Tag Archives: memories

Phyllis Would Probably Laugh

So… what was I saying Monday about not liking the pressure of making a post early the next morning as opposed to on time?  Well, here I am shortly after 4:30 Wednesday morning, making the post I was too tired to make on Tired Tuesday. I am still tired, and I overslept by 20 minutes.  I dreamed about my late, dearly missed friend, Phyllis, during the oversleep.  I was just thinking yesterday how I dream about my late husband all the time but had never dreamed about Phyllis.  If dead loved ones come to visit you in dreams as some say they do (my schnoodle, Tabby, does it all the time), why would Phyllis not drop in?

A wonderful memory.

Here are Phyllis and I (I am on the left), toasting friendship at Gerber’s 1933 Tavern in Utica, NY.  We were there with our husbands for lunch.  Some of my best memories are getting together with Phyllis and Jim.  They were also members of Ilion Little Theatre.  Jim shone onstage while Phyllis helped out offstage, often acting as prompter. She and I had some good times backstage during Dirty Work at the Crossroads.  At one point during the show (in an added attraction suggested by Jim), Jim was onstage singing, “Yankee Doodle Dandy.”  When he got  to “I’ve a Yankee Doodle sweetheart,” a young actress backstage (she was playing my daughter), would make a grand gesture toward Phyllis.  Phyllis would get a huge smile on her face, acknowledging that it was her.

One of my all-time favorite couples.

And here are Phyllis and JIm, when we met for lunch another time.  It was during COVID, when restaurants were allowed to open with restrictions.  Once again, a wonderful time was had by all.

Look at that, I am over 250 words.  I had no idea what I was going to write about, either last night or this morning.  I guess Phyllis showed up in my dreams to give me a little inspiration.  My late, much loved Aunt Carlyn would say, “This is how God works.”

 

I Start Lame and Go From There

Perhaps posting every other day will be a thing for a while.  No promises.  However, I managed to find my way to the dining-room-table-top and, well, here I am.

I just paused to get some coffee.  Surely that will help (after all, somebody’s name might be Shirley).

Not the cup I am using, but I wanted to add an illustration.

In my favor today:  it is Lame Post Friday.  Although I have made a habit lately of making my Lame Post Friday post early Saturday morning and my Throwback Thursday post early Friday morning, I feel fairly certain today’s will be somewhat of a lame post.  Then again, a couple of Throwback pictures might pep things up.

A favorite scene.

From spring of 2019, a scene from Morning’s at Seven at Ilion Little Theatre, with my dear friend Jim.  That play is a great theatre memory.

Oh yeah, Christmas is coming.

I was casting about, looking for other theatre memories but found this shot of my late, dearly missed husband, Steve, and a newscaster from WKTV whose name escapes me, stuffing the bus with toys for poor kids for Christmas 2019.  I must purchase something with which to stuff the bus this year.  Or perhaps I could win something at 4Pet’s Sake Food Pantry’s basket raffle on Saturday (preview of coming attractions).  I donated an afghan to the event.

May be an image of text that says 'BASKET RAFFLE 4PetSake Mohawk Legion 43W.MainSt, 43 W. Main Mohawk Food Pantry Inc. Benefits 4PetSake Food Pantry Saturday December, 2nd from 12-4 PM'

I plan to be there!

So now we have veered into Non-Sequitur territory, and I am over 200 words.  I adjourn for more coffee and wish you all a pleasant Friday.

 

October Memories

I guess it’s another Late Post Week (when you put it in caps it looks like more of a thing) as I sit here Friday morning making a Throwback Thursday Post.

I love it!

I go back to 2016 and one of the first pictures I ever shared in this blog.  It is from Pumpkin Junction in Sauquoit, so I can give a shout-out to one of my favorite local businesses.  I don’t think they had this particular display when I was there last year, but there was still plenty to look at and enjoy.

Isn’t he handsome?

Here is my late, dearly missed husband Steve that same year.  We used to have all kinds of Mohawk Valley Adventures together.

I’ve shared this suspicious bunch before.

Another kind of October adventure was our presentation of A G.R.A.V.E. Murder to benefit the Herkimer County Historical Society.  I must do some more work on Lights, Camera, Murder! the next murder mystery, coming up Nov. 11 (preview of coming attractions).

Must work on my front porch!

And here is  my front porch, with past Halloween decorations.  So far this year, I don’t even have lights.  I hang my head in shame.

To complete the post, and the shout-out of the first two pictures, I will add that Pumpkin Junction is located at 2188 Roberts Rd., Sauquoit. They are open 9 a.m. to 8 p.m, daily through Oct. 31.  Check it out!

 

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.

 

 

Maybe The Blog Post Should Have Stayed Absent

Yesterday was a true Blogger’s Sick Day.  I even called in sick to work, which I rarely do.  It was a migraine.  You know, one of those headaches where the only thing you can do is Have a Headache. It makes for a long, singularly unproductive day.

Now it is Friday morning, I am sipping coffee, and feeling tremuluosly happy NOT to have a headache.  Who knew the absence of something could feel so good?  Oh wait, I knew it, from previous migraine-free days.

Steve had a Get Out of Jail Free Card.

I threw in a picture to pep things up.  Here is my late husband Steven outside the 1834 Jail on Herkimer’s Historic Four Corners,  which regular readers know is one of my favorite places to walk or run by.

One of my all-time favorite couples.

Since I am apparently doing a Throwback Thursday Post,  here is a shot from July 2017 of our friends Jim and Phyllis at Gerber’s 1933 Tavern.  Phyllis sadly passed away in 2021.  I will never be done missing her, either.  One must treasure the memories.

And here’s all four of us.

What a weird post this is turning into.  I begin being happy my headache is gone and move on to being sad Steve and Phyllis are gone. There is a lesson or profound point in there somewhere, but I have had insufficient coffee to articulate it.  I guess I’ll bill this as a Non-Sequitur Thursday Post and drive on.  I hope to see you all later when I attempt a Lame Post Friday post.

 

Lame About Me

I got up this morning, having slept in till the for me late hour of six, with two thoughts vying for supremacy in my foggy head:  “Coffee first,  then run,” and “Run first, then coffee.”  Coffee won.  Hello, and welcome to another Late Lame Post Friday post.

I delayed making this post until I had a few sips of that magic elixir that renders almost any morning less hideous.  Thus I indulge in a little hyperbole. Is that an oxymoron?  Since hyperbole is exaggeration for effect, can you, in fact, have only a little hyperbole?   Points to ponder.

One problem with a personal blog: I tend to start all my paragraphs with “I.”  Because it is All About Me (ooh, that just gave me my title).  I have to watch that.

By now I think it is quite clear I have nothing whatever to say and am only rattling on in hopes of reaching 200 words before I run out of coffee.  I’ll throw in a picture to pep things up.

Who, us? Be silly?

This was taken at the H.A.L.O. Hoedown, a fundraiser for the cat rescue group, Helping Animals Live Organization.  It was some years ago and never became an annual thing, much to my disappointment, because I had a blast.

Yes, that is my late beloved husband Steve in the picture.  I’ll never be over being sad that he is gone, but I can smile at all the memories.  On that melancholy note (sorry about that; I know this is billed as a “totally fun blog”), I see I am over 250 words.  Score!  Thank you for tuning in.

 

Vermont Memories

I attempt a Throwback Thursday Post, because I do not wish to be making my Thursday blog post on Friday morning.  I thought that sentence might give me a little spurt of happiness by reminding me that tomorrow is Friday, but alas, not so much.  No matter.  On with the blog post.

Wrong season, so sue me.

This is a picture of the area of Vermont where some of my late husband Steve’s family lives.  I love the covered bridge.  Anyways, this was in my Media Library in April 2017, so I say it is a Throwback photo.

Nice doggies!

This is a really old snapshot, taken at Steve’s sister Ruby’s house, with one of those disposable cameras we used to use all the time.  It is Ruby’s dog Sapphire and our own Tabby.  I put it on a napkin and took a picture of it with the Tablet so Steven could share it on Facebook.  That may have been back in 2011, but I am not at all sure.  We never did learn how to use a scanner, although I think we have one my sister Diane gave us.

Gobble, gobble!

And here are some wild turkeys in Ruby’s backyard.  We had some wonderful afternoons and evenings sitting on Ruby’s deck, enjoying nature.  She had many small animal visitors.   She also had the occasional bear, but not when we were there.

Oh dear, I just remembered, I think there was once when we saw a bear although did not get a picture.  It was dark and we were looking out the kitchen window, as I recall.  If I recall correctly.  This is where it would be so nice to be able to turn to Steve and say, “We saw a bear at Ruby’s, didn’t we?” I am still getting used to widowhood.

There he is, with a friend.

On that note, I end with a picture of Steve.  He is at the So Sweet Candy Shoppe in Utica, NY, with our friend Margaret, the proprietress.  I guess that doesn’t really fit with my headline.  Does that mean I can also bill this as a Non-Sequitur Thursday Post?

 

Love’s Memories Not Lost

I want to have a Theatre Throwback Thursday Post and I do not care if I have thrown back to these memories many times before.  I saw some pictures yesterday when I was looking through the pictures in my Tablet, and I enjoyed them very much, if briefly.  I would like to enjoy a few of them some more today, and I hope my reader’s will enjoy them too.

Nice lunge, Tucker!

This is a rehearsal shot from Love’s Labour’s Lost, which was presented by LiFT,  Little Falls Theatre Company last summer.  I hope LiFT strikes again this summer (wouldn’t that make a great blog post title, “LiFT Strikes Again”?) (of course “strike” also means to take down a set, and we didn’t exactly have a set).

She’s not having any of it.

These were two of my favorite characters in the show.  Then again, I loved all the characters.

A mysterious lover!

This is one of my all time favorite pictures.  I think we should carry fans as accessories more often.

 

A most amusing pair.

I wanted to include a picture with costumes.  Well, maybe more than one.

 

Several cast members.

 

And here’s me.

I do love being in plays.

 

Not Much Brain, But a Nice Memory

I want to make my Sunday blog post on Sunday.  Unfortunately my brain is blank.  This is not an unusual situation for me.

“Did somebody ask for a brain?”

This is The Brain from the Planet Arous. Full disclosure:  I do not remember much about the movie; I just like to use the picture when I am feeling particularly brain dead.

Look at her giving him the side-eye!

And here is The Brain That Wouldn’t Die.  Mine obviously would.

There’s a guy with a brain!

I am still watching episode after episode of Columbo on DVD. Some episodes I pay more attention to than others.  Right now one is playing that I do not mind missing parts of.  Oh, wait, the plot just thickened!

Years ago, when my mother and I used to watch Murder, She Wrote on Sunday nights, at every commercial break, Mom would turn to me and say, “The plot thickens!”  I may have shared that memory before, but it is a good one.  My husband Steve always liked to hear it.  Sometimes I would remark that the plot thickened when he and I watched Dateline.  I do like a thick plot!

So I can’t remember much about The Brain from the Planet Arous, but I remember nice evenings with my Mom.  I’m OK with that.  Happy Sunday, everyone.

 

Another Stroll Down Movie Memory Lame

Hello and welcome to another late Lame Post Friday post.  I even got up up later this Saturday morning than I usually do, having stayed up later on Friday night.  I am sitting in silence, other than the sound of my furnace and the irregular tip tip tip of my stylus pecking in one letter at a time.  I hope to purchase a new laptop at some point.  Then I can ten finger type in more places and postures.

Yesterday was a Blogger’s Sad Day.  It would have been my husband Steven’s 68th birthday.  Birthdays were a big deal for him.  He always made mine special, and I tried to do the same for him.  I felt relieved that I did not have to work (took the whole day because I had an appointment).  I thought I should do something to mark the occasion.

Lots of screaming in this movie, but nothing like the scream queens of the ’70’s.

Since watching movies together was one of our favorite things, I popped in one of our all time favorites, House on Haunted Hill, the original William Castle version, starring Vincent Price (I have no use for the remake).  The first time we saw this, I was in the army.  We had taken the long drive to my first duty station, gotten signed into billeting, and had time to relax. It was a Friday, and I didn’t have to sign into my unit till Monday.  We saw House on Haunted Hill was going to be on AMC, back when AMC was good and showed all movies.  We loved it!

I think her braids are too tight.

Next I went to The Bad Seed, another long time favorite.  This goes all the way back to Norwood, NY, where we lived in the ’90’s and spent a considerable amount of time renting videos.  I miss those rental places!  I know, some people prefer streaming and the fact that they can sit on their butt in sweats and watch whatever.  I loved going to the place and walking around, finding things I didn’t know I wanted to find.

So this my stroll down Memory Lame.  See how I looped back to Lame Post Friday?  Sometimes I think I’m clever, but I daresay I flatter myself.