Photo of the Day: Seashells by the Seashore

Avalon Beach, Avalon, NJ
Friday, March 23, 2012

Photo of the Day - Snowbunnies

Vineyard Crawl, Hudson Valley, NY, December 2009

presented with this comment:

what is a teetotalling person to do on a vineyard crawl? be the designated driver and the designated documentarian!

Coping to the Signs on the Cod du Cape

Can't have a trip to the Cape without seeing some of this and some of that:

Not used to seeing wildlife en route to the Cape (used to go another way), but the rotary starts your thoughts circling to how far it is to the beach.

Thank goodness for a wonderful lighthouse/innkeeper who had opened her home with much graciousness.

Not coming from an imbibing family, I didn't know the Cape had Vineyards. It's closer than Napa, that's for sure.

P-town was full of safe temptations for me,

as well as some amusing advertisements.

Until this trip, I never realized how many things were up or down back alleys. Maybe I won't get new sandals or a tattoo, for now.

As for now, if you can't find me, I'm probably out fishing, or at The Lobster Pot,

or check the nearest beach.

Drowning!

The only problem with taking a few days off is that you feel like you are drowning when you return. Stay tuned for updates from Auntie Nettie and The Shushing Librarian. They both have some stories to tell.

Retroblog September 3, 1985

Today is September 3, 1985 Time 10:30

Hi! Boy it's been along time since I last wrote! 2 years in fact. But I've written in my diary. I'm going to write about something that happened to me almost a month ago. It was on August 14, 15, 16, and 17. For almost a year the Young Women had been paying monthly installments for a General Young Women's symposium for Girls 12- ____ from Connecticut, New York, Maine, Rhode Island, Vermont and New Hampshire. It cost $195. The girls who went from our ward were me, Luci, Pam, Mom, Sister Luty, Eva, Vicki, Lisa, Debbie and Lea. Sister Starko went too. On the first nite while we had the bar-b-que I looked around and thought WOW are there a LOT of girls here!

(CON)

that night during the skits Sister Kapp and Sister Ramsas from the General Young Women Board showed up they sat a row behind me. Up to the skit it hadn't hit me that I was actually at the conference But when we all got on the stage and did our things it hit me. The next day when I was in the talent show and I saw the girls from the other stakes it was great we all got close and made friends. When all the girls got to gether and sang the Rianbow Connection. It was GREAT. That nite when we went swimming it seemed as all the girls were wimming. It the Water Carnival the next nite all the girls

(CON)

our ward and stake became closer tring. We got third place! Before we left all the Ashford girls - Mom, Sister Starko, and Sister Luty all bore our testimonies. A very moving experience. As we went home we stopped at a mall - It seemed to me like coming out of a dream into a nightmare - There was porno all over the place YUK!

The best part of the whole thing was listening to Sis. Kapp talk!

Hope we have another!

Although I will still be posting retroblog entries from this volume, this is the last real entry in this journal.

It alludes to the fact that I must have been keeping some entries in another diary, but I know those have been destroyed.

Two years shows some definite improvements in the handwriting, spelling, and ability to write down more details, so it's a shame I didn't keep it up the journal.

The girls and ladies from my congregation have scattered over time. Sister Starko moved away and we still occassionally exchange holiday cards. Sister Luty, a major influence on my musical career, passed away a few years ago, and I know she's keeping that choir of angels hopping up in heaven. Everytime I hear a congregation singing hymns on Sunday MUCH too slowly, or see a kid running through the halls at a church, I think of Sister Luty.

I went through most of my teen church years with Eva and Vicki. The stories they could tell about me, and I pray they don't! Loose the photos ladies, please. (Girls, if you are reading this, forgive me for being so bad at being in touch. Many many congrats Vicki and Gary on your lovely addition! She's beautiful!)

S.L. Summer Fridays

S.L. here again, just writing to catch you up on my summer activities. Auntie Nettie has Fridays off in the summer (the Big J is really nice that way), so she's been taking advantage of them (finally) to go out and do things.

I tag along sometimes. Mostly though, I'm going off on some of my own Amazing Adventures.

Some of the Fridays this summer have been pretty quiet. For example, while Auntie Nettie was working on crochet projects, I was learning new skills, like quilting and tightrope walking and hula hoop juggling with Jedi swords.

I also did some editing for some friends. I had to consult my reference materials, because

my skills had seriously gone to pot.

I also did some travelling this summer.

I rented a VERY nice muscle carto go and visit friends in the wine country.

We had a ball catching up,

and going on a picnic -- where I drank too much.This was an interesting trip, because my friends tried to convert me to being a Diet Pepsi drinker AND a Yankee fan. This Diet Coke drinker and anyone-But-the-Yankees fan was very nice to her host.

(Look at the swag she tried to bribe me with.)

Later in the summer, I took a taxi ride. I had a hard time at first hailing a cab, when suddenly they all swarmed me. It's a multi-car pile-up. After that was sorted out, I headed downtown to Chinatown. I visited a Zen garden and had a visitation from a Celestial Being.
We bonded over a pot of tea and decided to go dress shopping. Which one should I choose? We decided that it might be a good idea to buy this one, in case my boyfriend, Casanova, ever decided to commit.

We then met up with Frieda Flamingo, who gave us a tour of the NBC Studios.

After the tour, we all went out for ice cream.

More girl talk ensued as we inhaled lots of chocolate, 'cuz

Girls+talk+dress+shopping=need for chocolate!

Finally, one of my more recent summer Friday adventures included a spontaneous trip to Caramoor Country, so I could get in touch with nature.

Maybe I should have planned ahead?
Darn!

Perhaps the best thing I have learned this summer is to relax and explore.
Mostly though, I've seriously begun to adopt this motto.
(read the fine print!)

More soooooooooooooon!

Girls and Football - dilemmas

As an older sister to two sports-playing younger brothers and a daughter to a sports-watching dad, I would always be the bane of their existence when games were on. I tried not to interrupt this bonding experience, because I am smart enough to know not to ask "dumb" questions during plays. But really, Ladies, who is not confused by the whole downs, endzones, penalties, off-sides, man-in-motion thing, anyway. Seriously. Do we really care? Yes, we know the big guys are the defense, the special teams are "special," and we all mock the kicker. We're supposed to idolize the QB. My favorite position on a football team, however, is the "tight-end" EXACTLY for the reasons you think. (YUMMY)

To add to my dilemmas, I grew up in a New England state and now live in New York so my loyalties (again, IF I CARED!) are divided. My policy for the "big game" du jour, du week, and du whatever, has always been to find out who my family/boyfriend/host/friend was routing for and THEN ROUTE FOR THE OTHER TEAM. 'Cause I'm the imp of perverseness that way ...

So, imagine what Sunday was like. On the one hand, New England, land of my upbringing, has this undefeated team -- supposedly the favorite, with this monster machine, debonair QB, and all that hype. Then we have the Giants, underdogs, scrappy, the better of the two NY teams, led by one of the Manning brothers. What's a girl supposed to do, again, IF SHE CARED?

Here's the thing. The Patriots. From what I gleaned from my glancing at the sports/gossip pages, Tom Brady dates an obnoxiously obnoxious supermodel. Strike 1. Tom Brady broke up with his ex-fiancee who found out she was pregnant. Strike 2. Patriots accused of spying on other teams. Strike 3. Coach didn't seem to be too remorseful that he was caught doing this. Strike 4. Coach seemed to be filled with hubris. Strike 5. Undefeated season Strike. 6. ---- mmmm --- the imp seems to be leaning in favor of ...
The Giants. Underdogs. Point 1. Cute Manning brother still dating college sweetheart. Point 2. Cute Manning brother NOT a regular in the society/gossip pages. Point 3. Coach not caught spying. Point 4. Again, underdogs. Point 5. (Can you see where this is going?)

Now, to be fair, I avoided much of the whole Superbowl day by either sleeping, reading the papers, napping, watching the FoodNetwork, TravelChannel, the PuppyBowl (which is strangely addictive), or Jane Austen ... however, thanks to the loud raucous parties throughout the building and across the street, I knew exactly when to flip to the game and watch the instant replays of some wonderful plays. Nice. Very nice, and you have to admit the dichotomy of Austen and football has to be admired on some levels.

So, if you haven't figured it out.

GO GIANTS!

Not that I care or anything ...

Nope. Not me.