According to one of my favorite poets, William Wordsworth, "Poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings...." The poem below is a perfect example of that expression and seemed to be "the right one" for posting here today.
Yesterday's blogging prompt (which I missed) was "Author's Choice." So here is my contribution, a day late.
Deep-fried turkey became a Thanksgiving sensation, at least in the Deep South, during the late 1980's. A tradition that began in Louisiana's Cajun country, fried turkey gradually became an alternative in many parts of the country to roast turkey at Thanksgiving and often, the turkey that graced the Christmas table. Since this blogger has never fried a turkey, I cannot begin to describe the process. I have seen it done, so I do know that frying a turkey is best accomplished outside the house in a special "turkey fryer" that holds several gallons of cooking oil. But back to the story. My oldest daughter had just moved out on her own and wanted to have our family's Christmas in her new place of abode. After years of preparing holiday meals for my own large family, I was more than ready for someone else to assume some of the responsibility. So I eagerly agreed that we would accept her invitation. But things didn't go the way I expected - by Christmas Eve, she had "assigned" the usual holiday dishes to her mother. And she "volunteered" to cook the turkey. This turn of events should not have surprised me. When she was a teenager, I often referred to her as "The Microwave Princess," since her only interest in the kitchen seemed to be heating something in the microwave.
Christmas Day arrived, and we opened gifts and had our usual Christmas breakfast. After breakfast, I set about getting my "assigned" dishes prepared and ready to transport to my daughter's house about two miles away. (No, she didn't move very far from home!) With all of the turkey's trimmings in the car, we arrived at her house at the appointed time. But what we saw as we were turning the corner was a total shock - a fire truck and an EMT vehicle were parked in the driveway and smoke was billowing out of two open windows! As I felt a sinking feeling deep in my stomach, I heard my daughter calling out to me, with a big smile on her face, saying, "Don't worry, it's just the turkey."
You must be wondering what caused all of this drama, so here's the rest of the story. Without telling me what she planned to do, my daughter had decided to fry a turkey breast, not roast the entire turkey. But she had forgotten to thaw the turkey breast. Not realizing what would happen to that frozen chunk of turkey, she had attempted to fry the turkey breast in a large pot of hot oil - not outside, but on the top of her almost new kitchen stove. Well, I don't think I need to go on - you can get the picture - one that involves fire, smoke, and lots and lots of grease! Fortunately, no one was burned or otherwise injured, except the turkey.
Years later, the "turkey fire" is a classic "remember when" Christmas story at our house. But it's one that I hope isn't repeated any time soon.
Today, NBC announced the names of celebrities who will be searching their family trees on the second season of "Who Do You Think You Are?" Names included in the press release were Ashley Judd, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kim Cattrall, Lionel Richie, Rosie O'Donnell, Steve Buscemi, Tim McGraw, and Vanessa Williams. Watch for the first show of the season on Friday, February 4, 2011, when it airs at 8-9 p.m. (ET). According to NBC's press release, the television show is "an adaptation of the award-winning hit British television documentary series that leads celebrities on a journey of self-discovery as they unearth their family trees that reveal surprising, inspiring, and even tragic stories that often are linked to crucial events in American history." To read more about the show, click here, or visit the show's website.
The December calendar is a busy one for our family. As a young girl, I learned that my paternal grandparents, were married on December 8th. Since their first and only child, my Dad, made his appearance on December 9th (the next year), my grandparents always jokingly referred to their marriage date and my Dad's birthday as if the two occurred one day apart. And then my Dad married my Mother, and their second child, my oldest brother, was born on my Dad's birthday. Although none of my oldest brother's children were born in December, his second wife's birthday is in December, ironically the same day (and year) as his own. The two of them joke that neither will ever forget the other's birthday! But the December birthdays certainly did not end there - my oldest brother (born on December 9th) has a granddaughter whose birthday is December 17th, and my youngest brother was born on December 4th. It was destiny, I suppose, that my youngest brother's first child, a daughter, was born on December 22. Just call December the "Month of Birthdays" for our family.
The anniversary and the birthdays mentioned here are all happy events, but life is not all happiness and joy, even at Christmastime. A number of years ago, our family's happiness turned to sorrow, when my oldest brother lost his beloved wife to cancer just before dawn on Christmas morning. When my young sister-in-law died that morning, Christmas Day stood still and sadness enveloped our entire family. Not only did she leave a grief-stricken husband, but three young children lost their mother. Although my brother is now happily remarried and the three children are married with families of their own, I know that memories of that sad Christmas morning will be with all of us for a lifetime.
Good News! Family Tree Magazine has just announced its nominations for the Top 40 Best Genealogy Blogs contest, and Mississippi Memories is on the list! Nominated in the My Family History category, this blog is included on a list of other blogs authored by some of the genealogy community's most talented family history researchers, writers, and technology experts. I am both humbled and honored that my little blogwas among those nominated. Votingfor theTop 40began yesterday and continues through 11:59 P.M. on Monday, December 20, 2010. If you choose to vote forMississippi Memories(and Ireallyhope you do!), please go to this link, whereyou mayvote as many times as you choose betweenow and next Monday's deadline. A big Thank You goes out to all of my readers, and especially to those of you who nominated this blog. And thank you in advance for voting for Mississippi Memories as one of Family Tree Magazine's Top 40 Genealogy Blogs!
A few days ago, footnoteMaven challenged fellow GeneaBloggers to blog their favorite Christmas carols - to participate in "blog-caroling," that is. Choosing a favorite Christmas carol was the difficult part for me, because I love all Christmas music - it's truly magical. Although I must admit that traditional music is my favorite, for this challenge, I decided to go with something more unique, something different ---contemporary with a flair --- a duet with David Bowie and Bing Crosby singing "The Little Drummer Boy/Peace on Earth."
Everything in life has a story behind it, and this duet has one, too. It was performed in 1977 on the last Bing Crosby Christmas television special that aired before Crosby's death occurred a short time later. When I first heard the song on a local radio station while driving home from work in late 2004, I listed to the music and the words with absolute awe. But I did not have a clue about who the vocalists were. This does not surprise me now, for in 1977, I had three young children, including a 6 month old baby, a full-time job, and little time for television. I am sure that I missed Bing Crosby's Christmas Special. I still remember how intently I continued to listen to the song on the radio, waiting for the announcer to identify the singers. When the announcer finally informed his listeners that David Bowie and Bing Crosby were singing this beautiful, powerful piece of music, I was quite surprised and truly amazed. Just today, a news article was published in the Los Angeles Times that includes mention of the "iconic duet" performed during that last Bing Crosby Christmas television special.
A video of the special Crosby-Bowie duet can be viewed below, and the words to the song appear at the bottom of this post. I hope you enjoy this unique version of a well-remembered Christmas carol recorded by two well-known artists and the special Christmas message it holds.
