Chief, 13.5, has been quite mobile but still dealing with hind-leg difficulties. He has been joining us on the deck and even joining Hoskins and Colonel Deeds in the yard as they chase and play around the stationary old fellow.
Harrigan, 10.5, has me worried as she has not eaten again, today. This happens with her once or twice each year, and she quickly bounces back to what is normal for her. She drinks water but refuses to eat. Harry stays with me in bed or on the deck and even joins the others out in the yard for pottying and sniffing around. I cannot determine if her depression over Bailey’s passing has returned or if she is just having a few off days.
I love older dogs, but when they hit “that point” with age or health issues, it is heart-tugging.
My weekend moved too quickly, and I wish I could grab it all over again.
Saturday was one setback after another, but it finally pulled together by 4 PM when Laura pulled into my driveway to take Mama Kay and me back to her home for a Chinese dinner she had made. And she made a sugar-free white cake with icing and decorated it with blueberries and strawberries. Delicious!
After dinner, we retreated to the front room to chat for several hours. It was such a nice respite from frustrations with deliveries, aging and ill pooches, and the continual stress of body issues.
Early Sunday morning we were greeted with the thunderstorms we were promised. The morning was blotches of rain showers and was cleared for a few hours, only to return by 3 PM.
Sunday afternoon and evening were filled with lessons from hardworking and dedicated students. I am so grateful for their commitment to studying voice and piano. Two students from Denver, Colorado are preparing to begin rehearsal for a fairly newly written musical, BETWEEEN THE LINES in which they have lead roles. Another student has been called back for an additional callback audition for the national tour of WICKED.
I’ve spent most of my day on the deck with the dogs lounging and playing. Chief has been much better, and Harrigan, although not out of the woods, has been eating and acting less lethargic.
It’s almost 4 PM and now on to the Monday lessons.
This Wednesday is a bit chillier than previous days, and we’ve had some scattered showers since early morning.
On Tuesday night, former student and bonus son Alex Loree and I went to Elsa’s on Far Hills Avenue for a late supper. We had a delicious meal, but a very disagreeable server named Rhonda. We’ve had her during previous visits, and she always makes us feel as if we are an insufferable burden to her. Our fine conversation over road any dissatisfaction with our service.
This morning after feeding the pooches, I returned to bed for a few more hours, rising at 9:15 AM to catch the southbound No. 17 bus to Walmart on Kingsridge Drive. I grabbed my fresh vegetables, wishing I had just gone to Kroger whose fresh produce is much better; the Walmart celery is wimpy and usually requires three stalks to Kroger’s one stalk. However, I needed some other items.
One of the plus-sides about last night’s dinner was that my chicken nachos had very few chips and an enormous amount of shredded chicken, with lots of cheese, which I brought home in a filled large container. I split it in half, and added two cans of cream of mushroom soup, a can of black beans, milk, and spices – perfection!
I hope to attend this evening’s Kettering Civic Band’s Fraze Pavilion in nearby Lincoln Park, the City of Kettering’s Block Party, the kick-off to summer. In the meantime, I shall bury myself in research, escaping back to 1904.
Wednesday was just a blah day, inside and outside. The sun barely acknowledged us, and the temperature remained cooler, finally allowing some warmer breezes to blow toward the evening.
I piddled around the house but did not feel accomplished. The little tasks are detestable but must be done.
Wednesday evening felt too chilly to sit outside for a band concert, so I opted to go to Blue Moon Chinese Buffet for dinner. Naturally, the weather warmed up on the way to the bus stop for No. 28, a few blocks away.
After dinner, I hopped on No. 28, heading to Town & Country for the pet store to buy a new collar for Hoskin. This is the third collar she has wiggled out of and eaten. Before grabbing the bus, Hoskins had wiggled out of the fence and was being held by a passing neighbor on a walk. Her new collar is on, a little tighter.
The temperature is currently 53 degrees and is expected to climb twenty more degrees by the day’s end.
It is a full day, and to be honest, I would rather relax on the deck with the pooches lounging about. I am busy throughout the day and will have about 90 minutes home before needing to head downtown to Schuster for a high school theatre event. Friday and Saturday, I will house manage, again, but it will be for THE KITE RUNNER at Victoria Theatre.
The Miami Valley was certainly alive with the sound of music, on Thursday night, and Schuster Center was the place to be where several hundred high school theatre students were celebrated for their talents and efforts. Seeing young people and the performing arts combined and acknowledged is always exciting. There were many outstanding individual and corporate performances.
I manned the Volunteer Ushers and the upper right balcony which hosted the high school students who came and went due to their performed numbers down on the stage. The students were enthusiastic and extremely well-behaved throughout the entire evening. In fact, when the production was over, they left the upper backing spotless and with only a few plastic water bottles and napkins.
This morning is cold at 49 degrees and the house is quite chilly. It has been determined that the day will reach 73 degrees by the afternoon, but that doesn’t placate the current shivering. I have windows open throughout the house and do not wish to go around shutting them in order to turn on the heat. I will be gone a majority of the day and by the time I return home to change clothes to return downtown to Victoria Theatre, it will not matter how cool the house is.
I am currently listening to a Ken Burns podcast featuring Erik Larson on America’s history from crisis to Civil War, and an Audible book, AMERICA IN THE GUILDED AGE AND PROGRESSIVE ERA by Edward T. O’Donnell. Professor O’Donnell said of history, “One central idea I try to communicate in my courses is that history is the study of choices. It follows no predetermined script. History is determined by the choices made by people both famous and unknown.”
It is time to move on with my day and I am glad I have things to do, but more importantly, that I can do them.
June 1st is upon us and as Oscar Hammerstein II’s lyrics tell us, “is bustin’ out all over.” We’re nearing this year’s halfway point. I am also just under four months until my 60th birthday.
Friday was a double-header, but by the time I returned from Part 1, I had the luxury of a 90-minute nap before returning to Victoria Theatre to house manage THE KITE RUNNER. The best part of working Friday evening was getting to see my wonderful friend and voice-teaching colleague, Carol Chatfield. The reunion was swift but recharged my batteries for the evening.
It’s 7 AM and the day is already looking to be a beautiful one. I know I should mow the lawn, but I am just too physically tired to do so. Perhaps, tomorrow or Tuesday I will mow. It’s still a bit chilly, and at some point, I will move my work to the deck to enjoy the weather and allow the pooches to play outside. I will take the No. 17 bus downtown around 5:20 PM to report to Victoria Theatre by 6 PM.
On with my day of rest and research.
Make it a great day!
“June Is Bustin’ Out All Over” from CAROUSEL
Oscar Hammerstein II & Richard Rodgers
March went out like a lion A whippin’ up the water in the bay Then April cried and stepped aside And along come pretty little May! May was full of promises But she didn’t keep ’em quickly enough for some And a crowd of doubtin’ Thomases Was predictin’ that the summer’d never come But it’s comin, by gum We can feel it come You can feel it in your heart You can see it in the ground You can see it in the trees You can smell it in the breeze Look around! Look around! Look around! June is bustin’ out all over All over the meadow and the hill Buds’re bustin’ outa bushes And the rompin’ river pushes Ev’ry little wheel that wheels beside the mill
Anna Greenlee Jones was born on June 2, 1875, in Boone Township, Madison County, Indiana. She was the daughter of Andrew Taylor Greenlee and Prudence Ball Greenlee, also of Boone Township.
Anna married Joel Monroe “Roe” Jones in March 1894, and she moved a half mile west of the Greenlee farm to the Vinson-Jones farm which was one mile directly south of Forrestville Cemetery.
Anna and Joel were the parents of William Henry Jones, Mary Belle Jones-Clary, Alpha Delmar Jones, Harry Jones, and Benge Jones. Belle and her husband, John Willliam Garrett Clary would take over the Vinson-Jones farm in 1934 when Anna and Roe retired from farming and moved into a large stone home on Lincoln Avenue in Alexandria, Indiana.
Anna died in September 15, 1950, three years following her father’s death, and was buried in Forrestville Cemetery. Alphie Jones would die on his mother’s birthday in 1973.
Anna Greenlee Jones was my great-great-grandmother.
THE KITE RUNNER ended its Dayton Live run on Sunday, and my last shift for the production was Saturday night.
Saturday, I traveled via No. 28|Stroop to The Greene to eat at El Toro for lunch and returned home for a nap before getting ready for my trip downtown. I worked with Janett for the Saturday shift, and as always we had a fun time.
I really did nothing on Sunday except eat lunch with Mama Kay at La Pinata in Centerville and teach from 4 PM until 11:30 PM. Several Colorado students who take their lessons via Zoom have lead roles in a fairly new musical, BETWEEN THE LINES. It’s been a lot of fun getting to learn this show which was entirely unfamiliar to me. I am so very proud of my students’ hard work and growth throughout this brief rehearsal period.
This coming week is not as packed as last week and I am looking forward to some deck time with my research, writing, and listening to documentaries from my chaise lounge while the pooches play. I need to work on mowing and trimming the yard, as well.
And this is today’s report. I am catching up on the news before getting ready for the day where I will be away until 2 PM and teaching from 4 PM to 11:45 PM.
And what is so rare as a day in June? Then, if ever, come perfect days; Then Heaven tries the earth if it be in tune, And over it softly her warm ear lays: Whether we look, or whether we listen, We hear life murmur, or see it glisten; Every clod feels a stir of might, An instinct within it that reaches and towers, And, groping blindly above it for light, Climbs to a soul in grass and flowers; The flush of life may well be seen Thrilling back over hills and valleys; The cowslip startles in meadows green, The buttercup catches the sun in its chalice, And there’s never a leaf nor a blade too mean To be some happy creature’s palace; The little bird sits at his door in the sun, Atilt like a blossom among the leaves, And lets his illumined being o’errun With the deluge of summer it receives; His mate feels the eggs beneath her wings, And the heart in her dumb breast flutters and sings; He sings to the wide world, and she to her nest,— In the nice ear of Nature which song is the best?
Now is the high-tide of the year, And whatever of life hath ebbed away Comes flooding back with a ripply cheer, Into every bare inlet and creek and bay; Now the heart is so full that a drop over-fills it, We are happy now because God wills it; No matter how barren the past may have been, ‘Tis enough for us now that the leaves are green; We sit in the warm shade and feel right well How the sap creeps up and the blossoms swell; We may shut our eyes, but we cannot help knowing That skies are clear and grass is growing; The breeze comes whispering in our ear, That dandelions are blossoming near, That maize has sprouted, that streams are flowing, That the river is bluer than the sky, That the robin is plastering his house hard by; And if the breeze kept the good news back, For other couriers we should not lack; We could guess it all by yon heifer’s lowing,— And hark! how clear bold chanticleer, Warmed with the new wine of the year, Tells all in his lusty crowing!
This Wednesday morning is still a bit damp from the downpour we received Tuesday evening.
I ran some Tuesday morning errands, ate lunch at The Greene, returned home by 1:15 PM, and sat in the chaise lounge on the deck to finish my Speedway coffee before mowing the yard.
I woke up at 3:30 PM!
Mama Kay was busy during the lunch-hour but sent an email to see if I’d like to go to a Taco Tuesday supper. I hurried up and fed the dogs, got my laundry on the line to dry, and moved to Mama Kay’s driveway.
When we finished eating at El Toro, the skies looked a bit stormy. There had been no predictions for rain, but my radar showed some popup storms moving our way. As far-off thunder heralded the approaching storm, I trimmed the front yard and sidewalk. I finished mowing and blowing the front yard just as drops of rain began falling before the deluge of water poured.
By 6:30 PM, I was stretched out on my bed for an additional nap. I was bushed!
There will be a quick hop downtown, this morning, an hour meeting at Noon, and I will have my own free time the remainder of the day and evening. Thursday and Friday will find me at Schuster Center, and Saturday and Sunday, I will be ensconced at Victoria Theatre from 8 AM – 10 PM for Funk Lab Dayton 2024. I was cheerfully prodded into joining another house manager for this event that no other house managers wanted. Last year’s house managers offered some email advice on managing this event.
The world around The Haasienda is light but there is no inviting sunshine. Until it dries off more, I will be inside and not out on the deck.
It is an overcast morning and the deck and yard are still quite damp from the previous night’s rain. The day is predicted to steep at 80 degrees, but clouds will cover the area.
Wednesday was a nice day, and I certainly kept busy with only one nap.
I was away from The Haasienda until 10:45 AM and easily made it to my Noon meeting which concluded at 1:15 PM.
Back at home, I took a nap on the deck until 3 PM, fed the pooches, and boarded No. 28 to take me on a three-minute ride to the intersection of Dorothy Lane and Wilmington Pike to eat dinner at Blue Moon Chinese Buffet.
I went to Dollar Tree to collect some snack items to get me through the long days of Saturday and Sunday when I will house manage Funk Lab Dayton. Normally, I am a firm customer at Kroger on Stroop Road for its produce; however, since I was at the Woodman Lane Kroger next to Delco Park, I decided to shave off time and travel.
Mission accomplished, and I was home by 6:30 PM to remain on the deck until an 8:15 PM shower suddenly appeared. We did not start with a few sprinkles but an immediate and quick downpour.
My body is tired and not without aches this morning. I am going to rest up the remainder of the morning before I am needed for my next command which will keep me busy until 8:30 PM.
It’s June 16th and the month is now half over. Once we hit July I always feel summer is on its final push as July and August are generally crammed full with return to school events as marching band, cross country and other athletic opportunities kick into gear. While they don’t necessarily affect me, I feel that pull into the fall activities.
I left for Schuster Center 10:45 AM and stepped back onto No. 17 at 11:35 PM. It was a long day but not as terribly exhausting as I imagined. The people, my fellow house managers, and my troop of Ushers for the 2 PM and 8 PM made it worthwhile and enjoyable.
I stepped inside to watch more of the production numbers for MAMMA MIA! and I did love them. The choreography was sensational and energizing.
There will be very few performances during the summer hiatus and I will mostly be house managing graduations, corporate meetings, and some productions in the PNC Annex on the south side of West Second Street, directly across from Schuster Center.
I’m hoping to take advantage of the concerts at the downtown Levitt Pavilion that take place on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. They also produce concerts on Sundays but they’re during my teaching hours. I also hope to do more hiking through the cemeteries, and to attend concerts and events at Fraze Pavilion, one block from my house, as well as some of the music events at Riverscape Metro Park alongside the Great Miami River.
Sunday and Monday afternoons and evenings will be packed with teaching. Tuesday and Wednesday are all mine and I am thrilled to plan my adventures. I also need to spend more time with the pooches who have been neglected these past several weeks.
Of course, I need to invest more time into my writing and research that has been woefully abandoned but for an hour or so each day.
The morning is stunning… a beautiful sky, a cool gentle breeze wafting through the house, the pooches outside playing or lounging, and an expected high of 83 degrees.
I just finished a late breakfast and will soon be preparing for a trip down to the Schuster Center for the second to last day of MAMMA MIA! which will conclude its Dayton run, on Sunday evening. We have a matinee and evening performance today, and I shall be there for both.
I almost hate to leave beautiful weather, but it will hopefully be another fun time at Schuster. The audience has made this tour a great deal of fun because they are having a grand time. Last evening, I stepped inside Door 6 to take in some of the Megamix that follows the bows, and it is hard to not get caught up in the thrill the music invokes. Audience members were dancing, singing, waving arms in the air… I love it.
Today’s two performances of MAMMA MIA! will be my last since I resume teaching private lessons on Sunday. I am not a fan of the show (jukebox musicals… meh…) but I will miss hearing the live music of ABBA.
It is time to begin preparations to meet No. 17 Eastbound for downtown at 10:39 AM to begin my 11:30 AM to 11:15 PM shift.
I love leaving Schuster Center with classic Rock songs exploding inside my brain and humming inside my head. At the end of the musical, many patrons burst through the doors singing, even dancing, and with wide smiles lighting up their faces. I love this.
Last evening, I saw several friends, former studio parents, Joan & Mike Cordonnier, Linda & Jim Utt, and longtime friend, Marabeth Klejna. It was nice collecting hugs from these folks.
Getting to Schuster was almost an event with the Dayton RTA (bus) running behind, disappearing from the route, only to reappear thirty-plus minutes after its due time as I stood across the street waiting on my Lyft driver.
I will return a bit after 2 PM, today, and I hope to grab a nap before needing to be back at Schuster by 6 PM. I am picking up a shift for a fellow house manager on Saturday morning. I was only to work from 6 PM to 11 PM, however, now I shall be there from 11:30 AM to 11 PM. It’s not the day I was hoping for as my backyard needs to be mowed, and there were other items I had hoped to accomplish. But I do enjoy being a part of this team of house managers and am happy to contribute my assistance.
I will have several days free with MAMMA MIA leaving Sunday evening. I won’t be at the two Sunday shows as I teach. I hope to reclaim some writing and research time on the deck and pay some attention to mowing the yard and laundry.
On with this muggy day that shall lead into the 80s by afternoon’s arrival.
The audience arrived, many in 1980s or Greek summer attire, festive and ready to have a good time. And a good time they had. Their exit from the show was filled with energy and appreciation for the music of ABBA.
Prior to the show, the Chief Creative Officer for Dayton Live, Gary Minyard, presented his program, “Background on Broadway,” a series of fascinating and individual histories of the musicals that come through Dayton. MAMMA MIA has a great background from the early days of ABBA to the stage.
Throughout the night, my dreams were accompanied by the ABBA soundtrack, mostly the songs from the musical and featuring “Under Attack,” one of my favorite songs.
I was home by 11 PM, and slept for five of the six hours allotted to me before needing to rise at 6 PM.
It’s already mid-June, and I wish the summer days would slow down a bit. After this week, the Dayton Live shows and events will end, mostly for the remainder of the summer, except for summer classes and private events.
It’s moving in on 7 AM and I need to move on with my day!
82 degrees is our promised high for the day but the morning is on the cooler side at 59 degrees. I’m on the deck with the pooches and am still comfortable.
The whirlwind days, beginning with Friday and culminating last evening. I’ve never been good with departures. I can remember the wretched trips down to Weir Cook Airport, now Indianapolis International Airport, to watch my Uncle Ron board the plane to return to the Norfolk, Virginia US Naval Base. Airports always gut my stomach with emotions.
I’m on to check in our Volunteer Ushers for MAMMA MIA, tonight, meaning I need to be in earlier than my fellow house managers. I do enjoy greeting our wonderful Volunteers.
There’s a few items around the house that need my attention but frankly, I’m just too tired. I’m retreating to my bed for a few more hours and will assess things upon waking.
It’s a chilly Tuesday morning, but warmer and more agreeable than yesterday. Our high, today, is only to reach 78 degrees.
Yesterday was a whirlwind of visiting several sites, two of Joshua’s godparents for lunch, dinner in Cincy, ice cream at Young’s Dairy in Yellow Springs, and Bill’s Donuts to crown the day. Coming off the long weekend, my body feels slammed this morning, but I shall be restored after a day or two.
I shall join a 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair Society meeting via Zoom tonight. This is the 120th anniversary of the great fair, and I grew up with the stories of family members visiting St. Louis for the event.
Tomorrow night, I will find myself near the fictional Greek island, Kalokariri, where MAMMA MIA! will take the stage at Schuster Center. I love ABBA’s music, but I do not like jukebox musicals. Yes, they are fun, but for me, personally, I would rather have a steadfast book musical. Still, I am sure I will hum the favorite melodies I have known for so many years.
The long weekend of house managing Funk Lab Dayton is over. I will admit I enjoyed myself, seeing folks I knew, and loved seeing the talent and energy, but it was hard on the body. I paced myself well, but by midafternoon on Sunday, I felt the body readjusting itself.
Just before 10 PM, last night, I walked into the house, changed clothes while the pooches pottied, and joined them on the deck for 45 minutes. It was so invigorating to be out in the fresh air.
This morning is chilly. I tried working from the deck but was drawn back inside to my study. Chief remains on the deck where he keeps an eye on the backyard, a responsibility he has taken seriously for many years.
I am resting until the early afternoon and will be out and about with loved ones.
I love this cool breeze blowing through the house at 5:30 AM. My alarms were set for 5:15 AM, 5:30 AM, and 5:45 AM but with Harrigan hovering over my face, Hoskins snuggling deeper into my side, and Colonel Deeds laying across my groin and nudging my bladder into urgency, I was bounding out of bed at 5 AM.
Saturday morning, I was downtown in time enough to grab some sugar-free sodas at the market and a tall coffee from Starbucks at Schuster Center. Tamra, my fellow house manager, had placed a Starbucks order, so I grabbed hers, as well.
I learned, but did not have time to investigate, that Dayton is the cradle for Funk!
The day was long but rather smooth. It was fun seeing the energy-filled dancers sign in with their parents as they prepared for their rehearsal shifts that ran from 10 AM to 3 PM, followed by the performance and awards ceremony that began at 5 PM. We were surprised to learn that we would complete our day by 8 PM instead of 11:15 PM. I was elated to be stepping into my Uber at 8:20 PM, out of my work clothes, and on the deck by 8:45 PM with the thrilled pooches. I received seven hours of sleep and not the anticipated five hours.
I do feel refreshed this morning and ready to meet this long day which will begin with a Lyft ride picking me up at 7:10 AM for my 7:30 AM shift at Victoria which will end at 8 PM when the dance concert concludes.
I did get to see three folks yesterday, two of whom I’ve known for many years. Josh Oxley, a former Kettering Middle School student, was there with his daughter, a fellow former marching band parent, Tina Wipperman-Hillard, and her daughter, Chloe, and one of our Dayton Live Volunteer Ushers, Heather Heritage who was with her son, Jax. The day before, I had a thoroughly enjoyable lunch with Carol Chatfield, and later that night at the Schuster concert, I got to chat with Mary Hutcheson Moenter.
My Uber driver was a 2012 Kettering Fairmont High School graduate and neighbor, Demetrius Summerville, also a National Parks Service Ranger. Demetrius possesses a deep love for local history, and we had a nice chat on the return to Kettering.
The dogs have been fed and pottied, waiting for their final yard venture before I leave. Today, Zac and Ian of the Canine Crew will be attending to the quintet throughout the day. Both are neighbor boys and musicians. Zac’s family has been attending the pooches, and cats, for over a decade now, beginning with his older sister, Gwen, who is now a National Parks Service Ranger out west.
I must be moving along with my morning as I have an hour before my driver arrives. I am grateful Mother raised me to be organized as I only need to pack things into my bags.
It’s 6:20 AM, Saturday morning, and I will be catching the 8:10 AM No. 17 to head downtown to house manage the Funk Lab Dayton dance competition at Victoria Theatre. I spent an hour, Friday afternoon, prepping for this terribly long day and tomorrow, which will keep me downtown until past 11 PM. Tomorrow, however, I am to be at Victoria by 7:30 AM. Hideous!
I had originally signed up to work Saturday’s second Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra’s performance which included Antonin Dvorak’s NEW WORLD SYMPHONY. Still, I cheerfully agreed to move across the street to the other venue. Last night, I listened to the most glorious concert, and I am kicking myself even more for not being able to hear a second round, tonight.
This is the repertoire of last night’s, and tonight’s repeated concert:
Florence Price (1887–1953) (orch. by William Grant Still) Dances in the Canebrakes
Nimble Feet
Tropical Noon
Silk Hat and Walking Cane
Harry Burleigh (1866–1949) “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot”
Artega Wright, baritone
Antonín Dvořák (1841–1904) Symphony No. 9 in E Minor, op. 95 (“From the New World”)
Adagio—Allegro molto
Largo
Molto vivace
Allegro con fuoco
– INTERMISSION –
Rosephanye Powell (b. 1962) “Ascribe to the Lord”
Adolphus Hailstork (b. 1941) Prelude & Great Day. He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands
Arr. Betty Jackson King (1928–1994) “I Want God’s Heaven to be Mine”
Hezekiah Walker (b. 1962) “Every Praise”
Kurt Carr (b. 1964) “For Every Mountain”
John Legend (b. 1978) (arr. Dr. Willetta Greene-Johnson) “Glory”
Judith McAllister (b. 1963) “Hallelujah, You’re Worthy to Be Praised”
The NEW WORLD SYMPHONY and the concluding piece, “Hallelujah, You’re Worthy to Be Praised” were powerful enough to make me kick myself over and over, knowing I will miss it, and that it’s being performed right across the street.
Oh, well… on with the day.
“Movement 2, Largo” from NEW WORLD SYMPHONY is for me, without a doubt, one of my favorite melodies. When it premiered in 1893 at New York City’s Carnegie Hall, many believed this movement to be an authentic Spiritual from pre-Civil War. In 1922, lyrics were added to the melody by Dvorak’s pupil, William Arms Fisher, and titled, “Goin’ Home.”
“Goin’ home, goin’ home, I’m just goin’ home. Quiet like some still day, I’m just goin’ home.”
On April 13, 1945, a United States Marine, Graham W. Jackson, stood in uniform, playing his accordion and singing, “Goin’ Home” as President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s flag-draped casket was loaded onto the train at Warm Springs, Georgia train depot, bound for Washington, DC. The iconic photograph of Graham W. Jackson’s tear-lined face covered LIFE.
When a piano student is introduced to this movement, they learn the story. Last evening, my Volunteer-Ushers, and a few others, learned the story. It’s one of my favorites.
Here we go. I am a bit grumpy knowing I have such a long day ahead of me, but it was my choice, and it is my responsibility to turn my attitude around so that I can do what I preach…
Last week, I sent my sister a text message to ask something about our baby brother, Destin Lang Haas (1974-2019). I received her response and then turned to answer my office desk phone.
I always joked that my second childhood had me was Forrestville Cemetery.
Forrestville Cemetery, located in the north central area of Boone Township in Madison County, Indiana, contains the graves of seven generations of my family’s graves.
It once boasted lush green trees that gave it the beauty of a country park. Over the recent years, all but a few trees have survived being cut down by saws or disease. The only thing I find attractive is the genealogical connection.
My great-grandparents and grandparents, plus all their relatives were religious in attending to family graves, especially around various holidays. Since so many pioneer graves were held in this cemetery, over half the graves were ignored. Our family gravesites were always nicely decorated with flowers, shrubbery, or peonies.
I spent a lot of time with my family when we visited Forrestville Cemetery which was practically weekly. My job was to take the bucket to gather water after priming the handle with the rusted coffee can that either collected rainwater or was filled by the precious pumper.
It was here I learned the names and important data of my ancestors, supplemented with the family oral descriptions and stories. I treasure those stories.
In this photograph, I am seated next to the gravestone of my great-uncle, Ronald Monroe Clary (1921-1937). Ronald, the brother of my maternal grandmother, Donna Clary Barmes, died after sustaining fatal injuries from being thrown from a horse.
I hope to return one more time to Forrestville Cemetery, plus a pass by of the ancestral homes of the Ball, Noble, Greenlee, Vinson, Jones, and Clary families.
We were predicted to have rain by 3 AM and throughout most of the morning. Therefore, I scheduled a Walmart return between 9 AM and 1 PM.
No rain.
I went to the front yard at 8:30 AM to check plants and to see if I should mow. As I returned to the front porch, a notification popped up on my phone at 8:48 AM: “Abakar has arrived to pick up your return.”
Ummm… I was alone on my front porch. I waited for around ten minutes. No one arrived.
Earlier this week, or last, I placed a Walmart delivery which included a bottle of vodka (I spray it in my shower to ward off mildew, and as a fabric freshener) for which I would need to sign. No notifications of the arriving delivery person. I have five dogs who can hear and respond to a cheese wrapper being opened across Shroyer Road and they were not giving any hint of the doorbell sounding or that someone was knocking on the door. No one rang the doorbell, and no one knocked. However, my delivery was delayed for later that afternoon.
After finally wiggling my way through the Walmart site to actually chat with an associate, my options were limited as to when the driver could return to retrieve my return. “Well, since the driver has already…” I stormed back. Their offer was not acceptable.
They assured me that my delivery time of 9 AM – 1 PM would not be altered for today.
Customer service has not gone completely by the wayside as there are still some great pockets of businesses that care about their customers. When it comes to deliveries and delivery drivers, there are times when the business is in error and it is not the fault of the delivery driver.
Too often, I have received notifications that my groceries have arrived, but nothing is on the front porch. There are specific instructions that there is a grey packing bin in which to set deliveries. For the delivery drivers who take a photo of the delivered items, I have located my groceries on my neighbor’s back stoop on several occasions.
To top this off, since I was imprisoned at home waiting for the return-delivery driver until 1 PM, I ordered a late breakfast which included two large coffees. Only half my order arrived, and there was only a small coffee. Just one… So be it…
So, now I wait, still making it a great day but in a bit of a pissy mood that my free day has been interrupted. Delivery disruptions… hell, even the forecast of rain to be delivered to the Miami Valley was disrupted with nice weather I cannot be out in other than on my deck. But, the pooches love having me here with them.
It feels a bit muggy and there is no rain mentioned in the forecast until 3 AM Saturday morning. The rain will last most of the day interrupting my plans to spend some time at Woodland Cemetery.
Wednesday night’s Dayton Live picnic in the vast Wintergarden was fun and the potluck offerings I ate were delicious. My graham cracker sandwiches were devoured with all but a dozen remaining in each of the three large square containers.
Harrigan is under the weather. She did not eat yesterday and today and has been spending time beneath my bed. She has been drinking her water and spending time with us on the deck and in my study. Chief, however, has been more active and far less lethargic than he was on Wednesday.
Hoskins and Colonel Deeds have been playing fast and furious in the yard for a good deal of the morning. Hoskins spends time with me when we are inside, and periodically comes to visit me when I am sitting on the deck.
It’s been a lazy morning around The Haasienda. My body reminds me there is a weather front coming in and I am dealing with those uncomfortable effects. This is my first free-Friday from events with Dayton Live and it feel a bit odd, a tad empty.
It is time to do something productive besides listening to the JEOPARDY channel on Pluto.
This evening, the Dayton Live Operations Team is hosting a picnic celebration for our wonderful Volunteers Ushers, Bartenders, and Security. The entire Dayton Live department teams were also invited and encouraged to bring additional food to supplement the hamburgers, hotdogs, and drinks from Dayton Live.
When it comes to “bringing a dish,” I am always ill at ease as I loathe cooking. I can cook and do an admirable job; however, cooking and baking are not my passions. Typically, I bring prepared vegetables with our family’s favorite “Brown Dip,” obtained by my Aunt Jenny Jolliff from a Campbell’s soup can or cookbook. Campbell’s “Cauliflower Dip” has been a family gathering staple since the 1970s. I have included the recipe below.
I also make a Jello non-bake cheesecake where I add cinnamon and ginger to the crust, and orange extract to the filling.
Yesterday, I decided to abandon my go-to covered dishes to a picnic favorite from my childhood, which at nearly sixty, is still pretty solid. Mother always made graham cracker sandwiches with icing made of powdered sugar, milk, food coloring for the occasion, and a flavoring. Sometimes, she sliced strawberries or bananas as additional filler. I have terrific memories of seeing Mother prepare the graham cracker sandwiches and knew we’d be going on a picnic or a spontaneous family road trip which we were known to often do. I also added a waffle cookie sandwich I learned about while staying with a host family in St. Wolfgang, Austria while on a choir tour of Austria, Switzerland, and Germany in May 1987. The night I spent with them was their son, Norbert Kopff’s Catholic saint’s day, St. Norbert Day. However, their waffle cookies were homemade, the size of a dinner plate, and each stacked waffle cookie level was filled with a layer of peanut butter, then jam, then peach slices, etc. It was delicious and still remains so in my memory.
The deck is cool and comfortable and I’m relaxing in my chase lounge listening to the early morning sounds of birds, Shroyer Road traffic, faculty and staff arriving next door at the high school, and a far off siren. There’s a sweet smelling aroma wafting across the yard and onto the deck. It smells a bit like lilac but I am not knowledgeable with plants.
I slept solidly, not even rising for a bathroom break. My inner alarm clock did not nudge me at 6 AM but three wet noses near my face brought me out from beneath the covers at 6:30 AM.
Chief is holding his own and is not abandoning his role as leader of the pack. He didn’t rise to go out to potty and then eat with the others but he did eventually come outside to potty and I brought his food bowl to the deck. Chief rested on the deck a while before he was roused by a passing dog with their human. Now, he is out wandering and sniffing about the yard while Harrigan, Hoskins, and Colonel Deeds chase one another and play.
Harrigan, who has always been serious, and not much for playing, is now the party animal with the younger set. After her bout with depression following Bailey’s passing in December 2023, this is so great to observe.
Hoskins is as tall as the others and has a beautiful face and graceful body. Her nickname, besides Hossy, Hosky, and whatever else crosses my brain, is Golden Mask.
Erma is lounging beside me as I listen to the Jeopardy Channel on Pluto streaming.
The activity at the high school is ramping up and in about fifteen minutes, at 7:15 AM, the busses will begin streaming through. I’m elated that I completed so much yesterday so that I might simply enjoy this Tuesday with rest, relaxation, “Jeopardy,” and whatever else stirs my interests.
The Haasienda on Shroyer... 