Memorial Day 2026

 

Hello Friends,

I am sharing a post I wrote in 2024. 

It is a good reminder to read about the bravery of our men and women. 

This is a story about a World War II soldier from Wisconsin. 

Enjoy...  

Today I am going to share a story I read in our Wisconsin Outdoor News. The author of the story is Dean Bortz. 

The Wisconsin Outdoor News 2023 Person of the Year, Rueben Kolpack. He is 103 years old and is the oldest licensed Wisconsin deer hunter.

Oh he has many milestones, I will share a few with you..

World War II soldier.

Recipient of the Silver Star for gallantry in action, the Purple Heart, African/European Medal, Victory Medal, and a Belgian medal on the recommendation of the French government.

Married 77 years to his wife, Lucille, who passed away in March at age 97, just five days short of her 98th birthday.

Father to six children.

 Successful farmer.

 

 

I want to share a few things from the article that Rueben shared.

Rueben grew up speaking German. While he was at basic training at Fort Riley, Kansas an officer asked if anyone could speak German. Once Uncle Sam figured out Kolpack could speak German, he was sent to radio school and then to the 2nd Armored Division where he was a radio operator and interpreter in a tank battery.

It was a tough duty. He saw a lot of things he'd rather not have had to witness - the huge cost of human lives on the beach of Normandy, the tank ahead of him getting blown to bits by a German Tiger tank and its 88 mm cannon.

"If it weren't for the grace of God, I wouldn't be here today. It was a miracle anyone survived the mortar attack where I was wounded. The stronghold was just 200 yards away on the ridge above us. Those mortar rounds just kept landing around us and the command tank. When people say there isn't a God, they're lying to themselves.

He was struck by a mortar that damaged his right leg. He spent four months in the hospital and was not fully recovered when he was forced back into war for the Battle of the Bulge because of losses in his unit.  

 ♥ ♥ ♥

 

 

Sound Off!!

 Hello Friends, 

Today is going to be a sound off, just to get some stuff off my chest.

I first will start with the USPS. 

I do have to say, my grandma was a rural mail carrier for 40 years. I rode with her on her route. We had so much fun together. I would ride in the back with all the mail. She was loved on her route and she took pride in her work.

I am not sure what is going on with today's USPS, but it is a mess. I wonder if we are going backwards instead of forwards.

 

For several years I have ordered our onion sets from a fantastic grower in Texas. I have not had one bit of trouble with receiving our order in fine condition, until this year.

I received confirmation our onions shipped. A week went by, still no onions on my doorstep? I was looking at the tracking and it looked like our onions where stuck in Ohio.

I contacted the company I deal with, they said they noticed the USPS is no longer updating the tracking information on the sight. WHAT??? CRAZY??

The next week our onions came... 

Our box of onion sets came soaking wet, when I opened the box the onions had mold all around them and smelled awful. 

They had gotten wet, left to sit and rot. 

 

 Thankfully the grower we order from sent out a replacement order for us immediately. 

The reason I am sounding off on the USPS is something honestly has happened to the service we once had, I do not know what the trouble is?

Short staffed?

Our carrier is a sweetheart, I know she does the best she can. Is something going on higher up making the USPS crash and burn? We no longer get mail daily. 

Any thoughts?

Next up...  

Below is a peek of just a wee bit of the mess behind our fence from our backyard neighbor.

Click here to get the rest of the story  

I shared the story about our backyard neighbor in the above post.

Sadly, he broke one of our fence panels moving more junk, a freezer, into his backyard along our fence this past week.

My husband fixed our fence and reinforced it to be ready for whatever may come next.

 

 

Keeping it real here my friends. The blog world can look all pretty and perfect, but in honesty we all are dealing with ups and downs. 

  Keep Calm and Carry On!!

Pink and White Confetti and it is the Hodgepodge

 

It is time for the pink and white confetti. Our apple trees will soon start to drop pink and white confetti. It will dance in the wind and fill the ground with pink and white. 

And it is time for the Hodgepodge.

Joyce asks the questions. 

We answer the questions.

Click here to join the fun! 

 

 1. What do you make more complicated than it needs to be? 

I am going to answer what took me forever to do just the other day. I was adjusting my car seat. I went up and down, back and forth several times, I think I ended up in the same place I started.  

2. What impresses you?  

Honesty!!

 3. On a scale of 1-10 how picky of an eater are you?  (1=extremely and 10=not at all) If you had to eat a meal made entirely of one color what color would you choose? 

 

I am a food snob nowadays because I want to know more about what I am eating. What is in it? Where was it grown? What has been sprayed on it. I read labels. I like to know where my meat comes from, I am really picky about that. 

I would say I am a 3. 

I will pick green. It would be a huge garden salad that came from our garden. I know what has been sprayed on it, NOTHING!!  

 4. What does balance in life mean to you? Does your life currently feel 'balanced'? 

I had to chuckle, because this has been an issue I have been writing about in my journal. I like to have routine in my days. I feel I get more done that way and I feel more 'balanced'. Not all days go as planned and soon I feel like I am 'spinning' like I felt last week. 

 5. If you could travel the world for a year what would be your first destination? 

It would be the UK!!

I have a love for the UK and I have blog buddies I would like to meet.  

 6. Insert your own random thought here. 

They do not last long, but we soak in the beauty while they are in bloom.