We were happy for a clear, sunny day as we motored 2 1/2 hours  northwest to have late lunch / early supper today -- lupper?-- with pals Tom and Char. When everyone's schedules are busy, meeting for a meal is a good way to stay in touch and get everyone back on the road. 

It's also a good opportunity to plan for future get-togethers that last longer.

I had never been to the tour-friendly Fair Oaks Farms complex just off I-65 at Fair Oaks, Indiana but there people of all ages can learn about different aspects of agriculture.

Of course one aspect of agriculture --the end result-- is enjoying a meal and we did just that at The Farmhouse. 

Although spring rolls in next week, today it was cold and the fireplace was warming to our late-winter spirits. The restaurant is comfortable, attractive, and the food is delicious and features generous portions. In fact, Char's corned beef and cabbage was enough for our lupper but also provided enough leftovers to go home with them.

Onsite or locally sourced foods when available go into the dishes. Brian had a chicken and bacon sandwich, Tom enjoyed meatloaf, mashed potatoes and green beans and all three of them had cups of potato-leek soup. I had a farmhouse salad and a bowl of delicious beef chili. I'm a chili hound and it was some of the best I've ever enjoyed.

We savored the meal, the visit, and then our friends headed back north to visit their family members and help with a big painting project. We scooted back southeast and got home before dark.

In all, a relaxing Saturday day trip enjoying a Hoosier agritourism destination.

The following column appeared in Sunday's, March 10, Courier-Times.

In our 60s now, Brian and I are clearly beyond the era of furnishing our home. We’re more in the stage of unfurnishing it. 

In this latest round of “what we keep,” the topic is books. We’ve collected volumes all our lives. My collection began at the top of the stairs in the old Veach’s store in downtown Richmond where a rack of Little Golden Books caught my eye when shopping with Mom. I’d be permitted to pick one to buy on occasion, and more than half-a-century later, I still have those shiny-covered stories. 

When Grandma Jobe was ill in the 1960s, she received a sunshine box from church friends. It contained small amusements, encouragements,  and cards. I still have the slim volume of friendship-themed poetry from that box. I’ve raised my hand with that tiny book in it several times, set to discard it, but always stop short.

College books in my major seemed too important to hawk at the campus bookstore. So the texts about editing, crafting feature stories, the history of journalism, and the requisite grammar books have roomed on our shelves for thirtysomething years.

Then came the decades of novel buying, gifting, garage saling. There were Friends of the Library-sale tables that yielded recycled tomes for a quarter apiece and offered no guilt if I didn’t read them right away – or in 20 years. Then there is my double-copy problem. When I enjoy a book such as “The Shipping News,” if I find a duplicate on the cheap, I’ll pick it up for a loaner. 

Brian has similar stories. He attended college a good many more years than I did for a master’s degree and certifications beyond that. He never wanted to purge his textbooks. In one noteworthy attempt, I held the volumes up and he would declare to keep or not. One book of poetry garnered his curious comment, “I hated that book. Keep it.”

So that’s how the weeding process has gone until now. We got a new sofa downstairs which inspired us to remake our upstairs bonus room. The room is where most of our books hang out and every last one of them, along with their shelving, and all manner of miscellaneous and mismatched furnishings, have to be hand-carried downstairs before our new carpeting is installed.

I’m envisioning a carefully edited library area with new shelving, a library table moved upstairs from down, and a designated family archives section where neatly organized lidded baskets will hold a family-history paper and photo trail. Should the need arise for our presidential libraries, it’s all there.

Meanwhile, we’ve given away works of Bill (Shakespeare); Uncle Walt (Cronkite’s bio), and a good number of less notable notables, including those duplicate loaner copies. Brian has decided that when it comes to our volume of volumes, less is less.

“All books do is sit there on the shelves,” he said.
“Yes, that’s what books do. It’s who they are,” I told him.

What does he expect them to do, spin, or for the non-fictions to reshelve themselves just for kicks into the middle of the photo albums? For Dad’s art books to mix it up with the novels?

So far, the tattered sofa and loveseat are gone; the new carpeting ordered, and we’re each hauling down at least one armload or large object a day, our stated minimum requirement on this project.
Then we'll reverse the process and the edited version will go back upstairs. At this rate we might be done while still in our 70s.

We’ve gone through nearly every book in the house and given each the yea or nay. No book in our collection is worth a marital spat so the criteria is simple.

1. Each of us may keep any book with no judgment from the spouse. (Rolling of the eyes is not to be within view.) 

2. However, if there is no expressed desire to retain a book, and if said owner does not see himself or herself enjoyng it within the next 10 years, it’s gone.

If one person’s trash is another’s treasure, then our recycled books are someone else’s shelf problems. We wish them well.

Brian kept the poetry book because he hated it so much. Remember, I’m not allowed to judge. (Rolling eyes out of view.)
​
Donna Cronk is Neighbors Editor of The Courier-Times. She also edits the quarterly her magazine for women.

The following column recently appeared in The Courier-Times.

The other morning I looked down and there was our Boston Terrier, Reggie, enjoying a cuddle in the 
comfort of our true-blue afghan.

That piece of handiwork was crocheted as a 1976 Christmas present my senior year of high school.
All the kids in the family got one, each  in a different color scheme, made by my sister-in-law 
Jeannie's mother, Evelyn, who passed away last year.

Who could have possibly guessed that over the next 42 years—and counting—that blanket would not 
only hold up great, but retain its bright blue hues, machine wash and dry like a dream, and fold neatly 
on the sofa? 

In the early days of our marriage, Brian recalls us fussing over which one would take possession of the afghan first on a cold winter's night. Known for its extra-long, mega-wide size, it has always been a favorite warmer.

I remember our couple friends who visited on New Year's Eve 1978, where we played Atari. Brian and I had been married just a couple months, and one of our friends realized she was chilling and taking ill that very evening. We swaddled her in the blanket to warm her up. I think it went home with them for the night. 

Once it wrapped a baby niece who was visiting—and went home with her on the ride home in a chilly 
car. We got it back next time we visited the family.

Older son Sam describes the blanket as a "family heirloom," because our sons have spent their fair 
share of moments wrapped in the still-serviceable keepsake.

For a while, we thought the afghan was gone for good. It hadn't turned up for a couple years, a 
mystery. Brian and I remained convinced that it had gone off with son Ben to college when he and 
three other boys rented a house for two years. We could only speculate—but not dwell—on what had 
happened to cause the disappearance of the old afghan. One thing for sure, we didn't think we'd ever 
see it again.

Then one day last year I was rummaging through layers of blankets folded under some throw pillows in an antique family cradle kept upstairs in our home, out of the way. To my astonishment—there was the blue afghan. I don't remember placing it there, but it looks like something only I would have done in an absent-minded way, perhaps in the heat of summer when the need for an ultra-warm afghan was a distant concept.

I quickly summoned Brian with news that what was lost is now found! We were both delighted.

This winter, the afghan is in use again, generally splayed across the sofa after being enjoyed yet again, 
now by the empty nesters and their dog. And yes, Reggie is quite happy to take her turn under or on 
top of its thick and cuddly surface.

Here's to you, blue afghan. Long may you warm the chilled and comfort the ill.

We're getting some new furniture. It came in earlier than we expected, which means we aren't ready and had to delay delivery for a week. It also means that we got ourselves in gear to redistribute the old stuff.

So today, it was up and cooking breakfast early for the moving crew. In the spirit of make-do Americans past and present, at least those in our families, Ben said he would like our old sectional sofa. I think it's in the blood, as well as the bank account, because Brian and I were handed down a sofa from his folks for our first rental home--and we were glad to get it, I might add. 

We were so excited to sleep in our rented farmhouse that first night before our other furniture arrived (notably, my childhood canopy bed, sans canopy) that we slept side-by-side on our used sofa.

So at 7:45 a.m. today, Sam was the first arrival and I began creating custom-order omelettes for the three of them.

Brian picked up the truck and the guys rolled to Indy not long after that. I had fully planned to go along and offer essential advice that every mom is good for -- "Be careful on those steps, you guys;" "Don't drop it!"; "Easy;" "Watch your fingers."

But before I could get on the road, a text came from a charity that I had given up on regarding taking our upstairs sofa and love seat. There was a chance they could pick them up at 11 if that worked. I said I'd stick around and see if it worked out. It didn't, but I was pleased to know that my trio down at Indy survived not only the move upstairs to Ben's apartment of the old sectional sofa, but also the move down and out of Ben's former used sofa. They got by without my, "Be careful in the door frame!"

When Brian got back to town, he called for me to head out to pick him up at the rental place. "That went about as smoothly as it could have," he assessed of the morning move.

Buoyed by the news, and it being a mere minutes after noon, we decided to delve into a related project. If your family is like ours, whenever there's a decorating project such as new furniture, that leads to another semi-related project. In our case, it's prep work for a revamp of our upstairs bonus room. That means many things, starting with weeding out a large number of books of all kinds. I'll save those details for another blog post.

Since I wasn't there to see the results, I asked Ben to text me a photo. He did, along with a photo of a meal he put together with some leftovers I sent him home with.

And, he sent this text, "Cannot believe the beloved Cronk couch is in my apartment."

Warms this mama's heart, for sure.

My name is Donna and I like to tell stories; good-news stories in particular. Here's one about a local girl who only wanted to give back to a hospital that has helped her family. From today's New Castle Courier-Times.

by DONNA CRONK

When thinking about how to celebrate her 12th birthday, Blue River Valley sixth-grader Ava Loveless had only one thing in mind. She wanted to raise money to benefit Riley Hospital for Children.

Her dream came true, taking in $400, and exceeding her expectations. She plans to hand-deliver the money soon.

Ava has a personal reason behind her love for Riley. Her brother Finnton Loveless, 9, was born there with a chromosome disorder, 5p minus syndrome, which is short for Cri du chat syndrome. Essentially, he is missing his fifth chromosome. He is unable to walk or talk.

“I know how hard it is to take care of him and to buy stuff for him,” says Ava. “I didn’t think I was going to get that much money.”

The siblings’ birthdays are very close. Ava was born Jan. 26, 2007 and Finnton three years later on Jan. 28, 2010. They are the children of Jerome and Brooke Loveless.

Says Brooke about her daughter, “She just always wanted to give back. I’m really proud of her for this.”
Ava’s Papaw, John Turner of New Castle, echoes the pride. “I’m just really proud of her for wanting to do it.”

Brooke says Finnton spent so much in-patient time at Riley that she and her daughter would stay together at the Ronald McDonald House.

The goal to raise money for the hospital that has served her family is not a new idea to Ava.
“I’ve actually been wanting to do that for my last birthday,” she says. “I’ve kind of always wanted to raise money for Riley.”

She’s excited about hand-delivering it very soon. When she’s not being a junior philanthropist, Ava enjoys volleyball when in season, social studies in the classroom, drawing, roller skating and playing on the trampoline. She attends Ninth Street Church of God.

Ava recently won an art contest by drawing the cover of her school’s upcoming yearbook. She also enjoys little kids and hopes to one day become an art teacher.

A cozy, quilting story for your winter and wintry Tuesday. From Sunday's New Castle Courier-Times. Hope you're having a great week. 

By Donna Cronk

​For Carolynn Hyde of New Castle, it started with a hobby, then became a treasured activity. Now her quilted creations are part of a home-based business, Carolynn’s Treasures. 

Carolynn and husband Bill relocated to New Castle from Indianapolis a couple years ago to be near their daughter, Lynnda Sparks and family. Bill is a retired pastor and Carolynn worked in administrative assisting. Married 51 years, both are retired.

They lived in a variety of locations during their working years, from Kentucky to several Indiana locations to West Virginia and Maryland before they started a church in Indy. They now attend Chicago Corner Church.

A graduate of Aresenal Technical High School, Carolynn was taught to sew in school where she also learned to make hats. She used to make her daughter’s clothes. In 1994, she visited a Greenfield quilt shop and began attending a quilting club. She began making quilts for herself and as gifts.

Several hundred quilts later, she sells them as a vendor at special events, at the Henry County Farmers Market, and does custom orders. She also makes appliqué-embellished bibs and T-shirts. 
“Appliqué is my favorite quilting technique,” says Carolynn. “It has more character than regular pieced quilting.”

That character is quickly evident inside the Hyde home where a whimsical chicken-themed quilt hangs on the dining- room wall. Carolynn says it’s one of her favorites. “They’re (chickens) goofy looking and you can make up things that they’re saying,” she says. Chicken-themed place mats are found on the dining-room table to go along with the quilt.

Nearby is a cat-themed quilt, also on the wall, and a snowman wallhanging. The snowman is part of series of seasonal quilts Carolynn has completed to showcase each month of the year in a unique and colorful way.

“With quilting, there’s not very many rules,” Carolynn says. She enjoys embellishing some of her work with buttons. “You can change it. My daughter says a pattern is a suggestion.”

Along with her daughter, who also quilts, the Hydes have a son Jeffrey, who lives in Pennsylvania. The Hydes have three grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

The handiwork is all machine-quilted but Carolynn hand-binds the backing.

When asked about the appeal of quilting, Carolynn says, “Because it is so versatile. It’s not cookie-cutter anything.”

She comments that if six women all created the same quilt, each one would look different.
Carolynn has her own designated quilting room, which she thoroughly enjoys. When asked what advice she has for those who might like to try their hands at quilting, Carolynn says to start small with a small project such as a mug rug to see how they enjoy it. “That way they get an idea if they want to pursue this.”

She enjoys teaching quilting and the small mug-rug projects and welcomes opportunities to do so.
She’s thinking of expanding her business to make rag dolls, another thing she enjoys.

Of quilting, Carolynn says, “You can just let your imagination go wild.”

To connect with Carolynn, call her at 317-536-2906 or email: cjhydeaway@sbcglobal.net.

This article appeared in Sunday's New Castle Courier-Times. It was a thrill to see the memorial during a night tour of capital monuments last month.

By Donna Cronk

This year’s celebration to honor the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. will take place in New Castle at 6 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 20 at The Place, 205 S. 21st St.

The evening features a program along with song and liturgical dance. An optional dinner will be served at 5 p.m. for anyone interested. Everyone is welcome to the meal and / or service. No reservations are needed for either.

Sponsoring New Castle congregations are First United Methodist Church, The Place, Bethany Tabernacle Church, Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, First Friends Meeting and St. James Episcopal Church, among others, according to the event facilitator, Barry Cramer.

Cramer, of Richmond, is an ordained deacon at St. James Episcopal Church. He will speak on the topic, “Finding Beloved Community.” He says that to him, the concept of beloved community means to recognize a shared human nature among people, and a calling to drop divisions along with discovering how we can all get along while recognizing our commonality.

“I believe the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday should be a holiday for all Americans, not just for the African-American community,” he said. “Our observances should be more than just remembrances of his life, but opportunities to be reminded what he taught – and to learn from him.”

He understands King’s message as one of racial reconciliation, economic justice and use of non-violent means to work toward justice and peace. “He was a contemporary prophet,” says Cramer. “He was a Nobel laureate because of his work. His stature compels us all to honor and learn from him.”
Along with his address will be various readings and prayers. The evening also features vocal music presented by several of Rosie Hua’s voice students; Stacey Torres is providing a liturgical dance accompanied by Hua singing, Kay Rogers on the flute and Sam Hua on the piano.

Cramer estimates that between 60 and 80 people attended last year. He hopes the annual tribute will continue. He would like to see more student involvement such as possibly writing or art projects, and possibly organizing a trip to the Underground Railroad Museum in Cincinnati.

He also welcomes involvement of additional churches. Any individual or church interested in becoming involved with next year’s program is welcome to email him at deaconbarryc@gmail.com.
Along with serving as a deacon, Cramer is a behavioral clinician in the addictions field at Meridian Health Services at the Addictions and Recovery Center in Richmond. He has also worked in blue-collar jobs, in the legal field, in mediation and conflict resolution.

His bachelor’s of arts degree in social sciences is from Ohio State University. He has a master of divinity from the Earlham School of Religion and a juris doctor (J.D.) from the International School of Law, now George Mason University School of Law.

The federal holiday of Martin Luther King Jr. Day is Monday, Jan. 21. 

The weekend shifted from Plan A to Plan B on Friday.

I was supposed to go with a group of friends to Terri's lake house in Brown County this weekend. We were ready to enjoy the fireplace, movies and HGTV, someone was bringing a craft, we'd have all the yummy food we could eat, and then some. The conversation would be enjoyed along with the naps and weekend of carefree relaxation.

Then came Winter Storm Gia. Since when did they start naming snowstorms?

With predictions of 5 to 7 inches of the white stuff, we canceled early yesterdy morning. But Terri offered a consolation prize: Why don't we come over Friday night for a soup supper? So we did, joined by two of her sisters and even a craft.

It's after 2 Saturday and Gia is still doing her thing. We've had four or five inches of snow by now, with more coming. We gathered groceries yesterday  and in a couple of hours the Colts will take the field in Kansas City in the NFL Playoffs. Life is good.

I've got McClellan Sisters' Homemade Vegetable-Beef Soup in the slow cooker, the last of the dirty clothes in the dryer and the unexpected snow day is working its usual magic, which means I'm in organizational overdrive. I cleaned out and organized all the tubes, jars, bottles, sprays and other weird bathroom miscellany and then hit my clothes closet.

If the Colts make me nervous, and they will, I'll find something else to organize. Somehow, it's a good activity for me for jazzed-up nerves.

Snow, ice and other winter weather issues take their toll before spring's arrival. But for today, the snowfall is a novelty as the weather has been a breeze so far. The house is cozy, the pantry is full, our team is in the Playoffs! So go Colts! Go Gia!