Monthly Archives: December 2016

Resolution of Condolence for Ralph Tyler 1929

Death, Things, ,

My grandfather’s uncle Ralph was a firefighter in Sioux City, Iowa. He died in 1929 and the Sioux City Firemen’s Association sent the following “Resolution of Condolence”. It has all the right words, but is very formally written. It is remarkable that this 85 year old piece of tissue paper is still readable.

Resolution of Condolence

Whereas, on March 20th, 1929, death took member and former president of our Local and at the time of his demise Vice-president of the Iowa Association of Fire Fighters, a man who by unceasing and unselfish devotion and loyalty to our interests, who in his quiet and unassuming manner had commanded our respect, excited our admiration, and gained for himself the friendship of many who will sincerely mourn his loss; and

Whereas, in his life and in his association activities, he ever displayed undaunted courage, battling always straightforwardly and openly for what he believed to be right and for the good of all, and letting neither opposition to nor apparent hopelessness of worthy causes deter him from pressing on to achieve victory for them, and whose vigorous personality and tenacity in pursuit of his purpose were ever a stimulating force in developing in others that militancy of organization spirit, without which our cause would soon become feeble and emasculated; and

Whereas, in the death of Ralph Tyler, Sioux City, Firemen’s Association, has sustained a loss unparalleled in its history; and

Whereas, we feel that his influence for good has extended far beyond the limits of Sioux City; therefore be it –

Resolved, that we give expression of our sincere and heartfelt sorrow by tendering to the bereft relatives our deep sympathy in their loss; and be it further –

Resolved, that copies of this REsolution be sent to the family of the deceased; that a copy be sent to the Iowa Association of Fire Fighters, to be placed on record; that a copy be sent to the International Association of Fire Fighters for the publication; that a copy be spread upon the Minutes of this Union, and that the Chapter No. 7 be draped for a period of thirty days.

Sioux city Firemen’s Association,

/s/D. D. Welsh/ Rec. Sec.

Here’s his obituary.

ralph tyler obit

In which this non-baker makes Christmas cookies

Food, Memories, ,

Our basement remodel is nearly finished and we are in the process of putting everything back to where it belongs. I’m being a grown-up and donating or throwing away things I don’t use or don’t need. It’s a tough process because maybe, someday, I might use the three burner food warmer or the old electric frying pan.

One of the items I thought about donating was a bread maker that was covered in all kinds of disgusting dust including scented cat litter dust, dryer vent dust and construction work dust. After dusting it off (and vacuuming it really well) I made the first loaf of bread it has manufactured in probably a decade. It was pretty good and didn’t taste at all like Fresh Step® with Febreze Multi-Cat Litter. I’m keeping the bread maker.

Another item I considered tossing was a cookie press kit that I bought when the kids were young because my mother (despite being a hoarder ) gave away the cookie press kit from my childhood. I have fond memories of making cookies with my mom using her cookie press kit like the one below.

vintage cookie press with discs
Vintage cookie press

I mostly remember the cookies made with the Christmas tree disk. We’d dye the dough green before putting the dough in the press chamber. They always were brown around the edges and a not-very-pinetree-green color on top.

Dean looked at the discs in my kit and marveled that they could become cookie shapes. I decided to make cookies to see if I wanted to keep the kit, so set to work softening butter and preheating the oven after finding a recipe online.

Before I continue — I am not a baker. I can bake, but I don’t make a habit of it. I think I like the idea of being a baker, but it always seems a tad too much trouble. Anyway, with the recipe in front of me and the oven preheated, I proceeded to make the dough and figure out the cookie press.

It took me a while to understand where the chamber went, how to open it, how to fill it and how to get the ratcheting thing to work, but I did eventually. I chose a disc that I thought would make a star shaped cookie.

Cookie press loaded to make star shaped cookies
Cookie press loaded to make star shaped cookies

I was right. Star shaped cookies were created from the disc.

Cookie stars with sprinkles
Cookie stars with sprinkles

After that I tried the Christmas tree, then something with a long oval hole and holes all around it which turned out to be a flower. Maybe a poinsettia?

Here are some cookies baking.

cookies baking
Cookies baking

Finally, the finished product. They were tasty. I’m keeping the cookie press. I may make cookies again in 2026.

delicious cookies
Delicious cookies

Camping Meal Memories

Food, Memories,
Example deal from woot.com
Example deal from woot.com

I check woot.com every day and a lot of time they have deals for dehydrated meals — the kind you might take camping or have in your pantry to prepare for a disaster. My brain always says “yuck” but something else in me says “yum.” A couple of years ago, visiting the family lake house in Wisconsin, I saw a container of dehydrated beef stroganoff and had a strong desire to make it, but it was there for my nephew to make in case of an emergency, not for me to make because I wondered what it tasted like. Besides, I told myself, it probably was disgusting.

Jack and "Cinder"
The cook, not cooking

Why, then, does part of me that want to eat dehydrated food? Not because I am a wilderness camper. Not because I like disgusting things, but because I have a memory of loving the food that Jack Burgoyne made for us in 1976 when I accompanied his family on a “caravan holiday” in Scotland. Normally his wife, Pat, cooked but when on vacation — at least that one– Jack made dinners and they were, as far as I recall, always from a freeze-dried packet. And, to me, they were delicious.

So that’s why I always stop and ponder buying a bucket of freeze dried lasagne or curry or Jamaican jerk rice with chicken from woot.com or consider making freeze dried beef stroganoff on trips to the lake house — memories of a long-ago trip to Loch Sween and a week in a mobile home on the grounds of an ancient castle and meals made by a kind and good and funny and wonderful man who left this world too soon.