Wednesday, August 29, 2012

LOL#16

Oh how a good long thinking-walk cures the writing muse blues!  The past two weeks for our family have been a flurry, no, make that a blizzard of activity.  I went back to work after my teacher summer hiatus - that in itself was a slight snowstorm.  My oldest one-of-three started high school; my middle one-of-three started middle school; and my little nutter butter is rapidly becoming not-so-little as she enters third grade.  Soccer is back into full swing with tournaments and practices, ballet is back to keeping us on our toes, and LAX emails are filling my inbox.  

Logistically keeping up with all these changes has seemed to be the easy part compared to the myriad of emotions I've been keeping up with inside of me as I watch my children take great running leaps and bounds toward independence.

Tonight, at one of those soccer practices, I turned on my pedometer app and took off.  Now, keep in mind that this sports complex is fairly large and heavily populated about every day of the week.  It has a large walking course that tonight was good medicine for me.  On my third lap, I heard an interesting noise in the distance.  No, not the cheers of parents as their little soccer stars performed Olympic worthy plays nor was it the crack of football pads hitting together as little tikes ran plays worthy of the Heisman.  Instead, it was a loud and resonant cock-a-doodle-doo from none other than the proud rooster who so willingly posed for my LOL photo this week!

The comedy kept coming.  As I got closer to the sound, I understood the adage, birds of a feather...  Seriously, how often can one find numerous chickens peck, peck, pecking away at the edge of soccer field? Other than the proud rooster, the feathered little guys were quite camera shy so it was handy to have my DSLR and trusty 55-250mm in the car. 




The icing on my comedy cake this evening was the sign posted right at the pedestrian crossing on the walking course.  I have come to the conclusion that these must be some pretty smart chickens.  Rare reading chickens to be exact.  They have every right to be exactly where they are!  Because they most definitely were not included in the sundry of prohibited items for this track.  And tonight, I was so glad they weren't! 


Saturday, August 18, 2012

LOL #15


My oldest-one-of-three put a big smile on my face this evening when she walked into the kitchen and began her crazy antics and gave me a hug - all because I had made salsa! 

I began baking when I was much, much younger and in my momma's kitchen, and I haven't stopped baking or cooking since.  To me, one of life's joys is to be able to make something yummy and have people enjoy eating it.  Give me a house full of people, a kitchen full of food, and I'm happy! 

Tonight, my youngest-one-of-three and I picked some tomatoes from our garden; jalapenos were harvested a few days ago.  Our dinner menu for this evening included tacos so the obvious side dish was salsa.  I began several years ago making fresh salsa and my three kids and the hubster eat it up.  It's quite a mystery to me though.  If I put any of the individual ingredients in front of them, they wouldn't touch any of them with a ten foot pole!  Put them all together though, give them a few pulses in the food processor, open a bag of tortilla chips, and the kiddos come running.

As we were eating dinner and dipping into the salsa bowl, my oldest says, "Have you made out your will?"  I responded, "Maybe..."  Her reply, "Well, you have to add the salsa recipe to it and will it to me!"  My reply - another smile!

Here's my ingredient list if you want to give it a try.  Amounts are more or less to taste; there's really no recipe.  My hope is that it will bring smiles to your home as well.

Roma tomatoes - 5 or 6 usually
jalapenos - 1-2
2-3 cloves of garlic
red onion - maybe 1/2, depends on how strong it is
handful of cilantro
salt - maybe a tsp
sugar - maybe a tsp

Put everything in a food processor and pulse away!  If it's too spicy, add more tomatoes.


I added yellow pear tomatoes tonight as well just because we have surplus from the garden!



Wednesday, August 15, 2012

On the Cheap


I'm not even going to pretend to be sophisticated and say "inexpensive."  I will be the first to say that I am always looking for a cheaper way to get the desired end.  A few week's ago, I returned home from a Pennsylvania trip with several yard sale items, an old salvaged window, and about six or seven vintage frames that I acquired after an enjoyable jaunt of bargaining with the local junk dealer.  They have all now been lovingly transformed into useful or decorative items in my home - on the cheap!

Frenchman Etienne de Silhouette lived from 1709-1767.  At that time, the word silhouette was exclusively known as a surname.  While most of use have never heard of Etienne, we have heard of the word silhouette - 1. a two dimensional representation of the outline of an object, as a cutout or configurational drawing, uniformly filled in with black, especially a black paper; 2. the outline or general shape of something; or 3. a dark image outlined by a lighter background.  The question remains, how did the two get connected?  Here's the answer.

Etienne de Silhouette served a very brief stint as France's Controller-General of Finances in 1759.  At that time, France was in the middle of a war and needed to "trim the budget," so to speak.  In an effort to do so, Etienne began his short career by taxing the then exempt royalty and church by collecting monies on any objects that represented wealth.  Even though he employed numerous budget belt tightening methods, this one, needless to say, caused his popularity to be short lived.  But although his career didn't last long, his name certainly did.

The term a la Silhouette was coined during Etienne's "reign" to refer to the cheapest way of doing something.  At the same time, a new and on the cheap art form was erupting.  Artists were selling miniature cutouts or pictures of profiles using black paper.  These were very quickly created and cheaply sold in place of the much more pricey and time consuming painted portraits.  This new art was a simple way for all classes of people to have a "photograph." The wealthy saw this art form as cheap and beneath them - a la silhouette.  The term stuck and officially lost its surname status and became a regular word in 1798.  We've been calling this art form a silhouette ever since.

These artistic, classic outlines remained a favorite well into the 20th century but most sources say that their popularity was never the same after the invention of the camera.  I beg to differ!






Sources
dictionary.com
etymonline.com
britannica.com

Sunday, August 12, 2012

LOL #14

A few weeks ago, I returned from my parents' home with three plastic bins of "stuff."  They had cleaned out their attic and had designated the contents of these bins as items that belonged to me and items I might want to keep.  My mother and I share the same sentimental gene so I'm sure she knew I would enjoy looking at all of my artifacts from yesteryear.  She was absolutely right!  And not only did I enjoy it, but I found my middle-child-of-three and my husband laughing hysterically yesterday in the garage.  The bins were wide open and they were exploring.

I joined in the search since I hadn't looked through this particular treasure chest.  At the very bottom of the loot was my middle school letterman jacket!  The funny (funny interesting, not funny ha-ha) thing about that was the hubster and I had just been discussing these fine specimen of sportswear with our children just a few days ago. 

Oh, was I laughing-out-loud when I put this treasure on and started modeling around the house!  Not only was I laughing at the jacket but I was getting a real kick out of the reactions from my three kiddos!  My oldest-one-of-three was completely mortified that I would even don this fashion disaster.  (Not to worry though, I later saw her trying it on!)  My youngest-one-of-three just said, "Ohhh!" and gave me one of those you're-so-weird-mom looks.  My middle-one-of-three joined in my laughter but was really more interested in the 1970s Duncan yo-yo that was also part of the loot in my treasure chest!

Oh what fun memories!  Little do my three kiddos know, but in our attic are three large plastic bins, each labeled with their names. Their treasure chests have been gradually getting filled up with loot from their lives.

This week's LOL photos are of me and my lovely letterman jacket from 1979 taken by my sweet little nutter butter and future photographer!  Hope you enjoy the hilarity of the scene and I most definitely hope you have some hilarious treasures of your own!  Go Grizzlies!


Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Lil' Bit of Hometown History


The factoid that people find most fascinating when I tell them about my little hometown is the fact that the yellow line running down the center of the town's main street is the actual state line between Tennessee and Virginia.  The street is lined with American flags on both sides and has Tennessee state flags interspersed on one side and Virginia state flags mixed in on the other.  It is, of course, appropriately named - State Street.


This summer I had the rare opportunity to spend almost an entire week in my hometown of Bristol - a twin city.  My younger two kiddos were attending a Tennessee camp so my oldest-of-three and I hung out for the week.  I used some of this time to reminisce and revisit old stomping grounds while claiming the entire time that I was simply introducing her to events and places of my childhood.

In my younger years, I vividly remember trips to downtown Bristol.  Bristol, Tennessee and Bristol, Virginia are entirely separately run towns but share their downtown area.  Shoe shopping, eating a Buntings hot dog with chili, trips to JCPenney, piano lessons, and some of my very first movies are images that come to mind when I remember downtown Bristol. 

Each state, or side of the street, had it's own movie theatre.  The Paramount was Tennessee's box office and the Cameo was Virginia's.  I'm sure I've attended both and both have been closed for various periods of time. 

Opening night at the Paramount was in February of 1931.  Fifty cents would get an adult in to see a sundry of shows and acts.  The theatre's entertainment varied over the years but the last movie was reported being shown in 1979.  After being placed on the National Historic Register in 1985 and undergoing a major renovation, the theatre re-opened it's doors in 1991 and is still being used today.

The Cameo, on the other hand, hasn't fared quite as well.  From what I have read, even though it remained open and showing movies until 1990, it has long since sat neglected and empty other than an occasional attempt to use the space.  If the information I read is accurate though, some very ghostly and seedy lore are associated with the property.

During our visit to State Street, we decided to try a restaurant that I can't believe I had never visited.  I had heard about it's popularity so there was no time like the present to check it out.  The Burger Bar and it's classic decor has been serving up burgers and a variety of yummy fare to locals since 1942.  Of course, being that I love all things old, I instantly fell in love with the lunch counter, old stools and booths and the iconic "Burger Boy" atop their sign.  Since the inside was pretty full (all 20 seats or so) my oldest-of-three and I grabbed a little table outside.  She went for a burger (and I must say she added it to her top 3 list) but I went for the triple grilled cheese and sweet potato fries.  Let me just share the photo - it's speaks way better than I ever could about this incredible lunch treat!

Not only is this little Burger Bar an eatery treat, it does hold some interesting history to it or as some might say, lore.  Legend has it that the Burger Bar was the last stopping place of Hank Williams.  Supposedly, Charles Carr, Williams' driver, stopped here on their way from Alabama to Ohio on December 31, 1952.  Carr asked Williams if he would like something to eat, but Williams said, "No."  Later that evening in West Virginia, Carr noticed something was wrong and took Williams to the hospital.  Hank Williams was pronounced dead on January 1, 1953.  Now, it's difficult to say whether the legend is true.  But all I do know for certain is that I am incredibly glad that Williams didn't eat anything at the Burger Bar.  His death so soon afterward could have been the end to the restaurant and I would have completely missed out on the delish triple grilled cheese!




Why in the world would a country music legend be driving through Bristol?  I'm sure that seems odd to most.  To me however, it seems entirely plausible.  Bristol is the birthplace of country music.  Yes, I said Bristol - not Nashville.  Many that aren't familiar with my little hometown are surprised by that bit of history.  In 1927, a man by the name of Ralph Peer made a recording offer to the Victor Talking Machine Company and soon chose Bristol as his home base to draw southern singers and their music out of the mountains of Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia.  He succeeded and his numerous recordings are what we now know as the Bristol Sessions.  His office was 408 State Street, Bristol, Tennessee.  In 1998, the United States Congress passed a resolution recognizing Bristol, Tennessee as the "Birthplace of Country Music." 



The last stop of my little hometown history train with my oldest-of-three was by a structure that has always held a certain appeal to me.  I'm sure, like many Bristoleans, I have taken it for granted, but after now living in various locales in the USA I understand and appreciate its uniqueness.  The Stone Castle is a football stadium used by the local high school. 

What even I learned on this visit was that it once was the stadium used by all four Bristol high schools - Bristol Tennessee High, Bristol Virginia High, and Slater and Douglas High Schools, the Black high schools prior to desegregation.  Funds to build the Stone Castle were entirely provided by the Works Progress Administration in an effort to provide people with jobs during a very bleak time in United States history. The stones for the project came from the nearby Beaver Creek.  The structure was dedicated on October 8,1936 and has become an iconic structure in my hometown.


 





















Two major railroads companies helped Bristol gain its ground and aided in it's birth as a town.  I've read that at one time it's population was larger than other cities that now could swallow it.  The Bristol I know is more of a sleepy little family town than a bustling city, I agree, it was a good place to live.  Two years ago, the town celebrated the 100th annivarsary of one of its most recognizable landmarks.  Who could miss it at 60 feet wide and 35 feet high?  I must say, sometimes I surely do miss it.


Sunday, August 5, 2012

LOL #13

One minute and forty-five seconds of nothing but out-loud laughing with a few screams thrown in - that was the scene this weekend just before I snapped this week's LOL shot of my nutter butter and me with my trusty pocket cam, a.k.a. iPhone 4.  

Our family along with some good friends, who my children think are family, spent a fun day at Hershey Park in my hubster's home state of Pennsylvania.  My first ride for the day at about 10:40 AM was on their historic wooden roller coaster called Comet.  The ride isn't at all their most popular.  It has long been surpassed by several behemoth steel coasters that defy gravity, drop from extreme heights, and barrel roll riders into oblivion. 

Regardless, the Comet was my pick of the day!  About half way into my one minute and forty-five second ride, I had a revelation.  I couldn't remember the last time I had laughed and screamed with such unbridled enthusiasm!  It was my little nutter butter's first big roller coaster (she finally surpassed that 48" height requirement) and she and I were having a blast.

Throughout the day, we experienced a wide array of other rides and coasters but to me, none quite compared.  Maybe it was just that I love "old school" or maybe it was just because it was our first ride for the day that started the laughter and screams - either way, when we were dragging our feet at about 10:40 PM and my nutter butter says, "Can we ride the Comet one more time?"  you know what I did!  One more minute and forty-five more seconds of nothing but out-loud laughter and screams! 

Comet Stats (courtesty Coasterpedia)

Park Hersheypark
Location Hershey, Pennsylvania, USA
Opened 1946
Manufacturer Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters
Type Wooden
Riders per train 24
Riders per hour 950
Height 84 feet (25.6 meters)
Drop 78 feet (23.8 meters)
Top speed 50 mph (80.5 km/h)
Length 3,360 feet (1,024 meters)
Duration 1:45

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Taste Buds


Each time I visit the same restaurant, I find myself ordering the same item from the huge sundry of menu selections.  I often think about trying something new, but then I just stick with the tried and true.  I thought maybe this was a trait peculiar to myself; however, when dining with my family and others, I see that it's more common than not.  Upon reflection, I think this behavior has more to do with human nature than it does anything else.  We are, like the adage says, creatures of habit.

My brother-in-law made a statement this week that has stuck with me.  His words were, in effect, we all have unique taste buds.  Now, while I have been blessed with an abundance of buds of the sweet variety and my hubster the salty, I don't think this is what my brother-in-law meant by his statement.

This past weekend was filled with wonderful family events, even some that really aren't on my palate.  For the past four or five years now, my two nephews have tickled my taste buds with something I had never before tasted - Demolition Derby.  While camouflage spandex, marriage proposals on a dirt race track, and crazily crashed cars (fires included) aren't dishes I would have normally selected from my menu of life, I must say that I have been pleasantly surprised at how entertained I have been at these events!  There's nothing quite like it and I mean that in a good way, I think.

Our family Derby weekend festivities do not include mint juleps, large hats, or even hot browns; but they do include a camaraderie like none other, including food, campfire, and laughter.  It has become a weekend of traditions.  My favorite one being the names on the demo cars.  Those that assist with the car preparation in some way get their names on the car.  I can't believe I'm saying this, but my name made the trunk of my nephew's car this year.  They've deemed me official Derby photographer.  Oh, how I'm chuckling as I type. 

Again, demolition derby?  Not something I would have ever dreamed I would attend.  But had I chosen to ignore this out-of-my-box event, my taste buds would have been a little deprived.  Makes me wonder, what other of life's menu selections am I missing?

If these photos don't vicariously tickle your taste buds; I at least hope they tickle your funny bone!


My nephew won fan's choice for this on-the-wall, off-the-wall manuever!








Can you read the words on the back of this car?  I would say that he pretty much succeeded.




I love this shot.  The cars are enveloped in smoke and the firemen are unphased!


Can you believe that his car was one of the last three running in the final heat?  Craziness!