Sunday, May 31, 2015

a day of memories...

This was a day filled with memories and emotions for sure. It actually began with a funeral for the Mom of a childhood friend. I have to say one neat thing about facebook, is that I have found a number of old friends and it has been nice to reconnect  with them. Salli's Mom was a lady that I have always admired and so when she passed I just had to attend. Salli now lives in the south, so she flew up and even though our meeting was brief, it was nice to see her again. 



After the funeral, I ran back home, did chores and we were off again. The fire department wanted to have an afternoon of "just getting together".. and even though we aren't in town anymore, Ed is always included in these events... so, it was back to town to join in. This was a fun afternoon (after my morning).. we met up with all our friends, and there were many stories and things to see with regards to the department and their times together.... These t-shirts are a project of Ed's. Each field day he designed a t-shirt to be sold. Every year had a different truck.....
Old photos were laid out on tables, and as you can see, everyone so enjoyed looking them over and bringing up the old stories that went along with them....
Many of the "old timers" as they are fondly called... came... including Bob and my Dad.... Bob really can't do much with the department as he lost a leg a couple years ago, but he still enjoys being a part of it... and my Dad does still go to the station and helps where he can.... so nice to see what dedication and a love for a purpose is all about...
Ed and Bob shared many stories.... Bob is always good for lots of wonderful stories...


The fire department has a big anniversary coming up in just a year.... and Ed has had something that he felt it was time to return. You can imagine the excitement this stirred when he walked in with this big "present"....
it stayed under wraps until most of the folks had arrived......
and when it was revealed... this is it. Back in the day (before radios and a dispatch center).. all calls where notified by the fire horn. This board told what number of blasts belonged to what part of town. Course, the town was much smaller back then. That horn could be heard for miles and for many many years, this system worked well. As a child, my favorite sound was three long  blasts...which meant that school was being closed due to snow. Sadly the horn isn't used anymore... just one blast at noontime to mark the time, but other than that.. it stays quiet.... time has moved on.. there are better and faster ways of communication... but some of us still remember how it "used" to be...


Because Ed donated the "big sign".. the guys gave him a "call card" (with the same info) that used to be handed out to the citizens and fire fighters, so that when they heard the horn, they could check and "see" where the fire call was. This will be a treasured item for sure.... 

There are so many great things about modern technology for sure, and I dare say.. much of it is better. But somehow it lacks the charm of some of the things of the days of old.... on my.. does this begin to show my real age????