The Snow Queen must have been jealous because yesterday morning she swept through, covering up the work of the Ice Queen with a fresh coating of fluffy white new snow. So there, she said. I can cover up all your work just like that. Of course, the Ice Queen’s work is still there, lying treacherously only an inch below. Some of the tree branches still carry their icy coating and our driveway shows no improvement. Our local stores are all sold out of ice melt. Me thinks the Ice Queen still rules.

Bella likes it when the Snow Queen comes. She likes to try and catch snowflakes in her mouth just like any other little kid.

59 years ago today my parents were married. Don’t they make a lovely couple? With mutual love shining out from their faces they had their whole lives ahead of them.

The following two photos were taken on their honeymoon in the Adirondacks.

I think my Dad looks like he could have been a movie star, but then again I might just be a wee bit prejudiced.

They were the best parents a child could ever hope for. Loving. Caring. Supportive. Always there to lend an ear or moral support. I miss them so. My Dad passed away almost ten years ago; my Mom I lost a year ago August. Oddly enough, they both died about a week and a half before their respective birthdays.

I’ve had dreams about them lately (as I wrote a few weeks back). In those dreams they were together. Again. Normally when I dream about them one or the other is in my dream but not both. I’d like to think that the meaning behind those dreams is that they found each other through the great expanse of the Hereafter.

Mom, Dad, wherever you are today, Happy Anniversary. I love and miss you both more than you’ll ever know.

I know, I know. I am failing miserably in my attempt to keep up with the ABC-Along. No imagination lately I guess. So, here goes “O” is for Overtaken.

It started out mildly enough last year with a pretty morning glory vine appearing out of nowhere and covering the lattice work we had just put up to hide Johnny and other outdoor tools. I enjoyed its pretty blooms that start out pinkish-purple when closed, and upon opening turn a periwinkle blue in the morning light. It was a good thing. Or at least I thought so then.

This year that insipid little vine has turned into a clutching, tenacious monster.

I should have known we were in trouble when the lattice work below the deck wasn’t enough for it. It tentatively poked its sinewy, viny fingers up through the boards of the deck.

Then it latched on to the railing and crept its way up and up.

Thwarted in its attempt to go further upwards, it branched out sideways and attached itself to my petunias, like some alien life form searching for blood. I’ll get you my pretty ...

I put and end to that stranglehold pretty quickly.

It also has wound itself around our weather station, which we need to take care of before the anemometer can’t measure the wind speed anymore, but we need a to get the ladder out.

It even worked its way into being a support for this spider’s web.

Here it is in its full summer glory (so to speak).

See how its greedy little arms reach out in every direction?

It’s creepy the way that is keeps making its way further and further. Soon I expect it to reach the second floor of our house, the vine slipping under the bathroom window, creeping along the floor until it reaches our bed, wrapping itself around my neck ... no! whew. So much for not having an active imagination lately.

But it does look rather innocuous, doesn’t it? I think it’s just waiting for its chance.

After the Wonder Wheel we took a walk on the boardwalk and out onto the pier for the view.

The now defunct parachute ride blooms like a leftover steel flower blossom at the foot of the pier.

And the amusement parks make a strange juxtaposition to the high-rise apartments in the background.

It’s very sad that as of yesterday, Astroland will no longer exist as it has been sold. This however does not appear to include the sale of the famous roller coaster, The Cyclone, which was made a landmark in 1988, or the Wonder Wheel,  but still it’s just another part of the past that seems to have no place anymore in our ever changing American society.

Our next stop had to be The Cyclone.

Let it be said that I am deathly afraid of roller coasters (and most other amusement park rides, other than the somewhat tame ferris wheel variety). I think it came about from a ride I took on a roller coaster at a local fairground when I was a teenager. For whatever reason, the bar in our car did not lock down and at every twist and turn of the coaster we threatened to pop out of it and it has stuck with me. It was a very scary experience that my brain can’t seem to rid itself of. I knew Rick wanted to ride it, and he knew that I couldn’t ride with him. How I wished it were as easy as not being tall enough to ride!

I stood watching it for awhile as it careened through its course, listening to the the clickety-clack of the wheels over the wooden tracks (which frankly sounded like the whole thing was going to come apart at the very seams) and thought for at least one very brief moment that I might actually be able to step outside of my fear and really do it. Then I regained control of my senses again and thought to myself: no, don’t do this! Rick had no problem going by himself. He knew my fear was real.

(Rick is fourth from the front in the photo just above.)

If want to experience the ride without really being there, follow this link to a youtube movie where someone videoed their front car experience on The Cyclone.

When he got off he told me it was a good thing I didn’t go with him. He said it was the roughest, most jarring ride he’s ever had on a coaster. Now that he’s ridden it once he won’t be going back for seconds.

Here is another great video clip of the Cyclone’s 80th Birthday (which happened last year).

It’s hard to believe that it’s now all come to an end. Soon they will have to remove all the rides and the carnival atmosphere will be no longer. I’m so glad we went to experience it when we did. There are rumors that the developer is going to put their own “bigger and better” amusement rides and such on the same site, but it will never be the same. An era has come to an end.

Looking toward Lower Manhattan,  Wall Street and the Statue of Liberty on a hazy day.

I know, I know. I apologize right up front. I’ve been lagging far behind in my ABC-Alongs. It’s a lot harder than I thought to come up with something. Plus, I like to do entries that coincide with what is actually happening in my life now, and what’s blooming in my yard now, and well, like my life now. My good friend Carolyn wrote to tell me that although she enjoyed the Queen Anne’s Lace entry, she felt that I had royally screwed up my ABC-Along because now what was I going to come up with for Q? I guess I’ll just tackle Q when I come to it.

So, with what’s happening now in my life as a guideline, what could be more timely than our trip into New York City last week?  We went in for the Walking with the Dinosaurs event at Madison Square Garden. We took the train in early to do something we have meant to do since moving here two years ago: visit the Empire State Building.

As you can imagine in high tourist season, lots of other people had the same idea. We stood in line; we went through security, we stood in line again—all before even getting to the ticket office. Here is a shot out the window while waiting in line.

All in all, it wasn’t that bad. We made it from the beginning of the line to the elevator in about 30 minutes. Our elevator made it from the bottom to the 80th floor in less than a minute. The floors didn’t register as 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. Oh no. More like 10, 20, 30, etc. As I watched we scaled ten floors at a time in about 5 or 7 seconds. Straight up. No stopping. whizzzz! When we stopped I felt dizzy and off-kilter. Very strange indeed.

We thought we were there, but alas, no. Another line awaited us and at the end of that we had a choice to climb the six flights of stairs to the Observatory on the 86th floor or wait in yet another line for the elevator. We opted to do stairs. The numbers on the landings told us where we were. I swear the 85th floor went on for two floors instead of one. Finally we were at the top with a crush of people vying for spots at the rail.

Here are views from a short person’s perspective. ( I was also trying to be artsy at the same time. ) I could have shot through the barrier but chose not to. Each shot is looking out from a different direction.

We didn’t tarry long gawking at the view. We figured we could come back in the low tourist season and not have to deal with the crush of people. We made our way back down, but this time took the elevator between the 86th and 80th floor instead of the stairs. The ride down was just as disorienting in equilibrium as the ride up, and I found myself staggering out of the elevator doors like someone who has had too much to drink. I have to admit that I had visions of “what if” flashing through my brain as we barreled downward at such a dizzying speed. What if the cable broke? What if the elevator suddenly stops and we’re trapped in here with little to no air flow? I do tend to an overactive imagination at times. Thankfully I didn’t have to worry about any of that since before I knew it we were back down to the main floor.

Walking with the Dinosaurs was awesome but I won’t go into that here since this post is not about that. If you have the chance to see it, do so, you won’t regret it.

There you have it: “N” is for New York (City).