Funny things Dad would say

 I am one lucky guy.  My dad had a great since of humor and was a great storyteller.  But here are some of the things that I loved and yes, some of them are off color.

1. yesterday, one of my close friends (Rich K.) told me I needed to drink more water.  Now I should preface this with it was a gathering of 11 guys for weekly fellowship that meet at Mike Cunningham's office (my old office before I retired).  Mike and Steve and staff are wonderful hosts.  Rather than make it such a long sentence which I used to get in trouble for with Mrs. Head, let's just say it is a bible study/prayer group.  Anyway, after R. Kanaly smarted off, I gave him one of my dad's sayings, "Piss on you".  Most folks would get their underwear in a wad saying something like that at a bible study, but I figure even if I don't say it, God knows what I am thinking.  Well, it got a good chuckle, kind of like Chuckles Codding more normally known as Harold.  

2.  Since I had shared one of my dad's little sayings, I figured on sharing another.  Dad use to say he was a FART KNOCKER and then he would double up one of his fists and knock on my shoulder or arm.  Do you get it?  Well, I did that to you know who yesterday.

3. This is the last one today, but there are many more:  Dad would take his index finger and make it look like a hook.  Then he would say, "do you know what this is?".  And if you did not know, he would say it is a shit hook.  Then he would proceed to hook you one the arm or somewhere to let you know you were the shits.

He always laughed and I cannot thank him enough for the great times.  I hope you can remember some great times with your dad.  If you do, check out the free invite below, where you can start writing or telling your stories and record them for your kids and grandkids.

So, what do you learn in the Osage?

• laughter is great medicine
• when you use words that are not especially acceptable by folks, just remember, God knows what you were thinking
• Words can hurt and they can heal but only Jesus forgives and does not judge, if only you put your trust in HIM.

Thanks for listening,

gary

here is my special invite:  gary.olson@finaciti.com

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Gary L. Olson

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well, here is a new one and i need your help. I think many of you know I have an app called Finaciti and if you would like to try it out for FREE (always free to you up to 1000 of my friends, family etc.). All I need is for you to try it and give me feedback to gary.olson@finaciti.com

so, here is what you need to get it free: download the app and when it asks for an AID number use srem8z

let me know you signed up and try it out. there are two things we are doing, and it will be expanding rapidly as we get a few things adjusted.

1. if you would like to get some education and organize your personal information secured on your phone, not on our files, so that is something happens to you, your family or spouse will know what to do.

2. if you go back to the main menu on the app you can start writing your story for your family and children and grandchildren. I personally have written a lot of stories about growing up in the Osage and especially stories of mom and dad and our ancestry.

And it is all FREE to you if you use the code srem8z

tell me of any problems you might have or suggestions. we are going to add end of life planning as well.

thanks for helping,

Gary L. Olson

gary.olson@finaciti.com

What should I not do when I lose a family member?

I found this to be an interesting problem for folks, not because I am smart, but because I had some friends tell me what happened to them.

One of my friends and financial clients (I am a retired financial advisor) lost their husband suddenly.  She immediately notified the credit card companies and her banks.   She shared that they immediately shut down / locked her accounts and she was not able to buy gas without cash or travel or even purchase groceries.  Wow!!  What did she do?

Well, the first thing is she had to get some friends to loan her some dough/cash until she could reapply for a credit card.  It took a couple of weeks, and she was stressed out by more than just the sudden loss of her husband.  

What about the checking account?  If things are done correctly there is generally no problem as long as the account has "right of survivorship".  You better go check with your bank.  There are other ways of handling, but this is the most common.  The bank may ask for a copy of the death certificate and/or identification proving you are the surviving account holder (depends on the bank's policies).  BUT, and there is always a but, if the deceased was the primary account holder, and you were listed only as an authorized user (not a co-owner), the bank may freeze the account.  This is a possible probate problem.  

Well, I hope this helps a little, but!

So what do you learn in the Osage

• check with your bank on what your options are
• check with your credit card company on are you a joint or authorized holder and ask how they would handle it
• on the credit card you will want to verify (by state) if you are liable for the debt and how they would handle the notification.
• talk to your financial advisor and lawyer 

Thanks for listening,

gary

gary.olson@finaciti.com

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Gary L. Olson

10m  · 

Shared with Public

well, here is a new one and i need your help. I think many of you know I have an app called Finaciti and if you would like to try it out for FREE (always free to you up to 1000 of my friends, family etc.). All I need is for you to try it and give me feedback to gary.olson@finaciti.com

so here is what you need to get it free: download the app and when it asks for an AID number use srem8z

let me know you signed up and try it out. there are two things we are doing and it will be expanding rapidly as we get a few things adjusted. 1. if you would like to get some education and organize your personal information secured on your phone, not on our files, so that is something happens to you, your family or spouse will know what to do. 2. if you go back to the main menu on the app you can start writing your story for your family and children and grandchildren. I personally have written a lot of stories about growing up in the Osage and expecially stories of mom and dad and our ancestry.

And it is all FREE to you if you use the code srem8z

tell me of any problems you might have or suggestions. we are going to add end of life planning as well.

thanks for helping,

Gary L. Olson

gary.olson@finaciti.com

Listen to Learn or Listen to Respond

 I don't know about you but as a child we were to listen to the adults and speak when spoken to.  However, somewhere along the way there was a transition to listening to respond.  I think it started when I entered school (1st grade with Aunt Geneva and then Mrs. Casselman and of course later was Miss Shumate).  Just as a side note, when you grow up in the Osage and especially Grainola and Shidler you can always remember your teachers. 

The only reason I had two first grade teachers is Aunt Give (long e) commonly known as Miss Snyder got sick and had a brain tumor.  She did pass away after a period of trying to recover.  Mrs. Casselman took over and she taught 1st and 2nd grade and both classes together had 11 until Ralph showed up for a short time, then we had 12 but only 5 and sometimes 6 in the 1st grade.  The 3rd, 4th and 5th grade was taught by Miss Shumate and we had 5 and sometimes 6 in my class depending on Joy Frank changing from Shidler to Grainola and then back to Shidler.  I never did know why she changed.  Seventh and eighth grade was taught by Mr. Morris and then we had 5 in the 7th but I left early to go to Shidler and that left just 4 (Jim, Jon, Hugh Allen and Denise) for the 8th grade.

OK, back to the listen and learn vs listen to respond.  I guess I was fairly aggressive in that I always wanted to be first in getting the answers to questions from the teachers except when it came to spelling.  Thank goodness for spell check for me.  This continued through high school and pretty much disappeared in college as it was mostly just listening to a professor/teacher talk (I hesitate to say teach as many teachers/professors just want to tell you their opinions).  As you can probably tell, I don't think too highly of college and what it does for a person's career.  But that is another story.

So here is where listening to learn vs listening to respond became important, Career and MARRIAGE!  I was amazed when I went to work for EDS in Dallas and the emphasis, they put on learning how to develop programs/systems for banks but first learning what the customer wanted, not what I thought was more important.  Later in my career I discovered many computer geeks thought they knew better than the customer what was needed.  This kind of reminds me of government and how they pass laws and compliance issues on business without having the least bit of experience and understanding of what the impact on business would be.  If you disagree, look around and see how many small towns and businesses have disappeared due to the burden of regulation (another story). 

But then there is marriage.  Men, listen to learn and you will be a better husband.

So what do you learn in the Osage?

• it is cheaper to listen and learn than listen and respond
• wisdom is the art of listening and learning
• you can stay out of trouble a lot easier if you listen or watch and learn

Well, thanks for listening,

gary.olson@finaciti.com

What was it like living through Covid, 2020 to 2024?

 Wow!  Suddenly the country was shut down basically by our government.  Between the government and the media, we were frightened for our family and friends.  

Family life became closer nit due to lockdowns and remote work.  We spent more time together and played more games and we watched a lot of TV to know what was going on in the world.  Probably one of worst aspects was out of fear the schools were closed.  Kids did not learn, and they lost time in all their activities.  We were almost in a prison, locked up and even the groceries were either delivered to the door or we ordered online, and our cars were loaded, but no walking the isles.  

Restaurants were shut down and drive throughs and outside deliveries were common.  No sit-down eating was allowed.  Think of the owners and the employees who both lost their incomes. Many businesses never reopened.  Amazon became a huge thing as it was totally online and door to door delivery of everything.  Government aid programs helped some businesses to stay afloat.

Social life was turned upside down.  Friends and even churches could only meet via the internet and Zoom became a huge help during that time.  Drive by birthdays were normal.  Our oldest son, a fireman, was constantly exposed to the virus and yet he survived.  He also shared that there were dramatic increases of medical issues and deaths.  Mental health skyrocketed with anxiety, depression, and loneliness.  As churches started to meet again we had every-other row marked off to help keep distance between folks.  Choir was canceled.  Sunday School or community groups went to online meetings.  

So it has been over five years and what lasting effects remain?

• remote and hybrid work remains - lots of automation to replace workers
• millions of folks retired and have never returned to the work force, some due to age but some just found another way to live and get by
• Dramatic inflation and availability of goods and services drastically reduced and/or changed
• Cities saw a mass migration to rural areas and lost tax revenue due to the shift
• We finally could get medical help/docs over the phone or via internet chats
• lots of lingering Covid related health issues remain
• delayed weddings and funerals especially were changed 
• some folks never returned to church gatherings
• online education is forever here

So, what do you learn in the Osage?

• Be careful in over-reacting and even under-reacting 
• Life is short and knowing Jesus is much more important when you understand that the end is potentially nearer than you once believed.
• God and family are much more important than I once thought

Thanks for listening,

gary

gary.olson@finaciti.com

How did the depression make a difference in your life?

 I know that I did not grow up in the depression, but it certainly made a difference in my life.  Mom and dad grew up during those times including the Dust Bowls, Depression, WWI and mostly WWII plus lots of presidents and lots of politics.  

Did it make a difference in my life?  Certainly, because mom became extremely thrifty, and she worked like a dog every day providing for the family.  Dad wanted to own land and raise a family that he could be proud of.  They both worked long hours 7 days a week from before daylight to after dark.  They both wanted their children (Larry, Debbie and me) to go to college and they taught us hard work, discipline and respect. They gave us values, honor and faith.  We virtually never missed church and knowing about the life of Christ.

Let me be specific:  We always had a huge garden and literally hundreds of chickens and I would guess over 100 hogs, and milk cows (a dairy for many years) plus beef cattle and even a few sheep.  Every year we put up (canned) hundreds of jars of vegetables for the winter.  We butchered chickens for meat and harvested eggs for the kitchen plus we traded eggs at Dale's Feed Seed and Fertilizer store for groceries.  We separated the whole milk and sold off the cream and then the milk for income.  We even made our own butter for years and to tell you the truth, I was glad to see those sticks of butter in the store and then our kitchen.  It saved a lot of work.  All of this was a reflection of mom's thrifty ways.  She made clothes for the entire family, except for the Levi's and even those were patched many times to make them last.  

Another reflection of the lasting effects of the depression is that being the youngest, I got to wear the used clothes of Larry, my brother, and Billy Snyder, my first cousin.  That is, until I outgrew them and that was about the time I hit 12 or 13.  Debbie, my sister, and the Shumate girls all learned to sew and make their own clothes.  Mom was a great teacher.

Another thing my parents did, and I believe it was due to the depression, was giving or I could say sharing what we had with others.  They gave even when it hurt as they saw others in need more than us.  I would say they happily gave, and they never asked the government to take their place in that giving.  They did not require something in return, because they understood the law of giving was a gift in itself.

Leftovers were never wasted with the one exception of liver.  Dad hated liver, so we got to use it for fish bait, so maybe it was not wasted either.  Vehicles were driven for years and were totally repaired and maintained by us.  Even the tractors were maintained and never traded for a newer model.  We used everything until it could be used no more.  

So what do you learn in the Osage?

• A great life is made by the values you learn, the hard way or should I say hard work
• Without a good example of a father and mother, growing up can be very difficult
• Give and give until you can give no more and give some more, you will be richer for it

Thanks for listening,

gary

gary.olson@finaciti.com

Honey Bees in your face -

 I never knew why but Mr. and Mrs. Fulsom seemed to really like me and insisted on hiring me to do any job they needed at their house.  When you are kid, folks always seemed old, and Mr. and Mrs. Fulsom were always old.  They lived in Grainola just east of Aunt Gladys (Mrs. Snyder) in a wonderful house with a giant wrap around porch and a detached garage with living quarters above the garage.  They had a crawl space under the house bigger than I have ever seen.  I could actually stand up in it.  Also, I should mention it was a rock house and, in my mind, the prettiest house in Grainola.  One last note before I get back to the story.  One of their daughters married Jack Heath (brother to my uncle Bill who married Aunt Peggy-mom's sister), father of Jim and Clarissa, and she could play basketball with the best of them.  In fact, she could play tennis as well.  Deanie was her name, and I have no idea if that is how you spell it.  Her sister was also on the team, and I hear she was a great player as well.  I believe Mildred Kelly was on this team as well.  They were the 1950 state champion girl basketball team. OK, back to the story.

Honeybees:  Mr. Fulsom asked me to repair the roof on his house and it was two stories tall, so we had to set up some scaffolds (dad, me and my brother Larry).  I know Mr. Fulsom knew that I would need dad, but he always asked me, and I never knew why.  So here we are on top of the scaffolds repairing the roof and some honeybees start coming out of the attic of the two-story house.  The more we hammered those nails the more bees came out until there were literally thousands.  Larry jumped down and ran to the pickup as he did not want to be stung.  Dad just said ignore them and keep on putting up shingles and hammering those nails.  I could see the bees were landing all over him and crawling in his hair and across his face.  There were hundreds landing on me as well and finally they were walking across my face.  I drew a steady hand until one of them walked across my eyelid.  I looked at dad and said I am done.  I slapped that bee and jumped down about 10 feet to the ground and took off running.  The bees were chasing me, and dad was just laughing at me.  I ran to get in the pickup with Larry, but he LOCKED the door.  I have no idea how far or how long I ran but I was stung at least 9 times!  I guess I was just too sweet to resist.  Finally, they stopped, and I rolled in the grass to keep them off until they were gone.  

The cool thing was we finally completed the roof, and dad knew how to smoke out the bees so they would not swarm, and we could get the honey.  I really do not remember how much honey there was, but it was huge, and I would bet it was at least 10 lbs. of honey.  

So, what do you learn in the Osage?

• When there is something sweet, there is always a bite to it, especially with girls.
• Every job has its challenges, but some have a sweet ending.
• You do not need to lock the pickup to keep out the bees.

Thanks for listening,

gary

gary.olson@finaciti.com