Chocolate, Radiators, and Photography: How They Connect with my Writing Life

July started with a fun trip to my hometown in Gaylord, Michigan. Since it’s about 1,000 miles from Tulsa, Robert and I stayed overnight in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Gawh, that twelve-hours of driving wasn’t for me! I’d rather fly than drive, but we wanted our car, so we could incorporate some writing research.

At least, we only had about a six-hour drive on the next day. We stopped in Owosso, Michigan for book research (more details in this newsletter), then drove the remaining 2-1/2 hours to Gaylord.

We attended my niece’s wedding on Saturday. It was a fun wedding and definitely visiting with so much family was a highlight of the trip! (The featured image is Robert and I at the wedding.)

Another was the beauty of northern Michigan. We stayed at my parents, and everyday ushered a variety of wildlife in their backyard.

They built a house in the woods, so we’d see wild turkeys, deer, a black squirrel, and a menagerie of birds such as cardinals, mourning doves, and robins.

If you’ve never visited Northern Michigan, I highly recommend it especially if you enjoy the outdoors.

On our drive home, we took three days. It was our way of celebrating our second wedding anniversary. We took the scenic route along the western end of the state, and stayed overnight in Benton Harbor along Lake Michigan. The next morning, we jumped in the cold but clear lake but it felt so refreshing. And the ivory sand was soft on under our feet.

After days of driving, boy were we glad to pull into our home. Well, until we discovered the air conditioner didn’t work. URGH! We left the low 80s in Michigan and came home to 112! After twenty minutes of enduring the heat, we were dripping in sweat. So, we stayed with his parents until the tech fixed the problem two days later.

At least, we got to pray with the A/C tech. When we asked if we could pray for him, he said, “I’ve got a sad story to tell.” Boy, praying for him and hearing his story, made the minor inconvenience of the a/c going out, worth it. We were thrilled to pray and share the love of Jesus in his time of need.

 

Marry For Love

Why did we stop in Owosso? (Yes, it’s spelled with an “o” for any Okies, who were wondering.)

Answer: Researching for Marry for Love, the fictionalized version of my grandparents’ love story. Growing up, I’d visit my grandparents in Owosso every summer. But it’s been over twenty years, so I recognized little in Owosso except the Shiawassee River flowing through the city and countryside.

Armed with addresses and names of sights in the novel, my hubby and I explored key spots. It was a rewarding visit!

Highlights:

Candyland: My grandma worked at this restaurant and chocolate shop as a waitress around seventeen to eighteen years old. Back in the 1920s, two Greek immigrants opened this fine dining restaurant, candy shop, soda fountain, and short order counter; Candyland was an all-in-one eatery for the city.

On this trip, Robert and I chatted with the woman who runs the Shiawassee Art Center. She shared how her grandmother would dine at Candyland. When she’d order a sundae, the server would pour the homemade hot fudge from a fine china pitcher onto the ice cream.

Today, Murtle’s Handmade Chocolate is there. How fitting! We asked the owner if anything was original to the shop. She pointed out the ornate ceiling and the pipes from the former soda fountain along the brick wall.

When I shared my grandmother worked at Candyland, she got ecstatic. She asked if my grandma knew what types of chocolates they made there, so the owner could feature them in honor of Candyland.

Of course, I’d ask her. The owner provided a piece of complimentary chocolate (of my choice) to gift to Grandma, LOL.

Fedders Factory: In the late 1930’s, Fedders was a newly constructed factory that made automobile radiators. They were very prosperous especially with Motor City only 92 miles away. Over time, the company closed and through the years, the property exchanged hands with various manufacturing companies.

Fedders was also the “magical” setting where my grandparents connected. For months, my grandpa would send notes down the conveyor, asking Grandma out! Feeling sorry for my grandpa, Grandma finally said yes to a date. Three dates later, she fell in love!

So, I wanted to see if the original building was still there. And low and behold, I saw a red brick structure amongst the modern steel buildings. (I assumed the brick structure was the original factory.) We could only see it from the side street since we couldn’t access the private parking lot for a closer look.

Five Points: My grandpa Freeman’s family were some of the earliest residents of Owosso. So, they settled on prime farming land at an intersection called Five Points. They owned land on both sides of the Shiawassee River. Robert and I drove to this area, admiring the beauty of the bountiful green fields and the thick forest near the river.

My grandma shared the Freemans would host family reunions by the river. And my dad remembered going fishing with my grandpa here.

Grandma’s response:

When we visited Grandma in Gaylord, we shared about Murtles. But she couldn’t remember the exact chocolates they made at Candyland, but emphasized they made everything. Then she walked down memory lane, sharing stories from this time of her life.

• How the short-order cook gave her ride home and probably had a crush on her.
• How she’d “grab” pieces of chocolate off the conveyor when the candymaker wasn’t looking.
• The day when a patron came to Candyland, to inform that Fedders was hiring six women. Since they would pay more than the restaurant, Grandma went to the factory first thing the next morning. Even now, she looked thrilled that they hired her. (She was nineteen years old at the time.)

I’m always amazed by her memory at 101 years young!

Christmas at Sonshine Barn: 

Since Garrett, the main character in my novella, Christmas at Sonshine Barn, is a professional photographer, I wanted to understand the basics of photography. So, my hubby, and I enrolled in a five-week photography course at Apertures, a local photography shop. We’ve taken two courses now, and each week, we have assignments. (The photos of the chocolate shop and Fedders were taken from my phone since the photography class started after our Michigan trip.)

My first homework assignment was harder than I expected. We had to shoot six shots outside using manual mode. So, at 5:00  p.m., I walked around my neighborhood and captured nature shots. The first few were almost black, so I changed a few settings until the photos were brighter.

Then in class, our teachers (a husband and wife duo) reviewed our photos with everyone. Their feedback was helpful. Robert and I are having fun learning this world of photography. And I feel better having some pedestrian knowledge for the book.

Here are the “best” of the photos I captured: