Is it me, or are there too many Zombies out there?!

     Happy Halloween, everybody! As I think I mentioned before, this isn't my favorite "holiday", I think it's really overly hyped.   I don't begrudge other adults from enjoying the day, it's just not my cup of tea, But since I work in a nursing home, (in activites), it's part of my job to make it fun for the residents. Today we had a costume contest. I lost my Groucho glasses, so I did the next best thing and went as a hippie!  All I needed was a tie-dye shirt, jeans, a bandana, and  glasses. Simple, and most everybody thought I fit the part! Others thought I was supposed to be an indian! Maybe that's a thought for next year, if the  PC police will allow it.

      We don't get many trick or treaters around here. We don't bother buying candy anymore, since nobody ever knocks on the door.  When I was a kid, going out for candy was fun, and more worthwhile with full sized candy bars.

       Anyway, I'm kind of glad Halloween is over tonight-there's been so many horror movies on over the past few weeks, the same ones repeated over and over again.  The Halloween francise, The Friday the 13th series, etc. I haven't really seen too many of the newer horror movies, because I'm not interested in gory, bloody violence. I prefer the  psycological thrillers.

     Some of the better ones I've seen include "The Haunting"; the original version from 1963,  "Phantasm" from 1979. Both of these are pretty creepy, and you have to be in the mood for them.  A few years ago I saw "The Ring" and that was kind of scary. It could have had a happy ending but they decided to go in the other direction, so they could have a sequel.  Another scary movie worth seeking out- "Dead of Night" an old B&W classic from the 40's. It has 3 or 4 stories intertwined, and has great atmosphere!  Not having to do with Halloween, but still scary, is "The Other" from 1972.  The details are sketchy now, but it had to do with twin brothers, one of whom was evil. I was only 8 or 9 when I first saw it, and it really scared me for a long time. I don't think it made total sense to me. I'll have to try watching it again.  If devil worshippers scare you (as they should) another movie that will creep you out is "Race with the Devil" from the early 1970's. It had Loretta Swit, Peter Fonda, Warren Oates and I think Susan George.

The last scary memory I have was from the movie "Magic". I never saw the movie, but the film ads with the ventriloquist dummy scared the heck out of me! Many a night alone I was kept awake by that stupid thing (I was only a kid, after all.)

     My main gripe that I almost forgot about was zombies and vampires!! Maybe I missed something, but why are zombies so in vogue right now? WHAT IS THE ATTRACTION?! Granted they ARE scary, at least to look at, or in premise. But do we really need to see them everywhere? They are mainstream now, and it kind of bothers me. I'm not too fond of vampires either. My old boss was obsessed with the "Twilight" saga, and the only way I stayed on her good side was to pretend I was interested. I guess I just don't understand.

     On that note, I hope you have a Happy Halloween, and don't eat too much candy!!! 

    

Monday Night Musings

     Hi Everybody! It's been a few days since my last posting, so I thought I'd better get to work.  I have to do a better job with proofreading, because even when I use the spellcheck, sometimes there is a wrong word, a result of a typo, that the spellcheck doesn't catch.  I have tried to go back and fix the mistakes, but haven't figured out how to do it yet.

     I feel pretty good after a 10 day bout with a cold. I hardly ever get sick, and will never take a flu shot. But colds are annoying, and I had forgotten how nice it is to be able to breathe through my nose until I couldn't do it anymore! I hate to say my six plus years without a call out came to an unceremonious end last Tuesday. Since I never got any recognition or financial reward for it, in retrospect I wish I had called out all the times I felt crummy!!

     I've been brainstorming for ideas for future articles, and hopefully have come up with some good ones.  I feel kind of impatient, because as a writer, one likes to get feedback on their work.  I have told quite a few acquaintances about this blog, and even e-mailed them the first couple of posts. I was hoping everybody would "follow" me, and make comments, but that hasn't happened yet.  My Mom, who I didn't actually tell about this project until the other day, was nice enough to sign up, but she hasn't posted any comments either. Why should she? She can just talk to me the next time I walk by! 

      Anyway, I think I'm a bit envious because I've started looking at other people's blogs, to get a feel for what blogs are all about. So many of these people have anywhere from 50 to hundreds of followers. I really don't like that word, because it sounds like a cult, or a herd of sheep!  Maybe "subscribers" would be a better word, because they are people who are looking to read each new article you have created.

     It makes me happy that so many people are still writing for the fun of it. That actually surprises me.  Some of these writers also list the blogs that they read, and I don't know how anybody has the time!  I would like to read some, but I have too many other things to do first, like my Bruins newsletter. (I used to have so much fun publishing my cute little newsletter "What's Brewin'"!)

     I accidentally discovered the other day that there is another Karen (spelled with an E) who has a blog with a similar title, "Life is what YOU make it".  I can't accuse her of stealing my title, because she was there first.  I had to think of a title fast. If I had it to do over again, I might call it something else.

     I tried to add more "gadgets" to the blog to make it more visually appealing, but it seemed that "cute puppies" were more of a distraction, so I took them down. In the months to come, I'm sure I will find the right touches to make this blog a success.

    Why not get me off on the right foot by commenting, so I know you are actually there? Thanks a lot!

See you next time!

Karin

Wonderful World of Videotapes

     Does anybody else remember what the world was like before the VCR was invented? Videotape players seem quaint now, maybe even obsolete. But at the time, boy, were they exciting. It was 1981 or so, and I was probably 12 years old. My dad brought home a beautiful Sony Beta max!!! It was stainless steel, and primitive by today's standards. It had push down buttons, like the kind you see on an audio tape recorder. It only had one speed, Beta 1, which was fast, and recorded 90 minutes.
     It was such a novelty to be able to record programs that you wanted to see again. I'm trying to remember what's on some of our oldest tapes. American Graffiti, old B&W movies with Cagney and Bogart, Andy Griffith. We had lots of bits and pieces that today are irreplaceable: clips from local news broadcasts, music videos from MTV when they actually showed music! (Joe Jackson's Steppin' Out, Steve Winwood's Still in the Game, are etched in my mind forever. I wonder how MTV went down the tubes, but that's an article for another day).
    One of the funniest clips on an old tape was from "Dick Clark's bloopers and practical jokes". It may have been a dumb show, but the clip of local Boston clown Willie Whistle laugh/whistling as a huge boa constrictor is crawling down his pants has to be one of the funniest moments in TV history. The last time I saw it I laughed so hard I cried. I don't know where that video is now, because the Beta machines (we had at least 3 or 4 of them) have long since been stored away. The newest one is underneath a VHS, a DVD/VHS combo player, and the regular DVD player. It would be great to use it, but we'd have to re-wire the cables, and that's too much trouble.  Before I post this, I'm going to see if Willie Whistle's clip is on you-tube. It's worth seeking out!
     I got the original idea for this article a few minutes ago, as I dug through a pile of VHS tapes. Whenever we run out if DVDs to watch, we plug the VCR in, and watch one of thousands of tapes that are piled up all over the place. One thing about having a VCR and blank tapes, I had a penchant for recording everything, or so it seems. And I didn't always have the brains to mark the tapes. So we have lots of great programs that I will never be able to find, unless it's by accident.   Then I have that I have recorded multiple times, "just in case" one gets lost, or recorded over by accident. That happened a lot too.
     When VCRs first came out, remember how expensive the blank tapes were? You had to be a little bit selective in what you chose to tape, and take the ads out so there would be enough time (especially if it was a movie.) Our brand of choice was TDK, and we always went with the high grade tape. I don't care what anybody says, Beta was far superior to VHS as far as I'm concerned. VHS won the popularity contest, and when Beta was phased out, we ended up getting one. The tapes were bigger, took up more space.
    When DVD players came out, (and video discs before them), some people abandoned their video collections to go to the new format. Just like when Cd's replaced cassettes in the music world.  But not us- we still use our videotapes to this day. Blank tapes are still available, but not as easy to find.  DVDs do have two things going for them- smaller size and not having to re-wind. But videotapes are good because you can stop a show and it stays where you stopped.
    At work we have hundreds of videos that we can't use since we got all new large screen Hi-def TV's.  We need a combo player. Pronto. My boss is working on it.
    The video tapes at my house are stacked all over, like building blocks, and some are nicely organized in boxes, never to see the light of day unless I finally get to that winter project- viewing all the ones that are not labeled, finding rare clips of old snow storms and old baseball and hockey games.  I miss the past, but it's all there. I hope some historian doing an archaeological dig 1000 years from now finds my video tapes. They will enjoy that Willie Whistle clip!!!!

     I'm so excited I found the clip! See if this doesn't make you laugh out loud!!!! Enjoy!

I'm surrounded by TV towers!

    Well, another week down the drain. It's hard to believe how quickly time passes by. One thing I can say is, you never know what's going to happen when you get up in the morning. Not to be a fatalist, but you never know if this day will be your last.  Only God knows, and he's not telling!

      The reason I bring this up is because there was a tragedy that happened very close to home this week. The whole thing gives me the creeps. I got up for work as usual, and when I was going to the bus stop, I noticed a "basket" hanging from the tower, and it was coming down, it was attached to the wires. It's kind of a novelty to see people on the tower, though I'm sure it's regular maintenance. Anyway, I grabbed my camera and snapped three or four pictures. It wasn't bright out, so even with the zoom in, you couldn't see the worker's faces, just silhouettes. You can probably see where I'm going with this story.

     Later, we found out that one of the workers had fallen off the tower at least 500 feet. The stories varied between his being electrocuted first, and falling over 1000 ft. Regardless of the details, the poor guy was dead. It really disturbed me. It made me want to immediately delete those pictures I had taken earlier in the day. There's no way to tell if the people I photographed included the man that fell, because there were a few people up there.

     The TV trucks were in the parking lot across the street all day and through the night. It was weird seeing  my neighborhood on TV. We found out that the man was a contractor from Iowa, but that was about all. OSHA is investigating and all work on the tower suspended until further notice.

     I'm very familiar with death. I work in a nursing home, so hardly a week goes by that I'm not saying farewell to somebody. But sudden, violent death is foreign to me, and I guess I don't know how to deal with it. It just reminds me that you have to be prepared to die, spiritually, as well as having things in order for your family. If I get hit by a bus tomorrow, I'd not have anything in place. No funeral home, no will to explain who to leave all my prized possessions to, etc. I like to think I have the spiritual things in place, but I'm not taking anything for granted. The Lord is my savior, but that's no guarantee I get to heaven, is it?

      This news story is also an excuse for me to write an essay about the TV towers. I've lived here all my life, and you can't escape them. From my house, there is a tower to see from just about every window. Thank God for summer, when the trees leaves obscure them from view. Even though I hate them, I have a morbid curiosity about them, especially the one closest to us, the one the man fell from. They call it the old WHDH, or Channel 5 tower. A little further away is what they call the UHF Candelabra. I always called it "The Fork Tower" because it has three prongs. Or I should say, it used to. Sometime while I  was at work, or in the middle of the night, they took down the other prongs. Boy, does it look ugly. And there is only one light at the top now. At first, I thought the changes were only temporary, but when I looked online, I read all about the changes that were made.

     That's one good thing about the Internet, you can research just about anything and get answers fast. I found a website that told all about all the towers in the area. Learning more about them took away some of the mystique, some of the creepiness.

     But still, I can't end this story without mentioning my nightmares about them. I've had countless dreams where the towers were right up against my windows, and scared the heck out of me. Others where planes fly into them, and others where I can see up close and there's offices and people up on the platforms.

       Then there's the real life, awake nightmares- I used to be mortally afraid to look at them through binoculars. The sight still shocked me. But still, it was fascinating. Another time I got up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom. I looked out the window, and was really surprised to see a bright light shining on and off up on the tower. I imagine they were doing some kind of maintenance. But at the time I was terrified!

     I guess I've come to a peace with the towers. If it was up to me, they wouldn't be here. I'm sick of the sight of them. I love it when it gets really cloudy, and my Dad jokes that they had to take them down! I always wanted to see what the view was like from up there-anybody ever think to take pictures or video? I did once see a view from Bing maps- I almost jumped out of my skin, because I wasn't expecting to see the tower, then it was right in my face, bigger than life (this was the fork tower, before they messed it up).

I hope they find out what happened with the worker, and I hope nobody else ever gets hurt up there again. My Dad told me stories of when the fork tower was being built-he and a co-worker saw someone falling off, but thankfully not landing. That would give me nightmares forever.

     If you live around here and are familiar with the towers, tell me what you think. Can you relate to anything I've said? I've added a few pictures for you to check out. Sorry most of them are sideways, but you'll get the idea. YouTube has a video of a person climbing a tower similar to ours, and it's a view from his helmet-cam. Pretty scary stuff.

   Till next time, take it easy and make every day count!

What's on my mind today

     I hope you are enjoying a taste of summer this weekend if you live in the Northeast! I hate to say that I am already accustomed to the chilly weather. The A/C is already shut off, and the heat on at my workplace.  But it's going to be in the 80's on Sunday! 

    Today I have some random thoughts.  First, my heart is saddened by the loss of a dear friend. I can't talk about it because of hippa regulations, but he was quite a guy.  He knows who he is, and I hope he is where he should be, free of pain. Carl will be sorely missed by his many friends, but will never be forgotten.

     Do you enjoy getting bargains? I love a bargain, and today I scored a couple: Staples had a great deal on 8 1/2 by 11 glossy photo paper. After the rebate, they only cost me $1.00 for a pack of 50 sheets! I bought three packs.  CVS has a markdown table on  most  days.  It's hard to resist buying things I probably won't even use, just because it's 90% off! I have gotten some great gifts for people this way, and I always planned on reselling things I didn't want at a garage sale or online. But all that's really happening is that all that "stuff" is accumulating and taking over the house!

    Last item on my mind today, some ideas about the blog. I was thinking of having a theme for each day of the week. Maybe food and recipes one day, sports another, home and garden, and "open forum" on the others. Let me know what you think!

    Still working this weekend, so I may not be back until Monday. I have a date with "Breaking Bad" Sunday night, the season finale.  Next season will be the last-BOO! But on the other hand, there's only so much you can do, and this show has to end. Any of you out there watch it? It can be far fetched, but it is very suspenseful.   I am also excited to see that "The Dick Van Dyke Show" is on TV Land! Very funny show.

Take care, and see you soon!

Karin

    

Time to Stop Procrastinating!

     Today I decided to try and stop procrastinating. It's easy to put things off, especially when that's what I am used to doing.  I have lots of goals, and there's no way I'll ever accomplish anything if I don't get started soon. Do any of you have this problem? How have you handled it?
      It gets more aggravating when the things you put off are related to your career (in my case, taking the activity director certification course). There are a lot of well meaning co-workers who want me to succeed, and ask me on a regular basis "What are you waiting for?" or "When do you start your class?" Every week that goes by that I don't do it (did I also mention I need $600?) I feel like a failure because not only have I let myself down, I've let down other people as well. But somehow that doesn't translate into accomplishing my goal. I feel sorry, try to explain why I haven't done it yet without crying poverty, or making a lame excuse. Nobody wants to hear excuses. Especially me- I have to live with myself.
     My hope in starting this blog was to get myself back on track with my writing, and in turn inspire myself to "just do it" as the sneaker ad once advised. If I hold myself accountable by having my goals as public record, maybe I will at least get started. Today I went online and reviewed the information I need to sign up. It only takes 16 weeks to complete the first part, I could've done it 100 times in the 11 years I've been in this job. When I think of that, it makes me really annoyed with myself. But is that counterproductive? Probably. God knows it hasn't helped me get ahead by picking on myself.
      Once again getting back to the title of my blog, I'm trying to make something of my life. I'm very lucky to have a great family, a good steady job doing something that helps people, and friends and colleagues who care enough to keep hounding me until I "just do it".
    When it's done, I'll get back to you!

I can't believe it's October already!!!

    Well, here it is, October 2, 2011. Is it me, or does it seem like it was only April a few days ago? Summer here in Newton wasn't too bad, as far as scorching heat went, though those humid days really got me pining for winter.  We had a successful garden, which is the most important part of summer to me.  Picking those ripe tomatoes and fresh basil are what makes all the sweat seem worthwhile.
     Other highlights of this summer? What happened right before the official start, of course: The Bruins won the Stanley Cup!!!!  This was a dream finally realized. Not that I had any control over it, of course. Being a Bruins fan for the majority of the 39 years since they won it, I feel like I paid my dues. So I am very thankful that the Bruins were able to pull it off despite the odds against them. You have to appreciate it while we have it. It doesn't seem possible that the new season starts this Thursday, and we defend our title.  I made a promise to old friends that if the Bruins won the Cup, I would publish a special edition of my newsletter, "What's Brewin". I haven't come through on that promise yet, but I am working on it. My hat is off to the Bruins. They really made a lot of people happy, and brought the Cup all over the place to their fans.
   Fall is traditionally a time of melancholy (at least for me). I love the change of seasons, and the fall foilage, apples, pumpkins and all that. But it makes me sad when it gets dark by 6:30, and my once vibrant garden looks sickly and withered. I'm also not that fond of  Halloween. I think it's a great holiday for kids, but they really need to upgrade the size of "fun size" candy bars. How is is "fun" to get something that small?!  Mainly, I don't like having to dress up at work, but it's part of the job, and I should learn to love it. I think this year's costume is going to be a pair of Groucho Marx glasses with the mustache and eyebrows.
    Going with the title of this blog, life IS what you make it. So I'll look on the bright side and try to relish all the good things about autumn and winter. Gotta go- time to pick a few tomatoes and make BLT's for supper tonight!
See you soon!
Love,

Karin

Today is the first day of the rest of my life!!

     Hi there! You know who I am, because right now this is a private blog. I still don't know what I'm doing, so this will be a learning experience for me. I have invited you to read and contribute to this blog, and I sure hope you will enjoy it!
     I plan on writing about a lot of different things, since I have a lot of interests that I would love to talk about. Broadly, just a few I can think of off the top of my head are: gardening, Boston Sports, cooking and recipes, animals (with my pets in particular), photography, movies, music and TV. I have a tendency to ramble on, so I will try to keep it concise.
    I am honored to have you as my friend, and I love hearing from each and every one of you. I hope you will respond to my posts, and will find them interesting, thought provoking, and entertaining. Over the coming weeks, hopefully there will be photos, links, and everything else a blog is supposed to have. Any suggestions you have will be welcomed.
Take care, and see you soon!
Love,

Karin (& Cindy!)