Time Travels

Tonight in my class we talked about Coney Island.  Not the Coney Island of today that is slowing being chipped away at by land developers, but this Coney Island:

This was the Coney Island that the working class man visited as an escape from the daily grind of his job and the city. This is the Coney Island I want to visit. I'm not exactly sure why. Maybe it's the innocence of the rides which were tame in comparison to today. Strangely, there was a "Human Zoo" where visitors would climb to the bottom of a ladder and would find themselves in a cage and were on display for other visitors who would feed them peanuts.

Certainly I would not care to put on one of the standard swimsuits for ladies which were made of wool and often weighed 15-20 lbs wet and would require ladies to use ropes to extract them from the ocean after a swim.

I remember my father talking about visiting Coney Island as a kid, but sadly I don't remember him telling me anything more about it.

Perhaps it's nostalgia or the desire to visit a simpler time. I'd love to jump into a time machine and visit Coney Island mid nineteenth century. Of course, I'm sure it would be just as great to return home.

Check out the new addition to my frequently read blogs....Ephemeral New York. Just a plethora of really cool information about a city I adore!

Dress Rehearsal

I think I think alot about death and dying. Perhaps too much. It is a subject that fascinates me and perhaps it has something to do with living in the cold north and coming out of the long, cold nights that makes me think about dying more often around this time of the year. I find that a lot of people die in the winter. It's like they lose hope. I'm thankful that I do not live in even further northern countries that have ten plus hours or more of darkness a day during the winter. 

My friend that I mentioned in my previous post has been away this week in Paris.  A very bittersweet trip to Paris.  I guess it's kind of a last hurrah and he knows that.  For me, this week has been sort of a dress rehearsal for things to come.  I have had no contact from him, no texting, no calls, no pictures posted on Facebook.  In a few days though, I will hear from him and there will be frenzied texting, much chattering on the phone and hopefully lots of pictures.  Sadly the day will come when it won't be a dress rehearsal and the phone and Facebook will remain silent.  But for today, I will enjoy the sunshine and the fact that he is still with us.

This weekend has been a tease for us at least in south central PA. The sun has been out all weekend, the temps are in the upper 50's. It's a hopeful sign. I haven't looked but I'm sure some of the early spring flowers are beginning to poke through. I can tell the days are getting longer. The snow has almost completely melted.  Days like these give me hope that the darkest days are behind us and good things are coming.  I am hopeful.