Category Archives: personal

And What Will Monday Bring?

Posted on September 24, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

What she said.

Yes, it is Wrist to Forehead Sunday.  I have had many; I will have more.  At least one more, being today.  I must admit, the above picture is a good way to ensure a really bad Monday.  I am not doing that.  Still, it is an amusing picture which I am sure many can identify with (I can so end a sentence with a preposition) (or a parenthetical comment; I’m flexible that way).

As you may guess, this is not going to be a blog post of much substance.  I do not care at all.  I have had a very pleasant Sunday, after not so great of a Saturday.  Oh, I don’t mean to complain (what a lie; of course I do), but spending most of Saturday with a headache is not going to make this one of my favorite weekends.  I have not had a headache today, but what will tomorrow bring?  Sometimes a little suspense adds interest to my day; at other times, not so much.

I loves me some Snapped!

I was watching Snapped but now it is over and something called Dying to Belong is on.  I am still deciding if I like this one.  I’m afraid all of these shows are getting a little too heavy on the re-enactments for me.  But I am increasingly aware that what I like is not what I am likely to see on television.  As I have often observed, it is not easy being me.

Be that as it may, I see I am over 250 words and by my own rules for my own blog, that is good enough.  I will just end with another picture, just for good measure.  Happy Sunday, everyone.

Oh, that’s right! I was planning to go on a diet tomorrow!

 

Leave a comment

Posted in humor, personal, Wrist to Forehead Sunday and tagged , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Alas and Yay on Scattered Saturday

Posted on September 23, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

Yes, it is that moment of a Saturday when I want to make my Scattered Saturday Post and get on with my evening.  This will be fast if not furious.  Here goes…

I slept in till after 6 a.m.  Yay, weekend!  And I woke up with a terrible headache, which made me feel distinctly ill-used, because I did NOT tie one on Friday night.  Next Friday I may drink my head off, because if I am going to have the headache anyways, I may as well have a good reason for it.  Be that as it may, I tried not to let the pain completely ruin my day.

I went running, which makes three days in a row.  Alas, three was not the charm, because the run was not fun and did not feel wonderful.  Still, I did it, so I could feel good about that, at least.  A shower felt good, and Steven and I pondered our options for the day.  Tentative plans changed after a phone call to my Mom.  She said my sister had been going to call me to ask that I pick up rolls for a family gathering on Sunday (baptism of my adorable great-niece, Evie.  Yay!).  Suddenly a trip to Heidelberg Bakery was on the agenda.

Just to make things perfect, I saw in the Utica OD that a church in Middleville was having a rummage sale.  We love rummage sales!  Our plan was set:  breakfast at Heidelberg, then on to Middleville for the rummage sale.  That was fun, but, alas, my headache did not go away.

Back home, I laid down with my face thing on (I have this thing my Mom got me; it has herbs or something in it, you heat it up in the microwave and lay down with it on your face), and took a nap.  That helped.

After the nap and a cup of hot tea (yay cooler weather!), I went with my friend Kim to a Lambrusco tasting at Valley Wine and Liquor in Herkimer.  I knew Kim would like Lambrusco, because it is sweet.  She is all the time going to tastings with me where nothing but dry is available, so I was happy to go to a tasting she would like.  Then we walked all over the store looking for a bottle wine that would be appropriate to bring to the cast party of Shattered Angel.  Could we find anything with an angel on the label?  NO, of course not!  We finally settled on a bottle of Dr. Frank Konstantin Riesling, because the accused in the play was examined by DOCTORS.  Also it was a nod to our dear friend, Julianne Allen, recently deceased, who was supposed to be in the play and who loved Riesling.

Next we went to Asteroga Ale House for a drink.  Steven joined us, so that was an enjoyable interlude.  Now I am at home, looking at Forensic Files in a desultory fashion and soon to begin the movie watching portion of the evening.  I hope all my readers are also having an enjoyable Saturday.

 

Leave a comment

Posted in humor, personal, Scattered Saturday and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Post Show Post

Posted on September 22, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

I had meant to have a pre-show post, but time got away from me.  In my defense, I went running.  And to Valley Wine and Liquor for a gin tasting.  And to dinner at Sorrento’s.  Then to the show, which was Shattered Angel presented by Herkimer County Historical Society at Ilion Little Theatre.

As you see, still a couple of opportunities to see it.

The show was excellent.  It was interestingly staged and emotionally involving.  My steady diet of true-crime documentaries on television gave me a good perspective on the proceedings, as did my previous obsession with shows like LA Law and Boston Legal.  I have a pretty good idea of how things may have transpired in a modern courtroom.  But never mind my silly opinions and perspectives. Instead, here are a couple of pictures of the show (taken during rehearsal, of course.  One does not like to take flash photos during a performance).

I think this one is suitable for framing.

This shot was purely staged for the picture; the actual pose was never seen in the show.  But that is appropriate, since the show is not precisely what went down in the courtroom.  I believe I mentioned before how characters are combined and testimony condensed to give us the feel of the whole without simply presenting the transcript verbatim (have you ever been to a real trial?  It sometimes takes a LONG time to get to the point).

One of the most moving scenes of the play.

I really enjoyed the performances.  I’m too tired to give a real review, mentioning names and detailing specific parts deserving praise.  But I guess that is appropriate for Lame Post Friday. Let’s just give a shout-out and drive on.

The play continues Saturday, Sept. 22 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Sept. 23 at 1:30 p.m.  I can’t guarantee they haven’t sold out, but if you’re local and want to take a chance, go to 13 Remington Ave., Ilion, NY.  It’s a great show!

 

Leave a comment

Posted in humor, Lame Post Friday, personal and tagged , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Running to Halloween?

Posted on September 21, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

I was determined to go running today, and to write a Running Commentary post.  First task completed!  On the the second part…

When I got home from work today, I did not pause and change my mind.  I went upstairs, gathered a load of laundry and put on running clothes. You see, I intended to multi-task by putting clothes in the washer while I ran (and felt pretty virtuous about it, since I am not out of clean underwear, nor is Steven out of clean socks).  I got the washer going, then got going myself.

I started out in the opposite direction of what I usually take, heading towards State Street instead of German.  The reason was that I had noticed a house down the street with Halloween decorations in the front yard.  I need a little Halloween!  I saw another house with a couple of scarecrows by the porch, so that was nice.

It was fine running weather:  not hot, not too sunny.  Of course, I was NOT in fine running shape.  I’m not even sure when I last ran, but I believe it was more than a week ago.  In my defense… OK, I have no defense.  It was stupid of me not to run, or at least get some form of exercise.  What can I say?  We do not always do what is best for ourselves (Oh, I suppose YOU do?).  However, I was happy I was out there moving, and I can continue to get out there on a regular basis.  I hope.

The house did not have as many decorations as some (not as many as MY house is going to have), but it did look nice.  I love Halloween.  I ran past it and turned right onto West Albany Street.  Hmm… which street should I run up?  Not Henry, that was too close. Maybe Caroline and make a BIG rectangle.  Instead I went up Margaret, because I did not feel like running around some cars I saw parked across the sidewalk.  I should perhaps mention that my body was not best pleased with me.  I wondered how long I could keep up even my slow middle-aged shuffle.

Twenty minutes.  I could go 20 minutes.  Oh dear, I wasn’t even at ten.  Never mind.  Just keep going.  I looked at different houses, envied a few screened in porches, admired some late blooming flowers, and calculated how long it was going to take me to get back into 5K shape.  There is a 5K at Cullen’s Pumpkin Farm in October, but that may be too soon.  There are usually a couple of Turkey Trots on Thanksgiving, but I might be busy that day.  Of course I intend to participate in the Reindeer Run in December (perhaps you read my blog post about last year’s event).

As I ran and figured, I started to feel a little better about moving.  Not better enough to go a whole lot more than 20 minutes, but I managed 25.  Then I felt pretty darn tired.  But that hardly matters.  The only other thing I have to do today is make my blog post (what, fold the laundry?  Surely you jest!) (and I will call you Shirley if I want to).  And here I am over 500 words.  Yay me!  Now if only I can make it LESS than a week before I run again.

 

Leave a comment

Posted in humor, personal, running, running commentary and tagged , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Up Next: Murder Most Trivial

Posted on September 20, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

I went to work this morning determined to write on breaks and lunch, as well as right before the first buzzer rings.  I usually get to work early.  I used to always write my blog post at that time. Did I do so this morning?  Alas, no.  What the hell happened to me?

However, the news is not all bad.  While I was working, I got a couple of good ideas for my next murder mystery.  I quickly jotted them down when I got a chance.  I was mysteriously unable to write any more, but one does what one can.  Herkimer County Historical Society, beneficiary of the murder mystery, had asked for the premise and title for their Facebook page.  I thought I could manage that much.  This is what I messaged them:

The title of the mystery is “A Trivial Murder.” We’re all here for a taping of the game show, “Who Knows Herkimer History” with our host, Gary “Herk” Henderson. Gary is actually the new host. The original host died under mysterious circumstances, but let us not allow such gloomy thoughts cloud our evening! You should also just ignore those rumors that our returning champion has been given the answers in advance. There’s no scandal here! That journalist is here to do a puff piece, not a muck raking scandal-monger.

Looking over it again, I see where it could be improved.  And improve it, I will!  But not for this blog post.  For one reason, this is Wuss-out Wednesday, and I am only slightly less brain dead than I was yesterday (which I just now realize I should have categorized under “Tired Tuesday”) (another indication of my brain dead condition).  Then again, slightly less is still less.  I bet I’ll have that murder mystery finished in no time!  Can better blog posts be far behind?

 

2 Comments

Posted in humor, personal, Wuss Out Wednesday and tagged , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Do Antibiotics Make You Stupid?

Posted on September 19, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

I admit I have had some lame posts lately, but I do not think I have had one whining about how I JUST CAN’T MAKE A BLOG POST TODAY in a while.  How melodramatic that sounds, especially all in caps.  But do you feel I am actually whining?  I feel more that I am lamenting, poised mid-swoon, with a wrist to my forehead.  Well, at least I amuse myself.

And then I sat here staring at that paragraph, unable to add to it.  I typed in one paragraph that I backspaced out. It was dumb.  In desperation, I went to Facebook and typed in the following:

Oh My God! I just started typing in a blog post and it is the dullest thing ever!

A friend commented asking how I even start. I replied that I just put my fingers on the keys and start typing. Usually once I start I think of things to say.  Today not so much.  What’s that all about, brain?
I think I shall blame this one on my health.  I was diagnosed with a sinus infection and have been on antibiotics since yesterday.  Do antibiotics make you stupid?  Cue unkind remarks about what’s my excuse the rest of the time.  You know, I think I can make this post slightly better with a picture of Nosferatu.

“I don’t know what I’m doing in this blog post.”

Well, that made me feel better, at any rate.  Maybe this blog post isn’t so bad.  At least it might make other bloggers feel better about their posts.  And I can always try to improve tomorrow.

4 Comments

Posted in blogging, humor, personal and tagged , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Just Another Monster Day

Posted on September 18, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

It seems as if I just had a monster day, and looking back (I am not always too lazy to do so), I see I had Mid-Week Monsters last Wednesday.  Well, today it is Monday and I need monsters.  I just changed my Facebook profile picture to the Bride of Frankenstein.  I commented, “When I take a little trouble with hair and make-up, I’m a whole different person!”

This is not the picture I used for my profile, but I love the saying.

Can I just say, sometimes it is difficult to find the picture you want. Oh, quit playing that miniature violin!  Everybody is allowed to complain once in a while.  Perhaps I take a few extra turns.  These things happen.

Scary!

To continue my post, I went to my Media Library and added the next picture that caught my eye.  Some of the older movies made excellent use of shadows.  And it just occurs to me:  lots of people are scared of the dark, but when it is pitch black, at least you can’t see any frightening shadows.  I’m just saying.   Another observation: I seem to have a lot of pictures of Nosferatu.  Some of you already knew that about me.

I’m with you, Boney!

I see by my word count I am over 200 words.  Miller time!  Figuratively speaking, of course.  I am actually sipping seltzer with lemon and feeling fairly virtuous about it.  Will my virtue last?  A little suspense adds interest to my evening.  Happy Monday, everyone.

 

Leave a comment

Posted in humor, Monstrous Monday, personal and tagged , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Sunday Cinema

Posted on September 17, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

I think I am going to change my Sunday feature to Sunday Cinema, because our favorite thing to do on Sunday is to watch movies.  We have been enjoying a few flicks today, and I will list them, with illustrations.

Hugging with eyes open is, of course, movie and TV shorthand for being up to no good.

We DVR’d The Bad Seed some time ago (oh, Sept. 9, according to this poster I found on Facebook) and finally got around to watching it today.  What a disappointment!  We are longtime fans of the 1956 movie with Patty McCormick, although we have problems with that one too.  I may write an entire blog post about it, but, um, not today.

Check out the psycho eyes!

Next Steven suggested we watch Murder on the Orient Express (1974), because yesterday was Agatha Christie’s birthday and today is Lauren Bacall’s.  We have yet to catch the 2017 remake of that. Rats!  This could have been Remake Sunday!  It lacks alliteration, but I like it.

There’s the birthday girl, with another favorite of ours, Albert Finney (I don’t know who the fellow in the background is, although the one cut off is Martin Balsam).

Next I got to pick and I chose Psycho (1960), because it is a Halloween movie.

“We all go a little mad sometimes.”

After Psycho I put on Snapped, but Steven preferred to watch another movie.  He decided to continue the Agatha Christie theme with Witness for the Prosecution (1957).  I am delighted to see this old favorite again.

Two more of my favorites: Elsa Lanchester and Charles Laughton.

So now I must stop blogging and go back to movie viewing. After all, it is Agatha Christie.  Happy Sunday, everyone.

 

Leave a comment

Posted in humor, personal, Sunday Cinema and tagged , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Getting Ready to Kill!

Posted on September 16, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

Just when I thought I was going to have to make a fast, foolish post before getting ready for our show tonight, I checked my email and found pictures!  My friend Matt  took these pictures at last night’s rehearsal.  Now I can talk some more about Donate to Murder.  This will be great!

Donate to Murder, regular readers may recall, is the murder mystery LiFT, Little Falls Theatre Company, is presenting at the Herkimer Elks Lodge tonight.  I really need to be showering and getting ready, but of course blog posts must be made (or else they are not blog posts).  So here are the pictures and a few brief comments by me.

Now when a woman has a flower in her teeth, they say it’s sexy.

This is Renwick Spaulding, a lover of bugs.  When I gave him a rolling cockroach I just happened to have (a relic of another murder mystery), he immediately adopted it as his best friend, Edward.  Now Edward is my favorite character in the play.  Good playwrights are not resistant to script changes.

Personally, I think plaid is sexy.

My husband, Steven, is also featured as Dudley Turnbull, a lover of dogs but hater of dog poo.  My character, Miss Phoebe Larkspur, cringes when he mentions “poop” instead of saying the dogs “do their business.”  The other lady is Flora Fertenza, a kind of a flower child.

It’s a dramatic moment. Take my word for it.

 

I have a little hostility towards Flora at first.

Yes, one of these people is a murderer.

Here is the whole crew: Phoebe Larkspur, Meryl Barrymore, Flora Fertenza, Harold Greene, Dudley Turnbull, and Renwick Spaulding.

And now I have to jump in the shower.  Crap, I hope I can remember my lines!

 

Leave a comment

Posted in community theatre, humor, personal and tagged , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Looking for Lame Inspiration

Posted on September 15, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

I tried hard to make a “real” post yesterday, because I knew I would be strictly lame today.  Then again, it is Lame Post Friday, and I have been known to post lame even after a whole week of stinkers.  So I will drive on, even though quite frankly, I feel like I got nuthin’.

“Nothing, you say? But you have BLOOD!”

As I often do, I look to Nosferatu for inspiration.  As I typed in the caption, I remembered a quote often repeated and I have no idea who said it: Writing is easy; just sit down and open a vein.  That is probably not even the right quote.  But I get the idea that I am supposed to bleed. Quite frankly, I have almost never found writing to be that painful.  Perhaps that is why I am a silly blogger and not the winner of some prestigious literary award.

I almost put “only a silly blogger,” but I do not feel it is nothing to make a blog post every day, even if many of them are lame.  I can always build on this and write more.  I always intend to.  In the meantime, how about a blog post now.

Since I wrote about Shattered Angel‘s dress rehearsal yesterday, it would be nice if I mentioned Donate to Murder‘s dress rehearsal tonight.  Of course, our murder mystery is by no means as vast an undertaking as Angel, and it lacks Angel‘s historical significance.  However, I expect to entertain a number of people.  We have certainly enjoyed our rehearsals.  If only I had taken some pictures.

Once again, Donate to Murder is to be presented at Herkimer Elks Lodge tomorrow, Saturday, Sept. 15, at 7 p.m.  Tickets are $25 per person and are available at the downstairs bar at the Elks lodge, 124 Mary St., Herkimer NY, or by calling 315-866-1439.

 

Leave a comment

Posted in humor, Lame Post Friday, personal and tagged , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.
← Older Posts
Newer Posts →