Vintage Ghosties…and the Power of Imagination

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A house is never still in darkness to those who listen intently; there is a whispering in distant chambers, an unearthly hand presses the snib of the window, the latch rises. Ghosts were created when the first man awoke in the night.
~ J.M. Barrie
imagesTHYNH9HXI like this Barrie quote, because along with the descriptive aspect of “ghostly” elements, he also acknowledges our own mind’s power to frighten ourselves. I’m guilty of that myself: imagination can be a wonderful and a terrible thing. 🙂
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When I was little, on nights when I’d spooked myself by reading my “Witching Hour” comic books or a spooky short story, I wouldn’t walk into my bedroom to climb into bed; I’d back up, run to the doorway, and leap from there into my bed, to avoid the “things” lurking in the dark under there, and to prevent them from grabbing my ankles.
skeletonWe’d also watch “Monster Movie Matinee” on Saturday afternoons, just before nap time (I’ll have to ask my mother why she allowed that, LOL). I recall one episode, called The Screaming Skull. After watching it, no nap was to be had, because my sister kept “seeing” the shadow of a skeletal hand moving down the hallway toward her bedroom and shrieking that it was coming to get her. 🙂
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I’ve gotten better at managing my imagination, now that I’m older. Usually I can reason through whatever is spooking me…though I can still experience a shiver and freeze up with the feeling that someone (or something!) is watching me from the dark, if I allow myself.Vintage-Halloween-Pumpkin-Head-Image-GraphicsFairy
I’ve had a few ghostly experiences as well, in the old house we first lived in when we were married, but those will have to save for another day.
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What about you – can you scare yourself silly…or have you had moments where you believe you’ve experienced something outside the natural world?

Vintage Halloween Post 1

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CLX1007Halloween0010-de[1]I’m sure by now it’s no surprise that I’m a “vintage” kind of gal…not necessarily in my clothing or even in how I decorate my home, but just in general enjoyment. Collectibles, cookbooks, music, art, books…I like old things, or things that look “classic”.

When it comes to All Hallow’s Eve, I’ve always been fascinated by the old-fashioned decorations and illustrations that are out there.

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Prior to the internet, of course, my exposure to these things were only through the occasional piece my parents had (similar to the paper mache’ cat head candy container pictured here).

 

 

 

Halloween+witch+owl+vintage+image+graphicsfairy8bWhen I was little, I loved to draw jack-lanterns. And big, yellow moons with witches flying across them. So illustrations like these, really tickle my fancy.5287ce33d06bd0637d1edd11a9dce24d

 

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And then there are the spooky trees and houses.

 

There is just something about old Halloween illustrations that really captures the old-fashioned nature of the holiday, rather than the more current focus on fear, gore, and demonic stuff. That’s not my cuppa. Give me “old” All Hallow’s Eve any day. How about you?

 

 

 

 

Danse Macabre

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Getting in the mood this Saturday night for All Hallow’s Eve, and since Danse Macabre by French composer Camille Saint-Saënsis is one of my favorite classical pieces of music for this time of year, I thought I’d share…I also fondly remember watching this accompanying PBS video in the 1980’s. Does anyone else remember watching this one (in elementary school, or like me, in high school…just because I liked it 🙂 )?

Keeping It In Perspective

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Happiness today is warm tea in my cheerful rooster mug and a peanut butter sandwich for lunch!

 

“If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.” ~ J. R. R. Tolkien

The Old Button Tin

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My mother’s old button tin (a reused, 1950’s Christmas cookie tin), a box of threads and some old “Bondex” iron-on material from the 1960’s

When I was little, I was always fascinated, watching my mother sew. She could hand sew or sew on the machine.

To me it was magic. I learned in later years, that it was necessity. With seven kids to raise on just my father’s salary (at least until I was a teen and my mother started a second career in the insurance industry and worked her way up to a CPCU license), it was more economical for my mother to craft many of our clothes and other items by hand than it was to buy them ready-made. Continue Reading…

The Illusion of Control – Or Being a Superhero

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So, lately in my life there have been some extra challenges.

They’re not the life and death kind, thank goodness. I and the people I love are healthy and (mostly) secure.

But the challenges that crop up can be disheartening and distressing, especially when they come in quick succession and kind of knock the wind out of me (you know what I mean?)

Sometimes they’re tied to people I love, and other times they’re connected to my teaching or writing career(s), where despite my best efforts and diligent work, I end up spinning my wheels in a way I never wanted, planned, or intended to. The giant road block (whether tangible, emotional, or mental) rises up in front of me and forces me – usually at great effort – to find a way around it.

Each of these instances sets me back on my heels for a bit. I have to process and come to terms with the hurt or angry feelings and then find a way to move through them to something better.

But that’s like taking a big, scary leap of faith, because continue reading…

On Handling Adversity

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The rising sun peeking from behind a red barn

“You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated. In fact, it may be necessary to encounter the defeats, so you can know who you are, what you can rise from, how you can still come out of it.”

~Maya Angelou

An Old Adirondack Hermit

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The picture here is of the rusty old water pump on the “shallow well” in the backyard at the Homestead…Pa found it in an old Adirondack dump back in the 1950’s and we’ve used it “decoratively” ever since 🙂

When I was just a little kid (before kindergarten-age), there was an old Adirondack hermit living in the woods up and around our area. He had a grizzly beard and looked around 75 or older; he walked with a sort of stooped gait, wearing a cap of some sort over his white hair.

For quite a while he had a “shelter” built deep in the woods, and he camped out there pretty much all year round. We didn’t know his name, but continue reading…

Fear and Loathing in My Kitchen

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I come home from work to face villains in my kitchen.

It’s been a long day, and I felt quite virtuous to have contained myself to a salad and some plain roasted chicken for lunch.

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First the open bag of potato chips sits there, staring at me with a “Come hither” pose.

I resist and pull back in terror. But before I get more than one step away…

leftover pieI shift my head just a bit, and there is the single piece of apple pie leftover from Sunday dinner. It’s lonely, desolate, and exuding the need to join me (maybe with a nice cup of tea).

“No!!!” I shake my head and back away even further.

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Just as I’m certain I’m in the clear, the dark, chocolately goodness of last night’s leftover brownies sings a siren song to me, inviting me to taste just a crumb. “A little bitty crumb won’t hurt you,” it whispers in a seductive purr.

Sigh.

In the end I succumb to half of the piece of pie. So far I’ve held off from devouring the rest, but who knows how long I will be able to be strong? Eating a celery stick isn’t going to cut it. I suppose I could drink some water, but that ruby port over there is looking far more enticing… 🙂

Anyone else have nutritional struggles, especially when you’re really trying to be good?  Sigh…

Nostalgic Music

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big band

Credit: Blubrry Podcast Community

I took a ride to my hometown, this past weekend, to re-deliver my mother to The Homestead where I grew up after she’d been out of state for several weeks, visiting one of my older sisters.

I took my husband’s vehicle, which has a year’s worth of satellite radio available, and since my iPod wasn’t working, I started to play with the dial and found one of my bittersweet loves: 1940’s music.

This is probably another area where I’m a bit strange, since continue reading…