Grandfather says trees are very important to him. Not the kind that's planted to exploit for money; orchards, for example. The ordinary, volunteering kind. First --and maybe foremost -- he says they are beautiful in his mind's eye. Some ...

Continue reading Grandfather Says: The Majesty of Trees

Grandfather likes the funny epitaphs he's seen. But he tries to have fun beforehand, because it's better than being morose. When he orders pizza, he tells the clerk to charge his credit card now so she'll get paid in case he dies before he can ...

Continue reading Grandfather Says: How I Order Pizza

Coyote predation, once a problem limited to the American West, has spread to pet and livestock owners in the Eastern US. So Grandfather built a blind overlooking one of his pastures, where he could sit and watch for coyotes and take appropriate ...

Continue reading Grandfather Says: Coyote Countermeasures

Grandfather says his Angus cattle herd produced five steer calves which measured up to those produced by modern breeding methods from some of the biggest herds in the US, in the American Angus Association's national carcass quality contest in 1991. ...

Continue reading Grandfather Says: He’s a Cowman (He Hasn’t Been a Boy In Years)

Grandfather says he's not much taken with teaching credentials. To hear some "educators" talk, one would think nobody could learn anything without their expert ministrations. Well ... here's a case where Grandfather taught something without a ...

Continue reading Grandfather Says: The Joy of Teachable Moments

Grandfather says he has been a fan of Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson, ever since he can't remember when ... Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "To be great is to be misunderstood." Grandfather says he hasn't had much truck with "greatness" ...

Continue reading Grandfather Says: A Few Words About Counterculture

Grandfather gets unhinged when the subject of his net worth comes up, because it bears no relation to his values and enjoyment of life. Is he a millionaire? He says that depends on the price of local real estate next week, which is of no interest ...

Continue reading Grandfather Says: Net Worth and Real Value

Grandfather says he doesn't mind a little frumpiness indoors, but the missus wants only clean firewood in the house. Well, OK; Grandfather will have to abandon the woodpile and store the firewood under roof. No spare roof onsite? The missus ...

Continue reading Grandfather Says: Only Clean Firewood Will Do

One of the things we all have where money doesn't count is the sky. Grandfather pays attention to it and says he will miss it when he's six feet under. *** About the Author: RD Blakeslee is an octogenarian from West Virginia who ...

Continue reading Grandfather Says: Something Beautiful That Money Can Never Buy

In the first article in this series, Grandfather talked about building your own house. Here's his during the build: And here's where Grandfather lived while his house was being built: When he was younger he and his friends (most now ...

Continue reading Grandfather Says: Grandfather’s House and Custom Built Stairs

Grandfather says self-confidence and independence go hand-in-hand. From his earliest days, Grandfather marched to his own drummer. In first-grade at elementary school -- a barracks-like structure with a classroom at each end and a coal furnace in ...

Continue reading Grandfather Says: The Importance of Self-Confidence and Independence

Stone. Grandfather says he thinks it's one of the substances that's been intertwined with everything mankind has done from time immemorial. There was the interaction of the Alps, elephants and Hannibal in 218 BC. Somewhat later, there was ...

Continue reading Grandfather Says: The Travails of Working with Stone

He imagined a man who walked about the country telling everyone he met: "I wish we could all live Martin Luther King's dream where we didn't see anyone's skin color anymore." Grandfather imagined the man started attracting the attention of the ...

Continue reading Grandfather Says: MLK’s Dream