Being drafted during World War II was a public affair. There would be a notice in the local newspaper listing the names of those called up during the previous week. I didn't know my husband before the war, so I don't have that notice from the newspaper. But I do have my cousin Grove's notice. Answering our country's call was locally a public affair. I remember when Grove's turn came. In our small cross-roads town (four corners and one side street); it was a celebrated event.

This hearty salad has Greek yogurt to accompany the mayonnaise. Sparks the flavor. Try it, In mixing bowl, combine cooked macaroni, onion, celery, green pepper and diced cheese. In small bowl combine Greek yogurt and mayonnaise. Toss to coat macaroni. Salt to taste. Transfer to serving bowl. Sprinkle with paprika. Cover and chill at least 1 hour.

Ask almost anybody if they like Spam, and they will turn up their nose. Too bad. Spam is a good pork product. It got a bad rap during WWl!. Spam was probably on the menu far too often and probably prepared only one way-plain out of the can. If you receive commodity foods at a food bank, Spam or Treet (same thing) will be given under its generic name of luncheon meat. There are several ways to fix it. I will offer you a couple. These recipe work with cooked ham, too.

This is a great way to prepare fresh mushrooms for a relish tray. Use the small button mushrooms from the produce department at Food City. You wouldn't think that fresh mushrooms would have much flavor, but they do. If you never have tried them this way, it will be a treat for you, plus another recipe to add to your holiday collection.

May your dressing be tasty
May your turkey be plump.
May your potatoes and gravy
Have not even one lump.
My your salads be ...

Cook rice according to directions. Drain and set aside. Cook the giblets in water for a minute or so. Drain, reserving water. Chop giblets and return to water. Simmer until tender. Saute onions in butter until yellow, but not browned. In large bowl combine onions, giblets and toasted bread. Stir until well combined.

You need several hearty salads in your recipe collection to take the place of potatoes in your menu. They are usually cold salads, so can be made ahead of the planned meal. In a large mixing bowl, combine everything but the dressing. Pour dressing over mixture and toss to coat. Cover and chill until serving time or up to 24 hours. Makes 16 servings. Note: The pimiento and cheese adds color.

We all have memories of unusual things. Well, I remember when you could buy gas cheap, really cheap . That was back in 1940, a long time ago. Don’t believe me? I have the picture to prove it. Mother took a picture of goats pulling some sort of contraption. The gas station sign happened to be in the picture, too. There it is – anti-knock for fourteen cents per gallon and ethyl for fifteen cents per gallon. For a penny more, you got their better grade. Do you remember when the engine would knock if you used too low a grade of gasoline? I do.

I have subscribed to the magazine Farm Show off and on for many years. It is full of inventive ideas farmers do to solve their everyday problems. It shows how creative farmers can be. Of course, you learn to “make do” with homemade things when money is tight. For a farmer, that is almost always. He probably had to borrow from the bank for seed in the spring, hoping to pay it back when he harvested in the fall. A farmer is always looking for ways to save money. Isn’t that the definition of invention, looking for a cheaper or easier ways to do something?

Anne was tidying up our barn the other day. She brought a strange looking contraption in for me to identify. It was a line level, of course.
You must be of a certain age and farm bred to recognize it. I answer “yes” to both conditions.