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X is for Merry XMas (War Is Over)

Apr29

X is for “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)”, released in 1971 as a single on Apple Records by John & Yoko/Plastic Ono Band with the Harlem Community Choir.  While the song is in theory a protest song about the Vietnam War, it has become a Christmas standard.  After John Lennon’s murder on 8 December 1980, the song was rereleased in the UK.  In recent years the song seems to land very high on any list of favorite Christmas songs.

While the song certainly isn’t directly Beatle-related, I felt I should include a song from John’s post-Beatle work, as I did with Paul McCartney.  The song is beautiful, and I think it is a shame that the Beatles didn’t write any Christmas music together.

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My First Guest Post!

Jan19

Santa Claus is Coming to Town – On My Birthday!, by Lindsey Russell « Once A Little Girl

My first guest post is up!  I had too much fun writing about one of my favorite childhood memories.  Please pay a visit to blog friend Once a Little Girl.  It is definitely worth taking a few minutes to look around.  You can find the page for one of my favorite features of the blog below:

Once a Little Girl Friends « Once A Little Girl

Currently I am in the midst of trying to create a schedule here at Ramblings of a Misguided Blonde.  Any suggestions?  Ideas?  What interest you?  I have too many ideas and too little time.

Thank you once again Adela and Once a Little Girl for sharing.

English: Santa Claus with a little girl Espera...

Image via Wikipedia

Little Doll Lost

Dec31

Sometimes a small, chance event will spark my imagination.  When I returned to work on December 27th, I found that an unlucky little girl left a new baby doll behind.  In my offline life I manage a convenience store open 24 hours a day 365 days a year.  In the hustle and bustle of Christmas, a brand new Christmas gift was left behind.  The sad little doll now has no home.  I can’t bring myself to throw it out.

As a child, I adored baby dolls.  Christmas was not Christmas without a new baby.  Even at age 31, I still own the dolls that meant the most to me throughout my childhood.  I could even tell you some of their names, origins, and stories.  Once, the prized doll in my collection, my Samantha American Girl doll, became lost for the better part of a decade.

It began innocently enough.  As I headed off to college, I assumed that Samantha was safely put away in her trunk along with all of her clothes and accessories.  Little did I know Samantha was nowhere to be found.  My little cousin Mackenzie, visiting my parents’ home for Christmas, wanted to play with Samantha.  Who could blame her?  She is a beautiful doll that even starred in her own set of books.  Mackenzie and I searched my parents’ entire home.  We could not find her.  The same scenario played itself out year after year.  It became tradition for Mackenzie and I to search for Samantha, even long after Mackenzie outgrew dolls herself.

And then it happened.  She appeared.  On a beautiful spring day I visited my parents’ home anticipating a visit with my Mom, my sister E, and her new baby boy W.  I was in for a surprise.  I found the house appearing empty only to find all three in the basement.  My Mom and sister were having a blast sorting through our childhood toys as my little nephew slept in the baby swing nearby.  After discussing the issue of our childhood toys for close to a decade, the time was finally right to go through it all.

While sorting through everything underneath the basement stairwell, my Mom and sister finally found long-lost Samantha.  What a pleasant surprise!  We spent the rest of that wonderful afternoon going through Barbie dolls, Cabbage Patch Kids, and more.  I came across so much I had forgotten.  At age 30, it felt amazing to feel 10 years old again, even if only for a few hours.

I discovered that I still love homemade dolls – and dolls period.  I hope one day to adopt a little girl to whom I can pass along my collection.  As a child, I never fully understood why my Mom would love to smell our new baby dolls at Christmas.  As an adult, I understand completely.  There is something about the smell of a new doll that will always remind me of Christmas.

If the owner of the little doll left in a convenience over Christmas doesn’t claim her, I will just have to pass her along to some little girl who will love her.  No little girl should go without a doll to love.  No doll should go without the love of a little girl.

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Literary Gifts 2011

Dec27

I couldn’t resist sharing my literary Christmas gifts with everyone.  Below are the books I received for Christmas and/or my birthday.  I love them all!  I can’t wait to dive right in.  Included are mysteries, great writing books, and even a few memoirs.  I also received a Nook Color, which is wonderful.

By far the most fascinating present I received this year is the diary of my great-great grandmother, Ella A. Brown Washburn Buttrick.  The diary covers the tumultuous years of 1936-1940.  My great-grandma, whom I knew as Great, passed this diary along to my Mom.  Ella Buttrick was Great’s mother-in-law.  My Mom owned this diary for nearly 20 years, but had a hard time reading Ella Buttrick’s handwriting.  So far I’ve discovered that my love of politics, family, and education are deeply ingrained in who I am.  What an amazing gift.  I can’t wait to pass it along to the next generation.  It probably is the most fascinating gift I’ll ever receive.

Lindsey J. Russell 2011

Getting There – Gerry Boylan

Writing Tools – Roy Peter Clark

Sin And Sintax – Constance Hale

Unbroken – Laura Hillenbrand

Steve Jobs – Walter Isaacson

Death Comes To Pemberley – P.D. James

On Writing – Stephen King

The Girl Who Played With Fire – Stieg Larsson

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo – Stieg Larsson

John – Cynthia Lennon

No Higher Honor – Condoleezza Rice

The Purpose Driven Life – Rick Warren

Lindsey J. Russell 2011

Books Of Christmases Past

Dec4

Christmas gift books linger in writers’ memories – USATODAY.com

I loved this feature and had a wonderful time reading writers’ reflections on Christmas gifts of books that made a difference in their lives.  I can relate.  Here are mine.

 

Circa 1987 – Where The Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein

My aunt gave me this book as an early Christmas present during Thanksgiving.  As a six year-old, it is what I remember as my first introduction to poetry.  I still love Shel Silverstein’s books.

Christmas 2006 – My boyfriend Brian bought me a set of the Little House on the Prairie books, along with a three volume set of collected writings by Laura Ingalls Wilder.  Her writing continues to inspire me as no other.  I spent the week after Christmas rereading all of the Little House books, books I last read at age eight.  I then moved on to the three volume set.  Brian is the only one who truly knows how much that gift meant and continues to mean to me.

Christmas 2009 – My sister and her husband gave me a gift of several books, but two books stand out.  Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides and Wicked – The Life And Times Of The Wicked Witch Of The West by Gregory Maguire.  I’ve been hooked on both authors ever since.  I can’t wait to read the last two novels in The Wicked Years series, and I am eager to read both The Virgin Suicides and The Marriage Plot by Eugenides.

Rest in Heavenly Peace Wally Bronner

Apr3
For those unfamiliar with Michigan, Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland in Frankenmuth, Michigan is something of a tourist attraction. This small town is a recreation of Bavaria in Michigan. Not only that, but one of its main attractions, Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland, is known for celebrating Christmas all year long. They have a lot of wonderful Christmas decorations, and their store is a sight to behold. It is beautifully decorated and very large.

Well, Mr. Wally Bronner, the gentleman who founded Bronner’s in the 1940s, passed away today. I heard about it on the radio as I was running errands. He was well-known in the area (Frankenmuth is maybe 20 minutes from my home) as a upstanding businessman and a leader in the Frankenmuth community. What really brought this home was a conversation I had with my Grandpa Buttrick a few months before he passed away regarding Wally Bronner. My Grandpa Buttrick, a well-respected businessman and community supporter too, told me how much he respected Mr. Bronner. Grandpa Buttrick stated that he met Wally Bronner a couple of times, and I can imagine that the two men had quite a bit in common. Anyway, it is a sweet little memory that I have of my Grandpa. I also have several wonderful childhood memories associated with Bronners.

My thoughts and prayers are with the Bronner family today.

Wally Bronner, founder of Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland in Frankenmuth, dies

Lindsey

Sparty Cat

Feb29

Today, as Brian and I were cleaning behind our entertainment center, our cat Sparty decided that he wanted to relax on the shelf normally occupied by Brian’s PS3 gaming system. The first two pictures are of him doing just that. The last picture was taken around Christmas time. Sparty evidently wanted to start typing something.

Sparty is a three year-old male manx cat that we rescued in Houston, Texas. He was roughly six months old when he came into our lives.

Sparty as PS3

Sparty napping

Sparty at laptop