The cheering squad

Yesterday for the Steelers-Chargers game, my two-year-old niece wore her Steelers cheerleader outfit. We said the Steelers needed her support and she should give them a cheer. She started shouting sounds. “Ah! Oof! Whoa! Ack! Yeah!” We all stared. After a minute, my brother realized that she was imitating us — those were the sounds …

A child’s view of Worsley’s

I’ve been scrambling to wrap up projects for work before the holidays and the end of the year. My apologies for the light posting here as a result. Here’s one of the things I did: It’s a short promotional video I created as part of Butler Downtown, a revitalization effort for my town. Each month, …

Envelopes full of history

Letters from my grandfather to his parents, originally uploaded by cynthiacloskey. I have in front of me a letter in my grandfather’s handwriting, postmarked July 18, 1944. It begins like this: Dear Folks, There is not much time now. Just one week from to-morrow, Tuesday, I report. I entend (sic) to quit work on Wednesday …

Ruth in Springtime

Grandmom Gallagher as a little girl, originally uploaded by cynthiacloskey. In my mother’s family, certain photos are highly prized. One is "the hat photo" that I posted Saturday; another is this picture of my grandmother as a little girl. I think of this photo on days like today, when all the trees and bushes are …

RIP Joseph Gallagher

Ruth and Joe Gallagher, originally uploaded by cynthiacloskey. My grandfather passed away this morning. I wasn’t close to him; he was not noticeably guarded, but he was what one might call a private person, not given to outbursts or sharing. He was a kind person though, and very religious. He was also an enthusiastic bridge …

Maybe she will trade one for a real house

Paper clips in the doll house, originally uploaded by cynthiacloskey. My niece, being my parents’ first grandchild, is regularly showered with gifts and has a lot of toys. She has puzzles; toy musical instruments; a doll house with Mommy and Daddy and Baby and little furniture for them to live with; Thomas the Tank Engine; …