Lets Try this Again!

Well lets try this again! I was wondering if I should start with a RANT or just give you some insight on who I am.

I am a true New Yorker (what is a true New Yorker anyway??), born in Brooklyn. Although I grew up in Brooklyn and Long Island I have actually lived most of my adult life upstate New York, but even today when I am asked where I am from I always say “ Well, I am originally from ….” I guess you just can’t get the NY’er out of the girl.

So Brooklyn huh and how did the seed get planted (well we all know that part). Dad was a Brooklyn boy, as was his father. He had that down home real “Brooklynease” accent, you know the kind that puts “earl” in the car and plants his tomatoes in the “serl” to those who don’t know that would be “Oil and Soil.” During WWII he was stationed in Portsmouth, New Hampshire on Shore Patrol and in the Army. He was an excellent ballplayer and ended up playing ball for most of the war on the Army baseball team. I have found a lot of old newspaper articles on dad in the old Portsmouth Herald archives and got a kick reading about him. While in Portsmouth he met mom, a true New Englander! OK, so I told you about dad’s accent, now how about mom! She would “pahk the cah in Hahvad Yahd”, (translation, Park the car in Harvard Yard). She was very prim and proper, I think I heard her say S**T twice in her lifetime, always had trimmed painted nails, dressed to the nines and always spoke proper Bostonian dialect. So as a child growing up I was very confused when it came to my vowels! Well anyway, dad met mom at a USO dance, he was engaged to a girl named Peggy … he broke the engagement and asked mom to marry him, her name is Peggy also. So he never got caught “slipping up.” After the war he convinced her to come to live in Brooklyn, but he was never really able to remove her New England roots from her heart (or her accent)! Dad died young in 1983 and mom just died this past March. I miss them both.

Here is mom and dad

Here is me .....

I don’t remember much about Brooklyn but still like to go back and visit. My great grandparents are buried in Greenwood Cemetery and my grandparents are buried in Holy Cross Cemetery. Greenwood Cemetery is amazing beautiful place. Last time I was there I found Leonard Bernstein’s grave and also Louis Comfort Tffany.

Oh did I tell you I love photography and photographing headstones. I belong to the website “Find A Grave” and volunteer to photograph graves for folks doing genealogy research. It gets me out of the house, makes me take peaceful rides in the country looking for old graveyards and away from my PC.

I also LOVE Ireland (been there five times), Irish Music, and I am addicted to genealogy and tracing my family tree.

I have three amazing daughters who have me very proud to be their mom, two wonderful son-in-laws, and one of the most handsome, funniest grandsons anyone could ever want!

A little about me with more to come on that in future blogs.

Thanks for "BEARING" with me!!