Cider Press Hill

Saturday tunes

2011-10-22T22:52:00Z

Was editing and updating my playlists and thought I’d share a couple of my favorites.

Richie Havens at Woodstock way back in 1969. This song was apparently improvised after he’d run through his repertoire, kept being called back for encores, and was desperate for material. It launched his career. Thank goodness.

Havens sings the same song, 40 years later, with greater subtlety, nuance, and depth. I could watch this all day long and still be endlessly fascinated by what he does with that guitar.

The pressure is on

2011-08-26T13:41:01Z

Just got word they published my blog entry and changed it to say “why I am SPEAKING” here Enough is Enough. No pressure or anything. I need lots of help from my friends. And you are my friends!! ;) I am sure it is supposed to be short and sweet, but still. God help us all...........

Enough is Enough Rally in Washington, DC

2011-08-25T19:02:00Z

OK, while I have been AWOL from Cider Press Hill, I have been busy!! I got hooked on Facebook and tend to do all my ranting and raving there. Don’t believe me?? Just ask Linkmeister as he knows!!

There is going to be a ‘by the people, for the people’ type Enough is Enough Rally on October 29 in Washington, DC and I will be there!!

Last time I did anything on this scale (and I am assuming this will turn into a large scale event--at least I surely hope so), was back in the 60’s when we marched against Viet Nam........never ever against our soldiers and veterans, but against the war. And that is a story for another day!!

However, I am one of thousands of “Coffee Party Members” and to that end, they and a few other organizations have decided there will be a People’s Rally on the 29th. I decided we would go and combine it with a visit with our older son and his girlfriend....nothing like inviting yourselves to someones’ house and saying BTW, we are participating in a March/Rally on the 29th!! But they know me and love me in spite of my decisions!! And my husband is on board for this one as well.

I was asked, as many others are being asked, to write a blog piece for the event and I just did. I wish I had Kate’s way with words, but below is exactly what I sent. Not sure where it goes from here, but somewhere I am sure. (Circular file??)

Why am I coming to the Rally on October 29???...........I wish I had some incredibly intellectual answer or could say a lightbulb (a real lightbulb) went off in my head, but it is simply a response to everything that has been happening in our world; it’s the right thing to do and the place we need to be.

I am but one of the thousands, millions, more likely, long considered the ‘silent majority’. We hate what is going on, are dismayed by the machinations of the people who have been elected to serve the people, yet we continue to sit silently by while they destroy everything past generations believed in and worked so hard for. It is no longer enough to just rant to your friends, to tweet or sound off on Facebook. I think we need to be there, be seen and be heard. Perhaps by standing up and speaking out, more and more will follow suit. It is time to drown out the rhetoric of those who would have you believe they speak for us and, in fact, only speak to their own lives and their own wallets and the people who continue to line those wallets.

The time to be silent is long gone. When I listen to elected officials, who were elected by the people to serve the people openly admit their main goal, their only goal is to defeat President Obama in 2012, you know something is dreadfully wrong. Really? Defeat our President?? What about the thousands of children in this country who go to bed hungry and get up hungry each day. what about the people who cannot get (and if the tea party has their way, will never get) medical insurance? Did they forget about the people who are unemployed, who have been for 2 years or more and probably have little or no hope of finding employment that will allow them to provide for their families and live with dignity. Many Republicans don’t care. I care. We should all care.

Democrats are far from perfect, we have bad apples too; however, this current crop of ignorant Republicans, particularly the tea party members, campaigned on JOBS. They were going to be the party that set the country back on the right track. Well, what they neglected to say was the track was a track for the top 2% to more wealth, a track for the ultra rich, many of whom have never done an honest day’s work in their life. Their wealth? Garnered on the backs of the rest of us. Oh wait, they are not the ultra rich, they are the ‘job creators’...and if you believe that one, then you deserve to have someone like Michelle Bachmann, Rick Perry, Sarah Palin or, better yet just throw all their names in a hat and pick one, running the country.

They have turned our political processes into a joke and I am fed up. We need solutions, not rhetoric, We need people to come together for the good of this nation, not for the good of corporations (who, by the way are not people) and we need these politicians to remember why they were elected. It is time to take back our country from the fat cats, the special interest groups and work together to build our country back to what it can and should be.

I have so much more to say, but I think this is enough for the moment. We have to start someplace and this is the place. I can only hope and pray we have not put it off too long.

And now, they emailed to say that since they are going to make this an open mike event (with hopefully Dylan Ratigan, Jon Stewart and others) for the ‘people’, would I consider speaking… Oh.My.God. Just what they/I need.............Send me your thoughts so if I do, I can speak for ‘my’ people!! ;)

So stay tuned, this ride could turn into an interesting one!!

Ciao’

Early Evening at the Beach

2011-07-19T21:09:00Z

Saturday at Hampton Beach, NH, just up the road from where I live. Maybe 7 or 8 miles. This was early evening...around 7:30. Two fishermen with their lines in the water. Tide is way out. Taken with my cell phone.

Looking down the beach. Pretty pink clouds.

Looking up the beach. Some fog beginning to roll in. These expensive houses sit on the raw edge of nothing. I’m sure the owners hope those heavy rocks prevent more beach erosion and don’t end up in their living rooms during some fierce ocean storm.

Charlie Sheen

2011-03-05T19:53:00Z

I figure unless you live in a cave in the depths of a mountainous region, relatively unvisited, you obviously have heard, seen, read about all of Charlie’s exploits. It is virtually impossible not to. I have not searched out any information about him, haven’t picked up an article specifically to read about him and yet, I probably could pass a test all about him!! I loved Two and a Half Men from the day it came on the scene and still, juvenile as it can be, like it. Makes me laugh much of the time.

I cannot help thinking, though, that while Charlie has obviously fried his brains over the years - and only he knows the extent of that - I personally think he is crazy...........like a fox. A very sly fox. If I were in a position to bet money, I would put it on him, he is going to come out of this smelling like a rose and probably will get most everything he is looking for.

Got an email yesterday from Sirius Radio (I have a subscription for my car), inviting me to listen to a new station.........Tiger Blood Radio, about, who else--Charlie Sheen. PUH-Leese. I really can think of better ways to spend my time.

And that brings me to the point of my rambling--most of you are too young to remember or know anything about a movie from the late 60’s called “Easy Rider.” Was my favorite back then, loved the song track (”...don’t bogart that joint my friend...") and the movie. If you are too young, google the movie and you will see what I am getting at. Now, you cannot tell me Jack Nicholson, Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda were choir boys. In fact, if the things we heard then--and more recently, on a graveyard tour in N’Orleans--were true, then they might make Charlie look like an amateur!!

The only difference I can see between then and now is we did not have the ability to hear about things happening the second they did, there was no such thing as the internet, cells phones--forget that, TV was so limited--so if you heard any stories, most likely it was because you knew people who were there. We had friends involved in the industry back then, my best friend was living in Santa Monica and so yeah, we heard stories. But nothing like the way we get information today. So for those who are getting all bent over this and tsk tsking about his behavior, he really isn’t doing anything that hasn’t been done--and maybe better, who knows. The media, entertainment media and the ones who call themselves newscasters(??) have latched onto this and feel this need to blast the airwaves with updates every 10 minutes or so. Heck, a show that I always thought was pretty reputable spent an entire hour the other day rehashing everything he has said and done. Get. Over. It. !! I am just grateful he is not my son, my brother, my nephew; other than that, I intend to sit back and just wait to see who wins. As I said before, my money is on Charlie!!

And now the sun really is out and maybe it will jump up to 60 the way they have promised all day, so I am heading outside!!

Ciao’

How to convert a Witch to Catholicism--or something like that....

2011-02-05T18:30:00Z

Five hundred years ago, the Catholic Church had a simple way of dealing with witches: It burned them alive. The Vatican still views these broom botherers as a danger, but is now calling on Catholics to eliminate the neo-pagan problem in a more moderate manner.

According to a new booklet from the Catholic Truth Society—the U.K. publishers for the Holy See—the faithful can convert Wiccans by following a few simple steps. The pamphlet, titled “Wicca and Witchcraft: Understanding the Dangers,” suggests that Catholics spark up conversations with these unbelievers about shared concerns such as the environment, The Telegraph reports.

And if you bump into a witch in a bar or coffee shop, the book adds, it’s important to recognize that “Wiccans are on a genuine spiritual quest,” providing “the starting point for dialog that may lead to their conversion."

I did not read all of the article, but what little I read did not mention what to do when you meet one on the campaign trail..........

Here is a link if you just cannot resist reading more....--Wicca and Witchcraft--

Stupid is stupid

2011-02-05T18:23:00Z

OK, you read thisFreshman GOPer did not knowand draw your own conclusions. I find it scary, not surprising, but scary. When I first read this, my thought was, “and these people breed AND vote.” That thought was closely followed by “wait, not only does she VOTE, but other people voted for her.”

If you ever wonder how Sharon Engel, Michelle Bachmann, that dipshit from Maryland(??), cannot think now of where she is from, the one who professed to be a witch--oh and wait, I have another article about witches to post here for your reading pleasure--ever got elected, wonder no more. People are ignorant and uninformed (or just plain don’t care) and becoming more so by the minute.

But this one, this one has me shaking my head. Apparently she lives in a cave and only comes out (like the groundhog) to make a speech and then goes back inside again.

GRRRRRRRR

Ciao’

PS I LOVE the snowpacalypse button. Can’t wait to use it. Oh maybe I shouldn’t say that!! ;)

Political terms

2011-02-03T04:27:00Z

Listening to the news a while ago, the segment on Egypt came on the teevee. I believe it was Comcast New England Cable News Network. Anyway, the reporter described the pro-democracy protests in Cairo’s Tahrir Square today as Mob Rule. Get that? Mob rule. Despite Mubarak’s thugs being out with their Molotov Cocktails and steel bar batons beating the ever-loving crap out of the protesters, the ones getting the crap beaten out of them were the ones identified as participating in Mob Rule. Those thugs doing the beating and bomb throwing who were captured proved to be plain clothes cops and Mubarak operatives with substantiating I.D. But they weren’t described as thugs or anything. Nooo...they were pro-government supporters. It is, apparently, in someone’s best interests to downplay the pro-democracy movement in Egypt and encourage us to be sympathetic to the pro-Mubarak supporters. (Notice how many of the pro-Mubarak signs are in English?) You kind of have to wonder why our news people want us to be sympathetic to the government thugs. Is it because the reporters are simply dumber than a box of rocks or do they have a vested interest in the outcome of this little dust up in the desert? I would like to know.

I thought bringing in the camels for foreign consumption was an especially nice touch. Camels in downtown Cairo? Really?

I heard that CNN’s Anderson Cooper got his head bashed in by pro-Mubarak supporters today. I wonder what his take on the subject is tonight. He was busy sucking up to the pro-Mubarak supporters just minutes before their batons cracked him over the skull.

Mob Rule vs Pro-Government supporters. Dear Comcast, your politics are showing (or your stupidity and I don’t believe that for a moment). It’s not flattering. You would prefer to lend support to a vicious dictator and adopt a “screw the people” attitude? My goodness. Who would have guessed. Who exactly are you protecting...and why? That’s a place where most Americans aren’t ready to go.

I feel sorry for the Egyptians and I offer them my worthless support from thousands of miles away. And a fervent wish that they succeed in ousting Mubarak and his government. They have to triumph or the government forces will track them down from the miles and miles of video coverage and torture them to death at leisure. That’s the way it works in Egypt. The people must triumph completely.

_________

For those who would like more information from some of the horses’ mouths and where lively discussion is encouraged and where idealism and honor are still highly valued, I’d urge you to visit Mondoweiss. It is one of the finest resources on the Middle East on the intertubes. A fine community of bright people who care about justice and human beings.

Stop snowing, already

2011-02-03T00:59:00Z

You know you live in New England when....

Well, as Cyn pointed out in her last post...this is New England and it is supposed to snow. But not this much. I know we have had harsh winters in the past, but I don’t remember so many roofs collapsing in such rapid succession. And I don’t recall having to shovel every couple of days. This is way past tiresome.

As of yesterday morning, I had a little over two feet of snow standing in my yard. As of last night, I had 3+ feet of snow standing in my yard and my picket fences were totally buried. Last night I shoveled a foot of snow out of my driveway and walkways and off my deck. It was light fluffy snow, so not backbreaking work. As of this evening, I have over four feet of snow standing in my yard. My driveway is not shoveled out because there is absolutely no place left for me to shovel it. I seriously don’t know what I am going to do. The mountains of snow on either side of my driveway are so high that I can’t throw the snow over the top of them anymore. Not when the snow is as heavy as it is today. Those mountains of snow are over 10 feet tall and I’m half that height. And I have two and a half feet of snow (thanks in part to the city snow plow driver) to dig out of my driveway. There’s no place for it to go. I am not kidding nor exaggerating in the slightest.

There is more snow forecast for Saturday and again next Tuesday. This constant parade of nor’easters marching up the coast has got to stop.

We’ve had enough. Honest. Please stop snowing. My back is killing me. I don’t want my roof to cave in. I don’t want my deck to collapse. I want it to stop snowing. PLEASE STOP SNOWING!!!

I’ve got to take pictures tomorrow.

Snow, Snow and more Snow........

2011-01-21T14:23:00Z

Kate, we need a weather button that says SNOW, more Freaking SNOW!! ;)

OK, so this has been such a lovely week. Went to work Tuesday in the snow--my boss called early in the morning and suggested she pick me up since she drives a BIG, black SUV and I have a cute little white sports type car that cannot be seen in the snow!! She lives right up the street from me so just came here and picked me up on her way. So good, took us ONE hour from my house to the office--a trip that generally takes 20 minutes. Along the way we saw a van totally flipped over and 3 other cars that either were involved in the accident or stopped to help. Trucks fishtailing but still trying to drive too fast and all the usual nonsense that goes on in the winter.

We get to the office, settle in and figure we would just hunker down and get a lot accomplished (I had packed my Nook, along with a couple paperbacks in case we were stuck there all night). But, the next thing that happens is the internet goes down......amazing how a business is practically paralyzed without the internet. We waited an hour or so, did other stuff and still no internet, so packed it up and headed home. Another hour on the roads, which were way worse than they had been earlier.

We stopped for lunch at a little Thai place in the town where we live since it was on the way--they were thrilled to have the business--after all not too many idiots go out and drive around, let alone go out to lunch, in the middle of a storm. So, no worries, I worked from home the rest of the day.

Wednesday, I get up, get ready for work, am about to leave, the phone rings, it’s my boss, she is in the office and there is still no internet. SO, I work from home all day. I do not think I would like to do that on a regular basis. It is OK once in a while, but on a daily basis, I do not think so.

Got in a full day at the office yesterday and today...................another freaking snowstorm. GRRRRRRRRRRR!!

Long range forecast says another storm coming in Tuesday. Our son, Eric, gave us tickets to Jersey Boys (I have been dying to see it) for Tuesday night in the city and they were crazy expensive so I am going come hell or high Snow?? ;) I figure if worse comes to worse, we can park at the train station in our town and go in that way. I am SO sick of this winter already.

Speaking of my little car--Does anyone remember when some parents bought those long poles with orange flags on them for their kids’ big wheels so they could be seen by cars? Mine would never have allowed it cause they had their reputations to think about (LOL), but some kids had them. Well, I need one for my car. The snowbanks around here are so high, easily 3-4 times higher than my car that not only can no one see me, I can’t see around them to pull out of our neighborhood onto the main road or any other intersection. It is a little scary. Truthfully not many cars can see around them, but mine is small and white and that makes it that much more difficult.

Oh well, I just have to suck it up cause for sure I would never buy myself a practical car!! And before you think that is stupid considering that we live in a snowy part of the country, consider this..........my husband has his second car that does NOT play in the snow at all. Now that is stupid!! Mine goes through the snow, etc. very nicely, it is just the height of the snowbanks etc. that are posing a problem. But his car fishtails in just a hint of snow. His last one was a Porsche and it was awful; so when he finally gets rid of it, I assume he will get something a little more practical. NO. He gets a testosterone filled Mustang. He was going to put snow tires on it this year, went to a bunch of different places and they all told him to save his money, that it would not really make any difference. So now he is dependent on me letting him use my car and I am not all that generous!! ;) I figure if I am miserable enough about it this year, next year he will garage the damn Mustang for the winter and get something practical. Yeah, and pigs might fly too!!

And on that note, I think I should do something, anything other than sitting in front of a computer bitching about the weather. We DO live in New England and it is supposed to snow, so I guess I need to just suck it up and shut up, or move to somewhere it doesn’t snow............Hawaii beckons!!

Happy Friday!!

Ciao’

Well, doesn't this just put the frosting on the cake....

2011-01-14T17:58:00Z

According to the Minnesota Planetarium Society, here is where the real signs of the Zodiac should fall. Get ready for your world to change forever!! I wonder what Nancy Reagan will have to say about this!!

Let’s see, a few days ago I thought my birth sign was Sagittarius (Nov. 24) as was my husband (Dec. 14) - trust me, I did not think that through very well some 40 years ago. LOL Our sons were both Capricorns (Dec. 22 and Dec. 27). Now I am a Scorpio - SCORPIO? You have got to be kidding. Joe is something I cannot pronounce and sounds dirty, but isn’t. It means something like snake slayer which could not be further from the truth and our sons are now under the sign of Sagittarius. Go figure!!

Whether you go along with it or not remains to be seen but it will make for some interesting conversations for the next few days or weeks and that is always good! As for me, I read my horoscope a few times a week in several different places, choose the one I like best or none of them if they all are uninteresting. So I guess you could say I am not really terribly sincere about it all.

I've been NOOKED

2011-01-09T17:03:01Z

I wanted a Kindle after doing my due diligence--asking everyone who reads Cider Press Hill and doing internet research but got a Nook instead. Not sure what the real differences are or if there really are a lot. Supposedly Nook has more titles available and I can access books from my local library using something called Overdrive. The person who gave it to me said she did not think that I could do that with a Kindle. SO we will see.

So far I have not been able to figure out how exactly to download books using Overdrive. I guess I will take my Nook to the library and ask someone there. I have done several things, but nothing seems to work.

I have purchased a few books from Barnes and Noble and they seemed to have downloaded just fine. I have to go sit somewhere for a couple hours tomorrow so am planning on taking it, instead of 2-3 books with me. Then I can report back as to whether or not this is a good thing or noooooooooo. I will love it I think when we travel cause now I can just take it with me instead of a suitcase full of books (yes I am nuts!!).

And on that note, I shall close.

OH, Jets vs Patriots next week, what do you think??

Ciao’

Oh my, time does fly by.....

2011-01-09T02:30:00Z

I cannot believe how long it has been since I popped in. Am home tonight even though it is date night (GASP), which is wicked unusual, but took pity on my husband since I knew he really, really wanted to watch the football games. So one of his buddies came over, they are in the family room watching and I am sitting in the kitchen playing channel roulette. Iron Chef competitions--just watched them cook Octopus a zillion different ways, back to the game, then to the hockey game, then back to Iron Chef. It could be worse!!

SO, was hoping to catch up on Kate’s life and her readers’ lives, but to my surprise I was the last one here. This is not good!!

What to talk about..........I have to confess I made myself a “few” Nutty Irishman (men?) drinks - or my version of one - tonight so probably anything I even try to comment on will not be terribly coherent.

I do want to mention the tragedy in Arizona. Linkmeister - who used to post here often - and who is a friend on FaceBook posted something a while ago to the tune that the Palins, Becks and the rest of the whack jobs in the public eye really need to be careful how they phrase things and what they say. Not that this kid necessarily took their comments and decided to go and shoot some people, but he might have been a fan. We may never know. But if they are in the public eye, then they have a responsibility to watch their mouths. Just take a look at the phrases Palin uses most often. What exactly is she saying? What is she telling people they should do if they do not like the status quo? And Michele Backman and Sharon Engle. Seems to me they are copying her words themselves. I realize each of us is responsible for his or her own actions, but there are enough people out there not dealing with a full deck and if they decide these people - Glenn Beck, O’Reilly, Palin, Coulter and others are speaking directly to them, then we are in a world of ****.

And on another note. Has anyone been following the story about the little boy who was killed at a gun show in Massachusetts a few years ago when he was firing an Uzi?? The trial has just started so it is back in the news again. I believe the father is suing the organizers of the gun show, the police who were on duty there and everyone else he can think of. Excuse me? It is another tragedy and that little boy should be alive and well today. However, not for one second do I believe ANYONE other than his father is responsible. He is the adult, he was the boy’s father, he IS the one who thought the kid should be allowed to fire the gun. I do not care how many adults were there and in charge. I don’t care that it was supposedly legal. Dad should never ever have taken the kid there in the first place and certainly should have had enough brains to know this was not something a small boy should have been even THINKING about doing, never mind being allowed to do. This case should have been thrown out long before this. Dad cannot place the blame anywhere except where it belongs--on his own shoulders. We have to begin to accept responsibility for our own actions and stop trying to point fingers at everyone else. And yes, I know this is a direct contradiction to what I wrote in the paragraph ahead. But there are significant differences between these two terrible events and therefore I am sticking to my story!!

What else? Holidays are over, seems as if they never arrived. Our tree is still up and lighted and beautiful. Last year our first one died two days before Christmas and I had to run around and find another perfect one (and did!!)--this year it is an incredibly healthy tree and looks and smells as wonderful today as it did when it was brought into the house around the 14th of December. Go figure!!

And now it is time for another NI--a little decaf coffee, some Bailey’s, some Frangelica, topped off with a sprinkle of cinnamon. Anyone want to join me? So, so smooth................

Ciao’

Keep the Light on by Pauline Clarke

2010-12-05T14:13:00Z

I have an incredibly talented writer/author friend who writes the most amazing stories. I had to post this one as it brought so many memories rushing back--of me as a teenager and how my Mom would flip that porch light on the second my boyfriend’s car (with me in it) would pull in the driveway at night and how I always left a light on for my kids (and husband) when they were out at night! Memories, usually a good thing--even when they bring you to tears as this one did. I hope you can access and enjoy. Keep the Light On

On my soapbbox again!!

2010-11-21T16:09:00Z

First of all, the weather--while it is SUNNY, as noted, it is also freaking cold!! However, my cousins in Utah posted pictures on FaceBook this AM of the 7+ inches of snow they got overnight, so I guess I will stop my whining!!

And now to my soapbox, I have been quiet lately (blessedly??) but the apathy on the part of the silent majority is beginning to eat at me. I have to put myself somewhat in that corner too as I bitch and complain and try to spread the word, but I haven’t gone out and DONE anything for a long while. I think, though, that the time has come for those of us who are quieter, who might be a little saner, who probably have a good handle on what is going on in this world of ours, to get off our collective butts and stand up together and fight what is going to happen in January when the new Senators and Representatives take their places. They are, mostly--not all, a bunch of hypocrites. Determined to take President Obama down, to stop health care reform - while screaming about the fact they have to wait a requisite number of days before THEIR health care program, so generously paid for by US, kicks in. I could go on and on, but I am sickened by the absolute selfishness, arrogance, ignorance and total lack of civility we are seeing day in and day out.

And to this end, I offer this article for you to read, chew on, absorb and then, perhaps someone will have some good ideas as to what we can do. I am emailing it to everyone I know, have posted it on my FaceBook page, but there has to be more we can do. We cannot sit quietly back anymore cause WE are the ones who are going to pay the price...........

The time is late. The stakes are extraordinary. While it is true that the billionaires and their supporters are “fired up and ready to go,” there is another more important truth. And that is that there are a lot more of us than there are of them. Now is the time for us to stand together, educate and organize. Now is the time to roll back this orgy of greed.

Billionaires want More, More, More...