Hello Friends, during one of our thrift store stops, we found the following pins. Barron is a small city about 4 miles from our village of Cameron. When we saw the pins, my husband said he wanted the Cameron Centennial pin and he thought of our friend Lori when spying the Farm'n Feather Fest pin. But who wears pins these days? So we decided to make the pins into magnets.
If you have been a long time reader of The River, you will know we are not native to Barron County or Cameron. And the above friend I mentioned helped us learn so much of the "need to know.. to look like you belong here" Ha Ha!
In all honesty, we did have a lot to learn. One was the name of roads that do not appear on the signage of the road and street. So when someone told us to go down Poor Farm Road .. we had no idea where Poor Farm Road was, because it is not on the map and is not named Poor Farm Road on the sign for the road.
Lori helped us learn where Poor Farm Road was, Airport Road and Museum Road. She made sure we knew who was related to who.. in case we got carried away talking about people. And thank goodness she did share that wee bit of information with us, because the person we purchased our home from ended up not being so nice. At the same time his sister attended the church we attended, but we did not know he was her brother.
We are thankful to Lori to have shared some of the inside, need to know, to get around this neck of the woods when we first stared out in these parts.
We were excited to gift Lori with a pin.. now a magnet.. to give her memories of her hometown.. because she has now moved away. I hope she finds a kind neighbor and makes a new friend to help her "fit in" to her new town.
Pins.. made into magnets.
We have lived here for 25 years.. but even with 25 years under our belt, we will never really be natives. Just recently while delivering Meals on Wheels I had a conversation with the participant, it went like this...
Me.. Hello, Meals on Wheels.
Participant.. Thank You. What is your name?
Me.. Carla TePaske
Participant.. Oh goodness, that is not a Cumberland name! (Cumberland is a small city about 30 miles from where I live, that is where I helped deliver Meals on Wheels.)
Me.. No, it is not, and it is even worse, it is not even a Barron County name. I am originally from Phillips, located in Price County.
Participant.. Alright.. she eyed me suspiciously.
Me.. I have lived here in Barron County going on 25 years. (hoping this would give me a pass.)
Participant.. Alright, you have pretty eyes, so that will do.
♥
Carla
LOL about the Meals on Wheels lady. How cute. Love the pins made into magnets. Your friend will love this special gift. xoxo Kris
ReplyDeleteWhat a cool idea this is, turning pins into magnets. goodness, I would think that 25 years of living in the same place would quality you as almost a native!
ReplyDeleteLOL! Good thing you have pretty eyes!
ReplyDeleteWe're non-natives, too (only 21 years for us - and we still feel very "out of it".) I think it's worse because our kids don't go to the public school. Good thing you had Lori to help you out! (What a gem she is!)
Oh Carla, your post hit home for me, as I'm not a native here either in this mountains town, and there's a whole lot of learning we have to go through, isn't there? That's so nice of Lori to help you with the journey. I have a few like that here as well. I chuckled when you said she made sure you knew who was related to who. That's important in a small village. The magnets you made are so nice and a special gift to Lori. 25 years is a long time, and soon you will feel like a native living there. ; )
ReplyDeleteThanks for the delightful post this morning, Carla. I'm sure you do have pretty eyes, as you have a beautiful heart.
~Sheri
Lovely gift to your friend.
ReplyDeleteThis non-acceptance makes it a quaint story.
Funny thing is, I actually tend to do the same thing!
I still look on people as... Old Families, and Newcomers (Those Carpet Baggers). >,-)
Actually here, it is from politics. Old Families tended to be Conservative. New rich people coming here to live, are Liberal/Woke. And sadly, they (LIBERALS) have taken over, and our beloved city is now one, where there were NO 4th of July Celebrations. >:-(((((((((
It does gall......!!!!
You asked for my fav Britbox shows... My latest post tells of one of my favorites. :-)
ReplyDeleteLOL...pretty eyes so that will do, after 25 years. Years ago hubby and I were in Canada at a car race and met people from some little town in Vermont. They had been there for years, but told similar stories about how they would never been considered natives.
ReplyDeleteHey Carla. Those are cute little pins, or magnets. I too can relate to your story. Dan and I moved here 32 years ago...from the Sandhills (southwest corner of NC to the northest corner of NC) . Sometimes if speak out loud in a public place, people will look up like, where in the the world is she from! Funny, isn't it? Glad you have pretty eyes.
ReplyDeleteWe've lived here for nearly 20 years, and I consider the two of us as outcasts. Not native Texans. And to top it off the city is much younger residents than us; not too many retirees. Oh, and my eyes are the wrong color!!😄
ReplyDeleteA smile and pretty eyes goes a long way! heehee! What a funny story. Love the magnets you made too. How clever!
ReplyDeleteHahaha, as long as you've got pretty eyes, you're covered.. Lol. That is a cute story.
ReplyDeleteI used to collect pins years ago and I think everyone else did too and then it all died down. I gave a lot of my pins to the thrift store. I'm sure your friend will appreciate the thoughtful gift.
Hugs,
Julia
WOW you are still an outsider after 25 years. I have been here now for 20 years. Glad I know the roads here too as some are called by different names as well. Must be a local thing. Nice of you to gift those pins for your friend. Janice
ReplyDeleteSuper cute!
ReplyDeleteThat's so funny. I'm a native in my town and sometimes I call roads their old names. I also think your new Meals on Wheels friend is silly...and right. You do have pretty eyes!
ReplyDeleteI love the pins and the fact that you made them into magnets. She will love it! Are you from Phillips, WI? Love the conversation you had. Take care.
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Wow, they really are locally minded up there! I grew up in Shawano, but my family wasn't native there either, as we moved there when I was nine. Funny, I feel so much more at home in Madison than I ever did in Shawano, although it was an OK place, for various reasons. Nifty magnet re-do. Fun stories!
ReplyDeleteOh Carla those pins and magnets are great! Your friend will love hers. I know what you mean ... we moved to Columbia 20 years ago and we're still outsiders, haaaha! sxoxo
ReplyDeleteHaha!They are suspicious of you "newbies"!!
ReplyDeleteWhat a clever and fun gift. I'm sure she loved it.
ReplyDelete