Photo © Caity Chap
We were doing some outdoor jobs and I noticed the little pansies blooming -- in November! Caity went and got the camera to capture a picture for you. And to think we had snow the beginning of October. I'm liking this much better! --Donna Johnson

Tom and I were pleased to have a visit recently from Tom's cousin Frank Morgan and his wife, Sandra, now from Chicago, Illinois. Frank is an Aircraft Systems Maintenance Engineer for United Airlines. He was asked to move to Chicago to work, as they closed the London, England, office.

Frank came to Chicago in April and Sandra came in August, after getting their home in London ready to rent out. Frank plans to stay for seven years in this role and then retire. United Airlines is relocating to downtown Chicago next year to work in the Sears Tower (now Willis Tower). They are living in Arlington Heights at present but will be moving downtown next year.

Sandra worked for the Faculty of Health as an assessor of health-related qualifications at a university in London. She is hoping to find employment in Chicago in a similar position or will try something new.

They have a family of four sons, who all have attended various universities in England. They have three sons living in England and one son, Grant, now living in Australia. Grant is due to marry in February 2010, so they are thrilled to be adding their first daughter-in-law to their family.

While visiting here in North Dakota, they have been helping our neighbor friends Darrin and DeAnna Meyer with the combining of beans and have greatly enjoyed the new experience of driving various equipment.

Photos © Mavis Morgan
Fun driving big equipment on wide open North Dakota spaces.

Photo © Mavis Morgan
The Morgans helped neighbors harvest beans with combine.

Mr. Frodo, our giant orange cat, has been missing since Monday, November 2nd. Umm ... the picture is not really him, just a good likeness, and the only one I have while our computer (and hence all our photo files) are at my dad's being fixed.

We have looked and looked for him in all of the usual places and thankfully have not yet found him as a sail kitty on the side of the road or some other awful circumstance. Frodo was an indoor/outdoor kind of cat but he hated "the wet" and would NEVER be away from his dinner dish for more than a few hours without growing peaked. Hence our concern.

With new dogs just moved in next door and the call of coyotes heard many nights lately, we have reason to believe foul play may have been involved. Frodo was the best cat ever. No, REALLY. He was about 9 years old, 19-20 pounds of love, and apparently the pack leader, since our St. Bernard and other two cats are either at each others' throats or stuck to us like Velcro since Frodo went missing.

Frodo adopted us at the Humane Society seven years ago. We went to get a kitten, thinking that would be the easiest to introduce into the house with a 10 year old male cat already in residence. Since it was the dead of winter and no kittens to be found, we wandered through the adult cat enclosure on our way out, just to give the poor things a minute or two of attention.

All of the cats sat on their perches or curled in their litter boxes, completely ignoring us, with one exception... This GIANT orange cat leaped down from a second tier perch and RAN over to us, winding around our legs. Surprised, and assuming he was in great need of attention, we took him into a private visiting room where he went back and forth between us, butting his huge, softball-size head into our faces and covering us in orange fur.

What could we do? We put him in a box, paid the nice lady a fee and wondered what our 10 year old Siamese was going to think of this. Always a big affectionate diplomat, Frodo assimilated well into the household without even a single incident. In spite of his huge size and strength, he was always the peacemaker in our pack. He was our protector, too. Woe be it to a stray cat entering his yard ... we saw him "bounce" many a marauding Tom 15 feet or more into the woods with a single strike and then follow until the interloper was well off the property.

He also taught many a visiting dog (including Doug's Otto) a few manners! Frodo was always a favorite of new kittens in the household, either cuddled up next to him or even allowing them to perch on top of his back. He was truly a gentle giant.

You always know the day will come when you will lose a beloved pet, but I think the not knowing is the hardest part of this one. Mr. Frodo was special to all who met him and we are very grateful we found him that day in 2002. We will miss him very much.

from Stan--
Just for grins, you sisters of mine need to take a look at the attached site. Try not to be too jealous of your internationally famous brother. If you are all real sweet to me, I might consider signing an autograph sometime for you all! If you check out the song samples page -- number four is one of mine.

I am playing steel on all the rest. (No, there are no sour notes -- I intentionally play like that to remind myself of the good old days when I was just an amateur!) All the songs on that page were recorded outdoors under a big oak tree in 98 degree temperatures. What a mess! ha.

I just wanted to send a few pictures I've taken of the kids lately. Abby loves to be in the kitchen with me, rearranging the canned goods or the tupperware cupboard. She found that the flour canister makes a perfect little chair for the job!

Then, when Mason and Logan came over to play, the three of them discovered what fun it is to empty the toy chest and pile in together! Gets a little crowded so they didn't last too long!

Meanwhile, Brienna has learned to sleep through the noise... :)

Happy November ... we're excited about Thanksgiving and for Rachel and Damon's wedding!

UPDATE -- author report on Anna Myers
by Kellie Thayer
Republic, MO

Just a quick note to let you know how much I enjoy The Bulletin, especially your Memory Lane excursions and "family news"! I liked the book section, too!

An author I thought you might be interested in is Anna Myers. She is an Oklahoma author and is gaining national recognition. Her books are not yet widely available, but some of the larger national chains will order her books, and some libraries are beginning to carry her works. She has written about 18 books, 16 of which are historical fiction. (It's a teacher thing!) She takes the point of view of a somewhat obscure character in dramas such as Lincoln's assassination (Assassin), the Galveston flood (Stolen by the Sea), and Nathan Hale's life in Spy. Another really good one is Tulsa Burning.

The books are written for 'tweens and teens, but I must confess to seeking out anything she writes! My students loved hearing her speak (she "became" some of her characters and told a bit of their stories) at a recent "Lite."

Here is a link to Anna Myers' web page: www.annamyers.info

I got a terrific e-mail from Lori this week -- their lake home is completed!

Kitchen, left; welcome with a lake view, right.

Let's Play a Guessing Game: Whenever it is handy to do so, we will run a picture of someone of the subscribers or staff members of our e-magazine. Tell us who you think it is -- we will let you know who was the first to guess it right -- and the correct guess -- in the following week's Bulletin.

(Send us some to run; we will line them up in our staging area to take their turn. Virginia McCorkell and Betty Weiland supplied last week's mystery photos.

First picture: Greg Dake, Suzanne McCorkell, Jennie Dake at LeRoy and Vonnie's home. Greg and Jennie lived at Cleveland and when they came to visit the three always had a picture by the living room door. It was about 1983. It most likely was around the first part of July. Greg, Suzanne, Jennie, LeRoy and Vonnie all had birthdays within a few days and we always had a birthday party.

Larry McCorkell
Blaine, MN

Judging by the calendar, it was in 1984, which would mean that Greg and Suzanne would have been 10 years old and Jennie 8 years old. --Ginny McCorkell

The left one looks like Greg and Jennie Dake and Suzanne McCorkell taken in Grandpa and Grandma (LeRoy and Vonnie)'s home. This corner was a traditional photo-shoot corner. I think we had one taken every time we got together at their house! This looks like one of the last times I was still taller than Greg! ;-)

A series of recollections, of the five years when Bill and Lois Dake and their family lived in Minnesota, began with the episode in Bulletin 343. It's too soon to tell just how many parts there will be in this series, just after World War II. In Bulletin 349, I told more about polio (once called Infantile Paralysis) via two links, Polio and Sister Kenny, to minimize disruption of the narrative flow. Both documents are posted as a series of scanned images. We can't edit them or correct typos and they will not respond to font changes or printer settings as regular Bulletin pages do.

Dorothy Dake, 20, hand tinted portrait, 1946.

Weather Change
by Dorothy Dake
Howard Lake, MN

Photos © Sheldon Swenson
Butchers selling meat, left; open air markets in Kathmandu.

Photo © Sheldon Swenson
Women fill buckets with water from a public well in Kathmandu, Nepal.

This Week's Birthdays
November 17---Zachary Myron
November 17---Mark Andrew Johnson
November 19---Tyler Swenson
November 19---Nancy Mellon
November 20---Jeff Gauderman
November 21---Alex Jo Marie Sigman (5 years)
November 21---Amy Elaine Printz (5 years)
November 21---Judy Riesenberg
Happy Birthday!

This Week's Anniversaries
November 16---Argyle and Kathlyn Johnson Anderson (46 years)
Congratulations!

More November Birthdays
' 
November 2---Gert Dake Pettit
November 2---Brianna Susan Lehtola (8 years)
November 3---Art Mitzel
November 7---Thomas Roland Mellon
November 7---Sandra Kay Miller Smith
November 10---Argyle Anderson
November 11---Allison Aydelotte (11 years)
November 12---Patty Anderson Henderson
November 14---Marian Miller
November 14---Cara Swenson

November 23---Jessy Chap
November 26---DeLoris Anderson
November 27---Shalana Kay Weiland
November 30---Aaron Stahlecker

More November Anniversaries
Z
November 3---Rich and Verlaine Weiland (47 years)

November 26---Ben and Heather Henderson (5 years)
November 29---Kurtis and Jeni Larson (5 years)

November Special Days
November 1---Daylight Saving Time Ends
November 11---Veterans Day
November 26---Thanksgiving Day

Miss Hetty's Mailbox:

Dear Miss Hetty and The Bulletin staff,

The ones of the Halloween subjects were so perfect, too. Can you imagine ever carving a pumpkin to look like that? I wonder if Steve used lasers? (I know he didn't.) They spend so much time designing costumes for Halloween, and did a fantastic job again.

THEN our update on the new baby, Grady. Thank you for all the details and pictures of that sweet bundle of happiness to the parents that had so longed for a baby in their arms and hearts and home. They had us hoping, too, so now we are glad to enter in to the Chap family settling in. Sounds like Paisley and Scout just take it all in stride, as long as their bowls are full, ha.

Not too many pictures of Grandma Donna with that broad smile, but how could she help but smile as she cuddles this brand new baby boy?

That was such an unusual picture for The Bulletin of the ripe cornfield. It was fun to just study it and see so many details, even the blue sky. As we from the city drive along on the highway, we only see those fields at a fleeting glance, but this picture took my full attention.

It was great seeing the Indermarks' Halloween dress up and Trick or Treating outfits. So soon they grow out of that interest, but right now it is still exciting to them, as well as to all the family.

This year we had so few ring our bell. The neighborhood children are grown up a notch above this event now. We missed them, but that just left Hershey Bars left over. Chocolate, anyone??

I was impressed with the Don and Betty McKenzie career story.

Not many have famous people in their family, and what makes it all the more to be appreciated is the fact that they worked hard from the bottom up to be where they were. Depression made people do what they never would have otherwise or even thought they could, and for them it did turn out to be a benefit. I wonder if we will see another depression? I was born during that time, but as so many others have said, we didn't know we were in a depression as our folks always seemed to have enough. We were just too young to realize where money came from or didn't.

That was such a cute story about those gals watching through the keyhole, and to think they eventually became their husbands. As we have witnessed in even this Bulletin, there is no substitute for having a home and raising a family. I am sure they never missed their life on the stage after their little ones came along. Thanks for that story, Don.

AND THEN comes the continued Memory Lane. It is so amazing to me that Dorothy can write like she does to take us right back into the developing room and we can almost smell those chemicals. I smile at how, in so many little ways, Mrs. Foley shows she really thinks a lot of Dorothy. Who wouldn't appreciate someone who could fit into either the back room or the front office? What a nice surprise to have that delicious meal with "Bill." Everything happening that would make you glad you had gone back to "Bermidji."

What a cute expression about "when I am an old lady" ... well, I would think that time is getting near. How cute to see little Carol at this age now. I keep thinking how much she would value The Bulletin with her baby and growing up pictures in it.

A very special thank you, Dorothy, for the Memory Lane, thus far. I do hope there are several more chapters to it.

We are still enjoying this Travelogue by the Swensons. Nepal is a very familiar name, although I have never heard or seen much about it in my reading, so it was most interesting to have this view of it. The fruit vendor must sell his wares quite soon or the bananas would not last. What a bike he uses to deliver such a heavy load! I can not even imagine it.

I loved the Swensons' attitude of not caring about what Nepal didn't have, but the friendly people won their hearts in a way that they would look forward to returning someday. Truly, that is what matters most.

I am not sure I'd want to walk around there with all those pigeons. The lookout at Lake Mille Lacs was enough for me. The sacred cows would not help the pollution any.

We enjoyed the selection and variety of pictures that our photo editor chose to include in the Travelogue, and we look for more, as was promised, as they would be appropriate.

The Letter to the Editor by our friend Ary Ommert, Jr. in the Netherlands was welcome again. They sound like they live just as normal as we do here, moving cupboards and putting forth a lot of sweat to prepare and furnish the new homes.

Even there, people are not spending as much as they have in the past. I hope all the work for the Christmas show will be an investment to bring in a remarkable business for this season.

How cute with the photo illustration Bitzi created again of the two Weiland kittens in the bathtub. It's a whole different world, living with and caring for pets that they hadn't had before. There are friends that cat-sit when Weilands need to be away, which is such a benefit. Actually, it's the people that have the kittens' mother, Oreo.

Pretty typical Quotation for the day for this November. "The Norway of the year..." Once again, you picked a good one, Jerrianne.

Now I had better get busy around here. It is so much fun to write the LTTE, but Roy is out mulching the leaves on this beautiful day, and his son, Dr. Rodger Droel, uses the leaf blower to pile them up for him. I am not out there helping as I just had cataract surgery.

Betty Droel

Photo © Betty Droel
Rodger blowing the leaves. I just poked the camera out the back door.