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Have No Regrets

The doorknobs throughout our house are sticky, and I am not in a hurry to clean them. Each time I grab one, it reminds me of the little hands of two grandkids under the age of 8 who created this mess. And I’m grateful. After two long years of separation, hunkering down at home to avoid the dreaded COVID virus, the grandkids have been visiting with renewed excitement. The last visit included some swim time at the neighbor’s pool, rides on the tractor and side by side, operating the toy trains with PopPop, playing a variety of make-believe games and baking muffins with Grandma. ...

Makes Cents to Me

For as long as I can remember, I have carried some type of coin purse along with my wallet and handbag. The first official coin purse was something I made at a summer day camp craft day. It was one of those little leather half-moon shaped coin purses that you put together with a length of leather string that resembled a shoelace. It snapped closed and probably had room for about 50 cents in coinage. But I was proud of my creation and carried it for quite some time. As the years passed I acquired numerous coin purses of various materials. I have found some of my favorite ones at ...

Marbles Offer Fun, Colorful Collectible

Even though today’s children are overloaded with toys and activities, marbles still fascinate youngsters — at least as far as my grandsons go. Just last weekend when I needed a marble for an old-time game where you tilt the board and race the marbles, my 5-year-old grandson, Angelo, ...

The Last Of The Great Ones

Anyone who has followed my writings over the 40-plus years I worked fulltime for this newspaper would have noticed my appreciation and affection for the military veterans in this Ohio Valley. During those years, I met many veterans from World War II, the Korean War, Desert Storm and so on. Among those troops was West Virginia’s own CWO4 Hershel Woodrow “Woody” Williams who died June 29 at the age of 98. At the time of his death, Woody was the last living World War II Congressional Medal of Honor recipient. Marine veteran John Nanny of Wheeling, who also died this year, ...

Creamers Are Fun and Useful to Collect

Do you use creamers on the table? Not just for cream, these small glass pitchers make perfect containers for condiments, syrups or dressings and add a little class to the dinner table. Creamers or syrups, as these small pitchers are usually called, are also fun to collect. Pitchers of all sizes were important elements of dining in days gone by. Tables were set with linens, china and proper serving dishes, even in the family home and on a daily basis. The required decorum meant that small pitchers were necessary to serve cream, milk, syrups, gravies and other condiments. ...

Stretch Glass Sparkles for Collectors

The term “stretch” glass seems a contradiction. Glass is one of the hardest substances known, so how in the world would it stretch? But stretch glass enthusiasts know that this term stands for a sparkling type of Victorian art glass that attracts lots of attention. Ask any one of the thousand or so members of the Stretch Glass Society why they got started collecting this novelty glass and they will tell you that once you discover it — stretch glass just won’t let go. Not to be confused with swung glass, or glass made by swinging it back and forth on a rod, stretch glass is ...