That Al Batt scooped me. I was just planning on a story on junk drawers and he did it first. At least it shows great minds think alike.
I was just trying to clean up a junk drawer that managed to outgrow its home and move into another drawer and decided that enough’s enough.
I envision nice clean drawers with everything in its proper spot. Dream on.
Only my late uncle, Arnold, could boast the perfect drawer. He could call his wife and tell her exactly where something was. I try, but like Al said, big things keep getting in the way.
That drawer is so handy to hold whatever needed to be scooped off the counter or things you didn’t know what else to do with it. My little niece, Ava, helped me recently. She is good at finding things and interestingly asked, "What is this?
A junk drawer is a terrific way to entertain a child, but don't forget to check for things that could be dangerous first. They will have fun, but don't be surprised that you get intrigued and join the fun as well.
It is a time when you can explain things and their uses as well as sort out the goodies.
When all else fails, dump the stuff in the next drawer down; it is probably full of "stick away junk" items, too.
What we find in junk drawers: night lights, a screw and washer from a toy, old flashlight batteries, clippings, scotch tape, dried up pens. . . the list goes on.
There are junk drawers and there are paper junk drawers. I have one with clippings and little notes about things of interest I didn't know, and might enlarge and make them a part of my own wisdom, but I'll share. It may be eclectic, but they at least intrigued me.
For instance, did you know Fannie Farmer, of candy fame, was the one who started using measuring cups? Before that, recipes called for a fist full of flour or a gob of shortening.
Good cooks turned out good food with solely the value of a good eye. But many of us aren't able to do that — we need those measuring cups.
The smartest toys can be the simplest. Blocks can build more vocabulary skills, partly because of interaction with their parents.
Children play more creatively with generic toys than with movies and television. Before kids had blocks they probably stacked rocks!
Did you know that a newborn baby’s brain triples in size in the first two years of life? A child’s intelligence, in terms of brain development, is determined by the time they celebrate their 4th birthday.
Work is the greatest thing in the world, so we should always save some jobs for tomorrow.
In 1990, there were about 15,000 vacuum cleaner accidents in the United States.
Little League baseball is a very good thing. It keeps parents off the streets.
The oldest person to manage a major league baseball team was Cornelius McGilicuddy, Sr., known as Connie Mack. He skippered the Philadelphia Athletics through the 1950 baseball season when he was 87 years old.
The Hall of Famer managed an astonishing 7,755 games in his career. His grandson was Senator Connie Mack III. (He was related to my Grandma Schember.)
The bathtub was invented in 1850 and the telephone in 1875. In other words, if you had been living in 1850 you could have sat in the bathtub for 25 years without having to answer the phone! Now cell phones go with their owners everywhere.
Since AARP and the AARP Foundation launched "Drive To End Hunger," the initiative has donated more than 6.6 million meals to older Americans. Think twice before you throw it away.
Do you know what a pedant is? My dictionary describes it as a person who emphasizes trivial points of learning, showing a scholarship lacking in judgment, as well as a narrow-minded teacher who insists on exact adherence to rules. A pedant person instructs us with what he knows, then of what we are ignorant.
If all the rich people in the world divided up their money among themselves there wouldn't be enough to go around.
However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
What other people think of you is none of your business.
Cooked tomatoes have more lycophene than raw. Even ketchup, though it has sugar, is good for your heart.
Eating tomatoes and carrots will keep down high blood pressure.
The cartenoids in orange colored fruit and vegetables can make you look thinner.
Eating carrots, tomatoes, plums, and sweet potatoes every day will give you a healthy glow.
We all have big changes in our lives that are more or less second chances.
Rattlesnakes gather in groups to sleep through the winter. Sometimes, up to 1,000 of them coil up together to keep warm.
The world’s tallest fountain is found in Fountain Hills, Arizona. Built at a cost of $1.5 million for McCullock Properties, Inc., the 564 tall columns of water weigh more than eight tons.
The average person falls asleep in seven minutes. (I guess I am not average.)
In the United States, both the "National Pig Day" and "Peanut Butter Lovers Day" are observed on March 1st. Hopefully not at the same time in the same place.
A barometer is a device for measuring the weight of atmosphere. The word is derived from the Greek word baras, or weight.
Time is free, but it is priceless. You cannot own it, but you can use it. You can keep it but you can't spend it. Once you lose it, you can never get it back.
If there is a friend you are thinking nice thoughts about, let him/her know.
God loves you because of who He is, not because of who you are.
And that is just the start of one of my "junk" drawers, that I guess really isn’t junk to me!
Some of our Star Eagle readers have commented they like to read about events such as family and school reunions, birthdays and anniversaries, and birth and wedding announcements. In order to read about these important things, we need our faithful readers to pass along the information to us.
If you have news, please contact me via e-mail, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; by postal mail, P. O. Box 192, Geneva, MN 56035 or telephone, 507-256-4405.
Birthdays and anniversaries:
• Thursday, September 20th: Trinity Starr Wocelka, her first; Jade Hill, Tricia Wayne, Alice Simonson, Sarah Mills, Cheryl Lonning, Bruce Born, Mardelyn Thompson, Jennifer Thorn, Jason & Michelle Gordon, Irvin & Kathy Jensen.
• Friday, September 21st: Addie Haugen, Tiffany Shelton, Tim Sorenson, Dan Richards, Ann Hamilton, Margaret Deml, Thomas O'Conner, Pastor Richard Spande, Richard Axmann, Sherri & Chad Fritz, Jodi & Brandon Wayne, Marty & Karen Johnson.
• Saturday, September 22nd: Noah Rasmussen, Lee Nelson, Gary Jenkins, Kaleb Christensen, Diane Stollard, Kathy Underland, Doris DeNeui, Mark & Rachel Lee.
• Sunday, September 23rd: Aiden James Manges, Allison Groth Muilenburg, Melissa Lonning, Sara Corenlius Routh, Kristin Hamburg, Lance Jepson, Theresa Langlie, Debra Harding, James Robertson, Galen Montanye, Elizabeth Lageson, Mark Kasper, Robin Christensen, Judy & Tad Lunning.
• Monday, September 24th: Gilmore Nelson, Nancy Pence, Jayna Domier, Jazmyne Tayton Martinez, Brandon Wayne, Cherysh Christina Hill Marcks, Brody Carlson, Michael Bedney, Trevor David Barber, Jill Vanden Heuvel, Kathie Lein, Susan Mickelson, Sophie Miller, Iris & Stanley Jensen.
• Tuesday, September 25th: Amelia Christine Powers, her first birthday: Maykayla Jayme Haberman, Trevor David Barber, Geraldine Vangen, Tom Lageson, Pat Conklin, Suzanne Enzenauer Skaar, Cameron & Dayna Schember, Kellen & Alison Utpadel, Dwight & Loretta Schewe, Harmony & Ryan Anderson, Amy & Rick Storlie, Wendy & Marty Schultz, Larry & Elaine Paulsen.
• Wednesday, September 26th: Becky Tindal, Tammy Beenken, Lori Klemmensen Suchanek, Marc Horan, Verdel Humberg, Virginia Miller, James Henry.
Neidermeier, Connie Menefee Calderon, Lee Johnson, Glenn Beckman, Marty & Lee Nelson.
May your special day hold the promise of many bright tomorrows!
