Original Leisure & Entertainment

The oldest known paper doll card was printed around 1650 with two female figures and numerous dresses, headgear, hairstyles, and accessories. In the 1700s, paper dolls, jointed and mounted on sticks, were called “pantins” meaning dancing, ... Read more

Recently, Born Again Quilts acquired a very rustic quilt top circa 1920s-30s. It was the shoo-fly/monkey wrench/churn dash/hole in the barn door design made of medium blue chambray and gray homespun plaid blocks. The blocks and medium blue ... Read more

The phrase “nutty as a fruitcake” was first used in 1935 in reference to Southern bakers who loaded their fruitcakes with nuts. But what is the history of this heavy, fruit laden cake? ... Read more

It had been a challenging year in our rural community. Lots of older people had passed away, leaving their spouses alone. There had also been quite a few farm accidents from which people were recovering. Additionally, farm prices were low, ... Read more

Christmas was fast approaching, and as I sat in church, all I could think about was the many things I needed to do. The lesson was titled “Caring and Sharing,” but I heard little of it. Then the teacher said something that caught my attention. “As ... Read more

Why do we say “Merry Christmas” and not “Happy Christmas?” Most people often use the word “Happy” for the New Year, holidays, birthdays, and anniversaries. But for Christmas, the majority of people in the United States use “Merry” instead ... Read more

When former lake neighbor Susan asked me to sell the family quilts belonging to her East Coast aunt, I never dreamed what I would discover. Looking through the quilts with her down at Born Again Quilts, it was evident that some were worn, or had ... Read more

First used in print in 1749, the term, “housewife,” has been used to denote a sewing kit commonly used by the military. The pocket sewing kit was also known as a “hussif” or “hussy” (also spelled “huswife”). ... Read more

The year was 1941. There was news of the carnage in Europe and Asia, and many were grateful America was not involved. The country faced the hardship of the Great Depression, and even though Arden’s little community wasn’t spared, everyone had ... Read more

The Fort Wayne Philharmonic announced recently that it will perform a concert featuring the music of Academy, Grammy, and Golden Globe award winning American composer John Williams on Saturday, November 12th at 7:30 p.m. in the Robert Goldstine ... Read more

I love autumn: hands-down my favorite time of the year. My birthday lands in mid-autumn, the trees in Indiana make for a beautiful autumn and there’s nothing more fun than watching high school footfall on a crisp autumn evening. So why is the ... Read more

My daughter, Heather, came out of her room all bleary-eyed one morning. ... Read more

The 1862 Homestead Act signed by Lincoln prior to the Civil War was an important piece of legislation about federal land. The Homestead Act provided that any adult citizen who had never borne arms against the U.S. government could claim 160 ... Read more

October is my favorite month. In our home, it is a month-long celebration of cinnamon tea, cozy sweaters, and pumpkin beer. My pumpkin patch even produced an abundance of decorative gourds. I also spend the month preparing this movie review, ... Read more

Recently Shelley Bergdall Rothgeb and her husband Chris Rothgeb visited Born Again Quilts. As is typical of first-time customers, they stood and stared as they took in all the textile wonders BAQ has to offer. Shelley shared with me that they ... Read more

“Octo” is Latin for “eight,” this once having been the eighth month of the year in the Roman calendar. In the Gregorian calendar, which we presently use, this is, of course, the tenth month.  ... Read more

“Showing in select theaters”—the dreaded phrase I thought had vanished in the streaming era reared its ugly head when I wanted to see Marcel the Shell with Shoes On. It turned out that “select theaters” translated to a small handful of showings ... Read more

Donna and I had barely started dating. She played in the orchestra for a musical, so I went almost every night. One night after the musical finished, she invited me backstage. As we were mingling with other cast and orchestra members, one of them ... Read more

For years now I’ve made it a point to attend the annual Maumee Valley Antique Steam & Gas Association Show held East of New Haven on the third weekend of August. ... Read more

For me, anything with Zoey Deutch is a must-see. In Not Okay, Deutch plays Danni Sanders, a struggling writer who lies about going to Paris only to post a photoshopped picture of her at the Arc Du Triomphe minutes before a terrorist attack at the ... Read more

A service flag or banner is one that family members of those serving in the U.S. Armed Forces can display. It is officially defined as a white field with a red border, with a blue star for each immediate family member serving during any period of ... Read more

The month of September has three landmark days: Labor Day, Sept. 5; Patriot Day, Sept. 11; and the First Day of Autumn, Sept. 22. But in addition to those major days, here are some others you may want to consider observing: ... Read more

For many of us, summer means outings to the state fair and steam engine shows. But what do we know about the story and significance of steam power? For much of history, the only way people traveled was by foot or horse. There were no powered trains, ... Read more

A few weeks ago, I had planned to meet my friend Robin who summers at the family farm near Fairmount, Indiana for our annual trip to the Quilter’s Hall of Fame Celebration in Marion, Indiana. The morning of our planned rendezvous, I was in contact ... Read more