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Category Archives: Monday Mental Meanderings

Am I Write?

Posted on February 13, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

I always say writing begets writing.  The more you write, the more you will write.  Having typed in those two sentences, I sit here, typing in a third sentence and backspacing it out, several times, because it is a cliche, or because it is not quite what I wanted to say, or, oh well, any of the many reasons one decides to unwrite what one has written.

What I’m trying to say is, I have been writing since I got home from work and I’m tired.  On the brighter side, I finished and emailed two articles to Mohawk Valley Living magazine.  On the duller side, I am just barely ahead of deadline, and I had faithfully promised to do better this month.  In my defense, it cannot be denied that shit happens.

So this is a Monday Mental Meanderings post, and I guess my thoughts are indeed meandering.  This is what happens when one writes a daily blog and one clearly does not write enough.  If I wrote enough, I would have at least a couple of extra posts hanging around somewhere, just waiting for me to hit Publish.  Well, one cannot live one’s life on “if.”  What is that nursery rhyme: If wishes were horses, beggars would ride.

Then again (see how I argue with myself?) what is a fiction writer (which I sometimes am) but somebody who continually asks and answers the question, “What if?”  What if several people all wanted a guy dead, and then he dropped dead?  That is the plot of most of my murder mysteries.  Oh that reminds me, I have to finish my script for Secrets at Suiter House, the murder mystery I am writing for Herkimer County Historical Society.  I’ll keep you posted on how that goes.

 

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I’ll Always Have Snapped

Posted on January 30, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

At the risk of stating the obvious.

This will be a brief combination of Monday Mental Meanderings and Blogger’s Sick Day.  I’m still sick with my cold or virus or whatever it is, but I made it through the day at work (I tried to avoid my co-workers and keep my germs to myself).  Now I am sitting here, looking at Snapped and wondering if I ought to attempt some chicken soup.

The Price is right.

Often I insert a monster picture at these times, but I thought a horror icon would do just as well.  My sister Vicki pointed this photo out to me on a page I had not encountered yet, Halloween (All Hallows Eve).  I immediately Liked it.

Full Disclosure:  I am not up to 200 words.  I’ll throw in the Snapped logo for a third picture and hit Publish.  Sorry, folks.

 

Only it’s not Sunday, and it is not no new. Hey, any Snapped in a storm.

 

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More Murder and Mayhem on Monday

Posted on January 9, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

I had a plan today that I was going to come home from work, write my postcards (which I neglected to do over the weekend), walk to the post office with them, take the long way home, then do a Pedestrian Post.  I felt certain there would be plenty to observe and comment on.  Herkimer is good that way.  Well, as my day at work wore on, I realized I am not feeling well.  Am I coming down with a cold?  SAY IT AIN’T SO!  In any case, coming home and lying down on the couch started sounding better and better.

When I left work, I felt happy that it was nowhere near as cold as it was all weekend.  How pleasant to walk to my vehicle and not have my face hurt!  I did not even mind that I had to brush wet, heavy snow off my SUV.  Ah yes, it snowed.  I had to utilize my 4-wheel drive to get into my driveway.  Damn!  Steven’s car is small and NOT 4-wheel drive. I figured I’d better do a little shoveling.

As I worked at it, a neighbor told me that Steven had done it once already, but the plow had been by again.  I thought that was nice of him to tell me, in case I was thinking unkind thoughts about my husband (I wasn’t).  I did not do a very good job shoveling, but I tried.  And I decided that could count as my exercise.

Anyways, now I am sitting on my couch, cooking, typing, and watching Snapped.  So I see that it is over 250 words into my post that the headline makes sense.  I find that highly amusing, but perhaps that is just me.  I ended yesterday’s post questioning my future as a blogger, but not feeling up to answering my questions.  I feel in the same state now. However, I have over 300 words and an alliterative headline.  I am going to hit Publish and hope for the best.

 

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Foolishness Part Two

Posted on January 2, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

I have been looking forward to making this post since I signed off on my last one.  Here are pictures from July through December 2017.

“I don’t always do Shakespeare plays…”

I was going to choose Nosferatu but decided on my friend Tucker looking like the Most Interesting Man in the World.  He is in costume for The Tempest, LiFT’s Summer Shakespeare production, a wonderful theatre experience for all involved.

“I could do a Shakespeare play.”

OK, here is Nosferatu.  I couldn’t leave him out, could I?  This is the shot in which I thought the background looks like the Little Falls Antique Center, which LiFT rehearses and performs in front of.  So the pictures kind of relate, right?

It was the first annual, and I was there!

This being a kind of a Year in Review, I include something about running.  I ran the Boilermaker 15K in Utica in July, then I ran the East Herkimer Fire Department 5K in October (although this photo was under September in my Media Library), AND I did the Reindeer Run 5K in Little Falls in December.  Full disclosure:  I have not been running since.  But I mean to take it up again soon.  No doubt I will make blog posts about it.

He looks quite delighted to be there, doesn’t he?

Here is a Halloween-y photo and a plug to a local business:  The Old Barn Marketplace on Route 5, Little Falls.  I wrote about them for Mohawk Valley Living magazine.  I shall no doubt go there again and write a blog post about it.

Gotta love me some Joan Crawford.

Here’s a shot from I Saw What You Did, a William Castle movie Steven got me for my birthday in November.  I just loves me a cheesy horror movie with Joan Crawford.

It was a fun day!

I thought I would end with a picture from the Reindeer Run 5K, which I mentioned earlier.  It was a fun run on a fun day.

And this has been a fun post to make.  Happy New Year, everybody, and let’s have a great 2018.

 

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Merry Mental Meanderings

Posted on December 26, 2017 by mohawkvalleygirl

I think since today is Christmas (although I may be posting late enough that WordPress will stamp this Dec. 26), it is appropriate to use “merry” in the headline.  And I am certainly not up for much beyond mental meanderings.  Oh, I have had a nice holiday.  Two days of hanging out with my family:  lots of good laughs, good food, a few drinks… I am so blessed.

So I am back home, pajama pants on, bra off, crime show on television (Forensic Files), and a little glass of Pinot Noir.  I am basking in holiday thankfulness.  Gee, I hope that is not too boring for a blog post. Perhaps I should look for a picture of a monster to pep things up.

So it’s not a monster. Sue me.

Forensic Files is one of the classier crime shows we watch.  They indulge in re-enactments, but the concentration is on the science of detection.  It is very educational.  We were just talking about it last night, when we found out that one of my nieces likes to watch it on Netflix, sometimes at three in the morning.  The last episode we saw was a case that was previously covered on Snapped.  Regular readers may remember that this is one of my favorite things:  to see the same case covered in different true crime shows.

OK, so I’ve gone from Merry to Murder in just over 200 words.  I’m going to call that acceptable for a holiday Monday.  Merry Christmas everyone.

 

 

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Mental Meanderings about the Mammary Glands

Posted on December 12, 2017 by mohawkvalleygirl

Today’s Monday Mental Meanderings is in the nature of a Public Service Announcement, with an added attraction for those of you who like to point and laugh at others’ discomfort (you know who you are).  Tomorrow, I go for a mammogram.

NO, I do not expect any of you are crass enough to be amused at the thought of my mammary glands being squished and photographed.  At least, I hope not.  The discomfort I was going to share for your amusement is that I have now gone over a week without coffee.  I cry a little even as I type it.

I don’t suppose non-coffee drinkers will understand, but I know some of you are raising your hands in horror at the thought.  In fact, a number of females have told me they were never advised to stay off caffeine.   When I made the appointment, the nurse told me I could drink decaf, and the reason for it is that the caffeine makes one’s breasts more sensitive.  I don’t remember a mammogram hurting that much to begin with, but it has been at least seven years since I’ve had one.

Ah, here is the Public Service Announcement part:  DON’T BE LIKE ME!  Get your cancer screening tests at the recommended intervals.

Back to the laughing at Cindy portion of the post.  I eased into things by having one small cup of coffee in the morning for two days. Then I had tea for two mornings.  I had some decaf filter bags a co-worker had given me.  Yes, there is still caffeine in decaf.  The lady told me I could drink decaf, so that was what I had for my usual mid-morning cuppa.  On the fourth day, I started having decaf from a filter bag for my first cup as well.  Oh, it does not taste as good.  It does not make me feel content to be out of bed and ready to face the day.  I suffer.

Almost every day, I have been tempted to just have a damn cup of joe.  All these other women have had mammograms and never been told to stay off coffee.  I don’t remember a mammogram hurting and even if it’s awful, it can’t last that long, can it?  I’m a tough girl!  I can take it!

Well, I can be tough enough to stay off coffee, too.  For one reason, I can be pretty stubborn once I have made up my mind to do something.  For another reason, once you have gone so far with something, you might just as well go all the way.

So now I am really, Really, REALLY looking forward to that first cup of coffee.  Alas, my appointment is at three tomorrow afternoon.  I fear if I immediately indulge, it will keep me up all night.  However, Wednesday morning will be a wonderful time for me.

And once again, to all my female readers:  Get your mammograms!

 

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Lee is Undead and I am Brain Dead

Posted on November 21, 2017 by mohawkvalleygirl

It’s that dreadful moment when you want to make your blog post and you realize you have not a thing to write about.  I’m not even sure I can do a Monday Mental Meanderings, because my mental capacity is running low.  I have not done much today.  I went to Basloe Library and printed out the registration form for the Reindeer Run 5K.  I guess I’m going to run it.  I think I’m going to run it.  Maybe I’m going to run it.  We’ll see.

Count Dracula don’t need no stinkin’ napkins!

As I type this (as Truman Capote once said, “That’s not writing, that’s typing”), Dracula is Risen from the Grave is playing on my DVR.  I wrote a blog post about it the last time I watched it.  It stars Christoper Lee, who was purportedly sick of playing Dracula by the time.  I stopped paying attention to it when I watched it that time, too, although I think my write-up on it was pretty fun (or do I flatter myself?).  The other Christopher Lee Dracula movie I have seen and written about was Dracula, Prince of Darkness.  I paid better attention to that one, but with me that isn’t saying much.

This shows how frustrated Lee was to still be playing the Count.

When TCM shows this movie again next October and I DVR it, I think I will try to pay attention to the whole thing.  No promises.  For one reason, am I likely to remember this brain dead moment a year from now?

He looks like he’s worried I might write another blog post about him.

Ah, I did have one more picture of Lee in my Media Library.  I do like to include three pictures.  Tomorrow I will try to include a more coherent blog post.  Happy Monday, everyone.

 

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Monday Movie Matinee

Posted on November 14, 2017 by mohawkvalleygirl

That title is purely for alliterative purposes and not an accurate reflection of this post’s contents.  At least, I will talk about a movie, and today is Monday.  It was a little after matinee hours when we watched the movie, and in fact we watched it on Sunday.  OK, I’m not even going to talk that much about the movie.  This is going to be a really stupid post, but at least I will try my hardest NOT to whine about how I can’t write a decent post today.

We all know I love cheesy movies.  It should come as no surprise, then, that I adore William Castle.  I adore him not only for the cheese factor in his flicks, though:  he is ENTERTAINING!  The man truly loved his audiences and intended to give them a thrill.  I am slowly acquiring a collection of DVDs of Castle movies.  Recently Steven gave me I Saw What You Did (1965), starring the inimitable Joan Crawford.  We watched it yesterday, when I had finished swooning over my blog post.

I don’t know why there are two Joans.

I’ve used this photo before, mostly for the gorgeous necklace.  That is a necklace to die for, or to kill for, or, you know, to find somewhere and pay money for.  Crawford’s part in this movie is really not all that major or even pivotal (my favorite description of a small role).  But it’s Joan Crawford.  I gotta love a movie with Joan Crawford.

Look, there’s that necklace again!

Now that I think of it, Crawford’s role is pivotal, because…  wait a minute.  I did not include a spoiler alert.  I won’t put one in now.  Watch I Saw What You Did, the 1965 version.  It’s a fun flick.  William Castle, I salute you.

Doesn’t he look like he’s having fun, too?

I close with a picture of the master himself.  I may watch another William Castle movie tonight.  Happy Monday, everyone.

 

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Monday Meander

Posted on November 7, 2017 by mohawkvalleygirl

So I got home from work and wrote my weekly postcards that I usually do on Saturday (don’t judge).  Steven graciously agreed to walk to the post office with me.  One reason I wanted to walk was to go through Meyers Park and check out the historical marker that said a graveyard was moved to put a park there.

I have noticed that marker before, notably while running.  I flash on Poltergeist when I see it.  Spoiler alert!  Stop reading here if you have not seen Poltergeist.  When we finally find out the source of all the haunting, we learn that it is because the unscrupulous real estate developer moved a graveyard but only moved the gravestones, not the bodies.  As I run through Meyers Park, I irresistibly hear Craig T. Nelson screaming, “You son of a bitch, you DIDN’T MOVE THE BODIES!!!”  Imagine my chagrin when we caught part of Poltergeist on TCM on Halloween and I discovered that that is not the actual line.  But he does call the guy a son of a bitch, so I am not completely full of beans.

Where was I?  Oh it is a Monday Mental Meanderings.  We took a walk, we got some food, I want to sit here and crochet and watch television.  I see that my husband Steven is looking at the movies.  I’d better get off the computer before he picks out something I do not want to see. Happy Monday, everyone.

 

 

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Another Blogger’s Sick Day

Posted on October 31, 2017 by mohawkvalleygirl

I just can’t do it.  I can’t let today be the day I don’t make a post.  Oh, I know, there have been a few days I’ve missed, due to computer problems or, well, falling asleep.  I made my post for those days as early as possible the next morning.  I thought briefly of doing that today, but, well, here I am, here is the laptop, my fingers are not broken, I have  internet connection, and I am awake.

Full disclosure:  I don’t want to be.  I think I am coming down with a cold or something.  I’m tired, I have a sick headache, I feel inclined to do nothing but whine.  My dear husband, Steven, suggested I take today off.  It was a kind, loving suggestion.  But I just feel if I take one day off, I will take all the days off, and then I will not be a blogger any more.  I suppose that would not be such a great loss to the blogosphere.  There are plenty of bloggers out there, many of them better than I am in different ways.

So I begin to ask myself, why am I still posting every day?  I started this blog in May of 2011 with the intention of posting every day for one year.  I don’t know what I thought was going to happen after a year, but it seemed a good goal to set for myself.  Now six years and a couple of months later, I am still at it.  Sometimes I feel a little proud of myself for that.  Then I think of all the foolish posts I’ve made along the way (YES, I realize this is one of them! Sheesh!), and I wonder.

However, when one is coming down with a miserable cold, it is not the best time to question one’s life choices.  One is likely to feel the only good choice would be to crawl into bed, pull up the covers, and cry.  Well, at least I won’t do the last one.  For one reason, it dehydrates one to cry, and it is important to stay hydrated, especially when ailing.  I am sure some readers will feel I might just as well have taken tonight off (you know who you are). No matter.  I am counting this as my Monday Mental Meanderings, and I am going to make myself some hot tea.  Thank you for tuning in.

 

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