Homestead mailing list

["Marie McHarry" <mmcharry AT gmail.com>]

On 6/6/07, Clansgian AT wmconnect.com <Clansgian AT wmconnect.com> wrote:

> > Any idea where the families moved to? Just curious.
>
> Yes, in fact.  For such a rural location, very little of people's affairs are
> actually private.  Except for us, that is, we are an enigma and a mystery to
> our neighbors.  Or so we imagine.
I'm sure you're not counting on that cover not being blown.  :)

I had a disadvantage when I moved here because I have family within 40
miles. Jim was amazed that the neighbors would stop in to welcome us
and NOT LEAVE UNTIL THEY KNEW EXACTLY WHO MY GRANDPARENTS WERE, BOTH
SIDES. He was left as the only enigma and when we had a party to
commemorate his life, a number of the locals stepped forward to
comment on how his mysterious past life contributed to stories that
have now led to local legends. In a tight little community, it don't
take much. It knocked 'em flat that he really did know Charlton Heston
(their mothers were best friends) because I revealed the mystery and
put up a couple of Charlton's last letters to Jim.

I've had mixed feelings about the price of gas and the recent (and
continuing) changes. I'm 20 miles from Springfield, which is the
largest employment center in the area, and bedroom communities have
spread from there. I don't think they'll reach me, at least not in my
useful lifetime, considering the uncertain gas prices. The farmland
around me is owned by farm families committed to farming (at least for
now).

My late, great mother and I used to have discussions about how lucky
we were to be old enough not to have to deal with the coming mess. A
child of the Depression, she was more frugal than most of us -- even
on this list -- can ever be. She died happy, with her tomatoes and
peppers planted and having had as much asparagus as she could eat from
her bed, which she extended last year. She even had a couple of bowls
of strawberries, though they were tiny (but sweet) because of the lack
of rain.

Marie