My Husband, my Hero

This week’s topic was a no-brainer. I know you all are used to reading about what movie I saw this weekend, or what I’m currently streaming on television, etc. but the holidays are always a good time to reflect on what you’re grateful for (hence, why we give presents to our loved ones). This entire month I have been forever grateful to be married to such a wonderful man who really went above and beyond the call of duty this year. It goes without saying that I am always extremely busy this time of year, same as you all. Working full time with only Christmas Day and New Year’s Day off has left slightly less free time than in the past when I would get off on the eve of both of those days, in addition to any vacation days I would use this time of year, but I was unable to get the time off, so life goes on, or at least it did thanks to my husband, Andrew.

He normally takes off the last two weeks of the year to use up any accumulated vacation time that can’t be carried over. Hence, this is partly why he had lots of free time to help me out (maybe in the future he won’t save up his vacation days so he’s not stuck being my personal Christmas elf [slave]: ).

Andrew carried out a diverse list of tasks in his servitude to me including chef and dishwasher as he outdid himself with his culinary creations including: Mincemeat Streusal,

mincemeat pies, Christmas cake (which we will probably enjoy until Easter),

Festive Tortellini Skewers and Holiday Roll-ups (recipes courtesy of Ree Drummond, the Pioneer Woman).

When he wasn’t in the kitchen he was busy preparing our house for the trio of guests (mom, dad & uncle) we were expecting. This includes stocking up on groceries for a breakfast buffet

to rival that of a fine restaurant

(well, maybe not, but our guests were certainly very appreciative), and a last minute trip to the store to replace the failed pump we use to inflate our air mattress.

As Andrew is a man of many talents, this includes assembling furniture and electronics as he put together the desk chair my parents bought for my 12 year old nephew, and then on Christmas day helped same nephew install some upgrades to his computer.

This is just a sample of all the chores Andrew helped me out with, but I feel he deserves a huge thanks because I really couldn’t have done all of this without him. I know marriage is all about give and take and working together, but during the holidays I rely on Andrew to help pick up my slack while I am at work (or at church decorating, etc.) and he rarely complains, so I know I’m lucky to have such a wonderful husband.

Thank you Andrew!

Happy New Year everyone!

"They Shall Not Grow Old"

Several nights ago my husband and I had the privilege of seeing the result of Peter Jackson’s epic restoration of hours upon hours of historic World War I film footage on loan from the Imperial War Museum in the UK. Mr. Jackson said he was tasked with putting a creative spin on the footage before rereleasing it to the public at large. That’s rather simplifying it a bit, but you can watch the documentary (which was shown following the movie) for yourself to learn the finer details.

Mr. Jackson said he first had to decide which angle to take in deciding what would be presented to the public amongst the hours and hours of footage he had to sort through. The decision was eventually made to present the experience of those on the front line with an effort being made to bring the men to life so we got to know them, and hence, mourn their loss as many lost their lives.

That being done, the film needed to be restored, and some of it colorized. Where there were gaps in film footage, stills from a World War I magazine called The War Illustrated were used.

Then there was the matter of adding sound to the silent footage – no small feat involving the use of lip readers to accurately match up dialogue to what was actually being said. Then there were creative sound effects, probably the most fun being the firing of the artillery which was done in conjunction with war reenactments. It is no wonder that this film took years and a vast crew to complete. When you watch the film you can see it was a labor of love and expertly done.

I certainly learned a lot after seeing the film – mostly about the seedier side of war. For instance, in lieu of latrines, men just dropped their trousers and hung their bums over a communal log, occasionally ending up in the dung pit if the log had the misfortune to split. This brought a few chuckles from the audience. I also didn’t realize that it wasn’t only prisoners who suffered from lice infestations. One of the narrators said it was very difficult to rid yourself of them, because once you put your clothes back on and your body warmed up, any stray eggs started hatching bringing about a new infestation.

Andrew sporting a fireman's helmet from WWI

My husband was lucky enough to visit some of the World War I battle sites in a school trip to Belgium/France (see photos). Though the trenches have filled in and grown over a bit, they’re still there as a permanent reminder of a terrible war that took the lives of millions of men, some as young as fifteen (as many lied about their ages and that fact was overlooked by the recruiters).

 one of the trenches

soldiers fired through the slits in the stone wall

inside one of the trenches

one of the better built trenches in France

I was most amused by Mr. Jackson’s choice to use the tune, “Mademoiselle from Armentières” while the credits ran. I recall doing a square dance to that when I was a child. We only knew it as “Inky, Dinky, Parlez-vous.” Apparently there are many variations with lyrics varying in their age appropriateness with some being less than PG.

If you have the chance to later stream this film or watch the dvd/Blu-ray version, I highly recommend it. It’s educational, entertaining, and a work of art to be appreciated by audiences.

P. S. It being nearly Christmas, we felt it was appropriate to stream the movie, "Joyeaux Noel" which is the true story of the Christmas Eve truce in December 1914. Although we had already seen the film many years ago, it was still as enjoyable as the first time we saw it, and certainly a good companion film. However, "Joyeaux Noel" paints a slightly less realistic portrait of war as the men's uniforms hardly have a stain and the men have all their teeth as well as their sense of humor.

Foodie Friday, a Film & Festive Music

This weekend we were out and about taking in the local Columbus scene.

Friday night my husband, Andrew, suggested we attend Foodie Friday and get our grocery shopping done. We’ve attended these periodically, but neither of us expected the crowd that turned up on Friday. Hence, it was quite a long, slow process moving from station to station where food and sometimes wine was served. We soon worked out a system where one of us stayed with the cart while the other one browsed the nearby aisles picking up the items we needed.

There were 12 stations, half of which served wine. They also increased the amount of time the event was held by adding an extra hour (6-9pm). I think the price also went up a little too. Since Andrew & I are picky about our seafood, we skipped the Cioppino* and the Shrimp on ice, so perhaps we didn’t quite get our money’s worth.

*Cioppino is a fish stew originating in San Francisco, California. It is an Italian-American dish, and is related to various regional fish soups and stews of Italian cuisine. (Wikipedia)

My favorite stations were the first few – one had a fancy cheese (Jarlsberg) spread on Sesame seed crackers; another served sweet red peppers stuffed with salsa fiesta (spicy cream cheese mix),

and another station had roast beef roll-ups stuffed with horseradish/cream cheese. Since it was well after 8pm by the time we finished with the last station, I asked for seconds on the (cookies ‘n cream) gelato. They usually don’t mind, and there didn’t seem to be too many people left in line behind us.

The selection of wine was pretty good, with a sparkling wine near the beginning and most of the other stations served red, which was a nice change, and paired well with the food served. The vintner of the Zanon Zinfandel even offered us samples of chocolate buttons since I mentioned how nicely red wine pairs with dark chocolate [sometimes it does pay to chat up the ones handing out the food and wine].

Saturday night we went to see “Green Book”* (which refers to the name of a 1960s guidebook meant to help Negroes traveling through the south)

*The Negro Motorist Green Book, popularly known as the Green Book, was a travel guide intended to help African American motorists avoid social obstacles prevalent during the period of racial segregation, commonly referred to as Jim Crow. The Green Book listed businesses that would accept African American customers. (Wikipedia)

I thought I had this movie pretty well soused after seeing the trailers, but there’s more depth to it than is revealed on the surfaced. I like the conversation Tony had with the other two members of the (Dr. Shirley) trio discussing why Dr. Shirley would put himself through all the hassles of traveling through the South during such a tumultuous time for those with darker skin, so-to-speak. I’ll leave it to you to learn the answer behind this.

Of course I am going to have a different perspective than people like my parents, for instance, who lived through that period of history, though I think my generation has seen and experienced plenty of discrimination and issues with race relations, especially among male African Americans. I have to agree with the Time magazine critic who said in his review, “it will make you realize we haven’t come as far as we think we have.”

Here’s what I wrote to my parents in the recommendation I sent them in an email, “it's a fabulous movie about the relationship between two individuals who couldn't be more different, but learn from each other and gradually become friends by the end of the film. Though quite a lot of the funny bits are in the trailer, there are still a few surprises to be had (mostly towards the end). Obviously you will both see the movie from a different perspective having been alive in the 1960s (the movie starts out in 1962 I think). Be sure to pay attention to an important name drop at the end of the film which certainly surprised both of us as I'm sure it will you too. Also, at the beginning of the credits is background info. and pictures of Dr. Shirley and Tony Lipp, so be sure to stick around for a few minutes to see that bit.”

Needless to say, I would not hesitate to recommend this film and can guarantee you it’s 2¼ hours of quality time spent at the cinema.

Sunday afternoon I attended the annual Advent (carol) concert held at my church mid afternoon. It’s usually a mixture of traditional carols everyone knows like: “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen,” “Hark the Herald Angels Sing” and “Oh Come, All Ye Faithful” and other songs like “O Come, Divine Messiah” and “O Come, O Come Emmanuel.”

Ross Williams, St. Brendan Music Director

If nothing else, it’s certainly a nice (approx. 1 hr) break from all the rushing around and crossing things off our list madness that is the Christmas season. In the words of Fr. Bob (& all other ministers), we need to keep in mind that Jesus is the reason for the season (not retailers! – I added that).

Have a great week everyone!

Support the Salvation Army!

I just wanted to share something I posted this week on the Buzz site we have where I work:

Hello everyone! I don't know about where you are, but it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas here, and of course along with Christmas comes charitable giving (in fact, yesterday was Giving Tuesday). As someone who has been involved with the Salvation Army (along with my family), I can tell you that not only do they like to receive donations, but a smile and a kind word goes a long way too. Maybe offer to buy them a hot cocoa or cup of coffee? I did that today and the bell ringer was so flattered she immediately hugged me. That's what the holidays are all about. Happy Holidays everyone!

                                                         ************************* 

Okay, so it might be pushing it a bit to say I was "involved," when in actual reality I have only been a bell ringer twice, whereas my father is the treasurer at his local branch, so his contribution is certainly greater than mine has been. As rewarding as it was being a bell ringer, I find it just as gratifying to be the one making the donation as most of the volunteers are so nice in spite of sometimes being in less than hospitable conditions (standing outside in the cold for hours). I even bought one a candy bar once, which was happily accepted. Whether you volunteer to be a bell ringer or just make donations (it's handy to have lots of dollar bills ready at this time of year), be sure to spread good cheer.

Two Parties in one Week!

Tuesday November 13, 2018

Art Quilt Alliance gallery opening

Tonight after work my husband, Andrew and I attended the gallery opening at the Dublin Arts Council for the local Art Quilt Alliance. To be honest, I wasn’t entirely sure what an art quilt was, size-wise or otherwise. Most were small enough (smaller than a meter) to be hung on the wall. According to an internet definition I found, “An art quilt is an original exploration of a concept or idea rather than the handing down of a “pattern”. It experiments with textile manipulation, color, texture and/or a diversity of mixed media. An Art Quilt often pushes quilt world boundaries.”

These were some very beautiful, creative and inspiring works of art. I doubt I have the patience, rather than the skill to ever create anything a fraction as nice as what I saw. However, I think I might have a go (someday) at trying to do something more like this:

This being a gallery (as opposed to a museum), most of the quilts were for sale, and the prices were fairly reasonable starting at about $150. I saw a couple I quite like, but haven’t yet decided whether to pull the trigger and make a purchase.

Kudos to the Dublin Arts Council for laying on quite a nice spread and offering a free glass of wine to its patrons. My husband and I ate enough that we only had a light snack when we got home. Also, let’s face it, it feels classy to walk around and look at art with a wine glass in your hand (it also influences your feelings about the art).

Thursday November 15, 2018

Party with the Pets

This was party night #2 where we were invited (to purchase tickets) to attend a building and animal show-off party of sorts. In December 2016 the local humane society, Columbus Area Humane Society, suffered a frozen pipe that burst causing thousands of dollars of damage to the veterinary area of the shelter as well as a few other areas.

I asked Rachel Finney, the director, whether the damage to shelter was the impetus to remodel. She said funnily enough there were plans to remodel before the burst pipe occurred, but there were no immediate plans to renovate the veterinary area, so that actually had to be added to the plan. Two years and about $3 million dollars later, the new Columbus Humane (as it’s called now) is an impressive structure designed with the animals’ comfort in mind. The cats now have multi-tiered villas with plenty of room to move around between naps and meals, and the dogs have bigger enclosures as well (though we didn’t actually check out that area).

Of course we window-shopped the cats and kittens and even introduced ourselves to a few, without the intention of taking any home. Probably my favorite was George (though he was already spoken for), a tortoiseshell tabby like our own fur baby, Tamsin. Then there was Lilly, who was also a tortie.

I think Andrew fancied a pair of black kittens.

My friend said, “Everyone should be owned by a pair of kittens.” Not just yet I think.

We left knowing that the felines there are in good hands, and the euthanasia rate is fairly low these days I believe.

Thanks to all the local businesses that donated food and made financial contributions for the renovations. Besides all the donors like ourselves, the shelter would be all the poorer without your significant contributions. It goes without saying that we ate and drank enough to feel quite satiated and perhaps a little tipsy (me). After we got home we made sure to smother our  own little fur baby with lots of kisses and cuddles for all the happiness she’s brought us since we adopted her there 12 years ago.

Outtakes:

When we were at the Gallery Opening, I heard a man utter, "There's no one here under 60." I said, "I beg your pardon?" He then noticed me and apologized, though he was mostly right. There were probably only a handful of us "youngsters" there. : )

While attending the Party with the Pets, a Pug mix (who I must have offended when I asked what kind of dog THAT was) tried to pee on me, but fortunately I moved fast enough to avoid the stream of pee that soon landed on the floor. : )