Transformation

The establishments that I frequented when I was a teen and young adult no longer exist. They have been bought out, renovated, merged and everything else in between.

Recently, Anheuser- Busch in Missouri was purchased by a Belgian-Brazilian Company.

My girlfriend resides in a suburb of St. Louis. Last week she informed me that she took her children for one final visit of the Clydesdale Horses at Grant's Farm. I do not know too much about Grant's Farm. However, I do know that my friend visits that farm often. Hopefully, it will not close. Following is an excerpt from the Grant's Farm website:

There are many exciting animal encounters possible at Grant's Farm, the 281-acre ancestral home of the Busch family, located just south of the city of St. Louis. The Farm is home to more than 1,000 animals representing more than 100 different species from six continents. Grant's Farm, operated by Anheuser-Busch, Inc., has been a St. Louis tradition for over five decades.

As I said, hopefully this ancestral home will remain.

I realize seasons change, cities get renovated, landmarks get transformed. With the blink of an eye, da-da!! The ribbon cutting for the new ......? It just seems like this is occuring to many venues, all at once. Baseball stadiums no longer have names such as "Tiger Stadium" (which was demolished last week ). Corporate Corporate Corporate! Now, baseball fans in Detroit go to Comerica (as in Comerica Bank) Park.

The names of the stores have been altered. Many stores do not exist. Here are a few examples of the stores (some in the metro Detroit area) that have changed names or are just a part of the archives because they no longer exist:

Arbor Drugs is now CVS

J.L. Hudsons is now Macys

Pine Knob is now DTE

Henry Ford Musuem is now THE HENRY FORD

Farmer Jack grocery does not exist

Harmony House records does not exist (maybe one classical store in R.O.)?

The good "old fashioned" movie theatres that DO NOT have stadium seating are starting to close down too.

Can't we just slow down a bit? I know the past is not the present but we can at least preserve some of it.

Mosquito Be Gone

I consider MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING to be one of my favorite movies. Family, culture, romance and of course, laughter!! One product that is mentioned throughout the movie is Windex. Windex cures pains, takes away pimples, it has over 100 uses. Not to mention that it cleans windows too.

Lately, I have unknowingly invited unwanted guests into my house. Always after dark. The mosquito. The little, leggy insect that makes a distinct buzzing noise near the ear. I have experienced countless battles with this irritating blood sucker! Every time I attempt to swat it, whoosh, it is gone. Touring the ceiling, fluttering behind the refrigerator. Of course, I usually end up with a gift or two in the morning - nice red bites.

This time, I was ready to win this war. I thought of the movie, remembered the Windex and VOILA!!! Quick spray, no mess on the wall and the mosquito was history!!. In fact, the wall will be clean and it doesn't harm the paint!

The Merger

M & M's and chips (any brand, flavor or the way it is prepared - low fat, no fat, baked) and they must have some salt.

I will use Rachael Ray's famous saying (although I detest when she says this):

"YUMM-O!!!"

Address Not Unknown

One day I decide to send a few dollars to the Disabled Vets. A few days later, I am gifted with an array of colorful address return labels. Adorned in the colors of Old Glory, I am happy with my gift. Is it really a gift? Didn’t I donate money to the organization? Well, I cannot complain. Until I receive a letter of despair from another organization. Ok, fine, a small donation wouldn’t hurt. Wow, I thought as I opened a larger packager I received. A nice notepad with not one but FOUR different lighthouse designs. Well, since I collect lighthouses, once again, I enjoy my gift.

This cycle is like a wheel that just won’t stop. Address labels, a letter of thanks, address labels, another thank you letter.

I am not cheap. I just do not care to donate every Monday and Tuesday (every week) to every organization that has my name from a list. I wrote a note begging – please save your funds – do not send any more labels. It did not work. They are aware that I enjoy sending letters, cards and notes. However, if I had to utilize all of my labels, (including holiday ones), I would have to send out about 2,000 pieces of mail!

All Aboard!!!

If you resided in Southeast Michigan before 1991, it is very possible that you visited Bob-Lo island. During the summer months, we would look forward to taking a trip across the river, to a different country. We traveled on a vessel filled with many people, listened to the music and watched the frothy waves sway back and forth along the Detroit River . We boogied on the dance floor, explored the deck and after expressing extreme patience, we arrived at the island. My eyes searched for my favorite ride - The Log Ride. I could not wait to sit in the log, legs streched out, floating in the water until it was time to climb the hill. Chug, chug, up the incline. Heart racing, eyes open for a second and then the g-force begins. There it is, the stomach in the mouth feeling, screams of intense excitement penetrated my ears and then, it is over. Until the next incline. Sometimes we were sprinkled with the water. I thoguht it was so much fun!!! Of course, the park was home to many other rides such as rollercoasters, dodge-em cars and even a haunted house. Who could forget riding in the Model T cars? In our young minds, we thought we were really controlling the wheel!!

My grandpa Moe joined us on one trip. He really had fun. I was in charge of "keeping an eye" on my six year old brother. He was walking down the stairs, which were very close to the edge of the boat, and I was scared he was going to fall. I grabbed his hand just to be safe. Always the worry wart... that's me. Nonetheless, I was, and continue to be, the mother hen of the brood.

The classic story occurred in 1978. My mom always buggied us to the coolest fun spots. This time, she surprised us with a spur of the moment trip to Bob Lo. We headed for the Detroit port and missed the boarding time by about five minutes. My mom, she is an ambitious lady. She said, "That's ok, we will go to the Wyandotte port. It isn't too far from here." Once again, we were a few minutes too late. Since there was only one daily pick-up in Wyandotte, we did not go to Bob Lo that day. The day was not a disaster - it had a sweet ending. My mom took us for ice cream - who would complain about that?

Unfortunately, Bob Lo island closed in 1993 and is now a residential community. Good website is
http://boblosteamers.com/

Flowers Everywhere

A big treat for our family was to watch "slides" on the weekends. My dad would bring out the projector and insert the big cube that held about 30 slide photos. Once the lights were off and the projector,which always made a slight humming noise, faced the blank wall it was Showtime!!!

Photos of ladies with boufant hairstyles, men with "lamb chop" side burns, birthday candles getting blown out....then the flowers. Rose bushes against the brick wall, a close up of a daisy. Flowers and more flowers!! I wanted to ask my dad why he photographed so many displays of flowers. I never did.

When I became interested in flowers and creating outdoor flower pot arrangements, I began to take photos of various blossoms. Not just one or two pictures. More like twenty. Now,

photographing flowers is my annual summer tradition. The vivid colors. The beauty of the center of a tulip. Water droplets on the leaf of a Ladies Slipper. Finally, I understood why my dad had so many photos of flowers.

My Generation?

"Hey, Hey, My, My...Rock and Roll will never die..." the words are quite clear. Rock and Roll will never die. In 1954, dj who worked for a radio station in New York coined the phrase "rock & roll". Back in the day, "rock and roll" musicians ranged from Booker T. and the MG's, Chuck Berry and of course, Elvis, to list a few. Enter 1964 (what a great year to be born!) and the Beatles invade America. Following their British mates, THE WHO breaks out with their first song in 1965. Music continues to get "psychedelic" with songs about white rabbits, purple haze and an "adonis like man" inviting listeners to light his fire.

The following years bring great rock and roll. Some bands break up. Young musicans choose to abuse substances, sometimes ending their careers or leaving the world in an abrupt fashion. Despite losing Keith Moon in 1978 and John Entwhistle in 2002, The Who continues to rock.

VH-1 classics (ok, am I disclosing my age ?!) hosted a week-long series on The Who, one of my favorite artisits. I saw the rock opera Tommy the summer of '76 with my Grandmother. I remember my mom dropped us off at the Livonia Mall movie theatre (which I thought was a very long ride from Oak Park) and I simply fell in love with Roger Daltrey. He possessed the long, curly, tendrils of light brown hair and "sweep me off my feet" crystal blue eyes. OUCH! This was a bit too much for a 13 year old to handle. When I wore my Tommy t-shirt the first week of 6th grade, I instantly made about 3 new friends. These young ladies simply wanted to look at the gorgeous man on my shirt!

When I was a Junior in high school, I was re-introduced to the Who. I gained the understanding as to what the songs were really were about. Pete Townshend's words are tremendous. We used to go to the Birmingham theatre (sometimes after midnight) to watch the movie Quadrophenia. As a teenager, I could somewhat relate to the main character, Jimmy.- he was confused. He was a Mod (see website Mod (lifestyle) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) (after all, I was labeled Ms. Mod (not the definition listed above) in middle school and it was not a compliment, it was daily harassment) and he struggled with the challenges of daily teenage life.

Many of us giggle when we watch these rockers rock. Why? We joke about their age. Question their full heads of hair with small, minute specks of grey. They are a bit slower at jumping in the air, they may wear comfortable shoes instead on the platform shoes or boots, and their pants may be tight NOT because they want them to be. Should we really be concerned about how they look? If we shut our eyes and just listen to the songs - that is where the beauty is. Roger may not have that beautiul long hair and I am not a 13 year old teenybopper either (just a 44 year old teenybopper....(only sometimes).

As I mentioned earlier, rock and roll will never die. I give a standing ovation to Roger and Pete (along with all of the other SENIOR CITIZEN ROCK ICONS) to keep the rock era of the 70's rocking as long as possible - even if they have to perform from their rockers! (oops, another joke). LONG LIVE ROCK!

My oh My it is the Moai!

I have always been in awe of the all the wonders of the world. Sure, there are the seven wonders. I believe there may be a new assorment of the seven wonders of the world. In my mind, I just wonder how these mysteries developed. Stonehenge. The Great Sphinx. The MOAI!

One of my treasured places to visit on my virtual web tour of the world is Easter Island. Home of the Moai.

I do not know why I find the Moai so fascinating . Is it the vast size? The intricate faces? The people that created them.? I just don't know...

here is the linkhttp://www.mysteriousplaces.com/Easter_Island/index.html

Behind the Scene

I do not discuss politics with many people. I do not desire to defend my opinion. Sometimes, words get twisted, heat rises. Soon, you and your neighbor look the other way when you are both outside. Not worth it to me.

However, when I want to really support a candidate, I am very generous with donating my time to their campaign. It is an opportune time to meet people in the community. It began a few years ago when I assisted a gentleman running for City Council. Since the telephone is physically glued to my ear, I performed the job of "the caller". A few years later, he was running for State Representative and I performed the same task for him. This gentlemen surprised me one day when he suggested that I join the political bandwagon. He wanted to endorse me to run for City Council and another political office. I politely declined. I am a "behind the scene" person. I do not care to be in the "political spotlight."

Currently, a good friend of mine is running to get re-elected as the County Commissioner. I have really enjoyed the ride of assisting with her campaign. I had a blast walking in the City Parade, proudly holding one side of her large banner. I went door to door with her in my neighborhood. We covered about a mile and people were so responsive and friendly. I hope she wins. I say that because she cares about people. She was the director of the Youth Assistance Program where I have been a volunteer for 13 years. Helps kids, helps people..

...Oh, did I mention the dirt that is sprinkled in politics? I would not even make a mud pie with it.