Ghosts to Groundhogs

Happy Imbolc and Happy Groundhog Day !
I started this morning making groundhog pancakes for my little grandson Perrin which he gobbled down while we watched the party near my hometown in Punxatawny Penna. for Phil to make his annual prediction. Being 4 years old, Perrin had a lot of questions about everything but we got our dancing shoes on listening to the Love Shack watching the gopher cheerleaders heating up the crowd in that bitter cold up there. I remember those cold mornings walking up to Gobblers Knob with my grandparents dressed in our Sunday clothes then going to the local firehouse for some hot breakfast after Phil told us whether it was 6 more long weeks of winter or spring was just around the corner. Times sure have changed since I was a little girl cuz it wasnt like this at all then. A radio station may have covered it then but mostly newspaper reporters and then only a few came.
At school, Perrin made a cute little groundhog that popped in and out of a cup today and I took his picture at his school where they decided that this was ok to have a sign out on the marquee. It no less surprised me for that as they are not the type of school to celebrate an old Pennsylvania German custom.
Last week on January 24th, I took some friends on the annual Ghost Brigade Ghost Walk in Centre Hill Mansion in Petersburg. My favorite author Mr LB Taylor was there and shared a few laughs with me on some of his stories especially Crazy Lucy down in Williamsburg. He has a wonderful way of writing a story and when he speaks, I can feel them come to life.
We seen no ghosts that night but seen more paranormal people there than usual. I havent been in a couple of years where I used to go faithfully each year. I have seen many unexplainable things in that house especially the white dress that is no longer in sight there. I chatted a bit with a few of the Tri City Paranormal guys and watched old Ben with his cameras outside where he said there was more activity out there than in the house. Several years ago he took some photos of my group and several had some wild looking lights around their heads. My favorite guide Ms Franklin wasnt with us on tour although she was there that night. Ahh the times she and I have had in that house and on the Blandford Cemetary tours with spirits and ghosts. I so wished we would have had any other guide than the one we had though as she went too fast thru the house, missed telling the group some of the main ghost stories like the melodium piano playing by itself, forgetting to take the second part of the tour group upstairs and not telling any of them about the bullet hole in the door. what should have been a 45 minute tour at the least ended after 20 minutes. It is a shame because the place was packed and they were turning people away that they had one guide at least who only wanted to share the historical value of the furniture and not the history of the home. But I will go back and somehow will make it up to my friends who came from out of the country to attend this event. Hopefully we can get to Shirley Plantation so they can see Aunt Pratt happly hanging on the wall these days or go see if the fruit stays in the bowl on the table at Berkeley Plantation.
Last but not least I need to make note that today the local army base was playing the music tones to Close Encounters again. I now know the reason behind it but cant even begin to imagine anyone who doesnt know what is going on and hears those tones thinking aliens may be coming or we are trying to contact them. I know the first time I heard them I was so excited but it scared my family and some friends when i rushed in the house to tell them and they heard.
I love living near the base as I have for many many years. One thing I miss on this side of Ft Lee is that I can no longer hear the soldiers singing during their morning exercises. But then I can hear all the bugle calls each day and end my nights with Taps thinking of all our men and women who are out there for my family, friends and me keeping me safe and free to do these things we sometimes take for granted. May they always be safe and in our prayers ! Good night my friends

Family Day Trip

Sunday we took Perrin and Flat Stanley on an adventure to the Air Power Park in Hampton, Va cuz Perrin suddenly started asking questions about space and rockets. Thanks to another blogger for writing about this park -Carolina Biker ! Perrin was in 7th heaven as he climbed on a few jets and walked under a couple of the rockets. Mike and I were amused to with the history on the aircraft in the park. The only drawbacks was that it was very cold and windy when we were there, and part of the park was closed at this time. But it was still the greatest thing for my little grandson to see real rockets and wonder what it was like to go out in space in them.
Flat Stanley came along for the ride too as he wanted to see the Mercury Capsule there and have his picture taken for the 50th anniversary of Mercury coming up this May.
Perrin's mom decided we should just ride on down to the beach and go to the aquarium since we were close by. So off we went so Perrin could check out his favorite beast - the sharks ! He just loved seeing the sharks in the tank swimming around and coming close enough that he could see those pointy teeth. It has been awhile since I went to the aquarium and was impressed with the new changes there. I also like the tanks with the sharks, and the crocodiles were really big. Perrin didnt want to leave the crocs at all til we told him he could go touch a sting ray. Such slimy feeling creatures ugh ! but interesting to watch how they flow thru the water. We also enjoyed seeing the jelly fish and seeing different kinds. I always thought there was only one type. Shows you how much I know LOL. There is also a tank to touch horseshoe crabs and starfish. I think there were a few other things in there but Perrin held my attention watching him learning new things.
We stopped at Abbey Road to eat dinner, Perrin had his shrimp that he loved. Ours wasnt so great, but it was also off season there and late in the evening. I did like all the Beatle items displayed on the walls though.
Last but not least, Mike and I did a virtual cache so we could mark off an area of our De Lorme map. We found the Norwegian Lady and I remember her being there when I was at the beach long ago. There were several new additions to the area saluting our Armed Forces. But the wind was so so cold coming off the ocean we had to hurry back to the car. Another trip we will plan to do more caches and see the new sights they have in place there now.
I hear people all the time saying they are bored and have nothing planned to do with their family. I dont understand why not take a few hours and go visit some sights. Except for the aquarium, there were a lot of free interesting things to see and do down there. Pack a picnic lunch, jump in the car and do something fun and educational, and get in touch with your family. Til next time ..........

Facebook reunions

ahhh Good ole Facebook, the people I have been reunited with after many years and now I find my long lost cousins too. My family is scattered all over the USA and being part of a military family when I was growing up and married, I kind of lost track of family. But the past two months has brought us a few of us out of the woodwork and a bit of catching up. It has been interesting to see thanks to the glorious Facebook, how much we have in common being family and not really knowing each other at all. It has also been sad to hear of those who have gone to another world and sadder that family fueds exist in ours too. I had a wise lawyer one time tell me, that the people you should fear the most with your possesions and money are those closest to you - your family. How right he was ! My grandma left her family farm to the 2 youngest out of 6 kids. One because she lived there on the place with her family and the other because he was the only one who truly loved the farming life. Of course this made the rest mad because they felt they had earned their share during their younger years working on the farm. Well however they worked it out, wasnt really my concern as inheritance stuff just wasnt my thing. All I had really wanted was some pictures of the way things were back then that told my familys story and history. But my grandma did leave me a small amount which I bought my daughters first camera with, and gave a small amount to my youngest for her towards becoming a nurse. Both were wise investments for me as it has turned out.
But now us cousins are trying for a new approach in some odd way to rekindle that sense of family. I guess we chose the easiest one first which is our love of the Steelers since we come from Steel Mill City and prolly the Pirates which is my one passion in sports. I only confess to seeing the Steelers during playoffs as football is not my sport of choice at all. But the Pirates bring memories of being on the front porch in the mountains of Pennsylvania with a cold bottle of pop while my grandpap and his brother and my uncle listened to the game on the radio. No tv back then LOL
So tomorrow afternoon, I will find me some pop or soda as we call it now, maybe a can of beer LOL whoops no Iron City in this town down south, grab a snack, watch the game while facebooking my cousins and enjoy a new approach to a some sort of reunion with my long lost family and enjoying the game.
I end this post with
GO STEELERS !

1-1-11

Happy New Year !
I have a lot of things I want to do this year, but try not to make a list of too many so I dont disappoint myself. Besides I like the surprises that come my way to do things I may not do or have thought of during the year !
2010 brought a lot of those surprises to me and a few items on my "bucket list".
I will probably forget a lot of them but here are a few
My baby girl got married finally in November and she was very beautiful in her dress ! I wish I could say things went well but there were some family conflicts that made me sad while I watched her become Mrs. I am proud of the woman she has become and hope she will always be happy.
The beginning of the year, my middle daughter showed her talent at the Richmond Bridal Show with her fantastic photography. Melody has a great eye for art and doesnt try to do the usual bridal and wedding pics. She opened her new studio in Colonial Heights this year and has really made some big changes in our lives.
I went to see the Broadway Show - Wicked at the Landmark in Richmond. It was one of my favorite shows that I have seen. My daughter and son in law had seen it in New York and made sure I had front seats here to see it.
I did a little treasure hunting this year as we have been off our game for awhile. Doing the Eye of Horus kind of wore us out learning so many skills to accomplish one of the best caches in the USA.
Taking my grandson to see the Bowman Body was another of my favorite moments and to know his picture will be in the documentary this year makes me happy. The many afternoons I watched Shock Theater with the BB as the host kept my mind off of struggles I went thru back then. and most of all it gave me the love of Halloween in ways I never thought I would be.
The summer gave me time to spend with all my grandchildren. Playing dress up, swimming, having them all together here every day was a lot of fun. Making fairy houses, teaching them about insects and now they love collecting stamps that I started them on this summer. Just like my grandma did with me when I was that age.
Speaking of Halloween, I took this year off from my own house haunting to see other places. Sometimes we all need a change of scenery to get our creativity going again. I posted a picture of the home we went to and have to say it was the best I have been to and makes me wish I could do something similar. ahhh those backyard hauntings are the best but kids now dont seem to appreciate it anymore.
I am skipping around the year, but I have to thank Facebook for helping me find my old friend from grammer school in January. We both liked a certain news station and she made a comment that showed up one morning as I was reading over the news of the day. I checked out her pic and said wow maybe this is her and sent a message. We got together a few days later and had a great time talking over old times and catching up to now. There is nothing like old friends in our life !
Another favorite moment or two that I enjoyed was going to the burlesque shows in Richmond this year. I needed those laughs and the sparkle of the costumes. and meeting some of Richmonds favorite Drag Queens really made my year too.
But of all the things I have done this year, being with Perrin meant the most to me. He makes my heart sing with joy every day even when he is not being his best. Watching him grow up is one of the best gifts I have in this life and being able to be a big part of his world is awesome to see it in a childs eyes. Perrin had his own 15 minutes of fame several times this year though. The big one was meeting author of the Wheel of Time, Robert Jordans wife and the cowriter of his books since his death. Perrins mom and dad named him after a character in the books so when Mom wrote an essay about why she wanted to be a Tower Guard at the newest book signing she mentioned she named her son from the book. So they asked her to bring him along when she won ! Along with Perrin being a small piece of the Bowman Body documentary and meeting him, Perrin also met Pamela Kinney, a local writer of ghost stories. He and I had a great time at the Art thru Literature Festival that day even though it was very very hot.
So I am sure I left out a lot of things but thats what I get for not writing like I should in my blog. but I will probably write about it later.
Til then Happy New Year ! and for those who blog more than me, that I follow, you inspire me with your stories and give me new things to think about for which I am happy that I read your blogs !

christmas magic

There is nothing like a little boy and his trains especially on Christmas morning, when all he asked for was a magic train that runs by itself. Watching Perrin this morning was like seeing real magic and that " I Believe " really exists with Santa.
And he is still that sweet caring little boy that wasnt greedy about his presents although he got a ton of them. But making sure we all had ours to open too. How I love him and hope he is always like this.
Merry Christmas my only true joy in this world, my little Perrin !

#42

This is a bit late on posting but I wanted to remember the day 10-10-10. Geocachers around the world celebrated the # 42 by finding at least one cache and logging it that day. 42 is the answer to everything according to the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy which is an all time favorite book and movie of mine. I logged my cache at Prince George Forgotten located near the homeplace. I took along my towel just in case I didnt have my "stuff" together along with the movie and 42 picture. It was fun just taking part in something that people all over the world were doing all day.

Halloween 2010

Ahhh the joys of Halloween this year ! One of the items on my bucket list was to meet the Bowman Body and my grandson Perrin and I did that Saturday at the Hopewell quick Lunch. Perrin and the BB bonded over lunch and it was a real treat for us.
Our Halloween night, we went to Jessica Meadors parents home and all I can say is WOW ! on my list forever now is 11501 Woodmill Place, Richmond Va for Halloween. Their home was done up so cool including a mortuary, massive graveyard and doctors office where he was performing surgery on a corpse. Down to the minimal detail this home was done.
We tried for Hanover Ave in Richmond, but it was so packed you could not see anything but massive people. maybe next year on my bucket list my pretties !