Waiting in the shade sitting on a brick ...

05 December 2010

More treats to look forward to

It's Christmas time all around us

Evidently some are just not in the spirit of giving

Could you just feel the warmth?

The frustration of dealing with the internet

Look back Friday - Two days late - My Mom with supporitng cast

The Thirties

My grandmother Nellie

My Mom Barbara at three months old

The Forties

Grandma Nellie

My Great grandmother Bertha with grandma Nellie and unknown woman

My grandfather Bob, grandma Nellie, Uncle Bobby, my mom

and Aunt loretta in a family photo

My mom on east 16th Street in Brooklyn

My mom Barbara with Bobby and Loretta

Mom and Aunt Loretta

Backyard fun with Uncle Andy, grandpa Bob and the girls

My mom's communion photo

Mom with Loretta - even in Brooklyn ponies could be found

Christmas - probably 1948 or 1949

Loretta, Bobby and Barbara

The Fifties

My mom - 16 years old

My mom with my Uncle Frank

16th Street in Brooklyn

Paramont photo of my mom

My mom with her 50 Ford

My Dad - Joey

Sweetheart's Dance

Their wedding day - Oct. 1955

The Poconos

The Sixties

Vacation with Mom - August 1960

Mom and Dad - August 1960

Doll

Christmas 1960

Baby Joe, Aunt Helen and my mom - November 1962

Baby Joe - 6 months

The Seventies

The Peter Max look

The Eighties

Mom and I on Hollywood Beach 1986

04 December 2010

Along with Christmas comes sweets

The joy of having many children

You’ll never know the joy of having six children until you have to run through the house towards the only bathroom singing a rendition of George Thorogood’s I Drink Alone but instead singing “I Poop Alone.”

The trick is getting in the bathroom in time to shut and lock the door for some privacy before someone asks if they can pee in the tub.

Having a small house isn’t that bad, it’s having only one bathroom for 7 people that’s the problem.

It could be worse, the bathroom could be outside.

Baby it's cold outside

Oh, Santa

It's the most wonderful time of the year!

Forks are for food not for feet

The other night we were eating dinner and I turned to Girlie and she had her foot on the table and was, what I thought, scratching the bottom of her foot with her fork.

I said to her “don’t do that, forks are for food not for feet.”

She looked at me and said, “But I have food on the bottom of my foot.”

I didn’t have much to say after that.

Being 2 ½ I hope her eating habits improve soon which would be to our benefit but not the dogs.

03 December 2010

Lessons in Manliness

Lessons in Manliness from It’s a Wonderful Life

by Brett on December 21, 2008

This comes from the Art of Manliness - http://artofmanliness.com

Editor’s note: This is a guest post from Harland Pond.

It’s that time of year again. Navigating social dangers at holiday work parties. Fighting extra calories off. Picking out the perfect present for your girl. Of course it is also the season of holiday movies. From old classics like Rudolph to newer ones like Elf, movies help get us in the holiday spirit, and their endless play on television signals the arrival of the Christmas season. Of course there is no more beloved Christmastime flick than the manly classic, Frank Capra’s It’s a Wonderful Life.

Of course, “manly” is not a word typically associated with the film, especially given the fact that more than one man will find himself teary eyed and avoiding eye contact with his wife at its conclusion. But the film has a good deal to teach us about being a man, the right kind of man. So in the spirit of quality Christmas movies, I offer you a quick guide to manliness, as taught by It’s a Wonderful Life.

Be a hero where you stand - This is the thread that weaves through George Bailey’s life. Saving his brother in the icy water. Keeping Mr. Gower from poisoning a child. Saving the Building & Loan multiple times. But it is the small things that make the hero; Bailey’s dedication to help others who are down on their luck is the true mark of his manliness.
Treat women well - At a key moment of their relationship, George visits Mary (Donna Reed) at her home and acts like a boor. Luckily, this leads to a final acknowledgement of their love, and for the most part, George is an example of how to treat women well (despite some cultural changes). Despite human, stressful outbursts, he loves his wife, and remains true to her in temptation. He takes care of his mother and even treats Violet (a woman with a dulled reputation) like gold, as a real man should – without taking advantage.
Love your family/family fidelity – In spite of his frustration and dreams, George honors his father’s work and keeps the Savings & Loan running. With a drafty house, sick kids, low wages, work stresses, and a normal man’s frustrations, he loves and supports his family. Is it easy? Heck no. But he comes through.
Facilitate others’ success – Helping people move out of the slums. Investing in the little people. Sacrificing for his brother Harry’s success. George’s dedication to his brother’s success is truly touching. The richness of George’s legacy lies in how he touched others’ lives and made them better for it, quietly sacrificing to improve the lot of those around him.
Stand up for what is right – Bailey’s morals may be simple common sense, but he lives them and fights for them. This is perhaps seen best when George strongly turns down Mr. Potter’s lucrative offer for everything he ever wanted: success, travel, luxury and security for his family, just to maintain the honor of his name. “I don’t need 24 hours!” he tells the man.
Know your faults and correct them – Of course our protagonist is not perfect. When facing personal failure, he is particularly prone to outbursts towards those with whom he is closest. And it takes a strong woman to keep him straight. He also has a knowable weakness for luxury and a misplaced view of himself and life. But George tries to lift himself above it, and in the end – with a little help from a different point of view and an angel named Clarence – he finds in himself what is beautiful in life.
Live your life with gratitude - Life is not measured in salaries, homes, trips, cars or Facebook friends. But it is truly measured in those moments when we love and touch others’ lives. Family and friends. Time and love. It may be sappy, but on your deathbed you won’t be looking to hold the hand of your Porsche.

Finally, it is not just the fictional character of George Bailey that provides valuable lessons in manliness; the real life of the film’s star, my personal acting hero, Jimmy Stewart, does as well. Jimmy epitomized the ideals of a gentleman. He took his responsibility to fight in WWII seriously and flew untold missions over Germany in a B-24 (retiring as a Brigadier General from the US Air Force). Known as a kind and soft-spoken guy, Stewart was discrete and chivalrous in his Hollywood relationships and remained humble despite his great success (his only Oscar stood in his father’s hardware store for years). As a philanthropist, lifelong Boy Scout (Silver Buffalo winner), loving father of 4 (adoptive father too), and a devoted husband for 45 years, Stewart was a man boys could look up to and other men could seek to emulate. President Truman said of him, “If Bess and I had a son, we’d want him to be just like Jimmy Stewart.” His last words were of his wife, “I’m going to be with Gloria now.” You couldn’t ask for a better man example. If you want another example of Stewart working his holiday magic, watch his touching portrayal in Mr. Krueger’s Christmas.

Bonus lesson: Oh yeah, and it’s ok for a grown man to cry.

A Pink Nightmare

I had an aunt just like Ralphie’s Aunt Clara, she was my Aunt Helen and one year when I was 15 she and my Uncle Andy gave me a big colorful mechanical toy train that if you placed it on a table it would turn around every time it hit the edge. Yup, lights a flashin’ whistle a whistling as it did K-turns.

As I’m looking at this thing go in circles on the table rolling my eyes, my Mom kicked me under the table and mouthed to me to be gracious.

Oh! the embarrassment.

(It must've been 'ol) Santa Claus - Harry Connick Jr.

I think “Season Shoppers be Kind” is more appropriate!

Isn’t this the season for giving and sacrifice? Not fist fights in big box stores so you can get that special gift for that little brat that sits at home watching TV yelling gim me, gim me, gim me or I want, I want, I want.

You know, I don’t mean anything by it, I’m just saying.

White out

Having a hectic week

Sorry the personal end of our Blog is lacking, work has been very hectic along with the home life. I should be able to post more family orientated posts soon. I recently found a bunch of photos from my Mom’s childhood which I should get to this afternoon and this weekend we plan on doing photos for our Christmas card. So enjoy the fun filler stuff for now and Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all.