I hope you all had a nice Valentine’s Day. We sure did, even if it was quiet. We stayed in bed cuddling and talking about how wonderful life is to be married to your best friend for a long time yesterday morning. Can you think of a better way to start the day?
I spent much of the day doing what I’ve been doing for a while now, working on the new issue of the Gypsy Journal. Sometimes I get sidetracked because while I am researching a story I find other things that fascinate me and I start checking them out, and before you know it I have lost a couple of hours.
Such was the case yesterday. I’m doing a story on a visit to Judy Garland’s childhood home in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, which is now a museum devoted to her life and career. In doing some research on the actress I came across references about how so many of the child actors in Hollywood were mistreated back in those days.
Garland, who was 15 when she made the movie, said that she was molested on the set of the Wizard of Oz, that the studios used to keep the young actors hyped up on pep pills so they could work 48 and even 72 hours at time, then give them sleeping pills so they could get some rest before they woke them up and put them to work again. She also claimed that in an effort to keep her young girl next-door figure, studio executives kept her on a diet of chicken soup and coffee. I started looking at similar allegations by other child actors and was shocked by some of the things I read. No amount of fame is worth what some of those kids had to go through.
On a happier note, Terry has been weaving the last few days, and here is her finished creation. Actually, I guess I should say two creations.
These crackle pattern scarves are beautiful and each measures about 65 inches long. They are made from tencel yarn, which is silk-like and has a beautiful sheen that moves in the changing light.
During the afternoon our friend Jim Lewis came by and I took a break so we could throw a few rounds of darts. It’s very seldom that either Terry or I can beat Jim, but it has happened on a few rare occasions. I have very little consistency when I throw. I can place two darts so close together they are almost touching, and the third one might be clear on the other side of the board. It was that way back when I was bowling, too. Sometimes I would bowl a strike, and the next two or three times up it was all I could do to keep the balls out of the gutter.
After humiliating me at darts, Jim made up for it by taking us to Alberto’s Restaurant for a delicious Italian dinner. If he keeps picking up the check like that, I may make it a point to lose every game we play!
We are supposed to have a storm system coming through this area today with the possibility of severe weather. They say it is going to be a fast-moving system, so hopefully it will come and go quickly and with no damage to anyone around here.
Thought For The Day – Most children threaten at times to run away from home. This is the only thing that keeps some parents going. – Phyllis Diller
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Nick Russell
World-Famous, New York Times Best Selling Author, and All-Around Nice Guy!