dual personalities

Tag: family

September 16, 2013

Weekend update

by chuckofish

Oh fall weekends! The heat finally broke here last Thursday and the temperatures plunged to where they really should be. Sweet relief.

On Saturday I decided to throw away my list of estate sales and instead I walked downtown to view our flyover town’s annual Greentree Parade. (Please forgive my iPhone pictures!)

Motorcycle cops showing off skillfully driving in circles opened up the parade.

cops

They were followed by the High School band and cheerleaders,

khs

motley groups of scouts,

scouts

local vendors,

Yes, that's a giant bison he's pulling!

Yes, that’s a giant bison he’s pulling!

bagpipers,

pipers

a giant motorized shopping cart,

cart

and various groups of equestrians,

horses

In addition, of course, the elementary schools and middle schools in town all had floats. A lot of churches also participated as well. The Methodist church always has the best entry and this year was no different with their own super-cool rockin’ Christian band blasting their live music.

methodists

Seriously, I always want to join their church after seeing them rock by. But my own Grace Church tries so hard—you have to love them despite the fact that they might as well hang a banner that says, “Yes, we’re Episcopalian nerds–join us!” We had music too, but we piped in hymns like “Let Us Gather at the River,” because we always stick to the yearly theme—this year it was “The Wild, wild West”. At least for our trouble we were awarded 1st place in the category of theme interpretation!

I took this picture on Sunday morning outside our church where it was proudly parked.

I took this picture on Sunday morning outside our church where it was proudly parked.

I did not take a picture of our float at the parade because I was so distracted by this friendly Episcopalian who was trotting around very much in character (“Howdy, Ma’am”).

chriskurth

(I found this better picture–with cacti–on our church website)

2013-Greentree-float

He handed out these invitations.

Real wooden crosses handmade in Bethlehem!

Real wooden crosses handmade in Bethlehem!

We may be a small congregation, but we are always classy! (No candy or dog treats for us.)

As if all this local excitement wasn’t enough, the boy and his bride invited us to go to the Cardinals game with them that evening.

W&L

Our seats were in the seventh row behind the home dugout–how perfect is that? Besides seeing the game at a great vantage point and the players up close and personal, we had many opportunities to see this guy.

fredbird

Fred Bird never ceases to amuse and entertain me.

Fredbird2

We may have lost the game, but the day was spectacular. God bless America!

4 Comments
September 11, 2013

Mary, Mary

by chuckofish

It is daughter #1’s birthday today. I wish I could teleport to the Upper West Side and take her out to lunch. Sigh.

More than gems in my comb box
shaped by the God of the Sea,
I prize you, my daughter

–Otomo no Sakanoue Iratsume, eighth-century Japanese poet

Happy Birthday!

marysroom

1 Comment
September 9, 2013

Darlin’, pardon me

by chuckofish

threecowboys

This picture was taken over 10 years ago backstage at the high school during the production of Girl Crazy. The boy is in the middle flanked by his two best friends. He was in 10th grade in his long flowing hair phase. He and two upperclassmen (not pictured) were the “cowboy trio” who got to sing “I’m Bidin’ My Time” at various times during the musical. They were adorable.

This is the time period when some people got the idea that the boy looked like Andy Samberg.

Hot Rod

I can see it. But it drove the boy crazy.

People do this all the time. Sometimes they are on target; sometimes not so much. Something strikes them as similar. People are always looking for a connection, aren’t they? I wonder why that is?

I do it myself. People frequently remind me of my father and also my father-in-law. The classic example of this is Grumpy Old Men (1993), starring Jack Lemmon (my father) and Walter Matthau (my father-in-law).

grumpy

Jack Lemmon IS my father–the fair-haired skinny wasp in khaki pants right down to the Brooks Brothers porkpie hat. I think he even says, “GodDAMit!”. And Walter Matthau is Bob. They were the quintessential grumpy old men in real life–how wonderful that they made a movie about them.

grumpy2kFtZTcwODQ3ODIwNA@@._V1._SX640_SY426_

And a sequel.

As for why we do this, I guess it gives us comfort and makes the world less strange and intimidating. Makes sense to me.

9 Comments
September 2, 2013

Westward Ho…

by chuckofish

…or a few more things about our recent trip West.

I have never been a big fan of large hotels, especially ones that charge you $5o a day to park in their garage–so when I was planning our trip to Denver I decided to be adventurous and try airbnb.com. I read about it on a blog of course. You can rent an apartment or a room, a treehouse or a boat. You can find a unique space in 192 countries!

We stayed in a renovated Victorian house in a hip neighborhood in Denver only minutes from the Colorado History Museum. We had a room and a bathroom (and street parking) in this lovely home owned by Jim, a friendly former Marine who has been renovating homes in this neighborhood for thirty years.

JIMWISEMAN

housedenver

I would do it again in a minute.

Daughter #2 attributed much of our good karma to the fact that our house was on Emerson St.

Daughter #2 attributed much of our good karma to the fact that our house was on Emerson St.

We spent many hours in the Stephen Hart Library of the Colorado History Museum doing research, i.e. taking photos of each page in multiple files from 3 boxes of archives pertaining to John Simpson Hough, John Wesley Prowers and Frank Baron Hough. The staff at the library were all friendly, accommodating and helpful–like most of the people we encountered in Denver. They seemed genuinely happy that we were there visiting them.

Photo Aug 16, 10 57 41 AM

We also went to the Denver Art Museum, which was pretty impressive.

Photo Aug 16, 4 10 03 PM

And we squeezed in lunch with one of daughter #2’s BFFs who went to college in Colorado and never came home.

julieE

I have a whole new appreciation for how that could happen. I mean you have to love a place that has a postcard featuring “The Coat”:

carson coat

And you have to love a state capitol with a statue of Kit Carson (wearing the aforementioned coat).

statue

And what trip is complete without a picture posed in front of a cannon?

cannonsue

We left Denver for Wyoming after only two (very busy) days…

road

But I’m sure we’ll be back!

2 Comments
August 30, 2013

Toot! Toot!

by chuckofish

Yesterday was the 50th anniversary of the Zooline Railroad at our famous flyover zoo.

Director Marlin Perkins looks at the plans in 1963.

Director Marlin Perkins looks at the plans in 1963.

A golden spike is driven into the ground on August 29, 1963.

A golden spike is driven into the ground on August 29, 1963.

Our Zoo is one of the biggest (and the best) zoos in the country and our summers are famously hot and humid. The Zoo train offers a comfortable way to get around the 90-acre Zoo campus. For your $5 these days (the cost was 30 cents in 1963) you get a 20-minute narrated tour weaving through tunnels and past favorite animal exhibits on a 1½-mile round trip. The Zooline Railroad has transported more than 35 million visitors since 1963 and it is still one of the most popular attractions there. (The railroad operates year-round, weather permitting.)

zootrain

My mother loved the Zoo train. It was one of the few things she was gladly willing to pay for back in the day. We loved it too. After she died, I always insisted on riding the train with my own children, and I still feel close to my mother as I ride around the familiar route.

Our favorite engine for obvious reasons.

Our favorite engine for obvious reasons.

I wish I had a picture of my mother on the Zoo train, but, alas, I do not. Instead, here’s a picture of Captain Kangaroo visiting the Zoo! Perhaps this was on the opening day–I’m not sure. (All pictures are from the Zoo website.)

captainkanga

Have a nice weekend!

4 Comments
August 15, 2013

Congratulations are in order!

by chuckofish

Emmy

Congrats to daughter #1 who is nominated for an Emmy! She has won Peabody Awards, but this is her first Emmy nomination. We so proud!

2 Comments
August 13, 2013

History beckons or “YOLO is just Carpe Diem for stupid people”*

by chuckofish

Somewhere in the Shiloh National Military Park...

Somewhere in the Shiloh National Military Park…

My children give me a lot of way too much grief about the vacations we took when they were youngsters. Excuse me, every trip did not involve a Civil War battlefield. (A lot did but what of it?) Just because they did not spend spring breaks in Destin or Orlando does not make them deprived children. Educational trips are the best, right?

Anyway, daughter #2 is coming home today for a few days and we are taking a little “educational” side trip to Denver, Colorado to do some family research at the Stephen H. Hart Library and Research Center at the brand new History Colorado Center.

HCC_sm_header_MG_0182a copy

I have been curious to see what is included in the archive pertaining to my ancestors John Simpson Hough and John Wesley Prowers, about whom I have written on this blog. John Hough’s son Frank Baron Hough died suddenly while dancing the Charleston in the 1920s (I kid you not) and his widow left all the family letters, documents, manuscripts, photographs, etc. to the state of Colorado. I have been meaning to make this trip for years, but something always prevented me–lack of time, lack of funds, no one to go with me. In the meantime, the old museum was torn down and this new shining edifice was constructed. Determined not to put it off another year, I am going at long last!

While we are out there we are also planning to drive up to Wyoming for a few days to visit an old friend–something else I have been meaning to do for years.

wy-130_wb_centennial_01

Wish us luck!

“You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find your eternity in each moment. Fools stand on their island of opportunities and look toward another land. There is no other land; there is no other life but this.”

― Henry David Thoreau

*Jack Black

5 Comments
August 8, 2013

Tout va bien

by chuckofish

Happiness is a care package from your dual personality!

care2

After a hard day at the salt mines, I was thrilled to find a wee package waiting for me at home yesterday. Inside were two books (a hardback copy of one of my favorites–Gilead by Marilynne Robinson–and The Bishop’s Mantle by Agnes Sligh Turnbull, which I have not read) and a small Spode votive candle holder.

Wasn’t that thoughtful?

In other news, I read on the Habitually Chic blog about the new documentary “Salinger” coming out next month:

I will hope for the best, but, as always, I’ll expect the worst*. Very few people understood old J.D.S. back in the day and that is why he went into seclusion and chose not to publish anymore. He’d had enough. Why is that hard to understand?

*I know what you’re thinking. You’re wondering what the origin of that expression is. Well, I don’t know, but I always think of Mel Brooks! So here are the lyrics to the classic song by Mel Brooks from his movie The Twelve Chairs:

Hope for the best, expect the worst
Some drink champagne, some die of thirst
No way of knowing
Which way it’s going
Hope for the best, expect the worst!

Hope for the best, expect the worst
The world’s a stage, we’re unrehearsed
Some reach the top, friends, while others drop, friends
Hope for the best, expect the worst!

I knew a man who saved a fortune that was splendid
Then he died the day he’d planned to go and spend it
Shouting “Live while you’re alive! No one will survive!”
Life is sorrow – – here today and gone tomorrow
Live while you’re alive, no one will survive – – there’s no guarantee

Hope for the best, expect the worst
You could be Tolstoy or Fannie Hurst
You take your chances, there are no answers
Hope for the best expect the worst!

I knew a man who saved a fortune that was splendid
Then he died the day he’d planned to go and spend it
Shouting “Live while you’re alive! No one will survive!”
Life is funny – – Spend your money! Spend your money!
Live while you’re alive, no one will survive – – there’s no guarantee



Hope for the best, expect the worst

The rich are blessed, the poor are cursed

That is a fact, friends, the deck is stacked, friends

Hope for the best, expect the – –
(even with a good beginning, it’s not certain that you’re winning,
even with the best of chances, they can kick you in the pantses)

Look out for the – – watch out for the worst!
Hey!

THE TWELVE CHAIRS movie poster for blog

I tried to watch The Twelve Chairs recently and didn’t make it through. Not that funny. But the song is classic.

2 Comments
August 6, 2013

Vintage picture Tuesday

by chuckofish

“Flowers have an expression of countenance as much as men and animals. Some seem to smile; some have a sad expression; some are pensive and diffident; others again are plain, honest and upright, like the broad-faced sunflower and the hollyhock.”

–Henry Ward Beecher

hollyhocks

Here is a picture of our grandmother Mira Sargent about a hundred years ago in her father’s yard in Worcester, MA. How about those hollyhocks?! As my children know, I have always wanted to grow hollyhocks in my own yard, but have never been able to do so. What was the Sargent’s secret?!

3 Comments
August 5, 2013

Flyover road trip and weekend update

by chuckofish

How was your weekend? We had some (much-needed) rain on Friday night, but the rest of the weekend was lovely. Perfect, in fact, for a road trip–which I took with some friends over to Boonville to attend a wedding.

boonville_mo

Yes, a destination wedding in Boonville, Missouri. And, yes, they spell it without an “e”. Don’t judge. The bride is from St. Louis and the groom hails from Steelville. No one seems to know why the wedding was in Boonville, but, hey, now I can say I’ve been there. Five hours in the car–well worth the effort.

Boonville is a town of about 8,000 in Cooper County on the Missouri River. Nothing much has happened there since a skirmish early in the Civil War when Union forces defeated a small and poorly equipped force of the Missouri State Guard in the first Battle of Boonville.

There are quite a few interesting buildings in town which are on the historic register, including the Thespian Hall, which is the oldest theater still in use west of the Alleghenies. Check out those brick columns!

LYRIC_THEATER,_BOONVILLE,_COOPER_COUNTY,_MO

The wedding took place in this lovely Episcopal Church.

Boonville church

I wish it had been held in the First Presbyterian Church in town, because–wow–I was dying to go inside this striking buff brick structure built in the Spanish Baroque style in 1903 with corner towers and a variety of classical motifs. What were those Boonville Presbyterians thinking?

HISTORIC_DISTRICT_D,_BOONVILLE,_COOPER_COUNTY,_MO

As I have asserted before, the traditional Episcopal wedding service is hard to beat, but the organist played his instrument like a calliope and raced through the hymns. I’m not sure what the rush was–there wasn’t anything else going on in town. Perhaps he had a date at the local casino, but I digress…The bride was pretty and the groom smiled a lot, and that is always a good thing. (Don’t get me started on bridesmaids with tattoos.)

The reception was in the historic Hotel Frederick which had a nice vintage ambience.

hotel

The food was excellent as were the pear basil sipper cocktails, and there was cake.

cake

Meanwhile back at the ranch, we continue to enjoy a cooler summer than we are used to. The flora continues to put forth bounty at a time when usually everything around here is burned up and nothing blooms but a few hardy roses. I really can’t believe this weather.

Carla's lush front yard

Carla’s lush front yard

I hung up some vintage curtains which I got on eBay in my laundry room and put two new shades in daughter #1/#2’s old bedroom with the help of my husband assisted by the boy.

IMGP0110

The latter job took two weekends and the purchasing of a new tool. Things are never as simple as they look.

I am enjoying my current reading material.

IMGP0109

Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin is surprisingly well written and chock full of fascinating characters who are not of the cardboard variety. What are you reading this summer?

5 Comments