New media, new opportunities

Yesterday I attended a great Minnesota Association of Government Communicators conference on new media and its applications for government communicators. I plan to spend some time reviewing the tips and tutorials on http://social-media-university-global.org/. While many people still do not have computer access, let alone FAST speed, the Internet allows us to uncomplicate complex issues by using video and audio as well is as the written word.

The ties that bind: Grandma Paukert

Last night’s dinner with cousins Barb Smith and Doug Lovejoy brought out shared memories of our Grandma Paukert.
We are among the “junior and senior” first-cousins in the tribe of oh … not sure …. 75? We remember the 1950s, the significance of girls wearing a square scarf folded into a triangle on your head with the knot tied at the chin; we remember the days of BIG cars, drive-ins, saddle shoes, GANT Madras shirts with the back tabs, that were collector’s items for girls. (I wonder if I still have my collection somewhere?)
We have shared memories of Grandma Paukert at that time, the matriarch of a family of 11 who lived her later years in a two-story house in Owatonna, within walking distance of the Catholic church. We “juniors and senior members of the second generation, were preteen or early teens and, although there were few times we were all together as a complete Paukert unit, we enjoyed even the anticipation of each other’s company.
Grandma’s house — the smell of apple butter and old lady; her waddle due to arthritis; her sagging boobs; her dark-colored housedresses; her long, yellow-grey hair, braided and pulled back in a bun; her love of card games, soap operas and never-ending crochet projects.
I don’t remember ever kissing or hugging her — Paukert’s aren’t known for physical displays of affection. I don’t remember her ever telling me stories, after all “hard work” was our mantra. But I remember her home being a place of warmth and safety, a place where family connected.
Every two years, a Paukert family reunion is held, but there’s fear that as the children of Elizabeth pass on (there are only three sisters living,) and as the “senior- and junior-”aged cousins move to retirement, the younger generation (whose numbers are too many to count) may no longer be interested in the Elizabeth-family-ties.
The chain would break.
Too bad … but I guess that’s the way it’s meant to be.
Now, as a grandma, I realize how important it is for me to create my own smells and experiences for my grandchildren … for their children- my great grandchildren- I will most likely only be a string of memories from their parents.

Stuff REALLY on my mind

It's been a tough year ... bad knee leads to hospital stay. Stinkin' thinkin' leads to thinkin' it through - with some help.
Depression - it's hard to come out of the closet on that one. This is a literal statement for me, because when I'm in the darkest corners of my mind, that's where I go (or my other favorite spot is under the bed covers.)
Yes, I struggle with depression - THERE - I've said it. There is still so much discrimination against those with any form of mental illness. It is hard to admit the diagnosis because it conjurs up images of the poor souls in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. For me, I vividly recall the Fergus Falls Treatment Center, (I graduated from the town's high school, and the grounds were a great place to go "park.") But the building - well it was scarey! The thought that at one time in our history you could have been sent there for stinkin' thinkin' makes me cringe.
Times have changed ... in the partial program I attended, I met smart, creative and kind depressives like me. Thanks to good meds, good programs, and a lot of hard work on my part, I am managing my depression rather than it managing me.

Mediterranean in the rain

Our plans can often change on a whim.
I've heard so much about the movie "Up," that I couldn't think of a better way to spend a rainy afternoon than in the theater. We decided, however, that we'd stop for a beer first ... Umm, where should it be Green Mill or Ansari's. (Both were quite near the movie theater in Eagan.)
We'd never been there before, Ansari's that is, so Ansari's it was. It was quiet there at 4:15 in the afternoon. Whenever we can, we like to sit at the bar, because you never know who you're going to end up talking to! So one Greek appetizer and a beer, led to another beer and dinner, and conversation with the restaurant's owner, his children, and Matthew and Chris who sat next to us at the bar.
The lamb platter with rice, the tabbouleh and pita were outstanding, combine that with the friendly people we met, we will be back.
I got the idea of writing a story about Hookahua pipes and Shisha (the type of tobacco used), they plan to have it available for customers this summer if they build a patio. They do however, have an online business selling the stuff. I think I could market the story to some publication.

Mining the Derrick Name-The Movie

Derricks north and south

I was doing some looking around on the Web regarding "Derrick, Lake Linden." I found this post.
-------
http://www.angelfire.com/sc2/thederrickfamily of SOUTH CAROLINA has other links
-John C DERRICK

*c1900 Michigan, USA. Larry SMITH lhsmith"at"srv.net 2002
I have a picture of the Hubbell, MI band in 1900, of which my gfr, Henry
SMITH, was the leader. In the band were Fred DERRICK on trombone & Ben
DERRICK on clarinet. They may have lived in Lake Linden, the next town to
Hubbell. This was copper mining and milling country then. I think the
DERRICKs may have moved on to the gold mining area of Dawson, Yukon
Territory, Canada later. I have postcards c1910 to my grandfather about
Dawson, but the correspondent didn't sign - but I always thought it was a
DERRICK or RILLSTONE that wrote.
If you think they may be related, I could probably see what the family
consisted of in the 1900 census. If you use Ancestry.com, which I don't, I
think you can see the 1900 and 1910 census on line. Lake Linden is in
Schoolcraft Township of Houghton County, and Hubbell is in Torch Lake Twp,
Houghton Co., MI.

That's all there is

Photo of Herbert Derrick

The Calumet shopkeeper told me it was no mystery to him why Charles was in Lake Linden. That's where the smelting operation was for the copper mines. And it turns out that Sheffield, England had plenty of smelters, and people from there were very skilled.

The man was also helpful in disciphering the letters behind the names in the directory.

Charles was a labor, as was his brother Benjamin, Ernest was a driver. We figure that Charles was the oldest because it is listed that Ernest and Benjamin lived with him. Now the kicker. ... the yellowed pages lay out exactly where the family lived in Lake Linden. ... two houses in from the corner of Hecla St. and G St.

It's hard to tell whether one of the houses on the block is where the family lived ... I doubt it. Houses would have been closer together ... my guess is that it is gone, vanished, just like the Derricks.

After visiting the street, we wanted to see if we could learn more and located the historical society building, but it was closed. So next stop, the cemeteries. First one, as it turns out, was the Catholic cemetery. There's no way a Derrick would be buried there, even if the church would have allowed it. We went to the Protestant cemetery and combed the grounds, looking at every tombstone, but there was no Derrick.

So many questions. What happened to these people? How come there are no photos of them? How come my dad rarely spoke of his family? OK, if the directory was from 1898, and Herbert was born in 1891 or so, that means there was quite a clan in the house.

Herbert had two brothers, Ernie and Fred, and there was a sister, Aunt Lisa. But who was the oldest? Where did Herbert move to? How did he meet his wife Ina Lee from Tornoto Canada?

Although Lake Linden is a beautiful spot, I came away very confused and with so many questions about these people. It's not so much that I have a desire to learn more about my roots, its more wanting to know why these people were forgotten ... chopped off the family tree.

That's all there is.