Happy Mothers Day

High School Graduation 1931

  Geneva Goodwin was born and raised on a farm in Shapleigh, Maine on August 27, 1913.  She had 3 sisters and one brother, so the farm work was shared by all.  There was never much cash money but the family shared a good life in other ways.  My grandfather never owned a car or truck but used horses and oxen for his farm and his work in the woods.  I remember the time Hollie asked her what kind of doll her grandmother had when she was a girl and mom said "I never had one"; she made doll clothes for all of her grand daughters.
  She and my dad got married in 1934, neither family could afford a wedding so they eloped to a neighboring town and were married by a minister in Acton, Maine.  They lived in a small little house in Sanford where dad work in the Goodall mills.  In 1936 they bought a farm in Lebanon, Maine, my home town, the farm consisted of a house connected to the barn by a shed and about 8 acres, mostly woods, there was also a detached forty acre woodlot, the "crop" was chickens and eggs, and a pig.
  My brother Lysle was born in 1937 and I followed in 1940, and that was the family unit in which I was raised.  Mom was good glue and held it all together no matter how hard I tried to make things worse.  She and my father were strong in the Christian faith, and strong on family there were many many trips to see grandparents none of them far away.
  Ma, as Lysle and I called her died in March of 2011, ten years after her beloved husband Stuart, she was ready to go all of those years but was patient in waiting.
  Happy Mothers Day ma.

My mother with me early in 1941

Just a little discomfort

Portland Maine
Photo: Tim Greenway www.pressherald.com
 

  New Years day each year is the day people go to the beach.  They just don't go to the beach, they go in the water!  Brrrrr!
  In Portland, Maine it's done to support Special Olympics as a fund raiser.  In other citys and towns it may be done for the same purpose or a different one.  It really is a "fun" way to raise money for a cause.  If I were younger................

Minneapolis, Minnesota
Photo: www.startribune.com

Seattle, Washington
Photo: www.seattlepi.com

Should have appeared yesterday!
Photo: Facebook

A Christmas Story, really

You need to read this in Maine language.  Remember the letter "R" is pronounced ahhh not are.  OK?

I was afraid they'd seen me working.

Larry Grant, the geezer

 

Downeast in Maine it was Feliz Navidad,
And I was at work getting the car from the yard.
Come Hell or high water, I was going to go,
ridin' around, just going to and fro.

 

Wa'nt nobody with me, so nobody could see,
all of them reindeer, up there in a tree,
there was a red sled too, but nobody around,
then I just happened to look, down there on the ground.

 

They must have been some guy, that fell from the sled,
his face was all white, but he was covered in red.
then he stood up, scared the hell out of me,
asked me to help him, get his sled out of the tree.

 

So there's me working.  Working right hard,
got my old chain saw from out of the yard;
chopped down that tree just quick as a wink,
and they was all gone, all in a blink.

 

Down at the store, the very next day,
I told 'em about it, to see what they'd say,
they all laughed out loud, not even a pause,
told me "you must have seen old Santa Claus!".

Christmas on the water

Rounding the point.  12th Annual Holiday Parade of Boat Lights. click to enlarge
Photo: Tom Greenway www.pressherald.com

  Yesterday the dog owners today some boat owners who celebrate while at the same time raising money for SailMaine safety courses.
  The Boats, full of light, cruise Portland, Maine harbor.  In the photo above the boats round Spring Point Ledge Lighthouse, probably a turn-around point in the cruise. 
   I would love to see this in person, but these photos may still be the best views.

Fireworks displays light up the boats in Portland Harbor. click to enlarge
Tom Greenway photo www.pressherald.com
 

It's not all that different

12th Annual Reindog Parade, Cincinnati - click to enlarge
www.cincinnati.com photo

  Just when you think you've seen it all....well, you haven't.  People all over the world are inventive and give much thought to finding new ways to celebrate.  Dog lovers are included in that group.  Most often groups of dog lovers will get together to think up new things to do.  I am positive that the group in Cincinnati is no different.  It's just "what can we do together, with the dogs?".
  So here it is, the 12th Annual Reindog Parade, held recently.

Cha-cha, the Snow Queen
Photo www.cincinnati.com
 

Hobbs and Guiness
Photo: www.cincinnati.com

It won't be long now......

...until all hell breaks loose.  I'm talking about "Black Friday", which is now "Black Thursday Night".  Not for me, I want no part of it.  Well...maybe if there was a free Ipad.
  I've already eaten my turkey, last Friday to be exact.  Oh yeah, we went to the Hermon Family Restaurant and I had a Hot Turkey Sandwich with gravy and cranberry sauce,  what more could I possibly want.  Trying to cook a turkey dinner for two people just doesn't seem worth the effort.
  I walked six miles again yesterday for day 2 in a row.  Started about 3:05, walked four miles straight with a break after three miles for a drink of water.  After coffee I walked in Wal-Mart and Home Depot for about a mile, and walked again here in the neighborhood in the afternoon.  Today, well it's a bit warmer, about 26 degrees, so we'll see.  Maybe four miles before coffee, that doesn't seem impossible - - - unless the wind is blowing, then no.
  Drive safe, enjoy your dinner.

"Bringing in the sheaves....

What we think of as the first Thanksgiving - click
www.wikipedia.org photo

....bringing in the sheaves; we shall come rejoicing bringing in the sheaves...".  I still remember just a little bit of that hymn or song; it was sung during the Sunday before Thanksgiving, and of course, at the Grange.
  Well you ask, what the heck is a sheave.  Well, I reply it's a bundle or grain (almost always cereal grant) such as winter wheat or rye.  A shock is 12 bundles of grant, or 18 bundles or winter wheat or rye.  One University, Wichita State, has teams called the "Shockers", Kansas being a wheat growing state, at least in years without drought.  North Dakota grows more grain than any other State, thanks for the fact Wilbur.
  Now, Thanksgiving.  An official holiday since 1863, during the US Civil War, President Lincoln declared a National Day of Thanksgiving.  The date has been adjusted a couple of times, it now falls on the fourth Thursday in November.  Generally now it's know for "food and football" or as the prelude to the day that makes all shop - a - holics happy; Black Friday- which begins at 12:00AM by the way.
  Anyway that's my take on Thanksgiving, I've already had my turkey this Friday past at the Hermon Family Restaurant - a hot turkey sandwich with nice gravy.  Gobble, gobble.

What it look like when I was a kid.  Right down to the pressed back chairs - click
www.wikipedia.org photo

Giving Thanks north of the Border

Canadian troops giving thanks at Cambrei Cathedral in 1918 - click to enlarge
www.wikipedia.org

  A statutory Holiday in Canada, for the most part, co-insides with Columbus Day, I think, in the good old USA.  Lots of Canadians use the long weekend to shop in Maine, at least around here, most from the Atlantic Provinces.   Now I need to tell you that Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador it is an optional Holiday.  And the Atlantic Provinces are where our shoppers live.
  The menu at a Thanksgiving Meal pretty much mimics the United States (mimics isn't the right word, it should be mirrors).
  Churches are decorated with pumpkins and sheaves of wheat or cornucopias.  Hymns and Bible readings reflect the Jewish Holiday of Sukkot (celebrate the harvest).

  I should note that Rat in the comic strip Pearls Before Swine wants more border patrols on the Canadian Border so they don't sneak in more Justin Beibers. 

Shopping for pumpkins in Ottawa - click to enlarge.
 

A Puerto Rican Thanksgiving

Patillas, Puerto Rico - click to enlarge
www.wikipedia.org

  Puerto Rico is a Commonwealth territory of the United States, the people are born with USA Citizenship and vote for their Governor, but can't vote for USA President, they do have a non-voting Representative to the US Congress.  And they celebrate Thanksgiving.
  Start with the Pavochon (turkey) stuffed with Mofongo, and the turkey is roasted.  So what is this Mofongo?  Well, it's plantain, a kind of banana - it's the reddish brown one in the supermarket, mashed and cooked with garlic and spices.  Then we could have Arroz con gandules, a Puerto Rican version of rice and beans.
  I have been watching some of the college basketball tournament the Puerto Rico Tipoff.  It looks like a nice place to go to the beach, above, but I don't think at my ago I'll go.
  Thanks to Darlene for the new subject suggestions, I can always count on her.

Mofongo
www.delicious-cooks.com photo

A Yankee Doodle Dandy day

  Today it is estimated that the population of the United States is 313.9 million.  That's a lot of hot dogs, parade watchers and days at the beach.  It's also how many of us are left alive because some of those who used to be with us no longer are.  Those veterans who died in all of the wars the United States has been involved in make it possible for those of us that are left to celebrate.
  It's a Hollie Day on a Holiday this morning, so I'm quite sure my morning has already been planned.  There is baseball on the MLB channel at 11:00AM and there will be a lot of day games to choose from too.
  Go.  Enjoy your day but pause to remember how lucky you are to be where you are.

USS Hornet docked at NAS Alameda as a museum.
Both places were a good home for me.

Take it outside!

Christmas in Bangor, Maine

There are lot's of times when a tree is outdoors,

far more obvious than making room to sweep floors;
sometimes an event, like Christmas or today,
is an ideal time to light up a display.

Of course in the big cities and many small towns,
the tree goes up so nobody frowns,
they decorate it with many bright lights,
and Christmas will shine throughout the nights.

You could have one a home, lots of folks do,
decorations and lights sure to suit you,
they'll light up your yard, and put on a show,
and look very pretty when covered with snow.

Levant, Maine 2011

Our deck in Carmel, Maine 2010

This one is okay!



Angels and snowflakes

After the "right" tree was home,

we still had to work our hands to the bone;
saw off the bottom a little bit more,
build a stand, so it's upright on the floor.

Tree stands back then didn't come from the store,
well, they did really in the form of a two by four;
make a cross and nail it together,  oh maybe a square eight,
two blocks on one piece to make it level and straight.

Nail the tree on make it secure,
but there ain't no place for the water to pour,
no water for the tree back in the day long ago,
it didn't last long, but, oh my what a show.

Some homemade things and more

Medford Maine 1992

The wrong tree!

Not a good one!

After trudging all through the woods,
we always made sure to come home with the goods,
some trees were small or not very large,
and some were big, they came by barge.

We never knew from one year to the next,
or that it was possible for us to be hexed;
but that wicked witch caught us one day,
we completely missed the birth on the hay.

So now when it's Christmas time, we work with care,
you never know when that witch will be there;
be careful, real careful when into the woods you go,
I'm telling you now, don't say you didn't know.

Couldn't be fixed

Maybe next year

Hats!

In Kennebunkport. Maine that is,

there's an interesting take on this holiday biz;
they hold a parade, absolutely that's..
..the pride of the Town, it's all about hats.

There are trees, fish and lobsters, a couple of cats,
two yellow dogs and some large top hats;
it's all in fun for the people that go,
and they have a better time...when there's no snow.

On "top" of things

Little trees

Big trees....Watch out for the dog!!

Photos by: Portland Press Herald/Portland Sunday Telegram

C'mon, c'mon!

I might just be going crazy, don't you know?

  Now I hear them on the radio, talking about snow,
  and I'm thinking about shovels, snowshoes and such;
  'course I don't do none of that, so I don't worry much.

 And I'm thinking about Christmas, what it used to be like,
  do you think I'd get a sled, some skis or get a bike?,
  Ice skates and airplanes you make from a kit?
  or maybe something like a snake, hope I don't get bit.
 

But Christmas is coming, it won't be too long,

  all of those imagined presents, right where they belong;
  now it doesn't matter, that all these years have passed,
  hang on a couple of weeks, gee!  It better get here fast!

Another time, another place.

  When I worked in Brewer my office looked out on Main Street, which is also State Route 9, locally known as the Airline.  Lacking an interstate highway Canadian trucks going from Atlantic Canada (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island) headed to the large Canadian cities of Toronto and Ottawa frequently cross Maine, it's the shortest route.  So those trucks, on the way to I-395, go up or down Main Street in Brewer.
  At Thanksgiving time the ladies and I would try to guess the date the first truckload of Christmas Trees got driven by, if one or two hadn't already made the trip.  Usually during the two weeks near Thanksgiving about 200 truck loads of trees go through Brewer.  A lot of trees are from Maine but the majority were Canadian.  Each truck load has, I'm guessing, one thousand trees, multiply that times the selling price (retail) of a tree and that's a "truckload of money".

Loading up.

Not so much.

  There is another story about Christmas trees too.  It is something that has been going on for more than a hundred years in Chicago.  Farmers in Michigan and Wisconsin raise trees that are going to be donated to the poorest people in Chicago.  The trees are loaded on to the U S Coast Guard Cutter Mackinaw at it's homeport of Cheboygan, Michigan.  Boy Scouts and other volunteers do the "dirty work".
  The trees are taken to the Navy Pier in Chicago and the volunteers and Boy Scouts again do the dirty work, there are about 8000 trees!
  All of this happens on the first Friday of December.  Just a by the way here, the Cutter is working on buoy maintenance during the trip on Lake Michigan, it's hardly just a "joyride".

USGC Mackinaw arrives in Chicago, with trees on board.

Leftovers..

...isn't always talk about turkey sandwiches.  How about left over money?  Got any of that?  With the feds cutting Low Income Heating Assistance you could make a donation.  Got any kind thoughts?  All of our troops out in the field and on the water, could use a few kind thoughts.  I just read about an Army unit "at the tip of the spear" in Northern Afghanistan, they built a small road even though they are an Infantry unit The Wolfhounds; it costs 8 American lives for that road, kind thoughts for the troops, it's what they need.
  Of course if you have any leftover time, you could go stand in line at Wal-Mart, or Toys R Us.  I personally, cannot imagine why people do that, oh wait, I think I can - remember Cabbage Patch dolls?  Rhonda was 8 or 9 then, we couldn't get one, but her Aunt and Uncle Brad and Charlene were able to.  I'm sure this year there is some other toy or electronic item that's a must have - I have no idea what it is.  Boy, do I feel good about that.  All I have to do is take a walk, drink some coffee, run a couple of errands and go home, life is good for the geezer!

A traditional leftover sandwich.

This is a burger with turkey and cranberry sauce.  Don't think I'd like it, how about you?

Aren't you glad...

...that today is Thanksgiving, at least here where I am, in the good ole USA.  And I have plenty to be grateful for.  The holiday was originally set aside to celebrate the harvest season and to express our thanks for all that good stuff that grows up from the ground.
  Some people call it Turkey Day because turkey seems to be the meal of choice for the day, I don't know the origin of that, but I like it.
  When I was a young kid Thanksgiving was a bigger deal, food wise, than it is now.  My family all went to my grandparents house, all of my aunts and uncles, cousins too.  There were usually about 30 to 40 of us.  The adults had cooked two turkeys and one roast, usually pork, for my mother and uncle Fred who didn't care for turkey.  There were big bowls of vegetables, biscuits and gravy (my favorite), and four or five kinds of pies - those ladies knew how to bake pies!  These days my wife and I still enjoy the day, but I no longer ice skate on Nesbit Pond with my cousins.  My wife makes better pies than all the rest, so it's a grateful day indeed.
  I am in hopes that all of you have an enjoyable day!

I know he's in here someplace!

The old...

...girl made it, through another year,
oil stained and fought over, could the end be near?
Not very likely she's been through tough times,
and always comes out, dressed to the nines.

So! Happy Birthday, old girl, you deserve the best,
but she takes them all, and gives them fair rest;
two hundred thirty-four years, and still going strong,
it's her birthday, but she brings us along.

Happy Fourth of July, 2010.

Fourth of July, Bangor, Maine - - don't know what year.

Sleeping in...

...was easy, until midnight anyway,
that's when I was up, ready to meet the day;
the weather cooperates, ain't that really cool,
when you walk in the parade, that's a useful tool.

We'll march today in groups, vets of each war,
it's not so much for us, or, what we're marching for;
it's to honor those who can't, they paid the mortal price,
some gave us all - the ultimate sacrifice.

Thank a vet!