"There is a time to let things happen and a time to make things happen."
— Hugh Prather: is an author, minister, and counselor
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Monday, June 29, 2009
Photos from Mom's Birthday Party....
Photo above taken by Heather Ann.
~~**Heather's Photos from Great Grandma's 90th Birthday Saturday at Lost Creek Church, Stillwater.
~~**Phil's Photos from his camera of Great Grandma's 90th Birthday Saturday at Lost Creek Church, Stillwater.
~~**Photo's from My Camera of same event taken by me and various folks.
I think our wires got crossed and we all thought someone else was taking crowd photos... and I am not sure photos of the folks in attendance were taken by anyone... wait... there was photos taken by Naomi's son I think... will try to find out and post.
Great party, good times, wonderful friends and family, well behaved kiddos, and even Ann and I were on good behavior... and the hottest day of 2009 - 106 - in Stillwater that afternoon.
Even had Bill and Rose Marie Shaklee from OKC drive up. Now let me assure you, Bill is going to celebrate his 90th Birthday in May of next year, however, this young man doesn't even warm up 90. I am not sure I could keep up with him in a full day. He is the family historian for the Shaklee family, and has one of the most documented family history's that these old eyes have ever seen. Yes, he drove up (about 60 miles) from near the heart of OKC to Mom's Birthday and returned on the HOTTEST DAY to date this year... 106 in Stillwater, most banks were reporting 110...
and we had many friends and family coming long distances to help prepare and celebrate... We hope in the future to thank them all for their thoughtfulness.
But for now, a very big thank you to all who attended from Marilyn, Ann and I and our family, Phillip, Tammy and Austyn; Heather, Paul, Andrew and Madison; Jonathan, Randi, Kaitlyn and Dylan; Jake, Trisha and Isabella. And of course from the birthday girl as well, Mom sends a very special THANK YOU ALL FOR EVERYTHING to one and all!
William "Bill" Shaklee and his lovely bride, Rose Marie
photo from 60th Wedding Anniversay, Bill and Rose Shaklee, Feb. 04, 2006.
Here is a link to the Bill and Rose Shaklee website
and below is a short version of William Shaklee's Military experience.
Thank you for your service from all of us!
1st Lt. William E. Shaklee"When the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, Hawaiian Islands, 7 Dec 1941, beginning the US entry into World War II, I was a senior at Oklahoma A. & College in Stillwater and was enrolled in the Advanced ROTC program. Upon graduation I was commissioned a Second Lieutenant 14 May 1942. I was ordered to active duty 6 July at the Enid Army Basic Flying School , now Vance Air Force Base. The most significant impact of World War II on my life occurred the next Sunday when I attended the First Methodist Church in Enid and met Rose Marie Miller.
I reported 4 Aug to the Provisional Battalion, Officer Training School, Fort Francis E. Warren, near Cheyenne, WY. There I was in training until assigned to the unit in which I would spend the bulk of World War II. On 8 Nov I reported to the 469th Quartermaster (QM) Truck Regiment, Camp Maxey, near Paris, TX, one of four white officers in Company B. Our 120 enlisted men were “colored”, today we would call them African-American. My promotion to First Lieutenant was 7 Apr 1943.
During almost a year of training, including maneuvers in Louisiana from 13 Apr to 30 Jul, we converted our men into a good truck company.
On 24 Oct we left Camp Maxey by train for Camp Stoneman, near San Francisco, CA. We left the US 1 Nov on the Nieuw Amsterdam, said to be the 15th largest ship afloat at that time. On 17 Nov we docked at Wellington, New Zealand, stretched our legs with a hike in the city, then returned to the ship. We arrived at Camp Hargrove near Sydney, Australia, 19 Nov where we became acclimated. We left Sydney by train
24 Nov for Camp Freeman near Brisbane. There we performed our first real war work, hauling supplies to and from ships and Quartermaster Depots, including helping to break up a strike of civilian Australian truck drivers. Company B, 469th QM Truck Regiment, was redesignated the 3662nd QM Truck Company 2 Dec.
We left Camp Freeman 16 Jan 1944 in the Australian ship HMAS Kanimbla and pulled into Finschaffen, New Guinea, 23 Jan. That was our home for the next 16 months. Our first night at Finschaffen was interrupted by an air-raid alarm followed by several big explosions. The alarm sounded three times that night and later it was reported seven bombs were dropped by Japanese warplanes. Three or four American soldiers were killed and more than 30 injured in nearby units during the raid, but our company had no casualties.
At Finschaffen our company hauled troops and supplies from ships at dockside to camps and supply depots and vice versa. Supplies consisted of ammunition, military equipment, clothing, medicines, gasoline, rations, beer, mail, and occasionally American casualties in pine coffins for burial in the Finschaffen military cemetery. Usually we worked 12-hour shifts and kept the trucks moving around the clock. Finschaffen was one of the busiest military ports in the South Pacific and was extremely hot and humid. Many of the men suffered constantly from heat rash. Malaria was controlled with small yellow atabrine pills, but Dengue fever affected many from time to time. Our troops had practically no contact with the local population, which consisted of aborigines. They could converse only in pidgin English.
One of the highlights at Finschaffen occurred 19 Jul when the Jack Benny United Services Organization (USO) show in the flesh came to the Naval Base. Other members of the troupe were Carole Landes, Martha Tilton, June Brunner, Larry Adler and Lanny Ross. On another occasion Irving Berlin appeared in person with his USO show 14 Feb 1945 at the Base Theater to entertain our troops. His show was billed, “This Is The Army”.
Soon after Victory Europe Day on 27 May 1945, we left Finschaffen on Landing Ship Tank #569 and arrived at Manila, Philippine Islands, 13 Jun. Our activities at Manila were much like those at Finschaffen. However, the Filipinos were quite a contrast to the New Guinea natives. They were rather well educated and we hired them to do much of the routine work around the camp. Also the dock areas of Manila that had not been destroyed by war activity were much better and more extensive than those at Finschaffen. Even though Manila had been badly damaged, it was a modern city with much civilian vehicle traffic. I was appointed Battalion Investigating Officer to settle accidents between military and civilian vehicles. By that time my other duties in the company included Executive Officer, First Platoon Leader, Mess Officer, Athletic and Recreation Officer, Civilian Labor Control Officer, Class A Agent for Civilian payrolls, Company Historian, Fire Marshall, Information and Education Officer, Insurance Officer, Intelligence Officer, Malaria Control Officer, Plans and Training Officer, Public Relations Officer, Recruiting Officer, Soldier’s Deposit Officer, Special Services Officer, Venereal Disease Control Officer, and War Bonds Officer.
Victory Japan Day ended World War II 15 Aug.
On 23 Aug I was transferred from the 3662nd QM Truck Company to the 48th QM Battalion and was appointed battalion adjutant. That job involved much paperwork and desk activity. I served in that capacity until assigned to the 1314th Engineer Company for the purpose of returning to the US.
We left Manila on the USS Duchess 6 Jan 1946 and arrived under the Golden Gate Bridge on 25 Jan. Then to Fort Leavenworth, KS, by train to be separated from active duty 1 Feb. I joined the Officers Reserve Corps in the US Army Reserve (USAR) and headed home. Rose and I were married 24 Feb. My terminal leave ended 26 Apr.
My World War II military decorations included the Asiatic-Pacific Service Medal with bronze star for the New Guinea Campaign, and bronze star for the Luzon Campaign; American Theater Medal; and World War II Victory Medal. A significant result of my military service in World War II permitted me to take advantage of the G. I. Bill of Rights. It helped me earn a Master of Science degree in genetics at the Iowa State College, Ames, IA; and a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Poultry Physiology at the University of Maryland, College Park, MD. They resulted in a civilian career as poultry geneticist with the US Department of Agriculture at Beltsville, MD, and Washington, DC.
In the USAR I transferred from the Quartermaster Corps to the Civil Affairs (CA) Branch in 1953. I was promoted to Captain in the 450th CA Company 16 Nov 1954; Major in the 310th CA Group 15 Nov 1961; Lieutenant Colonel in the 354th CA Headquarters (B) 7 Apr 1966; and Colonel in the 352nd CA Command 27 Mar 1970. Additional military decorations issued to me while in the USAR were: Armed Forces Reserve Medal; Bronze Medal for Excellence in Pistol Competition, Certificate of outstanding service, 352nd CA Area (A) Headquarters; Army Reserve Components Achievement Medal; US Army Meritorious Service Medal; Philippine Liberation Medal; and Philippine Republic Presidential Unit Citation Badge.
Our commanding general was promoted to Major General and I was one of three (out of 40 Colonels in our command) who were nominated 13 Jul 1972 to take his place. Although I was not selected, the Colonel who was selected for the promotion to Brigadier General appointed me his Chief of Staff and the other nominee became Deputy Commander. My principal Army Reserve duty was Food and Agriculture Officer; secondary duty, Marksmanship Coordinator, final duty assignment , Chief of Staff. I was a member of pistol marksmanship teams of the 354th CA Headquarters (B), 352nd CA Headquarters (A), 352nd CA Command, 97th US ARCOM, XXI US Army Corps and First US Army. I transferred to the Retired Reserve 8 Jul 1975. We moved to Enid and later I was Director of the Retiree Activities Office and editor of the retiree newsletter, Vance Air Force Base, Enid, OK, from 1986 to 1988."
COL William E. Shaklee
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Gettin' ready for the big day...
Austyn, Phillip, Tammy, Kathleen Woods, Angie Siegrist and girls, Stan, Ann and Marilyn met at church Friday night to get things semi ready for the big day....
Friday, June 26, 2009
T'was going to have this up early this am.... but .. .yelp, it didn't happen, sigh...!!!
HAPPY 16TH ANNIVERSARY TO PAUL AND HEATHER BLANKINSHIP (the two "older" kiddos in this photo...!) and many many more...
love you all... Dad and Mom M
Mom is going to donate to Stillwater Library and this will go along with donation, and a plaque will be put in the library honor them.
Oscar Lee Moffat and Elinore Mae Siegrist were born on farms in Canadian County, Oklahoma. Elinore was born June 23, 1919 west of Okarche, and Oscar on October 13, 1918 Southeast of Okarche, Oklahoma. The Siegrists’ moved to a farm NE of El Reno (Canadian County) in 1926. Both graduated from one room country schools, Mennonville and Racine, and enrolled in El Reno High School. Oscar dropped out to farm with his family. Elinore graduated as one of the Top Ten Seniors in 1935 from El Reno High School. She helped her father with farming. She operated a 6’ combine in 1935 behind a tractor driven by her younger brother. She also raked hay for square baler. She attended Central State College in Edmond from 1935-1939 and then to Oklahoma A&M College in Stillwater. Graduating in 1941 with a degree in Home Economics and Commerce, she started teaching at Terlton, OK as their Home Economics and Commerce teacher. Then, after marrying Oscar in March, 1942, she taught at Racine, a 1 room country school. On their wedding day, they combined their individual dairy cows into one herd and ran this dairy for 45 years with the cow herd never missing a milking in that time. (Elinore’s and Oscar’s families both belonged to Mt. Zion E.U.B. Church NE of El Reno. They dated for 7 years prior to marriage in 1942. They had two children, Marilyn K and Stanley Ray. Marilyn helps Elinore with the day to day operations of the farm as well as working full time for OSU Boren Vet Teaching Hospital Business Office. )
After completing her first year at Racine, she left teaching and devoted her time to being a full time farm partner, housewife and mother. Oscar and Elinore lived on several dairy farms from NE of El Reno and South of Yukon. On September 1st, they moved their entire farming operation and family to 800 acres South of Stillwater, with children entering the Perkins School system and they joined the Lost Creek Church as a family. They continued to Dairy Farm until 1985 and after retiring from the dairy, they continued running an Angus cross cow herd and raising wheat and hay until 2002, when they retired from raising wheat. Oscar passed away in September, 2004. Elinore still manages the family land and cattle operation living on the farm that she and Oscar called home on South Western Street since 1962. On a nice day you might find her at 90 years of age walking the ½ mile to get the mail, or spraying weed killer on thistles, or watering penned cattle, or checking for new births in the pasture, or shopping in nearby Stillwater or Perkins, tending to banking business, sewing, or attending meetings on important issues at the Stillwater Public Library.
Over the years, Oscar and Elinore were recognized for their magnificent conservation efforts with their land and as one of the prestigious Annual Payne County’s Cattlemen of the Year with their photo hanging in the Hall of Honor at the Payne County Courthouse forever, plus many other awards for farming excellence.
Elinore Mae Siegrist was born to Jacob “Jake” Siegrist and Maude Snethen Siegrist
Oscar Lee Moffat was the son of John K Moffat and Bertha Nelson Moffat
(Mom didn't want this in paper as she thought folks might think she passed away... haha... if you know her, you know she will still be chasing cows at 100 or getting goats off her front porch from the community sale barn south of her home place at 110.... she just warming up at 90!)
Elinore Mae Moffat, long-time Stillwater/Perkins resident, will celebrate her 90th birthday
Elinore Mae Moffat, long-time Stillwater/Perkins resident, will celebrate her 90th birthday with a “Come and Go Reception” Saturday from 2-4 p.m. in the Lost Creek United Methodist Church Social Hall. Her family is inviting all of the community to attend the reception. Please, no gifts, but a written remembrance or card would be welcome. Your presence will make the perfect gift.
**Photo by Grandson Phillip Shane Moffat, Stillwater, OK.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
 Posted 06/24/2009 ET Updated 06/24/2009 ET On Iran, President Obama is worse than Hamlet. He's Colin Powell, waiting to see who wins before picking a side. Last week, massive protests roiled Iran in response to an apparently fraudulent presidential election, in which nutcase Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was declared the winner within two hours of the polls closing. (ACORN must be involved.) Obama responded by boldly declaring that the difference between the loon Ahmadinejad and his reformist challenger, Mir Hossein Mousavi, "may not be as great as advertised." Maybe the thousands of dissenters risking their lives protesting on the streets of Tehran are doing so because they liked Mousavi's answer to the "boxers or briefs" question better than Ahmadinejad's. Then, in a manly rebuke to the cheating mullahs, Obama said: "You've seen in Iran some initial reaction from the supreme leader" -- peace be upon him -- "that indicates he understands the Iranian people have deep concerns about the election." Did FDR give speeches referring to Adolf Hilter as "Herr Fuhrer"? What's with Obama? Even the French condemned the Iranian government's "brutal" reaction to the protesters -- and the French have tanks with one speed in forward and five speeds in reverse. You might be a scaredy-cat if ... the president of France is talking tougher than you are. More than a week ago, French president Nicolas Sarkozy said: "The ruling power claims to have won the elections ... if that were true, we must ask why they find it necessary to imprison their opponents and repress them with such violence." But liberals rushed to assure us that Obama's weak-kneed response to the Iranian uprising and the consequent brutal crackdown was a brilliant foreign policy move. (They also proclaimed his admission that he still smokes "lion-hearted" and "statesmanlike.") As our own Supreme Leader B. Hussein Obama (peace be upon him) explained, "It's not productive given the history of U.S.-Iranian relations to be seen as meddling." You see, if the president of the United States condemned election fraud in Iran, much less put in a kind word for the presidential candidate who is not crazy, it would somehow crush the spirit of the protesters when they discovered, to their horror, that the Great Satan was on their side. (It also wouldn't do much for Al Franken in Minnesota.) Liberals hate America, so they assume everyone else does, too. So when a beautiful Iranian woman, Neda Agha Soltan, was shot dead in the streets of Iran during a protest on Saturday and a video of her death ricocheted around the World Wide Web, Obama valiantly responded by ... going out for an ice cream cone. (Masterful!) Commenting on a woman's cold-blooded murder in the streets of Tehran, like the murder of babies, is evidently above Obama's "pay grade." If it were true that a U.S. president should stay neutral between freedom-loving Iranian students and their oppressors, then why is Obama speaking in support of the protesters now? Are liberals no longer worried about the parade of horribles they claimed would ensue if the U.S. president condemned the mullahs? Obama's tough talk this week proves that his gentle words last week about Ahmadinejad and Iran's "supreme leader" (peace be upon him) constituted, at best, spinelessness and, at worst, an endorsement of the fraud. Moreover, if the better part of valor is for America to stand neutral between freedom and Islamic oppression, why are liberals trying to credit Obama's ridiculous Cairo speech for emboldening the Iranian protesters? The only reason that bald contradiction doesn't smack you in the face is that it is utterly preposterous that Obama's Cairo speech accomplished anything -- anything worthwhile, that is. Not even the people who say that believe it. The only reaction to Obama's Cairo speech in the Middle East is that the mullahs probably sighed in relief upon discovering that the U.S. president is a coward and an imbecile. Two weeks ago, New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman was exulting over the "free and fair" national election in Lebanon, in which the voters threw out Hezbollah and voted in the "U.S.-supported coalition." (Apparently support from America is not deemed the vote-killer in Lebanon that it allegedly is in Iran.) To justify his Times-expensed airfare to Beirut, Friedman added some local color, noting that "more than one Lebanese whispered to me: Without George Bush standing up to the Syrians in 2005 ... this free election would not have happened." That's what Lebanese voters said. But Friedman also placed a phone call to a guy at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace -- which he didn't have to go to Lebanon for -- to get a quote supporting the ludicrous proposition that Obama's Cairo speech was responsible for the favorable election results in Lebanon. "And then here came this man (Obama)," Mr. Carnegie Fund said, "who came to them with respect, speaking these deep values about their identity and dignity and economic progress and education, and this person indicated that this little prison that people are living in here was not the whole world. That change was possible." I think the fact that their Muslim brethren are now living in freedom in a democratic Iraq might have made the point that "change was possible" and "this little prison" is "not the whole world" somewhat more forcefully than a speech apologizing for Westerners who dislike the hijab. Obama -- and America -- are still living off President Bush's successes in the war on terrorism. For the country's sake, may those successes outlast Obama's attempt to dismantle them. |
Why can't we get rid of Barney Frank... sigh....
Fannie, Freddie asked to relax condo loan rules: report
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(Reuters) - Two U.S. Democratic lawmakers want Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to relax recently tightened standards for mortgages on new condominiums, saying they could threaten the viability of some developments and slow the housing-market recovery, the Wall Street Journal said.
In March, Fannie Mae (FNM.N)(FNM.P) said it would no longer guarantee mortgages on condos in buildings where fewer than 70 percent of the units have been sold, up from 51 percent, the paper said. Freddie Mac (FRE.P)(FRE.N) is due to implement similar policies next month, the paper said.
In a letter to the CEO's of both companies, Representatives Barney Frank, the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, and Anthony Weiner warned that a 70 percent sales threshold "may be too onerous" and could lead condo buyers to shun new developments, according to the paper.
The legislators asked the companies to "make appropriate adjustments" to their underwriting standards for condos, the paper added.
In an interview with the paper, Weiner said the rules have "had a real chill on the ability to get these condos sold," at a time when prices of condos have fallen enough to attract potential buyers.
In addition to the 70 percent sales threshold, Fannie Mae will also not purchase mortgages in buildings where 15 percent of owners are delinquent on condo association dues or where one owner has more than 10 percent of units, as the firm sees these as signals that a building could run into financial trouble, the paper added.
Both Fannie and Freddie are preparing a response to the lawmakers, according to the paper.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac could not be immediately reached for comment by Reuters.
(Reporting by Chakradhar Adusumilli in Bangalore; editing by Simon Jessop)
Stunning pictures of 'hole in the clouds' as astronauts witness volcano eruption from the International Space Station
By EDDIE WRENN
Last updated at 4:28 PM on 24th June 2009
A chance recording by astronauts on the International Space Station has captured the moment a volcano explosively erupted, sending massive shockwaves through the atmosphere.
Sarychev Peak, one of the most active volcanoes in the world, had been sitting quietly in the Kuril Island chain near Japan for 20 years, when it suddenly sprang to life on June 12.
Fortuitously, the International Space Station was flying overhead at the time, and managed to capture this spectacular image of the ash-cloud tearing through the atmosphere, sending clouds scattering in its wake in a perfect circle.
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Bird's eye view: Safe from harm, NASA scientists look down on the Sarychev Peak volcano as the dramatic eruption takes place. The force of the blast sends clouds scattering
The station, which orbits the earth from a height of 220 miles, makes nearly 16 orbits of our planet every 24 hours, and happened to be in the perfect spot to see the dramatic eruption.
The unique images have provided a wealth of new information about the eruption process, and volcanologists are now excitedly poring over the data.
Most unique is the mist-like 'roof' to the cloud, believed to be either steam or condensing water pushed ahead of the advancing cloud of ash. Known as a 'pileus cloud', it lasts just moments, making this a rare snapshot.
As the ISS continues its perfectly-timed flyby, the eruption continues unabated. The perfect 'plume' at the top of the volcano implies there is no shearing wind, which would have disrupted the pattern
Stretching behind the volcano lies the vast shadow caused by the eruption, as the blast continues to grow
Also visible, far below on the hillside, is the thunderous pyroclastic flow of super-heated rock as it cascades down the mountainside.
When most people picture volcanoes, they imagine red-hot lava flows. Pyrochastic flows are their deadlier older brother. Appearing at the start of an explosive eruption, they can travel at 130mph, chomping up the landscape as they go, meaning there's next-to no escape for anyone or anything caught in its path.
Where in the world? Sarychev Peak is to the north of Japan and east of Russia
But the most stunning aspect of the picture is the effect on the clouds: As the ash column punches its way towards the top of the atmosphere, the shockwave causes the clouds to scatter.
An alternative theory, one which these pictures is helping to test, is that as the ash rises, the surrounding air is pushed down, where it warms, and the increased heat causes the clouds to evaporate.
As the ISS continued its orbits over the next few hours and days, the astronauts could follow the plume as it drifted away from the island.
These images show the plume drifting through the atmosphere in the hours and days after the eruption
Between the two overpasses on June 14, the ash spread north and west from the volcano
By June 15, the ash had spread out to the east and west
The volcano is part of a seismically active cluster of islands running north east from Japan's Hokkaido Island, and up towards Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula.
There are disputes between Russia and Japan over who owns which islands, but Matua Island, where the volcano is located, is generally agreed to be Russian territory. The Japanese call it Matsuwa Island.
The last explosive eruption from Sarychev happened in 1989, with eruptions in 1986, 1976, 1954, and 1946 also producing lava flows.
Ash from the eruptions has been recorded to reach more than 1,500miles from the volcano and commercial airline flights have been disrupted.
The height of the plume was measured at five miles high - a huge distance into the sky, although not enough to worry the astronauts peering down from above.
The International Space Station was first constructed in 1998 and is scheduled to be completed in 2011.
You've seen the hole in the clouds - now see the hole in the universe:
A hole in the clouds is one thing, but a hole in the fabric of the universe is quite another.
With interstellar matter evenly distributed across the skies, this black anomaly is a bit of a head-scratcher - is it a black hole? A worm-hole? A stairway to Heaven? Or just the start of the collapse of the universe, which doomsayers assure us will start in 2012?
NASA's picture of the 'hole in the sky' - now known to be a dark molecular cloud absorbing all the visible light from stars behind it
No, it's none of these things. Instead, its a dark molecular cloud - a mass of of dust and gasses which combine to blank out all the visible light from the background stars.
Many of these 'dark absorption nebulae' have been discovered across the galaxy, with this one called Barnard 68 in the Ophiuchus constellation.
Measurements place this at a relatively close 500 light years away - much further away and the odds are there would be stars visible in front of Barnard 68.
It is calculated to be about half-a-light year across (a light-year being the distance light can travel through a vacuum in the course of a year).
How t
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