technology in agriculture

The over-a-week celebration of my Birthday was finished today as Tim and Laura left to drive back to Columbus, IN and Jon flew back to Washington, D.C. today. Verlon who came a couple days early got back to Richmond, VA on Thursday. We will continue to enjoy and celebrate every day with Carolyn, Ben, and the Owenses since they are here in Seward. After all of them were gone, I went back through all my recent Birthday cards as well as Father's Day and Wedding Anniversary cards that all come in June. We are still enjoying some of the "goodies" they bought while here and left with us. They left us with challenges including getting more exercise and drinking more liquids (rather than coffee).  I've learned several new computer "tricks" that will help me with my "Life Story", etc.  Jon has also ordered a "slide scanner" which will help in putting together collections of various picture topics. One of our weeks highlights was Carolyn setting up

Son Tim with his wife Laura, are visiting us this week and Tim has written today's blog page. Jakub Vrana is a forward with the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League. Jakub was born on February 28, 1996, in Prague, Czech Republic. He was the Capitals' first-round pick in the 2014 draft (13 th overall), and made his NHL debut on December 1, 1996. He scored his first NHL goal on December 9, 1996. His first full season with the Caps was the 2017-18, which recently concluded with the Caps winning the Stanley Cup, the NHL's championship trophy. It was the first Cup for the Caps, whose inaugural season was 1974-75. It was a glorious playoff run for Washington and its fans, and Jakub played an important role. Already known for his speed on skates, Jakub played aggressively without being nasty. In Game 5 of the finals against the Vegas Golden Knights, he scored the first goal of the game after a tense, scoreless first period and six-plus minutes of riveting but scor

It�s said that the tie makes the man. If this is true, then my father is a well-made man. Through many years of his life and career, he has displayed his professionalism in a suit, a white shirt, and a very classy tie. The dress code in the early part of his career in soil conservation was khaki pants, a work shirt, and a pair of well-oiled leather brogans. These were the �formal� apparel of the field conservationist, who worked with the farmers on the land. But then in the early 60s, he and the family moved to Washington, D.C., and the work attire quickly changed. Every day, for nearly 20 years, my father wore a tie, along with a suit and white shirt. He exuded professionalism, no less the conservationist than when he would walk the hills of Seward County, but with much greater responsibility and sphere of influence. Today, he brought out his collection of ties. Some brightly colored, some much more muted. Some nearly solidly colored, while at least a handful with pictures of various

This is another blog page written by our son Jon who is visiting us this week. Stained glass is purported to have adorned places of worship since the 7 th century. The Zion Lutheran Church of Garland, Nebraska is adorned with assorted windows of stain glass, suitable for the most elegant cathedral. This week I had an opportunity to make a short trip from Seward, where I was visiting my folks, to visit Garland and the Zion Lutheran Church. Garland is a small town in southeastern Nebraska with a population of about 280 individuals. Originally named Germantown, it was renamed to Garland at the time of the Great War, after the second local man who had died in the war. Among the modest homes that grace the town is the white clapboard greek revival church with multiple gable roofs of various pitches, topped with a simple white steeple. The original stained glass window above makes it clear the German origins of both the Lutheran faith and the church. �Kirche,� German for �church,� it was an

  Jon gave me some computer assistance this afternoon while others went elsewhere. Then we went over to visit the local NRCS office. His current position in Washington D.C. involves activities at the local level so we made an �unofficial visit�. I asked him to write this blog page on our visit.  You never know the path that life may take you and mine has taken me to suddenly being responsible for all the offices and vehicles in my agency. Tremendous responsibility, but also a tremendous opportunity to improve the service to our local conservation offices. Today I made a trip, in the company of my Dad, to the local Seward County USDA Service Center. Seventy years ago, this year, my dad began working for the Soil Conservation Service (SCS), the forerunner of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). Through the efforts of my dad and others in the work unit, soil was protected, water was conserved, and agricultural production was sustained and increased. A quick drive down Hwy. 3

I have enjoyed many birthday anniversaries over the years, but this one has to be among the tops. All 4 of our Children were here. We got this picture at the Julie and John Owens house following a birthday supper. We lined up according to age with Verlon R. from Richmond, VA next to Elaine; Tim from Columbus, IN; Carolyn from here in Seward; and Jon from Burke, VA near Washington D.C. I believe this is the first time that all 4 of them have been here at the same time since I celebrated my 90th 3 years ago.