Poetry Passion; 1.

I've had an on and off affair with poetry since fourth grade. Mr. S, my fourth grade teacher, would take about 15 minutes every day simply to stand in front of our class and recite a bit of poetry.
I have him to thank for my love of this beautiful art.

So, I've decide to post my favorites periodically.
This is the first in this series.



-Robert Frost-
Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening

Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.
He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.
The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.



The above poem also holds memories for me because, it was the very first poem I ever loved. My great aunt owned an enormous book of poems many years ago and she continually read this to me from its pages. I am not sure why she chose this particular work to read to a girl of three or four but, she did and I've always adored it.

So, dears, what was the first poem that you adored?

Sunny Side Up!,
Krista

Super Mario, Reenacted!

This is fantastic:



My mother and I were addicted to said game in the late 90s. I'd stay up far past my 9:30 bed time and be oh so tired at school the next day.
Nerd extraordinaire!
Also, this is from that show that they use as comedic fodder on MXC , which I admittedly once watched far too much of not so long ago.

Sunny Side Up!,
Krista

Where the hell IS Desilu? Its in our hearts!

Alrighty, where do I begin?

Well, I've been to Lucy-Desi Days three times; 2005, 2006, and now 2008 and, I must say, 2008 was above and beyond any of the others.

AMAZING.

The highlight events for me were the 50th Anniversary tribute to the Desilu Playhouse which was hosted by the adorable Dann Cahn who was film editor on I Love Lucy and other Lucy shows as well, including the Lucy-Desi Comedy Hours, and a good friend of both Lucy and Desi. As that man sat up there on that stage reminiscing, I could see how his face was just lit with happiness at being able to talk so freely about what must have been one of the happiest periods in his lifetime.

As I made my way up there on friday morning, the one thing I wanted to come away with more than anything was a better understanding of what it was like to be right in the middle of it all, all of that creativity and comedic genius. However, I left Jamestown with so much more than that. I was given the privilege to look in on, not only Mr. Cahn's personal relationship with my favorite couple but, insight into just Lucille Ball, the human being, made possible by the darling Wanda Clark , who was Lucy's personal secretary for 30-plus years and Howard Rayfiel who was the attorney for Desilu Studios and Vice President of Lucille Ball Productions later on, who were host and co-host at I Remember Lucy on saturday morning where I was fortunate enough to snag an autographed copy of his memoir, Where the Hell is Desilu? which, I've heard from VERY credible sources, is a MUST READ for any Lucy lover. I cannot wait to crack it open but, Im still working on Portrait of a Lady and I'm strange in that I cannot begin another book until I've finished up any current reads. So, I'm going as fast as I can!

I also met the founder of Lucille Ball's fan club and author of weekly newsletters over at lucyfan.com, Tom Watson. He, too, was just a doll and I'm so happy to have met him.

All of their stories and memories are priceless treasures for me and I am beyond greatful that those lovely people were so eager to share them with me and all of my fellow fans who attended as well.

...But, that isn't to say that I didn't manage to spend oh...somewhere upwards of $450.00 on memorabilia and including all the events I attended, that jacks the tag up to almost $800.00. But hey, it was my early birthday trip so, that makes it completely justifiable.

On top of meeting almost every special guest, {sans Wilmer Valderamma but, he was not a priority on my list to begin with and at $100.00 a head, I highly doubt he was a must meet for many of us.}, I met a few lovely fellow fans/friends who I found myself speaking to more freely than I have spoken to anyone in my life. My only regret is that every time I ran into said individuals, I was not carrying my bag which had my address book so, I wasn't able to get any of their contact information.

And so, I'm a very happy young lady.
...for the first time in awhile.


Sunny Side Up!,
Krista.

My (not so funny) Valentine, to Lucy.

My funny valentine,
Sweet, comic valentine;
You make me smile with my heart.
Your looks are laughable,
Unphotographable,
Yet, you're my favorite work of art.

Don't change a hair for me,
Not if you care for me,
Stay, little valentine, stay;
Each day is valentine's day.

My Funny Valentine, Rodgers & Hart,
1937

Right there, that little showtune I just quoted, It's exactly my feelings for Lucille Ball.

Her extensive body of work; three television series , over 80 films , and countless guest television appearances and specials; all just parts of the whole which, put together, leaves us with the valentine that she put together so diligently over the span of her 40+ year career in movies and television.

A lot of you might not be able to understand the way I feel about this incredible woman and, that's okay; understandable even.

I'll come right out and say it..

Lucille Ball saved me from suicide.

Yeah, that's right, that crazy "redhead" whose only real plot was trying to get into show business by cooking up hair-brained schemes with her BFF, Ethel, and driving her temperamental Cuban husband absolutely bananas with her unpredictability; that scatterbrained secretary who pushed her ultra- serious, no nonsense, yet somehow lovable curmudgeon of a boss, Mr. Mooney's buttons until they could be pushed no more; that doting working mother.. no, that's wrong..

None of those ladies are the individual who showed me what the world could hold in store for anyone who made the decision that their lives are no longer going to run them, they are going to take the bull by the horns and start running their lives. Granted, they are all a part of the lady I speak of but oh, what small, miniscule, cells they are in the person that was Lucille Desiree Ball.




The woman who refused to let CBS executives tell her that the American public would never buy into the idea that her all-American, Protestant self could possibly be married to the tempremental, 'hot-blooded', Catholic [gasp!] "latin bongo beater"; Desi Arnaz and, that's why he couldn't be cast as her spouse in the TV pilot which was in the works for her; by saying, But..we have been married for 10 years...and if he doesn't do it, I don't do it..

The woman who did not allow herself to sink and forcefully yet purposefully picked up the reins and trudged forward after the seemingly tragic dissolution of her 19 year union with the love of her life and, up until that point, the brains that kept the 'Lucy' empire running smoothly...

The lady, who at the tender age of 50, became the first woman to ever be appointed as the head of a studio, and went on to assist in the creation of such pop culture staples as Star Trek and Mission Impossible..

The caring, loving woman who was appointed National Chairwoman of the March of Dimes , made countless donations to hospitals, opened her home to children whose last dying wish was to 'meet LUCY!', and even, in one instance, funded the hospital stay of a woman who worked for her..

THAT is the incredible individual who showed me, taught me, unbeknownst to her of course; that there are, indeed, lovely human beings on this Earth, they just do not always sing [oh, lawdd, should I use that? ;-)]as loudly as those who are dead set on making others feel inadequate and unwanted.

Pardon me but I'm going to add this here as well:



I love you, Lucy and, for the millionth and one time, thank you.
For everything. All of your sacrifices, your hard work, 'twas not in vain, lovely.

I'm here, in large part, because of all of them.

And so, this weekend is all for you, darling.
I hope beyond hope that you're up there, looking down, reveling in the celebration of your life, as I continue on with my own.





With all of my love and deepest gratitude,

Sunny Side Up!,
Krista

OR-E-O, Ohhhh...

Remember the song I Have Confidence from The Sound of Music and how, as Maria is leaving the abbey to travel to the home of Captain Von Trapp, she sing-speaks the line

A captain with seven children. What's so fearsome about that?

Well, I misheard that line, if you will, for many years, misintreperting it as:

A Captain with seven children, what's a fearsome RUBBER BAT?

..I would sing out loud in that manner too, until a fellow SOM lover corrected me as we sat in her living room one evening watching it with a big bowl of extra butter popcorn between us..(that was pre- all natural eating, mind you)

Here's a rather funny example of such a misunderstanding but, on a bit of a larger scale:
Gospel Subtitles.

In the same vein..
I've always been adamant about the fact that as the monkeys in The Wizard of Oz are marching up the stairway of the castle, they are most definitely chanting:
OR-E-O, Ohhhh...
Am I right or...am I right?

So, has this happened to any of you?
If so, what song and what did you think it said only to find out much later, perhaps embarrassingly, that you were mistaken?

Sunny Side Up!,
Krista