Fake News and Facebook

There is BIG MONEY in the fake news business.  So much money that it seems everyone is jumping on-board the fake news gravy-train, and Facebookers and Tweeters are stoking the engine.

I'm guilty myself.  I've re-shared posts on my Facebook feed that turned out to be false.  Luckily a good many of my friends are self-appointed fake-post police, so I don't think I've actually gotten away with posting a false news post, but I've seen a lot of them posted that I just haven't shared.

I've only called out a few of them.  One that I just had to point out came from a site named Fauxcountrynews.com.  It actually says in the headline: "Fabricating Charleston News Since 2016."  Seriously people.  Look up the word "Fabricating" if you must, but stop sharing things as real when they come from sites like this.

This particular article http://fauxcountrynews.com/charleston-county-officials-worried-about-riggd-election/ from October 19, 2016 brought all kinds of outrage from a good many of my Republican friends.  I was flabbergasted at their outrageous resistance to reality.  Just read the article.  You will see what I mean.

Many sites, unlike the one above, do not tell you they are publishing fake news.  They look, feel, and read like real news sites.  Some even use other legitimate site names with maybe a slight misspelling.  Be careful.  Be wary.  

If the news sounds too stupid or unreal or just plain ridiculous to be true, then it is probably NOT TRUE.

The real trouble with the fake news sites is they undermine trust in the real news sites. If you fall for fake news a couple of times you start to question all news, which, of course, you should.

This brings me to the saddest part of all.  MOST of our media is owned and/or controlled by a handful of billionaires and their corporations, which means we are fed a steady diet of the news that the few want the many to hear, which is not necessarily what is always really the most important things that are presently happening.

If this doesn't frighten you, I don't know what will.  These numbers are five years old, so just imagine how much worse it it now. (from http://www.morriscreative.com/6-corporations-control-90-of-the-media-in-america/):

But I digress....

I guess I'm just trying to say what my Daddy always told me, "Never believe anything you hear and only half of what you see. If it sounds too good to be true, it is."

I'd also add, "Check your sources before re-posting news articles on Facebook." I know...I know...I should follow my own advice. I will try to do better.  I will....

Early Memories: A True Story

Do you ever think back?  Way way back to your early childhood?  What do you remember?

They say your earliest memories are embedded inside you.  If you get old and lose your memory, those early ones are the last to go.  

As I approach retirement, I find myself thinking of my early years a good bit.  

I remember many of those days bright and clear like they were yesterday, but some of the memories are fuzzy around the edges.  Frayed.  A little worn out and faded like an old 8mm movie that's been played too many times.  

Today I'm remembering one of those days.  I was very little.  I'd say I was only two years old, as my sister, Debbie, was not yet born and she came in 1958.  Mama and Daddy took my older brothers and sister and I to see some elderly people they knew.  It must have been some kind of family reunion or something because there were so many strangers there that day.  It could have been Thanksgiving.  Maybe it was.  That would make sense.

I remember the house.  It was a BIG two story house with white paint that was old and peeling.  The house was sitting high off the ground.  The porch was so high that I could easily walk under it since I was little.  There were dogs under there, so that's where I went the minute I was out of the car.  I've loved dogs all my life.  I was just trying to get one of the dogs to come to me when it happened.  A yellow jacket stung me on my chin.

It hurt very bad and I cried like the baby I was.

The older children all made fun of me as was their way.  My brother, Gene, pointed at my swelling chin and threw back his head and laughed and laughed.  Mama got mad at me for making such a fuss, and then she took a dab of snuff out of her mouth and put it on the sting, which made me both hurt worse and stink to high heaven.  

Mama made me stay inside after that.  There were a LOT of ladies in there.  Most of them were in the kitchen, but the older ones were in the sitting room dipping their snuff and spitting and talking about how children were so spoiled those days and how they had to work when they were my age.  (REMINDER: I was TWO YEARS OLD!)  

I remember feeling ashamed that I didn't have a job and I didn't do a good job of taking care of my Mama either.  

Now, as an adult, I realize Mama was sitting with the elderly women because she would have been very pregnant that day, and they were trying to guilt me into being good because they knew Mama would have yet another child to care for in a few weeks or months.  

The men were all gathered outside smoking cigarettes and doing their man gossiping.  Some of them were splitting more wood for the old wood cook stove and the fireplace in the sitting room.  You could hear the chop chop chopping from inside where I sat.  

The chopping noise was mixed with the squeals and war whoops of the boys outside playing cowboys and Indians.  The girls were much quieter in their play.  The younger ones were jumping rope while the older ones were sitting around a small campfire in the yard whispering and throwing sideways glances at the older boys helping stack the wood.

The elderly men were sitting either on the porch or in the front room fussing about how long women took to cook.  Some of them had pipes and were having good natured smoke ring competitions.  I still love the smell of good pipe tobacco to this day.  I loved those old men.  They were always sweet to me.  It was the old ladies that always let me know I was not good enough.

There was a big long table in the kitchen.  By the time the women finished putting the food on it, it practically groaned from the weight.  I didn't feel much like eating with my swollen chin that hurt so bad, but I was the only one.  They attacked that food like ravenous bears and it was gone in no time.  Leaving a mountain of dishes for the women to wash.  

By mid-afternoon the water had been carried in from the well and all the dishes were done.  The people started leaving family by family.  We were one of the last to leave as my Daddy dearly loved to spend time with family and friends.  

My chin finally healed, of course, but I will never forget that day.  

I still do not know where I was or who the people there were, but I can see it in my mind's eye as clear as day.   All the people knew my parents, so they had to have been either family or friends.  

When I grew up, I asked Mama about it many times, but she never remembered.  I even asked my older brothers and sisters, but they don't remember either.  They say, "It could have been... or it could have been... or it could have been..."  We visited a lot of places like that when I was little, I guess.  Daddy loved visiting family and friends.  That is true.  We were always going to see someone back then.  

No matter.  I remember it, so I thought I'd share.  I hope you have memories like this worth remembering and sharing too.  Lest we forget how the times have changed and how they have stayed the same....

I never did get to pet those dogs under the porch.  I'd still pet them if I could.  I just love dogs.

Cyber Monday

Today is Cyber Monday.  Marketing marketing marketing.

I don't know about you, but my email inbox is FULL of junk mail trying to sell me merchandise today.  It is ridiculous.  Even my credit card companies are offering me "deals" to "help" me spend money on things I really don't need and really don't want.

The part I hate the most about all these emails is I have found that if I click on some of the legitimate links, they do go to the store's site, but it is a bait and switch deal.  The FREE!!! is really only FREE!!! if you spend a HUNDRED DOLLARS or something similar to that.

If I have to spend $100.00 to get a "deal" then it is NOT a "deal" and it is NOT FREE!  Just sayin.

I really hate the dishonesty in advertising these days.  Just tell me the truth.  Don't lie to me and don't be dishonest.  Be fair and honorable and you will come much closer to getting my business.

Which reminds me of what happened at a store I frequent this past weekend.  The store shall remain nameless, but I will share that it both begins and ends with a T and has arge in the middle.

My little 8-year-old Great-Great-Nephew asked me to get him a particular toy for Christmas. He even wrote it down for me so I'd be sure to buy the correct thing, so I went online to see where I could get it the cheapest and the "T" store had it on sale online for $31.99 including a free extra toy.

Because I saw this online, I went to the "T" store to buy the toy thinking there would not be a problem.  My little Great-Great-Nephew may or may not be here for Christmas, but he was here for Thanksgiving.  I figured I could just buy the toy, wrap it, and give it to his parents so he'd have it for Christmas either here or in Alabama where they live.

Well, I got to the store and the toy at the store was $49.99 instead of $31.99, and no free toy either.

Okay.  I might have paid $5.00 extra to get it at the store, but I would NOT pay $20.00 extra, so I went to customer service and they told me they will not match prices until after Christmas.

I said, "But it is your own website!!!!  This is NOT another store's price.  It is YOUR PRICE!"  They still would not do it, so I walked outside, ordered the toy for $31.99 using my smart phone's internet, chose in-store pick-up, and then walked back inside to pick up the toy I just bought...the exact same toy they refused to sell me for their own website price.

I got the toy for the online price AND I got a free toy too, but they did not like it and truly I was also not happy at all.

You can bet I will NOT be doing any more Christmas shopping in that particular store.  What they tried to do is dishonest and wrong.

If that store is failing so that they have to cheat their customers to make more money, then they may need to be told that cheating their customers to make more money will make their store fail more in the long run.

Just sayin....

But I digress....

Cyber Monday is my kind of day.  Online shopping is the BEST.  You can easily compare prices and always get the BEST price of all.  You can even pick the item(s) up in local stores if you'd rather do that.  It is good.

My advice today?

Finish your Christmas shopping now so you can enjoy the season.  Go to church.  Go hear music.  Go watch live theater.  Go to movies.  Cook the Christmas cookies and fruit cakes.  Visit long lost family and friends.  Enjoy your life!!  The online shopping stores will even ship your purchases to your loved ones for no extra charge.

Life can be so good with a little forethought and a little luck.

Happy Holiday Season everyone!

Old Time Westerns

Today I'm still thinking about Westerns and also my Daddy.

Daddy LOVED westerns.  He loved watching them on television, but he also loved reading the old Zane Grey western books. 

I didn't know much about Zane Grey until recently.  I only knew he wrote the books my Daddy loved so much.  Turns out Zane Grey's first name was Pearl and he was not originally an author.  He was an American dentist who attended college on a baseball scholarship!  He actually played minor league baseball for a time.  His working life is as diverse as my own.  I'm pretty sure I would have liked this man, if he had lived during my lifetime.

A baseball player turned dentist turned western novel writer.  He also loved to fish.  I never knew.

Riders of the Purple Sage was Zane Grey's best selling novel, but he wrote many western novels.  You can buy Zane Grey: The Ultimate Collection - 49 Works - Classic Westerns and Much More to read on your Kindle or Kindle app for $1.99.  I own this particular collection and plan to read them all after I retire. I love reading books on my Kindle.  The Kindle has saved me from having to buy a larger house to store all my books.  I'm afraid I'm a bit of a book-aholic. 

But I digress....

Zane Grey Theater was a television series that aired from 1956-1961.  It was one of the shows my Daddy loved to watch.  Daddy also loved Gunsmoke, Rawhide, Have Gun Will Travel, Cheyenne, The Lone Ranger, The Rifleman, Maverick, Bonanza, Wagon Train, Roy Rogers Show, Laramie, Gene Autry Show, and probably a good many others that I am forgetting.

We also watched a LOT of old western movies back when Daddy was alive.  He loved the movies too. Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier. The Man from the Alamo, Rio Bravo, the original Magnificent Seven....

The westerns were a great escape.  Men never did hard work in the westerns.  They mostly were sheriffs who walked around the town talking to the various characters.  The characters played cards or rode around on their horses hunting bad guys to shoot.  They were always heroes and if they died, they died fighting with honor.  They were about as far away from real life in the wild wild west as you can get, which is why they were so popular, I guess.  

Even today I've had people tell me they wish they had been born in the wild wild west.  My reply to them?  "Ugh.  I prefer running water, indoor plumbing, and electricity. Hospitals and real doctors and dentists are nice too."  

They don't really want to live in the real wild west.  They mean they'd like to be Matt Dillon with a star on their chest and six shooters on their hips.  

They don't really want to plow with a mule and carry water from a spring and have to use a chamber pot late at night when it's too cold to go to the outhouse.  

They just want to walk through those swinging saloon doors with their gun-belt and spurs on their boots and order a whiskey at the bar.  

They want a fantasy.  Unfortunately real life is not like fantasies.  We should all be careful what we wish for because we just might get it and find out it's not really what we want at all.  

Life is like that.

I still like watching the westerns though....  

Westerns

Recently a friend and I went to see the 2016 remake of the Magnificent Seven at a local movie theater.  It was magnificent!!!

I came away remembering all the old westerns I've seen in my lifetime and all the actors and actresses I loved watching play the characters in them, John Wayne, James Arness, Amanda Blake, Richard Boone. Clint Eastwood....

Then it occurred to me that it has been literally years since I've watched a western!  Why?  No clue.  I love them as long as the horses don't get hurt.  They can kill off all the humans they like.  Just don't hurt the animals.  I can't stand to watch that.

If you are like me and haven't seen a western in a very long time, I would highly recommend that you go see the Magnificent Seven that is now playing in theaters.  I wouldn't take small children to see it because of all the bloodshed, but if you like shoot-em-up movies, this is one of the best. 

I love that this movie has all the diversity of the human condition represented.  That almost never happens in movies, and it was good to see.  

It is pretty impossible to not have a favorite among these seven.  I have to tell you.  My favorite is the one with the knives.  That man is impressive!  My second favorite would be the one with the card tricks.  He's pretty smart and I like smart men.  Then I'd have to go with the Native American.  Gotta love a man who can use a bow and arrow like that.

Okay.  I admit it.  I love the weapons.  I like sharpshooting and knife throwing and archery.  Can't help it.  I also love martial arts, but that is a story for another day. 

Black Friday

Some people look forward to shopping on Black Friday every year.  They love the crowds and sales.  Me?  I stay home.  I do not like crowds and long lines.  This is why:


These people scare me.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today I thought I'd share a poem I wrote decades ago.  It is published in my book, Living in My Body: Too Many Birthdays'll Kill Ya.  (Kindle Version) Enjoy!

---

Thanksgiving

Things I am thankful for…

T – tombstones, tomahawks, and tears
H – heavy hammers and harrowing heights
A – anger, aggression, and arrogant asses
N – neglect, need, and nasty nights
K – kindness kept and killer kisses
S – selfish sailors and sinful sisters
G – grisly girls and ghastly guys
I – injections, injuries, and insensitive in-laws
V – vivisection, vomit, and voracious victims
I – innuendoes, inordinate ingrates and ignorance
N – noxious, nervous, nincompoop nuisances
G – grotesque, grouchy, groping guests and guiltiness

Without such things our lives would be
Forever happy and care-free –
There would be no need to pray,
And certainly no need for Thanksgiving Day!

---

Also, if you are reading this today, please know that I am thankful for you.  Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!  I hope you all have a wonderful day.

Remembering the Day John F. Kennedy Died

It was November 22, 1963, a cold grey day in Blacksburg, South Carolina.  I was in the third grade, and I had a broken right arm.  The cast was covered in newly learned and carefully formed cursive writing, as all my third grade friends had signed it.

That particular day was definitely NOT a normal day.   My arm was aching and the teachers were crying and wouldn't tell us why.

Teachers never cry.

I was sitting in my little wooden desk near the radiators, which meant that my left side was pretty much on fire and my right side was ice.  The ceilings were at least 12 feet in our old grammar school and most of the heat on the coldest of days hovered above our heads.

Mrs. Jones was my teacher that year.  She had us sit in ABC order, which meant I would be in the front of the class on one side or the other, as my last name was Batchelor.  That year Mrs. Jones started the ABC seating near the radiators underneath the windows near her desk, so that is where I sat.

The windows in that room were tall.  At least three times as tall as my third grade self, I'd say.  You could see the playground outside with a tall chain link fence. Sidewalks, trees, the street, and old wooden neighborhood houses were on the other side of the fence.

The floors in the classroom were old hardwood, polished to a sheen by the janitor, who was a very nice older man.  He'd throw this oily looking sawdust stuff down and then sweep it up leaving the floor shiny and clean.  I can still smell it.

Outside the classroom door was a hallway that ran the length of the building with classrooms on either side.  When an adult visitor or teacher walked down the hall during class time, you could hear their footsteps echo as they approached.

Someone was coming.

Mrs. Moss, a first grade teacher, her face red and grave, opened the door and asked to see her son.  John Edward stepped out of the classroom to see what his mother wanted.  When he came back inside, he said, "It is a sad day for America," and shook his head as if in grief.  He would not tell us what had happened.  He just kept repeating, "It is a sad day for America."

A few minutes later we were told that school was over for the day.  Our parents would be coming for us, but my mother was at work, so I had to just walk home alone, which was usually what I did everyday.  

I still did not know what happened to make the teachers cry,  I was worried and curious, and on my way out John Edward smirked at me with that "I know something you don't know," look on his face. I hit him with my cast and turned my back on him as I left the school and headed home.  I knew he wouldn't even feel it underneath his heavy coat, but I did it anyway.  Hitting him should have made me feel a little better, but it mainly just made my arm hurt worse.

The babysitter was at my house taking care of my younger sister, Debbie, when I got home.  She was glued to the television with tears running down her face.  I still didn't totally understand why everyone was so upset, as I was young and presidents didn't mean that much to me at the time.  I watched and listened to the news on our little black and white television. 

President Kennedy was dead.  Shot in the head in Texas as he was riding in a parade.

The next few days were full of news of his funeral and theories about who did it.  I clearly remember his little son saluting his father's casket.  I felt so bad for him.  I had just lost my own father a year before.  I knew how that little boy felt.  Losing a father is a terrible thing.

It is funny what the mind chooses to remember.  I remember this day so clearly.  A 53 year old day.  Frozen in time in my mind.

If you were alive at that time, I bet you remember it too.  It was not the kind of day to be forgotten.

John Kennedy, Jr. salutes his father's casket, November 1963.

Remembering Emma Kelly: A True Story

Back in 2000 I had the great honor and pleasure of meeting the famous pianist and singer, Emma Kelly in Savannah, Georgia.

My apologies for the photo resolution.  I really need to find the original and re-scan it, but here I am with the lovely and talented, Emma Kelly, the Lady of 6000 Songs.  

I had seen her in concert with the Charleston Symphony Orchestra in Charleston, SC once before, but I didn't get to meet her that night.  I was thrilled to meet her this night!  She is one of my all time favorite musicians.  I just love her.

Emma Kelly gained nationwide fame when John Berendt published his book, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, back in 1994.  The book was full of Savannah, GA stories and characters and Emma Kelly was among them.  Then later in 1997, Clint Eastwood made a movie of the book. Emma played herself in the movie.  

She was and is unforgettable.  A finer lady never lived.  

Emma was the mother of 10 children.  She earned her living by playing the piano and singing, oftentimes having to drive long distances to get to her next gig.  She was a devout Christian, who was born in 1918 and died in 2001.

I own two of her CDs and listen to them often.  The last time I was in North Carolina visiting two of my sons and my granddaughters, I had Emma's music playing in the car and my sons heard her.  My son, Dave said, "Mama who is that singing?  She sounds like a female Louis Armstrong."  

Dave was originally a music performance major at North Carolina School of the Arts in Winston Salem, NC.  He was a jazz trombonist.  Him saying someone sounds like a female Louis Armstrong is high praise indeed. 

The night the picture above was taken, Emma was playing in a little jazz bar called Hard Hearted Hannah's, which was upstairs in the Pirates' House restaurant in Savannah, and... 

It was my 45th birthday!! 

A friend took me to Savannah for dinner at the Pirates' House that night, and then we went upstairs to hear Emma Kelly play and sing.  When she found out it was my 45th birthday, she came over and joined us for awhile.  We talked and laughed and had the BEST time.  She played and sang all my favorite songs, and honestly, it was one of the most memorable and wonderful birthdays of my life.  

About six months later, in January 2001, I heard the news.  Emma Kelly, the Lady of 6000 Songs, had passed away in her home.  She was 82. Thinking of her passing still makes me sad after all these years.  

I feel so very blessed to have had the opportunity to meet her.  It is so seldom we get to sit and chat with celebrities that we admire.  What a wonderful birthday gift!  A day and night to remember.... 

For more information about Emma Kelly, click HERE to read a 1998 tribute to her.  Her obituary is found HERE.

Building a Mountain Dulcimer at the Unicoi Dulcimer Festival (2008)

Those who know me well know that I play the mountain dulcimer.  It is one of the pure joys of life.  When I am down or grouchy or feeling mean, all I have to do is play my dulcimer for awhile to feel better.  I love it.

Back a few years ago I used to always attend the North Georgia Foothills Dulcimer Festival held annually the weekend before Thanksgiving at Unicoi State Park near Helen, Georgia.  Such fun!!!  We shop from all the wonderful vendors, catch up with friends, attend workshops and concerts, and jam all night long.

Back in November 2008 I took a day-long dulcimer building workshop at that dulcimer festival.  A local luthier presented the workshop, and I had the BEST time.

I'm thinking about that workshop today, so I thought I'd share the photos.  If you ever have a change to go to a dulcimer festival, GO!  You'll be glad you did.  A finer group of people never gathered together on this planet.  You'll see.

Beginning the Build.  The clothespins stay until the wood glue dries.

This is the luthier who lead the workshop.  I wish I could remember his name.

Voila!  I built a dulcimer!

Sharing 101 Things to Do in Asheville, NC from localadventurer.com

I've been a little under the weather the past few days.  Okay.  I admit it.  I've been more than a little under the weather.  

My poor sable Border Collie girl, Dolly, is also sick, so I haven't had much time for writing.  I'm hoping to feel much better soon.

In the meantime I've been daydreaming about the Asheville/Hendersonville area where I plan to move next year when I retire.  I happened across this website today:

http://localadventurer.com/things-to-do-in-asheville-nc-bucket-list/

and thought I would share.  It is a great list of things to do in the Asheville/Hendersonville, NC area.  I hope to do all of them after I retire and move there!

Click the link and enjoy!

Just Something to Make You Think Today

Just a few "What ifs" to make you think today.

1. What if light is a song the angels sing?
2. What if global warming is real?  (I believe it is all too real.)
3. What if we have to experience the same problems (and people) over and over until we learn the lesson they're meant to teach us?
4. What if we don't learn the lessons?  Do we have to come back and live another similar life?
5. What if our thoughts really do become reality?

What do you think?

Pullman, Illinois: A True Story

Some of you know that I love Chicago and have visited there many times over the years.  When I go, I'm usually working, but if time permits, on the last day before my plane leaves for home, I like to take a Greeter Tour.

Greeter Tours are FREE and awesome!  For more information about Chicago's Greeter Tours, click HERE.

On one such Greeter Tour I visited historic Pullman, IL, and found the history absolutely fascinating!  I took a lot of photos while I was there.  If you would like to see all the photos from my Pullman, IL tour, please click HERE. 

Pullman, IL today is an historic site.  Go HERE for more information or to plan your own visit.

I had no idea this town even existed!  Fascinating.

Now, let's talk a minute about the history of Pullman, Illinois.  Pullman was built to be similar to a southern "mill town" in that the town was owned and operated by the industry that was located there, which was a factory that built the luxurious Pullman railroad cars. 

The factory, the houses, well, basically everything in Pullman was built and owned and operated by the CEO and man in charge,  George M. Pullman.  

Everyone thought it was GREAT!  Until it wasn't.

Trying to exert too much control over your workers never ends well, and it didn't end well for Pullman either.

Oh...the town "looked" prosperous and healthy, but the unrest grew and grew as Mr. Pullman tightened his grip and tried to squeeze more and more work for less and less pay from his employees.  Never never never a good combination

Today though, Pullman looks lovely and quaint.

This is a mural on a wall near the town museum in Pullman, IL.

Photo in the Pullman Museum.
The Pullman Free School basically educated the worker's children in skills they would need to work in the Pullman factory.

Photos in the Pullman Museum. 
Pictured left: The Pullman Free School.  Pictured right: George Pullman

Left: Me!  Right: My Chicago Greeter Tour Guide

The Hotel Florence, Pullman, IL

Lake Vista and Illinois Central Railroad Depot as it was near the turn of the 20th Century

Hotel Florence, Pullman, IL

Yes.  There is a LOT to look at in Pullman.

Hotel Florence, pictured above, was named for George Pullman's favorite daughter. It first opened in November 1881 and still sits today an easy walk from the tree lined streets of neat brick homes.

Pullman was originally comprised of 1000 beautiful brick homes built by Pullman's employees in just less than four years time from 1881 to 1884.  The town was touted as an urban utopia, and, on the surface, it sure looked like that was true.  The homes were large and beautiful with both front and back yards, water and gas, and  access to sanitary facilities. The community spaces in town had parks and other green spaces to enjoy.  The town even picked the garbage  up once a day.  The rent for your home was taken out of your salary before you received your pay, so everything worked well at first.

At first.

But it only took ten years for that urban utopia cream to sour, and today Pullman, Illinois is best remembered for the Pullman Strike of 1894.  You want to watch this video:


Still curious?  Me too.  That's why I'm including this video for you as well.  Enjoy and feel free to share!

Remembering: One True Story

I love this picture. 

This photo was taken in the very early 1970s when I was a teenager and my brother, Gene, came home from Vietnam.  

The photo is of me and Gene standing in front of Mama's old house where I lived from when I was still 7 in early 1963 until I married.  This old house has not been there for many years now, but I remember it so well that I can smell it.  The clean, good wood, smell of home. 

I do not know who was in the porch swing of this photo.  Mama's house was always full of the neighborhood kids back then.  No telling which ones it was.  It looks like there is something in the old yellow chair behind, Gene, too.  No clue what that could have been.  

The bowl on the porch would have had water in it.  Back then we had the house cats, birds, and little dogs inside the house and we had our big dogs and our outside cats and other people's horses in the yard.  Dogs, cats, and children ran free all over town back then.  There were very few fences. 

If you look closely at the door of the house, you will see my Mama and my little pure-bred poodle, Nippy, both gone these many years, but this photo is stirring memories today.

Mama pitched a FIT when I bought Nippy for $100.00 in 1971 with my own money from my job.  She did NOT want the dog.  Then Mama promptly fell in love with the dog and would not allow me to take him with me when I married and moved.  Life is like that.  Sometimes what you think you do NOT want is what is best for you.

But I digress....

Gene came home that day.  I had not seen him for the four years he was in the Navy, then one day there he was at the door!  Surprise!!!  I did such a happy dance!  I wanted him to stay with us, but that was not to be.  It was still so good to see him.  Gene and I were a lot alike and always enjoyed each other's company.

I remember this day as a bright shining happy day.  Gene and I talked for hours about everything and nothing.  We ate good food and generally just caught up with each other.  I told him how I hated my glasses and how I cried myself to sleep every night because I was so skinny and couldn't gain weight.  He told me about Vietnam and the US Navy which made my problems seem small and unimportant by comparison. 

I will never forget this day.  I hope you have days in your life like this too.  Days so full of joy that they bear remembering.  Days you'll never forget.

Thanksgiving in the 1980s: A True Story

Back in the 1980s when I was younger and still raising my sons in Blacksburg, South Carolina, my family used to have Thanksgiving at my house.

Mama and my sisters and brothers in the area would come and bring their families.  Sometimes friends and cousins would come too.  I'd drag out my good china and we'd have a huge feast.  

There were dishes for days!!

A typical menu would be something like:

• Turkey
• Dressing (both fried and baked)
• Giblet gravy
• Regular gravy
• Mashed potatoes
• Rice
• Sweet potato casserole
• Green beans or green bean casserole
• Fried squash or fried okra (depending on the garden that year)
• Yellow squash casserole
• Garden salad
• Fruit salad with nuts from Mama's pecan trees
• Homemade cranberry sauce
• Homemade pickles
• Homemade biscuits
• Homemade cornbread
• Homemade pumpkin pie
• Homemade pecan pie
• Homemade fruit cake

Everyone would bring their favorite dishes.  We all had BIG gardens back then, so we had a LOT of food that needed to be eaten. 

I'd always do the turkey, mashed potatoes, rice, gravies, fruit salad, whatever was fried, fruit cake and pies.  Mama would make the biscuits and the dressing because nobody will ever be able to do those as good as my Mama.  My sister, Debbie, always made the casseroles and cranberry sauce.  My sister, Miniver, would bring whatever she had that was good to eat, and my brother, Howard, and his wife, Juliette, would do the same.  

We'd eat so much that we'd barely be able to move, and then the children would all go watch TV or play those old Atari video games while the adults cleaned up everything and washed the dishes.  

Our dogs and cats would feast on leftovers.  They'd be sooooo excited!

After the dishes were done, the adults would generally sit around the table in my formal dining room and gossip!  Both the men and the women.  We'd tell all the stories of our lives that year. We'd retell all the stories from our childhoods. We'd laugh and laugh and laugh. 

As the children grew older they would join us and contribute their own stories. 

Those were the best of times.  Those 1980s Thanksgivings.  

We had big curly permed hair and huge prescription eyeglasses.  The fashion was flashy, and the family was home.  

Two Poems I Wrote for My Brother, Gene, in Alice's Verse

Yesterday was my brother, Gene's birthday.  He passed away in 2002, but I still think of him often and still miss him terribly. 

Back in 2010 I published my poetry book, Alice's Verse, and dedicated it to Gene.  The dedication reads:

---

These thoughts are dedicated to the memory of my red-headed brother

Gene Wayne Batchelor

who truly loved me just as I am

---

Today I thought I'd share two of the poems I wrote for him with you.  They are on pages 10 and 20 of Alice's Verse.  Enjoy!

---

My Big Brother

Follow me!
The words still sing
in my mind's ear

Follow me!

Bright red hair
Freckled face;
Tiger lily sword
at the ready

Off he ran...
Ready to take on the world!!!
and the Wilkins boys;
whichever he encountered first

Me at his back
short legs struggling to keep up
little arms a-pumping
as I ran

I adored him

My big brother

I still adore him
even now
tho the Navy
has scattered his ashes
with honor
at sea

Little sister love
is forever love...

He still loves me too.

---

Big Brother's Game

Give it back!!!

You have to say the magic word.
He'd taunt me
with moon pie breath
and freckled face

Abracadabra?

devilment dancing in his eye
clapping his dirty hands
with glee

You only get three tries, he'd say

Hocus pocus?

laughing now
spinning
in a happy dance

One more try!
One more try!

he'd cackle through
his crooked grin

Oh...fudge

quiet

What did you say?

oh...fudge

dejected
broken
oh...woe is me...he

as he pulled from his pocket
my Cracker Jack prize

You cheated, he'd say
and winking
turn
run away

Dogs Are People Too

Dog lovers like me will tell you, "Dogs are people too!"  I believe they are.  They're so full of personality!

Today I ran across this video.  Had to share.  Aren't these dogs great?  Enjoy!

Computer Hell

We've all been there. The error messages. The blue screen of death.

I've been working with computers since Commodore 64. The most important thing they have taught me is patience. 

I hate patience. It takes way too long to learn. -sigh-

God loves me. He keeps trying to teach me.

This is why I feel bad about all the cussing I've been doing the past few days.

Yes. I bought a new hard drive and I said I'd just clone my old one. I actually said, "Easy peasy." NEVER let me say things like that!! It tempts the fates!

For at least three days I've struggled with this drive. It is a new fast 4096 sector drive. The problem is my old drive is a 512 sector drive, and the new drive is all uppity and the old drive is stubborn and full of itself and they are refusing to play nicely together...much like all my friends and family after the recent presidential election.

Story of my week.

I've tried different software programs. None worked. I reinstalled Windows from disk and Microsoft refused my product key!!! Something to do with the free Windows 10 upgrade I did.

I cloned. Wouldn't boot. I cleaned the disk and migrated. Wouldn't boot. I cleaned and formatted and partitioned and  tried installing Windows 7. Error.  Then I forced a Windows 7 installation to finish via DOS using the msoobe.exe file, but I know the drive really needs another driver that I may end up having to find. -sigh- But the cloning software seems to like the drive now, so cloning again.

Fingers crossed!!

Note: Clone=8 hours time

Patience. Ugh.

To be continued....




UPDATE: Didn't work. Reinstalled Windows 7 Pro from disk again. Got it to accept my Product Key this time, but it still will not reinstall my free Windows 10 Pro. Working on it.

I hate computers right now.


I'll have to reinstall all my software and re-copy all my old hard drive files back to the new drive after all the windows issues are fixed. At least it boots now and I have learned a lot of new things.

I hope I love it by Christmas! I'll let you know.

PS: I will have to break down and buy a new computer someday. Just hopefully not today.

---

9:00 PM Sunday UPDATE: I have a very active and passionate LOVE/HATE relationship with Microsoft. It is leaning more on the HATE side today. UGH!!!!

FINALLY got the stupid thing to reinstall my Windows 10 FREE Upgrade. Just in case this ever happens to you, here is what you have to do:

1. Reinstall the original Windows you had when you upgraded.  You will need the disk and the Product Key.  In my case, I had Windows 7 Professional before the upgrade, and I still had the disk, but....
2. Windows 7 Pro would NOT install on the new large and fast hard drive!  It hung up on the very last step and said it could not install on my hardware.  Here's how to fix that:
   -When you get the error screen, hit SHIFT F10 to open a Command Prompt.
   -Navigate to:
    C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\OOBE
   
   Then type MSOOBE and hit ENTER.
   
   It will let you finish the install. 
   
   Now.  I ask you.  Is that intuitive?  NO!!!!!
3. To finish the install you will have to use your Windows 7 Product Key...NOT the Windows 10 Product Key your old hard drive has installed.  Took me FOREVER to find my stupid Windows 7 Pro Product Key.  Don't ask.  Finally found it and installed and activated Windows 7 Pro.
4. THEN you have to download the Microsoft Media Creation Tool.  Do a Google search for MediaCreationTool.exe. 
   
   NO!  That is also NOT intuitive.
   
5. THEN install and run the Media Creation Tool.  Do NOT do the .iso install.  Do the Install to this machine option and wait...and wait...and wait...and wait...and finally it will install and re-activate itself!!!
6. Now I still have to reinstall all of my old programs and copy all of my old files to the new hard drive, but at least I have everything and everything is working again.  I really wish it would have just cloned though.  I really do.  I understand about the 512 and 4096 sector problem, but I still wish it would have cloned.

Yes.  I know a clean install to a new hard drive is probably better, but if the clone had worked, it would have been great!  Still...now I have two bootable hard drives, so I have a true backup of everything, and I'm going to buy an external drive as an extra back-up and copy all my files from my old hard drive to the new one using the external drive.  After these past few days of Computer Hell, I sure don't want to end up losing my stuff. 

All is well in Aliceland again.  For now...NEVER let me say things like that!!!!  It tempts The Fates!

Remembering My WWII Veteran Friend, Hasell Barton: A True Story

Yesterday was Veteran's Day.  Veteran's Day is one of the holidays I have to work, so I didn't feel much like celebrating other than acknowledging how thankful I am for our Veterans on Facebook.  This morning, however, I have time to think, and I am remembering my dear WWII Veteran friend, Hasell Barton.  May he rest in peace.

About three years after I moved to Charleston, SC in 1995, I was out one weekend listening to the live piano music in the Lobby Lounge at the Charleston Place Hotel downtown, and someone introduced me to Hasell Barton.

Seating was limited in the lounge that night and I was taking up a whole table by myself, so Hasell invited me to sit with him and his friend, Tom.  They were such good company!  We talked and talked and ended up sitting together for live music many nights over the next decade or so.

Hasell was my mother's age and full of interesting stories.  He served in the Air Force in WWII, and spent most of his World War II years in France.  I remember how much Hasell enjoyed Veterans Day. 

On Veterans Day evenings Hasell would wear his WWII Air Force uniform downtown and people would buy him free drinks all night long. They'd slap him on the back and laugh and everyone would tell war stories. Oftentimes the more colorful stories were spoken in French with a wink and a whispered "mademoiselle" or a laughing "oh là là!" towards the end of the evening, and they'd all end up singing their favorite 1940s songs as the night grew old. 

We'd be at a big table full of men and women by then.  Such fun!  I loved hanging around Hasell on Veterans Day.  You'd meet the most interesting characters. 

Hasell lived down on Queen Street near the Footlight Players Theater in one of those big beautiful historic houses with his beloved cat. He did a lot of different types of work in his lifetime, but his soul was that of an artist.  He loved to draw and paint.  Two of his framed prints hang in my house today.  I love his art.

As Hasell grew older, he'd go to listen to live music at the Best Friends Lounge in the Mills House Hotel instead of in the Lobby Lounge at Charleston Place Hotel.  The Best Friends Lounge was much closer to his house and an easier walk for him.  They kept a table right up front reserved for him every night.  Many nights I joined him there and we had the best time listening to the music and talking about old times with old friends and new.

Yes.  We all miss Hasell.  By the time he reached his 90s, his health forced him to move to North Carolina closer to family who could care for him.  He passed away in 2011.  I will always remember him as he was in the photo below.  Standing in the old and wonderful Charleston Place Hotel Lobby Lounge with a smile on his face and a song in his heart.

Rest in peace, Hasell Barton.  I just know you celebrated Veterans Day up in Heaven last night. Jusqu'à ce que nous nous reverrons.

Hasell Barton in the old Lobby Lounge at the Charleston Place Hotel - Late 1990s

---

Hasell Barton Obituary

1917 - 2011

Hasell W. Barton, 93, died on Monday, January 10, 2011 at Brighton Gardens, after several years of declining health. Funeral services will be held at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Greensboro at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, January 13, 2011. Lunch will follow in the Haywood Duke Room at the church. A private burial will be held on Friday, January 14 at All Saints Episcopal Church, Pawleys Island, SC.

Born in Hartwell, GA, he was the son of Dr. David J. and Harriet C. Barton. He was a graduate of Anderson Boys High School and earned a diploma in accounting from LaSalle Institute of Chicago.

Hasell served in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II as an ordinance officer in the 409th Bomb Group in England, France, and Belgium, attaining the rank of Captain. At war's end, he became treasurer of C.M. Guest and Sons Construction Company in Anderson, SC, where he was active in civic and church affairs, including chair of the Red Cross chapter and Deacon and president of the Men's Bible Class at First Presbyterian Church. He was also an amateur radio enthusiast.

In 1961 the Barton family moved to Greensboro, NC, where Hasell became president of Romeo Guest Associates. In 1971 Hasell formed Barton Construction Company at Pawleys Island, SC, where he joined All Saints Episcopal Church. After being widowed in 1977, he divided his time between Pawleys Island and Charleston, SC. He retired to Charleston in 1987, joining St. Phillips Episcopal Church. In Charleston he was treasurer and a member of the board of directors of the Footlight Players community theater and a member of the French Society (l'Alliance Francaise) and the Saint Cecilia Society. He was a Rotary Club Paul Harris Fellow. His lifetime love of Charleston and knowledge of Charleston history resulted in his becoming a volunteer guide for tourists. He studied watercolor painting in Charleston and in France, and became an accomplished artist. Hasell moved to Brighton Gardens Assisted Living in Greensboro in August of 2009.

Hasell was predeceased by his wife Myra Ashley Barton in 1977. He is survived by son Jon Hasell Barton, Sr. (Jan) and daughters Jane Barton Stott (Drayton) and Betsy Barton Dunn (Russ), both of Greensboro, six grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren.

Memorials contributions may be made to St. Phillips Episcopal Church, 142 Church St, Charleston, SC 29401 or to the Guilford County Animal Shelter 4525 W. Wendover Ave., Greensboro, NC 27409. 

RERUN: TOP TEN POSTS

Given that I have been in computer cloning H3!! for the past two days.  (I'll explain in another post.  I promise.)  I've decided to do a RERUN: TOP TEN POSTS post today. 

Did you miss any of these?

1. Booger Jim, Cherokee Falls, SC - A True Story (As Told to Me)
   Oct 23, 2016, 13 comments, 4436 views
2. My Original Huguenot Ancestors: A True Story
   Jun 20, 2016, 246 views
3. Remembering My Brother, Howard
   Jul 17, 2016, 1 comment, 220 views
4. Remembering My Brother, Howard: A True Story
   Aug 12, 2016, 2 comments, 217 views
5. Limestone College Ghost, Gaffney, South Carolina: A True Story
   Oct 20, 2016, 188 views
6. Ruby's 1927: A True Story
   Jun 13, 2016, 170 views
7. Where is the Gray Man?
   Oct 5, 2016, 151 views
8. Whig Hill Cemetery, Gaffney, South Carolina is Haunted: A True Story
   Oct 21, 2016, 135 views
9. Picture Day!
   Sep 15, 2016, 119 views
10. Thomas's Childhood: A True Story
    Jun 16, 2016, 115 views

It looks like you love the true stories!  I'll try to write more of them, as time goes by.  Enjoy!

Americans Are Resilient!

The election is over.  America has spoken. We are a country divided. Trump won the electorate. Clinton won the popular vote. Which frightens me enough to write this post.

Today's post is to remind all the Americans anywhere near my age that it really doesn't matter who is President of these United States.  We will survive.  

We may not like it, or we may love it, but either way, we will survive, and, no matter who is in power, the other political party will come back into power in just a few more years.

This is why we study history.

I, personally, have lived through the presidencies of:

1955	Dwight Eisenhower	Republican
1961	John F. Kennedy	Democrat
1963	Lyndon B. Johnson	Democrat
1969	Richard M. Nixon	Republican
1974	Gerald Ford	Republican
1977	Jimmy Carter	Democrat
1981	Ronald Reagan	Republican
1989	George Bush	Republican
1993	Bill Clinton	Democrat
2001	George W. Bush	Republican
2009	Barack Obama	Democrat
2016	Donald Trump	Republican

I've lived through more Republicans than Democrats.  I have not yet lived through even one president that I totally agreed with on the issues, so I'm choosing to be optimistic and hopeful this morning.

That's my soapbox for today.