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‘memories’ Category

Cajun Memories

January 13, 2012 by Karen of Scottsdale

Today we were going somewhere in the van and went past a Cajun bar and grill. We’ve never been there, and I don’t think we ever will, but the place got me thinking about my younger years living in Cajun country. This time of the year preparations for Mardi Gras begin in earnest. Many of the parents and relatives of my school buddies were active in the Mardi Gras set. Your family heritage and/or financial status determined what particular krewe you were a member of and what role you would play in the Mardi Gras traditions of galas and parade floats. Mardi Gras was always a big deal in our small town and the parade was the highlight.

Parades in the South are not like parades in other parts of the country. There are floats decorated around certain themes and those in costume and masks would throw candy and trinkets to the crowds. The trinkets consisted of decorative beaded necklaces and personalized coins. These coins were called doubloons and many of them were collectibles. It was custom to yell “throw me something” at the people on the floats. It was better than Halloween!

Oh the memories…

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Not So Close Please

December 30, 2011 by Karen of Scottsdale

This afternoon we were at the grocery store getting items for a few meals. Right up front they put seasonal items and today I noticed something completely different. Fireworks! That’s right, you can now buy fireworks at the local grocery store. Of course there was a prominently displayed sign that posted a notice that it is illegal to shoot fireworks within the Scottsdale city limits. Now, I enjoy watching fireworks from afar but I would never light one myself. I would have to wear a welding helmet along with complete fire protection clothing. Ever since I was a young child I have had a deathly fear of sparks and fireworks ashes. It probably is because when I was a toddler I got ashes in my face from a backyard fireworks episode. I can’t even hold one of those sparklers or get near one without a panic attack. It’s a wonder I made it past the grocery store display!

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I Have a Coupon for That

December 28, 2011 by Karen of Scottsdale

Thinking about coupons always reminds me of my grandma. She never met a coupon she didn’t like – in other words – if she had a coupon for it she was most likely going to buy it. Family get-togethers were always fun because grandma would bring out tons of snack foods like soda and chips that she purchased with coupons. It didn’t matter if nobody liked the particular brand she purchased. The important part was that she had a coupon for it! Oh how I loved my grandma! She was all about saving money because she grew up in the Depression. She and grandpa retired with a hefty savings, so she really didn’t need to use coupons for everything. Grandpa was not allowed to buy her things unless they were on sale. So when I ran across coupons for FTD orders of a certain amount I instantly thought of my grandparents and knew that Grandpa could’ve bought flowers for Grandma with that. She would not have seen it as an extravagance because he had a coupon for the flowers. I miss my grandparents a lot!

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I always wore a Helmet.

September 20, 2011 by azNorm

The picture shows me, back in the late 60s reporting traffic from I-17 here in Phoenix for KOOL Radio.

That’s not the reason for showing the picture. It was to let you see the helmet worn by the Arizona Highway Patrol officer behind me.

As a member of the Highway Patrol Reserve, I found that I liked wearing a helmet, just like the one he has, when I was driving a patrol car. While it’s no where as “KOOL” looking as a Shoei RF-1100, I felt just a little safer when I patrolled in and just outside of the Metro Phoenix area.

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If I Were A Guy

August 15, 2011 by Karen of Scottsdale

Do you ever think about what it might be like if you were the opposite sex? Don’t get me wrong, I love being a girl… I’m just saying for instance if I were a guy getting around in a wheelchair might be totally different. Okay, I suppose I could phrase this another way. What if I were the kind of girl who liked guy things? Things like ATVs and football and wrestling.

Growing up as a power wheelchair user I got teased a lot about my wheels. High school guys would invariably ask me if I could off-road in my wheelchair or if I went on the freeway. I was offended by this since I was a girly girl. Maybe if I had had ATV wheels I would’ve gotten asked out by high school guys a lot more? It’s certainly something to consider. Maybe being teased about something isn’t so bad if you look at it the right way. It was the guy’s ways of breaking the ice with me but I didn’t see it that way. It would have been a lot different if I had.

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Are you a nurse or a doctor?

May 21, 2011 by Karen of Scottsdale

I remember as a child going to the hospital you could tell the nurses from the doctors and from other hospital staff because a nurse’s uniform was rather specific. She wore a white hat which had a very odd shape and a white dress or a white smock and white slacks with white shoes. In modern times a nurse uniform is quite different and can vary from place to place. In fact, I often find it difficult to tell the nurses from the technicians or even the doctors because their uniforms are all quite similar. They all seem to wear scrubs these days. When I was in the hospital a few months back I had to ask someone in the ER if they were nurse or a doctor because everyone looked the same. Maybe I was just really sick.

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Growing up in Snow

January 21, 2011 by azNorm

It’s me, Karen’s Husband Norm, here blogging again as she is busy.

Growing up in Denver means that one gets used to walking and living with show. And using overshoes. I can even remember having to wear snow suits. They where designed to keep one warm while in the snow, but there was something about them that this young man just didn’t like.

I remember that early in my life there in the Capital of Colorado, I quickly became a Levis man. Even at a young age, I knew there was a difference between boys and girls.

Snow suits bothered me. Overshoes did not.

ps: Karen didn’t grow up where it snowed.

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Anniversary is Coming

January 18, 2011 by azNorm

Hi, it’s me, Mr. Karen…or to his friends just plain old Norm, punching away at the keyboard of my computer while Karen is doing something else. I have to admit that I like writing her blogs for her. Gives me a large audience.

Now I’m not going to say, click here , in order for you to see what I am blogging about. You can, mind you, do so and it will take you somewhere, but I’m going to let you see pictures of me as a DANCER.

I have been uploading to my computer pictures that were taken by my Dad back in the late 1950s. This picture was taken at a Square Dance at the Ride-N-Rock Ranch in Scottsdale. My parents would spend several weeks there each year back then. I would later attend Orme Ranch School that was between Scottsdale and Flagstaff.

Well here I am dancing away.

Had I not found the picture in over 500 35 mm slides that my brother found and brought over here, I would not remember dancing the night away.

In the morning I needed rest.

Our anniversary is coming up. I loved to dance the night away with Karen.

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