women's history: take 4

 

"Aren't those Girl Scout cookies?"

 

They are! Starting at the top and going clockwise, that's the Samoa, the Toffee-tastic, the Exploremore, the Adventureful, and the Lemon-Up. As I told my brother, Smitty, I had left these cookies so I could do a comparison for science. He thought that was odd, but he knows I am an analytical chemist and like to do that sort of thing from time to time. (smile!)

 

"Yes, I know he knows! So, what's the experimental results?"

 

The Samoa is still my hands-down favorite! Remember that I bought two boxes of those? That's the last one. Crisp cookie base, dipped in dark chocolate and coated in toasted coconut on top with dark chocolate stripes... totally delectable!!! I like to start off on the side, getting some of the coconut and chocolate together. Then, I bite off sections of dark chocolate from the bottom, baring the cookie. Next, I eat parts of the exposed cookie. Then I repeat the process until it's all gone! Those boxes had 15 cookies per box, with two being a serving. I'm saving that last cookie for a special occasion.

 

"Girl, you are so weird."

 

Hey, I like to enjoy my food, okay? There's nothing wrong with that!

 

"Sure, you're right,beg your pardon. Now, how about the others? I recall that you were excited about the other two dark cookies when you ordered them. How did that turn out?"

 

Well, the Adventureful - that's the one at 7 o'clock - was pretty tasty, and was fun to eat, too. I could bite off a couple of sections of the brownie-type cookie on the side, freeing up the caramel flavored top with its chocolate striping. Here's the thing, though: the cookie part was too soft for my liking. I doubt I will buy those again. However, the 15 cookies are all gone, so that's saying something.

 

"How about the Exploremore?"

 

That's the one I liked the least. The box came with two sleeves of 9 cookies... and I still have one sleeve not opened. I like that it was a sandwich cookie, and had two crisp chocolate cookies. But something was off about the chocolate and it tasted... I don't know... 'plain' is the only word that fits. As for the marshmallow creme filling, with its toasted almond flavoring, I didn't like that at all. I realize it's been years since I had Rocky Road ice cream, but I don't remember it tasting like that. It just came off as artificial.

 

"Wow. I was expecting something more like a s'more, but I guess not."

 

Most def not. As for the two non-chocolate cookies, I liked the Lemon-Up better. Very crisp cookie, with a very lemony bottom, as if it had been dipped in a lemon glaze. It was also a very big cookie compared to the others! I still have an unopened package of those waiting for me. And the last ones, the Toffee-tastic, I still have most of a box of those. That cookie reminds me a lot of a Pecan Sandy, but with bits of toffee candy instead of nuts. Same dry, powdery surface, so it makes lots of crumbs. Tasty, for sure, but also messy.

 

"I see. What I don't understand is why you included this post in those about Women's History Month."

 

Hey, I could have included them in Georgia History Month, too. The Girl Scouts were started right here in Savannah, Georgia, in 1912, by Juliette Gordon Low. Of the 18 girls in that very first troupe, two were sisters of my step-dad, Frank. As I recall, their names were Agnes Barry and Mary Barry. They were both older than he was, as he wasn't even born until 1922.

 

"Yes, I remember all that now! That makes those two girls part of history, for sure! Wouldn't it be nice to find a listing of those 18 first Girl Scouts?"

 

I do know the name of one other: Margaret "Daisy" Gordon, the niece of Juliet Gordon Low. She was registered as the first Girl Guide, as the Girl Scouts were once called. But that's all I've got. Maybe I'll check at the library the next time I go, see what they might have on the subject.

 

"Well, if you do, please let me know! Thanks!"

women's history: take 3

In honor of International Women's Day, during this Women's History Month in the United States, Kiva was promoting loans to women, with a perk of $20 credit to loan to another.

Of course I jumped at that opportunity!

My first microloan of $25 went to Manuela Christina Olivia last night.

Moments ago, I followed that with a microloan of $25 to Ruth Nohemi.

Both are young women in their mid-20's in Guatemala.

Both do sewing and embroidery and have a loyal clientele.

Both are now hard at work preparing special works of Easter finery.

 

Both are making better lives for their families.

These loans would not be available to them without help from Kiva, and the support of its lending community, to a small finance company.

Both are enriching their communities.

By successfully gaining funding via Kiva, more people in their communities will be able to gain monies for their goals.

Their repayments will enable the small finance company to help others make the community a better place for all.

Both will have renewed self-confidence in their futures.

Both will be able to pass along that sense of self-worth to their children as well as to others in their lives.

By helping these two people, I have helped so many more.

I feel a sense of self-worth akin to that I had when I donated blood.

I am so grateful for that.

I could have spent that money on events this past weekend -

SCAD had "9 To 5: The Musical" at the Lucas Theatre -

BC and St. Vincent's had "School House Rock" at the Trustees -

Hindsight Film Festival had a variety of documentaries  at SCAC -

"The Sound Of Music" was at the Historic Savannah Theatre -

or I could have seen Savannah Rep's play again -

any of which would have run about the same cost as one of those loans.

I'm proud of myself for the choice to help young entrepreneurs, rather than to entertain myself.

I'll have plenty of other opportunities for play time.

(smile!) 

women's history: take 2

The program by Spectra Choir had been specially curated for their International Women's Day Concert to highlight the creativity of females.

We were told all fifteen songs and six poems had been written by women.

However, as it turned out, some of the songs were co-written by women with men, not solely as a female effort.

That's okay, though, as all were performed today by women.

I would have preferred that the charity which benefited had been focused on women, but that was not the case.

That's okay, too, as I was there for the free annual concert!

Held at Asbury Memorial Church, I was sure to enjoy it... and I did!

 

I managed to find the perfect seat by the left wall, with a clear line of sight for the "Flute Sonata Opus 64", performed by Erika Andres, a classical piece written in 1904 by Mel Bonis, one of the first female symphonists.

She was 46 years old.

Although she was educated at the Paris Conservatoire and did well, she married an older man who put her to work caring for his children from another, as well as for the three children he had with her.

I'm sure that was a common story back then in women's history.  

Here in the United States, we had Margaret Bonds, the first black female composer, who would go on to become the first woman - of an race - to win three awards from ASCAP - wow!

Today, Julia Tucker played "Troubled Water", written by Bonds in 1967 when she was 57 years old, based on the gospel tune "Wade In The Water".

 

Don't get the impression that only older works were performed, though.

Here's the popular local singer, Laiken Love, pouring her energy into "Flowers", a song cowritten by Miley Cyrus and released in 2023.

"I can buy myself flowers, I can write my name in the sand... I can take myself dancing, I can hold my own hand..." - all about self-sustainability!  

That could practically be my theme song!

Of course I sang along with her.

(smile!)

I sang along with Beverly Jaques, too, as she sang "Up On The Roof", a song cowritten by Carole King in 1962.

Beverly said she was a teenager then and the songs from the twenty-something New York woman meant a lot to her.

They meant a lot to me, too, a decade later when I was a teen... and the songs still resonate with me, as I've mentioned in the past.

The highlight of the concert was this: there were two original pieces that made their world premiere today!!!

Here in Savannah!!!

The woman standing is Chelsea Olsen, the writer of "Love Is The Only Way".

The women had all squatted down so she could stand out as she introduced the piece she had composed using her harmonium...

then they all stood up as they performed alongside her!

Very catchy folk-type song!

The other world premiere was performed solo, by the writer, Cadence Mefford.

Titled "Glass Vase", it spoke to society's penchant for holding women to high beauty standards that are emotionally destructive.

I liked that one, too.

I liked all the songs, truly, at this two-hour concert, though I admit that I preferred the ones I knew, so I could sing along.

Those included Dolly Parton's "Wildflowers", KT Tunstall's "Suddenly I See", and Nancy Grundahl's "Oh, Be Swift".

However, I enjoyed the new songs, including Florence and the Machine's "King", the Highwomen's "Crowded Table", and Sia's "Alive".

That last one was performed fiercely by Amanda Ortiz!

I do hope she will become active in local musicals! 

(smile!) 

a tale of two elliots

To tell the truth, I'd been a little concerned about this reboot of a show that I'd enjoyed twenty years ago.

Yes, I'm talking about "[scrubs]", still written in lower-case and with the brackets it wore for nine years.

The three major characters - 'J.D.' (Zach Braff), 'Turk' (Donald Faison), 'Elliot' (Sarah Chalke) - had all been 26, 27, and 25, respectively, in 2001, when the series began.

Those were all reasonable ages for medical interns, and as they aged, they moved into new jobs, as they should.

Now, it's 2026, so they're all at least 50 years old.

What the heck's going on???

Fortunately, the series has jumped ahead the quarter-century in time, right along with the actors of those characters.

'J.D.' and 'Elliot' had married, but are divorced and never had children; 'Turk' and 'Carla' are still married and have four daughters of various ages.

Okay, that's good, but what's going to make the show work?

Here's what: they kept the song, and they kept the format: it's still a vlog of the thoughts and daydreams of 'J.D.'. 

Very nice!!!

In tonight's episode, "My Rom-Com", there was a line I just loved!

'Elliot' is upset about the new towel dispenser in the bathroom and 'Carla' tells her to get a grip.

Her response is priceless: "I can't get a grip, my hands are wet."

Hahahaha!!!

After that, I pulled up an episode of "Just Shoot Me!" that I'd recorded two days ago.

I really like that show... but it doesn't come on until 3 AM on Mondays.

So, I try to remember its schedule so I can enjoy on my time!

Here's the thing: I had not realized that it's 'Elliot' was spelled the same.

Hahahaha!

On this show, that character is a male photographer who gets to point his camera - all puns intended - at all the hot models. 

I do so love Enrico Colantoni in that role!

This time, in "What The Teddy Bear Saw", he's talking to 'Nina', who has just expressed one of her usual dingbat thoughts.

He then asks, "When you tilt your head to the side, does it sound like a rainstick?"

Hahahaha!

Just think, if I hadn't run these two shows back to back, I would have missed the similarity: they both give me jokes and puns!

Right place, right time!

(smile!)

betty's for southside?

I made a point to be here at Two Firsts Post for this urgent meeting.

It was to start at 1630... but finally did an hour later.

The meeting went on until just after 7 PM.

I think it was a success!

Mike Kozik and Kathrine Hancock were there to talk about the contract to bring Betty Bombers to this Montgomery Street locale to run the kitchen and bar.

The bar area is definitely ready for patrons!

I'm sure that's due, in large part, to the efforts of the members of Post 500.

Every one of those tables had to be assembled.

Every one of those chairs had to be assembled.

Every one of those bar stools had to be assembled.

I made sure to thank Eddie Patterson, John Parker, and Brenda Pough tonight and ask them to pass it along to the other American Legion members in their group.

They are the three who met tonight with the new owners of Betty Bombers.

There were several of us from Post 36 there, too.

Besides myself, we had Doug Andrews, Billy Cope, and Michael T. Powers.

We met in the ballroom area, at a long, white table with regular metal and plastic chairs.

No need to muss up the bar!

Billy has the wiring done for the cameras and TVs, so that's good.

He's also found out that DISH has a deal for the American Legion that is going to save money.

We're looking to have six large televisions to cover at least six different games for the viewing diners.

Hopefully, that will be coming along within two months.

The folks from Betty Bombers brought several printouts for us.

One had special menu items they were proposing, though I expect the names are up for change to more military-appropriate ones.

Another had specially crafted alcoholic beverages they'd created.

The most important printout, though, was the proposed outlay of capital and equipment that would be needed to put the plan into action.

That last part was discussed in some detail tonight...

but we will be meeting again on Monday, March 9, for more consideration of those contents.

I'm hoping we can all come to an agreement.

Mike and Kathrine had wanted to branch out, as their agreement with Post 135 downtown is fairly limiting.

They were planning to go elsewhere... 

and then our need for someone experienced to run a kitchen arose...

and the trial meeting a week ago went well.

Right time, right place, for all parties.

I'm looking forward to our next meeting.

I've even done some homework to prepare for it.

(smile!) 

parting gift from my nutritionist

When I went in to the Savannah VA Center for the meeting with Elizabeth Carley, I had been expecting the news would not be good.

I knew my weight would be up.

Between the inguinal hernia pain and cold weather, I had not been moving as much and had been eating more comfort foods.

I had no idea that she was leaving.

She has a more exciting job working with a new company in New York.

In true form, she had made plans for switching me to a new specialist, but wanted to discuss the options with me first.

Such a professional with a heart she is!

But she did one thing that my new PCP, Tiffiny Duchene, should have: she followed up on the Community Care I was supposed to have received in December.

Elizabeth found out I was to have started that on December 23, 2025.

Instead, I had not yet heard from the local surgeon who was to repair the inguinal hernia that's been paining me since mid-August.

Elizabeth wrote down all the information: the phone number, name, and address of the clinic as well as the Community Care Authorization number issued by the Ralph Johnson VA Hospital in Charleston.

I called the Surgical and Bariatric Care clinic at Memorial Hospital as soon as I got home that day.

They didn't have the paperwork from Charleston, but would call them.

I immediately went into VA Health's website and sent messages to the Community Care in Charleston and also to PCP Duchene.

That was on a Thursday.

I waited until Tuesday, February 17th, and called the clinic again.

Yes, they had the VA CCN!!!

The first available appointment was March 3rd.

Later than I'd hoped, but it was still more progress than I'd had!

Today, I was at the office of Dr. Oliver Whipple thirty minutes ahead of time.

I'd spent forty minutes on Sunday night filling in all the paperwork for the online check-in, plus I'd filled in the eight pages sent to me two weeks ago. 

I gave him the disk with my CT scan - from November 18th - as well as all that paperwork, then we talked.

Mostly, we talked about my previous surgeries over the years, but in particular about the cardiac ablations I've had.

After a talk with Marsha, the one in charge of surgery scheduling, I walked out with pre-surgery paperwork, though a date for that hernia repair has not yet been set.

First, they have to get clearance from my heart doc, but that should not be an issue after the results from the heart monitor study.

Dr. Whipple liked that Dr. Cobb was down to seeing me every 6 months; that's a very good thing!

However, the biggest hurdle to a surgery date is Dr. Whipple's upcoming two-week vacation coming up... after next week.

Timing is everything.

So, now, it looks like I won't have the hernia repair until late April.

Then, there will be about three weeks of recovery, they say.

Dr. Whipple told me he will be using a robot-assisted laparoscopic technique to remove all the scar tissues in my abdomen, starting from the ribcage down to the right groin, then insert a mesh pocket to hold the abdominal contents in place.

I'm hoping that will all go as planned.

He was surprised when he heard about the scar from my tubal ligation, then surprised again when I told him about my Polar Express from the hysterectomy.

I just wanted him to be forewarned about all that scar tissue, and the adhesions from three abdominal surgeries, waiting inside.

I'm not looking forward to the surgery, but I can't wait to be rid of the pain I've had for more than six months. 

None of this would even be in progress without the aid of my nutritionist, Elizabeth, taking action on my behalf.

My gratitude to her.

I sure am going to miss her.

women's history: take 1

"I get it! March is Women's History Month and you went to a movie about some famous woman. Am I correct?"

You're half-right. Yes, it is WHM! I hadn't realized that's such a recent thing. I was almost 30 when it came into existence. I guess that's one thing that Ronald Reagan did that was good.

"And the thing I'm wrong about?"

I went to a semi-biographical play, over at SavRepTh, not a movie. It was based on the real story of Jennifer Blackmer's mother, who was a stenographer called into service in 1973 to record the debriefings of returning POWs from Vietnam. She was 22 years old.

"1973... wasn't that Operation Homecoming? I was 15 years old and had just started 10th grade at Jenkins High School. So, that makes her just 7 years older than me."

Thereabouts. 'Esther' had already spent some time in the secretarial pool there at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base before she landed that job. She had caught the eye of a 34-year-old officer there, and, to keep her from taking a job in Vietnam, he got her that position to keep her handy. The play spent a bit of time on the courtship of 'Andy' with her. It even covered a fancy dance he took her to, with the focus on the black-tipped, high-heeled, Chanel shoes her mother sent for her to wear!

"I know that was a very special moment! 'Esther' thought she'd be following in her mom's footsteps and become a military wife, too."

Yes, she did, even though the courtship was moving slowly, with 'Andy' truly being an officer and a gentleman and not pressuring the virgin into sex. Later, though, when she came to him distraught over a debriefing she'd heard, he wasn't above plying her with alcohol. Don't get the wrong impression, though. She had to tell him that she was ready to have sex. So, this wasn't a forced situation.

"Well, that's to his favor then. Did he have her move in?"

I don't recall that ever happening. You see, the POW she'd been so upset about? His name was 'Daniel Case'. He turned up outside her apartment four days after his debriefing and she invited him in for some food. They got to talking and realized they had a lot in common with languages. With her it was Plover, the sound-based one used by stenographers to operate the blank black paddles of the little steno machine. For him, it was all wrapped in the poems of e.e. cummings, the man who used his own grammar and punctuation rules. In any case, she and he ended up together in her bed, having a lost night, with him gone in the morning.

"Say what? Just four days after she and the officer had sex?"

Yep. But what she and 'Daniel' had was clearly love-making, to hear her talk. In any case, she ended up pregnant with the daughter who wrote her story. However, before 'Esther' knew that had happened, she'd been called in for interrogation. Why? 'Daniel' had been AWOL when he showed up to her place and someone had seen him in the area. So the military wanted to know why he went to see her and what did they do and what did he say??? It was quite a harrowing thing for the young woman.

"Yes, I'm sure it was. Then she found out she was pregnant and 'Andy' thought he had to marry her, but she went back to her parent's house instead. I'm sure the truth was this: she wanted to believe the baby was the product of her time with 'Daniel'. Perhaps that was even the case. I'd like to think it was."

I agree. I After the play, Carolyn Cook came out to talk with those of us who wanted to know more about the character she portrayed. That's her, on the right, next to Natasha, the producer of this traveling show. You know the most interesting tidbit for me?

"What was that, dear?"

It was when she was asked something about the script. She said it was 44 pages with 168 light cues. Can you believe that??? Wow. 168 light cues!!!

"Oh, I get it. You've run lights for A.C.T.O.R. and the Armstrong Masquers, so you have personal experience with that sort of thing."

That's right! It came up because she was talking about the use of triangles and diamonds in the light patterns on the floor. Those were silent visual cues to move her to where she needed to be and to keep her on track with the story. Just by use of light cues! There were some sound effects, too, to accentuate what was going on. But the light operator - and that would be Justin Bishop - was the one who helped keep her on target. Well, I'm assuming it was Justin. The "program" was a QR code that my reader can't transcribe. I'm hoping Jenn Bishop will send me the URL.

"Was this the play you mentioned a week ago? The one you already bought a ticket for?"

Yes, it is. I'd been drawn in by its sponsorship by the foundation for Abbie DeLoach, one of the young nurses killed in the car wreck in 2015. She was only 21. I'd said at the time that her political uncle would cause a change, and I was right. I guess I have her to thank for the merger of Armstrong with Georgia Southern that led to my retirement in 2018.

"That's all true. Good thing you bought your ticket ahead, as this was a sold-out show. The Vintage Events Center at least has free parking! You know, you still haven't mentioned the name of the play. You're wanting to include the poem on which it's based, don't you? Well, now's the time!"

Here it is!

i carry your heart with me   

i carry your heart with me (i carry it in
my heart) i am never without it (anywhere
i go you go, my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing, my darling)
               i fear
no fate (for you are my fate, my sweet) i want
no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows
higher than soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart (i carry it in my heart)