Mixed Messages and Memories

when kennedy was in the white house
we were children in the sun
smokin' candy cigarettes
cowboys and indians with toy guns
~"joe" by Jude Cole, from the album i don't know why i act this way

Been thinking...

Funny how stuff was so different "way-back-when." I can't believe I'm old enough to remember a "way-back-when." But I do.

I remember the newscasts on Saturday mornings in between the cartoons with the spinning globe dancing around and around the TV screen. I remember Afterschool Specials and School House Rock. I remember when you turned off the TV, and it shrank to a little white dot in the middle of the screen. I remember black-and-white TV with dials to change channels -- one for UHF and one for VHF -- we had one for years, even after we had a color version. (Now, kids watch shows in High Definition television. They very seldom are interested in anything NOT in color...that's really old.) I remember if you turned on PBS too early in the morning you saw the color test screen and heard the sound test tone. And I remember when there wasn't such a thing as a VCR...let alone a DVD player. If you missed your favorite show or a movie, you'd have to pay close attention to the TV guide to see when it might be repeated. Forget seeing many movies anywhere except the cinema.

I was listening to the above verse from Jude Cole's song called "Joe" the other day and realized how different the world is today. I wasn't born yet when Kennedy was in the White House. In fact, only one of my sisters was. But I remember the stories. And I didn't come into the world too much later.

Would we encourage kids to "smoke" candy cigarettes now? I remember "smokin'" them. And it felt "cool," though I never took up smoking...too many allergies. I don't know that it was encouraged as much as accepted. We didn't know as much about the hazards of smoking.

Now I preach to my kids to stay away from cigarettes. I'd never buy them candy cigarettes.

And do kids actually play "cowboys and Indians" anymore? What seemed like a harmless game re-enacting the past has become un-PC. What about "cops and robbers"...or do we worry about the reprecussions of children poking fun at those poor unfortunate souls that really need rehabilitation not jail time?

But childhood games haven't really changed that much, have they? There are still playtimes of good against evil. Afterall, they brought back Star Wars -- a classic tale of good versus evil -- to introduce it to a whole new generation.

Our kids actually play CTU agents against terrorists...gee, wonder where they got that from?

Odd really...mixed messages...memories...

*sigh*

"Way-back-when"...it really is a "foreign country."

On Buses

AAAAAAAAAAA!

Have you seen the new style schoolbus driving 'round your neighborhood recently?

It looks more like a giant loaf of yellow bread with wheels.

Ugh! I'm so disappointed.

I saw one on my way to drop off the kids at their homeschool learning group today. I found myself fuming inside. I hate when they change something familiar to me. Something I've grown up seeing a certain way.

Remember the "Blue Bird" style schoolbus with the flat front? That style didn't last long. I guess that was because it looked nothing at all like the pull-along Fisher-Price happy-faced school bus with big orange wheels.

But maybe that's what it takes...

I mean...

Why mess with a classic? Ugh.

Canon Fire

My parents' wedding, June 17, 1961
Pachelbel's "Canon in D"...

It's one of my favorite classical pieces.

A popular wedding song. One of my sisters came down the aisle to it. We used it in our wedding as the processional for my parents. I got to play it on my flute for our friends' wedding. I practiced it on our honeymoon since they were marrying a few weeks after us.

I remember the first time I heard it was on the film Ordinary People (excellent and very moving film, by the way). They actually sang words to it. I was so moved by it that I began a quest to find it. I didn't know about soundtracks yet.

Now this version by Trans-Siberian Orchestra has me visiting my blog just to hear the video playing.

My dad told a story about how much he liked the "1812 Overture" and would listen to his record of it with the lights off and the volume pumped up on his record player.

So dim the lights, light a candle, close your eyes. And fire away this "canon."

It's magnificent!

A Real Nappy Knight

I was perusing the Internet today when I came across this hilarious tidbit:

Kiefer Sutherland’s Thanksgiving Diaper Duty

Kiefer Sutherland showed his nurturing side on Thanksgiving.

The “24″ star was dining with friends at Gotham Bar & Grill and enjoying a Jack Daniels and Coke when a male pal’s baby started to whine.

“Kiefer went straight to the men’s room with his friend and helped change the diaper,” our spy said. “He was really good about it - a really nice guy.”

Other diners sitting nearby included Nathan Lane with a male buddy, and Tony Bennett.

I'm a big fan and all, but can't the guy do anything without being noticed?? This cracked me up for hours! I mean, it's a baby's diaper, for goodness sakes. Anybody with munchkins has "been there, done that," including Mr. Sutherland.

What's next?

Kiefer Sutherland ties his own shoes. He's such a nice guy. Look, he's actually acting human like the rest of us....

He is human. And a nice guy. But give him a break, and let him breathe at little without reporting on it.

(An aside: The comment left on this article was equally hilarious:

"Well I guess he's had a fair amount of practice over the years. What an adorable man. In his own words........'Bless his heart'. "

I think he only fathered one baby (and raised three stepkids moins les nappies)...and even then I don't know how often he would have changed her diaper. He is a guy afterall...and he was in quite a few movies during that time.)

Sheesh...the life of a star....never a private moment to come to the aid of a "pal" and his baby's bursting diaper.

So where's the photo??

Hating It Together

It's odd to think that we recently learned some helpful relationship advice from a Notary Public we used to refinance our house. But that's exactly what we did, and it was excellent! Read on:

My habit is to "fix" stuff.

Not in the traditional tool way. But in a feelings way.

I'm one of the world's biggest cheerleaders; all the world really needs is a "pep rally" to forget its woes. Ask my former roommate at college. You know, "smile and the world smiles with you?" Well, sometimes, she told me, the world wants to "bop" you in the nose to get you to stop smiling for a little while.

Maybe that's because sometimes people don't need to be "fixed." They just need us to listen, to "hate" the problem with them, not try to solve it.

Think that's why God gave us two ears and only one mouth?

Don't you just hate it when people forget that?

I'm "hating" it with you.

With Thankful Hearts...

I'm a huge fan of Norman Rockwell's artwork.

We've been to a museum of his paintings down in the basement of the Curtis Publishing Co., in Philadelphia. It had every cover of the Saturday Evening Post that he ever did. Quite amazing really!

This picture is one of my favorites -- though I have a hard time narrowing down an actual favorite -- and came to mind as I sat down to eat Thanksgiving dinner this year.

It reminds me of how much love and blessing we share in being with family, actually having family.

Our Thanksgiving dinner, hosted by my aunt and uncle, was very similar this year...only multiply the picture by 4. Lots of people, kids, and food. And even an uncle and aunt who joined us from Colorado -- a first in at least 5 years.

Family may annoy, cause confusion, be a hassle....but, in the end, a small moment of time like this causes a person to sit back and reflect on the blessing of it.

Especially when we realize that not everyone has such a blessing.

It causes a thankful heart.

Thanksgiving Blessings!

Happy Thanksgiving!!









Now thank we all our God, with heart and hands and voices,
Who wondrous things has done, in Whom this world rejoices;
Who from our mothers’ arms has blessed us on our way
With countless gifts of love, and still is ours today.

O may this bounteous God through all our life be near us,
With ever joyful hearts and blessèd peace to cheer us;
And keep us in His grace, and guide us when perplexed;
And free us from all ills, in this world and the next!

All praise and thanks to God the Father now be given;
The Son and Him Who reigns with Them in highest Heaven;
The one eternal God, Whom earth and Heaven adore;
For thus it was, is now, and shall be evermore.

~Martin Rinkart, 1636

Talking Turkey

(Editor's note: I promised myself never to go on a politcal soapbox in my blog...but my ire is up...so "sue" me.)

I'm amazed.

I shouldn't be...but I am.

Totally and utterly amazed.

According to a news article, Bill Morgan, an elementary school teacher in Long Beach, Ca., decided to teach his class a new variation on an old theme. He walked into class and began snatching pencils, books, and other bits of property from the students. Because afterall, he said, isn't that what the pilgrims did? It outraged the kids who immediately wanted their property back. Bingo! said Mr. Morgan. That's how the Indians -- who apparently were nomadic and didn't believe in "owning" something -- felt.

Come on, Mr. Morgan! What are you really accomplishing by teaching what you consider the "truth" on history made nearly 400 years ago??

What do we really know about that time period? No one alive then is alive today. We only have what was written by the early settlers...and what was passed down orally by the Native Americans. Hmmmm....

I worked for 3 years as a reporter. I tried very hard to be accurate in my reporting. I wanted to represent whomever I reported on in the most exact way I could. Did I ever misquote them? Absolutely. I'm human. My ears can only hear so fast, and my pencil only write as quickly as my fingers can help it.

Can we really know exactly what happened during that first Thanksgiving? Or is there some surmising on both sides?

Teach the truth, Mr. Morgan.

It's fairly basic. There were pilgrims. There were Indians. Both had some issues, but somehow managed to overcome those in order to share a meal together to give thanks for the pilgrims making it through another year. Friendships were formed. Agreements were made. They traded recipes and farming tips. Somehow they went on to live in "perfect" harmony....

And that's what should be taught. Not the mistakes made (and there were plenty, I'm sure)...but the good stuff that was learned and practiced afterwards.

That's the kind of world we want for our kids.

Because we cannot rewrite history...only learn and grow from it.

* * *

Just for giggles and grins, perhaps our government should try a re-enactment of its own. Have a "First Thanksgiving" feast together...to give thanks for what we as a nation have.

Sounds Good to Me

Emily, age 2 1/2, never one to resist dancing to music --->

Listening to Rocco Deluca and the Burden in concert last weekend made me think a lot about music...obviously. Watching the rockumentary of their tour in Europe reminded me how much music moves and reaches people -- of all nationalities. You don't even need to speak the same language to enjoy it.

* * *

Do you have a soundtrack in your life?

I think all of us do.

My "life soundtrack" is made up of all sorts of songs that conjure up memories, thoughts, and emotions for me -- making me feel a magical moment I thought I'd forgotten. I've always used music to help me in my writing.

Life is made up of all sorts of music. I think a person who learns early on to enjoy and/or appreciate all genres of music is the truly gifted musician.

I especially love soundtracks. I love the way the songs set the mood of the film/show and affect my emotions as a viewer. My video this week is from the Narnia soundtrack.

When I was younger I collected soundtracks on cassette tape (CDs weren't out yet...amazing, huh?). I could never replace all of them now -- I'd collected so many. It was the first thing I noticed on a film, especially if it was good.

The soundtracks to many of my favorite movies aren't available. I can watch the end credits to get snippets of the lovely melodies. Or just re-watch the movies. Somehow the music will become part of my own "life soundtrack."

I recently watched The Lake House. I noticed right away how wonderful the soundtrack was. It added such a depth to the movie.

Fortunately for me, it was available.

I'm listening to it as I type...

...and it sounds so good to me!!

Another bunch of tracks for my "life soundtrack."

B-more Rocco-like

Welcome to B-more and Rocco Deluca!

Wow! What a night we had on Saturday!

We headed down to Maryland to see Rocco Deluca and the Burden play at Fletcher's Bar on South Bond Street in Baltimore -- their last concert on a national tour. (Cool area of the city...and the best part was we found parking for $3!! Yeah, Baby! ) The concert wasn't until 8 p.m. so we decided to have dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe down along the Inner Harbor. Great place!! And excellent food!!

Then we headed over to the venue around 6:30, and each sat enjoying a Yuengling's, Newcastle Brown Ale, and Woodpecker Cider, respectively, until it was time to head up to the room where the band would play....at 11(!!).

What we weren't told -- and there was a good reason for that since no one would have come until after -- is that a local rock band called OFM was "opening" for RDB. Let me think of a word to describe said band....hmmmm.....AWFUL? No, that's too strong. They tried....at little too hard (though some of their stuff is very catchy on their website) to be like RDB? But they added their own "zing," bouncing around the stage, playing their instruments in the air, banging on trashcans, eating the mics, and, basically, screeching song lyrics that no one could understand... The drummer actually resembled "Animal" from the Muppet Show, complete with the huge, round crazed-looking eyes, fluffy hair, and open mouth. After they finally deafened us with their noise music for 45 minutes (an aside to the soundboard people: those sliders go up and DOWN -- does wonders for the music), we waited for the stage to be reset with RDB's stuff. By the time all was said and done, we'd been standing for over 3 hours and waiting for nearly 5. I kept reminding myself of how good Rocco and his group were in Atlanta...and how worth the wait....

And they were! They played new stuff and "old" stuff and rocked the house.

Afterwards, we were going to leave, but I noticed that the room had cleared out, and we were told that the band was going to come out. I asked if we could stay around and get a photo and autograph on my CD insert. Stuart agreed, and we sat in the room and waited. It wasn't long. Rocco came out and happily agreed to a photo with us. He chatted to Stuart about England. I talked to Ryan (the drummer), and it was like they were "old buddies" of ours. (Yeh, right! LOL!) I told Rocco that our daughter Emily is a big fan, and he smiled. We missed saying hi to Greg (the master percussionist) and Dave (the bass player), but perhaps another time?

Tired but exhilarated, we arrived back in W. City around 3 a.m.

It was definitely worth the wait...we're still humming.

Cheers, Rocco!

Rocco On...

Some clips from the Rocco Deluca concert in Baltimore, Maryland. They're short because my little digital camera's batteries could only handle short tidbits. But enjoy! I'll post a few more later.

On Chickish Flicks

I'm a sucker for "chick flicks."

I mean it. I love a good action, adventure movie, but I can watch the same sad, soppy, emotion-filled movie and cry almost every time.

As I sit here typing -- my face tearstained -- I just finished watching one of my favorites, Behind the Red Door. I can't tell you the number of times I've watched that film since I discovered it....and nearly every time I find my eyes filling up with tears and my heart squeezing inside my chest.

I know what's going to happen. It's not a surprise. I mean, I knew it before I watched it the very first time -- it's on the back of the box. But there's something about watching it that makes me feel like I'm there suffering through with the actors -- feeling the pain of his sickness and the loss of their newly rekindled blossoming sibling relationship.

I watched The Lake House earlier in the week -- All I can say is: Excellent! One to keep you guessing! -- and then River Queen yesterday -- nothing can describe this fabulous film.

But it wasn't until this morning that I found myself able to really let my emotions go (blame the hormones -- I did). And thank goodness, my hubby was there to soak up all my tears! It was like the stories were all floating around inside my head, haunting me with their emotional overtones.

Gotta love that!

Well, I guess...if you're into "chickish flicks."

Fudging It

I was getting ready to post another very simple and WONDERFUL recipe from Hellish Kitchens that is perfect for this time of year....and then realized I'd already posted it here.

It's for "foolproof fudge," and it makes a great gift that says, "I slaved away in a burning-hot kitchen making this delicious delicacy for you because you're worth it!" (Only you know that it took about 10 minutes to prepare...and then another 2+ hours cooling in the fridge.)

I'm including a photo of this yummy treat to remind you that life is short...eat dessert FIRST!

Join the Club

It's funny taking a backseat to watch our kids in their various involvements.

Emily joined 4H this year as a member of the Berks County 4H Rabbit and Cavy Club. She is "mommy" to one bunny named Earl Grey. She attends the monthly meetings with the same gusto and enthusiasm she does everything and has been a very eager participant of this club, even though half the time she isn't really sure what's she supposed to be doing.

But tonight she felt officially accepted. She was nominated to be a "Pledge Leader" for next year -- a small, yet important, part of the 4H club staff. She'll lead the club members in saying the 4H or American Pledge.

With shining eyes and excitement bubbling over, she called and told her daddy on our way home. She wanted to call her grandparents, too.

She feels all jittery...she feels important...she feels a little more grown-up...

But most important she feels like she's a definite part of this club. She belongs now.

That's a big part of kidhood, huh....

Next Stop: Baltimore

Well, this Saturday we're heading down south again -- not as far this time -- to Baltimore, Maryland, to see another Rocco Deluca concert at Fletcher's Bar & Grill.

Okay, okay. So we're a little "hooked" at the moment. But Rocco and the band really are fun to watch and even better to listen to in person (I think our hearing has recovered enough since Atlanta...) -- though the CD is getting a lot of airtime in our house at the moment.

The kids are going to stay overnight with my parents, and I think they're more excited about this weekend than we are.

You can almost hear them saying, "Go! Go now! Shoo!"

Funny how that happens....and they're not even teenagers yet.

Photographic Memory

I was perusing some old photos on my computer and came across these....

What do you get when you give your then-3-year-old your digital camera while you stand and chat with another parent?

Voila! A photo collage of pictures from his vantage point... Gotta love the digital age!

Word of the Day

camaraderie

DEFINITION:
(noun) a spirit of friendship.

EXAMPLE:
Spending long days and nights together on the road, the members of a traveling theater group develop a strong sense of camaraderie.

SYNONYMS:
friendship, connection

Only Time...

I love the music of Enya! I discovered her music while living in England. It matched the countryside and overall aura of that pleasant land. I found it inspirational to write to, read to, travel to.

So I bought every song she ever released. I love her music that much.

The song on my blog's video player at the moment is one from A Day Without Rain, an album that I played during Edward's birth. I can't listen to it without thinking back on that moment.

It was surreal.

We had decided to try having Emily at home. (I say "home" but it was actually my parents' home as we lived in a very small apartment.) And since it turned out to be a very "good" experience, when I got pregnant with Edward, it didn't take any convincing to go that route again.

I don't remember as much of Emily's birth as I do Edward's. Perhaps it was because she was the first, and it was longer.

But during Edward's I felt much more aware of what was happening. We sat at 3 a.m., having a cup of tea and chatting with the midwife about her experiences in Europe, with Enya singing in the background.

It was Valentine's Day...a musical moment in time that froze in my memory.

A definite "labor of love."

Missing Me

It's funny how somebody can enter a new phase of life and completely -- and happily -- leave behind the other bits.

I think that's what happened to me when I had kids.

I love being a mother. I love all the aspects, even when they frustrate me to tears (and beyond)...and vice versa.

But I think I got to a point in motherhood when I realized that I "missed" myself -- the "me" that I was before I had Emily and Edward....though you know there's really no going back.

You become immersed in a new world when you have children. You learn to sing songs you hadn't remembered since Nursery School. You talk in a new language about simple subjects you'd long forgotten in the complex adult world. You watch educational programs with an enthusiasm you didn't know you still had. It's like you become a "kid" again alongside them.

Then one day -- when the kids are little older and more able to do for themselves -- you wake up and realize you don't really know who you are. All the things that used to go into making you "you" are gone...buried beneath the mountains of toys, blankies, character underoos, and stripey, mismatched socks. You've traded in pens for crayons. Novels for Dick and Jane books. Adult music for Wee Sing tapes.

It's not a bad trade-in...not by any stretch of the imagination. But you've lost your identity as someone other than "so-and-so's mommy."

During the summer of 2005, I began to read again. Books. Actual stories written for adults. And this past summer I began to write again. I rediscovered parts of myself that I definitely missed...and enjoyed blending into the new "me."

Pumpkin Days

What do you get when you combine pumpkins with two kids and a gaggle of giggles?

Behold:

October 2001

Fabulous Fall Feeling

I love alliteration! (See above for proof.)

And I love a crisp Autumn day!

November 2004

It always brings to mind childhood memories:

**We liked to play outside until our noses froze and ran. (I was always thankful if I found a crumpled up tissue stuffed in my pocket.)

**We used to rake up the leaves and jump in them -- over and over until they were just leaf dust. It didn't matter how chilly the wind got. We always stayed out until it was too dark to see, and we smelled fresh like the cold air.

**Do you remember swinging and trying to touch the sky with your toes? I liked to try to touch the colorful leaves.

**My mom always bought ginger snaps in the autumn. So we enjoyed them with cold apple cider. Tastes that went with the season.

I'm always amazed by the way the trees change colors differently each year. We lived in a second-floor apartment in the city and had a maple tree right outside our diningroom window. Some years it was brilliant yellow. Others it was reddish-orangish-yellow. I loved that tree.

And I love this season, which is why I told the kids to abandon My Little Pony and her Ponyland Kingdom and bundle up to go outside and play in the crisp, fading Autumn afternoon.

The leaves have nearly all fallen...

Ready Reader

I'm trying to learn how to embed video into my blog.

So this is Edward last year at age 4....reading a Biscuit book to Granny and Grampy. If you click on the image, you'll be able to view the video. Sorry it's so fuzzy. I only used our little webcam to make it.

And who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks? Woof! Woof!

Feeling Sloth-like....

Feeling sluggish today....not sure why...maybe just sinus problems.

But it made me wonder: what does a slug say when it's tired? Or what about a sloth? I guess the latter would just feel like itself.

Well, that's me today.

A sluggish sloth....if that's even possible.

Oh, for the life of a sloth....