Aunt Netty’s advice regarding a move was “go.” If it doesn’t work out, you can come back. Her spirit for adventure was shared by the author and early family members who dared migrate from Norway to the northern parts of America. Shy of funds, Vold’s relatives settled in South Dakota. The author’s maternal relatives settled in Wisconsin. The first pairing between these large families occurred at St. Olaf’s college in Wisconsin and started many marriages.

Alfred Vold was a farmer whose sons, including the youngest, Clarence, disliked farming. In 1959, Clarence (“Kip”) enlisted in the US Air Force. He served as a combat crew member and then in weather equipment maintenance at various bases. Vold met his wife, Mary, in 1965 while stationed in Georgia. Their companion shepherd, Cindy, lived almost eleven years. Frequent visits to family helped ease the eventual loss of relatives to aging. Promotions brought responsibility and travel. In Japan, Vold served as an air flight scheduler at Yokota AB. The next move was stateside, entailing oversight for flight crews with training hours tracked in computers. Vold retired with 30-years active duty. Earning a BA in economics, he worked twenty years with the public for companies like Hertz.

This warm memoir reveals glimpses of early migrant settlers juxtaposed with newsworthy aviation history such as the downed Korean airliner 007. Vold clearly treasured details of life and recounts them as if yesterday, though the plethora of details sometimes distracts. The author approaches writing with the super-organized mind of an aircraft scheduler but with the artist’s ability to paint with words. The reader can open this book anywhere to one of a myriad of pleasing vignettes. Among wisdom and witticisms, Vold offers his secret for keeping calm. Sharing family and travel photos at the end of each of the nine chapters also inspires recall for a memoir writer.

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