Tag Archives: memories

More Memories, This Time Theatre

I want to do a Throwback Thursday Post today, specifically a Theatre Throwback Thursday Post, because I realized that with the pictures I shared of my late, dearly missed husband Steve, I did not share any of our joint theatrical endeavors.  Theatre was something we both loved and loved to do together.  Steven was a great actor and director.  We helped start the Seaway Valley Footlighters in Massena, NY back in the 1990s.  About that time we started the company Murder for Hire, which did interactive murder mysteries at area restaurants and clubs. We didn’t make a lot of money, but we had a great deal of fun.

After a dry spell (long story,not very interesting), we relocated to Herkimer and found Ilion Little Theatre in the 2000s.  A little later, I started again writing murder mysteries, which I now only do for free and to benefit not for profits.  Well, this is turning into a long story.  Quick, throw in a picture.  I hope I can find something in my Media Library.

It was our “big scene,” as Steven called it.

Here we are in Harvey in, I believe 2012.  Steve is Dr. Cbumley, I am Veda.  It is one of my favorite theatre memories, and this is one of my favorite pictures of the two of us.

I set him straight in this scene.

This is our scene from Splitting Issues, which was a series of sketches about relationships.  There was a large cast and, I think, three directors.   I went with Steven to auditions, not intending to audition myself.  However, I agreed to read with him.  We read this scene, and I was later told that when the directors discussed who should play which part, all were agreed that Steve and I had to do this sketch.  It was very flattering, and it I think we did a pretty good job.

A suspicious bunch, indeed!

I close with a picture from a murder mystery, Rubbed Out at Ruby’s, which LiFT, Little Falls Theatre Company performed at the Overlook when it was a bed and breakfast.  I do love a 1920s theme, and have been trying to write another one ever since.

Steven kind of participated in Prescription: Murder, the play I was in last year about this time (perhaps you read a few of my blog posts about it).  I loaned his wedding ring to a fellow cast member.  I think Steve would have liked that.  Anyways I liked it.  I hope to make some more theatre memories soon (preview of coming attractions).  In the meantime, I guess I got kind of long-winded (for my blog posts), but you’ll have that.  As always, I thank you for tuning in.

 

Missing Steve, Cherishing Memories

I’m going to call yesterday a Blogger’s Sad Day.  It was the anniversary of my husband’s death.  I was actually looking at his death certificate yesterday and found out the cause was pneumonia.  They didn’t really tell me much at the hospital at the time, or perhaps I did not take it in properly. And no, I was not looking at the death certificate in nostalgia, what an idea!  I needed to send it with a form to the government for, oh never mind why. Explanations are tiresome.  Weird timing though.

Who, us? Be silly?

Here is a picture that kind of shows what we were like as a couple.  We took an ussie after voting.  Later we put the “I Voted” stickers in the TV Journal and made a note about it.  We did almost everything together and enjoyed it.  Even a trip to the super market was a laugh riot.

Cheers, Honey!

Steve often accompanied me on Mohawk Valley Adventures, till his health got too bad.  This was the tasting room at Beer Belly Bob’s in Ilion, where Red Shed Brewery was tasting.  Beer Belly Bob’s is now Beer Bliss, and I do not know if they do tastings.  I rarely drink beer any more.  Perhaps I should start.

Always well dressed for the occasion!

I close with a silly shot.  We always disagreed as to who was the silliest, me saying him and he saying me.  I think it was a tie.  The picture, by the way, was when we were celebrating the Kentucky Derby and thought we should wear fancy hats.

Looking at my Facebook Memories this morning, I saw that a friend posted on my page his sympathies, saying Steve was, “Flat out the nicest man I ever knew.”  That is a pretty good description. I miss my husband every day, but I am grateful for the memories and that I had such a wonderful person in my life.

 

The Evil Pork Loin

I thought of that title when I purchased a pork loin at the local grocery store for $6.66.  I mentioned to a worker who was stocking the meat case that I did not know how to cook a pork loin.  Then I saw instructions on the package.

“I am hooked up,” I declared.

I could not resist the price.

When Saturday was predicted to be one of the coldest days, I thought it would be an excellent day to run the oven.  That would be my Saturday blog post!

Of course it wasn’t.  I cooked with wine and went to bed early, having enjoyed a couple delicious slices of pork loin. It is now Sunday, and I am thinking that my cooking a pork loin, even an evil one, is hardly a blogworthy activity.  So now I am having a Wrist to Forehead Sunday.  It seems everyplace is closed in anticipation of the terrible storm we are supposed to be getting.  What can I do but sit home, watch Columbo, and eat leftover pork loin?

Not the Columbo I am watching, but a good one!

While searching my Media Library for a picture of Columbo, I came across some pictures of Prescription: Murder, the play I was in last year at Ilion Little Theatre. It was a great experience.  I need to audition for another play.  And organize another murder mystery.

A great group of people!

I close with a shot of the cast with the director and assistant director.  I would love to work with any or all of these people again.  So I end my Wrist to Forehead Sunday post on a positive note, perhaps a Preview of Coming Attractions.

Have you eaten any pork loin lately?

 

I Run in the Slow Lame

Hello and welcome to another Lame Post Friday post.  I went for a short run earlier this morning (ooh, it is still morning; I have not wasted away the whole day).  Am I ready for the Reindeer Run 5K in Little Falls tomorrow?  Was I ever going to be?  No matter.  I have a new theme song that goes:

We do what we can do

And if it’s not enough

Tough.

I sang it to myself during the latter part of my run.  It was quite snowy.  I meant to take a picture after the run to show what I was dealing with but was feeling rather defeated at the time and could only go in the house.  I was happy that I made the effort, though.  I am sure my body will feel better tomorrow because of it.

Preview of Coming Attractions?

That was me after I ran in 2018.  I was thinking of going to a dollar store and getting some garland to drape myself with this year but do not know if I can muster the oomph.  I find I have a very short supply of oomph these days and a whole reservoir of I Just Can’t Even.  That the hell, me?

I return to my theme song.  What I can do today, it seems, is a lame blog post.  I wonder if I can find a fun picture to close with.  Come on, Media Library, don’t fail me now!

Cheers to the season!

How about a very nice picture of my dearly missed husband, Steve.  He loved Christmas as much as I did, and he was proud of me for running a 5K, even if I was pretty slow about it.  I treasure warm memories, even as I search for a little more oomph.

 

Lame with a Dramatic Gesture!

So what is it now, six days since my last post, which was not a great post, although I was rather fond of the title.  It is now Lame Post Friday, and I feel terrible for not posting regularly.  I’ll be honest:  my depression is kicking my butt and I need to find new ways of combating it.  For now I will make a silly blog post.  For the future, I will seek out more better things to blog about (“more better” being the technical term).

Nice lunge, Tucker!

I looked for a silly picture to pep things up and found this rehearsal shot from Love’s Labour’s Lost, presented by Little Falls Theatre Company (LiFT) in 2022.  Oh, I miss summer Shakespeare!

I’ll wave my magic want and bring Shakespeare back!

Here is another summer memory:  Ilion Little Theatre (ILT) at the DooDah Parade in 2018.  ILT has not participated in recent years, which I find disappointing.  Perhaps I can be a mover and shaker in getting us involved next year.  Come to think of it, moving and shaking might help alleviate depression.

I love the photobomb!

I guess this turns out to be a theatre-themed post.  What a surprise, since Drama is my Life (said with a dramatic gesture)!  This, regular readers may recognize (if I still have any), is a shot from Four Old Broads on the High Seas, the play I was in with Players of Utica in July.  You know, thinking of my theatre friends makes me feel a little better.

So this is my silly post, so I can still say I am a blogger.  Will I ever be able to say I am a daily blogger again?  For the answer to that and other burning questions (actually some of my questions are only lukewarm), stay tuned to Mohawk Valley Girl!

 

Ghoulish Memories on Monstrous Monday

I had a problematic weekend, and the upcoming week doesn’t look much better.  And here I sit drinking hot coffee to make matters worse.

“Follow me! To the Graveyard!”

I quick threw in a picture to lighten things up. “Follow me!  To the Graveyard!” followed by an evil laugh is one of the things my Elliott Ghoul likes to say.  My late, dearly missed husband Steve and I picked up Elliott at a garage sale many years ago.  We used to put him in the attic November through September, then Steve used to at least turn him off when it wasn’t the season.  I leave him on year round, just for the sake of hearing a voice other than my own once in a while.

Where was I?  I just spent a ridiculous amount of time looking for a picture of Elliot Ghoul in my Media Library.  He stands in my dining room window, for the amusement of any passers-by who might notice.  He went off once behind me while I was on a video appointment with a VA doctor on the dining-room-table-top (long-time readers may remember it used to be a laptop).  The doctor asked what it was.

“Oh, that’s just my ghoul,” I was happy to explain.

And there’s my late sweetie-pie.

I add a picture of my late husband at a Halloween party, because it seems to fit the mood of today’s post.  I have 400 words of another post saved.  I started it yesterday, realized I did not know where I was going with it but knew it ought to go somewhere.  Will I finish it today?  Or ever?  A little uncertainty adds interest to my Monday.

 

Memories of Theatre Husbands

What a terrible time I am having getting anything done this week.  And how unbecoming of me to whine about it.  I’ll stop whining and try to make a Throwback Thursday post.  As I mentioned yesterday, I did not have rehearsal tonight (for Prescription: Murder at Ilion Little Theatre, for anybody just tuning in) so was able to cover a meeting of the Frankfort Town Board.  I still have to write my story about it, but I thought making the blog post first might be a good idea.

He thinks he’s tough now, but…

This is a rehearsal shot from Roxy, which Ilion Little Theatre (ILT) presented in 2015.  That’s me as Roxalana Druse, on the left.  The brute with the ax is my husband.  I kill him later in the scene.  I do not have good luck with stage husbands. There was one in And Then There Were None in 2011 who wasn’t too bad.  Neither of us killed the other, but we also did not survive till curtain call.  I can’t find a picture of that one, unfortunately.  I had a better time with husbands in real life.

There’s the best husband!

Here is my late, wonderful husband, Steve.  He had a few parts in Roxy, and was very good in all of them.

We were an exceptionally cute couple.

And here are Steve and I together after A G.R.A.V.E. Murder, which we put on to benefit the Herkimer County Historical Society in 2017.  I always thought it was so great that both Steve and I loved theatre. The couple that does plays together, stays together!

 

Memories of Coffee and Steve

I guess I am back to late blog posts as I site here early Friday morning to make a Throwback Thursday post.  I am up early, having gotten up just prior to five o’clock.  I like to be up early; I just don’t like to get up early.  Right now I am not even sure I like to be up early, but at least I have got coffee.  Thank God for coffee!

No fan needed today, though.

Ah, I knew I had a picture of the mug I am currently using.  I wonder if I can get to Dyn’s Cider Mill before they close for the season.  Perhaps a drive there today would be in order (preview of coming attractions?)

I rarely look this perky and cute, no matter the time of day.

I noticed this picture before I found the Dyn’s mug and thought, why not do a coffee mug throwback?  My late, dearly missed husband Steve and I collected many mugs in our years together.  I keep thinking I need to get rid of a few, but getting rid of things is not my strong suit.  Additionally, I use all my coffee mugs.  Many people have one favorite they use all the time, but Steven and I liked to use them all in turn, often depending on season or mood.

A favorite line from a favorite movie.

This was a present from Steve.  He always got me the best presents.  Well now I am throwing back to the great romance of my life.  Perhaps I should close with a picture of Steve.  If I had one of him with a coffee mug, how nice that would be!

 

Steven with wine is almost as good.

Looking through my Media Library for pictures has reminded me about a lot of good memories I have made on Mohawk Valley adventures.  I should do more Throwback Thursday posts.  And have more Mohawk Valley adventures.  But first, more coffee.

 

Once Again, The Best Lame Plans…

I really, truly meant to make my Lame Post Friday post on Friday.  They say something about the best laid plans, but my plans are almost never best laid, so never mind that.  It is early Saturday morning, earlier than I have been getting up, so that is something different.  I always say I don’t like getting up, but I like being up.

And now I have the Type It In Backspace It Out Disease!  I even backspaced out “type-it-in-backspace-it-out disease,” because I decided to capitalize instead of hyphenate.  Which is better?  Please feel free to comment or just discuss amongst yourselves if you prefer.

Weren’t we beautiful?

I threw in a picture to pep things up, one I have shared and will continue to share.  It is the cast of Fabulous and Fatal, a murder mystery we presented in 2019 to benefit the Herkimer County Historical Society.  It would be a good idea if I started writing more murder mysteries, ahead of the time when I actually have to start rehearsals.

Another kind of fabulous.

In searching for another picture to help along the post, I found this one from October 2020.  For once I was not too lazy to go back and look.  It is from a post I made about a walk in Russell Park I took with my sister Cheryl and her daughter Jenna.  That is Cheryl, posing on a bridge for a photo op.  I should give Cheryl a call and see if she is up for another such walk.

This is what I’m talking about!

I see I am over 250 words, so I close with another fall photo.  I don’t think this is as good a year for color as others (this pic is from 2022), but I am enjoying what I see.  I hope to take a walk or run later and see more.

 

Pop Fly to Lame Field!

I have been sitting here trying to think of something to type for a blog post.  A baseball game is on the television.  I don’t follow sports, but I do enjoy to see a game.  Live is more fun, but sometimes television will do.

“OOOPER DOOPER!”

I turned to my Media Library for inspiration and found this picture from Mel Brooks’ Young Frankenstein, one of my all-time favorite movies.  Earlier today I had “Puttin’ on the Ritz” playing in my head, especially the version shown in this movie.  I considered posting as my Facebook status, “OOOPER DOOPER!”  but forgot till just now.  Anyways, I have not spent much time on Facebook today.

An excellent theatre memory.

Another memory that popped into my head today was Splitting Issues, which was presented by Ilion Little Theatre in 2015 (I think). It is a series of short scenes having to do with relationships between the sexes.  I was not going to audition but went with Steve, my late dearly missed husband, who did want to audition.  I read a scene with him, just for fun, and, well, these things happen in community theatre.  We had a great time with our little scene.

 

 

I just realized my headline is about baseball, but I barely mentioned the game in the first paragraph.  I do not think I have any baseball pictures in my Media Library.  Oh dear.

Also blog posts.

Oh well, it is Lame Post Friday.  Will I have a better blog post on Saturday?  No promises, but I hope you’ll tune in.