Of Rain, Rain and hopefully more Rain~~~~

Hello Darklings,

I LOVE the Rain, its so moody, gothic and noir, even the wet streets at night reflecting the neon adds to the "Gotham" feeling, the dark corners, and slithery sounds of tires squashing though puddles.

Ahhh yes I had to work late last night, rain and rain, fortunately Doyle came to pick me up so I would not have to depend upon public transportation, not that I'd mind but of late Doyle is becoming more protective, if the traffic of San Francisco wasn't so congested and people driving like idiots I would enjoy going though this city, but stupid drivers and pedestrians make it difficult to seek the simple pleasures of just enjoying the city at night, in the rain, in the dark.

Driving back over the Bay Bridge (I'm sorry Darklings but I refuse to call it the Willy Brown Bridge it is the Bay Bridge and that is that), but driving over the Bridge I love the grittyness of the older part of the span, I keep hearing that song so often associated with a Mickey Spillane movie, I think it's called "Harlem Nocturn",  as we drive over it,  and then we go through the Tunnel at Treasure Island and bam we are on a bridge that is something out of a Star Trek Movie----Oh Darklings the aspects and designs of the 21st Century hold no charm for me.  I find them boring, a sterile sameness that just kills the soul.

Oh for the designs of the old Chrysler and Empire State buildings of New York, or the Gothicness of old New Orleans,  it's like that song "little houses, made of ticky-tacky, little houses all the same", then it becomes such a relief to walk into my own home, away from all the 21st century "stuff".

Oh well if people are blind to such early 20th century beauty then they are truely blind. 

My Gardener was able to take care of the trees that needed to be trimmed and he is soaking the severly damaged rose bushes in buckets of water with lots of plant vitamin B to help with the transplanting into the cemetery area, hopefully they will take and come back.   I'm going to the nursery Saturday, rain or no rain to select some new bushes to put into that area along with seeing if there are some annuals that can be planted to take care of the squashed plantings, until I can put in something more "permanet".  Louise my cousin will be coming with me, she has in front of her cottage apartment two cement planters so she needs soil and some plantings for it to help cheer up her entrance way.  I know how plebian, how mundane, but not everyone can live a totally gothic/noir life although I'd like to try. 

It sort of makes me wonder about evil characters like the evil queen in Snow White or Malifacent in Sleeping Beauty, who does their laundry?  Do they have to put on makeup each morning?  Do they suffer from headaches?  They can't always be scheming on doing evil deeds all the time, I would think it would be tiring.

Oh well,  and my contractor came by while there was a break in the weather, to look over the damage to the fence and give me an estimate, not as bad as I feared and I'll see if my home owners insurance can cover it, I know my neighbor can't, poor thing,  she still is in a state over it but I've been reassuring her to not worry,  as a matter of fact I'm inviting her over for dinner again tonight,  I am concerned about her health and I want to do everything to relax her,  Belladonna and Weiner Dog have been amusing her which is good, but still since her family lives so far away Sacramento I think, I want her to be in a "good place and frame of mind".

The arborist will be coming next week to see about her tree, I do hope we don't have to have it cut down, it is still a magnficent tree.

And the weather man is saying more rain is coming, more and more---oh that means people will be in the rain during the opening of the Oakland Museum's White Elephant Sale this weekend, and I do so want to go,  well I guess it will be rain coats and umbrella's or something.  I love the white elephant sale, you never know what one will find.  The only problem is parking, such a bear, completely horrible, but we'll see.

One of my co-workers said the only way we can break the drought is if it rains at least every other day for March, April and May,  we can hope.   I'd hate to think of manditory water rationing,  at least my cisterns are catching as much of the rain water as possible so that should help the garden and greenhouse, I have to thank my late Great-Aunt for thinking so far ahead on that.

Ahh but now I think I'll go ahead and prepare the salad,  and bake the pie for dessert, it's all put together apples and cranberries, I came across the receipe in one of those little cook books, the pie crust is pre-made but I did have to peel and cut the apples.  I think it will be a good warm yet refreshing thing to have.

Later Darklings 

Nail Polish for the Elder Goth

I love having my nails done, give me a mani-pedi any day, there is something so wickedly indulgent about having it done.

For my pedi’s health sake I have it done once a month, and the place I go to the staff makes sure everything is totally sanitary; during the winter I have the pedi’s done but without nail polish, I want to wear my socks and keep the feet warm, but when things start warming up, then the polish goes on, from March to November, as long as it’s warm.

I do not like flip-flops, or thronged sandals they are very painful to the skin between the toes, why anyone wants to torture themselves that way must be a masochist.

But one thing I’ve noticed is the dark, dark nail polish, the brighter reds don’t seem to be all that good, but the extreme darks like black, blue, green even deep purple just seem out of place for an Elder Goth, it’s like we’re playing dress up or are extremely eccentric, if you are an elder Goth doing business you have to chose your nail polish carefully.

How your hands and nails look can cause the other person to subconsciously judge you without them realizing it.

You don’t want that.

I’ve found that the deep “Hollywood Reds” from the 40’s and 50’s (I sometimes call them Revlon Reds because that’s the only company that seems to continue to make them) as deep and dark as they can be without them appearing too silly seems to work, but my Elder Goth Darklings, you have to remember how your aged hands appear as well. These same reds also work for those ladies in the Corporate Goth mode.

If you wash dishes, do gardening or house cleaning always wear gloves, as a matter of fact if you go outside at all to shop or run errands always wear gloves, especially during the coldest of weathers.

All of that takes a toll on the skin, which as one gets older becomes more fragile, and can bruise easily. Always use hand lotions to keep the skin soft and supple, but eventually you can no longer use the Dark, Dark nail colors, that is when your hands cannot hide the wrinkles, the knottiness of the joints, and the age spots and subsurface bruising.

When that happens, continue to use your hand lotions and wear gloves but switch to the light colors, you can have fun with the OPI colors such as “Nomad’s Dream” or “Oh So Glam!” There are web sites that offer these colors if you can’t find them in your favorite drug store or beauty supply house.

You can also provide your nail polish color from home when you have your mani-pedi especially if the salon no longer carries it.

The idea behind going towards the lighter colors is to lessen the aged look of your hands and provide a more elegant longer looking hand without drawing attention to its deficits.

The minute you think that your favorite dark, dark color doesn’t look good on your hands is the time to switch to the lighter colors, they don’t have to be pink, and remember as one ages so do the ridge lines on your nails appear, so you’ll want to avoid designs and add on’s, and no acrylic nails or silk wraps, you’ll be inviting a nail fungus which is not appealing at all.

One item of jewelry that is always appealing for Elder Goths, is a ring, I’m not talking about a silver thumb ring or with skulls or a cross but one piece of expensive jewelry in yellow gold or white gold, I have several in 14kt gold; one is a large piece of cabochon coral, another is a 7 carat weight brown topaz, another is lavender jade, another is a very large oval of black jet, one holds a 5 dollar gold piece and my final piece in yellow gold in a large piece that is just in a banded design.

These are in yellow gold; you can do the same with white gold and avoid the silver route entirely because there is nothing like a valuable piece of jewelry on one’s finger to set things off nicely. And only wear just one and not on the thumb, wearing a ring on the thumb is so tacky.

Eventually you will settle on one that will become a signature piece.

Part of the problem with wearing a ring or rings and gloves is that it’s impossible to wear both, what do you do? Well if you are outside, continue to wear gloves, but if it’s an evening function or you’re indoors then wear the rings.

Now I have seen black lace fingerless gloves which are very nice and that can be paired with rings, but remember as an Elder or Elderly Goth don’t go overboard, being understated without being plain is ideal.

A New Style of Goth?~~~~

First off there is something that a lot of young people in the Goth scene seem to disagree on---- They disagree on who is Goth and who is not.

Of course there are the Posers, those who dress in black, with black nail polish, black lipstick, dyed hair and say they are into a certain band or bands.

But there are a number of older Goths who really define Goth as just understanding that nothing in life is a certainty----we do die, but like the “Days of the Dead” we laugh at it, and also understand it.

We celebrate it in a way, we embrace the night side of life, therefore it is important to enjoy life, but embrace the finiteness of it and its dark side, without going into the abyss.

When I was a “Baby Bat” or “Baby Goth” in the late 1950’s I and my Mother enjoyed going to cemeteries and looking at tombstones, as a matter of fact, when we were putting flowers on the graves of our loved ones, we’d look at the nearby graves of our ‘neighbors’, sometimes even clearing away old dead flowers, noticing what graves were being taken care of and which one’s weren’t, we’d even notice if their was a new date of death or a new name.

More than once my Mother would say “Oh, Oh they lost their (son, mother, husband, daughter) and she would look the grave over and say a prayer. Going to the cemetery was visiting our “dead neighbors”, we may not know them, but sometimes it felt like family and yes, if we were there for a long time cleaning graves and such, we packed picnic lunches and eat there, of course it was a long walk to the bathrooms for the adults if we had to use them, sometimes several of the family members would use the car to get there and then come back.

I didn’t realize it but my Grandmother, who was born in 1890, was Goth, living a Goth life style but she and many like her didn’t flaunt it, they lived it differently. She never wore bright colors, especially after Grandpa died, it was always dark colored dresses, either dark blue or black with a dark print, she had three hats, two were straw, one was a black straw with dark purple flowers the other was a beige straw with lavender flowers, mourning and half mourning. The remaining hat was black wool with a wide brim.

She had two coats, the very good black coat for formal occasions, and the other good black coat for everyday use. Even her sweaters were black or dark blue. And always black shoes with lace ups.

The rooms were always dark, except for the kitchen; she’d always say “We need the light to see if the meat is done.” And her stove was an old Buck Stove, that you would see in a Victorian home, she used it until 10 years before she died, then my know it all Uncle had it replaced, the kitchen never felt the same again.

Nothing was ever replaced unless it had to be replaced. It was hard to get anything new into her house unless it was a mattress, sheets or towels, the one break through was the Television set, and it was years before it was replaced and only because the picture tube finally burnt out.

Music only the classical music stations or the Catholic Hour, especially the Rosary Hour, every evening at Sundown, 6 p.m. on the dot.

But that’s not to say we didn’t have fun, we did, playing board games, card games, dominos, puzzles, the puzzles were the best because we could talk about things.

Going to the Funerals was an occasion, there was always someone dying or dead as the case maybe, I got to be a connoisseur of funeral parlors, flower arrangements, churches funerals services, cemeteries, headstones, prayer cards, etiquette for funerals, all of that.

Then back to my Grandmother’s place to critic the funeral service from casket to final prayer.

In a way we were like that Adams Family, but we looked normal but just had this “dark side” outlook on life. And if that is not being Goth then I don’t know what is.

It’s more than music; it is a life outlook, which a lot of young people simply don’t know. Or think they know but really they don’t.

There is one style of Goth that I have not seen, maybe I’m the first to create it or maybe they are out there and thought they had to be Victorian or romantic.

This style Goth is what I call in reference to the furniture style either Art Deco or Art Modern. Some people may refer to them as Corporate Goth, but it goes beyond that.

The films they like are horror films, spy films, Hitchcock or the German noir films of the silent era, and the same genre from the 30’s, 40’s and 50’s, especially the film noir and Val Luton films---eventually I’ll create a list.

The music they like can be jazz, blues from the 20’s to early 50’s, some big band, classical as well, Gregorian chant eventually I’ll put together a list.

They will attend art galleries, museums, opera, ballet, concerts, and film revivals, explore antique shops, historical locations and homes, auctions, and for fun Flea Markets; they will pretty much shun the extreme modern artists, and love Tamara De Lempika.

They will read spy novels, murder mysteries, history, literature, be familiar with the era of the 20’ through the 1950’s in history, literature, art, fashion etc. even old funeral practices.

Be well educated, dress classy, with makeup and hair from the time frame of the 20’s to the 50’s without looking overdone, always look well put together without it looking fussy, always courteous, refrain from using obscenities, and look neat even at Burger King.

They maybe members of a local Art Deco Society, or Film Society, perhaps a Historic Preservation Society or members of a Tatofile society

In terms of etiquette they will follow Emily Post, Amy Vanderbilt but knowing the 21st century mores, but will honor the laws, especially in cell phone and black burry usage.
Be friendly, not aloof but reticent.

The idea is by their presence and example to make and encourage people of all ages to come up to your level not you go down to theirs, this will wake up young people to start dressing better, it may take time but one needs to be a good example.

They will not be flustered by anything, nor allow anything to irritate them, it simply is not done.

They distain extreme vulgarity and tasteless jokes, but are aware that not everyone is at their level, they will have the good manners to not look down upon those with no taste but simply not comment on it.

They can have fun and enjoy fun; they know how to laugh, sometimes to even delight in the very simple pleasures of watching butterflies, cutting out snow flakes, enjoying the expression of children who discover something for the first time.

For the Elderly Goth They KNOW that life is fleeting, that all blossomings are the beginnings of decay.

So I will continue to Explore this Style of Goth, incorporating the fact that they are aging and Elderly, but it will be something for the yearlings aka Baby Bats to learn from.