Category Posts
Blasts from the Past
For the next week my publisher is having a Valentine’s Day giveaway. At first I didn’t think I should participate. My characters are generally in such desperate plights that romance is the last thing on their mind. However, they are all young women and thus it is impossible to avoid clumsy flirtations, heart palpitations, despondency and yes, sex. Particularly for my youngest, Riley O’Tannen of the Graduation Present, a self-proclaimed klutz who misinterprets a young man’s interest until it’s almost too late.
Riley’s exploits are very loosely based on my own goof-ball adventures 
in Europe 40 years ago. In 2014 I came clean in a series of posts listed here:
- Europe on Five Dollars a Day
- Oeufs in a Van
- Nice is not Nice
- A Roll in the Hay, the French Riviera
- Never joke with a Border Guard, no matter how cute he is! (one of my most popular posts)
- The Samwitch Shop
- The Last Ferry to Dover
- Pier Andrea Makes his Move
- Wot the Chuffin Gypsy Nell’re ya speaking?
Three cute French guys and my traveling companion Carolyn from “Oeufs in a Van”
Fortunately I saved many of the letters and pictures from that time.
Carolyn gets carried out to sea by cute German guy in “The Samwitch Stand.”
Yes, as you can probably tell most of our time was spent hanging out with “cute” guys and trying not to get carried out to sea.
Letter from cute Italian guy in “Pierre Andrei Makes His Move”
Sigh. Do you have any embarrassing travel stories? Fess up!
BTW: Two other authors I’ve introduced you to on this blog are having give-aways:
Duke Miller’s unforgettable and poetic memoir of twenty-five years as a relief worker
Arleen William’s compelling glimpse into the lives of emigres in America
ThursdayDoors: The Basilica
Going back in time again, this time to a wedding in an abandoned factory in Hudson New York. The Basilica – once a forge and foundry for steel railways, then briefly a glue factory – now spends its semi-retirement as an events venue.
Founded in 1662, the town of Hudson thrived as a whaling and then manufacturing town for well over a hundred years until the late 19th century. Once the manufacturers disappeared the town slipped into “the unlikely setting for a world of prostitution, gambling, murder, and government corruption—with more than a touch of the Keystone Kops thrown in.” This according to Bruce Edwards Hall, the author of Diamond Street, The Story of the Little Town with the Big Red Light District.
Apparently he wasn’t exaggerating because in 1951 then Governor Dewey had to send in troops to run the varmints out of town or lock them up. Old West shenanigans in an otherwise quaint dairyland – gotta love it!
The inside of the factory the day before the wedding (trees had just been delivered)
The inside during the wedding – quite magical isn’t it? During the reception a thunderstorm rumbled and flashed overhead and the roof leaked!
In the mid-eighties the town began to revive, thanks to an unlikely group of modern day pioneers. Antiques dealers. They were followed by artists and nouveau cuisine restaurant owners. Today many urban couples have summer homes either in Hudson or the surrounding area which they rent via Airbnb. But we stayed outside of town on an organic farm. I’ve always been a sucker for cows, chickens and pigs.
What’s the most unusual destination wedding you’ve been to?
This post was inspired by Norm Frampton’s #ThursdayDoors event. Check out other doors here.
#ThursdayDoors: Wismar Germany
This week I’m going back in time to 1995, the year we went to Wismar, Germany.
The dotted red line between Schwerin and Wismar marks the autobahn Germany was building to connect the coastal towns to Berlin.
From the end of WWII until 1989, Wismar was behind the Iron Curtain, making travel there almost impossible. Even six years after the Berlin Wall had fallen, the rustic two lane road from Lubeck to Wismar catered more to donkey carts and tractors than cars and thus resulted in a frustrating three hour drive. Before the war, the towns along the southern Baltic were popular vacation destinations and the thought is evidently to revive them. However, in 1995 Germany still had a long way to go.
Aside from the lack of easy access, many of the coastal towns were heavily bombed by the Allies in 1945. Instead of rebuilding them, the Soviets simply moved the residents to cheaply-built, concrete-block apartments outside the city walls leaving their centers to sit in ruins for decades. When we were there construction cranes hung over the town as buildings that could not be renovated were destroyed.
Our bed and breakfast was one of the more modern buildings.
Another challenge for Germany, the locals seemed to think making money off tourism was a tawdry business indeed. Certainly anyone caught speaking English on the streets was given the evil eye.
The town center – note the Hanseatic design of the building facades.
Sorry for the poor quality of the pictures. We didn’t have the best camera and it rained the whole time we were there.
I believe this is St. Nicholas Cathedral but, because it was under repair, we couldn’t get near.
In case you’re wondering why we made a difficult journey to an obscure town on the Baltic, well, here goes: In 1663 (or around that time) a Swedish general conquered this important trade route and until 1717 it remained under Swedish rule. In return the general attained the noble title “Conqueror of Wismar.” According to a bit of family lore spawned by a Mormon missionary’s trip to the Swedish History Museum, my husband is one of his descendants. Didn’t know I was married to royalty, did you?
Check out other doors at Norm Frampton’s fun (and often challenging) #ThursdayDoors event.
#WordlessWednesday: Rain through Chimes
#ThursdayDoors: Ely Nevada
This door leads to the Nevada Northern Museum and Historic Train Ride in Ely, a town of about 5,000 people in eastern Nevada. Ely got its start as a Stagecoach and Pony Express stop. Then copper was discovered nearby in the early 1900s and times were good. But, as with any mining boom, eventually it went bust and the town had to turn to other sources of revenue, the Old Ghost Train run by the Nevada Northern being one of them.
The engine of the Ghost Train going out for a test drive.
This train runs during the summer and on certain holidays, such as Halloween and Christmas. The round trip to the Ruth mine covers about 14 miles and takes about 90 minutes (that’s not bad considering it’s the oldest still-running steam engine in America). We were there when no runs were planned but happily they were testing the engine.
Back doors to the platform.
The Old Ghost Train is most famous for Halloween runs, when employees dress in Victorian garb and tell ghoulish tales from Nevada’s colorful past, however there are other themed rides, for example:
- The Polar Express (with a real live Santa, caroling, etc.)
- Rocking Rolling Geology
- Wild Wild West (of course).
Shack across from the train station. Not sure what it was used for.
Ely is famous for many other things:
- The birthplace of Richard Nixon’s wife Pat
- The eastern end of Route 50, the Loneliest Highway in the World (and it is lonely!)
- The setting for the climatic scene in the movie, The Rat Race.
And it’s famous for one more thing as well. Let me think. What could that be? Ah yes, it’s the setting for that wacky mystery Flipka! (okay, maybe not famous yet but a gal can always dream.)
Another great thing to do in Ely! Cocktails and Cannons! Oh boy!
But before you get all excited about hopping on the Ghost Train or racing people in a bathtub, keep in mind Ely is a six hour drive from Reno and a four hour drive from Las Vegas. There are plenty of hotels nowadays but my favorite is the original Hotel Nevada and Gambling Hall. They have a huge sign in front that reads “We love Bikers.” To a hotel staff used to catering to the Hells Angels, Joel and me in our Prius were like visitors from another planet!
This post was inspired by Norm Frampton’s wonderful #ThursdayDoors prompt. Check out other doors and their histories!
#WordlessWednesday
#ThursdayDoors: Open the Door
Open the door this time of year and you may find . . .
They hadn’t quite memorized the songs but they got cookies anyway!!
I know I cheated (yet again!) but this is my addition to Norm Frampton’s #ThursdayDoors challenge! Check out the non-cheaters here.
Next I’ll be going all Christmasy with a repost of Dem Dam Hippies in Have You Been Saved Missouri!
#WordlessWednesday: Her Spirit Ariseth
Tombstone inscribed “Mrs. Elizabeth, ye wife of Francis Sikes, died 1774” Monson, MA
#ThursdayDoors: I want out
This is my back door. Those of you following this blog will recognize this sunflower as my Pilgrim. A volunteer onto my shore like Pretty Kitty. We had to bring her inside because the temps have started to dip below freezing and being inside is her only hope. But she wants out.
I understand because since the moment I first gained consciousness, I’ve felt the same way. What? This planet again.
Yes, she must release her seeds into the world and yes, their future is unclear.
I feel like her. I want out of a world where mass shootings are the norm.
Saying nothing in particular 