Wednesday's Wisdom:Walk Just for Pleasure

The Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir is known by New Yorkers as the Central Park Reservoir.

It is a decommissioned reservoir in Central Park. This reservoir stretches from 86th to 96th street. A partial view of it can be seen in the image atop this entry.

A number of years have passed since the last time that I walked around the reservoir, but, yesterday, which was The Fourth of July, I walked around it with a friend whose husband passed away a short time ago. I rarely take a walk for the sake of walking because I walk almost everywhere I need to go in the city, but I wanted to give the time to my friend, as it was her first Fourth of July holiday without her husband.

In my doing this, I was reminded that walking merely for the sake of walking releases endorphins; is relaxing; and, it causes one to take note of their surroundings as opposed to walking when you have to be somewhere at a certain time.

Tuesday's Truths WK 47-B: It's Independence Day (And Many Figurines Are Celebrating!)

Welcome to the forty-seventh week of my Tuesday's Truths. This day happens to be Independence Day and a number of my figurines are celebrating!

In the photograph atop this entry, all of my firework-themed figurines (dressed in red and white) can be seen rehearsing with two directors. One of them will be the mistress of ceremonies. She is wearing a red skirt and a blue top with white stripes. Her hand is clasping a baton that's been decorated to resemble a firework, and she is standing towards the left/center of the first row.

Her partner, the master of ceremonies is wearing a red jacket and white pants with blue stripes. He is also holding a baton that's been decorated to resemble a firework, and he is standing towards the right/center of the first row.

Their intention is to have the fire-work-themed figurines perform immediately after the completion of a vow renewal ceremony, where all the guests in attendance are wearing patriotic outfits. They can be seen in the bottom half of the aforementioned image, and many of them are ones you might recognize from prior posts here on Blogger.

Another figurine (pictured below) dressed as Lady Liberty,

is doing her own thing, by carrying an apple to honor NYC, which as you probably know is often called The Big Apple. She has also appeared in prior entries on Blogger (without her apple)  including ones that you may reference by clicking here as well as here.

And this year, I have two newcomers! They can be seen in the next image.

Each figurine has his/her own agenda, however, they all share one thing in common: Every one of them joins me in wishing you and yours a safe as well as celebratory Independence Day!

The Inspiration of Holocaust Survivor, Mathilde Freund (And Other News)

I have been away from my cyber-venues tending to matters related to the accident that I had this past May. Whenever I stray from the momentum of my writing, I always find it difficult to begin again. But I'm sure this idiosyncrasy of mine is of no real interest to anyone, and so I'll just begin my reentry into cyberspace where I left off, which was with a post I made on July 4th, 2016, — one week and four days ago.

In the aforementioned entry, I wrote a little bit about Mathilde Freund, a holocaust survivor who lives in my hood. I stated that Mathilde and I "spoke about Elie Wiesel, the holocaust survivor who died in his NYC home this past Saturday, July 2nd. Mathilde knew Mr. Wiesel because he was in the same camp (Buchenwald) that her husband had been in. She told me that she was in hiding at the time, but her husband was killed at Buchenwald two months before it was closed. She recalled that her husband was twenty-five years old at the time and that Elie Wiesel was much younger. She also remarked that the man who was pope at the time “turned the other way,” and she is quite impressed with the efforts of the current pope. She is someone who is most thankful for what Independence Day is SUPPOSED to represent, and is truly an amazing lady! I’m always grateful when I see her!" 

Since the publication of that blog post, I came across a YouTube Video that includes Mathilde. It is produced by Fordham University and I've posted it atop this blog entry. If you view it, dear reader, I'm sure you will see why I'm always grateful to see her. Moreover, I dare say I believe upon viewing the clip, that like myself, you will find her attitude toward the tragedies in her life uplifting and inspiring.

July 4th 2016

It's a rather quiet Fourth of July for me as I'm still recuperating, but progress is being made. In bygone years I've gone to NYC's Macy's Fireworks, but this year I'm laying low. However, I do have the company of my patriotic figurine-friends. Placing them in my kitchen (photo one), where I also have my succulent garden (photo below) makes me feel a little like Laura in Tennessee William's play, The Glass Menagerie.

The activity of putting these characters in strategic places in my kitchen as well as my main living area (photo below) helps me to keep my creative juices flowing and distract me from my woes.

INDEPENDENCE DAY 2013

I will return to Blogger after the July 4th holiday weekend but if you'd like to read a "story" about the Independence Day glasses pictured below, please click 
here.

HAPPY 1/2 YEAR FROM UNCLE SAM & ME!

HAPPY 1/2 YEAR, DEAR READER!

Today, July 1st 2013, marks the beginning of the 1/2 year mark for this year! And in bygone years, I have honored the occasion on Blogger with posts that reference the first six months of a given year in entries which you may refer to by clicking here for my 2010 posting, as well as here, here, and here for 2011 posts; and here for my 2012 post.

This year Uncle Sam (pictured above) has come to my succulent garden to celebrate this occasion, as well as to join the cast of characters that are here to perform on Independence Day, which is this coming Thursday, July the Fourth!

And, dear reader, you may be familiar with some of the characters as I referred to them the last time I posted here on Blogger as well as on hometalk.com and on in two entries on tumblr which you can refer to by clicking here and here.

But getting back to my newest succulent garden's guest, Uncle Sam, he has asked me to clarify a matter regarding his identity as he feel misunderstood! He wants to make it clear that he is not just an icon for the ready to eat Uncle Sam Cereal, which according to WIKI is a "breakfast cereal, first introduced in 1908 by U.S. Mills of Omaha, Nebraska. The company relocated to Needham, Massachusetts sometime after the 1970s. Attune Foods out of San Francisco acquired Uncle Sam Cereal in 2009."