Monday, September 10, 2012

Sept. 11

This is a hard one to write, and I didn't even have family in the impacted areas 11 years ago.

I remember watching a morning show with breaking news and a camera shot of the New York City skyline.   One of the towers had smoke billowing out of it.

Then the surreal moment as we all watched a second plane hit the second tower.
Live.
 As I stood in my living room.
Then the Pentagon.

Then a field in PA.

Watching the first responders going up the stairs of the World Trade Center buildings, and wondering how many would be coming back down.
All too soon getting the awful answer to that question.

Shock.  Horror.  Disbelief.   Anger.....lots of anger...

Phone calls to and from loved ones, checking in, checking up on each other.

Silence in the sky as United States airspace is closed to all commercial traffic.

Wondering if it was really over, or if  there was more yet to come.

Eleven years later and I still have a hard time watching those clips, seeing the interviews, hearing a song that mentions the day.  I still cry.  Still cringe at that date on the calendar.  The emotions are less intense now, mostly replaced with a deep, lingering,  sense of sadness.  And questions.  How does one mourn as an individual, and as part of a country when the event is already just a paragraph in history books?  How does a people and a country recover enough to rebuild and continue on?

We look back to history and to the memories of those who have recovered from other cataclysmic events.  We see their resolve and determination to not let evil acts have the last say in their lives. We see their faith and belief in a God who is holy and just and perfect, merciful , mighty and loving.  We listen as they remember what it was like to not know what each day would bring ,only that God had it under His control.  We stand in honor for them as they participate in the days marking their service and sacrifice.  We pray for those not yet home, who still stand watch.  We live, love and remember to not take a single day for granted.

My children have never known a world without the War on Terror.  Almost every aspect of their lives has been touched by the residual effects of that one day eleven years ago.  Travel security, government identification, communications, national spending, even telephone conversations with relatives stationed in war torn countries have been a part of their formative years.

As a student and teacher of history, the one thing I can almost guarantee is that their generation will also have a 9/11 moment.   My prayer is that we will have passed on to them the same faith and determination that has been exemplified for us.

because I hope I don't make a mockery of this tragedy and miss the class on that.

Saturday, September 8, 2012

fall fashions....

I love autumn.  I love the change in weather that signals the end to the seemingly endless, oppressive heat of summer.  I love the fact that I can pull out my soup pot and make hearty meals that hit the spot on a rainy day. I get especially excited that the feel of a blanket at night is now welcomed and needed instead of dreaded.  There's just something so comforting about pulling the covers up to your ears and burrowing under the weight of a handmade quilt on a chilly night.

What I really love about fall though, is that I can now dig out my favorite clothes from the basement storage boxes.
These are the clothes that I wish I could wear year-round.  These are the clothes that inspire me to try and become more "outdoorsy" and adventurous. (or at least try to get a fire going in the fireplace by myself)  These are the clothes that cry out to me to liberate them from confinement in the midst of 100 degree heatwaves.  These are the clothes that inevitably get me in trouble from the fashion police.

These are my flannel lined jeans.

I know that there are cute outfits for fall that incorporate denim, but they just don't work for me. Particularly those adorable draped scarves that make jeans and a plain white t-shirt look dressy and classy.  
First of all,  please remember my track record with light colored clothing...not good, even with a scarf to cover the coffee stains.
Second of all, anything draped around my neck would also be:
a) tangled in my seat belt
b) water stained as I lean over the sink
c) caught in the front door
d) hopelessly wound around me, my purse, and my shopping cart at the grocery store
e) angrily stuffed in the bottom of a bag, leaving me with my coffee stained t-shirt to wear
Not exactly the cultured, chic look I'm supposed to be aiming for.

My next option for dressing up the denim seems to be boots, except my idea of boots, and the fashion world's idea of boots seem to be on completely opposite sides.
I think that boots are to be used for working in the yard, hiking, or shoveling snow.  Try to find anything like that in the fall boot collection at your department store.   Those boots are made for people who do not need to walk or even move to do any of their daily activities.  The last time I checked the heels on those boots my daughter said, "Mom, put them back. You would hurt yourself in those."    She knows me too well...sigh.....

So as the days get shorter, the  temperatures cooler and summer fades away, what is a girl to do?

Gleefully skip to the basement and reverently remove the lid to the plastic tub containing the beautiful sight of flannel friends.

When the fall fashion police come banging on my door, (and they will) I will not panic.   I know I am breaking every fashion rule in the book, but I'm guessing they will run away screaming when I open my door grinning and  wearing:

My recently liberated flannel lined jeans with the layered look of the 80's turtleneck, paired with a flannel shirt, accessorised by a matching colored scrunchy in my ponytail, wool socks and sneakers.

I will chuckle, close the door, and contentedly head back to my pot of baked potato and cheddar cheese soup paired with warm crusty bread and a cup of tea.  Not a fancy scarf, or pair of dressy boots in sight....

'cause I missed the class on that.

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

why my parents let me watch so much television in the 80's.....

OK, maybe it wasn't so much "let" as much as me taking advantage of them being busy convincing my brothers they needed to do their homework....but really...80's television???

The original  Battle Star Galactica.
The "A" Team
The Dukes of Hazard
Air Wolf
Scarecrow and Mrs. King
Buck Rogers
Knight Rider
The Love Boat
The Fall Guy
Magnum P.I.

Yikes!!!    Anybody want some MORE cheese to go with those crackers????  
'Cause I'm not seeing much on that list that can be called "Great  writing/acting/producing..."
There were a few shows that did attempt to redeem the silver screen during this decade...


The Cosby Show
Little House on the Prairie


Give me a minute... I know I can think of some more....   (cue the JEOPARDY! theme music in your head please)


......nope.

But I'm betting that most children of the 80's can identify the theme songs for these shows within the first 5 notes, and then sing/hum the rest of the songs for the REST. OF. THE. DAY.  Regardless of how much we laugh at those shows now, they are ingrained in our childhood memories.   Deeply ingrained.

I realized last week just how deeply.

As I was nodding off to sleep one night, my  wonderful husband was fussing with his iPhone. It seems his old alarm tone wasn't waking him up so he needed to try a new sound clip.
Did I mention I was nodding off to sleep???
Did I mention I am a child of the 80's???
Did I mention I watched too much T.V. that decade???

Then please laugh/sympathise with me in the following scenario:

My dear husband forgets that the volume on the phone is set on high.
My sweet husband decides to try the "alarm" button on his ring tones list.... (please play the link below)
....and this mostly asleep, child of the 80's with waaaayyyy too many hours logged in front of the TV screen, sits straight up in bed with two thoughts in her head:

1) Where is my Haz-Mat Suit?????!

2) Where is MacGuyver?  We only have 30 seconds to fix this!!!

and then a third thought.....Why is my husband falling out of bed laughing???


'cause I missed the class on that while I was watching T.V.
Anyone else? 
http://youtu.be/sd7v_EBAsxs