May 24, 1924 to December 19, 2003
What can I say about my father?
Without a doubt he was a difficult man to get to truly know. Although he never had a problem telling you what was on his mind, he did have difficulty expressing his deeper feelings.
He could be at times obnoxious, irritating, but then roll over to being goofy and even funny.
Born and raised in Plainfield, NJ, he lived in that area his whole life. Although that doesn't sound like much, his contributions to the area were many. Heading out to war in 1943 he strode across the beaches at Normandy in the 5th wave of troops.
Shortly after returning from the war he married my mom, Patricia, and began the long hard job of living his life. His entire life he was a mason, first working for a few contractors, then branching out on his own with Middaugh Mason Contractors.
What little I know about our family and it's place in NJ is included here.
Apparently the Middaugh homeland is in Somerville, NJ, off of, that's right Middaugh St.. You can see a few pictures of me hanging with the curator of the site as well as a few shots of the Middaugh and Wallace Historic Sites
As far as the actual history of my direct family on the Middaugh side, I can tell you that my grandfather was a mason and lived in Plainfield, NJ all of his life. Like my brother he divorced and remarried the same woman twice.
Not a lot to tell there, I also believe I have a few relatives in Lake Hopactong, NJ but I've never met them. So....enjoy the pictures and stay out of trouble!
What can I tell ya about my parents? They are part of what has been called "The Greatest Generation", survivors of the Great Depression and WW II.
They married just a few months after meeting each other in 1946, in Plainfield, NJ where they both grew up.
My father had his own masonry business most of his life and kept a long list of hobbies from race cars to airplanes to fish tanks.
Mom was what some call a housewife, but the women of their generation were a little more than that. She was the linchpin that held the household together, always there with a helping hand or idea and very encouraging.
Together they raised 3 kids, owned a house, helped build half of the area in which they lived and made it through some of the most hectic times in our planets history.
I'm not going to say I can agree with everything they have done, but I can certainly say I am proud to be their son.
Here are a few pictures of moments from the lives of 2 people who are direct links to our past.
My sister, Linda Gay Middaugh Bodemer, born Feb. 5th 1949, is a child of that mythical era "The 60's" man, can you dig it?
She was there for all the big ones, JFK, man on the moon, Woodstock,'Nam.
I was going to write about what my impressions of the woman were, but instead I am going to do a Q and A with her to get her personal feelings about growing up in that turbulant era and how times have changed.
All I'll say about her is I know her to be pretty much rock solid, a believer in what she feels is right, a mom...and grandmom, and her home has a cool Christmas motif.
So read on about the life and times of a "60's Baby Boomer"
What do you say about a guy in his 40's who collects Star Wars junk, comics , and prefers working out and bike riding to watching the TV.
Well, you could say he works in the traffic control industry for Marbelite Co., Inc. , does websites and graphic design in his spare time for "mental hobbies". You might mention his strong views on the true meaning of "religion", or class discrimination, or terrorism against the native people of America, or why the public has such a fascination with "celebrities".
But that might get you annoyed, let's just say, I'm a straight up guy, who wants a little more unity and less self absorption in this planet.
Middaugh
