Odometer's

Lee recently sold his Ford truck - the last truck he owned in a long line of Ford trucks. They were mostly all red trucks and this last one was not an exception. He bought the truck in 1991 and it had 44 miles on it then. When he sold it earlier this month it registered 126,564 miles. And we didn't try to turn back the odometer. What the odometer said is what the man got who purchased the truck.

I know you are wondering - 'where in the world is she going with this story'...... Well, I was thinking about that truck and how worn and tattered and just plain 'old' it looked when we sold it. I saw my family doctor this week and he informed me that some things just happen when a person gets 'old'. That is coming from a 'young' doctor.

So while thinking about that 'old' worn and tattered truck - I thought that is exactly how I feel - especially since the doctor indicated that I am now 'old'.

I was encouraged tremendously this morning when I read a saying that I had seen some time ago and I can say without any reservations that I really do feel this way........

"Some people try to turn back their odometers. Not me! I
want people to know "why" I look this way. I've traveled a long way
and some of the roads weren't paved"

And just like Lee's truck, I am not turning back the odometer.

Derek is Front Page News

On Saturday it was in the Greenfield Daily Reporter and Indy Star articles regarding our very own Derek.

Earlier this month Greenfield elected a new mayor who will take office on January 1, 2008. Derek has been with Greenfield Police Department 17 years and Mayor Elect Brad DeReamer has announced that Derek will be the intermin Police Chief when he takes office in January.

This is exciting for all the Towles. Derek is proudly carrying on the Towle police tradition. Great Uncle Tom Towle - Police Chief of Pittsburg, Littleton and Colebrook, New Hampshire ~ ~ ~ Uncle Gene Towle, Capt. ( one of 7 Captains in the state) with the California Hightway Patrol and now Derek in his career with GPD is to be the interim police chief for Greenfield.

CONGRATULATIONS,

Derek

Happy Birthday, Brett!

Today is a special day at the Towle House. Our oldest son , Brett was born on this day in Moline, Illinois. That seems so very long ago, but how fast the years have passed by. It was such fun to have that little boy who now is a man that we are so very proud of.

Brett is our family firefighter and makes sure our home is fire safe. That is so good! He also is my help when the red van leaves me stranded in strange places. Thank you for all your help, Brett.

We hope your day is a happy one.

Happy Birthday with love,

Mom and Dad!

Brett then........and Brett (on the left) with fellow firefighters after fighting a fire......
He looks great in both pictures!

The 'Thingy'

Lee always carries his 'hugh' coffee container around wherever he is during the day. Well at least at home he does that. He looks for coffee in other ways when we are out. That might be a little wrong in that I distinctly remember him carrying that coffee mug when we have gone to garage sales in the summer. Anyway in Bette's buggy it is always sitting on the floor. It has been knocked over by things put in the golf cart, by people's feet in the golf cart and I am sure that even looking at it at times causes it to be knocked over.

Can you tell that his coffee mug is kind of irritating? Yea, that's about how it is.

There are cup holders in the golf cart - but they are not made for hugh, enormous coffee mugs. What to do? I have been telling him all summer, "You need to figure out some way of corralling that mug".

My phone rang and it was Lee needing my eyes to do some measuring. I am never sure what he is making, but today it was a thingy to hold that coffee mug. What a blessing! The thingy showed in the following pictures "wiggles a little" to quote Lee, so he needed an exact measurement of the cup holder hole, so he can make one the correct size.

Wouldn't it be great if I could say I am married to an inventor. Well I guess I am - there is only one problem with it - he invents thingies (that doesn't look like the correct spelling for pleural of thingy, but spell checker says it is) that are only useful for us. No income involved in that, but it sure does make life easier.

Bette's Buggy, piloted by none other than Lee Towle will certainly stay a lot cleaner with this new thingy invention.

"A Wedding Story" - with Lee & Bette

Lee and I have once again been married 18 years. This second 18 has gone by so much faster. Isn't that what they say about growing 'old'? The time goes by much quicker. I think maybe it is because we move much slower, because surely I am not OLD, didn't ask Lee if he is!

Yesterday Lee and I were going north on Fortville Pike - my usual 55-60, hoping no GPD officers were doing speed control near the interstate, as they seem to do quite often. Has anyone else noticed that? I hope so - because if you haven't, it could mean Derek has told them to watch for his mother who has a tendency to speed. No, not speed, I just forget to watch my speedometer. I really don't intentionally speed. Anyway I was coming up quite quickly to a red truck. I slowed down, slowed down and slowed down some more. Finally I put the brake on and when I finally was down to this gentleman's speed, we were doing a speedy little 25 MPH. On Fortville Pike, no less. GPD officers will not get this man, nor Derek's Mother who was behind him. Lee made the comment that he ( as a blind man ) could drive if he drove that slow. I can only hope he doesn't get the idea to take the red van keys and hit the road on 50 East.

But.....back to my story. The 1st Towle anniversary was June 25, 1960, a date Lee seems to easily remember. We were married 18 years and then were divorced. God in his mercy kept both of us waiting for the other and 11 years later Pastor Terry Going married us the second time on November 11, 1989 - so today is a Towle anniversary - this date Lee does not seem to remember and needs reminding every time. You would think that after a second 18 years, he would remember that day. Of course the 1st wedding found Lee only 25 and Bette 17. 47 years added to those ages makes remembering more of a challenge.

I have pictures from both weddings posted....I'm not sure either set are very good, but you can see we sure don't look like we did at one time - or even at two times. But the Towle Kids look good, don't they! Photography has certainly come a long way - it has to be the photography, we couldn't have changed that much, not Lee & Bette. Well .... here we are!

Lee & Bette 'A Wedding Story"

A Lee Towle, "GPD", Project

This is about one of those "Dad, I need" jobs. Derek came to Lee asking for some kind of container or holder to put the black flags in when the police are not using them. Well, Lee immediately got to work, even though Derek said, "It isn't a rush job, Dad. Just sometime we need something to store these flags in". Right....to Lee if someone says, "I need"...it is a rush job.

Whenever Derek for the Police Dept or Brett for the Fire Dept, or Nathan or Leanne or any one of them, for personal reasons says, "Dad I need".....everything else takes a back burner and this job was not an exception.

Well six weeks later....with many processes between now and then, the project is complete. We have delivered the flags in their new containers to Derek and Lee is happy that once more he was able to deliver on what was needed. I must say....."Good job, Lee"!

Click on the picture to see some of the steps in completing this job!

GPD Flag Project

Lee's Garden - 2007 Style!

As soon as January 1st arrives every year, Lee starts looking forward to his garden. He enjoys looking at the seeds. He likes planting them and watching them grow into plants he can put in the garden. He enjoys going and getting plants already to plant in his garden. He thinks it is fun to get the tiller out and work the soil. He just plain likes playing in the dirt.

Every year Lee says, "this year I am putting in a smaller garden". Hasn't happened yet, and I am not sure if he is capable of doing that. We will see. He has made that prediction one more time today after cleaning up from his 2007 garden.

I mulched leaves that had fallen the past few days and Lee got the cages out of the garden. I then helped him move most of them to storage. He carried some on the trusty "Bette's Buggy" to the storage area. And we finished it. Yea!

Working outside in the autumn air is a good feeling. Nice hot chili that has been cooking since noon is going to taste soooo good tonight!

"A garden is never so good as it will be next year". . . . Thomas Cooper (Professor at numerous Colleges & Universities in Pennsylvania, Virginia and South Carolina in the early 1800's)

Lee assures me he is looking forward to next years' ...smaller... (?) garden!

Here are some pictures from Lee's 2007 Garden!

Lee's Garden