Saturday Afternoon at the Movies

This idea came from a Facebook meme:

Over 10 days, post your 10 all time favorite films. What movie has really made an impact on you or what films can you watch over and over and never tire of? Post either the movie poster, DVD cover or even a screenshot on your timeline. No need to explain.

Only I had a hard time picking out just 10 movies so my favorites over the next few hundred Saturdays 😸 in roughly alphabetical order:

A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001) Jude Law, Haley Joel Osment, William Hurt

If you haven't seen this movie, you can watch a paid version at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-rDxmNOYhk

The Friday Five Good Things

Five good things that happened this week

1. I helped Himself clean out his office than we went out to lunch.

2. Himself bought a George Foreman grill so we've been playing with grilling veggies and chicken.

3. I found fresh spuckies (sub/hoagie/hero rolls) for sausage subs and grilled veggies.

4. Made hotel reservations for our trip to Pennsylvania, Ohio, and South Carolina

5. Heavy downpours and the basement didn't flood.

How was your week?

Throwback Thursday - The Notebooks

To clear up some confusion, the Notebook passages posted on Throwback Thursday were written by my father and found by me after he passed away. They were his attempt to tell the family history. He was in his late 80s or early 90s when he wrote them. Today's chapter:

Charlie Arnold would time to time wonder what she [ed: Doris] saw in him. Because he didn't think he was that handsome. And his attitude was that there wasn't anyone in the world as good as Doris. He loved her all the way to the end.

Not that they didn't have their arguments. I never heard them. But I could always tell when they were on the outs. He would read his newspaper and he would say, "Oh, Doris, come see this article. It's cute or worth reading." Doris wouldn't come around and would give him the silent treatment. Translated when you are ready to come and apologize.

Even in East Boston when I worked around the house. I would babysit for them or they would ask another girl  whose name I think was "Mary" not your mother to babysit, while we would go to Lynn to a Chinese restaurant. And my introduction to Chinese food which I haven't had for many, many years. I loved it chop suey, etc. [Ed: The reason Dad never had Chinese food after he married Ma was because Ma didn't like Chinese food. When she was little some bright spark told her the food was made with cat meat and it turned her off. She wasn't happy when Charlie and Doris' kids threw a 50th anniversary party at a Chinese restaurant. Probably the same restaurant in Lynn.]

Once we were going to Lynn in his second-hand Oldsmobile. And we were going through a rainstorm. Which let a lot of water come down fast, but let up fast. I sat in the front. Doris was in the back. Suddenly he hit a section of water and it came right up to the windshield.

I commented, "Wow, it took that big puddle like a battleship!" Skip said, "Yeah. Maybe we should go back and try it again."

All this time Doris was quiet. But when he made that statement she knew it would just be like him to do it. So there was a firm voice from the back seat. "Charles." and he said, "I guess not, Joe."

Wordless Wednesday

T Stands for Another Cemetery Hop - Part 2

The cemetery hop continues at the Highland Street Cemetery in Dover.

An Old English "D" with lovely ivy on this granite family monument.

The end of creeping phlox ground cover cascading over stones lining the main road. This was not far from the area where Teague's relatives were buried circa 1865. But there's a bit of a mystery. The plot where they were buried, according to the cemetery records, Rusty, the supervisor found, was a 10 grave plot. Five graves in front and five graves in back, but not one of the graves had a marker. This was also the case for several of her ancestors in other cemeteries. So the mystery? Was the family too poor to afford headstones? Did they use the money for other uses? Is anyone buried in the plot? Someone bought the gravesite, but was anyone actually buried here? She may never find an answer.

Geraniums in the center of the cemetery. Rusty really loves his job.

The grave of a young man killed in action during World War I

I thought this grave of a woman Air Force Service pilot during World War II was a great find. Way to go Mary!

As we moved into the newer section at the back of the cemetery, the stones were not typically what one finds in the newer areas of a cemetery.

A 21st. century grave with a 17th century style slate headstone for this husband and wife. The angels of death look more like cherubs. There was also an old rhyme on the stone:

Stop here my friend & cast an eye

as you are now so once was I

as I am now so you must be

Prepare for death and follow me.

A very sober thought, but not today.

A rough, hewn granite marker

with a charming statue of a woman carrying sheaves of wheat. And of course, I began humming the hymn:

Sowing in the morning, sowing seeds of kindness,

Sowing in the noontide and the dewy eve;

Waiting for the harvest, and the time of reaping,

We shall come rejoicing, bringing in the sheaves.

Again, a new slate stone with

a beautiful inlaid rose. Almost like marquetry, but in stone.

I like the personal touches that people leave for their loved ones. Here a statue of a rabbit and

a duck. Makes you wonder what the story is behind them. Also, someone was a member of Grange. Dover was a small, farming community back in the day. The Grange is a farmers association for social activities, community service, and political lobbying.

I also wondered about the grave with the statue of the woman carrying the sheaves, was that person also a Grange member?

It always sad to come upon the markers for the babies or young children, like the lamb and Our Lizzie from last week.

The Kanjii symbols for Warrior and Scholar are similar.

I laughed out loud when I found this marker. The Diamonds must have had a wonderful sense of humor. At the bottom of the stone: On the road again and a picture of a VW bus.

By the time we got back to Teague's house, it was time for dessert. We went to the local Dairy Queen and had Mini Blizzards in paper cups. I had a Heath Bar (toffee) Blizzard, and Teague had a Cookie Dough. She even held up a napkin as a professional backdrop so I could take the photo.

Drop by hosts, Bleubeard and Elizabeth's blog to find out what the rest of the T Stands For gang is up to. If you want to play, include in your Tuesday post a beverage or container for a beverage. Don't forget to link your blog to Bleubeard and Elizabeth's page.

Happy Mail

Nan sent me a postcard from her home town in Northern Ireland. Castlederg . The postcard has a picture of a ruined castle, bridge over the River Derg, and a picture of the village.

Nan's oldest girl was married on 9. June. From Nan's postcard: The wedding was fantastic and the weather perfect! It was held outdoors. The sun was shining - right out of a fairy tale. Enjoying a week of relaxation after all the festivities.. Then heading home.

I'll be looking forward to hearing all about the wedding when Nan gets home. Maybe I can persuade her to blog all about it.

How Does Your Garden Grow?

The male cardinal stopped by on Father's Day. Happy Father's Day, Dad!

The morning glories need a little help to climb.

The mystery plant produced a small, yellow flower? Any idea what kind of plant this is?

Wild thunderstorms moved through the area.

The color of the sky had a yellowish light. Sadly, the iPhone camera didn't capture it

One of the bunnies sitting in clover.

From the studio window, a squirrel sitting on the post of the Leaf Lady's rickety fence.

Hmm, one of the morning glories isn't doing well.

Somebody has been very busy,

Tiny tomatoes and 

tiny peppers.

Rain amount for the week. I thought we had more rain.

Saturday Afternoon at the Movies

This idea came from a Facebook meme:

Over 10 days, post your 10 all time favorite films. What movie has really made an impact on you or what films can you watch over and over and never tire of? Post either the movie poster, DVD cover or even a screenshot on your timeline. No need to explain.

Only I had a hard time picking out just 10 movies so my favorites over the next few hundred Saturdays 😸 in alphabetical order:

Alvarez Kelly, (1966), Richard 😻 Widmark, William Holden

If you haven't seen this movie you can pay to watch at YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmCMFpn3FJA

The Friday Five Good Things

Five good things that happened this week.

1. While Himself took a Father's Day nap, I watched Leslie Howard and Norma Shearer in Romeo and Juliet (1936)

2. For Father's Day dinner, Himself wanted Chinese food. We did takeout from Star Dumpling. No cooking for me!

3.  Monday was wicked hot and humid, and I did a happy dance.

4.  Happy mail day.

5. Picked up lunch at Panera and went to visit Baby G, her mom, and grandma.

How was your week?

Throwback Thursday - The Notebooks

Photo by Anthony from Pexels

To clear up some confusion, the Notebook passages posted on Throwback Thursday were written by my father and found by me after he passed away. They were his attempt to tell the family history. He was in his late 80s or early 90s when he wrote them. Today's chapter:

In addition I asked the girl next door at the first home they had out to dinner and the movies. I told Doris and she thought it was wonderful. And gave me pointers. She thought that Betty was a wonderful girl. And she was. Blonde Scottish ethnicity. Before I asked her I played catch with her brother. Spoke to her. She had an older sister and both worked for New England Telephone and Telegraph.

Doris suggested that I buy a small corsage. Nothing expensive and to make sure that I held the doors open for her [ed: Betty] and not to let the waiter seat her. That I should do this. Her parents had no objections. The Arnolds had said I was ok and that was it. Charlie explained his hopes for me in learning to become a social worker and the time it would take. Their curiosity arose from the experience of their elder daughter. She was in her twenties and had a steady fellow with the right intentions and I never found out or asked but either he dumped the girl or she dumped him. Anyway Betty was at that stage where girls married young.

Our first date went very well. We walked from downtown as we left our homes. I took her to the door and then went next door to my pad. Doris was up. Charlie was an early to bed guy. She would stay up in the late hours. Except when promises were made. So I suspected. In the nights she was up she would have coffee and pie or ice cream.

On the nights she went to bed early there would be a note on the kitchen chair that there would be ice cream, or pie, or some goodies. Whatever they had they always had some for me.

Also as soon as I could I bought myself some clothes. To look more presentable and when I went to East Boston I took my laundry with me.

I must have amazed Doris. We got to be good friends. When I first met her she was very cool to me. At the time she though me a hellion and when her children were getting their history from her. They also asked about me. And she answered, "He was a hellion.!!" This is registered on one of the tapes they gave me. Its' in my cabinet down my section of downstairs I call my music room that your mother calls the cellar. It has a picture of a young Doris. Beautiful.

Wordless Wednesday

T Stands for Another Cemetery Hop - Part 1

Works schedules made it difficult for my friend, Teague, and I to get together. A month ago we found a date which worked for both of us. Weather predictions were humid with a 50% chance of showers/thunderstorms.

When I got to her house, we decided what we should do for the day.

"What do you want to do, Marty?"

"I don't know. What do you want to do, Marty?"

Teague told me she had been in the town of Dover at the Highland St. Cemetery to look for some ancestors on her mother's side. She said she thought I would really like to see this cemetery.

She had me at cemetery so off we went.

Teague want to stop at the cemetery office to see if she could find the plot where her family was located. In her genealogy search, she had found section numbers, but when she first visited the cemetery, there were no section markings and since it was a Sunday, no one around to ask for a map.

GPS sent us down a dead end road and announced we had arrived at our destination. Teague said the office was in a garage across from the cemetery. Across the way, we could see what looked like a garage building, but like a lot of things in New England, "Ya can't get theyah from heah."

Teague found the way out, and we were across from the cemetery so she drove in and parked.

The front end of the cemetery was the oldest part. The cemetery wasn't large. So we split up and walked along the front half of the cemetery looking for the grave of her relatives.

I was charmed by the pansy carved on this stone for a beloved sister.

Teague searched her half.

I liked the Old English/Gothic lettering on this stone along with the shell motifs.

Many of the graves in this area were from the Revolutionary War  (1775 -1783), War of 1812 (1812-14), and Civil War (1861-1865)

This family plot was surrounded by a beautiful fence. Wrought iron?

Weeping willow detail 

Urn gate post.

Slate stone from 1778 with a typical Angel of Death motif 

This Death Head between the two columns reminded me of the Great and Powerful Wizard of Oz.

Around Memorial Day, flags are placed at the graves of Veterans. This man was a veteran of the Revolutionary War. Rusty, the supervisor of this cemetery, also plants geraniums at the veterans graves.

Another death head.

Lamb marking the grave of a child

This grave marks a veteran who served in the French and Indian War (1756 -1763)

This young man passed away in 1891. His age is listed in years, months, and days which was common for these early stones.

A handsome Old English B. The slate gravestones of the earlier graves didn't weather as well as this granite stone.

The Doctor? Doctor, who? (His soon her name is not Doctor Who. That's a running gag. Doctor, who? His/her name is The Doctor. And the grave is on Tranzelore)

A beautiful monument to a beloved daughter. A hand clutches a beautiful rose.

We had wandered halfway through the cemetery and Teague couldn't find the graves she was looking for. Fortunately, Rusty, the supervisor, was taking care of the grounds. He offered his services and went to the garage to find the area on a map, and then to the office two times (because Teague had misread lot numbers) to find the grave records.

This cemetery is very well maintained, and we told him how nice the grounds looked. He said he usually does more planting, but the late snows in March and cold April prevented him from getting flowers in.

After wandering through the new part of the cemetery (you'll see that over the next two weeks as I took a lot of photographs), we stopped at Murphy's Eats and Treats in Ashland.

My refreshing Raspberry Lime Rickey. Teague had a root beer

I had a freshly made, bacon cheeseburger with crinkle fries. Teague knows the drill (Don't eat!) and waited for me to take a picture.

Drop by hosts, Bleubeard and Elizabeth's blog to find out what the rest of the T Stands For gang is up to. If you want to play, include in your Tuesday post a beverage or container for a beverage. Don't forget to link your blog to Bleubeard and Elizabeth's page.