Spike's Bitches 42: Which question do you want me to answer first?
[NAFDA] Spike-centric discussion. Lusty, lewd (only occasionally crude), risqué (and frisqué), bawdy (Oh, lawdy!), flirty ('cuz we're purty), raunchy talk inside. Caveat lector.
So if I were to say, "America's horror theme park..." would anyone know the tune I was humming? I think I only saw the commercial once almost ten years ago, but it's still in my head! Freaky undead earworm.
So there's this kid that comes in early every morning -- one of my favorites, sweet, hard-working, really adorable. He wears Christian t-shirts, he's in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, that's all fine. Sort of odd in a "I've heard of this phenomenon but never met one before" way, but cool. He's also the only other person in here when the Pledge comes on. Which makes it a little weird that today's T-shirt says, "ONE COUNTRY UNDER GOD." Especially since that's the part I stay -- respectfully! -- silent for.
I suppose this may go some way toward explaining why this sweet, compassionate, hard-working, African-American future engineer... isn't sure who he's voting for yet.
(Did I mention I think I'm living in Real America?)
It really is-- but nothing can beat the West Side Market. Farmer's market on CRACK!
Whoa, yeah.
What I really loved about Hudson, though was that you had this little New England (as opposed to typically Midwest town) just outside of Cleveland, with this wonderfully funky Northern Exposure sort of vibe. We really thought we were going to be there for the long haul.
The interesting thing about Ohio is that it isn't just a Midwest state. The Western Reserve IS New England - or was, once upon a time. It only stopped being part of Connecticut in 1800 or so. So the older towns in that corner of the state were definitely built on New England patterns. Hudson is one of those towns. And the rest of the state - well, along the Ohio River, it sure acts like an Appalachian area, and then the western part of the state starts acting more Midwest.
And the rest of the state - well, along the Ohio River, it sure acts like an Appalachian area, and then the western part of the state starts acting more Midwest.
Even just a few miles away, you'd see the difference. Whenever we had visitors, I used to love driving them straight from Hudson across to Medina. Hudson: part of the Connecticut Western Reserve and looked it, with the Colonial houses. A mere twenty-five miles away, Medina was part of the Westward expansion and therefore, has a far more Midwest appearance and vibe, with the houses having the front porches and more of a prairie feel to them.
It really brought home just what a vast distance twenty-five miles was, two hundred years ago.
It really brought home just what a vast distance twenty-five miles was, two hundred years ago
Doing my geneology, it's made it both easy and hard to find ancestors. Sometimes, I'll find a census where there's a string of family only houses apart, which makes it easy to figure out who's a brother, uncle, cousin, etc. Often, with the in-laws interspersed. Helps figure out maiden names. US censuses are only 10 years apart, so tracking folks after 1850 is pretty easy. I've found pretty much every ancestor after that census. Before 1850 sucks, because the census only lists the first name of the head of household and then chicken scratches for the number of males/females in the house by age. But then, following families across the border from Canada can suck tremendously. So close, yet so far. Those 20 miles and they get lost in the border crossing. My only hope is that it's a couple who got married in Canada because they keep pretty comprehensive marriage records that includes the bride's maiden name.
Timelies, all. I managed to get a bit of sleep last night. I'm trying to decide now whether I want to try to get some work done today or stay home and try to clean my apartment. Or maybe just rest for a while.
Yay, I found a car conversion place much closer to home.
brrr. Chilly morning. Plus, sleep never fully came. It was more like a series of naps. Gronk level is high. Blargh.
It really brought home just what a vast distance twenty-five miles was, two hundred years ago.
Twenty-five miles was a big deal 40 years ago, too, in that neck of the woods. In my family, you planned a drive like that a few days in advance, in the "Let's go to Morgantown this Saturday" sense. A 40-mile drive was a true adventure.
It's still like that, to a degree. I suppose people could easily drive 25-miles inside the county, going back and forth between people's houses and into town, etc., but 25-miles in one direction that will take you that far from home . . . it's not something some people do casually.
New hair:
Photos taken in geeky home office.
GC,you always look fabulous, but that haircut is an extra dose of fabulous!
I will be so happy when this car stuff is over and my mother has one less thing to nag me about. Can I please have some ~ma that the insurance company faxes over what they are supposed to and I can sign all the paperwork tonight. TCG has tomorrow off and the weekend, so it would be much easier to get everything done then.
