First Memories, Contest Winner and New Contest!

As you know (and I don't know why I'm even saying this, other than stating the obvious seems to be one of my many many faults) I'm a terrible blogger!  I'm trying to be better, however, and I have decided to do something my daughter does…blog life as it happens and just keep it as part of my journal.  BUT for today I thought I'd do something a little scary…let you into my mind so you can see what a weirdo I've always been!

A month or so ago, my daughter asked me to jot down some of my first memories…you know…things I remembered when I was little.  Well, amazingly enough, I had recently come across something I'd typed up about sixteen years ago.  It was a brief list of first memories, and I think some of them reach back to when I was just over a year old!  Seriously!  Can you believe it?  Kevin is always teasing me about how I never forget anything, and even though I do forget stuff, I can remember things way way way back!

Anyway, I thought it might be fun just to post a couple of paragraphs from that thingy I wrote about my first memories.  Keep in mind that these are just quick thoughts…so their not very fun to read really…just kind of something to help me remember them when the day comes that I Do forget them.  (PS…I will post the winner of the Tarzan contest AND a new contest at the end of this blog, okay?)

So here goes!

"I have little bits and memories of standing in my crib talking to a "man."  This frightened my parents, needless to say.  I would say, "Hi, Man.  Go away, Man."  I can recall doing this and in my memory, I can see the man—a visible being.  For years I remembered him as being a black man.  But as I grew older, I think I only thought he was black, because he was always standing in the shadows in one corner of my room.  I was never afraid of the man, I would just finally get tired and want to lie down and go to sleep so I would tell him to go away. 

I remember my rocking horse and the carpeting in the house on Griegos Rd. In Albuquerque.  I can remember sitting in a high chair and gorging on ear after ear of corn-on-the-cob!  I loved it!  I still do!  I can remember curling up on the shelf of a large plant stand/table that my mom had our large Boston Fern sitting on.

Mom used to put me in the stroller and go for walks—very often to the nearby public library or the little neighborhood store.  I have a sense of the way the library smelled and remember how it looked and my favorite book to check out was Timothy Turtle by Al Graham (I have acquired three copies of this book thus far—one for each of my kids.  It's really hard to find!).  I loved that story!  I also have a vivid mind-movie (memory) of a particular walk to the neighborhood store when Mom purchased some little plastic boats for me to play with in the tub.  I loved those boats!

There as a little elderly couple named The Timmons, who lived next door.  Mrs. Timmons crocheted a lovely afghan for me.  I had a matching pillow.  I've been told that while observing Mr. Timmons walking along the sidewalk one day, I announced, "There goes Mr. Timmons's bottom!"

I must make mention of my pillow, "plug", and Muggins.  My pillow is self-explanatory.  It was a small, child-sized pillow—made out of that typical white and blue striped pillow ticking, and stuffed with feathers (I still have it).  I loved my pillow and drug it everywhere it seemed.  "Plug," was the term my parents used for a pacifier.  I'm guessing the reason is obvious—plug the hole, turn off the noise, right?  Muggins was a soft, plush, yellow, stuffed bunny that became my most treasured possession for a time.  These three items went everywhere I went!  If we forgot one, we went back for it.  I did finally give up the plug, and was able to do without the pillow after a while.  But Muggins was part of my very being.  You see, to me he was real.  I remember being petrified on occasion at looking out at the clothesline to see me Muggins hanging by his ears!  Such insensitivity was not common in my mother, however. Over the few years that Muggins was nearly flesh of my flesh, his soft, pretty, yellow fur became faded and worn.  Mom had to patch and repatch him several times and at one point must've gotten desperate, for he looks as if he'd had extensive skin-grafting procedures performed on him.  Over half of his original fur is gone and in its place lingers a fabric adorned with little green flowers.  The flowers are now faded, his pitiful arms are held together by a large safety pin, and he looks malnourished…especially in light of the fact that there are large gaping holes in his torso through which stuffing tries to escape.  On the inside of his pitiful little ears, one can still see a hint of faded yellow fur…evidence of the fine fur he once flaunted.  He is preserved, for as long as time will allow, in my cedar chest.  I check on him every once in a while out of respect and never-ending love."

What a nut bag, right?  But in my own defense…at two years old, Mr. Timmons' bottom was probably at my average eye level, okay?

Now…onto contests!  The winner of the Johnny Weissmuller/Tarzan contest is Shauna Bartlet!  Congratulations Shauna!  Just e-mail your address to me at marcialmcclure@cs.com and I'll get your Johnny stuff mailed!  (Oh I just LOVE Tarzan!)

Next…for this week's contest…I'm heading back to another one of my first memories…Showboat!  I remember watching Showboat on our old black and white TV when I was really, really little!  I instantly fell in love with Howard Keel (Man!  What a voice!), and the Deep South.  I think Showboat, combined with reading Gone with the Wind when I was in fifth grade, solidified my love for Civil War history and things.  But I digress…Showboat…when William Warfield sings Old Man River (STILL gives me goose bumps every time!)…WONDERFUL!  And then there's my favorite part…Kathryn Grayson and Howard Keel singing Make Believe!   (Heavy sigh!)  It is a rather bitter sweet movie…which makes the fact that I still love it, kind of amazing!  So…in thinking of my early years…my formative years…I HAVE to offer a copy of Showboat as this week's contest!

But wait!  There's more!  Why not put up the TMC Broadway Musicals collection with not just one…but four…count 'em four…Howard Keel musicals!  Including Annie Get your Gun and Seven Brides for Seven Brothers!?  Let's do it!

Therefore, for this week's contest post a comment here or on Facebook or e-mail me with one of your first childhood memories!  It can be random, funny, brief…whatever!  That will be your entry to win the DVD.  Okay?

Meanwhile, if you've never seen Showboat, here are a video to peak your interest…