#AtoZChallenge - Taphophilia

 

Welcome to Day 20 of the April A to Z Blogging Challenge!

My theme this year is things that entertain / inspire me. 

Today is Taphophilia.  There are many different definitions, but this is basically the deep interest of cemeteries & headstones. 

So I am a taphophile.  Or "tombstone tourist".  I see some places describe it as an "unnatural" or "morbid" attraction to cemeteries.  I don't think so.  I enjoy going to cemeteries because they're peaceful.  I enjoy the art and history that goes along with them.  And judging by the number of Facebook groups I see out there, I'm definitely not the only one out there!

I've never been scared at a cemetery, either.  There's been a few little things that have happened, like one time I was out with Sis1, very early in the spring.  The only thing growing was a bunch of daffodils (which don't have much scent) on the other side of the small cemetery.  We were looking at some stones when I suddenly caught of whiff of perfume as if someone walked past me.  There was no breeze and neither Sis1 or I had any on.  So I feel that the someone was maybe thanking us for stopping by to visit.  Other times I've been drawn to certain stones, where I feel the need to stop for a moment and wonder about their lives. 

I do listen to gut feelings.  If I get the feeling to not touch something - I don’t!  I was recently at a cemetery in Ohio and went to pick up a small stone that was laying face down… stopped right away and left it.  Another time I was at the cemetery that belonged to a “Home for the Feeble-Minded” and made sure I thanked everyone out loud for the visit and asked that no one followed us (Sis1 was with me).  

Here are a few of my favorite stones. 

Magnolia Cemetery, Charleston SC

Post Cemetery, Mackinac Island

The earliest burials likely date to the mid-1820s.

One of only 5 in the world authorized to always fly their flag at half mast - 

due the sheer number of unknowns.  Of 108 burials, 69 are unknown. 

Sacred to the memory of Col John Patterson, aged 52 years

Mary Young, his daughter, aged 19 years and 6 months

Charles Young, son of Mary Young, age 18 months

James Batcholer, aged 17 years

John Morris, aged 8 years and 9 months

Relatives of the above. 

All born at Philadelphia, state of Pennsylvania and fell victims 

within a few days of each other to the yellow fever of 1801 at St. Mary's, state of Georgia.  

This marble is erected my Francis Young and Lewis Levy, sons in law of Col John Patterson. 

Oak Grove, St Mary's GA

Col Patterson was a Revolutionary War vet.  

I visited this cemetery for the first time in 1992 or so and this grave always stayed in my mind.  So when the Spawn's dance team went to Nationals in Orlando in 2018, we flew into Atlanta & drove the rest of the way, just so we could stop here and pay our respects. 

Woodlawn Cemetery, Detroit

The Polar Bears Memorial, White Chapel, Troy MI

Oak Hill, Pontiac MI

Congregation of Moses Jewish Cemetery, Kalamazoo MI

Miss Myra is one of those who I felt drawn to. 

Mountain Home Cemetery, Kalamazoo MI

I haven't seen too many veteran stones with ships on them.  

The Queen City was a steamer acquired by the Union Navy during the Civil War and used as a gunboat to patrol the Confederate rivers to prevent trade.  In June of 1864, she was disabled by 2 regiments of Confederate cavalry and blown up.  Henry appears to have been 14 when that happened. 

Do you enjoy cemeteries?

#AtoZChallenge - Search & Rescue

 

Welcome to Day 19 of the April A to Z Blogging Challenge!

My theme this year is things that entertain and/or inspire me. 

Today it's all about search & rescue.  Specifically, what it takes to become a member of my team. 

 

Yes - we look for people!!  You wouldn't believe how many times we've been asked ~what~ we look for! 

I joined the Lapeer County Search & Rescue team when it was first being put together by the Lapeer County Sherriff's Department back in 2018.  Sis1 went to the informational meeting and I tagged along for moral support.  For shitz & gigglez, I applied and was accepted, even tho I don't live in the county. 

Most SAR teams follow guidelines set down by NASAR, the National Association for Search And Rescue. We also belong to MiPSARC which is the Michigan Professional Search & Rescue Council which means we are willing and able to deploy anywhere in the state.

My team has to pass a background check and an interview from the sheriff's department. 

 We do not deploy on searches without approval from the sheriff's liaison and our director.  A lot of times it's for safety's sake. 

The following is some of the qualifications we need to get and maintain in order to keep our certifications.

We start out with 6 FEMA courses in the first 90 days

*Intro to Hazardous Materials

*Intro to Incident Command System

*Basic Incident Command for Initial Response

*Intro to Community Emergency Response Team

*Intro to the National Incident Management System

*Intro to the National Response Framework

Then in the first year, we're required to have

*CPR & basic first aid

*Wilderness first aid

*Bloodborne pathogens

*Crime Scene Awareness

*Land Navigation

*HAZMAT Awareness

*NASAR SARTECH II certification

*Amateur Radio License, Technician or higher

*K9 First Aid

*Equine First Aid

and this is just the basics! Everyone starts out on the ground team, but you can eventually specialize in other units. We have a K9 unit with their own set of qualifications & certifications and also we're hoping to get the equine unit back this summer (the darn team lead, aka ***ME***, needs to get a darn horse!!) which means the horses also have to complete almost the same training as a police horse. We also encourage people to pursue other things - kayaking, man tracking, drones, etc.

And because I am a team lead, I'm SARTECH I qualified, which means I'm a crewleader and once I get my own horse, I'll be in charge of training.

We also have covered Lost Person Behavior and SARIA (initial actions) and do regular refreshers. 

Me on Kisses (right) and Sis1 on Remington (RIP)

doing a public relations outing on the local rail trail.

I did quite well at a 'SAR Olympics" that another team put on a couple years ago.

It was fun - they need to do that again!

Other teams are always welcome to attend our training sessions and a lot of times they do!

Drills in all weather

brrrr we are having FUN.  

Wrapping up a teammate in a 'hypothermia wrap"

Conducting a "building search" at Crossroads Village in Flint

and finding their Halloween decorations!

Kisses is now retired and is a professional Pasture Ornament.

The plan is for Sis1 to rehome one of her other horses so I can have his stall for a horse of my own!

We also get calls to assist with other teams - this was our first assist.

In January 2019, way up in the northern part of Michigan.

Some of our fantastic K9s & their handlers. 

Another drill!

I might not be the most knowledgeable when it comes to the technical side of radio, but I am quite proficient operating one.  

Securing a "victim" in the stokes basket for safe transport.

We're pretty honored to be included among the First Responders for the annual Halloween "Truck or Treat" event. 

We also attended the Lapeer County Emergency Services Gala this year.  

This is about 1/3 of our team - we clean up nice!

Oh, in a nutshell... in 2023, we were called out on 20 searches, got 7 new members for a total of 28 people, drove more then 39,500 miles and spent 4,500 hours of our time. 

Looking forward to what 2024 continues to bring!

#AtoZChallenge - Octopus

 

Welcome to day 15 of the April A to Z Blogging Challenge!

My theme this year is thing that inspire and/or entertain me.  This post falls directly in the "entertain" category!

The Legend of the Detroit Red Wing's Octopus.

(the following pics were taken at Hockeyfest in 2009, which is why you see Joe Louis Arena instead of Little Caesars Arena)

(text below)

There are few traditions in sports that compare to those in the game of hockey.  One such tradition is the throwing of octopi onto the ice at Red Wings games.  Ever wonder how it started?

The octopus first made its appearance on April 15, 1952 during the Red Wings' Stanley Cup playoff run. 

Two Detroit brothers, Pete & Jerry Cusimano - storeowners in Detroit's Eastern Market - threw the eight-legged cephalopod on the ice at Olympia Stadium.  Each tentacle of the octopus was symbolic of a win in the playoffs.  Back then, the NHL boasted only six teams, and eight wins (two best-of-seven series) were needed to win the Stanley Cup.  The Red Wings swept the series that year, and the octopus has come to be the good luck charm ever since. 

The tradition carried over to Joe Louis Arena on opening night in 1979 when several made their way onto the ice. 

During the 1995 playoffs, Bob Dubisky and Larry Shotwell, co-workers at a meat and seafood retail company near Detroit, tossed a 38-pound octopus onto the ice during the national Anthem prior to game 1 of the Western Conference Finals.  The year after, the duo struck again with a 50-pounder in the Conference Finals.  Although the feat received no airtime on the nationally broadcast game, the octopus was proudly displayed on the hood of the Zamboni between periods. 

As of the time I'm writing this, the Wings are currently playing.  So the last time I can confirm an octopus hit the ice was... 2 days ago!  

#AtoZChallenge - I am a Non-Writer (clearly - lol!)

  

Welcome to day 14 of the April A to Z Blogging Challenge!

My theme this year is things that inspire or entertain me.  However, I'm a couple days behind in posting so there's been a definite lack of inspiration!  I'm trying to come up with interesting topics and not just grabbing some random word just to post.    

I have bits of stories bouncing around on my head, but I am not a writer.  

I probably could be but getting the stuff in my head onto paper (or in this case, a screen) is tough. 

Gratuitous photo of coworkers watching the eclipse.

I started blogging prior to 2009.  I was on Yahoo360 in the beginning and when it shut down, I didn't export my posts like they recommended.  I'm almost 99.998% certain that there were no quality posts anyway so I'm not sad.  Anyhoo. 

 I started blogging to give me an outlet to vent about the Spouse & the Spawn not getting along and various other woe-is-me stuff.  See - not quality!  Nobody wants to read about that.  I now make a point to try to keep my posts positive.  Either way, I started putting thoughts down since I have a magical talent of the middle of my sentences interrupting the beginning of other people's!  When I blog, people can't talk over me or change topics all willy-nilly.   

I used to have 3 blogs.  This one used to be called "Random Ramblings", then I had "...Slow & Steady" which had been "the Life of Lisa" prior.  It was geared toward my weight loss journey (don't ask how THAT is going!!)  I ended up combining them since I did a lot of double posting anyway.   August 2011 is when I started my Halloween-esque blog called "Maple Grove Cemetery".  I post there sporadically year-round, and it obviously picks up in the fall.    

I was pretty ambitious when I first found the A to Z Challenge, since I jumped right in with all 3 blogs which meant 3 different topics!  I did that in 2012 & 2013.  Then I stopped with MGC since I also did the Countdown to Halloween bloghop that used to happen in October.  Then I had the 2 blogs in the challenge for 2014 & 2015.  September 2016 is when I combined the 2 blogs so other than the 2 years I skipped the challenge, it's been just one entry every year.  

Rusty napping in the sunshine on my pillow.

Links to all of my A to Z posts in the tab above.  My favorite A to Z theme was in 2015 when I wrote about my time in the US Navy and told some sea stories.  It was the easiest topic to write, ever! 

#AtoZChallenge - Kayaking

 

Welcome to day 11 of the April A to Z Blogging Challenge!

My theme for this year is stuff that entertains and/or inspires me. 

Today is kayaking!

This is something I definitely don't do enough of!

I don't have that many pictures since I'm always concerned with flipping over and losing my phone.

I wasn't too thrilled with this particular river because there weren't many places to stop and relax.  The shores were hidden by tall reeds.  

I grabbed this little guy off a lily pad to say hi before letting him go.  And then kept all appendages inside the kayak afterward when I saw a snapping turtle as big as a hubcap! 

Of course, Chuck the skeleton went along with us! 

So stylish!

There's an event currently on Facebook put on by the Friends of the Rouge River in SE Michigan - a Haunted Paddle trip!  I think it would be a lot of fun, but do I really want to kayak in mid October in Michigan??  We could easily be having snow! 

#AtoZChallenge - Jack of all Trades

Welcome to day 10 of the April A to Z Blogging Challenge!

My theme this year is things that inspire and/or entertain me. 

I had a thought the other day that I have so many interests, or jobs, or obligations that sometimes it's hard to switch gears mentally from one to another.  

I'm sure lots of people have this problem - a "Jack of All Trades, Master of None" type of thing. 

Wife 

(who occasionally makes the Spouse dress up and behave in public)

Mom / Grandma

also in this case, chauffeur

Search & rescue technician aka "professional volunteer"

This requires a ton of ongoing training & drills and of course call-outs! 

Hopefully soon, we’ll have the equine division of the SAR team active!

Note to self - this could be a good A to Z theme!

Member of the VFW

I'm the post surgeon (a very minor officer), public affairs / social media officer, 

chairperson for 4 different scholarship programs

and one of only 4 active female members at the post.

Sister

Daughter

Yes, that's me & Mom standing on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier in front of an F14.

The USS Abraham Lincoln CVN72, to be exact. 

I wrote more about it in my 2015 Tiger Cruise post....

She still talks about this trip!

Coworker

Pet parent

Rusty is actually laying on me while Daisy gives him the evil eye.

Chuck's social media person and overall Halloween enthusiast.