GRAND FINALE

To further illustrate how much my grandmother was loved here is a poem my grandfather wrote for her a couple of years before he died back in 1990:

FINALE
(To my wife, Aleta)

We've been on stage, my love,
With many backdrops behind.
The play is almost over;
What memories we find!

It was behind the scenes that
We laughed and suffered most;
But at all times, in all ways,
We played it well, I boast.

You've been my love through good;
You've been my love through bad.
As long as we're together-
No reason to be sad.

The past was good, my love;
But all memories forget-
The hopes and fears, the smiles and tears.
The best is coming yet.

My love, how well we know
We've faced all kinds of weather.
Now let's face the audience
And take our bow, together!

GOODBYE ME-MAW

My grandmother died last week. She was 91 years of age.

She was an amazing person - fiercely independent, fiercely opinionated - she always knew exactly where she was headed.

I'm happy for my grandmother - she's in peace now.

But I'll still miss her always.

A FREAKIN' SWORD

Well, I can hardly believe it myself but as of today I am now the proud owner of a sword. That's right, I said "a sword".



You see, somebody in the family was apparently in the US Calvary at some point and this sword was a part of the standard equipment. And it's been passed down a couple of generations and now it's my turn to have it.

It actually last belonged to my grandfather; he died about 20 years ago. My grandmother hasn't died yet thankfully, but she is currently in a nursing home rehabbing from breaking her hip and it doesn't appear she'll be able to return home anytime soon so my uncle saw fit to pass a few things on to the grandchildren at this time.

There's 3 grandchildren on my mother's side - one got a big regulation-size American flag, one got the family bible, and I got the goddamn sword. Shoot, if they thought I was the one deserving of the sword that shows you how completely non-violent my family is!

CAKE AND ICE CREAM

Ok, I thought it was time to mention desserts again. Actually, I now have all these dessert-related searches on my Google homepage so you might be getting more sweets news than your sensitive little tummy can handle.


- I really want to try Irish whiskey cake sometime. Yoko, do we know anything about Downey's restaurant in Philadelphia?

- And also check out this brief but cute history of the ice cream sundae. I don't know how true it is but it all sounds scrumptious to me.

SHEPHERDSTOWN, WV

A few weeks ago, I presented you with the top 5 most viewed photos from my Flickr photostream. I know you were very thankful for that - I could just feel it.

So now, here I am again, this time to post #6 thru #10 on the list of my most viewed photos on Flickr.

And, strangely enough, these photos were all taken in the same place - a charming little burg on the Potomac River known as Shepherdstown, West Virginia. I was there last summer visiting my parents and these are a few souvenirs of my visit.


6. "Stone Soup Bistro menu" - We did not eat at the Stone Soup Bistro but we should have. Even though I don't like pumpkin pie, I'm still dying to try the pumpkin-pear bisque!



7. "Shepherdstown houses" - I like the color scheme of the houses there. And always remember to turn left for Kearneysville!



8. "Main Street Shepherdstown" - A rather bland shot - it just seems people are always searching for "main street" shots.



9. "Here comes the train" - Okay, I like this one, how the train emerges out of the trees there.



10. "Watch that river curve" - I like this one too - it's purdy!

THE PIES HAVE IT

According to a survey conducted by the makers of Mrs. Smith's here are America's 10 favorite pies:

1. Apple
2. Pumpkin
3. Chocolate creme
4. Cherry
5. Apple crumb
6. Pecan
7. Lemon Meringue
8. Blueberry
9. Key lime
10. Peach

And now, even more importantly, here are Fairwitness's 10 favorite pies:

1. Cherry
2. Apple
3. Pecan
4. Lemon Meringue
5. Blueberry
6. Banana Cream
7. Coconut Custard
8. Chocolate Cream
9. French Apple
10. Sweet Potato

Pumpkin pie - I do not like pumpkin pie.
Peach and Key Lime pies - it's been so long since I've had either of these pies that I don't remember if I like them or not.

WOLFGANG AMADEUS RACHMANINOFF

On the piano - when I last updated you I had been working on two pieces - a Schumann dance and a Grieg nocturne. The Schumann I was done with about a month ago while the Grieg I just finished working on this past week. Btw, here's a picture of Grieg's house in Norway.

Now, it's time to move on up - to a Rachmaninoff romance and the very familiar first movement of a Mozart sonata. I'm playing Rachmaninoff and Mozart! Is that weird or what?

Sergei Rachmaninoff - Romance Op.10, No.6

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Rondo alla Turca

RADICAL CHANGES

So Yoko, notice anything different?

Tee hee.

So, I could totally bullshit you and say I changed my blog template because I needed the change - out with the old, in with the new.

But, it was nothing like that. I actually still liked that old template - alot.

But what I didn't like was my RSS feed always being completely screwed up - never displaying the post title and shit like that. You see, it was a pretty old template and the code for it was all outdated and I didn't know how to fix it.

Sooooooooooo, I've switched over to one of these there new-fangled templates with all the bells and whistles properly attached and it don't feel too damn bad.

What say you?