German Roots

In 1846 Henry Langhenning, my mother’s maternal grandmother’s father, came Galveston on a boat from Germany. He moved to Fredricksburg, Texas. He was a stone mason so he built houses and buildings. Mom’s grandmother spoke German had German bible, but she would not teach her children the German language. She wanted them to assimilate to the American culture. They moved to a non German speaking town. She grew a huge garden with beautiful flowers and had a fruit orchard. Her sons did drink a lot of beer. She was a very good cook, but my mom does not remember any particular German food.

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Family Legend

My Great Great Grandpa, my paternal grandmothers grandfather, George Cunningham was from Berryville, Va. My great aunt Virginia claimed they owned a lumber mill in Berryville. Eddie Cunningham, George’s son joined the army and was stationed in Texas.  Virginia said he was disinherited for giving up the family business and going to Texas. She sometimes exaggerates, so I investigated if they owned this mill or not. On the Morman geneology website I found out that George was just a laborer in the mills. Later on, Eddies brother Douglass was listed as a clerk at the mill. In the family album there is a business card that says he runs the mill but he was probably the manager. Perhaps he did wind up owning the mill but that I can’t confirm. Eddie’s father, however never owned a lumber mill.

Grandpa's Story

My Grandfather, who just turned 91 this month, has led an exciting and full life. He was born in 1920 right after his identical twin brother in Wichita Falls Texas. He was so small the kept him in a shoebox and called him Tensy, although his official name was John Walter Waren. His family name was Warren but they made a mistake on his birth certificate. They lived in Wichita Falls until he was a teenager. He moved to Brownwood, Texas with his mother, brother, and uncle to own a ranch in 1938. His father continued working as railroad employee in Wichita Falls. They bought 160 acres to farm. Because times were so tough, he could not attend college so he went to Los Angeles to get a job. In 1939, my grandmother soon was going to Sul Ross, a school in west Texas. At winter break she left to go to LA to be with him. She was told she had to marry so they went to Las Vegas and got married in December 1939. Grandpa worked odd jobs, but with his family connections he was hired at McDonald Douglass Aircraft. They lived there till 1944 when my father was born. When the war started he joined the navy and became an inspector of aircraft. It was a good safe job. He remembers when Pearl Harbor was bombed. He saved money to buy his family farm, but his father had sold it and he was very upset. He bought a dairy farm in Thrifty, Texas. They could not make any money so he went back to McDonald Douglass in California to work. They lived in El Segundo this time. Again he was an inspector but this time for the government. He had 3 kids total now and they lived a mile from the beach. He worked there until 1959 and went back to Texas to try farming again. He bought 160 acres Grosvenor TX.  Again, he couldn’t make a living so in 1964 moved to Sunnyvale Ca and worked again as inspector for government at Lockheed, another aircraft manufacturer. They moved back to Texas in 1968 and he worked at Bell helicopter in Ft. Worth. He moved back to Sunnyvale in 1971 and worked again at Lockheed. He retired in 1973 and moved to Brownwood TX. He bought 125 acres in McCullough County in 1976 where he was able to farm, his life long dream. He still lives there today.

Camping

I decided to rough it in the backyard for the night.Since the weather has been nice, I just laid out my sleeping bag on the ground. My dad wouldn't let me build a fire but I didn't need it, although it would have been more fun and I could have cooked. I was soon board without the television or computer. I guess I am really addicted. I thought it would be quiet but the birds and squirrels were really noisy. I am glad there were no mosquitoes or I don't think I would have been able to stand it. I messed around in the garden some. I at kale and cilantro. The lettuce and tomatoes are not ready yet. Thank god i ate before I started this. At night the stars were really pretty. I did a lot of star gazing because I had nothing else to do. I went to bed early. It was hard to sleep at first, not being in my bed. I woke up a few times because it was uncomfortable on the ground. I got up at dawn, the sun was really bright. I was a bit stiff, hungry, and I needed to go to the bathroom. Since my experiment was over I headed inside to do my business and make some much needed coffee. I was not allowed "to go" outside. My neighbor's brother-in-law pees in the back yard and it really stinks.

Grandmas Chair

I decided to reupholster this chair that originally belonged to my grandmother. She bought it in the 1960’s and gave it to my mother in the 1970’s. Now it is mine. It is falling apart and instead of chucking it I wanted to restore it. In order to go with my bedroom décor, I stripped the finish and stained the wood black. I choose a cream colored fabric to replace the old yellow upholstery. Both the old and new fabrics are polyester blends. Polyester was invented in 1941. It is a good choice even today because it is durable and resists staining. Damask is a weaving technique of Byzantine and Islamic origins from the middle ages. The word damask comes from 14th century France.The original fabric was a traditional pattern but the new fabric is a modern design because it was the only one I could find in the right color in my price range. Taking the old fabric off was an exhausting job, esp. all the staples. I obtained new cotton batting, brass nails and trim from an upholstery store. I used the original fabric as templates for the new fabric. It was slow going but I am very pleased with the result.

The Walkman

The audio scene in the seventies was enjoying success in the home stereo market. The pocket radio boom of the sixties continued into the seventies. Boomboxes, battery powered one piece stereos, were growing in popularity at the end of the seventies. So the invention of the personal stereo system was the logical next evolution for the audio industry. In 1979, Sony developed a small cassette player capable of stereo playback. Paired with headphones, the Sony walkman was invented. In the eighties Sony came out with the Sportsman Line. These cassette players featured a rugged bright yellow plastic case. Black rubber buttons made it seem extra cool. It had the normal features of play, stop, fast forward, and rewind. It came with yellow plastic headphones, which usually broke but were easily replaced. It retailed for about one hundred dollars. Although hopelessly outdated and now replaced by MP3 players, you can still find used models on ebay for under ten dollars.