On the Road

I just drove about 850 miles to get to this hotel, but the view makes every mile worth it.

Road Trip

I'm heading out early tomorrow morning to pick Rachael up in Kentucky. I expect to be gone for at least three or four days- who knows, maybe more. If anyone out there has any ideas about breaking into The Compound while I'm gone, do yourself a favor and don't waste your time. The electric fence will be switched on and the semi-starved hounds will be patrolling the estate.

However, when we return, if I find I can't accommodate all of her stuff (or Jake's, when he comes home from college in a couple of weeks), I may be willing to entertain giving certain items away. So get your lists ready.

There are only two ground rules. First, for every item you take, you have to take three more items of my choice that you don't want. And second, you can't have anything that belongs to me.

Other than that, it will be open season.

See you when I get back.

Friday Night Video

Ok, I’m going to honest here. I haven’t watched more than the first couple of minutes of the attached video but I wanted to have an excuse to talk about the New York World’s Fair. I was looking at one of those online slideshows the other day and it brought back some hazy, but fond memories (I’ll get to those in a moment). But since this is supposed to be a Friday Night Video, I didn't feel right about slipping in a slideshow (plus I can’t remember where I saw the slideshow, so I couldn't link to it anyway).

So instead, I surfed around a little bit looking for an interesting video that I could shove in here, but nothing seemed to capture the feelings that I held for the place- at least nothing within the first thirty seconds or so- which is how much time I give a video to capture my interest before I move on.

I came across the video below which seemed to hold some promise, but there were two problems right off the bat. First of all, this video is advertised as “Rare”. I’m not sure, but it seems to me that once you post something like this on the internet, you lose any right to call something “rare”. If I had the original film of this stashed away in my basement, then yes, maybe that film is rare. But once I post an exact copy of it on the internet, I don’t know. It doesn't seem right to me.

The second problem I have is the opening music. It seems out of tune and sounds like it keeps changing speeds. It’s kind of like when I would see a movie in my old elementary school auditorium- a teacher and her A.V. pet would constantly be adjusting the speed of the film right up until the film stalled. Then it would melt while it was projected on the screen (Ha! Good times!). The thing is though, if you can get past the music to the part where Edwin Newman starts talking, everything sounds normal (at least for the first thirty seconds that I bothered to watch).

The other thing about the music is the increasingly frenetic pace- like whoever's playing it is slowly losing their mind. All I could think of was that closing scene in The Bad Seed, where the little girl is speed walking at night in the pouring rain to retrieve the gun she had thrown off the dock- only to get blasted by a bolt of lightning. Luckily for Mr. Newman, the music ends without the lightning.

It’s a catchy tune though, I’ll give it that.

So anyway, about the fair- I don’t remember a lot. I was about nine when we went. But here, in no particular order, is what I do (and in some cases, don’t) remember:

We stayed at a real hotel (not motel) in the city. I remember that the hotel didn't have a thirteenth floor, but there was an ice machine and soda machine down the hall.

I have no recollection at all of what or where we ate. I’m pretty sure we did eat though- unless Mom and Dad left us locked in the hotel room when they went out to eat.

Speaking of Mom and Dad, they went to the fair alone together before the entire family went. This fair took place for a few months in 1964 and then for a few months in 1965. They went in 1964, we all went together in 1965. I don’t remember who baby sat for us, but I remember when Mom and Dad came back, they brought me an official World’s Fair pocket knife. Not sure what they were trying to instigate, but I liked it.

I remember that while walking from the hotel to the subway, a pigeon pooped on Dad’s head and he wiped it with one of his ever present handkerchiefs.

And I remember that the subway made me uncomfortable- too many strange people packed into too tight a place. I tried not to make eye contact with anyone. The inside of the subway cars were plastered with these weird posters above the windows of an upside-down cartoon girl (years later I realized these posters were advertising Barbra Streisand on Broadway).

I couldn't find the actual poster but this is close enough.

I remember the Fair had these cool strollers that looked like miniature cars. And I also remember that I was told I was too old to ride in them. However, apparently the same rules didn't seem to apply to my three year old (or something like that) sister. I still carry the scars... and the resentment.

I remember the Kodak building had a roof that looked like a big cloud. I went up there with my little sister and held her up so she could look down through one of the openings to see the people below- until some old know-it-all told me to be careful because I might drop her. Like that would ever happen.

I remember seeing a movie at the Johnson Wax Pavilion (I’m not making that up). I don’t remember the movie, but I think we saw it twice.

I remember standing in line for what seemed like forever to see Michelangelo's Pieta. I don't remember being impressed. I remember being hungry.

The only ride I have fairly strong memories of was at the General Motors Pavilion. You got to sit down in moving seats and listen to speakers by your head (or in my case, way above your head) as the host described the wonders that awaited mankind as you circled around a giant diorama of the future. That was pretty cool. Plus, you got to sit down. (***Late update: See special bonus video below! No extra charge!)

I'm not sure if we saw the Abraham Lincoln animatronic figure at the fair. I know it was there, but it was also forever being plugged on the Wonderful World of Color, so I may be remembering it from that show. In any case, whether I saw it on the show or at the fair, I was thoroughly unimpressed. For all the publicity, you would think that the robot get up and at least do a tap dance or something. But all it did was stand up and blink every so often while it droned on and on about God knows what. Even I could do that. Still can.

I remember having to go back to the hotel with Dad and Laura while my mom, brother and other two sisters stayed at the fair and had fun. I remember waiting and playing with the little flip flashlight that Dad got me at the fair. It was about the size of a disposable lighter and when you pulled back on the switch, the little flap at the end would flip up and the light would shine. When you closed it, the plastic collar around the bulb glowed in the dark. Not just a normal green glow, but the more rare blue glow. I remember watching it as I fell to sleep. I thought this was a really big deal, I think I may have had more fun with the flashlight than I would have had if I stayed at the fair with the others. So there. Plus, they ended up getting caught in the rain as punishment for trying to have fun without me. However, it was a lesson that didn't stick.

And that's about it. For all we must have done, that's about all I remember from fifty years ago. So, watch the video if you want. If you like it, there are apparently five more "rare" parts floating around YouTube somewhere. Sit back and enjoy the promise of the future, from fifty years ago.

I wonder whatever happened to that flashlight.



And for those of you who have read this far, here, as promised is the Special Bonus Video- for tonight only!

A Brief Update

I am "happy" to say that our new furnace is installed, running and semi-inspected. For those of you out of the loop, I had to replace the old oil furnace before it either set the house on fire or exploded. I've replaced it with a new and efficient (so I'm told) natural gas furnace that offers to burn  my house down or explode more efficiently (if my insurance agent is reading this- I'm kidding. Really).

Anyway, if you're considering doing the same, I would strongly advise against it. Now that I have made the investment, it's pretty much guaranteed that we will have a natural gas shortage and I will be forced to steal firewood from my neighbor.

More of the Same

I've mentioned Woolworths here several times before. It’s one of those places from my misspent youth where I mis-spent much of my money. It was a fun place to shop all year round as a kid, but it was especially fun if you were Christmas shopping with your family on a cold winter’s night. Did I mention that every year we would go Christmas shopping and get to pick out a lovely corsage for Mom there? If I didn't mention it, I should have. It was always a big deal to me.

The only picture that I've managed to find of the exact same store is the one located here. As you can see, it was taken well after the store closed and everything was gone- including the lunch counter which used to be over on the left. Even the wood floors that I remember are gone in this photo- covered up by linoleum tiles. This was probably an attempt to modernize the place- which explains a lot.

It’s not a very flattering photo. It would have been much better to have taken the photo when the place was still in operation- cash registers on either side, back to back in the space between the front doors, the grimy gumball machines over on the right.

I had a dream quite a while ago that was probably triggered by this photo. In my dream, I was walking through the empty store and I came upon the stairs to the basement- stairs I never knew existed. I followed them down to the basement where I found cartons and cartons of unopened merchandise from my era- long since forgotten. In my dream, it was like one of those Scrooge McDuck cartoons where the inexplicable light from above was shining down on all the gold. But better than gold, all of the cartons appeared to be shipments of toys.

That's when I woke up.

Anyway, I've looked in vain to find some decent photos of the Woolworths I used to shop at, but for some odd reason the rest of the internet is not as fixated on this place as I seem to be. Other than the link above, pictures of my actual store seem to be few and far between.

Here’s one picture I came across of a Woolworths that looks as though it were built in the same era as mine, but there are some important differences. For one thing, the double doors are too close together.They should be spread further apart. For another thing, there is what appears to be an old lady standing by the doors to the left. She doesn't belong there. That’s not how I remember it. The sign though, looks identical.

Here’s another photo that, although poorer in quality, is much closer to how I remember my store. Other than the phone pole out front and the hooligans hanging around the doorway, I would say it’s a pretty close match. It has the big red letters up above with the rolled up and never used awning below them, and it has the double doors on either end, right where they’re supposed to be .

My Woolworths has been gone for close to forty years now (yikes!). A CVS took over the spot, and still sits there now- making a mockery of my past. It's yet another reason I don't go back and visit.

I'm pretty sure that if I did go back, and I could sneak into that CVS some night and blast through a few of the walls, I bet could eventually find that old staircase.

Friday Night Video

I'm too tired to write anything tonight and if I wasn't, it would just end up me  complaining again as the furnace and home repair sagas morph into to the beasts that won't die- and that's no way to spend a Friday night. Let's save that for another time.

Instead, let's watch a music video. This song is from a CD I used to play when I would be tooling around town with my kids in the van. You can skip past the first fifty seconds or so of intro. I can't tell what's going on there. But I've always liked the song.

So, turn down the lights, close your eyes, pretend everything is ok, and let's relax to the Notting Hillbillies.

Cold Snap

Yesterday, it was seventy degrees.

Friday Night Video

This has been a long week. Actually, it’s been a long month. So what better way to spend a Friday night than kicking back and relaxing in front of the computer screen and watching a short clip of a Japanese video?

As far as I can tell, this is from some TV show that wakes people up in tender, yet inventive ways. It's kind of like reverse lullabies. While it’s pretty grainy to start off with, stick with it. It becomes clearer.

One of the things I like about this video is that you don’t need to speak a word of the language to appreciate it. Some of the more subtle nuances may take more than one viewing, but if you’re willing to invest the time, I think you’ll be rewarded with a deeper and more intimate understanding of the Japanese culture.

Besides, what else is there to do on a Friday night?

Enjoy.

Thanks Anyway

When I was backing my car into the driveway today, I noticed what appeared to be a face in the pealing paint and wood grain on the side of my garage.

If I were a very religious person, which I'm not (and by the way, Jesus is ok about it), I would say it was the face of God.

But since I'm not, I'm pretty sure it's just the tree spirit who sacrificed himself so that I would have a place to park my car, which would be great- unfortunately it's completely packed with crap.

Things Are Looking Up

There was a game I had when I was a kid that was about three inches square, and had sliding tiles with numbers on them. The object was to get the numbers in sequence, but you couldn't slide one number until you slid the one before it, and so on. Generally, the game ended either with me trying to pry the numbers out of it, or throwing it against a wall in frustration. I bring this up because I was thinking about this game as I've been trying to clear a spot in my basement. 

Why have I been foolish enough to try and clean the basement? Because today’s the day they’re delivering a new furnace (don’t ask). As a matter of fact, I’m waiting for a call from the plumber any minute now, telling me they've fallen through the basement stairs- or any number of other unanticipated nightmare scenarios.

On the brighter side, this, along with the bathroom experience and the tooth I broke over the weekend, is now making the news that I have to have a colonoscopy look like a piece of cake. 

I’m already prepped.

Friday Night Video

I have no idea how I stumbled across this video, but am I glad I did! This is a trailer for a video game. At first I thought it was from maybe ten years ago. But the video was only posted last year, so I’m guessing that this may not be the case. Whenever it was made, it has to be one of the best gaming videos- or maybe video of any kind, that I've ever seen- and I've seen at least a few. There is nothing about this video that is not awesome.

First of all, take the game itself. Who wouldn't want to play a bulked-up, backwoods lumberjack (as if there is any other kind). And not just any bulked-up, backwoods lumberjack, but a “Fearless” bulked-up, backwoods lumberjack (that’s "Fearless" with a capital “F”!). How fearless, you ask? How about fighting off werewolves on cold winter nights, is that good enough for you? What do you do on cold winter nights?

Take a gander at the arsenal that you can acquire. This is not your ordinary, everyday NRA sanctioned collection of weapons (well, maybe it is)- these are historical weapons!

The game play itself looks awesome- swinging axes, riding zip lines, firing some kind of crossbow thingy, and best of all- swinging axes!

But by far, the best part of this whole thing is the presentation. Let’s skip right past the old movie "marquee card" style of writing- with the classic mixture of uppercase and lowercase fonts splashed liberally across the screen. And I don’t need to comment on the two minutes and four seconds (including credits) of pulse-pounding, in-your-face action scenes. They speak for themselves. What really, really sets this apart for me is the background music.

Sure, it starts off with the usual subtle, foreboding lead-in music. We've only heard it about a million times before. But when the action lets loose, so does the music! What kind of music is this anyway? Is this some kind of Irish music? Some kind of Scottish music? Is this some kind of Jig? Whatever it is, it works! While the local folk are presumably back in town, swinging their dates around at the hoedown,- you, my friend, are deep in the dark, frigid woods, swinging axes into werewolves!

As the one and only video comment (to date) so succinctly puts it, and I quote in full: “Cool”.

'Nuff said!

Turn down the lights and prepare yourself as you enter the world of werewolf killing lumberjacks!

A Walk Around the Block

As the good weather has struggled to return, Sam and I have finally been able to resume our walks. At first it was down to Cumberland Farms, another day it was down to CVS and another day, it was a walk to Walgreens. Tonight though, he asked me if we could go for a walk around the block.

As we walked, he asked me about his brain tumor and what it was like when we found out, and how we knew that he had one. It surprised me because Sam has never expressed more than just a passing interest, if any interest at all, in hearing about his brain tumor in any great depth. He's always been well aware he had one, if for no other reason than the long scar on the back of his head. It's never been a secret. In fact, it's been a part of life, particularly in the years of the MRI's.

Tonight though, it was different. He wanted to know the background. Our walk was a mile long, which was long enough for the Cliffnote version. I told him the story about how we thought he had a series of ear infections, about how his balance would be off and his speech was delayed. I told him how we took him to the doctors over and over again but they never found the ear infection. I told him how it got to the point where his arm developed an occasional tremor but when we went to the doctors, they were unable to see it.

And I told him how on vacation, just a few weeks before his ultimate operation, he got sick at Cape Cod and he and I spent the night before going home, in the emergency room. And I told him how on the day we were going to go to the county fair he couldn't sit straight, how he leaned at an unnatural angle and when he tried to stand, he would walk into walls, and how I rushed him to the doctor's which was closed because it was early on Saturday. I told him how I took him to the emergency room, first in the morning and then, how and why we had to go back that night, how they did a scan and how we ended up having to bring him by ambulance to another hospital, and how Grandma stayed with his brother and sisters.

Every time we got distracted from the story, either by an animal running by or listening to a bird singing, Sam would direct me back to the story with a "Anyway, you were saying...".

I told him a lot, but not everything. I told him it was scary, but I left out the fear. I told him I was scared of losing him, but I didn't tell him I was scared for years and years after. I held a lot back, but then, I always have when it comes to talking about this. But all of the emotion is still there.

As we walked along, Sam spotted some crocuses poking up. Winter is finally being pushed aside by the struggling spring weather.

It's been too long.

News From the South

A few posts back, I wrote about some of the headlines that were on my local news station's website. I also frequent a news site that’s down by where Rachael lives.

After Rachael moved to her current apartment, one of the first things I did was to look for a news website in her area. This, I figured, would help me determine whether I should be worried about her, or really, really worried about her. The results have been mixed. On the first day that I bookmarked the site, there was a story about a couple of murders that happened within blocks of her home. That was a pretty good fit with what I had envisioned.

Over the last several months I've found that, while murder isn't uncommon, it’s not quite a daily event either. There are some positive stories. The other day, for example, the headline read, “Judge Denies Convicted Killer’s Shock Probation Request”. I found that to be good news.

On the other hand, recent stories have also covered flash mobs made up of the city's "youth". These mobs have been showing up and attacking pedestrians and convenience stores. Some parents of the accused have spoken up and said their children have been unfairly singled out. I'm assuming that what they mean is that while it's their kids that have been caught and arrested, the other kids have gotten away. Life is so unfair.

While there’s a lot on that site that makes me uneasy, there’s also a few “feel good” human interest stories. They currently have a slideshow up, titled: “Woman shows her love for the cats rule yard decorations". If you don’t quite follow that sentence, don’t blame me. I copied it verbatim off the website. Regardless, it get’s the feeling across. Here’s the first picture off the slideshow:

I didn't bother looking at the rest of the photos. I'm pretty sure that this picture says it all.

The weird (some might say “disturbing”) thing is that, except for the signs, this house looks eerily similar to mine.

I’m not sure how or if this ties into the seeming abundance of murder stories, but I feel like there’s a connection here somewhere. It's just one more reason I'll be glad when she's home.

A Short Clip

There's no story behind this, I just came across this when I was browsing tonight. I'm surprised it's not more popular. I like it.