Comments on Comments

Sunday again and even though I am spending almost the entire weekend at work, I had to make time for Comments on Comments! Luckily for you, though, because I'm spending almost the entire weekend at work - my comments to your comments will be short or at least that's my intention as I sit down to write this when I really ought to be trying to get some sleep in between shifts.

Okay, enough whining - moving on ...!

Monday found me being a lot more prolific than I meant to be with three posts (though to be honest, one was a paid post but it generated a lot of comments which means I must be doing a pretty good job making my paid posts readable!).

The first post of the day was Caption That Photo! featuring the following picture of a squirrel that I took while at Mohegan Park a couple of weeks ago.

You guys went totally nuts with your comments and there were a lot that really made me laugh right out loud! Amanda enjoyed them, too, and asked if she could pick out her favorite caption to which I said sure so she choose this one from my two favorite feline visitors -

Gandalf and Grayson said ...
I can haz pecans?

I loved all of the comments that people left; it's so much fun to read them and see what people come up with. My very favorite was this one from the Queen of Memes herself because it's so true for people as well as squirrels -

Mimi Lenox said ...
Sometimes you feel like a nut. Sometimes you don't.

My paid post for the day had to do with different types of bathtubs (not silk ties!) which was nice because I was able to use an honest-to-goodness story of when a friend and his family came over to dinner last winter and his daughter was enchanted with my claw-footed tub. My favorite comment from My Bathtub Has Feet!, came from a fellow Nutmegger -

Queen-Size funny bone said ...
Oh I love those old tubs. They are so nice and deep. You can't soak in these new tubs. If you're fat by time you get in there's no room for the water!

Boy has she ever got a point there! There may be a lot of things that I'm not enchanted about with the house I rent but the bathtub is definitely not one of them. It's actually one of the greatest things about living in an old Victorian style house - that and the front porch!

Finally, I wrapped up the day with my post Rambling aWAY ... in which I attempted to be clever by using the word WAY an awful lot! In the post I mentioned my upcoming work schedule and the WAY too many hours involved; the fact that I had to get Amanda to the airport for her Thanksgiving trip to New Jersey WAY too early the next morning; and that my youngest daughter, Jamie, would be coming home for Christmas after all which was WAY cool -

Dianne said ...
wow you are working a lot of hours!! enjoy the day - go back to sleep after the airport run :-)

Mags said...
Yay for Jamie being able to come for Christmas!! I know you were worried about not getting to see her. This is great news! I'm even more psyched that she gets to be an "only child" for a little bit too-alone time with Mom will be great for her...and you!!

My original plan was to go back to sleep after the airport run but unfortunately that didn't happen as I had lots to do on my one day off before Thanksgiving. I did, however, go to bed early that night for a change! Does that count? And Mags, you're absolutely right in that I think that being able to spend some one-on-one time with Jamie will be good for both of us. While Amanda is lounging on the beach in Puerto Rico, we can get in lots of Rock Band and Guitar Hero time!

For Tuesday I posted my entry for Roger's Creative Photography Contest, #15-4. For this week's entry I used a shot of a railroad bridge that I edited a tiny little bit just for effect. The entry prompted my friend from Germany, who is a totally awesome photographer herself, to leave the following comment -

Sanni @ Life... said ...
You outdid yourself, Linda! (Do you say so, too? I know it's a typical saying in Germany , but I'm not sure about the US ). Glad to see you're having so much fun with the D60 - and I'm glad there's water to jump into just in case the train comes along :-)

Thank you so very much, Sanni, and I believe we do say that here in the states! As for that water to jump into ... not a good idea as the railroad bridge is very close to the lower falls of the Yantic River that tumble into a very rocky gorge (a picture of which I posted on Saturday!). I'm not sure which would be worse - being flattened by a train or swept over the falls so I will try to avoid both!

On Wednesday I presented The Bookworm Award that I had received from Akelamalu to five other bloggers whom I thought were quite qualified as true bookworms. One of my choices was excited to do the award meme while the other ... not so much! Can you tell which one is which??

Jamie said ...
absolute proof I'm an unrepentant bookworm. The instant I saw sexy in the bad reading position, I mentally started chanting me me me waving hand pick me me me. So you did and I will. Thank you.

Mo said ...
Okay, mine is up. And I don't get it up for just anyone, you know. Erk, I have a headache. And I am grumpified.
Good thing there's not a turkey around, I think I might rip its gizzard out. Gobbledy go!

Thank you to both Jamie and Mo and to the others whom I also gave the award tag to that played along - Rob, Lois, and Erik. Now there are several books I need to add to my "must read" list! Erik did his tag a little differently as there were no books readily available but if you get a chance, go check out Erik's post and you'll learn some fascinating firefighting information that was developed as a result of a fatal fire in Worcester, Massachusetts that claimed the lives of six firefighters in December of 1999. Sometimes good does come from bad - sometimes.

Naturally on Thursday I was experiencing some Thanksgiving Thoughts and mentioned that it was also the birthday of my best friend who likes to call me at odd hours of the night on occasion and throw questions at me when I'm sometimes half asleep! The post was about the things I was thankful for at Thanksgiving including that friend MizCyn! -

tegbird92 said ...
well said--and yes, there is a lot to be thankful for when having a great friend like Cyndi also. Happy Thanksgiving, Linda.

MightyMom said ...
I need your phone number so I can call you at all hours of the night and ask you off the wall questions!! no??

Bridget, you are absolutely right and ... uhm .. Sarah? No! I think having one friend calling me at odd hours with odd questions is enough for now; I will let you know should I ever be in need of another! In the meantime, feel free to email me with those questions!

After a nice Thanksgiving Day at my Mom's and getting to bed at a reasonable hour, Friday found me writing two posts before heading out to work for the evening. The first was my thoughts on the biggest retail day of the year; No Black Friday for Me inspired the following comment that I thought was very well written but unfortunately, I have no idea who actually wrote it! -

Anonymous said ...
I wish "Black Friday" sales would become extinct and a thing or(fad) of the not so recent past. Especially with the numerable tramplings and deaths caused by greedy unruly crowds hell bent on showing the world and society how callous and slothy they really are...animals. When people die because of shootings at Toys'R us and trampled (along with EMS and employees trying to help) to death to save $50. on a piece of plastic electronica....it's time for us as society to say NO MORE.
NO MORE consumerism...
NO MORE greed....
NO MORE unkindness...
But sadly even in Eastern Connecticut a part of society (ones who camped out at the Box Stores) that bragged they got the one gift their "baby" wanted sadly missed the whole part of life that's free - God's (or whomever) love, along with your friends, family and yes, even bloggers like Linda.
There's truly no price on that.
Sorry about the long rant, the past 2 days stories about Black Fridays...really ticked me off.
Let's all end the race to the malls, huh?
thanks Linda

Anyone want to lay claim to that very true comment? If not, thank you whoever you are! I thought it was a great comment and long rants are always welcome!

My second post of the day was I've Got a Question - You've Got an Answer in which I asked readers - "What's your favorite thing about the holidays?" There were some really great answers and I'd love to repost all of them here but settled instead for just a few. If you'd like to read the rest, head on down to the original post as there really are lots of fantastic answers!

MizCyn said ...
Either an overstuffed house full of the faces I love best or thinking hilarious Holiday thoughts of you trying to play Scrabble (or maybe it was Trivial Pursuit?) after you'd had a tad too much Yuletide cheer. No, I'm certain of it--it's the latter!

Yeah, yeah - it was Trivial Pursuit and leave it to you, my dear friend, to remember one of the few times I had a little extra to drink! In spite of that, I think I played pretty well, though!

Star8278 said ...
Giving gifts and taking pictures. I also like that it seems people are a bit nicer this time of year. I wish it was like that all the time.

Star - I almost said the same thing about people being nicer this time of year and, like yourself, I wish it wasn't just at Christmastime that people were that way.

Sandee (Comedy +) said ...
Family is the best. The getting together in good times and bad times, but being together and loving each other. Can't beat that in my book.

You can't beat that in my book either, Sandee!

Katherine said ...
I like the music, and the lights, and the smells. I like wrapping paper and bows.
But my favorite part comes about the 23rd/24th ....when I take the time to remember "the reason for the season" and all that it means to me and how I choose to live my life.

Katherine, this is so "spot on" as our British friends would say. Very well written and something we should all try to remember during this not only festive but very hectic and sometimes stressful holiday season.

Finally on Saturday I posted pictures of The Falls on the Yantic River - a rather scenic area here in Norwich that has a very interesting history that I have been trying to piece together for a future post. I guess you could call it a visual preview of coming attractions until I get all that research done! In the meantime,

crazy working mom said ...
is that what's behind you in your profile pic? It is beautiful!

Yes, Tisha - the lower falls are what I'm standing in front of in my new profile pic but I'm doing a darned good job of blocking them just as I hope the camera I'm holding is doing a darned good job of blocking me!

Jamie said...
Absolutely beautiful and so wild looking that you might almost have gone back a couple of hundred years.

Actually, Jamie, once I get that other post done I'm working on then I'll definitely be going back a couple of hundred years - back to about 1643 if I remember correctly!

Ah well, speaking of going back, it's time for me to go back to work again! I hope the rest of you have a fantastic Sunday no matter what you're doing and don't forget to come back and leave a comment or two during the week!

The Falls on the Yantic River

I'm doing some research on a little more Norwich history to share with you but I've got some more digging to do before that post is going to be ready so in the meantime, I thought I'd share a couple of pictures with you that I recently took of the Upper and Lower Falls along the Yantic River.

The Upper Falls

The Lower Falls

There's a story here that I think you'll really like, I just need some more time to write it!

In the meantime, I'll be at work for 16 very long hours both today and tomorrow (hopefully I won't diet pills to stay awake!). If I don't get around to visiting your blogs this weekend, I hope you'll understand and I promise to get around to everyone after work Monday evening - honest!

Everyone have a great weekend!

I've Got a Question - You've Got an Answer

Now that we've feasted on turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and all the fixin's including several different kinds of pie it's officially the start of the holiday season (I'm sorry but I am just not going to rush it like retailers seem to want us to do these days). It's time for Christmas lights, Christmas music, and all of the other great stuff that goes along with the Christmas season which brings us directly to this post's question -

What's your favorite thing about the holidays?

For me one of my very favorite things is the smell of fresh pine boughs. I don't know what it is but that smell brings back such a flood of happy memories from Christmases gone by that it to me it's most definitely one of the best things about Christmas. That and a good version of O' Holy Night ... what about you??

Motor Vehicle Accidents Claim Three More Law Enforcement Lives

Shortly before 8:45 p.m. on Saturday, November 22nd, Hollywood Police Officer Alex Del Rio was on traffic enforcement duty in his Florida town when he was killed in a line of duty accident that happened when his cruiser slammed rear-first into a tree. Witnesses said he may have been following a speeder on the wide-open, six-lane divided road and swerved to avoid hitting a taxi cab when the accident occurred.

Officer Del Rio, 31, joined the Hollywood police force in 1996, at age 19, as a part-time community service officer. At 22, he became a sworn police officer. He wore badge number 2513, working patrol, special operations and -- his favorite -- traffic enforcement.

"He was a beautiful human being," Hollywood Police Chief Chadwick Wagner said. "And I am blessed and proud to have known him."

Officer Del Rio, who was born in Miami and lived in Hollywood, leaves behind his mother, Miriam Fernandez; his father, Alejandro Del Rio; and two sisters. His uncle Saul Fernandez, a Sweetwater police officer, recalled a nephew who even as an adult sat with the children, not the adults, at Thanksgiving dinner, "He always expressed how much he loved you -- a reflection of his mom and dad," Fernandez said.

"To know Alex is to love Alex," said his stepfather, Ron Koger. "You didn't have a choice."

Monroe County Traffic Enforcement Deputy Nick Pham died in a collision with a tractor-trailer while apparently making a U-turn to chase a vehicle violating a traffic law in the Florida Keys on Wednesday, November 26th.

The accident, which occurred at approximately 12:20 p.m. on the busiest traffic day of the year, happened when Deputy Pham u-turned directly in front of a 2007 Freightliner 18-wheeler which had no time to stop and slammed squarely into the driver's side of the 2008 Dodge Charger he was operating. Witnesses say the officer may have been pursuing a vehicle when he crashed with the tractor-trailer.

Sheriff Rick Roth said Pham was a ''great officer who was doing his job.'' Roth had recently given Pham an award for providing lifesaving CPR to another deputy who had suffered a seizure.

Capt. Bob Peryam, who was elected sheriff earlier this month to replace retiring Roth, said of Pham: "Boy, I will tell you he was one of the best. He had the highest regard for honesty, integrity and professionalism.''

Deputy Pham had worked for the sheriff’s office since September 15, 2004 where he was initially assigned to road patrol in the Upper Keys in Sector 7 — the Key Largo area. In July of 2006 he transferred to the Traffic Enforcement Division, working traffic enforcement countywide. He had previously worked for the Florida City Police Department and the Dade Correctional Institution. Deputy Jason Keith, a close friend of Deputy Pham, said that his friend was planning to transfer to the Miami-Dade Police Department to be able to work closer to his home.

The 38-year old native of Hawaii leaves behind his wife Jackey and several children.

An East Texas Sheriff was killed in the line of duty early Thanksgiving morning as he was pursuing a suspect involved in a disturbance. The accident occurred around 4:20 a.m. when Sheriff Brent Lee lost control of his 2006 Ford Crown Victoria which veered off a left hand turn and struck a power pole. Sheriff Lee was ejected from the burning vehicle and died on scene according to a spokesman with the Texas Department of Public Safety.

Sheriff Lee was elected for a term that begins January 1st, but he was sworn in this summer following the outgoing sheriff's resignation. Walker County Sheriff Clint McRae said, "We have already seen some positive reflection of his action and his department. He has done an excellent job and we're truly gonna miss him."

Angelina County Sheriff Kent Henson reflected, "You couldn't ask for a nicer person. He always had a smile on his face and that's one thing I'll remember him by is that smile. He was always willing to go an extra mile to help everybody out."

The son of a former Trinity County sheriff, Sheriff Lee, age 58, was a former state corrections officer and former Livingston police officer for the last thirty years working for the Texas Alcohol Beverage Commission, retiring as a lieutenant out of the Lufkin office. He leaves behind his wife and three grown children.

No Black Friday for Me!

Black Friday - the day when merchants all across the country are holding their breath in anticipation of getting the accounts on their ledgers to finally be in the black rather than the red; the day when shoppers all across the country beat feet to the merchants in the wee hours of the morning to try to find the best values possible; the day when I don't even think about going anywhere close to a store because a) I hate crowds, b) I hate getting up early, and c) I'd don't even have any money to go shopping with!

I know that retailers across the country are holding their collective breaths today hoping that all of the predictions that have been made about the horrible economic season aren't as bad as they've heard but I don't know. It really has been a tough year for a lot of people and money is extremely tight. So tight that cash loans have definitely become more popular but also are something you need to be careful with as interest rates can be outrageous. Still, sometimes a person doesn't have much choice and needs a little cash to hold them over until that next paycheck comes in.

Right now I'm holding my breath until next Thursday when my next paycheck comes in and not buying anything I don't positively need no matter how great those Black Friday sales might be! Happy shopping to everyone else!

Thanksgiving Thoughts 2008

Every great once in awhile my bestest friend MizCyn (whose birthday it is today!) will come out of hiding and leave a comment or two - like she did yesterday - or call me at strange hours of the night to ask me random questions out of nowhere - like she did late Monday night just as I was falling asleep! I never mind when she does these things even though the alarm was set for 4:30 in order to get Amanda to the airport because she's Cyndi and I love her and because sometimes I do the same things to her!

Her question of great import the other night was "What are you thankful for this year?" and even though I had asked the same question of you, my readers, last week I hadn't answered the question myself so I had to think for a minute before I told her, "I'm happy to still be treading water." One of the best things about having a bestest friend that you've known for years and who sometimes knows you better than you know yourself is that this required no explanation at all as Cyndi knew exactly what I was talking about and said that's why she loved me and we were best friends even though we were so opposite in some ways as she was thankful for the very same thing. I knew she would understand.

Sometimes I think that's the best I'm going to do anymore - keep my head above water and not go down for the third time. When I look at the current economic situation that our country is in and see how many people are not keeping their heads above water I can't help but think that it could very easily be me in the same position - having a home in foreclosure, not having a car parked out front because it got towed away, unable to provide food and shelter for myself and my daughter ... sure, I work a lot of overtime in order to keep the lights turned on, the bills more or less paid, and Amanda in hair products but unlike a lot of other people, I have the opportunity to work that overtime at my primary job as well as pick up hours at my second job. I do know how lucky I am even when I'm working a crazy schedule that barely gives me 8 hours in between shifts to try to recharge.

I'm treading water - have been for years - and even though there are times when I'd like to just give it up and sink, I am thankful that I have the ability to stay afloat not just when it comes to finances but also with my back issues and my mental and emotional state. Maybe sometimes that's the best we can ask for because things could be so much worse and, sadly, they are for a lot of other people. And maybe ... just maybe ... sometimes it's easier to be thankful for what we don't have as opposed to what we do.

"... I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens." - President Abraham Lincoln, Thanksgiving Proclamation, October 3rd, 1863

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone and a very Happy Birthday to Cyndi whom I am very thankful to still have as a friend after all these years and the distance that separates us. I love you!

The Bookworm Award

Emmie from Emmas Dilemmas & Great Expectations bestowed this award on my English friend, Akelamalu who, in turn, was kind enough to bestow it on me. Whereas I think this is a really cool award and I'm honored to have received it, I've got to say that looks like one extremely uncomfortable position to read a book in! Woman - get a comfy chair and put on a pair of sweats for crying out loud!

This award came along with a set of rules that I am apparently supposed to adhere to but they look pretty easy so I think I can handle them -

Rules: Pass it on to five other bloggers, and tell them to open the nearest book to page 46. Write out the fifth sentence on that page, and also the next two to five sentences. The closest book, not the coolest, or the one you think will sound the best. THE CLOSEST

Truth be told, I have two books sitting right next to me on the couch but in deference to keeping to the rule of opening the closest book I will grab the one on top which just happens to be Dark Lover by J.R. Ward. Now, let's see what page 46 has to offer, shall we?

"Calling the meeting in the daylight was also important, as it would ensure they weren't ambushed by the brotherhood. And he could easily pass it off to the academy's human employees as a seminar on martial-arts technique. They would hold the gathering in the large training room in the basement and lock the doors so they wouldn't be intruded upon.

Before he signed off, he posted an account of his elimination of Darius, because he wanted the slayers to have it in writing. He detailed the kind of bomb he'd used, the way to manufacture one from scratch, and the method for hardwiring the detonator into a car's ignition system."

At this point, you've probably read as much of the book as I have as I'm currently reading the book that was sitting under this one - The Eight by Katherine Neville which was recommended to me by our own Lois. Speaking of our own Lois, I'll be passing this award on to her along with four other bloggers who are very likely to have a book sitting close at hand - oh, and if you're a guy - don't be offended by this award, I bet you all look real cute in a jacked-up skirt and garters, too!

In addition to Lois of Lowdown from Lois I'm going to pass this award on to Rob of In Times & Out Goals as I'm sure he's got several books sitting close by; Morgen of It's a Blog Eat Blog World because even though I know he doesn't like tags, I'm having such a good time picturing him in that outfit that I couldn't resist!; Jamie of Duward Discussion as I'm sure she's got something really good close at hand; and Erik of The Fire Insider for pretty much the same reason I'm passing this on to Mo!

Now - go forth and have some fun!

A Saweet Contest!

You guys have got to check this out and enter as Pea is having one of the sweetest Christmas contests ever! Just click on the picture below and that will take you directly to Pea's contest post where entering is as easy as leaving a comment saying "count me in!" If you want to tell Pea that I sent you that would be nice, too, but not absolutely necessary!

Good luck!

Creative Photography Contest, #15-4

Is it me or are the weeks just flying right on by? I know they tend to do that this time of the year but it seems to me that as soon as I've posted an entry for Roger's Creative Photography Contest that it's time to post another! Oh well, it's a good excuse to try to get out and take some pictures from time to time and I've got to say that there are some truly great photos in the contest every week and it's a real pleasure to not only enter a photo of my own but to see what everyone else has posted, too.

This week's picture comes courtesy of my photo-hunting trip around parts of Norwich last Monday when I was experimenting with the new D60 a little bit. This is a shot of the railroad bridge over the Yantic River between the upper and lower falls that is still in use today though I've never been lucky enough to have a train go by while I was out there. Maybe one of these days? Though I'd rather not be standing where I was when I took this picture if one comes along!

Now make tracks over to check out some of the other entries at the Creative Photography Contest #15 Week 4 - I'm sure you'll see something you just love!

Maternity Made Fashionable

Pregnancy is not something that I, personally, am ever going to have to worry about again thanks to a) I had my tubes tied after Jamie was born and b) I'm not exactly a candidate for the Immaculate Conception Part II and that's the only way something like that could ever happen as it generally takes two to tango. Well, unless you're tangoing with some of the instruments that they use at fertility clinics like my dispatch partner Jen has been doing at Boston IVF. If that's made you curious, then you might be interested in reading her journeys regarding surrogacy on her blog, The Flower Pot.

Anyhow, I digress ... this post isn't so much about pregnancy itself or the journey that some women take to get there but about the Trendy Maternity Clothes that women can now wear once they've reached the point where everyone and their brother can tell that there is a big event on the way! Obviously, maternity clothes have changed a lot since my last date with the stork and now expectant moms can look quite fashionable and even - dare I say - hip in clothes like those from Juicy Maternity who make a really nice line of casual maternity wear that is touted to be some of the most comfortable anywhere.

I mean, come on now, I ask you - does this look like a maternity hoodie?? Does it look uncomfortable?? I think not! Ah, to have had that sort of comfort and fashion way back in the dark ages when I was pregnant! Unfortunately, comfort back then generally didn't mean style and by the end of nine months everything you put on sort of looked like a sack - a very large sack! A very large, usually uncomfortable sack now that I think about it! Personally I think this hoodie looks pretty cool and I bet it's even wearable when you've gone from expectant mom to getting-up-at-2:00-a.m.-for-feedings mom!

One of the other cool things they have now that they didn't have when I was pregnant is called a "Bella Band" by Ingrid & Isabel. No, no, it has nothing to do with Bella of Twilight fame even though she's all the rage right now, it's a great tool for one's maternity wardrobe! Jen was actually telling me about this the other day and it's a totally great idea for when you're trying to make your 'regular' clothes last a little longer before having to make the transition to actual maternity clothes.

A "Bella Band" is a seamless knit band that you can wear at your waist over your un-buttoned pre-pregnancy pants for an instantly smooth look rather than having that gaping, can't-button-your-pants look! Plus, if your maternity clothes are still a little loose before you really get big during your third trimester, the "Bella Band" will help hold them up! Is this not a great idea?? Why didn't someone think of this back in the early 90's when I had to wear hideous knit pants instead of my jeans?

Just like my children have grown over the years, so has fashionable maternity wear and I bet that's something that a lot of moms-to-be are very happy about!

Rambling aWAY ...

Finally ... a day off tomorrow after working every day since last Wednesday! The only drawback is that I have to get up WAY too early in the morning to drive Amanda over to T.F. Green Airport in Warwick, Rhode Island so that she can catch her too-darned-early-in-the-morning flight to Philadelphia. She's heading down to her friend Darci's house for the Thanksgiving holiday and will be leaving me to my own devices for the next week.

The only drawback to that is that "my own devices" will include WAY too many hours of work as I gear up for a double-shift on Wednesday, evening shift Friday, double-shifts Saturday and Sunday, and finally a day shift on Monday. Did I mention that I was having The Work Week from Hell this week??

All of the work hours are due to the fact that I am WAY too dedicated to my job it seems and always find myself being the one to say "Sure, I'll help fill those open shifts!" With 32 hours of overtime scheduled for this week and the 16 hours from last week all in the same pay period, Uncle Sam is going to be smiling from ear-to-ear.

The reason for that is that I am going to have WAY too much money taken out of my paycheck in the form of taxes. It would be really nice if the company I worked for would give out separate paychecks for regular time and overtime but alas, that would probably be too complicated and take up a lot more time to get payroll done. Still it would be nice ...

Speaking of nice ... I will be going to my Mom's house for Thanksgiving this year and sitting down to dinner with my three brothers and my two sisters-in-law. I just hope I don't eat WAY too much as I'm becoming desperately in need of some Orovo now as it is! Obviously Amanda will be out of town and because I'm covering a shift for one of my co-workers on Saturday, he's covering my shift on Thanksgiving Day. Nice, eh? Oh ...

... while I'm thinking of nice ... WAY nice! ... Jamie will be coming home for Christmas thanks once again to my Mom and the fact that I was able to get a pretty good deal on Southwest Airlines. She'll be flying in on the 18th of December and heading back down to Tampa on the 5th of January. Amanda will be off cavorting in Puerto Rico with the same friend she's spending Thanksgiving with so that means that Jamie and I will get some one-on-one time and she's already promised me at least a few sessions of "Rock Band". I was thinking that she might not get the chance to come up this Christmas season but I'm glad I was wrong and she is. Yay!

Ah well, I should wrap this up as, like I said, I have to get up WAY too early in the morning to get to the airport. Amanda's flight is leaving at 7:10 a.m. which means we need to be in Warwick not much later than 6:00 a.m. and it's just short of an hour drive.

Good night, all!

Caption That Photo!

While I was over at Mohegan Park snapping pictures last week, I happened upon this little fella who seemed more than willing to pose for a picture. Just like the geese I took pictures of, he was probably hoping for a snack but alas, I had nothing but my car keys and lint in my pockets. I'll know better next time I stop by the park and then I'm sure I'll be more popular than the Good Humor man on a hot summer's day! Of course, if I feed the animals too much they might be in need of some Leptovox, just like I am!

In the meantime, have fun and give this little guy some words and we'll see who emerges victorious later in the week! Have fun but don't go too squirrely on me!

My Bathtub Has Feet!

Right around Christmas a couple of years ago, I invited my favorite paramedic/dispatcher and his family over for dinner. Andrew had done a few things around the house for me that I wasn't able to do with my tricky back that has a tendency to go out at the worst possible time and I wanted to be able to express my thanks to not just Andrew and his strong back but also to Bethany, his fantastic wife who was kind enough to let me "borrow" her husband on several occasions. To that end, I invited over Andrew and Bethany and their two great kids - AJ and Leah.

We enjoyed a very nice dinner and then retired to the living room for the kids to watch a little TV while we adults visited. At the time, I believe that Leah was four years old or so and cute as a button. At one point, she told her parents that she needed to use the bathroom so Andrew accompanied her upstairs and when they came back downstairs Andrew was laughing as he told me that Leah was totally fascinated by my bathroom because "Miss Linda's bathtub has feet!"

Leah is quite right in that the bathtub that I have here in the house that I rent is one of those great old clawfoot bathtubs that Victorian houses sported back in the day. It's very deep and very high and most definitely has feet - rather big feet actually!

It's the type of bathtub that you could sink down into and have a good soak in except for the fact that it's so deep that I can't get a full tub of hot water due to a deficient hot water heater! Which is too bad as it would be great to be able to light a few candles, throw in some scented oil, and just lean back and relax after a stressful day at work. Perhaps it's not as great as some of the whirlpool tubs I've seen out there but it's a close second and definitely one of the best features of this house I've lived in for 8-1/2 years now.

The only other problem with this bathtub is that occasional bad back that I mentioned above. As great as a long, hot soak in this tub would be when my back hurts, there's that whole problem of getting in and out of it when I can barely walk to begin with! I think in cases like that, I would be much better off with one of those cool walk-in bathtubs that I've seen commercials for.

I'm sure that I'm not the only one who wouldn't mind having one of these great tubs in their home - I can readily think of several other people like my former grandmother-in-law out in California who, bless her 85-year old heart, has some trouble getting around these days due to painful arthritis and even one of my brothers who has his own share of back troubles that are even worse than mine.

I tell ya, if I ever win that elusive lottery that we've got a pool for at work and can finally build a house of my own then I'm going to have all three kinds of the bathtubs I've mentioned above - claw-foot, whirlpool, and walk-in. That way, I'll be prepared for all occasions!

While I'm at it, I'm going to get one of those really nice multi-head showers that look like you'd walk into and never want to get out of! Ah ... bliss!

Comments on Comments

Sunday again already and less than a week away from Thanksgiving - hokey smoke, Bullwinkle, where has the time gone?!? Even if I don't have the answer to that one, I do have the answer to where the time is going to be going during this next week as I've got The Work Schedule From Hell coming up. With 32 hours of overtime scheduled over the course of this Sunday to next Sunday, I want to apologize in advance if I don't get the chance to leave too many comments on too many other blogs but I do hope you'll still come by and visit me here and leave the occasional comment. After all, if I don't have any comments then I don't have a Sunday post for next week!

Anyhow, enough making excuses for the upcoming week, let's look back at last week, shall we??

My post for Monday, On Books and Love, was more or less a short review of the Stephenie Meyer novel that has absolutely nothing to do with vampires called The Host. It was a book that I initially had a little trouble getting into but once I did, I thoroughly enjoyed it as it seems that Stephenie Meyer and I have a lot in common when it comes to the concept of love - and heartbreak. Apparently I wasn't the only one who liked The Host as evidenced by this comment from one of my friends in England -

Jean-Luc Picard said ... Linda, I've read this book and thought it was unforgettable. Every time I had to put the book down, I couldn't wait to get back to it. It was one of those rare novels in which the reader cared about the characters. Wanderer, Melanie and those around were great. I really enjoyed the ending. After reading the book, I am now savouring the unabridged audio book version.

Hmmm, audio books ... I don't have much of a commute to work and don't really do any sort of distance driving so it wouldn't do me any good to try to listen to an audio book in that capacity but maybe I should figure out how to blog and listen at the same time - imagine the books I could get through then!

On Monday morning I took the time to step away from the blog and get out of the house for a little while and pay A Visit to Mohegan Park, which then became my post for Tuesday! Mohegan Park is one of Norwich's more or less hidden treasures and a good place for someone with a new camera to visit in an attempt to figure out how to use the thing! It was a cold day but the sky was a beautiful blue and I thought I managed to get a few good shots like this one here which shows Spaulding Pond that is in the center of Mohegan Park.

The pictures inspired former Norwich hometown boy, Erik, to leave the following comment:

Erik said ... Great pics Linda!! Having been born and raised in Norwich till I was 12, I've seen how much Mohegan Park has changed over the years. Some of the roads have been moved around, facilities were improved, but one thing I miss from when I was a kid, is the zoo!! I have many memories of hearing the coos and caws of the birds, seeing the other animals, including the monkey hut, and the old firetruck that they had at the playground. If I remember correctly, the firetruck was still there a few years ago when I took Hayleigh there.

I'm not sure whether the firetruck is still there or not, Boukie, but I would be willing to bet it is and I'll be sure to check that out next time I head back over there to take more pictures - which would be a lot sooner if it was to warm up a tiny bit!

Wednesday's post was my entry for Roger's Creative Photography Contest, #15-3 and for this week's entry I chose a picture of dark clouds above with a brightly lit Norwich landscape below. The shot was straight out of the camera with no touching up on my part and it was similar to this picture, though not this exact one ...

Bond said ... Wow ... before reading I had assumed you had darkened the sky ... that is some contrast ... nicely done ... good luck

Ralph said ... An Impressionist painter's take on the impending storm over Norwich. The photo as art. I've got to spend some time in the Rose City. You make it look beautiful!

Thanks guys, and Ralph, you're right, you should come spend some time in the Rose City just as I should go spend some time in Ansonia with you and Patti before the year ends!

Speaking of Patti, she left a great comment on my second post of Wednesday, A Birth Meme Followed by a Birthday!, where I finally got around to doing a great new meme that Jamie developed as well as wished my favorite CrAzY Working Mom a happy 31st birthday ...

Patti said ... I've always gotten along well with Virgos ~ but Capricorns are supposed to get along with fellow Earth signs Virgo and Taurus. "The earth signs indicate practicality, concern with concrete results, and usually an occupation with detailed financial, business and professional affairs." Well alrighty! Happy Birthday to Tisha ~ she is so young, and I feel so old! I saw this meme, looked up my birth date but didn't do a post. My bad.

Now, Patti, make my friend Jamie happy and do a post and then get Ralph to do one, too. I bet it would be interesting and Ralph does have to do that whole NaBloPoMo thing - what better way to take care of one day's post?!?

With just a week until Thanksgiving, on Thursday I did an I've Got a Question - You've Got an Answer post and asked readers "What are you most thankful for this year?" I received some fantastic answers, a few of which I will share with you here ...

WillThink4Wine said ... I am thankful for God and Country, my entire family, all my friends, my beautiful cats, my home and I am very most recently grateful that my new business seems to have gotten off the ground sooner than I expected ... Translation, before I ran out of money! Now if Obama can just send me some of that affordable health insurance and free money ...

Jeni said ... So many things I am thankful for -family, friends, food, faith -for openers. And all the many things that accompany those "Four F's". Good fortune doesn't always mean high finance, just being fortunate to have enough. Sometimes just enough to scrape by, other times enough to splurge a little here and there, but enough to be able to enjoy still being here, able to share the good and the not-so-hot at times too with so many who mean a heck of a lot to me!

carol g said ... Jamie (Duward Discussion) pointed me in this direction ... I am thankful for that (come to think of it, I am thankful for her friendship and wisdom). I surely have enjoyed this blog as well as Jamie's. It has been a very difficult year. I am grateful that my husband's cancer is currently in remission. We married late in life (just celebrated #4), and still hold hands when we fall asleep at night - I am thankful for that love. I am sure I could think of more, but right now this is what comes to the front of the line.

Carol, that's so sweet and if you had a blog of your own, I'd be happy to come over and read; I'm sure that you and your husband have a wonderful love story of your own to tell. Speaking of love stories ...

On Friday I took the easy way out published A Post from the Past so that I could sneak off to the movies to catch the long-awaited release of Twilight, a love story that I was really looking forward to. I mentioned that it was my duty as a mom to pre-screen the movie to keep Amanda from being disappointed but apparently Claire didn't think that was the case and came out of lurking long enough to say so ...

Claire said ..."After all, it could be an absolutely horrible adaptation of the book and it's my duty as a good mom to make the sacrifice to be sure that it's not going to disappoint the girls." What a load of bollocks! Have fun you horny auld vampire loving devil. :)

Now, Claire, how rude! Of course I was performing my parental duties and not just going to drool over the hot teenage vampires who turned out not to be so hot anyway as I wrote about in Saturday's post, "Twilight" Fails to Glimmer for Me.

I think that in the long run, Twilight is going to be a major hit with the fans of the book but alas, perhaps I'm just too old and picky when it comes to translations from the printed page to the big screen. Personally I thought the movie was a bit of a let-down but Cate absolutely loved it and Amanda admitted that "it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be" though they both agreed with me that the character of Bella was awful. I guess I was just bummed that the love story that was told so well in the book, wasn't told so well by the actors ... Apparently I'm not the only one who often finds a book-to-movie disappointing ...

Lois Grebowski said ... I'm trying to remember the last time a movie was better than the book ... Can't remember. Hubby can't either ... Sorry you were disappointed.

Queen-Size funny bone said ... Books although they give you the story, you can still interpret them yourself visually in your mind. when you see a movie you can't do that because its THEIR vision not yours. kinda like do you see what i see?

Now that I think about it,though, the A&E version of Pride and Prejudice was actually quite good and did the book credit - especially in the casting of Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy. Rowrrrr ... Oh sorry ... that was me being shallow ... Ahem, anyway, I would have to say that sometimes the movie is a little bit better than the book - just not too often and just definitely not in the case of Twilight. Which is too bad, because I really, really wanted it to be really, really good. And it wasn't ...

Oh, and one thing I hadn't thought of was brought up by Last Minute Lynn who very practically stated ...

Last Minute Lyn said ... As much as movies cost these days it really sucks when you think it was a waste of money. It's especially painful when it doesn't live up to the book.

True, Lyn, true - it most definitely sucks when it takes a bite out of your wallet and the vampires weren't what you hoped they'd be! Oh well, I'm hoping for a better production in the sequel which Summit Entertainment is already planning on. One can dream, right?!?

So, that's it for this week's Comments on Comments ... please stop in again sometime during the next week and drop me a comment or two then be sure to come back next Sunday to see if you've made the weekly wrap-up. Everyone have a fantastic Sunday!

"Twilight" Fails to Glimmer For Me

So ... had I been in need of a reminder that I am 50 and not 15, going to see Twilight at the movies yesterday provided me with one. I guess it should go to figure that a vampire movie would ultimately suck but I've got to admit to being disappointed that it did. Were I a tween or a fan-girl, though, perhaps the bite of disappointment might not have been so bad.

I was late getting into all of the hype and hysteria of Stephenie Meyer's teenage vampire romance saga but upon the urging of the teenage girls in my life, I recently read the entire four-book series from cover to cover and, like millions of girls and their moms across the country, became quite enamored of Edward Cullen - the perfect man except for the fact that he's one of the undead. A minor detail, though, and easily forgivable when it comes to Edward; as a matter of fact, immortality makes him even more appealing in some strange and supernatural way.

After reading the books and falling in love with the whole love story (though there are times when I really wanted to strangle a couple of the characters), I was really looking forward to the film adaptation even though common sense and past history warned me that there was the very real possibility of the movie being bad. After all, how many Stephen King books have been wonderful reads and yet complete and total bombs at the box office? Yeah ... I rest my case.

Sadly, history has once again managed to repeat itself and the curse of Stephen King has apparently been passed on to Stephenie Meyer. Maybe it's that whole "Stephen ..." thing? Whatever it may be, it's just very, very sad that a movie that had such potential ended up being a complete and total let-down. At least for me.

I guess it's pretty hard to take a 500-page book and condense it into a 122-minute movie without combining scenes, cutting scenes, or adding in scenes that never occurred in the book; all of which Twilight is guilty of. When you're only about ten minutes into a movie and thinking "hey, hold on - that's not right" or "that never happened" or "wait a minute, that didn't occur until halfway through the book" then you know you're in trouble of actually liking the film. I kept thinking that maybe it would have been better to have not read the book prior to seeing the movie but then it dawned on me that if I hadn't read the book, I would be even more confused than I was having read all of the books.

A 15-year old would probably see it differently but the chemistry that existed between Bella and Edward in the book just wasn't there on the screen; Bella was even more annoying in the movie than she was in the book; and Edward ...ah, Edward, I hardly knew ye! Instead of being the perfect man that he was on the printed page, Edward on the big screen was just another brooding teenager with pale skin, too much hair gel, and a striking resemblance to the chicks in the Robert Palmer "Addicted to Love" video.

The saddest thing, though, is that I really wanted this movie to be good; I really wanted it to live up to all of the hype; I really wanted it to be a movie that I would want to see over and over again; and I really wanted to see the beautiful love story between Bella and Edward come to life off of the pages and onto the screen. I love a good love story that makes me smile, makes me cry, makes me believe in the hope and power of true love. Twilight the book was a good love story that did all that - Twilight the movie was a lacking love story that didn't.

Amanda and Cate will be going to check out the movie themselves sometime this weekend and I'll be interested in hearing what their take on it is. I told Amanda that she should draw her own conclusions and not base them on my opinion of the movie but apparently a lot of her friends at school have the same opinion of the film that I do so she's quite skeptical that she's going to like it herself. Perhaps, though, she'll come home and tell me that I'm nuts and that it was great and how could I say all these awful things? After all, how often do teenagers agree with their parents?

Oh well, maybe the sequel will have a bigger budget and a better script ... there are, after all, three more books in the series and with the way the movie ended, there has to be a sequel as even though I found the movie to be sorely lacking and a let-down, millions of tweens won't think so and will make sure that Edward continues to live on.

A Post from the Past

Before I have to head into work later this afternoon, I have decided to treat myself and sneak off minus any teenagers to see "Twilight", the long-awaited big screen version of Stefanie Meyer's teenage vampire romance novel of the same name. Yeah, yeah, I know ... I really should wait and go with Amanda and Cate but I think I need to go first to check it out and see whether or not they're going to like it! After all, it could be an absolutely horrible adaptation of the book and it's my duty as a good mom to make the sacrifice to be sure that it's not going to disappoint the girls.

Anyhow, because I'm heading out to an 11:00 a.m. show, I decided to pull my post from two years ago today and republish it for your Friday enjoyment. It's quick, it's easy, and most of you weren't reading my blog way back in 2006 so this will be all new to you!

Enjoy and I'll be sure to let you know how the movie is! By the way, Callie - did you finish the book yet??

Originally posted on November 21st, 2006

“To live under the American Constitution is the greatest political privilege that was ever accorded to the human race” ~ Calvin Coolidge

Amanda has a two-part Civics test this week and this morning as we were sitting on the couch watching bits and pieces of the news (and no, not Rachel Lutzker for all of her fans out there!) she decided to try quizzing me on some of the things that she was going to be tested on.

"What rights are Americans promised under the U.S. Constitution?"

"You have the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney and to have an attorney present during questioning. If you cannot afford an attorney one will be provided to you free of charge."

"Who was James Madison?"

"He was the fourth President of the United States and was married to Dolly Madison who later went on to make wonderful snack cakes."

"What is the Preamble?"

"The short walk that you take to loosen up your legs before the real ambling begins."

"What is the New Jersey compromise?"

"A decision that is agreed upon by a bunch of guys talking with Jersey accents who generally say 'fuggedaboutit' to everything."

"What is the CT plan or the Great Compromise?"

"When the people from Connecticut decide to agree on something really good."

"What is the 3/5ths Compromise?"

"When 3/5ths of the people in the room agree on something then it's passed."

"Who was Thomas Jefferson?"

"The third President of the United States who lived at Monticello in Virginia and was the main author of the Declaration of Independence as well as a gifted inventor and player of the violin. He died on July 4th, 1809 - the exact same day as John Adams, second President of the United States" (Now this one I knew!)

Needless to say I was probably not a great deal of help to Amanda in studying for her test as most of this stuff totally escapes me despite the fact that I think I used to know it once upon a time. Even though I love history, and lament not having become a history teacher, I've never been a big fan of Civics which is more the study of comparative government or politics than it is actual history.

Whereas I can tell you quite a bit about what went on during the actual writing and signing of the Declaration of Independence, I can't tell you that much about the document itself. The same goes for the Constitution and any of the other lovely documents that our Founding Fathers decided to draft once they got the notion that we were going to be a nation independent of England. Ask me about George Washington as a General and I could bore you to tears but ask me about George Washington as a Statesman and I'll bore you to tears about George Washington as a General!

Knowing that I'm a history buff, Amanda was quite surprised that I couldn't answer most of the questions she threw out at me this morning (as a matter of fact, she kept smacking me in the head with her papers after every wrong answer!) but I was rather proud of the fact that she DID know the answers. Maybe she's paying more attention in class than I thought she was!

The FBI Loses an Agent in a Line of Duty Death in Pennsylvania

An agent with the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation was shot and killed while executing a federal search warrant associated with "a violent drug distribution ring" on Wednesday, November 19th. The wife of an alleged drug dealer has been charged with the killing and is in custody while an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the shooting is being conducted.

Special Agent Samuel Hicks was accompanied by other members of a multijurisdictional anti-drug task force that was rounding up suspected traffickers in the Pittsburgh area around 6 a.m. when the shooting occurred. The team announced itself as police before smashing in the front door at a home in Indian Township. A bullet was fired from the upstairs of the house striking Agent Hicks in the shoulder. Agents and officers pulled him out of the house and started cardiopulmonary resuscitation but he later died at an area hospital due to blood loss from the wound.

"This is the most tragic information you can relay to any spouse, child, parent or colleague," said Michael Rodriguez, special agent in charge of the FBI's Pittsburgh office. "He served with honor and bravery and will be greatly missed by his colleagues here in Pittsburgh and throughout the FBI."

Agent Hicks had been with the FBI since March of 2007 and was assigned to the Pittsburgh Office in July of that year. A native of western Pennsylvania, Agent Hicks taught school for a time in Maryland before joining the Baltimore Police Department in June of 2002. He served there until February of 2007 when he left to become an FBI agent.

Emily Hicks said that if there were any consolation to the tragedy, it was that her 33-year-old brother "died doing a job he loved."

Agent Hicks, who would have turned 34 on Thanksgiving Day, is survived by his wife, Brooke, with whom he just celebrated his 5th wedding anniversary two weeks ago, and his son Noah who turned two in August.

"The biggest tragedy in this is there is someone, she's 28 and she's a widow. She has got a son that is going to be heartbroken," said Angela Hohman, Agent Hicks' sister-in-law.

I've Got a Question - You've Got an Answer

In just one week, we here in the United States will celebrate our country's 145th Thanksgiving Day since the last Thursday of the month was proclaimed to be a National Day of Thanksgiving by then President Abraham Lincoln in his Thanksgiving Day Proclamation which was issued on the 3rd day of October in 1863.

Even though Thanksgiving services had been held in Virginia as early as 1607, America's very first Thanksgiving Festival, and the one that we all associate the holiday with, was a three-day feast which began on December 13th, 1621 in Plymouth, Massachusetts. The feast gave the Pilgrims, who had much to be thankful for, an opportunity to praise God and to celebrate with their Indian friends after they had reaped a bountiful harvest following a very rough first winter and spring in their new land.

It wasn't until 1789, following a proclamation issued by President George Washington, that America celebrated its first Day of Thanksgiving to God under its new constitution and that the Protestant Episcopal Church, of which President Washington was a member, announced that the first Thursday in November would become its regular day for giving thanks, "unless another day be appointed by the civil authorities."

Most Thanksgiving services and observances still only occurred at the State level until many years later when Mrs. Sarah Joseph Hale, the editor of Godey's Lady's Book, finally found a President who responded to her petitioning for an annual National Thanksgiving Day. For thirty years, Mrs. Hale promoted the idea of a national Thanksgiving Day, contacting one President after another, until President Abraham Lincoln responded in 1863 by setting aside the last Thursday of November as a National Day of Thanksgiving.

Over the next seventy-five years, future Presidents followed Lincoln's precedent by annually declaring a National Thanksgiving Day until Congress permanently established the fourth Thursday of each November as a national holiday in 1941 thus ending the need for an annual proclamation to be made.

Is it any wonder then that Abraham Lincoln is my very favorite President? Who else took the time to set aside one day out of the year when we not only take the time to remember that which we are most thankful for but can eat ourselves silly in the process? It's time to reflect upon the year that has almost passed, to perhaps gather with family and friends and share the bounty of love and friendship, and to maybe just slow down a little bit from life's regular hectic pace. Unless, of course, you happen to work for some heartless retailer who thinks it's necessary to stay open on a formerly "everything's closed" holiday and try to wring every last penny possible out of a struggling economy.

However, that's just my opinion which at long last brings me to the question of this post (I bet you thought I'd forgotten what the title of this post was, didn't ya?!) ...

What are you most thankful for this year?

Just because it's an American holiday that we'll be celebrating next week doesn't mean you need to be an American to answer this question; I don't think you have to have a designated National Day of Thanksgiving in order to be thankful. As a matter of fact, we should be thankful on a regular basis for all that we have in our lives. Sometimes, though, I think we just tend to forget the good as we get so overwhelmed with the bad but for now let's say we put the bad aside and concentrate on the good, shall we??

A Birth Meme Followed By A Birthday!

Last week, Jamie of Duward Discussion did a post about her birth year which she was inspired to write based on a feature called "Old School Friday" that Wayne Hicks does each week at Electronic Village. Jamie invented her own meme from this and challenged us all to the following:

"Your mission should you choose to accept it, is to go to The Birthday Calculator and This Day In History to find all sorts of interesting stuff about you and tell the world all about it."

Well, who am I to back away from a challenge? Especially one made by a woman whom I greatly admire as a fellow history buff and one who is much more knowledgeable than I! To that end, I hied myself on over to The Birthday Calculator and came up with the following for September 9th, 1958, the day my mother gave birth to her only daughter:

I was born on a Tuesday under the astrological sign Virgo.

My Life Path number is 5. As someone with a Life Path number of 5, I may be "one of the most compassionate of people as the 5 is surely the most freedom-loving and compassionate Life Path". This gives me something in common with my most favorite American President, Abraham Lincoln, who also had a Life Path number of 5! Pretty cool I'd say! I'm also supposed to be a good communicator and know how to motivate people around me which would give me something in common with President Ronald Reagan but I don't know what his Life Path number is!

My fortune cookie reads: It takes more than good memory to have good memories.

I was born in the Chinese year of the Dog.

My Native American Zodiac sign is Bear; my plant is Violets.

As of this writing I am 18,334 days old which makes 50 years sound not so bad after all!

I share my birthday with Michael Keaton, Adam Sandler, and Hugh Grant so guess who I'm inviting over for a party next year?!?

There were some truly odd songs at the Top of the Chart in 1958 including The Purple People Eater by Sheb Wooley, Tequila by Champs, Volare by Domenico Modugno, and one of my very favorites as a kid ...

My lucky day is Wednesday and lucky me, I work 16-hour days on Wednesdays!

My lucky number is 5, which is even better if the 5th happens to be a Wednesday!

My ruling planet is Mercury.

In 1958 there were approximately 4.0 million births in the US and approximately 1,452,000 deaths (9.6 per 1000). Doesn't quite balance out, does it?

My birthstone is a Sapphire and my birth tree is a Weeping Willow (why am I not surprised by this part ... "suffers in love but sometimes finds an anchoring partner."?!?)

Meanwhile ... on this day in history ...

In 1776 - the Continental Congress renames the "United Colonies," "United States"

In 1850 - California becomes the 31st state in the Union.

In 1893 - Frances Folsom Cleveland, the wife of President Grover Cleveland, gives birth to a daughter, Esther, in the White House.

In 1956 - Elvis Presley sings "Don't Be Cruel" and "Hound Dog" on Ed Sullivan's immensely popular show Toast of the Town.

In 1965 - Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Sandy Koufax pitches the eighth perfect game in major league history, leading the Dodgers to a 1-0 win over the Chicago Cubs at Dodgers Stadium in Los Angeles.

In 1966 - John Lennon meets Yoko Ono at an avante-garde art exposition. And imagine that - he releases "Imagine" in 1971 five years later to the day!

In 1971 - Prisoners riot and seize control of the maximum-security Attica Correctional Facility near Buffalo, New York.

In 1976 - Mao Zedong, Chinese revolutionary and statesman, dies in Beijing at the age of 82.

Thanks, Jamie - that was actually kind of fun! Perhaps more of you would like to find out about your birthday and what exciting things happened in history then? If so, take up Jamie's challenge and then be sure to let me know so I can read about it and let Jamie know, too, as she'll be more than happy to link back to you!

Oh, and speaking of great days in history ... guess what happened on this date thirty-one years ago in 1977? Not only did Egyptian president Anwar el-Sadat travel to Jerusalem to seek a permanent peace settlement with Israel after decades of conflict but it was also the birthday of the Blogosphere's very own CrAzY Working Mom! Talk about monumental!

Be sure to pop by Tisha's blog and wish her a very happy birthday as she celebrates the beginning of her 31st year on this planet! Oh - and here - have some cake before you go because what's a birthday without cake??

Happy Birthday, Tisha! Best wishes for many, many more!

Creative Photography Contest, #15-3

My entry into Roger's Creative Photography Contest this week isn't really very creative as it's a straight-out-of-the-camera shot but I still thought it was pretty darned cool as I simply love the contrast between the dark clouds above and the bright landscape below.

One of the advantages of working in "The Ivory Tower" of dispatch at American Ambulance is that I get a great view of Norwich - or at least parts of it! This picture was taken this past Sunday afternoon when I happened to look outside and noticed that the sun was shining over the city but there were dark clouds - very dark clouds - coming in from the East. Luckily for me I had my camera with me and I was able to get a few pictures - this was one of my favorites.

Be sure to check out the other entries at the Creative Photography Contest and if you've got a picture that you'd like to enter yourself - what are you waiting for? The contest is open to everyone with submissions taken weekly and winners announced at the end of the month. It's a great way to see some great pictures and get some feedback on your photography - something that I always look forward to. Hey, Kevin, didn't you get some nice pictures while your family was down at their Outer Banks rentals? I bet there's a good submission or two there! Of course, then you'd have to start a blog but that wouldn't be so bad, would it?

Oh, and speaking of blogs and winners ... I got this great award from Dianne at Forks Off the Moment yesterday and I've got to tell you that I am honored to pieces as Dianne is an excellent photographer and for little ole' me to get a photography award from her is just amazing and a true honor! I think that Dianne gave me the award because of my tendencies to skulk around dark places at night taking pictures as she wrote "I really want to go photo hunting with this lady. She roams around cemeteries at night and scans the skies. She is a photographic adventurer and a really good person." but either way, it's wicked awesome and I am wicked honored! Thank you again, Dianne!

Two More Line of Duty Deaths Claim Lives of Arkansas and Pennsylvania Officers

A helicopter crash on Sunday claimed the life of Arkansas Game and Fish Commission Sergeant Monty Carmikle, a passenger in an AGFC helicopter that was searching for possible night-hunters.

The crash of the Vietnam-era helicopter, a Bell OH-58, occurred around 1:00 a.m. in Cleburne County as Sergeant Carmikle, age 45, and the contract pilot, Jerry Fryar of Ozark, attempted to head off violators who were 'jack-lighting' deer in a field. The pilot was taken to a hospital where his injuries were not considered life-threatening.

“It’s my understanding they (Carmikle and Fryar) actually saw some headlights, and they were going down to try to see where they could head these guys off before they got out of the woods,” AGFC Spokesman Keith Stephens said. The crash, which occurred in a cow pasture about 60 miles north of Little Rock, is under investigation by both the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration.

AGFC wildlife officer Major Mike Knoedl, said that the entire agency is deeply saddened by the death. "Being a wildlife officer is a very dangerous job. We're trained for just about everything, but in this instance it was out of the officer's control," he said.

Segeant Carmikle, who is survived by his wife and son, had been with the state agency since the summer of 1985 working the Cleburne County area as a wildlife officer and on the AGFC Dive Team for many years. He was the first wildlife officer to die in the line of duty since two officers died in a plane crash in the 1970s.

The fourth Philadelphia police officer to die in the Line of Duty in 2008 was killed on Monday, November 17th, following a dramatic two-vehicle crash involving a suspected drunk driver. Sergeant Timothy Simpson died at Temple University Hospital at approximately 11:55 p.m., where he had been rushed in critical condition following the 10:30 p.m. collision in the Port Richmond section of the city.

Sergeant Simpson was responding to a robbery call when his police cruiser was slammed on the passenger's side by a Chevrolet Camaro driven by a convicted felon from Levittown with illegal drugs in his pockets. The suspect, who has a long arrest record, was being chased by another patrol car after running a red light before the crash which was so violent that it rocketed the cruiser into a nearby building and slammed the other car into a light stand. Both vehicles were demolished and it took furious efforts by rescuers to pull the officer from his squad car as well as two civilians from the other vehicle.

Only hours before he died, Sergeant Simpson had received an award for outstanding service as Superintendant of the Month from his commanding officer in the 24th District. Sergeant Simpson's other honors included a heroism award, four merit awards and a letter of commendation.

This past May, Sergeant Simpson's former partner, Sergeant Stephen Liczbinski, was gunned down following a bank robbery and Sergeant Simpson was briefly in the public eye following the five-day man hunt for the suspect when he formally arrested the accused bank robber wanted in connection with the death of his former partner and friend. Following police tradition, Sergeant Simpson placed Sergeant Liczbinski's handcuffs on the suspect, who later confessed to the bank robbery but denied shooting Sergeant Liczbinski, before leading him to a 24th district police wagon.

Following his death, Sergeant Simpson was named supervisor of Sergeant Liczbinski's unit. Captain Kevin Hodges of the 24th Police District told reporters, "I had to make the tough decision of who was going to go in Steve's position in 2 Squad. I chose Timmy Simpson because he was a strong leader, a great cop, and an excellent supervisor." Captain Hodges said Simpson belonged to an old school when it comes to policing. "We would have taken this job for 10 cents ... because we loved it. It wasn't a job or a career for us - it was truly a life's calling ... and Timmy embodied that."

Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey said Simpson was "An excellent sergeant, excellent police officer. You can't say enough good things about him." Echoing Commissioner Ramsey's sentiments, Philadelphia Mayor Nutter said, "He was a good officer trying to do his duty."

A 20-year veteran of the Philadelphia Police Department who celebrated that milestone just this last Friday, Sergeant Simpson, age 46, is survived by his wife Cathy, their 11-year-old daughter, and 15-year-old twins - a son and daughter - as well as a brother who is also on the force.

A Visit to Mohegan Park

For the first time in a long time on my day off I woke up to the sun shining brightly in the sky yesterday so I took full advantage of the gorgeous weather by grabbing my new toy (aka my Nikon D60) and heading out to Mohegan Park, a wooded recreation area that sits pretty much smack in the middle of Norwich. I knew that the foliage was long since gone but I thought there still might be the chance to get a few nice shots of the area as well as see what I could do with this new camera of mine.

It was a bit chilly when I left the house - a whooping 39 degrees as a matter of fact - but the sky couldn't have been bluer and I was just so happy that it wasn't raining for a change that I didn't mind the cooler weather at all! As you can see, when I got to the park the water looked like glass and even though there were definitely no leaves left on the trees, it was still very pretty.

The lovely body of water that you see in the first picture is Spaulding Pond - the centerpiece of Mohegan Park. As innocent as this pond looks in that picture at the top of this post, in 1963 six people died and more than $6 million in property damage resulted after the earthen dam that holds it back collapsed. The break caused the Great Flood of Norwich that sent a wall of water and debris hurtling through downtown swamping houses, streets, and cars and even collapsing a mill. The dam still runs along the southern end of Spaulding Pond and across the earthworks is a path bordered by pergulas and flowering plants. Though there obviously wasn't anything flowering on Monday it was still very pretty.

While I was in the park taking pictures closer to the water, I had some visitors swim by who were nice enough to pose for a few pictures even though I hadn't been nice enough to bring them something to eat! They got so close that I certainly didn't need a pair of Nikon binoculars to see them clearly either!

I could tell that my subjects seemed to be a bit disappointed but they were good sports and didn't give me a hard time about the fact that I had empty pockets! Next time I head over to Mohegan Park, though, I'll be sure to bring along some bread or something just in case!

Mohegan Park is one of those places that I think those of us who live in Norwich tend to forget about for the most part and that's a shame as it really is a lovely area complete with hiking and biking trails, several nice playgrounds, a swimming area in the summer, grills and picnic tables, and other nice features. Granted, it's certainly not the Mohegan Park that I remember as a child when there was a zoo and skating rink and other things but it's still very nice and a lovely place to show off to visitors from California and England - when I have them!

Should you happen to be in the area, we'll be celebrating Norwich's Semiseptcentennial in 2009 - that would be birthday number 350 - and if you want to come by, I'll be happy to give you a tour of Mohegan Park. I think you'd definitely like it! Just remember to pack some popcorn for the critters!

On Books and Love

Growing up, I spent a lot of time in the library and have always enjoyed reading. I remember reading The Wizard of Oz way back when I was in second grade and it seems that it was then that I developed my love for good stories. I love a book whose pages you can lose yourself in, whose characters become real, whose final page you're sorry to turn, whose story you remember long after the book has been finished.

I had gotten away from doing a lot of reading over the past few years but I've been making more trips to the library lately and currently have five books lined up and ready to be read; books that have either been recommended to me or that I stumbled across on the Internet which sounded good. It's a joy to be reading again even though my eyesight isn't what it used to be and I either need the large print edition or a pair of reading glasses stuck on my nose in order to see the words before me. Come to think of it, I'm starting to need the same thing for the computer!

I recently finished reading The Host by Stephenie Meyer, a book that I wasn't entirely sure I was going to finish when I first picked it up. Stefanie is more famous for her four-book Twilight Series, books that I've written about myself on this blog and whose first book, Twilight, comes out in movie form at the end of this week. Twilight is the love story between a teenage vampire and a teenage mortal and it appealed to the hopeless romantic in me. Who knew that The Host would do the same thing?

The Host is a science fiction/romance novel and tells the story of an alien species called 'souls' who take over Earth because they believe humans are too violent to each other. Wanderer is one of those souls and this is her story as she finds Melanie, whose body she occupies, resistant to being taken over by an alien.

I had been warned by Darci, Amanda, and Cate that the book wasn't very good and that I probably wouldn't like it and, for the first ten chapters, I was afraid they were going to be right. It was pretty slow-going but somewhere along the way, the story finally took hold and I found myself wanting to know what was going to happen next and how things were going to resolve. I found myself immersed in the story of Wanderer, Melanie, Jared, Ian, and Jamie and I even found myself crying a time or two - a sure sign that I have been sucked into a story.

There was something about Stephenie Meyer's writing in New Moon, the second book of the Twilight Series, that really spoke to me, as if this woman and I shared a lot of the same thoughts on love and heartbreak and how it can completely and totally debilitate your entire life if you aren't careful and when I came across the following passage in The Host, I again marveled at Ms. Meyer's insight ...

"I knew the human exaggeration for sorrow - a broken heart. Melanie remembered speaking the phrase herself. But I'd always thought of it as a hyperbole, a traditional description for something that had no real physiological link, like a green thumb. So I wasn't expecting the pain in my chest. The nausea, yes, the swelling in my throat, yes, and yes, the tears burning in my eyes. But what was the ripping sensation just under my rib cage? It made no logical sense. And it wasn't just ripping but twisting and pulling in different directions."

Being a bit of a skeptic growing up, I had always scoffed at the idea of a "broken heart" myself because it just didn't seem to make much sense that you would feel the pain of an emotion anywhere near an organ that was designed to pump blood through your system. Sure, you might feel a broken heart in your head, which is where all thoughts and emotions originate but certainly not anywhere near your chest, right?

Then my own heart was broken and holy smokes, did I find out that I was wrong. I can still remember clutching at my chest in the spot where I knew without a doubt my heart was as I could feel the actual cracking and breaking as small pieces of it came loose and floated off, never to be found again. It was as much of a physical pain as any other I have ever had and I was totally shocked as, like Wanderer, I never expected it. It made no logical sense and yet there it was.

I've had my heart broken more than once over the course of my life - three times by the same guy who to this day would be capable of breaking it for a fourth time should he ever choose to do so - and I learned very well that a broken heart is not at all an extravagant exaggeration but a very real truth that can knock you to your knees and change the whole course of your life. Apparently Stephenie Meyer knows this, too, as she's written about my heart in not just one now, but several of her books.

Even though I had gotten up at 4:45 on Friday morning to be into work early, I stayed up after getting home from work at 11:00 p.m. that night and read until almost 3:30 in the morning so that I could finish The Host; so that it would end the way I hoped it would; so that I could once again have my faith in true love restored.

I wasn't disappointed. I went through a lot of tissues and was glad I was reading at home and not at work as I just couldn't seem to help the tears but I wasn't disappointed.

I wonder what Stephenie Meyer is going to write for me next?

Comments on Comments

Before I start commenting on this week's comments let me just make one quick comment on the weather here in New England ...

It stinks!

Miracle of miracles, I have had the past two Saturdays off of work and what has it done on both of them? Rained! Somehow, it just doesn't seem fair especially when I go back to work for 16 hours on Sundays and it's beautiful outside!! ... Now, on to other people's comments!

On Monday I once again participated in the Manic Monday Meme were the word of the day was Bounty. Even though I could have done a post on the history of paper towels, I chose instead to write about Stephanie Plum, a fictional bounty hunter brought to life by Janet Evanovich in her fantastic books. Perhaps my post may have inspired one of my Manic Monday readers to check the books out ...

Desert Songbird said... I've heard lots of great things about this author. I guess I'm long overdue to check her out. Thanks for the tip!

I'm always glad to be of assistance when it come to a good book or two and I'm always glad to hear about a good book or two that I could read myself so feel free to make a suggestion or two!

On Tuesday, in addition to my Veteran's Day tribute post, I took my new Nikon camera out and did some Banking on Downtown Norwich. Translated - I posted some pictures of the Chelsea Savings Bank building! The post even inspired Sanni, who takes some totally amazing pictures, to pop in from Germany and leave a comment ...

Sanni said... YAY!!! Congrats on your new cam - I bet she'll be one of your best friends pretty soon. Frank loves his Nikon - and I love my Canon Rebel... but ssssssh, don't tell :-)
I've been allowed to touch the Nikon a few times and it ROCKS!
I can't wait to see more photos. You know how much I love your pics, don't you???

Aw shucks, thanks Sanni! And thank you to everyone else who left encouraging comments about my photography attempts!

Speaking of photography attempts, that brings us to Wednesday's post which was my entry to Roger's Creative Photography Contest for the week. With Amanda's help, I took one of the pictures that I had taken at the Chelsea Savings Bank and did a little bit of editing with it to come up with this week's photo. The comment that I got from Bulldog (aka one of my favorite EMTs as well as one of my best commenters ever since I started this blog!) made me laugh a bit as I think he has guessed what part of my plan is with some of my photography ...

bulldog said... Y'know, Linda...you keep showing these wonderful pictures of Norwich, and we might actually start seeing the better side of the "Rose City" - as opposed to the "dark" side we see @ work all the time! Great job, and keep up the positive work!

Maybe if I keep showing parts of Norwich in a good light, I can get a part-time job working for the Norwich Tourism Department or something ... if Norwich has one that is!

Thursday's post had a two-fold purpose: I needed a quick and easy post as my work hours were starting to wear at me and it seemed like fun! Caption That Photo! gave you, my readers, the chance to have some fun and make me laugh with some very funny captions! The picture I used was of Andrew and was taken this past May when he worked a dispatch shift with me. Andrew is a paramedic at both American and Backus Hospital as well as a great friend who didn't yell at me too much for using his picture (he did tell me that it was a terrible shot but I don't think so - I think it's all Andrew!). To read all of the funny comments that were left, be sure to go over and check it out but for my personal favorites and the one that Andrew chose as the winner read on ...

Sandee (Comedy +) said ... Okay Linda, what did you post on your blog this time? :)

Mary said ... Do I look amused? Now please put your clothes back on ...

Lee said ..."I'm telling you, that Nair bottle looked just like the Head & Shoulders bottle."

Travis said ... "I'm very disappointed. You said there would be CAKE."

And the winner and Andrew's personal favorite is ...

Callie Ann said ... What Now????

Thank you to everyone for playing along - even Claire came out of hiding for this one! - and a big thank you to Andrew for being such a good sport about it! It's so much fun to read what people came up with for captions - I'm going to have to do caption posts more often!

My post for Friday post revealed Amanda's latest hairstyle (she kept asking me if I was going to do a post about it so I couldn't very well disappoint her, could I?!?) and the kid has once again boldly gone ahead (no pun intended) where I have never gone before or would even consider going! Don't tell her I said this but I give her a lot of credit for being brave enough to be who she is and going against convention on occasion; I doubt she got that bravery from myself or her father so it's got to be all her!

After seeing Amanda's new Mohawk hairstyle in What's a Girl to "Do"? this is what some people had to say ...

Patty said ... A lot of teenagers go through this stage and survive. Believe it or not the parents survive too. I know I did. My daughter had her wild days and grew into a lovely young woman. I think it is normal for your daughter to want to be her own person. The only problem I see with this hair cut is some people may ridicule her for it. Tell her to hold her head up high and be proud that she has a mind of her own and is seeking to be who she is and not who everyone thinks she should be. I think she looks great!

Joan said ... I have to admit that Amanda's "do" is pretty darn cool looking...not too drastic yet very unique and flattering. As an admittedly obsessed "hair" person, I bow to her flair!

Jamie said ... Amanda is an absolute treasure with her adventurous spirit and artistry. Of course you are spoiling half the fun of being a rebellious teenager. How can you rebel when your mother takes a look and says, "That looks nice". :-)

When Amanda first suggested this style of haircut I definitely wasn't saying "that's nice" but afterward, even I had to agree that it looked pretty darned good on her and she's happy with it, which I think is what really matters.

Finally on Saturday, after working both a 6-hour shift at the Tribe and an 8-hour shift at American on Friday and not having a lot of energy left to write much of anything, I put a spin on an email I had gotten and asked people to describe themselves using one word in The Game - With a Twist! So, how did some people describe themselves?

Lois Grebowski said ... Hank says Sexy; I say goofy

Bud Weiser, WTIT said ... Jaded

Rob said ... Haggard

Jean-Luc Picard said ... Bookish

Akelamalu said ... Gobby - that's according to a neighbour!

Blogger Empress Bee (of the High Sea) said ... empress-y!

So ... anyone want to tell me what "Gobby" really means?? The definitions I found when I Googled the word were none too flattering and I would hope that Akelamalu's neighbour wasn't being rude! Any of my British friends care to chime in here? If you've yet to do so - stop by and tell me what one word describes you best!

As suspected, I did manage to hit 100,000 visitors to my blog fairly early this week but alas, it was someone I didn't know who had popped in via a Google Search from New Jersey. I didn't even know who the 5 people were on either side of it so I guess I'm going to have to give some thought to some sort of contest that I can bribe talk people into playing. After all, Ms Maggie Moo is having one heck of a sweet contest over on her blog that people are flocking over to play so even though I have no great talent as a dessert maker (though I do make a pretty good apple crisp and New York style cheesecake) perhaps I can find something to entice people with here? Hmmm ... I shall have to think on that! In the meantime, if you haven't entered, go pop by Mags blog and be sure to tell her that I sent you so that I can get an extra entry or two. After all, I've eaten some of her great desserts so I know what I'd be winning and trust me, it'll be good!

In the meantime, everyone have a great Sunday and be sure to come back and leave me a comment or two this week - it's always great to hear from you!

The Game - With a Twist!

Recently I received the same email from a couple of friends that was entiteld "The Game" and which contained the following instructions:

The Game is on!!! And you're IT! Describe ME in one word.
Just one single word, be honest if you are going to respond. Send it to me and to me only.
Then send this message to all your friends and see how many strange & interesting things they say about you.

Being the curious sort and wondering what one word my friends might choose to describe me - and hoping for the best! - I forwarded the email along to friends that I have met in real life and some I only know virtually and got some lovely responses back. They ranged from resplendent, fascinating, admirable, peacekeeper, wonderful, adventurous, clever, unflappable, strong, and trustworthy ... to two not so lovely but unfortunately sometimes true descriptions - snoggly and surly, which are basically the same thing but snoggly just sounds a little better!

While the email was fun and made me take a moment to think about what one word I would use to best describe my friends I got to thinking that it might be fun to ask people the same question but with a twist! This time, a person would have to choose one word to describe him or herself rather than their friends.

So guess what we're going to do now? Yep! You got it! You're going to leave me a comment and in one word, tell me how you would best describe yourself! I bet it's not as easy as it sounds but I bet it could be fun, too, so jump on in and let's see what you have to say about you! While you do that, I'm going to go look at some insurance quotes and see if I can get my car insurance down a bit!

Deep Tissue Massage

There are days - like today when I managed to overdo it a bit on the housework - when I think it would be nice to know someone who was a massage therapist so that I could throw myself on their mercy and maybe get some relief from my aching back and knotted up shoulders! Unfortunately, I don't know anyone who has ever studied to be a massage therapist, never mind one that knows how to do deep tissue massage, so I'm just going to have to rely on my old standbys of a couple of Tylenol and a heating pad!

If by any chance you are a massage therapist and you've ever thought about wanting to learn more about deep tissue massage, a great way to do it is through massage videos that give step-by-step instruction on to perform the proper method to release muscles and adhesions, increase range of motion, reset muscle memory, and reduce primary and secondary distortions.

If you're interested in ordering a massage video or two so that you can help out people who suffer from chronically tense and contracted areas, you really should check out Aesthetic VideoSource's indispensable new 3-part DVD series, Deep Tissue Massage Therapy. The DVDs are easy to order either individually or as a full set by calling 1-800-414-2434 or visiting www.VideoShelf.com. The complete set can be purchased for $132.00, at a savings of 20%, or individually for $54.95 plus shipping.

Deep Tissue Massage

Massage Techniques | Massage Supplies

What's a Girl to "Do"?

It's kind of depressing when you're 16 years old and you just don't like the way your hair looks - especially when your hair looks 'normal' and you just aren't a 'normal' hair kind of girl like Amanda has proven to be. So ... what's a girl to do in a case like this??

There's nothing to do but get a new 'do', of course! And that's exactly what Amanda did this past Saturday - got her hair cut Mohawk-style.

At first, I was pretty resistant to the whole idea as I just couldn't envision the hairstyle Amanda was trying to describe. To me, a Mohawk is completely shaved on the sides with a just a strip of hair in the middle that sticks straight up (hey, I've seen "Last of the Mohicans"!) but apparently that's not exactly the case anymore. As the stylist clipped and cut and shaped Amanda's massive mane of hair, I could finally see what she was talking about and had to grudgingly admit that it wasn't bad at all. In fact, it was kind of a good look for her.

It's short on the sides, still long over the left side of her face, and has a longer section that goes from the top of her head down the back which can be teased and sculpted with a ton of hair products to form the Mohawk part of the cut. To me it kind of looks like a spiked pony's mane or something but Amanda is quite happy with it and has gotten lots of compliments from the kids at school.

Oh, and she's promised me no more funky colors if you can believe that! Right now her hair is sort of black with a little bit of last summer's pink still showing through in places and then her normal color on the sides. Eventually she'd like to go all black again but for now, I rather like the different colors and highlights.

Next up for a new look - an eye doctor's appointment next Thursday with the challenge of picking out a new set of specs! She's had this pair for two years so it's time for a change of probably both lenses and frames. This could be interesting ...

Oh, speaking of interesting, I've had to turn comment moderation on for a little while but hopefully it won't have to be for too long and not to worry, there's still no dreaded word verification to slow you down from leaving a comment!

Utah & California Officers Mourned as Line of Duty Deaths

Police Officer Charles Skinner of the North Salt Lake Police Department, Utah died on Friday, November 7th, as a result of injuries received in a crash earlier in the week. Officer Skinner, 30, suffered head injuries after his police cruiser skidded on a rain-slick road and slammed into a sign post while pursuing an alleged car thief at approximately 4:00 a.m. on Monday, November 3rd.

Officer Skinner was transported to the hospital in critical condition with massive head injuries. Doctors performed several surgeries but the 5-month member of North Salt Lake Police Department never regained consciousness and his family decided to take him off of life support on Friday night.

A former member of the Salt Lake City Police Department, Officer Skinner and his wife Kaitlyn had bought a house and welcomed two children into their lives - twins, a boy and a girl, who were born just four weeks ago.

Officer Skinner is the first officer of the North Salt Lake Police Department to die in the line of duty. "It's hard," North Salt Lake Police Sgt. Mitch Gwilliam said Monday. "It's a small department."

Officer Skinner's father-in-law, Sgt. Gary Koehn of the Bountiful Police Department, said "Our family will grieve this loss for years to come, but we will continue to honor his memory for his children, and they will always know their dad was a great man, a respected police officer, and a hero."

"We are so fortunate to have been blessed to have Charlie in our lives," Koehn said. "He told my daughter just a week ago that he felt like he had the perfect life. They had just purchased a home, just had the two twins, and he was doing what he loved."

In California, Deputy Sheriff Lawrence Canfield, a 43-year-old Sacramento County sheriff's deputy, succumbed to injuries sustained in a traffic accident on Wednesday, November 12th, in the town of Rancho Cordova .

The collision occurred around 2:00 p.m. as he was traveling with lights and sirens activated attempting to overtake a speeder when a vehicle turned in front of him. The accident took place just 50 feet away from the site of a similar wreck that happened three years ago involving a Sacramento County officer who spent two months in the hospital recovering from injuries. Witnesses called 911 to report that an officer hat been hit and several motorists stopped to aid the fallen officer until emergency officials arrived. Deputy Canfield was transported to San Juan Medical Center in Carmichael where he was pronounced dead approximately two hours after the crash.

Deputy Canfield, who had been assigned to the Rancho Cordova Police Department's motorcycle unit for four years, was a 13-year veteran of the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department. Sheriff John McGinness, a personal friend of the deputy's father who is a retired sheriff's sergeant, called the accident "a horrible, horrible tragic loss" that "goes like waves through the department and I'll tell you, through the whole law enforcement community."

Sheriff McGinness described Deputy Canfield, who had also served in the U.S. Army, as "a very, very outgoing, personable, happy sort of guy. He absolutely loved what he did," McGinness said. "We know this job is not without its risks."

"Our thoughts and prayers go out to our officers and their families," said Chief Reuben Meeks of the Rancho Cordova Police Department.

Deputy Canfield is survived by his wife and two children both under the age of ten as well as his parents, and extended family

Caption That Photo!

Last time I asked everyone to write a caption for a picture, everyone seemed to have a good time with it and Travis' answer had me laughing for so long that I decided I was just going to have to try it again sometime. Well, "sometime" has arrived and after digging through my photo archives I think I've found a picture that opens itself to a myriad of different captions.

I took this picture back in May when one of my favorite paramedics, who also happens to be a part-time dispatcher, was filling in for someone who was off and working a shift with me. I absolutely love working dispatch with Andrew and don't get the chance to do it anywhere near often enough. With any luck, all of this buttering up will let me off the hook for using his picture for this post!

So, give it your best shot and leave a caption in the comments, after everyone has had a chance to play I'll post the results of the winner later in the week. Now go - have fun - and make me laugh!

Creative Photography Contest #15-2

Time once again for an entry into Roger's Creative Photography Contest and, as I did last week, I chose a picture taken here in Norwich. Last week's picture was taken at the Howard T. Brown Park on the Thames River while this picture comes from a little further up the road in the downtown area.

Yesterday I posted pictures of the Chelsea Savings Bank building that I had taken with my new Nikon D60 and my entry into this week's contest is taken from that series of pictures.

This lamp is one of two that flanks the front entrance to the bank and definitely adds to the character and solidity of the building as well as the overall feeling of security for one's money in an institution that has withstood 150 years of time.

I'd like to thank Amanda for lending me her eyes and helping me with the 'tweaking' of this picture!

Veterans Day 2008

In war, there are no unwounded soldiers. ~José Narosky

Thank you to ...

My father
Sarge Charlie
Sgt. Dub
Paramedic Seth DeAngelis
Paramedic Sean Judge
Gracie's Grandsons
Dixie's Marine
Lala's Aero
Frank Ellsworth, Fire Inspector
and all of the other
men & women
who have served
or are serving
to make
our Nation free.

Banking on Downtown Norwich

After much hemming and hawing and calculating and recalculating and convincing myself that it would be a good investment, I finally made the plunge and bought myself a new camera. Now I just need to put in even more extra hours to finish paying for it as the only way I could afford a new camera at this time was to succumb to the lure of Easy-Pay on QVC but I figured if I was going to be practically tied to a dispatch console anyway, I should reap some of the benefits.

This is my new baby, a Nikon D-60 with an 18-55 mm lens. It's a major step up from my Kodak Z712 which is a simple point and shoot camera that takes most excellent pictures with basically just the touch of a button. This camera has a lot more buttons to touch and even though I've read through the owner's manual, I have a sneaky feeling this is going to be a learning process for quite some time to come but one that I'm hoping will be well worth it.

Unfortunately, since I've taken ownership and become a Nikonian, the weather has been absolute crap so I haven't had the chance to go out and take too many pictures (well, that and I've been at work an awful lot, too). I did get the chance to take some pictures after visiting the library in downtown Norwich this past Saturday even though the skies were pretty gray - at least the rain was willing to hold off for a little while so I could try out my new camera a bit.

Downtown Norwich, even though it's nothing to brag about at this point in time, has some very interesting old buildings and those were the object of my photographic hunt. I just wish there had been a little sun to light them up a bit but last week the sun was definitely someplace else!

The pictures in this post are of the building that houses the Chelsea Savings Bank which was established in 1858 and sits solidly at the corners of Main and Cliff Street at One Franklin Square.

I just love this building as it looks exactly as a bank should look - solid and strong and a safe place to put one's money. It reminds me a bit of the bank that George worked at in Mary Poppins. You almost expect to see stern men in dark suits inside hunched over ledgers as they perform the day's accounting!

This particular building was constructed following the 1909 fire that destroyed the original Chelsea Savings Bank building that was located in Bankers Row on Shetucket Street. It last underwent renovation and expansion in 1980.

In 1982, the Chelsea Savings Bank merged with the Groton Savings Bank, which was established in 1854, to become the Chelsea Groton Savings Bank which currently has 14 branches though I still think that this is the finest looking of them all!

As I said to Rick Kramer, Director of Rose City Renaissance, a few weeks back when he and I met to discuss a possible upcoming photography contest and project (I'll write more on that another day), Norwich used to be a big deal and it's buildings like this that prove that statement out.

Unfortunately, not all of the buildings in Norwich's downtown area have the architecture and stateliness of this particular building but a lot of them have character of their own and I plan on bringing you pictures of them in future posts - once I figure out how to use my new-fangled camera that is and have the time to do a little more exploring with maybe some slightly better lighting to boot!

Dealing With a Craving!

I don't know why but I've had a craving for something sweet ever since I got home from job #2 at the Tribe where I have been dubbed a 'black cloud' due to the fact that things will be going along at a nice boring pace until I walk in the door. Last Tuesday it was a crane that fell over that tied up all sorts of resources and closed down the Mohegan-Pequot Bridge in one direction for hours on end; today it was the near-drowning of a 5-year old in the hotel swimming pool (apparently the adults that were supposed to be watching her weren't) followed by an assault on a gas station attendant by a patron. My next shift is supposed to be Friday morning from 6 a.m. to noon but Lisa, the Lead Dispatcher, told me that if it's busy because I'm there that she's throwing me out the door so that she and her partner Andy can enjoy their shift in peace! Oh dear ...

So, anyhow, all that being said, back to craving something sweet ... I rummaged through the cupboards in an attempt to see if there was something that I could possibly make to assuage this desire for a sugary snack and came across a bag of corn meal and a few other things that could probably use the protection of a couple of Indian meal moth traps. None of those things had any appeal but then I found a box mix for lemon poppy seed muffins hiding on the top shelf and decided that those would definitely do the trick! Add some milk, eggs, and a little bit of vegetable oil, stir a bit with a spoon, and the next thing I knew I had a dozen lemon poppy seed muffins baking happily away in the oven!

Now to go try one out and see if they really do hit the spot ... at 9:00 at night ... after being called a 'crap magnet' just like Stephanie Plum whom I wrote about below! I guess what goes around definitely does come around sometimes!

Manic Monday - Bounty

If you've clicked by here from Roger's Creative Photography Contest blog looking for my entry for the week, there was a minor mix-up with Mr. Linky and you can find that post here if you'd like! If you really wanted to read about Janet Evanovich's great books then please read on!

The Manic Monday word for the day is "bounty" and even though I think this is supposed to have something to do with Thanksgiving, the first thing that came to mind for me had nothing to do with Turkey Day as I immediately thought of Stephanie Plum - my very favorite fictional bounty hunter!

Stephanie is the creation of author Janet Evanovich and is the protagonist in 14 books starting with "One for the Money" and currently ending with "Fearless Fourteen" as well as four novellas that are written "between the numbers". She's been described as a combination between Dirty Harry and Nancy Drew with out of control curly brown hair, a fast metabolism, a penchant for something sweet when things start to go wrong, and a family that is even crazier than she is! In short, she's a true Jersey Girl!

Living in an apartment complex full of elderly neighbors in Trenton, New Jersey with her hamster, Rex, Stephanie is definitely what one might call a "crap magnet" as she finds herself in more impossible situations than you would ever think possible and yet they're all so darned funny that I constantly find myself laughing right out loud. Having lived in New Jersey myself during part of my time in the Air Force, I can easily picture the scenes in the books and think I even know which mall it is that Stephanie loves to go to when she's in need of some therapeutic shoe-shopping!

A lot of the comedy in the books comes from Stephanie's sidekick in the bounty hunting business, Lula - a plus-sized former hooker who constantly attempts to shove her size 16 body into size 10 spandex - generally with some sort of animal print! When she isn't helping Stephanie screw up an apprehension or threatening to shoot someone, Lula is working as a file clerk at Vincent Plum Bail Bonds which is owned by Stephanie's slime-ball cousin Vinnie who hired Stephanie on as a bounty hunter when the secretarial position she originally wanted was already taken by Connie. With her car about to be repossessed, Stephanie really needed the job even though she had no idea how to chase down the people who had skipped out on their court appearances and Vinnie needed back so as not to lose his bail money. Funny thing is, throughout all of the books, Stephanie never really gets better at being a bounty hunter but the situations get funnier and funnier.

There is no shortage of adventure, laughter, and hot men in the Stephanie Plum series and with any luck there might actually be a movie out before too long. From what I can gather the front runners for the role of Stephanie are Sandra Bullock and Ann Hathaway with the role of Lula being perfect for Queen Latifah; unfortunately I wasn't able to find out who they might be considering for the roles of Joe and Ranger though I'm sure there's a poll or two out there somewhere with fans asking that very question!

If you've never read these books, I highly recommend them as it's an excellent series and very fun to read. Just don't blame me if you find yourself craving Tasty Kakes or donuts while you're reading!

Don't forget to check out the rest of the Manic Monday Minions and have a great day!

Comments on Comments

The reviews are in and it seems I've got a hit with my weekly Comments on Comments feature ...

Travis said...
Comments rock!

Patti said...
Comments do rock. And I love this comments on comments feature, Linda.

Jamie said...
I love your Comment on the Comments feature. Your readers are a creative and funny bunch.

Empress Bee (of the High Sea) said...
i love it when you do this!

And PEA said it best when she said...
Woohoo, I made your list!! lol You know, I hear a lot of bloggers say that comments don't mean everything but I do think they are a huge part of blogging. I mean, how boring would it be to make post after post and not get any comments?? To me it's like friends coming over to share my day:-)

PEA couldn't have hit the nail on the head any better than she did; comments are a huge part of blogging. Without them it's like having company over and doing all of the talking over the coffee and cookies without the company uttering a single word! So stop in, leave a comment, and maybe you'll find yourself featured prominently in next Sunday's wrap-up.

Speaking of having company over ... Hmm, maybe I could even dig up some virtual snacks to serve ... Let me rummage through my virtual cupboards and see what we have ... Ah-ha! This should do just fine ...

... There, that should do it! Comfy? Can I get you anything else? No? Alright then, let's take a look and see what people had to say about my posts last week, shall we? And if you need a refill, just let me know ...

I began the week with Mo's Manic Monday - Colorful that featured a collage of some of the foliage shots I had taken around Norwich this autumn including this rock which I particularly liked:

Now looking at that picture alone probably wouldn't make you think that I took the pictures in New England but the rest of them were Connecticut along the Thames River at its best. Well, at least that's what some thought ...

WillThink4Wine said...
Glorious!! You even got some purples in there. I miss New England most in the fall! ::sigh::

Tink *~*~* said...
Ah, the water looks wonderful! And if there is one thing I miss about living up north, it's the colors of fall. Maybe I will visit in the fall next year.

I'd also like to say a very big thank you to everyone who left compliments on my pictures; it's too bad it's not something I could ever make a living doing but it's a hobby I definitely enjoy! Maybe when I finally win that elusive lottery I can just take off and be a photography-bum! Don't I just wish!

On Monday I wrote a second post, My Lone Political Rant for the Year, as I guess I felt like I'd kept my mouth shut long enough about the longest, nastiest, most contentious political election I have ever seen. Now that we have a new President-Elect it is my fervent hope that we can start acting like mature Americans and not like the guttersnipes a lot of us seemed to turn into. No matter who is leading this Nation of ours, unless we all get along and work together it's not going to matter one iota. I had comments from both sides of the aisle but I'm glad to say that they were all well witten and thoughtful with not a bit of nastiness involved ...

Ruth D~ said...
Well said! And courageous. I agree, but I'd be slaughtered in Massachusetts for saying so. There is a lot of mindbending that has gone on, and . . . well, we'll see tomorrow, won't we?

Bud Weiser, WTIT said ...
This is an intelligent and thoughtful view. While I agree and disagree with you, I appreciate the thought and courage it takes to make a point. And I am sure President-Elect Obama will, too. ;)

Well Ruth, Bud sells alcohol in Massachusetts so if things get worse maybe he can start selling more?!? Seriously, though, I certainly hope that things get better and maybe now the media can find another story or two to talk about? Please?

For Tuesday I posted my entry for the Creative Photography Contest Post #15-1, a photograph that I took on a bright and sunny Friday at the Norwich waterfront where people were enjoying a beautiful day of fishing. The picture prompted this comment from April, a very talented photographer from British Columbia ...

April said...
What a pretty place! Your photo for the Creative Photograph contest is so beautiful! I love the little stars of twinkling sunlight on the water as well as the shadows of the people.

I got another fantastic comment from a lady who has an amazing eye and takes some absolutely marvelous pictures ... and no, I'm not trying to butter her up because she also happens to be one of the Creative Photography Contest judges ...

Star8278 said...
Spectacular!
I am simply amazed at your photographic skills, better and better each day. I can't wait to see what you post next. Truly awed by your eye for detail.
Keep up the great work...

Dave at The Life of a Father of Five had called for fellow bloggers to post pictures of their 'cribs' so that's exactly what I did for Wednesday's post; Be It Ever So Humble ... gave readers a glimpse of my rather colorful humble abode (I have a bright yellow front door) and inspired the following comments ...

bulldog said...
Nice pics of the 'ol homestead! Having visited your abode in person, I agree w/Callie Ann...your house IS a home - chock full of character & warmth! Even a non-sociable person wouldn't be able to help but feel invited, welcomed, and comfy sitting in your home w/you drinking a warm beverage & enjoying a fanciful conversation!

Queen-Size funny bone said...
I love your door ... Nice crib!

Ah, fanciful conversations and warm beverages ... some of the best things in life! If you're ever in the area, stop in and we'll share some of each! Oh, and perhaps next Spring I'll finally get that darned basement door painted, too!

I've Got a Question - You've Got an Answer was my post on Thursday with the query of -

If you were going to be a professional writer, what genre would you choose?

Leave it to my good buddy Callie Ann to crack me up with her answer to this one ...

Callie Ann said...
SEX SEX SEX what else could there be ... Just write about real love stories with tons of anticipation and lot's of good pure wholesome ... SEX ... Oh the pleasure of it all ...
Or I could write about what an asshole the X is ... or I could right about little Hitler, my boss. Or I could just shut up ... Now there is a good subject ... How long could I possibly shut up for ... Not long ...
Happy day to you!!!

Once I could stop laughing and continue reading, on a more serious note ...

SheSue said...
I tried fiction for teens, children's books, romance and screenplay. Fun for a while, but got boring. That's why I like blogging. I can write about all sorts of things in nice short pieces. Keeps it fun.

Akelamalu said...
I've never even considered being a professional writer! I love writing my blog though and people come to me if they want official letters writing they say I have a knack for that.

I've just recently started reading SheSue's blog and she's got some great posts over there, I'm sure I'll be reading her blog regularly. As for Akelamalu, if you haven't had the chance to check out the Word Wuzzles and other writing challenges at her blog then you don't know what you're missing - that lady can write and she provides a twist you're never expecting at the end of every story! As Empress Bee would say, her writing is tits!

Friday had me finally catching up on an award/meme that my friend Connie from Brain Foggles had given me awhile back. Six Things That Make Me Happy helped to get me out of the funk I had fallen into mid-week that I'm sure was inspired by the completely and totally lousy weather we've had all week. I'm afraid my Seasonal Affectiveness Disorder is kicking in early this year!

One of my very favorite comments came from a gal who doesn't post in her blog often enough as far as I'm concerned but when this young lady from Norwich does, I love reading about The World According to Ms. Danger ...

StephieDanger said...
I call this list the "things that make my heart smile" list. I love reading other people's happy lists. It just spreads positive energy thinking about those lovely things!

Stephie's absolutely right, it's hard not to read about things that make other people happy without thinking about things that make you happy, too. If you don't believe me, feel free to steal the meme and if you do so, I'll be happy to pass the award on to you, too! Happy people all around - isn't that the change we want?!?

Finally, on Saturday I decided to venture no further than downtown Norwich for the post Civil War History in My Own "Backyard". Even though the furthest North the Civil War was fought was Gettysburg, Pennsylvania that doesn't mean that reminders of it aren't here in New England as evidenced by the Buckingham Memorial which is housed in the building for Post #1 of the Grand Army of the Republic, the former home of Connecticut's Governor William A. Buckingham. It seems, though, that not a lot of people are aware of this bit of history that perhaps they drive by every day ...

Rob said...
always wondered why there was a cannon in downtown...

bulldog said...
Wow! Who knew?? Well, YOU did! That cannon is one of those things that one goes past many, many times, but never fully appreciates until someone (like you) speaks up & tells "the rest of the story". Very impressive - especially the part about the GAR & Confederates planning/holding reunions right up through the 40's and 50's. Oh, to be a fly on the wall at those gatherings!

Perhaps next time you boys are driving an ambulance past that memorial you'll think of this story and remember that it's best to stay far away from Confederate sharpshooters!

And, of course, there's the comment that made me laugh from one of my favorite Southern Belles whom I knew would take great delight in this bit of history ...

Empress Bee (of the High Sea) said ...
extremely interesting! i love the story about the union dude getting shot under the eye after belittling his troops! what a war that one was, huh? that war of northern aggression. (sorry, couldn't help myself!)
truly a great post though!
smiles, bee

Glad you liked it, Bee. Seems that Major Sedgwick didn't even get a chance to eat his words before he died but I bet it gave his troops some food for thought! And on that groaner, once again I want to say thank you to everyone who comes by and not only visits but leaves a comment. I truly do appreciate every one of you.

Speaking of every one of you, if my stat counters are correct, I'll be coming up on Visitor #100,000 really quick (very possibly this week) so I'm planning on a special prize for whoever that lucky visitor may be. If it's a visitor who leaves a comment it will be an even bigger prize so be sure to at least say 'hi' because you never know if it might be you!

Civil War History in My Own "Backyard"

As some of you know, I enjoy history and in particular, the history of the Civil War. I've done a few posts here and there about various Civil War subjects and I've also done posts about the place I live - Norwich, Connecticut. Today, as we draw closer to Veteran's Day next week, I thought I would combine the two and do a post about the Buckingham Memorial also known as Segdwick Post #1 of the G.A.R.

The G.A.R., or Grand Army of the Republic, was a fraternal organization established in 1866 that was comprised of veterans of the Union Army who served in the Civil War. They not only wielded great political clout (no Republican was nominated to the Presidency between 1868 and 1908 without first receiving an endorsement from the G.A.R.) but they were also very active in pension legislation, establishing retirement homes for soldiers, and many other areas which concerned Union veterans including the establishment of Civil War monuments dedicated to those brave men who served honorably in our country's most horrific war in which brother fought against brother.

It was through legislation proposed by the G.A.R. that a day of memorial was designated for Union veterans which was originally called "Decoration Day." This day, May 30th, later evolved into our current Memorial Day, a day on which veterans from all wars are remembered and honored. It was also the influence of the Grand Army of the Republic that led to the creation of the Old Soldiers Homes of the late 19th century which later evolved into the current United States Department of Veterans Affairs. Prior to that soldiers of wars were pretty much left to their own devices.

The Grand Army of the Republic reached its largest enrollment in 1890 with 490,000 members and was formally dissolved in 1956 upon the death of its last member, Albert Henry Woolson who died at the age of 109 and was the last surviving Civil War veteran on either side.

The Southern equivalent of the G.A.R., the United Confederate Veterans Association, was formed in New Orleans in 1889 and was active well into the 1940s before its final reunion was held in Norfolk, Virginia in 1951. It was very common for both organizations to work together and between 1881 and 1887, Federal and Confederate veterans held 24 major reunions together. The fiftieth anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg in 1913 attracted 8,000 Confederate and 44,000 Union veterans and I can only imagine how they all felt meeting on that greatest of battlefields.

The first post in the Connecticut Department of the G.A.R., of which there was eventually a total of 87, was activated on February 15, 1867 here in Norwich and named for Major General John Sedgwick who was born in the town of Cornwall, Connecticut.

"Uncle John", as he was affectionately referred to by his soldiers, was killed in the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House on May 9th, 1864 as his men, the VI Corps of the Army of the Potomac, were probing skirmish lines ahead of the left flank of the Confederate defenses and he was directing artillery placements. There were Confederate sharpshooters in the area and Sedgwick's men were a bit edgy as they kept ducking for cover.

In an effort to rally his men, Major General Sedgwick strode around in the open and was quoted as saying, "What? Men dodging this way for single bullets? What will you do when they open fire along the whole line? I am ashamed of you. They couldn't hit an elephant at this distance." Although his men were ashamed, they continued to flinch away and he repeated, "I'm ashamed of you, dodging that way. They couldn't hit an elephant at this distance." Just seconds later he fell forward with a bullet hole below his left eye. Obviously this went down in the annals of history as irony - very sad irony.

Major General Sedgwick was the highest ranking Union casualty of the Civil War and upon hearing of his death, Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant repeatedly asked, "Is he really dead?" as he told his staff that the loss for him was worse than that of an entire division. A solid, dependable, but relatively non-aggressive general, Sedgwick's death was met with universal sorrow as even Confederate General Robert E. Lee expressed sadness over the death of an old friend while Union General George G. Meade wept at the news.

The G.A.R. post in downtown Norwich, which was named in honor of Major General Sedgwick, is the former home of Connecticut's "War Governor" William A. Buckingham who served as the mayor of Norwich from 1849 to 1850 and again from 1856 to 1857. Following his time as Mayor, he was elected governor of Connecticut in 1858 where Buckingham served for seven terms and was invaluable to President Lincoln in raising troops for the war effort.

In 1869 former Governor Buckingham was elected to the Senate where he served as the chairman for several committees including the Committee on Indian Affairs until his death in 1875. The former mayor, governor, and senator is buried in Yantic Cemetery here in Norwich but unfortunately his gravestone was part of an act of senseless and deplorable vandalism this past May. The vandalism to Governor Buckingham's stone, as well as over 100 others, resulted in almost $100,000 worth of damages in just the Yantic Cemetery alone.

I can't think of too many more heinous acts of vandalism than those done to cemeteries and it makes my blood boil to think that people can be so callous and uncaring as to desecrate the final resting places of other human beings. After the vandalism to the cemeteries, the city installed floodlights so that people can help the police in deterring crimes before they happen and calling in any sort of suspicious activity. Personally I think it's a great idea though it's a little strange seeing a cemetery lit up like a parking lot at night.

I took the above picture recently using strictly the light from the floodlights so as you can see, it's now very well lit and hopefully any further vandals will think twice before they go out and commit senseless, meaningless crimes such as tipping over gravestones.

So - there you have it - a bit of history from Norwich, the city I've called home for the past 8-1/2 years. Sometimes it's easy to forget that there's so much of interest oftentimes right there in our own backyards. I hope that you don't mind that I've shared some of mine with some of you.

Six Things That Make Me Happy

Awhile back - quite awhile back - I was given a lovely blogging award by my friend Connie of Brain Foggles. Lest Connie think that I was both ungrateful and forgetful because she gave me this award back on October 27th and it's now November 7th, let me just say that wasn't the case, I was just waiting until the right time to accept my award and complete the rules that it came with! I believe that the right time has arrived!

The Kreativ Blogger award first came to Connie via Tina from Mummified Times Five who apparently has a great sense of humor and five kids. Yep, I think that a mom would most definitely need a great sense of humor with five kids in the house! I'm pretty sure a dad would, too!

This award, lovely though it may be, comes with a bit of a catch ... before presenting it to six other people I have to tell you about six things that make me happy. Considering I've been in a rather, how shall we say, pissy mood the past couple of days it's been kind of hard to think of six things that make me happy but maybe when one is in a bad mood it's actually a very good time to put the thinking cap on and concentrate on happy things rather than annoying things. After all, I can't do anything about the rain ...

So without further ado (or more hemming and hawing) here are six things that make me happy:

1. Being able to sleep in rather than getting up before the sun. I am not a morning person - never have been and never will be - and I think there's nothing better than waking up in the morning at my own pace and not having to rush out the door to get to work.
2. Speaking of work - having a day off makes me very happy! I don't seem to get a lot of them but when I do I love it even if I do nothing else but hang around the house.
3. Getting together with my friend Rhonda once a month for either breakfast or lunch as it gives us the chance to stay in touch and catch up on each other's lives rather than be too busy to ever see each other even though we only live a couple of towns apart.
   
4. A good roast beef. I know that probably sounds shallow but there's more to it than just the taste! My grandfather cooked a delicious roast beef at every Sunday dinner that I can ever remember having at his house (and there were many of them) and a good roast beef always brings back happy memories of Sundays at Gramp's house.
5. Having a little money left over in my checking account on the Wednesday before my every-other-Thursday payday. Most times I'm treading water and don't have two nickels to rub together at the end of the two weeks but every once in awhile I won't be totally broke!
6. A good book. There is nothing quite like finding a good book with a good story that sucks you in and takes you outside of your own world as long as you've got pages to turn. I've recently rediscovered the joys of my local library and have been spending more time reading.

There you have it - six things that make me happy and now I'm craving a roast beef sandwich while I'm lounging in bed on my day off with a good book!

The other part of the rules is that I'm to pass this on to six other bloggers and make them happy so let's see ... whom shall I choose?

1. Lois of Lowdown From Lois
   
2. Patti of Late Bloomer Boomer
3. Sarah of My Wonderful Life
4. Pinky of Cheese in My Shoe
5. Ralph of Airhead 55
6. Tisha of CrAzY Working Mom

I hope that passing on this award complete with its quick little rules makes the above six people happy and if not I'm sure I'll hear about it! Right, Sarah??

Everyone have a happy Friday and thank you, Connie, for the lovely award! It was very sweet of you to think of me!

I've Got a Question - You've Got an Answer

While chatting with my friend MizCyn the other night (once I could get her to stop talking politics) we got to talking about writing and the types of writing that people might want to do. I've known a few people over the years who have said they'd like to make a living as a writer (my first ex-husband and a former roommate are two that come to mind) but it's a lot easier said than done as I'm sure a lot of us know!

Even though I used to write for my high school and college newspapers, I gave up the idea of wanting to be a journalist long ago - though that former roommate is actually doing quite well as a sports writer for The Stockton Record. I'm not sure why I threw in the towel typewriter - maybe I just didn't have the discipline or enough drive to pursue it but I'm happy writing a blog and having a small audience rather than being well-known and incredibly rich because all of the books I subsequently wrote after tiring of being a professional journalist have been turned into movies ... well, maybe happy is stretching it a bit but I'm content!

At any rate, I told Cyndi that it would be a good question to ask of people -

If you were going to be a professional writer, what genre would you choose?

Fantasy? ... Science fiction? ... Western? ... Mystery? ... Romance? ... There are as many styles of books out there as there are types of people but most people tend to pick one style of writing and then stick with it.

Me, I'd probably want to be the next Erma Bombeck (ah, sarcasm!) or someone who wrote non-fiction historical books that required a lot of research and storing up of useless facts! Neither of those two genres requires dialog to any extent and that would be great because I totally stink when it comes to dialog and I figured a body needs to know its weakness!

So how about it, what's your choice? Pick your poison and let me know!

Line of Duty Death Toll Continues to Rise With Four More Fallen Officers

A 25-year veteran of the University City Police Department in Missouri was killed in the line of duty on Friday, October 31st, as he sat in his patrol car at an intersection in a suburb of St. Louis. Sergeant Michael King, 50, died late Friday night after being shot in University City 's popular University City Loop area after a male suspect approached on foot and shot him several times. The suspect, a known drug dealer, was still at large at the time of this writing.

Prior to joining the University City department, Sergeant King served as a St. Charles sheriff's deputy and a probation and parole officer. He often mentored new officers and was formerly a field training officer and detective in the Investigations Division at University City . "Our hearts and prays go out to his family, University Police Chief Charles Adams said. "We're at a loss, just like they are. He was an extremely good officer, very dedicated and always did a great job. He was a very professional policeman and he loved being a policeman."

Sergeant King is survived by his wife Susan.

On Saturday, November 1st, Police Officer Frank Russo of the Schaumburg Police Department in Illinois died while working a day-off duty assignment at a local nightclub following a struggle with two suspects that had fled the club after being involved in a disturbance.

As Officer Russo and another officer began to struggle with the men, he collapsed and his partner immediately called for assistance. Officer Russo was transported to Alexian Brothers Hospital in Elk Grove Village , Illinois where he was pronounced dead a short time later of natural causes related to obesity.

Sgt John Nebal of the Schaumburg Police Department said that Officer Russo, 47, struggled to keep his weight down, but that it never hampered his police work and was never a source of concern around the department. "He was a big boy, but he always did his job without fail," said Nebl, who worked with Russo for more than a decade. "He was a phenomenal guy and he had an excellent sense of humor. He was a veteran, but he was still spunky and aggressive. If he needed to track down a suspect, he just did it."

Officer Russo, a 19-year veteran of the department, is survived by his wife, son, daughter, sister, and his parents.

South Strabane Township Police Officer Nathaniel Burnfield, 27, was struck and killed by a dump truck on Interstate 70 near Bentleyville , Pennsylvania Tuesday afternoon while trying to move debris from the roadway following an accident between a tire that was in the roadway and a double tractor-trailer belonging to UPS.

Officer Burnfield and two other officers had come upon the accident on their way back from a class and pulled over to assist. Officer Burnfield was attempting to remove the tire that had caused the accident from the roadway when an oncoming tri-axle dump truck carrying rocks swerved to avoid Officer Burnfield's police cruiser that was blocking the scene. The truck struck Officer Burnfield as he tried to get out of the roadway before striking the UPS tractor-trailer and overturning. The 44-year old driver of the truck also died at the scene of the accident.

"To try to move something off the road that could possibly hurt someone else, that's Nate, that's what he did," said Mayor Mark Pacilla, of East Washington .

"Nate was dedicated to public service, we're going to miss him," said South Strabane Police Chief Don Zofchak.

Officer Burnfield, a 5-year veteran of the South Strabane Township Police Department, was also a volunteer firefighter in Canton Township and a part-time officer in East Washington . He is survived by his parents and two older brothers.

A Chicago Police Detective who was shot in the line of duty seven years ago while leading an FBI Task Force at the home of bank robbery suspect, succumbed to his injuries on November 4th.

Detective Joseph Airhart, Jr. was shot in the head on August 24th, 2001, as he posed as a delivery man at the Southside apartment of the suspect when an intense gun battle erupted. The suspect took the wounded officer hostage following the shooting; he was finally rescued after over two hours of negotiations. The suspect was arrested and sentenced in February 2006 to life in prison plus an additional 132 years on 15 felony charges including two counts of attempted murder.

Detective Airhart suffered severe brain injuries and was left unable to walk, feed himself, or breathe without the assistance of a ventilator as a result of the shooting which left him in a coma for two months before he recovered enough to communicate by blinking. He was pronounced dead at 12:50 p.m. on November 4th at Advocate Trinity Hospital in Chicago , according to the Cook County Medical Examiner's office. An autopsy found he died of bronchial pneumonia as a result of the gunshot wound to the head and his death was ruled a homicide.

Retired Chicago police officer Len Bajenski, Detective Airhart's partner on the force for five years, mourned his loss. "I lost a close friend," said Bajenski, "The world lost a great kid."

A 19-year veteran of the Chicago Police Department at the time of the shooting, Detective Airhart, 53, was a 25-year veteran of the police department at the time of his death. He is survived by his brother and two sisters.

Be It Ever So Humble ...

A fellow dispatcher from the great state of Minnesota, Dave at The Life of a Father of Five, recently did a post on his "crib" aka house and asked his readers to follow suit and post pictures of their own humble abodes. Dave's abode is a lot less humble than mine as his comes complete with a three-car garage and nice driveway, a lovely deck in the back, and a yard free of leaves but I figured what the heck? Why not! However, after culling through my collection of photos, I couldn't really find one that I liked so I went out into the dark of night and snapped a couple of pictures. I threw the one of my favorite wind chime in because I like it plus it does a nice job of showing off the woodwork on the porch posts!

This other picture shows off my front door and no, the color isn't out of whack - my front door is a nice bright yellow. "Why?", you may ask. It's a feng-shui thing to be perfectly honest and it was the color that was recommended after I figured out the direction of my door and a whole bunch of other stuff that I can't remember right at the moment! The rest of the house is white on the bottom with red on the top so the front door really stands out but I like the bright and cheery color and even painted my mailbox to match!

Also, if you noticed that the ceiling of the porch is painted blue that's in keeping with the age of the house and the tradition back then of painting the ceiling of the porch to match the sky. In the lowlands of South Carolina ceilings are painted blue for a different reason which is to ward off evil spirits but I think here in New England it's really meant to mimic the sky. Either way, it goes nicely with my bright yellow door!

As for the rest of the house itself, it's hard to get a really good picture unless I were to drag a ladder across the street or a chair to stand on as my house is elevated from the road with a walk-out basement down below. Every time I take a picture I'm shooting up so it makes the house look a little bit distorted but I think you can get the general idea!

As you can tell, I need to get outside with a rake - or better yet send Amanda out with one! - but for the most part, that's it - the place we call home (be it ever so humble). Oh, and just as a bonus picture, I took this next picture around midnight or so a couple of nights ago when it was really way too cold to be outside taking night shots but I kind of like it anyway because you can see the stars in the sky above the house. You'll notice there are no orbs hanging around so apparently that blue ceiling on the porch is working!

So how about you guys, you want to show me what your "crib" looks like? I'd love to see it!

Creative Photography Contest #15-1

On my way back from having lunch with my mom last Friday, I stopped by the Norwich waterfront at Chelsea Landing to take a few pictures of the surrounding area. It was a beautiful day with the sun brightly shining and moderate temperatures - a great day for fishing it seemed as there were lots of folks doing so off the rocks and docks at Howard T. Brown Park. I'm pretty sure I'd never want to eat anything that came out of the Thames River but there are probably those brave souls who actually do eat what they catch; however, I think that more likely it's a nice relaxing way to spend the afternoon and wile away some of the remaining hours of good weather before Old Man Winter sets up camp and settles in for the season.

I choose this picture for Roger's Creative Photography Contest as I liked the way the people in the foreground were simply in shadow while the river gleamed in the sun behind them; I rather like the sparkles on the water! Except for cropping the shot, I didn't do anything else with it but I think it could tell a story if you wanted it to.

Speaking of stories - while I was taking pictures, these two handsome fishermen told me that if I became famous from their picture that they'd want to be cut in on the take! What a couple of sweeties though I don't think they should start counting their millions just yet!

Don't forget to pop by the Creative Photography Contest blog and see what other great pictures have been caught!

My Lone Political Rant for the Year

My second ex-husband says that all I ever do is 'slam' him on my blog but, truth be told, I very rarely even mention him. However, he says that his friends that are still in the area who read my blog tell him whenever I mention him I never have anything good to say. Well then, to that end ... hey friends of my ex-husband who read my blog - please tell him that I give him kudos for taking Jamie to a political rally in Florida this morning and for sending me a picture via cell phone text. I think it's great that he wants her to understand more about the Democratic process that we have here in America as when the next election rolls around in 2012, Jamie will be old enough to cast her own vote and I want her, and Amanda both, to know how important their vote is. They are the youth of this nation and they're the ones that are going to be calling the shots soon.

As a rule, I try to avoid politics on my blog as it's a nasty business these days and I've seen more people at odds with each other than I think I have ever seen. Passions have been running high and people seem to have lost the ability to 'agree to disagree'. Politics can bring out either the very best or the very worst in people and with this election, I'm afraid we've seen more of the very worst. Civility has gone the way of our economy it seems.

Just to stick my neck out here a tiny bit (probably not the brightest idea in the world but what the hey ...), I don't believe that George W. Bush is solely responsible for the deplorable condition that the country is in and I am getting a bit tired of so many people saying that he is. Unless things have changed drastically since our government first began, there is no way that just one man could lead our nation down the path to hell. There is a system of checks and balances in place that prevents just one man from being a dictator so if you're going to cast stones, then please cast them not only at the President but also at his Cabinet and the House and Senate.

And if you think that a President's Administration can't cause him nothing but grief and trouble then I suggest you go back and do some reading about the Presidency of Ulysses S. Grant - a fine general who did much to lead our country out of a terrible Civil War but sadly a President with one of the most corrupt Cabinets ever. During his term as President, Grant faced a nation attempting to heal from the War of Northern Aggression (as Empress Bee calls it) as well as trying to achieve civil rights for African Americans. He had a very tough row to hoe, especially considering he had no experience whatsoever when it came to politics; a fact which a lot of corrupt people took advantage of as Grant tried to bring the North and the South back together.

Granted (no pun intended), George W. Bush is no Ulysses S. Grant but he has faced a lot of obstacles in his Presidency, too. I'm not sure how anyone would have done if they were President when 9/11 happened and I firmly believe that President Bush did a creditable job at a time when our Nation needed it the most. However, it's really easy for us to forget that and cast stones at the man for everything else, isn't it? As an example, let's blame George W. Bush personally for the current economic crisis the country is in while Senator Christopher Dodd, head of the Senate Finance Committee and someone who should hold much of the responsibility for the banking and mortgage woes, goes skipping merrily along. If we in Connecticut have any brains at all, we will cast him out during his next election bid but I'm not going to hold my breath waiting for that to happen as Connecticut is a highly Democratic State and tends to vote party lines rather than conscience. Shame on all of us who do that. We should be voting for the person most qualified for the job regardless of what party affiliation they hold.

If we want our country to pull out of the nosedive that it's currently in, we need to think carefully about who we're voting into office tomorrow and not just chant "change, change, change" in the hopes that just saying it will make it so. Sure, I'm tired of the same-old, same-old myself but just voting in a new President isn't going to fix the problems unless we also vote out the people who give him the power to make poor decisions. It's not just the Presidency that's broken, it's our Congress, too, so let's remember that, shall we? And for the love of God and country, could we try to get along while doing it?? Please??

Manic Monday - Colorful

The first Manic Monday word for November is 'colorful' so I thought - well, why not take a few of my remaining foliage shots from the local area, make a nice collage, and use it for today's post? Obviously, that's exactly what I did! Unfortunately, this year's foliage was a little on the 'odd' side as far as the timing of each tree's color change went and nothing seemed to be changing at the same time but we still did have some lovely autumn colors even if it was patchy at times.

All of these pictures were taken from the Mohegan Sun side of the Thames River (on my way into work last Monday) except for the colorful rock cropping at the top; I took that picture from the parking garage right outside of where I work at the Tribe. I think for a bigger view you can click on the collage and it will take you to a larger size but this is the first time I've used this format and I could be wrong, though I hope not!

I hope everyone has a very colorful Monday no matter what you're up to; be sure to stop by Mo's Manic Monday Meme for more colorful choices!

Comments on Comments

With an extra hour to spare this weekend thanks to the clocks going back for Daylight Savings Time, it's once again time for me to take a look back through my posts of the past week and pick out the best comments ... did you make the post this week? Read on to find out!

For my Manic Monday post on the topic of ghost, I decided to take a slightly less conventional ghost route and post a video from one of Amanda's favorite bands, My Chemical Romance. The Ghost of You is a song about loss and, in my own humble opinion, one of my MCR's best. I lamented that there were a good number of former MCR fans who didn't feel the same way, though, and instead felt that somehow the band had "sold out" by having the nerve to record a commercially successful song. As an explanation for that ...

Bud Weiser, WTIT said...

I have to admit I knew nothing of this band. I loved the song and video! You've got great taste in music. As far as the sell out thing goes, it happens to almost every band. I think a lot of people think they sound hip when they say, "I loved them till they got commercial..." In other words, no one wants to share their band...

Good point, Bud, but when I hear good music I'm all for sharing it with anyone else who wants to give a listen. Oh, and thank you for saying I have great taste in music! At least I've got great taste in something!

Monday evening I did a second post - you can usually tell the days I don't have to work by the number of posts I put up! I've Been Awarded and Tagged! gave me the chance to share more useless facts about myself that I know you've all been chomping at the bit to learn - like the fact that my middle name is Jean and I'm not real keen on it.

Marilyn said...

My middle name is Hazel... Jean sounds pretty good.
But I've never broken a bone either and I have terrible handwriting.

Okay, Marilyn, you're right - maybe Jean isn't so bad after all! And like I said to another commenter, it could be worse, I could have one of my grandmother's names for a middle name and I like Fanny and Hilda even less than Jean! I'm definitely counting my blessings on that one!

Tuesday gave me the chance for another two'fer; Post #1 for the day was a photo entry for Creative Photography, Contest Week #14-4. I decided to use a picture that I had taken at the old Norwich State Hospital grounds and had attempted to make look aged. I don't know exactly how good the effect was or wasn't as it turns out that everyone who entered the contest in October got a special award from Roger who runs the Creative Photography Contest (thank you, Roger!); however, one of the judges who also writes the blog Forks Off the Moment left this comment ...

Dianne said...

you did a great job!!
looks like the photo was taken when the building was in its prime
love the effect

I'm going to take that to mean I accomplished what I was hoping with the aging effect! Thanks, Dianne! I think I also managed to get the 'creepy' factor across as almost all comments agreed with that aspect of the picture!

Post #2 for the day Well shut my mouth and call me honored ... was about an award that I had just been given by one of the latest entries (re-entries?) to the Blogosphere, Rob of In Times and Out Goals, who thinks of me as a Blogging Benefactor of sorts. One of my newest visitors (and additions to my Google Reader!) left the following comment that I agree wholeheartedly with ...

PEA said...

Congratulation on the award:-) Isn't it wonderful knowing that you are so loved? hehe Blogging has become such a huge part of my life and the friendships I've made are amazing...don't know what I'd do without all of you:-) xoxo

By the by, PEA throws some fantastic parties over on her blog and I was honored to be included in her recent Halloween Bash! I don't know what was better - the band or the snacks! Thanks again, PEA - I'm available for Christmas parties, too!

In keeping with the spirit of Halloween, Wednesday's post took us on A Walk Through the Old Burying Grounds in Norwichtown, the second oldest cemetery here in Norwich that has some very interesting gravestones as well as some orbs floating around at night (that is if you're nuts enough to be out there taking pictures at night which obviously I am!). Perhaps I've inspired one of my California readers to take a walk through her own cemetery with her camera, too? ...

Amazing Gracie said...

Awesome! I love your history field trips. We get excited out here if we spot a tombstone over 100 years old.
Funny, I live right across the street from a cemetery. Now I'm hankering to go at dusk at take some photos. I know so many of those in residence that it will feel very strange......
~~~Blessings~~~

If you do get out there, Gracie, then I expect to see some pictures over on your blog whether they're residents you know or not! If you do know them, that might make it even more interesting!

In Thursday's I've Got a Question - You've Got an Answer post I asked "What are your plans for Halloween?" and got responses ranging from "Alas, working ..." to "a quiet evening at home ... with dinner and blog reading". In Texas though, there were other plans for the holiday ...

MightyMom said...

I particularly took Halloween off so that I could sit on the front porch with my 3 peas in a pod and give candy to the kids. I'm looking forward to it.
Today the high is 77, low 59 so I'm hopeful it'll be just right for some family fun......and a little teaching that tis better to give than to receive!

What a great idea and the two little hooligans and lone hooliganette were all dressed in matching pea costumes that were just adorable - if you don't believe me, head off to My Wonderful Life and see for yourself! I guarantee you'll see cute - lots and lots of cute!

Even though I had to work on Friday, I managed to put up two posts for the day again ... the first A Few Halloween HaHas was simply a series of Halloween cartoons that had made me laugh so I thought I'd share them along with a craving or two ...

Mo said...

Mmmm.... I could go for a Baby Ruth about now...

I could, too, Mo but no Baby Ruths for me this year ... sigh ... one sounds good right now, come to think of it!

My second post, It's 6:oo a.m., Do You Know Where Your Zombie Is?, was a bit more frightening as I posted pictures of Amanda in the full Halloween regalia that she dragged herself off to school in, and I do mean dragged as zombies tend to do that! Scarily, she makes a pretty good zombie and I'm not the only one who thought so as evidenced by several of the many of comments ...

silverneurotic said...

I think that is the BEST home made costume I have EVER seen, hands down.

Maddy said...

Thoroughly expressive and creative, but of course we expect nothing less from Amanda!
Happy Halloween

Queen-Size funny bone said...

I do not want to run into her in the dark. EEEK!

And one very good point ...

Sarge Charlie said...

ouch.....how do you clean that off?

With a lot of hot and soapy water, Sarge, that's how! As for the clothes, though, I think they're a total loss but that's why they came from the local Goodwill store!

Finally, on Saturday, I decided to be a bit on the lazy side and posted the following photo and asked readers to Hit Me With Your Best Shot (or Caption!). Some of my favorites, and the winner, follow ...

Dean aka SGT DUB said...

"I told you Fred would eat it, but he don't look soooo good, do he?"

Jean-Luc Picard said...

"Hey! Is this the audition queue for 'The Birds' remake?"

And the hands-down winner that had me laughing so hard I was crying ...

Travis said...

"Just double the sales tax and round up for the tip so we can get out of here. I got an afternoon thing on Hwy 17."

A big thank you to everyone for playing along with the captions (I'll have to do that again sometime!) as well as being kind enough to visit this week and leave me a comment or two! It goes without saying that all comments are appreciated but I don't mind saying it again - thank you!! Now go enjoy that extra hour if you happen to live in an area that got it!

Hit Me With Your Best Shot (or Caption!)

I thought it might be fun to make you guys do the work on a post - especially considering I only have 8 hours in between shifts today - so give it your best shot and caption this picture for me ...

Winner gets a big shout-out as well as the chance to show off their sense of humor.

You do have a sense of humor, right?!?

Honoring a Fallen Officer from Michigan

A Barry County, Michigan sheriff's deputy was killed in the line of duty on Friday, October 17th when his motorcycle was struck by a vehicle north of Hastings as he worked an undercover narcotics investigation.

Deputy Sheriff Christopher Yonkers, 43, was on his way to perform a drug buy when another vehicle turned in front of him. Deputy Yonkers, who was wearing a helmet, died at the scene of the 9:45 p.m. crash. Officials initially thought he was off-duty at the time of the accident however it was later learned that Deputy Yonkers was working for the Southwest Enforcement Team on a drug investigation.

A 12-year veteran of the Barry County Sheriff's Department, Deputy Yonkers was a native of Ann Arbor, Michigan and a U.S. Army veteran having served with the 82nd Airborne Division based in Fort Bragg , North Carolina.

"There are some people who have a natural instinct to do police work. Chris was one of those guys who had that knack," Sheriff Dar Leaf said. "He was a very good leader. He was a lot of fun to work with, and he was an all-around good cop. We all looked at him like he was tough as nails, and he was. To have an accident like that shocked us pretty bad."

Deputy Yonkers is survived by his wife Kari, his sweetheart since 4th grade, and five children ages 10 to 17.

Of T-Shirts and Beer ... Sort of ... Not Really ...

To say that it's been a long time since I've been in college and even thought about wearing clothing like Miller Lite t-shirts or Captain Morgan t-shirts (though Captain Morgan is quite the popular guy these days!) would be a major understatement. It's been an extremely long time since I attended college and an even longer time since I've done what one might call any sort of serious drinking. Truth be told, I'm not a drinker as Claire could attest after spending my 50th birthday with me at the local pub where I barely managed to make it through two pints of ale by the end of the night!

However, there's a reason why I don't really imbibe and that's because of the one night in my life back when I was attending college when I broke out of my "I don't really drink" persona and ended up with the worst hangover that I think anyone anywhere has ever had. In the end, it was not fun at all and it definitely taught me that alcohol is definitely something that's better enjoyed in moderation.

The night I ended up on the bathroom floor at my friend Judy's apartment came about as the result of a silly bet with one of the guys that I worked with at my college radio station in Stockton, California. Fonzi (yep, his real name) had not quite finished descending from the Neanderthals and was of the opinion that men could do everything better than women - especially drinking. I took a bit of an exception to that pronouncement and (stupidly) told him that I could most likely match him drink for drink, I just chose not to drink most of the time. It was at that point that he laid down a bet and I (stupidly) took it up.

On a Saturday evening in August of 1984, we met over the kitchen table at Judy's apartment with nothing between us except a bottle of J&J Whiskey, two shot glasses, and glasses of water for a chaser. The object of the bet was to go shot for shot to see who could do more of them before he or she got totally drunk and stupid. The bet started out okay; however, by the time we got to shot #9 (or was it #10?) I could barely choke the stuff down without wanting to gag! I was completely in charge of all of my faculties but the taste was absolutely horrible and there was no way I was going to be able swallow another mouthful without spewing it all over the table!

Fonzi, of course, claimed triumph but, at that point, I just didn't care as I thought it was more lady-like to lose the bet than mess up Judy's kitchen with what was sure to be a royal mess were I to try to swallow one more mouthful of the foul-tasting whiskey. At that point I stood up from the table to move to the living room and immediately dropped to my knees as all of the alcohol rushed directly to my head. Apparently I was fine while sitting but standing up was not a good idea at all ... something I realized way too late!

Luckily Judy's downstairs bathroom was only about six feet away so I crawled on my hands and knees onto the cool tile floor and spent the night curled up next to the toilet being sicker than I ever was in my entire life. When I managed to emerge the next morning I could barely pick my head up and spent most of the day lying on the living room floor wishing for a swift and immediate death every time I looked up and saw the Jack Daniels t-shirts that Fonzi and my friend Scott were wearing.

Twenty-four years later I can still remember how awful I felt and have managed to keep the promise I made to God and myself that I would never get drunk again if He'd just let me survive my own stupidity! Every great once in awhile I'll have a drink or two but even though beer is apparently proving itself to be recession proof with continued increasing sales, it's not from any effort on my part as I don't really don't drink the stuff ... or vodka ... or rum ... or especially whiskey ... or anything else that's going to remind me of the night I spent on Judy's bathroom floor! Better to leave the drinking for those who can handle it as I sure know my limitations!

So ... perhaps this will better explain to Claire why I had two pints of ale to her six on my birthday though I rather doubt she'll quite grasp the whole concept of not drinking as she seems to have it down to a science. Must be the British blood in her veins - either that or she never made a really stupid bet!