Author Archives: mohawkvalleygirl

In My Defense, I’m Fighting a Cold

Posted on September 7, 2013 by mohawkvalleygirl

Well, I wrote some more on the post about the non-cheesy movie, but I’m just not up to it right now. Anyways, it’s Lame Post Friday. I don’t care how many times I wimp out during the week with a silly post, I treasure my Lame Post Friday.

Even when the post itself is no treasure.

I did have a random observation today. I observed a kid wearing a t-shirt from a nightclub that closed long ago.

“The shirt lasted longer than the club did,” I remarked. My co-worker agreed.

I didn’t observe much else today, other than the speed limit (well, I thought it was a funny thing to say). But I do have one bit of half-baked philosophy: I thought to myself today, “I could have BEEN somebody!” My next thought was, “Who else could I have possibly been?” In fact, I could have turned out into somebody worse. So I started thinking about who other people might have been.

For example, maybe Mother Theresa could have been the CEO of a multi-national corporation that made bazillions of dollars exploiting the masses and wreaking havoc on the environment (I’m not saying all multi-national corporations do those things; I’m just saying Mother Theresa could have headed up one that did). The CEO of some big corporation could have been a stay-at-home mom or dad (I know, probably dad), raising kids who could have been…

Did you say Mother Theresa?

Enough of this foolishness. I see I am over 200 words. Woohoo! If I can only think of a headline, it’s wine o’clock for me.

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Just Saying

Posted on September 6, 2013 by mohawkvalleygirl

I started to write another post about a movie (alas, not cheesy), but did not finish it, so I will attempt something off the cuff for Non-Sequitur Thursday. Full disclosure: if hearing about going to the bathroom may cause you to shout, “TMI!” stop reading now (and none of you wiseasses need to comment, “TMI,” either)(you know who you are)(and why is my computer telling me “wiseasses” is misspelled?).

We went to the laundromat today. One good thing about the Colonial Laundromat in Ilion, NY is that there is a clean restroom available. This is a thing I look for just about everywhere I go. Just saying.

The door was closed. And remained closed. I really could not wait much longer. I walked over and asked two ladies folding their clothes if anybody was in there. No, they said. I tried the door. Locked. They felt bad for having misinformed me. I went back over to where Steven was and watched the door.

Oh dear, it was taking a while. Not to be indelicate, but nobody really wants to use a bathroom where somebody else has just been in there for a long time. Just saying.

Our clothes still had nine minutes in the drier (actually, they ended up having a lot longer than that, but this isn’t really a post about laundry).

“I’m walking to Citgo,” I announced.

What a lot of traffic Ilion gets. I guess it’s the hip, happening place to be on a Thursday night. I had to cross the street twice at the intersection. Tricky, but I managed it. After crossing one way I considered staying on that side of the street and going to Stewart’s, but I couldn’t remember if they have a restroom. I was able to make the second cross while I was still thinking about it.

After walking to first one then another corner of the store, I saw the sign for “Restroom” in the third corner. Of course it was locked. I stood there, having to pee. I considered knocking on the door to see if someone was in there. I wondered if you were supposed to get a key from the cashier. There was no sign to say so. Some of your better convenience stores have that little thing on the lock that says “Vacant” or “Occupied,” depending. No offense, Citgo.

I got tired of waiting. Cross the street to Stewarts? Wait, there’s McDonalds! Before there were convenience stores everywhere, McDonald’s was the operative place to go to the bathroom when on a road trip. Then you bought french fries or a coffee or something. What you might call a win/win. I would use their bathroom and buy Steven a coffee.

“I haven’t been in here since you remodeled,” I said to the cashier as I purchased the coffee. “It’s fancy.”

“You think so?” she sounded skeptical. Nice customer service, trying to make me feel foolish (oh, I know, it’s not that hard to do)!

I made it back to the laundromat before our drier buzzed. Steven appreciated the coffee. I felt better about everything.

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Cemetery Walk

Posted on September 5, 2013 by mohawkvalleygirl

At the last program I attended at the Herkimer County Historical Society, I made a note of a cemetery walk in Oak View Cemetery in Frankfort, NY.

The walk had been postponed from Monday to Thursday last week. This was good news for Steven and me, because we could not make it on Monday. We drove to the cemetery and after some slight confusion as to where to pull in and park, we joined the crowd that was gathering for the walk.

I’m always pleased to see the people that gather for these historical society things, both the number and the variety. I like to see that people are interested and that they get away from their televisions and computers to participate. I know it is good for me to do so.

I was a little sorry I had forgotten to use bug spray, but this was a minor point. Sue Perkins, head of the historical society gave the presentation, assisted by Caryl Hopson. Caryl carried the speaker for Sue’s cordless microphone. It worked pretty well except for the occasional feedback. I think everybody was able to hear.

Sue and Caryl had visited the cemetery, picked the graves they liked, then researched the stories of the people buried there. They also had a binder with pictures of some of the people and places talked about. A little girl walked around showing us the pictures. after a while she must have gotten tired or bored, because her mother took over the task.

We heard a wide variety of stories. The one that particularly struck me was about a black baseball pioneer, John W. Jackson, also known as Bud Fowler, who was buried in the Potters Field. A Potters Field is where they used to bury indigent people, whose families could not afford a proper burial. A marker has since been placed for Jackson.

The final grave — they saved the best for last, Sue said — was Dieffenbacher. In face, there were Dieffenbachers in the crowd, one of whom was wearing a Dieffenbacher’s Potato Chip t-shirt. I think everybody though that was pretty cool.

I really enjoyed the walk-around aspect of the talk. My only problem was that i could not take proper notes for my blog post. I did pull a small pad out of my purse and jot down John Jackson, Dieffenbacher, and Whipple-Winkel Co. I took no further notes, so I don’t know what kind of company Whipple-Winkel was. Perhaps I could look it up at the Historical Society and make it the subject of a future blog post.

For more information on the Herkimer County Historical Society, you can visit their website at http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~nyhchs. You can also like them on Facebook, where they have been known to post some really cool pictures.

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I Wanted a Ghost

Posted on September 4, 2013 by mohawkvalleygirl

I DVR’d The Ghost Ship (1943) on the vague hope that it had something to do with a movie that I THINK was called Ghost Ship starring Julianna Margulies that Steven and I saw some years ago. Or vice versa, I guess. I seem to remember not being too nuts about the latter movie, especially the meant-to-be-shocking ending, that I believe did NOT take Steven or me by surprise. Oh dear, I haven’t put in the spoiler alert yet (I know I could always fix these things when I edit, but it’s more fun this way).

Here it is: Spoiler Alert! Although I may have already spoiled the Julianna Margulies movie for you. Maybe I ought to seek that movie out again, watch it again and write about it. But I am unlikely to do that before hitting publish on this.

Where was I?

I thought by the title “Ghost Ship” that the movie would have at least one actual ghost. Turns out not so much. I might have suspected such a thing from the description on digital cable, which said nobody will believe the third mate when he tries to tell them the captain is a sadistic psychopath. Still, I thought a sadistic psychopath might be worth a watch.

When we started to watch the movie, I saw that it starred Richard Dix. I said, “All right!” He was in those Whistler movies I enjoyed so much. I like that Richard Dix.

Naturally he is the sadistic psychopath captain. It’s actually good casting, because with his lovely deep voice, matinee idol good looks and kindly manner, it is easy to see how he fools everybody. The audience is privy to everything the third mate sees, so there is no “is he or isn’t he?” mystery, which may have been fun.

I would like to explain why it is a ghost ship, but I did not properly understand it myself. Something psychological, explained by the good woman whose love could perhaps have saved psycho captain. There’s still hope for the third mate, if only he can survive the voyage. If that sounds a little vague, sorry. I’m not up to giving a full plot summary.

It’s actually a pretty good movie. It gets suspenseful and exciting, and if a few of my favorite characters get killed off, well, you’ll have that. Still, I would have liked a ghost.

Incidentally, the plot of Ghost Ship, (2002, no “the”) (I looked it up), has nothing whatsoever in common with The Ghost Ship. If I were a real movie writer, I would edit this whole thing and delete any reference to it. And here we come to the ugly truth about me.

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Don’t Quote Me

Posted on September 3, 2013 by mohawkvalleygirl

Thank heavens it’s Middle-aged Musings Monday. Now all I have to do is pry my wrist off my forehead and think of something to muse about.

This raises a number of things I have talked about before: first, that even on the “nothing” days, I still have to think of something to write; second, that even though I have attained middle age (if I live to be a hundred), I have very few words of wisdom to impart. In fact, I have a few, but they’re mostly quotes.

Oh, that gives me something. Have you noticed how many people spend a lot of time on Facebook sharing these little cartoons or pictures or just big old squares with quotes? They can be inspirational or funny or profound or political or rude, or any combination of the above. I’ve done it myself. It’s almost a guilty pleasure, hitting that “Share” button. Maybe I didn’t think of it out of my own head, but I can take credit for being clever enough to recognize its worth.

Was that more of a random observation? And there is no Seinfeld-style punch line, so sorry about that. Incidentally, my best quotes have not been gleaned from the internet. I have had some of them for years. I found them in books.

My musing today is, do we really try to live by these words of wisdom? I’m talking now about the profound, inspirational ones, not the ones that give us good excuses to drink wine and eat chocolate, or extoll your good friend who will help you hide the body (I KNOW people live by those).

My contention has always been that “Do as I say, not as I do,” is really not bad advice. Most of us talk a good game. I may have voiced this opinion in this space before, but I shall not apologize, because I think it’s a good one. My more didactic readers may feel free to lecture me on repeating myself. I will nod wisely, knowing that they are probably repeating themselves. I will attempt to do as they say, not as they do.

And I will try not to share that sentiment on Facebook.

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Breakfast with Rachel

Posted on September 2, 2013 by mohawkvalleygirl

I put Rachel’s name in the title, so she can pretend she’s famous. At least, perhaps she is famous in certain circles, but I don’t think my blog will increase her fame. I’m afraid my blog is a little rinky-dink compared to some. Still, I like it.

Where was I? Ah yes, forgoing Wrist to Forehead Sunday for once (I hope) to write a little about my breakfast with my friend, and to give another shout-out to Crazy Otto’s Empire Diner.

When Rachel told me she would be passing close enough to Herkimer, NY to stop for a brief visit, she suggested we meet at one of those yummy places I write about. Since we would be meeting for a latish breakfast, I thought she would like Crazy Otto’s.

Obviously, lots of people like Crazy Otto’s. They didn’t have a booth free, so we sat at the counter. I pointed out the Georgia license plate Steven and I contributed to the decor. She was suitably impressed.

After hearing the specials we perused the menu. I picked something I had never noticed before, French toast with coconut flakes. Rachel wanted pancakes with eggs. This came with choice of meat. The waitress recommended sausage, which I must say looked pretty good. I may have to have another meal at Crazy Otto’s soon so I can try it.

It was really wonderful to sit and talk with a friend I had not seen in years. I only felt bad that it was just a meal and not the whole weekend. I guess anybody who knows me knows I could talk for three days at a stretch, but I would have let Rachel talk, too.

As I write this (I am composing at the keyboard, just to give you the proper mental image), I feel a bout of Wrist to Forehead coming on. Rachel read yesterday’s post, where I said I would write a post about our breakfast. She expressed (via Facebook comment) that she was looking forward to reading what we talked about. I commented back that now I felt the pressure to come up with something profound. Well, everything Rachel says is naturally profound, but this blog, not so much.

Never mind, we had a lovely breakfast, and I hope it is not another eight years till we see each other again. If you are meeting a friend you saw eight years ago, or one you just saw yesterday, or eating breakfast by yourself, I recommend Crazy Otto’s Empire Diner. Their website is www.crazyottosempirediner.com. You can also like them on Facebook.

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A Walk Before Breakfast

Posted on September 1, 2013 by mohawkvalleygirl

I did not run this morning, because it was raining. I felt blessedly off the hook, since by now I’ve been away from it for so long I’ve got that Starting Over Hump to deal with. Come to think of it, that will probably make a good blog post, so we’ve got something to look forward to.

The rain had stopped by the time Steven left for work about ten minutes before nine. I had written a few postcards. We had purchased some new ones at the Fly Creek Cider Mill on Sunday, so that was exciting for me. I thought a walk to the post office would be a good idea.

I had plans to meet my friend Rachel for breakfast. She would be driving through the area as part of a long road trip. I had not seen her in some years so was quite happy at the prospect. I took my cell phone along on the walk with me, in case she tried to call with an update on her progress.

It was still cool out, if a little gloomy, so that was good. I never mind a gloomy day. We set out prepared to enjoy the walk.

It did not disappoint. We said good morning to a couple of ladies out walking. Tabby was good and did not jump up on them. I was glad of that, because she had transformed into that famous blues singer, Muddy Paws.

Rachel called while we were at the post office. She said she was 27 miles outside of Utica traveling at 70 miles per hour, so I could figure it out. Why in the world would Rachel think I could do the math? I did the best I could and continued my walk.

Tabby, as usual, wanted to stop and sniff every two feet. We compromised and some sniffing was done while still making progress towards home. When we walked by Curves, I considered stopping in and saying hello, but the Muddy Paws thing deterred me.

We got home in plenty of time for me to get my act together and meet my friend. Our delightful breakfast may be the subject of a blog post in the near future. As always, I hope you’ll stay tuned.

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Whine O’Clock

Posted on August 31, 2013 by mohawkvalleygirl

Yes, it is Lame Post Friday, and it should surprise no one that I got nuthin’.

I was about to say I’ve had a bear of a week, but I seem to remember last week being rather bearish as well (ooh, look at that, according to my computer “bearish” is so a word; I thought I had just now made it up). Earlier today I told a co-worker I was in a terrible mood, because all I could think about was things that piss me off. She advised me to think about something else.

“What should I think about?”

“3:30 this afternoon.” That’s our quitting time. “Wine-thirty.”

“It’s whine-thirty all day long for me,” I admitted. “Because all I do is whine.”

See, you get the pun right away when you write it down.

I thought it was a kind of a preemptive strike on my part (I’ll be damned, according to my computer pre-emptive is not hyphenated) to admit that I was whining. You know how upsetting it can be when all you want to do is relieve your feelings by expressing your discontent and you get told to stop whining. Actually, I had taken care to go to the co-worker that doesn’t usually say that. You have to be careful who you whine to. Uh, I mean express your discontent.

I was going to go into some half-baked philosophy about whining and perspective, but I believe I have covered it before. I would look back, find the post (or posts, I know I repeat myself sometimes), but hey, it’s Friday and I’m one of those lucky bastards who have a three day weekend. I’m thinking it’s beer o’clock.

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Maybe Next Time with Peas

Posted on August 30, 2013 by mohawkvalleygirl

People share all kinds of good advice on Facebook lately. Decorating ideas, recipes, security concerns… and some health suggestions.

My cousin posted a rather silly looking picture of a girl sitting crouched over on the edge of her bathroom sink. To cure a headache, the caption said, sit with your hands and feet in warm/hot water and put a bag of frozen peas on the back of your neck. It went on to explain how this worked, but I don’t read all these things any more than I pay attention to all the plot points on cheesy horror movies.

My first thought, which I immediately posted as a comment, was that I could never do this as there are never frozen peas in my house. I hate cooked peas, always have. I like to eat raw peas straight out of the pod, I add for the sake of pea lovers who might be inclined to cut my acquaintance. My sister suggested I purchase one bag of frozen peas for just such a purpose. I thought this not a bad suggestion, as I would be disinclined to cook and eat any vegetable that had spent an appreciable amount of time on the back of my head.

Of course I did no such thing.

However, suffering from yet another headache this afternoon, I thought I would try the technique, as best as I could. I did not sit on the edge of my bathroom sink. For one thing, I’m far too lazy to clear it off for such a purpose. For another, I really do not need to know whether my fat ass will or will not crack marble (I’m hoping not, but why put it to the test?) (oh, I know, back on the South Beach Diet for me). I sat on the edge of my tub. A frozen gel pack substituted for the peas. Nobody took a picture for Facebook and other embarrassing purposes, so if anybody had their hopes up, sorry.

And I am sorry to report: it did not work for me. Maybe I had the wrong kind of headache.

On the brighter side, I thought it would make an acceptable blog post for a Non-Sequitur Thursday. Hmmm… I guess nothing particularly non-sequiturish about it, but it will have to do. I hope to see you (figuratively speaking, of course) on Lame Post Friday.

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Something with a Vampire

Posted on August 29, 2013 by mohawkvalleygirl

In my continuing quest to find cheesy horror movies to write about, I turned once again to Steven’s DVD boxes set of 50 Horror Classics, purchased for him by me out of a discount bin.

Spoiler Alert! Although I will try to avoid mentioning the big reveal. It is a big one. In fact, already I’ve said too much.

As I sit here writing this, I suddenly realize I am not 100 percent clear on what the title is. Something with a vampire. The Vampire Bat? Or was that the one I saw with Vincent Price and Agnes Moorehead? So many vampires, so little time. I know I can look up these things before I type this into the computer, but I thought it said a little something about the movie that I could not recall the title. Or about me. In either case, I found it of interest.

The vampire killings start before the first scene of the movie. We open on a meeting of important men of the village discussing the murders. It’s vampires, insists the burgermeister (and any time there is a burgermeister in one of these movies, how many flash onto Santa Claus is Coming to Town and Burgermeister Meisterburger? Raise your hands).

There are no vampires, insists the sheriff or marshal or whatever he is. He is dressed like a plainclothes detective and is apparently the only cop the place has. At least, I don’t remember seeing any other cops. Probably a low budget production.

Our hero states that he will seek out a human murderer and goes to visit his girlfriend, conveniently located in the next room. I wasn’t clear on the geography of this movie, but that’s what it looked like to me. Oh, and he has to go down some steps, which seems appropriate, because it looks like a mad scientist’s laboratory. It belongs to the village doctor. Fay Wray is his assistant.

My girl Fay does not get to crack wise, like she did in Mystery of the Wax Museum nor yet to scream her head off as she did in King Kong. I was naturally disappointed. Also on hand is Fay’s aunt, a hypochondriac who is constantly after the doctor to prescribe for her, using some impressive if malaproppriate medical terms (I just made up that word malapropriate: malapropism + appropriate). She was my favorite character, especially since they let Fay be so boring.

The other character of note is a half-wit who says bats are good, making him an object of suspicion to the villagers. You can tell he is a half-wit, because he speaks of himself in the third person. He likes to catch bats and pet them and put them in his pocket. Is anybody else reminded of Lenny in Of Mice and Men? Our half-wit does not fare a whole lot better.

Things get suspenseful, even given poor Fay’s lamentably underscripted character. I don’t really want to say too much, because I was intrigued and a little surprised by how things unfolded. A little confused, too, because Fay’s part was not the only thing underscripted.

On the whole, I enjoyed the movie. But now I want to view Mystery of the Wax Museum again. So I can watch Fay Wray crack wise.

Note: It is The Vampire Bat, 1933. The one with Vincent Price and Agnes Moorehead is The Bat, 1959. I wrote a blog post about it.

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