Sammonicus Lux

Suicidal Tendencies - Institutionalized (Music and lyrics)

2011-08-14T23:08:00.000-04:00

A Dozen Things I Miss About Mike...Plus One

2011-08-14T16:46:00.004-04:00

In every state, city or town we traveled to, I have at least one photo of him 'flipping the finger'.

He always brought a 'doggie bag' home for the cat.

He would sit next to my mom at the movies and never complain about her constant chatter...mostly because he was asleep!

He was incredibly tolerant of people,even stupid people. Even me.

He never forgot an important date...and always sent me flowers on our special days.

He had my name tattooed on his chest right over his heart (and under the naked, big busted woman riding the handle of a pistol). I miss ALL the tattoos.

He never met a penguin he didn't like. Nor a leg lamp he wouldn't buy!

He had this remarkable ability to have fun like a kid. Like when we flew kites together and I got his Spiderman kite hopelessly stuck in a tree...he pouted for hours. And then he was over it and doing something else for the fun of it.

He told the BEST true stories, ever!

He had this supernatural ability to find an Irish Pub ANYWHERE we went.

Music! Music! Music! Always.

He would say "I Love You" to me and his mom everyday...even when he had to grit his teeth and bite his tongue. And we both knew he meant it.

And the Plus One:

Every single night Mike would pour a bowl of Captain Crunch cereal and sit down on the side of the bed with his bowl. Angel (poofy, fluffy, white old diabetic cat...his second wife, honestly) would already be waiting. She would wait...not so patiently...tapping his leg with her paw...until he was done with the cereal. Then he would tell her, "You can have ten licks of milk" and he would count them down way too slowly. It made them both very happy. It used to drive me crazy. Now I wish for them both to be sitting on the bed just one more time, together.

I just hope they have Captain Crunch in heaven.

Paper Bullets "Trick or Treat"

2011-08-14T16:12:00.000-04:00

Who can't wait for Halloween?

2011-08-14T02:00:00.000-04:00

ME!! I can't.

Slytherin'

2011-08-14T01:31:00.003-04:00

Nope...i am not going to see the last Potter film. i just can't see my favorite Potions Master ever get, well, get...snake bit! And neither Hinoserm or Maniac Mike are here to enjoy the movie with. i'm sure Mike would have dressed up and played along even though he never read the books. He heard enough about them from me. i am not even gonna mention the girls in their Hogwarts school uniforms! Those skirts made his three hour wait for the midnight release of HP and the Half Blood Prince worthwhile.
i could always count on my kid and my husband to do the silly stuff with me...and i think that everywhere we went, we always had a good time.
So, Hino, when do we hit the road to Roswell??????

Order Up!

2011-01-06T05:06:00.003-05:00

Sometimes, at the library, I feel like a short order cook slingin' hash for the Sunday morning breakfast crowd, except I'm cookin' up books and I don't make tips. Also, we're not open on Sundays.

This picture was taken in the Berkshires in 2009.

Lily watching the Blackstone

2011-01-02T18:07:00.001-05:00

Ashton Mill January 2010

2011-01-02T18:02:00.002-05:00

A Very Long Movie

2010-09-21T01:06:00.002-04:00

i finally got Mike's old laptop hooked up. i cannot handle all this new technology...cell phones, digital cameras, Google Chrome, On Demand, I-Pods, etc. i refuse to get a Blu-Ray player but a Karaoke Machine would come in handy.

news from Rae: around 2:00pm monday she was folding clothes with her mom in her BRAND NEW HOUSE! we'll be comin', Rae. get us a few lumberjacks or horror novelists or whatever guys you got up there in Maine.

on saturday, mom and i went to see two movies: The Last Exorcism and Devil. we were in the theater from 5:30 until 9:40 pm. when my sister asked my mother what we watched she said, "A very long movie." ONE very long movie. no clue that she saw two. atleast she didn't ask me how my "Sweetheart" was doing. "He's dead, ma! geezus!"
while we were sitting down for the first movie, i could have sworn i saw Mike sit down next to my mom (we would keep him near her because he could manage AND he usually fell asleep anyway.) i'm told things like that are normal but it makes my heart jump.

the library is not the same without Rae. i think we are all in a kind of depression. we did hire a new full-timer and i'm pretty sure we will all get along fine. other than that, we have the usual daily dramas that both makes work suck AND makes work interesting. funny how that works.

Quote

2009-09-16T02:53:00.001-04:00

So, like Frankenstein, we sent Igor out into the graveyard of old ideas to see what he can dig up.

-Rocky Kolb

The Gravestone in September

2009-09-15T14:53:00.001-04:00

This is our family plot in Notre Dame Cemetery, Pawtucket. There were 6 plots: 3 are filled and my mom already has her name on the headstone, so she's in. i would like to bury some of Mike's ashes there but can you imagine a third name on that stone. Someone suggested we just chisel and "etc" at the bottom and just shovel us all in.

Winter weather in Ashton

2009-01-18T14:25:00.006-05:00

view between building A (left) and building B (right)

view of the Kelly House on the other side of the river (with bike paths)

along the Blackstone

View of the Blackstone

View of the fence and trees along the river side

Salem pics 01-03-09

2009-01-03T21:50:00.005-05:00

MM in front of the Broom Closet...the store that started us on our journey to Salem today. it did NOT live up to it's own publicity. the store did carry SOME Harry Potter stuff...including some Olivander wands, but the proprietress was the iciest shopkeeper we met. everyone else (and i mean EVERYONE) was super friendly. in one shop we met another chihuahua nicknamed 'cheeks' that looked so much like the Chica that owns one of our library staff. i think the friendliness may be due, in part, to all the incense smouldering everywhere.

that's me under the Magic Parlor sign. this was the coolest store we visited. charms, potions, statues, candles, herbs, Holy Water, voodoo candles and dolls, etc. more shit than you could shake your wand at...which would also include fake doggie poo, too.

MM in front of a super cool "so many books, so many bruised noggins" used bookstore. the books were STACKED in 12 ft tall piles and if you wanted one, you had to get someone to help you balance the rest of the books in that pile. dropped at least 30 books and the proprietor did not care.

Maniac Mike in front of the Salem directory.

pictures 01-02-09

2009-01-02T23:57:00.005-05:00

Maniac Mike in front of one of our favorite stores (still not as cool as The Armaggedon Shop

The Pillar of Truth (and shit)

my altar to Mary and Poppy

Elder Ballou Cemetery photos-fall 2008

2009-01-02T00:17:00.007-05:00

three pyramids on the headstone

M walking along rock wall

Maniac Mike happy to be sitting on an old New England rock wall.

i HAD this view...

2008-09-01T19:16:00.003-04:00

well, without the hot guy and the cool car. but i woke up every day to a view of Diamond Head, saw 3 billion-zillion rainbows (some were triples!) and every day i wonder why i am HERE INRI!

Viruses and Politicians will always be with us...

2008-07-06T00:26:00.003-04:00

if you find a way to eradicate* a Virus, you'll win a Nobel Prize for Medicine.

so, if you find a way to eradicate** the Politicians, will you win the Nobel Peace Prize?

*this blogger opposes violence/terrorism against all life-forms

**except Viruses. i think we should really, really terrorize those damn viruses. Kill The Common Cold Now!!

please don't send your Patriot (missile) Act after me! at least have the decency to wait until You have taken ALL my rights away. thanks.

Quote: Pastor Martin Niemoller

2008-06-19T01:03:00.001-04:00

"They came first for the Communists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist.

Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew.

Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Catholics,
and I didn't speak up because I was a Protestant.

Then they came for me,
and by that time no one was left to speak up."

-Pastor Martin Niemoller
Germany, WWII

Quote: Aung San Suu Kyi

2008-06-15T20:59:00.003-04:00

"It is not power that corrupts but fear. Fear of losing power corrupts those who wield it and fear of the scourge of power corrupts those who are subject to it."

-Aung San Suu Kyi
Nobel Peace Prize winner
in this (her) 13th year of 'house arrest', Burma

Quote: Susan B Anthony

2008-06-12T01:31:00.001-04:00

"No self respecting woman should wish or work for the success of a party that ignores her."

-Susan B Anthony

Quote: Bertrand Russell

2008-06-10T22:48:00.001-04:00

"People would rather die than think. And they do."

-Bertrand Russell

Oh, those crazy Hispanics!

2008-06-09T03:29:00.002-04:00

true library story:

an elderly female patron (that none of us like) scotch taped a note to a book and got goo on the cover. someone mentioned this to the circ head and she approached the patron in the nicest way and simply asked her not to tape anything on books. BIG mistake.

this patron loves to talk, which is partly why no one likes her. some of the things that come out of her mouth make us uncomfortable or downright angry.

the circ head got involved in a conversation that she could not get out of. she mentioned her new dog and the patron began talking about her own dog. i really was trying to tune it all out when i heard the patron say: "I don't like Chihuahuas. Those Hispanics are always trying to push their Chihuahuas on us!!"

i did a doubletake. i could not wrap my head around what she just said! it was too crazy, so racist and WEIRD! so, of course i had to run in the back and tell everyone what i just heard. MY GOD!

i said: "gee, i wish someone would push a Chihuahua on ME! i WANT one!"

sometimes the racism in this country IS blatant and sometimes it is subtle and sometimes it is just ABSURD. it is never tolerable, of course, but how do you respond to a remark like that?

Quote

2008-06-09T03:25:00.000-04:00

“There are none so enslaved as those who falsely believe they are free.”

Goethe

Quote: Who said this?

2008-04-30T01:09:00.005-04:00

hint: the time: February 12, 1920

"I do not understand this sqeamishness about the use of gas. I am strongly in favour of using poison gas against uncivilised tribes."

the quote refers to (more specifically) the Kurds and Iraqis and (generally) to Arabs.

hint: one of the "greatest" men of our century.

-------------------------------------------------

Winston Churchill

found at:
http://www.againstbombing.org/chemical.htm

Snape's on a Plane

2008-04-26T21:54:00.002-04:00

i couldn't resist!

Quote: Eleanor Roosevelt

2008-04-23T00:26:00.002-04:00

For it isn't enough to talk about peace.
One must believe in it.
And it isn't enough to believe in it.
One must work at it.

-Eleanor Roosevelt

quote from Have A Nice Doomsday

2008-04-14T23:12:00.005-04:00

"...fence sitting was no better than throwing brickbats, at least in God's eyes."

author-Nicholas Guyatt, 2007
ISBN978-0-06-115224-5

a most excellent quote!

i would never throw brickbats into God's eyes, but then, i am not a fence sitter. not since i was registered as an Independent, anyway.

brickbat-–noun 1. a piece of broken brick, esp. one used as a missile.
2. any rocklike missile.
3. an unkind or unfavorable remark; caustic criticism: The protestors greeted the president with brickbats. er, right.

a most excellent word, brickbat. not quite as good as bric-a-brac (also good for greeting presidents, by the way.)

quote from The Manchurian Candidate

2008-04-13T22:52:00.003-04:00

"What is the conciousness of guilt but the arena floor rushing up to meet the falling trapeze artist? Without it, a bullet becomes a tourist flying without responsibility through the air. The conciousness of guilt gives a scent to humanity, a threat of putrefaction, the ultimate cosmetic. Without the conciousness of guilt, existence had become so bland in Paradise that Eve welcomed the Pungency of Original Sin."

-author Richard Condon, 1959

Tha Manchurian Candidate
ISBN0743482972

quote from Apocalypse 2012

2008-04-13T22:40:00.005-04:00

"Save the world. Destroy the world. It's all pretty much the same ambition-that is, to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt the absurd proposition that life is divided into two roughly equal halves: oneself, and the rest of the Universe."

author-Lawrence E Joseph, 2008

Apocalypse 2012: An Investigation Into Civilization's End
ISBN9780767924481

Love, RI Division of Taxation

2008-04-13T19:32:00.005-04:00

in an effort to ignore all the Really, Really Rotten Shit happening this weekend, i will only write about the really rotten shit: RI Tax Forms.

first of all, the great state of RI & Providence Plantations did not even BOTHER to mail out forms nor did they bother to provide forms to the Libraries as they have done for, like, forever. well, not in 1629. in that year, they provided Quahog shells. so, they saved a bunch of money by placing the financial (and emotional) burden on Libraries and Librarians. oh, the State did have a number to call to request tax forms (to be sent to one's home) but NO ONE (not one single individual) i know who did call EVER get their forms. some people tried and tried but could not even get through. other folks were kept on hold for 15, 20, 30 minutes and STILL never received the forms they requested. way to go RI! INRI, it's all about efficiency! they also alienated the elderly population, the insane population, the normal population and the intelligent population (3 people somewhere in Burrillville [pronounced: bah-RAH-vil]) and half of Massachusetts. we are always alienating Massachusetts. just by existing, we alienate Massachusetts.

INRI, tax forms are also a good way to raise money for several organizations; many of them, i'm sure, are worthy. just tick a box and some of your tax refund will go to: #24 Drug Program Account (yes, i would like some drugs, please!)
#25 Olympic Contribution (i would like to finance the Jamaican Bobsled Team.)
#26 RI Organ Transplant Fund (no, just take my gallbladder, thanks!)
#27 RI Council for the Arts (one performance artist at RISD.)
#28 RI Nongame Wildlife Fund (oh, come on, Be Game!)
#29 RI Childhood Disease Victim's Fund (i had meningitis when i was 8. REFUND!)
#30 RI Military Family Relief Fund (how about, um, ending the WAR!)

see, some good organizations. there is also, of course, the political contribution.

what if we had some REALLY useful deductions instead?

#24 Deduction for having to run all over hell and highwater to find this form: $10
#25 Deduction for envelope and stamp: 46 cents
#26 Deduction to help repay cost to local libraries for all the ink and paper they used to print out forms from your website for people who don't own a computer: $100
#27 Deduction for migraines, nervous tics, mental breakdowns and depression incurred by tax paying residents of aforementioned state: PRICELESS.

the ONE thing i like about RI tax forms...and let me know if they do this in YOUR state...is that the form has a little Happy Smiley Face in the place where you would write in the amount you are to be refunded and there is a Very Sad Unsmiley face where you would write in the amount that you owe RI. it would be comical, if not so tragic. oh, soooo tragic!

Have a Nice Sister! AND New for Easter! The Taserphone!

2008-03-20T18:35:00.002-04:00

yesterday, i was helping two patrons. one was the 50ish daughter with a long, horribly costume-y black wig and her 75+ dad with a heavy accent (of unknown origin). they both wanted Herbie the Love Bug movies on videocassette. we have two: The Love Bug and Herbie Goes Bananas. the dad already had The Love Bug in his hand and he wanted more movies. i told him we had Herbie Goes Bananas and he said, "Yeah, yeah...that one!" so, i looked on the juvenile shelves (where it SHOULD have been), then the adult shelves, then the shelving carts. then i looked in the catalog and it did show that it was AVAILABLE which means it SHOULD be in the library. damn. i was about to set it to missing when i turned around just to look on the return cart and BAM! there it was! so, i said [smiling, happy], "Wow. you're lucky. someone just returned it!" and the dad said, "Yeah. I did!"

sigh

so, i told him i could get Herbie goes to Monte Carlo and he was happy with that. i was disgruntled and figured i'd leave it at that and look up other (are there other?) Herbie movies the next time they come in.
so, as the dad leaves he smiles and waves and says, "Have a Nice Sister!"

?!

i say, "You, too!" and wave back. what the hell? my coworker looks at me, i look at her, we shrug and then a little light bulb pops up over her head [POP!], "Oh! He said 'Have a Nice EASTER!'".

i walked into a conversation behind circ where i thought i overheard one circworker say to the techie, "It would be nice if the text messaging screen would pop up ON THE GUN."

?!

so i said, "Why? So you can text the guy before you shoot him...that's fucked up!"

????!!!!!

they were not talking about guns with text messaging capabilities but in this crazy society, it seemed possible to me. they DID start talking about a 'great' idea: a Taser Phone. an actual cell with built in Taser. a useful device with added protection. i said, "Why? So every time i answer my phone i can electrocute myself? No Thanks!". then the techie said, "Yeah. What would i say to a mugger...Wait! I need to make a phone call before you rob me?" HA!

"Futzing around"

2008-03-20T00:29:00.004-04:00

a most excellent word: 'Futz'
a most excellent phrase: 'Futzing around'

on Dictionary.com

futz intr.v. futzed, futz·ing, futz·es Slang
To waste time or effort on frivolities; fool. Often used with around.

"Stop futzing around with that thinga-ma-bob and get to bed!"

[Possible blend of fuck and putz.]

excellent! something new to use at work. did i mention i used to read the dictionary for fun when i was a kid? i still do!

'futzing around' found in the book Freakonomics. read it!

HateYou! Have a Nice Day!

2008-03-01T16:03:00.002-05:00

God I wish that I could hide away
And find a wall to bang my brains
I'm living in a fantasy, a nightmare dream... reality...

...I hate people
I hate the human race
I hate people
I hate your ugly face
I hate people
I hate your fucking mess
I hate people
They hate me

-Anti-Nowhere League

most of the time, i don't hate people. okay. that's a lie. i hate people. just a little bit. a teensy-weensy little, tiny bit. oops, i've lied again. hate them/love them hate them/love them...it's just too much for me to sort out. okay, most living people are okay. Zombies, though, Fuck i HATE Zombies...always wanting to eat your brains or your guts or check out their massive pile of DVDs or bitch about their 10 cent fine when they have a brand new BMW parked ON the sidewalk right in front of the Library door (so everyone else has to walk around it) because they cannot be bothered to park 5 feet away in an actual parking space. why is it that i cannot recall what i read yesterday but these Zombies can recall that, on March 3rd of 2006, they returned their one and only book two days before the due date. therefore, they could not possibly owe a fine. infact, they have never, ever been fined in their life for any reason. gee. maybe you should start LIVING! huh?

i also hate the person INRI with the license plate that reads: SMYLEE. really and honest to Allah, that is what was on the plate. what poor felon had to pound that one out? please tell me that is NOT your nickname because if it is, i have visions of a large, very hairy, middle-aged man in a clown suit that thinks it's okay to look at pictures of naked little boys.

now all clowns are not like that! don't misquote me!

I HATE CLOWNS!

that, you can quote.

please don't tell me you had SMYLEE put on your plate because they could not manage this>>>>>> :) <<<<<<<<< down at the DMV.

me: i am the second luckiest person INRI when it comes to license plates. the only two letters on my plate are FY followed by three consecutive numbers. once again: FY! the luckiest person INRI is the guy driving around with FU on his plate.

my favorite word in the English language is: Fuck You! yes, that is one word if you say it really fast with one burst of fiery, furious breath: FUCKU! the Y and the O are lost and the U merges with the motherword. practice!

don't try to get it placed on your plate: the DMV frowns on it. they frown A LOT down at the DMV. i don't know why, having to work for a bunch of Lunatics aka The Public. if you work in retail then iloveyou! iloveyou! iloveyou! here, have some tranquilizers. anyone who works FOR The Public...may Allah have mercy on your soul because no one else will...are the heart and soul of this country. you may think it is your boss but in reality, it is The Public that will pay you shittily (word?), walk all over you and tell you that you smell bad. they will make you follow a dress code, take out your piercings and cover your tattoes. you will work vast hours for pennies and suffer more Stress than Jeb when his brother called down to Florida and said, "do me a favor...fix it!" so, I LOVE YOU! really!

now be a good little Monkey and find a wall on which to bang your brain. preferably, one made of Corporation Concrete.

The Train Tracks

2008-02-29T13:21:00.002-05:00

the train tracks of the Providence & Worcester Railroad. this was taken facing the mill village (left) and the front entrance to the Ashton Mill (right).

The Ashton Mill

2008-02-29T13:18:00.001-05:00

this is taken from the footbridge that connects two towns and it is of the back of the mill. my place is on the second floor waaaaaayyyyy down towards the end of the building.

Smokestack/GW Bridge

2008-02-29T13:15:00.002-05:00

view if the back of the smokestack, along the Blackstone with the George Washington Bridge in the background. this is the bridge i cross to get to work.

Entrance to A Bldg/Bell Tower

2008-02-29T13:14:00.000-05:00

The A Building

2008-02-29T13:13:00.000-05:00

Desk w/Bookcases

2008-02-29T13:08:00.001-05:00

the picture hanging on the wall to the left is of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Refridgerator

2008-02-29T13:05:00.000-05:00

ABBA has never been to Pascoag?

2008-02-28T21:53:00.002-05:00

okay. i will admit when i am wrong. if i am wrong, i will say, "yes, i was wrong." no big deal. this is a really, really dumb one and i had to admit i was WAY wrong in front of the entire staff of the Library and it hurt. but, it was my own fault for opening my mouth Yet Again. i should learn how to Not Speak. or Unlearn Talking or just become a mute.

i have always believed that the lyrics to the Abba song included a Rhode Island town named Pascoag (pronounced Pass-Ko). i always thought that the lyrics to the song Super Trouper went like this:

Super trouper beams are gonna blind me
But I won't feel blue
Like I always do
cause somewhere in the crowd there's you.

I was sick and tired of everything
When I called you last night from PASCOAG
All I do is eat and sleep and sing
Wishing every show was the last show

i thought that it was unbelievably cool that this Swedish Pop group would pick out an obscure little RI town, stick it in a song AND pronounce it correctly.

WHAT THE HELL WAS I THINKING???

so, the other day i was on the desk (not ON the desk but behind the circulation desk) talking with a coworker and we were singing Abba songs and i sang a little bit of Super Trouper and i sang the part about PASCOAG. my coworker gave me that strange look and said, "What? are you a crazy person? the word is GLASGOW, as in Scotland!"

oh.
god.

today, i was walking by the tech room and i heard 3 of the girls talking about "that stuff that causes hallucinations". the Computer Guru saw me and said , "wait! we'll ask Rhonda. SHE'LL know!"
like i am an expert on all things hallucinatory (just because i saw a few aliens once...or twice). well, all they wanted to know about was Absinthe. and i had a story to go with it, too.

we once had this nice kid as a page, a guy named Matt. he eventually worked part time at circ and he was soooo nice to everybody and he was a little bit in his own little world, which was just fine. he was an Artist AND a Musician (mostly in his own mind). we all liked him and he was cool. we talked about music a lot. he would sometimes go off on these wild goose chases or have some kind of new scheme or another. one day, he decided he wanted to try Absinthe but could not get any around here, of course, because it was illegal. the Real stuff. so, he sent away to England for all the ingredients to make Real Absinthe, Wormwood and all.
he waited weeks for this stuff to arrive (and we heard all about it FOR weeks). finally, the potion was had and he mixed it up in his bathtub. when it was done it was Yellow. Piss Yellow. this perplexed him to no end because we all know that Absinthe is a bright, almost psychedelic, Green.
i thought he must not have put in dye.
he thought it was a complete failure. when i asked him what he was going to do with this rather expensive batch of Piss Yellow Absinthe and he said, quite logically, "i'm going to drink it anyway". and he did.

the good news is: he did't die. the bad news is: he never could write poetry.

Computer Shot Today

2008-02-24T23:13:00.002-05:00

My computer today. the last computer shot was taken before may 2007 in the old apartment.
notice yellow mug with Bush as Satan! Henry Rollins makes great wallpaper. i have not yet entirely cluttered my space, but i WILL soon enough!