A BROKEN LEG FOR CHRISTMAS

CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS

 CONTEST ANNOUNCEMENT! MAKE COMMENTS TO WIN!

CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS is awarding a monthly prize to the reader who makes the most comments at www.carolyncholland.wordpress.com. To enter, comment on any post. The more comments you post, the greater chance you have of winning. For further details click on http://carolyncholland.wordpress.com/monthly-prize-for-comments/ or visit the page MONTHLY PRIZE FOR COMMENTS at the top of the column to the right. 

A BROKEN LEG FOR CHRISTMAS

     It was just before Christmas, 1983. My friend, Shirl, her husband Wayne and I were ushering at the Alliance Theater in downtown Atlanta, Georgia, for a production of The Music Man.

     We ushered at this theater regularly and at other smaller theaters occasionally. It was a way for the wife of a graduate student and mother of a preteen and teenager to afford theater tickets (price, free) while spending three years in that city.

     This December day I’d dressed for the holidays, including high heel shoes. I was yet to learn I had high foot arches that made for ankle instability.

     I’d seen the play—and the movie—several times before, but really enjoyed the story. The first part of the play was wonderful, as usual. At intermission the three of us joined the throng of theater goers descending the marble stairway leading to the lobby (we’d been assigned balcony positions). Shirl was behind me. I heard her say something and turned slightly to respond.

     All of a sudden, I was

AN UNEXPECTED VISIT WITH BOB MENDLER ON DECEMBER 8, 2009

CAROLYN’S COMMENTS

AN UNEXPECTED VISIT WITH BOB MENDLER ON DECEMBER 8, 2009

Robert Mendler’s funeral will be held on Tuesday, December 15. For details, click on: ROBERT MENDLER: IN MEMORY December 10, 2009 or

http://carolyncholland.wordpress.com/2009/12/11/robert-mendler-in-memory-december-10-2009/

     On Tuesday, December 8, my husband Monte and I had an unexpected visit with Bob Mendler. The opportunity arose following a comment on the Bob’s story, which was posted in installments on my writing site, www.carolyncholland.wordpress.com*:

     “I and my family are from Nowy Targ. My father’s name was Alojzy Singer. I was a hidden child. I and my father survived. The rest of the family did not. The Singers had a large hardware store on the Rynek. I would love to be in touch with anyone from that town. I am sure that my father and Mr. Mendler knew each other.”

     I knew I had to get this comment to Bob, who lives in an adjacent town. Fortunately, I had a

My December Birthday: Reflections on Fifty Years of Bonus Life

CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS

HELP ME CELEBRATE MY DECEMBER BIRTHDAY!

Wonder how you can help me celebrate my birthday? Visit Carolyn’s Compositions daily—or more—, read as many posts as you choose to (check the index pages on the upper right hand side of the site to locate articles that most interest you), and add as many comments as you dare to on the posts. The person making the most comments on Sunday and through December 10 will receive a special gift.

ENTER THE DECEMBER COMMENT CONTEST

CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS is awarding a monthly prize to the reader who makes the most comments at www.carolyncholland.wordpress.com. To enter, comment on any post. The more comments you post, the greater chance you have of winning. For further details click on http://carolyncholland.wordpress.com/monthly-prize-for-comments/ or visit the page MONTHLY PRIZE FOR COMMENTS at the top of the column to the right.

November winner: Kim Mabee

MY DECEMBER BIRTHDAY: REFLECTIONS ON FIFTY YEARS OF “BONUS LIFE”

“Appendicitis gives Councilor Lown the sign he was seeking.”

     The newspaper headline came from the Portsmouth Herald (N.H.) newspaper, September 12, 2003. I was cleaning out my files from the three month New England vacation my husband, Monte, and I had taken (OK, so it’s 2009—and the files were stuck in a box, in a corner, like so many papers are in this house!). Portsmouth (N. H.) Councilman Brad Lown was pondering on whether or not to run for another term as councilman when his appendix provided the answer—no.

     It is likely Lown’s appendix was removed at Portsmouth Regional Hospital, the same hospital where mine was removed.

     I don’t recall the fateful day when I entered

CHRISTMAS LETTER 2006

CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS

CONTEST ANNOUNCEMENT!

CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS is awarding a monthly prize to the reader who makes the most comments at www.carolyncholland.wordpress.com. To enter, comment on any post. The more comments you post, the greater chance you have of winning. For further details click on http://carolyncholland.wordpress.com/monthly-prize-for-comments/ or visit the page MONTHLY PRIZE FOR COMMENTS at the top of the column to the right.

CHRISTMAS LETTER 2006

Each year our family contributes to the annual Christmas letter (dreaded by some persons). Tonight, to kick off this year’s Christmas season, I am posting excerpts from my section of our family’s 2006 annual Christmas letter, with a few necessary updates.   

     Year 2006 included a “maternity watch,” for grandchild Marcus, son of Nolan and Tammy, born July 8. We arrived in Cleveland right after his birth. Marcus is a happy baby, has a big smile and lots of conversation. Vince enjoys being “big brother,” accenting his job with two-year old exuberance. He attends softball games his parents play in, and his favorite toy is any kind of ball.

     The year’s events, however, began Christmas night 2005. It involved a 1971 promise my late friend Charlotte and I made to each other.

     We had adopted our girls, Sandy and Kathleen, at the same time from the same agency. They grew up as sisters. Us mothers agreed that

TURDUCKIN

CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS

TURDUCKIN

Tradition!

     Our family is like many others during the holidays. We have traditions. For instance, a turkey adorns our Thanksgiving table, and often stuffed Cornish hens appear on our Christmas or New Years day menu.

     We also have another tradition. Thanksgiving and other holidays are usually celebrated the day

THE THANKSGIVING TURKEY

CONTEST ANNOUNCEMENT!

CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS is awarding a monthly prize to the reader who makes the most comments at www.carolyncholland.wordpress.com. To enter, comment on any post. The more comments you post, the greater chance you have of winning. For further details click on http://carolyncholland.wordpress.com/monthly-prize-for-comments/ or visit the page MONTHLY PRIZE FOR COMMENTS at the top of the column to the right.

THE THANKSGIVING TURKEY

CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS

      I found the perfect card for my granddaughter’s ninth birthday—one that will make her eyes roll. The front has a sepia picture of a girl whose hair, dress and boots are quite old fashioned. She is holding a platter with a small cooked turkey on it.

     Inside it says Happy Birthday You Turkey

     OK, so you’re eyes are rolling too, as do the eyes of others who overhear me trying to

WHAT? NO PUMPKIN PIE FOR THANKSGIVING?

CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS

MONTHLY PRIZE FOR COMMENTS

NEW CONTEST! A MONTHLY PRIZE!

 

     CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS is awarding a monthly prize to the reader making the most comments at www.carolyncholland.wordpress.com. To be eligible for the prize, comment on any post. The more comments you post, the greater chance you have of being the winner.

     The first prize, to be announced on December 3, 2009, will be awarded to the reader who made the most comments on during November.

     The winner will be notified by E-mail. In the event of a tie, a name will be drawn. Winners will be listed on this page. 

     Thank you for your loyalty to my writing site.      Carolyn C. Holland

 WHAT? NO PUMPKIN PIE FOR THANKSGIVING?

     Will Mother Nature’s 2008 and 2009 weather conditions deny many Americans their traditional pumpkin pie? If so, the holiday dinner tables will look more like that of the first Thanksgiving in 1621.

     The menu for fifty-three immigrants who watched half of their group die of malnourishment and disease, and the ninety Indians, all of whom attended that three-day feast, didn’t have pumpkin pie on their menu. It was an improbable dessert because

There’s a Bug (Moth) In Carolyn’s Ear

CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS

NEW CONTEST!

MONTHLY PRIZE FOR COMMENTS

     CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS is awarding a monthly prize to the reader making the most comments at www.carolyncholland.wordpress.com. To be eligible for the prize, comment on any post. The more comments you post, the greater chance you have of being the winner.

     The first prize, to be announced on December 3, 2009, will be awarded to the reader who made the most comments on during November. The winner will be notified by E-mail. In the event of a tie, a name will be drawn. Winners will be listed on this page. 

     Thank you for your loyalty to my writing site.      Carolyn C. Holland

NEW! INDEX PAGES!

Check out the INDEX PAGES on the left hand side of this blogsite to easily locate posts on your favorite subjects! Keep in mind—they are still “under construction.”

THERE’S A BUG (MOTH) IN CAROLYN’S EAR

By Cochran Cornell, the Cantankerous Cockroach 

After my very early morning experience when a moth flew in my ear, I invited my cartoon character Cochran Cornell the Cantankerous Cockroach to tell all you good folks the story from his point of view.  

     Last night, my creator, Carolyn, came up with a new definition for the phrase “You have a bug in your ear!”

     It happened at 3:15 a.m. She was trying to sleep, lying on her side, with her cat Honey resting on her shoulder and purring loudly in her ear. Suddenly, she jumped up, startling Honey and dumping her off the bed. Something was in

It’s Been an Animal Day

CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS

MONTHLY PRIZE FOR COMMENTS

NEW CONTEST! A MONTHLY PRIZE!

 

     CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS is awarding a monthly prize to the reader making the most comments at www.carolyncholland.wordpress.com. To be eligible for the prize, comment on any post. The more comments you post, the greater chance you have of being the winner.

     The first prize, to be announced on December 3, 2009, will be awarded to the reader who made the most comments on during November.

     The winner will be notified by E-mail. In the event of a tie, a name will be drawn. Winners will be listed on this page. 

     Thank you for your loyalty to my writing site.      Carolyn C. Holland

 IT’S BEEN AN ANIMAL DAY

      It’s been an animal day.

      Black bear. Cat. Cat. Owl. Horse.

     While I groggily prepared my morning coffee, something caught my eye. I glanced out my window and was amazed to see a small black bear strolling through my driveway. I called my husband Monte, and we watched the bear lumber to the path leading to my daughter’s house.

     I grabbed the phone and called Sandy. She and her husband, Michael, watched the bear approach their yard, meander between her house and the neighbor’s house, return

Climb Mt. Everest? Not Me!

CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS

CLIMB MT. EVEREST? NOT ME!

     High at the top of my list of the things I won’t accomplish in this lifetime is joining the minority part of humanity, an estimated 2,000 persons, who successfully scaled Mount Everest. Climbers, including a 71-year-old Japanese man, a climber with an artificial leg, and a teenaged boy, have reached the summit since 1953.

     In 2007 more than “239 people had already climbed the 8,850 metre (29,035 feet) summit from the Nepali side and the rest from Tibet,” according to Sherpa. The previous record was 470 people who made their journey in the 2006 spring climbing season.
     Historians say that many people have conquered the summit more than once, meaning that the number of ascents is likely much higher than 2,000. At least 202 people have died trying to reach the top. (To read this article click on http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070531/india_nm/india300836)

     Living in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains I do climb Laurel Mountain on a regular basis (click on http://www.travellady.com/Issues/June05/1522LaurelHighlands.htm). That is, I drive or ride up the twisty paved road to the top of the mountain, which is close to