songbird's crazy world

Drew makes breakfast for me every Sunday morning. he can make scrambled eggs, french toast, pancakes, bacon, sausage ... and he recently added a waffle iron to his repertoire. now I have to go buy him a Keurig so he'll stop making that horrid instant coffee.

did I mention that Becca broke up with her boyfriend in mid August?  His idea, not hers.  and did I mention they got back together a few weeks later?  Don't feel bad if you can't keep up, I didn't know about the reconciliation until last week, when I took her out to dinner and she casually mentioned she'd spent the previous weekend at his college in Pennsylvania. poor Jen.  about halfway through the summer she stopped hanging with a certain group of friends and I didn't know why.  turns out she she had a falling out with her friend Sara.  since Sara was always with that group of friends, Jen chose to hang out with other friends instead.   you guessed it, the disagreement was over a boy ....someone Jen liked but the boy asked Sara out...and Sara didn't tell Jen and when Jen found out ... but the funniest part of this post is the email I got from Drew's sister.   seems auntie has a friend whose grandson is 26 and in medical school....grandm...

I first heard about Johnny Depp's Dark Shadows 2 years ago The movie is scheduled to open in May 2012. we've now seen a glimpse of what the movie will be like: http://www.newsday.com/entertainment/pet-rock-1.811972/depp-sinks-teeth-into-dark-shadows-role-1.3169947 Depp sinks teeth into 'Dark Shadows' role Wednesday September 14, 2011 11:31 AM By Meredith Daniels For those  who remember running home from school in the 1960s and '70s to watch the soap opera, "Dark Shadows,"  there's a film version on the way with actor Johnny Depp starring as the vampire, Barnabas Collins. The website collider.com has just released first photos from the set of Tim Burton's "Dark Shadows" adaptation. Johnny Depp looks like a typical, creepy, colorful, Burton character as he takes his turn as Barnabas, famously played in the television series by actor Jonathan Frid. The soap opera, which aired on ...

So yesterday I talked about Jewish custom and the purpose of our trip to the cemetery.  Looking at the post, it was so businesslike.... Today I'll be more emotional about it. My mother's family is buried in United Hebrew, a small Jewish cemetery in Staten Island.  My father's family is at Beth David, in Elmont, here on Long Island.  When I was a child it would be a major event to visit United Hebrew -- my parents would pick up my grandmother and my aunts and we'd make a day of it.  Often there'd be other relatives along for the visit, too.    Young rabbinical students used to try to earn a few dollars by reciting prayers over each grave in Hebrew.  After we'd say prayers at the graves of the dearly departed, we'd gather at a local diner and the living would catch up with family business. I was less familiar with Beth David, it being easy for my father to pay his respects without the entourage.  I think my parents stopped dragging us o...

It is incumbent upon Jews to remember the souls of our dearly departed. Long after the funeral and the official period of mourning there are ways in which we remember. Each year on the anniversary of a loved one's death (their yartzeit ) we light a candle that will burn for 24 hours. And the Kaddish - the mourners' prayer - is recited in the synagogue. Several times during the year - most notably at Yom Kippur - there is a special service called Yizkor. During the service we remember our loved ones. And then there's the custom of visiting the cemetery. The custom is to make a visit in the weeks before Rosh HaShanah. You visit each grave, leaving a pebble on the headstone so others will know you've been there. You recite prayers - Kaddish if you have a minyan (quorum ), other prayers if you do not. So today I took my parents to the cemetery where my mother's family is buried. My mother needed to fulfill the rituals. And I wanted to see my grandfat...

We usually go in August, but this year we never found the time. I think I like it better in cooler weather .... but by the end of the day I was actually shivering. We like the funny stuff .... the nuns who sing silly songs, the knife throwers with their comedic patter, the juggler/magician / mime who can make an audience laugh with just a look. Must sees include the living chess board and the joust. Next year I plan to go in costume. Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.4

Living with three cats can be ... interesting. I've written about my sweet, delicate Daisy. 16 years old, weighs all of six pounds, prefers the company of humans to that of other cats. She is a real princess ... but with excellent hunting skills. A great communicator, she will stand and meow at you until you realize what she wants. Mr. Kitty is a roly poly boy. He weighs about 20 pounds. Very laid back, he can often be found sleeping on the floor, belly exposed, paws in the air. He was a starving kitty when he came here. He equates food with love and he needs a lot of both. He's a perfect little brother -- he likes to pester Daisy, chase after her, steal her food. Now we add Redford into the mix. While Daisy and Mr. Kitty were kittens when they arrived here, Redford was a full grown tomcat when he joined our family last winter. He's really great with people, not so much with other cats. He gets along ok with the other cats in our house, But he fights with other ca...

it's been 10 years. the media in inundating us with remembrances.  as if anyone could forget. I've written about it before: http://songbirdscrazyworld.blogspot.com/2009/01/sad-memory.html http://songbirdscrazyworld.blogspot.com/2010/09/911-again.html http://songbirdscrazyworld.blogspot.com/2010/11/makeshift-memorial.html http://songbirdscrazyworld.blogspot.com/2009/11/why-mike-piazza-will-always-own-piece.html I was driving to work, listening to WPLJ, and Scott and Todd were interviewing  a guy who'd seen the first plane hit the WTC.  The second plane hit during the interview.  I will never forget the shock in that man's voice.  At work we huddled around the small TV in the gym.  that is, when we weren't phone trying to find family members, friends and coworkers.  Our firm had an office in lower Manhattan, and many of the lawyers in the Long Island office had court appearances in the city.Later I learned that one of our secretaries...

Don't you just love it?

Universal/IOA: My one complaint is that people here are more likely to ignore the "designated smoking area". Saw one young woman walking up the main street of the park, cigarette in hand. She was wearing short shorts -- so short that I could see the tattoo on her butt cheek. If I'd been her mother, she'd be dead. As hotel guests, we were able to go into IOA an hour before the park opened just for the Harry Potter area -- you don't get front of the line access for Forbidden Journey. On Saturday we did Harry Potter first, then worked our way around IOA and then went to Universal. On Sunday we did Harry Potter, then went over to Universal so the pirate king could ride the Hollywood rip rocket (no front of the line access for that one, either), and ended our day in IOA. The rides here tend to be darker and edgier, and we loved them. Forbidden Journey is clearly the best ride in Central Florida. Loved Spiderman and Revenge of the Mummy. Jaws is pure c...

As you may know, after many years of being divorced, my ex husband and I have reconciled and have done some traveling together recently. We honeymooned in Disneyworld in 1987, and though I've been to Disney and Universal many times since, my ex (who I'll call "the pirate king" for this trip report) had never been back. So when we decided to go, he let me do most of the planning. I think I did OK. Rather than give you a day by day itinerary, I think that what I'll do is give comments on various topics. The weather: Just as we were leaving for the airport, the pirate king's buddy asked us "do you guys have insurance? Hurricane Irene is in the Caribbean and it's aiming towards Florida." Ironically, while Irene dominated the news the entire time we were in Central Florida, the storm posed more of a danger to our friends and family back home on Long island than it did to us. In fact, although we were not directly affected by the stor...

Still, it's a little disconcerting to see the hazmat truck right outside your office as you're leaving for the day ... especially when you work in an environmental claims department! Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.4

So, OK, both kids went back to college and the Labor Day BBQ is but a memory.  I woke up yesterday to a cold, wet rainy day...a precursor for autumn.  Much as I love summer, I think I'm actually looking forward to the cool, crisp days, the falling leaves, etc.  I'm ready for a change of pace.  Different weather, different clothes, different foods.  The only problem I have with the fall...is that winter inevitably follows.

As seen from Hogsmeade Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.4

This isn't an oil painting ... it's a photo Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.4

Becca went back to school earlier this week and Jen leaves for school this morning. Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.4