A Frame of Reference
By Veronica MacDonald Ditko
An Accidental Anthropologist
I have a great four-section frame sitting on my shelf and I contemplate putting new photos in it. It currently has photos of my family while I was in college, and got stored away until I bought a house many years later. All that time I wondered [...]
By Veronica MacDonald Ditko
An Accidental Anthropologist
There is something mesmerizing about bubbles. And if they are within reach, the urge to pop them is almost unstoppable (or maybe that’s just me!). But where does this fascination come from?
If you think about our forefathers, when would they have seen bubbles before liquid soaps were invented? Perhaps [...]
Galoshes Galore
By Veronica MacDonald Ditko
An Accidental Anthropologist
Rainy days aren’t so bad in my house. My eldest loves to go outside in his rubber boots and use my ladybug umbrella (yes, I still retain ownership of my childish umbrella!) and splash vigorously in puddles. It is one of childhood’s simplest joys.
Lately I’ve noticed a lot of [...]
Water for Fire - Hydrants are Nothing New
By Veronica MacDonald Ditko
An Accidental Anthropologist
All the flooding lately has got me thinking about water. Water seems plentiful in our area, but since the beginning of time, humans have worked hard to harness the water and guide it. Sometimes that works, sometimes it doesn’t. Great things have come [...]
Are You Mad for March Madness?
By Veronica MacDonald Ditko
An Accidental Anthropologist
For many sports fans, March is synonymous with only one thing: college basketball. The March Madness tournament may be what gets them through winter, cheering their team on. Or the team they are desperately hoping will win the office pool.
I have some skeletons in the [...]
How Many Names Do You Know for Groundhogs?
By Veronica MacDonald Ditko
An Accidental Anthropologist
Groundhogs have been in the spotlight lately, thanks to Punxsutawney Phil and Staten Island Chuck. What these furry creatures are called actually depends on what part of the country you are from. I have informally analyzed them below (please note that I not [...]
By Veronica MacDonald Ditko
An Accidental Anthropologist
On January 17 we celebrate the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., which was really on January 15, 1929. We’ve all heard a lot about King over the years, his “I have a dream” speech, and the details of his death. He was a non-violent voice for human equality [...]
Wrapping My Head Around Christmas Bows
By Veronica MacDonald Ditko
An Accidental Anthropologist
I’ll never forget how quickly it happened. I was staring at the machine at Hallmark’s Visitors Center in Kansas City and before I knew it, in a few swift movements, the machine had created a perfect no-knot bow. I was 11 then and I am [...]
Carving Out the Truth: Are Turkey Hats for Real?
By Veronica MacDonald Ditko
An Accidental Anthropologist
You see them in store windows and on classroom walls. You’ve probably seen them for so long, you don’t notice them. Turkeys are everywhere for Thanksgiving. But did you ever notice the curious Pilgrim hats with buckles on top of their heads?
Pilgrims [...]
By Veronica MacDonald Ditko
An Accidental Anthropologist
Does it happen to you? Does your hair stand straight up on your neck on the night of October 30? Call it what you want: Cabbage Night, Mischief Night, Goosey Night, it’s all the same. Expect to see some toilet-papered trees and egged windows.
My first experience with Mischief Night, as [...]
How to get model’s legs
By Veronica MacDonald
An Accidental Anthropologist
Most people fantasize about running away with the circus. But when it comes down to it, there are very few circus jobs that are really desirable. It’s not the clown that hurls through the ring of fire at top speeds. Nor the trapeze artist that flies without [...]
By Veronica MacDonald Ditko
An Accidental Anthropologist
Okay, so it’s August now. Most children have had at least two months to practice a favorite summer pastime -watermelon seed spitting. Time for the real competitions to begin!
At my childhood residence, our competitions were nothing much to talk about. My brother always shot the farthest. But he spent a [...]
Sandcastles Have Lots of Substance, Or Do They?
By Veronica MacDonald Ditko
An Accidental Anthropologist
Summer is here and sandcastles are on my mind. It seems natural to want to make something out of the immense stretches of sand down south. It’s like a huge sandbox! Put a pile of it in front of a baby and he/she [...]
The Fun of Kindergarten
By Veronica MacDonald Ditko
An Accidental Anthropologist
May is the month most college students run screaming from the hills that they are off for the summer. High school seniors have serious cases of Senioritis by now. And Kindergarteners, well, do they know what summer is yet?
It only recently occurred to me that all [...]
Zoning Out
By Veronica MacDonald Ditko
An Accidental Anthropologist
I truly get bitten by the daydreaming bug as soon as the weather gets warmer. Really it’s the sun that entrances me: the way the spring light dances and lingers during the day. And the smell of the thawing, melting earth – I just love it!
If I’m indoors, I [...]
“Then my heart with pleasure fills and dances with the daffodils…” - William Wordsworth
By Veronica MacDonald Ditko
An Accidental Anthropologist
Daffodils are truly one of the first signs of spring. Their bright and sunny heads pop out of the ground all at once, just when you think winter will last longer than Punxsutawney Phil says. And what [...]
Putting Your Best Face Forward
By Veronica MacDonald Ditko
An Accidental Anthropologist
I see it happen so many times on the road. People cross a street and never look back to see if, by chance, a car is turning onto the street they are crossing. This is not a comment on pedestrians or drivers really, but rather a [...]
Kooky Cookies
By Veronica MacDonald Ditko
An Accidental Anthropologist
The Holidays have passed but there is still one food that keeps on hanging around if you’re lucky – cookies. Or maybe the cookies are now hanging on your hips (admit it – isn’t that your new year’s resolution!?). Either way, they’ve made their annual appearance.
I’m guessing here, but [...]
My favorite part of the holidays is when we dim the lights at night and let the soft lights of the Christmas tree glow…
Scarecrows look a lot friendlier today, even cheery. There are a few Scarecrow festivals in the Midwest each fall…
