It’s March finally and we’re well on our way to April. Over the last few days it’s snowed twice more and made this one helluva Maine winter to remember. I’m happy because snow cover is good for our perennials and herbs and offers perfect protection against the wind and cold air. Last year we had very little snow that lasted for any length of time and the plants suffered. Almost forty percent of my herb garden was lost including many older plants that I’ve tended for years. That noise you’re not hearing is me crossing my fingers.
The Maine aquifers are full and any threat of drought has been eliminated for the foreseeable future. I’m hearing that the celebrations over at the Poland Spring bottling plant could last for weeks. This winter is not only great for their business but also for revenues of the towns where they buy water.
Today was a good day for me because I was able to sit on my ass and watch while my room remodel continued. I finally wised up and hired someone to put down the new hardwood floor. It was done quickly and expertly and looks incredible and I didn’t spill a drop of wine in the process. Life is good sometimes. I actually was hoping it would take more than one day to do so I could loaf for a while longer. Because of the installers efficiency I’ll now be forced into beginning the dry wall installation. Another good plan foiled.
I’m sitting here listening to the Maine winter body count on the radio. Another three snowmobiler’s dead. They attempted to cross a partially frozen lake and went down with the ship. It was announced that the search for their bodies has been postponed until spring when the ice melts. What a terrible way to die.
For those of you living in warmer climates you need to understand that there are probably more snowmobiles in this state than people. We have areas up north that are snowmobile superhighways requiring places where you can stop and eat and even occasional police patrols to enforce the speed limits. You can travel for miles and miles and never see a road or even the ground. I’ve sat at one of the hundreds of snowmobile crossings in this state while thirty or forty snowmobiles rode by. Husbands, wives, kids, and even a pet of two. It’s really amazing to watch.
With that many people out and about on them and the large number of lakes in the state it’s just inevitable that fatal accidents will happen. Sympathies to the families for sure but more Maine winter casualties can be expected and will almost certainly occur. It’s a grim fact of life here in snow country.
I can smell some really excellent pizza cooking and my glass of wine is almost empty. That’s a Maine winter emergency I can do something about. More snow expected is through the night tonight and another winter wonderland in the morning. Hooray!
Doing a lot of reading through these freezing cold months is something I look forward to every year. With little or no outside work to do I can read two or three books a week with no trouble. I purposely buy books to be saved for these months and I try to make them as diverse as I can.
That being said, if you’ve read this blog or my previous blog, Anti-Stupidity Central, you know how much I tend to ridicule celebrities and the people who worship them. There is always so much hype and lies about their lives it’s difficult to sort through it all to find the truth. During my weekly reading this week I discovered a source who supplied me with some truth about celebrities that they can’t deny or spin or tell untruths about. The following information concerns those celebrities who have passed on with some interesting facts on how that occurred.
SAMMY DAVIS JR. (1925-1990)
Don’t wives ever listen? Sammy Davis Jr. wanted his coffin closed because he wanted no one to see his cancer-ravaged body. His wife Altovise had an open casket and hired a photographer to snap pictures. Later when she discovered his estate owed millions in back taxes she had him exhumed and removed $70,000.00 of jewelry from his body. She died in 2009 at the same age as Sammy. Ahhhh, ain’t true love wonderful?
MERV GRIFFIN (1925-2007)
His final resting place is Westwood Cemetery, Los Angeles. At the time of his death on August 12, he was a billionaire. He was clever and guarded at evading questions about his sexuality, telling the NY Times, “I tell everyone that I’m a quarter sexual. I will do anything with anyone for a quarter.” His epithet reads ‘I Will Not Be Right Back After This Message’.
JOHN WAYNE (1907-1979)
The Duke died of stomach cancer on June 11 and on his deathbed, he converted to Catholicism, and requested his tombstone to read, ‘Feo, Fuerte, y Normal’, a Spanish phrase meaning “ugly, strong, and dignified.” His grave remained unmarked for more than twenty years.
MEL BLANC (1908-1989)
Mel Blanc was known as the man of a thousand voices for more than fifty-two years, including Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Yosemite Sam, Wile E. Coyote, and Barney Rubble. He died on July 10 of heart disease and was buried in a grave with the inscription, ‘That’s All Folks’, as stipulated in his will.
JOAN HACKETT (1934-1983)
She was laid to rest in Hollywood Forever Cemetery after losing her battle with ovarian cancer. She checked herself out of the hospital shortly before her death to host a party at her home for Carrie Fisher and Paul Simon. She so loved to get her beauty sleep that she was left resting quietly in Crypt 2314 with the epithet, ‘Go Away – I’m Asleep’.
And last but certainly not least:
RODNEY DANGERFIELD (1921-2004)
His final resting place is Westwood Memorial Park in Los Angeles. You just have to love a guy who at eighty-two was still smoking pot. During the Reagan years he even once got stoned in the White House. He also, in 2002, got stoned in the hospital bathroom after having a heart attack scare. He died on October 5 from complications from heart-valve replacement. His tombstone reads "’There Goes The Neighborhood’. To me he was one of the funniest bastards who ever lived and has definitely earned my respect.
So there you have it. A small dose of graveside humor that can’t be disputed, denied, or spun. If only the ones still living could be as open and forthright.
everyuselessthing.com 