Down the Rabbit Hoel

Stories of family, creativity, and diverse distractions.

Month: May 2022

A Difference of Nine Days

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On May 31, 2022

In Outdoors

Springtime utterly transforms the forest. The colors shift from browns to greens, and the silence is shattered by the sounds of birds, insects, and frogs. The air is redolent with the scents of a hundred species of flower. It’s an amazing change, and it happens quite rapidly.

This spring I was fortunate enough to do two backpacking trips, nine days apart. I had taken some pictures on the first trip, and I though it would be fun to take a new set of the same shots on the second trip, just to compare.

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Georgie’s Memories – Part 6: Cooking on a wood stove

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On May 27, 2022

In Family History

As our family went through my mother’s personal effects, we discovered these essays, handwritten in a spiral notebook. Immediately, we knew we had found a very special look into the early life of someone we loved and admired. We’re sharing them here in the hope that others may enjoy them as well.

November 23, 1986

These essays are being written because I have often thought how nice it would be if, say, my great-grandmother had written about what life was like when she was growing up. It would have been so interesting to know how people’s daily life and experiences fitted in with the history that was being made at that time.

There’s an advertising slogan for cigarettes that says, “You’ve come a long way, baby” and this is surely true of cooking methods.  In the early years of the 20th century the housewife chopped wood, fired the cook stove, baked bread and cooked – quite a contrast to microwave ovens.  During the slack season on the farm, people “got up wood.”  They cut down dead trees, thinned the woods, and used down timber.  By this time gasoline sawmills were used, but making firewood was a hard job. 

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A Big Project For A Small Lathe

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On May 24, 2022

In Shop Projects

My lathe is rated at a seven inch swing, meaning that it can accommodate a piece of metal 7″ in diameter. You could maybe mount something that big somehow, and it would be able to rotate. But you couldn’t get a cutting tool to reach the outside diameter of the piece. In truth, the lathe really can’t work over about 5″.

A friend of mine is a cigar afficionado, and smokes outside on his patio. He was lamenting that he needed a better ashtray. He wanted an ashtray with wide enough grooves to accommodate a fat cigar. It must stay on the table even in high winds. And it had to look “industrial”.

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Georgie’s Memories – Part 5: At School

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On May 20, 2022

In Family History

As our family went through my mother’s personal effects, we discovered these essays, handwritten in a spiral notebook. Immediately, we knew we had found a very special look into the early life of someone we loved and admired. We’re sharing them here in the hope that others may enjoy them as well.

November 23, 1986

These essays are being written because I have often thought how nice it would be if, say, my great-grandmother had written about what life was like when she was growing up. It would have been so interesting to know how people’s daily life and experiences fitted in with the history that was being made at that time.

Elementary School

I started to school in September 1924.  There was no kindergarten then, no school buses.  The 1st Grade had a room to themselves but most rooms had 2 grades in them.  There were no lay teachers – the school was run entirely by sisters.  They were the Franciscans of Perpetual Adoration and the mother house was in La Crosse, Wisconsin. 

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As our family went through my mother’s personal effects, we discovered these essays, handwritten in a spiral notebook. Immediately, we knew we had found a very special look into the early life of someone we loved and admired. We’re sharing them here in the hope that others may enjoy them as well.

November 23, 1986

These essays are being written because I have often thought how nice it would be if, say, my great-grandmother had written about what life was like when she was growing up. It would have been so interesting to know how people’s daily life and experiences fitted in with the history that was being made at that time.

Elementary School

I started to school in September 1924.  There was no kindergarten then, no school buses.  The 1st Grade had a room to themselves but most rooms had 2 grades in them.  There were no lay teachers – the school was run entirely by sisters.  They were the Franciscans of Perpetual Adoration and the mother house was in La Crosse, Wisconsin. 

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What to do with leftovers – from a quilt!

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On May 17, 2022

In Quilts

Sometimes you have some odds and ends left over from a project. This can be something you cooked or something you made. Here is an example of using the cut off parts of a quilt I made a few years ago for a cousin’s grandbaby.

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Georgie’s Memories – Part 4: Horses

By

On May 13, 2022

In Family History

As our family went through my mother’s personal effects, we discovered these essays, handwritten in a spiral notebook. Immediately, we knew we had found a very special look into the early life of someone we loved and admired. We’re sharing them here in the hope that others may enjoy them as well.

November 23, 1986

These essays are being written because I have often thought how nice it would be if, say, my great-grandmother had written about what life was like when she was growing up. It would have been so interesting to know how people’s daily life and experiences fitted in with the history that was being made at that time.

Horses in everyday life

When we lived at the Bruegenhempke Place (which was a farm owned by Grandpa Wellman – the house was a log house covered with white siding) Grandpa always drove over with the team hitched to a farm wagon or the spring wagon as it was called.  When there was a lot of snow in the winter, he would hook up the bob sled.  I remember one horse was called Prince and sometimes Grandpa would ride him.  He enjoyed riding horseback.  Farming was done with horses and everybody raised hay.

Read More

As our family went through my mother’s personal effects, we discovered these essays, handwritten in a spiral notebook. Immediately, we knew we had found a very special look into the early life of someone we loved and admired. We’re sharing them here in the hope that others may enjoy them as well.

November 23, 1986

These essays are being written because I have often thought how nice it would be if, say, my great-grandmother had written about what life was like when she was growing up. It would have been so interesting to know how people’s daily life and experiences fitted in with the history that was being made at that time.

Horses in everyday life

When we lived at the Bruegenhempke Place (which was a farm owned by Grandpa Wellman – the house was a log house covered with white siding) Grandpa always drove over with the team hitched to a farm wagon or the spring wagon as it was called.  When there was a lot of snow in the winter, he would hook up the bob sled.  I remember one horse was called Prince and sometimes Grandpa would ride him.  He enjoyed riding horseback.  Farming was done with horses and everybody raised hay.

Read More

Why I Like Owning A Machine Shop, Reason # 52,372

By

On May 10, 2022

In Shop Projects

One of the things I really like about owning a machine shop is that it lets me find creative solutions to difficult problems. And often along the way I find myself forced to find creative solutions to new problems that crop up while solving the first problem! Today’s project provided a little of both.

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Georgie’s Memories – Part 3: And Automobiles

By

On May 6, 2022

In Family History

As our family went through my mother’s personal effects, we discovered these essays, handwritten in a spiral notebook. Immediately, we knew we had found a very special look into the early life of someone we loved and admired. We’re sharing them here in the hope that others may enjoy them as well.

November 23, 1986

These essays are being written because I have often thought how nice it would be if, say, my great-grandmother had written about what life was like when she was growing up. It would have been so interesting to know how people’s daily life and experiences fitted in with the history that was being made at that time.

Automobiles

Since I was born on October 23, 1917, the automobile and airplane share my infancy.  I remember when there were more horses with wagons or buggies around the square in West Point than there were automobiles. 

Read More

As our family went through my mother’s personal effects, we discovered these essays, handwritten in a spiral notebook. Immediately, we knew we had found a very special look into the early life of someone we loved and admired. We’re sharing them here in the hope that others may enjoy them as well.

November 23, 1986

These essays are being written because I have often thought how nice it would be if, say, my great-grandmother had written about what life was like when she was growing up. It would have been so interesting to know how people’s daily life and experiences fitted in with the history that was being made at that time.

Automobiles

Since I was born on October 23, 1917, the automobile and airplane share my infancy.  I remember when there were more horses with wagons or buggies around the square in West Point than there were automobiles. 

Read More

A Custom Air Rifle: The Crosman Backpacker

By

On May 3, 2022

In Shop Projects

Most of the projects I do in my machine shop are just for me, or maybe for Michelle. But once in a while I get a paying job. A few years ago a friend asked me to make a highly customized air rifle. I recently found some photos of the finished product, so I thought I would share.

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