Tag Archives: blogging

A Lot of Help from my Family

Posted on June 13, 2024 by mohawkvalleygirl

A long time ago, my father did the laundry, and my mother marveled that she had been visited by the Laundry Fairy.

“The Laundry Prince,” Dad corrected her in a dignified tone of voice.

Well, the Porch Prince and two Lawn and Deck Princesses visited my house yesterday while I was at work, performing miracles for which I am very grateful.  And a little ashamed, because I feel as a homeowner I ought to be taking care of these things myself.  However, we all need help sometimes, and I am so blessed to have a family that helps me.  After all, I often quote the song,  “I get by with a little help from my friends.”  My family are my best friends!

I do not have before pictures of the porch, but it was in sorry shape.  It was concrete that had been eaten away by erosion, largely because Steve and I never replaced the gutter which the guy took off when he repaired the porch roof after we had just moved in.  One of those things we always meant to get to but really only remembered about when it rained.  I really wanted a wooden porch, and Dad had an idea to use the concrete steps as a base for building one.  My Dad can build or fix anything!

He is amazing!

My sister Cheryl, one of the Lawn and Deck Princesses, sent me pictures.  That was when I realized she was going to do something about Frankentree.  I knew she wanted to, using the chain saw she had recently purchased (and not being one to perpetuate the Mohawk Valley Chainsaw Massacre) (I add for the amusement of my horror-movie loving readers), but I had rather thought she would pick a day when I would be there to help.  She texted, “Too late!”

Who knew it could look like that?

I may have a a before picture of Frankentree.  I guess I will have to give him a new name, since he looks all of a piece now.

This is from 2020.

The tree had only gotten more out of control, with a lot of the lower branches dying off.  The lawn, also, has gotten out of control, largely because I have allowed the daisies and other invaders to grow unchecked.  Mom and Cheryl cleaned out all under and around the tree, as you can see.  They left the daisies, because some blooms remained, but I will be cutting them back soon.  Cheryl suggested that I dig them up and replant them closer to the porch.

My back deck, too, has needed some work.  It was covered with leaves from the tree which gives it so much shade.  My two Princesses performed miracles there, too.

I may actually get to deck sit this year!

My three benefactors were waiting for me when I returned from work.  They showed me everything they had done and offered suggestions for what I should do next.  If only I could think of some way to properly thank them!  They already have plenty of afghans.  Any suggestions?

 

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About Blogging, About Writing

Posted on June 12, 2024 by mohawkvalleygirl

Yesterday I kind of snuck my late Monday post in under the radar (snuck isn’t a word, Chromebook?  what is it, sneaked? That sounds just as silly), making the post and not saying anything about when I made it.  Today is Wednesday and I am boldly making my Tired Tuesday post and telling you it is late.  For one thing, I am still too tired to write about other things.

That is an interesting thing about this blog.  When I started it, I wanted it to be about Something, not just me.  Well, it became a lot about me, and now it seems it has become a lot about itself.  Is that like a snake eating its own tail (another cliche but one not as often used)?  That is what fiction advisors say about people writing about their own experiences, just changing the names.  Sooner or later, they say, you run out of things to write about.  I quite frankly do not see where that is inevitable. You keep living, don’t you?  Incidentally, that is not my style when I write fiction:  I make almost everything up, characters, situations, events.

Well, the characters in my books sometimes drink wine.

I wanted to throw in a picture to pep things up but did not have one of me writing.  To continue:  a number of my friends have asked to be put into books.  I hesitate to do this, because what if they don’t like how they are portrayed?  “I’m not like that!”  “I would never say that!”  They would also like to be killed off, since I write murder mysteries.  I have thought of trying a horror novel, where lots of people get killed.  I could knock off all my friends and enemies at once.  Something to think about.

Full disclosure:  In my long life, I have only ever finished one novel.  I currently am not even working on one, but I am trying to get back into it.  These days I write my blog, my interactive murder mysteries, and articles for Mohawk Valley Living magazine.  That reminds me:  I have a magazine deadline coming up.  Yikes!

 

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Good Music at the Chowdown

Posted on June 11, 2024 by mohawkvalleygirl

Last Monday I received an unexpected invitation to join my friends Jim and Kelly at the Herkimer Downtown Chowdown.  Since it is walking distance from my house, I gladly took a walk down.  It was a beautiful evening, sunny with a little bit of a breeze.  Meyers Park, where the Chowdown is held, has plenty of shade.  Kelly and Jim had brought chairs.  I must do that next time.  Kelly volunteered to get a blanket out of their car and sit on the ground so I could have a chair. Since I had my Monday backache, I was very grateful for that (I don’t know if I ever mentioned it, but I get a backache most Mondays.  After relaxing all weekend, my back has a “What the hell?” attitude when I go back to work).

Kelly and I walked among the food trucks, pondering our choices.  We finally went to The Corner Office where I got a hamburger and Kelly got chicken tenders.  We went back and sat down while Jim went and got some loaded nachos.  I foolishly neglected to ask which truck he got them from; they looked really good.  We settled down to eat (chow down?) and listen to the band.

They really rocked.

It was an ’80’s band called Remedy.  ’80’s music is near and dear to my heart.  I often observe that it may not have been the best decade, but, man, what a soundtrack!  I say the same thing about the ’60’s and ’70’s.  Of course all decades have their good and bad points;  music was definitely one of the good points about the ’80’s.

The lead singer called a guitarist named Marco out of the crowd to join them for a song or two.  He was very good too.  Apparently there was some controversy, because the lead guy said he had cleared it with somebody named Anthony but expressed concern that some people were videotaping.  Yes, I had to choose that moment to take a couple pictures for the blog post.  Herkimer’s mayor was making a video, no doubt destined for their Facebook page.

Don’t tell Anthony! Whoever he is.

I had a really great time, but had to leave early, because I remembered I needed to put out my trash and recyclables (Tuesday is trash day in my neighborhood).  Jim, Kelly, and I made plans to get together to watch the next play at Ilion Little Theatre (preview of coming attractions).

I will just mention that Jim and Kelly are father and daughter.  Jim’s wife and Kelly’s mother is Phyllis, my late dearly missed friend, who I have mentioned many times in this space.

For more information about The New Herkimer Downtown Chowdown, you can visit their Facebook page.

 

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Who Me? Dread Monday?

Posted on June 10, 2024 by mohawkvalleygirl

Hello and welcome to another Wrist to Forehead Sunday, the day I swoon, dramatically posed with the back of one wrist to my forehead, although I do not possess a chaise lounge to swoon upon, alas.

I have not indulged to that extent.

Monday is OK, or at least it will be until it actually is Monday and I have to get out of bed.  That is always a bad moment.  However, one must carry on, and I don’t mean cry and carry on, although one does that on occasion.

Just one more blog post.

Of course I have been watching Columbo.  The sad part is that I saw a picture in my Media Library from one of the episodes I watched today, but, alas, I cannot find it ow.

One of my favorites!

I did, however, find a logo from Dateline, which I just now found on Roku.  I am not paying much attention to the episode that is currently running, except to see that that terrible wife totally did it.  Dateline is rarely much of a mystery.

 

Picture from last summer.

I was disappointed this morning to see that Brookwood Market’s opening day had been rescheduled to June 23, due to weather.  I had totally planned to take a walk over and check it out.  I want to purchase a shawl from Herkimer Handknits.  I am sure there are other vendors who will have things I will like to buy.  I will probably write a blog post about it (preview of coming attractions).

I see I am over 250 words.  Respectable for a Wrist to Forehead Sunday, at least by my rules for me.  Perhaps another picture just to round things out.

Not my outfit for today, but close enough.

Yes, I have been relaxing, in between bouts of dreading Monday.  Full disclosure:  I am not dreading Monday all that much.  Still, another three day weekend would be nice.

 

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I Cut Myself a Little More Slack

Posted on June 9, 2024 by mohawkvalleygirl

Here I sit, trying to make my Slacker Saturday blog post early Sunday morning.  At least, it is not early for me, but as Sunday mornings go for other people…  Not that I know that much about other people, but I have heard.

I put off making this blog post while I had some coffee, scrolled Facebook, played Solitaire, then read another blogger’s weekly post.  Oh, and I re-read one of my posts from 2012 which I had been thinking about.  I have been writing this blog for a long time, haven’t I?  Or, as Truman Capote famously said, “That’s not writing, that’s typing.”  I fear that lately my blog has become me rambling on, not saying much of any substance, much less sharing Mohawk Valley adventures as I intended to do when I began the blog.

Like KO Grainger at the Herkimer Downtown Chowdown.

I sometimes mention one I am going to write about, then when I sit down with the Chromebook… not so much.  What, I ask once again, is my problem?  More to the point, what is the solution? I confess I do not know.  I am not having much luck with the Do It Anyways method.

Am I too chicken to write?

Yesterday, by the way, was in fact a Slacker Saturday.  I went running, as I mentioned in my late Lame Post Friday post.  I puttered around, doing a little bit of cleaning here and there.  My house, as I have also mentioned, is quite the disaster area.  I express great determination to get it clean one way or another, then wander around, feeling ridiculous for not knowing where to start.  Then I put some things away and hope I have made some progress. Yesterday I discovered the Columbo method of cleaning:  I cleaned for a set amount of time, then when time was up, I said to myself, “Oh, one more thing!”

I am obsessed with Columbo, you may have noticed.

Eventually I wrote a few postcards and walked them to the post office.  It had stopped raining by then.  Returning home, I made some popcorn and watched, you guessed it, a couple episodes of Columbo.  I crocheted while I watched (after I had eaten some popcorn and washed the butter off my hands) (I’m not a barbarian, after all), so I could feel a little productive.

Once again, I have rattled on for an appreciable amount of words (just over 400!).  I shall end with a random picture, so that my Saturday post can be Scattered as well as Slacker.

Will the curtain rise on a new act for the play of my life?

Too dark, but I feel a picture of a closed curtain is always evocative.  It is the Capitol Theatre in Rome, NY, a good place to visit for future Mohawk Valley adventures.

 

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It’s Never Too Lame!

Posted on June 8, 2024 by mohawkvalleygirl

Once again I make my Lame Post Friday blog post on Saturday morning.  I thought about making it last night, but bed seemed like such a good place to be.  It’s been a difficult week, although it has had its good points.  Nothing is all good or all bad, I hope.  At least, I hope nothing is all bad.  All good, I would like to try and see.  There is some half-baked philosophy for you.  We are used to finding the silver lining in bad times, or at least it is a good idea to do so.  Do we ever look for the fly in the ointment in good times?  Are there any other hoary expressions I can throw in?  Really, me, “silver lining”?  “fly in the ointment”?  Have some more coffee.

Ah ha ha! Coffee can be evil!

I throw in a random picture while I go get another cup of coffee.  I do not want to speculate on whether coffee is or can be, in fact, evil.  I put the caption because I believe that coffee mug looks malevolent.

Since this is my second cup of coffee,  one might think I had just rolled out of bed, but that is not the case.  I got up prior to six and went for a run.  The problem with running before coffee is that sometimes I forget to make coffee.  I had my recovery beverage of chocolate milk (it’s science!), made myself an egg sammich for breakfast…  oh yes, coffee. Ahhh… coffee.

I got rained on during my run, off and on.  Now it seems mostly on, so I am sorry about the local events going on today, for example, Little Falls Pride 2024 and Dolgeville Violet Festival. I had been thinking of running the Pride Stride 5K in Little Falls.  There used to be a 5K associated with the Violet Festival, too, but I don’t know if there still is.  How uninformed of me.  Anyways, I am not in 5K shape at this time.  I am in shape, though, because round and puffy is still a shape, you know.

I don’t think these two are in 5K shape either.

Here are Bonita and Bonaparte to wish you a happy Saturday.  I will never be as skinny as Bonita.  Puffy little Bonaparte is more my speed (almost literally).  I suppose I am not as cute, although my husband, Steven used to think so.

 

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About Those Blog Posts…

Posted on June 7, 2024 by mohawkvalleygirl

So I put off making Wednesday’s post till Thursday morning, then Thursday was a Blogger’s Sick Day with all capital letters.  I spent the whole day in bed, unable to do anything but lie there and try not to toss and turn.  I tried to get up in the late afternoon, thinking I would never sleep at night.  I thought, I’ll eat something, I’ll call my Mom and Dad (which I try to do every day), I’ll make a blog post at least saying why I am not making a blog post.  I walked downstairs.  No food looked or sounded the least bit appetizing.  I walked back upstairs.

What a dull, boring, whiny paragraph.  It is just as well I did not attempt to make a blog post yesterday.  Quick, throw in a picture to pep things up.

Aren’t they pretty?

Here are some flowers I used to have on one side of the front porch.  They stopped coming up, but I do not rule out planting more.  Still, if I want to plant anything, I had better get moving on it or it will not happen this year either.  Just to continue whining, everything is so much effort these days.  Maybe I need to eat my Wheaties.  Too bad I hate Wheaties.

Doesn’t this picture look like it was taken by accident?

I still have these sneakers and wear them sometimes, although I have more recently acquired running shoes.  I had planned to go running Tuesday, then put it off till Wednesday, then till Thursday.  Let that be a lesson to me.  In my defense, I was dreadfully tired on Tuesday and busy on Wednesday (not that I got much done) (see previous paragraph about everything being too much effort).  And now I am back to whining.

I guess I’ll bill this as a Non-Sequitur Thursday post.  Full disclosure:  I am still feeling a bit woozy but think I can make it through the day at work.  Then we’ll see if I can manage a Lame Post Friday post.  As always, I hope you’ll stay tuned.

 

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More Writing About Not Writing

Posted on June 5, 2024 by mohawkvalleygirl

It is well known that good habits are difficult to establish while one falls back into bad habits with ease and sometimes a sense of comfort.  Thus I continue late posts, making my Tired Tuesday post early Wednesday morning.  I have a very good Mohawk Valley adventure to write about, because I attended the Herkimer Downtown Chowdown with some friends on Monday.  However, I am letting that marinade in what is left of my brain.  A wise woman told me you can’t rush into these things (“these things” being any number of chores and tasks that arise) (by the way, the wise woman was my mother, the same wise woman who also said, “Oh well, what the hell”) (I know she was not the first so say it, but she may have been the first to say, “As a wise woman once said,” etc) (I stand by my story).

Where was I?

I guess it isn’t Tuesday any more.

This meme is now late, but is my favorite one to use in a Tired Tuesday post.  As you may have guessed, this will be another post where I rattle on for 200 words or so, hit Publish, and hope for the best.  I am so dreadfully tired all the time lately.  Perhaps I do not eat enough vegetables.

Me, questioning my path as a writer, or at least as a daily blogger.  

Of course this is not me.  It is Michael Douglas in Wonder Boys, a movie about writers, among other things.  He plays a blocked writer.  At least, not exactly blocked, because he has written over a thousand pages on his next book, but, well, it is complicated.  I have not written over a thousand pages of anything lately, and I have never written a thousand pages on one project.  That might be a good challenge for me:  write a thousand pages on something, anything.  They say anything that gets your pen moving is a good thing (as usual, no idea who “they” are).

No blockage of daisies.

I leave you with a picture of my prolific daisies.  They are symbolic of two things: spring, as in “hope springs eternal,” and sheer number.  May my writing flourish as my daisies!

 

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I Need More Monsters

Posted on June 4, 2024 by mohawkvalleygirl

I feel so ill-used when I oversleep and still feel so tired when I wake up.  I was dreadfully tired when I went to bed last night, too, but managed to put on coffee for the morning, so I can be mildly functional now.  But enough whining from me, on with my late Monstrous Monday post.

You can’t see the monsters, but it is a scary shot nonetheless.

In a previous post I used a shot from Invasion of the Body Snatchers but foolishly did not identify it.  I remedy the omission with another shot from that movie.   It is a pretty good flick, but I confess my favorite scenes are early on, when the menace threatens in an undefined manner, and the characters are drinking martinis.  I like martinis.

Watch your head!

Here is a monster of the human variety, Joan Crawford in StraitJacket.  That is one of my go-to movies.  William Castle was a highly entertaining producer and director.  I love his stuff.

Why is she so horrified? I forgot.

I continue this rather disjointed post (Non-Sequitur Monsters?) with a shot from a silent movie that doesn’t get a lot of attention, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.  I have not seen it in a while but remember liking it.  I will have to watch it one day while running in place on the mini-tramp.  That is my usual way of watching silent movies.  Otherwise I want to knit and crochet while I watch, and you really need to keep both eyes on a silent movie.

Now I am over 250 words, so that is enough trolling my Media Library for today.  I hope to get some new monsters to share one day soon, but you know me: No promises.

 

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More Lawn, Still No Order

Posted on June 3, 2024 by mohawkvalleygirl

I did not have a majorly productive weekend, but I did manage to do some yard work today, Sunday.  That gave me a good reason to have a Wrist to Forehead moment, but I shall try not to whine.  Too much, anyways.

When mowing my lawn with the non-power mower, I have left a lot of crap around the edges.  Today I tried to clean up some of that.  One thing I learned, or perhaps was reminded of, is that wild grapevines are quite invasive.  The roots go on forever!  And the vines cling with tenacity to everything handy.  I clipped, I pulled, I hack-sawed.  I added to a growing pile of crap.

One nice thing was becoming a pricker bush slayer again.  You see, some years ago I spent a Sunday taking down a huge pricker bush behind our garage.  When Steven got home from work, he took me out to Miner’s Table at the Herkimer Diamonds Mine.  I wrote about it for Mohawk Valley Living magazine.  For the article I took a picture of Steven toasting me.  When the article appeared, the caption of that photo read, “Steven toasts Cindy, pricker bush slayer.”  I may not have that word for word, but close enough.

Evidence of my pricker bush and wild grapevine slaying prowess.

I soon filled a couple of containers for yard waste pick up tomorrow.  I posted on Facebook that I had literally put my blood, sweat, and tears into my yard work.  I do have some bloody-looking scratches on my arms and legs, and I was ready to cry by the time I gave up and went inside.  I have a lot more work to do, but I felt I had made some progress.

I guess it isn’t all that beautiful.

I was thinking I should have taken a “before” picture but it was too late by the time I thought that.  So I took a picture of a section I did not get to.

Something to look forward to.

My father gave me some advice on getting my power mower going, and offered to come over and work on it if I continued to have troubles.  So I may be making more progress on Lawn Order soon.  In the meantime, I have to be pleased with what I was able to get done.  I can only hope it made an entertaining blog post. Once again, thank you for tuning in.

 

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