MASTODON FOUND - 1992
By Donna Sullivan
Local Farmer Makes Giant Find
While installing drainage ditch in his field, not far from Otterbein Lake near Cranberry Marsh, a local farmer by the name of Larry Schafer discover portions of a Mastodon’s lower jaw and several teeth.
While digging in the field with his backhoe he uncovered what first appeared to him to be a pop bottle. But when he took a closer look at the object he discovered he had uncovered a section of teeth that were still in the lower jawbone. The jawbone was later identified by archaeologists who were working at a dig site in Cicott Park in Warren County as a bone of a Mastodon.
Arrangements were made to excavate the site. They hoped that the Mastodon might have been preserved and would be intact in the marsh. Experts Bill Wepler Curator of Anthropology at the Indiana State Museum and the Curator in Charge and Curator of Paleobiology at the Indiana State Museum, Ron Richard, decided after four days of hard work which had left them with little to show for that they would spend a few more days digging for the Mastodon and then call a halt to the expedition.
The dig which began on Thursday, September 17, 1992 with Bill Wepler and Ron Richard, along with volunteers from Purdue, Ball State and other schools of anthropology at the site. The dig was watched anxiously by local and not so many locals who were able to find the site that was located deep in a cornfield of approximately 300 acres, as the men and volunteers dug slowly using tools that resembled trowlers. They place the soil into bucket and then the soil was screened to allow the soil to shift through and preserve any prehistoric artifacts.
There were prehistoric rock, shells and plant material as well as an additional tooth found, this time from the upper jaw of a Mastodon, but there was no bone material of any significance discovered. This puzzled everyone and had them wondering what had happened to the rest of the prehistoric animal. As Bill Wepler explained that depended on where the Mastodon had died, on scavengers, heavy rainfall, shifting soils and any number of other things that could have caused the separation of the bones. He said, " There is always a slim chance that somewhere is a tightly clustered group of bone, but maybe not. Or they could be so thinly spread out that we haven’t been able to find them."
He was also quick to point out that as hard as it is to find the remains of this one Mastodon, evidence has been found that there could be up to 100 more in the area. But you have to know where to look. "They had to have died somewhere. After the original find of the lower teeth and jaw we had hoped to find the head or hoped it had stayed close, but we didn’t," he added.
He remember on one dig for a Mastodon they found the knee and wrists joints together so they anxiously dug for the head and found nothing more. "We almost always at least find teeth, but not that time," he said.
He also says it isn’t uncommon for someone digging on their property to install drainage tile or a pond and even mining peat to come across historic bones. It is now that people are beginning to call and let them know. "I understand that it’s tough to quit in the middle of something, especially for a commercial company and just shut down and wait."
When Larry Shafer found the teeth and jaw of the Mastodon he was very careful not to disturb the area and further. Due to the Shafer family’s enthusiasm fascination with the idea of the Mastodon quickly spread
through the community.
On September 22nd, the sixth day of the excavation, the weather had changed from the rains of the day before to brisk winds and temperatures were much below the 70’s and 80’s of the week before. Where the sun had shone brightly the week before a gray gloom settled upon the spectators who had gathered around the site hoping some mystery would be uncovered.
A lot was learned from the experience although a Mastodon wasn’t found, the curators were also disappointed but they did seem pleased with what little had been found. They plan to stay in touch with Larry Shafer as he completes his drainage ditch and resumes his farming.
Whispering Willow
By: Willow
Happy New Year everyone. Welcome to 2009. I hope everyone’s holiday was a happy one. It wasn’t just the price of gas that made this holiday more enjoyable for Al and I. Although it was great to be able to travel to Lake County twice for half of what it use to cost us of what two trips would have cost us a month ago.
First we had the trip to Hobart on December 20th for the Sullivan Christmas at my sister in laws. My sister was able to be here from Florida on that day but had to fly back before Christmas Eve, so we all got together then and had a great Christmas celebration. This year we decided as a family that we would only buy for kids under 18 years old. It made the evening seem very special to watch the kids open one present at a time and acknowledge the giver.
Then on Christmas Eve we traveled to a suburb of Chicago called Hegewish, where my oldest son and family live. Again we adhered to the promise to only buy for the kids. I have 3 great grandchildren. Since I live here and they live up there we don’t get to have as much contact as I would like. As young kids usually are they are shy around strangers and sadly I was a stranger. They would cowl in their mothers arms and peek at me. But when I would reach for them they would turn and bury their heads in their parents shoulder.
But this Christmas Eve there were fewer people around. We were all sitting around the Christmas tree as my youngest grand daughter passed out the gifts. One of my great Grandson’s was sitting on the floor in front of me. He was wrestling with a package that someone had taped tight. Finally I said, "Do you want me to help you with that Max?" He sighed and without looking back at me held the package above his head. When I opened it enough so he could pull the wrapping paper off and he saw that it was a small truck he was my friend the rest of the night.
I found my youngest Great Grandson loves to be kissed, he was laying in the floor with his belly showing, I couldn’t resist, I bend and blew a bubble on his belly. He rolled and giggle and we began a kissing and bubble battle.
The other Great Grandson was having trouble communicating his wish about a small tepee tent he had received. Everyone was trying to talk to him at once so I went into the room and sat down on the floor. I began taking the tent apart and he stopped and looked at me. All he said was "yes". What he wanted was the tent taken apart and moved into the living room where everyone was. But once we got it back in the box and convinced him he needed to wait and share it with his daddy who was home sick with the flu he calmed down and we began playing with his new trucks.
That night we spent the night with Al’s daughter and his grandkids. The next morning his granddaughter woke us up to tell us Santa had come. We went downstairs and watched them go through their stocking and they each opened one gift from Santa. The rest of Al’s family began to arrive and the space around the tree began to be filled with more presents. But they too, had decided to only buy for the young kids this year. It was wonderful to watch each one of them starting with the youngest stand at the coffee table and open his gifts and thank each giver as he opened them. Then it was his sisters turn, and when she finished it went to the next oldest.
The wonderful thing about all of this, we were a part of their enjoyment. We related to them, this is what Christmas presents are for. They are for the young. The look in their eyes as each package was placed in front of them, the look of wonder in their eyes as they tore the paper away and their reaction when the realized what the gift was.
Pure and simply this Christmas was truly a joy for me. I really felt a part of the little ones eye level view of Christmas. Happy New Year Everyone and’
Be Blessed
Willow
Willows Garden
By: Willow
"Let your food be your medicine, and your medicine be your food." Hippocrates
St. John’s Wort - Hypercium perfoatum
The St. John’s Wort is a native of Britain, Europe and Asia. It is a wild perennial that grows along roadsides, meadows and also in woody places. It has straight stems and small pale green leaves, with a wispy look to the plant. It’s delicate bright yellow flowers bloom from June to August and are dotted with oil glands that produce a red resin or violate oil, and after the blooming it produces small black seeds that have resinous scent.
The name hyperciumid Greek and translates as "over an apparition." St. John’s Wort, according to myth, was so offensive to evil spirits that one whiff of the aroma forced them to flee.
The St. John’s Wort’s name is credited to St. John of Jerusalem, who used the wort, (plant) during the crusades to heal his knights’ battlefield wounds, and to John the Baptist when he was beheaded, and the red oil from its glands represents his blood.
Patacelsus a 16th century physician inscribed the virtues of St. John’s wort as surpassing all other medicinal herbs when he wrote, "… In all formulas, there is no medicament that is so good and without the detriment without hazard, without hazard, as the healer St.Johnswort … its virtue shames all formulas…"
It is one of the finest nerviness in the herbal kingdom to restore the nervous system after prolonged periods of exhaustion and stress. When it is taken as a routine tea, it can lift depression, anxiety, and irritability, stabilize the emotions, and ease insomnia. St. John’s wort contains hypericin, which is an MAO inhibitor and stimulant for dopamine, which eases depression. The tea is cooling and bittersweet.
IN research from New York University and the Weizman Institute of Science in Israel found that hypericin and pseudo-hypericin, two of the properties in St. John’s wort , inhibited growth of HIV virus in animal studies. There are current studies underway to test the effect on humans. It is also high in flavonoids, its antiviral, antibacterial and anti fungal to fight disease.
If the tea is taken before bed it can be used to treat incontinence. It has a sedative effect to relieve the pain and the discomfort of the menses, tensions, and the depression of menopause. St John’s wort also relaxes the muscles, reduces inflammation, and eases pains in the nerves for neuralgia and neuritis.
By using a warm tea bag of St. Johns wort as a compress to relieve localized nerve pains and inflammation to strains and sprains, including tennis elbow. The beneficial parts of St. Johns wort ate the whole plant and the flowers.
St. Johns wort has been used in the treatment for bladder disorders, lung disorders and jaundice. It also has a reputation as an external application to dispel hard tumors, through the ages.
A word of caution, regular use can make you sun-sensitive so be careful during radiation therapy since it can heighten the tendency of the skin to blister and redden. It can increase blood pressure and cause headaches and nausea in some individual. It shouldn’t be used in combination with prescription; drugs, including MAO inhibitors, steroid medications, tranquilizers or over- the counter diet pills or amphetamine-like drugs. With St. Johns wort short term use is the best.
Be Blessed
Willow
German Noodle Bake
1 C. all-purpose flour 1/2 t. salt
2 eggs beaten 2 qt. water
Cheese Sauce
3 T. Butter 1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. paprika 1-1/2 c. milk
2 eggs, beaten 3 T. all-purpose flour
8 oz Swiss chees, diced- In a small bowl, combine the flour & salt. Make a well in the center & add eggs and stir together making a dough. Turn dough onto a floured surface; kneak for 5-6 minutes and divide dough in half.
- Roll each portion into a 12-in.x 9-in. rectangle and dust both sides with flour; roll up, jelly roll style and cut into 1/4-in. slices. Unroll noodles on a paper towel and let dry for up to 2 hours.
- In a dutch oven, bring water to a rapid boil andadd noodles, cook for 7-9 minutes or until tender.
- Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, melt butter and stir in flour, salt and paprika until smooth;gradually add milk. Bring back to boil; cook and stir for 2 min. or until thickened. Remove from heat; stir in cheese until melted. Stir in eggs.
Drain noodles; transfer to a greased 11x7 in. baking dish, cover and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake 10 - 15 minutes longer or until bubbly.
Serves 8
Taken from Country Extra January 2009
According To
Big Al...
"Listen to what I mean... not what I say."
THE PEANUT BUTTER KID
Our first born was a son and my wife was an excellent mother. She was very patient with him and had him potty trained by 9 months old. He was walking at 10 months and was a very inquisitive child. It seems that he was always looking for something to snack on. At a very early age he was trying to make himself something to eat. We did not usually have snack foods around the house. One of Blane's favorite foods was pancakes (or panny cakes as he referred to them). He was less than a year old when he got some eggs out of the refrigerator and cracked them on the floor and was going to make himself some panny cakes. I was at work when he did this so our neighbor Charlie bought some more eggs to replace the ones he cracked on the floor. I was kept in the dark about this episode until later on. We had a wooden kitchen table and the legs were secured with some large square headed screws. Blane would get under the table and manage to work them loose with his little fingers. I don't know how many times I tightened them up with a wrench, but it wouldn't be long and Blane had them loose again. I know this sounds impossible but its true. I don't know how he was able to do this at such an early age without the use of any tools, but I do know that he has an incredibly strong grip today which he uses while he plays his drums.
Our second son Eric was born when Blane was 2 years old so they shared many things together and were constant playmates. Prior to Eric being born, we placed Blane in a bed of his own so that the crib would be vacated and Blane wouldn't feel like Eric was taking his bed. Blane and Eric slept in the same room when Eric was only a few months old. Blane was a big help in the training of Eric – He was the ideal older brother. One day when Eric was about 6 months old, and was sleeping in his crib, Blane got into his crib with Eric. For some reason Blane started pulling out the cotton stuffing in the mattress. When we heard Eric screaming we went to their room and there sat Eric on a little piece of what was left of the mattress in the corner of the crib. Of course Blane was back in his bed but Eric was afraid he was going to fall because there was nothing left of his mattress. It was at that point that we decided that they would sleep together in Blane's bed.
One day when Blane was about 3 years old, we heard a disturbance in the kitchen and the kids bedroom. I got up to investigate. When I got their bedroom, I found Blane sitting in the corner with a big jar of peanut butter between his legs and a packet of crackers and a knife. He was having a snack at 3 A.M.. I got out the camera and took a picture before Blane was aware that we onto his little scheme. Now the amazing part of this story. The peanut butter jar was kept in in a cabinet above the refrigerator. It was one of those super duty jars and weighed about 5 pounds. We had stools in our kitchen, but that wasn't nearly tall enough to get to the top of the refrigerator. How he managed to get to the cabinet above the refrigerator and get out the huge jar of peanut butter out and get it down without dropping it we never could figure out. It was not an easy task for my wife to get out and we put it up there so Blane wouldn't get to it, but he fooled us. We let him finish his snack before we put the crackers and peanut butter back – we thought he deserved it for what he went through to get it.
When Eric got older, Blane and Eric were always getting into something. I found out that if I gave them something do while I was working that it would help to cut down on what they got into. One day I was working on a 1950 Ford in our attached garage. It was a very small garage so there wasn't much room to work let alone have space for Eric and Blane to be able to work with me. I was working on an engine and was using a head gasket compound. When I got home from work that evening they had painted their camel "Clyde", a rocking horse with the compound that I had been using. Now you can't wash off this material with soap and water, nor can you wash it off with kerosene, you have to use lacquer thinner. Well, I got a little lacquer thinner. A rag and took Clyde and the two boys outside to clean up their rocking horse. It was a pretty nasty job which they didn't like to much but they got most of the compound off Clyde before I finished it up for them afterwards, but it was the last time old Clyde got a paint job. The moral of the story was this – when you are doing some work let your kids get involved in some way or you will pay for it later.
If you think that was the end of their painting? Wrong. Later that summer I was doing some outside painting on the front of the house. I was in a hurry and neglected to let the two boys help me. When I got back from work the next day the front end of the 50 Ford had a new coat of white paint from a can and stick I had been using the day before. I'm not sure sometimes who was teaching who?
I learned to give the boys a little project whenever I was working. Buy them real tools not fakes so they can do some real work. Give them the leftover wood and nails so they can make something. I couldn't keep nails in my garage as the two boys were growing up. They made a little play house in the back yard and later another one in the nearby woods. It brought back memories of when I was young and did the same thing. I always encouraged them - maybe that is why they are both carpenters today?
Big Al
CRYTOQUOTE
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