A visit to the South's Grand Hotel

Our children were all spread out this Thanksgiving, so we took a drive south and visited 
The Peabody, an historic hotel in Memphis, Tennessee.

Still called the "South's Grand Hotel," The Peabody is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is a member of Historic Hotels of America. The hotel was cited by the U.S. Department of the Interior as one of the country's most outstanding preservation case studies. The original hotel was built at the corner of Main and Monroe in downtown Memphis and was considered one of the finest in the South. It had 75 rooms with private baths, a ballroom, saloon and lobby. It cost $3 to $4 a day for a room and meals, extra for a fire or gas light.

 

We were on the second floor balcony filming the holiday activities below. This gives you some perspective of how large the chandelier is.

The Peabody Hotel is a Mid-South institution, its name considered synonymous with Southern hospitality and Delta style. The 13-story hotel is an excellent example of Italian Renaissance Revival architecture and is Memphis' only historic hotel.

The beautiful ceiling is inlaid with carved wood trusses.

The original Peabody was built by Colonel Robert C. Brinkley in 1869. Just prior to its opening, Brinkley received news of the death of his good friend, philanthropist George Peabody. As a sign of respect for Peabody, who endowed George Peabody College in Nashville and contributed much to the disadvantaged South, the new hotel was named The Peabody.

Can you imagine the conversations that took place? Wouldn't you love to eavesdrop on a few?

 

 

"The Mississippi Delta begins in the lobby of The Peabody Hotel and ends on Catfish Row in Vicksburg. The Peabody is the Paris Ritz, the Cairo Shepherd's, the London Savoy of this section. If you stand near its fountain in the middle of the lobby... ultimately you will see everybody who is anybody in the Delta..."
                            - Author/Historian David Cohn, 1935.

Can't you just hear the blues being belted out on this antique gem?  I have photos of the famous.

This exquisite table was one of many pieces of furniture that caught my eye. The woodwork and double size wooden doors were also astounding. I felt like I was in a castle. I could almost hear the rustle of hooped skirts and  the voices of the gentleman suitors asking their belles to dance.

This wall-size tapestry was gorgeous. Can you imagine the tales this could tell?

Won't you come back for more photos? I have pictures of items in the mini museum, as well as the holiday festivities, and of course details about the duck walk and how it came to be and the story behind the fountain.

Your tighty Whiteys in the making

 "What is that?" I asked as we drove past field after field with these in them.
They resembled hay bales, but it was obvious that it was not hay.

 Then I got a closer look. "What kind of crop is WHITE?" I asked.  And then...

 

We saw the fields of cotton, growing in South East Missouri, Northern Arkansas and Memphis, TN

I have lots of photos to share with you this week.  Have you ever seen your T shirts before they went to the textile mills? Well, here you have it. 

My "first" Thanksgiving

45 years ago in Delta Junction, Alaska the buffalo roamed freely. It was dark by 2:30, and the nights were forever long. The stars seemed so close and bright I thought I could reach up and pluck one.

We heated with diesel fuel and cooked with propane. We could barely afford that stewing hen, much less a turkey on the military salary, but I wanted to prepare my first Thanksgiving dinner. Half way through the roasting, our trailer-size oven went cold. It ran out of propane. Days before payday and we didn't have six cents for a stamp to write home. None of the military families living off post did. We dug in the drawers, car, purse, pockets and came up with 99 cents. We went to the gas station up on the highway and asked the attendant to fill our five gallon drum with 99 cents worth of propane.

Today, so many years later, I am thankful for the man who filled our tank to the brim, and sent us down the road with his blessing.

We invited Bob and Karen over to share a meal. We heard a racket outside, looked out the trailer window at the field across the road and the small forest of stunted trees where the buffalo meandered. We noticed a middle age Eskimo couple walking down the gravel road, and it broke our hearts when we realized the man was verbally abusing the woman. Again. It was a common occurrence, a way of life for them, but especially hard to witness on Thanksgiving. Karen and I wanted to go rescue her.

Some times all we can do is offer a thought or prayers. Today I pray for all of those who are hungry, hurting, alone, in need. I am grateful for my many blessings and count my blog buddies among them. Wishing you and yours a blessed day. Enjoy your "stuffing."    

Albuquerque is a turkey

Presenting Albuquerque the turkey. One little girl told her mom and grandma that it was not a Turkey but a Querque, and if they didn't believe her then they could just ask Ms. Linda. I taught them a song about Albuquerque. I said, "Don't sing AlbaTURKEY, his name is AlbuQuerque."
The purpose was to see if they all had the hard C/K sound developed in their speech yet.

 The children twisted tissue paper and stuck it on our bird for feathers. Then, we did a food drive. It is never too early to teach children about helping those less fortunate. We talked about how the Native American Plains Indians had to hunt for buffalo when they wanted to eat or have clothing etc. because there were no stores.

I explained that even though we have stores now, there are some people who can't afford food. They need some, so we call them "needy", and we asked the children to bring non-perishables. When  parents walked in with a bag of canned goods or muffin mix, I stopped them and told them to allow their children to deposit the food in the box, so they could feel a part of the sharing.

Today we sorted all of the 125 items. We had more cans of soup and tuna, lots of fruits and vegetables, pastas and more. Not a bad donation form 19 students. I am proud of them. Tomorrow the people from the food pantry will come and haul it away.

Hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Multi-culturalism is a real hands-on experience in my classroom.

 

This is one of the most fun months at school for the children. It gets  a bit chaotic and noisy during free play as they take the toy bow and arrow and go on bear and buffalo and turkey hunts.

We make our very own tee-pee. Two children can sit inside and look at the pictorial display of the Native American doll and her accessories on the inner walls, or read a book, or view real photos of Native Americans.

First, we lay out a large roll of paper so the children can draw symbols. Prior to the activity I ask them if they can read. They all say NO, and then I show them bags from McDonalds, Taco Bell etc. and they "read" the words. I explain that they are symbol reading. Together we read a symbol story with pictures/words for water, mountain, tree, fish, deer etc. We learn that it required 12 buffalo skins or more to make one tee pee and the dads went hunting and the moms chewed the buffalo hide to soften it so they could sew the hides together. The kids are amazed to learn that Native American children had only one room in their home. Their first question is, "Where did they go to the bathroom?" They "Eww" when I say, "Out in the woods."

We converted an old vacuum cleaner box into a canoe and made paddles. The children dress in costumes and row down river to trade or see what they can see. I love to listen to their conversation and see how much information they have absorbed.

The week ends with a surprise. Ms. Amy borrows a box of animal pelts from The Department of Conservation. The children sit spellbound when they see the buffalo, bear and deer hides. We tell them how the Native Americans used all parts of the animals...every single part. They are amazed when I tell them that there were no stores to buy what you needed. If the Plains Indians needed food, clothing, shoes, a coat, blanket, or household items they had to go hunting for a large animal.

 In addition to these pelts, we also had a box of hides from small animal fur bearers. The children enjoyed guessing which animal it was. They have so much fun playing with the items I have collected over the years. It is times like these when I so enjoy teaching preschoolers. This is a month filled with active learning activities. The children think they are just playing, but play is a child's learning tool.

We have followed dot-to-dot paths, laced paper canoes, decorated paper tee pees, played listening games, learned songs, told individual stories and done so much more. Kids learn best by DOING. The back of the brain (sensory motor area) develops first, so giving children experiential learning activities enables them to hold on to the information better than doing table/pencil-paper work. If it's in the hand first it gets to the brain faster!

Now, to leave you with the best funny I have heard during the month of November. I told a class one year that my dad and grandma were Native American. A little girl raised her hand and said, "My daddy is a NAKED American, too." I kept a straight face and nodded, but I could not look at that father ever again with out laughing.

Look at this debut!

I have heard lots of bad news from friends and family about cancer, death, auto accidents, brain tumors, house fires, teen troubles and more. The Phillipines is a mess, and I feel helpless. I find myself lately saying, Why would anyone want to bring a baby into this crazy world?

I am not going to get all philosophical here, but let me just say that after meeting with my daughter, granddaughter and her husband on the parking lot of the doctor's office, I know that love conquers all.

When they handed me the ultrasound picture with "Hi Grandma" typed on top, I squealed, hugged them and ran up to the first woman I saw and shoved the picture at her, tapped it and said, "This is my first great-grandchild!"

She nodded, half-smiled, said, "Oh," and kept walking.

Yes, there are crazies in this world, and yesterday I appeared to be one of them.

Even in the worst crises, life goes on. Here is my granddaughter's "tadpole."

On my way home I thought about how happy my mother would be. Ashley was her first great grandchild, and to say she was obsessed with her would be an understatement. I'm sure she's rejoicing in heaven.

I gazed at a snapshot of my maternal great-grandmother. She used to allow my mom (when she was a little girl)  to comb out her curls after just coming from the beauty salon. My mom's mom would reprimand her, but my mom's grandmother would say, "You leave her alone. I don't mind at all."

That act of selflessness made all the difference to my mother in her life. She often said she felt more love from her grandma than anyone. Ever.

I picked up my great grandma's photo and placed the ultra sound picture next to it. "Meet your great-great-great-great grandbaby, Wally."

The doctor said the baby has a very strong heartbeat, so the parents are convinced it's a boy, whose name (this month) is Wyatt William. They will know the gender for sure in one month. Times have sure changed. She can dye her hair and paint the nursery, all no-nos when I was PG.

Ashley is 8 1/2 weeks along; her due date is, June 27th. It would be incredible if she delivered on my mom's birthday, June 21st or on her mom's birthday June 24th, or mine, or her husband's or any of the other eight June birthdays in our family. 

Recipe for success...who doesn't like a muffin?

I wish I were sitting in a large hi-rise at the beach with all my dear readers. I'd bake delicious muffins to share with all of you, and I would serve your beverages of choice...yes, anything.

We would gab about our lives and writing, and we'd gaze at the waves lapping the shore. We'd be proper and polite, share secrets and act silly; we'd be our authentic selves.

We would leave each other with lasting impressions and good-bye hugs that left indentations.

Since I can't gather you all at the beach, and shipping a muffin to all of you is out of the question, not to mention some of the beverages some of you would choose, I am inviting each of you to grab your favorite beverage and visit me at The Muffin. Please, will you leave a comment on their site?

http://muffin.wow-womenonwriting.com/2013/11/friday-speak-out-anthology-success.html

It's not exactly a muffin, but I'd like to share a recipe with you that I recently tried.

Simple and simply delicious pin wheels:

Unroll the entire pack of dairy case extra large crescent rolls onto aluminum foil in one section.
Pinch the perforations closed.
Spread with cooked scrambled eggs. (I used five egg whites and one whole egg.) 
Sprinkle with crushed, cooked bacon/crumbled sausage or both!
Top with shredded cheese.

Roll from the short end, jelly roll fashion as you remove from the foil.
Slice and bake at 350 degrees for 13-15 minutes.
Makes about 8-10 depending on how thick you slice yours.
If they seem loose when you roll them, give them a little squeeze, they will come out fine.

You can modify this in any way imaginable: fruit filling, sugar/cinnamon or any meat mixture.
These stored in fridge and reheated well. I am considering freezing some. They are addictive.

Now, will you please dash over to the The Muffin and read my post on Friday Speak Out!
The Muffin offers opportunties for publication with  Friday Speak Outs! Have at it.