February 15, 2011

Do you have a favorite song? I often wonder what makes a song one’s favorite.  Is it the beat, tune, singer or the message? Is it different for all of us?  Here were the responses; I’d love to get your opinion too! 

LB, Massachusetts: Amazing Grace…for the message but also because it reminds me of my dad and Ireland ;)

EP, Maine: That is a tough question, one of my favorites is Country Road by James Taylor because of the memory it evokes. 

MK, Maine: Knights in White Satin the Moody Blues.  Why? It reminds me of my youth.  The Moody Blues were my favorite band.  Still play their music. <3

February 11, 2011

I’m not sure which has more chocolate, Valentine’s Day or Halloween.  Between the boxes of assorted chocolates, the chocolate shaped hearts, kisses and everything else I think it MAY be Valentine’s Day.  This got me thinking about different types of chocolate, and wondering what people like most, dark or white chocolate.  I know I prefer dark and my husband prefers white, but what about everyone else? 

So, my question on Friday was simply; White chocolate or dark chocolate?

LF, Maine: dark…no white chocolate in this house!

DT, Maine: dark…I heard white chocolate really isn’t even chocolate!!

DP, Maine: Carob cause I can not eat chocolate L

TM, Mass: Milk chocolate haha, although I love Hershey’s special dark chocolate.

CD, Maine: dark chocolate, mmm,

GS, Maine: Milk Chocolate!

LJ, VA: White chocolate!

BF, MD: dark…if I have to make a choice.  “Any” is my real answer!

SV, Maine: Milk Chocolate, don’t like either white or dark.

JD, MD: Dark, because it’s soooo GOOD for you! Antioxidants yum! It’s practically healthfood.  And if there is ANY evidence to the contrary I don’t want to hear it!  Then of course there’s Nutella…

KL, Maine: Dark!

What’s your favorite?

January 10, 2011

What did you enjoy most about Valentine’s Day as a child?  I remember the silly invitations – usually having to do with a cartoon character or something of that nature. Then there were all the candy hearts with different sayings on them.  As I got a little older and starting dating there were the cute teddy bears with hearts attached to them saying something about how wonderful “I” was. 

Here are the responses I got when I asked what others enjoyed most about Valentine’s Day as a child:

EP, Maine: The candy hearts with messages

EK, Maine: As a really little kid, the candy, as a 8 y.o. nothing, I was very ungrateful of the one or two people who would give me cards. I bought into that whole you are not so I wont waste a card on you mentality that is/was Camden Rockport middle school when I moved there in 3rd grade away from North Haven.

LF, Maine: coming down for breakfast to find a small heart box of chocolates at my plate!

JP, Maine: my dad and I bringing both my mom and I home roses.

February 8, 2011

Valentine’s Day has never been one of my favorite holidays.  In 2003 and 2004 were particular bad years due to some medical issues that occurred on Valentine’s Day weekend – both years. 

Having said that though, 2004 still contained one of my favorite gifts.  My husband is not particularly romantic.  I think I can count the number of times on one hand that he has given me flowers, let alone had them delivered.  As I mentioned the year before was a bad Valentine’s Day, I think to make 2004 Valentine’s Day better he decided to order me some flowers, which of course I didn’t know.

That day I was working and started having some trouble needing to go to the hospital.  When I was released and sent home there was a huge cloud of sadness over us.  A few hours later, my boss called and spoke to Wayne, then showed up at the house with a dozen red roses.  The flowers that my husband had had delivered to me at work were delivered by my boss.  While it did not lift the sadness, it gave me a smile and reminded me just how much my husband loves me.

So the question I asked was this; Valentines Day is around the corner - What has been your favorite gift and why?

KP, Maine:  I got engaged on Feb 13 and married the following year on Feb. 15 and had my dream “valentines day” wedding with red dresses and everyone carried long stem roses.

EP, Maine: Day after Valentines, proposal!

SV, Maine:  Diamonds, they sparkle.  Or chocolate.

DF, Maine:  Chocolate, chocolate, chocolate, cause its yummy!!!!!

So, what has your favorite Valentine’s Day gift and why?

February 3, 2011 

The 2010 to 2011 winter has already seen many snow storms and snow days here in Maine and throughout the country.  With three school aged children a snow day significantly effects how my day plays out.  At times I dread the snow day, as I never know how much fighting the kids will do or how much I may actually get accomplished. 

On February 2^nd we had a snow day.  That day, I need not have feared what the day would bring.  The kids were amazing and terrific without an argument to be heard.  I got a lot done and we all laughed and smiled. 

The snow day made me stop and think about snow days of my youth.  So my question on February 3, 2011 was this: 

“Snow days – what were they like as a kid and what are they like now?”

Here are some of the comments: 

LB, Mass:  a lot more often now :O)

BV, Maine: Well, I NEVER spent a whole snow day on homework like Teal did yesterday!

TJ, Maine: like yesterday, only EVERY storm, and they didn’t cancel school.

JH, Mass and NY: When I was a kid living in Maryland I don’t remember ever getting enough snow to cancel school.  Then we moved to Egypt where it obviously never snowed.  But the whole school got let out of class for an extra hour of recess when it started to rain!

EP, Maine: OK I am ready to comment here.  As a kid they were greatly anticipated and fun digging forts in the snow plow pile, sledding at the golf course and feeling like the hill was Mt. Everest on each ascent, then drinking hot chocolate that always scalded the roof of my mouth.  As an adult I still love snow days it’s the days after that are starting to wear on me, shoveling, hoping my car starts, hoping the roof doesn’t leak, snow blowing and curing the sound of the plow getting ready to create a huge mound at the end of my newly cleaned drive way.

So, what are some of your snow day thoughts and memories?

January 26, 2011

This morning as I was making lunch for my husband and smelling the wonderful aroma of brewing coffee I started thinking about smells and scents.  Do I love the smell of coffee from because it brings me back to a specific time in my life?  Are there certain smells and scents that remind me of any one person or of my childhood? I realized that the smell of a wood burning stove or fire place makes me think about growing up in Leverett, Mass.

So, my question this morning was this:

“Is there a smell or a scent that makes you think of your childhood?”

Here are some of the responses:

LF, Maine: Sugar cookies

EP, Maine: Honeysuckle

BR, Mass: Oil frying for potato latkis….yummo….

LL, Mass: no but hearing the opening to MASH does.

CD, Maine: the smell of Charlie Lake at my grandparent’s camp in the Adirondacks, spice cookies baking in mom’s kitchen.

LJ, Maryland: The smell of Eucalyptus reminds me of living in San Francisco as a little girl. There are lots of eucalyptus trees in SF.

MK, Maine: outside…honeysuckle…inside….Thanksgiving dinner and my Mom did all of the cooking.

AP, Australia: Mum always work ‘Jicky’ perfume by Guerlain and Nan wore ‘Shalimar’ and I love the aroma of cloves cooked with apples and home baked bread, both of which I associate with Nan. 

What scents or smell do you associate with your childhood or youth?

January 19, 2011 

We no longer have TV at our house.  We have an x-box, but the kids don’t use it often.  They spend time on the computer and watching movies, they do a lot of reading, playing outside, building blanket forts, hula hoops etc… Looking around at my kids and kids from their schools I thought a lot about the games of my childhood and how much things have changed.  I wanted to try and reintroduce some of the things that I did to stay entertained when I was younger.

My question today was simply: 

“What were some of your favorite childhood games?” 

Here are some of the responses:

EK, Maine: hide and seek.  Even my brother admits I was scary good

EP, Maine: I too loved hide and seek!

MK, Maine: at the pool…tag in the water

CD, Maine: Marco polo, sharks and minnows, kick the can, hide and seek, seek and hide…

EP, Maine: do any of your kids still play those games? My son and a friend came home to a house without power and all I heard in the darkness was “Ready or not here I come!”

CD, Maine: Our kids do.  Hide and seek is a regular favorite.  As a kid, our games were generated because I grew up in a neighborhood with loads of kids of various ages.  We don’t have that now because we don’t live within walking distance of other kids.  Groups of kids arrive at our house when we organize playdates.

LE, Oregon: Marbles.  I had an awesome steelie.  I played with the boys and usually won.  I had a big box filled with my winnings, but somewhere along the way, many moves later, they vanished.

LJ, Maryland:  I loved skating and was forever losing my skate key (remember those?). I also loved to ride my bike all over the neighborhood (in San Francisco). 

What were some of your favorite childhood games?

January 14, 2011

I ran into a friend of mine last night at a Business Afterhours function.  We talked about a number of things including how funny facebook was sometimes.  We both noted that there were times that the simplest statement or comment received the most comments.  

My question this morning was asked because of that conversation.  Here you go:

“Skippy or Jiff?" 

Here are the responses:

TM, Mass:  Skippy, and after we made the sandwiches we used the empty Wonder Bread bag to put on our feet so they would slip in and out of our winter boots with ease. 

EP, Maine: Neither!

LF, Maine: Must be Jif! …makes the best PB Cookies! 

SV, Maine: Skippy Super Chunk, by far the best! 

CD, Maine: Now, we love the fresh ground from FOTH.  Growing up, always Jif super crunchy.

Do you have a favorite?

January 13, 2011

Bedtime stories. They bring back so many memories. My favorite was always ‘The Little Engine that Could.”  It always made me feel like I could do anything if I just tried hard enough. My son loved it when we would make up stories.  My youngest daughter always loved “Like you forever, Love you for Always” and my middle daughter “The Little Black Witch.” 

“What was your favorite bedtime story growing up?”

LB, Mass: Dr. Seuss… didn’t matter the story.

KP, Maine: The Castle of Grumpy Grouch. It’s an out-of-print (early 1900’s) story about a little princess who looses her temper and her adventures rescuing it from the evil guy who has it looked up.

EK, Maine: the ones my dad made up

JD, Maryland: Rabbit Hill by Robert Lawson.  Delighted to say it’s still in print.  I have spent the rest of my life wishing that my gardening relationship with the critters of the world could be like that.

What were some of your favorite bedtime stories? 

Most mornings after having some coffee and getting my husband off to work I have 10-15 minutes of alone time before waking up the kids.  One of the things I do is update my fan page on facebook, http://www.facebook.com/kirstentranscribes.  I try to put a question out to everyone asking them to think about their memories and history in some way.  My goal is really just to get people thinking and talking.  Some days I have more success then others.

I will be posting some of the questions and responses here, for you to read.  If you’d like to comment please do so here or on facebook!

Of course you may find other things here too; tips on recording your personal history, transcription, guest bloggers, or other pieces of interesting information.  Please keep checking back for more!