Archive for December, 2009

What are your favorite Christmas memories?

Published
by
mckirsch
on December 20, 2009
in personal
. 1 Comment

christmas morning.

watching the kids open presents.

all the smiles.

the hugs.

christmas breakfast with lots of crappy sweet food like cinnamon buns.

sitting by the fire.

the smell of christmas trees.

snow forts in 36 inches of snow in your back yard.

frozen wool mittens.

lots of friends and family around.

stockings on the mantle.

kids in santa hats.

dogs with bows round their necks.

old relatives being delighted to be with family.

eggnog from a carton.

andy williams records.

cheap bows in big bags from woolworth.

wet socks.

huge christmas trees in my parents 14′ living room.

christmas lights with screw in bulbs.

waking up to see if the cookies were gone.

piles of presents under the tree.

christmas carols on records.

hearing bells at night.

watching rudolf on tv every year before it was on DVD.

charlie brown’s christmas.

the wreath’s in Orchard Park every year.

The tree in Rockefeller center.

The bazillion people anywhere near Bloomingdales, FAO Schwartz, or Macy’s in New York.

skating outside, on a pond.

sledding at Chestnut Ridge, risking death or serious injury (anyone remember being in the injury room at CR?).

The windows at AM and A’s Department Store on Main Street.

watching kids cry getting their picture taken with Santa.

packages from out of town that said “do not open until Christmas!’ on them.

Christmas Carolers. Snow on Christmas Eve.

Christmas Eve at Shore’s Orchard Downs.

making out with a cute girl I was in love with at Shore’s on Christmas eve.

The crappy Santa booth at the Seneca Mall.

Christmas cards all over the house.

Jingles cookies.

sponge candy.

scotch tape all over everything.

kids in snowsuits with red cheeks from the cold.

skating on Freeman’s pond.

visitors from out of town, and all their packages, presents, and luggage.

food cooking for days.

christmas cookies in endless waves.

nativity scenes outside small churches in the country.

seeing someone’s eyes when you score a really great smile from a cool gift.

cookie dough.

silver and gold everywhere.

ice skates.

candles.

the still and quiet of a snow night.

stars on a clear winter night.

walking a dog on Christmas Eve

walking into a Christmas party and hearing a roar of laughter

pretty girls n those sexy santa’s helper dresses and santa hats with the furry collars from Fredericks, or wherever polyester dresses like that come from.

Mexican Wedding Cakes – best cookies ever, never around other than Christmas.

sleds with runners.

snow forts, with extra snowballs

giving a girl a christmas present, knowing she will squeal.

stuffing.

peace.

Any more I forgot?

Things birthdays make you think about

Published
by
mckirsch
on December 7, 2009
in Interesting
. 0 Comments

When I was 12 years old, my two aunts who were 18 and 20 years old, were killed by a drunk driver, a man my large Irish family immediately labeled a monster. They attended all of his trials, and made sure he got the maximum penalty for his crime.

Since this was 1976, and drunk driving penalties were still lax, he got weekends in jail for a year. For killing two people. I never met the guy, but he was bad.  I just knew.

I used to build a lot of stuff and often visited this small lumber yard near my house. I would buy scraps for a buck and build birdhouses and other small projects with them.

Eventually, the guys who worked there got to know me and would just give me scraps of wood after a while. The wood was garbage to them, and they would give me boxes of scraps to go.

One day I ran into this guy that had worked there for years. I hadn’t seen him for a while, and when I asked why, he said he had only been working during the week, while I was in school. He then left me to wait on another customer.

Another staff member I knew came over and told me that the boy was involved in a terrible car accident last summer, and had killed two girls. He had been at a party, had just a few beers and hit a car that had run a stop sign.

The kid was someone I had known for years, a normal guy, who had always been nice to me.  I was torn. We all hated him, for what he had done. But I knew he was just like the rest of us, and that it was just a mistake, a horrible mistake.

I walked up to him, and told him who I was. I said “I am Kathleen and Colleen’s nephew.”  He paled, and looked sick. He then walked quickly into the back room.

I left and never went back.

The lumberyard closed a few years later, not long after a bigger lumberyard was built near the expressway.

I never saw that guy again. I wonder if he’s OK.  If he still has nightmares about that night.

He was just a kid.

We all were.

Inspiration

Published
by
mckirsch
on December 7, 2009
in Interesting
. 0 Comments

Artist Seeks Inspiration.  Apply Within.

I have been trying to get motivated to paint.  Any of my creative friends have any ideas to get me off the bench?

Here is a great example of why I love Bruce Springsteen

Published
by
mckirsch
on December 7, 2009
in Interesting
. 0 Comments

“.Jungleland” live at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Awards 2009.

Note the amazing Little Steven Guitar solo, as he simply wails, and Clarence doing a soulful job on his sax solo soon after.  The E Street Band is tight, polished, and plays the daylights out of the finale to one of the greatest rock and roll albums of all time, Born to Run.