Are You Afraid of the Dark?

The dark can be scary. It changes pretty, sun-lit woods you walk by during the day to a creepy, monster-filled danger zone you will only pass by in your car. The window you look out of when you're relaxing on the couch reading a book on Saturday afternoon frames a view of freshly mowed grass, colorful flowers and stately pines. At night you shut the blinds so you can pretend that nothing is lurking in your backyard trying to peer in your windows. An old, historic graveyard is the perfect place to walk your dog after breakfast, but you wouldn't be caught dead there after the sun goes down.     

But the darkness is not always full of hidden dangers, scary monsters and frightening shadows. The dark can be magical. When I drive through the neighborhood during daylight hours I see houses, some new, some old, some well-kept, some not so much. Some neighborhoods are street after street of cookie-cutter houses with small touches of individuality here and there. Others are house after house of mine is better than yours.

Yet when darkness falls everything changes. Lampposts come on, solar lights illuminate pathways. Garden statues become animated; fairies hold up tiny glowing lanterns, a lighthouse slowly turns, lighting the rocky path of a garden, angel's wings throw soft light across peonies and roses. 

No more my house is better than yours. No more cookie-cutter houses. No more some old, some new, some well-kept, some not so much. The lights that the darkness bring turn them all into a Narnian lamppost-lit forest of soft colors, tantalizing shadows, back-lit flowers and twinkling lights through slightly moving leaves. If you're lucky the moon is full and adds an extra special touch of awesome. And every season has its own unique variation of colors and lights and wonder to enjoy.

Magical.  

Happy Birthday to the Cat

Today my sweet boy turns 15. In people years that is 76. Older than my parents when they passed away (much too soon). We miss his sister, who lived to 13 until a mysterious flu-like illness took her pretty quickly. The Boy is still hanging in there. We shower him with extra love and attention (and of course treats) in case he has doubts about leaving any time soon. He has many nicknames. Poop Head, Booger, the Boy, Puppy, Kitty Poopy, Yoda (see picture below), Pillow, and Puke Face.

He earned the name Poop Head as a young lad. He loved to run full speed into the bathroom and sail into the toilet. I learned quickly to keep the lid closed. Booger was bestowed upon him when he caught a cold. It was amazing what came out of such a tiny nose. The Boy has no special origin that I can recall, probably because he was the boy and his sister was the girl. Puppy came about because he shared property with two growing up and I didn't want him to think he was any different than anyone else. Kitty Poopy is what my husband calls him when he leaves little nugget presents for us to find. Puke Face is what my husband calls him when he eats too much. (It should be noted that Mom is the designated nugget and puke cleaner-upper.)

My Boy spends most of his day as a man of leisure. Sometimes above the covers: 

sometimes underneath them.

He is a cat of habit, some new some old. Growing up in a single parent household was a breeze. Sharing Mom with a sister was too. If his sister was curled up on Mom's lap it was easy enough to put his head underneath her and shove her out of Mom's lap so he could take her place. His sister was a runt, never getting bigger than six pounds, so it was easy to get his way when he was so inclined. Sleeping meant that Mom always had to be on her right side so both cats could snuggle under the covers in a little cave. Sister got the bottom, the Boy got the top so he could put his head on the pillow next to Mom. The name 'Pillow' was bestowed because somehow by the morning Mom was using the Boy as a pillow.

When he finally got a Dad it took him a few months to adjust. Dad as well. He'd never had a pet of any kind before so it was a big change. But soon enough Dad and cat become the best of friends, and when Dad was home Mom was a distant memory. Dad learned how to belly rub like a pro and the Boy would do the drop and roll whenever he could. One thing did not change, and that was bedtime. Even though his sister was gone, the Boy still sleeps with Mom on her side under the covers, head on the pillow. Because Dad has his specific side of the bed, this means that Mom has to sleep with her back to Dad.

And if Mom does not place herself in the proper position, the Boy will either sit and wait patiently until she moves, or leave and come back as many times as it takes for her to do so.

He is stubborn that way. But we love him just the way he is.

The Boy would like it known that he intends to maintain his dignity throughout his twilight years. He has no intention of exhibiting the kind of behavior a certain cousin has been lately.

Just saying .....

Happy Birthday with love and kisses!!!!!!!!!

The Silo

I walk every day when the weather is tolerable. Near my house is a long stretch of woods and farmland that will soon fall victim to more houses, if you ask some people. Recently hand-lettered signs of crayon on construction paper were taped over the sign announcing the new housing development proclaiming that we need our trees.

I don't disagree with the sentiment. I know that trees are very important to our planet and I hope that the builders do not decimate all of the trees that line the fields that will soon become homesteads. But I would be a hypocrite if I protested too hard. Some day I would like to buy a few acres of land and clear a patch in the center for a house of my own. A house that I've been designing in my head since I can remember. It's been inspired by bits and pieces of my experiences, places I've been, houses I've seen, books I've read. What's really neat is that my new husband likes my design and the only tweak he's made is the inclusion of a man cave. Since I hadn't scoped out any concrete plan for the basement yet, I was okay with it. No, really. And I will promise not to sacrifice more trees than necessary when I build my dream house.

Along the edge of the tree line stands an old silo. There is something about the silo that catches my eye. Every time I pass by it I look through the thinning trees to see if it is still there. It is slightly spooky, yet sad, rusting and abandoned yet eerily beautiful.

I know that some day soon it will be gone. And I will miss looking for it through the trees as I pass by.

ETA 6/20/2012
I drove by the silo today. It has been replaced by a bulldozer. RIP.

Herkimer County Historical Society Fundraiser at Beardslee Castle

The Herkimer County Historical Society (HCHS) is holding a fundraiser on Thursday, May 17th, at Beardslee Castle in Little Falls, New York. The Castle is about an hour's drive from the Capital District (Albany, New York area), and the Historical Society is about 20 minutes west of the Castle.

The HCHS is a great place. I spent many hours there in the past researching the story of Roxalana Druse, and the staff is not only welcoming, but informed and helpful. Two ladies in particular I would like to thank publicly are Susan R. Perkins (Executive Director) and Caryl A. Hopson (Administrative Assistant). Susan and Caryl are also the authors of three books for the Images of America series published by Arcadia Publishing. They are the Little Falls, German Flatts, and Herkimer Village. If you are a history buff these are great books.

Off on my tangent for a paragraph.

This past holiday season a local shopping club had a huge display of Images books, most of which were locally-themed. I bought as many as the holiday budget would allow, and on a subsequent trip with my sister I excitedly showed her the books. To my delight she was equally interested and we spent some time browsing through them. One of the books was The Legacy of Nursing at Albany Medical Center. When I was a little girl I played in the basement hallways of AMC along with some of my sisters when my dad, whose first teaching job out of college was teaching nurses at AMC, had to bring us along to work with him. Gertrude King, a pharmacology instructor at AMC (see pages 56 and 74 if you happen to pick up the book) was one of my sisters' Godmother and a dear friend of the family. My fondest memory of her is a Doctor Dolittle party she threw for us when we were small. (The Rex Harrison version.) My sister found her in the book and then began paging through, examining each photograph carefully. When she got to page 77 she went hmm, and told me to check out the photo at the bottom. Sure enough, albeit uncredited, there was my very young Dad, teaching a class of students. We both shrieked with delight, right in the middle of a crush of holiday shoppers.

It's all connected.

The Village of Herkimer is located within the Town of Herkimer which is located in the county of Herkimer. The name comes from a famous general of the American Revolution, Nicholas Herkimer, who died from wounds he received while fighting in the Battle of Oriskany. Prior to 1788 the name of the village was German Flatts. New York Surveyor-General Simeon DeWitt switched the names of the Village of Herkimer and the Town of German Flatts when he made his official report:

n 1788, following the Revolution, the New York State Legislature met in Poughkeepsie to erect new towns in what was then Montgomery County.  The names of German Flatts and Herkimer had been agreed upon to designate the two towns.  Dr. William Petry met Honorable Simeon DeWitt, Surveyor-General of the State of New York, who had maps and a survey before him.  DeWitt asked the doctor as to the situation of each.  Looking up the river, (toward the west), Dr. Petry answered, “Herkimer is on the left and German Flatts is on the right.”  DeWitt, assuming the doctor meant the right and left banks of the Mohawk, as the stream flowed, wrote the names on the map in reverse order.  The name of Herkimer had been intended for the territory south of the river where the historic Herkimer family first settled and where the Herkimer Home is situated to this day. The error in understanding was enacted into law. (Town of Herkimer)

Herkimer Village is a very interesting place. It still retains an atmosphere of the past, and at night when the wind blows through the streets I swear they carry whispers. One particular area that is near and dear to my heart is the historic four corners.

On one corner is the 1884 Suiter Mansion.

One another is the 1834 Herkimer County Jail.

Another corner holds the 1834 Reformed Church and her ancient graveyard.

On the last corner stands the 1873 Herkimer County Courthouse, seen here in the distance past more gravestones alongside the Church.

These are just four of the historical buildings the Herkimer County Historical Society works so hard to help preserve and keep in the people's memory. (More about the places mentioned above in future posts.)

From the Society's website: 

The cost of the dinner is $40.00/person and $70.00/couples. Tickets are requested to be purchased in advance and are available at the Historical Society, 400-406 N. Main St., Herkimer, NY, Monday-Friday, 10:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. To order by mail, send a check to Herkimer County Historical Society, 400 N. Main St., Herkimer, NY 13350 and they will mail them to you. If you have any questions please contact the HCHS at 315-866-6413.

Beardslee Castle is a wonderful place with equally wonderful food. In addition, there will be a guest speaker, James Greiner, who will be discussing his new book about Roxalana Druse. I am already halfway through it!!! 

If you are able to attend the fundraiser, I'll see you there.

Remembering the Titanic Tragedy

I'm remembering the Titanic tragedy, which occurred 100 years ago today, watching The Unsinkable Molly Brown and A Night to Remember.  

One of my favorite Debbie Reynolds films is The Unsinkable Molly Brown. Molly Brown, given name Margaret (née Tobin), was born in 1867 in Hannibal, Missouri, the second of four children to parents John and Johanna who'd each been widowed young. When they met they were both raising a young daughter and added two sons and another daughter aside from Molly to their family.

Molly, or Maggie to her friends, was determined to marry a rich man. Her reasons were noble. According to Wikipedia she said:

"I wanted a rich man, but I loved Jim Brown. I thought about how I wanted comfort for my father and how I had determined to stay single until a man presented himself who could give to the tired old man the things I longed for him. Jim was as poor as we were, and had no better chance in life. I struggled hard with myself in those days. I loved Jim, but he was poor. Finally, I decided that I'd be better off with a poor man whom I loved than with a wealthy one whose money had attracted me. So I married Jim Brown."

Margaret and James were married in the fall of 1886 at the Annunciation Church in Leadville, Colorado. (And in the teeniest of connections, I too was married in the fall at Annunciation Church, although this church is in Ilion, New York.)

They ended up doing quite well for themselves in the end.

Molly was a first class passenger on the Titanic. She boarded in Cherbourg, France. When the ship began to sink she delayed her disembarkment to help others get on lifeboats. When she finally left on Lifeboat 6, she not only helped row but there are reports that she got the lifeboat to go back for more survivors. Hence her nickname "The Unsinkable Molly Brown."

Picture from Wikipedia.

The Between the Lions blog has a fantastic account of her Titanic story. Part One is here and Part Two is here. Part Three is here.

Her home in Denver is now a museum. Margaret did not waste her second chance at life. She went on to do many great things in her lifetime. You can read about her life here.

As for Debbie Reynolds, before the movie begins they show her interviewed by Ben Mankiewicz at the 3rd annual TCM Classic Film Festival in Hollywood. She tells Ben that "it was a great part for a woman, unsinkable, ain't down yet, gonna get through everything in life, sorta reminds me of me." She also said that it was her favorite film for her, as an actress. "Molly Brown was a wonderful role."

I know one Molly, Molly Bolden. She is the pretty awesome owner of Bent Pages Bookstore and Cafe. I first met Molly at Heather Graham's Writers for New Orleans Conference. I highly recommend this conference. It is a lot of fun!

Back on topic.

I am looking forward to watching A Night to Remember. Although I have read the book, I have never seen the movie. Based on the book written by Walter Lord, who interviewed quite a few survivors during his research, the producer of the movie, William MacQuitty, watched the Titantic being launched when he was six years old. TCM has an informative article about the making of the movie.

Closer to home, as I read up on the various articles about the Titanic, I discovered that there was a gentleman from my area on board.

Mr. Gilbert Milligan Tucker, Jr., native of Albany, New York, was a first class passenger who boarded in Cherbourg and survived. His final destination was home.

I found yet another connection while reading about the Titanic tragedy. Among the passengers who had a ticket but did not sail was a man named Theodore Dreiser. Many years ago I enjoyed a movie called A Place in the Sun which starred Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift. I later learned that the movie was based on the book "An American Tragedy" written in 1925 by Mr. Dreiser. The book was inspired by the true story of Chester Gillette and Grace Brown. (Craig Brandon has also written some non-fiction books about their story.)

Chester was tried and convicted of murdering his pregnant girlfriend Grace. He was executed in 1908 at the Auburn State Prison (Auburn, New York). I learned a lot about their story while researching a book of my own based on the hanging of Roxalana Druse in 1887. Chester and Roxalana had their own connection. They were both housed in the Herkimer County jail and tried at the Herkimer County Courthouse. Both cases brought national attention. And because Roxalana's hanging was so badly botched, New York State began using the electric chair as the means of execution, thereby sparing Chester the ignominy of being hanged. (More about Roxalana and maybe Chester in upcoming posts.)

So here's to the passengers of the Titanic, the heroes, the survivors, the fallen. May you all rest in peace.

I Enjoyed This!

Disclaimer: I belong to no political party but I do admire Hillary Clinton.

I stumbled across this blog recently: Texts From Hillary

And it seems Madame Secretary likes it too!

Thanks for the laughs, Stacy and Adam!

Pieces of April

April is a neat month, and not just because it is the month in which I was born. It so happens that it is also the month in which my husband and two dearly loved (and one too soon lost) cats were born. As a matter of fact, we were all born within 5 days of each other.

Today is Easter Sunday. A day of hope, and joy, and family, and good friends, and dinner. More things to others I am sure. It is a good day to look back on the sad things of the recent past and leave them there. It is a good day to take some of those things and learn from them. The lesson is that if you define your self-worth by how others treat you, others who have their own narrow views of the world around them, you may never discover how special you really are. (My husband has been trying to drill this in my head and I think he's finally succeeding.)

April is also full of spring. Some may say showers but we need the rain to make the flowers grow so why complain? It is a month in which the wind loses her chill and becomes a breeze, and the sun actually warms you when you step outside.

It is also the month for Passover, a holiday I admit I don't know much about although I do know it is very important to those who observe it.

There is Earth Day, Arbor Day, and World Health Day. We remember the Holocaust this month.

It is also the month in which many of us file our taxes, play tricks on folks, and the anniversary month of the Titanic tragedy.

I'll leave you with one of my favorite 'Pieces of April', courtesy of Three Dog Night and Dave Loggins. (This will take you to YouTube.)

Thank You Doris Mary Ann Kappelhoff!

Going through receipts and bank statements is very painful. Entirely my fault of course. If I had kept up all last year (something I promise myself I am going to do every year so the pain index on doing my taxes stays relatively tolerable but so far it's still a promise) they would have been filed months ago. Luckily I still have a little over a week to get it done. 

However, two very important factors are helping me through it this year. One is my wonderful husband. The other is Doris Mary Ann Kappelhoff, better known as Doris Day. The picture below captures the quintessential Doris look, sweetly beaming with a devilish grin.

Photo shamelessly lifted from Wikipedia.

I love Doris Day. I can watch her movies over and over and over without getting bored. She makes me laugh, she makes me cry, she makes me smile, and she makes me sing (no worries, the only one getting offended is my cat).      

Doris wanted to be a dancer but was badly injured in a car accident. She discovered that she could sing while recovering. Her life story is pretty neat, check out an abbreviated version here.

I am a huge classic movie fan. It's just my fabulous luck that this is Doris' birthday week (April 3, 1923), and we are being treated to a variety of her films this week on Turner Classic Movies. I was delighted to learn that we share a birthday month. (Sometimes it's the little things!)

Among the highlights of my tax preparation distractions: 

Move Over Darling - This 1963 film also stars James Garner, Chuck Connors, Don Knotts, and the always amusing Thelma Ritter. It is a remake of the equally entertaining My Favorite Wife with Cary Grant and Irene Dunn. Doris' character pays homage to the original in a scene with (I believe it was) Thelma's character. See if you can spot it!

Do Not Disturb - Doris starred with Rod Taylor in this 1965 film. She gets to play a wife, a mistress and a girl who's had way too much to drink.

Billy Rose's Jumbo- One of my favorite movie songs is in this 1962 film, "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World." It is a carousel-worthy tune sung by Doris and her smolderingly-hot co-star Stephen Boyd. Jimmy Durante plays Doris' father in this movie.

Midnight Lace - Rex Harrison broke my heart by playing the bad guy in this 1960 drama. I loved him in My Fair Lady and it was rough on my poor heart to see him so evil, especially to poor Doris. The famously talented Myrna Loy also appears in this movie. It was remade in 1981 starring Mary Crosby, daughter of Bing.

Love Me or Leave Me - I think this is one of my favorite Doris Day films. She co-stars with Jimmy Cagney, and they both deliver. If you watch it, make sure you have a box of tissues handy. The movie tells the story of Ruth Etting, a torch singer from the twenties and thirties.

Doris had a list of co-stars a girl could only dream of. Besides the stars mentioned above, the list also includes Lauren Bacall, Kirk Douglas, Cary Grant, Danny Thomas, Ginger Rogers, Ronald Reagan, David Niven, Paul Lynde, Dom De Luise, Jack Lemmon and Ray Bolger.

Happy Birthday Week, Doris, and thanks!

Pesce d'aprile!

Mega Millions got up to $640 million by the time of the drawing. And yes, I was one of the winners!

If you believe me then you probably don't know what today is.

Check to see if you have a paper fish stuck to your back. I need to get back to another April task, working on my taxes.

Until next time!