  Now, I do not remember our family ever owning a gun, so I am wondering just what he killed it with,  and I was way to young to remember much about that ordeal.  I think it was a weasel.  Could have been almost anything.

I remember us being on the porch one day and the cat came to the yard with a baby chicken in its mouth.  Mother dispensed Jake and the cat into the forest and I remember Jake had a hatchet.  When he came back he still had the hatchet, but I never seen that cat again.  Big yellow tom cat.

Jake and I were in charge of taking the old milk cow down to the road and letting her eat the grass in the ditch.  She would amuse herself like that for quite a while and when we seen her looking towards the house, we were supposed to go "bring her 'round".  One of our favorite ways of doing this was to grab her tail.  This would cause her to run for the barn a lot faster.  Otherwise we had to walk behind her with a switch and touch her rump when she stopped to eat grass.  That was pretty boring!  Course when we made her run, she did not give much milk.  No winning when you are 5 years old.

Sister Donna poked her finger at a turtle once and it latched on to her finger.  Much discussion on that one.  Cut it off?  No way!  It will never let go if it is dead and she will have that thing hanging on her finger for the rest of her life.  And try to catch a husband with a turtle head on your finger!  But be patient and it will let go when the sun goes down.  I do not know how that one played out, but I do not think she still has it hanging off her finger!  So it must have been resolved.

My brother Gene came home from the Army for a brief visit and then was gone and wound up in prison for writing hot checks.  But it was not his fault!  It was that damn Banks boy that made him do it.

The best part of that time in my life was learning to take care of my hair!  Sarcasm there.  The way we got haircuts back then was to have a bowl placed over our head and then trim around the edge of the bowl.  Hence the term "bowl hair cut".  This was second only to washing of the hair for pure enjoyment.  This is how that went down.  We had no hot water, and the only source of water was a pitcher pump in the corner of the kitchen.  This pumped into a sink (of sorts) which was attached to a pipe that ran through the wall and outside into the yard.  Mother would tuck me under her arm with one hand supporting my flopping head and sister Josephine would start pumping.  Ice cold water was pouring into my hair at about 7 gallons per second.  Shampoo and lather and rinse.  I learned very early not to scream , beg, and whatever I did do not wiggle or try to kick free because that just prolonged the ordeal and got my butt beat royally!  And you think you had it rough! 

Well, I could reminisce all day here, but this is not getting the chores done.   When we left the Stroh place we moved to the Ailmore place.  I think my next book may cover some of my childhood lived in abject poverty, but you know what?  I would not have it any other way!

*************Today's featured sponsor*************

March 17, 2012 at First Church with Steve Parke!

I put captions under all of these and I am hoping that when I hit the "publish" button they will miraculously appear. 
This was St. Patricks Day at our church and Steve Parke put on a wonderful presentation of his trip to Ireland to see family that remains over there.  Steve is big on the genealogy thing and I may have him help me find the roots on my dad's side of the family.  Mother's side has been documented back to the 1400's, but my dad was a slippery little fellow and all I know is I was named after his mom.
 So enjoy the slide show and if the captions do not come up, there are several of the people from our church there.  But the dancers are from the Sarah Shaw Dance Studion and are under the direction of a very capable young lady named Samantha!   If you ever get the chance, these kids are great!
I am off to do chores, but I will check on this and see if it is working later.  

********************sponsor links******************** SALE: Cuisinart Rice Plus Multi-Cooker with Fuzzy Logic Technology - 63% off MSRP

BUNN Phase Brew HG - 15% off - Text

Save on Snacks and Party Favorite Foods

Mrs. Fields Easter Early Bird Special - 15% Off Sale! Use Code 12EEE. Shop Now!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!! and meet Steve Parke!!

Well,  here is my little friend, Steve Parke!  Today he is going to be conducting a program on his trip to Ireland a little while back.  We will get to see lots of slides of the Irish side of Steve, but I bet they have been censored.  Oh, not really.  He is a really great guy but I bet you would never guess by that ornery look on his face that he is a retired minister, would you?
He has lots of irons in the fire and genealogy is only one of them.  He plays a mean guitar and does the coffee shop strumming thing.  Open mike nights are his forte.  He also works with the little kiddies in our "Mothers Day Out" Daycare program.  He really likes that and the kids think he is superman!
Steve is an avid ski bum.  (I did not say skier cause I am not sure how to spell it.)  Winter time comes and Steve is up in Gunnison, teaching and doing the down hill thing. 
I do believe he is starting to stay in town a little more in the winter which is a good thing because we are always happy to have him in our midst.  He has put out an album which I had for sale in my store for a while.  I can sing along on all those songs.
So this afternoon I will be whiling away the hours in Mayflower Hall, learning all about the Irish roots of the Parke family.  And that is a good thing to do because as I understand it, we are all Irish on this day!  Hmmmmm....Can Haas, Gagnebien, and Hatfield actually be considered Irish!

See you later today, you wild little Irishman , you!

**************featured sponsor of the day*************

And the Apricot out back is in full bloom.

Well, yesterday I bit the bullet and cleaned the goose house.  I am sure the little feathered friends apprectiate my efforts if no one else does.  That is one very dirty job.  It took 5 wheel barrow loads in the garden and one up front on the herb garden.  Today I am going to start the sprinlers.  I am sure that will entail a trip to the local hardware to replace one or two of them.  I just love Spring.  With a little luck I will remember to get gas and such so I can rototill tomorrow or Saturday.  And during a stroll through my kingdom, I happened to see that the Apricot out back is in full bloom.  I did not take a picture of it because I take one every year and it looks the same, so here is a picture of it.

The strange part of this whole thing is that the tree in the back is in full bloom and the one in front is not.  Now I bet you are thinking that the front is further North, but it is not.  It is actually East.  I know what it is though.  This one is West of the house and the sun reflect on the stucco and warms it up more.  For many years I maintained Rose Gardens in the back, front , far front and side yards.  The kids always gave me roses for Mother's Day and at one time I had 64 and they were absolutely beautiful.  I love roses!  I used to have a favorite, but then I broke it into categories.  Favorite red, was Chrysler Imperial because it smelled best.  Favorite multi-color was Double Delight because it smelled best.  Favorite orange was Tropicana.  I could point at each one and tell you what it was, but then I got a little lax on the pruning and the feeding and the roses got a little scraggly and then real scraggly and then one by one they went to the big rose garden in the sky.  I still have a few, but those are on their way out.
This year I am going to work on turning my back yards into natural habitats for the little furry creatures and I do not mean the foxes, but I am sure they will drink from the pond if the dogs let them.  Oh, yeah and then there is that skunk thing.  Maybe I will try to just attract birds.  That would be best, I think.  I will keep the grass in the front and on the North side because I just love to mow that stuff!  That and the dogs and I like to set out front in the evening and early morning and survey our kingdom.  I have tried to get the geese to join us but I can not get them to leave the back.  Scary world out there!
So, just wanted to pop in here and let you know that Spring is here at my house.  This is not to say that we will not get a foot of snow next week.  It is just to say that it is looking good here yesterday and today and I am going to take full advantage of this little spurt of good weather!

******************************featured sponsor*********************

Featured Deal: Calphalon Unison 12-inch Nonstick Griddle - 67% off MSRP CHEFS Sale: Calphalon Unison Nonstick 4 Quart Soup Pot - 57% off MSRP
Featured Deal: Cuisinart Chef's Classic 4-Piece Nonstick Bakeware Set - 67% off MSRP