King of the Mountain

Reader Poll: Afghanistan

It will be interesting to see how many people actually respond to this since my daily readers have hovered around 40 for the last two months... maybe the Susan Boyle fans are still here? (They did good things for the stats!) :)

Anyway... The Poll: If one wanted to know what's going on in Afghanistan - you know, the whole "Operating Enduring Freedom" thing - would you choose:

- "Politics" or "US & World" on MSNBC?
OR
- "World" or "Politics" on CNN?

Um, thanks, news folks for the easy access to either of the two wars we're fighting. It certainly doesn't feel like "politics" that we have thousands of troops in other countries fighting battles daily (but maybe it is), and yet "world" is an awfully generic category as well. I mean, should an update on Afghanistan really be next to "Dubai renames tallest building..." or "Seoul battles heaviest snow in 70 years"?

As per usual, most good, God-fearing Americans have forgotten about current events which don't affect them directly, and it seems that most people are so disinterested in Afghanistan and Iraq at this point that there's no need to make it easily accessible on news sites. Crazy stuff, friends... crazy stuff. And that's all I have on that subject.

Inspiration: Susan Boyle

I'm being lazy today, and I'm sitting at home crocheting and watching movies. The perfect day - I love it. While browsing the free movies (there are so many) I caught a sneak peak of The Susan Boyle Story, and instantly looked it up to watch. Seriously... has there ever been a story that touched you like this one? I'm curious if non-singers react the way those of us who love to sing react when they see or hear of Susan. It's part jealousy, I suppose, but mostly I feel pure bliss and pride. She's exceptional. Her talent is extraordinary. She's impossible not to love, and she deserves all the fame she has (and will) receive.

Nothing brings me as much joy as watching or hearing her sing these days. It's just beautiful. Go and watch it if you have an hour or so to spare. It's worth it.

On Comcast go to:
On Demand
TV Entertainment
TV Guide Network
The Susan Boyle Story Parts 1-4

2010

I've contemplated 100 different ways to return to blogging, and who'd have thunk that watching 'Julie & Julia' would be the inspiration I needed to sit down today and type. 2009 was so difficult in so many ways, with more disappointments, regrets and losses than I think I've ever had in any one year. Not that it was a horrible year - I still had a great time with work, friends and family - but 2009 was colored by more sadness than I'd ever care to repeat in a twelve month period.

But enough of that.

My apartment is a mess. A total mess. Papercraft supplies have been moved into storage to make room for crocheting supplies and blankets - a few made by relatives long gone. An accordion sits in my living room, a skateboard is stored under the shelving unit in my kitchen, and oh! My kitchen. My kitchen is full of dishes from my Grandparents' house - a Fiesta serving dish, PYREX nesting bowls, and a (nearly) full set of pink and blue Fortecrisa glass dishes and bowls. All of my IKEA stuff is headed off to Goodwill soon - there's simply no room for it next to my Grandmother's cookware.

In my bedroom, a blanket rack now sits in the corner with one of my own handmade blankets, my Grandmother's flower blanket (compliments of my Aunt Mary) and my Aunt Dorothy's crocheted shawl hanging on it. Somewhere underneath those treasures is a blanket made by one of my Great Grandmothers - either Costa or Sinisi. My underwear drawer (!) now is the home for several handkerchiefs with "E" embroidered in them (for Emma Sinisi), a rosary hangs on my lamp (even though I'm not Catholic), and my Grandma Parks' blanket is on my bed so that I can sleep under it every night.

To many, this may seem like sadness, and I won't lie - it is to some extent. How can it not be? But it's also a celebration. Charissa is her own woman with her own likes and dislikes, but she's also a result of the women who have come before her, and how lucky I am to have these things to hold on to. They defined these women in many ways, and those women define parts of me.

So a lot has changed over 2009, and I don't have particularly high hopes that 2010 won't be without it's difficulty - for Heaven's sake, I already have a two foot crack across my windshield (thank you, cold weather) - but through it all I continue to grow and change and evolve. Not too far from the Charissa you know, mind you... but these things, these women, my history... it provides 'seasoning' on a life already in progress. I only hope to live up to the hard work and loving hearts of those that came before me... wish me luck. And please come back soon...

Happy Halloween!

For Rose and Val Costa

1925 - 2009

What I will miss most

It was in her laugh
It was in his smile
The way she twinkled when I talked to her
The whispers in my ear
The hopes she had for me
The secrets we shared
The way he beamed as he watched
The little jokes he told
That expression of wonder on his face
The tilt of his head
Her happy delight in my stories
His magic fingers as he played a serenade
The way she watched him
The way he looked at her
The joy in the little things

These things I will always long for
These things I was blessed to share

Pamela Parks Costa
Oct. 2009

In Loving Memory of my Grandparents

The Luckiest - Ben Folds

(music only)


I don't get many things right the first time
In fact, I am told that a lot
Now I know all the wrong turns, the stumbles and falls
Brought me here

And where was I before the day
That I first saw your lovely face?
Now I see it everyday
And I know

That I am
I am
I am
The luckiest

What if I'd been born fifty years before you
In a house on a street where you lived?
Maybe I'd be outside as you passed on your bike
Would I know?

And in a white sea of eyes
I see one pair that I recognize
And I know

That I am
I am
I am
The luckiest

I love you more than I have ever found a way to say to you

Next door there's an old man who lived to his nineties
And one day passed away in his sleep
And his wife; she stayed for a couple of days
And passed away

I'm sorry, I know that's a strange way to tell you that I know we belong
That I know

That I am
I am
I am
The luckiest