Category Archives: personal

Would Ten-Finger Typing Have Helped?

I meant to go for a walk or run after work today, so I could do a Running Commentary or Pedestrian Post.  I do not know why I thought I would do any such thing.  I am almost always tired after work these days.  I get very little done beyond the bare essentials.  In fact, as I type this (pecking in one letter at a time with the stylus on my Tablet, of course), I am remembering an essential or two I ought to be doing instead.

That was as far as I got earlier.  Full disclosure:  I did not do any of the aforementioned essentials, for which I am feeling suitably guilty.  Now I am back on my couch, on my Tablet, and I really would rather be headed to bed, but would like to make my blog post first.

Preview of Coming Attractions?

I looked in my Media Library at October 2016 for a Throwback Thursday picture.  When I was outside earlier, the air smelled like fall.  Additionally, my fall allergies are starting to kick in.  Therefore this picture from Pumpkin Junction in Sauquoit seemed appropriate.   I have seen posts on Facebook telling fall junkies like me to “back our pumpkin spice asses off, summer isn’t over yet!”  Of course it is still summer.  In fact, tomorrow is supposed to be hot and humid, and won’t that be pleasant for all involved?

There’s a summer view!

I went to June 2020 for this one.  My deck has not been in good shape to hang out on for a while.  My toenails have not been painted, and those sandals are broken.  You can just see one of my late husband Steve’s legs, beyond the glass of wine, just to remind me that toenails and sandals are really not things to be sad about.

Oh dear, I did not mean to make a melancholy blog post.  I expect some sadness will always be with me, but I do not mean to burden others with my emotions.  Let me look for a pleasant memory to close with.

Cheers to you, Steve!

Here is Steve in Ruggerios Trattoria in Little Falls, NY in the summer of 2019.   Good memories!

And I see I am over 350 words.  Perhaps I could come up with an off the wall headline suitable for a Non-Sequitur Thursday Post.

 

 

Wednesday, What Else?

I really thought about not going to Fratello’s Pizzeria in Frankfort for music and food this Wednesday night (tonight).  I was going to stay home, behave myself, maybe get a few things done.   Then of course I talked myself into going out.  For one reason, Matt Grainger was playing.  At least I tried to behave myself while I was there.

Picture from a previous night.

None of the pictures I took came out, so I resort to my Media Library.   I took the obligatory shot with my phone to post on Facebook inviting others to come out.  My current phone takes terrible pictures.  That is what I get for cheaping out.

My friend Kathy joined me.  We enjoyed garlic bread with mozzarella cheese.  We chatted and enjoyed the music.  We both also ordered Buffalo Chicken Salads, which we intend to enjoy for lunch tomorrow.

He is fine, yes!

I searched my Media Library for another picture, because I do not have a whole lot else to tell about the evening.  I did not make notes about any of the songs he played, and nothing of note really happened.

However, it was an enjoyable evening.  I was glad I went, and I will enjoy having salad for my lunch tomorrow and Friday.  I also have a little leftover garlic bread to enjoy!

 

This Blog Post Sounded Better In My Head

Hello, and welcome to yet another Tired Tuesday Post.

One of my favorites.

This meme showed up on my Facebook On This Day so naturally I shared it again, commenting that I had in fact woken up unsure what day it was (should that be “which day”?  “What day” sounded better in my head) (Ooh, that gives me an idea for today’s title).

Where was I?  Nowhere in particular, I guess.  My stomach and head felt better today than they did yesterday, but by the end of work I had no energy.  On another Tuesday, I put in laundry, went running, did the dishes, and still made it to rehearsal.  Which Tuesday was that (this time “Which Tuesday” sounded better in my head than “What Tuesday”)?  Did I write a blog post about it?

For once I was not too lazy to go back and check, and, you know what, I am going to go back to being too lazy, because that was a lot of trouble.  Of course, most of my troubles stem from Operator Error.  Earlier today I had some operator error.  Most of my life can be summed up in those two words.  Anything not covered under Operator Error usually falls under the heading Shit Happens.  It is nice to have everything categorized.

In the meantime,  I see I am over 200 words.  Score!  Once again, I will try for a better blog post tomorrow.

 

I Get By With A Little Help From My Monsters

Today is another Blogger’s Sick Day, and half a sick day from work as well.  The pain of my migraine subsided, but the nausea remained.  Just to whine and cry a little (or a lot).  However, I think I can manage a Monstrous Monday Post.  I do hate to miss a day.

Who says you can’t get a head?

Last night Vincent Price would have been more than welcome to take off my head, as he has apparently done here with Peter Lorre.  I guess these two are not technically monsters, but I think we can stretch a point.

A self portrait? 

Here is an authentic monster as well as a graphic depiction of how I feel.  Oops, a little more whining creeps in.  Then again, that is like the Blob too.  Remember the theme song:  “It creeps, and leaps, and crawls and sprawls…”

He’s nice!

I add a little cuteness with one of my own Halloween decorations.  It is almost time to decorate for Halloween again (yes, I rush the season; judge me if you are so inclined).  If I am up for it.  It is no secret my mood has been sad lately.  But I shall not burden my readers with more complaints.  Maybe one more picture…

Who could be un-cheered by Nosferatu?

Whatever my trials and tribulations,  monsters often help.

 

Late Post, But Library!

This past Friday I drove to Little Falls for a fundraiser for Little Falls Public Library at Rock Valley Brewing.  I thought I had written a blog post about it, but I see I have not.  I took a picture.

Nice lady.

I chatted with some people I knew as well as the library lady, although I did not get her name.  I took a pen and a book Mark from the library table.  There were colored pencils so you could personalize your bookmark, but I did not feel talented.

I petted a very nice dog and chatted with his dog-sitters (they were watching him for their daughter).  I drank some Chardonnay from Thousand Islands Winery, but not too much since I had to drive home.  I sat at a tall table and started a letter to a friend.

I guess this post isn’t such a much, and I apologize for that.  In my defense, I am just getting over a very bad migraine I had for most of the afternoon yesterday and all night last night.  Yesterday (Sunday) was a Blogger’s Sick Day for sure.  For Saturday I have no excuse.

However, I have given a shout-out to the library and Rock Valley Brewing.  I shall have some more coffee and try to face my day.  Once again, thank you for tuning in.

 

Bully for Bully Hill

A great way for me to start my weekend is with a tasting at Valley Wine and Liquor in Herkimer, NY.  I went there last Friday and sampled wines from Bully Hill Vineyards of Hammondsport, NY. I have known about Bully Hill Wines almost since I first began drinking wine, so long ago the drinking age was 18. I love their fun labels, and the price is nice, too.

Nice pourer nice wines, nice price.

All the wines I tasted were sweet, which is not my favorite.  However, you never know when you might find that one exception.  Additionally, I like chatting with the pourer.   I like hearing about the different wines and the people who make them.  Caitlin was very friendly and knowledgeable.

The Riesling is billed as semi-sweet, but to me it tasted sweet.  The Ravat 51 was more of a citrusy blend.  I felt there was a lot going on there, so I enjoyed that one.  The Sweet Walter Peach was peachy and very sweet.  The Sweet Walter Loganberry was also tasty.

The last one I tasted was the Sweet Walter Midnight Mission Dessert Wine.  It was indeed very desserty.  I thought it would pair well with a rich chocolate dessert, like the Spoon Cake at Salvatore’s Pizzeria and Restaurant in Herkimer.  I am of course no expert at pairings, but it sounded good to me.

I ended up buying a bottle of the Loganberry for my sister Cheryl, because I seemed to remember she liked loganberry wine.  I later thought that maybe it was the Loganberry from a different vineyard she liked, but perhaps she will like this one just as well.

Valley Wine and Liquor in Herkimer has tastings most weekends.  You can go to their website at shopvalleywine.com for a schedule.

 

Is a Redundancy as Bad as a Tautology?

So after a weekend of missed blog posts, I have had a week of late blog posts.  At least it is Friday, early morning as I sit, lounged on my couch pecking in one letter at a time with the stylus on my Tablet (most of that clause helpfully supplied by the predictive text thingy), and gratefully sipping coffee.

I was about to tell you of a weird, unexplained thing, but as soon as I started to, the explanation dawned on me.  The weird thing was this:  I did not put on coffee last night (no, that’s not the weird thing, keep reading).  I thought, I am not going to put on coffee and I am going to leave the kitchen light on all night.  I have a thing for leaving lights on lately, although I try to be conscientious about saving electricity.  When I got up this morning, the kitchen light was off!  I know I left it on! I remember deciding to!  Weird!

As soon as I started to tell the story,  I remembered.  After going upstairs I realized I had not taken my pills.  I had brought my old lady pill holder (the kind with a.m. and p.m. Monday through Friday) downstairs, because I have been being very bad about taking my a.m. pills.  I had it upstairs because my p.m. pills are more important and I was afraid if I forgot to take them I would be too lazy to walk downstairs and correct the omission.

So I proved myself not too lazy to walk down the stairs and no doubt automatically turned off the light, not even thinking about it (was that a redundancy to say “automatically ” and “not even thinking about it”?  I suppose so, but I do so for emphasis).

I am sorry I do not have a ghost story to share.  It would have been a nice follow-up to my Mid-Week Monsters Post.  However, I see I am over 300 words.  I guess I’ll slap on a headline and bill it as a Non-Sequitur Thursday Post.

 

In My Defense, Nosferatu!

Wuss-out Wednesday follows Tired Tuesday once again.  On the brighter side, I think I found what I must have inadvertently clicked to cause the technical difficulties I lamented these past two posts.  Let me add a picture (yes, predictive text thingy,  I usually do add “to pep things up”) and see how that goes.

“Just peeking in to see how it’s going.”

Score! I am back to the view I am used to!  As usual, all my problems are caused by Operator Error. I put a picture of Nosferatu, because I thought Mid-Week Monsters might be fun and easy.  I am all about making things easy these days, although it seems I rarely succeed.

A scary thought, indeed!

I have no idea where this one came from, but it was in my Media Library and I know I have not used it as many times as I have, for example, the one of Nosferatu.  In my defense, Nosferatu!

I wonder who does his nails.

I am not sure which Wolfman this is, but he looks scary enough.  I, personally, am fond of Lon Chaney,  Jr. in the part, although I always feel so sad for him.  I feel he is a tragic character.  I could write a whole essay on werewolves as tragic figures.  Perhaps I will, but not today.

I see this nonsense has brought me over 200 words.  Score!  Let’s see if I can make my Thursday blog post on Thursday.  No promises.

 

Technical Difficulties on Tired Tuesday

Yestersay was a common or garden Tired Tuesday (still the tiny letters on my Tablet and no predictive text or autocorrect; what’s that about?). I pulled a muscle at work, but it was not one of my blogposting muscles. Well, peripherally I guess it was, but really I have no good excuse.

So, what, is this post going to be entirely me whining about not making a post yesterday? SAY IT AIN’T SO! Now my predictive text would have given me the whole phrase after I had typed in “SA”, a great savings in time. Additionally, I just noticed that in the previous parahraph, “autocorrect” came out “autocortec.” Autocorrect would have caught that and fixed it. Ironic, yes? Or do I set the bar too low?

OK, so I guess it’s a post of me whining about technical difficulties. Quick, throw in a picture (once again, my predictive text thingy would have helpfully chimed in with “to pep things up”).

Once again, I am unable to add a caption, but this is the magnificent cast of Fabulous and Fatal, a murder mystery we presented in 2019 to benefit the Herkimer County Historical Society, a wonderful memory.

Come to think about it, I have to get moving on another murder mystery for them. So I begin with a whine and end with a preview of coming attractions. It will have to do for a late Tired Tuesday post.

Missing Steve, Missing Posts

Grief is not linear. You do not go through the steps in an orderly fashion, magically feeling a little bit better each day until one day you realize you have finally found you could live with it.

I just imagine this is not a startlingly original insight. I feel sure every grief stricken person has found it to be true, and a number of people who have yet to be bereaved have suspected such a thing. I suppose I suspected it myself. Now I know it to be true.

All this by way of apologizing for missing both my Saturday and Sunday posts. I was just too sad.

I share one of my favorite pictures of Steve. For anybody just tuning in, Steven is my much loved husband, who passed away Feb. 3 of this year. So I recently passed the six month mark. I am trying to concentrate on remembering the good times, being thankful that I had my husband for as long as I did, and learning how to live alone. Some days it works better than others.

Here is a picture of me and Steve together. I will just interject at this point that my Tablet and/or WordPress is really screwing with me today. It only shows a bunch of letters and symbols for the pictures I share, it won’t let me edit said pictures to add a caption, and my predictive text thingy (sometimes annoying but sometimes helpful) is gone. And the letters on my screen are way smaller than usual. What the hell? (Ooh, at least it is not autocorrecting “hell” into “he’ll”!)

So this my Monday post. An apology for no Saturday or Sunday post, and a grief update. Thank you for tuning in.