Category Archives: personal

Monday Movies

One of our all time favorites!

Yes, I said I was going to have a real post this Monday, and here I sit, watching old movies.  I took a vacation day today, never mind why, explanations are tiresome.  When we got back home from our obligations, we wanted to watch movies. I wanted an old one, and Steven (my husband) recommended Witness for the Prosecution (1957).  It was a good idea.  Billy Wilder, yes.

Instead of going on with a Billy Wilder theme, or perchance an Elsa Lanchester or Una O’Connor theme, Steven wanted to see a movie with good music. I suggested The Big Chill (1983).

Quite the star-studded cast for the day.

I think the above image is photo-shopped. I hope it is not copyright protected. I just found it on Facebook and downloaded it.  I see it came from Marshall Jay Kaplan’s Fame Cafe.  I think as long as I credit the source, it falls under the “fair use” clause.  It seems the Facebook page last posted in 2016.  I don’t properly understand the internet, as regular readers know.

Right now, I have more important things to ponder, such as what movie to watch next.  Good music? Old movie?  Monsters? The possibilities are endless.  In the meantime, I need to finish this post. I think I will call it another Mental Meanderings Monday and include one more photo, just because three’s the charm.

Back in the day when people made engravings on lighters for presents.

I don’t know if we’ll watch Strangers on a Train (1951) next, but I’m having trouble finding a picture to include, so this will have to do. In fact, I did mention this as a movie to watch tonight, since the  murder victim in Witness for the Prosecution shows up as in a small but pivotal role in Stranger on a Train.  I guess I don’t know what movie, if any we will watch next.  But at over 300 words, I call this respectable for a blog post. Happy Monday, everybody.

 

I Cooked, I Drank, I Posted

How about a Saturday Supper post?  Full disclosure:  what I made wasn’t such a much, but I just feel like making kind of an easy post today.  Judge me if you must, but here goes.

I had to restrain myself from starting supper till an annoying 5:30 p.m., because my husband Steven worked till 6:30.  Damn retail hours!  Yes, yes, it’s a job, I’m grateful he has a job, blah blah woof woof. Where was I?  Ah yes, sitting on my couch, knitting, and watching Snapped and the clock.  I was feeling more and more tired with less and less time to take a nap.  Finally I heated a cup of coffee and added a splash of Mohawk Valley Fire moonshine from DikinDurt Distillery of Herkimer (adding a little local color to my post).  It was yummy and revived me amazingly.

The sad part was, once I started cooking, I did not feel I should cook with wine.  I did not want to be too tipsy when Steven got home (full disclosure:  my early adventures had included a lovely glass of draft beer. That was a couple of hours before my coffee of questionable moral fiber).  I chopped an onion and crushed a few cloves of garlic. I put the onion and some sausage in a frying pan while I let the garlic “breathe” for 15 minutes (we’ve talked about that before).  The sausage, by the way, was from Dino’s Sausage and Meat Company of Utica, NY (a little more local color).

When the sausage was almost done, I added cream cheese.  It was a partial package.  I added some milk to help it blend in and not be too thick.  It was still pretty thick.  Eventually I decided to add a complete package of cream cheese (I had a couple more in the fridge).  The main reason for this was that as I taste tested the sausage I realized I had not picked up sweet but medium or something.  I thought more cream cheese would soften the hotness.  Oh yeah, and it was Neufchatel, not actually cream cheese.  It has a third less fat. I did not add any spices but trusted the sausage, onion and garlic to be tasty enough.  We had the mixture over ruffle pasta.

With supper, we drank Dry Riesling from Swedish Hill Winery, a New York State Winery (just to get a little more local or at least regional in here).  We are enjoying another glass while I type in my blog post.  Supper was pretty good.  I hope my blog post is all right as well.  Happy Saturday, everyone.

 

I Like a Semi-Colon on Lame Post Friday

Oh crap, it is almost 10:30 at night and I have not yet made my Friday Lame Post.  Can I make it before midnight?  A more practical question is, why am I up so far past my bedtime?  Well, I just got back from A Bad Year for Tomatoes at Ilion Little Theatre.  I think I can write a quick post while I sip a glass of wine with my husband.  What, you thought I wasn’t going to have a glass of wine on a Friday?  I don’t think anybody thought that.

Normally when I have someplace to go on a Friday, I try to make my blog post first. I did not do so today, because I was working on Spring Into Murder, the murder mystery we are putting on for Morning Star Methodist Church in Ilion on April 28.  Earlier today I saw a flier about said murder mystery, so I was all psyched up to get what I have typed into the computer so I can get it out to the cast and we can start rehearsals.  I’m getting there!  Oh, you think I should have had it completed, typed in, polished, and have started rehearsals already?  That would have been nice.  But this is me we’re talking about.

Oh dear, two paragraphs into the blog post and I’ve got the type-it-in-backspace-it-out disease.  Part of me is saying, “You’re over 200 words; that’s plenty for Lame Post Friday!”  Yes, the voices in my head use semi-colons when they talk.  The voices in my head are all about grammar and punctuation.  If anybody would like to comment below, pointing out any errors I may have made today, go right ahead.  I will only laugh, because I have forgotten more grammar than most folks ever knew.  The rest I willfully ignore as it suits my purpose (insert evil laugh here).

In the meantime, I think I need to hit Publish, finish my wine, and go to bed.  I hope to see you all tomorrow on Scattered Saturday or perhaps Slacker Saturday, whatever it turns out to be.

 

Fay Wray, Can You Help Me Now?

Tired Thursday just does not have the same alliterative charm of Tired Tuesday.  And yet, I am just as tired.  Well, we all know what I do when I’m tired:  I make a blog post anyways!  I’ve been trolling my monster and movie groups for new pictures, but I am having no luck and really want to get this post made.  I wonder if there is anything in my Media Library I haven’t used lately.

I’ve always had a thing for tall guys with long hair, but this is ridiculous!

I forgot to mention that my clever husband Steven got our DVD/Video player working again.  Movies may be in my future!  I have not seen King King with Fay Wray in a long time.  Steven got me the Jack Black version recently and we have never watched it.  Oh, we rented it back when it was first available (wow, was it really so long ago that there were still video rental places?  Why yes, a quick check tells me 2005!  How the time flies!).  That was the only time I saw it.

Is it really better than Dr. X, do you suppose?

I found and downloaded a new picture after all.  Thinking of Fay Wray made me think of Mystery of the Wax Museum, another one of my favorites.  Wray plays an intrepid girl reporter who cracks wise.  I just love an intrepid girl reporter.

Yes, this is how I feel much of the time.

I went to my Media Library and added the first movie picture I saw, because I like to include three pictures.  We don’t have The Blob on DVD or video, so I guess One of These Things Is Not Like the Others (remember, from Sesame Street?)  Then again, that makes this a Non-Sequitur Thursday, doesn’t it?  And over 300 words, which I deem sufficient for a blog post.  Happy Thursday and I hope to see you all on Lame Post Friday.

 

I’m So Ambitious!

I bet nobody believes that, a quite understandable reaction.  At least the headline makes a change from my usual Wuss-out Wednesday whining.  The fact is, I have just about run out of oomph, but I hope to muster enough to make a blog post before Dateline, which I will probably go to bed before the end of anyways.  I think I will iterate what I did to feel so ambitious, and my dear readers can decide for themselves the truth of my headline.

I worked out after work (I’ll write a whole blog post soon about my new work-out routine, but for now just know that I sweated).   I got home, showered, and checked Facebook and email while sipping my recovery beverage of chocolate milk. Yum!  But I had to tear myself away from the computer to start dinner so it would have time to cook before my husband Steven got home.

I chopped up an onion and two potatoes, and put them in a casserole dish with garlic oil.  The garlic oil is some I made last week in the blender with fresh garlic and dried spices.  I always make more than I need for the recipe at hand so I can use it in subsequent cooking adventures.  I put the casserole dish in the oven at 350 degrees, planning to stir it every 15 minutes and add ham chunks when the potatoes were almost done.  The ham was leftover from Easter dinner at my Mom and Dad’s house.  Waste not, want not!

While dinner cooked, I made some cocktail sauce, using my mother’s recipe and going heavy on the horseradish.  I put it in the fridge for the flavors to blend.  I had it in mind to put it on some fake crab meat for one of my snacks at work.  Raw celery and radishes are just not cutting it, and I am out of celery anyways.  Then I remembered I was going to boil some eggs, for breakfast or snack purposes.

Soon the eggs were cooking, the ham was in with the potatoes and onion, and I had put the crab meat with cocktail sauce into a container.  When taste testing, I found I had gone too heavy with the horseradish so added extra ketchup and chili sauce.  Oh, I was doing great!   When the egg water reached a boil, I turned off the burner and covered the pot.  I had good luck with that method the last time I made hard-boiled eggs.   I also turned off the oven, so the casserole would stay hot but not overcook.

I got back on the computer, thinking to make my blog post, then remembered I have a murder mystery to type in.  I got one character sheet typed in by the time Steven got home.  I thought that, in addition to the other stuff I did, on a Wuss-out Wednesday, was not bad.  But perhaps I flatter myself.  In any case, I am getting close to 500 words.  That is a long blog post for me!  I think I deserve to knit and watch Dateline.

 

Dessert and Monsters on Tired Tuesday

Did I say no promises for Tuesday?  I think I did.  And, yes, it is going to be a Tired Tuesday post.  But I will try not to go on and on about how tired I am.  Instead, I will talk about the dessert I made to follow the supper cooked by my husband Steven.

The supper was nothing unusual but quite delicious:  chicken and rice.  Not cooked together.  Steven baked boneless, skinless thighs with spices, and made rice in the rice cooker.  It was yummy and satisfying.  After letting it settle, I fixed a little something for dessert.

I had some Oreo cookies I had purchased thinking I might made Dirt Cake for Easter.  We did not need another dessert for Easter, and Steven has been munching the Oreos.  I took a few of them and broke them up in the bottom of two bowls. I put blueberries on the cookie pieces and topped it with whipped topping (generic Cool Whip).  The blueberries were purchased frozen at Hannaford and thawed in the refrigerator.

Wow, this really is a Tired Tuesday post, because it seems I am too tired to make it particularly interesting.  Maybe I should add in a picture of a monster to pep things up (it’s too late to include a picture of the dessert; we ate it up right fast).

“What do you mean, you ate all the blueberries?”

I saw this picture of my favorite guy, Nosferatu, on Facebook earlier today.  The person who shared it commented that he always looked surprised.  I must agree.  I’m sure Count Orlock is surprised to be included in a blog post about a dessert.

“I, too, am horrified to be here!”

This shot is from The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, another creepy silent horror movie, and another picture I found today on Facebook.  Both photos were on one of my favorite Facebook groups: The Golden Age of Monster Movies.

Incidentally, Steven miraculously fixed our DVD/VCR player today.  I will soon be watching monster movies again!  I hope to write a few blog posts about them.  In the meantime, I hope somebody liked my Tired Tuesday post.

 

Breakfast Twins at Heidelberg

My husband Steven had a rare Saturday off on the 31st; he had requested it for the murder mystery (which I believe I mentioned once or twice).  We celebrated with breakfast out at Heidelberg Cafe in Herkimer, NY.  For another reason, we wanted to purchase some yummy rolls for Easter dinner on Sunday.

We got an early start, to beat the crowd, but were not there at the crack of seven, when they open.  There were plenty of tables available.  Some neighbors already enjoying breakfast said hello (I love small-town living).  We took a table for two, and a waitress almost immediately asked what we wanted to drink.  We both asked for a cup of coffee and a glass of water.  Looking over the menu, I noticed some lunch choices that sounded delicious.  I’ve only had breakfast at the Heidelberg.  I’ll have to expand my horizons.

We continued twinning when we ordered food:  two eggs over medium and sourdough toast.  YUM!  We enjoyed listening to the local radio station while we ate (I’ll have to write a blog post about that radio station one day soon; it is a recent addition to the Mohawk Valley).   We also discussed how may rolls to purchase, counting on our fingers how many were expected at my Mom and Dad’s for dinner.  A dozen and a half sounded good to me.

For once we refrained from getting any goodies other than the rolls.  I had a bad moment when I saw the English Tea Cookies — I LOVE them!  But I am far enough from my weight loss goals.

I’m afraid this is a rather dull post.  In my defense, I am waiting for Steven to get home for dinner.  It will consist of sandwiches made with Heidelberg rolls and leftover ham from Easter dinner.  I’m SO HUNGRY!  But I have proven to myself that I can compose a blog post while hungry.  I also avoided having a Monstrous Monday, so I will content myself with that.  No promises for Tuesday, though.

Heidelberg Cafe is located at 3056 State Route 28, Herkimer, NY, phone number 315-866-0999.

 

Most of the Time, I’m a Regular Fool

So I guess my stomach problems yesterday were not purely nerves.  At least, I seemed OK during the murder mystery (which was a blast, by the way) and not bad this morning, but as soon as I ate something… well, these things happen, I suppose.  I really hate to make another blog post whining about my petty health complaints. I will try not to whine but merely state the facts.  Then again, it is Wrist to Forehead Sunday.  Perhaps a “woe is me” followed by a swoon is appropriate.

Most of the audience seemed to really enjoy Secrets at Suiter House, our murder mystery, last night.  Now I must rush headlong into the next, Spring into Murder.  I’ll have more blog posts about that, no doubt.  Theatre is my life!  Part of my life, anyways.

I had a very nice Easter dinner with some members of my family.  My stomach allowed me to partake of ham, cheesy potatoes, and Heidelberg rolls, among other treats.  I admit it: I am rarely too ill to eat.  I keep thinking if I eat the right thing, it will make me feel better.  This explains my continued failure to meet my weight-loss goals.

However, as I often say, tomorrow is another day.  I guess a lot of people have said that.  How embarrassing to resort to cliche.  Well, what do you people expect of me when I have a bad stomach on Wrist to Forehead Sunday?  I can’t be profound under these circumstances!  But apparently I can make a blog post, however foolish.  Hey, I just remembered something else:  it’s April Fool’s Day.  That’s it!  I’m just an April fool.  Happy Easter, everybody.

 

 

Stomach-ache at Suiter House

I’m sitting here wondering if my upset stomach is due to the piece of leftover pizza I had for lunch or to nervousness about tonight’s murder mystery.  It feels more like a pizza upset stomach, quite frankly, but one cannot completely discount pre-performance butterflies.

As more astute readers will have guessed, this is going to be another foolish post.  However, since I often have foolish posts before a theatrical performance (oh, OK, and the rest of the time too), I think I will be forgiven. And if not, oh well, I will just have to live with the disapproval.

The murder mystery, in case you didn’t read about it in a previous blog post, is Secrets at Suiter House, to benefit the Herkimer County Historical Society.  I think it is one of my better scripts, but perhaps I flatter myself.  I have an excellent cast assembled.  I know they will do a marvelous job.  I dare to include myself in that confidence.  Accuse me of tooting my own horn if you like, but I maintain that there are worse things than having an ego the size of Manhattan, especially for an actor.

Is my ego the size of Manhattan?  I’m sure these things are difficult to measure.  I certainly have ego enough to set my foolish words afloat into the blogosphere (there’s a silly word) and trust some people will be entertained by them.  I have ego enough to write a murder mystery and present it to a room full of people, trusting that they will be entertained.

And yet I sit here with my stomach roiling, saying to myself, “What the hell am I thinking?”  I guess a gigantic ego does not always translate into a plethora of self-confidence.  Never mind.  Overconfidence is a dangerous thing, and sometimes nerves are a good sign.  So I say, break a leg, me.

Maybe I’ll try the effects of some ginger tea on my stomach.

 

Chardonnay on Lame Post Friday

OK, today is Lame Post Friday, and I am going to make a fast post, because my husband, Steven, has not been on the computer since this morning.  I can’t hog the laptop, after all.  So here is a quick shout-out to a few Herkimer, NY, businesses that made our Friday evening a little bit better.

First I went to Hot Spot Salon and Spa to get a hair cut.  I did not know quite what I wanted, but I wanted it to look good and I didn’t want to do to much myself to make it so.  Clair helped me out as always, and I left looking pretty damn good.

I went to Asteroga Ale House, where I got a glass of Chadornnay, sat down, and wrote on the next murder mystery till my husband, Steven, showed up.  I enjoyed sitting there amidst the Friday Happy Hour crowd, but after Steven showed up and had a glass of Chardonnay himself, I wanted some food and I didn’t feel like cooking.  Accordingly, we went to Salvatore’s Pizzeria and Restaurant, where we had some food and, yes, another glass of Chardonnay.

This is looking like a Scattered Friday post, which lacks the alliteration of a Scattered Saturday.   Well, I can’t help that.  For one reason, I am home how and Steven has poured me yet another glass of Chardonnay.  I have to watch Snapped.  It is Friday, after all.  Happy weekend, everybody.