MINNESOTA MEMORIES
Minnesota Memories, Part 10: Working on George’s Truck Farm
In 1949 when I was 12, my dad and I moved to a small house on 15 acres of land. It was north of Duluth, just off the Miller Trunk Highway on Decker Road. The property was full of white pine and blue spruce with a trout stream about 500 yards from the road.
By Paul Slayback , December 31, 2011
Minnesota Memories: Down the Mississippi
One day in summer 1949, Mike Enrico, athletic coach at the Duluth YMCA, placed a poster in the Y’s front window: “Down the Mississippi — Tryouts.”
By Paul Slayback , December 30, 2011
Minnesota Memories: Risking my life in Duluth’s Bowery
In the west end of downtown Duluth, near the railroad tracks and about 150 yards from Lake Superior, was the area known as the Bowery.
By Paul Slayback , December 29, 2011
Minnesota Memories: Uncle John drops in for Christmas
I tramped down Superior Street in a light snowfall in December 1945, listening to snow crunch under my galoshes, the faint, tinkly sound of silver bells in the distance. I passed Salvation Army volunteers on street corners soliciting contributions from shoppers. Moving along, I noticed the people. They acted differently. I could sense it. On the street, in the market, in the stores, throughout the neighborhood and the city — smiles were wider, handshakes firmer, pats on the back heartfelt, greetings spirited and friendly. It was sudden and dramatic — like the first snowflakes of winter. School was out for two weeks —even brothers and sisters were tolerant of one another.
By Paul Slayback , December 25, 2011
Minnesota Memories, Part 4: Living the Ojibwe way with Grandma Baker
School’s end, 1943. To get me out of his way for the summer, my dad sent me to live with Indians. He sent me to stay 10 weeks with Susan “Grandma” Baker, a dear friend of my mother’s who lived about 20 miles from Finland.
By Paul Slayback , December 22, 2011
Minnesota Memories Part 3: Back to basics: A summer in Orr with Aunt Myrtle
The summer of my seventh year, in 1942, my dad sent me to stay with Aunt Myrtle, my mother’s sister, who lived with her husband, Sulo Ollela, and son, Raymond, in Orr.
By Paul Slayback , December 20, 2011
Minnesota Memories, Part 2
Paul Slayback, known throughout childhood by his middle name, Clarence, has spent most of his adult years practicing law in Newport Beach, Calif.
December 19, 2011
Minnesota Memories: A move to Duluth: Boys, bumps and blood
Duluth, December 1941. About a week after Pearl Harbor, my father moved our entire family to Duluth, a town of about 86,000. City life was a big change.
By Paul Slayback , December 19, 2011
Minnesota Memories: Finland, Minn.: My birth was a big surprise
Finland, Minn., is not a city, not a town — more like a way-station to the wilderness of Northeastern Minnesota.
By Paul Slayback , December 18, 2011
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