Tag Archives: writing

Is It Monday Already?

Posted on August 25, 2025 by mohawkvalleygirl

OK, late posts are the thing for the foreseeable future, as I sit here Monday morning making a Wrist to Forehead Sunday post.  In case you didn’t know, this is when I swoon, the back of one wrist to my forehead, onto a handy chaise lounge or other surface.  It made sense on a Sunday when I worked a Monday through Friday job: one cringes from the approaching Monday.

Is that Monday creeping up on him?

This is not Monday whispering in the driver’s ear.  It is William Hurt as Kevin Costner’s inner demon in Mr. Brooks, a creepy movie that grows on me more each time I see it.  I need to get a new DVD copy of it, because the one I have freezes up in a couple of places.  I couldn’t find a Monday meme in my Media Library, but this picture caught my eye.

So I guess I’m getting a little non-sequitur over here, but that hardly matters.  It is another placeholder post as I strive to regain my daily blogger mojo.  I need to get a lot of mojos back these days:  writing, running, cleaning… OK, I never for one day in my life had any cleaning mojo.  As it happens, I seem to be making strides in regaining my running mojo (see what I did there).

You wouldn’t think these feet could move very fast, would you?

I was looking for a more cheerful picture to end with, but all I could find was my feet encased in running shoes.  No doubt I will be making a Running Commentary post soon.

 

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It’s My Parasol

Posted on August 24, 2025 by mohawkvalleygirl

Is anybody surprised I did it again?  I posted yesterday for the day before, and here I am today posting for yesterday.  These things happen, especially to me.  Right now my only question is was it the right morning to substitute tea for coffee?  I’m on my second cup.

Yesterday I could not make up my mind what to do.  I wrote a letter to an aunt, finished a letter to a friend, and wrote my regular Saturday post cards.  The post cards I sent were of different states; my friend Kim sent me a set of 50 from the thrift store she works at.  I wrote on one, “I am in a state of indecision.”  Eventually I decided to walk to the post office.  It was quite sunny, so I took an umbrella.  I have found that an umbrella makes a nice little bit of portable shade.

As I walked, I thought of things I could say to people who remarked on my umbrella:  “It’s my parasol.”  “I am protecting my dewy completion from the sun’s ravages.”  Nobody said anything.  After mailing the letters, I decided to walk to Mohawk Antiques Mall.  For one reason, it was Customer Appreciation Day and they were serving hot dogs.  Also, it is a very fun place to walk around, as there are lots of vendors.

One thing they definitely have is post cards!

I was so glad I went!  I found three packs of 40 different post cards each for a very good price.  I enjoyed a nice burnt hot dog, too, while listening to a lady play old tunes on the piano.  I did not spend much time walking all around, though, because I found the post cards right away.

Back out on the sidewalk, it was even warmer.  The wind made it more comfortable but wasn’t so good with the umbrella.  I have not spent a great deal of time out in the sun this summer, and yesterday I was reminded why.  I start to feel a little ill.  Additionally, I had neglected to put on good sneakers, and the walk to the Antiques Mall was lengthier than I had realized.

Still, a walk is a walk.  I enjoyed looking at houses I passed and the canal as I walked over the bridge.  I went by a friend’s house and petted his dog (I didn’t know he lived there; he just happened to be sitting on the front porch with his dog at the time).  I felt rather tired at the end, and my feet hurt.  I fear I do not treat them very well.  I neglect my blog, I neglect my feet, what a bum!

In the meantime, I have gotten to over 450 words.  Will I make a Sunday post on Sunday?  My hopes are not high.

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Is It Halloween Yet?

Posted on August 23, 2025 by mohawkvalleygirl

Yesterday I thought surely I would be able to make a Lame Post Friday Post (I don’t mind it when I call myself Shirley). And here I am, Saturday morning, wondering why I didn’t.  Then again, sometimes “why?” is not a particularly helpful question to ask.  Far better to go ahead and just correct the error to the best of one’s abilities.  At least I have coffee.

A friendly face with a friendly beverage.

I just scrolled through my Media Library till I found a coffee mug.  I am not using this lovely mug today, a favorite of my late husband Steve’s, but I do not scruple to use it year round.  In fact it is almost time to start using Halloween mugs since for me the Halloween season begins immediately after Labor Day.

Speaking of Halloween, I need to start cleaning my house more thoroughly.  My sister Cheryl suggested I throw a Halloween party, as I have been known to do in the past.  That is, Steve and I threw them, but I feel sure I  am capable of hosting a party on my own.

Witchy would be happy to welcome folks to my house.

There are other reasons to get my house cleaned up and my act together. I will not list them here, although they may constitute some half-baked philosophy suitable for a Lame Post Friday post.  However, I see I am over 200 words.  I feel a Lame Post is best kept brief.  I shall strive for Some Sort of a Saturday post later.  As always, I hope you’ll stay tuned.

 

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I Do Do a Blog Post

Posted on August 14, 2025 by mohawkvalleygirl

Well, this is embarrassing.  I last posted on Sunday, and today is Thursday.  I just didn’t do it.  The opposite of Nike’s famous slogan?  Never mind.  The point is, I felt I couldn’t just quietly start over again with a normal post but wanted to post a kind of I’m sorry for being such a schlub then try to follow up later today with a “real” post.

The winter of my discontent?

I’m calling this a Non-Sequitur Thursday so looked in my Media Library for an unrelated photo.  My deck sure doesn’t look like this these days.  For one reason, it is covered with junk, most of which actually could belong there if I cleaned it up and arranged it in a pleasing fashion.  And of course there is no snow; I suppose if I did not mention that somebody would chime in in a didactic fashion pointing it out (you know who you are).   Will this post be a lament of Things Not Done This Summer?  SAY IT AIN’T SO!!!

“After all, somebody has to clap as I walk by.”

Just to remind myself I did so do stuff this summer, I share one of my favorite rehearsal shots from Four Old Broads on the High Seas, the play I was in at Players of Utica (perhaps you read a few of my blog posts about it).  The fact is, we never do all that we plan or want to.  The point is to enjoy what we do do (teehee: I said doodoo).

And another picture of me!

I know: the picture of plastic poo would have been a good one to share at this point, but I did not feel like searching for it.  Instead I share this fun picture of me before the Pride Stride 5K in Little Falls in June.  I later gave the skirt and wings to my great-niece Evie.  They didn’t really fit me, although I stretched a point for the sake of being a well-dressed runner (see what I did there).

Ooh, look at me, over 300 words.  I have got my blogging mojo back!  All I need is a headline and I am on my way!  That is, my way to more Mohawk Valley Adventures to blog about.  And maybe to clean off my deck.

 

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I Walked; I Didn’t High Tail It

Posted on August 4, 2025 by mohawkvalleygirl

Oh dear, once again I did not post on Sunday.  Will I post twice today (Monday) to make up for it?  That would be nice, but no promises.  In the meantime, I took a walk this morning, carrying my phone in hopes of making a Pedestrian P0st with Pictures (Freudian typo:  Poost.  My post is poo?  Also I left the i out of pictures.  I have no “eye” for photography?) (or perhaps I am overthinking it, kind of a hobby of mine).

This is kind of what I look like while I’m walking.

I did not see this on my walk; I took it yesterday at my sister Cheryl’s house.  She was having her annual Lantern Festival, but we also had a cook-out and swam in her pool.  We had a lovely time; Cheryl is really the hostess with the mostest.

Oh deer.

Today’s walk was not such a much.  I saw very little picture-worthy.  I was amazed at some of the overgrowth on some of the porches, houses, and garages, but I didn’t think it was nice to take pictures of those (although it did inspire me for a horror novel I might write).  It was toward the end of my walk I saw the deer.  I wonder if I can ever get a good shot of deer running away.  I like the way their tails flash white, reminding us where we get the expression, “high tail it out of there.”

Maybe I should have zoomed in.

Right after seeing the deer, I saw some pretty flowers along the roadside.  I do not know what they are.  I think there are apps you can get that tell you what flowers are, but I don’t know from apps.  I was headed towards the spring to refill my water bottle.  Must stay hydrated after all.

Pretty!

And here is another shot from Cheryl’s house.  I never quite got a container garden this year.  I bought some plants and put them in pots, but they remain on my messy porch waiting for me to water them.  This is why I like it when it rains.

I guess this is another placeholder post, but at least I was not whining about my depression or other ills.  Oops.  Never mind.  I’ll see what I can do to make the next post memorable.  As always, I thank you for tuning in.

 

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Kafka Was Right!

Posted on August 1, 2025 by mohawkvalleygirl

Oh dear.  I am sitting at my Chromebook feeling entirely empty.  Lucky for me it is Lame Post Friday.  Is it Friday?  I get a little confused at my age.

Is there an answer even yet?

I looked for a picture in my Media Library to pep things up.  Here is a headline from Aug. 1, 2018, when I used to subscribe to the Utica OD (that stands for Observer-Dispatch, not overdose).  I took a picture, because I found it punny.  I like puns.

Sometimes I am piddle puttering.

This is a plaque my sister Cheryl gave me.  Some time later, a friend shared that saying to my Facebook page, saying it made her think of me.  I confess I have been lolly gagging when it comes to making this blog post.  And now that I am making it, I fear it is not such a much.

Bad writing is still writing, right, Mr. Kafka?

And here is a thought about that:  I have often said that any blog post is better than no blog post at all.  I guess that is another one of My Rules For Me, like my rule of Any Writing Counts.  I have been writing letters, post cards, and journal entries lately.  Will I segue over to more worthy endeavors?  Oh, who can say what is a worthy endeavor anyways?  People like to get letters and post cards.

Sez you!

Regular readers know that when I am out walking or running, I love to enter where it says Do Not Enter.  Thus, to the inner critic who says, “Don’t publish this silly post,” I say, “Hah!”

 

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Late Post Performance Post

Posted on July 28, 2025 by mohawkvalleygirl

I suppose some of you thought (if you bother to think about this blog at all, which I do not flatter myself that many do) that yesterday would be the last I blog about Four Broads on the High Seas (you know, that play at Players of Utica I was in). Um, well, no.  It is Monday morning, not very early (for me), and I decided to blog (silly verb) a little about Post Play Letdown.

Who couldn’t feel a little let down after this?

I throw in one of my favorite rehearsal pictures to pep things up.  I am clearly not feeling very peppy but shall not let that stop me. Perhaps the coffee will kick in soon.

Of course it is natural to feel some letdown after big experiences.  It is even more so when the experience has been physically draining.  I had to work hard to keep my energy up for each performance.  The wonderful audience response helped a lot, as did my fellow cast members, who were all on their A game.

Who doesn’t love Liza?

The whole experience has been wonderful for me.  I had my doubts about the script at first, but once we were onstage playing off each other, it became clear that it would be very entertaining.  I was so blessed to work with some very talented people!  More importantly, I made new friends and spent time with a few old friends.  That is what it is all about.  I LOVE community theatre, and the emphasis really is on community.

Me, a new friend, and an old friend!

I don’t know how entertaining this blog post has been, but I did want to express my gratitude.  Another wonderful thing:  My parents and two sisters surprised me by attending the last performance!  They took an adorable selfie, but I can’t figure out how to get pictures from Facebook to WordPress on my Chromebook.

I am feeling less down after typing all this (as Truman Capote famously said, “That’s not writing, that’s typing”), and ready to move on to what is next.  I am hard at work on the next murder mystery, and I have it in mind to write my own silly play about female friends of a certain age.  Something that takes place in the Mohawk Valley, of course!

 

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Ghoulish Memories on Monstrous Monday

Posted on July 14, 2025 by mohawkvalleygirl

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.

 

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Sometimes I Do Run Backwards

Posted on July 11, 2025 by mohawkvalleygirl

It really has not been all that hot and humid lately.  I mean, no heat advisories that I heard of, and it was only in the 80s, not the 90s.  Why, then do I feel so sluggish and that my brain has been steamed?  Why, oh why, am I making another blog post about it?  This cannot be interesting!  Quick, throw in a picture to pep things up.

Anybody remember when I did that?

I participated in this race back in 2017 but not again thereafter.  I do not know why not.  However, I saw a post about it on Facebook the other day and said, “I’m doing it this year!”  Of course I forgot to write down the date or any other information about it.  However, I think I have time to find these things out.  And I am still in 5K shape from the Pride Stride 5K in June.  The beauty part is, this should be good for several blog posts.

Can you tell it’s uphill?

I think this is the back way to Herkimer College (previously known as HCCC).  I recently ran up the front way for the first time in a while.  I have not run up the back way recently but I suppose it would be a good idea to.  I feel I do not run enough hills.

On the brighter side, using the two pictures from the past entitles me to bill this as a Throwback Thursday.  Once again, I will try for a better blog post tomorrow, and I thank you for tuning in.

 

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Alas, Another Tired Tuesday Post

Posted on July 9, 2025 by mohawkvalleygirl

Oh dear.  I am as dreadfully overheated as I was yesterday, and I only feel up to a Tired Tuesday blog post.  I don’t have much to blog about anyways; I have done very little with my Tuesday. There was a moment as I was driving towards the grocery store when I felt an impulse to drive someplace more interesting, Little Falls Food Co-op, for example, but I couldn’t quite think what I might buy there.  I had rehearsal for Four Old Broads on the High Seas, but I need to sort through some pictures before I make another post about that (preview of coming attractions).

The Brain I Don’t Have.

I quick threw in a picture to pep things up.  This, of course, is The Brain from Planet Arous.  Looking through my Media Library distracted me from continuing the list of things I was NOT going to make a blog post about.  I once had a college professor get all mad at me because I spent a lot of a paper saying what I wasn’t going to get into about the topic at hand.  I don’t know what he wanted in a two page paper.  Anyways, he still gave me an A.  No wonder I got an exaggerated notion of myself as a writer.

For the record, I no longer have that exaggerated notion.  I am a writer who does not write enough. I keep hoping to change that.  I’ll let you know if I ever succeed.

 

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