It’s Veteran’s day and no matter which war or what time, life as we know it would not exist without our Veterans. Thank you to all who served, sacrificed and continue to serve.
Category Archives: Holidays
Keene NH
My friend Nancy, her children and I headed up to Keene, NH for the annual Pumpkin Festival. Who knew a bunch of immature, rowdy college kids would steal the limelight. We didn’t see any of it. We heard the sirens, saw lots of flashing lights and ambulances but nothing else. As we parked our car the lot attendant said they didn’t know what was going on but that they had heard there was an “incident”.
They said be careful and have a good time. So that’s what we did. I’ll save my remarks about idiot college kids for another post. It won’t be a pretty one.
It was quite a walk from the car to the center of Keene where the pumpkins lined the Main St. Keene holds the World Record for most number of lit jack-o-lanterns on display. In 2013 the total was 30,581. Kind of mind boggling. I don’t know if they won this year but there were Jack-o- lanterns everywhere.
Near the Ferris Wheel the was a “Dome” of pumpkins being set up.
There were wooden shelves set up along the center of Main street where more jack-o-lanterns perched.
They surrounded tress, made rows along the curbs and piled against fences and jersey barriers.
Almost anywhere you could imagine there were carved pumpkins. They were even in the trees.
It was packed! There were quite a few Halloween Characters around who posed for pictures with the kids. One of the first ones and one of the best ones was Batman. He even had his car. He patiently stood by waving to the crowd and posed for pictures. Very nicley done Batman!
While Alex was meeting and smoozing with the caped crusader Dawn was doing her version of pole dancing. She was more interested in the metal handrail in front of the large brick building than pumpkins or Batman.
I had promised to go on the Ferris Wheel with Dawn but when we got to it the kids were more interested in getting a pumpkin to carve. For a $5.00 donation you got to carve a pumpkin that got counted toward the total. At our first stop where we made our donation the pumpkins were pretty soggy so we moved on to another stand only to find the same thing there.
Along the way we marveled at the creativity of the carvers and Dawn and Alex signed a cardboard wall with their names.
Finally down near the craft fair and food Alex and I located some semi solid pumpkins, Dawn was getting her face painted. The man helping us explained that the pumpkins are all hollowed out by volunteers before the festival starts. They begin the process 2-3 days before the big date so the pumpkins begin to go downhill in a hurry.
The sun was setting as we put the finishing touches on our Jack-o-lanterns and began to work our way back to Main Street for the Pumpkin Tower. The pumpkins spell out words, I think of the sponsors of the event, but it’s a pretty amazing sight.
Did they win again? I don’t know. I googled it but couldn’t find 2014. The other burning question is….Pumpkin , Fruit or Vegetable?
(The answer is Fruit)
It was a Five Star Night
Or a two thumbs up or any other sign approval you can think of. It was just plain fun!
Edaville Railroad used to be a little engine that traveled around the cranberry bogs. The big deal was at Christmas when the bog was filled with holiday lights and a few rides led up to the train ride. Then a couple of years ago the owner announced he was selling out. Speculation was that a condo development was going in and the land that was home to the little railroad was needed for parking. Everyone was sad but then the real estate market crashed and now building a bunch of condos didn’t seem to be such a good idea. Suddenly an amusement park wasn’t so bad after all.
Almost immediately Edaville began to expand. It wasn’t the little Edaville Railroad any more. It was Edaville USA and one of the things that came to pass was Dinoland. Everybody loves dinosaurs so now there were dinos roaming the bog.
This year I noticed they had a big pumpkin spectacular called Pumpkins Aglow! I was hoping to get some nice pumpkin pictures so I planned to cough up the admission because I could use my tripod, something not allowed at Roger Williams Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular.
I was going to go alone but after a stop at Nancy’s house we decided to take the kids along. Oh my , what a great idea! Alex and Dawn had a fantastic time!
I expected it to be kind of tacky but it was not. It was very well done.
The kids wore costumes and the ride operators had costumes too and were handing out candy when you road their ride. Trick or Treat!
The rides are included in the admission price so although it seems expensive at first, it more than makes up for the initial investment. The kids can ride all night for free. Bumper cars, Ferris wheel, tilt a whirl, carousels, and of course the train.
But we had to see the dinos and that’s where Pumpkins Aglow was spread out. In the end I didn’t use a tripod. We went through twice , once at dusk and once at full dark. The dusk was better. You’ll see why in my next post!
Memorial Day Thanks
As we enjoy the wonderful weather and a day off from work to barbecue and party, take a moment to give thanks to those brave men and women whose sacrifices make our life style possible.
Remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice. They gave their lives that we might have ours. For them there is no tomorrow, no second chance at life or love, but thanks to them we have our life, our freedom and our chances to live.
Remember those who returned but suffered unspeakable injuries to body, soul or mind. Brave men and women traumatized by their injuries or the injuries to others that they witnessed or perhaps by the actions they had no choice but to take.
But these actions and sacrifices paid for our freedoms. They kept our shores safe. They stood up for our way of life.
As I think about Memorial Day and all that it stands for I am grateful to all who have done their duty to safeguard this great nation and our freedoms but I am sad too. I feel for the families left behind or the soldier who once able-bodied is now missing a limb or worse. My heart aches for those who returned so stressed and traumatized that although their body is sound, their emotions and feelings are forever scarred. This is the price we pay for our freedom. This is the price our soldiers paid for us.
On this Memorial Day honor them, thank them and pray for them. Keep safe those who even today are fighting for freedom in foreign lands. Pray that someday we will gain the wisdom to be able to put down our weapons and live in peace and respect throughout the world.
Always remember…
