Faith and Begorra

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Nothing says Happy St Patrick's Day quite like a nice Irish lad......

Takes All Kinds

What do you like (to do or to be or to see) that other people think is weird?  This week while Amy was home we had spaghetti for dinner one night and she mentioned that her friends think it's weird that she puts butter on her pasta.  That's one of those things we grew up with so it doesn't seem the least bit odd to us.  Sometimes we forget that not everyone has the same experiences, so it's good to be reminded once in a while.  Although you always do hope that whatever it is that someone else finds "weird", they aren't also finding it "disgusting". 

I like to SLEEP.  And I pretty much like everything associated with sleep--blankets, pillows, quiet time and comfortable rest.  Some people think that is weird.  I guess it's not really so much the sleep they find weird -- it's that I love to NAP.  I guess this is on my mind because we sprang forward last night and lost an hour of sleep.  I did rest my eyes this afternoon in peace and quiet. Much easier to accomplish now that Amy has returned to school.  It was very nice and reminded me of how much I just love to nap.

I do believe, however, that this is also something I came by honestly.  The acorn doesn't fall far from the tree, as Mom would say.  Nanny and Weenie in particular seemed to enjoy resting.  Both Mom and Dad napped.  When I was in college, my naps were usually deep deep sleep often with vivid (sometimes BAD) dreams.  I don't get that kind of sleep too often anymore but it doesn't diminish my enjoyment of a good nap that brings on a renewed refreshed state of mind.

Are there things that you do that other people think are strange?  Don't worry--YOU aren't strange--we all are!

Priorities

I am not going to try to write something poignant here or I will sound like a moron (I can't even come close to Perfect Patty's writing)

And Away We Go!

We are thinking about finally taking that next leap in television viewing and buying an HDTV.  So many options to sort through!  This got me thinking about our television watching habits.  Of course, we didn't have a color TV right away (kind of like we don't have a digital TV yet) and I can remember watching shows in black and white on Dennison Road.

The sunflower clock on the wall would wind down to 7:30 precisely as a signal for The Monkees to make their appearance.  We liked to watch Daktari, I Dream of Jeannie, Flipper, Gilligan's Island.  It was a special treat to stay up to watch The Wizard of Oz or Peter Pan.  When Jackie Gleason said "And away we go!" it meant bedtime (very clever Mom!).  I remember hating having to go to bed so early especially when it was daylight but I can understand Mom and Dad needed a break.  I also understand that was probably pretty standard at the time--even so, I think we had a pretty early bedtime.

Mom liked to watch the soap operas, though I don't know which ones.  I would sometimes help her put the rollers in her hair so I could sneak a peek at the forbidden shows.  There was no such thing as turning on the TV in the morning before school or work.

There were only the network channels to watch after careful adjustment to the rabbit ear antenna so no small wonder you didn't have it on very much.  I put this picture up because one of my memories is that the TV was in this corner where the hutch is at one time--though that doesn't really make sense.  Mostly I remember it was in the corner where the Christmas tree usually was (where did the TV go when the tree was up?).  The clock was on a wall in a different room because I can remember kind of leaning around the doorway into the den/Mary Jane's room to count down the second hand.  That doesn't make much sense either but that's how I remember it.

I remember watching JFK's funeral on that TV on Dennison Road; the prisoners of war returning home from Vietnam on the TV in the den on Buffalo St but nothing historic comes to mind for Walton.  Mom liked to watch Mannix and Kojak and I liked watching them with her.  Today, Ryan and I watch movies together and I hope this will be one of his fond memories.

I suspect our children will remember coverage of September 11 as it was certainly a turning point in our history--you knew it as you watched it unfold.  I am surprised at how closely television is tied to childhood memories and how it evokes certain feelings.  

Happy 50th Paula!

Happy Birthday Paula!  I thought it might be a good idea to put 50 years in perspective with some of the other great things that are 50:  Domino's Pizza, Etch a Sketch, Flintstones, Andy Griffith TV show, Green Eggs and Ham! 

Fifty years ago, another Olympics was wrapping up in Squaw Valley and it was the first televised Olympics.  Apparently this was the scene of the "original" Miracle on Ice.  ABC paid a pittance for the rights after the other networks declined.  Isn't that something?

Ray Charles recorded his version of Georgia on My Mind in 1960 which brought him great reward.  JFK won the Democratic nomination for President which placed him permanently and squarely into the history books.  The Family Circus cartoon debuted Feb 29 1960 along with Paula.

Paula was born on Leap Year Day which was a Monday in 1960:  "Monday's child is fair of face..." (Me too!). I imagine it looked pretty much like it does today outside when Mom and Dad brought her home to the house on Olive Street to 3 older siblings.  I think we moved to Dennison Road that year also. Now look how far we've come!

 

Yep--scary isn't it?

Here's a little bit of fun.  These are not very high resolution pictures because I took them off one of the DVDs but I thought they were a lot of fun.

 

I don't know if anyone else remembers fishing here.  My recollection is that this creek access was near the Thruway entrance off Rte 5 or 20 past Sunset Bay.  I only have a memory of going there once but maybe it was more often.  I guess it was one of Dad's efforts to get us out of the house for a while.  I remember this culotte outfit--very hot for the day.  Anyhow, the reason I put this up was NOT to humiliate myself but to point out to my favorite daughter that she did not come by her good looks by accident. I must have done more fishing than you'd think.  Dad used to take us out once in a great while--another place was over by Clothiers I think.  And there was that time I caught the fish in Gloucester (wish I could find that picture).  That's me--all about the great outdoors!

And we all recognize Judy....or is that Ryan Patrick?????  I think I even remember that bunny suit!  Wow.  Enjoy the little trip into the past. 

We have had a week filled with joy and with grief.  Jim's cousin's son hung himself over the weekend.  Although they were able to get him to the hospital (ironically the same hospital Amy was air lifted to) they were not able to revive him sufficiently.  He was declared brain dead and I imagine this meant the family had to make that awful final decision to let him go.  They don't seem to know if he was experimenting with a "game" or if he had some other intention.  He was only 13 so unpredictability is part of the package I think.  We went to Pennsylvania and watched his parents, grandparents and great grandmother bury him.  Such loss is unspeakable. 

As is so often typical in such situations, mourners found themselves comforted by his parents instead of the other way around.  This is an amazing phenomenon to me.  Perhaps it's a coping mechanism for the grief stricken family to be able to wrap themselves around others and offer comfort and hope.  It gives them a function during a time when no sense can be made of your surroundings and loss.  If so, that's a blessing from God.

And speaking of blessings, Jim' niece gave birth this weekend to a baby boy!  A new leaf on the tree.  Gotta love it.  I think I have mentioned the great balance present in the universe and this is a perfect example. 

The events of the weekend also serve as a reminder to tell those we love how we feel.  Every day.  Every chance you get.  Love you all!