Friday Five: Coin Toss Edition

Songbird at RevGalBlog Pals posts:

Well, Gals and Pals, this weekend we'll be rendering unto Caesar what is Caesar's, and that has me thinking about coinage.

(Songbird lives in the same state and country I do, and I'm not quite sure what she means by this. Oh wait -- self-employed clergy paying quarterly income tax, perhaps?)

1) When was the last time you flipped a coin or even saw one flipped in person?

I can't recall. I'm sure I've done it in the past; and it has been reported to have been done before the Presidential and Vice-Presidential debates, but they didn't show it happening. The closest I can come is the Scrabble challenge we entered a couple of weeks ago, when we drew letters to see who would play first. Since the Challenge pits two teams against each other over each board, a coin toss would have worked equally well, but in games with more than two players or teams per board, the traditional letter draw is the better solution.

2) Do you have any foreign coins in your house? If so, where are they from?

If we look hard enough we would probably find a Canadian coin, and I know there used to be some pfennigs. I think Onkel Hankie Pants gave away the Iraqi money and possibly Euros that he brought back from his sojourn in Baghdad and Amsterdam a few years ago. I did unearth a box recently, probably one that belonged to my late father-in-law, with several old silver dollars, Kennedy halfs, and an old quarter and nickel. They were all US coinage though.

3) A penny saved is a penny earned, they say. But let's get serious. Is there a special place in heaven for pennies, or do you think they'll find a special place in, well, the other place? 

I have not always been respectful of pennies. But Teddy Gross is. Here's an article about how he tries to help charity through penny collecting. Teddy (or Theodore as he is now known) was my co-editor on our college newspaper many years ago. We had many artistic differences (he was more the artistic type and I was more for straight journalism) but it's nice to see that he carries on the finest traditions of A Host at Last University as well as continuing his creative work.

4) How much did you get from the tooth fairy when you were a child? and if you have children of your own, do they get coins, or paper money? (I hear there may be some inflation.)

I got a dime. A dime was a lot in those days; it bought two candy bars, for example (which probably didn't do the new tooth any good!)  My children may have clearer memories than I, but I think we probably started out with quarters and ended up with a dollar bill. The last candy bar I bought cost about $2.50, then again it was one of those Endangered Species, organic fair trade chocolate ones; but I rather think even one of the traditional ones costs about 69 cents now.

5) Did anyone in your household collect the state quarters? And did anyone in your household manage to sustain the interest required to stick with it?

Not that I know of.  We certainly took note of them and were mildly excited when our two states' quarters came out. But we're more stamp collectors in our house. We did get a solicitation in the mail for a state quarter collection that included some sort of philatelic tie-in, but were too frugal to bite on it.

The Curse of Nikki's Coffee Mugs??

Perhaps you've heard of the "Curse of the State Quarters." I'm beginning to think there may be a curse connected with my collection of coffee mugs!  Here's what's happened:

I have a red mug that says "Murder Ink" on it, from a visit several years ago to this fine mystery bookshop in New York City. Alas, the store has since closed.

I have a black mug with a picture of Brunswick High School (the one I graduated from). The school building was replaced in 1995 and, as I mentioned recently, is scheduled for demolition in February of 2009.

And I have a red mug that says "Morning Show Blend" on it. Today, it was announced that the beloved 25-year-old program on Minnesota Public Radio will be going off the air when Jim Ed Poole (aka Tom Keith) retires and Dale Connelly moves on to "developing programming".  For several years now it's been broadcast on "The Current" (Minnesota Public Radio has beaucoup bucks and, in the Twin Cities area, three stations -- one for news, one for classical music, and one for contemporary music) and so will be replaced by more of the station's usual programming.

Onkel Hankie Pants will have to find something else to listen to when he goes up to his computer in the morning, and so will a lot of other people, and it won't be easy to find anything like the Morning Show.

We have been listening to it for pretty much its whole run, back to the days when Garrison Keillor was the DJ and Tom Keith the sound engineer who also did sound effects.  (This was before Garrison was famous, except locally).  The eclectic blend of music played introduced me to so many songs and singers who are now favorites, and the skits brought an often much-needed tinge of hilarity to mornings getting ready for work or kids to school. Both the older children have had songs played on the program to celebrate their birthdays. I can't remember what song was played for SonShineIn, but I do remember that we were amazed by the coincidence that they dedicated it also to his much-older cousin Axel who was setting off for a trip to China and shared his birthday! Cordeliaknits had a favorite doll she called "Doodoo Baby." Not for the reason you think, but because it had a pull-chain in its back and when you pulled it the doll played Brahms' Lullaby. (Doo-doo-doo, doo-doo-doo....) So we requested Brahms' Lullaby for her birthday when she was about 4 and they found a version played by a silver cornet band.  

The Morning Show was mostly responsible for the fact that, when we left Minnesota, we were giving a large (for us) amount to MPR each year. They had started issuing CDs with the theme "Keepers" which were used as membership premiums.  Every time they came out with a new one I would fall for the "if you increase your membership level" pitch.  If you ever see one of these CDs in a yard sale or thrift shop, snap it up.  (There are several titles, but they all have a fishing bobber on the cover). You will find anything from "With 'Er 'Ead Tucked Underneath 'Er Arm" to "Easter Island Head" to "A Cuppa Coffee the Size of My Head," and lots more besides.

I know Tom Keith is a little older than I am, and I can't begrudge him not wanting to keep getting up so early in the morning. But something wonderful has gone, and it seems that too much of that is happening.

So, First Parish Church, the United Church of Christ, Hamline University School of Law, the Labyrinth at Grace Cathedral, and several Minnesota State Parks -- watch your backs, just in case. I wouldn't want to lose any of you, just because I happen to have you on a coffee mug.

Random Thoughts from a Stuffed-Up Head

• I Hab a Code id by dose. Ad id by chest. I. Do. Not. Like. It. In a way, I would rather have major surgery, or the flu (but wait -- I have a shot for the flu).  
• No hurricane here, but it did rain quite a bit and one nearby section of a state road washed out twice. It's nice and warm though, about 60 when Rusty and I took our walk mid-morning.
• Last night I watched The Shadow in the North, the second of Masterpiece Mystery's(well, really BBC's) adaptations of Philip Pullman's Sally Lockhart series. Sisterfilms and I enjoyed these books about 10-12 years ago, so my memory for the plots is imperfect. I felt the adaptations used some fancy camerawork to the detriment of keeping the plot and characters understandable, so that the shows seemed squashed compared to the books (which were not nearly as long and wordy as his Golden Compass series) and I often found myself thinking, "Wait, where did that character come from?" Also, the color-blind casting was confusing in a costume drama. Although the main characters were believable as Victorian Englishmen and -women, minor characters and "extras" were more representative of England today. I'm generally a fan of color-blind casting in the theater -- Mixed Blood Theater in Minneapolis has made a practice of it and I've seen some great theater there -- but in this case it added nothing and actually distracted at least one viewer from the story. 
• One of the events I missed this past weekend because of the cold in my head was the first event in a months-long farewell to my old high school building (well, one of them). Since the building of a new school in the late 90s, the old school has had some use but has also been allowed to deteriorate. Despite many volunteers' work trying to come up with a plan to reuse it, the final decision was to tear it down and build our new Grades 3-5 elementary school on the site.  This has spurred the creation of an Alumni Association (which didn't exist before) and there will be several events before the demolition in February or March 2009.
• I attended three high schools. The first, Roger Ludlowe HS in Fairfield, CT, was closed in 1987 but reopened in 2003 under the name of Fairfield Ludlowe. The school newspaper, which was The Fox when I worked on it, is now The Prospect.  The second school, Ludwigsburg American HS in Ludwigsburg, Germany, changed its name regularly as Department of Defense school-naming rules changed; sometimes it was Ludwigsburg, sometimes Stuttgart. As US military presence in the area declined, and the school building aged, the high school closed, and a new one reopened at Patch Barracks nearby, called Patch American HS. The building now houses the Erich-Bracher-Schule which appears to be a technical or business-oriented high school. And, the third was Brunswick HS, whose fate I have detailed above. 
• From first through eighth grade I attended six different schools. The first two were Burnet and Coldwell Schools in El Paso, TX, which appear to be still in existence in approximately the same form. Coombs School in Bowdoinham (where my mother also went all 12 years, as it included high school then) has given way to the Bowdoinham Community School, but the building is still in use as the town library and town offices. Hoyt S. Vandenberg Elementary in Wiesbaden, Germany is still there, under the name of Hainerberg Elementary (that's the housing area where it is and where we lived). Point Beach School in Milford, CT is now a community center, and Mill Plain Junior High in Fairfield is the same building which is now Fairfield Ludlowe HS -- the addition was under construction during our eighth and ninth grade years. 
• That's a lot of changes!

A Johnny Appleseed Friday Five

Singing Owl at RevGalBlogPals asks us to:

Raise your hand if you know that today is Johnny Appleseed Day!

September 26, 1774 was his birthday. "Johnny Appleseed" (John Chapman) is one of America's great legends. He was a nurseryman who started out planting trees in western New York and Pennsylvania, but he was among those who were captivated by the movement west across the continent.

As Johnny travelled west (at that time, the "West" was places like Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, and Illinois) he planted apple trees and sold trees to settlers. With every apple tree that was planted, the legend grew. A devout Christian, he was known to preach during his travels. According to legend, Johnny Appleseed led a simple life and wanted little. He rarely accepted money and often donated any money he received to churches or charities. He planted hundreds of orchards, considering it his sevice to humankind. There is some link between Johnny Appleseed and very early Arbor Day celebrations.

So, in honor of this interesting fellow, let's get on with the questions!

1. What is your favorite apple dish? (BIG BONUS points if you share the recipe.)
Any apple dish I've ever had, at the time; but to make, and to eat, my favorite is Danish Aeblekage (say Ehhh-bl-kahhh).  And here is the recipe, which I got from Onkel Hankie Pants' mother, The Best Mother-in-Law Ever, with suggestions for people who don't live in the Midwest.  Quantities are approximate.

Aeblekage

One package of Jacobsen's Cinnamon Toasts, or plain toasts; if you can't find these, get two packages of zweiback from the baby food section

Your favorite variety of cinnamon (yes, there are different kinds)

A little sugar

One or two sticks of butter.  Personally I would not use margarine, and I don't think the tub varieties work well here.

One big jar of natural-style applesauce (chunkier the better) OR, MUCH BETTER, peel and core six to eight apples, depending on size, and cook them with a little water and sugar until they are soft, but don't strain or puree.

Whipped cream, and, if you like, red currant jelly (traditional) or other red jelly for decoration.

In a blender or food processor, or with a rolling pin between sheets of waxed paper, pulverize the toasts/zweiback to small crumbs. You will probably have to do this in batches.

Take a large skillet and melt the butter gently.  When it's all melted, put in the crumbs, cinnamon, and sugar (less of the latter if you got cinnamon toasts).  Stir gently with a wooden spoon until all the toast crumbs and butter are mixed together moistly.

Take your nicest serving bowl, preferably glass.  Layer the crumb mixture alternately with the applesauce, starting and ending with crumbs.  You can put the whipped cream on top now, if you are ready to serve, or you can chill the aeblekage and top it just before serving.  It is traditional to decorate the whipped cream with small dabs of red currant jelly, or another red jelly could be used if currant is unavailable.  Although I am a convert to the make-your-own-applesauce practice, anyone who sometimes has need for a special dessert in a hurry would be wise to keep applesauce and toast (and don't forget the whipped cream) on hand.

2. Have you ever planted a tree? If so was there a special reason or occasion you can tell us about?

Oh dear, I believe we planted a few, but they didn't do so well. But this was just as well. When my children were small, they would often bring home a pine seedling from school around Arbor Day. However, our small city lot had plenty (or even too many) trees already. It was like taking coals to Newcastle.

3. Does the idea of roaming around the countryside (preaching or otherwise) appeal to you? Why or why not?

Yes and no. To be like Johnny Appleseed, always roaming and never settling, is not appealing. But to spend some time traveling about would be fun. I don't think I would do much preaching, though. (This makes me think of one of my favorite books, Cold Comfort Farm, in which one of the characters' dearest wish is to travel about in "one o' they Ford vans" preaching. The movie is pretty good too, but don't miss the book. It's by Stella Gibbons.)

4. Who is a favorite "historical legend" of yours?
I have a soft spot for Robin Hood, Maid Marian, and the band of merry men in Sherwood Forest.  I grew up with Roger Moore's version on TV and Howard Pyle's book, and more recently have been enjoying the historically inaccurate, seemingly allegorical Dominick Minghella one on DVD.  

5. Johnny Appleseed was said to sing to keep up his spirits as he travelled the roads of the west. Do you have a song that comes when you are trying to be cheerful, or is there something else that you often do? 

Well, the Danish Hiking Song works pretty well.  You can listen to a line or two here. We sing it at Family Camp.  

And speaking of singing and Family Camp -- we usually use the Johnny Appleseed grace at least once, and here is the original Disney version.

Friday Five: Fall Equinox Edition

I took this photo last year on September 19, and yesterday this same tree looks just about the same.

Over at RevGalBlogPals, Songbird (who lives not far from me) posts:

It's that time of year, at least north of the equator. The windows are still open, but the darned furnace comes on early in the morning. My husband went out for a walk after an early supper and came home in full darkness.  (Auntie Knickers says: I just went around closing windows so the furnace wouldn't come on, as it's after 9 am and the temp is only about 40 degrees, which is the lowest setting on our thermostat).

And yes, where we live, leaves are beginning to turn.

As this vivid season begins, tell us five favorite things about fall:

1) A fragrance: When I was small, it was burning leaves. We don't do that any more, but especially here in Maine, more people are using woodstoves and the fragrance of woodsmoke can sometimes be discerned. It brings happy memories of my grandmother's woodstove.

2) A color: Red - the red of new apples and the "Irish setter red" of maple leaves. But then what about the gold of the leaves of other trees, and of the grasses I remember from the Midwest? And who can forget orange, pumpkins, leaves, and Halloween decorations?  

3) An item of clothing: Fleece jackets and vests -- I'm wearing one already as I write this for the chilly morning. 

4) An activity: Buying and planting spring bulbs -- always looking ahead.

5) A special day: Thanksgiving - all is safely gathered in, ere the winter storms begin (or at least we hope so!) Making special food for special people. I only wish there were a special morning church service to attend near me; I miss the one we had in Minneapolis.

Tuneful Tuesdays: Where Are the Comfort Songs?

(To the right, the best photo I could find to illustrate comfort....)

So, today I was transferring some old cassette tapes to the computer (since who knows how much longer the cassette player will last) and came upon Willie Nelson singing Bridge Over Troubled Water.  That made me think of some other comforting songs and realize that most of them (if not all) were written in what I'd call "my day" -- the late 60s and early 70s.  (Well, OK. I just remembered one that was written 20 years ago, more about that later). Right now, I'm doing fine. But a lot of people aren't -- most recently victims of Hurricane Ike, for instance. We all need some comfort songs sometimes.

I wonder what are the comfort songs of today? Minnesota Public Radio's Morning Program put out a CD a few years ago called Comfort Keepers, which has some great songs on it, but for the most part they are what I'd call "buck up" songs, like The Mary Ellen Carter ( a great song, by the way).  I Will Survive and the Chumbawamba song I Get Knocked Down But I Get Up Again are a couple more examples.  But that's not what I'm talking about right now.

My criteria for a "comfort song" are that it should be comforting not only in words but in music, and should be usable as a lullabye if you're so inclined.  To show you what I mean, here are a few. I'm using links instead of embedding this time, for a specific reason:

Bridge over Troubled Water by Simon and Garfunkel. I remember this song as coming out during my last semester in college, the semester of Kent State, Jackson State, daily casualty lists from Vietnam -- and of course, our own little worries about life after college. We really needed that song. At the Maine Veterans' Cemetery Chapel in Augusta, there's a carillon that plays before and after funeral services. People can donate money to have specific songs put on it. At my father's funeral, I remember hearing Bridge over Troubled Water. I imagine it was requested by someone who was burying a Vietnam veteran there.  It still comforts me.

You've Got a Friend by Carole King. I associate this song with a time when I was far from home, among mostly strangers, and King's album Tapestry came out. I like her own version best.

Sweet Baby James by James Taylor -- to make up for slighting his version of You've Got a Friend.  Another one from my college years, this one seems to say that sometimes you have to comfort yourself, even if it's by singing your own lullabye.

Lean on Me by Bill Withers.  This song came out in 1972, which was a year of great happiness for me but also great loneliness.  It's a great song because it points out that in a moment, we can change from being the leaner to the leaned-on -- or vice versa.

Warning: the only video on YouTube for the following song is, shall we say, rated R.  View at your own risk.

Lullabye by Cris Williamson.  This 1978 song was introduced to me through the Christmas album Snow Angel; Cris Williamson's music in general I learned about from Cordeliaknits.  It's the most recent of the songs except for the next one.

How Could Anyone Ever Tell You by Libby Roderick (this video has it sung by Shaina Noll).  This year is the twentieth anniversary of this song, and Libby Roderick had a video contest for videos to go with it. There were several of them on YouTube, but oddly enough, this one, which doesn't appear to have been part of the contest, seemed to me to capture the spirit of the song best of all.

I hope some of my younger and/or hipper readers will comment about comfort songs written more recently!

Friday Five: Back to School

Do schools start later in California? Mother Laura, at RevGalBlogPals, writes this week:

It's time for a Back-To-School Friday Five!

1. Is anyone going back to school, as a student or teacher, at your house? How's it going so far?

Sort of, but it hasn't really started yet. Onkel Hankie Pants is now on the sub list for at least one local high school (they all have different requests as far as references so it's a slow process) but, not surprisingly, hasn't been called yet, since school has only been in session since 2 September.  I'm sure he'll report on it when the time comes. He's also going to take a class on Keats in Senior College from an excellent, 90-ish teacher from whom he's taken several other classes. That starts next week.  In my 'virtual household,' of adult children, Sisterfilms' classes started again 25 August.  She's enjoying her three film classes so far, a new program was announced which will make it much easier for her to end up with a bachelor's degree, and she's even beginning to think about graduate school.  Cordeliaknits is not in school, first time in 7 years, but is nannying two under-1-year-olds, which is sort of like being a teacher (teaching them to nap at the same time is her priority right now!)

2. Were you glad or sad when back-to-school time came as a kid?

I was glad to go back to school, just as I was glad when school was out in  June.  Summers were delightfully unstructured then, and that was fun, but I also enjoyed school, for the most part.  

3. Did your family of origin have any rituals to mark this time of year? How about now?

Back-to-school shopping was much more of a ritual in my family of origin than when my kids were small, I think. Also back-to-school sewing! My mother made most of my clothes when I was in early elementary school, and quite a lot of them all through high school and even college.  (She made my sister's clothes too, my brothers', not so much, although I recall her making striped t-shirts, which were then called polo shirts for some reason, at least once.)

The ritual in our family was blueberry muffins for breakfast on the first day of school. I think this may have started out as blueberry pancakes but, given my kids' desire to sleep as late as possible, and their wide age separation (5 years between each pair) causing differing school schedules, muffins worked out better.

4. Favorite memories of back-to-school outfits, lunchboxes, etc? 

Oh, yes! I'm pretty sure it was 2nd grade and it wasn't technically back-to-school, since we moved in late October, but it was for starting a new school. Although I liked the dresses my mother made, I was really thrilled to get my first skirt with no suspenders attached, which we bought at the PX in Wiesbaden, Germany.  It was a Black Watch tartan pleated skirt; I think I wore a white blouse with it.  Now you must know, you young folks, that in my childhood it was implicitly believed that young girls needed suspenders on their skirts, or they would fall down. Sometimes the suspenders were attached and made of the same fabric as the skirt, or you could get elastic ones that were transferable. Getting a skirt with no suspenders made me feel very grown up -- just as, and I don't think this happened for another 3 years or so, getting my first pair of loafers, i.e. shoes with no laces.

I think I had a Lone Ranger lunchbox once, or was it Gene Autry? Lost in the mists of time.

5. What was your best year of school?

It would be a toss-up between 3rd grade and 10th grade, although there were good things in each year.

Third grade at Hoyt S. Vandenberg Elementary in Wiesbaden, Germany (and if anyone has a photo of that school I'd sure like one) : my teacher was Mr. Thomas Foster. My class was the (err-hmm) gifted and talented class, and he had free rein with the curriculum. We went through the official 3rd grade speller in days instead of weeks, and thereafter our spelling/vocabulary words were taken from films we watched, stories we read, and especially field trips. For some reason, learning to spell 'metamorphosis' after a film on butterflies has stayed in my memory. We also learned multiplication and I remember my mother drilling me on the times tables.  The field trips -- I remember going to a vineyard and then to a Sekt winery (German version of champagne) -- we kids just got to have the unfermented grape juice. The only unfortunate thing was that that was the year I got all the childhood diseases then common (measles, mumps, chicken pox) and missed several of the trips. 

Sophomore year at Roger Ludlowe High in Fairfield, Connecticut -- because the junior high and high school had switched places, this was our first year in the high school environment and it was exciting to us to meet the upperclassmen (and women) and participate in various activities, in my case, The Fox, the student newspaper.  I had one of the best social studies teachers ever, Jack Strauss of blessed memory, and once again field trips were a highlight -- we saw Beyond the Fringe on Broadway and also went into the city to see A Man for All Seasons, AND our Brooklyn-born teacher made sure we got to eat at the Automat.  I also got to attend a student journalists' convention at Columbia.  The bad thing that happened that year took place during English class, when the announcement came over the PA that President Kennedy had been shot. Still, the Intellectual Diaries Mr. Strauss had us keep helped us process that experience. (I don't think journaling in school was nearly as common then as it is now.)

Well, this got to be long! But maybe it will make up for several days of not blogging.