Alphabe-Thursday..."N" as in NEW JERSEY!

Welcome to this week's version of Alphabe-Thursday sponsored by Ms. Jenny over at Jenny Matlock..."off on my tangent." This week we are studying the letter "N" as in NEW Jersey or just plain Joisy to us natives and NEW Jersey to the rest of you.

However, first things first. I had an excused absence last week, and if my mother were still here she'd write a note for me. I thought I'd quickly throw up an "M" word and the only thing I could come up with in a pinch was the MARTIN family. Here are all the MARTINS once again.

This one also appears on my sidebar because we rarely are photographed together. Since this photo was taken in 2004 Troy and his significant other have broken up, but the rest of the picture is still the same. We haven't aged a bit. :)


Now on to "N" as in NEW Joisy.

Although I live in Texas now I grew up in Joisy. That's what the natives call it. Just Josiy for short. Yes, we sometimes talk funny although I've been told that my accent has faded over the years. However, if I go back to Joisy for any length of time I can hear the old accent creeping back in.

It's funny how things are different between here and there. In Texas women carry purses, but in NEW Joisy we carry pocketbooks. To this day my husband will say, "Don't forget your pocketbook." I have to remind him that we're not in Kansas anymore. Whoops, make that NEW Joisy. At one time I carried a pocketbook just like this one.

Another difference is that in Texas people go to the beach, but in NEW Joisy we go "down the shore." Again, different terminology for the same thing. I don't think you can grow up in Joisy and not visit the shore. My friends and I spent a lot of time at the shore. We'd go for holiday weekends and then rent a place for a week each summer. I'm pretty sure our Joisy shore wasn't anything like the TV show. I've never actually seen the TV show, but I did see The Situation on Dancing With The Stars. That's as close as I've ever come. Here are a couple of pictures of some of my friends down at the shore circa 1964.

That's Peggy Calligan, Brigid Bohan, and Maryanne Baretta.

And this is Mary Schumeyer.
For some reason I still had these pictures. I'm pretty sure they were taken with my Kodak Brownie camera. (There's one on eBay right now if you'd like one of your very own.) It's nice to know that my pictures were blurry back then too.

I grew up in Westwood, NEW Jersey which is in Bergen County and a suburb of New York City. (Almost all the way to the end of the Garden State Parkway.) My mother was born in Westwood and my dad moved there when he was three years old. Weswood is a pretty little town, but there's lots of traffic. I'm a nervous wreck driving there because it's a different type of driving. Here we have lots of traffic on the freeways, but in Joisy it's lots of cars on roads that were never meant to have that many cars and it's a lot of stop and go driving. When traffic lights turn green people immediately start honking their horns. You have to have a lot of patience because it takes a while to get anywhere. NEW Joisy is the most densely populated state in the country.

It bothers me that people always think of Joisy as being Newark. (No offense to Newark.) Most people only see Newark Airport (now called Newark Liberty Airport) and think that's Josiy. I'm here to dispell that notion.

This is right down the street from where I grew up. It's called Bogert's Pond and there's a waterfall and at one time there was a mill. (Not during my lifetime.) George Washington didn't sleep here, but he and his troops did stop and rest. (I'm not sure how they know that, but there's an historical marker saying it's so.

There's a lot of history in NEW Joisy since it was one of the 13 original colonies. Some key battles of the Revolutionary War were fought there. (We've all seen the picture of George Washington crossing the Delaware in history books.)

In Texas most people hop in their cars and drive to work in bumper to bumper traffic. One thing Joisy has is mass transit and it's wonderful. Right in Westwood there's a train station.

You just hop on the train and ride to Hoboken and from there cross into New York City. Just sit back and leave the driving to someone else.

In the area of Texas where I live most of the houses would be considered new in New Joisy. Most of this area was developed starting in the early 1960's when the Johnson Space Center came to town. In New Joisy there are many older homes. This is the house I grew up in. My parents had it built and I was three when we moved in. It's still there, but the people that bought it raised the roof and completely redid it. I've only see the outside, but it looks very nice. This is how I'll always remember it.

This is the house my mother grew up in and was probably taken sometime in the 1930's. It still looks pretty much the same.

This is where my Dad grew up. Many years ago the street was paved and the house has been remodeled over the years, but the basic structure pretty much looks the same.

In Texas they have barbecue and in Josiy they have Taylor Ham which is also known as Pork Roll. Instead of barbecue joints they have diners in NEW Joisy and I really miss them. There's nothing like a gooey, runny egg sandwich with Taylor Ham.

At one time our local Kroger had Taylor Ham, but I haven't seen it in a while. You can order it by mail from Jersey Pork Roll if you'd like to try it out. There are also some recipes here.

I miss diners so much that I set up a diner scene for my dolls. I call it Jeff's Jersey Diner and there's even Taylor Ham on the menu.

See the window above the diner booth? You can't see it in the picture, but I put a photo of the Westwood Train Station behind the window so it looks like that's the view out the window.

Growing up there was a soda fountain called Conrad's in Westwood and it's still there. On one of my trips back to Joisy my friend and I went to Conrad's for old time's sake. This is Peachy enjoying a milkshake.

I used to get chocolate Cokes at Conrad's. I love chocolate Cokes and there was actually a hamburger joint in Seabrook, Texas that made chocolate Cokes, but unfortunately they never opened again after Hurricane Ike. Now I make my own chocolate Cokes and I'm sharing my secret recipe with you.

Open one can of Coke. Pour it in a glass and add ice. Add 2 teaspoons of Hershey's chocolate syrup and stir well. YUM!

OK, "youse guys" get over to Ms. Jenny's now so you can visit some more Alphabe-Thursday posts.

Edited: 7/20 - I am having trouble leaving comments on blogs that have the little pull down menu where you indicate how you want to leave a comment. I always choose my google account, but for some reason it keeps asking me to sign in (when I'm already signed in anyway) and then when the sign in screen appears and I sign in again it keeps asking me to do it again and again. I'm sorry, but I can't leave you a comment. I've had this problem with around five different blogs today. I'm hoping tomorrow things will clear up.

Alphabe Thursday..."C" is for CARDS!

Welcome once again to Alphabe Thursday sponsored by Ms. Jenny over at Jenny Matlock..."off on my tangent."  Head over to Ms. Jenny's blog for a list of this week's participants and for information on how you can join in the fun.

This week we are studying the letter "C" as in CARDS.

Lots and lots of CARDS!

CARDS, letters, notes, children's drawings, a pop-up book...

All sent to my son while he was hospitalized in March for a stem cell transplant.  Ms. Jenny wrote about it on her blog and asked  people to send CARDS.  Other people added the information to their blogs and word spread.  Most of the cards you see here were sent because of Ms. Jenny's original request.

They came from all over the United States and even Europe!  Some were beautifully handmade, some contained inspirational notes or letters.  There were even a couple from people that knew someone that had had a sucessful stem cell transplant.  People wrote about their own sucessful cancer treatments or their loved ones.  A couple of children sent him drawings.  Many, many prayers were sent.

Reid was pretty sick at the time, but he opened and enjoyed every single one.

Thank you Ms. Jenny!!  Thank you to everyone for your warm thoughts and prayers.

He's had two clear scans so far and is starting to feel like his old self again!



"C" is also for Wilhemina CAROLINE Volz.  She was my grandmother and was always called CARRIE.  This is one of my favorite pictures.  I think she was probably in her 20's.

I told you last week that my mother's name was CAROLYN Elizabeth Morris.  She was nicknamed Betty, but her real name was CAROLYN.  This photo was taken in January 1938.  She would have been a Senior in High School then.  She looks so young.

And my sister's name is CAROL Sue.  She was born on December 23, 1943 in Holy Name Hospital in Teaneck, NJ.  My mother said the nuns were going around the hospital singing CHRISTMAS CAROLS and so she named her CAROL Sue.  CAROL after the CHRISTMAS CAROLS, but I have no idea where the Sue came from.  My mother just liked those two name names.  You might remember Betty Jean from last week.

And this is my kindergarten CLASS with Miss CORNELL.  Do you see me?  I believe I showed this picture once before.  Hint:  I'm the smallest one in the class.

Thanks for visting.  Now head over to Ms. Jenny's blog for the list of this week's participants.

Chicago White Sox Win!

Today the Chicago White Sox beat the Oakland Athletics 4-3.  How do I know?  I get an E-mail update from Major League Baseball.  Why do I get that update?  I've been getting it for a number of years so I could keep my Dad informed.

Dad grew up in a suburb of NYC, but around the age of 12 he became a Chicago White Sox fan.  It seems the members of his Boy Scout Troop decided to pick teams to root for and Dad got the Chicago White Sox by default.  He said by the time they got to him there weren't too many teams left, so he picked the White Sox.

Dad making the tag, his brother Robert as umpire, and his friend Clarence sliding into home plate. 

The White Sox have never had such a loyal fan.  It would have been so easy for Dad to become a Yankee fan at sometime over the years, but he never succumbed.  The White Sox were his team and that was all there was to it.

Sometime in the 1950's Dad discovered that he could pick up the Baltimore radio station on the car radio.  So, whenever the White Sox played Baltimore  Dad would sit in the hot garage and listen to the game.  Of course, he often got to see them play on TV when they came to town to play the Yankees.  I guess that's how he became a die hard Yankee hater.  He took his baseball very seriously.  Once in a while we actually went to Yankee Stadium when the White Sox were in town.  Dad enjoyed seeing his team in person.

Dad's only been to Chicago a few times in his life and never for a game.  He followed his team in the newspaper, The Sporting News, and the sports reports on TV and radio.  For most of his years that's the way he kept track of how they were doing.  This was before cable or satellite TV.

Finally in 2005 they beat my Houston Astros in the World Series.  Dad was ecstatic!  It was a dream come true for him.  At the time he was living in NJ and he'd call me in Texas after each game and we'd rehash what we had just seen happen.

In 2006 Dad moved to Texas and lived nearby in Assisted Living.  For the first time in his life he was able to see most of the White Sox games.  I signed up for MLB TV and would bring Dad over here to watch their games online.  He was that 12 year old kid again.  He'd sit in front of the computer screen watching excitedly.  Just about everyone in Assisted Living knew he was a White Sox fan and after a win he'd be so excited on the ride back to the facility.  He couldn't wait to share his good news.

Sadly, Dad's Alzheimer's progressed and he had to be moved to a nursing home a little over a year ago.  This year for the first time he no longer asked me how the White Sox were doing.  However, every day the aides made sure he wore his White Sox cap.

Yesterday he took a turn for the worse and for the first time spent the day in bed without his cap.  Early this morning the Chicago White Sox lost their oldest and most faithful fan outside of Chicago.  I'll continue receiving those E-mail alerts from the Chicago White Sox because then a piece of Dad will always be with me.

I like to think they won today's game for Dad.  Thanks guys.  You never knew him, but he sure knew you!

Alphabe-Thursday Make Up Class -A,S,T,U

Welcome once again to Alphabe-Thursday sponsored by Mrs. Matlock over at Jenny Matlcok..."off on my tangent." Today is a make up class and I feel right at home. In real school I was forever turning in things late. I guess Mrs. Matlock will be deducting points today. That's OK...I got used to it years ago.

I discovered Jenny's blog right after the letter A, so I began this journey with the letter B. I thought it was appropriate to go back and pick up the letter A and post this video of the ALPHABET Song. I've always had a special place in my heart for Elmo, so I thought I'd share this with you today.



Sometime during Alphabe-Thursday I decided to try and improve my photography skills and take pictures of my dolls using a tripod and without a flash. There are plenty of websites out there with lots of advice on photographing dolls, but I fooled around with it for weeks and was never happy with the results. I even went out and bought the equipment...blue photo bulbs, reflector lights with clips, and a new tripod to replace the one I thought wobbled too much. (It had to be the tripod...not me.) I finally came to the conclusion that the problem is with the operator and not the equipment.

I had set up a scene with my dolls and intended to use if for the letter S. When I didn't have the pictures ready in time I decided to use it the following week for the letter T. That week passed and I still wasn't happy with the results, so I decided to try using my doll scene for the letter U. Three weeks went by and I never posted the pictures for Alphabe-Thursday. Finally, I gave up.

Since this is a make up class I decided to use the pictures anyway. Someday when I have more time I'll figure out how to get rid of the shadows and get the color better.

S as in SCOUTS.

T as in TROOP.

U as in UNIFORM.

This was the annual Brownie Troop 33 picnic. They're wearing the number 33 on their sleeves. A couple of Girl Scouts joined them that day to help the Leader.









This was supposed to be my old Brownie Troop...Troop 33 in Westwood, NJ. I don't know why I became sentimental for Brownies. I was only a Brownie for one year and hated it. I decided the only person that had any fun in our troop was the treasurer because she got to collect our ten cents dues each week in the metal band aid container. (Remember those?)





I hope to see you in class again.



This was Kindergarten. Can you guess which one is me? Hint: I was always the smallest one in the class.

See you in Summer School!

ANALOG TO DIGITAL

Analog to digital. Have you heard? If not you've probably been on Mars for the past year and a half. Today was the big day when TV finally went from analog to digital. We have cable, so the transition was unnoticeable to us. However, if a hurricane comes through this year we'll certainly notice. Our little battery operated TV will now be useless. I wonder if anyone even gave that a thought?

I still yearn for the old days when there were only a few channels and most of the day the test pattern appeared on the TV screen. This picture is from 1951 and that's our first TV in the background.

My sister and I used to enjoy watching Winky Dink. They say that's the first real "video game," but would be considered very primitive by today's standards. I still remember the green clear plastic that stuck to the TV screen. We would help Winky Dink by drawing on the TV with crayons. My sister was two years older than me, so she got to do most of the drawing. Anyone with an older sister can probably relate.

We have five TV's in this 2,000 square foot home. We all watch TV in separate rooms. I remember in the 1970's when my husband and I used to get the kids to bed by prime time and watch TV in the evening together. Those days are gone forever.

When we lived overseas with the Navy we only used our little black and white TV once. That was on July 20, 1969. We dragged the TV out, turned down the volume, and listened on Armed Forces radio while man walked on the moon.

Personally, I miss the old days. When we didn't have TV overseas we spent more time with neighbors and friends. We used to visit and play games. When we didn't have all these darn channels in the 1970's my husband and I used to enjoy the same shows. We spent more time together. Now we're always interrupting each other's TV show to have a simple conversation. And I'm afraid the Internet is making everyone even more isolated. Yes, we have Internet friends, but nothing can replace face to face friendships.

This is all progress...right?