Bob and Whiskers – 1955 – Guest Blog Post

This guest post is in response to Murphy the Airedale’s passing. We are grateful to so many friends and followers for their lovely email and text messages and comments on the blogpost, too. Many of you have experienced pet loss and understand how painful it is.

On Wednesday morning, my neighbor Bob (from across the hall at school) brought me a copy of this wonderful photograph with 1955 written in the margin. It touched me so. Later in the afternoon I asked if I could please share it on the blog.

Here is what Bob wrote for the blog when I asked if it would be okay to post………..

This picture of my dog Whiskers and me was taken in 1955 with an second-hand camera that had light leak. My oldest sister took this photo. He was a mixed terrier. On July 4th, 1957 my pal was attacked by a very large German Shepherd and he passed away 2 days later. I was 6 in this picture. My buddy was 5.

After 58 years, I have never forgotten what a great family member he was and I still miss him. This is on the Southside of Pittsburgh.

My face and hands and my pup were as dirty as the air we breathed back then.

There was a song on the radio that came out just about the time of my dog’s passing. It was ” I’m saving my money to buy you a rainbow“. Whenever I hear or think of that song, it takes me back to those wonderful days with my dog Whiskers, when “life was in black and white”.

Thanks for your kind sympathy Bob. I appreciate your thoughtfulness to me and also my family as we grieve the loss of dear Murphy.

Pyramid of LED Lights on the Gulf Tower, Change with the Weather

Dear Blog Readers,

Thank you for the thoughtful expressions of sympathy, your comments and emails yesterday, on the passing of Murphy the Airedale.

It means a lot to the whole family to read such an outpouring of love, care and concern. Your words offer comfort and understanding. xxoo Ruth

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For years the Gulf Tower Building ( built in 1930) had a beacon that displayed the weather- red lights for fair or blue lights for precipitation

Now The Gulf Tower has a fancy installation of programmed LED lights that change with the holidays, sporting events and special occasions but still tell the weather at five minutes before the hour. The combination of lights can produce any color.

Designed by Cindy Limauro, professor of lighting design at Carnegie Mellon University and husband, Christopher Popowich, partners in C&C Lighting LLC.

Murphy the Airedale- A Family’s Best Friend

Murphy Joseph McGrath. Murphy passed today. He just turned 11. He was patient, loving, loyal, humorous and adored by everyone. What a personality!

It is a very sad day for the family.

If you’ve been following the blog you’ve seen his photograph many times. I swear he smiled for the camera.

He was one of the first posts on the blog, Murphy Waits for Michael.

So many of you expressed sympathy recently on the passing of Erika’s parents Italian Greyhound, Cleo. It’s been a hard month.

Today’s tribute is for Mark and Erika’s, Anna, Michael, Jack and Maura’s dear sweet boy- Murphy!

When Mark and Erika brought each of the babies home from the hospital, Murphy was there to welcome them into the family. Murphy was a pup before M & E got married. He was a loving and well loved member of the family. ( Erika would get mad at me if I called him “dog”)

There are no words to describe the sadness, the missing. You may remember the photos from his Tenth Birthday post last year.

Anna is nine now but here she is just home from Mercy Hospital

Murphy’s favorite tree in Virginia. He represented for the Weekly Photo Challenge: Peaceful.

Photographed by Erika

In Hardy Virginia

Rest in Peace Murphy

Get in on Knit the Bridge Project NOW! Deadline is June 1st.

My friend Ellen sent me an email about the Knit the Bridge project. You know how we Pittsburghers feel about our bridges.

The Knit the Bridge project is a YARN BOMB thing planned for the Andy Warhol Bridge and is an outreach project for Fiberart International 2013 Knitting Communities together one bridge at a time

We even got together with another friend and knit a bit one evening. Well, not much. We were catching up on one another’s lives now that we don’t teach in the same school anymore. I was reluctant to commit to knit for the project as I had so many projects started. I thought I would knit one 17×17 inch square to help out. It has to be in acrylic yarn and bright colors are desired. I even went to the Red White and Blue Secondhand shop looking for donated yarn to purchase. No luck. The knit or crochet pieces/panels are due June first. There are directions and suggestions for the knit and/or crochet panels at the Knit the Bridge (wordpress blog) and all kinds of information if you want to consider participating. You can mail me your knit pieces and I will turn them in at a drop off point. Of course I plan to photograph the bridge when it is KNIT!

Now I have signed up to knit an entire panel. I’m just starting. It will be 72″ x 34″. Oh my. They need almost 600 panels!

What have I done? I bought some yarn and started my granddaughter Anna (9) on a square 17×17. Then Maura (4) wanted to sit on my lap and learn how to knit so I started her off and amazingly she seemed to “get it” right away. Both granddaughters are left handed so I didn’t know how to do it any differently from how I already knit.

Just got in from visiting the family in Ohio this weekend and so took a quick pic of the bag of yarn to knit in the foyer after I unpacked the car. I put the phone camera down into the bag of yarn and the hall light on the desk illuminated it through the white plastic bag.

Some crazy colors that should show up nicely.

I like to do plain knitting, back and forth, back and forth, watch it grow.

It calms me, sucks out my anxiety. I am going to be very peaceful and relaxed when it ‘s complete

with all that knitting required!

Kids Marvel at Typewriter

In this age of devices and flat screen tv, the kids marvel at my friend V’s typewriter. She said remembers how she used to type her college term papers on it in the early 70’s.
Michael (7) was fascinated with Tin-Tin and inspired by the typewriter he saw in the movie. He asked if I could bring one out to Ohio. V had given this to Laura when L was in high school. I had it in the hall closet. Michael typed the name of each member of the family and the others were mesmerized.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Change

Change.

Have you ever tried to?

Change your mind about something or someone?

Change-the only constant of our lives.

Oh, you changed your hair.

“You’ve got to change, baby”

Change trains.

I have a friend who can change the subject on a dime.

Many people don’t enjoy change.

I can change a diaper. Four quarters for a buck. Switch directions in the car when necessary. Change lanes.

But change?

Really truly change. Change my ways. Change my habits. Change my thinking?

Lots of people are worrying about Climate Change.

Subtle change, drastic change.

Here are some suggested change illustrations-

Hot Dog Vendor checks his supply of change.

Architecture changes over time.

The window dresser changes the window.

Waiting for the red light to change.

And you can always count on the weather to change,

the seasons to change-

although sometimes the pace is agonizingly slow.

Thanks to everyone who sent good words for the milestone 1300th post. Now what? Can’t change it up now, so here’s #1301.

This is a sad change- what it looked like about 7 years ago

On the way into school Friday morning. Steeler umbrella, daffodils, new green grass and a Spring rain NOT snow! A change for the better.

Thirteen Hundredth Post Today

This is the blog’s 1300th post today. I don’t think I mentioned when it hit number 1200 or 1100. Thanks for following and looking and writing when you can.

Maybe it was the 13 which was the lucky number for two of my kids on their baseball uniforms years ago!

I was sitting on the floor and looked at some of Matthew’s books on a shelf at his Aunt Mary’s, thinking about him. Saw the brick wall reflected in the vintage looking alarm clock.

What Laura and James Found While Digging in their Garden

It’s gardening season finally. Planting grass seed. Thinking about what vegetables to plant. James and Laura were preparing their garden and found this Old School original Fisher-Price Little People® girl. Wooden head. Wooden body.

I think she got transferred from my son and his wife’s house to my daughter and her husband’s house. Not by a bird but a grandchild. Will have to check and see if the same girl is living in two homes.

Awhile ago I did a post on the various generations of the Little People® I’d come across at the family’s house in Columbus.

No worries about choking hazard when these were manufactured. And here’s the crazy part. I discovered a site that identifies the Little People®.

From what I could determine she’s from late 60s early 70s. On the site she is listed as Occupation: Girl.

I think they are a match!

Here are the three generations from the October 2011 post

Need an Ohio Spider ID

How do you feel about spiders?

Found under the kids’ sandbox when cleaned out on Sunday. Not sure if it is a biting spider or not. I had no idea there were so many types of spiders in the world.

Looked at some photos online but started to feel confused. Hope someone can tell what kind of a spider he is and if we should worry he is making his home underneath the sandbox.

Anyone have a clue?

I remember reading the kids a book when they were little –Be Nice To Spiders.

Portrait of Husband Who Waits for Wife While She Shops in the Shoe Department

How about this department store for ambience? Hospitality?

Von Maur Department Store in Columbus, Ohio at Polaris Mall. This is Donald, my son’s father-in-law waiting in a comfortable chair by the fireplace in the shoe department. I was shopping too and saw him sitting there and had to photograph him in this elegant setting.

A few weeks before, Anna had told me that a Giant Sock Monkey was on sale at Von Maur. (What’s a grandmother for?) Making sock monkeys for all the grandchildren had kept me busy but this one was giant.

My sister and I drove out from NYC the day before. Early Friday morning we went and and picked up the Giant Sock Monkey and had taken it to the car as a surprise for later. He’d been in the Customer Service Department where they said they were feeding him bananas daily. A couple of weeks ago, I’d called from Pittsburgh and ordered him by phone and asked them to save him for pick up at Easter time. There was a thank you note from the sales associate Taylor attached to the huge package. thanking me for my purchase. The Customer Service at Von Maur is excellent.

Anyway, Anna wanted to show me something in the Children’s Department but when we got to the spot, whatever she wanted to show me was GONE. Little did she know that the Giant Sock Monkey was already wearing a seat belt in my back seat. It was a fun day.

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