Be Somebody Who Makes

Everyone feel like Somebody

The First to Apologize

Is the Bravest

The First to Forgive

Is the Strongest

The First to Forget

Is the Happiest

A smile goes a long way

Smile – It makes everyone

else wonder what you are up to

Dad John McClure

Never say anything to a person

That you do not want them to say to you!

Dad John McClure

What ever your motto for the New Year Resolution, keep it, make sure it works.

As I look back on the year of 2015 I am sure Bob and I had a wonderful time each day as I do not remember anything that has poked my memory and stands out!

Our whole year was a good memory. It is important to keep the good memories!

I often wonder how our ancestors improved each year on their living conditions, the way of life, the dreams that they made come true. I am reading

Thimble of Soil, Butter in the Well, Prairie Blooming, Trail of Thread, Looking Back, a series of stories by Linda K Hubalek. It is a diary of how they came from the east coast to settle in Kansas and the hardships of the early first settlers of our America. They would never believe our living conditions of today!! What is amazing is I am not reading this from a book. I am reading this from a Kindle that my daughter Susan loaned to me. What’s more she said I could listen to this also and not read it at all. Would our ancestry ever in a million years believe this? The man that had the vision of a cell phone was Nikola Tesla in 1926! He probably had visions of the IPad, IPod and so on!

My Mother was born in 1915, a hundred years ago. Here are some of the things that was the way of life the year of her birth,

The average life expectancy was 47 years

Fuel for cars was only sold in drug stores

Only 14% of the households had bathtubs.

Only 5% of the homes had telephones

The maximum speed limit in most cities was10 MPH

The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower

The average wage in 1915 was 20 cents per hour

The average worker made between $300 and $400 a year

A competent accountant could expect to earn $2,000 a year

A dentist made about $2,500 a year

A veterinarian could make about $2,500 to $4,000 a Year

More than 95% of the births took place at home

Ninety pre cent of the doctors had no college education, instead they attended a “so-called” medical school, many of which were condemned and the Government deemed “substandard.”

Sugar cost 4 cents per pound

Eggs were 14 cents per dozen

Coffee was 15 cents per pound

Most women washed their hair once a month. They used Borax and eggs yolks for shampoo

Canada passed a law that prohibited poor people from entering into their country for any reason.

The five leading causes of death were: Pneumonia and influenza, Tuberculosis, Diarrhea, Heart disease and Stroke.

The American flag had 45 stars.

The population of La Vegas was only 30

Crossword puzzled, canned beer and iced tea had not been invented yet.

There was neither and Mother’s Day or a Father’s Day

Two out of every ten adults could not read or write.

Only 6% of all Americans graduated from High School

Marijuana, heroin, morphine were always available over counter at a the local drug store.

Back then it was believed that: “Heroin cleared the complexion, gave buoyancy to the mind,

Regulated the stomach and bowels and in fact a perfect guardian of health.”

Eighteen percent of household had at least one full time servant or domestic help

There was at lest 250 reported murders in the entire United States.

It is amazing how fast everything around us has changed. It is impossible to imagine what it will be like in another 100 years!

In my 78 years on this earth I have seen and experienced Drive-Inn food and Drive Inn movies.

Radio’s and ipods that you carry around in your pocket and listen to them by the cord attached and plugged in your ear

I carry a PHONE in my pocket.

I had my kids scared of micro wave ovens, because I was!

I learned to use the computer at 62 years old

Man and men on the moon. Jet airplanes to travel in. Improvement of train travel. Fancy cars and trucks of all kinds, compared to the functional cars and trucks of the past. Horses in the field replace by tractors and the improvement of all kinds of farm equipment.

The refinement of food. The shipment of food.

The vast improvement of medicine to improve our health.

The “nuclear medicine.” that my Dad called “automatic medicine.” CAT scans, PET scans, X-rays, MRI’s, etc.

The longevity of most of the population, thus the demand for assisted living.

I am sure you can add to this in many ways. It is good to have memories and have improvements. We all should strive to have both.