Of Rain, "the Black Cat" and after Thanksgiving thoughts and other thoughts~~~~

Hello Darklings

I woke up to a wet, damp, rainy morning.  Time for a good hot cup of coffee I always say.  

 

I woke up early this morning, just before 7 a.m. and with all the cloud cover it was darkish, I had to turn on a few lights as I made my way down stairs just to not trip over anything.   As the water was heating up I stepped out onto the back porch while the rain had stopped and was astonished at the Silence I heard, you can hear Silence because it’s the absence of sound. 

Oh there was sound, the slow drip, plop of water running off the roof edge and the tips of tree branches, but nothing from the street or freeway hum, no street sounds, not even birds, no dogs barking in the distance, nothing, complete silence and stillness.  That is such a rarity in this busy hustle and bustle age.

 I looked across the fences to some of the neighbors houses, through the bare trees and saw an occasion warm yellow glow of a light in a window, someone was up, either making coffee like myself in the downstairs kitchen  or an upstairs window that told me that either they were going to church or an early morning sale. 

It had a sort of Thomas Kinkade feeling, wet, silent, very cool, with splotches of warm light in a window here and there.  And I breathed in the fresh rain washed air, and enjoyed the dampness around me, my feet warm in thick slippers, geared for cold days and nights.  

The silence was finally broken by the arrival of two very small birds, too large to be finches, not wild canaries, and just a little too small to be sparrows, they might be chickadee’s, and they did a bit of “chit, chit, chittering” between themselves and then in the distance the very muffled roar of the jets of a plane taking off from SFO airport.   The earth and surrounding urban civilization was slowly waking up, and the coffee was ready.

The dogs refused  to do their business, at least for now, “Nos Mummy is tu wets” but they did eventually.   No one, not dog nor human can hold their bladder forever.

Sis and I are not going  today to do grocery shopping, it would be too insane with the shoppers, so we’ll do it tomorrow morning, not that we need much, just a few staples, milk, bread, cold cuts for sandwiches and such.  We had so much left overs from Thanksgiving for the weekend that we are doing good, even with all the food that we gave for people to take home.

And so much that we froze to heat up, I think we're really good for the week, although I think Doyle may get a bit tired of Turkey sandwiches to take to work, even if there is cranberry spread on them.

No, both Sis and I will each do in our respective houses  a few more indoor projects, another load of laundry, more sorting and such.  Then tomorrow I’ll balance the checkbook, do some banking and such so we can gear up to take care of other things later in the week, like paying the property taxes.   And addressing holiday cards, I just remembered I need to put postage stamps on the list. 

Last night we stayed up to watch Svengoolie's presentation of "The Black Cat" 1934 with Karloff and Lugosi, perhaps one of the best Art Deco styled and Goth horror films I've ever watched, Karloff with that sibilant evil lisp and Lugosi giving one of the best monologue performances in the end as his character is dying, it is broken up in a way, and only runs just over an hour, as I understand it the Head Office was concerned about some of the scene's that would have really tied the movie up better but they insisted on having it re-filmed.  But still in the Bright Art Deco sets, that sense of dark evil hanging over it.

I'd have to say it was one of the better Horror films of the early 1930's difficult to re-capture.

Thanksgiving dinner was a success, the tables groaned with good food, good conversation and good family and friends, the younger boys putting olives on their fingers and eating them off, its a good thing I bought several cans of olives because I remember doing that too when I was a child.

Then as the food settled, we settled in the formal parlor with coffee as the Turkey tryptophan took over, and the children fell asleep on the rugs with Weiner Dog and Belladonna nestled among them, as we chatted about this and that, and candles burned in the fire place making a cozy scene.

I thought the Men folk wanted to watch football, the Niner's were playing, but our brother via a text on his cell phone had the score and said its not worth watching them go down in defeat.  After a bit Coralline and her older brother woke up and laid there listening to us adults talk about things, reminiscing at times, while the younger children continued to sleep.

One of our guests asked me why do I dress sort of old-fashion, and why do I keep the house old-fashioned and I explained to them why, and that modern conveniences such as microwave ovens, washers and dryings and computers and cd player are not far away, just hidden, and how I, Sis and Doyle have a tendency to eschew ultra modern trappings for some thing's  and an era that is far simpler, but is no less complex.

Our guest understood in a way because he and his wife said that they felt totally relaxed for the first time in ages, even if we did have some quirky things in the house, but it was a good feeling.

But all good things had to come to an end and as it drew late everyone had to leave but not without some food bundles to take home.  And yet still we had a lot left over.

Doyle being a wise person recorded the 11 p.m. news last night for us to watch this morning as we didn't want to miss watching the late night movie.

So as I listened to it I was dismayed to hear that in Oakland the small locally owned business did not do very well on Small Business Saturday, the demonstrations that turned into riots earlier in the week, scared many people away so that people were afraid to come into Oakland to shop.

The protests did not do our local small business owners any good, and for many the Holidays is when they are going to either make it or not. 

It reminded me of something I just recently read in a Dean Koontz Odd Thomas novel "Deeply Odd" I looked for the statement and I quote it here:

"The wisdom of the most sagacious ancient Greeks, the wisdom of the most perceptive rabbis of ancient Canaan, and all the parables of Christ teach us to believe not in justice, but in truth. 

In a world of rampant lying, where so many lies are used to inflame passions and justify false grievances, the indiscriminate pursuit of justice leads sooner of later to insanity, mass murder, and the ruin of entire civilizations. 

Therefore, those who wish to punish the current and future generations for the inequities of a generation long gone, and who equate justice with revenge, are the most dangerous people in the world."

I think we have had another demonstration of this hunt for alleged "justice" and it satisfies no one, it only separates things further, it does not bring things together.  It only hurts those who are trying to make it in this world, it only harms those who live thousands of miles away  or only 1 mile from the original "flashpoint".

I do not have any answers but I do know that change must come from within, within a community, within a family, within an individual, some people call it and I just recently heard it again, "the broken window" theory, if one window is broken then others think its o.k. to break the other windows until a house, a building, a block and eventually an entire neighborhood is broken.   But if people come together to fix that broken window to turn in the evil doer who broke it, then it turns back the evil that seeks to creep into the neighborhood and into people's souls. 

It's like cancer, most cancers can be cured if caught early enough and gone after aggressively enough,   I should know, I've survived two bought's of cancer because I suspected something and I and my doctor went after it aggressively and I've been cancer free for 10 years. 

Education is the first step, encouraging children to stay in school is the second, helping people become independent is the third and a community working together to achieve that is what it takes. 

The holidays are tough times for many people trying to make it, and I and those I love support those organizations that help those in need.  And that is a good way to give to others, because little things as imperceptible as they may be can reap huge rewards that reach out to millions. 

And we have to start by fixing one broken window.

Later Darklings

Of Happy Thanksgiving~~~~

Dear Darklings,

The pies are baking for tomorrow, the Jell-O desserts for those that like wiggly things with fruit inside are chilling.

The table is set with glass and plate wear upside down to keep the dust off.

Scented candles have been burning and are set to burn tomorrow.

Sis came across a recipe for German Chocolate cookies and baked them, heavenly.

The yams have been boiled and peeled and are ready to bake tomorrow, the Turkey is thawed, the stuffing (home made) has been made and ready to go into the bird.

Veggies are washed and waiting in the Refrigerator to be cooked, pans and pots for each dish to be prepared are labeled.

Doyle has been doing yeoman duty keeping the dogs amused and getting for us any thing we need,  Louise came by with her friend and have been helping with anything that needs to be done for tonight. 

Doyle has set candles in the fireplaces to be burned as it maybe a spare the air day tomorrow.

My contractor has called and said he can start on shifting the location of the gates next week.

The wines have been chosen, the soft drinks chilling.

Everyone has called and confirmed when they will be here and what they are bringing.

The house is sparkling inside and out because Doyle decided to put up the white lights outside last weekend, everything is warm and cozy and Doyle has gone to get our "go-to" Chinese Dinner which we will enjoy. 

Right now as we wait, Sis, Louise, her friend Carol and I are going to relax with some tea as we listen to 1920's jazz playing on my old fashion looking radio that plays C.D's 

And then we all decided that we need to watch an old-fashioned Sherlock Holmes movie, maybe two, with Basil Rathbone.  It's that kind of evening.

We feel thankful for the blessings we have received, we've had our ups and downs, our joys and grief's,  we've been luckier than most, but we don't take it for granted. 

Part of our thing is we took 4 fresh turkeys yesterday to one of the vital soup kitchens to serve food for those not so lucky, we've donated to the Food Pantry as well, there are some charities that will be needing financial help this Holiday Season and we'll contribute to them, Toys for Tots, a program for wounded warriors and others. 

But we don't do it just during the holidays, but all year long, its just that this time of year is when things are becoming at its darkest and we must continue to shed light to drive darkness away, we must bring love to take away hate, we must give healing to take away pain, we must give courage to replace fear.

And we must Give Thanks for that which we are about to receive, and in doing so we must share with those who have nothing.

Our history has been convoluted, secrets are being revealed, old beliefs are breaking down in the light of truth.

And there for we should Give Thanks that is happening.

But we must not give in to greed, and selfishness, but replace it with compassion and sharing.

We must not think of ourselves but of those around us, all of us who are so imperfect, for in our imperfections we create uniqueness and in doing so we see many different facets of the lives around us.

And therefor we should Give Thanks for all the Blessings that we receive whether we know of them or not. 

For if one person does a kindness it echo's on to the next and the next and the next, even if we do not know where it came from, We Should Give Thanks.

Later Darklings

Wishing all of you a Happy Thanksgiving

Of the repercussions of Ferguson~~~~

Hello Darklings,

My niece "Coralline" called me last night to see if I was safe.  She was very worried, and understandably so.

I assured her that the protests being done where I live is far enough away from mine and Sis's homes and we were all safe.

My sister in law and others who work nearby were permitted to leave early and their office closed early because already people were milling about and it didn't look good, she managed to catch a BART train out of town to her area and pick up the children since their after school programs were cancelled.

I've been home and fortunately Sis's last client was at 3 p.m. and left before it got dark.  Doyle was still in the City,  he managed to come home by going down south towards San Mateo  took the San Mateo bridge back over then took the back roads home, he was exhausted, tired and hungry.

His office advised that unless you had to be in the field to do your reports from home.  Which he is, all of Sis's afternoon clients today cancelled, so after the last one we went via a different route to the store to get a few last things. 

And we were surprised at how calm and peaceful it was in the store, people looking over the baked pies and strudel to buy for Thursday's Thanksgiving,  picking over celery, potatoes, yams (which I bought, I completely forgot about the yams), even flowers.  I found some scented candles in cinnamon and vanilla so I bought those. 

And I found the latest issue of "Guns of the Old West" winter issue,  for Doyle, it talks about the history of various people outlaws and law men, recreational reading for Doyle.

But it was the calmness that I found refreshing, the complete ordinariness of it all.  For the people here it was as if nothing had happened, the people here have their own lives to lead, budgets to maintain, a turkey to defrost and roast.  Let us be thankful for that. 

Sis does not have any appointments scheduled tomorrow and she would have cancelled them anyway until things settled down.

There were protests, blockage of freeways, looting, vandalism, some small fires set, not like in Ferguson but enough to be of serious concern.  There maybe even more tonight.

I am not going to remark about this event or the Grand Jury's Decision which I know was based on evidence and eye witnesses testimony.

But what I do have to say is this----Does anyone remember people rioting when O.J. Simpson was found not guilty?   I certainly don't.

I know that sounds callous and cruel but really, does anyone remember what happened after that decision?  I know I was not happy about it, I know a number of people were not happy about it, but I don't remember any protests.  Do you?

Later Darklings

Of possible word on Ferguson Grand Jury decison~~~

Hello My Darklings,

Doyle just called he said that the Grand Jury will be releasing its decision later today.

I just talked to my "Merry Maids" ladies and they understood and will take alternate routes.

Sis has called her remaining appointments and advised them to be careful and to also take alternate routes.

I can only pray for peaceful demonstrations here in my local.  How it will be in Ferguson we can only pray for them.

Later Darklings

Of Concerns about the Ferguson decision~~~~~~

Hello My Darklings,

It's unusual for me to be writing this early in the morning, but I am home right now and waiting for my "Merry Maids" to help me "fluff and dust" the house for the Thanksgiving celebrations.

They will make it much easier for me to just give the house a quick vacuuming and wiping down the day before the festivities.  The House Trust covers anytime I have to use their services.

Doyle is at work in the City, my sister is at her home working with clients.

But Doyle advised both of us to be on the alert in case a decision is rendered by the Grand Jury on the Ferguson incident.

Tensions are high, riots are expected.  Of course there will be marches, but there are criminal elements showing up to do harm and destruction.  Already several persons from out of town were arrested in Ferguson for having weapons and bomb making or pipe bomb devises.

Doyle heard that the word is out that the high possibility of protest marches in the City and near by maybe a reality.  Much like the "Occupy (insert name of city here)"  marches which led to destruction of property and interruption of commerce and ordinary people trying to get to work to earn money to pay their bills and put food on the table.

Doyle advised that if we have to leave our homes to be sure to carry our cellphones, leave them on and he'll call the minute he gets word and for us to come home by our planned alternate routes.

I do have thoughts on this situation, but I will keep my own opinions and not voice them.

What I do object to is how these situations give destructive, violent people access to place everyone in jeopardy.    Many of the protestors that were doing destruction were from out of town. 

And they weakened the message of the "Occupy" movement. 

Doyle having been a former police officer (retired) knows the stresses that can happen, knows the split decision making, knows that there are a lot of good cops out there, and that there are bad one's that should be removed.  

But to tar them all with the same brush?   Unless one has walked in a police officers shoes, face the dangers they face, realize the stupidity and self-entitlement the perpetrators think they have which can create a dangerous situation, then do not do a Monday morning quarter-backing.

One time I and my brother(younger) were stopped by a police officer, we followed everything the officer said carefully, we listened carefully to what he was saying, we kept our hands out where he could see them, we did not make any false moves that could be misinterpreted.

It turned out that our car was the same make, model and color of one that was just used in a robbery where someone was shot.  Two white persons were involved, it was believed one was  female.

We complied, I allowed them to search the vehicle, we gave statements, HAD our I.D.'s with us (which many people including criminals never carry).  Could verify our purchases (had receipts).

In the end the officers apologized to us and Thanked Us for our co-operation, and just as we were about to get into the car we heard that the actual robbers had been captured. 

It does not matter what color you are, always have I.D. always comply with orders because those police officers are under stress, if you are handcuffed do not resist because it is for everyone's safety.  And if you have nothing to hide, if you are telling the truth, your stories will match.

But the minute you start hiding the truth, its all over.   I do wish the "COPS" show was still being shown on regular broadcast T.V.  because it is a learning lesson of what not to do, and WHY criminals are caught. 

I remember watching the show and I would cheer for the police dog.  That may sound vicious, but they can go where no officer can, and they are considered officers as well.  I donate to the program for police vests for police dogs.

So for the next few days, maybe a week, if I have to leave the house I'll tell Doyle and keep my cell phone on, just in case and pray that any protests will be peaceful.

Later Darklings.

Of Thanksgiving shopping~~~~

Dear Darklings,

I and my sister are exhausted!!!!  

We did the bulk of our shopping today, both for general use and specifically for Thanksgiving,  Doyle drove us, but wisely brought along a book to read and said "I'll wait in the car while you ladies shop, if need be I can use the store bathroom."

We were lucky in getting a parking spot, so close to the front and we managed to snag two carts, but I swear people were driving as if they were not seeing where they were suppose to go, and people were walking in front of moving vehicles as if they didn't know where to go.

It was a miracle no one was hurt or killed.  

And the aisles in the store was jammed packed with shoppers, leaving their carts in the middle of the aisle while they wandered further down.

There was one cart right in the middle, no space to go left or right, and my sister, well sometimes she amazes me, she went right up to the cart moved it and then yelled "To Whomever left your cart in the middle of the aisle, I WILL MOVE IT to one side, don't block the walk way!!!"   and considering there was about 8 or 9 people they turned looked at Sis as she manhandled the cart over and they didn't say a word and no one owned up to it. 

We continued down the aisle got what we needed then as we turned at the end I glanced back and saw a very sheepish looking young man who was in the aisle as Sis made her announcement, claim his cart. 

Everyone had that turkey glaze look, where's the gravy--it's right in front of you.   They see yet they don't see.  Sis and I were afraid to think how the Christmas shopping was going to be.

But one poor husband and wife (young), were having a problem pushing their overloaded cart, but Sis and I saw what was the problem, it was not balanced properly and we informed them of that.

So all 4 of us redistributed everything, Sis and I showed them how to put things in the cart so nothing would get crushed and how to balance the weight to get good traction, when we were done the wife said "Oh look we've got more space in the cart!!!  I don't have to do a second trip!!"   and yes there was more space in the cart.  They thanked us for the lesson and happily went looking for more goodies.

We had our lists, went up and down the aisles starting first with fruit and veggies, moved to meats and cold cuts, then boxed, canned and bottled items, heading to dairy and frozen goods, finishing with bakery goods. 

Then standing in line and standing in line and standing in line and standing in line, all the lines were full.

We got out and found Doyle asleep in the car, so loaded things in the trunk and came home to put everything away, now Sis is in her favorite chair, I'm typing this post, Doyle has gone to pick up our favorite go-to Chinese dinner while a berry pie is baking in the oven,  not to worry Darklings I bought plenty of pies.

Then we'll have an early dinner, Sis will check things at her home and then come back for dessert while the three of us to watch our favorite shows on T.V.

Doyle did ask what took us so long, Sis and I merely looked at each other, and Doyle took the hint and offered to spring for dinner. 

I maybe able to squeeze in a little reading, I just started Dean Koontz's book "Forever Odd" one of his Odd Thomas series, I like how he writes and uses descriptive words and even within the narrative gives voice to opinions that many of us have. 

In the mean time Darklings, all of you have a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving Holiday.

Later Darklings

Of the Answer to the strange Guessing Game~~~~

Hello Darklings,

I'm sure most of you guessed the answer, and have refrained from posting it, to those who saw but wasn't sure, well don't worry Darklings, even I wasn't sure at first.

The simple answer is ---the Lady in the picture, oh she is human----but  She's Dead!

Yes Darklings she is dead, embalmed and posed with her favorite things, wine, Bingo, cigarettes, etc. 

It seems that this is a slowly emerging new trend in funeral arrangements, a bit morbid for my taste but who knows.

I've heard of several others, a woman in her favorite sexy nightgown posed in her Ferrari and she was buried in it too.

A man posed on his favorite motorcycle in full cycle gear, and a few others.  Not many but a few as I'm sure there have been.

Well there had been jokes going around when Roy Rogers had Bullet the dog and Trigger "stuffed", when he died very in poor taste jokes were going around asking if Dale had Roy "stuffed".

But it seems that the deceased in planning their funerals wanted it to be a celebration of their life, and to not going around all weepy eyed, but to just live it up.  Frankly for some people I think that's a wonderful idea, after all we go to haunted houses to see spooky tableau's why not?

I remember a story, or maybe its just an urban myth.  There was a fun house dark ride and one of the figures was that of a gruesome looking body that was hung, some years later when they were re-vamping the dark ride it turned out that it was not a prop but a real body that had been in the dark ride for years, where it came from no one knew.  Strange things happen. 

That's why I like(d) the CSI series and Bones they would find the most gruesome things, but I was told by a writer friend of mine who has done T.V. scripts that a lot of those are based on actual events that have happened and then they tie it into a story line.  He told me some writers use to joke "what kind of horrible death can we use this week."   Not at all tasteful, but not untrue either.

Mom wanted to put on Dad's tombstone "Gone Fishing" with a fish splashing out of the water, but a couple of relatives were horrified, so a year later on the anniversary of his passing we put flowers on his grave and Mom stuck a small wooden sign she made with the same words.  She was going to have the last say in the matter.  That sign stayed there until it fell apart, next year we're going to put up a new one.

But I'm afraid I am a bit of a traditionalist, I'll want the simple boring funeral service, but I'm choosing the music I want to be played, such as Bach's "Toccata and Fugue"  Some Gregorian Chants, maybe Mozart's Requiem I haven't thought it out yet.

But I do want my hands to be over my chest with a lily in one hand, like Lily Munster,  I don't care if its a silk lily that is what I want. 

And now I must sign off, the timer went off and Doyle has pulled the stuffed Bell Peppers from the oven.

Later Darklings