IRON MOUNTAIN — At my grandmother’s house are hundreds of pictures. They litter the walls to the point where there is no longer a wall to be seen; they cover tables and counters, sit on desks and window sills, and still yet, there are always more being added. I’ve said before that my grandparents are not the most nostalgic people, but my gram can be sentimental, and she loves fiercely. She has said in an interview that her proudest accomplishment of life is her family. This is why her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and extended family members decorate her house from top to bottom.

As I walk through the rooms at their home, I can see all of the stages of my life permeated through film. There are baby pictures where I’m wearing my dedication dress; two-year-old photos that remind me of the story my mother told me of how she would put my hair in curlers and I’d watch the birds with my dog Max while they set. I can see pictures of me holding my siblings when they were first born, photos of my horribly awkward stage that I wish no one could see, senior portraits, high school and college graduations, poses of me standing beside my grandmother in front of the Eiffel tower, and soon to be snapshots of my wedding.

Aside from myself, there are moments captured in time of all of my family members as well. My siblings, cousins, aunts and uncles, of all generations, share their places beside me on the coveted walls of her home. In us, her most prized possession, my grandmother is sentimental.

My mother learned from her mother, because if you walk through her home, you find more pictures than are even found at my grandmother’s. In our stairway leading up to the bedrooms, there is not an inch of wall space left uncovered. Not only does my mother have hanged and framed photos, she has dozens of picture albums. Each of us kids have our own “baby book” that covers the time from our birth to our first birthday. If you’ve ever wondered what I look like at 12 months devouring a Raggedy Ann doll cake, my mother is the one to ask. She has books that cover family vacations to Mackinac Island and Hawaii, Colorado and the Keweenaw. I often will base a period of my life on the photos I know have been taken. When was the last time we went to Disney as an entire family? Well, if I close my eyes, I can see the picture of my brothers, sister, and I all in ponchos, mildly wet, standing in Fantasyland. I can also see my wild hair and bangs curling up, and I know then the exact year.

Aside from the many albums, my mother also has hundreds of home videos. There are ones of us playing dress up, frogging outside, or just eating dinner. In one, you can see my me and my brother at the top of our stairs on Christmas morning, waiting patiently to go downstairs. After watching us talk to our mom, you can then watch in horror as my father, carrying my 6-day old youngest brother, vigorously slips and slides down the stairs, taking me and “Yack” out with him. The video promptly goes to black.

In my dad’s office, there is this old photograph of my Grandpa Swanson’s birthday. In the photo, he and my grandma are the only ones in focus. He’s smiling tremendously, as my mother sets down his birthday cake in front of him. She’s completely blurry, and you can only see half her face and her arms holding the delicacy, but you can see that she’s smiling too. My dad is there as well, but he too is not centered, yet his joy permeates through his mustache. I believe that they were in a park, sitting at a picnic table, and though I can’t remember when my Grandpa Swanson’s birthday was, the photo looks like fall, and so I’ve always pictured it as that.

Years ago, I found that photo in an old album of my mother’s. When I showed it to her, she instantly smiled and began to tell me about the day. I framed it, and gave it to my dad as a gift, because to me, that photo was precious. I hadn’t been born yet. I don’t think I was even an inkling of imagination in my parents’ minds, and yet by looking at that picture, I almost feel as if I can sense the emotions felt at the time. I feel as though I’ve been given a rare glimpse into the past, and even though it isn’t my memory, it’s still a part of my story. The photo captured effortlessly a moment that would have otherwise been easily forgotten.

As I’ve grown older and started my own family with my own home, I’ve carried on this tradition of immortalizing a moment through film. My husband gave his cousin a video tour of our house, and his cousin said that no one could question who lived there because there were pictures everywhere to prove it was ours. In reality, I hate having my picture taken. I despise how I tend to look in most of them, hate the fact that once a photo is taken these days it’s immediately thrown up onto social media for the entire world to see, and I cringe when someone asks me to pose with them and I’ve lost the right to my own facial privacy, as someone now owns the file. However, I love the results of a picture that is beloved.

Recently, my mom, grandma, and I looked through the hundreds of digital photos from my wedding, so that we could write down a list of all the ones they wanted printed off and enlarged. When I think back to my wedding day as a whole, I tend to remember the cringe worthy moments first. I remember having a slight panic attack right before getting dressed, not because I didn’t want to marry my husband, but because so much had gone wrong leading up to the wedding that I just wanted to get it all over with. I remember how the lunch wasn’t delivered for the bridal party, because the order was mysteriously lost. I think back on how when the groomsmen put on their vests, one was the wrong color, and so all the groomsmen had to rush to David’s Bridal, and exchange their attire for a completely different color. I remember the arbor falling on us as we were taking photos, and my husband and I frantically calling anyone who would answer to find sand bags to hold it down so it wouldn’t fall during the ceremony. I remember the five people who were no shows, and the cake I never got to eat and the wine I never got to taste. But then, I look through the portraits with my family.

As I sat there, with two of the most important women in my world, we laughed and awed and remembered all the perfect moments that were captured yet forgotten. I let go of the negative and was engrossed in the positive. I was able to see all the minute details I’d worked so hard on really come to life, because on the day of, I definitely wasn’t thinking of them. I was able to see the joy on my families’ faces as they hugged us after the ceremony, danced, and laughed at speeches. I saw the pride on my father’s face in the photos that showed us swaying back and forth to the song “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” and the pure elation as my sister joined in halfway through. I saw what I didn’t see on that day.

They say that smell is the strongest sense we have for recreating memories. There are certain aromas associated with certain places and experiences. I can’t name the scent, or even describe it, but if I’m even to think of my aunt’s house in Florida, suddenly I almost feel as if I can smell her home as well, because her home has its own smell. Whenever I walk into the department store Nordstrom, I turn to my husband and I say, “It smells like Grandma;” when I walk into this particular store, it is usually right near the perfume section, and she never fails to smell like luxury. When I smell hair spray or vanilla scented candles, I think of my mother. The air of fall makes me think of my father, and no matter where I am, if I smell grilled corn on the cob, I think of the county fair.

Photos are the sense of smell of material goods. They aren’t officially proven by science, but they evoke emotions in a nearly identical fashion. The power of a time captured in film is nearly immortal. I love pictures because it brings me back to memories I’d forgotten, or sends me to times I never experienced but now feel like I can touch. A picture is supposedly worth a thousand words; the memories, however, can never be measured. As Ansel Adams says, you don’t take a photograph, you make it.

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NURSING HOMES

Freeman

Kingsford

Scenes and sounds, 11:45 a.m. Monday through Saturday.

Sunday: Scenes and sounds, noon; Uno, 1 p.m.; dunking donuts, 2 p.m.; church, 2:15 p.m.

Monday: Pretty nails, 10 a.m.; library cart, 11 a.m.; brouhaha, 1 p.m.; bingo, 2 p.m.; ice cream social, 3 p.m.

Tuesday: Crafts, 10 a.m.; reminisce, 1:15 p.m.; Kentucky Derby, 2 p.m.

Wednesday: Room visits, 10 a.m.; rosary, 11 a.m.; bingo, 2 p.m.; movie and popcorn, 3 p.m.

Thursday: Reading buddy, 10 a.m.; Bible study, 11 a.m.; what’s the word?, 1 p.m.; Crystal Hogan entertains, 2 p.m.

Friday: What’s cooking?, 11 a.m.; bunko, 1 p.m.; happy hour, 3 p.m.

Saturday: Meet and greet, 10:30 a.m.; spinning records, 11 a.m.; Daily News, 1 p.m.; bingo, 2 p.m.

Iron County

Medical Facility

Crystal Falls

Room visits, 1 p.m., Monday, Wednesday, Friday.

Exercise, 11 a.m., Monday, Wednesday, Friday.

Sunday: One-to-one church visitors, 8:30 to 11 a.m.; room visits, 9 to 11 a.m.; reminisce, 10 a.m.; afternoon matinee with popcorn, 1:30 p.m..; Church of Christ, 3 p.m.

ManorCare

Kingsford

Wet your whistle, 9:30 a.m. daily.

Movie, 10:45 a.m. daily, and 3:15 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Gathering place, 11:40 a.m. Saturday and Sunday, and 11:40 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Popcorn Day Fridays.

Protestant Church service, 3 p.m. Sunday.

Exercises, 10 a.m. daily.

Sunday: Just jokes, 10:15 a.m.; morsels and more, 1:30 p.m.; Protestant church, 3 p.m.

Monday: Who, what, where, 10:15 a.m.; bingo, 2 p.m.; pokeno, 5:45 p.m.

Tuesday: Who am I?, 10:15 a.m.; Wheel of Fortune, 2 p.m.; Movie and a manicure, 5:30 p.m.

Wednesday: Remembering when, 10:15 a.m.; Boccee, 2 p.m.; Flip Five, 5:45 p.m.

Thursday: Crosswords, 10:15 a.m.; bingo, 2 p.m.; crafts, 5:45 p.m.

Friday: ABC game, 10:15 a.m.; Catholic Mass, 2 p.m.; chips n’ chatter, 2:30 p.m.

Saturday: Current events, 10:15 a.m.; bingo, 2 p.m.; movie, 3:15 p.m.

Maryhill Manor

Niagara, Wis.

Rosary, 8:30 a.m. Monday through Friday.

Parachute, 1:30 p.m. daily.

Monthly support group for grief and loss, 2 p.m. second Monday of the month.

Weekend pet visits.

Sunday: Rosary, 8:30 a.m.; Catholic Mass, 9 a.m.; bingo, 10:15 a.m.; Yahtzee, 1:30 p.m.; Protestant service, 2:30 p.m.

Monday: Nickel jokereno, 10:15 a.m.; crafts, 2 p.m.; Baptist service, 6 p.m.

Tuesday: Bingo, 10:15 a.m.; current events, 2 p.m.; sing a long, 6:15 p.m.

Wednesday: You be the judge, 10:15 a.m.; jokereno, 2 p.m.; Bible stories, 3 p.m.; Bunco, 6:15 p.m.

Thursday: Catholic Mass, 9 a.m.; Scattergories, 10:15 a.m.; Derby Day, 2 p.m.; Whammo, 6:15 p.m.

Friday: Exercise and trivia, 10:15 a.m.; happy hour, 2 p.m.

Saturday: Jokereno, 10:15 a.m.; pamper and polish, 2 p.m.; coffee social, 2 p.m.

Maryhill Manor, Alzheimer’s Unit

Niagara, Wis.

Bread making, noon daily.

Chicken soup, communication program, 4 p.m. daily.

Sensory group, 6 p.m. daily.

Movie, 6:30 p.m. daily.

Sunday: Table ball, 9 a.m.; puzzles, 9:45 a.m.; Bible stories, 10:15 a.m.; sing-a-long, 12:15 p.m.; bowling, 1 p.m.; bingo, 2 p.m.; balloon ball, 3:30 p.m.

Monday: Table ball, 9 a.m.; spelling bee, 9:45 a.m.; Bible stories, 10:15 a.m.; old TV shows, 12:15 p.m.; Animal Kingdom, 1 p.m.; pamper and polish, 2 p.m.; kickball, 3:30 p.m.

Tuesday: Play dough molds, 9 a.m.; puzzles, 9:45 a.m.; table ball, 10:15 a.m.; sing-along, 12:15 p.m.; foot soaks, 1 p.m.; creative art, 2 p.m.; balloon ball, 3:30 p.m.

Wednesday: Play dough molds, 9 a.m.; spelling bee, 9:45 a.m.; coloring, 10:15 a.m.; old TV shows, 12:15 p.m.; through the years, 1 p.m.; pamper and polish, 2 p.m.; golf, 3:30 p.m.

Thursday: Table ball, 9 a.m.; puzzles, 9:45 a.m.; Bible stories, 10:15 a.m.; sing-a-long, 12:15 p.m.; foot soaks, 1 p.m.; men’s group, 2 p.m.; parachute, 3:30 p.m.

Friday: Play dough molds, 9 a.m.; spelling bee, 9:45 a.m.; coloring, 10:15 a.m.; old TV shows, 12:15 p.m.; creative art, 1 p.m.; happy hour/music and memory, 2 p.m.; kickball, 3:30 p.m.

Saturday: Table ball, 9 a.m.; puzzles, 9:45 a.m.; Bible stories, 10:15 a.m.; sing-along, 12:15 p.m.; foot soaks, 1 p.m.; bowling, 2 p.m.; parachute, 3:30 p.m.

Victorian Pines

Iron Mountain

Exercise, 11 a.m. Monday through Friday.

Sunday: Bible study, 2:30 p.m.; refreshments, 3 p.m.; Super Bowl, 5 p.m.

Monday: Bingo, 2 p.m.; refreshments, 3 p.m.

Tuesday: Left, center, right, 2 p.m.; refreshments, 3 p.m.

Wednesday: Golden Throats, 2 p.m.; refreshments, 3 p.m.

Thursday: Crosswords, 2 p.m.; rosary, 3 p.m.

Friday: Bingo, 2 p.m.; refreshments, 3 p.m.

Saturday: Movie and popcorn, 2 p.m.

Florence Health Services

Florence, Wis.

Sunday: Bingo, 10 a.m.; matinee with popcorn, 2 p.m.

Monday: Horticulture, 10 a.m.; bingo with Bette, 2 p.m.; room visits, 3:30 p.m.

Tuesday: Poetry reading, 10 a.m.; travel to Japan with Valri, 2 p.m.; one on one time, 3:30 p.m.

Wednesday: Valentine’s cards, 10 a.m.; shopping outing to Walmart, 1:30 p.m.; tabletop bowling, 2 p.m.; room visits, 3:30 p.m.; music by Grace and Dave, 6:30 p.m.

Thursday: Lutheran service, 10 a.m.; massages and manicures, 2 p.m.; comedy hour, 3 p.m.

Friday: Catholic communion service, 10 a.m.; music with Crystal Hogan, 2 p.m.; social hour, 2 p.m.

Saturday: Bingo, 10 a.m.; Uno, 2 p.m.

Pinecrest Medical

Care Facility

Powers

Life connections, 9:45 a.m. every Monday.

Busy bee, 12:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Rosary 2:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Sunday: Grace church, 10 a.m.; Pictionary, 10 a.m.; cribbage, 2 p.m.; manicures, 2 p.m.

Monday: Song service, 1:30 p.m.; decorating, 3:30 p.m.; bowling, 6 p.m.

Tuesday: Resident council, 10 a.m.; happy hour, 2:30 p.m.; Scattegories, 3:30 p.m.; one to one visits, 6 p.m.

Wednesday: Casino outing, 10 a.m.; social circle, 2 p.m.; one to one visits, 3:30 p.m.

Thursday: Exercise, 9:30 a.m.; bingo, 1:45 p.m.; cards, 3:30 p.m.; ball toss, 6 p.m.

Friday: Mass, 10 a.m.; movie, 2 p.m.; fish fry outing, 3:30 p.m.

Saturday: Coffee social, 10 a.m.; crafts, 10 a.m.; bingo, 2 p.m.; balloon toss, 2 p.m.

Victorian Heights

Crystal Falls

906-874-1000

*Activities director out on leave. Call the home for additional information.

SENIOR CENTERS

Note: All centers ask for 24-hour advanced reservations for lunch. If you have meals delivered and will not be home, notify the center.

Alpha-Mastodon Center

906-875-3315

Meal noon every Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.

Amasa Center

906-822-7284

Open Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

Lunch at noon.

Bingo on Tuesdays.

Free meal drawing on Thursdays.

Breen Center

906-774-5110

Meals Monday through Friday.

Cards and games available 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 2 p.m.

Hostess on duty Monday through Friday.

Treats and coffee, 8:30 to 11:30 a.m.

Center retail store is open 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday; volunteers and donations are welcome.

Birthdays acknowledged every day.

Evening meals are on the first and third Thursday of the month. Salad bar opens at 4 p.m., with dinner at 5 p.m. Donations are $4 for those 60 and older and $5 for 60 and younger.

Blood pressure and blood sugar testing every fourth Wednesday.

Crystal Falls Center

Head Cook, Tracy West

906-875-6709

Meals will be served on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 5 p.m., with the salad bar opening at 4:30 p.m. The dinner donation is $5 for those age 60 and older and $6 for those younger than 60. There is a $1 charge for take-out containers. All are invited.

Cribbage will be played at 1 p.m. Wednesdays and be concluded in time for dinner.

The center is closed Thursday through Sunday.

A site council meeting takes place at 3 p.m. on the third Wednesday of the month.

A blood pressure reading can be taken by request at any time while the center is open.

Crystal Lake Center

906-774-5888

The center is closed on weekends.

Monday: Woodcarvers, 10 a.m.; mahjong in dining hall, noon; Les Artistes Art Club, noon; Bridge Club, 12:15 p.m.

Tuesday and Thursday: Pinochle, 12:30 p.m.

Tuesday, Thursday and Friday: Billiards, 9:30 a.m.

Wednesday: Spinning Spools Quilters Guild, 1 p.m., crafters, scrap bookers and others also welcome; knitting and crocheting class, 1 to 3 p.m.

Friday: Smear, 12:30 p.m.

Last Saturday of the month: Music jam starting at 1 p.m. Admission is free.

Dances take place from 7 to 10 p.m. on the second and fourth Fridays of the month. Admission is $6; coffee is free.

The Photo Club meets 1 to 3 p.m. on the first Tuesday of the month.

Evening meals are usually on the second and fourth Tuesday of the month. Salad bar opens at 4 p.m., with the meal served at 4:30 p.m. A donation of $4 is accepted for seniors age 60 and older but not required.

Home-delivered meals are for seniors 60 and older can be delivered seven days a week. Suggested donation is $4 per meal. For information, call Chris Tramotin at 906-774-2256, ext. 235.

Transportation is available from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Call the center to book a ride.

Felch Center

906-246-3559

Meals served at 11:30 a.m. Monday through Wednesday.

Bingo after lunch on the first and third Wednesday of each month.

A congregate jigsaw puzzle is done daily.

Aging and Disability Resource Center of Florence County

715-528-4890

Director: Tiffany White

Suggested donation for seniors older than 60 is $4 per meal. Residents younger than 60 must pay $7. Reservations and cancellations needed 48 hours in advance.

The ADRC can assist area seniors and those with disabilities with transportation Monday through Friday. Transportation reservation should be made with meal reservation.

Four senior dining locations are listed below:

Fence Center/Town Hall

715-336-2980

Meal at noon Wednesdays only. Reservations are requested. Cribbage and cards are available.

Florence Community Center/Town Hall

715-528-4261

Meal is served at 11:30 a.m. Monday through Friday.

Jigsaw puzzles, cards, cribbage and board games are available. The coffee is always on as well.

Senior Dining

Center-NWTC, Aurora

715-589-4491

Serving lunch at 11:30 am, Monday through Thursday

Tipler Town Hall

715-674-2320

Serving lunch at noon on the second Thursday of the month.

Hillcrest Senior

Dining Center, Aurora

715-589-4491

Meal is served at 11:30 a.m. Monday through Thursday. Jigsaw puzzles, cribbage, cards and board games are available. The coffee is always on as well.

Hermansville Center

Coordinator: Pam Haluska

906-498-7735

Meal is at noon Monday through Friday. Suggested donation is $3 for age 60 and older and $7 for those younger than 60.

Morning coffee is available daily.

Fifteen games of “fun bingo” are played each Tuesday and Friday, along with a 50/50 drawing.

Tuesday: Bingo, 12:45 p.m.

Wednesday: Cards played in the afternoon. Call ahead to see if a game will be going on.

Friday: Bingo, 12:45 p.m.

Monday through Friday: Walking in the gym, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. A treadmill also is available.

Friendly interaction with other crafters.

Iron River Center

906-265-6134

Meals served 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday; a $4 donation is encouraged from those 60 and older, and a $5 payment is required from those younger than 60.

Thursday meal, 4 p.m. salad bar, with dinner at 4:30 p.m.

DICSA operates all meals and transportation out of the Iron River Center. Rides are $2.50 donation for age 60 and older, and $3 required for younger than 60. Call 906-265-6134 to schedule a ride

Niagara Northwoods Senior Cafe and Center

Corrie Maule, meal site manager, 715-251-1603

Jill Anderson, senior center director, 715-251- 4154

Noon meals served Monday through Thursday.

Transportation to the meal site from the Niagara, Wis., area is offered.

They welcome any senior groups that would like to use the meal site as a meeting place — join them for lunch and then stay for a meeting or social time.

Wii games, cards, puzzles and board games are available to play.

Other activities are in the works — suggestions are always welcome.

Norway Center

Director: Susie Slining

906-563-8716

Monday through Thursday: Meals served at noon, with salad bar. Soup also is available at 11 a.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Milk, juice, bread, fruit, tea, and coffee served daily. Meal donation is $5. Reservation for the meal should be made in advance.

Two special-themed meals take place each month, with bingo, prizes and a 50/50 drawing.

Two evening meals offered at 5 p.m. on the first Monday and third Wednesday of the month, with bingo, prizes and a 50/50.

If Norway-Vulcan are schools are closed due to snow days, so is the senior center. If the schools are on a two-hour delay, the center remains open.

Cards are played daily after the noon meal.

Craft and exercise classes: Mondays and Thursdays.

Ceramic and art classes: Wednesdays.

Monday — Noon meal with fish sandwich, tator tots, corn, salad, fruit, juice, dessert.

Monday — Evening meal at 5 p.m. with famous company chicken dinner, mashed potatoes, gravy, vegetables, soup and salad at 4 p.m., dessert, 50/50 and bingo prizes to follow dinner; sign up early.

Wednesday — Blood pressure clinic, 11 a.m.

A senior coloring class meets daily. All are welcome. Some materials will be provided.

Sagola Center

906-542-3273

Meals: Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, 11:45 a.m.

Cards: Tuesday and Wednesday and Thursday.

Commodities every other month and quarterly commodities are every three months.

A puzzle table is available to enjoy.

Volunteers are always welcome.