It’s almost the end of January and have
you got all of your Christmas put away yet? Some people who get clothing
on Christmas wear them the next day, so all can see what Santa brought
them. Others piece them out so that everyone doesn’t notice these
things, unless of course it’s a diamond engagement ring, and then you
are waving that left hand around with finger extended so that you can’t
help but notice it and comment on it.
I’m beginning to think it
will be well into February before Christmas boxes get put away. Some
gifts that I received that need thought as to where I am going to use
them. Some need fixtures for hanging, some need to be put away until
spring or summer, while others need to go back to the store to exchange.
I’ve
been having trouble finding replacement bulbs for my Christmas tree
lights, not the tiny ones but the regular size that were once so common.
I finally located and purchased some but not in the colors I would have
liked. Bummer.
Income tax time’s arriving, and it’s time to pay
all those holiday bills. There are also taxes, water bills, perhaps
mortgage payment, car insurance or homeowners that comes due in January
and you feel overloaded with disbursements on the family budget. If you
are efficient and smart you might have already sent in your income tax
and have your refund (if you have one) back so it can help pay some of
these expenses. Good for you. I’m still trying to collect all of the
necessary data to get ready to file a tax with no refund, I guess that
is why I don’t rush to get them done. Some of the information I need
isn’t ready until February, so we can’t be one of the early birds
anyway.
In collecting material for taxes do you run into piles of
old paperwork? How far back should you keep cancelled checks, receipts,
important papers, auto, house, etc. policies? When the auditor came to
the office back when I was working I asked him and he said seven years,
but by the same token one of the other auditors who came I asked the
same question and he looked at me in horror and said “never throw away
anything of importance!” So I have a few more boxes that are ready to be
placed in the attic with all of the others. Will I ever need them? Good
question, but if I do, I will have them, and that eases my mind.
January
is also a good time to get rid of all the magazines, books and other
reading material that you planned to read in 2011 and never got around
to it. Either read it now in these blah days of the month or toss it.
The pile will only get that much bigger if you don’t lower it now.
January is a good time to weed out and start fresh; am I the only one who thinks that?
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Kitchen remains heart of my home
If you have a sitting area in your kitchen, it should be called the “keeping room.”
The other day while browsing through my Country Homes magazine, I learned that this practical, all-purpose room was called the keeping room in olden times because that was where the heat was in the winter and sometimes it was the only room that was lived in besides the bedroom.
I would like a “keeping room” for watching TV, visiting with people -- a cozy place to spend most of my waking hours.
Our family came from the farm, but never got used to city ways and the kitchen was the place for them. You might say they “kept house” in their kitchen and most their business was done at the kitchen table.
My grandparents had a rocking chair and a black cookstove that burned wood in the kitchen.
Family and friends who came to visit would sit in rocking chairs and the woodbox and around the kitchen table.
Other non-family members were taken to the living room.
The woodbox and stove are gone, but the chair still is used for storytelling when the little ones come for a visit.
I find that the kitchen is the place for everything I do, whether it’s writing checks, paying bills, reading the daily newspaper, cutting out patterns on the table, or fixing whatever needs mending.
In my grandma’s kitchen in the,spring, I believe, there was a box behind the black kitchen stove where covered over with a huge flannel cloth would be baby chicks she was raising.
They would sleep a great deal, but each day they would be taken out and put on the floor while she cleaned out their box and put new paper linings in it. When she was doing this, we would rush into the kitchen to watch the babies as they pecked at the small amount of cornmeal that she would put down for them to busy themselves and not be wandering off while she was cleaning.
We were always sorry when the time came to go to the little chicken house in our backyard to live until they grew bigger.
It was fenced in and had a runway from the inside of the house to the yard where they could run around. Eventually they grew to the size to be moved into a larger house that we had in back of the barn.
It was not uncommon back in those days to have chickens in the village; many folks did and when the Great Depression came along more and more people fixed places to have a few chickens for eggs and a Sunday dinner.
My dad kept the chickens until his retirement. Sometimes neighbors would complain when the rooster crowed early in the morning.
We only ever had one, but he could be noisy, along with the others in the neighborhood.
The other day while browsing through my Country Homes magazine, I learned that this practical, all-purpose room was called the keeping room in olden times because that was where the heat was in the winter and sometimes it was the only room that was lived in besides the bedroom.
I would like a “keeping room” for watching TV, visiting with people -- a cozy place to spend most of my waking hours.
Our family came from the farm, but never got used to city ways and the kitchen was the place for them. You might say they “kept house” in their kitchen and most their business was done at the kitchen table.
My grandparents had a rocking chair and a black cookstove that burned wood in the kitchen.
Family and friends who came to visit would sit in rocking chairs and the woodbox and around the kitchen table.
Other non-family members were taken to the living room.
The woodbox and stove are gone, but the chair still is used for storytelling when the little ones come for a visit.
I find that the kitchen is the place for everything I do, whether it’s writing checks, paying bills, reading the daily newspaper, cutting out patterns on the table, or fixing whatever needs mending.
In my grandma’s kitchen in the,spring, I believe, there was a box behind the black kitchen stove where covered over with a huge flannel cloth would be baby chicks she was raising.
They would sleep a great deal, but each day they would be taken out and put on the floor while she cleaned out their box and put new paper linings in it. When she was doing this, we would rush into the kitchen to watch the babies as they pecked at the small amount of cornmeal that she would put down for them to busy themselves and not be wandering off while she was cleaning.
We were always sorry when the time came to go to the little chicken house in our backyard to live until they grew bigger.
It was fenced in and had a runway from the inside of the house to the yard where they could run around. Eventually they grew to the size to be moved into a larger house that we had in back of the barn.
It was not uncommon back in those days to have chickens in the village; many folks did and when the Great Depression came along more and more people fixed places to have a few chickens for eggs and a Sunday dinner.
My dad kept the chickens until his retirement. Sometimes neighbors would complain when the rooster crowed early in the morning.
We only ever had one, but he could be noisy, along with the others in the neighborhood.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
We had fun in Canastota
Can you remember when the Canastota High
School band and cheerleaders would march through town with the football
team after every win? Do you remember our majorettes with their white
and maroon high hats with a visors and feathers? When did they change to
gold? Leland Wright would play his bugle and everyone would yell,
“Charge!”
Do you remember the old high school on Peterboro Street with its entrance on the north side for boys and on the south for girls?
There was a balcony around the upper floor where you could stand and watch the activities below, especially basketball and wrestling. Many a romance blossomed along the balcony as girls watched their fellows play.
Adult basketball teams that played there, too. It was exciting for the fans as well as the team.
A picnic was held at the end of the year either on the school grounds or nearby. Everyone looked forward to it.
Didn’t we have fun?
Can you remember the Feast of Assumption Days when the downtown streets were lined with booths where so many organizations sold such delicious foods?
How about the one-act plays presented by local people who had talent you never thought they had?
The crowds that would come, and not just on Aug. 15. There would also be block dances where traditional Italian bands would play folk songs and popular music.
The Onion Queen contest that began early in the month would culminate with the crowning of the winner and the parade.
There would be fireworks at the airport. Public displays were rare because of the economy, but home fireworks were still legal, so everyone who could afford them would set them off, especially of the 4th of July.
On Easter Sunday, you would go to church with all of your new clothes, corsages and fancy hats.
At Christmas Mass at St. Agatha’s, everyone dressed in their best attire with furs, diamonds and elegant hats. People got to church early just to watch the arrivals in their finery.
Firemen’s Field Days started on Thursday with a small parade for inspection of the various companies that would on Peterboro Street, Center Street and other side streets.
The grand parade would be on Saturday. Everyone went to the field which was up over the Terrace boardwalk to the vacant field, which now has the Southside School on it for the food, rides and entertainment.
There were several stages with tents, with paid performances. Most people walked to the field back in those days.
If you were near the old fire station you would smell the luscious aroma of onions and peppers firemen were cooking ahead to sell at the field days.
These are a few memories of Canastota back in the 30s and early 40s. What did I miss?
Remembering is fun for the soul, especially when they are pleasant memories. Bad ones should be shelved and forgotten.
Do you remember the old high school on Peterboro Street with its entrance on the north side for boys and on the south for girls?
There was a balcony around the upper floor where you could stand and watch the activities below, especially basketball and wrestling. Many a romance blossomed along the balcony as girls watched their fellows play.
Adult basketball teams that played there, too. It was exciting for the fans as well as the team.
A picnic was held at the end of the year either on the school grounds or nearby. Everyone looked forward to it.
Didn’t we have fun?
Can you remember the Feast of Assumption Days when the downtown streets were lined with booths where so many organizations sold such delicious foods?
How about the one-act plays presented by local people who had talent you never thought they had?
The crowds that would come, and not just on Aug. 15. There would also be block dances where traditional Italian bands would play folk songs and popular music.
The Onion Queen contest that began early in the month would culminate with the crowning of the winner and the parade.
There would be fireworks at the airport. Public displays were rare because of the economy, but home fireworks were still legal, so everyone who could afford them would set them off, especially of the 4th of July.
On Easter Sunday, you would go to church with all of your new clothes, corsages and fancy hats.
At Christmas Mass at St. Agatha’s, everyone dressed in their best attire with furs, diamonds and elegant hats. People got to church early just to watch the arrivals in their finery.
Firemen’s Field Days started on Thursday with a small parade for inspection of the various companies that would on Peterboro Street, Center Street and other side streets.
The grand parade would be on Saturday. Everyone went to the field which was up over the Terrace boardwalk to the vacant field, which now has the Southside School on it for the food, rides and entertainment.
There were several stages with tents, with paid performances. Most people walked to the field back in those days.
If you were near the old fire station you would smell the luscious aroma of onions and peppers firemen were cooking ahead to sell at the field days.
These are a few memories of Canastota back in the 30s and early 40s. What did I miss?
Remembering is fun for the soul, especially when they are pleasant memories. Bad ones should be shelved and forgotten.
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Christmas continues in my house
Ever so gradually we’re getting back to
normal at our house. The decorations and tree are still up and I’m
enjoying them more now than before Christmas.
I have time to look at the tree and listen to Christmas music .
Before Christmas I’m so frazzled I hardly notice the decorations, except to be sure the lights are on when it gets dark. A neighbor his decorations on a timer, so whether home or not, they come on at a certain time. Smart.
I feel I’m lucky to have a switch inside the warm house to turn off at bedtime.
However the house is becoming a little more normal. The Christmas linens have been laundered, ironed and folded into tissue paper, ready for next year.
Today’s linens are so much easier to care for. I can remember after the holidays my grandmother standing for hours ironing the linens that were used for the Christmas dinner; it had to be done perfectly - that was grandma’s way.
She had a linen tablecloth with a holly-and-berry design with napkins to match; the family initial was embroidered into the corner. We still use the napkins, but the tablecloth has finally shown the wear of time and has several holes in it. If grandma were, she would’ve cut it up and made into dresser scarves, towels or napkins. We still use dresser scarves with initials embroidered in the corners; I don’t even know whose initials they are, but you can be sure grandma knew. You might say she was recycling, but didn’t know it at the time.
Some people today have the same tendencies. We can find uses for butter or whipped topping tubs, egg cartons and cardboard tubes. Baby food jars and hairspray lids are in demand from craftspeople, the tops from hairspray cans. There are women who save their plastic bread wrappers to braid beautiful rugs and chair mats. I could go on and on.
I wonder what our grandmothers would think of all of the plastic that comes into our homes with foodstuffs. I can almost hear my own saying “a waste of money using so many containers for foods.” And she didn’t even know about landfills and how they can be filled with such items if not recycled. Girl Scout, Brownies and 4-H members save empty containers for so many uses.
Holiday aprons are popular now that aprons are making a comeback. If you are one of those persons who shops for next Christmas to take advantage of all the bargains, this would be the time to pick up a Christmas apron or two for those ladies who are hard to buy for. Be sure to keep a list with your purchases so you know next December who you purchased them for. Organization is the keyto taking advantage of post-Christmas sales. Have a special place to keep all of the purchases you make throughout the year for Christmas gifts for those people you are buying for.
We have another week or two before we have to take down the rest of the decorations, unless you keep your tree up until Epiphany (The 12th day of Christmas, Jan. 6) like I do. Some folks’ trees stay up until the end of January or even Valentine’s Day, decorating it with hearts and flowers for the occasion.
I have time to look at the tree and listen to Christmas music .
Before Christmas I’m so frazzled I hardly notice the decorations, except to be sure the lights are on when it gets dark. A neighbor his decorations on a timer, so whether home or not, they come on at a certain time. Smart.
I feel I’m lucky to have a switch inside the warm house to turn off at bedtime.
However the house is becoming a little more normal. The Christmas linens have been laundered, ironed and folded into tissue paper, ready for next year.
Today’s linens are so much easier to care for. I can remember after the holidays my grandmother standing for hours ironing the linens that were used for the Christmas dinner; it had to be done perfectly - that was grandma’s way.
She had a linen tablecloth with a holly-and-berry design with napkins to match; the family initial was embroidered into the corner. We still use the napkins, but the tablecloth has finally shown the wear of time and has several holes in it. If grandma were, she would’ve cut it up and made into dresser scarves, towels or napkins. We still use dresser scarves with initials embroidered in the corners; I don’t even know whose initials they are, but you can be sure grandma knew. You might say she was recycling, but didn’t know it at the time.
Some people today have the same tendencies. We can find uses for butter or whipped topping tubs, egg cartons and cardboard tubes. Baby food jars and hairspray lids are in demand from craftspeople, the tops from hairspray cans. There are women who save their plastic bread wrappers to braid beautiful rugs and chair mats. I could go on and on.
I wonder what our grandmothers would think of all of the plastic that comes into our homes with foodstuffs. I can almost hear my own saying “a waste of money using so many containers for foods.” And she didn’t even know about landfills and how they can be filled with such items if not recycled. Girl Scout, Brownies and 4-H members save empty containers for so many uses.
Holiday aprons are popular now that aprons are making a comeback. If you are one of those persons who shops for next Christmas to take advantage of all the bargains, this would be the time to pick up a Christmas apron or two for those ladies who are hard to buy for. Be sure to keep a list with your purchases so you know next December who you purchased them for. Organization is the keyto taking advantage of post-Christmas sales. Have a special place to keep all of the purchases you make throughout the year for Christmas gifts for those people you are buying for.
We have another week or two before we have to take down the rest of the decorations, unless you keep your tree up until Epiphany (The 12th day of Christmas, Jan. 6) like I do. Some folks’ trees stay up until the end of January or even Valentine’s Day, decorating it with hearts and flowers for the occasion.
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