Written on 2015-03-27 1649 Monongahela Ave – Part 2 Childhood is a special time, a time of dreams, of make believe friends and of trusting fully without reservations. It is also a time of growing up and finding out that everything isn’t always magical. And this is very difficult for any child to understand. One …
Month: March 2015
1649 Monongahela Ave – Swissvale, PA.
Written on 2015-03-27 1649 Monongahela Ave – Swissvale, PA. Here it is spring and I can swear I can hear my mother’s voice “Get busy cleaning.” And you know you must always listen to your mother. I started pulling things from the cabinets, digging into boxes and in the process, re-discovery many treasures from the …
The Early Years of Mom and Dad’s Marriage
Written 2015-03-08 The Early Years of Mom and Dad’s Marriage It is a beautiful Sunday morning. Frank and I just finished breakfast and now I am relaxing on the porch, watching the dogs in the yard. Of course, one of them will probably blow it and start to bark at the neighbors’ dogs. Then it …
Friday Night Suppers
Written 2014-05-29 Friday Night Suppers It is getting near lunch and I can feel my stomach grumbling. I’m not sure what I will have but it did set me to thinking about some of the meals we had as kids. Mom was a good cook but some days she wasn’t in the mood to cook. …
Cook-outs at Grandpap Racz’ House
Written 2014-05-27 Cook-outs at Grandpap Racz’ House Seeing all of the Facebook posts reminded me of the cook-outs we had at Grandpap Racz, or as we called him, Nazupa, Hungarian for grandfather. It was a simple feast, kielbasa and hot dogs on the charcoal grill. The hot dogs were always burnt but that was the …
Memorial Day and Grandmother Bertha Racz
Written 2014-05-26 Memorial Day and Grandmother Bertha Racz Memorial Day always brings back a flood of memories, of the men and women who sacrificed so much for our country. I think of Dad in his army uniform, his head tilted just a little to the right. My sister, Maureen Duncan, brought back other memories. She …
Mother’s Day – Mother-Daughter Banquet
Written 2014-05-07, revised 2017-06-15 Mother’s Day – Mother-Daughter Banquet As Mother’s Day is approaching this coming Sunday, my thoughts are on my mother, Helen Racy Duncan. Mom was 78 years old when she died on October 20, 2004. It is hard to believe that it has been ten years since she left us. So many …
Dad Returning Home after World War II
Written 2014-04-26 Dad's Return Home after WW II Not all of the memories from this time are so depressing. But times were different and difficult then. Maybe that was what made the good times even better. Some of these memories are extremely short, no real details, but always bringing a smile to our faces when …
My Aunt Marie Duncan
Written on 2014-04-25 My Aunt Marie Duncan For so many back in the early 19oo's, disease and death were always there, sometimes overwhelming, as in the Spanish Influenza. At other times, it would swiftly attack, taking a loved one’s life in the blink of an eye. My Aunt Marie was such a case. My grandparents …
The Spanish Influenza – 1918 – 1919
Written on 2014-04-25 The Spanish Influenza - 1918-1919 My Grandma Duncan was born in 1896, Marie Hindley. I don’t remember her ever telling us much of her early life, except that she worked in a shoe store at one time and bragged that she only read one book her entire life. I will need to …
Cheryl Lynn West 