tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-85431162419930197452024-02-19T21:06:37.169-08:00Miss Charlotte Bronte meets Miss Barbara PymThis Blog accompanies my class Miss Bronte Meets Miss Pym. There are graphics and photos, bliographies and lists of books in print. Included is information about related topics and The other Brontes, Shirley Jackson, Laura Ingalls Wilder and Susan Glapsell. Please visit often, and feel free to visit whether you are in my course or not.
In Memory of our Friend Cathy BertaEllen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.comBlogger612125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-82103849514392298902024-02-19T21:05:00.000-08:002024-02-19T21:05:45.297-08:00The International Doll Museum blog: Doll Museum<a href="https://internationaldollmuseum.blogspot.com/2023/09/doll-museum.html?spref=bl">The International Doll Museum blog: Doll Museum</a>Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-73071306419327670742024-01-18T14:48:00.000-08:002024-01-18T14:48:49.210-08:00Memoir; Writing your Life Story: We're just past Christmas, and what have I Done?<a href="https://memoirlifestory.blogspot.com/2024/01/were-just-past-christmas-and-what-have.html?spref=bl">Memoir; Writing your Life Story: We're just past Christmas, and what have I Done?</a>: Memories assault us at Christmas, and the current year never seems to be as good as Christmas Past. I tried to honor those memories; I bak...
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKjIsDp66Lpa1jB31PyJV2WOIQOuRGxHpFGMIeK-RZV2NTJc2s-gZ7EvmVMq5t1flBW719F7Fk7R-vA_JsCUy_7ipsUk0HZANK0hlskjiun_n_oNeNdxcfNaJzXPy79-Sa7Yu9MaTXzH0FK1SfpEgnxXLeKVVihPUDLn2wW-06SwFeoJpM9WWK1tb41mY/s3840/IMG_20231229_203343_690.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" height="320" data-original-height="3840" data-original-width="3072" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKjIsDp66Lpa1jB31PyJV2WOIQOuRGxHpFGMIeK-RZV2NTJc2s-gZ7EvmVMq5t1flBW719F7Fk7R-vA_JsCUy_7ipsUk0HZANK0hlskjiun_n_oNeNdxcfNaJzXPy79-Sa7Yu9MaTXzH0FK1SfpEgnxXLeKVVihPUDLn2wW-06SwFeoJpM9WWK1tb41mY/s320/IMG_20231229_203343_690.jpg"/></a></div>Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-34659444818066548242023-09-03T08:39:00.001-07:002023-09-03T08:39:46.161-07:00American Doll and Toy Museum: A History Of German Toy Making<a href="https://dollmusem.blogspot.com/2023/09/a-history-of-german-toy-making.html?spref=bl">American Doll and Toy Museum: A History Of German Toy Making</a>Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-1337648403903552902023-05-19T14:04:00.001-07:002023-05-19T14:04:16.164-07:00Our Guest Blogger; Dr. David Levy of Jarnac Observatory- a Poem for his late Wife, a most Excellent WomanSkyward
June 2023
Wendee among the stars
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij_1wFUFkLSCEkejz-wrDZUABCPIFZEo4q3mJkAXp8OpMBQQMc73xl_MN9a3Lh9OZ_QMGA9Ov5hgDF03Mokl9EM0R9FoLNJVpaROig3cfrpEqaMRbjvORkTVBasY62J37CGUt8iuF35vqhKcGtaksvrZtRqZCCUoQnZ1l0FIYx53PyW8_spkD5U5eN/s810/Wendee%20silhouette%20Venus%20and%20Jupiter.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" width="320" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="810" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij_1wFUFkLSCEkejz-wrDZUABCPIFZEo4q3mJkAXp8OpMBQQMc73xl_MN9a3Lh9OZ_QMGA9Ov5hgDF03Mokl9EM0R9FoLNJVpaROig3cfrpEqaMRbjvORkTVBasY62J37CGUt8iuF35vqhKcGtaksvrZtRqZCCUoQnZ1l0FIYx53PyW8_spkD5U5eN/s320/Wendee%20silhouette%20Venus%20and%20Jupiter.jpg"/></a></div>
David H. Levy
Never in my life did I appreciate the peace and beauty of the night sky as I do now. It offers solace; it brings peace. And now more than eight months since my wife Wendee’s death, it is an easy reminder of why I love the sky.
Over many years, I have been reading brief poems for multiple online and personal sessions. One of my favourites is the Denver Astronomical Society, which I first joined in May of 1963 while I was a patient at the Jewish National Home for Asthmatic Children in Denver. Recently they even elected me as their poet laureate. Like the night sky, poetry brings peace.
The days go on; I watch the news, the details of war, of debt, of artificial intelligence well beyond my own, of murder, theft, and lies. But as the Sun sinks in the west, the shadow of our planet rises in the east, and with the daily darkening of the sky comes a bigger picture. The Universe does not care about the details; our days and years are nanoseconds in the cosmic timescale. But when we look toward the sky, with our eyes in the hope of catching a shooting star, through binoculars to make out a new pattern of stars, or with a telescope to celebrate a planet’s rings or a far-off galaxy, we can enter that cosmic picture and be part of it for a brief time.
In my professional life, I have tried to connect the night sky to poetry, but those rhymes are rarely my own. I make an exception this month. Besides raising my insight and bringing me peace, I find nothing that so stirs my heart as the joy of the night sky.
Each day I awake; today is the day!
I look toward her, she is not there.
My heart goes on, but do I care?
Will anything—anything—let in some ray.
The night is dark, as dark as coal.
The sky is stars from west to east
From south to north, just like a feast
A pill, heav’n sent to calm my soul.
A telescope stands, it stands and waits
For my eye, it asks, “just one brief look.”
Forward through space, like an open book;
And back through time, open wide the gates.
I see a star; why is it there?
Lapis philosophorum, philosopher’s stone
That strikes the night, it ushers me home
As part of a pattern to learn, I dare.
But reason not. General relativity;
Gravity’s geometry, no speck of thought;
No idea works, no system bought,
A spacetime crash, to save its dignity.
She’s part of me, a beam of light
Among the stars, in the sky a plant
Not there, but there, my soul enchant.
From grief to joy, all through the night.
Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-26389955232227976182022-09-21T21:14:00.001-07:002022-09-21T21:14:18.303-07:00Dr. E's Doll Museum Blog: American Doll and Toy Museum: September is for Co...<a href="https://wwwdollmuseum.blogspot.com/2022/09/american-doll-and-toy-museum-september.html?spref=bl">Dr. E's Doll Museum Blog: American Doll and Toy Museum: September is for Co...</a>: American Doll and Toy Museum: September is for Collectors; Why Collect Dolls? : Today, the first of September, used to be the kick off of...<div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Pym admired writer Denton Welch, who created doll houses.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaSwqwwyKUpTjiXt1Buj8cClC2XI6XT7Ba12ZWV9-lFDiGtILO9oGBWNEZIKsPvsBxnAAxVBSSIXAWAM8JejQruIhPdIgwQB9DsPj87j0eIxlmjo0GSwJ8zd--oXWjo0sB3moPBjXNAhi3ECqcPMFe5c7L4TjEQfwuB1Yh01BPwv7SAQmDc95ypno_/s3072/IMG_20220920_182543_569.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3072" data-original-width="3072" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaSwqwwyKUpTjiXt1Buj8cClC2XI6XT7Ba12ZWV9-lFDiGtILO9oGBWNEZIKsPvsBxnAAxVBSSIXAWAM8JejQruIhPdIgwQB9DsPj87j0eIxlmjo0GSwJ8zd--oXWjo0sB3moPBjXNAhi3ECqcPMFe5c7L4TjEQfwuB1Yh01BPwv7SAQmDc95ypno_/s320/IMG_20220920_182543_569.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div>Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-40711597686771739662022-09-19T21:18:00.002-07:002022-09-19T21:18:43.257-07:00An Apologia for Countess Erzebet Bathory: RIP Your Late Majesty Elizabeth II<a href="https://anapologiaforcountesserzebetbathory.blogspot.com/2022/09/rip-your-late-majesty-elizabeth-ii.html?spref=bl">An Apologia for Countess Erzebet Bathory: RIP Your Late Majesty Elizabeth II</a>: She did the day after her own coronation and the birthday of Elizabeth I. She also died one day after the birthday of my late beloved best...<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQJQUbBmVBLtuHk5NXDNVSyZw1n3eIwcPeAIENT7Dg8MhBA2VdurPnGoGVsAHeAOtSF4bs1JTakcg4L2-3im28TBHi1mfjoUpaXy5-f62AkfQj24-bpwEomGIqkKbWzeU69R94ELX0CBbzX7qbHh-DSacjMynaSRhAH6QPcmjmqEB6AUtNVmzrt7B7/s3072/IMG_20220919_202043_938.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3072" data-original-width="3072" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQJQUbBmVBLtuHk5NXDNVSyZw1n3eIwcPeAIENT7Dg8MhBA2VdurPnGoGVsAHeAOtSF4bs1JTakcg4L2-3im28TBHi1mfjoUpaXy5-f62AkfQj24-bpwEomGIqkKbWzeU69R94ELX0CBbzX7qbHh-DSacjMynaSRhAH6QPcmjmqEB6AUtNVmzrt7B7/s320/IMG_20220919_202043_938.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div>Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-1302501452424078722022-09-07T20:08:00.001-07:002022-09-07T20:08:24.634-07:00An Apologia for Countess Erzebet Bathory: Boleyns a scandalous family and Erzebet in Harold ...<a href="https://anapologiaforcountesserzebetbathory.blogspot.com/2022/08/boleyns-scandalous-family-and-erzebet.html?spref=bl">An Apologia for Countess Erzebet Bathory: Boleyns a scandalous family and Erzebet in Harold ...</a>: The documentary or whatever about. the Boleyns is on PBS tonight, 7pm cst. We'll see how it is. These films are usually more enter...Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-73734405719240943822022-09-07T20:08:00.000-07:002022-09-07T20:08:08.590-07:00An Apologia for Countess Erzebet Bathory: Elizabeth I<a href="https://anapologiaforcountesserzebetbathory.blogspot.com/2022/09/elizabeth-i.html?spref=bl">An Apologia for Countess Erzebet Bathory: Elizabeth I</a>: We wish HRH Elisabeth I a Happy Birthday in Heaven, as I do my dear friend Rosemary, born on the same day as Queen Elizabeth II's coro...Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-44539922099563719662022-09-07T20:07:00.002-07:002022-09-07T20:07:41.304-07:00Flowers and Fall<a href="https://dresgreening.blogspot.com/2022/09/flowers-and-fall.html">Flowers and </a><div><br /></div><div>For Pym and her friends, forever flower arranging, for Kate Greenaway and her language of flowers.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA_QsObop3BoOHeUReXY3yKhfiSvG6OIWUehjuh__ltnRFvGmI_8cGLq0uthPDzDtaKPFKGTb0vO0qJB1YdaEJaEO7y5vGn6pwqQU7l21ojw_4QsK34nv2lgaaN88PTpyH2wSAbjLdeIWZbUD-fwJVrZrDZyT0MMDdK0265Gofa879QAtPP7YKik3l/s3072/IMG_20220905_164305_683.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3072" data-original-width="3072" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA_QsObop3BoOHeUReXY3yKhfiSvG6OIWUehjuh__ltnRFvGmI_8cGLq0uthPDzDtaKPFKGTb0vO0qJB1YdaEJaEO7y5vGn6pwqQU7l21ojw_4QsK34nv2lgaaN88PTpyH2wSAbjLdeIWZbUD-fwJVrZrDZyT0MMDdK0265Gofa879QAtPP7YKik3l/s320/IMG_20220905_164305_683.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZpE4SYOTaEMJrMfKmM11FObn_CODgpRbI4QJ6J-_NFwmv5ZDpMTBQcLIRmKT4HXag8Hxk5dnUKBWmzY5wR3nQfqlOGPNVxN9TtZlXqOqmmUbfUTSvFcrwNhpk_OJSXe7k0j2ZQkI3NgP2ALJTQqLnSLVcN2JKhptgr8ijfGuhh1XScuJvaH5zMprZ/s1199/IMG_20220905_163623_262.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1199" data-original-width="1198" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZpE4SYOTaEMJrMfKmM11FObn_CODgpRbI4QJ6J-_NFwmv5ZDpMTBQcLIRmKT4HXag8Hxk5dnUKBWmzY5wR3nQfqlOGPNVxN9TtZlXqOqmmUbfUTSvFcrwNhpk_OJSXe7k0j2ZQkI3NgP2ALJTQqLnSLVcN2JKhptgr8ijfGuhh1XScuJvaH5zMprZ/s320/IMG_20220905_163623_262.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div>Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-26379258196401051962022-07-24T15:07:00.004-07:002022-07-24T15:07:57.466-07:00Frances Glessner Lee; A Pioneer in a Male Dominated Field<p> I shared a blog post called Our Wildest Dreams about Ms. Lee, who created the Forensic Pathology Department at Harvard. During the forties and fifties, she used her skills as a miniaturist to create doll house rooms representing unsolved murders. The FBI still uses these rooms, and books and films have been done about them. The post was taken down as "inappropriate."</p><p>Boys and girls, I'd like to remind us all that The First Amendment is still in effect. It was an act of sexism and ignorance to remove the post I shared. It told the historic biographical tale of a woman who is still considered an institution in criminology and legal studies, who continues to inspire those of us who work in this field today. </p>Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-76055598928904106312022-07-24T14:32:00.001-07:002022-07-24T14:32:29.785-07:00Spring flings - shopping fun Pym would have loved<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KcFDhC3QAqI/XpzoUBJM0yI/AAAAAAAAjHk/k5Gri3YugDUknOZvGEEzunK-69cpgXiegCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_20200419_165841991.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KcFDhC3QAqI/XpzoUBJM0yI/AAAAAAAAjHk/k5Gri3YugDUknOZvGEEzunK-69cpgXiegCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20200419_165841991.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AcS0Ga9vb1U/XpzoTsunkGI/AAAAAAAAjHg/ugCEQgcyui0xty9e4T0ZIpyt4bWwRAaPgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_20200419_165847721.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AcS0Ga9vb1U/XpzoTsunkGI/AAAAAAAAjHg/ugCEQgcyui0xty9e4T0ZIpyt4bWwRAaPgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20200419_165847721.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S3VSwJ7BsEg/XpzoUY-AzKI/AAAAAAAAjHo/c_KLdOBAnboUq8HJrisxcHGzZEONukT0gCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_20200419_171213359.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S3VSwJ7BsEg/XpzoUY-AzKI/AAAAAAAAjHo/c_KLdOBAnboUq8HJrisxcHGzZEONukT0gCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20200419_171213359.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-90901003980987166312022-06-05T14:21:00.003-07:002022-06-05T14:21:35.123-07:00American Doll and Toy Museum: Our History - American Doll and Toy Museum<a href="https://dollmusem.blogspot.com/2022/06/our-history-american-doll-and-toy-museum.html?spref=bl">American Doll and Toy Museum: Our History - American Doll and Toy Museum</a>: American Doll and Toy Museum was established in 2019. We moved to our permanent location in 2020. We opened to the public in 2021. ...<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTWMwg59TFGguL57vT9BypKVTOw_sv1nXiLBQ5i7D6ejkmzHYPRjIOF0rKMik323RUayQn-pkIN1HAaeVKh3JlRx1nM7SmGzhhmMUU-P5ywXzmcEBZOHzUqIoPaQb0C-5yTGtB8fKKbHvmyH0XOsGao3QrMLer34C7ohX-XYnZHPl-y136rwTEA2QL/s4160/IMG_20220603_163044860.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4160" data-original-width="3120" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTWMwg59TFGguL57vT9BypKVTOw_sv1nXiLBQ5i7D6ejkmzHYPRjIOF0rKMik323RUayQn-pkIN1HAaeVKh3JlRx1nM7SmGzhhmMUU-P5ywXzmcEBZOHzUqIoPaQb0C-5yTGtB8fKKbHvmyH0XOsGao3QrMLer34C7ohX-XYnZHPl-y136rwTEA2QL/s320/IMG_20220603_163044860.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div>Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-60698161590572304312022-03-14T19:55:00.000-07:002022-03-14T19:55:02.168-07:00Skyward for March 2022 by guest blogger David Levy<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: Pica;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><i><span style="font-family: Pica;">Once again, here is our guest blogger, Dr. David Levy. This post is dedicated to the memory of our friend, Terry Dufek, avid astronomer and aficionado of action figures.</span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: Pica;">Skyward
for March 2022<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: Pica;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh8ewu6eZIlCxWcLOXHE_Q4X23jF857X06bgNUhMJ7BqAiusMc6T9MqLXtCBEWC6kSTVbQ9GO_Rm9XSZV3gIEoQDshpqtwiUj_4-ljyP-3e9obWV-qZgM6I1fWGIKHPRwk-N3g0J_ffFWyVqewFN4AiBPZb5MswK1C8CjAbyHKiHSlXtxD7ZWL_t4qL=s4032" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh8ewu6eZIlCxWcLOXHE_Q4X23jF857X06bgNUhMJ7BqAiusMc6T9MqLXtCBEWC6kSTVbQ9GO_Rm9XSZV3gIEoQDshpqtwiUj_4-ljyP-3e9obWV-qZgM6I1fWGIKHPRwk-N3g0J_ffFWyVqewFN4AiBPZb5MswK1C8CjAbyHKiHSlXtxD7ZWL_t4qL=s320" width="240" /></a></div><br /><p></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Picture Caption: Eureka, one of my telescopes, is probably s bit</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">better than the one referred to in Wordsworth's 1806 poem Star Gazers.</span></p></blockquote></blockquote>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: Pica;">Star
Gazers<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><i><span style="font-family: Pica;">What
crowd is this?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What have we here?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We must not pass it by;<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><i><span style="font-family: Pica;">A
telescope upon its frame, and pointed to the sky…<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="ListParagraph" style="line-height: 200%; margin-left: .4in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">n<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"><span style="font-family: Pica;">William
Wordsworth, 1806<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: Pica;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: Pica;">While
I was working on my master’s degree at Queen’s University in Canada some 42
years ago, I came across this poem, loved it, and decided to include it in my
thesis.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Norman MacKenzie, my thesis
advisor, a scholar and a genius, pencilled one comment at the bottom of this
poem:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Wordsworth wrote some wretched
verse.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Norman did not have much of a
sense of humour, but I am still laughing at his written comment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: Pica;">In
his poem, Wordsworth complains about how many people who look through a
telescope are disappointed in what they see.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>At no point in time is that idea more cogent than now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If a telescope we look through cannot offer
us a view as good as a space telescope, then that telescope is a failure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: Pica;">By the end of the poem, the crowd abandons the
telescope:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: Pica;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: Pica;">“<i>One
after one they take their turns, nor have I one espied<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><i><span style="font-family: Pica;">That
doth not slackly go away, as if dissatisfied.</span></i><span style="font-family: Pica;">”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: Pica;">For
me, the night sky is far more than our imagined perceptions of what we can see
through a telescope.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of us can look
at an internet photograph all day long, but not I.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The beauty of the sky lies in its reality.
The planets I see are real worlds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
constellations I point out to young observers contain real stars.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One evening I asked a group if they had seen
the recent eclipse of the Moon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Yes,”
answered one, “I saw it online.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No, he
didn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Eclipses are real only if you
see them in the sky, while they are happening. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: Pica;">It
is a given that a back yard telescope will never show us Jupiter as detailed or
as colorful as a telescope out in space will.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What that telescope does show us is the genuine sky, a sky without
artificial color enhancement, a sky as it really exists on top of our heads on
every clear night.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It shows us a sky
untarnished by the trivial events of the day, and unspoiled by petty concerns
that are bothering us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our own telescope
truly shows us the Moon as it was a third of a second<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>ago,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>a
star as it appeared thirty-four years ago, or a galaxy as it appeared<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>twelve million years in the past.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our back yard telescope shows us what is
there, and unlike the crowd from 1806 that left dissatisfied, the people of
today can understand that the sky they see is real.<o:p></o:p></span></p>Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-74918151544622130112022-01-04T10:39:00.000-08:002022-01-04T10:39:01.216-08:00Local doll museum previews open house<a href="https://www.ourquadcities.com/living-local/local-doll-museum-previews-open-house/">Local doll museum previews open house</a>: Did you have a favorite doll as a kid? Executive Director Ellen Tsagaris joined us today to talk about how the American Doll and Toy Museum celebrates all kinds of toys. For more information visit …Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-47239720032669801902021-10-16T10:19:00.002-07:002021-10-16T10:19:24.802-07:00Dr. E's Doll Museum Blog: eBay is Destroying the doll collectors market! Sa...<a href="https://wwwdollmuseum.blogspot.com/2021/10/ebay-is-destroying-doll-collectors.html?spref=bl">Dr. E's Doll Museum Blog: eBay is Destroying the doll collectors market! Sa...</a>: Here is the link to Rachel Hoffman's YouTube channel where she speaks out about eBay's latest move which is hurting doll collecting...<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ldI19mbtKAo/YWsJkeegflI/AAAAAAAAu6I/TqDPXGDnMmooSg2xhcJr6avlxcsWZiz2QCPcBGAsYHg/s1080/IMG_20211015_181517_277.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ldI19mbtKAo/YWsJkeegflI/AAAAAAAAu6I/TqDPXGDnMmooSg2xhcJr6avlxcsWZiz2QCPcBGAsYHg/s320/IMG_20211015_181517_277.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div>Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-83902800688949442942021-09-29T11:47:00.002-07:002021-09-29T11:47:46.789-07:00American Doll and Toy Museum: American Doll and Toy Museum is Open!!<a href="https://dresgreening.blogspot.com/2021/09/american-doll-and-toy-museum-american.html">American Doll and Toy Museum: American Doll and Toy Museum is Open!!</a><div><br /></div><div>Pym was not a stranger to toys and recreation. A father Christmas figure, soap animals, "bits and pieces" antiques, Cycladic idols stuffed animals, and more appear in her novels. Our museum is open, and some of her books are there, too. We even have a Pym doll and a Virginia Woolf nutcracker. Don't forget her fellow writer Denton Welch loved doll houses!</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_b4xcJM4BrA/YVS0sBgtq7I/AAAAAAAAuYQ/JU_4IBTRM8wmRby_KUTwPvhg8wD6GnWFACPcBGAsYHg/s4160/IMG_20210922_121222183.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3120" data-original-width="4160" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_b4xcJM4BrA/YVS0sBgtq7I/AAAAAAAAuYQ/JU_4IBTRM8wmRby_KUTwPvhg8wD6GnWFACPcBGAsYHg/s320/IMG_20210922_121222183.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9eUchyBn24Y/YVS0sNyG6LI/AAAAAAAAuYQ/m1yfktJaKcIeiU9OhswFkXpFrlY0CYDhgCPcBGAsYHg/s4160/IMG_20210922_121214537.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3120" data-original-width="4160" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9eUchyBn24Y/YVS0sNyG6LI/AAAAAAAAuYQ/m1yfktJaKcIeiU9OhswFkXpFrlY0CYDhgCPcBGAsYHg/s320/IMG_20210922_121214537.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd1-PxUNeJkzpsOktoDoWYxxzJbtUt0_4aYnt3jWiYU-pvLuM3ztKs_oBr_xwKSkLFCaRFw00O2XOIfAYtgQqL2WSbkB3Wp1ycOXCNbcFrJwgLK90bNGW2KJeg24zkZdI_MZ8zxDeYhYZ0/s4160/IMG_20210922_100255175_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4160" data-original-width="3120" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd1-PxUNeJkzpsOktoDoWYxxzJbtUt0_4aYnt3jWiYU-pvLuM3ztKs_oBr_xwKSkLFCaRFw00O2XOIfAYtgQqL2WSbkB3Wp1ycOXCNbcFrJwgLK90bNGW2KJeg24zkZdI_MZ8zxDeYhYZ0/s320/IMG_20210922_100255175_HDR.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEkd92yThbZJUs6ukXnaoLehL2TKTBy4I9RuXn2WVuWlecvlWOg3RWUDY7CUzEeLw7mFLAqtJKfkaI_k2snINSnFqq51mqVNlnfMpnW_8DSR3Ia4ED0uIDJgAfSfh026asn-4U2KW-3O-x/s4160/IMG_20210922_100425570.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4160" data-original-width="3120" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEkd92yThbZJUs6ukXnaoLehL2TKTBy4I9RuXn2WVuWlecvlWOg3RWUDY7CUzEeLw7mFLAqtJKfkaI_k2snINSnFqq51mqVNlnfMpnW_8DSR3Ia4ED0uIDJgAfSfh026asn-4U2KW-3O-x/s320/IMG_20210922_100425570.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div>Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-26435694288234388262021-05-09T09:23:00.001-07:002021-05-09T09:23:26.946-07:00Pymian Material Culture<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal">Material Culture</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wW0U3EDn3_k/YJgMShQeiaI/AAAAAAAArZo/g9bxi7xOWC881jwhSbTnLE6rMYVsTo1IQCPcBGAsYHg/s4160/IMG_20210505_090839124.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3120" data-original-width="4160" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wW0U3EDn3_k/YJgMShQeiaI/AAAAAAAArZo/g9bxi7xOWC881jwhSbTnLE6rMYVsTo1IQCPcBGAsYHg/s320/IMG_20210505_090839124.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9P8yQqaJagU/YJgMSiLhRkI/AAAAAAAArZo/IMiLjig9Mbwh1D_U0wKDko4-ExN-P0kRACPcBGAsYHg/s1080/IMG_20210509_103310_348.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9P8yQqaJagU/YJgMSiLhRkI/AAAAAAAArZo/IMiLjig9Mbwh1D_U0wKDko4-ExN-P0kRACPcBGAsYHg/s320/IMG_20210509_103310_348.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Happy Mother’s Day, a day I can no longer celebrate since I
lost my mom and my aunt, but all the same.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I was pondering human individuality, and what our things and
what we do with them say about us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One
famous art teacher and collector likes to pick up discarded grocery lists. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The contents of shopping lists, and the tasks
we write on our daily planners says a lot about us. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Like snowflakes, no two are alike. We all
write mini autobiographies when we pen a list, especially for the super market.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How we do it is also telling.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I used to write mine in my daily planner; now
I text it to myself. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No time to write it
down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve also used neat little pads
like my aunt, or scraps of paper. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My mom
write lists for dad, or cruised the aisles working from memory.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">It’s telling what things we put over and over; coffee,
oatmeal, cat food, Clamato juice, coke.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3bfrfWeplXA/YJgMbH_Ok8I/AAAAAAAArZs/y3uYaRKlIvI9R5pZ-ZI4jOwqvrrS3FKxQCPcBGAsYHg/s1080/IMG_20210504_123933_397.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3bfrfWeplXA/YJgMbH_Ok8I/AAAAAAAArZs/y3uYaRKlIvI9R5pZ-ZI4jOwqvrrS3FKxQCPcBGAsYHg/s320/IMG_20210504_123933_397.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDPKrOWQ2N6VmCDFWMana0wolvSSh7yvGXpjmiVaIsdlK1x9oU5tQKedBIl9krARcScbiWWwLLwk72jbReavsaZMQNIA7usQ5ltU454Zm94TPrLb1t480LNsXPrCKBCGSSOy8nqTsuvCHV/s1080/IMG_20210504_093637_488.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDPKrOWQ2N6VmCDFWMana0wolvSSh7yvGXpjmiVaIsdlK1x9oU5tQKedBIl9krARcScbiWWwLLwk72jbReavsaZMQNIA7usQ5ltU454Zm94TPrLb1t480LNsXPrCKBCGSSOy8nqTsuvCHV/s320/IMG_20210504_093637_488.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The books on our shelves, or lack thereof, also say a lot
about us. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some artists do portraits of
people by painting the books on their book shelves. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If we collect, or not, also says a lot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What we collect says even more. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No two collections are every alike.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">People who save nothing make a statement, too, as do those
who painstakingly arrange their shoes and wardrobe.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Stuff matters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
defines us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It lives after us to
describe who we are. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Think King Tut, the
Emperor’s Tomb, the Snettingham Horde.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">People in Barbara Pym books all have their bits and
pieces.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Marcia her bags, milk bottles,
and string. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All have their books.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Leonora Eyre has her perfect antiques. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Older women their flea market finds, or bits
and pieces. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Clergyman have soap animals
and Faberge eggs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><st1:city w:st="on">Norman</st1:city>
his stuffed animals at the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Brit</st1:placename>
<st1:placetype w:st="on">Museum</st1:placetype></st1:place>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Some characters mentally collect license plates. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They would love Pinterest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jewelry is important to some, others have
hobbies like caring for cats and hedge hogs. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jumble sales and Bring and Buys are routine.
All have their books and magazines.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Even in simple things, what we chose to keep and discard
from the material world defines us.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Thoughts to ponder.</p>Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-8055203883353932892021-02-16T08:19:00.000-08:002021-02-16T08:19:10.878-08:00American Doll and Toy Museum: Thinking outside the Doll House, A Memoir, is now ...<a href="https://dollmusem.blogspot.com/2021/02/thinking-outside-doll-house-memoir-is.html?spref=bl">American Doll and Toy Museum: Thinking outside the Doll House, A Memoir, is now ...</a>: Here is the link: Thinking outside the Doll House: https://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Outside-Doll-House-Memoir-ebook/dp/B08W9QFPB9/ref=sr_1_1...<div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Here it is after 17 years of research and constant editing and rewriting; Thank you Dr. Roald Tweet. This is the story of us, our museum, me, my friends and family, and of course, the dolls.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nX7yzN-Fyak/YCvwah903zI/AAAAAAAAqbs/LIG-HQ5HtI8n2tWz1LVnWUhBn1XrdovGwCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/thinking%2Boutside%2Bthe%2Bdoll%2Bhouse%2Ba%2Bmemoir%2Bbook.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="331" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nX7yzN-Fyak/YCvwah903zI/AAAAAAAAqbs/LIG-HQ5HtI8n2tWz1LVnWUhBn1XrdovGwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/thinking%2Boutside%2Bthe%2Bdoll%2Bhouse%2Ba%2Bmemoir%2Bbook.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div>Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-23559311390419067562020-12-13T09:21:00.001-08:002020-12-13T09:21:33.056-08:00What I learned from Dr. Tweet<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal">What I learned from Dr. Tweet</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Around this time of year, late fall or early winter, during
the late 70s, we were studying Moby Dick in Dr. Tweet’s American Renaissance
class. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The theme of “heart’s honeymoon”
was prevalent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here were all these
sailors, from all over the world, some barely “civilized” according to 19<sup>th</sup>
century American mores, all depending on each other certainly for survival, but
also for companionship and fellowship. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some
couldn’t speak English, but that didn’t matter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They were still tied together in a common endeavor, “brothers in Christ”,
if you will.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I saw the same theme in Heart of Darkness, by Joseph Conrad,
my favorite writer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The thrill of it
all, that despite our differences, we are human, and we need each other for
love and for survival.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">That’s a powerful message to remember at the end of this
terrible year, where I fear we still are not out of the woods. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This past week, I learned of the deaths of two
more friends, not Covid 19 related, but devastating all the same. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the last six weeks, that’s, five people for
me in the last six weeks alone. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t
know how many altogether this year, but my Aunt Connie’s death stands out above
all. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Swift, terrible, sudden.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the last 2.5 years, I’ve had three
funerals for family, several deaths on the same day, lost three of my closest
friends, people I depended on. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I lost my
mother, too, and that seemed to start all of it.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">While it’s true many of my friends were older, it is also
true that I know people of extreme old age who are hale and healthy and who,
yes, work.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">It’s almost over, and many of us are still alive. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My cousin, disabled, but still young, endures
in a nursing home, with her devoted brother visiting on the other side of plexi
glass every two days. Parents of other good friends and family languish in
their assisted and even independent living establishments, trapped indefinitely
till this nightmare is over.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">It bothers me we forget who we are as Americans; that no
one, on either side of the aisle, reads The Constitution. It bothers me that
something as trivial as politics can cause an intellectual and philosophical
civil war. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Forgive me for rambling, but for 13 years, I’ve watched my
family suffer and die, often because of mistakes of incompetent hospitals and
so called health care professionals. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes,
I’ve spoken up, reported, watched, done my due diligence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It didn’t help.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My comfort is what goes around comes around;
what happened to my family will happen to them, or even better/worse, to
someone they love. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wish I could be
there to laugh in their faces when that happens.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Despite the fact that my Mediterranean personality demands
the vendetta, I try to live in memory to take comfort, especially during the
holidays. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I honor my family with
cemetery flowers, but I try paying it forward to people with small gifts and
contributions, by remembering our charities and church, by saying prayers, like
“Thank you, Lord, for this day”, each morning.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I try to move forward, and have forgiven much of the past. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I try to be kind to someone, even a stranger,
to remember how fleeting life is, to try to enjoy what I can. Yet, I know that
now, when I set our holiday table, I also prepare a place for the Angel of
Death, who walks with me everywhere.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">This holiday season, may your loved ones’ memories be
eternal. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Take comfort in Him who died
for our sins, and whom we celebrate this time of year. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As you take your ornaments out, treasure your
memories, and remember that no one who is remembered really dies.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-59922954909480551312020-11-18T06:12:00.001-08:002020-11-18T06:12:16.532-08:00In the Autumn of our Years; Women of a Certain Age<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal">Women of a Certain Age; Autumn</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>“You’re ageless, timeless, lace and fineness/ you’re
beauty and elegance.”<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="mso-tab-count: 3;"> </span>Rod
Stewart, “You’re in my Heart”<o:p></o:p></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><br /></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cg9hKyDOlFw/X7UrpmO460I/AAAAAAAAn4g/VOZJOMdOQ0ImGvjV5D3fbGkAdPq18YSawCLcBGAsYHQ/s615/autumn%2Bstill%2Blife.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="410" data-original-width="615" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cg9hKyDOlFw/X7UrpmO460I/AAAAAAAAn4g/VOZJOMdOQ0ImGvjV5D3fbGkAdPq18YSawCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/autumn%2Bstill%2Blife.jpg" width="320" /></a></i></div><i><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br /></i></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal">I’ve always loved fall best out of all the seasons, but it
isn’t lost on me that it’s full of contradictions. One day it’s boiling hot, the next, frost
covers everything. Sometimes there are
roses and violets everywhere, yet pumpkins are sparse and few.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As beautiful as the leaves are, it’s hard to remember that
they are dying, that Persephone left for Hades in autumn, and that winter was
close behind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">So, too women in their autumn years are full of
contradictions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We didn’t create them,
we just have them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are old enough to
be grandparents, yet young enough to raise our grandchildren if we have
to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">We can no longer have our own children, but our husbands can
procreate seemingly forever.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As women, we still need our mothers and fathers, yet we end
up in a parental role for them, or worse, we lose them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At a certain age, a woman first experiences
true loneliness; she watches her family die around her, even some of her
friends, till no one is left.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">We remember real rock and its legends, but many of them, if
alive, are even older than we are, and they walk with canes if at all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes their voices are strong, and when
we hear them sing, we can close are eyes and be fourteen again.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The same things hurt us, but we aren’t supposed to let them
bother us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Often the same things please
us, or we wouldn’t be married to the same person for so long.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We think as we always think, some of us get
sharper, not duller.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We still work, and
we still have the time to learn.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yet, no
matter how good we look, the world makes certain assumptions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People speak to us more slowly and more
loudly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bank clerks and nurses feel the
need to “guide” us and remind us of bleak financial futures, Medicare, and
brittle bones.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">We wonder if more time is gone then left; some of us used to
escape on long trips and cruises, often on group tours.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is safety in numbers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of us find solace in our pets, in our
cats and dogs especially.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We indulge in
our hobbies, we join clubs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">We’d like to work, but employers do the math; experience
plus maturity equals to them old age, a definite no-no in a corporate world
made of mutton, but dressed as lamb.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">No one dresses as her grandmother did; it’s hard to tell how
old we are.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our hands betray us
sometimes; crippled with arthritis, fingers twisted, no longer pointing
straight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here and there, age spots
erupt, but concealer covers them up. If we wear nice gloves or have elaborate
manicures, we can explain away our old hands.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Barbara Pym celebrated us, and made our lives worthwhile to study, yet she's almost out of print, again.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">So, here we are, deemed too young for some things, yet still
to old to die.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What’s a girl to do?</p>Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-60137607633409494372020-11-15T09:44:00.002-08:002020-11-15T09:44:46.778-08:00Pym, Paternity, and Plastic Bags<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal">This cold, blustery November day is the third anniversary of my Dad’s death. I remember everything about him, including how neat and precise he was in organizing his things. His desk was perfection, and we called it Miss Pym’s desk, since he was the one who edited my book and dissertation about Pym, <i>The Subversion of Romance in the Novels of Barbara Pym.<o:p></o:p></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i> </i></p><p class="MsoNormal">He folded papers and plastic bags neatly, and even sorted and arranged our garbage. He was way ahead of the recycling movement. He could have been Marcia’s sibling from Pym’s <i>Quartet in Autumn. </i> As Susan Pearce noted in <i>The Collector’s Voice, Modern Voices, </i> Marcia was a discerning and organized collector. She sorted milk bottles, leaving behind those that did not “fit”, and carefully folded and recycled her plastic bags. I have a friend who does this, too, particularly with the plastic bags that encase rolls of paper towels. Both Marcia and my friend creased them perfectly, and kept them in special places. I have tried to be that neat, and tried to crease carefully the bags I repurpose and recycle, but I just can’t do it.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Here’s to Dad, and to Pym and Marcia. We could take a lesson from them about recycling, organization, and life.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-CLezzAECp44/X7FobC6RQyI/AAAAAAAAn04/w9BaEKKdI0oczlOWa4rmzYZVdZ0cMMuaACLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="276" data-original-width="615" height="144" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-CLezzAECp44/X7FobC6RQyI/AAAAAAAAn04/w9BaEKKdI0oczlOWa4rmzYZVdZ0cMMuaACLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p>Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-6916562302921505402020-09-20T08:34:00.001-07:002020-09-20T08:34:28.273-07:00American Doll and Toy Museum: Musings on Museum Movings<a href="https://dollmusem.blogspot.com/2020/09/musings-on-museum-movings.html?spref=bl">American Doll and Toy Museum: Musings on Museum Movings</a>: Musings on Museum Movings Yesterday finished cleaning and emptying the old museum. I will miss that space, cozy and in the hub of ...Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-5695255872372313072020-06-20T08:10:00.001-07:002020-06-20T08:10:50.938-07:00American Doll and Toy Museum: The Dolls are Moving soon to their Forever Home!<a href="https://dollmusem.blogspot.com/2020/06/the-dolls-are-moving-soon-to-their.html?spref=bl">American Doll and Toy Museum: The Dolls are Moving soon to their Forever Home!</a>: The Dolls are Moving soon to their Forever Home! It’s happening; the citizens of American Doll & Toy Museum are moving to thei...Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-36740538741746931002020-06-15T20:32:00.001-07:002020-06-15T20:32:52.592-07:00An Apologia for Countess Erzebet Bathory: Erzebet in Film and Pop Culture<a href="https://anapologiaforcountesserzebetbathory.blogspot.com/2020/06/erzebet-in-film-and-pop-culture.html?spref=bl">An Apologia for Countess Erzebet Bathory: Erzebet in Film and Pop Culture</a>: My book This post was inspired by a 1963 Italian Gothic movie called The Blancheville Horror . It's pretty much stock Gothic roma...Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8543116241993019745.post-38874632624099862122020-06-13T19:37:00.001-07:002020-06-13T19:37:00.106-07:00Dr. E's Doll Museum Blog: World Doll Day!<a href="https://wwwdollmuseum.blogspot.com/2020/06/world-doll-day.html?spref=bl">Dr. E's Doll Museum Blog: World Doll Day!</a>: Once again we celebrate this notable day in doll collecting. How did you spend your day? I checked on American Doll & Toy Museum; we a...Ellen M. Tsagarishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17371709590550209896noreply@blogger.com0