Edelweiss

NPR is doing a series on “Thanks for the Music Mom & Dad” where listeners are asked “how, for better or worse, has your parents' record collection shaped your own taste in music?”

While listening to this series on my NPdrive home from work,  the first interview was with Audra McDonald.  She was talking about Christopher Plummer singing Edelweiss in the Sound of Music.

I had a flashback of Dad, with our record player he purchased while he was a member of the Columbia Record Club.  It was gray and white, with two side speakers that you unbuckled from the sides.  One of Dad’s favorite records was the Broadway recording of the Sound of Music.  I can still hear him singing along with Theodore Bickel to Edelweiss.  Edelweiss is still one of Dad’s all-time favorite songs.

It still amazes me how something as simple as a song, can stir up so many memories.

Thanks Dad!

Thanks to my guest blogger, my sister Jackie, for this great memory of Dad.

PS I remember Grandmom sitting on the green metal glider on the big stone front porch playing her old banjo and singing Edelweiss.

Happy 60th Anniversary

Today is Mom and Pop's 60th Anniversary. I'll try to be brief as I give you a rundown of the days' events.

Yesterday I asked Pop what he would like to get Mom for their anniversary. His response, "When is it?" "It's tomorrow." "Oh, okay, I guess a new car" My husband then tells Mom that he made reservations for dinner at IHop tomorrow night. Mom: "Don't you dare." Husband: "I already did!" Later that evening, Mom to me: " He better not make reservations at IHoo."
Me: "Dinner for four tomorrow at 5:30 PM." (Death stare number 1)

Next day, on the kitchen table are three anniversary cards, and gifts for Pop. Pop: "What's all this for?" Mom: "It's our 60th anniversary today." Pop: "How many years have we been married?" Mom: "60"

Fast forward 6:00 PM:

So, off we go to IHope. Mom: " He won't eat anything there." Husband: "Their specialty is sushi."Pop: "Where are we going?" Me: "We are late for our reservations." (Death stare number 2)

We enter IPop.  Mom: "We should have gone to Olive Garden." Husband: "I hear their hollandaise sauce is great!" Pop: "Why are we going out to dinner?"  I kept my mouth shut this time.

The waitress at HopOnPop serves us dinner: Mom: "Lots of old people here!" Husband: "Who put the coffee in Pop's cream and sugar. Pop: "Would you look at the size of that fellow!"

Later that evening:
Ice cream cake was served and on the top written in icing Happy Anniversary. Pop: "Who got married?" Pop wasn't looking at Mom but I'm pretty sure he would not have survived the death stare.

Name that Turd!

Today I came home from school and was greeted by Mom screeching at Pop, "Where's the plunger?!" She repeated louder, "Where's the plunger?!"  As I approached their apartment, I heard a toilet flushing, water running and then I went running, as my superhero, alter ego, Toxic Avenger to the rescue!

WARNING: If you are squeamish, stop reading here...
Floating in yellow water rimming to the toilet seat were several turds in various states of decomposition. I sprang into action trying to avoid a catastrophic environmental cleanup.

Flashback to earlier this afternoon, Pop uses the bathroom and then uses wads and wads of TP. He neglects to flush the toilet. Mom goes in to use the bathroom and when she flushes, the clog is immediately evident.

Meanwhile, Pop is content to sit in the recliner watching the TV at ear-piercing volume and remains blissfully unaware of his part in this near disaster that created a foul ecosystem that had been brewing for hours. After everything was cleaned up, Pop asks, "What did Mom need the plunger for?"

The Merchant of Venice

Mom's modern day version of this Shakespeare classic goes like this

Act I:
Narrator: As of January 1, 2012 Mom and Pop's private insurance will be changed to Medicare Advantage.
Mom (in her best Shakespearean dialect): Forsooth, why oh why must it be changed?  What option (casket) should I choose?

Act II: Two weeks later:
Mobile Lab: I'm coming out tomorrow morning to draw some blood that your doctor (Shylock) ordered.
Narrator: The Mobile Lab arrives, draws three vials of blood from Mom and two vials from Pop. Mom is upset because they took so much blood, they usually only take one vial of blood and only from me, not from Pop.

Later that same day: Mom received two phone calls. One from the doctor's office confirming an appointment for Pop and the other from the Mobile Lab at the hospital about their blood work results and questions about insurance information.

Mom is convinced that the reason they took so much blood (a pound of flesh)  is because of the faulty new insurance plan and they are accepting blood in lieu of insurance payments.

Pop's Wardrobe Choices

I've mentioned in previous posts what a snappy dresser Pop is but these two photos explain it better than any description I could write.

On the left Pop rocking the Hugh Hefner look and on the right a classic Bill Murray, Caddy Shack. If you look closely you can see his
Haverford scarf embroidered with
                                                     Class of 1935!

T'was the Night Before Christmas....

... and all through the house,
the TV was deafening at Mom and Pop's house.

The stockings were hung but yet to be filled

with candies and Combos and lots of goodwill.

The parents were nestled all snug in their recliners,

With had visions of gummy bears what could be finer
And Mom in her blanket and Pop with his puzzle,

And me I just wanted the TV to muzzle!@#
Cleaning and cooking, sweeping and mopping
and then off to do some last minute shopping
Paper and ribbons, boxes and bows
wrapping and tape, anything goes!
And all of a sudden there was a knock at the door
Twelve people for breakfast and for dinner much more
The TV still blaring, the parents asleep
And me, my sanity I want to keep

As I finally snuggled in bed for the night
"Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good-night."

Reader's Digest version of stories that will never be written

A ton of tiny twinkle lights lay tangled on the tile floor alongside a bevy of broken and busted, battered and beat up balls that had been bounced across the blanketed floor and there in the middle of the chaos, lay Clarence the cat, who had inflicted copious amount of damage on the Christmas tree that had crashed to the ground at the crack of dawn that cold Christmas morn.

Mrs. Grinch

You probably didn't know that the Grinch had a wife. She lives with me. I love decorating for Christmas. I love the bright lights, the colorful decorations, the presents and bows, the beautiful music. Mom loathes the thought of card writing, caroling, baking, and celebrating the season.  Pop on the other other hand, enjoys looking at all the glittering decorations on the tree and watching my sisters and I decorate their house. He loves his "antique" train set that circles underneath his Christmas tree. He loves to tell the story about how he bought that train set for his daughter, Jackie's, first Christmas. He is enamored at the prospect of opening presents on Christmas morning and joyfully singing Christmas carols. Mom, however, sums it up..."I'm going to be Jewish this year"

 Every Who down in Who-ville, the tall and the small,

Was singing! Without any presents at all!

He HADN'T stopped Christmas from coming! IT CAME!

Somehow or other, it came just the same!

And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled ’till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.         - Dr. Seuss

Shopping for Pasties

Mom loves to go grocery shopping. She clips coupons and makes lists. The problem is that sometimes the lists are difficult to decipher. One item was particularly perplexing. She had written pop-up pasties. She could have meant pop-top cans, pastries, pop-tarts, or pasta or....possibly she really wanted pasties; sexy, pop-up pasties w/tassels. I looked all over Giant for them  (even in the stripper accessories aisle) but couldn't find them anywhere!

Cafe Ristorante

The elderly couple shuffles into the cafe at the 6:00 PM sharp and take their usual seats at the counter. The waitress recites the menu for tonight but Pop prefers to order a la carte and asks, "Is there anything else to eat?" "Yeah, cold cereal," the waitress adds sweetly.

Dinner is brought to their table piping hot but Mom complains, "this meat is overcooked and it's not even hot!" Pop adds,"I'm not really hungry." Meanwhile, Mom is cleaning her plate of the meal that was overdone and the waitress has microwaved to the desired temperature. She grumbles because the stool is too small and she can't get comfortable. Pop pushes his food around on his plate to make it appear that he has actually eaten while he patiently waits for dessert.

Dessert is cinnamon buns, but again he asks, "Is there anything else?" Oreos and Tastycakes are brought to their table. He chooses the original option and then requests butter. The waitress clears off the dirty plates and silverware and prepares the dessert. Pop is eager for his dessert because he hasn't eaten his dinner and asks the waitress again for butter for his cinnamon bun. (The cafe is short-staffed tonight.) He states the obvious when he says, "This butter is cold" but he lets that slide because the waitress has microwaved his cinnamon bun and the butter melts instantly.

The weary waitress cleans the remnants of their meal from the table, sans a tip, as the elderly couple leave the Ristorante to return again tomorrow night.

Pop Discovers YouTube

Tonight after dinner, Pop recalled a favorite song from the 40's called Turn the Radio On. I decided to Google the lyrics to the song and sure enough, they had a version of the song on YouTube. It wasn't long before Pop requested, Tennessee Waltz, I Want to Go Where You Go, Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, Buttons and Bows and other wildly popular Top 10 hits.

Pop sat with the headphones on, singing along as he conducted just like Lawrence Welk. He stopped after each song and asked where do you put the tape in for these songs? How did you get them in there with the movie? Is it just like TV? No explanation I gave could convince him that the waves around us found their way into my computer. I finally told him it was magic!

Albert and Andy

Albert (94) and Andy (92) barely knew each other but for Pop they were best friends. They had two things in common: They both served in the Army during WWII and saw each other every Sunday night. Pop knew alot about Andy, Andy didn't know a thing about Pop."He was war correspondent for the Stars and Stripes. He flew on the first American bombing raid over Germany. He's written lots of books." Pop would brag about his "old friend."

Andy's stories on A Few Minutes with Andy Rooney made Pop happy. Pop sat in his recliner facing Andy sitting behind his walnut desk. "He made that desk himself," Pop would boast.

But Pop never bragged about himself. While Andy was in the air, Pop was on the ground during Germany's relentless air raids to stop the progress of American GI's. Pop slept in fox holes and watched his army buddies die. Pop has never written a book. He's never made anything.  He has made lasting relationships, raised three daughters, married his sweetheart 59 years ago. Pop has lived his a quiet, modest life, proud of the simple things in life. He loves his family and cantaloupe.

I know Pop’s Sundays will not be the same now. So while Pop laments the loss of his BFF, Andy, we give thanks that he still has Larry (Lawrence Welk), the Daily News, the Inquirer and cantaloupe, lots of cantaloupe.

Thanks to my sister Jackie for this post!

We shared a laugh last night...

a genuine belly laugh, a good old fashioned laugh out loud laugh! This might not seem monumental but for Mom this was a major event.

I was just beginning Mom and Pops's monthly pedicures and had to borrow Pop's nail clippers. He warned, "make sure you put them back where they belong!" The key phrase is, "where they belong." You see, Pop has developed a bit of OCD as he has gotten older. If you saw the top of his bureau you would understand.  It's like a map, everything is located by latitude and longitude, a place for everything and everything in its place, and the dust makes perfect little impressions where each item belongs. I took one look at Mom, she had that old twinkle in her eye (one I haven't seen in a while) and she knew mischief was about to happen. I "innocently" put them back in the wrong place. I asked Mom to watch and let me know how long it took before Pop realized my "mistake." It didn't take long. We waited until Pop went into the bedroom and when we heard a "Hey!" emerge from Pop ( famous for his sound effects), we giggled like school girls who had just shared a secret.

You Be the Judge!

Last week Mom called me a whore. I guess I should be upset, but you have to realize that sometimes what she says and what she means are two different things. She was watching a TV program called Hoarding: Buried Alive. Here is a picture of my sewing room. You can judge for yourself.

Punch Lines that should be on Cartoon Strips.

It begins as soon as their feet touch the doctor's waiting room floor:
1. Pop proclaims loudly, "Look at how tall that fellow is." He pauses and then adds, "but little feet."
2. Mom is scrutinizing me as I read a Time magazine. She inquires, "What do you do to your mustache?" She doesn't miss a beat and shares, "I use adhesive tape."
3. After the appointment, Pop had to use the bathroom. I told him the second door is the men's room. Of course, he went into the ladies room.

Pearls of Wisdom from Mom

"You should not go swimming with your hat on."

I should explain. Mom was watching the news last night and there was a story about a church that had their air conditioner stolen. A woman they interviewed was wearing a large hat. Following that segment was a story about kids swimming to keep cool during this heat wave. It makes perfect sense now, doesn't it.

The American GI and the German Professor

 During dinner, Pop will often tell stories about the Great War but he never mentions the actual fighting and war, only friendships. Just last night at dinner he told a story about a Professor that he met after the war. He was a German who taught English at the University. The American GIs were not allowed to speak to the German people. But Pop did and they became friends, if only for a short time. The Professor invited Pop to dinner and he accepted. Pop knew that he had two little girls and due to the war they did not have many possessions. On his way to dinner, Pop passed by a shoe store that had been raided, windows broken and much of the store destroyed. Pop went in and found two pair of brand new shoes that he thought might fit the girls. He left payment on the counter for the shoes. When he gave them to the girls they were overjoyed and hugged him, an American GI. Pop enjoyed dinner with the Professors' family. Pop commented on the delicious chicken. The girls giggled and then corrected him, "It's rabbit!" they said in unison.

Furniture Delivery

The recliner delivery was prompt and uneventful. The fun began afterward. The old recliners, in "perfect" condition, perfect...with rips, scratches and stains, were moved outside to the front porch to make room for the brand new power recliner chairs. Mom and Pop eagerly took them for a test drive. (My husband told Mom and Pop they needed drivers' licenses.)

I left the Elderfolk, sleeping in their new recliners to go to the store. When I returned, both Mom and Pop were still sound asleep but they were now sleeping in the old recliners on the porch. The only thing missing was the TV remote in Mom's hand. Priceless!

Furniture Shopping at Mealey's

On day, Mom decided they needed new recliners. "The other recliners are in 'perfect' condition," Mom said, "but I want new ones." So off we went to Mealey's. After an extensive search through an acre of furniture, Mom selected two power chairs in matching gold color. Story finished; no, just beginning...

The salesperson directed us to the Mealey's Cafe, which has a selection of snack foods to eat while completing the paperwork for the sale. You have heard the expression, "like a kid in a candy store," truer words have never been spoken. The salesperson said to Mom and Pop help yourself. Everything is free! Mom opened her purse and began filling it with wrapped candies like she was at the diner loading it with coffee creamers. Pop asked, "Where do we pay for this stuff?" Meanwhile, Mom had moved on to the freezer was busy raiding it for ice cream. Mom finally sat down at the table with a dixie cup in one hand, which she handed to Pop, and ice cream sandwich in the other. Pop asked, "Who do we pay for this stuff?"  By now, the salesperson had been waiting patiently for five minutes. Story finished, not yet, there's more....

Pop, "I can't use this wooden spoon, do you have a regular spoon?" Mom was up again selecting her second choice of ice cream and we still haven't started the paperwork.  Finally, the "kids" settled down and in between dripping ice cream and empty candy wrappers, the sale was finalized. At the end of the transaction, I asked where the restroom was, the salesperson directed me and then said, "I'll babysit for awhile."

As we were leaving the store, Pop said, "We didn't pay for all that stuff."

Happy Father's Day!

Last night after Pop went to bed, Mom and I got our cards together for Father's Day. Mom handed me her card and I put them on the kitchen table for Pop to open today. A few minutes later we heard shuffling in the kitchen. Our signal that Pop was awake. Sure enough he opened the cards. After another few minutes, Pop emerged from the kitchen, cards in hand. "Who's this card from? It isn't signed." He handed the card to me. On the front it said Happy Father's Day to My Wonderful Husband.

Groundhog Day II

Pop: What's on the program today?
Me: The boys are coming home to help Eric build the bridge in the back yard.
Pop: Is that what the big pile of stones in the driveway is for?
Me: Yes
Pop: What about that big pipe, is that for the bridge too?
Me: Yes
Pop: Are they going to use the Kabota to move the stone and the pipe?
Me: Yes
Pop: Maybe, I'll get dress and go out and watch them.
Me: Good idea.

As I turned to leave....

Pop: What's on the program today?
Me: The boys are coming home to help Eric build the bridge.
Pop: Is that what the big pile of stones ....
You get the picture?

Groundhog Day

Pop and Bill Murray have a lot in common. Both are snappy dressers (Caddy Shack) and both experience Déjà vu (Groundhog Day). For Pop everyday is a repeat of the previous day. I will ask him, "What did you do today?" He will answer without a hint of sarcasm, "Same thing I did yesterday!" 


Which explains a lot. He can tell a story or ask a question less than 10 seconds after he told the same story or asked the same question, but ... It still doesn't explain the snappy outfits!

Lost in Translation

Mom has suddenly developed an interest in watching baseball, specifically the Phillies. She will yell at the players when they are doing poorly and cheer when they do well.

The other night during dinner Mom announced, "The Phillies play at the Metropolitan tonight at 7:00."
Pop, "I'd enjoy watching that, who is their conductor?
Mom, "Charlie Manuel"
Pop, "I didn't know he played an instrument."

Choose Your Own Adventure

As "I have may have told you before," Pop frequently tells the same story over and over and just as frequently he changes one or two details to the story (just to keep us guessing). It reminds me of the books my sons used to read as children, Choose Your Own Adventure books. You know, the kind of book where you get to make the decisions as to what the main character does next. Here is Pop's version.

He is walking to school and crosses a
a: cow pasture (turn to page 2)
b: dirt path (turn to page 5)
c: river (turn to page 6)

 He notices a patches of
a. scallions (turn to page 7)
b: garlic (turn to page 8)
c. radishes (turn to page 11)

He decides to eat them on the way to school. Unbeknown to Pop, his dog,
a. Monk
b. Buster
c. Sargent

follows him to school. His teacher,
a. Miss Buckworthy
b. Miss Buckwald
c. Miss Buckwheat

yells at him for eating those smelly vegetables and for bringing his dog to school. Meanwhile at recess, his brother,
a. Jack
b. Lou
c. Cork

gets into a fight.  Pop is in more trouble for coming to his rescue and is called to the principal's office.
a. Mrs. O'Leary
b. Mrs. O'Donnell
c. Mrs. O'Reilly

always wears her hair in a
a. bun
b. beehive
c. braid wrapped around her head

She tells Pop,
a. "Let your brother fight his own fights"
b. "March to your own drummer."
c. "You bold and brazen article!"

Star Gazing

STAR DATE: 3/7/2011- 10:00 PM
The night was cold, the sky was black, and the stars were clear and bright. There was a new moon. The perfect evening for star gazing. Pop and I bundled up and went outside to watch the stars. As we stood in the driveway and gazed up at these brilliant points of light, we watched in wonder at the shining constellations and planets that were displayed against the velvet sky. We huddled together for warmth, me holding Pop in my arms so he could keep his balance as he craned his neck to pick out another shining jewel, "Look at that one!" "There's more stars over there!" "I wonder what is that cluster of stars?" Pop said excitedly as he pointed toward the northeastern sky.

For the next several minutes, we stood quietly, observing the show overhead. If you have never paused to watch the stars and then pause again to see the stars reflected back in your Pop's eyes, you are missing something wonderful, try it sometime!