Category Archives: personal

Still Blogging, But I’m No Blob

Posted on May 10, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

I am approaching my seventh anniversary of writing this blog (I may use “blogging” as a verb, but I shall not use the word “blogiversary”) (except, perhaps, parenthetically), and I am beginning to wonder if I am just not coming to the end.  SAY IT AIN’T SO!!!  The fact is, I have been sitting here with the laptop on my lap for some time now, and I have no idea what to write a blog post about.  I just hate to have a Wuss-out Wednesday after a Bad Attituesday after a Monstrous Monday after a Wrist to Forehead Sunday after a, oh crap, what was Saturday?

“What do you mean another silly post?”

When in doubt, throw in a picture of a monster.  A natural monster this time, the great white shark from JAWS.  At least, I think this is the mechanical shark, Bruce, making it a depiction of a natural monster (I add in the interests of accuracy).

As usual, I meant to write a blog post while on breaks at work.  As usual, I did not.  My obsession with solving puzzles once again got the better of me.  I managed to write a little on a letter to my sister.  And I wrote entries in my food and headache journal (I’m documenting and looking for patterns) (no luck so far).  I do not know what is wrong with me.  However, as Scarlett O’Hara used to say, tomorrow is another day.  I’ll throw in a couple more monster pictures and call it a day.

It creeps, and leaps…

I would say this is me: a blob, but in fact it is not.  The Blob oozed around quite actively, causing all kinds of trouble.  All I want to do is sit on the couch and knit.

I forgot I had this one.

I thought I would close with a picture of my favorite, Nosferatu.  I love that guy.  Happy Wednesday, everybody.

 

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Macabre Memories on Bad Attituesday

Posted on May 9, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

I think I have not had a Bad Attituesday post in a long time (at least I have not categorized it a such, or I would have found one on the search I just made).  That is good new for me, because today I have SUCH a bad attitude.

I don’t know if I shared this memory before, but when I was in fourth grade, I had a hard time learning how to spell Tuesday.  I blame my teacher, Miss Pomilio, although ultimately of course I take responsibility for my own education.  For one reason, I did finally learn how to spell the damn word.  No thanks to that old biddy.

Miss Pomilio was roughly 512 years old.  I heard that every year the principal, Mr. Perillo, talked her out of retiring, because she was such a good teacher.  By “good teacher,” I believe they meant she was very strict and did not take any garbage from fourth graders.  I mostly remember how she seemed to love to tell stories that involved people dying.  For example, to really bring home the lesson of the importance of reading signs, she told the story of a guy (for some reason I remember picturing a bald old man, but I don’t recall if she specified any such details), who dived headfirst from the high dive, completely neglecting the sign that said there was no water in the pool.

“And the doctors picked him apart, but he died,” she said.  She also told us that if we didn’t poop for a few days, we would die.  “Try it and you’ll die.”  In later years I wonder if she really did invite us to try it or if that is an invention of my macabre memory.

Getting back to Tuesday, it was a spelling word one week.  When Miss Pomilio said the word, in that frighteningly solemn tone teachers use for spelling tests, she pronounced it, “Teeooosday.”  I mean, she used a really distinct EEEE and OOOO.  As if she was TRYING to get us to spell it wrong!  To this day, whenever I spell the word Tuesday, I have to say in my head, “Two-EEZ-day.”

And thus my bad attitude began.

Just kidding.  I’m sure I have always had a bad attitude about some things at least part of the time. The rest of the time, I try to be cheerful.  My motto is, “You can laugh or you can cry; you might as well laugh.”  I made it up myself.  Now I have typed myself right out of my bad attitude, and I away Wednesday in a reasonably happy state of mind.

 

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George Zucco on Monstrous Monday

Posted on May 8, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

I had vague hopes (not high hopes, as you see) of making a real post, perhaps writing it while on break at work.  I also had what I thought were firm plans to exercise after work.  I should have known better.  Now here I am, in a monstrous mood, typing off the top of my head and hoping for a Monstrous Monday post.  I do like monsters.

“Y’see, dock, it hurts right about here…”

Here is George Zucco and… a friend (I bet you thought I was going to say his mummy) (you know who you are).  I had seen a picture of George Zucco and a gorilla in one of my movie groups earlier and thought I might download it.  I went back to Facebook and searched “Geroge Zucco.”  There it was!  At the last minute I thought, what if it belongs to somebody and I was supposed to get permission?  So I changed my search to “George Zucco public photos.”  I kind of like the mummy better anyways.  It is more monstrous.

I was introduced to George Zucco (it just feels right to use his entire name every time) in our 50 Horror Classics DVD collection.  He is described as “marvelously theatrical.”  I’m sure I’ve written blog posts about some of his movies.  I really must start doing movie write-ups again.  They are such fun.  For me, at least.

Spoiler alert: they do more than just walk in this flick.

I think this is one of the movies I wrote about.   If I was better about tagging, I could probably find it and link back to it.  And here we come to the ugly truth about me.

I still don’t know why the monster was so mad.

I actually do not remember if I saw this one or not, but I thought it would be nice to include another picture with George Zucco.  My new ambition for the week:  to watch a movie featuring George Zucco and write about it.  It is good to make a big plan on a Monday.

 

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Wrist to Scattered Sunday

Posted on May 7, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

It’s that time on a Sunday when all I want to do is settle down with a glass of wine, my knitting, and watch Snapped, and I remember I have not yet done my blog post.   And Snapped isn’t on!  We find a Snapped On Demand and I try to type in a fast Wrist to Forehead Sunday post so I can get back to my activities of choice.

It has actually been a delightful Sunday.  I worked for a half hour in the yard and got quite a lot done. Steven was happy when he came home and saw the progress I had made.  I got the dishes done, took a shower, and put on a cute outfit (although perhaps I flatter myself). I made myself a cup of tea and worked on my novel.   I finished a letter to a friend, wrote my weekly postcards and walked to the post office, taking a convoluted route home to make a 35 minute walk.

After Steven got home, we went to Little Falls to the Mohawk Valley Center for the Arts for a reading featuring two local authors, one of whom is a theatre friend of mine.  That was fun; I must write a full post about it.  Then we had a delightful dinner at Ruggiero’s Trattoria.  Yum!  While Steven stepped outside to smoke a cigarette, I wrote a few more notes on my novel.  Maybe if I ever finish one and publish it, I can have a reading at the Center for the Arts.

So I’m going to hit Publish and call this a Scattered Sunday.  After all, I have knitting to do, wine to drink, and Snapped to watch.  Happy Sunday, everyone!

 

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Introducing Stream of Consciousness Saturday

Posted on May 6, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

I have less than twenty minutes to make my blog post or I will have to drink and type.  Oh, who am I kidding?  I have sipped and typed many times. In fact, right now I am sipping an iced coffee QMF (that stands for Questionable Moral Fiber).  I had meant to drink it virgin, but it tasted kind of bland and sad, so, PURELY for flavoring purposes, I added just a small splash of DikinDurt Distillery’s Mohawk Valley Fire.  Yum.  Sometimes the naughtiness of having a little nip is all you really need.

So I am sitting here waiting for my friend, Kim, to pick me up to go to a Cinco de Mayo event at the Ilion Elks Lodge.  There I go again with my latest Freudian typo!  I keep wanting to put Cindy de Mayo.  A Facebook friend said she thought a Cindy de Mayo party sounded like a hoot.  I’ll have to keep that in mind.  It reminded Steven of a Freudian error he used to make when writing in the TV Journal.  He would refer to a certain HBO show as Sex and the Cindy.  Make what unflattering jokes you please, I think it sounds like a good show.

Either the coffee or the minute amount of alcohol is giving me a hot flash, just to give this post a little stream of consciousness flair.  Ooh, how’ s that for a new category?  Stream of Consciousness Saturday!  I love it!  And I am over 250 words, a perfectly respectable blog post by my own perhaps messed up rules (but they work for me).  And I still have 12 minutes before Kim gets here. Happy Saturday, everyone.

 

 

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Lame Headache, Monster Pictures

Posted on May 5, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

If this was not Lame Post Friday, I might be tempted to have another Blogger’s Sick Day.  I left work early with a migraine.  It’s better now, but I still have a naggy little headache.  So much for my health woes.  Let’s post some monster pictures.

“You think YOU have a headache!”

Earlier today, I observed that my hair has grown out to the point where I either have to cut it or spend more time growing it before I will like it again.  I also thought it made kind of a square shape on the top of my head.  So I thought I probably looked like Frankenstein, and that made me feel happier about it.  My work friend, Karen, said my hair has been looking nice lately and pointed out that hair does need to be cut on a regular basis.  I personally want to do another St. Baldrick’s event and be bald.  Maybe in 2019.

Maybe Dr. Frankenstein should have put this brain in his monster.

This is a shot from The Brain From Planet Arous (1957).  I seem to remember it is a very silly movie, but since my brain is kind of throbbing, I thought it was appropriate.

One more picture and I’ll sign off.  Hmmm…

Everybody needs a little help sometimes.

I think if somebody would have offered that monster a nice cup of tea, a good many rampages could have been avoided.  Perhaps I shall have a cup of tea myself, although I do not feel inclined to go on a rampage at this time. Happy Friday, everyone!

 

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Non-Sequitur Bomb Scare

Posted on May 4, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

I am taking a Blogger’s Sick Day.  I was going to say Blogger’s Mental Health Day, but for some reason that does not feel right to me.  I was over two hours late getting out of work, because we were locked down for a car bomb threat.  I was happy enough when they gave us the All Clear shortly after 5, because we were hearing we would be stuck there till 7:30 at the earliest.

For some reason, I can’t seem to hit Publish after less than a hundred words (my usual minimum for a respectable post is 200), but I am quite disinclined to say anything about this threat.  I’ll probably hear more about it on the news tomorrow.

Full disclosure:  I did not feel frightened or freaked out at the time. I am not sure how shaken I feel now, but I am not able to make a “totally fun” post, as advertised in my subtitle.  Now if one of my family or friends had endured a threat of some nature, that would have bothered me.  Discuss the psychological implications among yourselves.

 

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May Pizza!

Posted on May 3, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

Steven and I celebrated today’s extremely warm weather with a short walk and dinner out.  I had meant to make a Pedestrian Post and took my Tablet on the walk in hopes of finding some of them there May flowers to take pictures of.  That did not work out so well.  I tried to take a picture of two trees starting to get leaves, but all I could see on the Tablet was the reflection of my own stupid face. No, I did not have it in “selfie” mode;  it was the result of the bright sun on the black screen.  I think.  I did not continue to look at it, because the angle was really showing up my middle-age turkey neck.  I don’t mind getting old, but there is no reason to stare at some things.

The sun was bright and hot; shade and breeze were not plentiful, but what we encountered was appreciated.  No, I am NOT complaining.  I would have enjoyed authentic spring weather, but I’ll take summer.  I said we should sit out on the deck with a couple of beers, but we were hungry and going out to eat sounded really, really good.  I suggested Franco’s Pizza in Ilion.  I had been there for the first time on a recent Scattered Saturday, but Steven had never been.

The restaurant was not crowded, but a few people were ahead of us ordering at the counter.  That was OK, since we needed time to peruse the boards and decide what to get.  We were still debating when it was our turn, so the counter person was able to help the person behind us who was picking up an order.  We saw a few people picking up orders they had called in.  Maybe we’ll do that next time.

At last we decided on a small, thin crust garlic pizza with sausage and mushrooms with ten butter-garlic wings.  We split a bottle of Dasani.  We sat at a tall table and enjoyed the retro ’50’s decor as well as the sunshine coming through the large windows.   The food was delicious, and we brought home leftovers.  Pizza for breakfast, my favorite!

Franco’s Pizza is located at 6 Central Plaza, Ilion, NY, phone number 315-894-5580.  For more information, you can visit their website at www.francosilion.com.  You can also Like them on Facebook.  I did.

 

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May Day Run?

Posted on May 2, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

I unexpectedly ran today.  I had my work-out clothes in a bag in my vehicle, thinking to go to the YMCA in Mohawk for my usual arms and abs followed by elliptical.  Then I stepped out of work into the warm air and thought, “I can’t waste this!”  It was nice and cloudy too, just the way I like it.  I left the workout clothes in my vehicle for another day, got dressed in a running outfit — shorts and short sleeves, woohoo! — and set out.  Full disclosure:  the outfit in my bag would have been fine for running, but I figured this way I already have the bag packed for next time.

Oh, the bare sidewalks! Oh the breeze that did NOT torment my sinuses!  Well, yes, the warmer temperature does make my spring allergies immediately kick in (it’s either placebo effect or really, really fast pollens), but that is not the same as the pain brought on by a bitter wind.  I got set to enjoy myself.

Of course I did not.  I have not been running in weeks (too lazy to check my running journal and see exactly how long) (well, that fits: too lazy to run, too lazy to check).  I have taken walks and gone to the YMCA, but not as consistently as intended or recommended.  In fact, I haven’t done anything since Friday.  In my defense, oh never mind my defense, explanations are tiresome.  But my body was not happy with me right away.

I grimly told myself that this was the difference between a smooth elliptical machine and pounding on the pavement.   Just endure, I thought.  One must get through runs like this to get to the good ones.  I have not run up the hill to Herkimer College in a long, long time.  I want to get back there one day!  Today, obviously, was not that day.  I decided 15 minutes would be OK, although I would try for 20.  Twenty minutes seemed good for the first run in a long, long time.

I thought about how I have been going for long walks on some of the days I do not go to the YMCA.  Walking, I thought longingly.  How pleasant would that be?  I would go further and longer!  Why wasn’t I walking?  I had really missed a bet this time!  But I kept running, at least the middle-aged shuffle I call a run.  I reminded myself that this was the pace I can keep up for just about as long as I decide to.

By the end of the run, I was picturing a calendar and counting in my head if I ran 20 minutes, then added 10 percent every week, how soon would I be ready to run a 5K?  What if I ran 22 minutes?   I left out a week and got confused.  Then I wondered when I might find a 5K in the area that I wanted to run.  I also wondered if I would be able to get a blog post out of this run.  I could call it May Day Run.  Isn’t May Day what ships call when they are about to sink?  Appropriate for the way I was running!

I made it for 23 minutes.  Perhaps I could have gone further, but there was no point in killing myself (oh, YOU can probably see a point to it!) (you know who you are).  As it was I was damn tired.  My cool-down walk was more pleasant than the run, but I was ready to stop that by the end, too.  I stood on the deck to do my stretches and noticed some daffodils in my yard.  Yay, daffodils!  I had been hoping all day to see some May flowers.

 

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Various Movies on Monstrous Monday

Posted on May 1, 2018 by mohawkvalleygirl

I’m sure nobody expected me to get my act together overnight.  If you did, well, you realize you were setting yourself up for disappointment, do you not?  No matter.  We all have foolish expectations from time to time.

All this by way of introduction to another Monstrous Monday.  My only decision now is whether to use repeat monsters or search for new pictures to share.  I think I’ll look for old and try to think of new things to say about them.

Here’s a double bill I never thought of.

I do not remember why I downloaded this shot or when I used it.  Trog, for the uninitiated, is Joan Crawford’s last movie.  It is not my favorite cheesy horror movie featuring Crawford.  And before anybody hazards a guess, neither is Whatever Happened to Baby Jane.  I don’t think I have ever seen Taste the Blood of Dracula, although I have seen a few Hammer Dracula movies starring Christopher Lee.  I understand he kept saying each one was his last, but the studio would talk him into the next, often by pointing out how many people would get work thereby.  If that is true, it gives me quite a good opinion of Lee, even outside of his acting prowess.

“Did you think I would not pop in?”

What’s a Monstrous Monday without my favorite guy, Nosferatu?

He only looks harmless.

I end with a monster of the human variety, Robert Walker as Bruno in Strangers on a Train, on the right.  The other guy, looking a little apprehensive (and no idea yet how right he is to be so!) is Farley Granger as Guy Haines.  Good movie.  I’ll have to give it another watch soon.  But not on a double bill with Trog.

 

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